Get4Best

You look fat in that. Of course I’ll be late. Your baby reminds me of Gollum’s uncle.

This is what the 2013 Subaru BRZ might say if it could talk. The all-new, rear-wheel-drive sports car starts at $26,265, and boy is it honest — perhaps more so than any other car on the market today, save for its mechanical twin, the Scion FR-S. The two were jointly developed by Subaru and Scion’s parent company, Toyota, with both assembled by Subaru in Japan.

The question about the BRZ is, can you handle the honesty? The answer may surprise you.

For starters, only an honest car would dare to tell you that you don’t need 8,756 horsepower to have a good time. This Subaru has a modest 200. Torque? A tidy 151 pound-feet. This, from a naturally aspirated (no turbos or superchargers) 2.0-liter, four-cylinder engine featuring direct injection. Zero to 60 mph happens in 6.4 seconds, according to Motor Trend.

Such figures may seem quaint when minivans are creeping toward 300 horsepower and the latest Shelby version of Ford’s Mustang will have more than double that. (RIP, Carroll.) But remember that the best sports cars of yesterday raised your pulse not with acceleration that compressed expletives out of your lungs but with balance and handling borne out of the car being lightweight and thoughtfully engineered.

This Subaru continues that trend, a difficult feat in an era of ever-expanding safety equipment and crash regulations that have consistently raised curb weights over the years.

A BRZ with the standard six-speed manual transmission weighs about the same as a Toyota Corolla — a bit under 2,800 pounds. Add 50 more pounds for the optional six-speed automatic. The extensive use of high-strength steel and an aluminum hood helped keep the weight down.

Also keeping things light is the fact that this is not a particularly big car. It has the wheelbase of the small Hyundai Accent hatchback, and it’s a mere 4 inches longer. On the road, the BRZ looks larger than it really is.

Subaru and Scion wisely avoided the temptation to turn this car into an over-styled nightmare begging for attention. Instead, the cars have a clean, sporty look throughout. Short overhangs at the front and rear are paired well with softly sculpted fenders. The rear of the BRZ is its most aggressive angle, with a low-slung dark plastic diffuser surrounding the dual exhaust tips and center-mounted backup light.

It’s inside this Subaru that its diminution is most noticeable. Although it has a pair of rear seats, consider them extensions of the trunk and not fit for anything bipedal. The front passengers sit in the driving equivalent of the attack position; hips low, legs stretched out, seat reclined.

Keeping the weight of occupants as close to the ground as possible and designing the engine to be compact and low give the BRZ a center of gravity equal to that of your average coffee table. Subaru brags that at 18 inches, it’s one of the lowest centers of gravity of any production car in the world.

Thus, when you throw the BRZ onto curving, sweeping roads, don’t expect the thumb-sucking pushover predicted by the naysayers who derisively scoff at its horsepower or torque output.

Instead, get ready for some good, clean thrills from a vehicle not unlike a bigger, more refined go-cart. You only need moments behind the wheel to know this is a purpose-built sports car; everything happens quickly and with reason.

The engine loves to rev high and loud, which is good because you need it to wring out all its power.

Your full bowl of torque comes at 6,400 rpm and horsepower at 7,000 rpm. But the BRZ isn’t underpowered if you know how and when to use the power you’ve got.

The steering is excellent; the compact wheel moves in your hands with a confidence-inspiring resistance and turn-in is immediate. A touch more granularity to maximize control would be nice, but this steering would be at home on a sports car costing three times the BRZ’s asking price. Why yes, Porsche 911, I am talking about you.

The BRZ’s standard six-speed manual transmission’s performance is on par with the rest of the car. The shifter itself has short throws through a gearbox that’s precise yet has a dash of that smooth, rubbery feel that makes you want to row all day. This transmission is rated at 22 miles per gallon in the city and 30 on the highway.

If you’re one of the few misguided souls who buys this car with the $1,100 six-speed automatic transmission, you too have a good gearbox to enjoy. It happily takes the car near its redline before executing a surprisingly quick shift. This transmission also has Sport and Snow settings. Plus, throttle-blipping downshifts are included, and the automatic transmission’s fuel economy bests that of the manual, at 25 mpg in the city and 34 on the highway.

