Alguersuari surprised at exit from Toro Rosso

Spanish driver Jaime Alguersuari said he is very surprised by Toro Rossos decision to drop him for the 2012 Formula One season. Alguersuari said Thursday that team principal Franz Tost and adviser Helmut Marko had as recently as Monday told me to insist on our 2012 project in F1. Toro Rosso announced two days later that Daniel Ricciardo of Australia and Jean-Eric...

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Chevy Volt Hysteria: We?re All Going to Die! Or, An Application of Facts and Rationality to Flaming Batteries and Melting Chargers

One can learn a lot from history. When gasoline-fueled motor cars began roaming streets (and their proxies) in great numbers at the beginning of the 20th century, fuel tanks were thought to be ready to burst into flames if looked at sideways, and gasoline run-off was blamed for sewer explosions. Such fear and misinformation prompted [...]

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What I?d Do Differently: Henrik Fisker Interviewed

Designer, coachbuilder, and principal of an eponymous startup, Fisker, 48, tells us which Aston Martins he penned, what he wouldn?t sell for a billion dollars, and how he?s not like John DeLorean. C/D: Let?s start at the beginning. You began working at BMW on a car that was pretty prescient considering how your career has [...]

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Tickets for 2012 Race Season at Infineon Raceway On-Sale Dec. 15

Infineon RacewaySONOMA, Calif. (Dec. 14, 2011) ? Infineon Raceway officially opens its ticket office on Thursday, Dec. 15, for the 2012 Big O Tires Racing Season, highlighted by the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series, IZOD IndyCar® Series and AMA Pro Road Racing. It?s one of the most comprehensive motor-racing schedules...more»

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Report: Toro Rosso ditches its drivers for fresh talent in 2012

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Vergne and Ricciardo

Many eyebrows were raised when Red Bull jumped from sponsoring existing F1 teams to buying its own 2005, but then the energy-drink giant surprised the pundits again by buying an unprecedented second team in 2006. So why'd they do it? To give the aspiring talents, which the outfit nurtures through its extensive young driver development program, a leg up into the pinnacle of motorsport.

That's what has prompted Scuderia Toro Rosso to change its drivers from time to time, but it usually does so one driver at a time. But the upcoming season marks a drastic change for the team, which has just dumped its current drivers in favor of an entirely fresh line-up.

In the place of Jaime Alguersuari and Sebastien Buemi, STR will be fielding newcomers Daniel Ricciardo and Jean-Eric Vergne for the 2012 championship. Both are known entities among Toro Rosso's engineers, having tested for the team previously: Ricciardo as the team's official back-up driver, and Vergne as the team's nominee for the Abu Dhabi young driver test this season.

Australia's Ricciardo also drove eleven races this season for HRT, and both he and France's Vergne are former champions of the British Formula Three series. As for Alguersuari and Buemi, well, they both drove admirably these past few seasons, but with months still to go before the start of the new season, hopefully they'll find drives elsewhere.

Toro Rosso ditches its drivers for fresh talent in 2012 originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 16 Dec 2011 08:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Teased: Hyundai teases I-oniq concept for Geneva

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Hyundai I-oniq teaser

Hyundai has decided to drop a little gift ahead of the 2012 Geneva Motor Show. Yes, we said Geneva, which means this teaser comes a full three months before the curtains drop on its official debut.

In any case, the Korean automaker says the I-oniq "will preview the next evolution of the brand's 'fluidic sculpture' form language," and that its two strong arched curves create "a playful contrast between the sharp character lines and soft but muscular features." Who are we to argue?

Based on this image alone, it's hard to say whether this is a hatchback, a shooting brake, a crossover of sorts or even a four-door coupe in the vein of the Mercedes-Benz CLS. See an enlarged version of the teaser by clicking on the image above, and stay tuned for more information on the Hyundai I-oniq as we get closer to its Geneva debut.

Continue reading Hyundai teases I-oniq concept for Geneva

Hyundai teases I-oniq concept for Geneva originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 15 Dec 2011 11:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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iRacing Pro Race of Champions Gets Green Flag Wednesday

Real World Pros Meet in the Virtual World The green flag waves on the inaugural iRacing.com Pro Race of Champions (iPRoC) this Wednesday, December 14.  Make that two green flags, as top professional race drivers from around the world will compete in a pair of online races Wednesday evening, both of which will be broadcast on www.iRacing.com/live beginning at 8 pm EST. The first event will see the Pros racing their digital Chevrolet Silverados for 25 laps under the lights on iRacing?s virtual version of Charlotte Motor Speedway. In the ?night cap,? the Pros will tackle Watkins Glen International?s Cup Course for ten laps in their Mazda MX5s. More than two dozen professional race drivers are expected to compete in Wednesday?s races including NASCAR Sprint Cup champion Bobby Labonte, GRAND-AM [...]

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