Enjoy sweet ride in automotive history

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Click photo to enlargeAmericans often wonder why the world seems to dislike them. Frankly, having been on the outside as well as the inside of this problem as an Englishman, I cheerfully can say I’m sure most of it is envy. For so many years, America seemed to have it so good, while the rest of us struggled.

You had Chevys and Cadillacs, we had Morris Minors. Even the name was demeaning.

One had to climb out of the working classes, who until the ’60s mostly used public transport, in order to get decent automobiles, and then they still were often rather strange.

Recently I visited the Riverside International Automotive Museum and ran headfirst into an old friend from back then – a 1951 Riley.

In the late ’50s, I borrowed one of these cars from a friend on a few occasions and still remember what an odd experience it was.

Riley was bought out by British Motor Corporation in the early ’60s and it was kept alive for a few years, but its uniqueness disappeared once the papers were signed. It became, along with Wolseley, solely a badge on the front of a more ordinary BMC car.

The original had a pre-selector gear box – the same as London’s buses at the time. You moved the gear lever into position but it didn’t change until you depressed the clutch. Nearly every car in the UK at the time was stick-shifted and this was a sort of halfway point before automatics came in. Incidentally, you have to specify automatic if you rent a car over there today, so be warned or relearn the art of toe and heel!

Like all the vehicles on show in this spacious museum in Riverside, the Riley 2 liter is in immaculate condition, maroon paintwork gleaming and chrome shining under the lights. I would have liked to take it for a spin around the block.

The museum is owned by Doug Magnon and his father, who have been car buffs all their lives. “We have the same design logo as the Riverside Raceway, which closed in 1988,” he said.

“We also have the largest collection of Maseratis on the West Coast.”

In fact the museum is a real gem for those interested in exotic cars from all over the world. When asked which one he would try to save in the event of a catastrophe, Magnon pointed to a Maserati MC 12, which is valued “at well into seven figures.” I hoped it would start under those circumstances, I thought to myself rather irreverently.

I ran into another old friend, a Jaguar Mark Ten. This was produced by Jaguar before they were bought and sold a few times later on in their lives. Ford even had a go running the company once.

The Mk X was not considered a great car back in the UK. It seemed rather bulbous and boat-like for the narrow roads and streets.

However, it now looked an elegant and gleaming vehicle, and I wondered what had happened to my tastes. “It fits into American design much more,” Magnon said. Perhaps my eyes have become more accustomed to such things now, as I liked the car very much and remembered traveling in one on a number of occasions.

If you’re curious about the upper end of the European automobile market, or just want to familiarize yourself with these fine cars, then you will find a visit to the Riverside International Automotive Museum an interesting experience; and you might run into some old friends.

Check out Trevor Summons’ blog at www.trevorsummons.blogspot.com. And visit his website, www.trevorsummons.com

Article source: http://www.sgvtribune.com/living/ci_20665516/enjoy-sweet-ride-automotive-history

Second Autofest on June 2 at JAA

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Vehicle care and maintenance services, as well as driver-improvement simulations and training, are among the main features of the 2012 Autofest Auto Fair. It will be held at the Jamaica Automobile Association’s (JAA) headquarters, 7 Central Avenue, Swallowfield, St Andrew, on Saturday, June 2.

Autofest, which will be held under the theme ‘Car Care for Safe Motoring’, was first staged last year and received positive responses from the more than 300 persons who benefitted from the event.

Duane Ellis, general manager of the JAA, said the fair will once again be staged in collaboration with the Insurance Association of Jamaica (IAJ) and will offer vehicle inspections, valuations and diagnostics, as well as washes and general cleaning.

“With the participation of the IAJ, Autofest will also place emphasis on road safety and accident prevention with exhibits that will highlight some of the hazards of driving, including speeding,” Ellis pointed out.

A simulator

Among the new features that have been added to Autofest are driver-improvement simulations and training, which will be open to patrons. “We will be using a simulator to allow persons to test their driving skills and provide suggestions on how they can make improvements,” Ellis explained.

Orville Johnson, executive director of IAJ, pointed out that Autofest provides an opportunity for the insurance industry “to give back and educate the public on the importance of keeping their vehicles properly maintained”.

“Buying a vehicle is the second most important purchase most persons will make, and it is important that they work to maintain the value of the car and learn to drive safely,” Johnson stated.

As part of the JAA’s support of the UN Decade of Action for Road Safety campaign, special focus will also be placed on safe road use by children and the promotion of behaviour change as it relates to drunk driving.

Ellis added that JAA Show Your Card and Save discount partners and other affiliates will showcase their products and services at Autofest 2012.

