Autoblog

One of Steve McQueen's co-stars in the 1971 documentary-style film Le Mans, a Porsche racing car, is up for action this August in Carmel Valley, California. The car is a 1969-1970 Porsche 908/2 Spyder. It features a 3.0-liter air/oil-cooled flat-8 engine rated at 350 hp @ 8500 rpm. While many of today's production cars are making that type of power, with a fiberglass body on a tubular aluminum spaceframe, the Porsche 908/2 tips the scales at just under 1,322 pounds. Power is sent to the rear wheels through a five-speed manual gearbox giving the racer a top speed of 200 mph. This particular vehicle was mounted with two cameras and raced in the French city of Le Mans to create footage for the racing film (the car is said to have competed in the event five times). The classic Porsche sounds like a ton of fun to toss around a track, but the winning bidder may have second thoughts if the car fetches anywhere near its pre-auction estimate of $2 million -- not entirely unlikely as another one of McQueen's cars, a Ferrari Lusso, grabbed $2.31 million at an auction last year.

[Source: Bloomberg]

Do not consider the Rallye de Paris simply another Gumball-type event. While the celebrity-laden Gumball 3000 was entangled in lawlessness, and eventually tragedy, the Rallye de Paris is designed for the devoted car lover and track junkie.

Starting in Paris, participants make a round-trip trek through France visiting the tracks at Magny-Cours (the French F1 track) and Val-de-Vienne before heading back to the capital again. It's a whirlwind tour, over in just two days. Automotive participants include the expected Ferrari 430, Audi R8, and Lamborghini Murcielago, but also in attendance are such enthusiast classics as the Ferrari F40, Porsche 911 RS 2.7L, and the Jaguar XK120.

The 2008 Rallye de Paris took place last week with more than 200 cars in participation. Mark your calendars for next year's event and brush up on your French before you check out the additional pics and video on this site. Thanks for the tip, Pierre!

[Source: Caradisiac, photos by Caradisiac]

Two children tragically lost their lives when French driver Catherine Kohtz lost control of her Volvo 850. The 1999 incident, which Kohtz blamed on a loss of braking ability in her Volvo, has led to French courts handing down a finding of manslaughter. The guilty verdict against Volvo also carries an €200,000 fine, though Volvo holds that there wasn't anything wrong with the car's braking system and will likely appeal. Driver Kohtz was fined €300 and also sentenced to a six-month jail term, which was suspended.

Kohtz's accident was initially attributed to reckless operation, and tensions in the town of Wasselonne have been stirred by the circumstances of crash. Rumblings of Kohtz, relatively wealthy, having bought her way out of a more serious outcome for the death of two ten year olds from lesser means have been dividing the town in eastern France. An investigation determined that the brakes in the Volvo 850 suffered from a problem known to Volvo. Rather than recall 180,000 850s, Volvo is alleged to have quietly asked its dealers to fix a rubber pipe prone to rupture or detachment, causing a loss of braking ability. An investigating magistrate contended that service documents instructing dealers how to repair the problem were overly vague, leading to an improper and ineffective repair on Kohtz's car. For a company with such an emphasis on safety, its surprising that it would try to cover up a major flaw in such a crucial system. Volvo argued that the service documents that were seized outline an innocuous fault, and that something else like a loose water bottle behind the pedal was to blame.

[Source: BBC via Winding Road; The Independent]

The Twingo still won't take you to mythical Silene, but the UK gets its own specially pimped version of the entry-level Twingo called the "Extreme." Think of it as a Tercel Blackhawk en français, s'il vous plaît. The Twingo Extreme consists of mostly graphics for the exterior, though there's a few extra bits of gear thrown in, too.

Power is provided by a 1.2-liter engine, and Renault throws in specially trimmed wheels, a tachometer, and foglights. Soccer Football fans will undoubtedly choose the flag of St. George graphics for the exterior, and there's also Union Jacks for the door handles and stripes or checkered flags can adorn the outside, too, all for a modest price. MINI has already shown that customization at the dealer level is a popular activity, and we hope that the rest of the driving public soon becomes as smitten with small hatchy-things as we are. If we create enough clamor, they might send us a Jerry Lewis edition or something.

Press release after the jump

[Source: Renault]

Automobile flambé is a familiar dish in France, where rioters, protesters and revelers seemingly use any occasion involving large congregations of people to torch whatever cars happen to be in the vicinity. Apparently, New Year's Eve is always good for a spike in car-burning incidents, but this year authorities were prepared. "Only" 372 cars were transformed into funeral pyres compared to last year when 397 rides met their makers. In some regions, the sale of fuel canisters was actually halted during the runup to New Year's Eve. Who wins here? We'd say it's salesmen for Peugeot, Renault, and Citroën. After all, as of Tuesday, there were at least 372 people who had to go car shopping this week. Bummer for them, bully for the French auto industry!

