Stick Basketball

Game description: Ready for some ball? Play 21, a single match or go for the tourney win! Drop bombs from long distance, or take it to the hoop!
Game controls: Arrow keys to move. Offense: A-dodge. S-shoot. D-dunk. F-pass. Defense: A-steal. S-block. 

Stylish Cover Girl

Game description: Pssst!!! I know what you do Friday afternoons! Don't act so surprised! Everybody knows that you lay in your bed and go through the latest magazines, wanting to know everything that is new in fashion. Imagine something really great: your are a stylist that takes care that the front page model looks fabulous. First you pick the right foundation, then you apply some subtle blush. You always want to make a statement with the eyes that's why you use eye liner, eyebrows pencil and dark mascara,for extra volume. After you pick out the perfect dress that matches with her sun-kissed skin, you know which lipstick to use. The final touch are the sparkly jewels.Your wonderful job is done here. She's amazing!!!
Game controls: Use the mouse to make up and dress up this Stylish Cover Girl. 

Sushi Cat 2

Game description: Sushi Cat and his wife are out shopping at the local mall when a new nemesis, Bacon Dog, sees Sushi Cat's wife and decides to steal her. Help Sushi Cat get her back by guiding him to as much sushi as possible. Watch him grow fat as he eats more and more sushi along his way. Fill up his belly to win. Unlock new outfits for Sushi Cat along the way by collecting golden sushi on each level.
Game controls: This game is played with mouse only. 

Skies of War - Extended

Game description: Load out your aircraft with weapons as you take off and take out enemy structures, vehicles, and more.
Game controls: Mouse - Move / Shoot. R - Make a full roll. CTRL - Helicopter hover-mode. C - Chnage Weapon. 

Shoot West

Game description: Do you like shooting games? We offer you a new game where you must save the girls and women from cowboys who kidnapped and demanded a reward for them. Shoot all cowboys, so you can save the girls.
Game controls: Mouse key - To aim and shoot. Space bar - To reload your weapon. 

Sponge Bob SquarePants Boo or Boom

Game description: Play Mr. Squarepants or someone else in this funny Halloween game which reminds a lot of Bomberman!
Game controls: Arrow Keys - Move. Spacebar - Bombs. 

Taxi Gone Wild

Game description: You're a crazy cabbie racing against the clock! Swerve to avoid other cars...or just jump right over them!
Game controls: Left / Right Arrow Keys - Steer. Up / Down Arrow Keys - Control the Speed. Spacebar - Jump. 

VW Group geared up for 2012 Worthersee Tour

Volkswagen, Audi, Skoda and Seat are each fronting up to Austrian jamboree with something special

The Wörthersee Tour is on again. A celebration of all things Volkswagen, (but particularly Golf GTi), the event, which runs from May 16 to 19, is based in the Austrian town of Reifnitz on the shores of Lake Wörthersee — hence the name.

As in previous years, the 2012 event (the 31st) is expected to showcase the weird and wonderful from around the Volkswagen world. To ensure that's the case, Volkswagen itself and three of its subsidiaries will be attending the event, packing plenty to see.

Skoda is bringing two concept cars games  to Austria. One is the Skoda Citigo Rally and the other is the Citigo DJ Car. Both cars are developed from the Citigo, which itself is based on the Volkswagen up! In the case of the Citigo DJ Car, Skoda has created a one-off mobile mixing desk for a DJ to play music at the venue — through sound equipment rated at almost 100,000 Watts. Running on forged 18-inch wheels, the Citigo Rally pays homage to Skoda rally cars of the past and present.

Spanish brand SEAT has racing car concepts based on the Ibiza and Leon models to wow the bystanders at Reifnitz. But the company is also unveiling its new Mii, which is based on the VW up!, like the Skoda Citigo. The Ibiza and Leon models at Reifnitz include the Ibiza Cupra concept (yellow), powered by a 1.4-litre TSI engine and riding on 17-inch wheels; the Ibiza/Leon Cupra R in white; Ibiza SC Trophy — also with 1.4-litre TSI, but with seven-speed DSG and 18-inch wheels; and the WTCC-based Leon Super Copa — with a 2.0-litre TSI engine driving through a six-speed DSG. For Wörthersee SEAT will display the Mii in red, with black 16-inch alloys.

