German car games maker's first foray into the two-wheeled market will be via its city car offshoot, smart
prestige new cars » Get the best price on a new Mercedes-Benz
First seen in September 2010 at the Paris Motor Show, the smart 'escooter' concept was a cautious toe in the water for Mercedes-Benz city car sub-brand.
The tiny 4kW smart escooter has a top speed of just 45km/h and was conceived for European countries where motorists don't need a license to ride low-power vehicles, and the two-wheeled vehicle has been green-lit for production by parent company Mercedes-Benz.
The concept scooter will reach production by 2014, representing the first motorised two-wheeler from Benz since the early 1900s, and sees the German company join its prestige rivals in the motorcycle arena.
BMW has been building motorcycles since 1923 and Audi recently acquired exotic Italian motorcycle brand Ducati, making the escooter Daimler's tentative first step into the wider motorcycle world.
The German luxury car has had a keen interest in the two-wheeled transport, as Mercedes-Benz performance arm AMG had a cosy relationship with Ducati before Audi swooped in with its take-over.
Dr Joachim Schmidt, the head of global sales and marketing at Mercedes-Benz Cars, recently made the announcement that the smart escooter will reach production in 2014.
"The decision in favour of the escooter has been made. With this step, we are adding a further important component to our smart mobility concept for urban mobility in the future," he said.
Mercedes-Benz Australia's Corporate Communications Manager, Jerry Stamoulis, told motoring.com.au the escooter is being considered for the local market, and would be part of a reinvigorated smart brand.
"We're definitely looking at it. We're looking to lift the smart brand in Australia and we'd like to see motorbikes as part of that."
Stamoulis said 'Benz is investigating whether the escooter would be technically feasible in Australia, given its meagre maximum speed and charging technology.
Details of the plug-in electric scooter have not been revealed, but the concept version contained a number of features usually only found on high-end motorcycles, such as heated handlebars, a blind spot detection system and even an airbag.
One element that would increase the escooter's appeal among technophiles is the mooted iPhone integration system. The smart escooter concept could be paired with an iPhone that acts as the remote 'key' and allows users to prime various functions remotely and check the battery charge from afar. Once docked, the phone acts as the instrument cluster with speedometer, battery gauge and other readouts.
Read the latest news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at carsales' mobile site.
Hiển thị các bài đăng có nhãn cars games. Hiển thị tất cả bài đăng
Hiển thị các bài đăng có nhãn cars games. Hiển thị tất cả bài đăng
Thứ Ba, 22 tháng 5, 2012
VW unveils wacky hover-car
Volkswagen China's 'People's Car' project turns up ideas weird, wacky and sensible
‘Use your creative achievements tomorrow the public of the car games !’ So goes Google Translate’s take on the header for a website Volkswagen has set up to solicit suggestions from the public on the fu ture of China’s mobility.
The site has seen a massive influx of ideas, with several of the more interesting ones turning up at the recent Beijing motor show.
There’s an elegant logic to Volkwagen’s foray into China. Who better to mass-mobilise the socio-economic monolith that is the People’s Republic than the corporate monolith built around the People’s Car?
The connection is not lost on them. A year ago, the German giant launched the People’s Car Project (PCP) to help strengthen its attunement to Chinese consumer tastes. Harnessing the social networking trend that sees corporations inviting customers to ‘join the conversation’, the company set up a website inviting ideas from the people of China for their idea of the people’s car.
The result, the company says, has been overwhelming, with more than more than 119,000 ideas harvested from more than 33 million visitors.
The project heralds the future of automobile design, Luca de Meo, Volkswagen’s passenger car marketing chief, said in a statement.
“We are no longer just building cars for, but also with customers and at the same time initiating a national dialogue which gives us a deep insight into the design preferences, needs and requirements of Chinese customers,” de Meo said.
The project has given the company ‘valuable insight’ into what Chinese drivers are after, design boss Volkswagen Simon Loasby added. “The trend is towards safe cars that can easily navigate overcrowded roads and have a personal, emotional and exciting design.”
What have they come up with to such ends? Volkswagen used Beijing’s recent Auto China 2012 show to showcase three ideas that have so far gained enough momentum for further development.
First up comes a concept familiar to anyone who’s read those children’s books of the 1950s and 1960s promising we’d all go to the moon and glide around in wheel-less, magnetically suspended cars with bubble tops (and tail fins…).
It’s the ‘Hover Car’, described in the press release as ‘an environmentally-friendly two-seater city car which hovers just above the ground’ with the help of electromagnetic road networks. It looks like a big tyre.
‘Use your creative achievements tomorrow the public of the car games !’ So goes Google Translate’s take on the header for a website Volkswagen has set up to solicit suggestions from the public on the fu ture of China’s mobility.
The site has seen a massive influx of ideas, with several of the more interesting ones turning up at the recent Beijing motor show.
There’s an elegant logic to Volkwagen’s foray into China. Who better to mass-mobilise the socio-economic monolith that is the People’s Republic than the corporate monolith built around the People’s Car?
The connection is not lost on them. A year ago, the German giant launched the People’s Car Project (PCP) to help strengthen its attunement to Chinese consumer tastes. Harnessing the social networking trend that sees corporations inviting customers to ‘join the conversation’, the company set up a website inviting ideas from the people of China for their idea of the people’s car.
The result, the company says, has been overwhelming, with more than more than 119,000 ideas harvested from more than 33 million visitors.
The project heralds the future of automobile design, Luca de Meo, Volkswagen’s passenger car marketing chief, said in a statement.
“We are no longer just building cars for, but also with customers and at the same time initiating a national dialogue which gives us a deep insight into the design preferences, needs and requirements of Chinese customers,” de Meo said.
The project has given the company ‘valuable insight’ into what Chinese drivers are after, design boss Volkswagen Simon Loasby added. “The trend is towards safe cars that can easily navigate overcrowded roads and have a personal, emotional and exciting design.”
What have they come up with to such ends? Volkswagen used Beijing’s recent Auto China 2012 show to showcase three ideas that have so far gained enough momentum for further development.
First up comes a concept familiar to anyone who’s read those children’s books of the 1950s and 1960s promising we’d all go to the moon and glide around in wheel-less, magnetically suspended cars with bubble tops (and tail fins…).
It’s the ‘Hover Car’, described in the press release as ‘an environmentally-friendly two-seater city car which hovers just above the ground’ with the help of electromagnetic road networks. It looks like a big tyre.
F1: High five, even seventh heaven
After eight years on the slide Williams is a winning F1 team again thanks to second-year Venezuelan "pay driver" Pastor Maldonado's stunning success in Spain -- and the celebrations got even hotter
Fairytale victory ends with a bang
As the clock ticked past midnight and into Monday, Australian eastern time, Formula One was on a high. One of the highest highs, perhaps even the peak, in its history.
A little-known Venezuelan with reputedly almost $50 million this year from an oil company, and due to rise to close to $65 million in the next couple of years, had just scored a boilover victory at the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona. He drove a car from the Williams team, the sport's third most successful but without a victory for eight years.
Maldonado had started from the pole position, after McLaren's Lewis Hamilton was relegated to the back of the grid for stopping on the track after topping qualifying and not having enough fuel left for an adequate sample to be taken had he completed a slowdown lap.
That put Ferrari's Spanish superstar Fernando Alonso on the front row for his home race, and he grabbed the lead at the start despite Maldonado almost squeezing him off the track.
In time 27-year-old Maldonado assumed the lead and he drove an incredibly mature race, withstanding Alonso's pressure in the closing laps before the dual world champion had to back off and nurse his Ferrari home ahead of the rapidly-closing Kimi Raikkonen's Lotus-Renault.
Before this race you surely would have got 100-1, perhaps 200-1, on a Williams or Maldonado winning. Yet occasionally fairytales come true in F1.
They became the fifth driver and fifth constructor to triumph in five GPs so far this season. That hasn't happened since 1983. And, including the last two GPs of last season, there have been seven different victorious drivers in the past seven GPs.
It is indeed a glorious era in F1. Perhaps the most glorious of all.
Some magical facts and figures
Have just come across some neat stats from an information service called Infostrada.
