Yesterday at the annual Essen Motorshow, Audi took the wraps off the all new R8 LMS, destined for GT3 racing in 2009. The launch itself was no surprise and Audi had already posted some images quite some time ago but there nevertheless was some big news revealed. Firstly the name 'LMS' moniker and more importantly the fact that the car will be powered by Audi's V10 engine. This also means that the debut of the long speculated V10 engined R8 road car is imminent. Our best guess for the type name for that machine is the R8 LM. The R8 LMS represents Audi's return to customer motorsport or as Audi Motorsport Director quaintly described 'kundenmotorsport.' For a hefty 262,000 ex taxes, anybody can order the 500 bhp racing car from the newly established customer sport center in Ingolstadt. Takers will have to be quick as Audi plans to build just eight cars for 2009. The V10 machine can be campaigned in any of a growing number of championships run under the GT3 banner. There it will face a massive field of F430s, 997 GT3s, Gallardos, Ford GTs, Corvettes and Vipers.
Dr Ulrich also confirmed a big rumor; Audi is well under way with a replacement for the R10 TDI Le Mans racer. Although little other than the R15 TDI type name was revealed, we have strong reasons to believe that the open racer will be powered by an all new V10 diesel engine. The R15 will make its competition debut at the Sebring 12 Hours next March.
Keep an eye on the news section as a full report of the Essen Motorshow will follow on Monday.

With a four-door and a diesel Porsche, our previous update has probably not gone down too well with the purists. For them and all other enthusiasts we have highlighted a proper thoroughbred today; the Ferrari 512 S. Devised in 1970 as the answer to the Porsche 917, the ferocious Ferrari never quite managed to make up for the Germans' head-start. In its original guise the 512 sported a very beautiful curvaceous body that would have been right at home in the 1960s. Ever increasing knowledge of aerodynamics resulted in a complete redesign of the body for the 1971. The revised version was dubbed the 512 M and featured a much squarer body. The changes proved to be effective and the previously dominant 917 was often challenged and once beaten. Unfortunately rule changes left the big sports racers obsolete. Both 512 versions were powered by an exquisite 5 litre V12 engine with high-tech four-valve heads. Pumping out a hefty 550 bhp, it could propel the 860 kg 512 to incredible speeds. Of the various versions, we like the original 512 S the best.
Earlier this year we were fortunate enough to capture a breathtaking example both in great detail and in action on the Laguna Seca track. Of the dozens of shots we have selected a spectacular 18-shot gallery, which highlights a detailed report of the machine's history.

After years and years of waiting, Porsche has finally released the first images of the upcoming Panamera. The four-door 'coupe' will be the fourth model in the Porsche range and directly targets the highly acclaimed Maserati Quattroporte. The top of the range Turbo model will be powered by a 500 bhp version of the twin-turbo V8 out of the Cayenne. Options include the VW derived V6 engine and a choice of rear or all-wheel drive. The wait is not quite over yet as the Panamera will not hit the showrooms until the end of summer next year.
At the Los Angeles Auto Show that opened its doors last week, the German manufacturer also took center stage. There, face-lifted versions of the Boxster S and Cayman S were revealed. Apart from the styling changes the biggest news is the availability of direct-injection engines that produce more power and are more efficient. Nissan also grabbed a lot of attention in LA with the new Nissan 370Z and the closely related Infiniti G37 Convertible. Both cars feature the latest 3.7 litre V6 engine that produces a hefty 332 bhp in the stylish new Nissan coupe. The most unusual car in LA was Honda's FC Sport Design Study, which combines bold styling with a hydrogen engine. Of course we can not forget the all new Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4 Spider that was revealed at the heart of its target market.
Early this morning, Volvo sent us the first image of the S60 Concept. To be unveiled at the NAIAS in Detroit next January, it will offer a first glimpse of the next generation S60.

These days the Indianapolis 500 is disputed with what are pretty much spec-racers. This brings most of the focus on the drivers and the race itself. In the old days, when some things really were better, the Brickyard was open for much more variety. It paved the way for victories for cars manufactured by the likes of Maserati and Lotus. Their ventures were far from successful at each occasion and both manufacturers built cars that never actually made it to the race. Earlier this year we ran into one from each marque and this week we want to highlight these special cars, which both are two superb pieces of engineering.
Maserati's 8CLT did not even make it to North America. Originally commissioned in 1950 by Francesco Rol and Giuseppe 'Nino' Farina, the two cars built were barely completed when the two drivers pulled the plug. They were eventually sold to New Zealand where they were raced for many seasons. The two single seater machines combined the latest tubular Maserati chassis with a very powerful eight cylinder engine. The real star of the 8CLT is the engine, which sports a fantastic exhaust header with sixteen individual pipes; one for each port.
During the practice sessions of the 1969 Indy 500 Mario Andretti was stunning onlookers by setting record breaking laps in his all new Lotus 64. Powered by a turbocharged Ford V8 engine, it used a cutting edge four wheel drive system. Unfortunately the practice sessions also revealed a design flaw in one of the hubs that sent Andretti into the wall at a very high speed. With no time to repair the problem, the Lotus team withdrew from the race. That was the last we saw of the STP liveried machines until this year when one of the three surviving examples raced up the hill at Goodwood after a lengthy restoration.
Needless to say the Maserati and Lotus features include mouth-watering photography and a detailed history.

At the Los Angeles International Auto Show, Ford today launched a revised version of the highly popular Mustang GT that entered production back in 2005. Due to the success of the Mustang, Chevrolet and Dodge joined the party with their all new Camaro and Challenger. All three models feature a modern-retro styling introduced by Ford with cars like the Thunderbird, GT and Mustang, and transport us right back to the late 1960s when the original 'pony cars' cruised the streets of the United States. We already suggested this earlier, but it really is time now for a revival of the fantastic, production based Trans-Am series featuring the Mustang, Camaro and Challenger.
It is obvious that the 2010 Ford Mustang is not a brand new car, but rather a subtly improved version of the existing model. The exterior styling has been cleaned up made a little more aggressive, while maintaining a close link to the Mustangs of the 1968-1969 era that inspired the overall design. On the inside much care has been given to improve look and feel of the interior. The new Mustang is also considerably quieter. The 2010 engine remains largely unchanged, although the V8 engine has been uprated to 315 bhp, which is similar to the 'Bullitt' spec of the outgoing model.
The first details and pictures of the 2010 Mustang can be found here. The new Mustang was exclusively launched on SpeedTV.com, for which this this concise history of the previous Mustang models was supplied by us. We will post more news from LA in the next few days.

German Porsche tuner 9ff plan to take their already bonkers 987 bhp GT9 supercar one step further. For those customers who desperately need more than 1000 bhp, they are working on this GT9-R. In addition to getting a power upgrade, the new 9ff also features a brand new body kit with front and rear spoilers. Development is still under way, but the German company hopes to show the finished product in Essen at the end of the month. Also benefiting from some additional horses is the Bentley Azure T. The stylish drop top has 50 more horses compared to the standard Azure and could be the last new model using the classic V8 engine.
At the newly revived Abarth marque, the 100th birthday of company founder Carlo Abarth was celebrated this Saturday. The site was the Torino Esposizioni, which currently houses the exhibition "From 0 to 100", which includes some of Abarth's finest products. The festivities also included the unveiling of the limited edition 500 "Da 0 a 100" of which just 101 will be build.
The recently established FIA GT4 class will see two new machines join the fun in 2009. Aston Martin will replace the "N24" based on the old Vantage with the Vantage GT4, which is based on the current 4.7 litre version. Lotus will challenge the likes of Donkervoort and KTM in the supersport category with this 2-Eleven GT4.
Lamborghini's Countach remained in production for almost two decades during which it was constantly updated. The biggest development came in 1985 when the LP5000 QV was introduced. It was powered by an all new four valve version of the familiar V12 engine, which produced 455 bhp.
Today front wheel drive is very common on most small and mid-sized machines. Amazingly it took almost forty years after the first car was built before a production car used front wheel drive. It was the little known French Tracta marque that pioneered the system. At Pebble beach we ran into this spectacular Tracta E Henri Le Moine Coupe, which reason enough to tell the story of this ill-fated, but important car.

German manufacturer Porsche celebrates its sixtieth anniversary in 2008. Earlier this year we highlighted the very first and now it is time to take a closer look at the very best; the 959. Originally developed to compete in the popular Group B category, the 959 grew out to be one of the fastest and certainly the most advanced road cars of the 1980s. Porsche's talented engineers pulled everything out of their big hats and equipped the road racer with exotic technology throughout. They had to learn as they went along to create an active four-wheel drive system and anti-lock brakes. Power comes from a 450 bhp flat six engine that was closely related to the Le Mans winning 956 Group C cars. It propelled three modified examples to a first, second and sixth in the 1986 edition of the grueling Paris-Dakar rally. Unlike most other supercars the 959 is fitted with a luxurious interior with electronic controls throughout and even air conditioning.
Recently our photographer Rob Clements caught up with almost a dozen examples. He provided a 12-shot gallery and we have backed it up with an in-depth, 2200 word article on quite possibly the finest car to roll out of the Stuttgart factory.

Earlier this year Lamborghini was one of the featured marques during the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance. An impressive collection of 'Bulls' graced the Pacific Ocean shoreline. Easily the least known was the P140 Concept. Built in the late 1980s as a possible replacement for the Jalpa, the striking Marcello Gandini styled coupe was never shown in public. So with a sense of occasion and a bit of humor, the Lamborghini executives were on hand to remove the tarp for the P140's world debut. Some years after the original P140 was constructed the same chassis and running gear was used for the fantastic Cala. The Jalpa, however, was not replaced until the Gallardo was introduced in 2003.
In our SEMA Show feature we missed two very interesting cars. The first is the Dodge Challenger Targa, which features a 540 bhp HEMI crate engine and completed the Targa Tasmania road rally earlier this year. The other is the Volkswagen Super CC. Using the Passat CC as a base, the Volkswagen Design Center in California created a very fast and sleek four-door coupe. Further tuning news includes this 660 bhp Techart GTstreet R.
Custom coach building used to be the ultimate expression of automotive luxury. A great, classic example of the long lost art is this Hispano Suiza K6 Brandone Cabriolet. It was a concours winner when it was new and again in August when it picked up a best in class at Pebble. Californian company Anteros Coachwork now looks set to revive great coach building tradition. Their XTM Roadster has already been making the rounds at all the major shows and it will be joined next week in LA by this XTR Hardtop.

Ferrari traditionally ends the season with the 'World Finals' at the Mugello track. The 'Scuderia Ferrari' Formula 1 drivers and cars are joined by various Historic and Modern Challenges. The 2008 'Finale Mondiale' was held this weekend and Ferrari decided to celebrate their year style with the unveiling of the Scuderia Spider 16M.
The stripped-out version of the F430 Spider has been the subject of many rumors and it was not a question of 'if', but rather 'when'. The specification is identical to that of the 430 Scuderia coupe. The obvious difference is the convertible roof and additional weight to strengthen the drop-top chassis. According to Ferrari it is the fastest open road car they have ever produced.
The '16M' in the type name refers to the 16 Constructor World Championships the Ferrari Formula 1 team has won. The first one was secured in 1961 and the most recent one last weekend at the Brazilian Grand Prix. That race had a very mixed result for the team, but at Mugello all that seemed to have been forgotten amidst the Scuderia Spider launch and celebrations of a great season of modern and historic racing.
Production of the Scuderia Spider 16M is limited to just 499 examples.

