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Jay Leno puts carbon fiber wheels to the test on a Porsche 911 GT3 RS

Jay Leno's Garage usually focuses on looking at cars new and old, speaking to their owners and then Jay taking a drive to see what he thinks. However, Leno throws his usual shtick to the curb this week to do a full product test of the carbon fiber wheels from a company called Carbon Revolution. If you're not interested in hearing about wheels for 18 minutes, don't worry. They get mounted on a Porsche and are tested back-to-back with stock wheels, and Leno takes the 911 for a track test, too.
While carbon-fiber wheels aren't exactly a new idea, Carbon Revolution's goal is to create a lightweight, one-piece product that can be mass produced. The company even claims that it already has a deal with an OEM automaker to offer them on a vehicle in a few years. The key to the technology is that it doesn't need an expensive autoclave to be made.
In the meantime, the company's carbon fiber wheels are available as an aftermarket option for about $15,000 a set, according to the video. They weigh in at about 15.5 pounds each and offer OEM-levels of stiffness, so they could cut some unsprung mass off of a performance car. Watch here as Jay and his mechanic Bernard lap Willow Springs and give their feedback about what they think of this cutting-edge technology.

Porsche 960 could come with quad-turbo flat-eight engine

Getting a bead on the target that is the so-called Porsche 960 is not easy, as the target keeps moving. First labeled the 960, then the 961, and now back to being called the 960, it is Porsche's take on a supercar specifically aimed at Ferrari - the latest report in Automobile says that Porsche's internal moniker for it is "FeFi," which stands for "Ferrari Fighter." Because it is expected to cost as much as the top-tier V12 Ferrari, Porsche wants the engine solution to justify the price tag. That means, according to author Georg Kacher, a 3.9-liter, quad-turbo flat-eight engine with 650 horsepower.
Last summer, the engine was mooted to be a twin-turbo flat six. A few months later, the rumor was that it would use the 4.6-liter V8 from the 918 and have about 570 horsepower. This new mid-engine configuration would be quite the leap, giving the 960 more power than the 918 Spyder (pictured) and 911 GT2 RS, and utilize other tech features like four adjustable camshafts and "a complex multistage intake manifold." In this scenario, power would be run through a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission and all-wheel drive.
Build materials are still slated to be a hodgepodge of materials including aluminum, steel, carbon fiber, titanium and magnesium. The boosted flat-eight, all-wheel drive and a 3,000-pound weight could get the 960 from zero to 60 miles per hour in just 2.5 seconds. Since it is looking squarely at Ferrari, the idea that the 960 will be a "four-door coupe" can probably be put to rest. For now.

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