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We all dream about taking a drive and discovering the mythical barn find of a vintage Shelby Cobra or Porsche Speedster hidden way under a sheet, totally forgotten. An upcoming auction from Artcurial in France on February 6 proves that these treasure troves still really do exist, and this might be one of the ultimate barn finds ever.

Decaying away on a French estate, there was a collection of about 100 dirt-covered cars that had been undisturbed for decades, according to The Telegraph. They included all of the great European marques, like Bugatti, Porsche, Maserati, Ferrari and many more. Most of the vehicles were underneath a shed but generally exposed to the elements; however, two very special sports cars were hidden away in a garage (pictured above). In there was a 1961 Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spider with covered headlights. It was one of just 37 made and thought to be lost. Beside the Ferrari was a 1956 Maserati A6G Gran Sport Frua.

The collection belonged to Roger Baillon, a French transport magnate, according to Artcurial. He amassed this wonderful collection, but when his business fell on hard times in the '70s, Baillon sold part of the group off. These were the ones he kept, but they eventually went forgotten.

Artcurial thinks that only 60 of the cars are actually in salable condition, and they cross the block during the Retromobile Salon in February. The auctioneers believe the Ferrari could sell for as much as 12 million euros (14.74 million) and the Maserati for 1.2 million euros ($1.5 million). Check out the gallery to glimpse the breadth of classics in this collection. Be sure to scroll down for a must-watch, gut-wrenching, patina-laden video showing off the collection and for Artcurial's press release about the sale.

We drive the facelifted 2015 VW Touareg SUV

Volkswagen's Touareg has always straddled the line between the mainstream and luxury SUV segments, but the second-generation model has fallen a bit off the premium pace, having been in production since 2010 without major changes. For 2015, the Touareg gets a streamlined freshened look and a lot of optional new active safety technology. Is it enough to keep it in the hunt? Our man Seyth Miersma drives it and finds out.



Montana lawmakers want 85 mph speed limit

Back in the day, Montana's freeway speed limit on certain vast, empty sections was simply listed as "reasonable and prudent." In other words, it was our version of the Autobahn. That didn't last due to legal challenges, sadly, but now some lawmakers in the state are pushing hard for an 85-mph limit. A number of other neighboring states have adopted 80-mph limits, will Montana do them five better?



Gorgeous production Ferrari Sergio revealed

Listen, we know that gushing over Ferraris isn't exactly an uncommon thing, but we're going to go ahead all the same and express our ardor for this 1 of 6 Ferrari Sergio, a Pininfarina-designed future Pebble Beach Concours winner if we've ever seen one. Ferrari has announced that the first of these half-dozen 458 Spider-based coupes has already been delivered. To the Middle East, where else?



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Ward's Auto has published a piece on Scion that further confirms that we really have no idea what to expect from the brand. In speaking with Toyota USA CEO Jim Lentz about what was once firmly intended to be a hip, experimental youth brand, Lentz said, "I still personally believe small-premium is the direction we should be going."

We'll walk right on by Lentz's use of the word "still" and focus on "small-premium" with the question: How? As much as we dig the FR-S, nothing in the brand's lineup can get within a whiff of the word "premium." It's even further away from being able to sniff the lifestyle-powered exhaust of a Mini or Fiat 500, and the production version of the forthcoming IM Concept (inset) will only draw it closer to its plain vanilla parent. Of course, Scion could head the premium way, but the amount of time and money needed to make it work would seem to go against everything the brand currently stands for.

The murk stays just as murky when Lentz's words are placed next to those of Scion brand VP Doug Murtha, who spoke to Ward's at a different time. Murtha's response to the "small-premium" note was, "He may be having discussions at levels I'm not," and that such intent is "probably a longer-term proposition than we're looking at right now," with planning under way out to 2025. We're already being prepared for the iM to come in under $20,000, which will ensure the "attainability factor" of the "younger audience" that Murtha still views as Scion's base. And at the moment, Murtha is probably focused on adding desirability to the current lineup, halting the 14-percent year-over-year sales slide to a point that's just over half the annual volume necessary for profitability, and making sure he and his dealers have the support necessary to make the required splash with new product.

Aside from all that, what might we expect? We know there'll be another product shown along with the production IM at the 2015 New York Auto Show, and Murtha isn't against a small crossover if they can come up with "something appropriately Scion-esque." So... there's that.

With 22 months of record Leaf sales under its zero-emission belt, Nissan has started two big ad campaigns for the battery-powered Leaf. On TV, there's the Kick Gas campaign (it's a popular name) and on social media, Nissan is promoting the EV as the "world's cleanest car" (it's a paint thing). We don't know how much the paint prank is costing, but we do have some estimated numbers for the TV ads.