This week the United States was at the center of attention in the world media. To conclude this very American week, we have taken a closer look at one of the finest racing cars built in the US. To create the American answer to the dominant European sports racers millionaire Lance Reventlow assembled an all-star team of designers and fabricators in the late 1950s. The only limitation for the team was that the car could use American sourced parts only. The result was the Scarab, which absolutely dominated North American road racing for several seasons. The marriage of a very light chassis with a very potent V8 left the competition from England (Lister) and Italy (Ferrari and Maserati) gasping for air. In addition to being a successful racing car, the Scarab is also achingly beautiful with dramatic curves at all the right places. The blue racers' reign finally came to an end by the mid-engine revolution, making them the last of the great front engined sports racers.
Our 18-shot gallery shows the third and final example built. Piloted by experienced American racer John Morton, it took victory during the Monterey Historic races in August. Fittingly he beat various Lister Jaguars, a Maserati 450S and a Ferrari 412 S. Morton demonstrated exceptional car control, sliding the 385 bhp beast through the tricky corners of the Laguna Seca track. It really does not get much better than this.

While most of America and the world for that matter was concentrating on a historic election, the automotive industry gathered in Las Vegas for the annual SEMA Show. Organized by the Specialty Equipment Market Association, it is the largest gathering for automotive aftermarket parts. Being a trade show, it is not open to the public.
To showcase their own and other suppliers' products, many manufacturers create exciting concept cars specifically for the SEMA Show. At General Motors the brand new Camaro took center stage. Among the various versions launched, the Camaro GS Racecar is our clear favorite. Painted in the Sunoco colors of the late 1960s Camaro TransAm racing car, it brings back fond memories of the partnership between driver Mark Donohue and team owner Roger Penske. With the Mustang and Challenger also revived, maybe it's time to bring back TransAm? Another exciting Camaro is the LS7 Concept, which as the name suggests boasts the 550 bhp LS7 crate engine.
At the Ford booth motorsport was also high on the agenda with the introduction of the Mustang Cobra Jet drag racer and the F-150 SVT Raptor R built for extreme off-road events like the Baja 1000 km. Also on display was the tamed down production version of the raptor.
The Asian brands also enjoy much success in the aftermarket world and have an ever stronger presence at SEMA. Toyota teamed up with five axis to create this wild Yaris Club in the style of the Toyota 7 Can-Am car of old. Hyundai celebrated the introduction of the rear wheel drive Genesis. The highlight of their display was this Genesis Coupe turned into a racing car by Rhys Millen.

More than any other engine, the V12 has achieved a legendary status. It combines a glorious soundtrack with a spectacular record on both road and track. Although Ferrari is by far the best known manufacturer of V12s, they were not the first nor the last to go the V12 route. Today we take a look at three not so well known, but hugely interesting applications of the V12 engine.
In the early 1920s Delage was one of the first manufacturers to try the V12. It is commonly accepted that the 2LCV Grand Prix car captured Enzo Ferrari's interest and twenty years later convinced him to fit his first car with a similar engine. The rare Delage uses a beautiful sculpted V12, which turned out to look a lot better than it performed. Our article shows a rare survivor of the five built in action.
In the 1930s high-end manufacturers adopted the V12 engine and among them was Lagonda. Their bespoke V12 was designed by none other than W.O. Bentley. Although the V12 Lagonda was intended as a luxurious road car, Bentley was asked to turn it into a Le Mans racer. Reluctantly he developed the light weight and slippery V12 Le Mans for the 1939 edition. Finishing had top priority and the drivers were told stick to a safe pace. Nevertheless the featured example finished second and after the race the drivers were convinced that they could have easily won. Unfortunately they would not get a chance to prove that the next year.
The least known of the three machines under scrutiny today is no doubt the OSCA Tipo G 4500. Constructed by the Maserati brothers early in 1951, the 4.5 litre unit had twin overhead camshafts and produced a hefty 330 bhp. It was originally intended to power a Gordini Formula 1 car (hence the G), but when the French funds dried up, it was offered as an upgrade for existing Maserati 4CLTs. Prince Bira was the only customer of the upgrade and immediately scored a victory with his Maserati/OSCA hybrid at Goodwood. The second of three engines was eventually fitted in a brand new OSCA Grand Prix car. It was only raced once at Monza. Both these machines are pictured in our 18-shot gallery.