Autoblog

Morgan launches 3 Wheeler in Gulf livery

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Sat, 01 Dec 2012 13:00:00 EST

Filed under: Convertible, Performance, Motorcycle, Specialty, Design/Style, MISC

We love the classic baby blue and orange Gulf livery as much as anyone, but when everything from the Tata Nano to a DeLorean and even a racing-grade semi truck (okay, the semi is pretty cool...) is painted in the scheme, it might be time to give it a rest. With perhaps one notable exception: this Gulf Edition Morgan 3 Wheeler.

Not only does Morgan have a legitimate racing relationship with Gulf Oil in Le Mans-class racing, we just so happen to love the Morgan 3 Wheeler more than almost anything else on wheels... no matter what hue it's painted. Combine the two and you've got us drooling.

Morgan will build 100 commemorative Gulf Edition 3 Wheeler models, with a starting price of 29,162.50 pounds (plus Value Added Tax) in the UK - that's around $46,700 US. We're not sure how many examples will make it Stateside, but if we happened to be in the market for an in-your-face adrenaline rush on three wheels, we'd have our friendly neighborhood US distributor on speed dial.

Check out the high-res image gallery above, and don't forget the press release below.

Continue reading Morgan launches 3 Wheeler in Gulf livery

Morgan launches 3 Wheeler in Gulf livery originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 01 Dec 2012 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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New York 2011: Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG springs forward with Gulf's iconic blue and orange

Jeff Glucker — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 11:59:00 EST

Filed under: New York Auto Show, Coupe, Performance, Mercedes-Benz, Design/Style

New York 2011: Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG wearing Gulf livery - Click above for high-res image gallery

If you watched auto racing in the 1960s and 70s, your eyes likely caught sight of baby blue and orange streaks roaring to victory on tracks around the world. Gulf livery has since become an iconic paint scheme for everything from the ratty street cars of wide-eyed boy racers to expensive watches and clothing for those looking to embrace their inner McQueen. Hell, there's even a drift-happy Freightliner wearing the oil company's famous colors. Mercedes-Benz has decided to bring a touch of those famous colors in the form of a tarted-up SLS AMG.

It's no Porsche 917... but it's still pretty cool looking, and we've got a full gallery for you to look through below.

Gallery: Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG in Gulf Livery: New York 2011

New York 2011: Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG springs forward with Gulf's iconic blue and orange originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 20 Apr 2011 11:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: Recreating Ken Block's Gymkhana... in a Gulf-livery semi truck

Aaron Richardson — Fri, 01 Apr 2011 12:30:00 EST

Filed under: Motorsports, Truck, Videos, Work, Racing

Mike Ryan's drifting Freightliner - Click above to view watch the video after the jump

Mike Ryan has won a dozen Pikes Peak Hill Climbs in his Gulf-liveried Freightliner Cascadia, so it's no joke when we say this man has some serious talent. To raise his and the truck's profile a little bit, Ryan has decided to show off what he does when he's not storming mountains to stay sharp.

Aping Ken Block's Gymkhana series, Ryan haunts abandoned airstrips, looking for cones, old hangars and dirt roads on which to slide his truck around. In fact, Ryan has gone so far as to shoot this video at El Toro, the same Marine air base where Block filmed the first installment of his epic videos. Ryan's Freightliner packs 1,950 horsepower and more than 3,400 pound-feet of torque, so roasting the truck's handmade custom Michelin tires isn't a problem, even in a 10,000-pound Big Daddy Freightliner. Check out all the action in HD splendor after the jump. Top tip, Jason!