“The very popular used car flea market will also be brought back to facilitate car owners who are seeking a quick sale,” he explained. More than 10 vehicles were sold on the spot, at the 2011 flea market.

Autofest is open to members of the general public, and is free of cost for to all in attendance.

Article source: http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20120520/auto/auto51.html

Carmakers adding Internet devices despite safety concerns of feds

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Drivers, start your cars and fire up your Wi-Fi. And please don’t crash while tweeting or making dinner reservations on the interstate.

That’s the message from automakers that want to sell lots of vehicles enabled for Wi-Fi, Facebook and Twitter and drown out critics warning of a catastrophe on the nation’s roads as driver distractions proliferate.

Volkswagen AG’s Audi brand calls itself the first luxury carmaker to offer in-vehicle access to Wi-Fi and Google Earth. “Google it,” it’s telling customers in advertisements if they want to know more. Nissan Motor Co., General Motors Co. and Ford Motor Co. are embracing in-car systems that access Google, Facebook and Twitter.

“If the auto manufacturers focused as much on safety as they do on marketing their products, we would save a lot of lives,” National Transportation Safety Board Chairman Deborah Hersman, who advocates a ban on in-car mobile phone use even with hands-free devices, said in an interview.

These Web-enabled cars are hitting showrooms as U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood pushes guidelines, on which comments are due tomorrow, to quell in-dash distractions behind the wheel. The guidelines recommend that no task for drivers take longer than two seconds and that cars be stopped and in park before users can enter navigation commands or use social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter.

Eyes on road

The guidelines stop short of recommending limits on devices. That has allowed automakers to praise LaHood’s intent to protect drivers while adding and marketing what critics say are potentially distracting features.

LaHood still said last week that automakers must ensure drivers’ eyes stay on the road.

“When you’re behind the wheel of a car, anything that takes your eyes off the road or your hands off the wheel can be deadly,” he said in an e-mailed statement. “We don’t have to choose between safety and technology, but while these devices may offer consumers new tools and features, automakers have a responsibility to ensure they don’t divert a driver’s attention away from the road.”

LaHood praised Subaru, a unit of Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd., and Bayerische Motoren Werke AG after they made television commercials urging people not to use mobile phones while driving.

MyFord Touch

The stakes are high. In 2010, 3,092 people — or 9.4 percent of road fatalities — were killed in crashes related to driver distraction, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The National Safety Council, an Itasca, Ill.-based advocacy group, said the number is “considerably higher” because not all crashes involving driver distraction are counted. The council estimates mobile phone use is a cause in about 24 percent of crashes.

Companies say they are striving to ensure their electronics are easy to use and that their cars remain safe for drivers. Ford, whose MyFord Touch and MyLincoln Touch infotainment systems were panned by Consumer Reports magazine in February for being too hard to use, said it’s devising more ways of bringing Facebook into its cars.

“Our engineers have also been working with Facebook engineers to develop unique and safer ways of integrating the car experience with Facebook,” Jay Cooney, a Ford spokesman, said in an emailed statement.

Voice recognition

The Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, whose members include BMW and Volkswagen, points to its own distraction guidelines published in 2002 and updated in 2006 as evidence that it’s responding to LaHood’s concerns. The guidelines specify limits on how long a driver’s eyes may be averted from the road to accomplish a task in the vehicle such as entering an address in a global positioning system.

Voice recognition is part of the solution, GM Chief Executive Officer Dan Akerson said on May 14 in an interview at Bloomberg headquarters in New York.

The new Cadillac User Experience, which will be in the XTS sedan, will have an iPad-like feel and take some initial steps into voice control features that will grow over time, Akerson said.

“When you look at the average car, and we’re guilty of it and so are all of our competitors, you’ve got too many buttons,” Akerson said.

Manufacturers are developing systems designed to keep drivers’ eyes on the road and hands on steering wheels, said Wade Newton, a spokesman for the Washington-based Alliance.

‘Ravenous Appetite’

Drivers will keep using electronic devices, he said.

“They’re going to do those things whether it’s through the vehicle or through a handheld electronic that they bring with them in the car, and those are devices that were never designed to be used while in an auto,” Newton said.

When automakers include such options in cars and regulators allow it, there’s a tacit message that they’re safe to use, said Rob Reynolds, executive director of FocusDriven, an anti-distracted driving group.

“They only serve to feed an already ravenous appetite for distracted driving,” Reynolds said in an interview. “It’s like putting a filter on a very large cigarette and giving people the impression that it might make smoking that cigarette safe.”

