Cars

Take some comfort gearheads: as the inches and pounds pile on — and our waistlines begin to bulge as we travel down this road we call life, — so too have the cars we know and love  seen their own dimensions increase as they age. Take the BMW 3-Series for example, since its launch in 1975, the 3-Series has gained over 1,100 pounds, grown 10.5-inches in length, over eight inches in width, and nearly two-inches in height. Needless to… Read More

Being a rock star has its perks, and not just the fame, fortune, and groupies. It also means not settling for off-the-shelf stuff, even when it comes to Italian sports cars. Eric Clapton wanted his own Ferrari, so he had the boffins at Maranello design one for him. Behold the one-of-a-kind Ferrari SP12 EC. "The world-famous guitar player has been attached to one particular Ferrari model: the 512 BB, of which he has owned three over the… Read More

It’s certainly been a long time coming, but Renault has officially unveiled its Alpine A110-50 concept at the Monaco Grand Prix. From the start, the French automaker set out to engineer a worthy successor to the original two-door coupe that rocketed around the streets of Europe and took the rally world by storm during the early 1970s. Striking a contoured and dramatic pose, the Alpine A110-50 concept is anything but dull and features enough… Read More

You might not realize it, and maybe you haven't even considered it, but the 2012 Volkswagen Beetle is a manly car. And by manly I simply mean it can no longer be considered the choice ride of the fairer sex, nor of men who are admirably comfortable in their sexuality or completely oblivious to the fact that the car they’re driving is — by and large — a chick-mobile, and not the cool kind of chick-mobile the Fonze would drive,… Read More

Apparently, some cars are just too good to die. After a tortured existence under General Motors and a short period of independence, Swedish car company Saab finally went under last December. Chinese company Youngman Lotus tried unsuccessfully to acquire Saab’s assets, but now a new electric car company is picking off where Youngman left off. National Electric Vehicle Sweden is trying to give Saab a last minute reprieve, and its timing could not… Read More

The automobile is ready for a revolution, and so are its drivers. In this week's edition of DT Debate, our own Amir Illiaifar and Nick Mokey go head-to-head over the  fuel that's going to power this revolution. Will the EV pull through, or do we need to start looking elsewhere? This week we ask:  Nick Unless “the future of cars” only involves puttering around for 80 miles at a time then desperately searching for a cord… Read More

The Mercedes-Benz G-Class is an extremely capable vehicle. Designed in the 1970s for military use, the “G-Wagen” is a legendary off-roader with plenty of street cred. Hummer is kaput, but the boxy G-Class soldiers on. Still, no one ever accused this SUV of being pretty, which is why German Special Customs (GSC) stepped in to make some improvements. GSC’s GoldStorm body kit definitely makes the G-Class look different; whether it makes it look… Read More

Are self-driving cars the future of motoring? State governments seem to think so. Last June, Nevada legalized autonomous cars and ordered its Department of Motor Vehicles to write regulations for them. Now, California has become the second state to regulate these robo-vehicles. The bill passed the California State Senate 37-0 and is pending approval by the State Assembly. Unlike Nevada, California did not pass a bill explicitly legalizing… Read More

If you’re an EV enthusiast who’s looking to buy an electric car, now is a great time to get your tailpipe off of the electric fence and see what all the buzz is about. Not only are there an abundance of electric vehicles out now, but more are on the way. While we've already highlighted some of the best electrics and plug-in hybrids  out now and coming soon, we figured we'd  draw attention to some of the future electric cars we’re… Read More

There’s no denying former Apple CEO Steve Job's impact on not only the tech world, but the world as whole. Whether you’re an Apple fan or not, the fact remains that Steve Jobs had a major hand in revolutionizing  some of the most important facets of our lives: from the way we buy and listen to music (iPod/iTunes), to the way we access the Web — including the wealth of media that comes along with it — due to the evolution of… Read More

The last generation BMW M5 (E60 to Bimmer fans) was an impressive machine. It’s 5.0-liter V10 put out 500 horsepower, with a sound reminiscent of Formula 1. Apparently, that is not enough for some people. German tuner G-Power is building a monster called the Hurricane RRs, which turns the dial up to 818 hp, and 575 pound-feet of torque. The appropriately named Hurricane gets its extra power from a pair of ASA T1-316 superchargers. The engine is… Read More

Fiat and Mazda announced today a plan to collaborate on a new sports car. The new car will be based on the next-generation Mazda MX-5 Miata, and will be sold as an Alfa Romeo. The Italian company’s Spider is an icon, thanks to its appearance alongside Dustin Hoffman in The Graduate, so the Miata-based car will have big shoes to fill. The Alfa will share its platform with the Miata, but Fiat and Mazda were quick to emphasize that the two cars… Read More

It’s no secret Ford is both proud and excited for its very first electric passenger car. The 2012 Ford Focus is currently on its way to select dealerships across the U.S. and will mark the company’s first foray into the modern EV market (and no, we’re not counting hybrids). We recently had a chance to take the Focus Electric for spin on the rain-soaked streets of Portland, Oregon, and our initial drive impressions were, well, impressive to say… Read More

If you've ever driven along a highway and been overtaken by someone with their legs wrapped around the steering wheel, or worse, using their chin to steer instead of their hands, the chances are they're trying to tap out an email on their smartphone. Of course, it would be a whole lot safer if the same task could be performed using only voice commands. Nuance Communications, the team behind the popular Dragon range of voice… Read More

Hot on the heels of the Ford Focus Electric will be the much-anticipated Tesla Model S. After years of development, the electric sedan from the company that brought you the Roadster electric sports car has been tested by the Environment Protection Agency and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. With mileage and crash tests squared away, Tesla plans to deliver the first cars to customers beginning June 22. On the same day that his… Read More