Forza Horizon: Are you disrespecting the house of Cooper?

The House of Cooper

Most of the car enthusiasts admit that a German carmaker like BMW did ruined the Mini heritage because a modern Mini is too German for its own kind. Some Mini enthusiasts defended that opinion saying that the Gerrys are staying loyal to the Mini's roots. I'm neither on one of their side because driving a Mini Cooper like these on Horizon rather seems fine for me because of its compact sizing that makes it for a nimble getaway. It is a swift car on the corners but for some of you who like the modern Mini, why not take a look back on memory lane in one of these?

Mr Bean at the House of Cooper!

This is a 1965 Mini Cooper S. It's not one of the cars that tickles my fancy on Horizon. It's not the nicest looking car in my mind, and also it's one of the most hideous-looking cars I have ever seen in my life. But, ever since I drove one of these in one of Horizon's Showcase Events, I am willing to take back what I said about the classic Mini Cooper because such sizing and agility REALLY tickles my fancy. On the right circumstances, it's a brilliant little car if you're in a mood for some fun and games. It's really really that fun to drive and such a superb lightweight body makes it a winning formula for those who want a good handling car.

What's in our Car Town garage today? (April 9, 2013)

What's in our Car Town garage today?

2008 Hummer H2

If the H1 is much more than the road-going version of the Humvee, the H2 from Hummer is more of a status symbol for the rich and famous. Think about this ride; there are many celebrities, especially hip-hop musicians and rappers alike, even famous athletes, especially from the NBA or NFL, had one of those Hummers. Perhaps this is one of the cars that revolutionized the "bling bling" trend since the Chrysler 300C. Anyway, never mind about that, what it means that the H2 is a status symbol for the big-shots, especially when it was used by Rod Hall Racing when it made class victories at the Baja 1000.

2008 Hummer H2

1993 Lamborghini LM002

Lamborghini made some of the fanciest V12 supercars, but in case you're wondering, how did Lamborghini made this kind of vehicle? Well, this strange Lamborghini, called the LM002, might not exactly the Lambo you want to have, despite the fact that this is an offroader, the kind of thing Lamborghini made one in the past. This offroad Lambo garnered a nickname "Rambo-Lambo" because its tough looks and the V12 engine that powers it really worked. Perhaps, there was such thing as a V12 SUV in the past though.

1992 Lamborghini LM002

1977 Lotus Esprit

This car was famed for being the James Bond submarine Lotus from the Bond movie The Spy Who Loved Me. It's specifically, the first Esprit ever made since its premiere at the 1975 Paris Motor Show and production commenced at 1976, replacing the Europa in the lineup. It sticks true to the Lotus mantra of making lightweight cars, therefore it weighs less than 1000kg while being powered by a 2.0L engine which develops 162PS of power.

1977 Lotus Esprit

Super GT 2013 Round 1 Okayama

Super GT 2013 Round 1 Okayama

The 2013 season of the Super GT race has begun at Okayama and on its first day of the match, it was a big drama out there! At the start of the season, the No.100 RAYBRIG HSV-010 driven by (Takuya Izawa/Takashi Kogure) won the GT500 class while the No.11 GAINER DIXCEL SLS driven by Katsuyuki Hiranaka and Bjorn Wirdheim won the GT300 class!

PRESS RELEASE:

Round 1 Okayama : Race Review

 

On the afternoon of April 7, the OKAYAMA GT 300km RACE, Round 1 of the 2013 AUTOBACS SUPER GT, took place at the Okayama International Circuit in Okayama Pref. The winner in the GT500 class was the No.100 RAYBRIG HSV-010 driven by (Takuya Izawa/Takashi Kogure). The winner of the GT300 class was the No.11 GAINER DIXCEL SLS driven by Katsuyuki Hiranaka and Bjorn Wirdheim.

 

Weather: Fine | Course: Dry

 

Upsets mark the early going in different conditions from the qualifying

Under a thin cloud cover, but with a chance of rain looming, the track was dry with the air temperature at 11 degrees C. and the track surface temperature at 21 degrees as the starting time for the race approached at 2:00 PM at Okayama Circuit for Sunday’s race. Finally, the formation lap of the season’s opening race rolled into action. But, immediately there was an unexpected mishap as No. 32 Epson HSV-010 (Ryo Michigami), starting from 2nd position on the grid ran off the track at the first turn. Michigami was able to recover his position quickly, but the pace car made another lap as a result, reducing the race distance to 81 laps when it finally started at 2:07 PM.

