Ford also has both the normally aspirated 5.0-liter Coyote V8 in the Mustang GT and supercharged engines in the Shelby GT500. The current 2013 GT500 powerplant has grown to 5.8-liters and 662 hp but a couple of years ago I wrote about the transition of the 5.4-liter from a cast-iron to an aluminum block after a chat with SVT chief engineer Jamal Hameedi.

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2011 Ford Shelby GT500 finally gets aluminum engine, loses 120 pounds
2011 Ford Shelby GT500 Ever since Ford introduced the modern Shelby GT500 four years ago, almost no one

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Eight months before I ever got to drive the Cadillac CTS-V, I got the low-down on its powerplant, the marvelous LSA V8. A close cousin of the LS9 in the Corvette ZR1, the LSA has since found a second home under the hood of the Camaro ZL1. For an engine that traces it's architectural roots back to the original small block that debuted in 1955, it's quite remarkable what engineers have been able to achieve with modern electronic control systems and fuel injection.

Long live the V8!

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Detroit 2008: 2009 LSA 6.2L supercharged V-8 in depth
We've now had a couple of weeks to digest the new 620+hp LS9 V8 in the Corvette ZR1, it's time to see what else the GM Powertrain team has up its sleeves.

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Back in 2008 when +Cadillac was launching the current generation CTS-V, they held the media drive at the then-newMonticello Motor Club in New York. As I was cleaning up some stuff on my hard drive I found the video that was shot in one of the cars that was set up with cameras and a microphone.

http://www.autoblog.com/2008/09/02/first-drive-2009-cadillac-cts-v/

I captured a two lap stint on the track that gives you a pretty good idea of the layout of the 4-mile, 22-turn circuit. Paving of the circuit had only recently been completed and features like the kerbs were still missing at the time so we generally avoided pushing the cars to the limits in order to stay on the pavement. Nonetheless both the cars and the circuit were magnificent. The CTS-V remains one of my all-time favorites and If I had the financial wherewithal I'd probably be driving a Thunder Grey V-wagon with the satin graphite wheels, Recaro seats and a manual gearbox.

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Don't expect a battery revolution any time soon

Reshared post from +Green Car Reports

It's going to take about ten years for next-generation electric-car batteries to come according to the DoE.

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New-Generation Electric-Car Batteries Will Take 10 Years, DoE Lab Says
There's kind of a running joke within the electric car world that the next generation of batteries is just a decade away. And the next time you ask, it's still a decade away. Even a decade later. Well…

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Reshared post from +Mike Elgan

The 10 biggest lies about social media.

People say a lot of dumb things about social media.

Once a wrong idea hits the technology-pundit echo chamber, it takes on a life of its own. When repeated enough, even the most absurd falsehoods about social media become “true” through repetition.

Sometimes, it’s a good idea to stop and take a reality check. Here are the ten biggest social media lies:

http://www.datamation.com/networks/the-10-biggest-social-media-lies-1.html

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Pine cones in the making

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Rosie's watching you!

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every site should be doing this now

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President Obama orders federal agencies to optimize sites for smartphones and tablets
President Obama has issued a directive to urge major government agencies to focus on the "growing mobile revolution." In a note issued by The White House this week, Obama says "it is time for the Federal Government to do more" to assist American people using Government services on smartphones or tablets. "American people have been forced to navigate a labyrinth of information across different Government programs in order to find the services they need," says Obama, while highlighting the tren…

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Over at +Green Car Reports, +John Voelcker makes a great point about most of the automakers offering plug-in vehicles. When you look at much of their promotional material, the price that you see promoted most of the time is the so-called net-price, that is the price after subtracting the $7,500 federal tax credit.

The problem is that isn't the price you'll pay if you go to a dealer and try to buy a +Nissan Leaf, +Chevrolet Volt or +Tesla Motors Model S. You have to pay the full retail price and then if you qualify, you'll get the tax credit sometime in 2013 after filing your federal tax return.

Tesla is particularly egregious in this regard because they promote the Model S as costing just $49,900 while also promoting a 300 mile electric driving range. The problem is the 300 mile range is only available in the top of the line Model S which costs $20,000 more (plus the $7,500 that you get back later). The base $57,400 model only has a nominal range of about 160 mile and it won't be available until at least the end of the year.

There should be truth in pricing for EVs.

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Electric-Car Prices: Tesla, Nissan, Chevy Should Be Ashamed–Here's Why
Always read the fine print. That's a lesson every car buyer should take to heart. Especially since Nissan, Chevrolet, Tesla, and Mitsubishi all now engage in a pricing practice of which they should be…

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