Article source: http://www.startribune.com/autos/152165895.html

As a race fan, to me the Indy 500 is like the Super Bowl, like game seven of the World Series and other high-intensity single-day sports experiences. Although a historic race and something every driver would like to win, within the IZOD IndyCar schedule, it’s just another race on the 2012 race calendar.

While I’m sure we will see an exciting race, I wonder if we will see any speed records. The speeds are already coming in very high, with some drivers hitting 222 mph in practice this year. That is slightly down from the 227 mph average that won the pole in 2011. It’s still early in the practice sessions and I do think we will see higher speeds as we get closer to race day.

The highest speeds were in the turbo-charged 1990s, when Arie Luyendyk just missed a 237 mph, four-lap qualifying average speed in 1996. It was 20 years before that, that racers broke the 200 mph mark, when Tom Sneva did it in 1977. The first big Indianapolis speed barrier of the modern era was 150 mph, broken by Parnelli Jones back in 1962.

This year’s race will also have extra drama as it’s the first oval race the series will hold since the tragic death of racer Dan Wheldon in Las Vegas on an oval track. The factors that caused Wheldon’s accident are still under investigation, but I think those same risks: high speeds, high car density on the track are what makes races exciting to fans. I like to see how IndyCar is making changes to make the races safer and put more emphasis on over-taking. Like in Formula 1 racing, it’s overtaking that makes the races exciting to watch, not seeing the same five cars start in the front, run the entire race in the same order, then finish.

Although the horsepower of the IndyCars is down from the 650 they had last year, officials have announced they will be adding horsepower to give cars a 4-5 mph boost over the practice weekend, so we will see if that can be seen on the track. The Indianapolis 500 is May 27.

A lifetime auto racing fan, Freddy Sherman collects vintage muscle cars and attends races and rally events in the U.S. and around the world. You can follow him on twitter -@thefredsherman

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Article source: http://sports.yahoo.com/news/indy-500-see-speed-records-fans-124300972--irl.html

The 2013 Subaru BRZ: 200-HP, 2.0-Liter Flat Four, 34/25 MPG highway/city, 6-speed manual, $26,300

I was once lucky enough to drive a 1970 Ferrari 246 Dino. It was a singular experience, the kind of eye-opening life landmark that prompts you to call friends and mark the day in your calendar.

I remember two things from that day. The Dino’s arching front fenders, seen from the cockpit, looked remarkably like a woman’s breasts. And while the car spit out a magnificent bastard of a noise, it was big-time slow. Halfway through my drive, a woman in a Toyota Camry handed me my ass in a stoplight drag race. She was on the phone when the light went green, and I still lost. I was so taken with the Dino (noise! breast fenders!), so in love with its sensory assault, that I barely noticed.

I mention this not to knock an icon — the Dino is one of the greatest Ferraris ever built¹ — but to prove a point: Speed isn’t everything. We drive because it’s quicker than walking but also because it’s a shitload of fun. Great cars make you forget the speed thing entirely.

At just 200 hp, 2,762 pounds, and 0 to 60 mph in about 6.5 seconds, the 2013 Subaru BRZ isn’t slow, but it isn’t fast, either. It is also not heavy, ostentatious, disgustingly overpowered, or tolerant of fools — a rare combo for a modern car.

Cars like this used to be everywhere. In the sixties and seventies, companies such as MG and Alfa Romeo built affordable, loin-stirring sports cars for people born without trust funds. If you had a job and a pulse, you could buy yourself a Triumph Spitfire, an Alfa Romeo Spider, or a handful of other fun, inexpensive, rear-wheel-drive roadsters. There wasn’t much power, but few people cared; they were having more fun at 50 mph than most modern drivers do at 100.

With a few notable exceptions — namely the Mazda MX-5, aka the Miata — that breed of machine disappeared years ago, a victim of tougher safety regulations and ad-driven horsepower wars. (And while the Mazda is a genuinely great car, it carries an undeniable “Hey guys!” stigma.)

Sports-car interiors should be simple without being uncomfortable, the better to focus on the task at hand. This one is. Be grateful.