Just after the start, the No. 17 KEIHIN HSV-010 (Toshihiro Kaneishi) and the No. 100 RAYBRIG HSV-010 (Takuya Izawa) caught and passed the No. 24 D'station ADVAN GT-R (Michael Krumm) to move up into 3rd and 4th positions respectively behind the No. 23 MOTUL AUTECH GT-R (Ronnie Quintarelli) and the No. 32 Epson HSV-010. Just as No. 24 had dropped to 5th position, the No. 19 WedsSport ADVAN SC430 (Andre Couto), which had also had difficulty in warming up the tires, dropped all the way back to 10th position by the end of the first lap.

Behind the No. 23 MOTUL AUTECH GT-R leading the race, the No. 32 Epson HSV-010 was also having trouble keeping a fast pace in the early going, and on the fifth lap it was passed by the No. 17 KEIHIN HSV-010, the No. 100 RAYBRIG HSV-010 and then the No. 18 Weider Modolo HSV-010 (Naoki Yamamoto) to be left in their wake.

At this point in the race the leading order was No. 23 followed by No. 17, No. 100, No. 18 and No. 12, and on the seventh lap three Lexus machines, the No. 37 KeePer TOM'S SC430 (Andrea Caldarelli), the No. 36 PETRONAS TOM'S SC430 (James Rossiter) and the No. 38 ZENT CERUMO SC430 (Kohei Hirate) passed the No. 32 Epson HSV-010 to move into 6th, 7th and 8th places. But, in the charge of these Lexus machine the No. 36 PETRONAS TOM'S SC430 received damage to one of its wheels in a brush up with No. 38 ZENT CERUMO SC430 on the sixth lap and had to return to the pit on lap eight and forced to lose its hard-earned position.

From the ninth lap the leaders began to come up on GT300 class back markers, but the No. 23 MOTUL AUTECH GT-R continued to run strong in the lead. Two or three seconds behind, the No. 17, No. 100 and No. 18 HSV-010 were staging a tight nose-to-tail battle for 2nd place. Also, behind the No. 12 CALSONIC IMPUL GT-R (Tsugio Matsuda) in 5th position cars No. 37, No. 38 and the No. 39 DENSO KOBELCO SC430 (Hiroaki Ishiura) were in a fierce battle of their own. In this way the early stages of the race continued to be marked by battles between cars of the same maker.

Amid these contests, the No. 18 Weider Modolo HSV-010 passed the No. 100 RAYBRIG HSV-010 on the 15th lap to move into 3rd position, and on the 16th lap the No. 38 ZENT CERUMO SC430 caught and passed the No. 37 KeePer TOM'S SC430 to take 6th position, and for a while these positions would hold.

An intense battle unfolds over the last ten laps

Around the 23rg and 24th laps a light rain began to fall and the No. 23 MOTUL AUTECH GT-R began to lose some of its margin of lead, but it was still firmly in the lead when the teams began to make their routine pit stops from around lap 35. The leader finally made its pit stop on lap 43, changing drivers from Quintarelli to Masataka Yanagida, and when all the teams had finished their pit stops by lap 48, No. 23 was back in the lead with Yanagida at the wheel, followed another car on Michelin tires in 2nd place, the No. 18 Weider Modolo HSV-010 (Frederic Makowiecki).

After the 60th lap, however, the No. 18 Weider Modolo HSV-010 was unable to hold the pace and the No. 100 RAYBRIG HSV-010 (Takashi Kogure) and No. 17 KEIHIN HSV-010 (Koudai Tsukakoshi) were closing in on it. Once again it was a battle for 2nd position between three HSV-010 machines, the contender were down to two when the No.18 Weider Modolo HSV-010 suddenly spun out by itself on Atwood Curve of lap the 68. This put the No. 100 RAYBRIG HSV-010 and No. 17 KEIHIN HSV-010 in 2nd and 3rd places respectively, while the No. 18 Weider Modolo HSV-010 dropped to 4th position.

Now in 2nd and 3rd positions, the No. 100 RAYBRIG HSV-010 and No. 17 KEIHIN HSV-010 began to close in on the No. 23 MOTUL AUTECH GT-R as its pace slowed after the 70th lap, perhaps because of the dropping track temperature. A nip-and-tuck battle continued between the three machines until the 77th lap, when the No. 100 RAYBRIG HSV-010 started to draw alongside the No. 23 MOTUL AUTECH GT-R on the infield, and despite Yanagida’s desperate efforts to hold them off, the two HSV-010 machines both managed to pass the GT-R over the course of the double hairpin and the Mike Knight Corner! With this, the No. 100 RAYBRIG HSV-010 had finally taken the lead.

