They use a multimillion-dollar machine known as the Meisterbock gauge that laser-scans the entire surface of the vehicle for defects as small as a few millimeters.

WSJ: New Chrysler Battling Old Defects

And yet, the US space agency has high confidence that the high-risk descent strategy its engineers have devised will deliver an intact vehicle to the surface.

BBC: Nasa's Curiosity Mars rover set for high risk landing

Torque vectoring enables optimum use of the adhesion potential between the tyres and the road surface in all driving conditions, thereby extending the critical limits of the vehicle's driving dynamics.

ENGADGET: Visualized: Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG E-Cell bares all

He has reported as the space vehicle Pathfinder arrived on Mars and beamed live video of the planet's surface back to earth.

CNN: The View from Space

While dirt would seem to be a slippery surface compared to pavement, a sprint car bites into the dirt and can outaccelerate almost any other vehicle: 0 to 60 in about 3 seconds.

FORBES: Vroom!

While dirt would seem to be a slippery surface compared to pavement, a sprint car bites into the dirt and can accelerate faster than almost any other vehicle: 0 to 95kph in about 3 seconds.

FORBES: Vroom!