After Christmas Sale!

While looking for some post-holiday/New Year steals, I started thinking about what kind of deals I can find in the realm of motorized transportation.  For the motorcycle enthusiast, the off-season means gear and bikes are at a yearly low.  For the (very) affluent yet tight budgeted millionaire...

2010 "Can't Think of a More Witty Phrase than 'Car of the Year" Award

Back in October, I posted my thoughts about Hyundai becoming the next Honda, or more importantly the Honda of the 90s.  Back then, Honda had several exciting cars in their lineup that showcased cutting edge technologies like four-wheel steering, VTEC, and aluminum unibody.  Today, the excitement can be felt in Hyundai's entire range of cars.  There's the sporty rear-wheel drive Genesis coupe, the mega-mile consuming Genesis luxury sedan, and the jack-of-all trades Sonata.  While the two Genesis cars cater to a very distinctive audience, the Sonata is the car that everyone can enjoy for its good looks, perfect size, adrenaline pumping turbo power, and frugality at the pump.

courtesy autoblog.com

It's Danny Choy's Birthday!

Happy Birthday, Danny!

Freak of the Week: Blizzy-B

The F2000 has something the Ford Raptor doesn't

Happy Holidays!

I love me some T-Rex

Shaped like the head of a Tyrannosaurus-Rex, Laguna Seca is my favorite track on Earth.

Freak of the Week: very long and very black edition

Welcome to our second installment of Freak of the Week, where for every weekend, Weimann, Chin, and I look for something balls off the wall crazy, weird, or just polarizing and worth talking about. I know it's Monday today, but bear with us...

In this week's freak, we introduce to you a Dodge Daytona, affectionately named "ANGRIER", that's been built for Pro Touring.

F-Duct - 5 Favorite Commercials

This post has been coming for a while now, some of these I posted here and some on Facebook. A good commercial finds a balance between entertainment/comedy and that emotional response that make us love cars in the first place. - Dan W

In no particular order...

Feint Drifting over the River and Through the Woods

As a resident of the northern hemisphere, I admit that things can get a bit depressing around this time of year.  The days are getting shorter, the temperature is slowly creeping toward single digits, and it seems like the sun is doing nothing but taunting us.  The good cheer and festive moods of the holiday season do help some but even the holidays are sure to cause a bit of depression.  The two main culprits for this are the slightly enlarged waistlines and those ridiculously large red bows in Lexus commercial!

lexusenthusiast.com

Italian Passion with Little Distraction

Italy produces some of the most lust worthy pieces of sheet metal in all the world.  Just the mere sight of them can make a person all teary-eyed and weak in the knees.  This Lancia Delta Integrale isn't one of those sensuous pieces of steel but still has the same crisis-inducing effects.

Freak of the Week: Studie AG BMW Z4 M Coupe

Let's try something new here.

BMW 1 M Coupe VS BMW E46 M3

Motortrend

The press has introduced the BMW 1 Series M Coupe as the spiritual successor of the legendary 1988 BMW E30 M3... except the press already miscalculated one detail. Everyone here who knows even a little bit about the original M3 will not fall for the silly marketing hubbub.

Lotus teaser for F1's 2011 season

Lotus is back, take 2, with a second team, Group Lotus.
Behold the John Player Special colors!

Opposite Lock - Rants & Raves

Imagine a world where a driver doesn't need to turn his head in order to be a safe, responsible motorist.  Well, that world will soon be here starting around 2014 when the NHTSA wants to mandate rear-facing cameras for all passenger cars under 10,000 pounds.  This in addition to the proliferation of blind spot detection technology means drivers of the future can be as clueless about their surroundings as they want to be.

Call me old fashioned but I like to know what's around me when I'm bombing down some rural twisties, slogging through city traffic, or cruising on a holiday congested highway.  That is to say, I ALWAYS like knowing what's around me when driving.  While learning how to drive, I was yelled at time and time again to check my blind spots - quickly and thoroughly - before changing lanes. 

Is making rear facing cameras mandatory a reflection of our overbearing government or of the drivers in this country?  I would tend to think that this is a reactionary move by the NHTSA.  If this is the case, it's time for all you Big Mac eating, cell phone talking, leg out the window driving ass-hats to watch the road all around you and drive properly!  The constant influx of needless technology into new cars is making each subsequent generation of the automobile heavier which is costing us money, fuel mileage, and performance.