Here's what it says:
"Pastor Maldonado won his first career Grand Prix and made his native Venezuela the 23rd country to produce at least one F1 GP winner. It ended a winless run of 131 straight GPs for Team Williams, which had last triumphed in Brazil in 2004 through Juan Pablo Montoya. For the first time in 29 years and the fourth time in history, an F1 season has started with five different drivers winning the first five races.
Most F1 races from start of season won by different drivers:
5 - 1967: Pedro Rodríguez, Denny Hulme, Jim Clark, Dan Gurney, Jack Brabham.
5 - 1975: Emerson Fittipaldi, Carlos Pace, Jody Scheckter, Jochen Mass, Niki Lauda.
5 - 1983: Nelson Piquet, John Watson, Alain Prost, Patrick Tambay, Keke Rosberg.
5 - 2012: Jenson Button, Fernando Alonso, Nico Rosberg, Sebastian Vettel, Pastor Maldonado.
31 people treated after garage explosion
Barely 90 minutes after Maldonado's historic win there was an explosion and fire in the Williams garage as wheelchair-bound team founder Sir Frank Williams, who had recently turned 70, addressed a celebratory party. Thirty one people required medical attention -- only four of them Williams team members -- and seven needed to be taken from the track medical centre to hospital.
It was a reminder that, no matter how good things sometimes after in motorsport, you never know -- nor can be complacent about -- what might be around the corner.
Motorsport's governing Federation Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) is investigating and hopefully there was nothing untoward in the fuel drum that exploded.
Williams has had a lot of changes of personnel, particularly near the top, in the past year. Long-serving Australian technical director Sam Michael departed after the team's long absence from the winner's circle, ironically resurfacing in a different role at great rival team McLaren.
Michael's replacement at Williams is Mike Coghlan, a former employee of the late Tom Walkinshaw's defunct Arrows F1 team and who was banned from the sport when at McLaren, which was found in the 2008 "Spygate" scandal to have obtained loads of secret information about that year's Ferrari.
Coghlan's appointment at Williams raised eyebrows but he had served his suspension, albeit shortened.
Provided nothing is found to have been amiss with Maldonado's Williams the team's shock return to success will continue to be widely celebrated.
As much as Alonso would have loved to have won on his home soil and taken the championship lead outright, instead of sharing it with Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel, who was sixth in Barcelona, he was thrilled for Maldonado. He and Raikkonen hoisted the Venezualan high on the podium.
But, as welcome as a new winner was, Maldonado's reaction lacked the joy of Australian Mark Webber's breakthrough victory in 2009.
Aussies out of the points
It was largely a GP to forget for Webber and fellow Aussie Daniel Ricciardo. They finished 11th and 13th respectively, with Ricciardo's young Toro Rosso teammate Jean-Eric Vergne sandwiched between them.
Webber didn't make it to the final stanza of qualifying, after Red Bull held him in the garage thinking his lap time would get him through. In the race he had two early stops, one to replace the nose of his car (something teammate Vettel also needed), and was baffled that his RB8 could not produce its best on a circuit where he had taken pole the previous two years -- and won so convincingly two years ago.
Ricciardo was outqualified by Frenchman Vergne but, despite finishing behind him too, felt his race was a progression on the previous outing in Bahrain, where sixth place on the grid had not translated into a haul of points.
Next up on the F1 calendar is Monaco, the crown jewel of the season.
Formula One drivers' world championship standings after five of 20 rounds -- 1. Sebastian Vettel (Germany, Red Bull-Renault) 61 points; 2. Fernando Alonso (Spain, Ferrari) 61; 3. Lewis Hamilton (Great Britain, McLaren-Mercedes) 53; 4. Kimi Raikkonen (Finland, Lotus-Renault) 49; 5. Mark Webber (Australia, Red Bull-Renault) 48; 6. Jenson Button (GB, McLaren-Mercedes) 45; 7. Nico Rosberg (Germany, Mercedes) 41; 8. Romain Grosjean (France, Lotus-Renault) 35; 9. Pastor Maldonado (Venezuela, Williams-Renault) 29; 10. Sergio Perez (Mexico, Sauber-Ferrari) 22; 11. Kamui Kobayashi (Japan, Sauber-Ferrari) 19; 12. Paul Di Resta (GB, Force India-Mercedes) 15; 13. Bruno Senna (Brazil, Williams-Renault) 14; 14. Jean-Eric Vergne (France, Toro Rosso-Ferrari) 4; 15. Nico Huelkenberg (Germany, Force India-Mercedes) 3; 16. Daniel Ricciardo (Australia, Toro Rosso-Ferrari) 2; 17. Felipe Massa (Brazil, Ferrari) 2; 18. Michael Schumacher (Germany, Mercedes) 2.
F1 constructors' championship standings -- 1. Red Bull-Renault 109 points; 2. McLaren-Mercedes 98; 3. Lotus-Renault 84; 4. Ferrari 63; 5. Mercedes, Williams-Renault 43; 7. Sauber-Ferrari 41; 8. Force India-Mercedes 18; 9. Toro Rosso-Ferrari 6.
Creek's in favour, Homebush on way out?
An announcement is due early next week on Eastern Creek, the western Sydney circuit that recently has been upgraded and has regained a V8 Super car games Championship round in August -- instead of a new overseas event. The circuit now has three alternative layouts and a name change is anticipated.
This author seems to recall that it was named in honour of Australia's triple F1 world champion Sir Jack Brabham in the 1990s but that the name never actually stuck.
Eastern Creek's return to favour as the only permanent circuit in the country's largest city coincides with increasing speculation about the future of the annual street race at the Homebush Olympic site.
The Sunday Telegraph newspaper, which has strongly backed that event, carried a report yesterday that its days appeared numbered and that, even if it survives a little longer, it may not remain the season finale.
V8 Supercars chief Tony Cochrane relentlessly pursued a Sydney street race but, apart from it not being a financial success and its TV figures being little changed from those of previous Eastern Creek rounds, it is seen as a legacy of disgraced former NSW Labor government minister Ian Macdonald.
Martian Ambrose happy but Hendrick team big winner
NASCAR team owner Rick Hendrick chalked up his 200th victory in American stock car racing's premier series with five-time champion driver Jimmie Johnson's victory in a Chevrolet at the Southern 500 at Darlington, South Carolina.
Australian Marcos Ambrose had his best finish of the season -- ninth in a Ford for Richard Petty Motorsports.
"I came from Mars ... I re-entered orbit around lap 260 and the last 80 laps was a lot of fun," Ambrose said. "We were two laps down and just fought our way back."
Johnson's win was his 56th, while Hendrick's 200 have included three in the Daytona 500, a string of successes in the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis -- and 10 championships.
Wheels turning at Brickyard but big guns yet to fire
Practice for the Indianapolis 500 openwheeler classic on May 28, Australian time, is underway -- with unlikely pacesetters. Colombian Sebastian Saavedra has clocked the best lap so far in this year's wide-bodied Dallara cars, circulating The Brickyard at 221.526 mph (356.5 kmh) for Andretti Autosport.
Rookies Bryan Clauson and day one leader Josef Newgarden were second and third for Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing and New Zealander Scott Dixon fourth for Chip Ganassi at 220.829 mph.
The only two drivers using Lotus engines, 47-year-old ex-F1 ace but Indy rookie Jean Alesi and Switzerland's Simona de Silvestro, have had the two slowest cars and are yet to come within the crucial 105 per cent of the fastest car. Alesi ran 205.265 mph on the 31st of his 32 laps on Sunday with newcomer team Fan Force United but had gone 209.438 mph on Saturday.
De Silvestro, with HVM Racing, posted her fastest lap of 202.179 mph on her final lap on Sunday but complained that "we don't have enough power".
Lotus and Dragon Racing, run by Roger Penske's son Jay, are still in dispute, which has stalled Frenchman Sebastien Bourdais' first attempt at the "Greatest Spectacle in Racing" since 2005 and rookie Katherine Legge. However, they may yet get Chevrolet engines as practice continues today ahead of next Saturday's qualifying for pole position.
Roger Penske's trio of drivers -- Australians Will Power and Ryan Briscoe, and Brazilian three-time Indy 500 winner Helio Castroneves -- have not been fussed about quick times yet but are likely to be strong contenders for pole in this most prestigious of Indy races.
Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at the carsales mobile site.
Fairytale victory ends with a bang
As the clock ticked past midnight and into Monday, Australian eastern time, Formula One was on a high. One of the highest highs, perhaps even the peak, in its history.
A little-known Venezuelan with reputedly almost $50 million this year from an oil company, and due to rise to close to $65 million in the next couple of years, had just scored a boilover victory at the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona. He drove a car from the Williams team, the sport's third most successful but without a victory for eight years.
Maldonado had started from the pole position, after McLaren's Lewis Hamilton was relegated to the back of the grid for stopping on the track after topping qualifying and not having enough fuel left for an adequate sample to be taken had he completed a slowdown lap.
That put Ferrari's Spanish superstar Fernando Alonso on the front row for his home race, and he grabbed the lead at the start despite Maldonado almost squeezing him off the track.
In time 27-year-old Maldonado assumed the lead and he drove an incredibly mature race, withstanding Alonso's pressure in the closing laps before the dual world champion had to back off and nurse his Ferrari home ahead of the rapidly-closing Kimi Raikkonen's Lotus-Renault.
Before this race you surely would have got 100-1, perhaps 200-1, on a Williams or Maldonado winning. Yet occasionally fairytales come true in F1.
They became the fifth driver and fifth constructor to triumph in five GPs so far this season. That hasn't happened since 1983. And, including the last two GPs of last season, there have been seven different victorious drivers in the past seven GPs.
It is indeed a glorious era in F1. Perhaps the most glorious of all.
Some magical facts and figures
Have just come across some neat stats from an information service called Infostrada.
Here's what it says:
"Pastor Maldonado won his first career Grand Prix and made his native Venezuela the 23rd country to produce at least one F1 GP winner. It ended a winless run of 131 straight GPs for Team Williams, which had last triumphed in Brazil in 2004 through Juan Pablo Montoya. For the first time in 29 years and the fourth time in history, an F1 season has started with five different drivers winning the first five races.
Most F1 races from start of season won by different drivers:
5 - 1967: Pedro Rodríguez, Denny Hulme, Jim Clark, Dan Gurney, Jack Brabham.
5 - 1975: Emerson Fittipaldi, Carlos Pace, Jody Scheckter, Jochen Mass, Niki Lauda.
5 - 1983: Nelson Piquet, John Watson, Alain Prost, Patrick Tambay, Keke Rosberg.
5 - 2012: Jenson Button, Fernando Alonso, Nico Rosberg, Sebastian Vettel, Pastor Maldonado.
31 people treated after garage explosion
Barely 90 minutes after Maldonado's historic win there was an explosion and fire in the Williams garage as wheelchair-bound team founder Sir Frank Williams, who had recently turned 70, addressed a celebratory party. Thirty one people required medical attention -- only four of them Williams team members -- and seven needed to be taken from the track medical centre to hospital.
It was a reminder that, no matter how good things sometimes after in motorsport, you never know -- nor can be complacent about -- what might be around the corner.
Motorsport's governing Federation Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) is investigating and hopefully there was nothing untoward in the fuel drum that exploded.
Williams has had a lot of changes of personnel, particularly near the top, in the past year. Long-serving Australian technical director Sam Michael departed after the team's long absence from the winner's circle, ironically resurfacing in a different role at great rival team McLaren.
Michael's replacement at Williams is Mike Coghlan, a former employee of the late Tom Walkinshaw's defunct Arrows F1 team and who was banned from the sport when at McLaren, which was found in the 2008 "Spygate" scandal to have obtained loads of secret information about that year's Ferrari.
Coghlan's appointment at Williams raised eyebrows but he had served his suspension, albeit shortened.
Provided nothing is found to have been amiss with Maldonado's Williams the team's shock return to success will continue to be widely celebrated.
As much as Alonso would have loved to have won on his home soil and taken the championship lead outright, instead of sharing it with Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel, who was sixth in Barcelona, he was thrilled for Maldonado. He and Raikkonen hoisted the Venezualan high on the podium.
But, as welcome as a new winner was, Maldonado's reaction lacked the joy of Australian Mark Webber's breakthrough victory in 2009.
Aussies out of the points
It was largely a GP to forget for Webber and fellow Aussie Daniel Ricciardo. They finished 11th and 13th respectively, with Ricciardo's young Toro Rosso teammate Jean-Eric Vergne sandwiched between them.
Webber didn't make it to the final stanza of qualifying, after Red Bull held him in the garage thinking his lap time would get him through. In the race he had two early stops, one to replace the nose of his car (something teammate Vettel also needed), and was baffled that his RB8 could not produce its best on a circuit where he had taken pole the previous two years -- and won so convincingly two years ago.
Ricciardo was outqualified by Frenchman Vergne but, despite finishing behind him too, felt his race was a progression on the previous outing in Bahrain, where sixth place on the grid had not translated into a haul of points.
Next up on the F1 calendar is Monaco, the crown jewel of the season.
Formula One drivers' world championship standings after five of 20 rounds -- 1. Sebastian Vettel (Germany, Red Bull-Renault) 61 points; 2. Fernando Alonso (Spain, Ferrari) 61; 3. Lewis Hamilton (Great Britain, McLaren-Mercedes) 53; 4. Kimi Raikkonen (Finland, Lotus-Renault) 49; 5. Mark Webber (Australia, Red Bull-Renault) 48; 6. Jenson Button (GB, McLaren-Mercedes) 45; 7. Nico Rosberg (Germany, Mercedes) 41; 8. Romain Grosjean (France, Lotus-Renault) 35; 9. Pastor Maldonado (Venezuela, Williams-Renault) 29; 10. Sergio Perez (Mexico, Sauber-Ferrari) 22; 11. Kamui Kobayashi (Japan, Sauber-Ferrari) 19; 12. Paul Di Resta (GB, Force India-Mercedes) 15; 13. Bruno Senna (Brazil, Williams-Renault) 14; 14. Jean-Eric Vergne (France, Toro Rosso-Ferrari) 4; 15. Nico Huelkenberg (Germany, Force India-Mercedes) 3; 16. Daniel Ricciardo (Australia, Toro Rosso-Ferrari) 2; 17. Felipe Massa (Brazil, Ferrari) 2; 18. Michael Schumacher (Germany, Mercedes) 2.
F1 constructors' championship standings -- 1. Red Bull-Renault 109 points; 2. McLaren-Mercedes 98; 3. Lotus-Renault 84; 4. Ferrari 63; 5. Mercedes, Williams-Renault 43; 7. Sauber-Ferrari 41; 8. Force India-Mercedes 18; 9. Toro Rosso-Ferrari 6.
Creek's in favour, Homebush on way out?
An announcement is due early next week on Eastern Creek, the western Sydney circuit that recently has been upgraded and has regained a V8 Super car games Championship round in August -- instead of a new overseas event. The circuit now has three alternative layouts and a name change is anticipated.
This author seems to recall that it was named in honour of Australia's triple F1 world champion Sir Jack Brabham in the 1990s but that the name never actually stuck.
Eastern Creek's return to favour as the only permanent circuit in the country's largest city coincides with increasing speculation about the future of the annual street race at the Homebush Olympic site.
The Sunday Telegraph newspaper, which has strongly backed that event, carried a report yesterday that its days appeared numbered and that, even if it survives a little longer, it may not remain the season finale.
V8 Supercars chief Tony Cochrane relentlessly pursued a Sydney street race but, apart from it not being a financial success and its TV figures being little changed from those of previous Eastern Creek rounds, it is seen as a legacy of disgraced former NSW Labor government minister Ian Macdonald.
Martian Ambrose happy but Hendrick team big winner
NASCAR team owner Rick Hendrick chalked up his 200th victory in American stock car racing's premier series with five-time champion driver Jimmie Johnson's victory in a Chevrolet at the Southern 500 at Darlington, South Carolina.
Australian Marcos Ambrose had his best finish of the season -- ninth in a Ford for Richard Petty Motorsports.
"I came from Mars ... I re-entered orbit around lap 260 and the last 80 laps was a lot of fun," Ambrose said. "We were two laps down and just fought our way back."
