Chevrolet Camaro Prototype Race Car to be Auctioned

Although this isn’t as special as cars like the Stirling Moss Mustang, Michael Schumacher’s Ferraris or the 1954 Mercedes-Benz W196 Grand Prix car that have come under the hammer in recent times, this is a unique racing car that could fetch a few hundred thousand dollars at the upcoming Mecum Auctions during Monterey Car Week in August.

This Camaro was commissioned by GM’s High Performance Vehicle Operations for the 2008 SEMA show. It was built by Riley Technologies to show customer racing teams what to expect from the Grand-Am KONI Challenge GS Class spec Chevrolet Camaro for the 2009 race season and is painted in the colours Mark Donahue used in the 1969 Trans-Am championship, the spiritual successor to the current Grand-Am GS class.

To keep the cost of competition to a minimum Grand-Am rules stipulate that the cars are as close to stock as possible given the conditions they’ll face over 24 hours at Daytona, so Riley’s engineers took the production Camaro and replaced its bonnet, boot and doors with carbon fibre pieces. Aftermarket exhaust silencers and engine, oil and transmission coolers were added to cope with the additional heat generated by the uprated LS3 V-8 under the bonnet.

Chevrolet Camaro Prototype Race Car

The auction house expect the prototype to go for anywhere between $100,000 and $200,000 when the auction takes place at the Hyatt Regency Resort during the internationally famedMonterey Car Week.

from EUROCARBLOG

Holographic Hammer

Ducati Diavel Carbon by Vilner

Vilner is the name of a Bulgarian tuner that is actually particularly popular in the car-tuning world because of the always excellent customization of the interiors, but in recent times the prestigious Sofia-based atelier has begun to focus its attention on motorcycles too, as the brilliant Ducati Monster Bulgari, Aprilia RSV Tuono Stingray, Triumph Speed Triple Bulldogand Vilner Predator (this one built on the basis of BMW F800) proved only too well.

In chronological order, the last outcome of Vilner’s passion for bikes is this astonishing Ducati Diavel Carbon by Vilner, a model that the Bulgarian tuner admitted was particularly challenging because of the objectively peculiar design of the original bike. In their attempt to emphasize its curvy forms, the Vilner guys provided the Diavel with a pretty different-looking front end that immediately catches the eye, with newly designed upper and lower cover for the headlight as well as a bigger fender that wraps up a big portion of the fork to make and makes the Diavel even meaner than usual. For the same reason, the new under-belly cover is 3 cm larger than the standard pan.

Given the reputation of the brand, the saddle is of course one of the highlights of its customization. It it is completely redesigned and handscrafted the finest materials and finishes, and its leather gets to embrace the side panels too. Moreover, its stitching continues lengthwise through the bike on both tank and tail (which has been reshaped and reduced in size). To top it off, the rear light clusters got darkened to add up to its wicked and even more muscular new aesthetics. Chassis and mechanics were obviously left untouched.

from Twowheelsblog

moto .....G !