Not quite. But Dubai has an unusually large population of Bugatti Veyrons, as published in a press-release-style article in Emirates Business newspaper. Out of 125 Veyrons delivered to customers worldwide, Dubai alone has 15. While the article simply mentions numbers, a simple calculation reveals that tiny Dubai has a massive 12% of the world’s Veyrons. Maybe a few of them will show up at the PrivatDrive Supercar Show in Abu Dhabi. Read on for more details about the show. Read more… »
The PrivatDrive Supercar Show is about to begin in Abu Dhabi at the Emirates Palace, from February 2 to February 4, 2007. The best part is the general public can enter for free, so all are invited. The event will be used to show off the Abu Dhabi numberplate “1″ (in the Code 5 category), before it makes its bid to become the most expensive numberplate in the world. Read more… »
Mercedes-Benz has officially unveiled a new compact addition to their line-up. It is called the CLC-Class, and is basically a 3-door hatchback that is marketed as a “sports coupe.” And if the car seems too familiar to you, that’s because it already existed long before the CLC badge was conceived. Read more… »
The latest edition of our cruddy videos, showing off our pathetic driving skills and even worse testing procedures. Yep, that’s Fast Cars for you. Read more… »
The pickup version of the Hummer H3 has been revealed by General Motors. The new off-road truck, dubbed the Hummer H3T, features four doors and a proper truck bed long enough to fit a small motorbike apparently. Read more… »
Yep, after an extensive search for a used rocket, our new benchmark sports car is a 2000 BMW M Roadster. In buying it, we broke all the sensible rules of buying a used car, and took the plunge into high-maintenance exotic car ownership. With 321 hp calling, who can resist? Read more… »
The Grand Racing weekend makes its international debut at the Dubai Autodrome on the 24th, 25th and 26th January 2008. The Autodrome will be hosting the Speedcar Series, the GP2 Asia series, the Gulf Radical Cup championship and the Lumina CSV championship during those dates. Last night at the Dubai Press Club, the Qi-Meritus.Mahara team unveiled their new drivers and their latest car for the GP2 Asia races. Their main talking point was that they are a fully Asian team, with ownership split between a Malaysian and a Saudi camp. Read more… »
These here are the first images of the 2009 Mercedes-Benz SL-Class. Basically a facelift with a new front end, a resculpted rear bumper and updated interior trim, the car tries to look like a weird version of the 1950s SL which had upward-swinging gullwing doors. Normal doors on this one though. Read more… »
Yes, we were saving up for a benchmark used “hot” hatchback, but as we went around for a few months looking for a decent deal, we realised we had saved up enough for a real sports car. So we switched gears and started looking for a used sports car that could best our rocketship 1987 Toyota Supra Twin Turbo, which we have sold off. The Supra still runs like the wind, but it is in rather poor overall shape, and a pain to drive due to its modified underpinings. We estimate the Supra has 300+ hp now after mods, and we managed the 0-100 kph sprint in 5.3 seconds once. Also consider that we sold this Porsche-killer off for Dhs 9,000! We just bought a used replacement for it, and it is still red, but let’s look at what other options we had in the sports car market for around Dhs 50,000 or less. The only criteria was it had to be fast, it should have a manual gearbox, it had to handle reasonably well, it had to have reasonable reliability, and its maintenance had to cost less than that of an overpriced Porsche Boxster. Read more… »
Stunt-driver Terry Grant did a reverse-180, also known as a J-turn, between two barriers with a Renault Twingo supermini. In doing so, he set a new world record, considering he slipped the 370cm-long car through a gap that is 378cm wide. For a better view, check out the video playing on the big screen behind the track.
The 2008 North American International Auto Show in Detroit played host to the unveiling of the all-new 2009 Toyota Venza crossover. Toyota calls it a “crossover sedan” that will compete with the Murano and the Edge, but we are not sure Toyota needs yet another fake 4WD in its range alongside the RAV-4. We assume this “lifestyle” vehicle might come here too eventually. Read more… »
Usually I don’t freely advertise local aftermarket outfits, but the PR folks for Yellow Hat were kind enough to invite me to their opening ceremony, so I figured I’d give them my time. Yellow Hat is a Japanese superstore for aftermarket car accessories, and they have opened a branch store here in Dubai, at the Times Square Mall on Sheikh Zayed road. Read more… »
The new 2009 Mitsubishi Lancer Ralliart debuted at the 2008 Detroit Auto Show. Unlike the previous insult to the badge, the new Lancer Ralliart is like an entry-level version of the upcoming Evolution, with a turbocharged engine and all-wheel-drive. Read more… »
As Dubai celebrates Bush Day by announcing a public holiday during George W’s visit here, the 2008 Detroit Auto Show in America is in full swing, and one of the first launches include the weird 2009 Volkswagen Passat CC, a so-called “coupe” that still looks like a damn four-door sedan. Read more… »
I briefly wanted to get a cheap so-called “hot hatch” so I could have some fun driving around town while I saved up enough money for a true sports car (since I refuse to take a bank loan). After selling off the Supra, I didn’t want to lose touch with a manual car. The ideal temporary-replacement used car I wanted had to be small, have decent power for its weight, have a manual gearbox, and be really cheap. This pretty much removed most reliable-but-slow-and-sloppy Japanese commuter compacts from my list sadly. So what I came across in my search were four Europeans and one Japanese. My target price was Dhs 10,000, but I was willing to part with up to Dhs 20,000 for a nicer one. Read more… »
Not really sure where this is taking place, but it shows a guy changing a tyre on his retro racecar, while the car is still doing doughnuts! Just when I think I’ve seen it all involving cars, someone comes along doing even weirder stuff.
Bosses at General Motors figured that the camouflage on their upcoming Chevrolet Camaro was affecting their aerodynamics tests, so they decided to drive around their prototype without any black dressing any more. These photos, released by GM themselves, show the actual production-version exterior trim of the 2009 Camaro. Read more… »
Ratan Tata, boss of Indian conglomerate Tata, had vowed some time ago to release a “1-lakh” car, essentially a car that costs 100,000 Indian rupees, or US$2,500. That translates to Dhs 9,350 for a new car, and it has just been launched in India as I speak, as the Tata Nano. Read more… »
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