Autoblog

Miraculously, the driver of the '08 Dodge Ram in the video above escaped unharmed, along with his ten-year-old son. Apparently, he had miscalculated his position when pulling past the drive-thru station at his Dallas-area bank. Disaster quickly ensues after his tall camper trailer impacts the awning covering the entire area. Fortunately, no other cars were having transactions processed at the time. While the bank's going to remain open, the drive-thru area's going to be out of commission for a bit...

[Source: NextAutos]

Click above to view video of the 2008 smart fortwo crash test

Each year, it seems as if more and more new models are able to ace both the IIHS' and the government's crash-test ratings. In fact, according to Transportation Secretary Mary Peters, 97-percent of all new cars available today earn the highest four or five-star ratings from NHTSA. These all-too-similar ratings makes it rather difficult for consumers to make a choice based solely on passenger safety, so the Fed's have decided to take another stab at the current rating system, which was introduced way back in 1979. Though still based on a five-star ranking, the revised 2010 ratings will include additional front-end tests and a new side-impact test meant to mimic the impact of a vehicle that collides with a tree or pole. Also new for the '10 model year is an overall rating meant to make comparisons easier between competing vehicles. More changes are possible for 2012, as NHTSA is still considering whether to make electronic nannies like stability control mandatory.

[Source: The Detroit News]

"Dad, I've totalled the (insert name of first car here)." Chances are that even if you haven't had to use that phrase, you know someone who has. But in an unusual twist, Anthony Hamilton may be making the sheepish call to his son this morning.

Lewis Hamilton's dad has put someone's Carrera GT through a hedge just a couple of hundred meters from the family home in the village of Tewin, just north of London. He's not saying who the Porsche belongs to, but it appears to have German license plates, which unfortunately makes it unlikely that the car belongs to new Swiss immigrant Lewis. That would have made the story so much sweeter.

Follow the jump to The Daily Mail's version of events, but we take the tabloid's assertation that Mr. Hamilton "somehow lost control on a straight road," with a pinch of salt. The road is a sweeping right hander and was greasy at the time of the accident. Given the proximity to the Hamilton home and the GT's reputation for snap over steer, it's pretty easy to imagine what happened. Thanks for the tip Robert!

[Source: The Daily Mail]

Despite a couple of disastrous and debilitating setbacks, filming of the next Bond flick, the Quantum of Solace, is back, with production continuing in the mountains of Carrara, Italy. Unfortunately, these newest shots from the set are further proof that the writers and producers have absolutely no regard for the hotness that is the Aston Martin DBS. To their credit, the death of the DBS was deliberate, as 007 is chased through a rock quarry by a handful of villains piloting Alfa Romeos. The 15-minute scene will make up the pre-credit sequence that is the staple of any good Bond film (they're always our favorite), right before they cue the cheesy retro-pop and cut to blacked-out babes wielding heavy artillery.

Thanks for the tip, Miguel!

[Source: MI6]

While rollover resistance is improving, current vehicle roof strength regulations date back nearly 35 years. With that in mind, Congress will be taking a careful look at federal regulators as they work on upgrading the standards early next month before they unveil a final regulation at the end of July. Current standards require a vehicle under 6,000 pounds to withstand a force of 1.5 times the vehicle weight without crushing and striking the head of a belted average-size adult male. In August 2005, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) proposed toughening that standard to 2.5 times the vehicle weight (and adding it should cover all vehicles under 10,000 pounds). Safety advocates, however, have argued that the standard should be 3 to 3.5 times the vehicle weight.

According to the NHTSA, increasing the crush resistance to 3 times the vehicle weight would cost automakers at least $1.1 billion more that it would to meet the 2.5 standard. Automakers have shown resistance to the proposals too. They have asked for more time to comply with the toughened rules, and that some vehicles (such as the Jeep Wrangler) be exempt. They have also pointed out that increased roof strength means added weight -- counterproductive in their continued efforts to meet stringent fuel economy standards.

[Source: The Detroit News, Photo from Volvo]

Motorsport is a game of inches and tenths. A few inches here and a few tenths of a second there can mean the difference between spectacle and tragedy. Case in point: Team ORECA driver Stephane Ortelli's horrifying crash during today's Le Mans Series race at Monza. Ortelli, driving the ORECA Courage LC70-Judd, lost control of the car, which spun off the pavement and onto the grass. The prototype then became airborne, barely missing Allan McNish in the Audi R10 TDI. And then things got really ugly. The Courage touched back down and went into a series of cartwheels, shedding bodywork all over the place before crashing into the wall and landing right-side up. Ortelli suffered a broken ankle, but Team ORECA reports he is otherwise in good health. As you'll see in the video, things could have been a whole lot worse. You know. A few inches here, a few tenths there...

We wish him a speedy recovery.

[Sources: Maximum Motorsport, Crash.net]

Filming of the latest Bond flick, Quantum of Solace, has been put on hiatus after two stunt drivers were injured during filming. The crash apparently took place while performing a chase sequence where one driver in an Alfa Romeo crashed into a wall while chasing Bond's Aston Martin DBS along the Gardesana, a curvy road that lines Lake Garda. The man behind the wheel of the Alfa was flown to the hospital in a helicopter and is in serious condition, while his passenger sustained only minor injuries.

This news comes within days of the previous crash that put one of the DBSs used for filming into the same lake, and despite the fact that filming was about to be wrapped today, the set remains closed until an investigation takes place. Thanks to all who tipped in.

[Sources: CNN, MI6.co.uk]

At 6:30 this morning, a stunt driver shooting a scene for the upcoming James Bond flick, Quantum of Solace, lost control of an Aston Martin DBS while filming a chase scene and plunged into Lake Garda in Italy. The film's executive producer, Anthony Waye, said that the scene was being shot in the pouring rain, and although the DBS didn't survive it's unplanned excursion into the water, the driver sustained only minor injuries and was released from the hospital earlier this afternoon. MI6 declined to comment on the incident, but a spokesperson for the agency remarked that the submersible kit for the Aston was under development. Too little, too late Q.

Thanks for the tip MaTTia.


[Source: Reuters.it - translated]

Hyundai expects the 2009 Genesis Sedan to fly off the showroom floor. However, few were probably amused when a pair of the brand-new Korean sedans took a leap from a transporter. We don't know many details other than the incident occurred somewhere in South Korea. Of course, we don't consider this incident extremely newsworthy, but as a blog we do find these automotive-related human errors with expensive aftermaths rather fascinating. Keep 'em coming.

[Source: CarScoop]

Click above for more pics of this bashed up Nissan GT-R

This isn't the first Nissan GT-R to find itself looking like an accordion. We brought you another shattered GT-R in Hong Kong in early January, and a GT-R fender bender a few days later in Shibuya (Tokyo). An Autoblog tipster just sent us a link to yet another bashed-up GT-R in Malaysia. As a purely objective observation, the latest incident does a decent job of demonstrating the integrity of the Nissan GT-R's safety cage. Too bad it's at the expense of supercar carnage. Are we the only ones who think this Nissan GT-R bloodshed is getting out of hand? Thanks for the tip, Eric!

[Source: NAGTROC]