Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson puts rare Ferrari up for auction

Reggie Jackson, the Hall of Fame baseball player and long-time car collector, is selling one the most unique cars in his collection, a 1973 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Spyder. With chassis number 16835, Jackson’s car is among the rarest Ferrari models, and it will be one of the featured sale items at RM Auctions’ annual Automobiles of Arizona, Jan. 20-21, 2011 in Phoenix, Arizona. The Ferrari was also owned daredevil Evel Knievel, who died in 2007. The iconic motorcycle jumper sold the car to radio disc jockey Frankie Crocker after crashing while attempting to jump the fountains of Caesar’s Palace.

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Toyota, Honda claim top 2011 gas mileages, reports EPA

Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co. captured six of the U.S. government’s top 10 fuel-economy ratings for 2011 models, according to the Environmental Protection Agency and Energy Department. Toyota’s Prius hybrid remains country’s highest fuel mileage car with 51 mpg (city) and 48 mpg (highway) averages. Ford Motor Co., the only U.S. automaker to rate in the top 10, finished second with the Fusion, Mercury Milan and Lincoln MKZ hybrids. Honda finished in the third position with the Civic and Insight hybrids and in fourth with the CR-Z hybrid, according to the two agencies. Automakers selling models in the

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Consumers Digest awards 35 ‘best buy’ for 2011 models

Thirty-five 2011 vehicles and seven companion models have been selected from more than 250 models and received Best Buy ratings from Consumers Digest magazine. The ratings, published in the December issue (on sale now), span 12 categories: Subcompacts, Compacts, Family Cars, Luxury Cars, Sporty Cars, Full-size Pickups, Small Pickups, Minivans, Compact SUVs, Midsize SUVs, Full-size/Luxury SUVs and Hybrids. The Best Buys — based on behind-the-wheel assessment, safety ratings, ownership costs, warranty, price, comfort, ergonomics, styling and amenities — reflect the publication’s view the vehicles offering exceptional value. “Value, as we see it, is based on purchase price and ownership costs

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Honda CR-Z, 2011: The Weekly Driver Car Review

After various debuts in recent years at car shows around the globe, the 2011 Honda CR-Z (Compact Renaissance Zero) arrived for North American consumers in August as a compact hybrid electric and marketed as a sport hybrid coupe. The CR-Z combines a hybrid gasoline-electric powertrain and is the successor to the second generation Honda CR-X via its design and similar name. The CR-Z is the only gasoline-electric hybrid model offered by any automaker that can be equipped with a manual transmission. The new Honda is offered in three trim levels: base, EX, and EX with navigation and has a base

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Bugatti Type 57C leads top-10 most expensive auctioned car list

The automotive website MIBZ.com has compiled a unique car list. It’s a twist on the ever-evolving industry standard list of most expensive new cars. The offshoot list is the 10 most expensive cars sold at auction. The web site doesn’t elaborate how its list was compiled. Nonetheless, the list is a varied, stunning display of vehicles and some extraordinary prices. In all likelihood, the impetus for the list occurred in June when the price record was set in the sale a 1936 Bugatti Type 57C Atlantic, one of only three made, o an anonymous buyer for an estimated $30 million.

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Top Gear U.S. version set for debut on History Channel

The U.S.-based version of Top Gear, the globally popular U.K.-based comedic automotive program profiled on 60 Minutes and broadcast in more than 100 countries, will debut Nov. 21 on the History Channel. The 10-episode series is being made by BBC Worldwide Productions and, like its original namesake, will showcase an offbeat celebration of automobiles and driving. The show will be hosted by comedian Adam Ferrara, champion rally and drift racer Tanner Foust and racing analyst Rutledge Wood. The U.S. version will also feature “The Stig,” the faceless and non-speaking fourth  member of the hosting crew. The U.S. version of Top

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World Series: GM will debut Chevy Volt, Cruze campaign

The Super Bowl is the most prestigious and most expensive advertising avenue for automakers, but the World Series may be the second most important broadcast exposure opportunity. At least General Motors thinks it will be the best time to promote the Chevy Volt plug-in hybrid. The advertising campaign for the Volt, GM’s most touted new vehicle, will begin during the major league baseball’s pinnacle event and will be part of a broad campaign that Chevrolet will run throughout autumn, according to Joel Ewanick, GM’s marketing director. Ewanick said the ad “would remind viewers of Chevrolet’s nearly 100-year heritage and the

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Top Gear hits top speed on 60 Minutes

The segment was called “Top Gear: Zero to 60 Minutes.” It was a clever title for the 60 Minutes piece on one of the world’s most popular television programs. But as it does with other segments, the longstanding Sunday evening news show allows Internet visitors to view of the story on 60 Minutes Overtime. In the Top Gear overtime segment, CBS enticingly introduced the extended version. “Overtime goes over the top with the blokes behind the British car-show sensation ‘Top Gear.’ All the conversations, crashes, and humor that didn’t make the “60 Minutes” broadcast.” The video didn’t disappoint, and it’s

