Certified, Pdk, One Owner on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Watch 14 hot rides take over concept car lawn at Pebble Beach

The Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance is an annual celebration of the beautiful, old cars that grace Monterey Car Week. But Monterey – and Pebble – features lots of newer metal, too, and that includes the concept lawn at Pebble Beach. Now, "concept lawn" isn't a totally accurate name anymore, and you'll see why in the list below. This year especially, plenty of production cars can be found in the area once reserved for the conceptual. Still, we're happy to see them. Here's what's featured this year: Alfa Romeo 4C Spider Audi R8 BAC Mono Bentley EXP 10 Speed 6 BMW 3.0 CSL Hommage R Buick Avenir Galpin-Fisker Rocket Speedster Hyundai HCD-16 Vision G Coupe Icona Volcano Infiniti Q60 Lamborghini Asterion LPI 910-4 Maserati Ghibli McLaren 570S Rolls-Royce Wraith By our count, that's seven concepts out of fourteen cars. But it still makes for one hot group of metal. Check 'em out in the gallery above. Related Video: Related Gallery 2015 Pebble Beach Concept Car Lawn View 38 Photos Image Credit: Copyright 2015 Drew Phillips / AOL Design/Style Alfa Romeo Audi Bentley Buick Infiniti Lamborghini Lincoln McLaren Porsche Concept Cars Videos Original Video Pebble Beach

Roger Rodas' Widow Suing Porsche Over Carrera GT Crash

Investigations undertaken by local law enforcement may have vindicated Porsche from any wrongdoing in the crash that killed actor Paul Walker and racing driver Roger Rodas last year, but the latter's widow is apparently not convinced. According to emerging reports, Kristine Rodas has filed a lawsuit seeking unspecified damages from Porsche Cars North America. In her suit filed with the Los Angeles Superior Court, Rodas' attorney Mark Geragos reportedly disputes the findings of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, which asserted that the vehicle was traveling at an unsafe speed of 90 miles per hour on city streets, identifying the speed as the cause of the accident. Instead the lawsuit claims that the vehicle was only going 55 mph and that the cause of the crash was improper equipment – namely a faulty right rear suspension and the lack of a crash cage and proper fuel tank. "The Carrera GT was unsafe for its intended use by reason of defects in its manufacture, design, testing, component and constituents, so that it would not safely serve its purpose," according to the specifics of the suit obtained by the Los Angeles Times. When reached for comment, Porsche Cars North America spokesman Nick Twork told Autoblog: We are very sorry for the Rodas and Walker family's loss. The crash was the subject of a detailed investigation by the proper authorities (L.A. County Sheriff and California Highway Patrol), and their investigation disproves the allegations in the lawsuit. The investigation found that driving at a high speed in a negligent manner caused the crash and concluded that there was no mechanical defect. The Carrera GT is known as a difficult car to drive. As the LA Times report points out, Jay Leno spun one at Talladega in 2005, and the following year, Porsche paid part of a multi-million-dollar settlement after two were killed on a track when their Carrera GT struck a slower-moving Ferrari. The Rodas lawsuit could very well point to that previous suit from San Diego Superior Court. Whether the court in LA will hand down a similar ruling remains to be seen.

2012 TechArt Porsche 911 is visually dazzling, both inside and out

One way to ensure that your brand-new Porsche 911 (a.k.a. 991) won't look like the one in your neighbor's driveway is to give TechArt a call. The famed German tuner has rolled out its version of the latest Carrera and Carrera S at the Geneva Motor Show and trust us, it won't be mistaken for anything from the factory in Stuttgart.
Up front, TechArt has fitted its own unique two-part spoiler with integrated splitter while more aggressive side skirts adorn the rocker panels. The rear has a new lower diffuser, wrapped around the TechArt exhaust, and a large fixed rear wing (complete with an integrated third brake light). Look more closely to notice the subtle trim panels on the exterior mirrors and front headlights. The wheels are lightweight forged 20- and 21-inch alloys with matching paint on their rims.
Inside the heavily modified cabin are even more drastic enhancements (let's say TechArt has gone over the top). Don't let the aluminum pedals be a distraction as you inspect the black Alcantara and high-grade leather covering nearly every square inch. Flirting with gaudy, the dark upholstery is contrasted by vehicle-color-coordinated stitching and painted trim splashed throughout. However, the icing on the cake is an insanely thick TechArt three-spoke sports steering wheel.