Bush Stadium in downtown Indianapolis was built in 1931 as a field for Negro and minor-league baseball teams. Today, it’s a historical relic holding hundreds of rusting vehicles traded in under “cash for clunkers,” a spooky memorial to waste.

If you’re a fan of baseball movies, you’ve seen Bush Stadium. It stood in for Comiskey Park in the movie Eight Men Out. In its heyday, it resembled a minature Wrigley Field, with ivy-covered outfield walls and an Art Deco stone entry. It’s been vacant since 1996, left to rot by an indifferent city that rented it to junkyards needing someplace to park vehicles trashed in 2009 during cash for clunkers. More recent photos show the herd has thinned, but hundreds of derelict vehicles remain in a slow-motion race of decay from the elements.

Preservationists have for years sought some way of saving Bush Stadium, which appears on the National Register of Historic Places. But despite several proposals, some as recently as October, it appears the stadium will go the way of the vehicles on its infield, scrapped before being used to its fullest.

I’m all for driving your expensive 599 GTO instead of letting it languish and rot under a cover, but there are probably times you should park it in a garage.

Listen, General Motors. We know you’re kinda busy getting back on track, jump-starting your IPO, and generally getting your house in order. We appreciate it and everything. But could we ask just one favor? You see this Vauxhall? Could you bring it over to this side of the Atlantic, please? You don’t have to bring Pontiac back to do it, no matter how many people are still looking it up on Google. You can slap a Bowtie badge on the nose – heck you can make it a Buick if you want. Call it a Daewoo for all we care. Just bring it here.

What we’re talking about is the new Vauxhall VXR8, and it could very well be the best performance sedan The General offers this side of the Cadillac CTS-V. And it’s just undergone a series of updates, complete with a restyled front end, tail and interior, along with some new gizmos to keep all the power in check.

The VXR8 is based on the Holden Commodore, but instead of the hot ClubSport R8 model on which the previous Vauxhall was based, the new model starts with the new E3 GTS just launched in Australia. That means a 6.2-liter LS3 V8 with 425 horsepower and 405 lb-ft of torque – kept in line by new Magnetic Ride Control and Launch Control systems, driving through a six-speed transmission (automatic or manual) and a mechanical diff – for a 4.9-second sprint to 60 mph and an electronically-limited top speed of 155 mph.

There are plenty more reasons to want this muscle sedan on American shores, pronto, and you can read all about ‘em in the press release after the jump. We just hope someone at the RenCenter is listening.

Sure enough, The Crest is headed back to the race track, this time with its menacing CTS-V Coupe. Cadillac last took to the field of battle in 2007, when it campaigned in the Sports Car Club of America World Challenge, and according to General Motors, the company will once again race in that series with a two-car team next season. Pratt & Miller, the shop responsible for the wicked American Le Mans Series Chevrolet Corvettes we all know and love, has been tasked with developing the racier version of the CTS-V Coupe. While the cars are largely production-based in the World Challenge GT class, some of the vehicle’s systems will need to be upgraded to meet SCCA specifications.

The two CTS-V Coupe race cars will compete for the first time on March 25 in St. Petersburg, Florida with Johnny O’Connel and Andy Pilgram behind the wheel. Fortunately, we don’t have to wait that long to see these machine in the metal.

The R18 gets its grunt from a 3.7-liter TDI V6 engine, and while Audi isn’t saying exactly how much horsepower or torque the oil-burner produces, we have to guess that the figures are nothing to sneeze at. Behind the engine is a new six-speed transmission, though the innovations aren’t simply chained to the drivetrain. Audi used a single-piece construction carbon fiber monocoque to keep weight down and increase stiffness, and those epic all-LED headlights are the first make their way to Le Mans.

While Audi is planning to campaign a total of three R18 racers at the 2011 Le Mans race this summer, the vehicle’s first appearance will be at the six hours of Spa on April 24

As impressive as it may be in its own right, when Ferrari introduces a new V8 supercar, you know there’s more to come. A Spider version. A Challenge racer. Probably a CS/Scuderia-style hardcore street version somewhere down the line. And yes, a GT2 racing version. That appears to be what we’re looking at right here.

Once a top-tier Le Mans contender, Ferrari’s sportscar racing program is largely limited these days to the GT2 category, leaving the likes of Peugeot and Audi to compete for top honors in the LMP1 category and its own sister-company Maserati to fight for GT1 victory.

