Arias Pistons 12.5:1 Compression 82mm Bore Honda B-series on 2040-parts.com

'American Nitro' is back!

"Seventies drag-race mayhem is back!" bills "American Nitro," a schlocky drive-in exploitation film whose only quote of praise, from a dog-eared period issue of "Car Craft," reads, simply, "SPECTACULAR CRASHES!" Director Bill Kimberlin says that he made "American Nitro" in 1979 as a response to Tom Wolfe's influential 1965 essay, "The Kandy-Kolored Tangerine-Flake Streamline Baby." "I was just getting out of high school in a small town in Northern California when Wolfe's book came out," he said. "Nitro came about as my response to the car culture I was exposed to in the small valley town of Boonville, Calif. Instead of 'American Graffiti,' I made 'American Nitro.'" A fitting comparison, in fact, considering Kimberlin later worked for George Lucas at ILM, starting with" Return of the Jedi." Now the movie is being released on DVD for the first time -- beware of bootlegs, warns the website -- and digitally remastered, while retaining the explosive charm and goofy narration of the 1979 original.

2014 Audi RS7 tuned to 700 hp

Most would consider the performance offered by the Audi RS7 to be plenty, whether they live close to a derestricted autobahn or not. But it wasn't enough for Audi tuner ABT Sportsline, who just introduced their own take on the 2014 RS7. The stock RS7 is powered by a 4.0-liter twin turbo V8 mated to an eight-speed transmission, good for 552 hp and 516 lb-ft of torque.

Motoring April Fool’s 2009: the best and worst

By Tim Pollard Motoring Issues 01 April 2009 00:01 Those crazy car makers have been letting their hair down to present us with an array of April Fool’s Day fodder. We’ve handily collated all the gags and jokes that’ve landed in our intray today – and you can name and shame the best and worst in our CAR Magazine poll below. So read and weep – and then vote!