The automakers’ focus on hands-free devices diverts from the point that any in-dash technology may be distracting, said John Ulczycki, group vice president at the National Safety Council.

No Hands-Free

“And now they’ve got things with Internet connectivity where you can make your phone into a wireless router and you can watch videos,” said Ulczycki, who testified on behalf of his organization at a hearing on LaHood’s distracted driving guidelines.

“It’s just crazy all the things that they’re enabling people to do in their car,” he said. “It’s very concerning.”

The Safety Council called for banning all phone use, including hands-free, in January 2009, almost three years before Hersman did. The NTSB, an independent agency that makes safety recommendations, hasn’t taken a position on in-dash systems or global-positioning devices.

The back and forth between the regulator and the regulated echoes earlier auto-safety campaigns, for seat belts and air bags, said Henry Jasny, general counsel for Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety.

“It took a long time to get the political motivation and the manufacturers behind putting seat belts in vehicles,” said Jasny, who has worked in auto-safety advocacy for 25 years.

While safety groups have been talking about distracted driving since the 1990s, when phones began to proliferate in cars, LaHood made the issue U.S. government policy by holding two forums and numerous press conferences since he assumed his post in 2009. He’s created a video series called “Faces of Distracted Driving” featuring families who have lost a loved one to distracted driving crashes.

Article source: http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20120520/AUTO01/205200305/1121/auto01/Carmakers-adding-Internet-devices-despite-safety-concerns-of-feds

Clean Cars of America Announces New Website

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Clean Cars of America, LLC

We wanted the web site to show that we are an experienced and distinguished company by providing visuals on our workmanship.

Nashville, Tenn. (PRWEB) May 20, 2012

To place stronger emphasis on their dedication to helping car owners retaining their vehicle’s aesthetic appeal, Clean Cars of America has joined with web design and development company Horton Group to launch a revamped website. The new website is visually stimulating with a gallery full of high resolution pictures. Images highlight the cleaning and restoration process along with the detail work they have done on automobiles of all kinds, plus not to mention aircraft at the Museum of Flight in Seattle, Wash.

“One of the most important features of the new site was giving the Clean Car Staff the ability to add content,” said Horton designer Corey Lamp. “This particular site was designed on the Drupal content management system, which makes it easier for site administrators to add new content and update the image gallery.”

A new blog section was added to give website visitors a better understanding of the Clean Cars of America’s services and a insider look into the automotive detailing industry. Another added convenience is the website’s wide open navigation. Drop-down menus link visitors to a detailed listing of services such as: plastics restoration, exterior tar removal and interior sealing protection. Pricing for all of their corporate and personal vehicle detailing services are included on the website. The automotive detail professionals have also added original copies of customer testimonials to the a section of the website.    

Clean Cars of America has detailed some of the most valuable vehicles in the Tennessee region. Their reputation for excellence has led them to work on some of the largest of projects like the original Air Force One presidential jet. They have a professionally certified staff of automotive detail specialist with a commitment to their craft.

“The Governor of the State of Tennessee is one amongst are many satisfied clients,” stated project manager Terrance Dunnavant. “We wanted the web site to show that we are an experienced and distinguished company by providing visuals on our workmanship. In every service we offer we consistently do what it takes to be number one.”

For more information on Clean Cars of America’s services contact them at, 888-752-5326 or dunn(at)cleancarsofamerica(dot)com.

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Article source: http://www.prweb.com/releases/2012/5/prweb9524098.htm

Avid automobile fans gather at Carlisle Import & Kit Nationals – Patriot

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Car restoration is about recapturing youth and connecting with the past.

Row upon row of meticulously maintained and slavishly serviced foreign classics gracing the Carlisle Fairgrounds this weekend aren’t mere automobiles.

Carlisle Import Kit Nationals 2012

What’s really on display at the Carlisle Import Kit Nationals show is memories that move.

History that can still break speed limits.

Time itself on riding on four wheels.

Behind every mint Mercedes, each fine-as-wine Fiat, the vintage Volvos, the blast-from-the-past BMWs and the rare but futuristic Citroen coups are years of pain-staking work. And a story.

This is car culture at its most intimate.

It’s a throwback to the days when car companies across the globe competed, not based on sticker price or fuel economy, but rather on original, breath-taking design and styling, along with plenty of power and punch under the hood.

Recent stories have suggested that Americans, especially younger generations, are losing their love affair with the automobile.

Virile V-8 engines, performance carburetors and fuel injection are no longer the technologies that capture kids’ imagination. Rather, it’s video games, smartphones and iPads.