Itself a replacement for the 360 GTC that came before, the F430 GT2 has been a wildly successful racer, winning its class in both the American Le Mans Series and the FIA GT Championship. But its days are numbered as Maranello has been working on its replacement based on the new 458 Italia. And this is our first proper look at it.

As it stands now, the 458 GT2 has a face that looks something like a jack-o-lantern, but some simple black trim around the maw will surely go great lengths towards rectifying that. And besides, if this machine proves to be as giant a leap forward over the one it replaces as the 458 Italia street car is over the F430, its rivals will only be seeing the back end of it, anyway.

Put more simply in actual dollars and cents, that will cost you $89,950. For those unaware, that’s the sum Nissan is asking for its updated 2012 GT-R, which recently made its live American debut at the 2010 LA Auto Show. The Japanese automaker has kindly provided a digital readout from an electronic measurement device from Digitek to silence the doubters (above). As you can clearly squint and see, the GT-R hit 60 miles per hour in 2.9 seconds and 100 kilometers per hour (62 mph) in exactly three seconds.

Your move, Corvette ZR1.

Fortunately, Kovalainen was not seriously injured during the bang-up. Likewise, his girlfriend, who was riding in the vehicle at the time, walked away from the incident without so much as a scuff as well.

2011 Audi A1 by HS Motorsport
By eauto

In cooperation with Autohaus Kempen (Meckenheim) and other partners, HS Motorsport has built a spectacular project car based on the highly popular Audi A1.

What attracts the eye, first and foremost, is the effect-rich silver finish of the classy small car. The masterfully executed work of the CFC Styling Station in Neuss has ensured an avant garde optical effect. HS Motorsport has given the rear of the vehicle a modified bumper, which appropriately houses the R32-look tailpipes developed and manufactured especially for this project by Fox Sport Exhaust Systems. The classy tailpipes are complemented by a full-throated sporty rumble – almost cocky for a vehicle of this class.

Go-Kart with glamourous wheels

The running gear, from the house of H&R, is also a new development. The team from Lennestädt have made a coilover suspension system for the small Ingolstadt manufacturer’s project vehicle, lowered to 55 mm at the front and 60 mm at the back. This upgrade gives the already snappy A1 a genuine go-kart feeling!

In terms of wheels, HS Motorsport offers plenty of choice – in fact, purchasers are spoilt for choice. Because: Both the classic ASA GT1 rims in black silk matte with a silver accent ring and the edgier ASA GT2 alloy wheels with their seven double spokes (available in either black silk matte or anthracite shine front-polished) appear to be made for the polished Audi. The 8.5 x 18 inch rim sizes remain the same. The 215/35R18 tyre configuration comes from Vredestein (Ultrac Sessanta) or Hankook (Ventus V12 evo).
Sit more comfortably

HS Motorsport has placed two Recaro Sportster CS lightweight bucket seats inside the A1, in carbon and original A1 upholstery, from Recaro Sportline Center Germany. The seat consoles have been manufactured especially for the A1 project by Weinkarth.

HS Motorsport have left the engine capacity of the concept car untouched at 122 hp. The Bavarians do offer increased performance for the Audi A1 1.4 TSI, however. The installation of an additional module generates 25 additional hp, and 50 additional Nm, making a total of 147 hp and 250 Nm available. Also available as an option is an Alpine sound system with navigation unit. In addition, a snappy Brembo braking system is also being developed for the front end of the Audi A1.

Mazda has produced some iconic sports cars throughout its history, and now those vehicles have been immortalized in stamp form. Released as a limited-edition on November 1st, the Japan Post Network Chugoke Regional Office has created a 12-stamp set officially titled History of Mazda Motor Corporation Hiroshima.

The stamp set is limited to just 3,000 units and each one comes with a 1:64 scale model of a white Mazda Cosmo Sport 110S. Images on the stamps range from the past icons such as the 1950 Mazda-Go three-wheeled truck and aforementioned Cosmo to modern ones like the MX-5 and Mazda5. It’s not just cars though, as one of the stamps features an image of Mazda’s infamous rotary engine.

Unfortunately, those of us outside of Japan will not be able to purchase this stamp collection, as Mazda is only offering it in its home market. The price is 2,800 Yen per set, which is about $35 USD based on current exchange rates. The stamps are shown in the image to the right, which you can expand by clicking on it, and Mazda’s official press release is available after the jump.