Having now dropped to 3rd position, the No. 23 MOTUL AUTECH GT-R lacked the speed to win back the lead, leaving the No. 100 RAYBRIG HSV-010 to race on to the win. The No. 17 KEIHIN HSV-010 finished 2nd, and after leading for most of the race, the No. 23 MOTUL AUTECH GT-R ended up 3rd. In 4th place came the No. 38 ZENT CERUMO SC4304, having managed to pass the No. 18 Weider Modolo HSV-010 on the last lap.

For the No. 100 RAYBRIG HSV-010 that had lost the victory in the final moments of last year’s season opener, there was sweet revenge in this day’s victory by the new driver team of Takuya Izawa and Takashi Kogure.

SUBARU BRZ gets a good start from pole position, but …

The start of the GT300 class race came off without mishap. Starting form pole position, the No. 61 SUBARU BRZ R&D SPORT (Tetsuya Yamano) led the race in the early running, but soon the No. 3 S Road NDDP GT-R (Kazuki Hoshino), the No.11 GAINER DIXCEL SLS (Bjorn Wirdheim) and the No. 87 LA SEINE LAMBORGHINI GT3 (Hideki Yamauchi) were closing in from behind. Unable to hold them off, the No. 31 BRZ quickly fell to 4th position. Despite having been strong in the rain of the qualifying on Saturday, the JAF GT spec BRZ was unable to match the speed of the powerful FIA GT3 spec machines on a dry track. The battle for the now came down to the No. 3 GT-R and the No. 11 R8. But, soon the No. 3 began losing speed, and on lap 10 Wirdheim in car No.11 passed Hoshino to take the lead. From there, the No.11 SLS pulled away at a fast pace and succeeded in opening up a lead of about 20 seconds over the No. 87 LAMBORGHINI by the time the teams began to make their routine pit stops from around lap 35.

The GAINER DIXCEL SLS dominates for 90% of the race

The No. 11 GAINER DIXCEL SLS was the last among the leaders to make its pit stop on lap 47. With its considerable margin of lead, Katsuyuki Hiranaka was able to assume the front position in the race with no problem after the driver change. Hiranaka was five seconds ahead of the No. 4 GSR HATSUNEMIKU BMW (Tatsuya Kataoka > Nobuteru Taniguchi), which had moved into 2nd position after making an early pit stop. It looked at this point as if Taniguchi in car No. 4 would be able to close the gap on Hiranaka in car No. 11. But, running at a fast pace of 1’30 to 1’31 per lap, Hiranaka began to widen his lead again to first 10 and then 15 seconds. At one point he built up a lead of nearly 22 seconds that gave him a comfortable margin of lead to cruise on to victory unchallenged. For the winning No.11 GAINER DIXCEL SLS team GAINER, this was the second consecutive win here at Okayama, having won last year using the Audi R8 LMS. Also, this was the first win for the Mercedes Benz SLS AMG GT3, which began competing in GT300 from last season. Finishing 2nd was the No. 4 GSR HATSUNEMIKU BMW. The race for 3rd place was a nip-and-tuck battle between the No. 87 LA SEINE LAMBORGHINI GT3 (Hiroki Yoshimoto) and the No. 33 HANKOOK PORSCHE (Tomonobu Fujii) that continued until the second lap from the finish. But, in the heat of the brawl, there was a collision that caused the No. 33 PORSCHE to fall back and concede the win to the No. 87 LAMBORGHINI, which went on to claim the third spot on the winners’ podium. Running at a constant pace throughout the race, the veteran driver pair of the No. 52 OKINAWA-IMP SLS (Hironori Takeuchi > Takeshi Tsuchiya) finished 4th, while the pole-starting No. 61 SUBARU BRZ R&D SPORT (Yamano > Kota Sasaki) finished 5th. The No. 55 ARTA CR-Z GT (Shinichi Takagi > Takashi Kobayashi) that had crashed in the free practice on qualifying day was able to start the race from the beck of the grid after frantic repair work. In the race, despite some trouble, the team managed to finish 12th.

Source: http://supergt.net/pages/pg:news_detail/device:pc/ln:en/id:12860

So, the Okayama race was a memorable for the 2013 season but the battle goes on because this April 28-29, Round 2 will start at Fuji Speedway.

Let's Do The News! (April 7, 2013)

River's Diary

Right, what's the news today you spoiler-laden TARDIS journal?