Gallery: Mike Ryan's Freightliner Cascadia Pikes Peak Special

Photos copyright (C)2011 Drew Phillips / AOL

[Source: YouTube]

Continue reading Video: Recreating Ken Block's Gymkhana... in a Gulf-livery semi truck

Video: Recreating Ken Block's Gymkhana... in a Gulf-livery semi truck originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 01 Apr 2011 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gulf and Fiat team up in Luxembourg for a special edition 500 Abarth

Noah Joseph — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 18:01:00 EST

Filed under: Europe, Hatchback, Fiat

There have been some iconic racing liveries over the course of motorsport history. Martini, Marlboro, JPS... we could go on, but none carry the enthusiasm of the classic Gulf color combo. Maybe it's because of Steve McQueen's cult classic Le Mans. Maybe it's the irony of the pastel colors on brutal racing machines. Whatever it is, it's an all-time favorite. But would you want your daily driver painted in the baby-blue and orange scheme, complete with sponsor logos?

For most it's not a tough decision to make, unless they're driving an Aston Martin at Le Mans or buying a custom Hummer. But customers in Luxembourg now have the rare opportunity to get their hands on an officially sanctioned Gulf-liveried hot hatch.

The special edition Fiat 500 Abarth EsseEsse was initially planned as a one-off contest giveaway, created in celebration of Gulf oil's 10th anniversary in the principality. In the end they set on making a limited run of ten examples, which are available from Fiat's importer for BeNeLux for 25,000 euros (about $35k). It features the Gulf livery both inside and out - even the Sabelt racing buckets have their seatbacks painted in the classic scheme.

Those 10 examples are likely to sell out fast, even in a country as small as Luxembourg. The question for the rest of us is, if you had the option, would you buy one?

[Source: Autofans.be - translated]

Gulf and Fiat team up in Luxembourg for a special edition 500 Abarth originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 27 Jan 2011 18:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Tuner wrecks customer's Ford GT, situation devolves from there

Noah Joseph — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 11:29:00 EST

Filed under: Aftermarket, Coupe, Performance, Government/Legal, Safety, Ford

Anyone who's ever been hesitant to hand over their keys to another driver, or conversely to get behind the wheel of someone else's car - exotic or otherwise - will want to take note of the following story currently being played out on the internet's extensive web of car enthusiast forums.

The story revolves around a Ford GT - one of the finest exotics ever produced by an American automaker - its customization, and its unfortunate demise. The car - in classic Gulf baby blue and orange heritage livery and outfitted with twin turbochargers - belongs to one Ray Hofman, who wanted to have some modifications carried out to make it more drivable in advance of a Ford GT rally event. Having struck out with other tuners, Ray turned to Bill Knobloch of Discovery Automotive, better known to forum members as Shadowman. Bill agreed to carry out the tuning Ray was looking for, handed over the keys, and from there things went downhill in more ways than one. Follow the jump to read on.

[Sources: Bimmerboost, Ford GT Forum]

Continue reading Tuner wrecks customer's Ford GT, situation devolves from there

Tuner wrecks customer's Ford GT, situation devolves from there originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 20 Oct 2010 11:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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eBay Find of the Day: Gulf Racing DeLorean is a very bad idea

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 14:59:00 EST

Filed under: Classics, Coupe, Auctions, Specialty, Design/Style

Gulf liveried DeLorean - Click above for high-res image gallery

Don't get us wrong. We love ourselves some DeLorean, and we'd argue there may not be a more iconic motorsports paint scheme in history than the classic Gulf Racing livery. But sometimes, two rights make one horrible wrong. Such is the case with today's eBay Find of the Day.

Call us purists if you must, but DeLoreans should all be left in their bare unfinished stainless steel suit. And so it's a rather good thing that this otherwise fine example of the breed isn't actually painted at all - the horrid coating you see in the images below is actually a vinyl wrap. Thank God for small miracles.

Looking past the unfortunate wrap, what we have here appears to be a very nice gullwinged coupe with under 10,000 miles. It's got the preferred five-speed manual transmission, has been updated with an Eibach suspension kit and it's been otherwise completely refurbished by the experts at DeLorean Motor Company.

At the time of this writing, the top bid sits at just over $15K and there's five days left. Happy bidding (and happy removal of its vinyl wrap...)!