Nissan has spent over $30 million on TV advertising for the Leaf in 2014.

According to iSpot, which tracks these sorts of things, Nissan spent over $30 million promoting the Leaf on TV in 2014. "Through November of this year," iSpot CEO Sean Muller wrote to AutoblogGreen, "Nissan spent more then $400 million in TV advertising for its traditional fuel fleet, and $22 million for the rechargeable Leaf. It has since dedicated an additional $9 million on it its new Kick Gas campaign, which started airing November 3, shortly after news of the electronic sales slump broke."

iSpot says that Kick Gas aired predominately on NBC, CBS and Fox. The result of those airings can be seen in the charts below, but the takeaway point is that viewers of college football, Gladiator and The Rachel Maddow Show were the most engaged by the ad. Nissan has said the ad is working and that it helped increase Leaf sales in November.

How is Chevrolet promoting the Volt? Not nearly as aggressively as Nissan is with the Leaf. Muller said iSpot estimates that GM spent just $2 million over the past couple of years to sell the plug-in hybrid on TV, despite offering 62 different Volt ads online. Then there's new entry into the mix, the Kia Soul EV. iSpot figures Kia has spent about $15 million on TV airings of that odd sexified hamster spot. That's a lot of money for a car that just went on sale here in October, let alone one that isn't available in most states.

We've asked Chevy, Kia and Nissan for comment on the iSpot numbers but have not yet heard back. You can watch ads for all three vehicles below.

The holiday shopping season is in full swing, and maybe you have someone on your list who already seems to have everything. Never fear, an upcoming auction from the now-defunct Marussia Formula 1 Team might be just the ticket for your hard-to-shop-for racing fan.

During its brief tenure in F1, Marussia only managed to score two championship points, both of which came during this season's grand prix in Monaco. In October, the team announced that it would miss the US Grand Prix and declared bankruptcy soon afterward. Now, the squad's wares are crossing the auction block on December 16 and 17 in England, and the goods are streaming online.

The highlight for many people will likely be the sale of complete Formula 1 cars, albeit without their engines. But the buyer will obviously need spares, and the auction will feature plenty of those, too. Images show tables stacked with body panels, and the floor is covered with exhausts and other components.

Some of the other cool items include the opportunity to pick up one of the team's race suits. Sure, arriving to a local track day in it next year might look a little silly, but imagine being able to show the overalls off in 20 years when Marussia starts to seem cool and vintage among F1 fans. There's also enough tools and machines available to build just about anything mechanical you could ever want, too.

In addition to the smaller items, Marussia is auctioning off its transport and technical trucks. Getting them to the US is probably too much work, but a race team in Europe could probably find a great use for them in the paddock in seasons to come.

Check out the gallery for a look at some of these items or head over to auctioneers CA Global Partners to see the complete listing with all of the images. If these lots aren't enough, the company has another Marussia sale closing on January 21 with three GP3 cars and a Super Aguri racer.

Subaru is packing up shop and making a big move, announcing that it will be relocating its Cherry Hill, NJ headquarters. Is the company pulling a Toyota and moving across the country, or perhaps following the example set by Cadillac and relocating to a major metropolis? Nope. The all-wheel-drive aficionados are going just four miles down the road, to Camden, NJ.

We suppose that is one way to celebrate all of the company's sales successes.

The move hasn't been confirmed through the New Jersey government just yet – it needs to be approved by the New Jersey Economic Development Authority – but if it gets the green light, it will see the company relocate to a new, 250,000-square-foot facility that's twice the size of its current headquarters. The land the company will be developing on is currently owned by Campbell Soup Company.

Provided the NJEDA approves the plan, Subaru will work things out with its developers, and is hoping to be up and running at the new facility by 2016 or early 2017. Take a look below for the company's announcement.

In September Milestone, the developer behind the MotoGP videogame, announced an offering that would "alter the concept of motorcycle video games forever" called Ride, slated for release in Spring 2015 on Xbox One and 360, PlayStation 3 and 4, Steam and PC. Thanks to a press release we have a few more details on what's being billed "a complete motorcycle racing simulator" and "incredibly deep racing experience" featuring more than 100 bikes and every kind of circuit.

We're told players can take superbike, supersport, naked and historical two-wheelers through rider and vehicle customizing options and into "true-to-life racing simulation." Those who make it out to Sony's PlayStation Experience in Las Vegas on December 6 and 7 will get a chance to play it themselves. Until then, there's a video that gives us a bit more to go on, and a press release below.

