Crazily Fast and Furious

The Panasonic Toyota Racing is all set and ready to hit the race tracks after a great rubber-burning start in the 2007 F1 opening season. This time, they are going to face the tough tracks of Sakhir at the exciting Bahrain Grand Prix! Now who’s excited?

Happening at Sakhir, which is an oasis of runway in the heart of the hot desert, the race is the second part of the back-to-back events which was started by the Malaysian Grand Prix. The scent of a burning rubber with the sweet screeching of the tires is back and is on again! So you better check on your brakes before we witness this fast and furious event.

Now check out some insights from the best drivers of all times about the hottest event today - the Bahrain Grand Prix!

Ralf Schumacher (on Car 11) is proud to express: “The home of the Bahrain Grand Prix, Sakhir, is one of the latest breed of race tracks and a great modern facility. We know that Bahrain will be hot but the heat should not be exceptional and it is less humid than the last race in Malaysia. Even if we do face extreme conditions the teams have so much experience that from a technical point of view it shouldn’t make too much difference. We had a mixed time here during the two weeks of testing before the season but we were able to make some improvements towards the end. Since then we have made a strong start to the season but we clearly have some work to do to catch the top teams. Still, you need to watch a few races before you get a clear picture of the situation. I didn’t have the best of races in Malaysia but we will look for an improved performance and better finish in Bahrain.”

Jarno Trulli (on Car 12) exclaims: “We have had a solid start to 2007 and while we performed well in Melbourne and Malaysia, Bahrain has proved difficult for us in the past. I was delighted to make the podium here in 2005 but last year we had a problem because it was the first race and we didn’t fully understand how to make the most of our package with our new tires. At this year’s pre-season test at Sakhir we struggled too. So it’s never been our track but there is no particular reason why it should be hard for us. It’s an incredible venue with state-of-the-art facilities and it is not a difficult track from a driving perspective. It is hard on braking and there is always wind which brings dust and sand onto the track. Otherwise it is a very clean, smooth circuit with few bumps. We have had a reliable start to the year and we head to Bahrain looking to improve our fortunes in the kingdom with a good result.”

Pascal Vasselon, on the Senior General Manager Chassis fairs: “The Malaysian Grand Prix showed we had progressed since Melbourne so we must now look to build on that. Bahrain was the first race of 2006 and our worst race of the year. Because we hadn’t tested in warm weather before the start of the season we didn’t discover that we had bigger than expected warming up issues with our new tires. It was also slightly cooler than usual with track temperatures of 35 degrees Celsius. This year the race is later in the year so we expect it to be warmer. Our pre-season test at Bahrain this year didn’t go too well - which triggered most of the alarms in the outside world about our form. But the main problem was that we had many reliability issues. They were all minor and have since been solved but it limited our running time and limited our pace. At the following test at Jerez our reliability was better and so was the pace. In Malaysia we had developments to the suspension and a new floor and engine cover. We will run the same package in Bahrain before a big aero update for the next race at Barcelona. We will hope to return to Europe on the back of another strong performance.”

What will happen? Let’s all stay tuned to find out.

Can you believe that? I mean almost every car maker is making their car models available in the market for a very low price. Now, even racing cars are sold on an unbelievable price of less than $3,000. Believe me. It may sound a little impossible but it is real.

In fact, the small, compact, sub-compact and no frills cars are already sold in countries like India as well as Eastern Europe with a price of $7,000. We all know that Renault and Nissan joined together to make the Logan in Mexico which will be available soon for a very reasonable price. Add the Hyundai Santro which is now making a good sale in India under the pricing of $6,300. We are overwhelmed by how the people embrace the Logan. Complete with Nissan parts and powerful powertrain parts, the people in the plant is working 24 hours in order to compensate for its demand in the market.

But the cheapest among all on the hurdle on a $3,000 price now sold in India. But the biggest question is: Would it be available on the US car market? I don’t think someone would venture selling a $3000 less profitable car in US. If it is equipped with all the necessary parts to call it a racing car, the cheapest price would be $7000. Anyway just a thought that you might agree with.

It was tough luck for three Toyota NASCAR contenders that ended up in the gutters of the race tracks. When bad luck strikes, and then comes disaster.

It is known that a lot of race cars have been declared by action on the pressurized cemented high borders of Bristol Motor Speedway. This was the situation were all three Toyota Camry units contending in the Sharpie Mini 300 event were wedged up in accidents. And it does look like that in this situation, more than one accident occurred. But I guess that’s what racing is all about!

