The I DRAW CARS Sketchbook & Reference Guide is an indispensible tool for students, designers, hobbyists, artists and car enthusiasts. We’ve designed the ultimate car design field guide by pairing commonly used industry reference materials with a ubiquitous and iconic moleskine-style sketchbook.

I have always thought about being an vehicle designer or an industrial engineer, some one who gets to design those amazingly cool cars. Matt Marrocco and Adam Hubres are two designers/engineers who work in this industry and wanted to provide a book and tool that can help people develop this skill. I love that they have gone with the Moleskine look for this book and they have put a lot of effort into it, all the different perspectives and designs. I for one have zero skill in drawing even though I sketch a lot in my Moleskine so I pledged right away, I love that they have a sketch over section so I can improve my horrible skills and I would love to add this to my collection. If you like this sort of thing check out their website and then head over to Kickstarter to pledge for the book. I hope this is a first edition and they come up with other design books soon.

Link: IDRAWCARS
Link: Kickstarter

After approving F1 to return to Bahrain for the 2011 we all got excited and were happy that it is coming back. Honestly a lot of people were happy for Bahrain, we want things to settle down and every one to get back to their daily lives. I know that I for one am very much looking forward to visiting Bahrain again for our friends and the track. Bahrain is one of the most accomodating people and country in the Middle East, very nice and very nice people.

Then later in the week, FIA supremo, Bernie Ecclestone, and president Jean Todt decided to go change their mind. They both suddenly announced that Bahrain is out of bounds again. All the teams participating in F1 filed a formal later against reinstating Bahrain to the FIA and mentioned that all that teams won’t be participating in that race since they have gotten warning from their respective governments that their safety can not be guaranteed in Bahrain such as the warning from the US Embassy and UK Embassy, which is very sad since things have very much settled down in Bahrain and its considerably safe, people go about their daily lives normally. I do hope that this exemption is only for this year and hopefully returns for 2012.

Photo From BuYousef

“The Gizmos and Gadgets are like being inside a Transformer”

I have seen the LFA in Kuwait a few times on the road, the white one, and it is a beautiful creature to see. But hearing the exhaust for the first time in this video is amazing and I love that they have matched it up with the IS-F. The IS-F is one the most fun four door sedans out there to drive and seriously a lot of bundled up power in the machine. I really love the color on both the LFA and IS-F and they both do wonders around the track. If I had a choice between a Lamborghini and the LFA I would honestly go with the LFA because its a once in a lifetime vehicle, its on a level of its own.

Recently I had the chance to try a mobile car wash service, Wash-N-Drive, and they come to your home for a regular wash which takes about 30 minutes per car or a full detailing which can take all day. In this case they have been washing my cars normally for the past two months, alternating between two or three car every other day.

Whats great is that you can sign up for a schedule with them and in my case they come three times a week at around noon. They arrive in a van with all the necessary tools and detailing equipment, all they need is water and electricity. They are pretty pack these days but they will be adding more personal soon, they are usually consistent about timing and sometimes they run late due to certain circumstances but I do appreciate their professionalism. For 5 KD per car you will have a sparkling car and I do appreciate their excellent service since I don’t always have the chance to go to a car wash. They also wash and details motorcycles and boats and I have seen what they do with motorcycles and they know how to clean without getting the bike too wet.

I am not one for waterless washes as I have tried them before, they are a good concept for a quick touch up and wash but not a full wash that I like so I do like what DriveNWash do.

DriveNWash
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I remember reading and seeing so many images of the 599 GTO at the beginning of 2010. It was a limited edition run by Ferrari its the street going version of the 599XX, and it runs at about 661 bhp. I always loved the 599 and I thought that the 599 GTO would be just the same looking, but I was so very very wrong. I did a double take as I was walking out of the hotel, the last thing I thought I would see in Vancouver Canada is a 599 GTO parked right out front.

