Via Jay Lenos garage:

We were deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Carroll Shelby. He was a good friend, a true gentleman, and an American legend. Carroll, we will miss you.

Carroll last visited the garage in 2010, to talk about his 2011 GT350.

Via autoblog:

When an automaker comes out with a two-door sportscar, you know what will come next: a roadster version. But while we haven't heard anything from Toyota, its Scion division or its partner in crime Subaru on the prospect of a GT 86/FR-S/BRZ convertible, a California coachbuilder has stepped up to the plate with a concept version of its own.

The Scion FR-S Speedster concept you see here was worked up by Cartel Customs, a company with a history of chopping the roofs off of Scions. But while the lack of roof and chopped-down windscreen are what set it apart, Cartel hasn't stopped there. The aftermarket outfit also installed a giant 61-inch rear wing and upgraded the suspension, brakes, rolling stock, exhaust and clutch, and gave the open cockpit a hot rod-style retrofit, too.

Although this appears to be a one-off chop-job, the fact that it's set to kick off the festivities at the Toyota-sponsored Long Beach Grand Prix CART race this weekend has us raising an eyebrow like Cartel Customs has raised the roof on this beauty you can check out in greater detail in the high-res image gallery.

News Source: Cartel Customs

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Cash-strapped enthusiasts may not have had much to get all sticky over from Camp Toyota in recent years, but the automaker's new GT 86 / Scion FR-S coupe promises to mine a rich paystreak of driving enjoyment. And while we're big (okay, huge) fans of the car's low-speed dynamic thrills, not every enthusiast is so forgiving of its rather middling power and acceleration figures. We knew it wouldn't take long for the aftermarket to remedy this perceived power deficit with things like forced induction and ECU reflashes, but we foolishly expected a full engine swap to take a bit longer than it apparently has.

What you're looking at here is Manabu "Max" Orido's Toyota GT 86 prepped for drifting in D1 Grand Prix events. In this case, that means the two-door has been gutted and stuffed with the 5.0-liter V8 from the Lexus IS F, one of Toyota's more emotive offerings thanks to its honkin' great eight.

Orido's GT 86 is shown here undergoing shakedown testing, and from the looks of things, the transplant appears to be going rather swimmingly. At first glance, we even dig the more aggressive widebody look, lack of paint and all. Check it out for yourself, and be sure to have your speakers on.

"On this episode of HOT ROD Unlimited, we take you behind the scenes of the buildup of the car that was named America's Most Beautiful Roadster for 2012 at the Grand National Roadster Show. The Indy Speedster is an amazingly detailed, hand fabricated track roadster that was a project of Jackie Howerton's for well over a decade before he sold it to Bill Lindig who had the car finished by So-Cal Speed Shop. In the video, we get the inside view from So-Cal's Pete Chapouris and Jimmy Shine."

Although Jaguar may not be racing all that much these days, motorsport competition was an integral part to forming its identity decades ago. And it's that legacy that Jaguar aims to tap into with its latest development.

The British auto marque has of late been participating in numerous classic racing events, but is now intensifying and organizing its efforts under the Jaguar Heritage Racing banner. Managed for the factory by specialist firm JD Classics of Essex, the program will see the C-Type and D-Type (click on the image above to enlarge the two classic cats) challenging revival events at venues as varied as Goodwood, the Nürburgring and the Mille Miglia, where the initiative will make its first appearance this May.

Although limited in scope to classic racing events, the renewed effort will see the factory getting back onto the track in an arguably more substantial way than it has with the Jaguar RSR XKR GT2, retapping the racing spirit not seen in Coventry since winning Le Mans with the XJR-12 in 1990 and selling its F1 team in 2004 – but which could, if recent rumors come to fruition, resurface again with a new LMP1 in the near future. In the meantime you can read more about the Jaguar Heritage Racing program in the press release below.

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News Source: Jaguar

Via youtube / autoblog..



"If you appreciate cost-no-object supercars – or cost-no-object anything, for that matter – then you'll want to dig into the video after the jump. Pagani put together a 14-minute mini-documentary that reveals the finer details of its latest work, the Huayra.

The Huayra is more than just a sexy carbon and titanium body. The film visits the companies that help make Pagani's coupe a 230-mile-per-hour rocket, like ASPA in Italy that spends an entire day milling just the logo, Formula One supplier MHG that makes the titanium exhaust, and the AMG engine-making facility where the Huayra's turbocharged, 6.0-liter V12 is built by hand."

Time for a special treat! Bob Shaw visits the garage to show off his dream car, an updated version of the Hawk sports roadster that his good buddy Brooks Stevens originally designed in 1959. It took 10 years to build, but you won't believe the result!