Monterey 2009: Ducati debuts Martini Porsche tribute bike at Historics

While cars are definitely the conveyance of choice on the track at Laguna Seca during the Monterey Historics, there are enough motorcycles, scooters and mopeds zipping all over the paddock to make you realize that car people can very often be bike people as well. One pair of bikes that really caught our eye were the Ducatis you see above; One in Gulf Racing orange and blue, the other in the classic red and blue stripes on white of Martini & Rossi, better known as Martini Racing. That was the one that really captivated us.

Created as a tribute to Porsche, the Ducati 1098 S Martini Racing Bike was built to be displayed alongside the 1971 Martini Porsche 908/3 over the race weekend. This one-off Ducati honors the powerful and highly successful Martini Porsche and Lancia racing machines of the 1960's and 1970's. It looks awesome too, and we wish they would make more. And send them to our garage. Soon.

Woodward 2009: The heavy haulers and shakers

With vast amounts of sheetmetal and a bed, trucks can be a lot easier to modify than cars. That holds true at the Woodward Dream Cruise, as mod masters jack up, lower and customize trucks of all shapes and sizes. Beyond the beefed up suspensions and 36-inch wheels, we also caught far bigger vehicles ranging from military applications and monster trucks to fire trucks and classic Chevys and Fords. Click on the gallery below to enjoy trucks ranging from the classic to the ridiculous.

Monterey 2009: Shelby Daytona Coupe sells for record $7.25 million

While many of the high-dollar auction cars are having trouble meeting their reserve prices, the Shelby Daytona Coupe that failed to sell back in May has found a new home. The price tag? $7.25 million, a new record for an American car sold at auction.

Chassis CSX2601, this particular Daytona Coupe is known as the "Championship Car" because it clinched the 1965 World Manufacturers Championship for Shelby American after it won the race in Reims, France. Its driver, Bob Bondurant, was on hand at the event to personally drive the car across the block before bidding began. More details on the sale and the auction in the press release after the jump.


PRESS RELEASE:

MARENGO, Ill. - The championship-winning 1965 Shelby Daytona Cobra Coupe CSX2601 has made history again, selling for a record-breaking $7.25 million at Mecum's inaugural Monterey Auction on August 15, 2009.

That price tag sets the record for the highest price paid for an American car at public auction.

High performance collector car specialists Mecum Auction promoted the Daytona Cobra Coupe - American racing's Crown Jewel - for months leading up to the auction. "Selling this amazing piece of American race history at our first Monterey auction has been the crowning achievement of my career and Mecum Auction's 22 years of selling collector cars," said Dana Mecum, president of Mecum Auction.

"This hand-built car beat the fastest cars in the world and has now added another 'win' to its list of accomplishments. It certainly finished in record form again."

The 1965 Shelby Daytona Cobra was one of six cars built by Carroll Shelby to compete against the dominating Ferrari in the F.I.A. (Federation Internationale de l'Automobile) World Manufacturers Championship for GT race class. An experimental coupe body designed by Peter Brock was built on an existing Cobra chassis, immediately increasing the top speed by 25 mph. That car won its first race, the 1964 Daytona Continental (prompting Shelby to adopt the name), and five more coupes were built, including CSX2601.

After competing at Daytona, Monza, Spa and Nurburgring, CSX2601 made history when it clinched the 1965 World Manufacturers Championship for the United States and Shelby American on July 4 in Reims, France. Driving the car - and America - to victory was legendary race car driver Bob Bondurant.

Bondurant drove the Daytona Cobra Coupe across the Mecum auction block as it set the new high-bid record.

"Truly the best part about auctioning the Shelby Daytona Cobra Coupe has been sharing the stories of its amazing history with millions of people across the country," Mecum said. "This race car's greatest moments and its legacy as America's world champion will be cherished for generations to come."

Mecum's Monterey Auction took place on Saturday, August 15, 2009, at the Hyatt Regency Monterey Resort & Spa on the Del Monte Golf Course. In addition to the Shelby Daytona, Mecum offered an eclectic mix of more than 200 cars ranging from a 1931 Rolls-Royce to a 2007 Saleen S7.

The Mecum Auction Company has been specializing in the sale of collector cars for 22 years, offering more than 5,000 collector cars per year - more than any collector car auction company in the world. Auction information and results are available online at www.Mecum.com or by calling 815.568.8888.

Woodward 2009: Muscle cars of the Motor City

As we've come to expect from the Woodward Dream Cruise, the vast majority of the vehicles taking part are classic muscle cars from Detroit's heyday in the 1960s and 1970s. Naturally, we had no trouble filling our memory cards with images of rumbling V8-powered Camaros, Mustangs, GTOs and Trans Ams.

