From our buddies at Axis of Oversteer we find an amusing and, apparently, true legal tidbit. Ford sued Ferrari this week over Ferrari's announcement that their new Formula 1 racer would be designated F150 (for Ferrari-150th Anniversary of the unification of Italy.) Ford contends that it would dilute the brand of their iconic and best-selling pick-up truck, the F-150. Ferrari quickly agreed to change the name, saying that they had not intended anyone to think that their race car was related to a Ford truck. The proposed new name is the F150th Italia. We say, "Ford, drop the suit and settle this like gentlemen. . . just like you did in 1963." The remake of the Ford GT40 just whet our appetites for a new Ferrari-Ford duel. You have Almost Everything Autobody's blessing to do it in either F1 or LeMans-style racing.
Driver of the Ferrari 458 Italia says the truck didn't see him and accelerated over the top of his car. Photos, video & witnesses say the Ferrari was on the wrong side of the road trying to illegally get around a line of stopped traffic. The Ferrari had less than 500 miles on the odometer. Preliminary estimate of damage is $25K to the Ferrari. The truck appeared to have minimal damage. Thanks to James Worley for the photos & video and WreckedExotics.com for bringing it to our attention.
Thanks again to our buddies at WreckedExotics.com for this little nugget. The car on the bottom was a 2003 Ferrari 360 Modena. The truck appears to be a Ford F150 Stepside. We'd hate to see this kid's insurance bill. The good news is the garage door & the Ferrari seem to have provided a soft landing. The story goes that a young man got the truck up to a good speed as he was coming over a hill. The truck flew off the hill and into this garage.
Feel free to send us your car wreck cringe inducing stories & please vote for us for Best Autobody in the San Francisco Bay Area.
President Zine el Abidine Ben Ali of Tunisia escaped the country into a self-imposed exile on Friday, Jan. 14, 2011 after his 23 year rule ended with a popular uprising. Some of his cars were not so lucky. He owned several Ferrari's including this 2010 California that was destroyed during the uprising. Photos of the damage courtesy of WreckedExotics.com.
Great name. Great blog. Go visit! Here's a sample titled "Racing on the Moon, Chased by Helicopters." They are describing the latest Dakar Rally that ended today. Almost Everything's just become a regular follower and we're adding a link on our site. Absolutely brilliant collection of photos, car & race stats. Our kind of folks.
Racing on the Moon Chased by Helicopters from Axis of Oversteer
Here's another sample from the Axis of Oversteer site of the one-off Ferrari P4/5 Competizione designed by Pinifarina and built by ProTo for James Glickenhaus. This is the second P4/5 for Glickenhaus. His first was built in 2006 as a road car based on a Ferrari Enzo. This second Competizione is intended for racing and is based on the Ferrari 430 Scuderia. The Pininfarina design is, in our humble opinion, far more comely than either the Enzo or the 430.
ProTo built Glickenhaus-Ferrari P4/5 Competizione from Axis of Oversteer
If you've spent any time on Almost Everything Autobody's site, or looked at our screen savers in the shop, you probably know that we are Maserati fans. We want a Maserati Quattroporte for a delivery van. Here's what the fuss is about, courtesy of our good friend Jeremy at Top Gear:
Here's a little something RED for our Christmas edition. Could it possibly be a true story? We have our doubts but if true, the end of the world may be nigh!
Ferrari 348 Broadsides Ferrari Testarosa in Parking Lot
The story goes that a former surgeon turned baseball coach loans his 2 Ferraris, a 1991 Testarosa and a 1995 348, to a bunch of his high school baseball players. The kids drive to the mall and fight over a parking place, managing to do major damage to both of the cars.
Strangely enough, none of the kids were supposed to have died at the hands of the surgeon. That Hippocratic Oath is really something!
Visit WreckedExotics.com for the complete story and more photos that sure look real.
Almost Everything Autobody celebrates Maserati's win in the FIA GT1 World Championship. GT racing is, in our humble opinion, the greatest racing in the world because it features cars that can actually be purchased and driven on real roads. Previously Maserati has won 5 consecutive FIA GT Manufacturers Cups from 2005-2009 with their dominating MC12. In 2005 Maserati beat 2nd place Ferrari by nearly 2x in the points standing! And now they have won the inaugural FIA GT1 World Championship, beating Aston Martin (another favorite), Corvette, Ford GT (okay, they are all favorites), Lamborghini & Nissan GT-R.
Maserati is near and dear to the hearts of the crew here at Almost Everything Autobody for 3 reasons.
The first, of course, is that Maserati has produced some of the most beautiful and fastest works of art in the history of man (we'll excuse them for everything that happened in the 1980s & 1990s.)
Second, since 2008 it has been a dream and is actually written into the employee manual & the business plan that Almost Everything Autobody will procure a Maserati Quattroporte to use as a customer courtesy shuttle. It was supposed to happen in Dec. 2010 but the past couple of years have been economically tough for everyone in the world as well as us here at Almost Everything so the plan has been pushed back. 2011 looks to be a good year for business and we are hopeful.
Third, Frank Barnard, Almost Everything Autobody's President, bought a Maserati-engined 1973 Citroën SM as his second car. Citroën is the French auto manufacturer that owned Maserati in the late 1960's and early 1970's. The SM was Citroën's flagship as well as a platform for the Maserati Merak.
Citroën SM
Congratulations to Maserati, the Vitaphone Racing Team and drivers Michael Bartels and Andrea Bertolini for their fantastic achievement. You are all welcome to stop by the shop anytime!
From our friends at Top Gear and DogFightMag.com, here are some spy shots of the brand-spanking new Ferrari 458 GTC undergoing testing. Look for it at the 2011 Sebring 12 Hour endurance race.
From our dear friends at StreetFire.net and Top Gear, here's a short (1 hour) drive through Romania in 3 unbelievable convertables. Not to be missed. . .
From our friends at Top Gear and Vimeo, here's video of Ferrari boss Luca di Montezemolo driving and then approving the prototype of the new Lancia Stratos. If you aren't familiar with the history of the Stratos, do a quick Google search. It is one of history's greatest racing cars. Enjoy. . .
Thanks again to our buddies at 
