Main page | April 1, 2008 »

Hershey honors Dale Earnhardt Foundation

Hershey Company has debuted a series of collectible candy bars honoring racing legend Dale Earnhardt and given fans the opportunity to personally join a permanent tribute to “The Intimidator” while raising funds for the Dale Earnhardt Foundation.

By logging on to www.hersheys.com/dale, fans can upload a photo for inclusion in a picture mosaic – a replica of which will be unveiled on April 29, during Dale Earnhardt Day in Mooresville, N.C. Already, nearly 1,000 fans have posted their name, photo and/or message to the site. Fans also can make a donation to The Dale Earnhardt Foundation.

Dale Earnhardt fans have been joined by actress Carmen Electra and Dale Earnhardt Inc. drivers Mark Martin and Martin Truex Jr., who recently posted their images and messages to the site

Available in four varieties, including two Hershey’s Milk Chocolate Bar designs, one Hershey’s Milk Chocolate with Almonds Bar design and one Kit Kat Wafer Bar design, the specially moulded Collector Edition Dale Earnhardt bars feature a distinctive on-bar design.

The designs include three individual portraits spanning Earnhardt’s distinguished career and one image of the Richard Childress Racing #3 GM Goodwrench car that is most synonymous with Earnhardt’s nickname, “The Intimidator.”

The Dale Earnhardt Foundation sponsors charitable programs that focus on education, children and environment/wildlife preservation.

For more information, go to: www.thedaleearnhardtfoundation.org.

Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth  at 3:17 PM to Racing | Permalink | Comments 0

VW looks to the past to advertise new models

Model Heidi Klum "guests" on a talk show hosted by Max, the star character of VW's new ads.

NEW YORK — Herbie the Love Bug rides again … sort of.

Volkswagen, which has a goal of tripling U.S. sales to about 1 million vehicles by 2018, is rolling out a classic Beetle as the brand's face and voice in a quirky TV, Web and print ad campaign that starts Monday in print and will be on TV starting Saturday, according to USA Today.

The campaign's star is "Max," a pristinely restored 1964 black Bug.

The stepped-up brand advertising precedes Volkswagen's introduction this year of several new vehicles, including the Tiguan crossover SUV, Routan minivan, Passat CC, clean diesel Jetta TDI and Jetta SportWagen. VW would not disclose the ad budget.

"We're reintroducing Volkswagen to the world by using a lovable icon that everyone will know and relate to," says Tim Ellis, VW's vice president of marketing. "Max will be integrated into everything we do and will be the connective tissue as we launch new vehicles."

Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth  at 12:39 PM to VW | Permalink | Comments 0

Smoking tires take out Bob Tasca III at NHRA Spring Nationals

HOUSTON – Bob Tasca III and the Motorcraft/Quick Lane Shelby Mustang team hadn’t smoked the tires in any of the four qualifying runs for the NHRA Spring Nationals, but that is exactly what happened on Sunday to knock them out in the first round of eliminations at Houston Raceway Park, according to his publicist Alexis Kinch

“We didn’t do that all weekend; there’s no reason to do it first round,” said a frustrated Tasca. “I just don’t know. The crew chiefs will go through the data and look at it and we’ll test here on Monday. This is very disappointing because we had a very good running racecar all weekend.”

Tasca faced Tony Bartone in the first round of competition, and Bartone had issues of his own with a loss of traction on the track. Tasca pedaled his Shelby Mustang, but his 7.767 ET, 191.87 mph run wasn’t good enough to beat Bartone’s 6.327 ET, 261.88 mph pass.

“I was pedaling it and trying to get it to recover, but it just kept smoking the tires,” said Tasca. “Once it gets that upset that early, it’s hard to recover it. That’s the frustrating part about this sport. It’s so competitive and so difficult and 1,000 things have to go right and only one needs to go wrong to end your day. If Bartone had ran a 4.84 ET, I probably wouldn’t feel so bad, but he had a six second run and unfortunately, we didn’t have enough to make it to the second round.”

­­Tasca and the Motorcraft/Quick Lane Shelby Mustang team will next compete at the SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals April 10-13 in Las Vegas for the fifth race the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series season.

Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth  at 10:29 AM to Racing | Permalink | Comments 0

Are You a Good Driver? Here’s How to Find Out

This DriveFit test measures the ability to estimate speed.

Could a video game make you a better driver? More important, could computer software prevent teenagers from making fatal mistakes or even weed out older drivers whose debilities make them crash-prone?

While no one is suggesting that games like Grand Theft Auto will help junior make safer left-hand turns, there are researchers who believe that specially designed cognitive assessment software can train neophytes and aging drivers, according to The New York Times.

Much as games like Brain Age for the Nintendo DS are intended to improve mental acuity, the cognitive software uses bouncing balls and visual memory tests to gauge driving skills.

Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth  at 10:06 AM to Safety | Permalink | Comments 0

Making It Safer to Back Up

After years of lobbying by child safety advocates, legislation to make it safer to back up the family minivan was signed into law last month, according to The New York Times.

Named after a Long Island two-year-old who was backed over and killed by his father in 2002, the Cameron Gulbransen Kids Transportation Safety Act of 2007 mandates that the Department of Transportation establish rear visibility performance standards for cars, S.U.V.’s and minivans within about three years.

Kids and Cars, a nonprofit group that pushed for the law, estimated that about two children a week were killed by vehicles backing up. The reason is obvious: most drivers cannot see small children directly behind their vehicles.

Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth  at 9:59 AM to Safety | Permalink | Comments 0

High-tech gear disables car if borrower misses payment

MURRIETA, Calif. — When the light starts to flash, you had better have the cash, according to USA Today.

That's the reality for millions of subprime borrowers whose used car purchase is contingent upon having an unusual option: a little box mounted underneath the dashboard that forces them to make their payments on time.

A light on the plastic box flashes when a payment is due. If the payment isn't made and the resulting code punched in to reset the box, the vehicle won't start. The next step is a visit from the repo man.

Posted by Peter C. T. Elsworth  at 9:56 AM to Technology | Permalink | Comments 0