Threats from North Korea - week in review

A week-in-review notes from the escalating tensions from the Korean Peninsula:

• North Korea approves nuclear strike against the USA
• North Korea once again threatens to shut down the Kaesong Complex, which is a symbol of the North-South Korean cooperation
• North Korean gearing up for a missle launch, which was moved to the East Coast of this country, putting US army sites in Guam on sight.
• North Korean warns foreign embassies to evacuate immediately, while Russia and UK has no plans ot evacuate the peninsula.

Top Gear presenters to guest star in a forthcoming Phineas and Ferb episode!

Richard Hammond meets Phineas and Ferb

After taking a break from Season 19 of BBC Top Gear, the three hosts of the popular British motoring TV show; Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, and James May, will be making a special appearance in a forthcoming episode of the hit kids TV cartoon, Disney's Phineas and Ferb, on Disney Channel and Disney XD. Titled Live and Let Drive, the presenters will lend the roles as racing commentators. Also, Richard Hammond will be guesting himself in the talk show spin-off of the hit TV series, Take Two with Phineas and Ferb, on Disney XD this May.

Story: http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/entertainment/news/top-gear-stars-for-phineas-and-ferb-29174342.html

Sony lets you turn into a figure for 500 dollars!

Now for some strange news from Japan. At last week's 2013 Anime Contents Expo, the Sony booth showcased its human figure-making project, a concept study where you can get your very own figure of yourself thanks to some 3D full-body scan technology. Three special steps on this human figure-making concept;

Step One: Scanning
Step Two: Modeling
Step Three: Printing

The finished product will be sent to customers two months after they get their photos taken. A 6-inch figure costs about 500 US Dollars while a 8-inch figure costs you 660 US Dollars and a 12-inch figure costs 1,160 US Dollars. If this became reality, your friends would know that you had your very own figure of yourself. Lovely isn't it? Makes it a birthday party gift though...

Story: http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2013-04-06/sony-can-turn-you-into-3d-painted-figure-for-us$500

Summer Tuli...again!

If it's summer in the Philippines, what comes in mind for Mang Juan? Nope, rather than just vacation, it's the time for T-U-L-I. Tuli, or circumcision in Tagalog, is a common trend in Philippine summer for the little boys because it's for hygenic purposes and to lower the chance of sexual diseases. Contrary to popular belief, circumcision DOES NOT make a little boy grow taller. Only little boys aged 12 and below took part of this summer tuli and no matter what the outcome, guess you should have seen the look of their faces when they have their tuli. Some are laughing (which is ironic), some a crying, and some don't feel any emotion after all.

Has your little boy took the circumcision from the clinic? Just asking...

The Kiyomi Song (Cutie Song)...what's it all about?!

Now, here's one thing I really DON'T UNDERSTAND and it's this thing is called the 귀요미송 or Gwiyomi song or Kiyomi song, or Cutie song, whatever you called it. Anyway, what's it all about?! This is new...

The word Gwiyomi is a South Korean slang for "cute" or "cute person". The Gwiyomi song was composed and performed by musicians Dandi and Hari and it was uploaded three months ago and released as a digital single a month later. It became the most search term in the Korean search engine NAVER and now, it's spreading like wildfire, something that last year's Gangnam Style and the biblically terrible Harlem Shake can't catch up...

Info: http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/the-gwiyomi-song

Doctor Who S07E07

The Rings of Akhaten

Episode 7 of BBC Doctor Who Season 7's titled The Rings of Akhaten and while this episode turned out one of the most "tense" episodes I've ever saw, it's also has the most beautiful storyline in this episode. While I'm not going to explain what just happened, here's a quick sum-up...

- First off all, that red leaf we saw last week, isn't more than just a leaf (or the first page as Clara said it last week), it has significance to Clara's past.

- That cool-looking moped we just saw in the episode...this looks cool if we want to take a spin on it...

- Favorite dialogue in the episode? OH MY STARS! It's the dialogue came from Clara's deceased mother, Ellie Ravenwood-Oswald.

- One thing that made me noticed that Clara's childhood book, 101 Places to See, was handed over from her mother in the past. Am I saying that loud, am I?

- The Long Song...if you're reading this Sir Murray Gold, please add this on the Series 7 Soundtrack!!!

...anyway that does it. And here's some outtakes...



...next week, The Doctor and Clara are in the nuclear submarine in a Cold War era and on the verge to save the fleet before it's too late...