Johnson's win was his 56th, while Hendrick's 200 have included three in the Daytona 500, a string of successes in the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis -- and 10 championships.
Wheels turning at Brickyard but big guns yet to fire
Practice for the Indianapolis 500 openwheeler classic on May 28, Australian time, is underway -- with unlikely pacesetters. Colombian Sebastian Saavedra has clocked the best lap so far in this year's wide-bodied Dallara cars, circulating The Brickyard at 221.526 mph (356.5 kmh) for Andretti Autosport.
Rookies Bryan Clauson and day one leader Josef Newgarden were second and third for Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing and New Zealander Scott Dixon fourth for Chip Ganassi at 220.829 mph.
The only two drivers using Lotus engines, 47-year-old ex-F1 ace but Indy rookie Jean Alesi and Switzerland's Simona de Silvestro, have had the two slowest cars and are yet to come within the crucial 105 per cent of the fastest car. Alesi ran 205.265 mph on the 31st of his 32 laps on Sunday with newcomer team Fan Force United but had gone 209.438 mph on Saturday.
De Silvestro, with HVM Racing, posted her fastest lap of 202.179 mph on her final lap on Sunday but complained that "we don't have enough power".
Lotus and Dragon Racing, run by Roger Penske's son Jay, are still in dispute, which has stalled Frenchman Sebastien Bourdais' first attempt at the "Greatest Spectacle in Racing" since 2005 and rookie Katherine Legge. However, they may yet get Chevrolet engines as practice continues today ahead of next Saturday's qualifying for pole position.
Roger Penske's trio of drivers -- Australians Will Power and Ryan Briscoe, and Brazilian three-time Indy 500 winner Helio Castroneves -- have not been fussed about quick times yet but are likely to be strong contenders for pole in this most prestigious of Indy races.
Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at the carsales mobile site.
Vale an automotive genius, Carroll Shelby
He was a top driver but it was as a designer and engineer that Car games roll Shelby generated the style and performance for which he will always be revered
Carroll Shelby, the father of the muscle car and the Ford GT40 that ended Ferrari's dominance at Le Mans, has died, aged 89.
Shelby was a man of many parts -- at various times a chicken farmer, an African safari operator, a diamond dealer and a marketer of a chilli mix he sold to Nestlé. He was married seven times but "didn't count the second one 'cause it happened in Mexico".
Texan Shelby won Le Mans driving an Aston-Martin in 1959 and set land speed records on the Bonneville Salt Flats, but it was as a race and sports car designer and engineer that he was revered.
Shelby created the Cobra in 1962, marrying a sports car chassis and body from AC Ace in Britain to a high-powered Ford V8 engine.
Four years later Ford GT40s finished one, two, three at Le Mans in a monumental triumph for American engineering over the Europeans, especially Ferrari.
The next year a development of the GT40, the Mark IV, won the French 24-hour classic. Lee Iacocca, then running Ford, had already assigned Shelby to produce a high-performance, sportier version of his Mustang to compete with Chevrolet's Corvette -- and he came up with the fastback.
During six decades in the motor industry he also worked for General Motors' Oldsmobile division and for Chrysler, where Iacocca had him create the Dodge Viper. His entry to the car industry had been through a Dallas dealership in which a co-owner was another Texan automotive genius, Jim Hall, of Chaparral fame, and together they created a handful of Scaglietti Corvettes.
Shelby's career ended with a consultancy back at Ford. The 2013 Shelby GT 500 on which he collaborated has the most powerful production V8 engine in the world -- 662 horsepower -- and a top speed of 200mph (320kmh).
Announcing his death, without disclosing the cause (thought to be from pneumonia), Joe Conway, president of Carroll Shelby International, said: "There has been no one like Carroll Shelby and never will be. He is perhaps the only person to have worked at a visible level with all three American automobile manufacturers."
Shelby had survived a heart transplant in 1990 and a kidney transplant in 1996.
In between he was inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame.
"Performance is my business," he used to say. When asked his favourite among all the cars he had created he invariably said "the next one".
Edsel B. Ford said of Shelby: "Whether helping Ford dominate the 1960s racing scene or building some of the most famous Mustangs, his enthusiasm and passion for great automobiles over six decades has truly inspired everyone who worked with him."
But perhaps it was Carol Flake, writing in the Texas Monthly magazine in 1995, who said it best. Flake had been taken for a ride in a 30-year-old Shelby Cobra and said that anybody lucky enough to have that experience "may never feel the same way about cars again".
"It's a little like riding a runaway thoroughbred after trotting around a ring on a pony," she said. "Fear melts into awe."
Carroll Shelby was a man who forever will be held in awe.
Carroll Shelby, the father of the muscle car and the Ford GT40 that ended Ferrari's dominance at Le Mans, has died, aged 89.
Shelby was a man of many parts -- at various times a chicken farmer, an African safari operator, a diamond dealer and a marketer of a chilli mix he sold to Nestlé. He was married seven times but "didn't count the second one 'cause it happened in Mexico".
Texan Shelby won Le Mans driving an Aston-Martin in 1959 and set land speed records on the Bonneville Salt Flats, but it was as a race and sports car designer and engineer that he was revered.
Shelby created the Cobra in 1962, marrying a sports car chassis and body from AC Ace in Britain to a high-powered Ford V8 engine.
Four years later Ford GT40s finished one, two, three at Le Mans in a monumental triumph for American engineering over the Europeans, especially Ferrari.
The next year a development of the GT40, the Mark IV, won the French 24-hour classic. Lee Iacocca, then running Ford, had already assigned Shelby to produce a high-performance, sportier version of his Mustang to compete with Chevrolet's Corvette -- and he came up with the fastback.
During six decades in the motor industry he also worked for General Motors' Oldsmobile division and for Chrysler, where Iacocca had him create the Dodge Viper. His entry to the car industry had been through a Dallas dealership in which a co-owner was another Texan automotive genius, Jim Hall, of Chaparral fame, and together they created a handful of Scaglietti Corvettes.
Shelby's career ended with a consultancy back at Ford. The 2013 Shelby GT 500 on which he collaborated has the most powerful production V8 engine in the world -- 662 horsepower -- and a top speed of 200mph (320kmh).
Announcing his death, without disclosing the cause (thought to be from pneumonia), Joe Conway, president of Carroll Shelby International, said: "There has been no one like Carroll Shelby and never will be. He is perhaps the only person to have worked at a visible level with all three American automobile manufacturers."
Shelby had survived a heart transplant in 1990 and a kidney transplant in 1996.
In between he was inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame.
"Performance is my business," he used to say. When asked his favourite among all the cars he had created he invariably said "the next one".
Edsel B. Ford said of Shelby: "Whether helping Ford dominate the 1960s racing scene or building some of the most famous Mustangs, his enthusiasm and passion for great automobiles over six decades has truly inspired everyone who worked with him."
But perhaps it was Carol Flake, writing in the Texas Monthly magazine in 1995, who said it best. Flake had been taken for a ride in a 30-year-old Shelby Cobra and said that anybody lucky enough to have that experience "may never feel the same way about cars again".
"It's a little like riding a runaway thoroughbred after trotting around a ring on a pony," she said. "Fear melts into awe."
Carroll Shelby was a man who forever will be held in awe.
Last Saabs for sale
After 25 years of convertible business, Saab signs off with an Independence Edition soft-top
A limited number of hand-finished Saab convertibles have been released for sale in the UK. Referred to as "the last" right-hand drive 9-3 models, the "Final MY12" offering will total just 26.
The Independence Edition convertibles were assembled by "a dedicated and loyal workforce" at Trollhattan, Sweden and are based on the top-spec Aero model.
Equipped with Saab's 1.9-litre twin turbo diesel and six-speed automatic transmission, the Independence models are distinguished by car games bon fibre trim embellishments, orange-stitched leather upholstery and new-style five-spoke 18-inch alloy wheels. Each will come with its serial number on the rear side window.
The last-of-the-line Saab starts at 22,750 pounds (approximately AU$37K). Saab Australia representatives could not be reached for comment.
While Saab was officially placed into receivership last December receivership last December, vehicle owners were assured parts supply would continue as Saab Parts AB in Sweden was outside the effects of the bankruptcy on the vehicle manufacturing arm.