Audi will use the event to promote its latest SUV on the scene, the Q3. Three themed Q3 models will be on display in Reifnitz, as will Audi's e-bike, which explores the company's commitment to 'design', 'ultra', 'connect' and 'e-tron'. Audi has shipped across the RS Q3 concept that made its debut at the Beijing motor show. The other two Q3 models are the Q3 Jinlong Yufeng ('Golden Dragon in the Wind' — also first revealed in Beijing) and the Q3 Red Track, which appears to be the same vehicle as the Q3 Vail debuted in Detroit earlier this year. All three Q3 models at Reifnitz are powered by five-cylinder TFSI engines rated at outputs between 228kW and 265kW.

Parent company Volkswagen is adopting an understated approach this year. In 2011 the company introduced the GTi and R variants of the Golf cabrio at Wörthersee, but the company is only admitting that it will enter a special Golf GTi for this year. The vehicle in question is being customised by nine young women and men apprenticed to Volkswagen.

Volkswagen set the four women and five men to work on the GTi back in October last year, so it promises to be one out of the box when it's unveiled.

"This project illustrates how the thorough knowledge, commitment and creativity of our apprentices culminates in a fascinating show car that combines technical extravagance and everyday utility", Dr Ulrich Hackenberg was quoted as saying. Dr Hackenberg is the Member of the Volkswagen Passenger Cars Board of Management responsible for Development.

Volkswagen is revealing nothing about its unique Golf GTi, but when the apprentices are reportedly polishing screw heads, it says volumes for the care and attention being lavished on it.

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MOTORSPORT: Big news ... but will outcomes match it?

Casey Stoner quitting MotoGP, the next Holden Commodore for NAS CAR GAMES, and talk of another V8 Supercar entrant and venue
Rumour mills in overdrive
What a mega day in motorsport! Casey Stoner announces he'll quit MotoGP at the end of the year, and immediately speculation ramps up about him going V8 Supercar racing.

General Motors in the US confirms that the next Holden Commodore, the VF, will be its new NASCAR, in the guise of a Chevrolet SS.

Talk too of Mazda taking a close look at V8 Supercar racing. And Queensland regional city Mackay comes on the radar as a potential V8 Supercar venue. All of which has overshadowed the lead-in to the fifth round of the V8 Supercar Championship at Victoria's Phillip Island - as a sprint round after four years of endurance races at the seaside circuit.

Also this weekend Marcos Ambrose is racing for a $1 million prize in NASCAR's All-Star Race at Charlotte, North Carolina, while fellow Australians Will Power and Ryan Briscoe will vie with 30-odd other drivers tomorrow for pole position for the Indianapolis 500, to be run early on May 28, Australian time. And, while it has been huge day for news, all of it has contained elements that ought to keep feet firmly on the ground.

Stoner has said he won't be making an instant switch to V8 Supercars, a senior GM executive has said the group does not foresee the Australian-built Chevrolet SS -- short for Super Sport, and the first rear-wheel-drive in GM's American line-up for 17 years -- being a major seller, the Mazda report is kite-flying, and, while Mackay has a major events committee considering a pitch for a V8 Supercar round like Townsville's a member of that committee admits it's very early days, even calling it "pie in the sky stuff".

V8 Supercar has welcome mat out for Stoner
V8 Supercars has said in a statement today that it would welcome Casey Stoner "with open arms". No surprise there. Stoner has shown interest in the V8s over the years, attending various events and late last year having a drive of a Triple Eight Race Engineering Holden Commodore at a closed session.

Triple Eight boss Roland Dane said at the time: "I see no reason at all why Casey shouldn't be very competitive in a V8 Supercar ... It is in his hands if he wants to drive a V8 Supercar. One day I suspect he will end up doing it." Today Dane has been careful not to add to those comments.

Stoner said at Le Mans in France, where he announced that will quit two-wheel racing at the end of this season (perhaps with a third MotoGP world title), that he will consider a future in V8 Supercars.

"It is something I am definitely interested to do, but whether I will be fast enough or not is another thing," he said. And he quickly added: "That [any switch] will not be in the near future, the immediate future."

Now the father of a young daughter, he said there were "many things that I would like to do with my life". He was insistent that his retirement from motorcycle racing was not linked to a switch to four wheels.

