Damox's Car Blog

The NISMO 350Z is the meaner, more powerful cousin of the Nissan 350Z. The DOHC V6 engine makes 306 horsepower at 6,800 RPM and 268 lb/ft of torque. The aerodynamics package makes it look a lot less-cute than the plain vanilla Nissan version, but this street-legal car doesn't really want to have anything to do with its pansy relative. It will be available in July 2007.

Popular sports car modifier/manufacturer Saleen has come out with a new truck, the S331 Sport Truck. The company is better know for its Mustangs, which command a nice premium over a stock 'Stang, and the S7 supercar, which was featured in the movie "Bruce Almighty".

While this truck is based on the F-150, it is not a tuner. Saleen does not use any loopholes to avoid recertification. Each one of their cars and trucks goes through the same certification process as a new car from Ford or Chevy. The S331 retains the towing capacity of the F-150, but with the performance numbers that will beat a stock Mustang GT.

In the end, what you get with a S331 is a truck that can beat just about any car in the road. It also looks great, and will have tremendous resale value 20 or 30 years down the line.

The Audi R8 will come with a hefty price tag in the United States, with the manual transmission model going for $109,000 and the R tronic transmission model retailing at $118,000. Those are base model prices with no added options.

These cars will sell well among the wealthy no matter what the price, because the R8 has been so highly-touted for its performance and luxury features. Although it comes with Audi Quattro AWD, it is actually 98% biased towards the rear wheels, so it's basically a rear wheel drive sports car.

I've got some pictures of what is reportedly the new Subaru Impreza WRX. I personally hate the entire rear of this car, right down to the ricer taillights. The front end is alright, but I'd prefer the current styling. What do you think?

We already knew that Eddie Griffin was a terrible actor. Now, we know he's a terrible driver as well. The star of such B-list crap as Undercover Brother wrecked a Ferrari Enzo while practicing before a celebrity charity race. He was unhurt, but the $1.5 million car was totaled. The car was owned by the producer of a new movie starring Griffin, so I guess he kind of deserved it.
Gone in 60 Seconds: Eddie Griffin Totals Rare Ferrari Enzo

Before a new production car can be sold in the United States, it must undergo various forms of testing. This includes crash testing. 10 Tesla Roadster prototypes arrived in California the other day from the factory in England, with several of them slated to be destroyed for the sake of testing.

Several press affiliates will get the opportunity to test drive one of these electric supercars. Although I will not be one of them, I will be relaying their full reports as soon as I get them.
First Validation Prototype Tesla Roadster arrives Stateside - Autoblog

Jalopnik found some great pics of the Corvette SS production mule. This is the car they are using to test the powertrain that will go into the Corvette SS.
The Corvette SS Production Mule Spy Photos Were So Precise, Even Germans Dig Them! - Jalopnik

Have you ever bought a car, only to be pressured into spending more money on an Extended Car Warranty? Sometimes this coverage is completely unnecessary, but consumers usually do not know this.

Do some research to learn what you need to know about extended service contracts before you buy your next car. This information could literally save you thousands of dollars, and it will allow you to respond to the car salesman's pitch with an intelligent response. Do not buy your next car without doing some research into warranties.

The above picture is a Toyota Auris presented at the Geneva Motor Show. There is no chance you will ever see one of these at your local dealership. I'm not even sure if a fully-chromed car is legal in all states. Still, it looks pretty sweet.

In the interest of my readers, I've decided to delete this post, because it has nothing useful to offer.

Motor Trend has a great article about the new Camaro Convertible concept car. There is so much excitement surrounding the new Camaros, I think these cars might just help save Chevrolet... for a few years.

