The Civic Loses it's Charm

2012 Honda Civic EX Sedan

I wouldn't have one of these in a million years, and apparently, neither would Consumer Reports. For the last couple of years, the Civic has always been a must buy for readers of the Consumer Reports, but this year, it seems that the editor wants their readers to buy a Kia Forte, a Ford Focus, a Chevy Cruze, a Fiat 500, a Nissan GT-R; pretty much any car other than this. How bad has this car become? Well, the last one which looked decent received a score of 78. This new one with it's weird curves and crooked lines took its score down 17 notches to a disappointing 61, casting it out of the Consumer Reports recommended cars list along with the Toyota Corolla, Nissan Sentra, and Mazda 3. Unfortunately, they're not gonna get any luck with me. It's by far the ugliest Civic I've ever seen. Honestly, they should've left the design alone. It looked better before this horrid redo. So, if you've bought a new Civic, shame on you! You could've done much better with an older one. Or better yet, if you want a good looking, fuel efficient, cheap compact car, I'd get either a Ford Focus, Ford Fiesta, or a Fiat 500. Those 3 are the best looking small cars in this day and age. Honda's really going down a steep hill with their failures. First it was the CR-V, now, it's this. If only the S2000 came back.

Clarkson Takes Forza By Storm

2005 Ford GT (Forza Motorsport 4)

If you're a genuine Jeremy Clarkson fan, you might wanna put Forza Motorsport 4 and an Xbox 360 (if you don't have one) on your christmas wish list. Remember yesterday when I said that Clarkson was going to narrate his take on some cars in the game? I wasn't kidding. InsideSimRacing.tv just posted a pre-release video of Clarkson giving his take on the Ford GT, the only car of which he really loved. Unlike those boring monotone voices that you get in DiRT 3, Jeremy's voice is very real and provides the same doctrine that he's done with the cars on Top Gear. So, Gran Turismo, you might wanna think about hiring him in your next installment, cuz Forza already have. Take a look at the video below to see what I'm talking about.

H.F.H.V

2011 Ford Fiesta Gymkhana 4 H.F.H.V

So, if you've heard the chatter around Ken Block's Facebook Page and his main rally website, you've probably heard of Ken Block's newest project: the Hybrid Function Hooning Vehicle, or H.F.H.V for short. Basically, Ken takes a two-door Ford Fiesta rally car, but instead setting up for one main discipline like Gymkhana, he uses it for three different disciplines like Gymkhana, RallyCross, and Rally. One car, three ways to race, new awesome! So far, Ken's given his new car a public show by hooning it around his Los Angeles stop on his Gymkhana World Tour. So far, no info has been given on what this new 3-in-1 monster packs under its bonnet, but Ken says it will be released along with a new video tomorrow.

Cobra Stays Supercharged

2013 Ford Shelby GT500 (Courtesy of Brenda Priddy & Company)

It looks like the Cobra will remain supercharged after all. In recent rumors and reports, the big, bad GT500 will hold on to its Supercharger. But, with that intercooler also under the bonnet, expect this car to produce as much horsepower than the already menacing Camaro ZL1, which could receive 570 horsepower from its 6.2-liter LSA Supercharged V8. The current snake produces 550 horsepower, and in recent reports, the car will come with somewhat of a 20 horsepower power bump in 2014. In that same year though, a new Mustang will come forth as a 2015 model. Specifics are unclear as for now, but when I get something, I'll make sure you'll hear it from me first.

Supercar For a Week

2010 Bentley Continental GT

Ok, so some internet marketing program invited me to enter to win a supercar for a week, and I thought, Brilliant! I'll enter. All I have to do to win is get a lot of votes and from the competition I'm seeing, it might not be that hard, but just in case, you guys have to vote for me. If you do, I'll promise to give you guys something big, maybe a cool racing game, say Need For Speed: The Run? The only way to make this work is if you vote for me. So go to this website (http://splinternetmarketing.com/supercarentries/ObiNkwonta.html) and click on the big "Vote for Me button on the bottom (you can't miss it)! Please do this. It will benefit the blog and yourselves in many ways. Cars I can win? Well, a Lamborghini Gallardo, Bentley Continental GT, and Ford GT are up for grabs so that's good. 