“Today, you’ve got the Playstations and the computers,” laments Jeff Chao of Bennington, Vt., who was at the show hawking subscriptions to Hemmings Motor News, the auto restorer’s bible.

And while the motor magazine remains strong, with a healthy 500,000 print circulation, its demographics are decidedly older. One reason? There’s just not much about most of today’s cars to excite young people to tear apart their Hondas, Toyotas and Kias.

“The cars are all run by computers, and they’re plastic,” Chao scoffs. “Back in the old days, you could pop the hood, turn a couple of bolts, and you were good to go work on the engine.”

These days, a teen or twentysomething is more apt to play at building a “virtual” car on his computer, rather than soil his hands with grease.

“You can buy a video game and build your own car and never turn a wrench or pay anything,” Chao says.

Among the many veteran car show vendors is Russ Angstadt of Myerstown. He’s been selling here as long has there has been a car show.

But instead of trafficking in spare parts, the lifeblood of shows devoted to rare and restored cars, he hawks little car models.

To the untrained eye, they are toys. To collectors, they are 1-43rd- and 1-18th-scale die-cast models of vintage rides. And they are expensive.

Angstadt’s prices range from $30 all the way up to $1,000 or more for some of his oldest and rarest models. But given the appeal of these models as toys, one might think his tent store would attract the younger set.

Yet, all those fawning over items such as the 2008 Indy pace car Corvette look to be 40 and up.

Still, Angstadt isn’t giving up on the younger generation. Just yesterday, he had a 10-year-old prowling around what he calls his “tins.” They are among the oldest and rarest models he carries. They boy’s dad reported that the youngster has amassed a considerable collection.

It reminded Angstadt of how he grew to a lifetime of admiring automobiles. He began making the rounds at flea markets with his father just as soon as he could walk. He sold his first car parts long before he could drive.

Now, at 60, he’s seen auto shows evolve as collectors age into their passions.

When he first started attending shows, lawns were lined with classics from the 1920s and 30s. Now those vehicles are relegated to museums, as today’s collectors turn to the cars of their youth. Thus, the plethora from the 60s, 70s and 80s on display.

In 30 years, Angstadt wouldn’t put it past a collector to restore a Prius.

“If you can still buy a battery for it, sure,” he said. “It’s going to evolve. You’d be surprised.”

The common denominator for most collectors: Nostalgia, emotion and personal connection.

Obsessed Baby Boomer car buffs manage to track down the very first car they ever drove. Not just the same year, make and model, mind you. But the exact same car. They restore it to the full glory from their own memory.

Others preserve their late father’s beloved ride, that beautiful cream puff a kid remembers his dad buffing as if it were Aladdin’s lamp.

This is automobile as living legacy, an inheritance to literally drive down memory lane.

Some capture the car they wish they had when they were 17. Better late than never.

What these vintage vehicles all have in common is the remarkable fidelity and attention to detail with which they have been refurbished. The goal of auto restoration purists isn’t to soup up or embellish, but rather to re-create as it would have rolled off the assembly line so many decades before.

To do this, the task of finding parts turns into scrapyard treasure hunts. The Internet has made tracing sparse spare part much easier, but many restoration junkies consider this cheating. It robs them of the challenge of the hunt and the thrill of the find.

True restoration is something that should not be rushed. It’s to be savored.

It took Ronald Keenen nearly five years to gloriously restore his 1960 Fiat 500 Autobianchi. During those years of restricted weekend leisure, he often promised his wife, Holly, that both they and the car would have their day in the sun.

Now, basking in their second Carlisle auto show, the couple smile from the shade of a pop-up shelter as spectators ooh and awe over their rare car, reborn.

“It’s perfect,” gushed Paul Salomoni of Bridgeport, Conn. “It’s unbelievable.”

For the Keenens of Lancaster County, such praise is the perfect reward. Because it comes from car lover to car lover.

“It makes it all worth while,” says Ronald Keenen, 54. “All the hard work. That’s what I enjoy doing — bringing them back as close as possible to what they were.”

Three generations and a parking space.

That’s what it is for Mark Adams, his son, Kyle, and their family heirloom — a gleaming silver 1972 Citroen SM. The very same car Mark’s father and Kyle’s grandfather purchased new, owned proudly and loved dearly.

The family patriarch is gone now, but his car endures. It’s a family fixture now, despite an 18-year-old detour when Mark needed to focus on raising his children, not keeping up with a fussy French classic with a Maserati engine.

“I didn’t have the money to put into it, and I didn’t want it to rot,” says Mark, 51, explaining his decision to part with the car his father had gifted him.