The rear-wheel-drive Subaru BRZ is one of those long-gone cars, only it’s not gone. It costs $26,265 (manual), which means almost anyone can afford it. It looks sharp and feisty and like it actually came from its homeland, which is great, because most modern sports cars look like bloated, cultureless tilapia. It’s also roughly the size of the two-seat MX-5 but somehow manages to cram four seats, a longer wheelbase, and a larger trunk into the same space.

The BRZ is the result of a joint engineering project between Subaru and Toyota, one that benefits each company in different ways. Subaru created the car’s new 2.0-liter flat-four engine, driveline, and suspension; Toyota was responsible for the general styling and smaller engineering details. For Subaru, the BRZ serves as a gateway drug to the company’s most expensive hot rod, the rally-ready Impreza WRX STI. For Toyota, it’s a signal that the big T can move beyond sleepy sedans. (Toyota will soon sell a BRZ twin in the form of the Scion FR-S.) For both automakers, the BRZ is an astonishing wake-up call, a car too good for its price.

The low weight and subterranean center of gravity help it rip into corners, but the details, the conscious choices of its makers, are the real joy. The tires — the same hard, narrow Michelin Primacys used for some of Toyota’s European models — were chosen because they let the BRZ slide around at legal speeds. (More sliding, more fun.) The engine revs to 7,400 rpm but doesn’t make real power or a decent snarl until 5,000, so you have to drive awake, whipping it heartlessly to get anywhere. (More shifting, more fun.) The suspension is tuned for a predictable amount of what racers call oversteer, that happy hooligan feeling most people know only from taking rear-drive cars out in snowstorms. You laugh when you drive this thing, shifting for the hell of it, flipping from gear to gear in traffic just because it sounds cool. You drive down the street to get milk, it’s an event.

That’s the point. The BRZ feels special, which is what sports cars are really about. Like the MX-5, the Subaru is the Japanese returning to a well everyone else left for dry, but unlike the Mazda, it doesn’t give you the feeling that you’re Peter Panning your way out of sane adulthood. The BRZ kicks ass, but subtly. As the world grows greener and highways clog thicker, this is the future of speed for the regular guy. Thank God it’s so much fun.

^{1. This is not an exaggeration. The 246 never wore Ferrari badging or insignia; it was named after Enzo Ferrari’s beloved son, who died in 1956 at age twenty-four. But the 246 is emotional overload, a masterpiece in steel and glass, the epitome of everything a Ferrari ought to be. You drive one of these things, the experience consumes you. I didn’t sleep right for weeks.}

CLASSIC OPTIONS:

History is littered with sports cars that emphasize reflexes and affordability over brute power. Here’s a glimpse — four inexpensive, widely available alternatives to the BRZ that you can purchase pretty easily on the used market….

ALSO:

Article source: http://www.esquire.com/features/cars/subaru-brz-0612

You look fat in that. Of course I’ll be late. Your baby reminds me of Gollum’s uncle.

This is what the 2013 Subaru BRZ might say if it could talk. The all-new, rear-wheel-drive sports car starts at $26,265, and boy is it honest— perhaps more so than any other car on the market today, save for its mechanical twin, the Scion FR-S. The two were jointly developed by Subaru and Scion’s parent company, Toyota, with both assembled by Subaru in Japan.

The question about the BRZ is, can you handle the honesty? The answer may surprise you.

For starters, only an honest car would dare to tell you that you don’t need 8,756 horsepower to have a good time. This Subaru has a modest 200. Torque? A tidy 151 pound-feet. This, from a naturally aspirated (no turbos or superchargers) 2.0-liter, four-cylinder engine featuring direct injection. Zero to 60 mph happens in 6.4 seconds, according to Motor Trend.

Such figures may seem quaint when minivans are creeping toward 300 horsepower and the latest Shelby version of Ford’s Mustang will have more than double that. (RIP, Carroll.) But remember that the best sports cars of yesterday raised your pulse not with acceleration that compressed expletives out of your lungs but with balance and handling borne out of the car being lightweight and thoughtfully engineered.

This Subaru continues that trend, a difficult feat in an era of ever-expanding safety equipment and crash regulations that have consistently raised curb weights over the years.

