500 ALFA ROMEO 8C SPIDERS RIPE AND READY

Sadly, only thirteen photos are available. But what photos. Oh. My. Goodness.

For detailed information on Alfa Romeo's 8C project, check the Lowdown on the 8C Competizione. Decked out in wicked red paint, the 8C with a roof was nice. In all white, the 8C Spider - supercar convertibles not normally my cup of tea - is equally spectacular. Check out the gallery below for justification.

VIDEOS OF AMCI TESTING - HYUNDAI BEATING E-CLASS, 5-SERIES, BOXSTER, 7-SERIES

In Orange County, California Hyundai's latest push upstream, the Genesis luxury sedan, was tested against a variety of relatively direct and completely indirect competitors. The Porsche Boxster, for instance, isn't likely to be cross-shopped. 

Nevertheless, according to Automotive Marketing Consultants Inc., the Genesis is quicker than the Porsche. Other tests were completed and of course, Hyundai wants to share with you its sedan's all-around capabilities. 

HyundaiGenesis.com has a performance video section that you can visit by clicking here. It should be noted that the numbers sometimes present a different story than the driver(s) who found that story. For instance, here's a paragraph from Car & Driver's test of the V8 Genesis: "On smooth freeway stretches, the ride is creamy and quiet. But on those back roads, contoured and crinkled by Michigan winters, it was not difficult to use up all of the suspension travel, yielding hard bumps and episodes of head toss." C/D goes on to say that BMW is the master of this domain "and assessed by the 528i’s standard of response and balance, it’s a fraternity to which the Genesis does not yet belong. But competing as a luxury cruiser, the Genesis rates well."

CHINESE F1 GRAND PRIX RESULTS - HAMILTON NEARLY LOCKS IT UP

Brazilians will be up close and personal with Felipe Massa's tension at the early November Formula 1 race; the final meeting of the season. 

In Shanghai, Massa was offered second place when teammate Kimi Raikkonen let him through in order to tighten the gap going into the next race. Lewis Hamilton drove his McLaren-Mercedes very well and his seven point lead seems safe. Massa's Ferrari needs at least second place in Brazil, and that's with Hamilton finishing out of the points. A victory for the Brazilian Ferrari driver with Hamilton no better than seventh would also do the trick. Lewis and his Mercedes V8-powered F1 car have only been worse than seventh four times this season; in Bahrain (13th), Canada (ret.) and France (10th) and Japan (12th). He's scored five wins including this most recent Shanghai victory. Massa and his Ferrari have won five races along with two 13ths a 17th in Hungary and two retirements.

The Formula  Grande Premio Do Brasil 2008 at Interlagos will be available for viewing here on GoodCarBadCar.net - streaming live online for free - just like every other race of the season; barring complications where viewers will be provided with other streaming locations.

Ferrari has a firm grip in the team championship. BMW has a theoretical chance of overtaking McLaren-Mercedes in the constructor's championship, too. That won't happen. BMW's Robert Kubica, sitting in third position, can't climb higher and is unlikely to lose that position to Kimi Raikkonen of Ferrari. Full results from China are below.

1 - Lewis Hamilton, McLaren-Mercedes

2 - Felipe Massa, Ferrari

3- Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari

4 - Fernando Alonso, Renault

5 - Nick Heidfeld, BMW

6 - Robert Kubica, BMW

7 - Timo Glock, Toyota

8- Nelsinho Piquet, Renault

9- Sebastian Vettel, Scuderia Toro Rosso-Ferrari

10- David Coulthard, Red Bull-Renault

11 Rubens Barichello, Honda

12- Kazuki Nakajima, Williams-Toyota

13- Sebastian Bourdais, Scuderia Toro Rosso-Ferrari

14- Mark Webber, Red Bull-Renault

15- Nico Rosberg, Williams-Toyota

16-Jenson Button, Honda

17- Giancarlo Fisichella, Force India-Ferrari

DNF- Heikki Kovalainen, McLaren-Mercedes*

DNF- Adrian Sutil, Force India-Ferrari

DNF- Jarno Trulli, Toyota

* Marks only the second time this season where a McLaren-Mercedes driver failed to complete the race because of mechanical problems, the first being last week in Japan with Kovalainen's engine.