Luckily, he sold it to a friend, who not only restored the vehicle, but offered Mark the chance to buy it back in 2008. Some $30,000 later, another father and son are bonding over the car.

“To have it back; it’s like having a family member back,” gushes Mark.

Kyle, 21, comes with his father to auto shows. On the six-hour drive from North Stonington, Conn., riders in other cookie-cutter cars whip out smartphone to snap pictures of this alien automobile.

Virtually none of Kyle’s other friends has ever had such an experience. Cars mean little more to them than basic transportation. The idea of a three-generation legacy on wheels is as foreign as the ground-breaking French automobile that captured his grandfather’s imagination so many years ago.

And one day, it will be his — to love, safeguard and pass on.

“It’s the connection,” Kyle explains of the Citroen’s centrality in his family. “It’s the family history of the car. My grandfather drove this car, and he gave it to his son. And now I’m driving it. My friends don’t have that. Their dads don’t have a car to take to a car show.”

Article source: http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2012/05/avid_automobile_fans_gather_at.html

Harness racing briefs

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Suspicious fire in Southland hotel

Highlanders hang tough to beat the Bulls

Firebirds hold off valiant Southern Steel

Sports Roundup

Liquor outlets named, shamed

The rewarding life of a St John volunteer

Southern boy tops booze readings

Editorial: Better than nothing

Hansen crowned as cycling salutes successes

Sharks hope for bright end to dismal season

Axemen sharpen their tools and wits for challenge

Councillor throws her hat in ring for deputy mayor’s job

Britain’s amateur titles lure for McCall

Knee injury puts Tairi on sidelines

Vikings manage to get job done

Article source: http://www.stuff.co.nz/southland-times/sport/racing/6954895/Harness-racing-briefs

Jack Daniel’s racing confirms endurance driver line-up

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Tim Blanchard and David Russell will join regular Jack Daniel’s Racing drivers Todd and Rick Kelly for September’s Sandown 500 and Australia’s Great Race, the Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 in October.

Blanchard will step aboard the #7 Holden to partner Todd Kelly, with Russell to share the #15 Commodore of Rick Kelly.

Both drivers are already part of the Jack Daniel’s Racing endurance fabric, with Russell having co-driven Todd Kelly in 2011, while Blanchard drove the #16 Kelly Racing entry alongside former driver David Reynolds.

Russell currently drives in the Dunlop V8 Series with Kelly Racing’s Dreamtime Racing and he stepped aboard the Pepsi Max Crew Commodore in Tasmania to substitute for Greg Murphy, who missed that race with a back injury. Blanchard also races in the Dunlop series as part of MW Motorsport.

Both drivers will take part in the designated co-drivers’ only practice session, as well as the next practice on Friday at this weekend’s Phillip island 300.

Todd and Rick Kelly will then take over the cars for the final Friday session, ahead of the weekend’s practice, qualifying and races at Phillip Island.

The Phillip Island 300 will be run exclusively on the hard Dunlop race tyre; something that both Kelly brothers are looking forward to at a track they rate as one of the best in the V8 Supercars Championship.

 

Rick Kelly – Speaking about David Russell

 

“He knows us very well and knows the equipment as well,” said Rick Kelly.

 

“It’s very important in the endurance races to have a driver that is either doing the Dunlop Series or doing a lot of racing.

 

“We’re confident that it’s a pairing that is a very strong one and a combination that can win the endurance races.”

 

Rick Kelly – Speaking about Phillip Island this weekend

 

“I’m excited about having just the hard tyre this weekend,” said Rick Kelly.

 

“It gives us some consistency not having to worry about setting the car up for two different types of tyre.

 

“The soft tyre has shown that if you put it on the wrong time you can fire backwards at a million miles an hour if you don’t look after it very well.

 

“It’s a track we love as well and I believe we are better suited to the hard tyre and it should produce some great racing on this circuit.”

 

Todd Kelly – Speaking about Tim Blanchard

 

“I’m rapt to have Tim Blanchard on-board this year,” said Todd Kelly.

 

“He did a great job for our Kelly Racing operation last year and really surprised us with not only his pace, but also his consistency and most importantly in endurance racing, his reliability and how he looked after the car.

 

“It will be good to get him in my car this weekend for at least two practice sessions and for me to really sit back and watch how he goes about it.

 

“I’m sure he will offer plenty for us later in the year, but also this weekend he will add to our efforts in getting the car dialled in for the Phillip Island races.

 

Todd Kelly – Speaking about Phillip Island this weekend

 

“It’s good to get back to Phillip Island and race on the type of circuit that I really enjoy,” said Todd Kelly.

