Absolutley Beautiful 1978 Ford Ranchero Brougham Just 50,130 Laser Straight Mint on 2040-cars

Auto blog

11 vehicles from Barrett-Jackson Las Vegas worth watching

This weekend will see the world's collector car crowds descend on Las Vegas, NV for one of the biggest shows on Barrett-Jackson's popular auction circuit. There are hundreds of vehicles up for bidding, ranging from a brand-new Lamborghini Aventador to a spattering of Art Deco classics and a huge swath of classic muscle cars.
While it's virtually impossible to assemble an inarguable list of the best cars coming during the three-day, 700-plus vehicle auction, we've sifted through the listings for this year's show - it was a tough assignment, we promise - and assembled a list of what we think will be some of the most interesting lots. We'll admit, it's a bit heavy on American iron, but if you browse BJ's listings, you'll come to a similar conclusion. Still, scroll down for our list of what we think will be the most interesting vehicles at the upcoming auction.

Hertz goes Dutch with Ford Focus ST-H

Want to take a performance car for a ride? Hertz can make that happen. Spin by your local rental location (depending, of course, on availability) and you can take out a Dodge Challenger, Ford Mustang, Chevy Camaro, even a Corvette as part of the Adrenaline Collection. Hertz's Dream Cars lineup even includes Porsches and AMGs. But the really interesting stuff is what you can't get anywhere else: cars built specifically for Hertz.
Back in 1966, Hertz had Ford cook up a special run of Mustang GT350H models in back with gold stripes. It became an icon in and of itself, and in 2008 Hertz had a new batch of Shelby GT-Hs made. Earlier this year, Hertz contracted Penske to deliver another fleet of specially-built Mustangs you can rent. But if your travel plans include a trip to the Netherlands, Hertz has a completely different type of specially-prepared Ford on offer for you.
Back in August, Ford delivered a couple of Focus STs made specifically for Hertz in Holland. Now it's expanded that fleet even further. The Ford Focus ST-H features the same 252-horsepower 2.0-liter turbo four (and everything else) as the standard Focus ST, but gets that signature black exterior with gold stripes and a black leather interior with Recaro buckets. So in case a trip to Amsterdam doesn't hold enough thrills, now you can throw a hot hatch into the mix as well. Scope out the press release (in Dutch - isn't that weird?) below.

Toyota sells six of 10 of hybrids in California

In an apparent shot back at Ford's increasing market share of electrified vehicles and claim that it accepts more Prius trade-ins for its own hybrids than any other car, Toyota has flexed a muscle and played the numbers game to put the Blue Oval in its place.
Leaning on its hybrid market dominance in California, the Japanese automaker stated that six out of 10 hybrids sold in the Golden State are Toyota models. And it keeps coming: Year-to-date through May 2013, Toyota sold five times more hybrids than Ford. One of every two hybrids in California is a Prius model. In addition, Toyota notes that it has sold 1.5 million Prius vehicles in the US, 90-percent of which are still on the road today.
Want more? We'll let Bill Fay, Toyota's group vice president and general manager of sales lay the smack down: