Simoncelli tops crash-strewn practice

Marco Simoncelli was quickest in opening free practice for the German Grand Prix at the Sachsenring, amid a string of crashes for leading riders. Championship leader Casey Stoner (Honda), his team-mate Dani Pedrosa, Ducati's Valentino Rossi and LCR Honda rider Toni Elias all lost control and fell at the downhill right-hander at Turn 11.

Sterling Burton Marlin Mark Anthony Martin Jeremy Allan Mayfield James Christopher McMurray

Kline Inaugural PIR Tour Modified Winner

Untamed Motorsports pulled into Phoenix International Raceway this past week fully prepared for Round Ten of 2011 Season Two of the NASCAR iRacing.com Tour Modified season. In the end, the team which focuses most of their time on the modified ranks on the online racing service came out with three of the top five spots with their team president taking the overall win. Shane Kline?s victory in the July 9th, 2541 sof race put the veteran sim racer to the top of the board for Week Ten with 159 points. Kline led 64 of the 75 laps at the one mile track and won the event by two and a half seconds over teammate Paul Wisniewski. Jamie Collier was third with Untamed?s Jerold John in fourth, just in front of fifth place finisher [...]

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Rumormill: Subaru to split WRX from rest of Impreza line, make it smaller

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Subaru WRX renderingSubaru unveiled its 2012 Impreza at the New York Auto Show in April, and upon seeing the new car's new shape, we instantly started to picture it with all of the hardcore WRX and STI bits (including gold wheels, of course). However, it might not be as simple as slapping on some bits and pieces to the Impreza body anymore. According to Motor Trend, a source within Subaru says that the next-generation WRX will be very different from its Impreza kin.

First and foremost, the name "Impreza WRX" as we know it may soon be defunct. Since Subaru is planning for the new 'Rex to be a greater departure from the Impreza-based cars that came before it, the car's nomenclature may simply change to solely "WRX" and "WRX STI." Fine, since that's what 90 percent of people call it, anyway.

In speaking to Motor Trend, a Subaru spokesperson said that, "Apart from a few nuts and bolts, every part on the WRX will be unique. Even the engine and body." From there, the source stated that while the WRX will use a version of the Impreza's platform, it will be "radically modified and significantly shortened." How short? A little bigger than a Toyota Yaris, Motor Trend reports. Yikes!

What's more, it looks like the WRX's turbocharged Boxer engine may lose some displacement, with the new car using a 1.6-liter unit capable of producing somewhere around 270 horsepower. A twin-charged (turbocharged and supercharged) version is also said to be under development.

Look for the next-generation WRX to land in 2014.

Subaru to split WRX from rest of Impreza line, make it smaller originally appeared on Autoblog 5.0 on Fri, 15 Jul 2011 13:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sterling Burton Marlin Mark Anthony Martin Jeremy Allan Mayfield James Christopher McMurray

McLaren duo back team to recover

McLaren duo Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button have backed their team to recover from its mid-season slump in form, after a troubling British Grand Prix weekend. With the outfit having slipped back from being Red Bull Racing's main challengers at the start of the campaign, Hamilton and Button have endured difficult times in recent races that has seen them fall away from runaway points leader Sebastian Vettel. Team principal Martin Whitmarsh admitted at Silverstone that the team's title hopes were now looking slim, and that its target was simply to get itself back into a position to win races later this campaign.

Toyota Kimmy Z Line Designs Toyota Parker Kligerman Trevor Bayne

Kenny Wallace, No. 09 RAB Racing with Brack Maggard Toyota Tundra New Hampshire Motor Speedway Preview

Kenny Wallace - Photo Credit: John Harrelson / Getty Images for NASCARCONCORD, N.C. (July 13, 2011) ? KENNY WALLACE, NO. 09 TOYOTA CAMRY, NEW ENGLAND 200, NEW HAMPSHIRE MOTOR SPEEDWAY Team:RAB Racing with Brack Maggard Car: No. 09 Toyota Camry Race 19 of 34: New England 200 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway Event Info: Saturday,...more»

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Subaru?s Motion-V Five-Year Plan Includes Three New Models, a Hybrid, and More Toyota Cooperation

As is customary for Japanese automakers, Subaru’s parent company Fuji Heavy Industries has released a five-year action plan outlining its goals for the near future. (You can read about Nissan and Infiniti?s similar plan, released last week.) Subaru?s plan, called Motion-V, covers new models, cooperation with Toyota, and sales goals, among other things. Three New [...]

Rupert Keegan Eddie Keizan Al Keller Joe Kelly