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40+ cars that barely avoid the gas guzzler tax

The Gas Guzzler schedule, with mpg ratings and charges that haven't changed since 1991, lays out which fuel-swillers owe what to Uncle Sam.
I started thinking about the "Gas Guzzler Tax" - considerably less well known as The Energy Tax Act of 1978 - when I was driving Dodge's new Challenger SRT Hellcat last week. Unsurprisingly for a car that can burn 1.5 gallons of gas per minute at max tilt, theoretically able to empty a full tank of premium in about 13 minutes, the Hellcat will be subject to the Gas Guzzler Tax schedule when it goes on sale.

Woman rushing to pub nearly causes head-on collision

A woman in a rush to pick up her husband from a local pub caused this close call on a street in England this weekend. The near miss happened on Sunday on the B1253 between Rudston and Bridlington, East Yorkshire, England. A Porsche Cayenne driver attempted to overtake a blue Citroen on a blind curve but didn't see the white Skoda in oncoming traffic. Thanks to the Skoda driver's quick maneuvering on to the grassy shoulder the Cayenne only caused minor damage to the other two cars. Damian Hodgson is the owner of the dashboard camera who was behind the blue Citroen. After the close call Hodgson first stopped to check on the Skoda driver. Driver and car were okay, but a 10-year-old girl in the front seat was in tears. Hodgson then made his way down the road where the Porsche driver was speaking to the Citroen driver. He said the Porsche's driver gave some pretty lame reasons for putting so many people's lives in danger. "She said she was picking her husband up from the pub and was wearing a pair of slippers - but it's no excuse to be overtaking on a blind bend," Hodgson told the Mirror. "She did tell me she always overtakes at that spot though." Hodgson picked up the dashcam after a crash while on vacation in Florida last month. He offered the footage to both the drivers of the Skoda and the Citroen, but both declined. Hodgson told the Mirror that he hopes some good comes from the incident. "If anything comes of this, it is hopefully that the lady Porsche driver has learned a lesson and she will not put others in danger again." Related Video: News Source: The Mirror Weird Car News Porsche Citroen Skoda Driving Safety dashboard camera near miss

Listen to the Porsche Macan's exhaust note ahead of its LA debut

As if we need further proof that the Porsche Macan won't just be another small CUV, it'll be a small Porsche CUV, the German automaker has released a video of the vehicle's raucous exhaust note. In short, the Macan will sport a far racier soundtrack than most of its competitors.
The raspy sound coming from one of the Macan's two turbocharged V6 engines sounds great (the video isn't clear as to whether we're listening to the base 3.0-liter or the Turbo model's 3.6-liter engine), and it's accompanied by a nice crackle on overrun. It isn't like a 911 or other flat-six model, but it is more or less what we expect a Porsche to sound like. We'll have all the details on the newest member of the Porsche lineup when it debuts later this month at the 2013 Los Angeles Auto Show. Scroll down for an official press release from Porsche, as well as the video of the Macan, and be sure to turn your speakers up.