2014 Nissan Titan Sv on 2040-cars

Auto blog

St. Louis man charged in killing of Illinois college student

A St. Louis man has been arrested and charged with murder in the slaying of a 19-year-old Illinois college student who went missing while trying to sell his sports car on Craigslist, authorities said. Capt. Tim Fagan of the Florissant, Missouri, police department said at a news conference Wednesday night that 24-year-old Michael Gordon was taken into custody Tuesday and was being held at the St. Louis County jail in lieu of $1 million bond. Gordon has been charged with first-degree murder and armed criminal action in the death of Taylor Clark, a sophomore engineering student at Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville. Fagan, the deputy commander of the Major Case Squad of Greater St. Louis and lead investigator in the case, said police arrested Gordon after his name was found in emails Gordon traded with Clark about the car Clark was trying to sell. Investigators said the two did not know one another before they met. Police say Gordon is an employee of a truck driver training center in the St. Louis suburb of Hazelwood, Missouri, not far from where Clark's 2007 Nissan 350ZX and body were found Tuesday. It was not immediately clear whether Gordon has an attorney. Clark, who is from the southwestern Illinois town of St. Jacob, was reported missing by family members on Monday. Authorities say he was last seen by his girlfriend. "Our hearts and minds are with Taylor Clark's family and friends as they cope with this tragic loss," SIU-E Chancellor Julie Furst-Bowe said in a statement issued Wednesday. "At a time of the year when the new spring season brings the promise of brighter days ahead, and commencement provides unending potential for so many of our students, it is truly sad that Taylor had his bright future taken away." The Belleville (Illinois) News-Democrat reported that Clark worked at a convenience store in Troy, where a candlelight vigil was scheduled for Wednesday night. A similar vigil was held Tuesday night on campus. Clark's death comes during the same week as a Monday court hearing in St. Charles County in which a 23-year-old man was sentenced to life in prison for fatally stabbing a 45-year-old St. Louis man during an encounter and planned robbery in 2012 that was set up through a Craigslist ad. On the same day of the hearing, Fairview Heights, Illinois, police unveiled a "safe exchange zone" on its parking lot, complete with security cameras, to help citizens safely broker online transactions with strangers.

Mazda Turnpike in Japan shut down for racing

The people behind Motorhead Magazine in Japan clearly have some friends in high places. Not only did they manage to shutdown eight kilometers of the Mazda Turnpike up the Hakone mountain, but they invited some of the country's premiere racers to take a drive up the hill. This wasn't just a Sunday cruise either. Featuring a BMW Z4 from the Super GT series, a classic Ford GT40, two flavors of Nissan GT-R and two takes on the Subaru Impreza WRX STI, these guys came ready to run. When an opportunity to let racecars challenge a curvy mountain road presents itself, you don't squander it. Thankfully, the folks at Motorhead knew that and outfitted the course with a plethora of cameras and high-quality sound equipment to capture the action. The result is nothing short of sublime. Take the video's urging to turn up your speakers for this one, and watch as these racers hit ludicrous speeds in a beautiful place never meant for them. News Source: japanmotorhead via YouTube, Jalopnik Aftermarket Motorsports BMW Ford Nissan Subaru Racing Vehicles Performance Videos ford gt40 super gt

Ghosn: Restoring Mitsubishi's reputation is biggest challenge

After news that Mitsubishi falsified its fuel economy data on every vehicle it has sold in Japan since 1991, and the tumble in the company's value that followed, the troubled carmaker has an unlikely savior. Nissan has confirmed it will purchase over one third of Mitsubishi's stock, or 34 percent. The stake is valued at $2.2 billion. Ghosn says making Mitsubishi a part of the Renault-Nissan alliance will save billions in development costs. But the merger certainly isn't without challenges. "The biggest challenge is to support Mitsubishi changing itself and growing and being profitable and restoring its reputation," said Ghosn. Nissan is a natural partner for Mitsubishi, and since the fuel economy scandal escalated from discrepancies in the data regarding Mitsubishi-manufactured, Nissan-badged Japan-market vehicles, it makes sense for the company to sweep in and save the day. Nissan itself is partially owned by Renault, and Nissan has a 15-percent stake in the French automaker. Mitsubishi's chairman, Osamu Masuko says that the merger was inevitable, that it "would have happened one day" anyway, according to the New York Times. Carlos Ghosn, chairman of both Nissan and Renault, is confident they will be able to turn Mitsubishi's fortunes around. "We have the track record to make it work", Ghosn said, referring to the Renault-funded rescue of Nissan in the early 2000s. Related Video: