The Quail, A Motorsports Gathering 2011 Is Stunning!

I don’t know if the 9th annual The Quail was the best so far, but it was the best show I’ve ever attended. What a $400, limited ticket sale admission buys is exclusivity and a perfect sized venue with excellent parking for the aficionado of cars and food. Make that fine automobiles and cuisines. Friday, August 19th was an unforgettable day. Be sure to see the slideshow pictures.

When 9 Bugatti Veyrons are on site in their own section, including two Super Sports, you know you’re in the right place. And then there was a $2,350,000 Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport “L’Or Blanc” which features fine porcelain on its body and in its cabin. There was a Pagani Zonda R totally overshadowing a Carrera GT and a Mercedes McLaren SLR 722 despite the bland colored carbon fiber bodywork.

Mr. Horacio Pagani was there presenting the stunning new Pagani Huayra. Intended for the US market but 15 or so are currently declined by the Feds due to airbag technology compliance, it’s an amazing piece of automotive design and engineering.

Not far from the Pagani was an Aston Martin One-77. The fabulous, million-dollar supercar definitely has Aston styling with cues that make it stand apart from the blurring of their other models.

Other outstanding manufacturer themed displays included: Lamborghini presenting the new Aventador, the 50thAnniversary of Jaguar E-Types, Ferrari America and Superamerica Models, new Jaguars, also Mercedes Gullwings and SLSs. Ferrari had a display of the California, the 458 Italia and the brand new, controversial, all-wheel drive FF. Cadillac had a display of V’s, including their CTS-V Coupe race car. Land Rover, Maserati, Audi & Rolls Royce also had outstanding displays.

Fine jewelry vendors were present. A helicopter near the show, assumed some V.I.P.s personal ride, was actually shuttle service to Mazda Raceway at Laguna Seca even though Laurels Grade Road is a fun ride too.

Walk around enough and the hunger for exotic cars translates to a craving for food. The menu has cuisines specific to Carmel Valley, Italy, Spain, France and the Mediterranean region.

Other highlights included:

Bonhams & Butterfields two-day auction featuring the famed 1979 BMW M1 “Art Car”
50thAnniversary of Phil Hill’s Formula One World Drivers’ Championship

Riverside International Raceway cars that competed at that location

Sports and Racing Motorcycles

It was a very sad moment of longing when it was time to leave this spectacular display. However, thanks to a parking lot of attendees vehicles equivalent to the Concorso Italiano – Ferraris, Lamborghinis and even a red Porsche Carrera GT, it was a happy goodbye.

The Quail, A Motorsports Gathering is the most expensive “show” during the weekend and quite possibly the best in variety, size and execution. I can't wait for next year.

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Brake Caliper Placement - Ask Rob About Cars

Why is it that the rear calipers are in front of the axle and the front calipers to the rear of the axle?

-Augie Ruberto, Campbell, CA.

Great question Augie! There are multiple reasons for this. For most cars, it’s a non-issue. But if you look at sports cars, it’s almost always the rule with two notable exceptions I know of. Regarding the fronts, one reason is the steering knuckle is many times designed in front of the axle and so the caliper behind the axle offsets the weight and effect of the forces acting on the steering.

Another reason is for brake cooling. Ducts are used to direct cooling air to the brakes and a large caliper will block airflow to the disc which is vented. Cooling isn’t as critical for the rear brakes and it makes sense for weight distribution between the axles.

The two exceptions that come to mind are the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution and the Nissan 370Z. I haven’t heard of any issues with the Mitsubishi, but the Nissan 370Z had a notorious brake failure when Car & Driver magazine was conducting one of their “Lightning Lap” tests. Further investigating with upgraded pads and then brake fluid to reduce temperatures, their suspicion was compromised aerodynamics. If you notice in the accompanying pictures, the front caliper is in front of the axle.

http://www.caranddriver.com/features/z-meets-wall-we-investigate-why-the-nismo-zs-brakes-failed-at-lightning-lap

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Have a question about cars you would like answered? Questions about performance, racing, modifying, shopping, makes, models, events, etc? Ask me here: AskRobAboutCars@gmail.com and I'll do my best to answer your question and publish it here on Examiner.com!