The one-of-a-kind NISMO GT-R LM!

This R33 looks like it's been injected with enhancements

Hmmm...It does look like a R33 Skyline GT-R in beefed up wide body kit but what I'm looking here is a one-off Road Going Version of the NISMO GT-R LM, the one that was used to compete at the GT Class of the 1995 Le Mans 24 Hour Endurance race. 

There is only one example in its existence and this special was built and registered in Great Britain. Yep. Great Britain. Anyway, most R33 Skyline GT-Rs are 4WD but for this one-off special, the 4WD system from this R33 has been ditched and replaced it with a hairy-chested rear-wheel drive. I can't believe that this is a rear-wheel drive GT-R I have ever driven in Gran Turismo history.  Of course, that was a regulation in motorsports. The Impreza for example, when it participate the Super GT years ago, it had its 4WD thrown away and switch it to FR. It's a rule but stripping away the 4WD and replace it with FR can benefit weight loss. That's brilliant but on the downside, it takes a skilled driver to handle a car that was once 4WD converted to FR because even a slight mistake may cost you more.

Handsome looking racer, eh?

Sure, without the 4WD, the NISMO GT-R LM became a completely different animal, it appears that Godzilla's becoming a bit more...like it came from Jurassic Park. It can bite you and yes, it will keep biting your hands every time when you steer. Try respond to some brutal measures and you're gone. It feels like you've been swallowed by the dark matter by mistake. That G-Force it generates, it made the NISMO GT-R LM struggling to cling on every corner and no matter the driver, the cornering is a bit too harsh. You won't try to push the GT-R LM too hard because the G-Forces stopped you from doing so in such speeds.

This guy's went out for some Top Gun

There is a simple story about the NISMO GT-R LM. When it joined the 1995 24 Hours of Le Mans, the #22 GT-R LM  qualified in a 34th positioned, which is a very low position, but worked its way to 10th place, that's 5th place in the GT1 category. The #23 though, retired with a broken gearbox in 157 laps. With that #22 racer being in top 10, NISMO returned these two from Japan for some further tweaks and in the 1996 season, disaster. The #22 GT-R LM retired from damages after 209 while the #23 GT-R LM finished 15th overall and 10th in the GT1 class. Furthermore, the program was pulled after two years into the three-year program and it was replaced with the R390 GT1 race car years later. That whole story about the GT-R raced in Le Mans was quite impressive despite the results. I have to say that the Yokohama-based carmaker really did pulled some impressive measures to have their name recognized in the world of motorsport.

The one-off NISMO GT-R LM Road Going Version is a fine example of how did Godzilla became capable of in the world of motorsport, especially Le Mans. 

Welcome Back: 1981 BMW M1

Nice viewing, eh?

The M1 is BMW's first and last mid-engined supercar that was produced from 1978 to 1981, with over four hundred units built. The body was styled by Giugiaro, drawn inspiration from the 1972 BMW Turbo show car. Under the hood, it has a 3.5L DOHC 6-cylinder engine with Kugelfischer mechanical fuel injection that generates 277 PS (204 kW; 273 hp) of power and top speed of 260 km/h (160 mph). It is mated with a 5-speed manual gearbox.

The M1 was heavily involved in BMW's one-make race series called BMW M1 Procar Championship. The M1 Procars have turbocharged engines that generates 850HP of power. This race ran for two years with Niki Lauda won the 1979 season and Nelson Piquet in the 1980 season.

This car gained the tenth place on the list of Sports Car International's Top Sports Cars of the 1970's in 2004 because of its various successes in motorsports.

In Series 3 Episode 2 of Top Gear, James May drove the BMW M1 while Richard Hammond drives a E34 M5 and the E30 M3 at the Isle of Man.

Let's Do The News! (July 30, 2012)

Right! Let's do the news and hold on a minute. Our friends are away for some errands and it appears I am just alone for now. Anyway, let's do a bit just like from Gandang Gabi Vice's Vice Advice segment. I have two minutes for me to answer a question I'm pulling at a fishbowl  Ready? 3...2...1...GO!

1) Who won the Hungarian GP?

Lewis Hamilton from McLaren!

Scoop: http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2012/7/13665.html

2) Who's second?

Kimi Raikkonen

3) Who's Third in the Hungary GP?

Roman Grosjean

4) When's the Belgian GP?

September 2

5) Who won the Super GT Round 4 at Sugo for GT500 class?

Daisuke Ito and Kazuya Oshima driving the #6 ENEOS SUSTINA SC430

6) Who won the Super GT Round 4 at Sugo for GT300 class?

Yuhi Sekiguchi and Katsumasa Chiyo driving the #3 S Road NDDP GT-R

7) When's Round 5 for the Super GT held?

August 19!

