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Posted
Mar 13 2010, 03:28 PM
by
John Brooks
with 16 comment(s)
A week in racing, as well as politics, is a very long time. From the frozen wastes of the Var and Le Castellet, I am now pitched into the very agreeable surroundings of the Ritz Carlton, Amelia Island for the 15th edition of the Concours d'Elegance. The show is actually tomorrow but keen as mustard me, I ventured onto the Golf Course to see what is in store when the Sun rises in the morning. Straight out of the Weissach version of Rowan & Martin's Laugh In was the Martini Racing Porsche...
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Posted
Dec 15 2009, 03:33 AM
by
Dino Dalle Carbonare
with 31 comment(s)
OK time now to wrap up the coverage from the 2009 Tsukuba Super Lap Battle by taking another look through the paddock and some of the cars that help make the event what it is. There is no doubting that Time Attack is the epitome of the tuning industry, it helps push manufacturers and shops to advance parts and car development to extremes, creating wild machines like the Cyber Evo above. Like I mentioned in Part 1 back in the mid nineties if your car managed to lap Tsukuba in under a minute you had...
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Posted
Dec 10 2009, 06:45 PM
by
Dino Dalle Carbonare
with 29 comment(s)
Time now for a final stroll through the Mooneyes Hot Rod and Custom show that was held this past week-end in Yokohama. Many of you wanted to see more pictures of the left hand drive S30 above, so you'll be pleased to know I will dedicate a Car Spotlight post to it as it was just too perfect. Hot Rod and Customs are all about the details and even for someone like me that finds this whole scene very new, there is just so much to appreciate down to the smallest detail. Plus this has to be the only...
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Posted
Dec 09 2009, 11:50 PM
by
Dino Dalle Carbonare
with 42 comment(s)
I have probably never covered as much drifting as over this past year. It has been a real blast seeing pro drivers battle it out in D1-GP or up and coming young stars shine at more grassroots events like MSC, not to mention the craziness that is the Drift Matsuri, but I have well and truly missed more conventional kinds of motorsport. I am of course talking about grip. I'm not going to deny it, this is where my passion lies, so you can understand why I have been eagerly awaiting for what is in...
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Posted
Dec 07 2009, 08:00 PM
by
Dino Dalle Carbonare
with 53 comment(s)
You are looking at what the Nismo Festival was all about this year, racecars. Nissan has never forgotten that enthusiasts want to see their favorite production cars on the race track, something that helps build a strong image for the brand. The concoction of GT-R race engines that were unleashed on the circuit throughout the day was a true visual and aural experience, with crackling and backfiring VK45DEs, VQ30DETTs... ...and of course the best of them all, the mighty RB26DETT. As ever the Gr.A BNR32s...
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Posted
Dec 07 2009, 11:00 AM
by
Dino Dalle Carbonare
with 24 comment(s)
After seeing Nissan race cars blast around Fuji Speedway at the Nismo Festival it's time to return back at the halls of the Yokohama Pacifico for some more hot rod and sexy muscle cars. When I grabbed this shot of this 1968 Charger I knew I would have to use it as an opening image to one of my posts from this show! This ride was just outrageous starting from that propped-up rear-end stance to those massive 29"x15.5 Hoosier Pro Street tires. On the other side of the spectrum this roof-chopped...
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Posted
Dec 06 2009, 11:30 PM
by
Dino Dalle Carbonare
with 28 comment(s)
For me the Nismo Festival has always marked the end of the year's event calendar and for 2009 things just couldn't have gone any better, starting with the weather which was fantastic for this time of year with blue skies throughout the day. Nismo always manages to keep the event interesting, despite there being pretty much the same cars every year, however there are always some new additions to keep fans flocking in, like the FIA GT GT1-class GT-Rs you can see here in the opening picture...
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Posted
Dec 05 2009, 07:45 AM
by
Dino Dalle Carbonare
with 36 comment(s)
It's official. I am becoming a big fan of the custom & hot-rod scene. I just spent the whole day walking the halls of the Yokohama Pacifico exhibition center during the set up day of the 2009 Mooneyes Hot Rod Custom Show. Unfortunately due to a scheduling conflict I will not be able to attend the actual show tomorrow, as in about 5 hours I will be getting up and heading to Fuji Speedway to cover this year's Nismo Festival. But with such a great selection of cars on show there was no way...
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Posted
Nov 11 2009, 02:00 AM
by
Dino Dalle Carbonare
with 30 comment(s)
While most people probably think that everyone in Japan drives around in Skylines, Supras and AE86's the reality is that a great slice of the population is pretty crazy about minivans. Manufacturers have been churning them out in all shapes and sizes giving way to an ever-increasing presence on the crowded roads of the country. They do make sense as a practical means of transportation, they are big and in most cases pretty economical and as you can see from these pictures lend themselves rather...
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Posted
Oct 15 2009, 04:45 AM
by
Dino Dalle Carbonare
with 17 comment(s)
This past weekend when I was in Fuji Speedway for the D1-GP there was another event back in central Tokyo that I really wanted to check out, the yearly Mille Miglia Japan classic car race. 103 cars set-off from Harajuku, right in front of the Meiji shrine on Saturday afternoon and headed on a 3-day, 1000-mile drive that would take them all the way up to Fukushima-ken and back down towards Tokyo, passing Honda's Twin Ring Motegi race track in Tochigi-ken and the famous Umihotaru Parking Area in...