 

“We have been to a lot of street circuits this year with fairly slow speed corners at a lot of those tracks.

 

“So to get on a track where you can really open the cars up on the hard tyre I’m sure will produce some pretty cool racing.

 

“We normally go well here and certainly traditionally better than the tracks we have been to recently. So hopefully this is a round where we get a few points for both Jack Daniel’s Racing cars and Rick and I move up the standings.”

 

David Russell – Speaking about driving with Rick Kelly

 

“It’s great to be back in the JD garage that is for sure,” said David Russell.

 

“It’s good to have that continuity. I have been in the cars before, but obviously a switch this year to partner Rick which is something I am relishing.

 

“I get a feel for the car as there has been some changes since Bathurst last year and the guys have been working on some developments, so I’m really looking forward to this weekend at Phillip Island.”

 

Tim Blanchard – Speaking about driving with Todd Kelly

 

“It’s just fantastic to be in the same organisation for two years in a row and gives everyone some continuity,” said Tim Blanchard.

 

“To be representing a brand like Jack Daniel’s is a great opportunity for me.

 

“This weekend is all about getting a base setup for Todd to use for the rest of the meeting.

 

“It also gives me the opportunity to get used to driving one of the Kelly Racing cars against a full field of V8s.”

 

 

Tim Blanchard – #7 Jack Daniel’s Holden Commodore

 

Date of Birth: 21/06/1987

Place of Birth: Melbourne, Vic

Lives: Melbourne, Vic

Marital Status: Single

Height: 178cm

Weight: 78kg

Nickname: Timmy or TB

Hobbies Interests: Snowboarding, Tennis Karting

 

Current Series: Dunlop V8 Supercar Series with MW Motorsport

 

2011 Endurance Race results (with David Reynolds in Car #16)

2011 LH 500 Driver B Qualifying: 12th

2011 LH 500 Driver B Qualifying Race: 19th

2011 LH 500 Finish: 6th

2011 Bathurst 1000 Qualifying: David Reynolds qualified Car #16 in 7th

2011 Bathurst 1000 Race: 19th (with David Reynolds in Car #16)

 

V8 Supercar Championship Series Results:

Debut: 2011 (with David Reynolds in Car #16)

Best Qualifying: 12th – 2011 Driver B-Qualifying, LH 500

Best Race Finish: 6th (2011 LH 500 with David Reynolds in Car #16)

Podium Finishes: Nil

Top 10 Finish in Race: 1 (LH 500 – 2011)

Podium Finishes: Nil

 

David Russell – #15 Jack Daniel’s Holden Commodore:

 

Date of Birth: 04/01/1982

Place of Birth: Casino, NSW

Lives: Brisbane, Qld

Marital Status: Married

Height: 176cm

Weight: 72kg

Nickname: Coighty

Hobbies and Interests: Extreme Sports, Water Skiing, Motocross

 

Current Series: Dunlop V8 Supercar Series with Dreamtime Racing

 

2011 Endurance Race results (with Todd Kelly in Car #7):

2011 LH 500 Driver B Qualifying: 18th

2011 LH 500 Driver B Qualifying Race: 20th

2011 LH 500 Finish: 14th (with Todd Kelly in Car #7)

2011 Bathurst 1000 Qualifying: Todd Kelly qualified Car #7 in 19th

2011 Bathurst 1000 Race: 24th (with Todd Kelly in Car #7)

 

V8 Supercar Championship Series Results:

Debut: 2003 (with Jose Fernandez)

Best Qualifying: 25th – Symmons Plains 2012 (in Car #11 deputising for Greg Murphy)

Best Race Finish: 14th (2011 LH 500 with Todd Kelly in Car #7)

Podium Finishes: nil

Top 10 Finish in Race: nil

NB: Won pole position and both races in the Fujitsu V8 Supercars Series round at Bathurst in 2010 and won Class B in 2011 Bathurst 12 Hour.

 

 

 

2012 V8 Supercars Championship after nine of 29 races

 

1. Jamie Whincup 1095 points

2. Will Davison 1066

3. Mark Winterbottom 935

4. Craig Lowndes 779

5. Lee Holdsworth 737

6. Shane van Gisbergen 695

7. Fabian Coulthard 694

8. Tim Slade 681

9. Garth Tander 618

10. Rick Kelly 571

12. Todd Kelly 507

 

PHILLIP ISLAND DETAILS:

 

Circuit: Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit

Location: Phillip Island, Victoria

Circuit Length: 4.445 kilometres

 

Format:

 