8) Where's Round 5 for the Super GT held?

Suzuka Circuit!

9) Did you watched The Nerdist special about Comic Con 2012 yesterday?

Oh my gosh! I didn't! Oh No!

(audience laughing)

10) Is France making its own version of Japan's ECO CAR GENZEI system to save the French auto industry?

Yes. And we think the French version of the ECO CAR GENZEI would work...

Scoop: http://www.autoblog.com/2012/07/29/france-unveils-green-incentive-to-rescue-auto-industry/

11) Is Land Rover planning a longer Range Rover in the future?

Sort of....

Scoop: http://www.autoblog.com/2012/07/28/long-wheelbase-range-rover-in-the-works/

12) Who are the winners of the Cinemalaya 2012?

Well, find out at: http://pep.ph/guide/indie/10620/cinemalaya-2012-winners-unveiled-four-actresses-receive-best-ensemble-award

13) Are you going to watch the Potted Potter at the RCBC Theater this August 28 to September 2?

I'm not sure but the spoof play of all seven Harry Potter chapters can be funny as it seems. See if I can find out....

14) A movie that was rejected by the MMFF titled Thy Womb, is it going to compete at this year's Venice Film Festival?

Wow. Never heard of that. A movie that was rejected by the MMFF tries to take a shot at a foreign film festival just to show that a film rejected by a local film fest has some second chance abroad!

Scoop: http://www.pep.ph/news/35062/brillante-mendoza39s-thy-womb-competes-in-venice-filmfest-after-being-rejected-by-mmff

15) Have you taken part at some protest in Tokyo against a reopened Ohi power plant?

Sadly though I wasn't here but my gosh, those people from Tokyo really take it seriously against the Ohi nuclear plant's restart.

Scoop: http://www3.nhk.or.jp/daily/english/20120729_22.html

16) The radiation-stricken Fukushima prefecture restarted their annual festival after two years. Were you there?

Sadly no. I'm not at the radiation-stricken prefecture but hey, sure is glad to have their summer festival back and running for the hope of Fukushima prefecture. Amazing those warriors fought hard to capture the sacred flags...

Scoop: http://www3.nhk.or.jp/daily/english/20120729_17.html

17) Have you been reviewed for the driving test?

Oh my gosh! I haven't! Don't worry! I'll review it, okay?

(audience laughing)

18) Chevrolet teams up with Liverpool FC?

After Manchester, it was like "Your Changing Sides Now? Change Sides? I never recall I was onto yours". You got that idea, pal.

(audience laughing)

Scoop: http://www.chevrolet.com/chevy-culture/news/chevrolet-and-liverpool-fc-.html

19) How's the cleanup on your garden of your house?

Pretty good but the cleanup wasn't quite done yet.

20) What do you think of this 2013 Kia K3?

2013 Kia K3

Pretty good. Looks even hotter than the Forte it replaces!

Scoop: http://carscoop.blogspot.com/2012/07/kia-blows-box-open-on-new-2014-forte-k3.html

(BEEP)

Okay! Time's up! Glad I made it though, and I found the paper my mama's looking for! Can't believe it was down there, under our working space! He he he

(audience laughing)

But, on that bombshell, that's the news!

Bulilits race for the gold!

On the July 29, 2012 episode of Goin Bulilit

- Goin Bulilit music video of "THE FACEBOOK SONG" by Tanya Markova

- Marathon gags

- Coring and Liwayway in palengke...

- Goin Bulilit spoofs Lorenzo's Time in LORENZO'S RHYME!

- In the Goin Bulilit spoof of Aryana titled AROWANA, is Arowana looks delicious to eat? Uh oh....

- Cycling gags

- Goin Bulilit spoofs Lorenzo's Time in LORENZO'S MIME!

- Some more corny jokes on I'M CORNY!

- Goin Bulilit spoofs Lorenzo's Time in LORENZO'S SLIME

- Ready Get Set Goin in Bisikwela!

Cadillac ATS

2013 Cadillac ATS

At first glance, I thought that the ATS will be a successor to the CTS but I was wrong. The all new Cadillac ATS is not a CTS replacement. What this here is the baby Caddy that competes to the same level as the BMW 3 series, Mercedes C-Class, and Audi A4. Confused? Back then, when the CTS launched in early 2002, this was made to be the baby of the Cadillac range and revolutionized the ART & SCIENCE design that kept Cadillac alive and kicking. When it got a full model change in 2007, the CTS was graduated from 3-Series rival to 5-Series rival and as of that, there is no Cadillac that can compete against the baby luxury saloons until the arrival of the ATS.

