CARSCOOP

Subaru Owner Goes Berserk Upon Seeing New 2013 Scion FR-S on the Road [Video]
EU Ruling Raises Car Insurance Cost for Young Women but Lowers it for “Boy Racers”
Shocker: Crash Tests Reveal that Most Cars Sold in Latin America are Deathtraps on Wheels
Volvo Designer Imagines a P1800 Coupe for the 21st Century
Put a Socket on it: Nissan Celebrates Leaf's First Birthday with an Ad
Report: Senior U.S. Car Buyers Try to Cling on to their Youth by Choosing Good Ol' American Iron
ArmyLand: Take a Spin in a Tank and Destroy a Car for $1,000
2010-2011 Ford Fusion and Mercy Milan Sedans Recalled Over Fears that Wheels Could Fall Off
Ford Expands its Range of Crate Engines for 2012, adds New 20-liter 4-Cylinder
Golden Razzie: Teen Girl Supposedly Does Burnout in Dad's Manual Corvette C6
Ward's Auto Announces the 10 Best Engines of the Year
Formula 1: Sauber is Third Team to Leave FOTA, Toro Rosso to Follow?
Attention, Serious Buyers Only: 1995 Cadillac 900S Convertible
2011 Nissan Rogue Subjected to Recall Over Power Steering Issue
This Flashy Ferrari 360 Spider will Leave You… BedazzLED
GM to Donate Proceeds from Military Tribute Camaro to Veterans Program
Report: U.S. Highway Fatalities Drop to their Lowest Number Since 1949
Toyota's Gloomy New Forecast Cuts Annual Profits by More than Half
Skoda Remembers the VisionD Concept with a New Set of Photos

Subaru Owner Goes Berserk Upon Seeing New 2013 Scion FR-S on the Road [Video]

Posted: 09 Dec 2011 06:05 PM PST

Some of us may have been slightly disappointed by the conservative transition of the original Toyota FT-86 and Scion FR-S from concept to production, but there's a lot of enthusiasm out there, especially from young buyers looking for an affordable, rear-wheel drive sports coupe.

You can see that from the interest shown in all three derivatives of the collaborative project between Toyota and Subaru, despite the fact that the BRZ, 86 and FR-S are virtually identical sans for some insignificant styling and trim differences. In the States, the plan is to bring the Subaru BRZ and the Scion FR-S (instead of the 86 / GT 86).

EU Ruling Raises Car Insurance Cost for Young Women but Lowers it for “Boy Racers”

Posted: 09 Dec 2011 04:52 PM PST

For many decades, women have been talking about sex discrimination. We for one, support equality for both genders. And so does the European Court of Justice, which just last March, ruled that it is illegal for insurance companies to set premiums according to gender.

The case was brought to court by a Belgian consumer group, which argued that it was illegal under EU law to make risk assessments based on gender.

Shocker: Crash Tests Reveal that Most Cars Sold in Latin America are Deathtraps on Wheels

Posted: 09 Dec 2011 05:47 PM PST

The FIA Foundation announced the results of the first ever crash tests carried out by the Latin New Car Assessment Program (Latin NCAP), and the news isn't good for consumers and automakers alike.

Actually, the crash test results reveal a terrifying reality: most of the best selling cars in Latin America's emerging markets offer minimal or no protection at all to their adult occupants let alone children...

Max Mosley, president of Global NCAP, said: "The latest results of the Latin NCAP reveal that South America's most popular cars are still about 20 years behind the levels of safety enjoyed in Europe and North America. This cannot be acceptable."

"We want to see the UN's global crash test standards applied to all new cars across the world. And we want consumers to be aware of the life and death choices they make when buying a new car," Mosley added.

Volvo Designer Imagines a P1800 Coupe for the 21st Century

Posted: 09 Dec 2011 02:43 PM PST

The P1800 is by far the sportiest looking model ever to leave Volvo's production facilities - though to be precise, manufacturing began in the UK by Jensen Motors before Volvo moved production to Sweden in 1963.