INFINITI EUROPE READY TO SELL

Although it's only a half-lineup - lacking the jumbo SUV that is the QX56, the M35, M45 and all-wheel drive derivatives -  and though the Infiniti dealership network represents less than two dozen outlets, Infiniti is ready for Europe. Alive for two decades in other parts of the world, most notably North America, Infiniti's most recent successes bode well for this European adventure, more of which you can read about here.

The lineup is pictured below. At its grandest, the FX50 is a wild and value-driven alternative to a Porsche Cayenne Turbo. The lesser-powered but still capable FX37 should do the trick for many buyers. The EX37 is a true crossover; stuck halfway between wagon and SUV. The G37 coupe and sedan are two of Infiniti's strongest products, taking the fight to the German trio from Mercedes-Benz (C-Class), Audi (A4), and BMW (3-Series) quite ably.

Click here for all Infiniti-related posts from GoodCarBadCar.net

Three dealers in Switzerland, five in Spain, two in the Netherlands, five in Italy, and one each in Poland; Estonia; Belgium; Bulgaria; France; and Greece will serve potential customers. Many of whom, I might add, will be searching for diesels that they will not find. Problems establishing dealers in the UK will delay Infinitis's launch there until 2009.

2010 TOYOTA PRIUS REVEALED

With a vibrant new competitor ready to fight for every sale, the Toyota Prius plans to be all-new around the same time. More power, increased efficiency, and improved design will be part of the package. Official photos have been leaked and confirmation has arrived that what you see here is the next Toyota Prius; ready for battle with the Honda Insight.

FURTHER HYUNDAI ELANTRA RECALL RELATED TO AIR BAG PROBLEMS IN 2001-2002

We've already seen how problems with cupholders in '01 Hyundai Elantras can translate into an airbag Recall seven or eight years later. This secondary Hyundai Recall is more direct.

Apparently the side impact air bag wiring harness has too much room to jiggle. This may result in electrical resistance that would apparently illuminate the air bag warning light. In the end you have issues where the side impact air bags on MY 2001 and MY 2002 Hyundai Elantras won't deploy at the appropriate time. Air bags are supposed to deploy at the appropriate time.

Read The Good Car Guy's Driven review of the latest Elantra here

Sometime before the end of the year, Hyundai will be notifying owners to have their cars fitted at Hyundai dealers with new wiring harnesses under both front seats with new connector clips. As of this moment, NHTSA wasn't sure how many cars would be affected by this Recall. If you think you're one such owner, contact Hyundai at 1-800-633-5151.

HYUNDAI RECALLS 2001 ELANTRA FOR CUPHOLDER SEEPAGE?

Some recalls come along in a fashion causing one to easily determine that a small percentage of owners will actually have the problem dealt with. NHTSA's announcement that Hyundai will be issuing a Recall of 150,954 Elantras from model year 2001 is one such Recall.

Without further adieu, here are the specifics from NHTSA: "If a liquid is spilled in the area of the cupholder on the center console, it may seep through the console opening for the parking brake lever and then drip onto the air bag control module electrical connector. The spilled liquid may contaminate the air bag control module and its electrical connector to the air bag wiring harness and cause the supplemental restraint system warning light to ulluminate."

As for the consequences of such liquid seepage: "This condition may affect the driver and passenger frontal air bags or the driver and front passenger seat mounted side impact air bags and may prevent air bag deployment during a crash where such deployment should occur. Non-deployment of the SRS air bags may increase the risk of inury to the driver and front passenger under certain crash conditions."

A protective cover will be placed over the air bag control module by dealers sometime for those who respond to this Hyundai Recall sometime before the end of the year.