Personalized license plates coming to Dubai?

Posted January 26, 2012 by el wehbi
Categories: Rants

Tags: , , , , , , ,

Dubai is known for its flamboyant license plate auctions, where the sales of these plates tend to raise about 70 million dirhams annually! Apparently, the funds raised support transport projects around the emirate.

And because of this craze, which primarily rests with the Emiratis, foreigners are beginning to catch on too. So offering personalized license plates seems like the next step that Read the rest of this post »

The Ariel Atom is built in China… no it isn’t!

Posted January 24, 2012 by el wehbi
Categories: Rants

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The Chinese can copy anything. They’re capable of mimicking the tiniest screw to the largest skyscraper. So why not the Ariel Atom? Cue some random Chinese mechanic living in a shed.

Why the Atom? We’ll never know but this guy obviously knew he could pull it off to some Read the rest of this post »

Porsches = Smiles for U.S. troops

Posted January 23, 2012 by el wehbi
Categories: Events

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I was invited by the founder of the Porsche Enthusiasts Club of Kuwait, Tarek Al Shafie, to take part in a group drive up to Camp Arifjan for the U.S. Army’s 3rd Annual Muscle Car & Bike Show.

The show was created a few years back to provide American troops, stationed in Kuwait, with an opportunity to get some face-time with muscle cars and motorcycles from local clubs.

The reason we were invited was to add a bit of German flair to the American machinery usually on display at Read the rest of this post »

GulfRun 7: Load ‘em up!

Posted January 22, 2012 by el wehbi
Categories: Events, GulfRun Posts

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As GulfRun 7 kicks off this weekend in Bahrain (January 26th – 27th), there was only one thing left to do: load up the cars and have them sent to the Bahrain International Circuit!

By no means is it easy to organize such an event. For one thing, there is all the pre-planning, securing of the participants, getting all the paperwork ready for transporting the vehicles to Bahrain via Saudi Arabia, let alone dealing with a lot of ‘antsy’ drivers and a lot of horsepower.

Prior to loading up the cars, the drivers were instructed to meet up at Tilal Complex where they were briefed on the driving route to the  Read the rest of this post »

Racing from the couch to a podium finish!

Posted January 17, 2012 by el wehbi
Categories: Gaming, Racing

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A few years back, I posted on the GulfRun blog that Nissan and Sony’s Playstation were teaming up to create a virtual race academy to find some stay-at-home racecar drivers. Well guess what? Read the rest of this post »

BMW M Meets X Event

Posted January 15, 2012 by el wehbi
Categories: Events

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A friend contacted me earlier this week and asked if I’d like to attend BMW’s ‘M Meets X’ event, held at the ProKart track. Of course, I jumped at the opportunity.

Organized by Ali Alghanim & Sons Automotive, the objective behind the event was to promote the experience behind the wheel of different M vehicles.

We had the chance to drive three different M cars: the X5M, the X6M and the M3. Prior to jumping in the cars, there were two Read the rest of this post »

GulfRun 7 Car Show @ 360 Mall

Posted January 13, 2012 by el wehbi
Categories: Events, GulfRun Posts

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I stopped by a crowded 360 Mall today to check out some of the rides participating in this year’s GulfRun event: numero 7.

Inside, the GulfRun boys set up two large stands with some wonderful cars on display. In the pic above we have a red Audi R8 GT (supplied by Fouad Alghanim & Sons Automotive Co.), a silver Ford GT and a white McLaren SLR 722.

A few track cars were also on hand inside the mall with the Ariel Atom and the Read the rest of this post »

Al Falah Carwash: where GulfRun cars go to get cleaned

Posted January 13, 2012 by el wehbi
Categories: Events, GulfRun Posts

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The official buildup to GulfRun 7 is finally here with the carwash event held at Al Falah / showshine last night.

What’s hotter than a Lamborghini Murcielago covered in soap suds?

There were a good variety of cars on hand. Read the rest of this post »

In celebration of a legend’s birthday

Posted January 11, 2012 by el wehbi
Categories: Events

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I was invited to stop by the Historical Vintage & Classic Cars Museum for an event honoring Carroll Shelby’s birthday. With or without the 89 year old, the attendees and their cars were in the mood to celebrate.

There was a mix of new Shelby Mustangs, older ‘stangs, and some great Read the rest of this post »

BMW’s late Christmas gift to the US market

Posted January 10, 2012 by el wehbi
Categories: Automotive

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The jealousy meter is hitting its max here at Brake Banzeen! Once again, BMW has confirmed that the US market will get a manual gearbox option for its latest M5, while the rest of the globe will have to get its kicks from a dual-clutch automated shifter.

As you may know, this isn’t the first time this happens. The outgoing E60 M5 came with the manual option, but only for the US market while the rest of the world left shifting duties to Read the rest of this post »

BMW M’s badge… what does its tri-color design represent?

Posted January 9, 2012 by el wehbi
Categories: Design, Rants

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BMW’s M brand is probably one of the most recognizable sub-brands in the automotive industry. The M division was initially developed to support BMW’s motorsport activities, but as time marched on, it became a monster of its own. BMW M is now responsible for creating modified versions of BMW cars with the engines, transmissions, suspensions, aerodynamics and more all bettered with performance in mind. But haven’t you ever wondered what the tri-color badge actually stands for? Read the rest of this post »

Changing tires on your exotic supercar? Don’t do what someone did in Dubai!

Posted January 8, 2012 by el wehbi
Categories: Rants

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This is pretty ridiculous if you ask me. This Gemballa Mirage GT – a tuned, twin-turbocharged Porsche Carrera GT – is worth a hefty sack of change, especially considering it’s one of nineteen examples out there. So what makes it okay to change its tires in this manner?!?! Read the rest of this post »

The cheaper alternative to drifting

Posted January 5, 2012 by el wehbi
Categories: Drifting

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“No drift… no life”.

The saying should read more like this: “Go drift… no money”. So how to get your kicks drifting without spending the big dineros? Remote control drifting! Watch the video after the jump. Read the rest of this post »

Ducati’s 1199 Panigale… a bike of many firsts

Posted January 5, 2012 by el wehbi
Categories: Launched!, Motorcycles

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Ducati needs no introduction. The moto manufacturer from Bologna is regarded as the Ferrari of bikes with its own die-hard cult following. So it’s pretty big news with the introduction of the 2012 Ducati 1199 Panigale, successor to the Ducati 1198, especially because it’s such an innovative machine. More on that later.

Not only is the 1199 Panigale lighter and more powerful than the its predecessor, by almost 10kg and 20hp respectively, it’s the lightest and Read the rest of this post »

Does a twin-turbo’d V12 Mercedes G-Wagon scare you as well?

Posted January 3, 2012 by el wehbi
Categories: 4x4, Leakage!

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There have been numerous spy shots making the rounds of two Mercedes Benz G-Wagons said to be AMG’s next G55 and G65 models. The G55 differs from its predecessor in that it will be powered by a new, 5.5-liter twin-turbo V8 engine. The other model, the G65, is the one that really scares me!

Expected to be powered by a twin-turbo 6.0-liter V-12 under its hood, roughly pumping out 612hp and Read the rest of this post »


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