Car FYI

Photo Credit: Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images Johnson Equals The Intimidator’s Career Win Tally With Thrilling Atlanta Victory The second race of the 2016 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season was a drastically different affair compared to the Daytona 500 opener won by Denny Hamlin . Atlanta Motor Speedway’s Folds of Honor Quiktrip 500 was the season’s first use of new low-downforce aerodynamic rules on the stock cars. Differences in car handling and the aged surface of the oval track contributed to a very active race with plenty of competitive passing. Despite vehicles being less stable than in previously years, the 39-car field was slowed by only three cautions with the first coming out on lap 211. Ceasing on an advantage through short-pitting in a late stint to vault over the race-dominating vehicle of Kevin Harvick and Martin Truex Jr, the #48 Lowes Chevrolet piloted by Jimmie Johnson held an advantage of more than five seconds before a lap-324 caution resulting from a spinning #31

Photo Credit: Chris Nagy Last weekend, the 2016 edition of the Canadian International AutoShow concluded as an indoor automotive festival. Latest concept cars like the Toyota U Squared and new Canadian production vehicle introductions such as the Kia Niro Hybrid demonstrated the modern direction of the automobile. The auto show also remained mindful of where 21st century automobiles are rooted with the Art and the Automobile exhibit and auto racing fans delighted in the Indy 500 display. As the collection of new and old vehicles departed the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, the gaze of a record crowd left the automotive gathering left satisfied. From February 12th to February 21st, the 2016 Canadian International AutoShow tallied 320,651 visitors have attended the show. The attendance number is touted as the highest number ever in the TADA (Trillium Automobile Dealers Association) hosted event's 43-year history .“From the global and North American unveilings to the VIP visi

Photo Credit: Chris Nagy Hyundai appeals to the Canadian public to help find a special engineering exhibit that was stolen last week in Toronto. Part of the recently-concluded 2016 Canadian International AutoShow in the city, the Korean auto company's presentation consisted of an unfinished 2017 Elantra shown only in form of its SuperStructure. A display of the brand's commitment to more than doubling the amount of advanced high-strength steel (consuming up to 53 percent of its total composition) used in the new compact car's chassis, the SuperStructure of the 2017 Hyundai Elantra is said to perform with greater rigidity as well as provide a quieter, more comfortable ride quality. Captured on a surveillance camera, the theft of the Hyundai SuperStructure was carried out during the early morning hours at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre by three perpetrators. Fears are that the SuperStructure has been stolen by Hyundai competition in the goal to reverse engineer

Photo Credit: Ford Motor Company The blue oval brigade will gain a powerful, new ally for the 2017 NASCAR season. On Wednesday morning, Ford Performance (the motorsport and special vehicle arm of Ford Motor Company) announced the addition of Stewart-Haas Racing to their brand for next year's Cup Series. Stewart-Haas Racing has signed a multi-year deal with the auto company to field four Ford Fusion stock cars starting with the 2017 Daytona 500. “We are thrilled to be able to add a championship-level team like Stewart-Haas Racing to our Ford NASCAR program,” said Ford Motor Company's executive vice president and Chief Technical Officer Raj Nair. Stewart-Haas Racing will join Penske Racing, Richard Petty Motorsports, Roush Fenway Racing, Wood Brothers Racing and Front Row Motorsports as NASCAR Cup organizations to be gathered under the 2017 Ford line-up. Ford Fusion-bodied Stewart-Haas Racing cars will be supplied by the same Roush Yates Engines V-8 powerplants used by t

Photo Credit: Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images The first 200 laps of competition for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series 2016 season took place at the crown jewel of stock car racing. A facility recently renovated under the Daytona Rising initiative focused on greater fan comfort (a plan also including the reduction of seating from the 2014 capacity of over 145,000 to approximately 101,000), the track configuration contributing to high-speeds and multi-car drafting remained the same. This year's Daytona 500 saw the race decided in a matter of less than half the distance of the 2.5-mile track on the final lap. Before the Green Flag Since 1982, the Daytona 500 has been the stage to start of the Cup Series season. Ahead of the green flag for the 58th annual 500 mile race at the 2.5-mile Daytona International Speedway oval, several radical changes have been instituted for the new Sprint Cup Series season. A new charter team structure guarantees 36 teams will start every race this seas

Photo Credit: Aston Martin The Americas It seems James Bond is always running or chasing something. Piloting jet aircraft, boats, jet skis and even a lunar vehicle from a fabricated sound stage,  cars are the best known means of moving a world-saving spy  in whatever locale on the globe he lands. British luxury car maker Aston Martin owes their entire company image on their appearance in the movie franchise first with the DB5 and with subsequent models used over decades. Spectre, last year's continuation of the movie saga starring Daniel Craig playing British secret agent codenamed '007', contained a custom-made Aston Martin racing in high-suspense scenes. The Aston Martin DB10 was a hand-built sports car created specifically for the movie. A marriage of carbon fiber and aluminum, the alluring British vehicle is set in motion by a 4.7-liter V-8 engine and six-speed manual transmission permitting top speeds of 190 miles per hour. Despite being a world-renowned super s

