Filed under: Etc., Celebrities, Humor

It seems that Muslims aren’t the only religious group upset about the recent Top Gear holiday special. According to The Digital Journal and iAfrica, Christians have now come out against the show. While Muslims found issue with hosts Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May all donning the traditional headwear of Muslim women, Christians are more riled about the episode’s closing manger scene. After the trio of presenters made their way from Iraq to Bethlehem, they came up on a miniature baby Stig tucked away in a manger. The clip was meant to parody the nativity scene with Clarkson, Hammond and May all portraying the three wise men and Mini-Me Stig filling in for baby Jesus. Apparently, that bit of blasphemy was enough to ruffle a few feathers.

As usual, neither Top Gear nor the BBC have responded to the kerfuffle surrounding the show or its content.

[Sources: The Digital Jounral, iAfrica]

Followup: As it turns out, Christians also offended by Top Gear holiday special originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 31 Dec 2010 15:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Etc., Safety, Videos, Audi, Humor

When you gotta go, you gotta go. We’re not talking about dying, we’re talking about answering nature’s clarion call. However, the individual seen in this video very nearly combined the two. While the side of a seemingly empty road might provide an ample spot for an emergency bathroom, you should be sure it is, in fact, empty. This one is not.

An Audi driver was on the road, apparently enjoying his German sedan con brio when he lost control. Did he succumb to oversteer because he spied a man relieving himself, or because of the camera man filming the his buddy? Perhaps he saw both – or perhaps he saw neither. In fact, perhaps the video isn’t even real, but it certainly looks it. If it’s the real deal, we wouldn’t be at all surprised to learn than more than one person soiled themselves in the making of this video.

Hop the jump to view the clip and tell us what you think in Comments. Top tip, Marshall!

[Source: YouTube]

Continue reading Video: Urine trouble now, Audi driver

Video: Urine trouble now, Audi driver originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 31 Dec 2010 13:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Spy Photos, Coupe, Hybrid, Performance, BMW, Middle East, Diesel

During a recent trip to Abu Dhabi, Teamspeed forum member Captain Stradale caught a glimpse of the BMW Vision EfficientDynamics strutting its stuff for an on-track photo shoot. What makes us most curious, though, is the fact that this gray version of the VED is marginally different-looking than the white concept BMW has paraded around the auto show circuit over the past year (along with the white with blue swirly camo prototype they’ve shown).

The Vision EfficientDynamics, which is rumored to come into production under the name ‘i8′, is expected to be powered by a 328-horsepower three-cylinder diesel-hybrid powertrain. The ultra-lightweight production car is tipped to run from 0-100 in just 4.8 seconds, and during normal driving, the new efficient supercar is estimated to achieve 62.5 miles per gallon.

When we’ll see the production version of the VED is still unclear, though sources have reported that it will show up in 2013, priced from around $200,000. We can’t verify if the gray car in these Teamspeed shots is anything closer to production, but seeing this thing out on the track makes us all the more eager to experience BMW’s efficient hotness for ourselves. In the meantime, check out the spy video after the jump and click on the link below to see more photos at Teamspeed. Thanks to everyone for the tips!

[Source: Teamspeed]

Continue reading BMW Vision EfficientDynamics spotted in Abu Dhabi – is it closer to production? [w/video]

BMW Vision EfficientDynamics spotted in Abu Dhabi – is it closer to production? [w/video] originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 31 Dec 2010 17:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Motorsports, Performance, Videos

The annual Lightning Lap roundup from Car and Driver is easily one of our favorite car magazine features of any of the past five years, and this year’s extravaganza at Virginia International Raceway delivers once again. The five classes in the throwdown represent vehicles under $30,000, $30k to $60k, $60,000 to $120,000, $120k to $240k and the elusive “and up” category. C/D asked manufacturers to supply production vehicles that come equipped with the most track-ready options that any Tom, Dick and Harry can get straight from the factory, including uprated tires, brakes and sporting suspensions. The goal? To find out what production car is the quickest around VIR’s challenging roadcourse.

After the jump are video summaries of the LL2 and LL3 competitions. The LL2 class features dream matchups of the Ford Mustang GT, Lexus LS-F, Shelby Mustang GT500, Mazda RX8 R3, Mitsubishi EVO and Subaru WRX STI. The LL3 class features the Jaguar XFR, Chevrolet Corvette Z06, Cadillac CTS-V Coupe, Lotus Evora, Mercedes E63 AMG and Porsche Boxster Spyder.

