Every year, people doing the Bullrun get arrested. Generally, it has something to do with local police not approving of visitors to their jurisdictions hitting triple-digits speeds on public roads. But fortunately, getting taken into custody isn’t always a huge hassle. Case in point: While Wiji did wind up handcuffed in the back of a squad car after getting popped for doing 120 in a 75 zone, he was able to post his $600 bail on the spot, which saved him a trip to the slammer. And while a burly speeding charge like that sometimes involves appearing in court,for those not planning on returning to the state, it’s not terribly important to show.

I recently got back from an overnight stay in Maine where I had the privilege of driving both these cars through one full tank of gas. The only thing they have in common is they are both German. That’s it.

First up, a pristine 34k original mile 1989 Porsche 930 Turbo. Let me say from the get go that this car will slap you senseless if you are not VERY careful behind the wheel, as the technology is right out of the 1970s. The Porsche is a rear engine flat six mated to a big ole’ turbo, a 5-speed tranny (first year for this), torsion bar suspension, manual brakes, manual steering and no sound installation. It is a pure driver’s car, nothing more, nothing less. It makes no bones about the fact that it will try and kill you if you are not careful. Continue reading after the jump.

Continue reading "1989 Porsche 930 Turbo or 2008 Audi R8?" »

The trailers for Iron Man look awesome, and with Robert Downey Jr. in the lead, I’m confident the big screen adaptation will deliver the goods. But as it turns out, the stunt team had a lot more trouble with some of the car shoots than they anticipated. In the clip below, the storyboard called for the R8 to flip, but like a stubborn puppy, Audi’s halo car just didn’t want to roll over. And when they tried use mechanical claws rip the roof open like a tin can? You guessed it. The German steel just wouldn’t cooperate. In another scene, a Q7 was supposed to come skidding to a halt, and as you can imagine, the Audi’s anti-lock brakes kept bringing the crossover to a nice, controlled stop. Apparently, German engineering doesn’t dig drama. Enjoy the clips.

Like a lot companies, CarDomain runs its servers on Linux. And while that OS is still a little above my head—I’m just happy I can use my iPod—I thought it was interesting to see it’s the system of choice for F1 teams. How long will it be before it’s practical for regular users? Anyway, here’s the news:

• Stop the presses! It looks like RENNtech has made a brake rotor big enough to handle a hi-riser! At 16.2 inches, it’s more than half the size of a pair of "30s, so being donkalicious no longer means having to coast to a stop. Jalopnik
• Hillary Clinton and John McCain want to give consumers a break from the gas tax this summer, and while it sounds nice, it basically means they both think you’re dumber than you look. Carpetbagger Report
• Honda is probably the most boring company in the world, but guess what? America loves boring! Last month, the Accord was the best selling vehicle in the States, and this April isn’t looking bad for it either. Auto Observer
• If you have a few grand to spare and want to get a feel for what Audi’s burly new 420 horsepower R8 can do, you might want to check out Audi’s "driving camp" in Cali. Hey, burning rubber beats the hell out of weaving baskets. AutoWeek
• Volvo has built its reputation on safety, so it can’t be happy about having to recall 65,000 cars. The problem? A software glitch is delaying the deployment of side-impact airbags. This is one situation where late really isn’t much better than never. CarScoop

Audi let us drive its ground-skimming $3 million R8 TDI Le Mans concept car in Manhattan during the New York Auto Show. The main difference between the R8 TDI Le Mans concept and the standard R8 is its V12 diesel engine in place of the regular V8. There’s only one of these experimental vehicles in the world, so it was our responsibility not to turn that number into zero by getting into a head-on collision with a cab or hitting one of Manhattan’s Grand-Canyon-sized potholes. As it turns out, both we and the R8 TDI Le Mans survived the experience, and the nervous Audi engineer riding shotgun even cracked a few smiles. Read our full test drive of the Audi R8 TDI Le Mans here. And check out a slideshow featuring New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady warming up the seat for us the night before we drove it. Thanks, Tom!

This is a clip from Jeremy Clarkson’s Supercar Showdown, where the Stig, driving a 997 GT3, is pitted against Sabine Schmitz, behind the wheel of Audi’s R8. Schmitz is know for driving the  M5 "ring taxi" around Germany’s famed Nürburgring track, and in this segment, she makes the Top Gear ace earn his money. Unlike most of battles showcased on the TV show, the two drivers actually race each other—not just the clock—and the result is beyond awesome. Enjoy.

Audi has been making waves with its diesel-powered Le Mans cars, which made history with a first-ever major motorsports victory for a diesel at the 2006 12 Hours of Sebring race. Now, as Road & Track suggests, the chance of Audi’s big-diesel performance making its way into the US market are greater than ever. The June ’08 issue will contain an exclusive road test report and extensive technical breakdown of Audi’s new diesel V12-powered R8 TDI Le Mans—we’re stoked! Click on the pic to check out a slideshow and video of the new ride.

For most people, commercials are the highlight of the Super Bowl, and while the General was the only one of the Big Three to air one, there were still some awesome automotive spots. Cars.com offered some interesting negotiation techniques, Bridgestone narrowly avoided killing Richard Simmons and Alice Cooper, Audi introduced its snarling R8 in a sweet Godfather-themed spot, Garmin used Napoleon to drive home that their units are small and powerful and Toyota used badgers and big wheels to great effect. Which was your favorite?

While Hyundai went with a reserved tone in the spots for its newGenesis luxury sedan, Audi went completely in the other direction withthis ad for its new V10 supercar. If you’ve seen the Godfather, you’re going to love what they did to showcase the R8. If you haven’t seen the Godfather, please be advised that isn’t something you should admit publicly, and go rent it immediately.

This week Edmunds published a comparison test between an Audi R8 and a Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8. I don’t get it. What do you think they were going for here? Is it supposed to be funny or something?