In January, Saab Automobile Parts UK was established and has since arranged new contracts with suppliers. More promising news followed in late April, with the announcement body parts production had resumed at Saab's Trollhatten plant.
Lennart Stahl, CEO of Saab Automobile Parts AB, said: "These agreements, together with recently signed new contracts with key suppliers, are part of a comprehensive program to ensure a consistent supply of parts for Saab vehicles, both short and long term."
Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at the carsales mobile site.
A limited number of hand-finished Saab convertibles have been released for sale in the UK. Referred to as "the last" right-hand drive 9-3 models, the "Final MY12" offering will total just 26.
The Independence Edition convertibles were assembled by "a dedicated and loyal workforce" at Trollhattan, Sweden and are based on the top-spec Aero model.
Equipped with Saab's 1.9-litre twin turbo diesel and six-speed automatic transmission, the Independence models are distinguished by car games bon fibre trim embellishments, orange-stitched leather upholstery and new-style five-spoke 18-inch alloy wheels. Each will come with its serial number on the rear side window.
The last-of-the-line Saab starts at 22,750 pounds (approximately AU$37K). Saab Australia representatives could not be reached for comment.
While Saab was officially placed into receivership last December receivership last December, vehicle owners were assured parts supply would continue as Saab Parts AB in Sweden was outside the effects of the bankruptcy on the vehicle manufacturing arm.
In January, Saab Automobile Parts UK was established and has since arranged new contracts with suppliers. More promising news followed in late April, with the announcement body parts production had resumed at Saab's Trollhatten plant.
Lennart Stahl, CEO of Saab Automobile Parts AB, said: "These agreements, together with recently signed new contracts with key suppliers, are part of a comprehensive program to ensure a consistent supply of parts for Saab vehicles, both short and long term."
Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at the carsales mobile site.
BMW packs more into new 3 Touring
Class-leading car games go capacity will be a hallmark of the new 3 Series Touring, says BMW
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BMW claims to have set a new benchmark for luggage space with its stylish new 3 Series Touring wagon.
A huge seller in its native Europe, the 3 Series Touring will have its cargo area bumped up 495 litres when it launches in its domestic market in August.
Powered by a lone petrol engine and a pair of diesels in its initial wave, the 3 Series Touring will also be longer, more economical and faster than the old version.
Identical to the all-new 3 Series from the front bumper back to the B-Pillar, the redesigned Touring is all change from the rear doors back, as well as stretched to be 97mm longer than the sedan.
More than half of that is in the wheelbase, with the rear wheels sitting 50mm further back than they do in the sedan, though the car is up to 40kg lighter than its predecessor.
BMW has also given it a 40:20:40 split in the folding rear seat, which gives the five-door wagon the potential to offer a 1500-litre cargo capacity in a machine whose standard format already offers 35 litres more luggage space than the old 3 Series Touring.
The extra wheelbase has largely been dedicated to luggage space, though, because the extra 50mm translates to only 17mm more rear knee room than the sedan.
Its cargo area has been carefully crafted with Audi in mind, containing an array of hooks, compartmentalisation options, sliding rails, cargo nets and a cargo cover that can be dispatched to stow beneath the rear floor. It retains the separate rear window operation of the old car, too, and its loading lip is still low, at 620mm off the ground.
It offers the typically huge BMW range of options, including a hands-free foot-swiping arrangement to open the tailgate, but will be based around Modern, Luxury and Sport packages, though there is also an M Sport offering that rides lower and carries some bodywork and extra grip.
It will arrive initially in 328i, 320d and 330d form, with the 330d sitting smugly atop the TwinPower petrol engine as the flagship.
The six-cylinder turbodiesel outputs 10 percent more power, with 190kW, and thumps out 560Nm of torque from 1500rpm. It’s the fastest offering in the initial 3 Series Touring range, too, sprinting to 100km/h in 5.6 seconds, yet uses just 5.1 litres/100km on the combined European cycle.
It is also the heaviest, at 1600kg of dry kerb weight, which is 100kg more than the 328i.
The sole petrol offering, the four-cylinder, turbocharged 328i is marginally slower than the 330d, with its 180kW of power slipping it through to 100km/h in 6.05 seconds. It’s thirstier, too, at 6.8L/100km on the combined cycle (though that’s a 10 percent improvement over the old 325i Touring) and less flexible, thanks to its 350Nm falling more than 200Nm shy of the big-punching six.
The base engine is a 2.0-litre turbodiesel in the 320d, with 380Nm of torque and 135kW of power. It’s also the lightest at 1490kg and uses the least fuel, at 4.7L/100km, and shrinks the faster car’s 17-inch wheels down to 16-inch, shedding its standard run-flat rubber for old-school pneumatic tyres on the way.
All three cars will be available with manual transmissions (in Europe, anyway), though the optional eight-speed automatic is both faster and more economical, even if it adds another 30kg.
The family won’t stop there though, with BMW already planning to introduce a 320i, a 316d and a 318d in Europe before the end of the year.
discount new cars Get the best price on a new BMW
BMW claims to have set a new benchmark for luggage space with its stylish new 3 Series Touring wagon.
A huge seller in its native Europe, the 3 Series Touring will have its cargo area bumped up 495 litres when it launches in its domestic market in August.
Powered by a lone petrol engine and a pair of diesels in its initial wave, the 3 Series Touring will also be longer, more economical and faster than the old version.
Identical to the all-new 3 Series from the front bumper back to the B-Pillar, the redesigned Touring is all change from the rear doors back, as well as stretched to be 97mm longer than the sedan.
More than half of that is in the wheelbase, with the rear wheels sitting 50mm further back than they do in the sedan, though the car is up to 40kg lighter than its predecessor.
BMW has also given it a 40:20:40 split in the folding rear seat, which gives the five-door wagon the potential to offer a 1500-litre cargo capacity in a machine whose standard format already offers 35 litres more luggage space than the old 3 Series Touring.
The extra wheelbase has largely been dedicated to luggage space, though, because the extra 50mm translates to only 17mm more rear knee room than the sedan.
Its cargo area has been carefully crafted with Audi in mind, containing an array of hooks, compartmentalisation options, sliding rails, cargo nets and a cargo cover that can be dispatched to stow beneath the rear floor. It retains the separate rear window operation of the old car, too, and its loading lip is still low, at 620mm off the ground.
It offers the typically huge BMW range of options, including a hands-free foot-swiping arrangement to open the tailgate, but will be based around Modern, Luxury and Sport packages, though there is also an M Sport offering that rides lower and carries some bodywork and extra grip.
It will arrive initially in 328i, 320d and 330d form, with the 330d sitting smugly atop the TwinPower petrol engine as the flagship.
The six-cylinder turbodiesel outputs 10 percent more power, with 190kW, and thumps out 560Nm of torque from 1500rpm. It’s the fastest offering in the initial 3 Series Touring range, too, sprinting to 100km/h in 5.6 seconds, yet uses just 5.1 litres/100km on the combined European cycle.
It is also the heaviest, at 1600kg of dry kerb weight, which is 100kg more than the 328i.
The sole petrol offering, the four-cylinder, turbocharged 328i is marginally slower than the 330d, with its 180kW of power slipping it through to 100km/h in 6.05 seconds. It’s thirstier, too, at 6.8L/100km on the combined cycle (though that’s a 10 percent improvement over the old 325i Touring) and less flexible, thanks to its 350Nm falling more than 200Nm shy of the big-punching six.
The base engine is a 2.0-litre turbodiesel in the 320d, with 380Nm of torque and 135kW of power. It’s also the lightest at 1490kg and uses the least fuel, at 4.7L/100km, and shrinks the faster car’s 17-inch wheels down to 16-inch, shedding its standard run-flat rubber for old-school pneumatic tyres on the way.
All three cars will be available with manual transmissions (in Europe, anyway), though the optional eight-speed automatic is both faster and more economical, even if it adds another 30kg.
The family won’t stop there though, with BMW already planning to introduce a 320i, a 316d and a 318d in Europe before the end of the year.
