Holiday Spirit!

Happy Holidays from Seventhgear Autosport! It's hard to believe that 2010 is winding to a close. Our 1 year Anniversary milestone, Hanukkah, and now Christmas have all passed... and New Years Day is just around the corner. We've got some fun things in store for 2011, and I cannot wait to dive into the new year. One of our New years resolutions is to have more fun with our blog, and with the car culture this year.

There is just so much to follow, in the world of car enthusiasm. The car show circuit is about to ramp up in a major way, as all the major global shows will take place in the next 120 days or so. The North American International Auto Show is scheduled in just a handful of days and there are sure to be some exciting concept cars to come out of that show.

The racing season is just around the corner, and there have been a number of interesting developments in Indycar and in Formula 1. Indycar just finalized a completely new set of chassis and engine design rules for 2012 (turbocharged V6's!), and they have signed 2 new (and Honda is returning) manufacturers with Chevrolet and Lotus. In Formula 1, the off-season shuffle is in full force, and teams are already testing design 'mules' on the track for their 2011 specifications. The KERS hybrid system specification returns too, which should make for interesting racing!

MINI (a car brand close to our hearts) has decided to enter WRC (World Rallye Championship) Racing with a hardcore effort to run the Countryman platform in full race trim. That's huge for MINI, as they have a strong history in Rally racing. Being MINI fans we can only root for them to succeed against the big guns like Subaru, Ford, and Citroen.

Anyway, in a nutshell, we are excited about 2011! Much more to come!

Jenson and Lewis are stuck building it themselves

This is great! It helps a race fan understand how complex these cars are!

Sebastian Vettel is the Champ!

Sebastian Vettel is almost in-human. For you non-F1 fans, pay attention. This guy is a ridiculous sporting talent. Calling him a "guy" is almost aspirational, as he's barely 23. He's more like a boy.

Or a 'man-child'.

His hero is the legendary Michael Schumacher, who he competed against today in the final race of the season in Abu Dhabi. Michael was driving in Formula 1 when Sebastian was just 4 years old.

Sebastian joined the F1 circus full time, 4 seasons ago at just 19! He is the youngest driver to score points in a F1 race (He did so in his first F1 start with Sauber F1). He's the youngest driver to lead an F1 race. He's the youngest driver to achieve an F1 pole position. He's the youngest driver to win an F1 race. You see where I am going with this?

As of this morning, he's also the youngest ever winner of the Formula 1 World Championship.

Some of you might be saying "So what?"

I'll tell you what. Have you ever seen a Football team with a 23 year old quarterback win the Super Bowl?

Given the difficulty in ever making it as a professional racing driver, much less getting through the lower ranks of Formula racing... all the way to the highest echelon (Indycar and to a greater Extent globally, F1). His title as a driver is one of the greatest feats in sports.

There are 1696 players in the NFL. There are 750 in Major League Baseball. There are 432 in the NBA. There are only 24 drivers in the world, in Formula 1. Rare air. To master this sport at all, is a remarkable achievement. To do it by the age of 23, is amazing.

On the surface, F1 racing seems simple. 24 drivers, 24 cars, and a racetrack. Yet, with 150 million live viewers of every race, the scrutiny is immense. With some teams nudging towards a 1 billion (yes, that's with a 'b') dollar annual operating budget to field 2 car/driver combos per season, this is a sport that requires the ultimate of teamwork. It requires team rosters ranging from 300-900 employees (50-75 of which travel to the races) working 24 hours a day to field those 2 cars, all while representing major corporate sponsors . In the case of Vettel that would be Red Bull. The commercial impact of every decision you make as a driver, every mistake, every nuance of your work is scrutinized.

That pressure, he appears almost immune to. Super impressive. Congrats to you, Sebastian!

Ok, lonnnng break... but BACK!

Somehow, in the crazy, zany world of ours I managed to neglect the blog. So here I am.... ready to chat again about all things 'auto'. Stay tuned for thoughts on Sebastian Vettel and his winning of the F1 World Title, a new Lambo in the offers, the end of the Murcielago, the insanity of 'Ferrari World, and many other random musings.

Thanks for hanging in there with me!

Out from under a rock!

Ok, so I took a little time off from blogging. Like... 2 months. This spring and summer has just flown by... so FAST! We've been busy selling cars and growing our little business at Seventhgear Autosport that I've not taken the time to sit and talk about cool car related stuff.

Welp... gonna change that right about now.

So stay tuned for some random musings! Coming SOON.

Happy Memorial Day!

First, let me say Godspeed to all our fallen veterans.

Without their sacrifices throughout the history of this nation, our populous would not be able to enjoy the fruit of liberty and freedom that we often take for granted.

