Category: Automotive

A reader sent me a link to an article in Al Watan Daily on the new Gulf Road cameras that are installed. According to the article the speed cameras on the Gulf Road don’t just take pictures of speeding cars but are similar to the cameras on the First Ring Road in that they calculate your average speed from one camera to another. That means even if you slow down when passing camera 1, if you get to camera 2 too quickly then they would know you were speeding.

Personally I don’t think this is true. When compared to the First Ring Road, that stretch has 2 lanes of traffic and 2 cameras at the start each pointing to a lane with 2 more cameras at the end of the stretch also with each pointing to a lane. The Gulf Road on the other hand has 3 lanes and traffic lights all along the way. There is also 1 camera pointing across all the lanes instead of 3 different cameras each pointing to a seperate lane. I could also speed down the Gulf Road at 120km/h but as soon as I stop at a red traffic light my average speed is back to normal. Of course I won’t be speeding just in case this is true. [Link]

Thanks Nooris

The beautiful new McLaren is currently being exhibited privately somewhere in Kuwait. The price starts at KD60,000 and goes up depending on the options. If anyone can get me an invite to check the car out please email me!

Update: Turns out the McLaren dealer will be Ali Alghanim & Sons Automotive Company who are also the dealers for BMW, Land Rover and the Mini. The car is also currently being displayed in private at Marriott Al Raya. iLSuL6ana was lucky enough to get an invite!

Update2: Here is a video of the McLaren from todays event via iLSuL6ana

[YouTube]

Update3: And here is a picture taken by a reader

The cops now have new portable cameras and by the looks of it they will be very difficult to spot. Judging by the picture above they will be used to catch the people who drive on emergency lanes which is cool but I believe they will also be able to capture speeders.

The Ministry pointed out that the new radar is accurate and can be transported from one place to another easily, in addition to having the video and photographic characteristics, which confirms the fact of the violation. It stated that the mobile radar is currently working with high efficiency in many locations, especially places of high traffic density, including schools.

Here is the link to the article on Arab Times. [Link]

I passed by the car exhibition tonight. I was expecting it to be really packed but surprisingly it wasn’t. The exhibit is divided into 4 halls, one is full of American cars, another European, a third was taken by Toyota and Lexus while the fourth was a mixture. The exhibition was ok, not too exciting but there were a few cars (and a bike) that grabbed my attention. My favorite has to be the Ford SVT Raptor (pictured above) but at KD20,000 I’m never going to own one. The Range Rover Evoque was on display surprisingly and priced very reasonably at KD17,000. Other interesting cars were the Aston Martin Cygnet, the Mini Countryman and the beautiful Confederate motorbike. There’s lots of parking space available and the entrance is free so it’s worth the visit. For more info on the exhibition click [Here]

This is one of my favorite events that takes place in Kuwait so I definitely will be passing by. I hope they have some interesting cars this year like the Lexus LFA or the Land Rover Evoque.

The Kuwait International Fair Auto Show is one of the oldest automobile exhibitions in the Middle East. To this day, the Auto Show is growing remarkably and has positioned itself as one of the foremost automobile exhibitions in the Middle Eastern region. This must-attend event is held once every two years, and 2010 will see its appearance once again, providing a wealth of opportunities for exhibitors, sponsors and partner organizations.

When: December 12 to December 18, 2010
Where: Kuwait International Fair, Hall 5, 6, 7 & 8

For more information you can check out the KIF website [Here]

I love how all these random videos of Kuwait from the 80s are starting to pop up. This one is of a car exhibition that was held sometime in the mid 80s. [YouTube]

I thought I spotted a car on the Gulf Road a couple of weeks back that looked like the taxi from the video game Crazy Taxi. Turns out I wasn’t imagining things since I spotted the picture above on the blog Hunny Was Here. Lots of cool pictures of other interesting cars as well check them out [Here] and [Here]

[YouTube]

It’s going to kick ass this year. Here is a link to their website. [Link]

I noticed Sports Corner in Salmiya has a small section with authentic Red Bull Racing Gear. They had a bunch of their Formula 1 branded gear including Vettel tshirts and Red Bull racing caps and polos. For those of you don’t follow Formula 1, this year Vettel who drives a Red Bull car was the champion.

I take the Gulf Road every morning to work and every evening back home. I also take the Gulf Road on my way to the gym and back. Every single freakin day I have to put up with jerks on the road trying to hit on chicks. The Gulf Road is just 3 lanes and if there is a car with a girl in it then you find a car on the left of hers and a car on the right of hers filled with a guy or two driving at the exact same speed as the girl (or girls). It’s ridiculous! Sometimes there would be a car in front of her as well and maybe a car or two behind also trying to get some action. These idiots block the whole Gulf Road driving at a slow pace hoping to get the girls number or whatever (I have no clue how that works) while everyone else is forced to drive at an abnormally slow pace behind them.

It’s not just guys that are the problem, sometimes you get these group of girls with a ton of makeup on giggling and laughing in the car with the windows open driving slow actually wanting the guys to hit on them. It really pisses me off. Where are the cops? Why don’t the cops do anything? Why don’t they assign the female cops (pictured above) to the Gulf Road and have them take vengeance?? Instead of installing new speed cameras on the Gulf Road they should figure out a way to stop these morons.

Sorry I’m venting but I just got home after getting stuck in traffic because of some jerks.

The gas station on the Gulf Road right next to Shaab Park in Salmiya is nearly done. I passed by tonight and they had the lights on and everything looks pretty cool. I think there will also be a small mini market at this gas station which should prove to be very popular since it’s right on the Gulf Road. This used to be the gas station I passed by the most since it’s on my way back from work so I’m glad it’s finally opening up again.

If any cops are watching this I think it might be easy to catch this guy since his username on YouTube is 6025176 and I am taking a wild guess here but that could actually be his phone number. [YouTube]

The first professional Kuwaiti racing driver Khaled Al Mudhaf is participating in the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge this Saturday and Sunday. I found out about him recently and think what he’s doing is very cool. The GT3 Cup Challenge is the biggest motor sport challenge in the Middle East and Khaled will be representing Kuwait with his black Porsche pictured above. The two rounds of the race will be shown live on Abu Dhabi Sports Channel on both free-to-air Channel 2 and Channel 6. Round 1 will be shown tomorrow (Saturday) at 15:25 while Round 2 will be broadcasted at 14:45 on Sunday. I wish him the best of luck.

For more information here is the GT3 Cup Facebook page [Link]

Recently they’ve started putting up new speed cameras on the Gulf Road. They’ve started installing cameras in new locations and they’ve also started replacing some old cameras including the red light cameras and speed cameras with newer models. The new cameras differ from the older ones in that the radar, flash and camera are no longer located all together in one housing (like this) but instead divided into two separate pieces. Currently the large box housing (better pictures below) doesn’t have any openings in the front but I am guessing that’s because the system is still being set up and installed. Judging by the pictures on the manufacturers website, the housing called the TraffiTower can hold all the systems internally including the camera so not sure why they’re installing the camera separately. Also I am guessing there must be something new, a new feature that previously wasn’t available that they will be installing in the housing or else why would they replace the reliable and practical single housing units? I took a few pictures of the new speed cameras which you can check out above and below.

Someone should build these guys a drift track.
Oh wait they already have one… [YouTube]