I know you've been waiting for it, so here's the second installment in our HellaFlush 3.5 event coverage from Buttonwillow Raceway. I'm not sure that there have ever been this many cars with aggressive fitment and stance at the Lerdo Highway exit off the California Interstate 5 highway.
Honestly, I gotta give props to all the Northern California people who came down to this event. Not only does it show that Northern Cali folks are super down and committed, but it was also great to see a lot of cars come out of the woodwork that we normally don't see on blogs and websites. I'd love to expand the MotorMavens reach from doing mostly Southern California events all the time, but it really is kind of difficult as we're doing this as privateers, and we don't have a big corporate budget of several hundred thousand dollars to spend each year like some of the other blogs out there. However, we're resourceful, so we will keep trying to break boundaries, and keep doing our best with the Macaroni-and-Cheese/Cup-o-Noodle budget that we currently have. Hope you like the photos! Read more...
Peanut butter and jelly. Macaroni and cheese. Ham and burgers. What do these things have in common? It seems nearly impossible to have one without the other. Ken Block and Subaru also share this likeness. Regardless, it seems that Ken is leaving the Japanese Pleiades Oval for that of the classic American Blue Oval.
DEARBORN, Mich., Jan. 6, 2010 – Ford Motor Company announced today that it is teaming up with Ken Block, the California-based action sports icon-turned-rally driver, for future global motorsports opportunities.
Block, the 2005 Rally America Rookie of the Year and a three-time medalist at X Games, has cultivated a tremendous following with his Gymkhana videos on YouTube. In 2010, Block will campaign a Ford Focus in the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) and a Ford Fiesta in Rally America and X Games.
“I am stoked to be rallying in a Ford. They are an impressive force in the sport,” said Ken Block. “From the days of the 1970s Escorts to the Group B RS200 to the modern-day Focus and now the Fiesta, Ford just does an excellent job at rally and I couldn’t be happier to now be part of this amazing heritage. Not to mention my dad would be proud. He was a dedicated Ford guy.”
“Ken Block has established himself as an action sports competitor and a rising star in the world of American rally racing,” said Jamie Allison, director Ford North America Motorsports. “We are excited to have him on our team to help promote our new global products, the 2011 Ford Fiesta and 2012 Ford Focus.”
Rallying is a crucial part of Ford’s global motorsports strategy and provides the company with the opportunity to showcase the true performance capabilities of Ford’s products. Since its support of rallying began, Ford has won three WRC titles and 73 individual events. And, last year in North America, Ford’s participation in the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb and X Games 15 were key elements for the launch of the Ford Fiesta for the U.S.
“Thanks to our participation in WRC, rallying has always played a key role in Ford’s global motorsports programs,” said Allison. “Ford is the only manufacturer that could provide Ken with global rally opportunities.”
“We’re delighted that Ken Block has chosen to team up with Ford to develop his rallying activities beyond America and into the global arena,” said Gerard Quinn, Ford of Europe’s senior motorsports manager. “Ford and its U.K.-based rally partner, M-Sport, is looking forward to welcoming Ken to the wider team of talented rally drivers using Ford vehicles to compete in this demanding sport at the highest level internationally.”
While it may seem implausible to imagine Ken piloting anything but a Subaru… something tells me that his wild antics and crazy style will follow suit behind the wheel of a Ford.
Wow! Travis Pastrana’s record breaking car jump 250 feet over the water in Long Beach Harbor for Red Bull’s No Limit New Year’s Eve! I’m posting this for those of you who live in other parts of the world, and those who don’t have ESPN! This was LIVE tonight at 9:00pm PST/12 midnight EST. Wow, Red Bull does some pretty damn cool things with its money.
If you’ve had a hectic, mind-numbing, soul-searching day, I think this video from Clash Production might just help you to forget all of the “craptasticness” (my own word) of life. Give yourself a timeout and enjoy a few moments of pleasure.
Granted, it is old, and it has two of my favorite people in it: Nobushige Kumakubo and Kazuhiro Tanaka from Team Orange. Some great camera work inside and outside of the car, with a mellow song to bring it all home. Speaking of home, Clash Production says Silverstone is the “home” track for a lot of the UK-based drifters. It’s a pretty sweet track to call home – especially when considering the F1 history there. It also happens to be one of my personal favorites. So sit back and watch some sick drifting and let the BS of the day go away.
There's no doubt that every single hachiroku lover in the world has been eagerly anticipating news, photos, and information on the new front engine, rear wheel drive Toyota FT86, which is rumored to be a joint project between Toyota and Subaru. Thanks to friends at Hachiroku.com.au and The Motor Report, Motor Mavens is proud to show these sneak peeks at the new generation hachiroku concept.
While it certainly doesn't look like it shares much of its looks with Toyota's original AE86 design, which was sold in the USA from 1984-1987, the new FT86 concept sure looks intriguing. The front/headlights sort of look ISF-ish to me, while the hood reminds me of a Toyota MR Spyder, the side windows look like an R35 GTR, and the rear C pillar reminds me of a Scion TC. Read more...