Driving Music (What is the name of the song on car commercial?) Vol. 50

Okay, seems that some music pirates trying to attack my blog for unknown reasons. This time, I'm picking up some damages from my blog such as this...

buick encore commercial song

..well I think that's it but a small threat to my blog cost me more! I'm warning you. I'm just like NoKor. I can throw as much bellicose threats as possible until you stop doing it. I'm warning you, the DMCA is threatening you unless you stop doing such bellicose threats to the music industry because of car commercial songs...

As part of my bellicose threats to you, pirates, ANOTHER SET OF FIVE DRIVING MUSICS (CAR COMMERCIAL SONGS) TO SIT DOWN AND SHUT UP!!!

5) Midnight City by M83 - from the Renault Captur commercial

4) Sirius by The Alan Parsons Project - from a classic Kia Sephia Korean commercial

3) 駆け抜けろ！ by Arashi - from a Nissan Serena S-HYBRID Japanese commercial

2) Ahead Of The Light by MIYAVI - from a Nissan X-TRAIL 冬にじっとしてる気か Japanese commercial

1) The Guitar by They Might Be Giants - from the Buick Encore commercial

...so, there we go. Hope these reaches to those "car-music-nappers" everywhere. If such threats happen again on this blog, the DRIVING MUSIC segment will take action from those trying to steal music from car commercials...

"Helps you be up to 100% dandruff free FOREVER"

On the March 5, 2013 episode of Bubble Gang...

- ransom gags

- Mr. Assimo meets the fortune teller

- Of love, lies, and some lice on your hair!

- Tata Lino's here again to solve life's problems...

- Bubble Gang does Head and Shoulders by spoofing this commercial as HEAD AND SHONGGAL! Helps you be up to 100% dandruff free FOREVER!

- To recall a crime scene, first you have to sketch it with your photographic memory...

- It's more fun showing off your fun-filled memories with your friends but sometimes it can be boring...

- Ang Bagong Dating Doon

- No wonder you're name is Joey!

- IyoTube in Gangnam Style!

Let's Do The News! (April 5, 2013)

River's Diary

Right, what's the news today you spoiler-laden TARDIS journal?

Legendary film critic Rogert Ebert passed away

The legendary film critic, Robert Ebert, I'm afraid that he passed away at the age of 70 after he was succumbed to cancer. In the past years, Sir Robert Ebert spent most of his life waging his life against cancer.

Sir Robert Ebert reviewed several films for the Sun Times for 46 years and on TV for 31 years. Not only he's popular but he's well respected by many.

Story: http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2013/04/04/176261560/roger-ebert-legendary-film-critic-dies

2014 Panamera receives PHV model and others

2014 Porsche Panamera

So, Maserati now has a new Quattroporte, Aston Martin now has a Rapide S, now it's Porsche's turn for the "Four Door Supercars Part Deux" by revealing the facelifted 2014 Porsche Panamera range. For this facelift, the Panamera now gains a long wheelbase model, a V6 turbo variant, and a new PHV model called the e-Hybrid. The biggest change however is that the manual transmission has sadly been removed from the lineup and all models come with PDK dual clutch and 8-speed AT.

It will be revealed at 2013 Auto China in Shanghai this April 2013 and sales start in the Summer.

Story: http://www.carscoops.com/2013/04/porsche-panamera-facelift-gets-new-lwb.html

X4 Concept in Shanghai

BMW X4 Concept

BMW will preview an upcoming sports activity vehicle at this year's 2013 Auto China in Shanghai in a form of a concept model. Dubbed as the X4, it will slot between the X6 and the X3, making it a new addition to BMW's long range or sports activity vehicle.

Story: http://www.autoblog.com/2013/04/04/bmw-x4-concept-shanghai-photos-reveal/

Fast & Furious Experience in Car Town!

FAST & FURIOUS EXPERIENCE

In honor for May 2013's Fast and Furious 6, Car Town is bringing the slice of Fast and Furious to the wildly popular social game for car enthusiasts. The Fast & Furious Experience needs you and your recruited crew members to build some Fast & Furious cars for your ever-growing car collection in your garage. You can challenge for pink slips and complete new collections to win gold cars. New locations await you as well as new F&F cars including fan favorites such as Neela's RX-8, DK's 350Z, Jesse's Jetta, and others!

Start Your Fast & Furious Experience -> http://bit.ly/playcartown

Special-edition JDM Ferrari California

Ferrari California 30 Giappone

Announced at the Ferrari Racing Days 2013 in Suzukia, Japan, there's a new special edition for the Ferrari California called the "Ferrari California 30 Giappone", which is available exclusively for the Japanese market and it was made in honor of Ferrari's first win at the Japanese GP 25 years ago. Matches to the theme of Japan, the exterior color is white while the interior color is red.