Twin-Turbo Cobra?

2013 Ford Shelby GT500 (Courtesy of AutoBlog)

It's possible! Why? Take a look at the intercooler hiding behind the grille. The only cars I know that have such an instrument would have an engine that's been turbocharged. And seeing that this is the GT500, I'm thinkin' two turbos would fit the bill. Don't panic Supercharger lovers. There are also rumors that an even bigger supercharger will be housed under the bonnet of the Cobra which will push the power from 550 to 620 horsepower. As for me, I'm just glad to see it hugging corners on the Nürburgring. That course is racing heaven. In order to master it, you'll need a fantastic car as well as fantastic driving skills. Since the GT500 came back in 2006, it's been praised for being a powerful car, but mocked for having stick-like handling. Now that it's on the Ring, this will give Ford the chance to make the car more grippy, less stick-like, and more refined. Hopefully, this car will beat the M3 GTS to the punch.

The Race For Your Life

2010 BMW M6 Convertible

Need For Speed is back and it's bringing the cops and the action with it. If you remember Hot Pursuit with just pure racing and cop chasing, put that all aside, because in this new game, it's a matter of life and death. No word on who will develop this game, but it's most likely that Black Box Studios will come back to make a knock-your-socks-off racing game. It looks like there's gonna be an array of new cars from the Audi R8 5.2 FSI Quattro, the BMW M3 GTS, the Shelby GT500 Super Snake, the Ford Taurus SHO Interceptor, the Aston Martin V12 Vantage, and many more. So, to sum it up, Black Box Studios is bringing back the cop chases, the insane races, and the movie scenes to this latest NFS title. I just hope it's not another Undercover. Let's see if Black Box can redeem themselves with this title. Need For Speed: The Run is scheduled for release this November 15 for the PS3, Xbox 360, and the PC. Check out the trailer below.

DLC Madness!

Team Need For Speed Porsche 911 Carrera RSR 3.0

The Legends have come to Shift 2 Unleashed as the first DLC for the game arrives today. Before our present day 911 GT3 RSRs, Matech Ford GT1s, and Nissan R35 GT1s, there was the 911 Carrera RSR 3.0, the Ford Mk. I GT40, and the Nissan Skyline 2000GT-R. Aw, yes, the true legends of the track have returned, and it's your job to master them in order to become a well-rounded racer. The Legends Pack includes a new career map with new events featuring 13 classic cars that you need to hone. Not mention you'll be driving on 5 new classic tracks from the 1950's to the 1980's. Oh, and did I mention that Team NFS drifter Matt Powers will be taking you on in his custom 911 Carrera RSR? If you want that car, you're gonna have to race him for it. The DLC comes out today for Xbox Live and Playstation Network, those PSN members will be getting it later due to the recent hacker shutdown.

Things Are Getting DiRTY

Traxxas #43 Ford Fiesta Gymkhana 3 R/C

Grab your helmet and a clean towel because things are about to get DiRTY. The next biggest racing game of 2011, DiRT 3, will be here May 24 for the PS3, Xbox 360, and the PC. Codemasters has made what probably will be the best rally racing game of all time including all your rally favorites such as the legendary Group B races, Pikes Peak stages, WRC battles, Rally Raid races, and everyone's favorite Gymkhana showdowns. 50 cars are said to be on the roster including the Ford Fiesta WRC, the Suzuki Grand Vitara Pikes Peak, and even the MG Metro 6R4 rally monster. So far, there will be two editions available for pre-order: the standard and the limited edition. Pre-ordering the limited edition will give you more rep points at the beginning, all four cars from the Texaco Racing Superteam, and four bonus events. Not only that. Remember the time I told that Codemasters was planning to release that R/C Ford Fiesta (above) to all the DiRT 3 LE players? Well it turns out that it's all true. When you pre-order the Limited Edition, Codemasters will add Ken Block's Traxxas Ford Fiesta Gymkhana 3 R/C car to the bundle. Normally this toy would cost you about $500. But, Codemasters will send the car and the game to you for a reasonable $300. Sounds good, doesn't it? So if you haven't pre-ordered the game yet, you better get on it.