[Source: Reuters]

Nothing is better at propagating a rumor like a nasty social disease than the internet, and the France family just got a lesson. A report surfaced in Europe that an investment firm based there was investigating the potential purchase of NASCAR. Brian France, chairman of NASCAR, dismissed the report as speculation. According to France, the death of his father, Bill France Jr. most likely kicked off the baseless chatter. The current scoop is that the France family is not stepping down from the top of NASCAR or International Speedway Corporation, another France enterprise. While rising energy prices have taken a bite out of profits, and will likely affect attendance attendance somewhat, France assures that NASCAR will be "just fine."

A couple of other items help fuel the speculation, too. International Speedway endured a couple of abortive efforts in Washington state and New York to add new tracks to its holdings, but the long term plan is indeed for new venues when the right ones present themselves. Television ratings are also down, but that doesn't affect NASCAR so much as whacking the price that can be charged for ad space during television coverage of NASCAR events. So, while it might have been fun to kick the ball around thinking of NASCAR without the Frances – not this time.

[Source: Auto News - Sub Req Photo: NASCAR.com]

Singapore is getting ready to host the first night race in Formula One history after the FIA approved the proposed calendar for next year's championship. Race promoters in Singapore got the clearance from the FIA to build the Monaco-style street circuit in May, and things are reportedly moving along well. The spectacle of the flood-lit road race in the Pacific city-state promises to inject some more excitement into what is already held as the pinnacle of international motorsport.

As we had reported earlier, there were a few proposed grands prix that were up in the air, but the motorsport governing body has approved them all. (Yay!) In addition to Singapore, the new event in Valencia, Spain, was awaiting approval. The French Grand Prix at Magny-Cours was under threat, as well. Even the perennial Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal wasn't for sure, as the economies of scale in schlepping the whole F1 circus to North America were eliminated with the cancellation of the race at Indianapolis. In the end all were confirmed, alongside the usual suspects in Australia, Malaysia, Bahrain, Spain, Turkey, Monaco, Britain, Germany, Hungary, Belgium, Italy, Japan, China and Brazil. Only a few dates were changed around by the FIA in the process. Altogether it makes for a full eighteen races, and we're looking forward already.

Follow the jump for the full 2008 FIA Formula One World Championship calendar.

[Source: Autosport]

Renault and Citroen are winding up to launch a frontal assault on the German car market. Germany is Europe's largest automotive market, filled with über-drivers that demand cars that set the performance and luxury standard for the rest of Europe, and arguably the world. The French automakers want a larger piece of the German market, as well as further global expansion, too. Renault is bringing the fight to Germany with their new Laguna. The Laguna was designed specifically to appeal to the tastes of German buyers, with Renault's German marketing department making sure the car met the needs and desires of the Deutschland buyer. Hopes are high that the Laguna will bolster profits for Renault. It's an attempt to crack into the $35,000 price range, where profits are fatter, yet buyers are more demanding.

Citroën is also trying to push into the luxury market. Long known for small and medium-sized cars, the brand's C6 is attempting to mix it up on Mercedes, Audi, and BMW's turf. Citroën has a plan to bolster its credibility as a maker of luxurious cars, such as drawing the line from the DS to the C6, while also improving the dealer and support experience to keep customers smiling. Both brands don't yet have the volume in the German market that they desire, but have pledged that Germany is crucial to their survival plans.

[Source: Reuters]

It's no big deal, really, just an eensy weensy potential short circuit in the ABS/Stability control system. A seal on the hardware that the ABS and ESP systems share can allow water infiltration, which leads to electrical maladies. A mass self-immolation of 307s would be rather unseemly, so Peugeot has recalled roughly 240,000 of the vehicles built between 2003 and 2006. Letters have gone out to owners beckoning about 60 percent of the 2 million total 307's sold to come back before there's legions of weeping former 307CC drivers stumbling back home.

[Source: Automotive News - sub req]

The family of former NASCAR chairman Bill France Jr. has suffered yet another tragedy only one month after the former NASCAR chief died of cancer. The husband of NASCAR executive Lesa France Kennedy died in a tragic plane crash along with another long-time NASCAR employee after their twin-engine Cesna 310 began emitting smoke in the cabin. Dr. Bruce Kennedy was attempting to land the disabled plane at Sanford-Orlando Airport but never got there, as the aircraft crashed into a house. Several people on the ground were injured or killed in the accident, which is obviously casting more pain on the France family and NASCAR.

[Source: AutoWeek]