SEMA 2012: Google’s Driverless Toyota Prius

Posted on December 20, 2012 by Trevor Freeman

In March of 2004, the United States Department of Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) held a competition in the Nevada desert called the Grand Challenge. The purpose was to determine if an autonomous, driverless car could negotiate a 150-mile off-road course on its own. The prize? A cool one million dollars.

Fifteen teams representing Carnegie-Mellon University and a variety of privately funded teams competed in the Challenge. Each team had equipped their car with a multitude of cameras, sensors, GPS units, and onboard computers in addition to off-road tires and heavy-duty suspensions.

Not one of the fifteen vehicles completed the challenge.

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Spotted: 2012 Tesla Model S

Posted on December 19, 2012 by Trevor Freeman

What is the fastest American sedan you can buy today?

You might be surprised to learn that it’s not the twin-turbo Lincoln MK-S, the Dodge Charger SRT8 Super Bee, or even the mighty Cadillac CTS-V. The fastest American-made sedan is none other than the Tesla Model S – and it shuts these other cars down without using a drop of gasoline.

Just how quick is this car? Take a look at these figures:

2012 Tesla Model S P85
0-60: 3.9 seconds
1/4 Mile: 12.5 @ 110.9 mph¹

2013 Lincoln MK-S EcoBoost Twin Turbo AWD
0-60: 5.2 seconds
1/4 Mile: 13.9 @ 100.8 mph²

2012 Dodge Charger SRT8 Super Bee
0-60: 4.4 seconds
1/4 Mile: 12.8 @ 112.6 mph³

2009 Cadillac CTS-V Sedan
0-60: 4.3 seconds
1/4 Mile: 12.6 @ 114.6 mph⁴

With numbers like these, you can understand why I was ecstatic to see a Model S Signature in real life the other day at the Scottsdale Pavilions car show.

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A Festive Waste Of Finite Resources

Posted on December 16, 2012 by Mike Ross

Driving around at day, covered in Christmas lights, towing a boat with a first-generation Prius, in the heart of the city, nowhere near a lake. What a bizarre way to slowly waste a little tiny bit of gas.

Merry Christmas.

Report: 2013 Arizona International Auto Show

Posted on December 14, 2012 by Trevor Freeman

For me, Thanksgiving is about more than just turkey: it’s also about cars. Every year the Arizona International Auto Show comes to town on Thanksgiving weekend. This show features the newest vehicles from dozens of manufacturers. You can sit in them, play with the knobs, and there are no sales people anywhere. My favorite part is going on test drives!

Last year, I drove four different turbocharged cars as well as a Chevrolet Volt and a Camaro SS convertible. This year, I broke my old record and went on seven test drives in one day! The cars I drove are as follows:

2013 Ford Mustang GT 5.0
2013 Lincoln MK-S
2013 Chevrolet Volt
2013 Kia Optima SX Limited
2013 Subaru Legacy CVT
2013 Dodge Challenger V6
2013 Dodge Charger Super Bee
2013 Hyundai Equus Signature

I’d like to take a moment to talk about each one, but first I want to go over some thoughts from the Auto Show itself. Attendance seemed down this year, it didn’t seem to be as busy as last year.

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Dodge This

Posted on December 13, 2012 by Mike Ross

I have no solid information to offer you. All I know is that this half Dakota/half …60-ish D100 streaked past me on Cave Creek road today and I hardly had time to get a good look at it. The blurry photo pretty much accurately represents the the impression the truck made on my in person as well. If you are the owner of this truck, or know anything about it, feel free to fill us in on the details.

SEMA 2012: Fireball Robert’s #22 Ford Galaxie

Posted on December 12, 2012 by Cameron Tunstall

It’s hard to believe such a beautiful Ford Galaxie would mark one of the darkest years of racing history in America. The #22 Driven by NASCAR’s first great superstar driver: Fireball Roberts. A man who raced under Smokey Yunick’s Black and Gold paint from 1959 to 1962 and in that same 1962 occupied his non-NASCAR efforts driving Ferraris in endurance road course events. This man was not one of those moonshine-running, good ol’ boy stereotypes that NASCAR fans like to glorify. Instead he was a talented driver and a true athlete.