Blessings to those that stand in harm's way, to represent a thankful nation of individuals, many of whom would never have the courage to do the same.

I salute you.

Dinosaur Bones, Electricity...and Racing. The Final Chapter

Ok... I'm going to first say..."droooool". The Germans are at it again....

Just look at this car. It's fabulous looking.

Better still, it's disturbingly FAST. It can reach speeds of nearly 200 mph.

Even better still, it's extremely powerful. It can clock a 0-60 time in a blistering 3.2 seconds. (That's about as long as it takes to drop something, then bend down and pick it up off the ground, btw.)

The ultimate? It can lap the Nurburgring Nordschleife circuit in a ridiculously fast 7 minutes and 29 seconds. That's faster than the Porsche Carrera GT supercar.

The the ultimate "topper"? It can achieve 78miles per gallon. That's right, nearly 80mpg.

How in the world is that even possible? Thanks to the megaminds at Porsche AG, it is.

Introducing the Porsche 918 Spyder. They should've just skipped the typical Porsche numerical model designation and called it the "Porsche Answer"

Combining a traditional V8, and useful plug-in hybrid technology (consisting of two powerful electric motors, and a regenerative braking/battery system), this beautiful beast is good for about 718 horsepower. Yes, you read that right. Over SEVEN HUNDRED horsepower.

No sooner did I anoint the BMW Active Hybrid Concept as the "second coming of the supercar" in my mind, than Porsche decided to unveil this piece of art and magic in Geneva, at the 2010 Auto Show.

Looking at this shift to hybrid powered cars over the last few years, I've witnessed a range of emotions as a "car guy". I'm excited to see symbols of innovative thinking like this, continue in the world of automobiles. This innovation is what has brought us everything from the seat belt (and later the airbag), to the turbo charger and active suspension systems. The Porsche 918 Spyder is yet another example of the march of progress and innovation into the future.

Conversely, like many who cling to the familiar, I'm fearful of the loss of what I have grown to love. There is nothing like the sound of a fabulously tuned, high revving V12 internal combustion engine. Nor is there anything like the music that a 7 liter 427 Cobra makes. It's music to my ears. These things are still enduring symbol of mechanical power, technology, and an aspiration to greatness in times past. These things have also become a symbol of the greater question, that asks if they are now just symbols of 'dated' ideals. I'd like to think not, as I see them as historically significant, but one can argue the contrary.

So where does that leave us?

There is a will now, to explore the frontier of new energy. For example, Sugarcane derived Ethanol powered all the cars in the Indy 500, over this Memorial Holiday weekend. This is a true potential energy source that is clean burning, and is renewable. That's one example is a litany of proposed alternative solutions to the global thirst for energy. However incomplete, flawed and imperfect all of the world's solutions are to energy source change, there is no disputing that all are measurable steps toward a better future.

Behaving like a company with a vested interest in this outcome, Porsche is stepping into the fray to offer something exciting. Something to whet the 'appetite of possibility' for auto enthusiasts around the world. Again, enter the Porsche 918. It is a concept that is both fascinating and admirable. It's a feat of engineering. It's a feat of ideology.

It says to this world that fast, and exotic can be exciting while being mindful.

To read more about this fantastic car, go here:

The Porsche 918 Spyder

Been Awhile!

Ok .... first, sorry for the delay in posting. May was a BUSY month!

Second, stay tuned for a new post a bit later today!

Dinosaur Bones, Electricity...and Racing. Part 2

OK, I said I love cars.

I REALLY love fast cars.

Like kick-in-the-pants fast.

But a Hybrid?

First: Ok, I noted the fabulous MotoCzysz creation a few days ago and neglected to mention to you Oregon readers that they call Portland home! (Seventhgear Autosport's home base...) To you non-Oregon readers.....neeener neeener neeeeenerrr! Just kidding.

Now...PART 2:

Just as the MotoCzysz creation was hitting the track at the Isle of Man TT race last year, another fantastic hybrid concept made it's debut. Specifically, a wicked concept for a turbo-diesel-electric-hybrid from the 'skinny glasses-n-lab coat wearing' geniuses at Bayerische Motoren Werke. Otherwise known as ... BMW. This is the first car that I have ever seen that really made me excited to see a hybrid. It's interesting, it's fast, it's efficient, and it actually would be possible to use something similar, with our current automotive infrastructure in place. Novel, eh?

Yes, the Germans have done it. They have produced a seriously high powered, feasible hybrid.

Named the 'BMW Vision Efficient Dynamics Concept' (mouthful, yes...) it boasts over 355 hp and a WICKED 590 ft/lbs of torque. For those of you who don't nerd out on this stuff, the horsepower is really nice but it's the torque that really gives you the seat of the pants rush under acceleration. This car apparently does not disappoint. Sporting a look right out of the yet to be released "Tron" sequel, this car talks the talk AND walks the walk.