This vehicle looks so menacing with its aggressive stance and carbon fiber parts, the combination of colors make for a very mean machine. I literally walk around the car twice, taking a look at it from every angle and it is a beautiful sight. The funny part is the the guy’s license plate, it says “F1 GTO”, I do love personalized license plates.

Now will you sell your soul for this Lamborghini creation! It is one very impressive looking machine.

Recently I had the chance to get my hands on the Ferrari Italia 458, I wasn’t expecting to find it in the Exotic Racing line up in Las Vegas. As soon as I saw I had to get my hands on it, I booked it for as much as possible around the track. Last time I was there I drove the F430 Scuderia and I was impressed with that car, I didn’t know what to expect with the 458.

As soon as I got behind the wheel I saw that bright and lovely digital dial with so much information being presented and one big RPM. The instructor sitting to my right gave me the details of the car and told me what to do to get the most out of it. At first he had me driving in normal mode so the car won’t slip too much. A few laps around the track and he said I said driving it a bit too soft, I could push it on the corners, turn harder, it will hold. I tried going faster and faster, that car held really well, my blood got pumping around a few tight corners where I carried the speed really well. At one point the grin on my face was stuck and I was on a high, that car is amazing, the Italia was performs as good as it looks. It sounds so good as you throttle out of the corner and it hugs the corners so well, I had a few close mishaps but luckily the car did well even on the sportier setting. I still had traction control on and I loved driving it around the track, its a lovely experience for anyone. Italians know how to breed them.

Fantastic job Mubarak and the RedBull Drift Competition this weekend! He came in 3rd place, and the first two spots went to professional racers, so on that scale Mubarak is number one on my scale. I would hope that he could participate in the race in Lebanon but that only goes to first place. Lets hope that Mubarak goes on to bigger and better competitions so he can show skills. Thanks to GulfRun, HuperOptik Kuwait, and Abdulmohsen Abdulaziz Al-Babtain Co fo sponsoring him and supporting him in this endeavor. I hope more events such as these take place in Kuwait, and I hope better venues start popping up in Kuwait for events like these.

Thanks to 7ajieDude for the video coverage! Thanks to HisHersQ8 for the great coverage! Loved seeing the photos!

Link: GulfRun

I do love the Fast & The Furious movies, and I hope they just keep making them better and better. Nothing brought drifting to the main stream as much as the first movies did as well as Tokyo Drift, I know there were some ridiculous scenes but you can’t help but love the stunts they do. I would love to get my hands on this Corvette, it looks like a ton of tire burning fun!

The final car on the list is the star of the show, a replica of a 1965 Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport, build by Mongoose Motorsports. It features the ubiquitous Chevrolet 502 big block, backed up by a Borg Warner Super T-10 four-speed stick. The combination rides on C3 Corvette suspension, which struggles to handle nearly 600 horses stuffed into a featherweight frame.

This is a little more then it seems, at the launch of the Diavel there was some exciting news about AMG and Ducati collaborating on a few porjects. At first I thought it was just for marketting reasons but after reading A&R’s article below it seems that Mercedes has interest to buy Ducati but they are feeling things out before proceeding. Ducati has had a spectacular 5 years with the debut of the 1098, they have really worked on the quality of their products and slowly expanding their product line. Ducati have had a bit of rough time earlier but these days they are on top and it seems that Mercedes has noticed, but they don’t want them because they are on top. They want them so that they have another arm of their business which is in direct competition with BMW, with an established product portfolio and distribution line, Mercedes wants to take on BMW. But what Mercedes and Ducati are trying to do is to see how they fit together, they each don’t want to alienate their customer and fan base, and Ducatiests are known to be loyal to the brand and don’t want any interference. I wonder how this would work out? Would they share their technical knowledge? Would distribution lines be streamlined? Would you start seeing Ducaties at Mercedes Dealerships? It is a shocking development and I’m not sure if its a good or bad thing, and it seems to Mercedes that there is a lot of good to take Ducati but they have to do carefully or a lot of damage will be done to either brand.

Link: AsphalyAndRubber