"There is no coincidence to it whatsover," he said. While Stoner could be a huge drawcard in V8 Supercar racing it ought not be forgotten that, while exceptionally fast at times, 1987 world 500cc champion Wayne Gardner did not win any touring car races of great consequence and two-time world superbike champion Troy Bayliss' attempt to break into V8 Supercars in 2009 was embarrassingly short-lived.

Commodore + bowtie badge = NASCAR
Mark Reuss, an American who briefly was the head of Holden in Australia and now is president of General Motors North America, delighted in making the announcement overnight that the next Commodore would become GM's next NASCAR.

The second generation of NASCAR's Car of Tomorrow introduced in 2007 will allow the four competing manufacturers to run shapes more closely resembling their production models than the existing generic bodyshells that are differentiated only by the grills, headlight decals and badges.

 "I am delighted to say that Chevrolet will deliver a true rear-wheel-drive NASCAR racecar in the SS that very closely links the performance sedan that will be available for sale," Reuss said. "The Chevrolet SS is a great example of how GM is able to leverage its global product portfolio to deliver a unique performance experience that extends well beyond the track and I am personally looking forward to driving it."

Chevrolet has already tested the Commodore or SS, camoflauged in chequered livery, at Florida's Homestead-Miami Speedway. It will be introduced to NASCAR racing at next February 24's Daytona 500 although the production version will not arrive in American dealerships until late next year as a 2014 model.
And respected American motoring and motorsport writer Bob Pockrass has said on Sporting News that the car "is considered a niche, low-volume, high-performance vehicle that won't be built on the scale of the Impala (the front-wheel-drive Chevrolet model it will replace in NASCAR) or even the Scion".

And Pockrass quoted GM spokesman Monte Doran saying: "We're not going to sell as many Chevrolet SS's as Impalas. However, we felt like it was a really exciting opportunity to more closely align what we're competing with with what we're selling in dealerships.

"I still think the 'Win on Sunday, Sell on Monday' mentality works for the whole Chevrolet brand ... they may go buy a Silverado or a Camaro or an Impala. NASCAR is still a huge contributor to our overall brand awareness and it also helps build excitement from our performance brand."

And Chevrolet's top NASCAR team owner, Rick Hendrick, who has just chalked up his 200th victory in the premier Cup series, said: "We are [going] back to seeing in the showrooms what we are racing on the race track. "The fans have said they want that, and the manufacturers want it, and actually the teams want it... It's going to be better for the sport."

While V8 Supercar racing is not translating into sales growth for Holden's Commodore or Ford's Falcon in Australia, indeed quite the contrary, for the Chevrolet SS in America, starting from zero, the only way will be up -- albeit it in a niche, performance market with only a V8 version expected to be available.

Mazda kite flies over Phillip Island
The Mazda-eying-V8 Supercars kite has been flown in News Ltd newspapers today. A visit to Australia by Mazda development officer Shoichi Kamimura with the Japan Auto Federation has been portrayed as a cover for a visit to Phillip Island to study whether Mazda needs to counter Nissan's already-announced entry to V8 Supercars next year.

A mysterious "industry insider" is quoted saying "they [Mazda] are aware of the popularity of the V8 Supercar series ... [and] they don't want to miss the boat".

Nissan performance arm NISMO general manager Kamei Yasuharu also reportedly is attending the Phillip Island round. The Victorian circuit traditionally has been Holden territory, but Ford Performance Racing has won the past five races in this year's championship (and seven of the nine in the four rounds so far) -- although Commodore star Jamie Whincup has seized the series lead ahead of FPR's Will Davison and Mark Winterbottom.

Greatly-improved FPR is only one win away from equaling its best season -- eight wins in 2008 -- after a decade in existence since Prodrive took over Glenn Seton's team.

Meanwhile, 23-year-old Shane Van Gisbergen's contract with the Stone Brothers Ford team has been extended for another three years.

Both the weekend's races -- over 32 laps of the 4.445km track on Saturday and 45 laps on Sunday -- are scheduled to be run entirely on hard compound tyres, rather than the combination of hard and soft rubber at recent rounds.

Mackay's interest in becoming a V8 Supercar venue has been reported in the Queensland provincial city's Daily Mercury newspaper. Mackay Tourism has established a committee to attract big events to the city.

Committee member Russell Spurrell said V8 Supercars was among the possibilities, as many people from Mackay, Moranbah and Dysart already travelled to Townsville for the annual V8 Supercar round there. But he said there was a lot to be discussed before any pitch was made.

