By Jen Dunnaway

Editor

CarDomain member James was selected as the first winner in the Castrol Edge Unlock Your Performance contest, and as part of the deal he got to make a video with his 4Runner and Matt Farrah. It turned out pretty awesome–and it’s amazing what he’s done with a base-model 4Runner. Take a look!

Unlock Your Performance Winner #1: James’ 1999 Toyota 4Runner

By John Coyle

Deputy Editor

Right now, there are automotive engineers all over the world working to give computers more control of our cars. They’re spending billions to figure out how to implement systems that will avoid collisions, alert sleepy drivers, and generally make the roads safer. And then there are the guys from Engineer Awesome, who bought a crappy 1988 Oldsmobile Delta off eBay and rigged it so you can control it with an iPhone. It totally craps all over the other iPhone controlled car we’ve seen. Watch them take it surfing in the clip below, and hit the jump for the complete how-to.

Continue reading "What's Next: Driving a Car via iPhone" »

By John Coyle

Deputy Editor

It probably shouldn’t bother me, but I tend to get kind of steamed when people tell me racing is boring. Seriously, there are people out there who will make that statement, and then in the next breath, start talking about how awesome watching soccer is. Obviously, these people are insane. But what really pisses me off is when folks start whining about how “wasteful” auto racing is, because the fact of the matter is that a lot of the technology that makes road cars safer and more efficient comes from lessons learned on the grid. Two quick cases in point? Well, the American Le Mans Series recently launched the Green Challenge, a set of rules designed to encourage the use of environmentally friendly technology, and NASCARs are already running on E85. For some great info on the future of earth-friendly racing, head over to Wired and read the great interview with Lord Drayson, the UK’s minister for science and innovation. He moonlights as a AMLS racer, and he’s got an awesome perspective.

By John Coyle

Deputy Editor

Nope, that’s not a joke: The New York Times is reporting that the venerable East German crap-box is set to return as an all-electric car. IndiKar’s Ronald Gerschewski says the new Trabant will “Be simple, practical, and in the old tradition of the original, but it won’t be a retro model.” The concept isn’t set to be revealed until the Frankfurt Auto Show, but if we read between the lines, we can determine that the modern vehicle will have updated styling—courtesy of model making firm, Herpa—boast dismal performance numbers, worse reliability and be assembled by uninspired, paranoid workers under the careful eyes of the Stasi. Unfortunately, it will be unavailable in North America. Head over to the New York Times for more info.

By Rob Einaudi

Editor-in-Chief

Mission Motors, founded by a former Tesla Motors engineer, plans to sell a limited run of 50 of these electric super bikes next year. Powered by a 3-phase AC induction motor and a liquid-cooled lithium-ion battery, the bike has a range of 150 miles and a claimed top speed of 150 mph. A recharge takes two hours at 240 volts and eight hours at 120 volts. Price? Only $69,000! More at Wired

By Rob Einaudi

Editor-in-Chief

It’s so simple it just makes sense: shut down your engine when you’re at a stop and you’ll save gas. Start-stop technology is already commonplace in hybrids, but it’s coming to more conventional gasoline cars, and may be standard on all vehicles within the next five to ten years. Mercedes has been particularly aggressive, announcing last year that that they would be rolling it out across their entire lineup. And AMG just announced that it will be standard on many AMG cars next year. So now you won’t have to feel guilty sitting in the drive-thru. Via Wired and Autoblog