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Pink Floyd's Nick Mason Has His LaFerrari Hooned by Le Mans Champ Emanuele Pirro

2/7/2016

Nick Mason (yes, we're talking about Pink Floyd's drummer, not your neighbor who happens to have the same name) is the kind of man who invests a great deal of his fortune into his automotive passion. As a result, it comes as no surprise that the legend's car collection includes a LaFerrari.

What might surprise certain people, though, is the fact that, at age 72, Nick keeps learning. The most recent example of this saw him handing over the keys to his LaF to racing driver Emanuele Pirro.

Not only did the five-time LeMans champion get to flog the 950 hp (963 PS) hybrid, obviously on a track, but the drummer was riding shotgun at the time.

With the Prancing Horse's tail-happy rear-wheel-drive setup and the typical British weather, it's safe to say the two had quite an experience in the LaF. The only unfortunate side of it all is that the clip below is short, so we don't get the full taste of the memorable track stint that certainly taught Nick a thing or two about the limits of his machine.

The feat didn't happen by mistake, as today, January 27, happens to be Nick's birthday and the resulting footage was released by Goodwood Road and Racing as a celebration. What can we say? This certainly beats a Ferrari-shaped cake.

As for the Emanuele Pirro-related side of the story, it's nice to see this champion enjoying his time in a Ferrari halo car. This is quite a change from all the times we saw the man taking home the Le Mans title in Audis - he won the LMP900 class three times in an R8, as well as the top-tier LMP1 Class twice, behind the wheel of a diesel-hearted Audi R10 TDI.

This story brings us to the rumor mill talk about Ferrari returning to the LMP1 hostilities, but this is another story for another time.

Now this is our kind of mobile office!

2/7/2016

We have been having a rough time finding an affordable office/shop combo. Our current office is great, but without a place to wrench on cars we are limited. Well, We found the perfect solution for us! It a Ferrari F1 race trailer… garage… office… Wow, whatever this thing is, it is awesome! Just take a look inside and you will see what I mean. It’s listed here on Motorsport Auctions for €199,000 EUR so it’s unfortunately out of the budget. I suppose we could save on monthly rent by just moving around to a different parking lot everyday though…

50th Anniversary Shelby GT40

2/7/2016

We all know that automotive story from the 1960s, the story of how Henry Ford II showed Enzo Ferrari who’s top dog at Le Mans. It’s the story of the world-beating Ford GT40, a car so rare and valuable that us mortals can only dream of owning one.

The GT40 Registry-eligible replica you can admire above is more attainable than the original endurance racer. Priced from $169,995, the 50th Anniversary Shelby GT40 celebrates the legendary 1-2-3 sweep at the 1966 edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans race. The thing is, though, that mountain of green dollar bills doesn’t buy you an engine or a transmission.

According to Shelby American, the best combo you could get on their iteration of the GT40 is a classically correct manual transmission and no less than 427 cubic inches (7 liters) of Ford FE V8 madness. The least expensive 427 FE goes for $27,499.99, which is Chevrolet Impala money. But then again, the 427’s rumble makes it worth it.

The anniversary GT40 stays true to the original GT40 Mk II’s dimensions. In plain English, that’s 163 inches (4.14 meters) long and 40 inches (1.01 meters) high. For the taller ones among us, Shelby American will gladly install a Gurney bubble right over the driver’s seat. Even the 2x10-gallon fuel tanks and the Halibrand style pin drive wheels are made to the old GT40’s specifications.

If you aren’t too fond of the black and silver color scheme of Bruce McLaren’s 1966 winning machine, Shelby American can paint your anniversary GT40 in blue or red, with or without the white racing stripes.

For those of you who can’t do without the cool blow of air conditioning, fret not because the right price will get you that as well. With these being said, forgo the balloons and party poppers - just put your money where your mouth is and buckle up because driving this bruiser is what celebrating Le Mans is all about.

Carmen Jorda still chasing F1 dream with Renault

2/7/2016

Renault development driver hopes to be in a F1 car in 'six months to a year'

Carmen Jorda has admitted her dream of actually driving a Formula One car has been put on the backburner for now.

Amid some controversy about the former GP3 driver's credentials, the 27-year-old Spaniard was signed this year by Renault as development driver, and has been travelling the calendar with the Enstone team.

Asked to assess her 2015 so far, she told the Spanish sports daily Marca, "It's my first season and I'm happy with how far I have come. But my dream to test the car has not happened because of some problems with the team. Yet I know that my time will come and so I have been focused on working in the simulator and on my physical preparation."

She admitted not actually driving yet is a setback, but is happy she is carrying the baton for female drivers all over the world who dream of a career at the top of racing.

"I am satisfied," she said, "because it's not as though you arrive and that's it. Everything is a process with ups and downs, like now with the team problems that have not allowed me to do as was planned."