It is equipped with an innovative power source, including electric motors at both the front and rear axle, and a 3 cylinder turbodiesel, internal combustion engine.

This powerplant provides the car with serious performance, on par with their famed M3 models. Yes, that means a 0-60 time in 4.8 seconds, and an electronically limited 155 mph top speed (the same as all US spec BMW M3s). You would think that all of this performance would burn through fuel quickly. Well, you'd be mistaken. The rated fuel consumption is a stingy 62 MPG. Quite a difference from the 16 MPG the M3 gets.

In addition to the turbo diesel engine, the car is equipped with a dual 'plug in hybrid/ regenerative braking' electric drive system. Meaning, it generates SOME of it's own electrical power and also is plugged into the wall in your garage. The electric component of the drivetrain will last a full fuel tank cycle before needing any charge.

I've not seen anything like this proposed by any of the major manufacturers, and BMW should be proud that they are pushing the envelope of speed, power, and efficiency.

As for the aesthetic design of the car itself, I'm a big fan. It's way, way forward thinking and I appreciate seeing something different. You'll notice a LOT of glass in the design. It's actually polycarbonate, photosensitive panel that changes tint depending on solar exposure (think of those glasses that automatically darken when you walk outside).

Is it buildable on a mass production scale as it sits? Heck no. It's a very intricate design that would cost a fortune to make a million examples of. Well then, what's the point? You can bet that you'll see design cues and engineering breakthroughs achieved with this concept, on future road-going models from BMW.

Perhaps someday we'll see it on the road!

Dinosaur Bones, Electricity...and Racing.

PART 1: I have a dilemma.

I LOVE cars.

I LOVE motorcycles.

I LOVE racing.

I LOVE speed (at the track, of course).

I LOVE the visceral feel and sound of a high performance internal combustion engine. It's intoxicating to me, in person. I LOVE racing cars and motorcycles, and their road going counterparts, for their look, speed, power and performance. I love the freedom that cars and motorcycles give an individual in daily life.

However, I struggle with the insatiable 'fossil fuel burn' that modern Western society participates in. It IS a long term problem that needs to be solved. Finding a way to reduce dependence on petroleum is the right thing to do for the planet in the long term. I have to balance this with my white hot fever for the sound of a Lamborghini's 6.0 liter 12 cylinder engine screaming at full song down a straight. What's that you say, about hypocrisy?

Such is 'my dilemma'...

I'm excited to say that innovative companies are pushing the envelope of performance and efficiency with cars, every day. With much of the early credit due to pioneering companies like Honda and Toyota, for embracing and developing hybrid electric technology. As I'm sure you're all aware, throughout the 1990's, they focused on developing cars that appealed to the basic desires of mass consumer sentiment. Those efforts came to fruition in the 2000's and they produced the rather altruistic Honda Insight and Toyota Prius. Honestly they are...to be blunt...as exciting to a car guy as standing in line at any poorly manned government agency. This is OK, if that's what suits you. If you like automotive boredom they are perfect. While their actual effectiveness could be debated all day, they have made the case to the masses for alternatives that can work in the real world.

For those of us that live and breathe the car hobby however, they leave something to be desired.

Well, that's where some other companies are now stepping up the the plate, to swing the proverbial 'bat'. Small companies like Tesla have already developed entirely new plug-in electric technology sports cars. Then there's MotoCzysz. The leading edge mini-MotoGP team turned electric motorcycle manufacturer, that was founded by the architect turned motorcycle designer, Michael Czysz.

On the back of their 'not-yet-realized' Moto GP project, they have developed a completely wicked, battery powered Moto GP inspired bike called the E1pc. It competed for the first time at the Isle of Man TTXGP last summer. With a staggering 250 lbs of torque from this plug-n-play battery powered tri-electric motor equipped cycle, Motoczysz is pushing boundaries of alternative technologies for vehicle power. It's to date, the only platform that allows the batteries themselves to be charged remotely from the vehicle. Just like an everyday appliance, you just put them in a "charger" and then they are ready for use.

More thoughts to come in PART 2 of this post.... but for starters.... Check out this cool trailer (documenting the Motoczysz project) from the movie "CHARGE", written by Mark Neale and narrated by noted motorcycle guru and acclaimed actor, Ewan McGregor.

Images and video courtesy of MotoCzysz

Love your family?

...Then wear your seatbelt.

It still astonishes me people neglect this. Here's a different take on why.

Formula 1: Why it's special.

Formula One.

Formula Freaking One...

