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The 2013 Audi S8 - A Closer Look

A few days ago, I made a post about about Motor Trend's test of the Audi S8. It does a 0-60 mph sprint in 3.5 seconds and goes through the 1/4 mile in 11.8 @ 118.3 mph.. very impressive numbers. Even more so when you look at a couple other cars: 2012 Porsche Panamera Turbo S 0-60 mph: 3.5 s 1/4 mile: 11.8 s @ 118.0 mph Power: 550 hp Torque: 553 lb-ft Weight: 4,388 lb 2012 Audi R8 GT 0-60 mph: 3.5 s 1/4 mile: 11.5 s @ 125.1 mph Power: 560 hp Torque: 398 lb-ft Weight: 3,484 lb Now let's compare those to the Audi S8 0-60 mph: 3.5 s 1/4 mile: 11.8 @ 118.3 mph Power 520 hp Torque: 481 lb-ft Weight: 4,619 lb The Panamera and R8 have weight to power ratios of 7.98 lb/hp and 6.22 lb/hp. The S8? Well, that one has a weight to power ratio of 8.88 lb/hp... The identical 0-60 time of the R8 GT and S8 can somewhat be explained by their engines' way of induction. Since the R8 is NA, the torque curve probably isn't as meaty so even though it weighs a lot less an

Faster than A Corvette Z06? - A Closer Look

" its test-track acceleration numbers would match the  Porsche Panamera  Turbo and embarrass a Chevrolet Corvette Z06 owner." That's what Motor Trend had to say about the 2013 Audi S8 after a test. Let's get the facts out of the way first: the Audi S8 is fast.. very fast, especially for a 4,600+ lb sedan. According to their test, it gets from 0 to 60 mph in 3.5 seconds and finishes a 1/4 mile in a mere 11.8 seconds @ 118.3 mph. That's impressive. Apparently, though, it's not impressive enough to attract readers so something extra had to be said. Track test acceleration numbers would embarrass a Chevrolet Z06 owner? How? I looked up Z06 acceleration numbers.. from Motor Trend tests. I found 5 different tests and all of them pull a 0-60 mph in a consistent 3.8 seconds, except for the Z06 with the Z07 package which does it in 3.7 seconds. 1/4 mile? 2 tests are at 11.6 seconds, 1 test is at 11.7, 1 is at 11.8 and another at 11.9. So out of 5 tests, the Corvette

An unfortunate first post.. or is it?

Well, I took my car in for service today because my passenger side rear tire was losing pressure. The car had been parked during the last week of October because of the bad weather. When I took the car out last week, a low tire pressure warning came on and I thought it was just because the car was parked for a week in cold weather so I simply filled up the tires and drove away. While I was filling the tires, I heard a slight "hissing" noise but I didn't think much of it and thought it was just the air compressor. The next day, the low tire pressure warning was back and I figured the hissing noise must have been coming from one of the tires. I checked tire pressure all around and one of them was down to 15 psi. Now I know I definitely have a problem. I filled it up because I had to go run some errands and drove away. I get in the car the next morning and, yes, the warning was back. I scheduled an appointment to get the tire checked because I couldn't see any damage.

Well, I finally put it into gear!

Hi everyone, my name is Mike. I am very passionate about cars and I enjoy driving to the fullest. I enjoy long stretches of highways and twisty backroads.. a late night drive and a rush hour commute.. I'm almost always up for a drive, regardless of time, place and purpose, but there are a couple of things that could ruin a drive for me; bad road manners and poor road conditions, namely broken up roads. As a result, I almost always have something to say about what happens on the road, car news and car reviews so I figured I would start blogging. I decided to start a driving blog a while back but I haven't got to it yet. I have finally put it into gear, though, so here's what to expect: I will share anything from everyday driving experiences to track driving and possibly car reviews. I will be filming while driving - using a car camera mount, not while holding the camera - and will include relevant clips along with some posts. I think this concludes my introduction so drive






Does An Aftermarket Grille Really Increase Airflow?
I put a Saleen S281 grille to the test to answer that question.

Stock Suspension S197 Mustang With Square 305/30/19's
What you need to fit a proper size square tire setup.

How Limited Slip Diffs Make You Faster on Track
What you need to know about how they put power down and pros and cons.

Can Telemetry Explain Schumacher's Talent?
A comparison between Schumacher's and then team mate Herbert's data.






Cayman GT4 Track Review
The first Cayman with proper (911-challenging) power.

Is an EcoBoost Mustang any good on Track?
Two days at the track in a Mustang short 4 cylinders.

2016 BMW M4 DCT Track Review
It's quick (properly quick). But is it fun?

Can a stock Golf Diesel handle a Track Day?
Not your every day track beater.




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Limited Slip Differential Types Compared

BMW M2 equipped with an eLSD - BMW © A few weeks ago, I posted about traditional clutch-type limited slip diffs (LSD's) and how they work. You can read about those in the previous post: How Limited Slip Diffs Make You Faster on Track . But as you might know or have learned from reading the article, they aren't without their faults, which means engineers are always working to get around those limitations. You may not be surprised to learn that something like the Ferrari 488 GTB doesn't use a traditional limited slip diff, but it's not limited to super cars, far from it. Cars like the Golf GTI, the Civic Type R, various Mustangs, Corvettes, and BMW M cars, and even the Lexus RC F and GS F, all avoid a traditional limited slip diff in favour of one of these technologies. To keep things simple, I'll focus on two wheel drive vehicles. The vast (vast) majority of principles apply to all and 4 wheel drive vehicles, but there are some subtle differences that I'll

Falken Azenis RT615k+ Street and Track Review

Last year, I picked up a 2009 Lancer Ralliart to do a long term test with it as a dual duty track/daily. One of the first things I knew I was going to do was put a decent set of tires on it. The car came without OEM wheels which was actually good because I didn't have to hesitate about getting a good set of aftermarket wheels to support going wider. Thankfully, my friends at YST Auto Halifax  set me up with a great set of Superspeed RF03RR wheels. The Wheels I had never even heard of Superspeed but I trusted the good folk at YST Auto who mentioned some customer cars running on track with them. These wheels are rotary forged which is basically a prerequisite to be taken seriously in this market populated by companies like TSW and Fast Wheels. The wheels looked like a high quality, well finished wheel and each had a "QC" check sticker on. Just for appearances? Maybe, but I found no defects. The wheels seemed easy to balance (didn't need many weights) and at 18.1 lb. f

GTR vs Evo X vs STI: which has the best AWD system?

A few weeks ago, I made a post explaining  mainstream AWD system types and how they compare , pros and cons, etc. including some simple diagrams to show where the power goes and how much. As promised, this post will focus on specific cars and what AWD systems they use, especially ones that that have more or less been defined by their AWD systems, and the best place to start may be with a bombshell; the Nissan GT-R. Nissan GT-R (R35) The GT-R has built a reputation around having monster traction and very approachable performance, thanks to its AWD system - Advanced Total Traction Engineering System for All-Terrain (ATTESA) - and what it can do for you. But the GT-R doesn't actually use the most mechanically sophisticated type of AWD systems discussed in the previous article, namely a "true" AWD with a centre differential. Instead, it uses a clutch pack to transfer power. RWD-based clutch-type AWD schematic - Rams Eye The Track Guy © The R32, R33, and R34 Sky

Why an Open Differential Doesn't Work on Track

C7 Corvette Grand Sport... doing a burnout with a proper diff - Graham MacNeil  © I wrote a tech post comparing various open and limited slip diffs for a comparison and I found that a lot of people were asking questions. To simplify and make it easier to read, I decide to break them up for a future tech article about handling. Make sure to stay tuned for two posts on limited slip diffs this week!. WHY DO YOU EVEN NEED A DIFFERENTIAL? A differential's job is to allow two wheels on the same axle (or two axles in a 4WD drivetrain) to spin at different speeds so a car could smoothly go around a corner. Why do the wheels need to spin at different speeds? Each wheel on a car has to travel a different path to reach the end of the turn. You can see that for yourself every time you drive on snow covered roads or muddy trails. Four different tracks by four wheels/tires on one car going around a turn - Rams Eye The Track Guy  © If you take a turn, you'll see that each whee