Manufacturers will someday learn what the consumer wants without having to wait a decade to figure it out. The retro trend has been around for a good 12 years in the auto industry, yet Chevy kept making their Camaro more wedge-shaped and more "futuristic" and ugly. They had to kill the brand before realizing that consumers just wanted the car they had when they were growing up, but with modern features. Maybe now they've finally figured it out.
Chevrolet Camaro Convertible Concept - First Look - Motor Trend

I've seen my share of cracked car windows in my day. Last year a rock cracked my windshield, requiring it to be replaced. Finding the right place to do this kind of work can be more difficult than it appears.

I was surprised to learn that glass coverage was included in my car insurance with State Farm. I'm not sure how all other car insurers work, but I know past insurers that I've used have not had this glass coverage included. Perhaps not all State Farm agencies include this glass coverage, so check with yours before signing up. After my windshield cracked, I notified State Farm, and they said it could be replaced without having any effect on my insurance premiums, which was a huge surprise. Their glass coverage is re-insured through another firm, so I received a call from that firm instructing me on how to proceed. Within a few days my windshield was replaced and my insurance premium did not increase.

Labels: cars, glass, insurance, windshield

I've seen several crashed Ferrari Enzos, but this picture below is the first wrecked Bugatti Veyron I've seen. I'm told this car hit a large puddle of water, the AWD went haywire, and it went off the road and wrecked. I'm not sure how many body shops are equipped to repair a Bugatti Veyron, but I'd imagine the repair costs for this wreck are in the area of a quarter million dollars or more.

Are you a NASCAR fan, but you can't stand social networking sites like Facebook and Myspace? Check out OvalFan.com.

This might just be the first social networking sites designed specifically for NASCAR fans. If you're into NASCAR, you probably hate a lot of things about MySpace. Namely, the guys who wear pink, collared shirts and all that sissy music. With a NASCAR social network, you can be sure there will be a lot more talk about things like engines and gasoline, and a lot less talk about your emo band and who's hooking up with who. You don't want to be mixed in with all of those wannabe hippies and rich suburban "gangstas". Stick to the crowd you know, the people you like. It's a virtual community made of the same people you see at the track on the weekends.

The great thing about a NASCAR social network is that it's real easy to find friends who are fans of the same driver. You won't have to worry about going on that date with a girl who turns out to be a Jeff Gordan fan. Don't you just hate it when that happens?

Labels: facebook, nascar

Chevrolet will end the Monte Carlo line on June 20th of this year. Despite sale being up in 2006, they dropped significantly in 2007. The new Malibu will likely cut into Monte Carlo sales, and it just didn't make sense to hold on to a competing brand. Other GM models that it would have likely competed with include the new Camaro, Impala, GTO, and Buick Statesman, if they ever make it.
Chevrolet Monte Carlo production to end | Leftlane - Car News For Enthusiasts

I've done a lot of writing on car insurance and different ways you can protect your car, but I've ignored one of the most common causes of damage to a car: student drivers. Inexperienced drivers are not bad people, they just haven't learned the driving skills that the rest of us have developed over years and years of practice.

I've found a website that has some products that can be very useful to the student driver. The Park N Place garage parking system alerts the driver when they are getting too close to the wall. Actually, that's not just for student drivers. I know my mom could use a product like that. Over the years she's managed to rub away all the sheetrock on the inside of the garage wall by bumping it hundreds of times.

A product like the Park 'N Place is very useful for instructional purposes as well. Have them practice parking in different odd positions, even if you have to create those positions using cones and the Park 'N Place system. It's important for inexperienced drivers to become comfortable with their brake and steering control, along with awareness of how large their car is and how close they can get to objects without hitting them.

BusinessWeek has some great pictures of the most expensive luxury cars of 2007. The Lexus LS460 is my favorite among cars I could afford if I felt like saving the money, with the Bugatti Veyron being my overall favorite.

If this list illustrates anything, it's how far behind BMW is in styling. Their 760Li costs $144,675 fully loaded, but most people would have trouble distinguishing it from their sub-$50,000 offerings. That's a problem for someone who wants to show off, and that includes most people who spend this much money on a car.
Most Expensive Luxury Cars 2007