As a car fan you typically fall into two categories.

One: You've probably heard the term, and are a least familiar, but you don't really know much about WHY F1 is so special.

Or...

Two: You are a rabid, long time fan, and can't imagine how anyone who is a true fan of cars would not watch the sport with astonishment. It's a sport where each team (at a cost of several hundred million dollars per year) designs and builds purpose built, bespoke racing cars and engines... completely from scratch. It's a sport where these teams then risk their car's destruction every two weeks while drivers pilot them around harrowing race courses at speeds up to 200 mph.

This is a little insight into why I mostly fall into category "Two".

Formula One is almost a ridiculous proposition when you really think about it. It's a sport where just milliseconds matter. Not tenths or hundredths of a second... but thousandths of a second. Blink your eyes twice, right now. That's the difference in lap times over two and a half mile courses that separate the best (winning) teams from the teams that never win. It requires a herculean effort to make up those thousandths, from the standpoint of a team.

It has an allure that is magnetic. It's a near impossible feat in many ways.

It requires you to trot the globe. It requires absolute focus. It requires innovation 24 hours a day. Literally. This is a sport where lab coats, exotic metals and materials, autoclaves, 100 channel data acquisition and CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) are the norm. It's a sport where a team's banks of high powered computers are crunching petabytes of gathered race and testing data, 24 hours a day. It's a sport that requires as many as 900 employees per team, to field a 2 car team for a season! Like I said.... ridiculous.

Did you know that each of the larger teams has wind tunnels that are manned 24 hours a day in three shifts no less, by engineers who are testing the aerodynamic qualities of an individual team's car? They are constantly making changes to parts on the car that affect airflow, drag, lift and downforce. Teams work 24 hours a day remanufacturing newly designed revisions to the cars, to specifically build their cars for a specific race. They spare no effort or expense to win. It's an exceptional thing to behold.

Here's a fascinating look into a winning team. This is behind the scenes stuff! (click on the video, let it load...and behold...) Image courtesy of Motorsport.com / Video Courtesy of Red Bull F1 Racing

Automobile Magazine reports that the Audi RS5 is coming to the USA!

Now, I've been a fan of Audi since my days with a remote control scale version of the legendary '85 Quattro Short Wheelbase Rallye Car. I would die to have been given the chance to fling one of these beasts up the course at Corsica Italy, or Rally Spain. But, I had to settle for my ultra cool, birthday present as a 13 year old 7th Grader in Central Pennsylvania. It had 4 wheels and was self powered so I was cool with it.

Since then, Audi has made some fantastic REAL cars, and I have owned several models (...currently I have two... an S4, and a TT for sale over at the dealership website...) including the A4. One car I have not yet pulled the trigger on is the ULTRA sexy A. The A5, A coupe, is now offered by Audi in both S (Sport) and RS ( RennSport...or 'Racing') models. Over the years, the primo RS models would often be witheld from our fine USA shores for a myriad of reasons, but these days the RS models are finding their way here. Even though they regularly don't have ALL the primo bells and whistles of the Euro models, they are a treat and this RS5 is no different. At 444hp and 317 ft/lbs of torque, this is going to be one FUN car that still has a trunk in the back.

Automobile Magazine has reported that they have confirmed it to be true...no official word from Audi yet, but it looks like the RS5 is coming! I can't wait!

(Picture credits above are to Audi AG)

Check this World Car Fans post about it....

Audi RS5 Confirmed for U.S. - rumors

http://www.worldcarfans.com/110040525514...

While details are limited, Automobile is reporting an unnamed source has told them an American launch is "increasingly likely." Despite being far from official, the possibility of an RS5 in the U.S. is tantalizing.

Welcome to SGA's Automotive enthusiast blog!

I just wanted to take a moment to say hi to you folks reading this blog for the first time. I'm new to blog writing, and new to the car business so this is exciting for us. What I'm not new to, is a love of cool cars! Whether it's a real 1962 Shelby Cobra, a cool little BMW Isetta, a modern MINI, a eurotuner modified Audi, or even Lamborghini Reventon...I'll take notice!

As an offshoot of my car craziness, I am an internet car forum nut, and a racing fan to the bone. I cruise a bunch of online fora, and when I have time I'll sit and watch Formula One, Indycar, LeMans Racing on TV for sure. When there's a fair amount of free time (Since starting SGA, there's a LOT less lately!), I'll tune in to some NHRA, and even some NASCAR too.

So, on that note, you can look forward to my opinions about all manner of car related thoughts, some racin' thoughts, as well as the occasional non-car thought. (I do have them, amazingly...)

Thanks again for stopping by!

Bronson Graff

Owner, Seventhgear Autosport