Commodore to USA - again

Commodore gets another shot at the American market — and VF will debut earlier than expected?
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Commodore and Holden are back in business in the USA. The local manufacturer will start shipping the Chev-branded production VF Commodore across to the US from late 2013. It has been confirmed now that in America the car will be sold as the Chevrolet SS, a name long associated with the Chevy brand.

The announcement ends months of speculation that the Commodore would fill a premium niche in the Chevrolet range. That speculation grew apace with Chevrolet's official confirmation it would enter a new model in NASCAR from next year, based on a new platform with a new nameplate.

Chevrolet has declared its existing NASCAR campaigner, the Impala, will definitely be put out to pasture at the end of this season. The new race car will debut at Daytona on February 24 next year, raising the prospect of Holden revealing the VF Commodore before then. As the picture here shows, the race car is already being tested for NASCAR racing, camouflaged to the hilt. The Daytona 500 will be a fitting launch venue for the car, given Commodore's Aussie motor sport heritage and successes over the years.

“Holden has a great track record of producing performance cars for GM and the world,” said Greg Tyus, Holden's Executive Director of Engineering, as quoted in a press release issued by Holden yesterday. "We were responsible for the design and engineering of the Chevrolet Camaro, VE Commodore was sold as the Pontiac G8 and we are currently exporting the Chevrolet Caprice Police Patrol Vehicle - so we understand the needs of the North American market."

Kate Lonsdale, Holden's Senior Product Communications Manager, was not in a position to reveal much about the export program to motoring.com.au — and certainly not from the Chevrolet perspective — but she did confirm the SS will be a "high-end" model when it goes on sale in the US.

"This vehicle's going to be a top-end, premium vehicle; it's a high-performance sedan, so it's a really niche-volume product," Ms Lonsdale said. Holden is not revealing how many cars it hopes to export to the US, with Ms Lonsdale simply reiterating it will be a "niche product". Nor could she say how Chevrolet will price the car in the US.

"That's a question for Chevrolet and they're not announcing pricing until closer to the launch. It's still some way off."

Holden is sticking to the "icing on the cake" line the company trots out whenever talk turns to exports, but it's clearly good news for the folks at Fishermans Bend.

"We will continue to pursue targeted, profitable export programs, however... we're making sure first and foremost we're profitable domestically. Any export program on top of that is a lovely bonus," said Ms Lonsdale. "[The export program] shows confidence in our product and I think the US are excited as we are about this, and we're getting some good feedback from some of the speculation that's been out..."

If there's one hurdle to overcome, it's the viability of the program with the Aussie dollar at historically high levels, although currency exchange rates have been considered in establishing the framework for this deal.

"If [we] had a crystal ball it would make our jobs a lot easier," said Ms Lonsdale. "Our feeling is that we've taken into account the current exchange rate with this program and the fact that it is sort of a more high-end, less price-sensitive market [sector] does help. It's not easy to export to the US at the moment, but that's been taken into account."

The VF model is shaping up to be significantly lighter than the current VE model Commodore — which indicates major changes to the platform, the underpinnings and sheet metal to reflect the depth of those changes. But how different will the Chev SS look, in contrast with the Commodore?

"[We're] Not announcing anything specific about the product," Ms Lonsdale replied, "but it will have Chevrolet cues."

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Benz's 'clever' cruise control for S-Class?

New fuel-saving feature for trucks only — for the present
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Mercedes-Benz in Germany has developed a cruise control system more capable than all but the most focused of drivers. And the Predictive Power Control system, as it's known, is bound for a passenger car with a three-pointed star on the grille.

Introduced in the Actros truck range, the new system relies on geodetic data and the global positioning system (GPS) to determine whether the prime mover should be picking up speed ahead of a climb or changing down a gear on a descent. Benz-owned Freightliner first brought a GPS-based speed regulator to market in 2009, but that system — 'Predictive Cruise Control' — did not regulate the transmission.

According to Benz, the new system can improve fuel economy on a run by as much as three per cent and, in fact, is superior to all drivers barring "an extremely motivated truck driver with an exceptional level of concentration".

