Autoblog http://www.autoblog.com Autoblog http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.autoblog.com/media/feedlogo.gif Autoblog http://www.autoblog.com en-us Copyright 2009 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[UK adventurer challenges Clarkson to cross Sahara in 1937 Austin 7 Ruby]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2009/10/29/uk-adventurer-challenges-clarkson-to-cross-sahara-in-1937-austin/http://www.autoblog.com/2009/10/29/uk-adventurer-challenges-clarkson-to-cross-sahara-in-1937-austin/http://www.autoblog.com/2009/10/29/uk-adventurer-challenges-clarkson-to-cross-sahara-in-1937-austin/#commentsFiled under: ,

Now we're talking! If there's one thing we're in favor of its pushing cars to their breaking point. See LeMons. But what about pushing cars past their breaking point? Like across Africa? That's exactly what British journalist and adventurer Brian Milton did in 1968 when he took a 1937 Austin 7 Ruby and drove it across the Sahara Desert to meet his fiancee.

Mr. Milton has written a book about his forty-one year old adventure entitled Alexa -- the Life and Death of an Austin 7 Ruby. And to our ears, it sounds wonderful:
"I motored 1,800 miles on rough track across the Sahara... I reached a Nigeria that was wracked by civil war... I survived. But alas, my Austin 7 did not. We crashed once and ran out of water twice in the Sahara. I drove 2,000 miles on three pistons and 900 miles without brakes, lights, shock absorbers or starting motor or handle."
Mr. Milton has sent a copy of Alexa to none other than Jeremy "Torques" Clarkson, asking the Top Gear star to go on and recreate his 1968 adventure. While some might argue that driving a Lancia Beta Coupe across the desert might get Jezza off the hook, we'd totally watch him and May and Hammond kill themselves in something as dodgy as an Austin 7. Interested in reading about Brian Milton's adventure? Alexa can be purchased right here.

[Source: East London Advertiser]

UK adventurer challenges Clarkson to cross Sahara in 1937 Austin 7 Ruby originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 29 Oct 2009 18:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>AfricaAustin 7Austin 7 RubyAustin7Austin7RubyBrian MiltonBrianMiltonJames MayJamesMayJeremy ClarksonJeremyClarksonJezzaRichard HaRichardHaSaharaTop GearTopGearThu, 29 Oct 2009 18:02:00 EST<![CDATA[Nigerian goat held by police, accused of armed carjacking]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2009/01/24/nigerian-goat-held-by-police-accused-of-armed-carjacking/http://www.autoblog.com/2009/01/24/nigerian-goat-held-by-police-accused-of-armed-carjacking/http://www.autoblog.com/2009/01/24/nigerian-goat-held-by-police-accused-of-armed-carjacking/#commentsFiled under: ,

There aren't enough police in some areas of Nigeria, so vigilante groups have formed to take up the slack. When vigilantes in Kwara State saw two men trying to carjack a Mazda 323, they went after the baddies. One of the men escaped, but the other man, cornered... um, how do we say this... turned himself into a goat. (That's the actual goat/suspect pictured.) Even as a goat, "he" was apparently just as easy to catch, and the vigilantes took the goat to the police station.

According to Reuters, a police spokesman said "We cannot confirm the story, but the goat is in our custody. We cannot base our information on something mystical. It is something that has to be proved scientifically, that a human being turned into a goat." Yet according to Nigeria's Vanguard newspaper, which first reported the story, a police spokesman "said the goat 'armed robbery suspect' will not be left off the hook until investigations into the case are concluded." We will wait for justice to do its thing, but this comes as no surprise to us - everybody knows that goats love Mazdas.

[Source: Vanguard via Reuters]

Nigerian goat held by police, accused of armed carjacking originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 24 Jan 2009 09:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>africaanimalscarjackingetcgoatgoatshumornigeriapoliceSat, 24 Jan 2009 09:07:00 EST<![CDATA[Ethiopia gets its first automaker]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2007/11/10/ethiopia-gets-its-first-automaker/http://www.autoblog.com/2007/11/10/ethiopia-gets-its-first-automaker/http://www.autoblog.com/2007/11/10/ethiopia-gets-its-first-automaker/#commentsFiled under: , ,



China's automakers aren't fooling around when it comes to aggressive growth. While you don't hear much enthusiasm from European or North American automakers about the market on the African continent, There's already at least two Chinese carmakers who've set up shop there as a way to expand beyond the borders of their home country. Holland Car is the first car assembly plant in Ethiopia, and it's kicking out a renamed Lifan 520. The 520 goes by the handle Abay in Ethiopia. Abay is the name of Ethiopia's largest river, and the hope is that the name will spur buyers to check the vehicle out. Equipment levels are luxury-level for its market, $16,000 price buys you safety gear like ABS, airbags and brake distribution, and quality is good enough that Lifan thinks it will change Ethiopian's opinions about a domestically produced car. Power is provided by a 1.3 liter four cylinder twisting a 5-speed transmission. The cars are assembled from knock-downs (CKD), and appear to have been solidly engineered. Lifan produces the 520 in several different locations - Russia, and Vietnam, for example. Hit the jump for a Lifan 520 commercial.