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Chevrolet Volt, 2011: General Motors’ radical new green machine

The new compact Chevrolet Volt hatchback sedan is the world’s first mass-produced electric vehicle with extended range. It’s the most radical  General Motors high-volume car since the 1960s Chevy rear-engine Corvair, which was virtually buried  by the then-new conventional Ford Mustang. The front-wheel-drive Volt is the most mass-produced aerodynamic car Chevrolet has made to get maximum fuel efficiency. One aerodynamic trick is giving the car a phony grille. Air is fed to the engine compartment via an “under-grille” scoop below the bumper. The futuristic aerodynamic 1960s Studebaker Avanti used the same type of air induction. Still, the Volt  drew few

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Rare Porsche models honored for automaker’s 60th anniversary

As part of its 60th anniversary celebration, Porsche Cars North America embarked on a quest to find the oldest Porsche sold in America via The Porsche Classic Search. It encouraged individuals to submit documentation their Porsche was one of the earliest in its category sold in the United States. With awards and bragging rights at stake, the entries are an impressive collection of finalists, including the oldest U.S.-retailed model found, a restored 1952 Strawberry Red 356 Cabriolet. Among the hundreds of submissions from Porsche owners across the country since last August was a rare 1952 356 Cabriolet owned by Dr.

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Toyota announces largest recall in history, 1.6 million cars with brake issues

Recalled plagued Toyota Motor Corp. has announced its latest and largest recall to date, this time 1.66 million Avalon and other vehicles, including Lexus models, for brake cylinder issues. The new recall includes the 2005 and 2006 Avalon sedan, 2004 through 2006 Highlander (the non-Hybrid model) and Lexus RX330 crossovers, and the 2006 Lexus GS300, IS250, and IS350 sedans. Additionally, the latest recall, mostly in Japan and the United States, comes less than two months after a recall in Canada and the United States of 1.3 million Corolla and Matrix cars. In that instance, the vehicle had defective engine control

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Suzuki Kizashi, 2011: The Weekly Driver Car Review

Now in its second model year as Suzuki‘s most expensive vehicle, the Kizashi is a value-priced sedan trying to find a niche in the crowded mid-sized segment. Its name in Japanese means “something great is coming.” What’s great about the Kizashi is that Suzuki is offering the vehicle in the near-luxury category with a top-of-the-line price ($25,000) that’s still about $5,000 less than the average price of a new car in the United States. Suzuki attracted a buzz when the car debuted a year as a cheap (but not cheaply built) alternative to an Audi 4. With a few exterior

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Super Bowl 2011: Cars.com joins GM among car-related advertisers

Cars.com has announced it will join GM among perhaps at a half-dozen automakers and other car-related companies advertising during Super Bowl XLV in 2011. A popular automotive site, Cars.com will return to the Super Bowl for the fourth straight year. It will debut two 30-second commercials, one each in third and fourth quarter of the Feb. 6 broadcast of FOX from Arlington, Texas. “The unique attention paid to Super Bowl ads ensures our messages are delivered,” said Carolyn Crafts, Cars.com vice president of marketing. “Our ad during last year’s Super Bowl reached more than 106 million viewers – the largest

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Electric car curious? Rent a LEAF, CODA or Renault from Avis, Enterprise, Budget soon

If you’re not quite sure if you want to buy an electric car, there’s an alternative to a test drive at a dealership — renting a Nissan Leaf, a Renault Fluence, Kangoo Express of CODA sedan. Depending up rental car company preference — Avis, Budget or Enterprise — and where in the world you live, several electric vehicles will soon be available for a business trip, vacation or for fun. Avis Budget Group, which also owns Budget Rent A Car, has ordered 500 Renault Fluence Z.E.’s and Kangoo Express Z.E.’s to rent in France, Spain, Belgium, England, Germany, and Portugal in

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Ferrari World iconic theme park set for early opening in Abu Dhabi

The much-talked about, long-anticipated Ferrari World, the world’s largest indoor theme park, will open Oct. 27 — one day earlier than expected — in Abu Dhabi, capital of the United Arab Emirates. Ferrari World is the only theme park dedicated to the renowned racing cars and features the world’s fastest roller coaster, Formula Rossa, which can hit top speeds of up to 150 mph. Ferrari World is home to 20 Ferrari-inspired rides, race simulators and attractions, all nicely package in the 2.2 million square floor edifice covered in famous Ferrari red and styling of a Ferrari GT. Ferrari may have

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GM recalls 300,000 Chevy Impalas for faulty seat belts

For the second time in two years, General Motors has investigated faulty seat belts in Chevrolet Impalas and this time the examination has resulted in a recall of more than 300,000 of the longstanding vehicle. The automaker said that in 2009 and 2010 Impalas, the front safety belt straps may not be not secured to the lap belt anchor pretensioner that is mounted on the side of the doors. Thus, passengers may not be properly protected. GM also said straps can separate from the anchor in a crash, no longer restraining the passenger. No injuries or deaths have been reported,

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