When asked about the progress of the Renault buyout, Jorda answered: "I am very focused on my work, which I do every day with the engineers. I also know that our management will do their best for the team, but it (the buyout) is likely to happen.

"In the end, a F1 team is a business and if the company has financial problems that of course affects everyone. And yet in Japan we had both drivers in the points, showing that we have a very good technical team despite the difficulties."

Asked, then, where she sees herself in five years, Jorda answered, "My sole focus is on testing the car in six months or a year. It's the only thing in my mind."

It's Official: The Scion Brand Is Dead

2/6/2016

Toyota has announced today that the Scion brand is no more. The Japanese auto giant first launched it in 2003 with the aim of attracting younger buyers in the North American market, and it seemed to have worked - the brand has the youngest average buyer age (36) in the car industry, apparently. Regardless, Toyota has seen fit to kill off Scion.

The tC (below) will die with the brand, ending production in August 2016, while the remaining models - the FR-S, iA and iM - will be sold as Toyotas from the 2017 model year onwards. The incoming Scion C-HR will also be getting a Toyota badge.The 22-strong team of dedicated Scion employees will all be offered new jobs at Toyota USA, while servicing and repairs for Scion vehicles will continue with Toyota dealerships as normal. Meanwhile, people from the rest of the world are still looking at the top image thinking “what’s that weird badge on the front of that GT86?”

UPDATE: Toyota USA has since confirmed to us that the FR-S model name will still be used after the Scion brand is discontinued.

HERE ARE ALL 16 PORSCHES FROM THE JERRY SEINFELD COLLECTION TO BE AUCTIONED ON AMELIA ISLAND

2/6/2016

A couple of weeks ago, Gooding & Co. told us about three Porsches they would be adding to their Amelia Island sale from the highly esteemed Jerry Seinfeld collection. At that time they worded the press release to say "a sampling of this exceptional collection will feature three historic Porsches at Gooding & Company’s annual Scottsdale Auctions marquee beginning January 27, 2016." We knew from that very moment that there would be more Seinfeld Porsches coming to auction (in fact we knew exactly how many but were sworn to secrecy). This morning, Gooding finally released the full extent of what Jerry will be selling so we can share it with you here. Get excited, because this is a very interesting list.

David Gooding, President and Founder, Gooding & Co. -

“Mr. Seinfeld is recognized throughout the world as having acquired one of the finest Porsche collections ever assembled. He has become known as the definitive Porsche connoisseur based on his passion and devotion to the marque. We at Gooding & Company share his reverence for Porsche and are proud to offer these truly incredible examples. This is a rare opportunity for collectors to acquire some of the finest Porsches ever to come to market.”

Jerry had this to say about the sale,

"Each one of these cars is a pinnacle of mechanical culture to me. Many are the best examples that exist in the world. I've loved being entrusted with their care, and I'm proud of the level to which we have brought each and every one of these wonderful machines. Honestly, if I had unlimited time, space and attention span I would never sell one of them. And the reason I wanted to bid these cars farewell in this way is really just to see the look of excitement on the faces of the next owners who I know will be out of their minds with joy that they are going to get to experience them. My enthusiasm for this pursuit remains quite insane and I am very fortunate to have many other cars I get to look after."

Previously announced were Jerry's 550 Spyder, his GS/GT 356 Carrera Speedster, and his Peter Revson 3-liter IROC RSR. Added to the list are a further 13 significant and beautiful Porsche lots (plus two pretty fun VWs). Below is the full Porsche list. In a later post we'll go more in-depth on everything Porsche-related coming up for sale at the Amelia Island auctions. After a relatively milquetoast auction season thus far this year, we're really excited to see these lots cross the dais. Get your bidding paddles ready!

Mercedes: "No stopping" our engine gains for 2016

2/6/2016

Mercedes has hinted that it is on course to deliver good gains with its benchmark 900bhp+ Formula 1 engine in 2016, with the company insisting there is no 'stopping' its scope for improvement.The German car manufacturer's power unit has been the class of the field since the new turbo era came into force in 2014, and it has secured back-to-back championship doubles.

Although Mercedes' rivals may have hoped that the Silver Arrows had reached the limit of potential with hybrid V6 technology, engine chief Andy Cowell said on Friday that their engine still has plenty more to deliver.

"We've made some huge gains in the last years as we have done the development," he explained during a briefing with media at Mercedes' Brixworth facility on Friday.

"We have good gains over the past two years of racing. I don't see that stopping. I don't think anybody here sees that we have reached the limit.

"Where we are at today with our thermal efficiency is mind blowing when you step back and look at it."
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Thermal efficiencyThe new fuel-efficient F1 regulations have put a premium on thermal efficiency, which is effectively the amount of energy produced against the fuel delivered.