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Posted
Oct 11 2009, 09:00 AM
by
Dino Dalle Carbonare
with 32 comment(s)
Time to check out some more action from Round 7 of the D1-GP at Fuji Speedway, and what better way to open this post than with a nice shot of the 10 top-seeded cars, neatly lined up on the judged corner. Here is Sakuma and Tanaka during their first Best 16 outing. Sakuma managed to beat the Team Orange driver allowing him to progress to the next stage against Tezuka. Nagasawa's S15, sitting alone in the garage. One of the D1 image girls had to do a balancing act while being driven around in this...
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Posted
Oct 10 2009, 08:45 AM
by
Dino Dalle Carbonare
with 32 comment(s)
I have to say, I'm quite glad I got to cover some drifting today, I was getting withdrawal symptoms after two months of no sideways action! I always love shooting at Fuji Speedway, the D1 guys really take it to the extreme in both speed and angle even with the rain that accompanied much of today's round. Following the new format, this week-end we'll see both Round 7, held today, and the 2009 Season finale tomorrow with Round 8. I really got trigger happy today so I hope you enjoy this...
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Posted
Aug 18 2009, 03:16 AM
by
Jeroen Willemsen
with 15 comment(s)
This second installment covers the outside grounds of the VW-Speed Summer Show. In the opening picture you see the most favorite wheel amongst the show goers. The community is really laidback and it seemed that for most of the people that attended it was more like a get together with ‘old' and new friends....
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Posted
Aug 12 2009, 06:30 AM
by
Linhbergh Nguyen
with 29 comment(s)
The Bonneville Speedweek brings all sorts of people to the event. Some drive from far away lands in their hot rods that lack what many of us normally take for granted in our cars; cushioned seats, carpet, sound deadening, or even a roof. But the trip to "the Salt" in your home brewed hot rod or rat rod is a pilgramage to pure automotive glory. There's a huge sense that everyone that is at the event lives the lifestyle to it's fullest with style is one of the biggest aspects of the...
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Posted
Aug 07 2009, 12:58 PM
by
Andy Blackmore
with 9 comment(s)
It has been a while, with a long summer break, but the British Touring Car Championship returned to the track last weekend at Snetterton, in Norfolk. Current Champion Fabrizio Giovanardi and Colin Turkington shared the top spot of the podium during the three race event. Turkington was a little fortunate to take the final race win of the day after original winner, James Nash, was excluded. Jason Plato started the day in pole position for Race One in his Silverline Racing Chevrolet Lacetti. Turkington...
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Posted
Aug 05 2009, 11:24 AM
by
Patrick McGrath
with 5 comment(s)
This weekend gone saw the third round of the Irish Prodrift Series take place at Mondello Park, the only international race circuit in Ireland. With entry speeds of 100mph and a new line for the drivers to follow, plenty of action was on the cards for those in attendance. Like previous rounds, round three was all about the outside clipping point with only one inside clipping point on the course that was situated on the first corner. The outer clipping points increased the difficulty of the course...
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Posted
Jul 27 2009, 07:00 AM
by
Linhbergh Nguyen
with 17 comment(s)
What is it about cars that makes people get up way before they're suppose to? I've attended weddings where even the a groom doesn't want up early on his own wedding day. So what is it about these technological tin cans that makes us happily roll out of bed, drive up a mountain, hike it, only to freeze because you're at 10,000 feet above sea level and since the sun is not up yet? After you put in all that work, you find a nice cosy spot (be it a little bit freezing, and with mutated...
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Posted
Jul 20 2009, 04:30 PM
by
Linhbergh Nguyen
with 22 comment(s)
There was a lot of hype surrounding this week over this car: "Monster" Tajima's Suzuki SX4. This is a car designed specifically to tackle the Pike's Peak course and hopefully beating his previous Pike's Peak record, and also smashing the 10 minute barrier. Sadly, things were not to be. Tajima clocked in a 10 minutes and 15 second time on Sunday. A time far away from beating 10 minutes and also a time that was just shy of 14 seconds slower than his 2007 time of 10 minutes and...
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Posted
Jun 11 2009, 04:30 AM
by
Dino Dalle Carbonare
with 16 comment(s)
While walking through the paddock the other day at the InterClub Historic Car Race I couldn't help but be amazed at the broad selection of cars. It felt great seeing the owners actually use them on track like they were designed to. And despite this being a friendly race series, some out there were taking it pretty seriously, which made for some great footage! Now this little selection here is something I was just not expecting. Vintage Formula 1 cars, and a few other racers, mixing it up with...
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Posted
Jun 08 2009, 05:02 PM
by
Patrick McGrath
with 12 comment(s)
I felt some sympathy for Lihnbergh and the rest of the Speedhunters team in Jersey this weekend gone, as The Wall turned into The Pool . It's a scene I'm all too familiar with, but for one weekend in May, Ireland swapped weather systems and the sun unleashed its unrelenting heat on the Prodrift Punchestown course. We spoke about the rear clipping zone in Part II and this shot of Martin Ffrench displays the difference between non-seeded pro and seeded pro class, not only do you need to get...
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