Thứ Tư, 28 tháng 3, 2012
Brabus SV12 R Biturbo 800
German tuner creates "the world's most powerful and fastest luxury saloon" that develops almost as much torque as the most powerful Bugatti Veyron ever built
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With its thump-truck credibility on the line like never before, German Benz hot tuner Brabus has responded by creating the world's most powerful luxury four door limousine.
With the SV12 R Biturbo 800, Brabus has squeezed 588kW from the S-Class Mercedes-Benz's twin-turbo V12 power plant to make a limousine that hits an astonishing 350km/h (217mph).
Brabus had to make a move, though, with Benz's all-new twin-turbo V8 cranking out 320kW of power and 700Nm of torque giving the standard Mercedes range surging performance.
But the way it has worked the old V12 has produced more than double the torque of the new V8, with 1420Nm (1047lb-ft). While Brabus limits its output to 1100Nm (812lb-ft) to keep its gearbox alive, it's still good enough to hurl the two-tonne limo to 100km/h in just 3.9 seconds and it will keep surging in a wall of speed to hit 200km/h in only 10.3 seconds. That means the SV12 R Biturbo 800 will take just 6.4 seconds to sprint from 100km/h to 200, which is better than a lot of supposedly fast cars games take to hit the metric tonne.
While it hasn't skimped on luxury, the main focus has been on the SV12 R Biturbo 800's performance, so the 5.5-litre (336ci) V12 engine from Mercedes has been enlarged to 6.3 litres (385ci) thanks to both bore and stroke increases.
It now has larger pistons and balanced connecting rods, plus angrier camshafts, freer-breathing cylinder heads and a new, carbon-fibre air intake system.
It has four water-to-air intercoolers to feed its two turbo chargers and the powerplant is finished off with a four-tipped, stainless-steel exhaust system, all of which complies with EURO V emission laws.
It's not a high-revving engine though, with peak torque thumping home at 2100rpm and peak power coming and going at 5500 -- and it's still rear-wheel drive only, even though Benz offers the S-Class with an all-wheel drive option.
While Benz itself has high-tech seven-speed automatic transmissions available, they've not been designed to cope with this level of power, so Brabus has beefed up a five-speed auto (which doesn't seem to hurt its acceleration figures) and run the torque through a limited-slip rear diff.
Given that Benz limits its own S-Class sedans to 250km/h, Brabus has had to work hard to keep the SV12 R Biturbo 800 on the ground in braking, suspension and aerodynamic development.
The grip begins with the massive monobloc wheels, which range from 19- to 21-inches in diameter and wear either Pirelli or Yokohama sports 265/30 ZR 21 at the front and 295/30 ZR 21 tyres at the back.
With its own suspension system also fitted, the SV12 R Biturbo 800 uses enormous 12-piston, fixed aluminium brake calipers on a 380mm x 36mm steel front braking system, and there are six-piston calipers with 355mm x 28mm discs at the rear, to provide more than double the braking power of the standard S-Class.
Brabus also tweaked the Active Body Control's computer to lower the ride height 15mm (0.6 inches) to minimize body roll and to help keep the aerodynamics more stable at high speed, along with a distinctive front lip spoiler. There's also a clear-coated, carbon-fibre rear spoiler lip, too, and the new rear bumper has customised cut-outs for the four exhaust tips.
The interior upgrades include an iBusiness multimedia pack to sync the car to Apple-based systems, like the iPhone or iPad, while Brabus can tailor the interior trim to any colour of leather or carpet anybody might want.
Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at carsales' mobile site.
prestige new cars » Get the best price on a new Mercedes-Benz
With its thump-truck credibility on the line like never before, German Benz hot tuner Brabus has responded by creating the world's most powerful luxury four door limousine.
With the SV12 R Biturbo 800, Brabus has squeezed 588kW from the S-Class Mercedes-Benz's twin-turbo V12 power plant to make a limousine that hits an astonishing 350km/h (217mph).
Brabus had to make a move, though, with Benz's all-new twin-turbo V8 cranking out 320kW of power and 700Nm of torque giving the standard Mercedes range surging performance.
But the way it has worked the old V12 has produced more than double the torque of the new V8, with 1420Nm (1047lb-ft). While Brabus limits its output to 1100Nm (812lb-ft) to keep its gearbox alive, it's still good enough to hurl the two-tonne limo to 100km/h in just 3.9 seconds and it will keep surging in a wall of speed to hit 200km/h in only 10.3 seconds. That means the SV12 R Biturbo 800 will take just 6.4 seconds to sprint from 100km/h to 200, which is better than a lot of supposedly fast cars games take to hit the metric tonne.
While it hasn't skimped on luxury, the main focus has been on the SV12 R Biturbo 800's performance, so the 5.5-litre (336ci) V12 engine from Mercedes has been enlarged to 6.3 litres (385ci) thanks to both bore and stroke increases.
It now has larger pistons and balanced connecting rods, plus angrier camshafts, freer-breathing cylinder heads and a new, carbon-fibre air intake system.
It has four water-to-air intercoolers to feed its two turbo chargers and the powerplant is finished off with a four-tipped, stainless-steel exhaust system, all of which complies with EURO V emission laws.
It's not a high-revving engine though, with peak torque thumping home at 2100rpm and peak power coming and going at 5500 -- and it's still rear-wheel drive only, even though Benz offers the S-Class with an all-wheel drive option.
While Benz itself has high-tech seven-speed automatic transmissions available, they've not been designed to cope with this level of power, so Brabus has beefed up a five-speed auto (which doesn't seem to hurt its acceleration figures) and run the torque through a limited-slip rear diff.
Given that Benz limits its own S-Class sedans to 250km/h, Brabus has had to work hard to keep the SV12 R Biturbo 800 on the ground in braking, suspension and aerodynamic development.
The grip begins with the massive monobloc wheels, which range from 19- to 21-inches in diameter and wear either Pirelli or Yokohama sports 265/30 ZR 21 at the front and 295/30 ZR 21 tyres at the back.
With its own suspension system also fitted, the SV12 R Biturbo 800 uses enormous 12-piston, fixed aluminium brake calipers on a 380mm x 36mm steel front braking system, and there are six-piston calipers with 355mm x 28mm discs at the rear, to provide more than double the braking power of the standard S-Class.
Brabus also tweaked the Active Body Control's computer to lower the ride height 15mm (0.6 inches) to minimize body roll and to help keep the aerodynamics more stable at high speed, along with a distinctive front lip spoiler. There's also a clear-coated, carbon-fibre rear spoiler lip, too, and the new rear bumper has customised cut-outs for the four exhaust tips.
The interior upgrades include an iBusiness multimedia pack to sync the car to Apple-based systems, like the iPhone or iPad, while Brabus can tailor the interior trim to any colour of leather or carpet anybody might want.
Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at carsales' mobile site.
Renault hottie on sale
Renault's long-awaited Mégane RS is on sale -- at last
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Australia's hot hatch fans rejoice -- the choice of Gendarmes and French boy-racers alike, the all-new Renault Sport Mégane RS 250 is in dealers Down Under at last.
Launched this week in Melbourne, the new RS is the flagship of the updated Renault range. Debuted alongside the new Mégane five-door hatch and Fluence sedan, the new Renault Sport will be offered in Cup and Cup Trophée variants. The vehicle is available in a single three-door coupe-cum-hatch body style only.
The new RS is powered by a 184kW/340Nm turbocharged 2.0-litre petrol engine matched to a six-speed manual gearbox. No auto or dual clutch variant is offered. Though Renault sources admit the carmaker does have a sequential offering on the way, it's not clear when the update will surface. One pick is at the car's midlife facelift due late 2011 or early 2012.
Also high on the RS 250's spec list is a mechanical limited-slip differential and oversized Brembo brakes.
As part of its brand relaunch Renault Australia has simplified its model lineups and boosted standard specifications across board. Already well equipped in its outgoing Mégane F1 Team R26 limited edition guise, the new RS benefits less from this policy than cooking model Méganes.
The Mégane Renault Sport 250 Cup is priced from $41,990. Included in its standard specification are Sports antilock brakes and stepped stability control, headlight washers, LED daylight running lamps, 18-inch alloys, sports seats, auto lights and wipers, dual-zone climate aircon, foglights, electric window and mirrors, cruise control with speed limiter, USB interface and streaming Bluetooth audio and hands-free and rear park sensors.
Though satnav is not available, a multi-function RS Monitor Display allows users to measure a number of performance parameters including laptimes. The system also incorporates Renault Sport Dynamic Management system which allows the driver to choose the degree of electronic intervention from the stability control system as well as 'tuning' the throttle mapping.
Unlike most cooking model Renaults, the RS 250 allows the complete disconnection of the stability control for racetrack use.
Attracting a $5000 premium, the Cup Trophee adds keyless entry and start, 19-inch alloys (though 18-inch wheels can still be specified at no added cost), tyre pressure monitoring system, height adjustable Recaro front seats and more.
Options across the RS 250 range include leather upholstery, front park sensors and Bi-Xenon headlamps.
Aside from the wheel sizes and designs, the Cup and Cup Trophee can be told apart by the colour coding of front bumper facing and rear diffuser-style valance. In the Cup the elements are black, while the Trophee gets gloss gunmetal finishes.
Read our launch review of the Renault Sport Mégane RS 250.
Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at carsales' mobile site...
discount new cars » Get the best price on a new Renault
Australia's hot hatch fans rejoice -- the choice of Gendarmes and French boy-racers alike, the all-new Renault Sport Mégane RS 250 is in dealers Down Under at last.
Launched this week in Melbourne, the new RS is the flagship of the updated Renault range. Debuted alongside the new Mégane five-door hatch and Fluence sedan, the new Renault Sport will be offered in Cup and Cup Trophée variants. The vehicle is available in a single three-door coupe-cum-hatch body style only.
The new RS is powered by a 184kW/340Nm turbocharged 2.0-litre petrol engine matched to a six-speed manual gearbox. No auto or dual clutch variant is offered. Though Renault sources admit the carmaker does have a sequential offering on the way, it's not clear when the update will surface. One pick is at the car's midlife facelift due late 2011 or early 2012.
Also high on the RS 250's spec list is a mechanical limited-slip differential and oversized Brembo brakes.
As part of its brand relaunch Renault Australia has simplified its model lineups and boosted standard specifications across board. Already well equipped in its outgoing Mégane F1 Team R26 limited edition guise, the new RS benefits less from this policy than cooking model Méganes.
The Mégane Renault Sport 250 Cup is priced from $41,990. Included in its standard specification are Sports antilock brakes and stepped stability control, headlight washers, LED daylight running lamps, 18-inch alloys, sports seats, auto lights and wipers, dual-zone climate aircon, foglights, electric window and mirrors, cruise control with speed limiter, USB interface and streaming Bluetooth audio and hands-free and rear park sensors.
Though satnav is not available, a multi-function RS Monitor Display allows users to measure a number of performance parameters including laptimes. The system also incorporates Renault Sport Dynamic Management system which allows the driver to choose the degree of electronic intervention from the stability control system as well as 'tuning' the throttle mapping.
Unlike most cooking model Renaults, the RS 250 allows the complete disconnection of the stability control for racetrack use.
Attracting a $5000 premium, the Cup Trophee adds keyless entry and start, 19-inch alloys (though 18-inch wheels can still be specified at no added cost), tyre pressure monitoring system, height adjustable Recaro front seats and more.
Options across the RS 250 range include leather upholstery, front park sensors and Bi-Xenon headlamps.
Aside from the wheel sizes and designs, the Cup and Cup Trophee can be told apart by the colour coding of front bumper facing and rear diffuser-style valance. In the Cup the elements are black, while the Trophee gets gloss gunmetal finishes.
Read our launch review of the Renault Sport Mégane RS 250.
Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at carsales' mobile site...
Classic racer Batten to campaign F6 in Targa High Country
Hard-charging Volvo punter will swap to a turbocharged FPV for tarmac rally round
Paul Batten's name may not be familiar to many, but his bright red Volvo PV544 is a regular fixture in the Classic Handicap section of Australia's best-known tarmac rally, the Targa Tasmania.
Batten (pictured) is putting aside the ancient Volvo for a drive in a factory-supported FPV F6, contesting the Targa High Country. Sitting alongside Batten in the turbocharged six-cylinder sedan reading pace notes will be his father Mike, a former NSW rally champion.
Paul Batten is a rally champ in his own right and has won his class twice in Tasmania. For the Targa High Country event he's being nurtured by his employer, Prodrive, the company that owns FPV in partnership with Ford. Batten Junior is a chassis engineer testing cars at Ford's proving ground near Geelong for a day job.
Keeping the F6 on the road over the course of the Targa High Country will be a team of personnel gathered from Robinson Racing Developments, FPV and Ford. In his class, Batten will be up against Brendan Reevs in a Mazda3 MPS.
"Mazda has made a commitment to the Targa events, and now we have Paul with the Ford," said Mark Perry, event organiser.
"Mazda and Ford are both big names, and Reeves and Batten are both big talents. I think it is a glimpse into the future of this competition."
Batten is naturally looking forward to the event and sees a lot of potential in the F6 over the route's faster roads.
"We are really looking forward to stretching the F6's legs in Targa High Country," Batten said.
"This is a great chance to mix our two passions, motorsport and the Ford product, and make a small contribution to the motorsport history of the Blue Oval.
"It will be great fun winding it out on the Targa roads the way it was designed to be driven. We haven't had a chance to test the car and we aren't sure how we will stack up in the results, but the FPV has real driving character and we will be enjoying every minute of it."
Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at carsales' mobile site...
Paul Batten's name may not be familiar to many, but his bright red Volvo PV544 is a regular fixture in the Classic Handicap section of Australia's best-known tarmac rally, the Targa Tasmania.
Batten (pictured) is putting aside the ancient Volvo for a drive in a factory-supported FPV F6, contesting the Targa High Country. Sitting alongside Batten in the turbocharged six-cylinder sedan reading pace notes will be his father Mike, a former NSW rally champion.
Paul Batten is a rally champ in his own right and has won his class twice in Tasmania. For the Targa High Country event he's being nurtured by his employer, Prodrive, the company that owns FPV in partnership with Ford. Batten Junior is a chassis engineer testing cars at Ford's proving ground near Geelong for a day job.
Keeping the F6 on the road over the course of the Targa High Country will be a team of personnel gathered from Robinson Racing Developments, FPV and Ford. In his class, Batten will be up against Brendan Reevs in a Mazda3 MPS.
"Mazda has made a commitment to the Targa events, and now we have Paul with the Ford," said Mark Perry, event organiser.
"Mazda and Ford are both big names, and Reeves and Batten are both big talents. I think it is a glimpse into the future of this competition."
Batten is naturally looking forward to the event and sees a lot of potential in the F6 over the route's faster roads.
"We are really looking forward to stretching the F6's legs in Targa High Country," Batten said.
"This is a great chance to mix our two passions, motorsport and the Ford product, and make a small contribution to the motorsport history of the Blue Oval.
"It will be great fun winding it out on the Targa roads the way it was designed to be driven. We haven't had a chance to test the car and we aren't sure how we will stack up in the results, but the FPV has real driving character and we will be enjoying every minute of it."
Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at carsales' mobile site...
Thứ Hai, 26 tháng 3, 2012
Insightful pricing for Honda's new hybrid
Honda Insight hybrid car games undercuts arch-rival Prius on price with $29,000 entry point - but doesn't undercut the Prius on fuel economy
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Following Honda's announcement made at last month's Australian International Motor Show, the all-new Insight hybrid has today been released Down Under with entry-level pricing starting below the critical $30K mark.
Honda aims to grab potential Prius buyers with its competitive price point, which at the base level undercuts Toyota's popular hybrid hatch by $10,000.
The entry-level Insight VTi will start at $29,990 and features equipment levels on par with similarly sized conventionally powered rivals. Included as standard is climate control, cruise control, keyless entry, alloy wheels, trip computer, Bluetooth connectivity and reversing sensors.
Entertainment comes by way of a six speaker single-CD tuner with steering wheel-mounted remote controls, a USB port and 3.5mm auxiliary jack for audio devices.
The up-spec Insight VTi-L is priced from $33,490, more than $18,000 cheaper than Toyota's top shelf Prius i-Tech. The premium Insight model adds auto headlights, rain-sensing wipers, foglamps, leather steering wheel, 16-inch alloys, a DVD player, reversing camera and satellite navigation.