Story: http://www.carview.co.jp/news/1/183143/

Mercedes-Benz CLA-Class

The Mercedes-Benz range has a lot of saloons to choose from and the S-Class is the pinnacle of the lineup. Let's put it this way, if you can't afford an S-Class, buy a CLS-Class. If you can't afford a CLS, buy an E-Class. And if you can't afford an E-Class, buy a C-Class. Simple as that but there is a problem. What if you want a Mercedes-Benz saloon car but can't afford on a C-Class? Of course, you're not going to prompt for an A-Class because it's a hatchback and it's a different story. That's simply a gap that's never been filled until now...

2014 Mercedes-Benz CLA-Class

Now, here's a rule-breaker in the range. It's called the CLA-Class and it's a brand new model from Mercedes-Benz for those who can't afford a C-Clas and it's very crucial for those kind of people because prices start at, you guessed it, 28,977 Euros, which makes it the most affordable four-door saloon car Mercedes-Benz has ever made. So, well done Mercedes-Benz, but actually...nope.

2014 Mercedes-Benz CLA-Class interior

You see, this is a class of its own for this car. This ushered a revolution where luxury car brands decided to make entry-level models that are appropriate to younger buyers. One such irrelevant example was Aston Martin. Sure, they made lots of luxury grand tourers such as the DB9 and the Vanquish but they changed course by developing the Cygnet, which is a compact car based on the Toyota iQ. Audi plans to develop a sedan version of the A3 to counter this kind of bellicose rhetoric done by Mercedes-Benz. However, the CLA-Class maybe a "bellicose rhetoric" for some econmic reasons but this urban egoist sure knows how to grow up just like the C-Class, the E-Class, the CLS, and the S-Class saloons.

First of all, the CLA carved its inspiration from the Concept Style Coupé concept at 2012 Paris Auto Show. As you can see, despite its entry-level capability, it's still very sexy to look at. It's like a 5-year-old girl who has the seduction of a 25-year-old supermodel. Well, that doesn't sound right because it's a bit racy if I'm honest. What I mean is, despite the compact look, it looks rather stylish indeed. Plus, it's aerodynamic as well because the CLA is the most aerodynamic car ever sold with the drag coefficient of 0.23.

As for the choice of engines, let's take a look. It had a 1.6L petrol engines with three configurations, a 2.0L turbo engine, and a 2.1L diesel engine as of now. They can be mated with either a 6-speed manual, which is lovely if you want to make things a bit more interesting, or a 7G-DCT for those whose ideas are about to get rhetorical on your way to the party. As I see it, they're working on an AMG version very very soon and this would be a very interesting choice for those who are on some serious bellicose rhetorics. In the meantime, I would go for the one with the 2.0L turbo engine on it, which produces 211PS of power. Not bad for a car who begs for high performance, though...

2014 Mercedes-Benz CLA-Class

The CLA-Class may not quite having the talents of other saloons from Mercedes-Benz but in anycase, it's a well-civilized saloon car that is usable on the city streets and on the open roads as well. It feels like you're spending the whole day listening to the house music served from King Street Sounds and when you're on your way to Aruba Bar & Restaurant before you reach the night, it's just as what you can say "absolutely fabulous" indeed. What I love about this car though that driving the CLA is like having the same moment as taking a break at a nightclub somewhere at Ortigas and listen to house music.

As a car made for everyday use, it kinda feels like weekend's over. If you're driving this car to work, most people will notice that you're driving a car suitable for nightclub visits and other stuff. It's not kinda right if you're an ordinary office employee who spends most of his time typing at the computer or making phone calls. Despite that, the CLA is just one way of telling your friends that you had a Mercedes-Benz. It's like showing off a Hermes bag or a Prada bag to anyone just for brags. It maybe an entry-level car but this is a sure fire thing that you owned a luxury car for a reasonable price. Who can't blame them? Now if you don't mind, I'm off for some nightclub chow downs...Ciao!

Photo: Mercedes-Benz

The boys gave TGUSA Season 3 a Viking Burial

Top Gear USA Season 3 finale

Season 3 of Top Gear USA came to an end as the boys drove American offroaders on the Icelandic volcano to prove that Americans have the best offroaders in the world. Tanner Foust drives a 1979 Ford Bronco with a big block and 44-inch wheels while Rutledge Wood opts for a 1973 International Scout with tough axles and 44-inch wheels and Adam Ferrera goes for the 1984 Chevy K30 Diesel with 49-inch tires.