While the slow speeds didn't allow these big-inch muscle cars any tire burning or stoplight-to-stoplight antics, we still got to appreciate all those cubes via the ground shaking and unburnt hydrocarbons emitted from their tail pipes as we walked down the avenue. Take a good look at our high-res image gallery below for the best muscle cars from the 2009 Woodward Dream Cruise.

Monterey 2009: Fisker Karma, Devon GTX lap Laguna Seca

In addition to the eight classes of vintage racecars that took to the track at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca on Saturday, spectators were also treated to a duo of special vehicles. The first was the 2010 Fisker Karma, which made its official driving debut (even though we saw it driving the day before at Concorso Italiano). We almost missed it since we couldn't hear it coming and it only did one lap, but fortunately we were able to grab a few photos. The next was the Devon GTX, which set a blistering lap time of 1:35.075 at MRLS just a few days earlier. After wowing the crowds, the GTX was loaded on a trailer and transported to Pebble Beach for its official debut. Our action photos of both cars can be found in the gallery below.

Woodward 2009: Capturing the classics

What exactly determines if a car is a "classic?" That's probably an infinitely debatable subject that could spark any number of answers from a given group of enthusiasts. For the purpose of this post, a classic is anything that came before the 1964 GTO kicked off the muscle car era. Sure, it's an arbitrary definition, but it allows us to create yet another interesting gallery of cool cars that drove up and down Woodward Avenue here in Detroit this weekend. So sit back, relax and enjoy the gallery below of classic cars from the 2009 Dream Cruise.

Monterey 2009: The faces and names of the Monterey Historics

While at the Monterey Historic Automobile Races this year, it dawned on us that the cars taking to the track are really legends in the Pantheon of autodom. The Porsche 917, Ford GT40, Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa, Jaguar D-Type, and Maserati Birdcage are all stars in their fields, but the Historics are about so much more than famous cars.

First of all, the cars are being driven, and driven hard. That leads us to important point number two: People are needed to drive (and appreciate) these vehicles in order to make the races as entertaining as they are. Some of those people are famous celebrities from outside the car world, some are car people who aren't necessarily household names, others are automotive giants, and still others are just fans. Granted, some of those fans have deeper knowledge and appreciation of the vehicles than even their owners, but other than that they tend to be ordinary people who pay their taxes just like the rest of us.

Among the crowds at Laguna Seca, we spotted folks from each of these groups and captured some of them on film in (hopefully) interesting situations or poses. We've assembled a small gallery of those shots to share with you. Click below and you'll see everyone from Sir Stirling Moss to Mike Joy, Hurley Haywood to Vic Edelbrock. We didn't get any shots of Brian Redman, Jay Leno or David Donohue either, but we know they were there. One star who was definitely there was Patrick Dempsey, who could be seen behind the wheel of a Mazda RX-792, even though he wasn't officially there. He was a really good sport as we continually ran into him around the paddock. He also did a pretty good job of driving that Mazda, but we don't want to get him in any trouble.

Woodward 2009: Dream Cruising on two wheels

Motorcycles, scooters and trikes make the annual pilgrimage to Woodward Avenue each year for the Dream Cruise right along with all the classic cars and trucks that we've come to expect. This being the case, we dutifully pointed our lenses in the direction of the most interesting two wheelers from the 2009 Dream Cruise and gallerized them for your viewing pleasure. In between all the standard-fare Harleys and Hayabusas, we saw the occasional gem such as this wheelchair-accessible Suzuki Burgman scooter and this Honda 50. Check 'em all out in our gallery below.

REPORT: Ecclestone cuts rates to bring Grand Prix back to Montreal

This year was the first in Formula One history that had absolutely no presence in North America. But that could change for next year if the latest reports from Canada are any indication, as insiders suggest that a new deal between race organizers and government officials on the one hand and Bernie Ecclestone on the other is in the closing rounds of negotiations.

Ecclestone pulled the plug on the Canadian Grand Prix – the only F1 race in North America and a longstanding fixture of the F1 calendar – last year after municipal, provincial and federal government officials refused to pay his exorbitant fees. But after a year without the race in Montreal, Ecclestone has reportedly changed his tune and agreed to a substantially reduced (though still highly lucrative) deal with local officials that would cut his fees by a reported $100 million, down from his previous demanded guarantee of $175 million to the governments' counter-offer of $75 million.

