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Ugly Moto makes beautiful motorcycle art [w/video]

Ugly Moto is a horrible name for a company that makes such wonderful motorcycle art. The creation of artist Francis Ooi, the company's illustrations focus on some of the iconic racing bikes of the 1960s and 1970s.
The artwork has an elegant simplicity that really makes it pop. It would fit just about anywhere from a home office to the bedroom of a young gearhead. Ooi has completed six illustrations so far covering classic cycles from Honda, Ducati, Yamaha and even Harley-Davidson. According to his site, the Suzuki RGB500 ridden by Barry Sheene will be the next one released. All of the prints are priced at $65 and are limited to 100 copies. They are all about 16.53 inches by 23.58 inches in size.
According to his website, these prints are just a hobby for Ooi and his real career is as the creative director at an ad agency. He creates the illustrations on his Mac, and he estimates that each design with about 800 components and layers takes about a month to complete. You can get idea of the process involved in the time-lapse video below.

Weekly Recap: Ferrari looks to reclaim old success with new manager

Clearly, Ferrari doesn't race for fourth place, and this week, major changes continued at the Scuderia. It was a rough year for Ferrari, and the Scuderia conducted its season-ending tests in Abu Dhabi this week with a view toward a fresh start in 2015 with new leaders and a new ace driver. Though plenty of other Formula One teams were disappointed with their finishes in 2014, Ferrari was perhaps the most eager to put this season in its rear-view mirror. The Scuderia finished a distant fourth in the Constructors standings with 216 points, well behind No. 1 Mercedes (701 points), and Ferrari failed to win a single race as the Silver Arrows dominated the grid. It was an especially bitter pill for a team that claims 16 Constructors championships and 15 Drivers titles – the most in history – and is the only surviving team from F1's first season, 1950. Clearly, Ferrari doesn't race for fourth place, and this week, major changes continued at the Scuderia. Ferrari named Philip Morris executive Maurizio Arrivabene as team principal. He replaced Marco Mattiacci, who held the job for only seven months after taking over for Stefano Domenicali, who resigned in April amid the Scuderia's early-season struggles. Phillip Morris (through its Marlboro brand) is a key Ferrari sponsor, and that played a role in Arrivabene's ascension. Still, he's no stranger to F1, and has been intimately involved in the Ferrari-Marlboro partnership. He also has served as the sponsors' representative on the FIA's F1 Commission since 2010. In a statement, new Ferrari chairman Sergio Marchionne said: "We decided to appoint Maurizio Arrivabene because, at this historic moment in time for the Scuderia and for Formula One, we need a person with a thorough understanding not just of Ferrari, but also of the governance mechanisms and requirements of the sport." Arrivabene's background is primarily in marketing and communication, and most recently he held the title of vice president of consumer channel strategy and event marketing for Philip Morris. He has been with the company since 1997. Arrivabene now leads a team that's rife with change. Marchionne took over in October when longtime boss Luca di Montezemolo quit in a disagreement about Ferrari's future, and the company itself will be spun off from parent Fiat Chrysler Automobiles in 2015.

Japan wants to boost fuel-cell numbers 100x by 2020

How many hydrogen refueling stations will Japan need? Can each station handle 250 fuel-cell vehicles? They can in the Japanese government's new plans for hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle growth and station deployment throughout the country. With Prime Minister Shinzo Abe continuing to trumpet fuel cells as the advanced powertrain of the future, the government says the number of fuel-cell vehicle on its roads will multiply by 100 within the next four years, according to the Japan Times. Specifically, Japan, which is home to about 400 fuel-cell vehicles today, hopes to have 40,000 by 2020 and a whopping 800,000 by 2030. More importantly, Japan has 80 stations either in operation or slated to be deployed soon, and hopes to double that number by the end of the decade. For perspective's sake, the US has about two-dozen publicly accessible hydrogen fuel cell stations today, according to US Department of Energy. The newer ones are can dispense 100 kilogram a day, which can fuel 20-25 cars a day. Japanese automakers Honda and Toyota appear to be trying to do their parts in the H2 plan. Earlier this month, Honda started leasing its Clarity fuel-cell vehicle in Japan and is planning to bring them to California later in the year. The vehicle, which is priced at about $68,000 in Japan, is said to be able to travel about 466 miles on a full hydrogen tank, per the more lenient Japanese driving cycle (roughly 300 miles on the US scale). Honda will start production at a rate of 200 vehicles a year. With skin in the game, though, Honda indicated late last year that it was frustrated with what it said was the slow pace of fuel-cell station deployment in Japan, according to Bloomberg News. Honda was collaborating with hydrogen supply company Iwatani Corp. on what they called a "Smart Hydrogen Station," though that concept was in its testing phase as of last December. The Mirai also started sales in Japan and debuted in limited numbers in California last year. Last fall, Toyota set a rather lofty goal of selling 30,000 fuel-cell vehicles a year by 2020 as part of its Toyota Environmental Challenge 2050. Related Video: News Source: Japan TimesImage Credit: YOSHIKAZU TSUNO via Getty Images Green Honda Toyota Hydrogen Cars