It's a system with potential in passenger cars too, according to the Senior Manager for Corporate Communications at Mercedes-Benz Australia, David McCarthy. But there's no word on whether the system — as a complete package or otherwise — will make it into the next generation S-Class. The new Benz flagship is at least 12 months away from a local launch, McCarthy says, but technical details will begin to trickle out "towards the end of the year," ahead of the car's global launch.

While Predictive Power Control could be one of the new features introduced with the next passenger car flagship, McCarthy says that it's not simply a question of taking a black box out of a truck and fitting it to a passenger car. To illustrate, he provided the example of ESP — the electronic stability control program developed jointly by Bosch and Mercedes-Benz for the W126 S-Class in the early 1980s.

"ESP in a Sprinter or a Vito van is adaptive, but adaptive in the sense that it adapts to the load, where the load's positioned, et cetera. That is in one way different to a passenger car, because a passenger car — realistically — you can have five passengers and luggage.

"In a van you might have a tonne that's just above the axle line or you might have a tonne that's almost at the roof."

Just as the ESP in the Sprinter is actually more sophisticated in one way than its counterpart in passenger vehicles — where load positioning is less critical to active safety — Predictive Power Control would very likely need to be calibrated specifically for different parameters in passenger cars, including higher potential top speeds (on German autobahns in particular), the varying power delivery characteristics of petrol engines and epicylic transmissions or even integration with hybrid-drive and DiesOtto drivetrain systems.

McCarthy hints that the intelligent cruise control system may not be introduced to passenger cars with the next S-Class, despite that model being Benz's traditional "technology leader".

"One thing that has changed over the last few years... is that previously you saw a lot of technology introduced at the very top level, and it would then trickle down..." he explained. "That's changed quite a bit; you've seen in E-Class and B-Class and C-Class some technologies introduced that actually weren't in S-Class [first]. So it's not always the case, but we have no intention of surrendering the reality that the S-Class has been a benchmark in technology and innovation for a very long time."

Without specifically admitting that Benz has a history of introducing new technology in its passenger cars at the very outset of a new model cycle, rather than as running changes, McCarthy did say that the new S-Class would launch "safety innovations and equipment". Some of those features, he says, were previously showcased on the 2009 ESF concept car, which was based on the current (W221) model. One of those features is a centrally-suspended airbag that prevents front-seat occupants belting heads together in a prang — and that seems a likely candidate for inclusion in the production S-Class when it hits the streets next year.

One point that McCarthy stressed was the propensity for Mercedes-Benz to recycle technology across all its platforms, whether a "two-seater smart" or a "140-tonne roadtrain".

"Rest assured that any innovation, any enhancement gets used across all the vehicle platforms, as long as it's relevant to that platform," he said.

So Predictive Power Control is not a matter of 'if' as much as 'when'. And while it could wait for the next E-Class, our money's on the S-Class introducing it, or something much like it, next year.

Computer-generated image courtesy of Carparazzi

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Twincharged 86 ready for Nürburgring 24-hour

GRMN Gazoo develops 238kW/421Nm twincharged Toyota 86 for upcoming Nürburgring event
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German-based GRMN Gazoo is hard at work developing a twincharged 86 concept for the upcoming 24-hour race at the infamous Nürburgring.

Combining a supercharger and turbocharger -- a set up familiar to that found in Volkswagen’s twincharged 1.4 TFSI engine -- the twincharged 86 concept outputs an impressive 238kW/421Nm from its 1998cc horizontally-opposed four-cylinder. It is mated to a standard six-speed manual transmission.

Boasting a bespoke dual exhaust system, brake and suspension setup, the concept vehicle is also fitted with lightweight alloy wheels, redesigned front and rear bumpers and guards, one-off GR rear garnish, as well as a mammoth rear spoiler.

The interior is stripped for the purpose and features the bare essentials, such as a full roll cage, four-point harness, solitary bucket seat and boost, temperature and oil pressure-gauge binnacle.

The 40th Nürburgring 24-hour race is held this weekend May 19 – 20 and is limited to a field of 190 entries.

Toyota GRMN Gazoo twincharged GT86 concept dimensions:
- Height/Width/Length (mm): 1250/1855/4350
- Wheelbase (mm): 2570
- Front Track/Rear Track (mm): 1590/1610
- Front Tyre/Rear Tyre: 245/40R18 / 265/35R18
- Kerb Weight (kg): 1280
- Ground Clearance (mm): 95

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