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RallyCross driver shorts jump in X Games practice

Drew Phillips — Sat, 30 Jun 2012 09:55:00 EST

The skill displayed by drivers in the RallyCross competition at X Games, particularly with the jump, makes it easy to forget just how dangerous the sport can be. Everyone was reminded of that earlier today, however, when Finnish driver and X Games rookie Toomas Heikkinen shorted the 50-foot gap, crashing into the steel ramp. Heikkinen's Fiesta eventually landed upside down, and fluids leaking from the car caught fire after he exited the car.

While the head-on crash looked devastating, X Games later reported that Heikkinen thankfully only suffered a broken ankle and minor abdominal pain. Needless to say, he isn't expected to participate in Sunday's competition, although Travis Pastrana demonstrated last year that a broken ankle doesn't necessarily have to keep you out of a rally car.

You can view different angles of Heikkinen's unfriendly meeting with the ramp in the embedded videos below.

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RallyCross driver shorts jump in X Games practice originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 30 Jun 2012 09:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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X Games 16: Rally practice day reveals new challenges

Drew Phillips — Sat, 31 Jul 2010 10:04:00 EST

Filed under: Motorsports

X Games 16 Rally Practice Day - Click above for high-res image gallery

The practice day for the X Games 16 Rally competitors is in the books, and despite plenty of preparation the teams face some unexpected challenges at the new venue. The drivers first took to the makeshift dirt track at the L.A. Coliseum early yesterday afternoon and quickly found that the setup isn't ideally suited to automobiles - or at least anything with bumpers. The course features two major elevation changes, going up and out of the stadium and then back in again, and nearly all of the drivers are having difficulty with the latter. The entrance back into the stadium is so steep that drivers are forced to either come in extremely slowly or catch air and plow the front end of the car into the dirt. To make matters worse, an uneven track surface at the bottom of the descent causes the cars to go airborne again. It may be fun to watch, but it's undoubtedly frustrating for the drivers.

Interestingly, the one feature of the track that usually gives the drivers trouble - the jump - is no problem at all. Most drivers initially seemed cautious before making their practice runs, but they quickly realized that not too much speed is needed, and soon thereafter they were easily clearing the gap on every lap.

Overall, the current track layout at the new venue is disappointing. The course is essentially one large loop featuring all right turns, with the two elevation changes and the jump thrown in. Much of the course is fairly narrow as well, which will make the SuperRally either very boring (no passing) or very interesting (lots of bumping and crashing). We'll reserve judgment until we actually see it happen, and we fully expect the addition of actual competition and tens of thousands of fans to make things more exciting. Stay tuned for more live X Games 16 rally coverage this weekend.

Gallery: X Games 16 Rally Practice Day

X Games 16: Rally practice day reveals new challenges originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 31 Jul 2010 10:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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LA 2009: Ford shows off some Fiesta possibilities

Frank Filipponio — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Concept Cars, LA Auto Show, Budget, Hatchback, Ford

2011 Ford Fiesta by Ford Custom Accessories - Click above for high-res image gallery

While introducing the folks at the LA Auto Show to the American-market 2011 Ford Fiesta, Ford decided to go a step further. They didn't just show the production sedan and hatchback, they also showed off the possibilities the platform presents as well. They had four customized Fiestas on display, done up by companies like H&R, 3dCarbon, FSWerks, and Steeda, as well as Ford's in-house Racing and Custom Accessories team. And just for good measure, they also brought along that wicked Kenny Brack X-Games Rally Fiesta as well.

There's a full press release after the jump, but here is a brief summary of the four featured vehicles:

Black Fiesta:

This car was put together by Ford Racing and Steeda Autosports. It features Steeda's cold air intake, a Borla/Ford Racing Performance cat-back exhaust system, Steeda/Ford Racing suspension upgrades, Ford Racing multi-spoke Euro wheels and Brembo anchors.

Blue Fiesta:

The blue car was built by H&R Special Springs. Naturally, it received some suspension tuning with an H&R Street Performance monotube coil-over kit and a set of spiffy 18-inch OZ SuperTurismo GT wheels. It's also the beneficiary of some Euro reverse-engineering via "Sticky Jewell custom graphics, custom Euro hood vents, stealthy blacked-out headlamps and a Ford Custom Accessories upper rear hatch spoiler."