[Source: Inside Line]

Continue reading Ethiopia gets its first automaker

Ethiopia gets its first automaker originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 10 Nov 2007 13:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>abayafricachinaethiopiaholland carHollandCarlifanlifan 520Lifan520Sat, 10 Nov 2007 13:01:00 EST<![CDATA[Tunage: Sportech gives a Golf 335 hp and 1,800 watts]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2007/04/24/tunage-sportech-gives-a-golf-335-hp-and-1-800-watts/http://www.autoblog.com/2007/04/24/tunage-sportech-gives-a-golf-335-hp-and-1-800-watts/http://www.autoblog.com/2007/04/24/tunage-sportech-gives-a-golf-335-hp-and-1-800-watts/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Sportech is a South African tuner with a penchant for German cars. Out to build the fastest GTI around, they are currently working on a people's missile called the P Cubed Golf. It will have, among many other things, 335 hp, and is being built to handle just as well as it flies.

Somehow they plan to wring those 335 ponies from the turbocharged 2.0-liter that hauls the GTI, but Sportech hasn't said how they'll do it. If they pull that off, they expect a top speed in excess of 150 mph. And because apparently there isn't much to do when traveling at Mach 0.2, inside the car will be an 1,800-watt Rockford Fosgate system, three 7-inch touchscreens, two tablet PC's for the back seat passengers, wireless Internet, and a DVD screen and 15-inch sub in the trunk. Oh, and the rear bench is swapped out for twin Recaros that match the ones in front.

According to Sportech's Chad Wentzel, the paint job is meant to "make more than a few heads swivel with its dramatic looks." If you happen to be in South Africa on April 27, you can check it out at the Castrol Extreme Show. Mach schnell indeed.

[Source: German Car Blog]

Tunage: Sportech gives a Golf 335 hp and 1,800 watts originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 24 Apr 2007 16:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>africacastrolcubedgolfgtipsouthsportechTue, 24 Apr 2007 16:02:00 EST<![CDATA[Bahrain is still in the race, and the race is still in Bahrain]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2007/02/01/bahrain-is-still-in-the-race-and-the-race-is-still-in-bahrain/http://www.autoblog.com/2007/02/01/bahrain-is-still-in-the-race-and-the-race-is-still-in-bahrain/http://www.autoblog.com/2007/02/01/bahrain-is-still-in-the-race-and-the-race-is-still-in-bahrain/#commentsFiled under:

With Abu Dhabi expected to announce its contract for a grand prix this coming Saturday, you'd be forgiven for thinking Bahrain was off the grid. You'd be forgiven, but you'd be wrong.

The small Gulf state has hosted the Bahrain Grand Prix since 2004 with an exclusive contract for the only F1 race in the entire Middle East & North Africa region, and though nobody outside the organization knows the precise terms of the contract - namely, when the exclusivity clause expires - insiders estimate that it runs out in 2008, leaving the door open for Abu Dhabi to host its own race as early as 2009. But that doesn't mean the Bahrain Grand Prix is history - they spent $150 million to build the Sakhir track and have yet to recuperate all the costs. Casting a shadow over the impending festivities in Abu Dhabi, Bahrain has announced its extending its contract with Bernie Ecclestone, possibly all the way through 2019.

The question remains over how many F1 races the region can support. With a small population, Bahrain was banking on attracting spectators (read: tourists) from all over the Middle East, but the grandstands have been conspicuously empty. And though the geo-political debate continues over Turkey's situation in Europe or the Middle East, either way it's not far away, bordering Syria, Iran and Iraq. Abu Dhabi is banking on its grand prix becoming just one part of the Yas Island development, but with that many races in a region where F1 is still an emerging field, it may be too much too fast. Then again, that's what F1 is all about.

Related posts:

[Source: GrandPrix.com]

Bahrain is still in the race, and the race is still in Bahrain originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 01 Feb 2007 18:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>abuafricabahraindhabieastemiratef1formulagrandgulfmiddlenorthoneprixraceThu, 01 Feb 2007 18:28:00 EST<![CDATA[African-American: Cadillac launches in South Africa]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2006/10/11/african-american-cadillac-launches-in-south-africa/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/10/11/african-american-cadillac-launches-in-south-africa/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/10/11/african-american-cadillac-launches-in-south-africa/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

GM's on a mission to take over the South African market. Just one day after the first HUMMER H3s rolled off the assembly line at GM's Struandale plant in Port Elizabeth, General Motors today announced it's bringing Cadillac to South Africa.

The first models to be offered in "the rainbow nation" will be the overseas-market BLS (based on the Saab 9-3), the SRX crossover and the STS sedan. The Caddys will be sold through a direct distribution network, with new dealerships opening in Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban.

GM also markets several Chevy models, Saabs, Opels, Isuzus and Suzukis in South Africa, and operates two manufacturing plants in Port Elizabeth. With all that love for the liberated republic, don't be surprised if GM shows up as a major sponsor when South Africa hosts the FIFA World Cup in 2010.

[Source: GM]

African-American: Cadillac launches in South Africa originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 11 Oct 2006 14:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>africablscadillacgmport elizabethPortElizabethsouth africaSouthAfricasrxstsWed, 11 Oct 2006 14:31:00 EST