The more efficient the engine is, then the more power can be produced from a formula where fuel capacity and fuel flow rate are strictly controlled.

Cowell confirmed that the Mercedes engine was now delivering in excess of 900bhp.

Mercedes believes its power unit was delivering more than 45 percent thermal efficiency last year – and a graph shown to journalists suggested that the step being prepared for 2016 could be as big a leap forward as the team made between 2014 and 2015.

Cowell would not elaborate on the specific data to confirm that is the size of jump expected, but did hint that big chunks of power were still being unlocked.

"It will continue to go up," he said. "Does it get harder to find gains? Yes it does. But there are lots of areas where small gains will come.

"It is a bit like gold mining, you work bloody hard, you get lots of dust and now and again, you get a nice big nugget that makes you smile. And we still find those nuggets…."

He added: "Thermal efficiency is going up, from where we were in 2014 we took a good step up for 2015 – and perhaps it is going to go up in 2016.

"It is definitely going to go up in the future as well because nobody has said that we have reached the limit here. When I walk around the factory I never hear people say that is the best we can do, that is optimum…"

Honda threatDespite optimism about the Mercedes unit, Cowell is well aware that rivals were chasing them hard, and even reckoned Honda needed to be watched closely.

"If we look at what Ferrari has done over the last 12 months, it's remarkable," Cowell said. "Their improvements have been a huge credit to their reshuffle and their enthusiasm.

"Everybody here is going 'I wonder how we're going to do?' Nobody here is assuming we are going to win, everybody here is assuming that we're going to get beaten by Ferrari, and Honda are a big threat.

"They have come in quickly and they are learning in front of the public but they're hugely determined and partnered with McLaren who are hugely determined.

"We know exactly how McLaren work in terms of a data-driven approach, so they are going to make some big, big gains.

"Renault's determination as well, as they've shown by being a lot more involved now in Formula 1, instead of just being a power unit provider there has been a team restructuring. There are going to be some great stories to talk about."

This skydive, BASE jump and wingsuit film is crazy

2/6/2016

What happens when a highly-skilled, precision-flying crew of aerial athletes is tasked with creating their dream project? This incredible video.

“What we wanted to do was show every air sports discipline we do on the Red Bull Air Force team and put it into one massive sequence,” says RBAF captain Jon DeVore.

Every aerial sport there is in one video

Six months in the makingSo, we trust you’re on board with the “whole lot of awesome” description for the RBAF after watching that clip. The sequence shown in the video was the result of over six months of careful research, planning, coordination and rehearsal. You can learn more in the behind-the-scenes edit that will be released on Friday, Jan. 22.

The setting The team chose Moab, Utah, as the setting for the undertaking (which is also where Daisher recently completed his 4,000th BASE jump). “Finding the right location for this project was challenging,” says DeVore. “After a lot of research we came to the conclusion that Moab was going to be the perfect location to accomplish our goals. It gave us everything we needed to go from A to Z in this whole sequence.”

Want To Buy A UH-60A Black Hawk? Well You Can.

2/6/2016

WANT TO BUY A UH-60A BLACK HAWK? WELL YOU CAN.If you have ever thought you might want to own your very own UH-60A Black Hawk, now is your chance. The Black Hawk is being sold at GSA Auctions and is currently in Hunstville, Alabama – and you can bid on it here. And don’t worry, it’s only $200,000. This Black Hawk that is up for auction has had a pretty busy life, there are historical recordshere.

P51 Mustang "Big Beautiful" Doll Destroyed, Pilot Killed

2/6/2016

Multiple sources confirm the F-51D Mustang, Big Beautiful Doll was the aircraft involved in Friday's horrific accident south of Phoenix, Arizona.

According to multiple witnesses the vintage fighter plunged straight into the ground exploding into flames.

Sources also report the pilot was owner Jeffery Pino who walked away in 2014 from a belly landing dramtically captured on video by a TV helicopter crew. (Video Below)

Big Beautiful Doll was a 1944 P-51D model that was re-designated in 1948 as the F-51D.

Horsemen P-51 Flight Team pilot Ed Shipley once owned Big Beautiful Doll back in the '90's and provided the photo above and one below as he flew with the F-16 as a Heritage Flight.

The NTSB is investigating the cause of the accident.

------ original ----- MARICOPA, Ariz. (KSAZ) Authorities say a World War II-era plane has crashed near Papago and Ralston Road.

Mark Clark of the Pinal County Sheriff's Office said authorities were heading to the scene of the crash Friday to investigate. He described it as a small plane but didn't have further information on the occupants or whether there were survivors or injuries.

Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Ian Gregor said preliminary information on the crash indicated the plane was a P-51D Mustang, a type of single-engine American fighter used during World War II.

Gregor said the preliminary information indicated the plane caught fire after crashing.

The spokesman said the FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board will investigate the crash.