Flappy Paddle Head's 100th Post. One year and counting.

This entry marks our 100th post.
December 6, 2010 marks the one year anniversary of Flappy Paddle Heads.
Shit is crazy!

Bass Ackward but Amazing (Caution: nerdy ramblings ahead)

autoworld.files.wordpress.com

This year Porsche released their GT3 RS, which pumps out 450 horsepower from a 3.8 liter flat 6.  This is the latest version of Porsche's horizontally opposed 6-cylinder range.  It has evolved over the years more than a Pokemon.  Any motor that produces 100 horsepower per liter of displacement is a marvel of engineering.  Complete this thought with the fact that this motor doesn't have forced induction or direct fuel injection and this motor seems to be the pinnacle of Porsche's legendary engineering pedigree.  Although, I can't help but think that the limits of the iconic 911 may be drawing near.

F-Duct - iRacing Live Blog

Gran Turismo 5: FPH wrap-up

How often have you heard that in order to do things right, you have to pay attention to the little things, the details? I bet the development team for Gran Turismo 5 had the mantra tattooed on their backs, they cared so much about it.

Watch the video, you'll see:

Carpe Diem

We're fans of motorsports. But we were fans of humanity first.

Dedicated to all the people that wonder what makes sitting down behind a steering wheel a sport.

Top 5 Cars to Survive the Zombie Apocalypse!!! (results may vary)

Danny's "Top Gear post-apocalypse" blog got me thinking about other forms of apocalypse.  There's the nuclear kind which is nicely displayed in the videos.  The Mayans predict an "end of days" in 2012.  Danny Choy's fire hurricane is always just off the horizon.  Then there's the kind that seems just as far fetched yet more entertaining... THE ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE!!!

Top Gear's guide to the post-apocalypse

www.zastavki.com

Stampede of the bulls from Sant'Agata Bolognese

Happy Thanksgiving!

Stay tuned, guys. I'm really busy right now. Really busy.

Killer B (part 2)

While Group B rally had some amazing drivers, it was the cars that made WRC so spectacular at the time.  More often than not the drivers were just along for the ride and some didn't make it out alive.  The following are the fire-breathing monsters that crisscrossed the world in the mid-80s for global supremacy on dirt, snow, and asphalt.

Here's some music to get you in the mood first:

The Kings of Cool

Racing Sequences of Steve McQueen's 1971 movie, "Le Mans."



Hope everyone's been having a good weekend so far!

Negative Camber: GM week.

This is not a coincidence.

The Chevrolet Volt has just been awarded "Motor Trend," "Green Car Journal" and "Automobile Magazine's" 2011 car of the year. Then, in perfectly synchronized timing, General Motors returns, Camaro convertible entrance and all, to NYSE.

Never trust those back markers.

This was 2008:
The party crasher: Glock



... and what about last week?
The party crasher: Petrov



Funny how both occasions could've/should've/would've been Ferrari's moment.

F1 2010: FPH wrap-up

Did you see this coming?
Congratulations to Formula 1's new world champion, Sebastian Vettel!

Big congratulations to our true champion!

"The Leonardo DaVinci of Formula 1 is Adrian Newey."

                                                                                                          - Martin Brundle

Team Red Bull/Renault & Adrian Newey's lovechild:
the Red Bull "Luscious Liz" RB6 is ready for her close-up.

Champion of Williams, McLaren, and now Red Bull,
this is Chief Technical Officer Newey's trademark "sexyface".

GoGo Gadget flow

Tackle land, water and air with the Halo Intersceptor!

Of course, only if you have a driver's license, nautical license, aircraft license, and insurance for all three...

Death and taxes, my friends. Death. And Taxes.



And let's just hope you won't have to deal with this:


Geez, why am I so pessimistic about personal air travel?

The sarky sports commentator

"... that special morale busting official dispensation, which ensures that a driver must first lay his life on the line before being told that all his efforts are in vain."

Sunday Afternoon

Killer B: This one is for the ladies

"It's like a ballet, it's like a dance. It's fantastic."

-Michele Mouton

Michele Mouton, the Quickest Woman in the World.