The boys struggled themselves to get through the Nordic roads from the old Viking Parliament to the Eyjafjallajökull volcano, the one that was erupted three years ago, disrupting air travel in Europe for almost a week. It is also a volcano where no offroader stood atop the freshly-laid, virgin rock at the summit.

In the end though...looks like they made it. They made it to the summit and prove that even beat-up American offroaders can still have what it takes to conquer the world.

And that concludes the third season of Top Gear USA. Thank you, you idiot trio for wasting my time watching your adventures in motoring...but it was fun having them around.

Forza Horizon: For Driving Gods and Bad Winners

Now I think it's time to meet up with a special someone from Forza Horizon's April Top Gear Pack...

Nemesis

Now, fans of Top Gear might remember this is the Bowler Nemesis but this kind of Nemesis is a bit different than what it used to be. Thing is though that Bowler has a wide reputation of creating off-road ready vehicles based on Land Rover models. They were designed to survive tough, unforgiving, terrains worldwide, whether if its tarmac, gravel, snow, whatever floats their boat. The Defender-based Wildcat is made for those who want to be Driving Gods while the Range Rover Sport-based Nemesis was designed for the Bad Winners in mind, even Hammond when he kicked the butt of his German rival at the off-road segment of Top Gear vs. The Germans episode. You know what a bad loser feels like? For Hammond, there's a Bad Winner. Bowlers are made not just for off-road fun but for bragging rights.

It's a whole new Bowler awaits..

But this Bowler has gone up in the world. This is the EXR S model. Made as a direct response to customer demand for a road going version of the EXR rally raid car, the S model uses the handling, strength and weight distribution characteristics of the rally car but usable on public roads. It even has the same supercharged 5.0L V8 engine from the Jaguar XKR which develops 510hp of power and it weighs 1800kg. Zero to 60mph in 4.2 seconds and has a limited to speed of 155mph.

The Bowler EXR made an appearance on the Top Gear Apocalypse 2010 DVD, where Richard Hammond drives the Bowler to avoid the prying eyes of a photographer taking pictures of him while riding in a Jaguar XKR, a helicopter, a military vehicle, and a hovercraft.

Off-road ready

In the world of Forza Horizon, does this new Bowler stand up when things get rough? Thing is though, even when the EXR is a road-legal Bowler, it still carries the same essence from its Nemesis rally raid car. You can go off-roading and go mad when you're in a badlands rumble.

That's how you eat Eggs Benedict for breakfast

This comes with a supercharged 5.0L V8 engine that I got from the Jaguar XKR-S but because the Bowler has more power than the XKR-S (550HP > 545HP) and lighter, the Bowler's power to weight ratio is better than the JAAAAAG! In a straight line, the Bowler can take down the Jag on a quarter mile but on the corner, there's one bit problem regarding this...me. Thankfully, the Bowler can find racing lines whereas other sportscars don't. Therefore, it can vanquish any opponent on tarmac.

Desperate Chase

On a familiar Bowler territory, this is when it gets interesting because while the Bowler was born to be an offroader, it takes mastery and some skill to conquer this machine in such unforgiving conditions, especially on rally courses and playground games whereas infecting and King is possible. With this though, this meant more musical chairs from your opponents racing offroads.

DRIVING GOD!!!

I've been driven this Bowler on Horizon and I have to say that this is the best offroader in Horizon. You can forget about the Range Rover, the ML63, the Wrangler, the FJ, or the G65, becaue this Bowler will deifnitely eat them all for breakfast. This is truly Horizon's king of 4WD offroader. This is made for those who want to become Driving Gods or Bad Winners.

This is just one of the many cars why Great Britain is so reluctant on making one of those and with all the insanity hidden beneath the Bowler's personality, this makes me so proud to yell that I AM A DRIVING GOD! (Oops!)

Let's Do The News! (April 3, 2013)

(cheers and applause)

JC: That's the most beautiful thing I have ever driven...

RH: You love this thing, don't ya?

JC: Yes! Precisely, that is the best-looking Aston Martin in ages.

RH: Yeah, I see where you're getting somewhere because...

JC: Because it sounds old-school, looks beautiful on the move, and savage if you are in for some fun and games. Brilliant. Anyway, let's do the news!

JM: Anyway, it seems that Wonder Woman travels around the world via an invisible jet but what if she need some wheels to race through the dangers and save the world alongside the Justice League? Guess what? Kia Motors made a ride for Wonder Woman and it's a Sportage R. Here it is...

Kia Sportage R Wonder Woman

JM:...this car is part of Kia Motors collaborating with DC Comics for the We Can Be Heroes campaign, dedicated to fight poverty. Well, I think the Justice League-themed Kia cars are complete right about now...

