Like New!! on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Instructor's death at Disney racetrack 3rd in past year [w/video]

For his 24th birthday, TaVon Watson wanted a thrill ride, so he headed to the Exotic Driving Experience track at Walt Disney World. With instructor Gary Terry by his side, Watson raced a Lamborghini around the one-mile course until he lost control of the sports car and slammed into a guardrail. Terry, 36, was killed. "It's not the kid's fault. It's a freak thing that happened," said Timothy Horvath, a Terry family friend. As for Terry, "if he thought he was in any danger, he wouldn't have done it." It was at least the third death in the past year at speedways in the US that allow customers to get behind the wheel of a fast car. Last September, an Indiana man was killed in a crash at the Rusty Wallace Driving Experience at Kentucky Speedway, and a New Jersey woman died at the Wall Stadium Speedway in New Jersey. Watson had paid under $400 for the chance to drive the Lamborghini Gallardo LP570-4 Superleggera, which sells for around $240,000. He failed to maneuver the high-powered vehicle through the course while driving about 100 miles per hour, and the passenger side struck the guardrail, according to the Florida Highway Patrol. Terry died at the scene. Watson was treated at a hospital and released. Both Watson and Terry were wearing helmets and lap and shoulder belts, said Sgt. Kim Montes, a spokeswoman for the Florida Highway Patrol. Watson doesn't face any traffic charges since the accident took place on a closed track, and there are no indications he was doing anything criminal, authorities said. Investigators from the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration are looking into what happened. OSHA spokesman Lindsay Williams said the agency hadn't previously investigated Petty Holdings, the company that operates the track. Terry was a former racecar driver and was also senior operations manager at the tourist attraction. Working there was his "dream job," Horvath said. Watson, a hotel bellhop, didn't respond to emails or an inquiry via Facebook. He didn't have a phone listing. On his LinkedIn profile, he described himself as self-motivated, professionally mannered, humble and "a very quick learner." He told authorities he had been at the Exotic Driving Experience before. A spokeswoman for Petty Holdings wouldn't comment on whether the Lamborghini had any special safety devices like those provided in a driver's ed car, and Montes said investigators had yet to examine the Lamborghini.

Bertone goes bust

The famous Italian coachbuilder and designer Bertone may be on its deathbed. The company that penned the beautiful shape of the Lamborghini Miura has been facing financial hardships for months, and Autocar is reporting that the Turin, Italy firm has just declared bankruptcy. The last we heard from Bertone, it was showing the Jet 2+2 station wagon based on an Aston Martin Rapide at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show. The Turin-based carrozzeria became famous for its wild designs like the BMW Spicup concept, Lancia Stratos and the initial shape of the Lamborghini Countach. In recent years, it had been limited to creating mostly one-off vehicles. The company has slowly been shrinking recently. It sold its small factory to Fiat a few years go and let go of 165 employees and 10 interns in December. Bertone has been shopping itself in hopes of finding a new owner. According to PistonHeads, even with the money problems, the business generated 20-million euros ($27.9 million) in revenue in 2013 and has been working on projects in China. A Turkish firm was rumored to be interested in buying it for just $2.7 million, and GT Spirit claims that there are also seven Italian companies potentially interested in purchasing it. Bertone has a long and proud automotive history, and it wouldn't be surprising if it were bought just for the value of the brand – perhaps we haven't seen the last of its stylized B logo. Featured Gallery Bertone Jet 2+2: Geneva 2013 View 10 Photos News Source: Autocar via Pistonheads, GTSpiritImage Credit: Copyright 2014 Drew Phillips / AOL Design/Style Hirings/Firings/Layoffs Plants/Manufacturing BMW Lamborghini Lancia Concept Cars Luxury Special and Limited Editions Performance Classics bertone lamborghini miura Lamborghini Countach

Lamborghini Centenario to grace the cover of next Forza game

The creatives at Turn 10 Studios must have had a heck of a time choosing which new supercar would feature on the cover of the next installment in the Forza franchise. We saw an unsurpassed array of exotic machinery, after all, unveiled last month alone at the Geneva Motor Show, but in the end it's the Lamborghini Centenario that got the nod. The exclusive supercar marks the 100th anniversary of Ferruccio Lamborghini's birth, and stands as "the most powerful Lamborghini produced to date," in the words of the company's own R&D chief Maurizio Reggiani. Unfortunately only 40 examples will ever be made – 20 coupes and 20 convertibles – and they've all been sold for the equivalent of nearly $2 million apiece. It will hit the small screen in the next Forza game before any of those extremely fortunate customers have theirs delivered in real life. Microsoft will reveal the new game at E3 in June, but for now we don't even know what it will be called. Forza Motorsport 7? Forza Horizon 3? Something else entirely? We'll have to wait to find out, but the Centenario will definitely be on the cover. This won't be the first time that a Lamborghini has graced the cover of a Forza game. The Huracan appeared on the cover of Forza Horizon 2. Previous cover cars have included the Ford GT, McLaren P1, Dodge Viper, Ferrari 458 Italia, and Audi R8. That'll make the Raging Bull marque, by our account, the only to be featured twice in the series. Related Video: Lamborghini partners with Microsoft: Lamborghini Centenario is cover car for next Forza game on Xbox. Sant'Agata Bolognese, 04 March 2016 : The Lamborghini Centenario will feature on the front cover and within the next Forza racing game on Xbox. Lamborghini and Microsoft's Turn 10 Studios announced their latest collaboration at Geneva Motor Show in March 2016, with the new Xbox game to be revealed at the Electronic Entertainment Expo in June 2016. The Centenario will be available "First in Forza," giving millions of fans around the world the exclusive opportunity to experience the virtual version of the car on Xbox before its road debut. Thus, players will be the first to enjoy the aspects of the car celebrating the 100 year anniversary of founder Ferruccio Lamborghini's birth, starting from the naturally aspirated V12 Centenario which produces 770 hp and powers from 0100 km/h in 2.8 seconds ( 0-300 km/h in 23.5 seconds) with a top speed of more than 350 km/h.