Killer B (Part 1)

Being a twenty-something, technology has always been prevalent in everyday life.  Growing up with two older brothers and an uncle who always had the latest gadgets meant hand-me-downs like Apple IIs, Walkmans, and Atari.  Today, everyone has an Ipod, cell phone, and/or a GPS at any given time.  Sadly, this type of technological proliferation has made its way into racing.  Today, races are won by complex launch control, traction control, anti-lock brakes, computer aided design, and computational fluid dynamics.  What ever happened to simple "run what you brung" racing?  It's time to revisit those days when victory could be achieved by big wings, big turbos, and big cojones.

SEMA: FPH wrap-up

Hey, good news!
 

FIAT/Chrysler Frustration

What was the last major bit of news you've heard from Chrysler?

Gentle, dignified, debonair, and did I mention very English?

The Beauty of Racing

This isn't actual race footage but it is gorgeous nonetheless.  Watch it in 1080p if you have the means.

Where are they now?

I'm pretty sure that I'm not the only enthusiast who saves old magazines.  While cleaning out some old junk, I came across the January 2000 edition of Road & Track.  The cover story is 100 Best Cars of 100 Years.  I assume this is like the Wikipedia of its day to an impressionable fourteen year old. Having said that, the most striking thing about the issue is the Ampersand column which has a short blurb about the Bugatti Veyron Concept.

Bugatti Veyron Concept

Mystery Dyno

Here's a dyno that I don't think many people have seen.  Every time I look at it, it just blows my mind.  Can you guess what it belongs to?

I'll provide the right answer after everyone has had a chance to guess.

Patrick Snijers and the '88 Manx Rally BANZAI!!

Note the sick mid-air rotation at 0:41, setting up entry for the next corner.



Happy Monday everybody!!


source: windingroad

Required Viewing

For anyone interested in the history of American motorsports this documentary is required viewing. Documenting the evolution of the land speed record and the 60's in which the record jumped 200+ mph in a decade.

In Search of Speed - The Battle of Bonneville Part 1/6

mucho cojones.

Seems like an Amateur Class one-spec racing series. But Dean Evans is no amateur.

Changing times: The car pr0n that never was.

Mazda 787B
courtesy of: forocompeticion.com

The year is 1991. Mazda wins the 24 hours of Le Mans and the FIA bans the Wankel rotary engine. This marked the first and only Le Mans 24 victory by a Japanese race car, and the Mazda 787B will never participate in an international race again.

Riding on a high, Mazda believed it was still their time in prototype racing. Conveniently for them, IMSA did not ban rotaries... and the successor to the 787B was created.

Behold, bitches:

Affordable Supercar Series: ASS

The word "supercar" conjures up different images to different people.  Some think of the svelte, sexy curves of an Aston DBS or a Ferrari 599.  To others, a supercar is meant to go as fast as freakin possible even if there needs to be a plethora of wings, scoops, and vents like on a Gumpbert Apollo or Lotus Esprit.  Today, we're not going to talk about any of those.  Nope.  Today is about a BMW that can fly under the radar and yet doesn't look like any BMW you'd regularly see.  This is the 2001 BMW M coupe.

2001 BMW M coupe courtesy of screene.com

Lotus lights its ass on fire

1969 Lotus 49B
Courtesy of: ausmotive.com

Taking the Dip, Part 1

Is Hyundai the next Honda?

Before Honda and Toyota started duking it out for bragging rights to who could sell the most midsize family sedans, Honda was a company that sold innovative, passionate cars.  They were pretty much an engineering house with an automotive department to showcase their new technologies.  Anybody could walk into a Honda (or Acura) dealer and buy a car with a motor that revved to the heavens, had some sort of black magic called VTEC, and could steer with all four wheels.  Honda has since lost some of its luster.  However, there is another "H" badged marque releasing new and innovative technologies.

2011 Hyundai Sonata courtesy of autoblog.com

Want to Own a Rally Car?

Apline A110 courtesy of luiscezar.blogspot.com

No, we're not talking about the all too common WRX, STi, or Evo.  We bring you something with a little more sophistication and sex appeal.  This is the Apine A110 from the 60s and early 70s.  It was a rear-engined, rear wheel drive world beater.  It won the World Rally Championship in the series' inaugural 1973 season.  Head on over to Ebay and you can find one of these featherweight road racers for yourself.

Goodness gracious me! Succumbed to an incredible crisis!

Here are some astonishing stills of the heralded Maserati 250F. Credit of these beautiful photographs go to Mr. Bernd Kammerer.

Please visit the coolist here for even more photographs. It does your body good.