This year marks the 50th anniversary since Volvo introduced the coupe model to the world in 1961, and to celebrate the event, the Swedish firm's head designer and an avid fan of the P1800, Christopher Benjamin, came up with a sketch to show what a modern day version could look like.

Put a Socket on it: Nissan Celebrates Leaf's First Birthday with an Ad

Posted: 09 Dec 2011 01:51 PM PST

It's been about 365 days or a year since Nissan launched its new pure-electric Leaf onto the market and to celebrate the event, the Japanese company released a commercial featuring household electric-sockets singing the traditional 'happy birthday song'.

Over the course of a year, Nissan says it has sold more than 19,000 Leaf hatchbacks worldwide. In the U.S., sales of the all-electric model have totaled 8,720 units through the end of November. Just this week, Nissan announced that it is going to expand the availability of the Leaf to seven more states starting from spring of 2012.

Report: Senior U.S. Car Buyers Try to Cling on to their Youth by Choosing Good Ol' American Iron

Posted: 09 Dec 2011 01:26 PM PST

Oscar Wilde famously said that "to get back to my youth I would do anything in the world except take exercise, get up early, or be respectable".

Sadly, the 19-century novelist and poet is no longer among us to reveal if buying a car to remind him of his youth, no matter how far behind the competition it is, would be one of the sacrifices he would or wouldn't be willing to make.

A survey by TrueCar.com reveals that cars bought by people aged 65 and above in the States belong mostly to domestic brands they remember from their youth, such as Cadillac, Lincoln and Buick

ArmyLand: Take a Spin in a Tank and Destroy a Car for $1,000

Posted: 09 Dec 2011 12:50 PM PST

So you want to blow off some steam and crash a car with tank, do you? Minnesota-based company 'Drive-a-Tank' has you covered. The name leaves no ambiguity as to what it is all about.

For $499, you can take a three to four hour drive in one of the available British tanks after some necessary lessons, while adding another $499 for a total of $998 will allow you to run over a car. If that's not enough, you can always opt for the double car crash package that will cost you $1,190 in total.

2010-2011 Ford Fusion and Mercy Milan Sedans Recalled Over Fears that Wheels Could Fall Off

Posted: 09 Dec 2011 12:05 PM PST

The Blue Oval has issued a new recall on certain 2010-2011MY Ford Fusion and Mercury Milan sedans that are equipped with 17-inch steel wheels because the wheel studs may start fracturing and split over time, potentially leading to one or more wheels falling off the car. No other types of wheels are affected by this recall. Read more »

Ford Expands its Range of Crate Engines for 2012, adds New 2.0-liter 4-Cylinder

Posted: 09 Dec 2011 11:31 AM PST

Ford Racing has released details on its new crate engines that will be available for 2012. Apart from the usual powerplants that range from the nine pushrod engines to the new, high-tech "Coyote" 5.0-liter V8, Ford has expanded its lineup to include a new 2.0-liter four-cylinder.

The I4 "Concept" is the first of a line of four cylinders to follow and is a naturally aspirated, direct-injection, 2.0-liter unit with variable valve timing, 12.0:1 compression ratio and an output of 160HP to 175 HP.

Golden Razzie: Teen Girl Supposedly Does Burnout in Dad's Manual Corvette C6

Posted: 09 Dec 2011 10:54 AM PST

When you hunt for car-related videos on a daily basis, you are bound to stumble on a clip or two that will force you to place your hand flat across your face – a physical gesture commonly known as 'face palm'.

And this video of a supposedly teenage girl - who actually looks like she's well into her 20s- allegedly doing a burnout in her father's manual gearbox Corvette C6 is definitely worth a good face palm, or two.

Ward's Auto Announces the 10 Best Engines of the Year

Posted: 09 Dec 2011 10:21 AM PST

The annual list of Ward's 10 Best Engines of the year has been released. The magazine's editors chose the winners after spending October and November driving 36 vehicles with 34 of those featuring new or significantly upgraded powerplants.

To be eligible to participate in the competition, Ward's states that "each engine must be available in a regular-production U.S.-specification model on sale no later than first-quarter 2012, in a vehicle with a base price below $55,000".

Formula 1: Sauber is Third Team to Leave FOTA, Toro Rosso to Follow?

