John Lennon’s 1965 Ferrari 330GT is headed for auction at the Goodwood Festival of Speed. The day a young John Lennon passed his driving test, the famed Beatles frontman had his pick of high-priced rides from luxury automotive dealerships vying for his attention. Aston Martins, Jaguars and Maseratis were offered hand over fist, parked in literally in his front yard. But the one that caught his eye was a beautiful blue 1965 Ferrari 330GT. Half a century later, and 33 years after his murder by a gun-wielding fan, Lennon’s car is headed for the auction block, where it’s expected to fetch upwards of $340,000. Valued at around $10,000 at the time Lennon acquired it, the car is inextricably linked to the Fab Five’s No. 1 hit, Ticket to Ride, which the group had...

Cheyanne Phillips (9, left) ready to greet fans with her racing brother Shane and mechanic dad Tom. She’s quite the little spark plug, herself. Nine-year-old Cheyanne Phillips is already several years into a go-kart racing career and currently is in second points in her series, behind only her younger brother Shane. But she’s as compassionate as she is competitive. That’s why she’s the latest Team E3 Racing Tier 1 winner. Racing runs in the Phillips family’s blood. Phillips’ grandfather built engines for Winston Cup racecars and her father (a friend of E3 Spark Plugs-sponsored racer Kevin Probst) ice raced three-wheelers and raced off-road buggies. It didn’t take long for Phillips and her little brother to follow suit. She began racing...

Buckminster Fuller’s 1933 Dymaxion just might have changed the automotive world had tragedy not struck – twice. It might have forever changed the way the world thought of transportation and altered the course of the automotive industry, were it not for a buzz-killing fatal crash at the 1933 Chicago World’s Fair and a fire that destroyed two of three completed prototypes. And we here at E3 Spark Plugs rather wish things had gone differently for Buckminster Fuller and his gleaming, three-wheeled road zeppelin. Alas, just one Dymaxion car prototype survives locked away at the National Automobile Museum in Reno, Nevada. But all that could change if the right bidder prevails. On June 6, a set of 18 blueprints believed to be the only Dymaxion-related items not currently...

Team E3 Racing winner Shea Holbrook recently launched SteelOvaryNation.com. Who says professional racing isn’t a girl’s club? Team E3 Racing winner Shea Holbrook is a standout among a burgeoning number of female drivers, engineers, mechanics and motorsport execs. And there are more racing fans and auto enthusiasts of the fairer sex today than ever before. Yet, there are precious few resources for gearhead gals to hang out and share their love for all things automotive. To that end, Holbrook recently launched SteelOvaryNation.com, a new website with an accompanying #SteelOvaryNation hashtag campaign. The brand represents female drivers, engineers, mechanics, broadcasters, bloggers, fans and car and motorsport gurus and features articles, photos and merchandise. Says...

On his 12th try, the popular hard-luck racer Tony Kanaan finally took the Indy 500 checkered flag. Do you remember the 18 years that All My Children star Susan Lucci was nominated for the Outstanding Lead Actress Emmy, but left the theatre like a jilted bride every single time before finally snagging the trophy, launching the show’s happiest/sappiest acceptance speech and getting the rowdiest audience atta girl ever on her 19th nod? Okay, maybe not you, but perhaps your wife or mother does. Anyway, we’re betting that Tony Kanaan was sweating a little of that same lady-in-waiting feeling while at the starting line of this weekend’s Indianapolis 500 for his 11th time. Little did he know, his wait was over. After more than a decade of gunning for the Indy 500 finish...

Pro Wrestler John Cena’s flame-throwing, no-doors InCENArator built for the Gumball 3000. It’s been called the world’s biggest, craziest moving car show.  Though constantly conjuring memories of the 1982 Burt Reynolds comedy The Cannonball Run, the Gumball 3000 is a decidedly more posh, yet perhaps equally wacky event – an annual favorite of E3 Spark Plugs. And this year, it’s celebrating its 15th year. The 8-day competition across Europe revved up Saturday with launch party in Copenhagen, Denmark and will take competitors across the continent with stops in Sweden, Finland, Russia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Austria, Italy and Monaco. Members of the 115 driving teams are quite the motley crew, consisting of film, music and sports...

The 2014 NASCAR Hall of Fame inductees will be announced Wednesday evening, May 22. On Wednesday, May 22, the 54 members of the NASCAR Hall of Fame’s Nominating Committee and Voting Panel will gather at North Carolina’s Charlotte Convention Center to whittle down the class of 25 nominees to five worthy inductees, including one nominated by fan vote. Come 6pm ET, the rest of the world will know who they’ve picked. Of course a driver or two will make the list. More than half of the 20 current members were nominated based upon their behind-the-wheel talent. But like any well-oiled machine, it takes many different parts, people and functions to run a professional sport that challenges its participants, makes celebrities of its stars, entertains its fans and inspires the...

“Fast & Furious 6″ hits theater screens nationwide this Friday. One of the most successful movie franchises in history revs up again, slamming into theatres across America this Friday. The creative spark plugs fueling the Fast & Furious 6 have delivered another fast-paced, fiery, fun film that includes a few surprises. In the latest Fast & Furious sequel our hero team has left their former lives in the dust, having toppled the operation of a Brazilian drug lord and taking $100 million of his money with them. But all that cash and the new lives they’ve built can’t replace the families and lives they’ve left behind. So when Special Agent Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson) turns up looking a lot like his G.I. Joe character and asking for help in taking down...

Gran Turismo 6 for PlayStation 3 will be released just in time for the 2013 holiday season. Hear that sound, gearheads and gamers? That’s your wallet cringing, backed by your inner teenager rejoicing at the news that Gran Turismo 6 for PlayStation 3 will be released just in time for the 2013 holiday season. Legendary GT creator Kazunori Yamauchi himself made the announcement at a celebration marking 15 years of the 70-million-selling series earlier this week. The “Real Driving Simulator” promises a full battery of cool features including a collection of new cars that brings the roster to more than 1,200. And players get more customization options than ever before, assuring you’ll be able to rock your ride like no one else’s. You’ll speed through 33...

The Lamborghini Egoista concept, debuted at the company’s private 50th birthday celebration in Italy, is creating quite a stir. In what’s being touted as an epic midlife crisis, iconic automaker Lamborghini unveiled a one-off design that beats any superhero ride you ever sketched in bout of boredom during your high school civics class. Officials debuted the aptly named “Egoista” (which translates to “selfish”) at its 50th birthday celebration in Italy – and immediately revved up a global controversy. Drawing love-it-or-hate-it coverage, the Egoista was designed by the famed Walter De Silva and inspired by the look of Apache helicopters. It’s powered by a 600-hp V-10 and seats just one passionate and unapologetic driver. Says DeSilva:...