A BRZ with the standard six-speed manual transmission weighs about the same as a Toyota Corolla — a bit under 2,800 pounds. Add 50 more pounds for the optional six-speed automatic. The extensive use of high-strength steel and an aluminum hood helped keep the weight down.

Also keeping things light is the fact that this is not a particularly big car. It has the wheelbase of the small Hyundai Accent hatchback, and it’s a mere 4 inches longer. On the road, the BRZ looks larger than it really is.

Subaru and Scion wisely avoided the temptation to turn this car into an over-styled nightmare begging for attention. Instead, the cars have a clean, sporty look throughout. Short overhangs at the front and rear are paired well with softly sculpted fenders. The rear of the BRZ is its most aggressive angle, with a low-slung dark plastic diffuser surrounding the dual exhaust tips and center-mounted backup light.

It’s inside this Subaru that its diminution is most noticeable. Although it has a pair of rear seats, consider them extensions of the trunk and not fit for anything bipedal. The front passengers sit in the driving equivalent of the attack position; hips low, legs stretched out, seat reclined.

Keeping the weight of occupants as close to the ground as possible and designing the engine to be compact and low gives the BRZ a center of gravity equal to that of your average coffee table. Subaru brags that at 18 inches, it’s one of the lowest centers of gravity of any production car in the world.

Thus, when you throw the BRZ onto curving, sweeping roads, don’t expect the thumb-sucking pushover predicted by the naysayers who derisively scoff at its horsepower or torque output.

Instead, get ready for some good, clean thrills from a vehicle not unlike a bigger, more refined go-cart. You only need moments behind the wheel to know this is a purpose-built sports car; everything happens quickly and with reason.

The engine loves to rev high and loud, which is good because you need it to wring out all its power. Your full bowl of torque comes at 6,400 rpm and horsepower at 7,000 rpm. But the BRZ isn’t underpowered if you know how and when to use the power you’ve got.

The steering is excellent; the compact wheel moves in your hands with a confidence-inspiring resistance and turn-in is immediate. A touch more granularity to maximize control would be nice, but this steering would be at home on a sports car costing three times the BRZ’s asking price. Why yes, Porsche 911, I am talking about you.

The BRZ’s standard six-speed manual transmission’s performance is on par with the rest of the car. The shifter itself has short throws through a gearbox that’s precise yet has a dash of that smooth, rubbery feel that makes you want to row all day. This transmission is rated at 22 miles per gallon in the city and 30 on the highway.

If you’re one of the few misguided souls who buys this car with the $1,100 six-speed automatic transmission, you too have a good gearbox to enjoy. It happily takes the car near its redline before executing a surprisingly quick shift. This transmission also has Sport and Snow settings. Plus, throttle-blipping downshifts are included, and the automatic transmission’s fuel economy bests that of the manual, at 25 mpg in the city and 34 on the highway.

All BRZs come with stability control and traction control and each can be turned off completely. You’re going to want to do so for truly enthused driving; the systems have Normal and Sport modes that intervene with the subtlety of Metta World Peace’s elbow. But with those systems off, beware that this Subaru is engineered to perform and if you’re careless, it’s just as possible to put it into the bushes as something more powerful.

Hence a significant source of this car’s honesty; it isn’t one you can pound on with the grace of a drugged elephant and expect it to iron out your mistakes. Instead, the BRZ compounds talent and skillful inputs with one of the highest dollar-per-fun ratios in the automotive landscape.

This honesty is also important to remember in daily driving. While the suspension setup is remarkably balanced and devoid of body roll during any kind of cornering, it’s a very firm ride around town. It’s also noisy. Your Aunt Gert’s 1989 Cadillac Brougham this isn’t.

Subaru has wisely kept options for the loud cabin to a minimum. A base BRZ starts at $26,265 and comes with items such as the manual transmission, a limited-slip differential and six air bags. It also has a slow, 6-inch touch-screen navigation system with iPod control, 196-watt amplifier, Bluetooth and XM satellite radio and traffic alerts.

The BRZ I tested added the Limited package (the only one available). For the additional $2,000 you get wonderfully bolstered Alcantara and leather seats, dual-zone climate control, keyless entry, fog lights and an ugly rear spoiler.

