If you love cars as much as we do, chances are you also like to see them zooming around on a track attempting to oust competitors in a race to the finish line. And, if you live in Australia, those chances are apparently even higher. Everyone knows that there’s nothing like watching a race while downin’ a few brews but it seems that alcohol related crime is on the rise during events such as the Bathurst 1000 V8 supercar race has lead the government to take a bit of precautionary action.

Recent reports have come from Down Under that let us know that those attending the Bathurst 1000 are limited to 24-beers a day. Yes, you’ll be allowed to drink just 24-beers per day while attending the event. 25? 26? You’re outta’ here.

Honestly though, let’s hope this cuts down on the crime rate during such events to make them once again a joyful experience.

Read (Reuters)

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Now, Chevrolet has yet to officially announce a convertible version of their popular Camaro, which means official shots are even farther away. However, there has been an much less official option but that’s never as good as the real thing.

Luckily, Jalopnik has gotten their hands on a shot of the drop-top Camaro driving around the streets of Australia. As you can see, the car looks exactly how you’d expect, a coupe Camaro with a convertible roof. Any questions?

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Joss Supercar

Australia’s first mid-engine sports car, the Joss Supercar, is nearly ready for production. Designed by Matt Thomas, the Joss Supercar was first displayed more than five years ago. Thomas alleges the car is just about ready for production, and can do 0 to 62 mph in just under 3.0 seconds and reach a top speed of 211 mph.

Joss states these feats are possible thanks to a V-8 producing “more than 500 hp.” “We have been refining the mechanics of the business model and the car and are now satisfied that we have the right product and systems in place to move forward,” said Thomas. When the Joss Supercar does make it to production, it should retail for around $600,000 AUS (U.S. $489,000).

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One thing that people hate about online car insurance is the waiting period. But perhaps other car insurance companies can take their cue from The Buzz, Australia’s new offering for busy individuals who want to manage their car insurance needs in a flash.

Among the highlights include a 60 second quick quote and simple language. It also includes a host of other online ’self-serve’ features consumers have requested, including Live Chat. Consumers can also choose exactly what insurance cover they want for their car, and only pay for that.

“The Buzz has been developed from the voice of Australians,” Ms Johnson said.
“People told us they want insurance products and services that are flexible and that suit their own needs. Importantly, they want choice and control over what they do – after all, that’s why they’re using the internet.

(Source) Press

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It seems Volkswagen is actually looking to introduce a new pickup to market entitled the Amarok. While it almost seems like whoever came up with the name picked letters at random out of a hat, this is not the case; VW let us know that Amarok means “wolf” to the Inuit people and translates to “he loves stones” in “the languages spoken in South America”. Either way, VW is obviously trying to market this car as a heavy duty pickup.

Anyways, there are no real specs or even real pictures to go by as of now with the above being just a concept. However, we do know that the Amarok will debut as a double-cab sporting 4WD pickup with a single-cab model hitting market shortly after.

Volkswagen says their Amarok pickup truck will launch in South America early next year, Central America in spring of next year and Russia, Africa, Australia and Europe sometime after.

Read (Autoblog)

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It seems that an Australian man by the name of Ian Bryce decided to attach a makeshift protection chamber with a Pope mannequin inside to the roof of his car. But why?

This wasn’t a completely random act Bryce says his strange idea was an attempt to exercise his right of free speach and the right to criticize religion.

When Sydney got wind of a man driving around with a fake pope ont he top of his car they quickly fined him $81 saying it could cause a distraction to other drivers on the road. Luckily for Mr. Bryce, chargers were dropped soon after they were pressed.

Read (Autopia)

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Car geeks and motorists are sure to wish that they could be at the second edition of the Barbican Turbo made possible by Barbican and United Business Media. This latest event promises 3 days of high octane, tire-shredding action and festival features.

Barbican Turbo: the Ultimate Auto Fest launched to an attendance of over 19,000 visitors in 2008. This year’s event set to take place from the 8th – 10th of October will aim to be bigger and better.

“Barbican Turbo was a great experience and the biggest custom car show I have ever seen. It gathered car lovers from all over…and that’s what made it so unique…the event was fantastic!” said Antoine Waheed, Winner of the Best on a Budget category of the Top 100 competition, 2008.

This year the Global Tribes AutoZone expects to show custom creations from the U.S., Japan, Australia and Europe alongside the Local Heroes AutoZone which will strive to showcase the best-of-the-best from around the Middle East. For techno junkies and lovers of sound the I.C.E. showcase area will seek the ultimate of in-car entertainment; and the Unbelievable Motorcycle area, two-wheeled works-of-art from around the globe.

Audiences will be thrilled and mesmerised as the organisers set their sights on offering fast and furious driving demonstrations and all action drifting – as last year’s Middle East debut of crowd pleasers Team Orange , the 2006 D1 World Series Drift Champions from Japan was considered by many to be the main highlight of the show.

(Source) Press

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VXR8 Bathurst S

Vauxhall will be releasing the new VXR8 Bathurst S. which was conceived in the spirit of Australian Motorsport. This will be the most potent car Vauxhall has released to date. They collaborated with high performance experts Walkinshaw to produce this special edition. In the UK and Australia, Walkinshaw has a well-established history of converting and upgrading superchargers.

Thay have now coupled the latest 122 supercharger with a 6.2 litre LS3 V8 resulting in the 552bhp VXR8 Bathurst S. The VXR8 Bathurst dishes out 560 horsepower by way of a supercharged LS3 V8 so this is no ordianry Vauxhall. All this in a sleek and stylish sedan. What a bargain at £44,995. The Bathurst S will be sold in selected Vauxhall dealerships soon.

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Good bye gas stations and welcome electric car charge stations! That’s not exactly the case but Australians are going to build a whole network of electric car charging station. The network will be built by a U.S. company and it will cost about $1 billion dollars. Better Place, AGL and Macquarie Capital are some of the name behind this endeavor.

Better Place is a company that manufactured similar stations in Denmark and Israel; AGL is the Australian power company while the Macquarie Capital is of course the money involved in all of this.

A huge number of charging stations is going to be built. From 200,000 to 250,000 stations are going to be installed in three major cities by 2012. Well good for them! But what happens when you’re out of those three cities?

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