Dave Blaney, in the Camping World/RVs Camry, marked the top Toyota finish which landed them on the 30th place. And this happened even though he was not able to run anymore when Carl Edwards over ran him and took charge, got the checkered flag and won the said event.

Blaney has reached the top 20 before the smashing accident happened that caused him to slow down and eventually hammered him out of the race.

"We just got wrecked there toward the end of the race. We have struggled with the Busch car all weekend in practice and then again in qualifying. But we thought we could at least get a decent finish today by staying out of the wrecks, but that just wasn’t the case today. It’s pretty frustrating because I know we’re going to take a hit in the points with this one, but we’ll have to try and get that back when we get to Nashville," he said.

David Reutimann driving in the Aaron’s Dream Machine was in fact running at the finish line, although he was far behind the finish line after making general repairs and soon he ended up in 33rd place. He was driving in the top 20 standings, but failed to maintain his position after the bumpy and exterior car parts crashing accident occurred.

"I hadn’t gotten into anybody all day; I hadn’t put a scratch on the car. Then the No. 77 car just tagged me from behind. I don’t know what happened or why. It’s just pretty disappointing. But that’s kind of been the way our season has gone so far. We’ll just have to regroup and keep digging. We were running okay before the wreck, but we still weren’t anywhere near as good as we were yesterday. We had made some gains on it, but we were still pretty far off. I think we would have been able to get a pretty decent finish today, but we’re not going to have that chance now," said a true blue frustrated Reutimann.

Lastly, we have Jason Leffler, who was drawn in in three different causes in the early part of the race. He came back to finish a few more laps before parking it for good and completed the race that brought him into 34th place.

"We had quite a day today. Unfortunately, we just can’t seem to get any kind of luck on our side this year. It’s frustrating for everyone on the Great Clips team. We have such a great group of guys and awesome equipment with amazing support from Toyota. We should be contending for wins every week and not fixing wrecked race cars like we have been. We’ll just keep digging and moving forward and hope for a better week at Nashville," Leffler said.

Oh yeah! Speed, domination, power and royalty. That’s what Ford 2008 Shelby Cobra GT500KR is all about!

The return of the legendary “king of the road” celebrates its 40th anniversary of the 1968 Shelby Cobra GT500KR and it is scheduled to unveil at this week’s 2007 New York International Auto Show (NYIAS). The most powerful existing Mustang will once again resurface on the elite streets of the earth.

The year 1967 was the birth of the most powerful Mustang ever - the “king of the road” Ford Shelby Cobra GT500KR. When I first saw and read the preview, I was like going down on my knees and giving praises to a king. I can’t say anything and I never doubted the king in the first place. I believe! I believe and we’re not worth it… Oh praise you!

How I wish I could have a closer interaction with his royalty, bless me! Of course, the New York International Auto Show is drawing nearer, and oh, forty years ago, Shelby was first unveiled in New York. Some kind of a déjà vu? Now here’s our chance at last. Can you feel the rush of blood rising through your brain? I can feel it right now!

Now let’s talk about details. The 2008 Ford Shelby carries an absolutely powerful 5.4 liter V-8 engine with a Ford Racing Power Upgrade Pack. It produces a raging 540 horsepower and it has an extraordinary tuned suspension, a short-throw shifter and a 3.73:1 rear axle ratio. Inspired by the classic Shelby KR, exterior designs features awesome wheels, a one of a kind carbon composite hood, dazzling Ford parts and a splendid interior styling. The bottom line is, the “king of the road” rules! And it rocks too! His Majesty will arrive this spring with a limited production of 1000 units. Only.

In behalf of the Shelby team, head Carroll Shelby spoke about the king and now, you listen closely to what the genius has to say! “I’m proud to once again be a part of an historical moment, bringing back the ‘King of the Road’ Mustang, and collaborating with Ford SVT and Ford Racing. “I’m committed to continuously upping the ante when it comes to performance, and it’s great to be doing it with Ford,” expresses Shelby.

“The return of the Shelby GT500KR further establishes Mustang as the true king of the pony car segment,” said Robert Parker, the manager of the Ford Car Brand. “With the unveiling of the new KR we are staying true to the promise we made our loyal Mustang fans to continue Mustang’s prowess by bringing new, exciting and more powerful Mustangs to market.”

Great words from two great men. Makes me feel great too!

I think nobody will protest the Shelby’s “king of the road” title, because I know and you know that the Shelby Cobra GT500KR perfectly deserves the name. Hail to the King!