Autoblog

With the end of the year 2007, so came the end of Ferrari's 60th anniversary celebrations. Although the 60 special-edition 612 Scagliettis made to mark the occasion were nothing compared to the F40 and F50 supercars that were created to celebrate previous anniversaries, for its sixtieth Maranello partied it up in a number of ways, including an around-the-world rally. The relay baton that was passed off through each country on its global adventure was decorated with 60 emblems, each designed for the occasion and depicting an icon from each year of the company's history.

Now those emblems are being offered to customers as a collection, each minted in brass and mounted on a wooden base covered in red silk. Anchoring the display is the same Ferrari badge that goes on the boot lid of every new Ferrari road car. The collection is available for about $2000, but if you think nobody would drop that kind of cash on something like this, there are thousands of Ferrari collectors out there who are used to spending easily a hundred times that on a new car without batting an eye, and 1947 of them will have these hanging in their homes, offices or garage.

[Source: FerrariStore.com via Luxurylaunches.com]

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British police may not pack firearms, but when it comes to their motor pool, they've got us beat, hands down. True, those Vauxhall Astras might not look like much next to a fully-spec'd Crown Vic cruiser, but Scotland Yard seems to repeatedly be handed the keys to special vehicles that put even the most fantastic of exotic collections to shame, highlighted by publicity vehicles that have included a Renault Formula 1 car and a Lamborghini Murcielago LP640.

The latest to be adorned with the flashing lights on England's roads is a specially-prepared Ferrari 612 Scaglietti. The grand touring car was presented to British police as a sort of pace car to accompany the UK leg of Ferrari's 60th anniversary relay, a worldwide tour that has already been through the Middle East, the Far East, North America and parts of Europe, and arrives today in the United Kingdom.

Driving the GT will be police officers from five law enforcement agencies across the UK, leading a procession that will snake some 1500 miles through the British Isles from Belfast to Silverstone, passing along the way through such locations as Edinburgh, Manchester, Birmingham and London. The Scag is adorned with police livery and an emergency lighting bar along with the GTS Handling package and all the options.

We assume that the bobbies will be returning the keys at the end of the event, but it's not exactly like Ferrari GB could call the police to report the car stolen if they didn't. For our British readers, we wouldn't recommend testing the speed cameras for the next few days, just to be on the safe side.

[Source: Ferrari]

We've reported three times on Honda's recent major recall that's affected vehicles sold in the U.S., China and Japan. Not being mechanics, we've done our best to relay what the actual issue is that's prompted the recalls, but most articles we've found on the topic stop after mentioning something about the fuel pump and engines that won't start.

Fortunately, Honda noticed we were in the dark and shot us a quick email to explain exactly what the issue is, which we found interesting since the mainstream media's descriptions have been pretty vague and off the mark in comparison.

The issue involves not the fuel pump, but a fuel pump relay, which is like a fuse. During production of the relay, presumably by a supplier, sealer leaked inside and coated parts of the metal coil that transfers the electrical signal within the relay. As the relay activates during normal operation, it continually heats and cools. Because these particular relays may be coated with sealer, they cannot contract and expand properly, which could cause them to become brittle and break. If that happens, then the car will not start or may stall while driving. Fortunately, the relay is located right in the under dash fuse box, so repairing the problem is simply a matter of popping a new relay in.

This more detailed explanation certainly puts the severity of the recall in perspective, though unfortunately its scope, which now reaches over 1,000,000 vehicles sold around the world, cannot be denied.

[Source: Honda]

There's little doubt that General Motors turned its eyes to Saturn for this show, as evidenced by production introductions of the 2007 Outlook, Aura, and Sky Red Line.

If not in sales, perhaps the most significant move by GM is the dawning  of the 8-passenger Outlook, which places the ringed marque into a new segment (and likely a new high-water MSRP). Twinned with the upcoming GMC Acadia and Buick Enclave on the General's new Lambda platform, if nothing else, Outlook impresses with its size inside and out.

With a large chrome grille packing the biggest Saturn emblem to date, the front end of the Outlook is certainly aggressive, both in photographs and in person. While not exactly 'pretty,' it doesn't want for presence. If anything, the nose looks like a more accomplished Relay, had Saturn had the financial wherewithal to start with a clean sheet. In fact, the advent of the Outlook itself calls into question the need for the Relay minivan, though the final verdict will need to wait until pricing is announced. Bookending the sizeable grille are clear-lensed dual element projector beams (high-intensity discharge lamps will be available).

Hit the jump for more impressions and photographs inside-and-out