When you look at it, the ATS does really look like the CTS because...well it's a bit too confusing, the headlights, the ART & SCIENCE grille, the typical Caddy rear, everything looks the same! That's right! It looks the same but when you look at the dimensions between the ATS and the CTS, you'll realize that the ATS is a bit too shorter than its big brother so, therefore, it really was a "Compact Luxury Sport Sedan". That was a catchphrase but oh well, that suits the ATS well.

2013 Cadillac ATS interior

Don't be deceived on the exterior because the interior of the ATS is all functional and it's also got the Cadillac CUE as we first seen on the flagship XTS sedan. This new telematics system provides drivers some ease-free navigation, music, news, Pandora Radio, or some Bluetooth connectivity. We know, we examined that before and you can even update the CUE via USB during the life of the vehicle. That's amazing, a software that can be more current when you trade in your Cadillac than when you bought it. It's like updating my PS3 via storage media. He he he....

Anyway, the well sculpted interior of the ATS makes it as comfortable as an ultra expensive full size saloon in car that costs less than its rivals. All that ART & SCIENCE really gives some atmosphere around this compact luxury saloon and if I'm honest, surprisingly quiet.

For a real treat, this one comes with the BOSE PREMIUM AUDIO SYSTEM, which is the same brand you could expect on those Renault-Nissan Alliance cars. That ten-speaker surround sound system, this is the best thing I'd expect from this baby Caddy and of course, this is way even better than the pathetic Mark Levinson audio system I've tried from the Lexus IS. No wait, even better than the Toyota Premium Sound System expected from those luxury Toyota minivans that pathetic ASEAN idiots got obsessed with. Every time when you see a car that has a BOSE on it, you'll know that BOSE has the best audio quality than any other and when applied on selected cars, you'll know that this combo gives it a better experience for music-worthy drivers.

As of now, you can expect the 2.5L (2,499 cc) LCV I-4 and the 3.6L (3,564 cc) LFX V6 petrol engines for now. The 2.5L engine generates 202 hp of power while the 3.6L V6 engine produces about 321 hp of power. Sure, they're all mated with a 6-speed automatic transmission but if you're patient, Cadillac will offer you a turbocharged 2.0L engine in late 2012, which generates 272 hp of power and can be mated with a Tremec 6-speed manual transmission, developed exclusively for the ATS! Sounds juicy then and then there was this; a Chevrolet Corvette-derived MAGNETIC RIDE CONTROL provides this ATS some touring car-like agility which can be somewhat useful on some corners. This feature benefits increased performance, safety, comfort and balance, for positive stopping power.

Sure, the ATS do come with safety equipment such as the Forward Collision Alert, Side Blind Zone Alert, and Rear Cross-Traffic Alert, as well as the Adaptive Cruise Control, adaptive forward lighting and so on but then, there's a real catch because the ATS comes with the all new SAFETY ALERT SEAT - a next-generation warning signal - that sends pulses through the driver's seat cushion, left and right simultaneously, alerting you from potential hazards.

Available colors are: Radiant Silver Metallic, White Diamond Tricoat, Silver Coast Metallic, Glacier Blue Metallic, Thunder Gray Chromaflair, Summer Gold Metallic, Crystal Red Tintcoat, Opulent Blue Metallic, Black Diamond Tricoat, and Black Raven.

My comment:

So, the all new Cadillac ATS, it maybe the baby of the Caddy lineup but it is proven to be a worthy contender against the BMW 3-Series, Audi A4, Mercedes-Benz C-Class, Nissan Skyline sedan, or even the Lexus IS. With some luxurious features you can expect from an ultra-expensive car, you'll regret that you're in an entry-level Cadillac that is a bit too suitable for the accountants, people who want to go to the country club, or someone named Keith. I never knew that the Americans made a car that competes with the entry-level European luxury saloons but on balance, I would rather buy a CTS instead because it's the best Cadillac ever made and it's well balanced and sadly, no CUE yet until next year's full model change for the CTS. As a matter of fact, I have to make do with the ATS, the baby Caddy for made for everyone who don't want European-made saloons.

Photo: General Motors

When a car's gone skydiving for ad purposes....

We've seen car ads from all over the world doing exciting ways to please the crowd but nothing got us better than ads of cars skydiving.

This here is the debut commercial for the Mazda Premacy back in 1999 in Japan. Of course, the Premacy debuted in Japan in 1999 and the slogan was "Premacy Capsule". What you can see here is the Premacy gone skydiving but that's just special effects you can see. Yep, just special effects.

Anyway, when we say the advert for the new Toyota Spade, which is just a Porte with a different styling, this is what we saw...

This one's real, right. No special effects involved. The Toyota Spade just got dropped for some skydiving. PROFFESIONAL STUNT. DO NOT ATTEMPT, FOLKS. That gave us thinking, this Toyota Spade commercial we just saw kinda reminds us of Chevy Sonic's first skydiving...