Boohoo, shocking lies from GM?

Paris 2010: FPH wrap-up

Motorcycle Racing at Its Finest

This is what happens when the reigning world champion and the current points leader meet on the track.  This is the last few laps of the Motogp race at Motegi from today.  All rights belong to Dorna.

Amazing Old School Isle of Man TT Footage

Joey Dunlop, one of the greatest motorcyclists ever, riding a Honda V4 at the Isle of Man

Lotus Elan is back. Crisis.

 Stay tuned at the 2010 Paris Mundial Del Automovil.

courtesy of autoblog

Cosworth Powered RWD Honda Prelude

Totally boss.

built by Jim Morgan at JTM services

for more info::      http://www.rodbirley.com/Honda.htm

Best of Both Worlds?

We seem to be very evasive here at FPH regarding the subject of hybrids.  While I can't speak for Danny Choy on this one, I do indeed like hybrids.  Ligers and Grolar Bears are freaking badass!  In some instances, the sum of these animal hybrids are better than their equivalent parts.  They can run faster, jump higher, and rip off your face more!  Actually, they are a bit like their automotive counterparts...a bit.

BMW 7-series Hybrid courtesy of caranddriver.com

Cars with air conditioning should not have carbon fiber bits!

 

These carbon vents are pretty gaudy, aren't they? Why would we ever need vents made out of carbon fiber? If you really want to make your car lighter, might you consider completely removing air conditioning instead?

Porschefest

Porsche owners at Porschefest... like brothers of a strange fraternity.

Affordable Supercar Series (ASS)

Courtesy Z06zone.com

There are only a few things that a 16 year old boy thinks about on a daily basis.  In no certain order, these thoughts circulate around food, video games, girls'...er..."personalities", and big horsepower numbers.  The car that produced the biggest numbers at a fraction of the cost of most supercars back when I was 16 was the 2002 Corvette Z06.

My first time. And it's with a 458 Italia!!

In a word, privileged...

Salt Fever

Quintessential American motorsport.
Don’t think, just say the first thing that comes to mind!

Car Porn

Here's a selection of car pictures to get you over that Wednesday hump.  They were taken by Keqing Song, a good friend of mine from school.  For more info, check out his website at here.

Obligatory Chevy Bel Air

Porsche. It’s not a sellout.

You prefer feeling secure? Go buy a wittle puppy. Porsche understands this.

Sporty Buick... wait wha?

Courtesy autoblog.com

Merriam-Webster defines an oxymoron as "something that is made up of contradictory or incongruous elements."  Applying this term to the automotive world, we could make a whole list that would consist of things like fun Camry, practical supercar, Nascar roadcourse, and sporty Buick.  Yet, GM would like us to believe that a car with "European driving characteristics" makes a performance car regardless of its badge or specs.  So, the General bequeathed its German Opel Insignia to their most lackluster American brand as the 2011 Buick Regal.

Rants and Raves

Japanese Inventor Masuyuki Naruse has been building and selling his patented Naruse pedal with the hope of reducing or eliminating events of "unintended acceleration."  He believes that humans automatically stomp when faced with a panic situation while driving.  By eliminating an accelerator "pedal" with a clockwise-rotating arm, there is no possibility of flooring the gas accidentally.

What is the Bugatti Veyron?

To start, Bugatti Veyron is a noun.

From there, things are going to get a bit complicated.. Or, dare I, things get a bit nonsensical.

Bugatti Veyron Gran Sport

Toyota Sports Cars: "Moving Backward"

carwalls.com

Recently, Toyota has been in the press for both good reasons and bad.  First, there was the "our-drivers-don't-know-cars-or-care-about-driving-and-"unintentionally"-hit-the-gas" scandal which everyone and their mother had theories about.  Then, there was the release of the Lexus LFA which every enthusiast has had theories about...for 10 years.

Now, these two events only really apply to very specific types of people.  The unintended acceleration debacle played out in the cars of those who could care less about driving and treat their cars like appliances.  Lexus' LFA supercar, which costs $375,000, may interest a few passionate drivers among us but let's face it.  It is for the absurdly rich... and we, enthusiasts, probably already have our hearts set on other supercars that aren't from companies like Lexus.

So, where is the Toyota for the everyday enthusiast? Where are the cars that can herald the arrival of technology from F1, WRC, or JGTC?  When will we see names like Supra, Celica, or MR2 again?