Just a few years ago, aggressive fitment wheels were a pretty rare find on cars in the United States. Most people thought that getting wheels that "fit" well meant that the wheels wouldn't have any rubbing or clearance issues. Nowadays, the trendsetters in the scene have completely changed the game, and all the "cool kids" with the best wheel fitment are all about stretched tires and seeing how close you can get your wheels/tires to the fenders.
The owner of this slammed Subaru Impreza WRX STi is a seventeen year old (Yes, I said 17 years old!) high school student named Abbitt Wilkerson from AW Films. Abbitt has been making a name for himself; not only because he shoots some of the most popular car videos up here in the Northwest, but also because he has a driving passion for building Subarus with the common thread of aggressive wheel fitment. Read more...
My friend Eric just got his driver’s license, and along with it: his first car. Now, most people get a crappy, beat-up, old junker for their first car. But up here in Reno NV, due to the crazy winters and icy roads, that just won’t cut it. So instead he took out a loan from his parents and got a 2006 Subaru Impreza WRX. How lucky!?
While browsing the internet, looking for inspiration on how to fix it up, we stumbled across this awesome Impreza video. Aside from the amazing videography and post-production, these two modified 2002 Subarus just look bad ass.
Now he may not be able to go racing on an airport runway, but I’m pretty damn sure Eric found his inspiration.
It's been an extremely busy week for those of us working on the Motor Mavens site! We're all making lots of steps toward positive growth for the site, which is exciting! This past weekend, Travis Hodges and I went out to the IDRC Finals at the AAA Auto Club Dragway in Fontana CA. We thought it would be interesting to show a little bit of drag racing content on the site, since our site is just so populated with drifting content all the time (not that it's a bad thing!).
Fontucky was extremely hot while we were there; the sun and Southern Cali fires weren't helping matters at all, burning through our sunscreen like a magnifying glass being held over ants. If you're interested in play by play bracketed info on all the classes, you'll need to check an upcoming copy of DSPORT Magazine. However, if you're like us and you just want to check out the cars at the event, please read on! Read more...
I'm still sorting through all the photos I took during my trip to Seattle... believe me, there were A LOT. However, I thought I'd just take a brief detour from the Formula D action to showcase some of the cars I saw at the event, which really clue you in on how dope the Pacific Northwest cars are. I just don't understand how people can sleep on the scene up there so much! All the big car magazines and media sites seem to only focus on Southern Cali, but those of us who have traveled all over the world can tell you that the Northwest has style!!! Tons of it. Let's take a look! Read more...
Okay, it's already past 2am now, and I need to get to sleep because we have a long day at the track ahead of us tomorrow! But before I sleep, let me just throw a few quick photos up on the site!
Above, here's a real dope R32 Skyline 4door that came from British Columbia (that's Canada, to those of us who are ignorant Americans). More photos of this car coming soon!
It's so cool that you can register a car like an R32 Skyline, A31 Cefiro or C33 Laurel and just drive it on the street, legally in Canada. What the hell are we still doing living in Southern Cali, anyway? (Who am I kidding, I love Southern Cali...) Read more...
Las Vegas local video star Joshua Herron put out his Formula D Las Vegas video today. The footage recaps all the highlights from the Vegas Pro-Am event, practice and the main event in the blistering desert heat. I’ve personally been waiting for this video because it was his first video out using his new Panasonic HMC150 video camera, and like always, I’m super impressed by the footage he puts out. Thanks again Josh for covering all the Formula D events and putting out some of the best footage there is. Check out his site as well for his other videos at JoshuaHerron.com.
So check it. Our homie Tree just linked us to this new video that Eddie from Dynamic Autosports was talking about in Las Vegas. It was shot by this video crew that has experience doing extreme sports (Is that what he said? Can’t remember, due to the intoxicated state we were in. We apologize).
It’s great to see well produced footage of the Dynamic Autosports/Apex’i/Hankook team. The video team definitely had some great equipment, and we were glad to see someone showcasing the Hankook drivers this way! It’s about time those guys got some love – they’re the most slept on group of drivers in the Formula D series!
:: Motor Mavens
PS: What’s with the S&M outfits on the girls? It looked like it was HOT out there; those chicks must have been dying! LOL at their facial expressions and poses when the cars pass them by!
Continuing our Motor Mavens Coverage on Formula D Las Vegas... many of the fans and media members seem to have been focused on only the Top 32 tandem competition, but those who braved the Vegas heat earlier in the day were treated to some pretty exciting tsuisou action from the Formula D Pro Am drivers. Props go out to all the Pro Am drivers for coming up through the ranks and doin it big! Read more...
An amazing tribute to an amazing motorsport. I cannot stop watching this video. I can’t even begin to fathom the amount of footage that went into this… and could it be edited any better? This video and it’s soundtrack just feel like a match made in heaven. I hope you all enjoy this as much as I did. Hats off to ‘Miika’ for creating this gem.
This just in! Check out the newest video from our friend Stephane Benini, which features the Time Attack UK series through the eyes of Clash Productions. This new video features the incredibly fast Roger Clark Motorsports “Gobstopper” GC8 Subaru Impreza battling it out with Europe’s fastest Imprezas and Lancer Evos at the legendary UK racetrack, Brands Hatch!
Enjoy this exciting overseas footage – thanks to the internet, we are no longer confined to watching racing events only in the countries we live in! Love it.