We won’t reveal any winners here, but you can find out the LL2 and LL3 champs by hitting the jump. Heck, one LL3 car would have also won the LL4 class, so we’re talking serious speed here. There aren’t many better ways to spend eight minutes of your life, but if you’ve got an hour or two to kill, head over to C/D’s website for all five Lightning Lap summaries, plus a bunch of individual laps and summaries from past Lightning Laps.

[Source: Car and Driver I Images: Marc Urbano]

Continue reading Car and Driver returns to VIR for Lightning Lap No. 5 [w/video]

Car and Driver returns to VIR for Lightning Lap No. 5 [w/video] originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 31 Dec 2010 13:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Etc.

Murder and intrigue. Car crashes, dead bodies, motorcycle chases and, of course, sweet revenge. Are we describing the latest round of blockbuster summer movies or reading the latest New York Times best-seller? Nope, just recapping the ten most popular posts on Autoblog from 2010 as determined by click-throughs garned from from regular AB readers and outside link-ins.

Yep, it’s that time of the season. It’s officially the very last day of the year, so we hope you’ll join us in taking a look back at the year that just was – and, of course, in looking forward to everything that 2011 has in store for those of us who obsessively cover the auto industry.

Click here to take a trip down memory lane.

[Source Image: Cliff Owen/AP]

Continue reading Autoblog’s Most Popular Posts of 2010

Autoblog’s Most Popular Posts of 2010 originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 31 Dec 2010 11:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Etc.

We’re like the proud parents of a newborn bundle of joy. We published about 6,800 individual posts in 2010, which is itself a pretty staggering statistic, but there are always a few that we’re especially fond of. Whether we’re making ill-informed buying decisions, traveling at triple-digit speeds in a supercar through Mexico with an official police escort, nearly careening off the side of a cliff on a motorcycle or driving the fastest production car in the world, we’ve had ourselves some good times in 2010.

Now, without further ado, click here to read some of the stories we’re most proud of from 2010.

Continue reading Autoblog 2010: Some of our favorite features

Autoblog 2010: Some of our favorite features originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 31 Dec 2010 14:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Performance, Marketing/Advertising, Videos

The Pagani C9 is coming and it will be here sooner than you think. Slated to arrive in the beginning of 2011, the C9 figures to be a beastly V12-powered supercar ready to pick up where the Zonda leaves off… if it ever actually leaves. Before we get a good look at the production C9, Pagani has decided to go the teaser route. It’s giving us a glimpse of… something, and it’s doing it in video form rather than close-ups of a headlamp or a wheel lugnut.

It’s hard to tell exactly what to look for in the video, but you have to watch until this most subtle of teasers all the way to the end to find it. Hop the jump to view the java-flavored clip. Thanks to all for the tips!

[Source: YouTube]

Continue reading Video: Pagani releases odd coffee-flavored C9 teaser

Video: Pagani releases odd coffee-flavored C9 teaser originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 31 Dec 2010 17:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) owes petroleum traders who imported fuel on its behalf a staggering $3.3 billion or N500 billion, Daily Trust learnt from industry sources in Abuja yesterday.

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Filed under: Etc., Government/Legal, UK, Celebrities

Could Jeremy Clarkson find himself in a position of real power? Not of the MOAR variety, but rather of a political nature. If the British public gets its way, then anything is possible.

His strongest supporters have always wanted to push Clarkson into the political arena. Only now they may be able to, because the public is getting a larger say in what gets presented in Parliament. According to the UK’s Telegraph, certain petitions will be turned into bills and presented to MPs if they receive enough votes.

According to the Telegraph, a previous online petition system mandated an official government response via email to anyone who signed a petition that tallied over 500 signatures. Interestingly enough, the campaign that garnered the most support was auto-related – it called for the nixing of a planned vehicle tracking and pricing scheme and received some 1.8 million signatures. A previous people’s petition looking to appoint Jeremy Clarkson also garnered around 70,000 signers.

Said another way, Jezza in politics probably isn’t as unlikely as it might seem. if there is enough of a groundswell movement behind putting putting the Top Gear star in office, then Clarkson could find himself in a heretofore unlikely position – even if he didn’t sign the petition himself.

[Source: Telegraph]

How Jeremy Clarkson could rocket into UK politics – in spite of himself originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 31 Dec 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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National Assembly members like Sidia Jatta have been raising the question of royalties or income from minerals. Nothing is indicated in the budget speech of the Minister or the estimates regarding income from minerals. The Gambian people have been exposed to the case affecting Northfield and Carnegie Minerals. He was detained in connection with mining until he escaped from the Gambia . Statements were issued indicating the various types of minerals that are in the Country. What benefit is Gambia getting from minerals?

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