Friday: 2 x 30min 2 x 20min practice sessions

Saturday: 1 x 30min practice, 1 x 20min qualifying 1 x 32 lap race

Sunday: 1 x 30min practice, 1 x 20min qualifying 1 x 45 lap race

 

Tyres: Hard tyres

 

2011 Results:

Note: the 2011 race was a 500km endurance event

 

2011 Qualifying Pole Winner: Will Davison/Luke Youlden

2011 Race Winner: Mark Skaife/Craig Lowndes

 

WEEKEND SCHEDULE

The times below are AEST

 

Friday, May 18:

Practice 0: 11.40am – 12.10pm (Co-drivers only)

Practice 1: 1.10pm – 1.40pm (Lower 50% of grid only)

Practice 2: 2.20pm – 2.40pm (All)

Practice 3: 2.55pm – 3.15pm (All)

 

Saturday, May 19:

Practice 4: 10.10am – 10.40am

Qualifying Race 10: 1.25pm – 1.45pm

Race 10: 4.05pm – 5.15pm (32 laps/140km)

 

Sunday, May 20:

Practice 5: 10.05am – 10.35am

Qualifying Race 11: 1.00pm – 1.20pm

Race 11: 3.40pm – 5.15pm (45 laps/200km)

 

TELEVISION SCHEDULE

Times subject to amendment, please check local guides:

 

Seven Network 7Mate

 

Saturday, May 19:

12.00pm – 3.30pm Qualifying Race 10 (Perth) 7Mate

1.30pm – 5.00pm Qualifying Race 10 (Adelaide) 7Mate

2.00pm – 5.30pm Qualifying Race 10 (Sydney, Brisbane) Channel 7

2.00pm – 5.30pm Qualifying Race 10 (Melbourne) 7Mate

 

Sunday, May 20:

12.00pm – 3.30pm Qualifying Race 11 (Perth) 7Mate

1.30pm – 5.00pm Qualifying Race 11 (Adelaide) 7Mate

2.00pm – 5.30pm Qualifying Race 11 (Sydney, Brisbane) Channel 7

2.00pm – 5.30pm Qualifying Race 11 (Melbourne) 7Mate

 

A one hour highlights package of each race is broadcast in each market late on Saturday and Sunday, check times and stations for details

 



Article source: http://www.ozracingwrap.com/v8-supercars/3828-jack-daniels-racing-confirms-endurance-driver-line-up.html

V8 title turns bitter

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Davison Lowndes

Battle … FPR and TeamVodafone are in a fierce battle for the 2012 V8 Supercars title.
Source:
Chris Kidd / News Limited

Ford Performance Racing have accused TeamVodafone of trying to win the title ‘in the stewards’ office’ after a chaotic weekend at Phillip Island.

TeamVodafone boss Roland Dane says FPR driver Mark Winterbottom drove slowly and held up his drivers in an effort to avoid queuing in pit lane.

During the V8 Supercars telecast Dane was seen remonstrating with officials and has told SpeedCafe that the title leaders were being “unsportsmanlike”.

“There’s a rule against it – you can’t travel unnecessarily slow on the circuit,” Dane told Speedcafe.com.

“What Winterbottom did is in direct contradiction to the rules as they’ve been explained to us in the past.

“He blatantly backed everybody up. Not only did he do it on the circuit, he did it in pit lane, doing 29kmh, rather than 39kmh.”

FPR boss Tim Edwards says Winterbottom did travel at the maximum speed allowable while in pit lane and claims TeamVodafone are engaged in political gamesmanship.

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“I think our friends down the end there have decided they can’t beat us on the track so they will try it in the stewards’ office,” Edwards said.

“There are three things being looked at tonight, all instigated by TeamVodafone.”

RaceFax reports that the matters TeamVodafone have raised are that Winterbottom deliberately slowed in pitlane, and that Davison intentionally braked when the safety car accelerated.

V8 Supercars rules state that the lead car must maintain speed once the safety car accelerates away from the field to restart the race.

According to an FPR spokesperson TeamVodafone also instigated the investigation into the late-race crash involving Tim Slade which took out title contenders Jamie Whincup and Will Davison on Saturday.

Stewards deemed that crash a racing incident. 

Double-stacking in pit lane reared its head after an early safety car in Sunday’s race, and the chaos in pitlane became dangerous when Fabian Coulthard and Karl Reindler made contact in the busy lane.

Managing speed to minimise the drama of double stacking under the safety car is nothing new to V8 Supercars, with both Holden Racing Team and TeamVodafone employing the strategy during the Bathurst 1000 in October.

