Following the earlier news about the Subaru Impreza WRX STI here is a behind the scenes look at Subaru’s time at the Nürburgring. The clip runs for just under four minutes and gives a bit more insight into the STI sedan setting a new Nürburgring record for a four-door car.
Bit of a catch up post this one. Last October this 1997 McLaren F1 sold at auction in London for £2.5M (AU$5.4M). The sale price was a new record for a McLaren F1 and almost double the estimated sale price. Given the doom and gloom that has followed since you’d reckon the result should remain a record for quite some time.
I’m sure I’m not alone in holding the Macca F1 up as one of the greatest cars ever made. When the car was released I was seduced by its looks, its performance and its aura. Little has changed in the decade and a half since. The F1 still has awe inspiring performance that few cars can match.
I was holding off on posting this article on the off chance my wife had bought it for me for Christmas. Maybe the car has been held up in customs?
Source: autoblog and RM Auctions
Rolls-Royce is bucking the trend of financial disaster in this carpocalypse now era. Yesterday, the Goodwood based company proudly announced a 20 per cent growth in sales during 2008. Last year 1212 Rollers found new homes, up from 1010 in 2007. That marks their fifth consecutive year of increasing sales.
“This is a tremendous result and particularly gratifying considering the challenging economic environment manufacturers faced in the second half of 2008,†said Tom Purves, Chief Executive Officer, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. “Once again much of this success lies with the highly skilled and dedicated workforce that we have at Goodwoodâ€.
Given the gravity of the financial meltdown in the United States some may be surprised to learn that almost 40 per cent of Rolls-Royce deliveries headed Stateside. Northern Europe and the Middle East also saw big spikes on 2007 figures, up 95% and 48% respectively. Even Australia did its part in boosting BMW’s balance sheet in the RR column, with sales also growing here.
It will come as no surprise that the most successful Rolls-Royce dealer worldwide is in Abu Dhabi. While Beijing, Beverly Hills, Dubai and London rounded out the top five.
Can sales continue to grow for a sixth consecutive year? I can’t imagine the chaps at Goodwood are banking on that. However, preparations are underway for the introduction of a brand new model series, currently named RR4, due later this year (design sketch images below).