Yamaha Xj 550 Maxim Rear Footpeg Mounts on 2040-parts.com

BMW i3 ‘virtual test drive’ app (2013) CAR review

Though we’ve seen new the BMW i3 in full production trim, and had a ride in the carbonfibre electric city car, there’s still a short wait before anyone can get behind the wheel of a showroom-spec example in the UK – or is there? BMW has launched a smartphone and tablet app – ‘BMW i3: Become Electric’, which it claims allows users to virtually test drive the new i3 without so much as setting foot outside their front door, yet alone finding the time to head to a BMW dealership. It’s available now on the Apple App Store, and from 26 September 2013 on Google Play.

Automotive Archaeology: Chicago collector creates gems from the junkyard

Chicago-area native Joe Bortz began collecting cars in 1962 with no idea that he'd become renowned for having possibly the world's best collection of significant concept cars. More than 40 years later, that's an honor Bortz wears with pride, but it speaks to only a part of his collection of machinery. Bortz's car-collecting passion began with a 1928 Chevrolet Landau coupe.

Hennessey-tuned Ford GT does a 235.1-mph Texas two-step

A few times a year, some of the fastest and most powerful cars meet in Texas for an adrenaline-filled weekend of top-speed runs called the Texas Mile. The high-performance machines have one mile of arrow-straight runway to get the highest top speed at the one-mile marker. It was the right mix of conditions for Mark Heidaker and Sean Kennedy, who drove their twin-turbocharged Ford GT to a top speed of 235.1 mph down the runway into a decent headwind of 20 mph.