Octane TV

Television and radio comedian Adam Carolla, champion rally and drift racer Tanner Foust, and TV construction guru Eric Stromer, will lead NBC’s pilot of the international smash hit series “Top Gear.” The production will begin later this week.

Produced by BBC Worldwide America, the U.S. version of the hit franchise will mirror the UK show’s irreverent humor and camaraderie between the three presenters, epic races, outrageous stunts and challenges, unique celebrity guest participation and eccentric methods of testing cars.

"This franchise is a proven winner worldwide and the hosting team of Adam, Tanner and Eric that we have brought together for the U.S. version offers a perfect match of humor, insider know-how and priceless track experience," said Craig Plestis, Executive Vice President, Alternative Programming Development and Specials, NBC Entertainment. "We are going to create a high-powered show that, like the original, will keep viewers in every demographic clutching the edge of their seats."

“These three guys will get to drive the world’s most amazing cars, go on incredible road trips and blow stuff up. It’s a dirty old job but someone has to do it…why didn’t I get the job?!” said Paul Telegdy, Executive Vice President, TV Sales and Content & Production, BBC Worldwide America.

Jeremy Clarkson, executive producer and host of the UK “Top Gear” said: “This is fantastic news - but how on earth you lot are going to do it on the wrong side of the road I’ve no idea.”

Adam Carolla
Television and radio personality Adam Carolla is host of the daily, nationally-syndicated radio program “The Adam Carolla Show,” based out of Los Angeles’ KLSX 97.1/ FREE FM. With partners Jimmy Kimmel and Daniel Kellison, Carolla created Jackhole Industries where he produced and starred in two hit Comedy Central shows, "The Man Show" and "Crank Yankers." Carolla also co-hosted the nationally-syndicated radio program “Loveline” with Dr. Drew Pinsky for 10 years, as well as its TV version on MTV. Carolla also recently wrote and starred in the independent, award-winning feature film, “The Hammer.” In season six of “Dancing with the Stars,” Adam became the first ever contestant to complete a Paso Doble on a unicycle. Carolla is an avid car collector and owns several classic collectible Lamborghinis, Maseratis, two Ferraris and an Audi S4.

Tanner Foust
Tanner Foust is in high-demand as a stunt driver, with film credits including “The Bourne Ultimatum,” “The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift” and “The Dukes of Hazard.” Foust is a winning competitor in rally, drift, ice racing and time attack with multiple champion podium placements including the 2007 X Games Rally Champion and 2007 Formula Drift Pro Drift Champion. His varied race experience includes open wheel competition, the Pikes Peak Hill Climb (2002 - 2004), five Ice Racing championships and the 2005 PGT Rally Championship. He also holds class lap records at numerous U.S. road courses in Time Attack. In addition, Foust also hosted “Supercars Exposed” for the SPEED channel. Foust’s car of choice is a tricked-out M3.

Eric Stromer
Eric Stromer, host of the HGTV show "Over Your Head," started life in construction and remodeling houses after a short acting career as a soap opera hunk was abruptly ended by a Styrofoam boulder on the set of “Santa Barbara.” For 20 years he ran a successful building company before becoming the face of HGTV’s hit show. He’s a regular on Adam Carolla’s nationally-syndicated radio show giving out construction advice, and also appears on TLC’s “Clean Sweep,” NBC’s “Three Wishes” and is a special correspondent for “The Insider.” Stromer prefers his Camry hybrid. Autospies

Apparently the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents is not a big fan of Jeremy Clarkson. Actually, that's a bit of an understatement. They think his behavior is despicable and that he should be sacked.

To which any car fan would likely respond 'yeah, whatever' but, alas, Mr. Clarkson is not doing himself any favors by bragging in an interview that the top speed he's driven on public roads is...186 miles per hour.

And, while that figure might sound well-suited to an Autobahn, unfortunately for Jezzer, he chose to open things up a bit in a Bugatti Veyron on the Limehouse Link tunnel between Central London and Docklands, in the East of the city.

In his interview with the Daily Mail newspaper, Clarkson said, "I haven't been pulled over for speed for 20 years and I have never been pulled over for speed while working on Top Gear. I don't drive very fast.
'I don't have any influence over what people do, I really don't. It makes no difference what I say. Top Gear is just fluff. It's just entertainment - people don't listen to me."

Safety campaigners say otherwise: Mary Williams, chief executive of Brake, said: 'Jeremy Clarkson is extremely offensive and irresponsible. His comments are very upsetting to loved ones who have suffered a bereavement through a road crash because of a speeding driver. He is the most appalling role model for our next generation of drivers. The BBC should sack him - he is totally out of control."