Photo Credit:Chris Nagy It was another wild weather outing for me trekking down to Toronto on Thursday for what is one of the most special annual traditions for me. On the plus side this year, the worst temperature I endured was only -17 degrees Celsius instead of -23 degrees Celsius. You may ask me what propels someone to undertake foot travel when the vile force we call winter is at all might. The 2016 Canadian International AutoShow is the answer I proudly give. Since 2009, my devotion to automotive journalism has been rewarded with an advance viewing of some of the greatest new cars and special displays. Always logging around a healthy weight in equipment for what works out to be roughly ten hours of attendance at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, I return tired but incredibly fulfilled with what has been presented to me. Some would think ten hours is more than enough time to absorb all the information at a display for automobiles. I must beg the pardon of those i

Photo Credit: Tesla Motors Tesla Motors has repeatedly beaten odds for a start-up United States-based automaker. Specifically focused on the creation of electric vehicles, the California car builder overcame sceptics with their Roadster and later with the release of the Model S sedan. When the Tesla Model S would gain the honour of Motor Trend's Car of the Year in 2013 , the win of one of the most prestigious vehicle awards meant no one could afford to underestimate the electric car company. As soon as Tesla's buzz reached critical mass in the United States, the brand has expanded rapidly. In Canada, the electric vehicle's image has grown swiftly. Since Tesla's first Canadian sales store opened inside Toronto's Yorkdale Shopping Centre in 2012, addition locations in the Ottawa, Vancouver and Montreal area have spouted up. 17 of Tesla's Supercharger charging stations are also part of the electric car company's Canadian infrastructure. With such a bri

Photo Credit: Toyota Canada Inc. The Canadian International AutoShow always features a lively and eclectic group of automobiles. This year’s show pledges to offer the greatest of 2016 cars, trucks, vans, crossovers, and almost any other class of passenger vehicle on four wheels. Some of the most engaging concept vehicles also arrive in Toronto every year as a firsthand opportunity for Canadians of the great city to chart what progress is upcoming for automobiles. Many times attendees of the Canadian show are the first in the country to witness the bold and high-tech future but we face the reality that we are not the first public members to examine such designs. Sometimes automakers even send concept vehicles that were first displayed several years ago to Toronto. Having brought the i-Road, FV2 Concept and the Fun-VII to previous iterations of the Canadian International AutoShow, Toyota will embark on a fairly uncommon vehicle. As much as their concept design is striking amongst

The 2016 Canadian International AutoShow arrives this weekend promising to gather an assorted collection of automobiles. Before going into any depth with the 2016 edition of the Toronto exhibition, I wish to provide some enlightenment to the spirit of the event by profiling last year’s. While I was able to detail some of the content through articles and with videos on YouTube, I regret that I wasn’t able to write a full review of last year’s Canadian International AutoShow. I’ll sum it up by explaining that I simply froze. Last year’s media day for the Canadian International AutoShow corresponded with one of the coldest days of 2015. In my round-trip to the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, there was about 15 minutes I needed to walk outside. In the morning it was about -15 degrees Celsius and my trip back had me moving through temperatures of -25 degrees Celsius. Between that time, I was inside a convention space where lights and constant movement made it feel like a sauna. I a

Photo Credit: Ford Motor Company The words of The Simpsons character Helen Lovejoy “Won’t somebody please think of the children!” comes to mind in a recent browse on Ebay. Ahead of the 2016 North American International Auto Show in Detroit, I recalled a press release from Ford announcing a promotion with model builder Revell. Having built so many models as a kid and continuing to construct sets to this day, it’s a good feeling to see the pass time is still in existence. At the Detroit show, a custom-built scaled Snap Kit of the 2017 Ford GT was offered to a specific audience of younger automotive enthusiasts. “Letting kids build their own Ford GT is a great way to introduce them to the Ford brand and create new enthusiasts,” is part of what Ford Licensing manager Mark Bentley said ahead of the Revell Make n’ Take model kit program at the show. Unless a significant sum of kids have chosen to gain PayPal accounts and sell their specialized model kits in on-line auctions, I belie

Photo Credit: Chris Nagy When Billy Joel once sang that "Only the good die young", some could ponder if his words are prophetic to Toyota's experiment with a youth-driven brand. Bearing a name symbolizing an offspring or descendent, Scion was deliberately launched as a targeted method to court the Generation Y or Millennial automotive customer. After 13 years, Toyota's has announced plans to discontinue the Scion brand. A sudden announcement from the world's largest automaker, the move by Toyota is not unexpected. Since its launch in 2003, Scion has experienced varying success in the marketplace. Sale numbers for Scion have never arisen to expectations. Despite boasting well-equipped, practical vehicles and some compact performance spice with the Scion FR-S, the brand had trouble identifying with a large customer base. At the end of 2015 in the United States, the entire sum of Scion sales accounted for just 56,167 vehicles of Toyota's total of over 1.1

Photo Credit: Honda Considered the officially awakening of the North American, the staple Rolex 24 at Daytona sports car endurance event is a non-stop challenge placing some of the world's most exotic race cars and skilled drivers in a battle consumed within a 24-hour clock. At the end of the 2016 edition of the prestigious competition, the Daytona International Speedway was a sight of some intense action, heartbreak and some strong showings from some newer vehicles. Last year, a Ligier-powered Honda in the hands of Michael Shank Racing demonstrated pole-winning speed but lost the test of endurance over 24 hours. For 2016, the Ligier chassis and Honda engine went the distance in the hands of Tequila Patron ESM. The second fastest prototype entry after the sports car race's qualifying session, the black and green #2 car promptly took the lead on the first lap. Leading the 2016 Rolex 24 at Daytona's initial 26 laps, Tequila Patron ESM race car was a steady frontrunne