Toyota Speedway at Irwindale and other Southern California short tracks that host racing mostly on Saturday nights are gearing up for the 2009 racing season.
The Irwindale facility, considered one of the best short tracks in the nation, is a half-mile paved oval that features late-model stock cars.
Trucks and smaller cars called bandoleros and legends also compete at Toyota Speedway, which also hosts demolition derbies and figure-eight races.
The track’s notable events during the year include its NASCAR season opener March 21, the NASCAR Camping World Series 200 on July 4, the NASCAR Late Model final on Oct. 24 and the venerable Turkey Night race with sprint and midget cars Thanksgiving night.
On Oct. 17, the speedway also is scheduled to host a professional “drifting” event as part of the Formula Drift series’ schedule…Â More info
The Aston Martin V12 Vantage has arrived and yes, you want one. Evolving the styling and engineering exercise Aston unveiled in 2007 and set for a Geneva Motor Show debut, the blokes Gaydon claim the V12 Vantage is the most driver-focused sports car the automaker has ever produced.
Power is provided by a 6.0-liter V12 putting out 510 hp at 6,500 rpm and 420 lb.-ft. of torque at 5,750 rpm. The Vantage’s new-found grunt is sent through a carbon fiber driveshaft to a rear-mounted six-speed manual gearbox. The transmission benefits from an oil cooler and a new rear diffuser helps cool the standard limited slip differential. Aston claims a 0-60 time of 4.1 seconds and top speed of 190 mph…Â More Info…
Chris Bangle, who as head of design for BMW became one of the most famous — and reviled — auto designers in automotive history, has abruptly resigned after 16 years with the German automaker. Few will mourn his departure. Fewer still will deny his impact on auto design. The 52-year-old American was so widely… More Info…
A deadline is fast approaching on February 10 that could potentially be deadly for the youth motorcycle and ATV market. In less than two weeks, the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008, enacted August 14 of last year, will go into effect and ban all products designed for children ages 12 or under which contain lead over specified limits. The Specialty Vehicle Institute of America and Motorcycle Industry Council are attempting to get an exemption for ATV and motorcycle parts…
…What exactly happens on Feb 10 for motorcycle dealers?
“On February 10 large inventories of motorcycle and ATV products that present no health risk to children could be rendered retroactively illegal and future products prohibited from sale. These products may need to be destroyed resulting in severe hardship for dealers and manufacturers in the motorcycle industry. Along with the current state of the economy, this may be a hit that dealers and manufacturers will not be able to recover from…Â More Info…