Gulf Superior

2012 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Gulf Edition

Who said the Ford GT had to be the only supercar to wear the Gulf livery? Mercedes was there during olden racing days, so it deserves a chance. This week at New York, Mercedes-Benz unveiled their premiere silver arrow, the SLS AMG, wearing a very unique Gulf Livery. It might not be as fast the Ford GT, but with the livery on, it just looks better. Besides, it is more powerful than the GT with the 6.2-liter un-Supercharged 563 horsepower V8 engine out-revving the GT's 5.4-liter Supercharged cod. No prices have announced yet, but it would be cool to see this thing on sale.

[Source: Autoblog]

All Work and No Play Keeps even Ken Block Away

Traxxas Ford Fiesta #43 Gymkhana R/C Car

Remember this little thing? Monster World Rally Driver Ken Block asked world-renowned R/C Car company Traxxas to make a special one just for him and the fans. It's on sale now if you still want to buy it. But, since the real thing is the official car of the next big sim game, DiRT 3, Codemasters, the guys behind the DiRT series, decided to amp it up a little. When the game comes out on May 24, there will be 2 editions: the standard and the limited edition. Recent speculation has been received that if you pre-order the limited edition for who knows how much, Codemasters will drop this awesome R/C car in the package along with the game. How cool is that? We're talking about a toy car that's about the size of my laptop and can run faster than a school bus. Check out their website for more info and check out the video below to see the car in action.

King Cobra

2010 Shelby GT500 Super Snake

Shelby and the Ford Mustang are like two peas in a pod, always hanging around each other. Ever since the 60's, Shelby has always been tuning the pony car with superchargers and other stuff to make it the most powerful muscle car on earth. In 2010, they came back to produce the Super Snake, their most powerful Mustang yet with a 5.4-liter Supercharged V8 engine producing 750 horsepower. Carroll Shelby himself said that car will do over 200 MPH with a 0 to 60 time of 3.7 seconds. Well, word has gone out that for 2012, Shelby will be recreating the Super Snake. This time, it will have, get this, 800 horsepower. It will also come with other upgrades like BAER Six-Piston brakes, Borla Exhaust System, Sport-tuned suspension, and Alcoa 20-inch rims. But, out of all honesty, if the Mustang wasn't so heavy, the Super Snake would easily do 220 MPH. But, Shelby loves to go all out while maintaining their "safety" motto with their cars. Anyway, the 800 horsepower King Cobra will be on display this month at the New York International Auto Show, so you better believe that I'll have pictures of it.

King Cobra

2013 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 (Courtesy of WorldCarFans)

It seems like Ford was rather displeased by the unveiling of the Chevy Camaro ZL1. So, after that car made its world debut, they decided to even the odds. And by evening the odds, I mean making their pony car the fastest and most powerful on the planet, in their terms at least. So, welcome everyone, to the all new King Cobra, the Shelby GT500 for 2013. No real changes in body work. Ford just wanted this Cobra to be more powerful. So what did they do? They took out the old 5.4-liter 550 horsepower supercharged V8 engine and put in an all new 5.8-liter 620 horsepower supercharged V8 engine. The new supercharger provides all the beans in this car. Our current GT500 uses one from Eaton Performance. This new one will use a TVS blower for more power and torque. No calculations yet on how fast the new Cobra can go, but Ford promises that this car will do 0 to 60 in less than 4 seconds and a over 190 MPH. I hope they can achieve this. The Camaro ZL1 will do 0 to 60 in about 3.8 seconds and up to 200 MPH. Ford has a lot of work to do if they want to catch up.

[Source: WorldCarFans]