The F1 chief's actions are suspected to be influenced by the new Concorde Agreement – F1's secretive profit-sharing deal – with the teams eager to return to North America and Ecclestone weary of losing more manufacturers from the series following the departure of Honda and BMW. Thanks to everyone who sent in tips!

Woodward 2009: A corral of Cobras and not a real one in sight

Someday, many decades from now, after all historical records of the late 20th and early 21st centuries have been extinguished by the great internet crash of 2012, someone will be trying to figure out what happened. As paleontologists are combing through the remainder of scrap yards for clues about what we did here, they may come to the conclusion that the Shelby Cobra was the second most produced car of all time after the VW Beetle.

The reality, of course, is that the real Shelby Cobra is exceedingly rare, but the look may well be the most replicated of all time. There are also plenty of Ferrari and Lamborghini "replicas" that are mutated to fit on existing platforms like the aforementioned Beetle and the Pontiac Fiero, but the vast majority of the faux-Cobras look so much like the real thing, that all but the most dedicated observers cannot tell the difference without close inspection.

In a little corner off Woodward Ave just south of Maple Rd. were at least two dozen "Cobras", and not one appeared to be the real thing. None the less, these are generally blindingly fast cars and usually just as thrilling to drive as one of Carroll's babies.

Monterey 2009: Bugatti Grand Sport Sang Bleu live from the Quail Lodge

With so many special edition Veyrons, we're starting to wonder if Bugatti is still making any regular versions. To their credit, this is only the first unique version of the Grand Sport model that made its debut at Pebble Beach this time last year. Named the Sang Bleu, the latest Veyron variant was unveiled at the Quail Motorsports Gathering yesterday and features a body comprised of polished aluminum and carbon fiber tinted in Royal Blue. The only other differences between the Sang Bleu and the standard Grand Sport are the Gaucho leather seating and wheels that have a Diamond Cut finish and Midnight Blue trim. Check out our live pictures below or read more about the car after the jump in case you missed the official announcement yesterday.

PRESS RELEASE:

A new Bugatti piece of art for Pebble Beach

The « Sang Bleu » to honour the 100th anniversary of the marque Carmel, California, 14th August 2009. – Continuing this year's 100th anniversary celebrations Bugatti Automobiles S.A.S. has chosen the prestigious Pebble Beach weekend to present a further highlight to pay tribute to this legendary brand : The company proudly unveils the Bugatti « Sang Bleu » - an exclusive, one-off Grand Sport, honouring the marques precious heritage.

Innovation and Harmony

The « Sang Bleu » has ventured into new areas. Instead of applying two paint colours or paint and material to highlight the two tone design the « Sang Bleu » exclusively concentrates on materials - carbon fibre and aluminum - an innovative combination never realised before. This unique approach opens a new dimension of « Art – Forme – Technique », the company's core alues.

The colour combination commissioned for the Pebble Beach car is blue carbon fibre with polished aluminum. The visual carbon fibre is tinted in royal blue to emphasize the refined volumes and surfaces of the Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport. The rear airscoops are tinted in the same nightblue – offering a dramatic view from above – and thus fluidly integrate into the overall design philosophy of this unique model.

The rims are inspired by the Grand Sport Roadster and are highlighted in a Midnight Blue and Diamond Cut two tone finish. The interior, specially and tastefully selcted for the Pebble Beach event, is trimmed in a newly developed Gaucho leather which blends with the intriguing and pure exterior materials creating an elegant and harmonious overall appearance.

Featured Marque

In the year of its100th anniversary Bugatti has been selected to be one of the featured marques at the 2009 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance. Ettore Bugatti started his business in the Alsacian town of Molsheim in 1909. The name of the company: „Ettore Bugatti Automobiles i. Els.". In 1956 the company ceased its activities. Exactly 50 years later, in March 2006, the first Bugatti Veyron built by Bugatti Automobiles S.A.S. was delivered – after the Volkswagen Group had aquired the rights of the Bugatti marque in 1998 and started the re-launch of this famous brand. To date over 250 of the planned Bugatti Veyrons are sold, 215 of them have been delivered to customers worldwide. In June 2009 Bugatti started production of the Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport, the open roadster. The sales results are encouraging over 20 Grand Sports have been sold, with first deliveries already started.

The Bugatti « Sang Bleu » is the latest in a line of centenary Bugatti models which have won worldwide acclaim in 2009. This unique car stands – like the others - for the commitment of the Bugatti of today to carry the values and the philosophy of Ettore Bugatti, the founder of this unique marque, into a successful future.