Posted: 09 Dec 2011 09:37 AM PST

A spokeswoman for the Sauber Formula 1 team has confirmed to ESPN that it has sent a letter to the Formula One Teams' Association (FOTA), informing them that it will no longer be part of it.

The move makes Sauber the third team after Red Bull and Ferrari to leave FOTA which, ironically, was formed on July 2008 in a meeting in Maranello in order for the F1 teams to present a unified stance in talks with FIA and the Bernie Ecclestone-owned Formula One Group that owns F1's commercial rights.

Attention, Serious Buyers Only: 1995 Cadillac 900S Convertible

Posted: 09 Dec 2011 08:52 AM PST

From the 1980s right through to the beginning of the 21st century, General Motors tried its best to simplify the art of badge engineering as a cheap and easy way to expand its offerings and increase its profits.

Apparently, some of GM's enthusiasm for badge-trickery managed to rub off on certain consumers like the owner of this 1995 Saab who artfully transformed the open-top model into the Cadillac 900S Convertible in a way that a 1990s GM exec would say, "why didn't I think of that?"

2011 Nissan Rogue Subjected to Recall Over Power Steering Issue

Posted: 09 Dec 2011 08:32 AM PST

More than 7,300 Nissan Rogue crossovers from the 2011 model year are being recalled after it was discovered that circuit board might not have been installed in the correct position on certain electric power steering (EPS) assist control units.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration [NHTSA] said that this may cause the circuit board to fail and as a result, the power steering assist feature will cease to function thus increasing the force needed to steer the vehicle.

This Flashy Ferrari 360 Spider will Leave You… BedazzLED

Posted: 09 Dec 2011 07:54 AM PST

For some bizarre and unexplainable reason, certain owners of Italian exotic supercars think that adding myriads of LEDs to their vehicles is a very cool idea.

After the colorful Lamborghini Diablo and its super-LED trimmed Ferrari F458 counterpart, we bring you yet another bright creation, this time a Ferrari 360 Spider with more flashing lights than a 1990s rave party in Amsterdam… Videos follow after the break.

GM to Donate Proceeds from Military Tribute Camaro to Veterans Program

Posted: 09 Dec 2011 07:28 AM PST

A one-off Military Tribute Camaro designed by award-winning artist Mickey Harris is heading to the Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale Arizona auction that takes place from January 15 to 22, 2012, and all for good reason as General Motors announced today that it plans to give all proceeds from the sale will benefit the Achilles Freedom Team of Wounded Veterans. Read more »

Report: U.S. Highway Fatalities Drop to their Lowest Number Since 1949

Posted: 09 Dec 2011 07:05 AM PST

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reported that the number of overall road fatalities in the States dropped by 2.9% to 32,885 in 2010 compared to 2009. The fatality rate, that is the number of people killed per 100 million vehicle miles traveled, fell to 1.1 last year from 1.15 in 2009.

This is the fifth year in a row that fatalities decreased. On the other hand, deaths of motorcyclists, pedestrians and large-truck occupants increased and the number of traffic accident-related injuries rose by 0.9% to 2.24 million.

Toyota's Gloomy New Forecast Cuts Annual Profits by More than Half

Posted: 09 Dec 2011 06:46 AM PST

After losing the top spot as the world's largest automaker, Toyota is now halving its profit forecast due to a number of factors, the most important of which are the production disruptions caused by the earthquake and tsunami in Japan in March and the recent floods in Thailand, as well as the strong yen.

Toyota said that it expects to bring in a net profit of 180 billion Yen [US$2.3 billion] for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2012, down 53.8 percent from the 390 billion yen [US$5.04 billion] it projected in August.

Skoda Remembers the VisionD Concept with a New Set of Photos

Posted: 09 Dec 2011 06:02 AM PST

We're not sure why, but Skoda has released a new gallery of pictures of its VisionD concept that we first laid eyes on at the Geneva Motor Show back in March 2011.

Perhaps it is because the Czech automaker would like to refresh our memory on the design of the VisionD, which according to the company, offers a "clear indication" of the future styling direction for all Skoda models.