What's the saying...all good publicity is good publicity? Daily Mail

In Europe, it's customary to simply fill your tank and then go inside to pay, you don't have to pay first in order to get served. Honor system, and all that. (Plus they want you to spend money on snacks etc).

With a 60-liter tank now costing around $150 to fill up in the UK, it's no wonder that drivers are turning to stealing. So, petrol stations are now implementing security systems to stop motorists driving away without paying: tire spikes.

A cashier activates the device after a sensor near the pump detects a vehicle attempting to leave without paying. Red lights flash at the entrance and loudspeakers broadcast a warning telling all drivers on the forecourt that their tires will be destroyed if they attempt to leave.

Any driver who ignores the warning will trigger a row of metal spikes as the front wheels pass over pressure pads. The spikes, embedded at the entrance as well as the exit, spring up and penetrate the rear wheels, deflating them in about ten seconds. The system leaves a metal tube with a unique identification number embedded in the tire.

The tube allows police to link the vehicle with the theft and prevents the tire from being reinflated with roadside repair kits which seal the puncture.

The Drivestop system costs around $20,000 to install. The system was invented by Jaginda Singh, whose family-owned petrol station was almost driven out of business by drive-aways.

“My father used to sit on the forecourt writing down number plates but the thieves would just use fake ones. I decided to build a system which speaks the only language these people understand. Interest in it started slowly but I am now having to double my staff to cope with the calls from forecourt owners who have people queuing up to steal from them.”

The Petrol Retailers’ Association said drive-aways cost the industry more than £11 million in 2006 but this was likely to have grown in the past year. London Times

The Aston Martin V8 Vantage was launched back in 2005 at the Geneva Auto Show and is now set for a makeover for model year 2009.

Along with some cosmetic changes the biggest difference is going to be under the hood. Displacement will go from 4.3-liters to 4.7-liters, for a horsepower increase of 11% for a total 420 horses. That figure will let the big cat rocket to 60 mph in 4.7 seconds but, perhaps best of all, the increased performance will be accompanied by better fuel economy, too.

Other than that, the car gets some improvements to its transmissions, for greater weight saving and quicker engine response, plus a revised suspension that's said to improve handling when you're on bendy-types of roads.

No word on what the new pricing will be.

Alex Roy of Team Polizei has been doing some digging into just what the hell is happening with Top Gear USA. It's on, it's not, the hosts have been cast, now some have been fired. All we know is that it's damn confusing and nobody will say for sure what the future of the show really is.

Thankfully, Alex has been keeping track of all this, so here is the blow-by-blow of what's happened to date and what he thinks is looming shortly:

JAN: NBC orders pilot for US Top Gear. Jay Leno & Jerry Seinfeld rumored to host. American fans of UK Top Gear complain.
FEB: Adam Carolla announces he will host US Top Gear. American fans of UK Top Gear complain.
MAR: Jay Leno writes "I hope we don’t ruin it." American fans of UK Top Gear concur…and complain. Pulitzer Prize-winning automotive journalist Dan Neil joins the cast.
APR: Drifting champion Tanner Foust joins the cast. Dan Neil fired. Rumors say top NBC brass responsible. Neil confirms worst fears of American fans of UK Top Gear. Adam Carolla driving video emerges. American fans of UK Top Gear complain.
MAY: NBC Exec says "it’s in trouble" - off the record, of course. Screen tests continue. Pilot shoot delayed. Non-appearance on NBC’s fall lineup sparks cancellation rumors. American fans of UK Top Gear rejoice.

So NOW here’s his list of possible news coming sometime today, or not:
The pilot will be delayed and released mid-season.
The show is cancelled.
The show is being "tweaked" due to…er…NBC brass hating everything about it, or being confused, or both.
The third host will be:
a) A certain Team Polizei co-pilot who may or may not have been announced as a co-pilot…yet. Maybe.
b) A certain writer, possibly foreign, who currently writes for a certain American car magazine that doesn’t suck, yet who doesn’t need (or necessarily want) the job.
c) A certain TV personality from a well-known automotive show that may or may not be called "Beastly Carriage House", and who once participated in the Gumball 3000 and married a now-retired-yet-once-well-known porn access. He might have divorced her…not that I dug that deep and found out, of course.
d) A TV actor whose first name is Chris, whose suitability for Top Gear USA must be based on information far, far beyond the web, and who played a character who may or may not have been named something like "Nutty Cornea’d Murderer" on a popular TV show. Maybe.
e) Some other f****** guy about whom no one can tell me anything useful.

Apparently Herr Roy is in possession of a ton more information but is not releasing it at this time. Is any of this to be believed? Who knows. But where the fate of anything Top Gear-related is involved, the public wants to know!! Team Polizei

So, you're ready to stump up the cash to lease a new set of wheels or, if you're brave, buy them. Gas prices are rising as fast as global temperatures but your boss is about as likely to give you a raise as Lindsay Lohan is to stay sober for a day.

So, while what you really lust after is the new GT-R, reality is a car that will do 30 mpg on a good day. Enter Cars.com and their rather helpful list of Gas and Hybrid cars that will leave a little bit of cash in your wallet when you're done filling up.

As you might expect, the cars on the list are, well, small. The winner on the Gas list most definitely fits into the 'nice things in small packages' category: the Smart ForTwo. it'll do 33 mpg in the city and 41 on the highway, with an anticipated purchase & fuel cost of $22,868.

As you might expect on the hybrid list, the Toyota Prius knows no equal. The car that's just sold 1 million units worldwide is, seemingly, unstoppable, with 48 mpg in and around town, and 45 mpg out in the boonies. Projected fuel & sticker cost: $29,855.

But hybrid fans, be warned. Cars.com reckon that the Prius will cost you more, over time, than the Smart ForTwo - $7,000 more, in fact. Projections were based on an average gas price of $3.40 (we wish!!) and an 8-year ownership period.

The following are the most economic vehicles for gas-only and hybrids, respectively. Included are fuel efficiency estimates followed by total lifetime cost (combining sticker and fuel costs)

Gas-Only Vehicles
(All have manual transmission)
1. Smart ForTwo (with premium fuel): 33/41; $22,868
2. Toyota Yaris: 29/36 ; $24,188
3. Hyundai Accent: 27/32; $24,824
4. Kia Rio: 27/32; $24,939
5. Chevrolet Aveo5: 24/34; $24,985
6. Nissan Versa: 26/31; $27,433
7. Chevrolet Aveo: 24/34; $26,920
8. Honda Fit: 28/34; $27,364
9. Toyota Corolla: 28/37; $27,381
10. Scion xD: 24/32; $28,425

Hybrid Vehicles
1. Toyota Prius: 48/45; $29,855
2. Honda Civic Hybrid: 40/45; $32,290
3. Toyota Camry Hybrid: 33/34; $37,400
4. Nissan Altima Hybrid: 35/33; $37,455
5. Saturn Aura Green Line: 24/32; $38,728

Oh those crazy Brits are at it again. U.K. DJ Chris Evans has shelled out a massive $10.9 million for a 1961 Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spyder.

Unable to put down his paddle as the price soared higher and higher, Mr. Evans is now the proud owner of the beautiful car that was once owned by James Coburn, star of films like "The Magnificent Seven".

Sold at RM Auctions over the weekend, the car was expected to fetch €3.5 million but the hammer eventually dropped at €7,040,000. The car is powered by a 3.0-liter V12 making 280 horsepower and was immortalized in the film "Ferris Bueller's Day Off".

Let's hope this Spyder doesn't meet with the same demise as the one in the movie. EGMCartech.com

You might think that NY or LA would 'boast' the highest prices around but that sad fate currently falls to Chicagoans. The average price for a gallon of self-serve regular is now $4.07, with prices for premium reaching ever-nearer to the $5 mark.

Pump visitors are filling up only enough to get them to where gas might be cheaper aka: the suburbs. Out of the metro area, prices are as much as 30 or 40 cents cheaper a gallon.

WIth Memorial Day Weekend approaching, chances that traffic will be lighter on the roads than usual seems like a pretty good bet...these days, it's looking cheaper to fly. CBS2Chicago

If you want to roll in style we already know custom rims are a must have. Spinners were hot for a brief second but for those seeking good looks and great performance, there's only one way to go: forged.

Enter Capital Forged Wheels, a new L.A.-based company specialized in the art of designing, engineering and manufacturing high-quality forged wheels.

And while the company may be new, the guys behind it are auto industry veterans: Kevin Kim headed up Unified Distribution, a national distributor of aftermarket parts, aero kits and accessories, plus interior, exterior, suspension and engine products; Brian Garin owned ABG Motoring, overseeing complete car buildups, as well as custom designs.

“Capital Forged Wheels was launched to provide customers with not only an outstanding product, but with outstanding service,” said Kevin Kim, chief executive officer of Capital Forged Wheels. “Our company’s commitment is to provide innovative styling and design while ensuring that we continually deliver on our commitments to our customers.”

CFW will initially offer 12 wheel designs in different sizes for cars, trucks and SUVs. Judging from the pics, we don't think the company's going to find it too hard to find willing customers. Capital Forged Wheels

"Nissan GT 2012" (G for Growth, T for Trust) outlines the Japanese giant's plans through the year 2012.

The plan calls for 60 all-new models over the next 5 years and the release of at least 15 new technologies each year, starting in 2009. Nissan will rely on quality leadership, zero-emission vehicle leadership and a 5% average revenue growth over 5 years.

NIssan CEO Carlos Ghosn says that Japan and the U.S. will see the first Nissan-badged electric vehicles in 2010, with the rest of the world getting them in 2012.

Nissan's Infiniti wasn't left out of the planning party either. 2 new models will be bowing in fiscal year 2008 - a convertible G37 and a mini-SUV, although it's unclear as to whether that 'ute will wear an Infiniti or Nissan badge.

With 41% of Lamborghini's sales happening on the U.S. continent, it's no surprise that their first official outpost should be here, specifically in Santa Monica, CA.

This marks the first HQ for the company outside of Italy and, while New York was a contender, the West Coast proved victorious.
"While we will have to wait until the afternoons to call California from Italy, it was the best decision," Stephan Winkelmann, CEO of Automobili Lamborghini, told Automotive News. "California is where the future trends are. It's where our PR agency is. It's where many of our buyers are."

Sounds logical. Expect a surfer dude / starlet version of Lamborghini's new 'stereotypical' ads any day now.

Cadillac is proudly shouting the lap times of the new CTS-V: it's recorded a 7 minute 59.32 second lap time at the Nürburgring that marks the fastest ever documented for a production sedan. (Pause for back slapping at GM HQ).

The new model goes on sale later this summer and will boast an estimated 550hp. Official numbers, including pricing, have yet to be announced.

Schilling out a wad of cash for a car is one of the biggest purchases you're likely to make in any given year, unless you're ready to commit to a house down payment and a mortgage.

To help lessen the blow, the fine folks at egmcartech.com have compiled a list of the 10 Least Expensive Cars to Own, taking into consideration purchase price, insurance & maintenance costs and depreciation.

Granted, none of the cars on the list are likely to win you any points at the next Auto Enthusiast Show 'n' Tell Parking Lot Match-Up, but if you need a daily driver that's not going to steal all of your daily bread, then this list is for you.

(Drum Roll...) In Reverse Order, listing Price & 5-year cost of ownership:

10. Honda Civic DX sedan: $15,010/$33,759 9. Scion xD: $14,550/$33,486 8. Chevrolet Cobalt LS: $13,925/$33,362 7. Kia Rio: $10,890/$32,750 6. Dodge Caliber SE: $14,000/$32,736 5. Hyundai Accent GS: $10,775/$32,314 4. Nissan Versa S: $12,730/$32,261 3. Chevrolet Aveo5: $10,235/$32,059 2. Honda Fit: $13,950/$31,821

And the winner is:

1. Toyota Yaris Liftback: $11,350/$30,820

The days of actually showing your product when you're advertising it are long gone. Far cooler is to allude to an idea, present a clever twist and hope that your prospective buyers are hip enough to 'get' it.

This is just what Lamborghini has done in a series of new ads that put a twist on the Italian stereotype. With a tagline "Feels Italian Wherever You Are", a hint of a wing mirror is as close to actually seeing the car as you're going to get.

Instead you get London Guards (you know, the ones who aren't supposed to move. At all.) lolling against a wall and 'talking' wildly with their hands, a couple of cowboys daintily drinking espresso outside a diner, and a, er, rather chubby fellow on a Vespa, spinning the back wheels outside a Mexican biker bar.

We're sure the agency, Philipp und Keuntje, had fun with these. Whether they'll translate into sale is another matter.

The ironic juxtaposition of an electric automaker's new flagship store opening at one of Los Angeles' busiest intersection is not lost on us. Tesla Motors has just opened the doors to its brand new, $2 million dealership near the 405 freeway in West L.A.

A necessary transmission redesign means that the company is woefully behind in its production schedule: so far only 4 cars have been built, although more than 600 have been sold and there's a wait list of another 400.

Likening the new showroom to the Apple Store experience, company founder Elon Musk said, “We wanted a nontraditional automotive experience, and we have it.”

The next Tesla stores are slated for Menlo Park, CA, round the corner from the company's Silicon Vally HQ, plus New York, Miami, Seattle and Chicago. AutoWeek