Article source: http://www.foxsports.com.au/motor-sports/v8-supercars/ford-performance-racing-accuse-teamvodafone-of-trying-to-win-the-title-in-the-stewards-office/story-fn2ms9um-1226361531427

No penalty for huge V8 crash

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No penalties have been issued over Will Davison and Jamie Whincup’s controversial crash at Phillip Island which turned the V8 Supercar championship race on its head.

V8 Supercars Stewards have announced no action will be taken against any driver over the incident in which Davison clipped Ford driver Tim Slade, skidded out of control and ploughed into a helpless Whincup late in Saturday’s opening race of the weekend.

The crash came as a group of drivers diced for several laps after a restart, almost certainly costing Holden driver Whincup second place and vital championship points.

Their demise allowed Davison’s Ford Performance Racing teammate Mark Winterbottom to go on and win the 32-lap race, putting him back into the championship picture.

Going into the weekend’s second race on Sunday, Whincup still leads the championship by 10 points from Winterbottom, with Davison third 19 points further back.

Slade rebounded from his part in the spectacular crash to top the morning practice session for Sunday’s race.

The Lucky Seven Racing pilot set a 1min 33.0515sec fastest lap.

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Both Davison and Whincup’s cars, which needed hasty and extensive repair work, were on the grid for morning practice under rainy skies at the coastal Victorian track.

Davison was fifth fastest, while Whincup was well down in 16th.

A fresh qualifying session will be held on Sunday afternoon ahead of the 45-lap race.

Article source: http://www.foxsports.com.au/motor-sports/v8-supercars/v8-supercars-rules-the-massive-crash-between-will-davison-and-jamie-whincup-a-racing-incident/story-fn2ms9um-1226361429896

Model A is getting its own museum in Hickory Corners in Barry County

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It may not have the fame of the Ford Model T, but the car that came after it — the Model A — is now getting its own museum.

The Gilmore Car Museum in Hickory Corners, Barry County, is to finish building an 11,000-square-foot exhibit space, which will look like a 1920s Ford dealership, around Labor Day.

A groundbreaking ceremony for the $900,000 building — a project with the Massachusetts-based Model A Ford Foundation — was held last month.

Produced from 1928-31, the Model A had more features than the Model T. For example, it had more horsepower, did not require cranking and came in multiple styles, according to Gilmore spokesman Jay Follis.

Ford “needed to come up with a new model, because the Model T was so dated at that point. People loved it, but Chevrolet was taking market share from them, and other companies, like DeSoto, Dodge and Chrysler were competing with them,” Follis said. “The Model A sold 400,000″ before it was unveiled to the public.

The museum will include numerous examples of the car, along with a Model A truck and a Model A school bus.

Also on exhibit will be advertisements for the car, photographs, and displays about the events and fashions of the era. Museum-goers will be able to change a Model A tire and honk an ahooga horn. Gas pumps will be out front.

“You no longer were stuck on the farm and couldn’t go anywhere. The Model T really got people moving, but with the A, you really could go distances,” Follis said. “People started going on vacation. It was more durable, more powerful.”

The Model A Ford Foundation had shopped around before deciding to work with Gilmore, selected because it not only had infrastructure and management in place, but also was located in the MotorCities National Heritage Area, according to Stan Johnson, president of the organization.

Celebrities who drove a Model A included Douglas Fairbanks and Joan Crawford. But Henry Ford gave the first Model A to his friend Thomas Edison.

So, why did a man so methodical jump from near the end of the alphabet to the beginning?

“They called it Model A to start again, because it was new and fresh and widely anticipated by the public,” Johnson said. “It had a sliding-gear transmission and four-wheel brakes and safety glass and much more comfort in the closed-body models.”

He also explained that Ford didn’t use every letter of the alphabet; in fact, he had used A once before — in the early days of his company.

The Model A had another name, too: Henry’s Lady.

“The Model T was known as the Tin Lizzie, and Model A was a much more docile, friendly car to drive,” Johnson explained, adding that the car also was marketed to women.

Follis had a more politically correct explanation for the nickname: “The Model T was considered the everyman’s car, simplistic, easy to work on, sold a ton. The Model A, they put a whole lot more effort into it. They look at the Model A as Henry Ford’s real accomplishment. The Model A is twice the horsepower, came in a lot of styles, far easier to operate.”

This year also marks the start of the Gilmore museum staying open year-round, Follis said.

The museum opened to the public in 1966. Last year, it welcomed 50,000 visitors.

Contact Zlati Meyer: 313-223-4439 or zmeyer@freepress.com

Article source: http://www.freep.com/article/20120520/NEWS06/205200482/Model-A-is-getting-its-own-museum-in-Hickory-Corners-in-Barry-County