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Rare Ferrari GTO Sells for Millions

December 28th, 2009 | No Comments | Posted in News

As one of the world’s most rare and coveted cars in the world for car collectors, the 1963 Ferrari 250 GTO stands out as tribute to excellence in sports car design. The recent auction held by Canada based RM Auctions brought a great deal of excitement from car collectors with this vehicle being offered via private treaty. While the specific numbers of the price tag and the buyer were not revealed to the public or the media, the race car itself is expected to bring well over $25 million for the buyer and RM Auctions. A similar 250 GTO was sold at auction to a buyer in the United Kingdom for $25 million in 2008 and this is where the valuation comes from as these cars continue to be harder to find. Many collectors consider the 250 GTO to be one of the most visually pleasing of all the cars built by Ferrari, a brand well known for its attractive design. Not only was the car successful in terms of visual appeal, however, it also managed to do well for the auto maker in the racing world where it one several World Championships. The Modense built race car features a 302 horse power V12 engine that makes it capable of reaching a top speed of 174 miles per hour.

This particular car is built using chassis No. 4675 GT and is one of 3 dozen 250 GTO’s made by Ferrari. In addition to that status, it is also one of only a handful that possess the Series II GTO body work. After leaving the factory in April of 1963 the car was raced by drivers like Oddone Sigala, Guido Fossati, Vincenzo Nember and Jean Guichet. Its finishing color is Rosso Cina.

Robotic Audi to Perform Steep Climb

December 15th, 2009 | No Comments | Posted in News

Building on a tradition that dates back to 1916, the annual Pikes peak International Hill Climb is a tradition near the US city of Colorado Springs, Colorado. With a length of just over 12 miles, the curving roads of the mountain area are a testing grounds for all sorts of vehicles, but a professor of mechanical engineering from Stanford University is setting out to trump the list of famous drivers such as Al Unser and Mario Andretti. Gerdes is looking to be the first to send up a car that will drive itself. Using an Audi TTS, the professor has altered the vehicle to be able to drive itself at speeds of up to 130 miles an hour using a computer and GPS control. There will be test runs using a driver for the safety of the vehicle, known by the name of Shelley, but for the solo climb, Shelley will need to make use of only computer systems and remote control in order to make the drive. The speeds and general path the car follows will be a product of the extensive testing planned.

Since the car is capable of receiving information at a rate of around 500 instances per second, it will need to make use of a variety of tools built into its design. Aside from the GPS system on board, the car has a number of gyroscopes and accelerometers which will control both braking and speed, helping the car respond to determinations of the road’s boundaries. As director for Stanford’s Center for Automotive Research, Gerdes teamed up with Volkswagen to use their $5.75 million grant to create the Volkswagen Automotive Innovation Lab which has helped to produce the vehicle.