Gallery: Gulf liveried DeLorean

[Source: eBay Motors]

eBay Find of the Day: Gulf Racing DeLorean is a very bad idea originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 11 Aug 2010 14:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Aston Martin shows off the racier side of the Cygnet

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 08:59:00 EST

Filed under: Motorsports, Coupe, Hatchback, Aston Martin, Design/Style

Aston Martin Cygnet in Gulf Livery - Click above to enlarge

Aston Martin is an automaker with a history that's indelibly linked with racing... not to mention beautiful styling, attractive colors and, um, James Bond. But the British automaker has more recently signaled its intent to be known for offering a lavishly equipped fuel efficient city car that focus solely on transportation duties and not 0 to 60 times or top speeds.

Mostly. A quick run through the automaker's website shows that its not willing to let the Cygnet degrade its performance and racing image entirely. To wit, the little urban commuter is pictured in a number of scenarios that don't exactly scream "efficient transportation." For instance, there's an orange-helmeted Stig lookalike posing with the Aston in one scene.

Note too that the Cygnet can be customized with three different racing-derived paint schemes, two of which focus on the classic British Racing Green of Aston Martin's current racers and a third that shows the Cygnet painted up in iconic Gulf livery. Feel free to check it out for yourself at AstonMartin.com.

[Source: Aston Martin]

Aston Martin shows off the racier side of the Cygnet originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 17 Mar 2010 08:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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If you've ever wondered what a Tata Nano looks like in Gulf livery, well... wonder no more

Jonathon Ramsey — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 12:33:00 EST

Filed under: Budget, Etc., Hatchback, India, Tata

The CarWale Endurance Run Tata Nano - Click above for image gallery

The Indian car shopping site CarWale.com is driving a Tata Nano in a loop across the length and breadth of India to make a point about the car and the country. Their journey started on February 4 and ends February 19, covering 6,909 kilometers (4,284 miles) of terrain best described as... Indian... and along the way, the crew will explore every aspect of the Nano, including how it came about and what it means for the people who can benefit the most from it.

Naturally, the trip has seen its share of heat, goats, nearly impossible roads, wild motorbikers, jury-rigged repairs, Jeep Wrangler taxis with roof-mounted loudspeakers and miserable GPS instructions. It's a colorful tale all the way, and as if a Nano in iconic Gulf drag weren't enough (love the auxiliary Hella lamps, guys), the pictures alone are worth a visit. And to the two gents at the helm, best of luck to you the rest of the way.

Gallery: CarWale Endurance Run

[Source: CarWale]

If you've ever wondered what a Tata Nano looks like in Gulf livery, well... wonder no more originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 15 Feb 2010 12:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Aston Martin Racing unveils Gulf livery for DBR9s!

Alex Nunez — Thu, 10 Jan 2008 07:15:00 EST

Filed under: Motorsports, Coupe, Performance, Europe, Aston Martin

Click image for high-res gallery

The now-famous powder-blue and orange Gulf Oil racing livery was on a 24 Hours of Le Mans winner for the first time in 1968 when Pedro Rodriguez and Lucien Bianchi piloted the #9 Ford GT40 to overall victory at the Circuit de la Sarthe. It has subsequently been worn by a variety of other racers at Le Mans, most notably the Porsche 917, and even on the R8 campaigned by Audi Sport UK in 2001. This year, on the 40th anniversary of that first victory, the Gulf colors will again be worn by contenders at Le Mans. The #007 and #009 Aston Martin Racing DBR9s will trade in their green livery for the iconic blue-and-orange as Aston looks to defend its GT1 crown against Corvette Racing. For a race as steeped in tradition as Le Mans, this change by Aston Martin Racing seems only fitting and further adds to the mystique.

[Source: Aston Martin]

Gallery: 2008 Aston Martin Racing Gulf DBR9

Continue reading Aston Martin Racing unveils Gulf livery for DBR9s!

Aston Martin Racing unveils Gulf livery for DBR9s! originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 10 Jan 2008 07:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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