Octane TV

Lewis Hamilton is the darling of F1 and, as he proved at the Monaco Grand Prix, storming to victory in a rain-soaked race, his driving skills are phenomenal.

The same cannot be said, however, for his Dad. Evidently, Lewis did not learn all he knows from his Father, whose own car control evidently leaves much to be desired.

Case in point: a quiet, English country lane, a grassy verge, a big hedge and a $425K Porsche Carrera GT that's plowed straight through said hedge.

There is no doubt that the car is extremely powerful and extremely fast but how Mr. Hamilton managed to spin out of control on a straight road is a bit beyond us.

'This is my first crash in almost 30 years and it had to happen in someone else's car,' he said. 'Thankfully the only thing hurt was the car, and a bush fence - for which I am extremely sorry.'

The Carrera GT sports German license plates, so we're unsure to whom it belongs but we're fairly sure they won't be too happy with the outcome of Hamilton Sr.'s drive. Daily Mail

The Bullrunners continue their journey South, peeling out of Vineyard 49 on Long Island and headed for Atlantic City.

Unsurprisingly, Claus in the TechArt Cayenne arrives in 1st place, having caught the early ferry. Behind him, Bullrunners jostle for position, attempting to beat traffic, stay ahead of the law and head in the right direction. Yeah, the whole 'Head South' thing can get confusing.

Meanwhile, Team Texas' Richard Rawlings and Dennis Collins have been tearing across the country and, at around 5am East Coast time, they make a triumphant phone call to Jay Riecke to call in their $50,000 bet. Their transcontinental time? A ridiculously-fast 31:59.

Morning in Atlantic City means bleary eyes and sore heads all round (boy, those blue rinse old ladies in A.C. sure know how to party...) as everyone heads for a checkpoint at Bullrun National Park. Alas, Team Lotus and Team CEC both fall prey to the cops and Team Riecke 2 just can't seem to find the right road.

A quick pit stop and the cavalcade heads for Staunton, VA. This small town ain't seen nothing like this before and all the locals pack the streets to welcome Bullrun to town. They're rewarded by Mardi Gras beads, thongs & t-shirts thrown from the top of a Hummer and a night of partying they're likely to remember for years to come.

Bullrun Rally 2007 Episode 4 of 10

InsideLine have been at it again, slogging away at a job that any of us would do for free! This time around they've pitted the 2009 Nissan GT-R against...The Rest of the World. Well, almost.

The GT-R is up against the following 'wouldn't say no to having it in my garage' list:
2008 Audi R8
2008 Lotus Elise SC
2008 Porsche 911
2008 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X MR
2008 Subaru WRX STI.

The cars were put through their paces on a twisty 1.8 mile closed road course and at Willow Springs Raceway. Click the link to find out the results...but no prizes for guessing which car came out on top. InsideLine

Autoblog's gotten hold of some spy pictures of the new mini-Cayenne SUV running fast laps around the Nürburgring, Germany. At first glance it looks remarkably like a regular Cayenne but, upon closer inspection, the differences soon emerge.

Likely based on the upcoming Audi Q5, Porsche designers have taken steps to distance the more pricey Cayenne from its Audi brethren. More dainty proportions, a raked D-pillar and some different cut lines around the door set it apart from Daddy Cayenne. AutoBlog

What's a racer / rallyer like Tanner Foust to do in the off-season? Simple: along with readying his cars for the upcoming race/rally season, he's been getting behind the wheel of various super-fast, exotic cars.

Over at the network that enjoys all things at high Speed, Tanner's fronting a new show: "Supercars Exposed". Not quite "Top Gear" in production value, the show still has him at the wheel of anything from a Carrera GT to an ALMS GT Saleen S7.

Not entirely automotive in flavor, I'm assured the boys down at Camp Pendelton give as good as they get, so to speak. In return for seeing what a Ford GT can do, they happily showed off the abilities of their 90ft hovercraft and a couple of amphibious tanks. Sweet!

Back in the racing world, Foust will be driving for Rockstar Energy Drink in both the US Rally series, that's already 2 races in, and Formula Drift, that kicks off in April. As the returning Formula Drift Champion, and the Gold medal winner at last year's X Games, Foust has a lot to prove in 2008. Tanner Foust Supercars Exposed

Porsche has officially offered to increase its equity stake in Volkswagen to what would amount to over 50%. Porsche is offering Є100.92 per common share, and Є65.54 for preferred shares, coming in at the bare minimum required by law. Volkswagen shareholders have until May 29 to say "Ya" or "Nein".

Could make for an interesting new chapter for a company that was on the verge of bankruptcy not so long ago, to now reign over the likes of Bentley, Lamborghini, Bugatti, Audi, Seat and, of course, that ultra-swank, must-be-seen-in gem: Skoda.

A Fistful of Dollars
For all the talk of pricey gas in the U.S.A. we've got it cheap compared to the Brits. Not only are they paying the equivalent of around $6 a gallon, they have to pay extra to get anywhere where they're going, if where they're going is anywhere near the heart of London.

And as if the congestion charge hasn't been met by enough dissenters along the way, London's Mayor - Ken Livingstone - just drew a big red target on his back for anyone with a 'gas guzzler' or G band car.

Love to drive your Cayenne to work in the morning? Think again. It now costs 25 pounds sterling (so roughly 50 bucks!) to drive into Central London. And that's a daily charge!

Porsche has decided it's had enough and isn't going to take it anymore. Throwing a complete tantrum, they're bringing a lawsuit against the charge. Yeah...good luck with that. Telegraph Newspaper