Whether that’s a good value depends on how you prioritize the fun you expect to wring out of your purchase. This car is undeniably down on power to other performance cars of its ilk. But to dwell on this deficit misses the point of the BRZ. It has a balance of old-school thrills and connectivity to the road that additional power would probably upset.

Fortunately, it’s honest about its purpose. And your waistline.

david.undercoffler@latimes.com

Article source: http://www.latimes.com/business/autos/la-fi-autos-subaru-brz-review-20120517,0,1474122.story

Mazda’s top contender in the uber-competitive compact SUV segment arrived for a recent visit in top-of-the-line GT trim and equipped with the brand’s entire range of its newly-developed Skyactiv technology.

In showrooms now, Mazda said it has a global sales target of 160,000 units per year for the new CX-5 crossover which parked itself alongside the top-selling Mazda3 as the manufacturer’s one-two core model punch.

As usual, we’ll punch our way inside the cabin first.

The CX-5’s interior was gimmick-free and offered a mature-but-no-frills attitude which was evident by a dashboard that offered simple functionality with switches and controls that were well placed and easy to reach from behind the wheel.

Soft materials were used on the instrument panel and door trim and they contrasted well with the satin chrome finish of the steering wheel spokes and door handles.

The red-stitched, black leather seats looked, and even smelled (seriously), like they belonged in something more expensive.

The CX-5’s high front bucket seat position allowed great forward and side-to-side visibility, but some extra attention was required for a gander directly out the back-hatch glass.

The rear-view camera, big side-view mirrors, and Blind Spot Monitoring System added to a safe, confident feel in tight parking spaces and on rush-hour highway lane changes.

My driver seat power-moved me eight ways and took good care of my lower back with power lumbar support. The seat bolsters weren’t on the big side, but they kept me firmly in place whenever I took a curve at speed.

Head and leg room up front and out back would not disappoint tall humans, even with the sun roof in our tester and the sloped rear roofline. An indent in a portion of the roof liner allowed for more rear passenger headroom. Rear legroom, knee clearance, and foot space was easy to find.

I liked that the rear seat split 40-20-40 and could be folded in several combinations with the use of convenient handles on the cargo walls near the rear hatch. Those handles could be pulled to drop both the outer ‘40s’ and the middle ‘20’ all at once or one by one for an assortment of cargo options.

The CX-5’s load floor was almost flat with the seatbacks down, but I had to either push ahead the front seats slightly or pop out the headrests to drop them down to the maximum. Cargo space increased from 966 litres to 1,852 litres with the seats down.

The low lift gate height and large cargo opening made the load process simple.

All of the CX-5’s doors opened nice and wide for simple entry and exit for all members of my family.

At highway speeds and over rough asphalt the cabin was noticeably hushed.

Other ‘likes’ I jotted down from the inside included three-stage seat heaters; a great BOSE audio system; large, easy-to-work steering wheel controls for audio, cruise, and Bluetooth; USB and auxiliary inputs in the armrest bin; front seatback pouches; bottle holders in all doors capable of holding one-litre bottles; clips to hold rear seatbelts in place; and an easy-to-read 5.8-inch touch screen for Nav (TomTom-based), audio, and the rear camera image.

On the road, the CX-5 exhibited surprising drive dynamics for an SUV as it leisurely rounded bends at speed with sport-car-like handling prowess. Its steering felt well-weighted and highly communicative.

The shifter could be moved to manual mode to hold a gear when needed, or to just mix up the drive experience (move shifter forward for down shifts, rearward for upshifts).

Part of that Skyactiv tech on the CX-5 included a newly-developed all-wheel drive system that weighed 44 per cent less than the previous unit and, said Mazda, reduced energy loss by up to 52 per cent through ‘controlled torque distribution.’

Under the hood, its 2.0-litre inline four-cylinder engine was rated at 155 horsepower and offered 150 lb-ft of torque. Not big numbers, but more than enough to push its 1,555 kg.

On the whole, the Mazda CX-5 was an SUV that could out-handle many cars on offer that advertised a sporty nature.

It also boasted all the comfort and versatility expected of a utility vehicle without much of a thirst for dead dinosaurs.

Article source: http://thechronicleherald.ca/wheelsnews/96916-mazda-cx-5-compact-suv-boasts-comfort-versatility-fuel-efficiency-sports-car-like-h

When one tries to fathom the riddle of the Mazda MX-5, the most non-Japanese car that was produced in Japan, he arrives at: America – where small British sports cars were loved.

Article source: http://www.carbuzz.com/news/2012/5/16/Japanese-Sports-Cars-Part-4-The-Mazda-MX-5-Miata-7708827/

By
Eddie Wrenn

PUBLISHED:

05:38 EST, 15 May 2012

|

UPDATED:

08:12 EST, 15 May 2012

A car enthusiast has completed his six-year project to turn his dream sports car into a 60mph sea-worth vehicle.

The Sea Lion, as inventor Marc Witt calls it, is a completely bespoke car that can do 125mph on the roads – and then fly down the pier into the water and keep up a respectable speed as it sails past the yachts and boats.

And this car could be yours today, as Marc is now ready to cast the car-boat hybrid adrift, putting it up for sale for $259,500.

Scroll down for video

Off the ramp and on to the water: The Sea Lion can drive straight into the water, and straight out to the horizon

The Good Ship Sea Lion: The $250,000 car has a top speed of 180pm by land, and 60mph by sea

Sea view: The Sea Lion prepares for a quick trip across the harbour

Enlarge

 

Writing on Fantasy Junction, where the car is for sale, Marc said: ‘Building Sea Lion has been an enjoyable exploration. I have provided the basic architecture for the car and resolved every conflicting interaction between Car and Boat.

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Article source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2144639/Sea-Lion-Amphibious-sports-car-hit-125mph-land-60mph-HIGH-SEAS.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

While GRAND-AM has seen new cars from Ferrari and Audi grace the Rolex Sports Car Series grid this year, another high-profile manufacturer could be joining the GT ranks with its GT3-based contender as early as next year.

Aston Martin is currently evaluating the possibility of its new V12 Vantage GT3 for the highly competitive production-based category, while also not ruling out an effort in Daytona Prototype, either as an engine supplier or with brand-specific bodywork as well.

“We definitely want to get more into racing in America,” Aston Martin Racing team principal John Gaw said in a SPEED.com exclusive interview. “We have great products across all the range: the GTE, the GT4 and the GT3.

“We’re starting off quietly and slowly with the GT4 GRAND-AM car. It’s doing pretty well. It’s been on the front row and [finished on the podium]. We’re pretty happy with it.

“Now that we know the spec of that car, we can easily do a [Rolex Series] GT class car. We’re now talking to some people about doing that.”

Multimatic Motorsports debuted Aston Martin’s GT4-based Vantage in the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge earlier this year, with the V8-powered beast having already shown promising pace in the first four races of the season for the factory supported development program.

Gaw says adapting the V12 Vantage, a new-for-2012 GT3-spec car, to Rolex Series competition would mainly entail a thicker roll cage and revised fuel cell placement, modifications that have already been made to the GT4 car for its eligibility in the Continental GS category.

While the green light has not yet been given, Gaw says there’s more than a 50 percent chance of it happening for next year.

“We just need the right customer to agree with us and we’re ready to do the program,” he said. “It probably would be a continuation with Multimatic. They’re great partners and have done a good job with us. We’re looking to expand the work they’re doing for us, so why not?”

Another program currently under evaluation is a leap into Daytona Prototype competition, with custom bodywork and/or customer engine program.

The manufacturers’ 4.5-liter normally aspirated V8, currently used in its GTE-class Vantage, would be the powerplant of choice, which also fits into the cost-capped ACO LMP2 regulations, another option Gaw said they’re exploring.

“The DP is not a specific objective of ours, but there are some customers interested,” Gaw said. “If it works commercially for the customers and doesn’t detract from the main program, why not? There are two options, one just being an engine with a current chassis or a new body kit as well.”

While Gaw would not completely rule out a potential move into DP for next year, he said that project would likely be geared more towards 2014, if the right partners are found.

John Dagys is SPEED.com’s Sportscar Racing Reporter, focusing on all major domestic and international championships. You can follow him on Twitter @johndagys or email him at

Article source: http://auto-racing.speedtv.com/article/grand-am-aston-martin-eyeing-gt-dp-projects/