50th anniversary reunion for the Shelby Cobra and it started in January. Shelby started a set of nationwide events to commemorate the 50th anniversary of their prized jewel. If happen to catch an event you can see the very first Cobra CSX2001 and the new 2012 Shelby Cobra 1000 alongside many other variations. The most recent event took place at Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum in Pomona, CA. This is going to be one heck of a show and everyone should look for it coming to an event near you.

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Miami found hundreds of municipal vehicles that were over 5 years old and never used. Actually a Spanish language newspaper made the discovery and wrote an article on it in their newspaper. What a black eye for Miami-Dade County for spending tax payer money on hundreds of Toyota Prius Hybrids and then losing them. After the find, Miami has put the cars directly into service in an attempt to maybe save face? Either way, there will be people looking into the matter; however there is already a prevailing theory. 5 Years ago Carlos Alvarez was Mayor and purchased the vehicles. Shortly afterward he was the subject of a voter recall and was ousted. Seems the voters believed he was involved in misappropriation of funds and wanted him removed.

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One step forward and 2 steps backward for car engines. It seems that auto makers are dumping their V6 engines but not for a larger V8 or something new. They are going backwards to 4 Cylinder engines. It seems there will be room in the engine compartment again to actually work on your car. For those of you not around during the 4 Cylinder engine days, that’s around 155 horsepower with about 150 lbs of torque. Not a very powerful engine at all unless you want to add a turbo charger to get an extra 20-30 horsepower.

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It’s not what you know…it’s what you can prove. New Jersey has added “Road Rage” up charges for traffic violations. The new add-on, named the “Jessica Rogers’ Law”, was added in honor of the woman who was paralyzed from the waist down due to a road rage incident. She wasn’t driving but was the passenger in a car where the driver went “Road Rage” after another driver that cut them off. The new law will upgrade traffic violations when “Road Rage” is considered a factor. The big question is “who determines Road Rage”? The answer is simple…the officer(s) and judge. That’s right; “Intent” is determined by the officer(s) and judge. Not by witness testimony or facts in the case, but by a person. The defendant faces up to a max of 5 years in jail and a max of $15,000 in fines.

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