Cadillac is setting itself up for major changes in the coming years with its decision to hire Johan de Nysschen as the brand's new boss and moving some of the staff to new digs in the trendy SoHo neighborhood of Manhattan. With those two big shifts in place, there's one more on the way with the company's announcement that Publicis Worldwide is now its global creative agency of record, effective immediately. The firm replaces former, long-time General Motors associate Campbell-Ewald; now a portion of Lowe and Partners.

"This appointment is designed to accelerate the global expansion and elevation of Cadillac into a truly global luxury brand," said Cadillac Chief Marketing Officer Uwe Ellinghaus in the company's announcement. "We have spent much of this year refocusing on the core values of our brand." Although, some work may remain at Lowe and Partners for now. According to Cadillac spokesperson David Caldwell via email to Autoblog: "The bulk of work makes this shift. It is possible that maybe a small individual smaller project or two might still be handled by Lowe. Not certain yet."

The fruit of this new partnership shouldn't take long to mature, either. "We will have substantially new marketing and brand identity work in early 2015." said Caldwell.

According to Ad Age, Cadillac's advertising had been handled by Lowe and Partners, Campbell-Ewald in Detroit (now entirely part of Lowe) and Hill Holiday. Caddy had a relationship with the agency since 2013 but has changed firms several times in 2006.

GM had a long collaboration with Campbell-Ewald, though. Chevrolet was its partner for nearly a century until the automaker also jumped to Publicis in 2010. The firm was responsible for campaigns like, "The Heartbeat of America", "Like A Rock" and "An American Revolution."

Scroll down to read Cadillac's full announcement of the change.

It's almost impossible not to notice that it's a lot cheaper to fill up at the gas station in the latter portion of this year. As of December 1, the US Energy Information Administration said the average cost of a gallon of gas was $2.778, down almost 50 cents from a year ago. In general, fuel prices have been on the decline for much of 2014, and the effects have started showing themselves with people seemingly more willing to buy lower efficiency vehicles.

The average fuel economy of new vehicles sold in November was 24.8 miles per gallon, according to the Wards Auto Fuel Economy Index. That was down 0.1 percent from November 2013. While a tenth of a percent was hardly a mammoth change, it still represented the first decrease in the figure in the last four years. Wards Auto said that improvements have been diminishing over the past six months, but this was the first actual decline.

That statistic also represents just one month. Through the first 11 months of the year, the index shows an average of 25.1 mpg, a 1.8 percent improvement over 2013.

Gas prices in the US have been predicted to fall since last year, in part because people were buying more fuel-efficient vehicles. However, this much of a decline was bit of a surprise. At least one expert earlier in 2014 thought it would take a financial collapse to get the average below $3.00. However, a fight in the OPEC cartel over which country would reduce production first has also been also a contributing factor in making gasoline cheaper.

The effects of the price drop are showing themselves beyond just Wards' index. Sales of hybrids and EVs are down about 5 percent for the year. That comes while SUVs and pickups are up around 20 percent.

$90 Million Powerball winner plans to buy a #Subaru Forester. Go ahead, treat yourself to the power windows. http://t.co/G0RjRlgSob

- Car Talk (@cartalk) December 5, 2014

Lisa Quam recently hit the Powerball jackpot to win $90 million. Like many folks lucky enough to win, Quam says one of her first stops will be a car dealer for a new set of wheels. Her first thought isn't to choose high luxury with a Bentley Mulsanne or Mercedes-Benz S-Class, though. Nope, she plans to buy herself a Subaru Forester, which is an eminently practical (if predictable) choice for someone residing in Washington state. Hopefully, Quam will decide to spend a few extra bucks for the turbocharged XT trim; she can definitely afford it.

For our money, Quam's Subaru isn't nearly as cool of a choice as the guy who decided to buy himself an used Acura NSX from Craigslist with his $448 million Powerball jackpot last year. They're both keeping things modest with their newfound fortunes, though, and that strikes us as a smart move.

Sometimes the automotive world throws out something so bizarre, you can't help but do a double-take in disbelief. Take this Willys AW 380 Berlinetta, for example. It's made by a pair of Italian companies and inspired by a French design that harkens back to the work in Brazil of an American company. The mind boggles.