RH: Really?

JM: Yeah, seems that the Justice League Kias have finally assembled. Batman has a K5, Green Lantern has a Soul, Cyborg has a Forte Hatchback, Aquaman has a Pride, The Flash has a Forte Koup, Superman has a K5 Hybrid, and now Wonder Woman has a Kia Sportage R. It's already full force!

JC: Yeah, tell you what? I think it's rubbish to see the Justice League driving in those stupid Korean cars...

(audience laughing)

JC: Yes. They're superheroes. They don't need those rubbish Korean cars. They can go wherever they want...Well, except Batman because he doesn't have powers, only gadgets.

(audience laughing)

RH: So, you're saying is Batman will drive only the K5?

(audience laughing)

JC: No. He has a Batmobile. He don't need this rubbish Kia K5, you know...

(audience laughing)

JC: Now, anyway, as we told, North Korea continues to make threats everyday, regarding their nukes. Guess what? I made this...it's called the North Korea threat detector-inator...

(audience laughing)

RH: Threat detector-inator? Why would you add the "inator" suffix on it? What is this?

JC: I don't know. But what it will do for me is to detect everyday threats that the North Korea can throw us at it...

(beeping)

JC: Oh! There's an upcoming threat! Oh no!

JM: What is it this time?

JC: It says...oh wait that was yesterday...It's about North Korea trying to restart a nuclear reactor at Nyongbyon that was disabled under a six-party agreement in 2007. This nuclear reactor was once extracting plutonium for nukes.

RH: Okay, Mr. Clarkson. What's today threat now? Yesterday, it said that the restart of the nuclear reactor is another one of NoKor's threats. So, what's today's threat now?

JC: Hang on a minute...it still says UPDATING...

(audience laughing)

JC: It takes time, I tell you. It takes time. When NoKor issues a threat against humanity, this North Korea threat detector-inator will ring me, okay? Arirang, NHK, BBC, CNN, or any other channels, they'll give me a call. They'll check out the latest threats from NoKor, just to be sure...

RH: Anyway, can we move on?

JC: Yes...Well, anyway, it's summer in the Philippines and everyone's going on vacation, even the kids after the end of the school year. People went to go on provinces, some go to other countries, others went shopping, etc...etc...etc...The list goes on and on until school starts this June. So, if you're a car nut, are you interested on this?

2013 Manila International Auto Show

RH: Uh no...

JM: No...

(audience laughing)

JC: Uh...me too. Not interested on this because there are so many carmakers backed out, especially ones who are members of AVID like Hyundai. But what's interesting here is that Russ Swift will be participating on that event showcasing some stunts in the brand new Subaru BRZ.

RH: Does this mean, there's going to be drifting involved in the BRZ?

(audience laughing)

JC: Not sure but Russ Swift can do better than that now that he's making a switch from the WRX STi to the Subaru BRZ for some unknown reasons but I think it's going to be quite exciting. I promise...

(cheers and applause)

JC: Now, interesting news because Hennessey Performance, the tuning company behind the wildly acclaimed Venom GT, made some headlines again because it set the fastest top speed for production vehicles. That's about 265.7MPH or 427.6 km/h.

JM: Wait a minute...wait a minute...Didn't the Veyron SuperSport claim that record because when I was in Germany, the folks at Bugatti maxed out at 267.8 mph. But how?

JC: Well, the Veyron SS did 267.8 mph of top speed but shocking fact is that Bugatti speed-limits its production vehicles to 258 mph. So that now, Hennessey claimed that record for the Venom GT's top speed.

RH: Those utter utter bastards...

(audience laughing)

RH: This is just like Steven Moffat messing up Doctor Who with some shocking plot twists that infuriate Whovians! Get it?

JM: I'll show those Hennessey bastards a lesson...

JC: Whoa! Whoa! Calm down. Calm down. Let's move on because while the Buick Encore (an Americanized version of the Opel/Vauxhall Mokka) is new because it was been on sale last quarter, there's a report that General Motors issued an recall on 144 Buick Encores from the 2013 model year because the steering wheel could come loose or separate from the steering column! In short, the steering wheel may come off!

RH: Whoa! Guess whoever bought a new Encore right about now might end up noticing about this recall, eh? It's like you're buying a car which then later the tires come off of the sunroof shattered or things get disintegrated quickly...

(audience laughing)

JC: I know. It's a weird move to recall such a brand new car like this. Well, anyway, that's the end of the news...