Yep, that's that. Toyota took the idea from General Motors to drop the Spade from the sky just like what happened to the Chevy Sonic.

Now, if I were going to steal the idea from Clarkson's Duel DVD, where he dropped the Ford Scorpio and a coin to the surface, I would rather drop the first-generation Mazda Premacy, Toyota Spade, and the Chevy Sonic, to see who can fall but in order to do that, I have to be in Japan. For the first-generation Premacy, which was built from 1999 to 2005, I have to find one at the used car dealer, which sounds reasonable. For the Toyota Spade, as I said, it's available at Corolla and Netz dealerships for 1,450,000 Japanese Yen. For the Chevrolet Sonic, I have to find one at a Chevy dealer for 1,890,000 Japanese Yen.

Now, all I need now is some cranes to hang those three, no wait, have them bolted with a giant parachute and place it to the cargo plane. If all according to plan, I would want to see if these three did exactly as they did on these ads and find out which is the best skydiving car from the ads. This is a duel but it's not because it's three cars. See about that and I hope someone got my memo...He he he he....SPOILERS!

A Tale of two C8's

Clive Crowley Aileron and the Laviolette!

What you're looking here are two Spykers hooning around Forza Motorsport 4 everyday. If you don't know what Spyker is, well, it's a Dutch car company that in 1925, they went out of business but in the new millennium, a Dutch businessman revived Spyker and built the C8. We'd never know that this supercar came out from Holland and hey, this is like messing up Vincent Van Gogh's famous Sunflower painting with the words "FOR AMY, VINCENT". Wait...Did I said that Who reference? Anyway, forget about it, what we have here is the limited edition LM85 and the recently arrived in my desk Aileron, which was part of the July Car Pack for sure, which both have Audi's 4.2L V8 engine but anyway, what made them differ?

Spyker C8 Laviolette LM85

The LM85 is a special edition Laviolette model that celebrates the company's involvement in the 24 Hours of Le Mans since 2002. Sticking to its Le Mans theme, only 24 units were made and each owner has an invitation to the 24 Hours of Le Mans race as a VIP guest of Spyker and they will receive a special Chronoswiss 24 Hours Pilot Watch with an orange crocodile strap.

It comes with a naturally aspirated Audi 4.2-litre V8 petrol engine that generates 400PS of power and 480Nm of torque. 0-100kph in 4.5 seconds and top speed of 300kph.

This special edition model is finished in a distinctive burnt almond orange colour with the contrasting Gun Metal 'S' logo and charcoal-tinted polycarbonate roof panels. The interior boasts the signature Spyker attention to detail, with the seats, door panels, centre tunnel, roof lining and dashboard top finished in black leather or Alcantara.

Spyker Aileron

Revealed at the 2009 Salon International de l'Automobile in Geneva, the Aileron served as the next step in Spyker's evolution thanks to its sleek aerodynamics, a long GT wheelbase, luxurious and spacious cabin and world-class ZF six-speed automatic transmission. The Aileron comes with the naturally aspirated Audi 4.2-litre V8 petrol engine that generates 400PS of power and 480Nm of torque. 0-100kph in 4.5 seconds and top speed of 300kph. A 6-speed automatic transmission is the first for the Aileron and it features a regular torque converter and offers drivers a choice of fully automatic or clutch-less sequential manual gear shifting using the standard paddle shifts behind the steering wheel.

An exclusive Kharma in-car entertainment system was equipped for the first time ever on the Aileron, marking the Kharma brand's debut in the world of automotive entertainment. The "Reference" Kharma sound system incorporates a FM and DAB digital radio, iPod connectivity, 8 GB memory drive, and USB and AUX inputs, benefitting from the bespoke-designed control on the central console mechanism behind the gear selector, and selections are shown in the integrated dashboard LCD panel.

Sure, both of them have the same engine, they have the F1-inspired suspension, they have eccentric looks, they have no airbags, no stability control, no traction control, but anyway, when you compare two of these cars, it appears that both of these Dutchmen want to go to the bar for some arm wrestling but hey, their interiors look as better than several Hermes bags that Mommy D have. Heh, Hermes bags...no wonder she loves those... 

When you take them both to the track, Clive Crowley Aileron and the Laviolette are getting along with the road just fine and with such handling, it feels like it's well balance, well poised, and kinda feels like a Lotus Elise dressed up with a smoking jacket. I have to say, that even though these two don't work to be rivals against Ferrari, Aston Martin, Porsche, or Lamborghini, these giant earrings are far out stylish and if I were to put these two at the Cool Wall, it would be over the top. The country that give you Rembrandt, Van Gogh, and Big Brother, made a very stylish car that is more than just driving...it's a Hermes Bag in wheels....