College Exhibition: LTU 2009

Lawrence Technological University (LTU) celebrated its second annual Transportation Design Show earlier this month. The second year (Sophomore) and first year (Freshmen) classes both presented projects at the degree show. The Sophomore project brief was to create a concept vehicle that reinforced the Jeep brand while capturing new customers in a niche market.

Video: Darrell Waltrip laps Bathurst with V8 Supercar driver Jason Bright

One of the most entertaining things to come out of the Bathurst 1000 last weekend in Australia--besides Garth Tander and Nick Percat taking the checkered flag--was ex-NASCAR driver and commentator Darrel Waltrip going for a wild hot lap with V8 Supercar driver Jason Bright. After taking the first turn at speed in the 650-hp Holden Commodore, Waltrip yells, “Impossible!” The video gets even more entertaining around the Esses and the Dipper, two succeeding corners. The clip is full of repeatable one-liners from Waltrip including, “I lost my lunch, and I didn't even have lunch.” He calls the track on Mount Panorama a geological oddity.

Infiniti Emerg-E concept

Infiniti's third recent concept car, the Emerg-E, will debut at the Geneva motor show next week. Following the Essence of 2009 and last year's Etherea, the Emerg-E is the brand's first mid-engined car design. While the proportions of all three cars are very different (thanks to the Essence's front-engine, rear-wheel drive layout and the front-engined, front-wheel drive Etherea), their form language is shared.