White Fiesta:

The white Fiesta (above) features Ford Custom Accessories, so it ought to be the easiest model the Average Joe to copy. Nearly every styling element can be purchased from the Ford Custom Accessories, Ford Licensed Accessories or Ford Racing Performance Parts catalogs. And get used to those graphics, because Ford has taken this opportunity to add a whole new line of them for the Fiesta. You can see the whole collection at fordfiestagraphics.com.

Red Fiesta:

Last, but certainly not least, is the red Fiesta by 3dCarbon and FSWerks. It's the only one of the four that has some serious rejiggering underhood. It features an FSWerks Stage 2 intercooled turbo kit and 2.25-inch exhaust system. It also sports a 3dCarbon body kit with an "aggressive front air dam, aerodynamic side skirts and rear lower accent trim."

We'd probably mix and match among these mods, perhaps the H&R suspension, the Brembos from the Steeda car, the OZ wheels and that FSWerks turbo setup. Or maybe we'd just take Brack's car. Check out the gallery by clicking below and more details in the press release after the jump.

Gallery: LA 2009: 2011 Ford Fiesta Customs

Photos copyright (C)2009 Frank Filipponio/Weblogs, Inc.
[Source: Ford]

Continue reading LA 2009: Ford shows off some Fiesta possibilities

LA 2009: Ford shows off some Fiesta possibilities originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 03 Dec 2009 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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2009 X Games Rally Car ride along

Jonny Lieberman — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 11:57:00 EST

Filed under: Motorsports, Performance, Hatchback, Ford, Subaru

2009 X Games Rally Car ride along - Click above for high-res image gallery

If you've never been given a "hot lap" by a professional driver, let me try and convey what the experience is like. You're usually dehydrated and have been standing on a heat-soaked paddock for far too long. There's a track rat (or two) whose job it is to get a helmet and HANS device fastened on you and their default thinking is that you've never even seen a track before, much less driven on one. You're wearing your street clothes, and items like your wallet and cell phone make it even harder for them to get you shoehorned and belted into the seat. The passenger seats are typically much narrower than the driver's seat and you're typically much fatter than the driver. It can be pretty embarrassing. Once you're secured, the driver sticks his hand out, you shake it and then you're off.

Follow the jump to find out what happens next.

Gallery: 2009 X Games Rally Car ride along

Continue reading 2009 X Games Rally Car ride along

2009 X Games Rally Car ride along originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 31 Jul 2009 11:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Rally at X Games 14 wows the crowds [SPOILER ALERT]

John Neff — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 15:58:00 EST

Filed under: Motorsports

Click above for high-res gallery of rally at X Games 14

You can bitch and moan about the X Games version of rally racing being less pure than what you see on WRC, and while there are no trees whizzing by or bottomless pits in which to careen, the Home Depot Center in Carson, CA offered many opportunities for competitors to crash their cars in spectacular fashion. This year's event at X Games 14 was divided between driving on dirt within the stadium and pavement outside with a big jump smack dab in the center of the stadium giving fans the best view of the biggest car-nage.

The most spectacular example of mechanical mayhem from this past weekend's two-hour competition was during the quarterfinals in which Andrew Comrie-Picard didn't quite make the big jump and smacked his rear end on the lip of the receiving ramp, which flipped his car end over end (see above and more in gallery). His competitor at the time, Dave Mirra, who is an X Games alum competing for the first time in a car rather than on a bike, just had to finish to win. He tagged the wall halfway through the race, however, and was forced to finish without being able to turn left.

Find out what happened in the gold medal race, as well video of that race and the Mirra/Comrie-Picard duel after the jump, and view some photos of yesterday's Rally X action in the gallery below.

Gallery: X Games 14 (2008) - Rally

[Source: Expn]

Continue reading Rally at X Games 14 wows the crowds [SPOILER ALERT]

Rally at X Games 14 wows the crowds [SPOILER ALERT] originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 04 Aug 2008 15:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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