The AW 380 is being unveiled at the Bologna Motor Show, but this Willys is no Jeep. It's being built in cooperation by two Italy's Maggiora and Carrozzeria Viotti. The design is inspired by the Renault Alpine A108 with quad headlights up front, a flowing roof and rear-mounted engine. There's a reason for that Gallic influence: According to WorldCarFans, Willys actually built some examples of the A108 in Brazil in the '60s.

According to the spec sheet, the engine out back is a 3.8-liter, twin-turbocharged six-cylinder boxer engine making a reported 610 horsepower and 612 pound-feet of torque. While not specifically stated, that sounds like a Porsche mill to us. In a total package that weighs 2,976 pounds, the Willys can allegedly hit 62 miles per hour in 2.7 seconds with a top speed of 212 mph.

Prices for these oddities are set at 380,000 euros (around $467,000 at current rates) and 110 examples are planned, with the companies claiming that first one is already spoken for.

If nothing else, it would be fun trying to explain to friends just what this thing is and how it came to be.

The lads at Top Gear have released their listing of the finest cars of the past year, handing the ultimate honor to BMW's revolutionary i8 plug-in-hybrid supercar.

"The i8 is a milestone in the annals of automotive history and a glorious statement for an exciting and positive future. The i8 delivers - and then some," the British mag wrote. The i8, though, was far from the only hybridized car to take victories. James May and Richard Hammond both highlighted hybrids as their personal cars of the year, with May saluting the Ferrari LaFerrari and the Hamster, unsurprisingly, heaping praise on the Porsche 918 Spyder. Jeremy Clarkson, meanwhile, opted to shock many by selecting not only an American car as his best of 2014, but giving the honor to of all things, a Corvette.

Clarkson wasn't the only person to honor the USA's iconic sports car, with the new, 650-horsepower Z06 variant being named TG's Muscle Car of the Year. Other big winners include Mercedes-Benz, which TG honored for S-Class Coupe (Luxury Car of the Year), the new AMG GT (Sports Car of the Year) and the not-for-US C-Class Estate (Family Car of the Year). The 458 Italia Speciale A snagged a second win for Ferrari.

The best of the rest include the Citroen C4 Cactus, Renault Twingo, Volkswagen Golf R, Lamborghini Huracan and Audi TT.

Take a look below for the celebratory press blast from BMW.

Not even three months after its production announcement, Ferrari has already delivered the first Sergio, a wildly modified 458 Spider meant to honor Sergio Pininfarina, founder of the eponymous design studio that has turned out so many memorable prancing horses.

Unsurprisingly, the roofless Ferrari, the first of six, was delivered to the Middle East, going to the SBH Royal Auto Gallery in the United Arab Emirates' capital, Abu Dhabi. Ferrari handed over the keys at the Yas Marina Circuit, which is currently playing host to the Finali Mondiali Ferrari, the same place the FXX K debuted earlier this week.

With a 605-horsepower, 4.5-liter V8, the Sergio can hit 60 miles per hour in just three seconds, although this particular Ferrari is about a lot more than performance. The Pininfarina styling is the real focus here, giving a few lucky owners the opportunity to enjoy concept-car styling in a road-legal machine.

Unlike the original Sergio, that debuted at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show, though, the production model is somewhat tamer. Blame the necessity that is the windshield. That, though is the most significant change in evidence. All the very best parts of the concept car have seemingly made it through to production, including the lovely forward-swept rollbar and the stylish black element that defines the profile.

Take a look up top for the official images from Ferrari, and then scroll below for Maranello's press release.

The SEMA show came and went last month, and it showed us a ton of heavily modded goodies to dream about during the long, cold winter. The Motor Trend Channel on YouTube is keeping the party rolling a little longer, though, with a drag race inspired by the aftermarket event.

All of the hosts were supposed to borrow a vehicle from the show for the big race, but only two of them actually cajoled companies into lending their wares. Still, the result includes four very cool and extremely different examples of the breadth of the automotive hobby.

First up, there's a 1955 Chevrolet with a 535-cubic-inch (8.8-liter) Hemi V8 stuffed under the hood. Appropriately, it's dubbed the Blasphemi, and with skinny tires up front, fat rubber in the rear and a stripped interior, this this is made to go very fast in a straight line. Next, there's a stock Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat boasting 707 horsepower. Plus, host Jessi Lang has her dog riding shotgun for the race. A Chevy Sonic RS with some body mods, downpipe and intake is also competing. Finally, the most bizarre of the quartet is a custom 1958 Jeep Forward Control with a 5.7-liter Hemi V8 and treads to replace the wheels.

Obviously, the Blasphemi and Hellcat are the only two that really have a chance of winning, but check out the video to see which one crosses the finish line first.