http://www.madwhips.com/audi-r8-gt3-essen-motor-show/

Introduced to the world this past August, it seems that Audi and racing team ABT Sportsline are spending some time at the Nürburgring with this, supremely wild R8 GT3.

The hugely winged and kitted R8 is said to have been fitted to the requirements of a GT3 race car, meaning that all of its 500 horsepower is directed to the rear wheels only—as four-wheel drive isn’t permitted in the formula. That prodigious shove from the V-10 engine is handled through a six-speed sequential gearbox. We’ve heard rumors that the racy R8 was clearing the ‘Ring in laps of around eight minutes, forty seconds, which isn’t bad considering the recently rainy driving conditions.

Have a closer look at the super R8 GT3 in our gallery above, or scroll down below to read a few words penned by the spy shooter himself.

In order to compete in the 634-mile-long 41st Annual Tecate SCORE Baja 1000 desert race, Volkswagen seemingly forged, machined, and filed away at a giant block of steel until the Touareg TDI Trophy Truck was born. To be unveiled at the L.A Auto Show, and christened with the name Touareg, the only similarities the truck has with its road-going relative are its four wheels and its name. Knowing that, it would certainly be quite a blunder to take this beast of a machine lightly.
 
A 5.5-liter V-12 clean turbo diesel engine growls somewhere underneath its sharp and cutting exterior and is able to produce 550 horsepower and 625 pound-feet of torque. And will need every bit of that power considering it weighs in at a massive 5650 pounds. Hopefully, its Xtrac six-speed sequential transmission will be able to hold up to that combo.

+ Carscoop: VW To Unveil Touareg V12 TDI Race Truck at L.A. Show

With participants hailing from Formula 1, NASCAR, the World Touring Car Championship, the World Rally Championship, and more, the Race of Champions is a pretty impressive spectacle. The event challenges drivers, usually splint into teams representing the drivers’ country of origin, to navigate the super tight confines of a road course, shoehorned onto a stadium field.  The ROC found a new home at Wembley Stadium last winter, and will take place there again this year.

Adding a bit of excitement to the proceedings this go-round, the wide swath of racers will be piloting the hardcore KTM X-Bow. The newly debuted track demon would seem to be a natural choice for the tight confines of Wembley, and one that has got the drivers talking already.
 
Longtime F1 driver David Coulthard is excited to trade in his standard racecar confines for a night with the X-Bow, calling the car “ingenious” and adding, “I think it looks absolutely stunning – I can hardly wait to get behind the wheel in December.”

The ROC is set to go off on December 13th this year, though it remains to be seen if U.S. motorsports fans will get a broadcast.

Following the recent trend of designers imagining up individualized track-day cars, Dieter Fuoss thought that he would show the world his own version—set to be released for the public in early 2009. The Fuoss 01, weighing in at just 661 pounds, is definitely one of the lighter lightweights. It is powered by a 400cc Suzuki engine capable of a wholesome 42 horses, with a 5-speed sequential gearbox to transfer the power to the wheels. Although the speed tops out at around 91 miles per hour, hitting that kind of speed while sitting low in such a tiny, light car will be saved for those that have enough courage, or at least a lack of sense.

Sadly, it won't come with any sort of top for rainy days but at least the interior is rainproof. So for those who don't mind shelling out $37,000, and maybe getting a little wet, this is could be the car for you. As a bonus, the Fuoss 01 will even do 47 miles per gallon, though most likely when it isn't being thrashed around on the track.
 
+ Motor Authority: Fuoss 01 hits the track in early 2009

The 2009 American Le Mans Series will mark the end for Corvette Racing competing in the GT1 class. The General Motors factory race team will transition to the GT2 class instead, possibly debuting at the Mid-Ohio ALMS race in August.

The GT2 entry will be based on the next generation Corvette C6R and compete while burning cellulosic E85. The new car will be almost indistinguishable from the current GT1 racer, apart from a smaller rear wing. Powered by a 6.0-liter engine, it will have less horsepower than the GT1 car, and the new car will also run steel brake rotors instead of the usual carbon fiber items.

According to Doug Fehan, Corvette Racing program manager, the engineering and design work is done. All that is needed now is to build and assemble the cars which will begin in the next week or so.

Though Fehan is certain that the new car will not outright dominate the first time, he is still confident in the team's capabilities.

"We've done the simulations on it. We know what the rules are and we know what the other cars are capable of. When we finally come out we'll do the best job we possibly can," said Fehan.

+ American Le Mans Series: Corvette Racing Readies for GT2 Challenge

With twelve World Touring Car Championship wins under their belt using the Daewoo-built Lacetti, Chevrolet unveiled the new Cruze based WTCC contender for the 2009 season.

Equipped with a paintjob that appears to be some sort of digital camouflage made up of Chevrolet logos, the WTCC Cruze is already undergoing testing for its upcoming debut in Curitiba, Brazil next spring. So far, the team seems rather confident. According to motorsport manager Eric Nève, the "new Cruze will be the next milestone in Chevrolet Europe's motorsports history."

The championship racers are all based on compact and midsized cars, powered by 2.0-liter, four-cylinder engines. All the cars also have to be derived from its manufactured counterpart though heavy modifications are allowed. Judging from the pictures, the Cruze seems to at least look the part. Click through the post to read GM's official press release.

+ Autoblog: GM unveils Chevrolet Cruze WTCC racer

This four-minute long YouTube video is really one half Ford Escort Cosworth commercial and half extra-cheesy music video featuring the guitar stylings of Queen’s lead axe-wielder, Brian May. We’ve always loved the Cossie from afar, so we can really get behind some of the glorious detail shots and tail-out action in this nearly feature length ad (where did they show this thing?), but we must admit that May has done better work. Don’t miss the tail end when he throws a little Queen-style harmony in for good measure.

+ YouTube: Ford Escort Cosworth

Mitsubishi Motors has just tipped its entry into the LA Auto Show Design Challenge for this year, and extraordinary conceptual rally car straight from the 2025 season.

The MMR25 concept makes use of a radical omnidirectional wheel design which uses eight independently controlled electric motors. The idea is that the wild wheels will be able to keep the vehicle moving on a forward path while pointing the nose in any direction that is called for. The net effect will be the ability to literally drive sideways, instead of just drifting like a modern rally car.

Naturally, the Mitsu rally car is all electrically powered, with fully recyclable batteries that are able to run for up to 1000 miles on a single charge. That may sound like a lot but we are talking about "uniform composite Nano fiber Lithium batteries" here - not your average Duracell.

And though the MM25 may look fairly badass from the outside, it sounds like kind of a terrifying proposition for the driver, who pilots the machine from the inside of a "windowless pod" somewhere below the center wing. This chamber of fear moves up and down with the wing as the MM25 goes about its business, feeding all of the visual information to the driver via a seamless 360 degree, prone to failure, panoramic display. And you thought today's rally drivers had stones.

Check out the full design brief below.