Safety features familiar to both Insight models include dual front and side airbags, stability control, traction control and anti-lock brakes with brake-force distribution and emergency brake assist.
Insight variants are powered by a 1.3 litre i-VTEC four-cylinder petrol engine with Honda's Integrated Motor Assist (IMA) system putting power to the front wheels through a continuously variable transmission (CVT). The IMA is essentially an oversized starter motor designed to supplement petrol engine power and boost torque.
Honda claims a combined fuel economy average of 4.6L/100km, with emissions of just 109g/km. By the same measure, Prius records 3.9L/100km and 89g/km.
Visit the Carsales Network again for our local launch review of new Honda Insight range.
Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at the carsales mobile site
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discount new cars » Get the best price on a new Honda
Following Honda's announcement made at last month's Australian International Motor Show, the all-new Insight hybrid has today been released Down Under with entry-level pricing starting below the critical $30K mark.
Honda aims to grab potential Prius buyers with its competitive price point, which at the base level undercuts Toyota's popular hybrid hatch by $10,000.
The entry-level Insight VTi will start at $29,990 and features equipment levels on par with similarly sized conventionally powered rivals. Included as standard is climate control, cruise control, keyless entry, alloy wheels, trip computer, Bluetooth connectivity and reversing sensors.
Entertainment comes by way of a six speaker single-CD tuner with steering wheel-mounted remote controls, a USB port and 3.5mm auxiliary jack for audio devices.
The up-spec Insight VTi-L is priced from $33,490, more than $18,000 cheaper than Toyota's top shelf Prius i-Tech. The premium Insight model adds auto headlights, rain-sensing wipers, foglamps, leather steering wheel, 16-inch alloys, a DVD player, reversing camera and satellite navigation.
Safety features familiar to both Insight models include dual front and side airbags, stability control, traction control and anti-lock brakes with brake-force distribution and emergency brake assist.
Insight variants are powered by a 1.3 litre i-VTEC four-cylinder petrol engine with Honda's Integrated Motor Assist (IMA) system putting power to the front wheels through a continuously variable transmission (CVT). The IMA is essentially an oversized starter motor designed to supplement petrol engine power and boost torque.
Honda claims a combined fuel economy average of 4.6L/100km, with emissions of just 109g/km. By the same measure, Prius records 3.9L/100km and 89g/km.
Visit the Carsales Network again for our local launch review of new Honda Insight range.
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High five! Audi unleashes stove-hot RS3
Throbbing turbo five-pot engine, flared lightweight carbonfibre-reinforced plastic wings and widened track are among the USPs of Ingolstadt's latest road rocket
prestige new cars » Get the best price on a new Audi
These are the first images of Audi's steroidal new RS3 Sportback, which packs the TT RS's turbo five-pot engine within its relatively sedate hatchback proportions.
The numbers alone make for tantalising reading, as the 2.5-litre turbo five belts out a robust 250kW and 450Nm (on tap from 1600 to 5300rpm), easily giving it bragging rights among the five-door hatch brigade.
Audi quotes a 0-100km/h split of 4.6sec and top whack of 250km/h, and these stats put it in exalted company that includes the likes of the BMW M3 and Mercedes C63 AMG. Needless to say, it blows into the weeds its lesser S3 sibling.
Drive from the warbling five-cylinder engine is relayed to all four wheels by a seven-speed S Tronic dual-clutch transmission and Audi's trademark quattro AWD system -- a viscous-coupled Haldex affair.
The RS3 tips the scales at 1575kg (about 60kg more than the four-cylinder turbo S3), and its none-too-portly girth is partly thanks to weight-saving measures such as carbon fibre-reinforced plastic (CFRP) front wings and the use of "light vermicular graphite" for the engine block.
Efficiency tweaks include a delivery-on-demand oil pump and a regenerative system that recovers energy as the car decelerates.
Offsetting its extra oomph is a chassis that lowers the RS3 Sportback by 25mm compared with the standard A3, while balance and composure are boosted by a widened 1564mm track
The RS3 rides on 19-inch alloy wheels (available in machine-polished titanium look or a black finish with red rim inserts) shod with 235/35 series tyres at the front and 225/35 at the rear.
Electromechanical rack-and-pinion steering provides a suitably direct gear ratio of 16.2:1 for keen turn-in, while internally ventilated discs (370mm at the front and 310mm at the rear) boost stopping power.
Befitting its high-po orientation, the electronic stability programme (ESP) features a Sport mode that activates later intervention of the braking and acceleration retardation functions for added fun factor, and it can be switched off entirely for circuit use.
There's also aural rewards to be had as a sound flap in the exhaust branch intensifies the five-pot's intoxicating note when the driver presses the Sport button, which also varies throttle response.
Visual clues to the RS3's identity are in the form of a deeper front apron with enlarged air intakes, an anthracite coloured single-frame grille with diamond-patterned styling and xenon plus headlamps.
The side view is dominated by flared guards, 19-inch alloy wheels, prominent sill panels, mirror casings in matt aluminium look and a large roof spoiler. A high-gloss black diffuser insert and two elliptical exhaust tailpipes differentiate the rear.
Interior upgrades include a tactile flat-bottomed RS steering wheel, Fine Nappa leather sports seats with silver contrasting stitching, and inlays finished in Piano black or the new Aluminium Race look.
There's also a revised instrument panel and S tronic selector lever, along with a specially configured Driver's Information System that displays boost pressure and oil temperature and doubles as a lap timer.
Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at the carsales mobile site
prestige new cars » Get the best price on a new Audi
These are the first images of Audi's steroidal new RS3 Sportback, which packs the TT RS's turbo five-pot engine within its relatively sedate hatchback proportions.
The numbers alone make for tantalising reading, as the 2.5-litre turbo five belts out a robust 250kW and 450Nm (on tap from 1600 to 5300rpm), easily giving it bragging rights among the five-door hatch brigade.
Audi quotes a 0-100km/h split of 4.6sec and top whack of 250km/h, and these stats put it in exalted company that includes the likes of the BMW M3 and Mercedes C63 AMG. Needless to say, it blows into the weeds its lesser S3 sibling.
Drive from the warbling five-cylinder engine is relayed to all four wheels by a seven-speed S Tronic dual-clutch transmission and Audi's trademark quattro AWD system -- a viscous-coupled Haldex affair.
The RS3 tips the scales at 1575kg (about 60kg more than the four-cylinder turbo S3), and its none-too-portly girth is partly thanks to weight-saving measures such as carbon fibre-reinforced plastic (CFRP) front wings and the use of "light vermicular graphite" for the engine block.
Efficiency tweaks include a delivery-on-demand oil pump and a regenerative system that recovers energy as the car decelerates.
Offsetting its extra oomph is a chassis that lowers the RS3 Sportback by 25mm compared with the standard A3, while balance and composure are boosted by a widened 1564mm track
The RS3 rides on 19-inch alloy wheels (available in machine-polished titanium look or a black finish with red rim inserts) shod with 235/35 series tyres at the front and 225/35 at the rear.
Electromechanical rack-and-pinion steering provides a suitably direct gear ratio of 16.2:1 for keen turn-in, while internally ventilated discs (370mm at the front and 310mm at the rear) boost stopping power.
Befitting its high-po orientation, the electronic stability programme (ESP) features a Sport mode that activates later intervention of the braking and acceleration retardation functions for added fun factor, and it can be switched off entirely for circuit use.
There's also aural rewards to be had as a sound flap in the exhaust branch intensifies the five-pot's intoxicating note when the driver presses the Sport button, which also varies throttle response.
Visual clues to the RS3's identity are in the form of a deeper front apron with enlarged air intakes, an anthracite coloured single-frame grille with diamond-patterned styling and xenon plus headlamps.
The side view is dominated by flared guards, 19-inch alloy wheels, prominent sill panels, mirror casings in matt aluminium look and a large roof spoiler. A high-gloss black diffuser insert and two elliptical exhaust tailpipes differentiate the rear.
Interior upgrades include a tactile flat-bottomed RS steering wheel, Fine Nappa leather sports seats with silver contrasting stitching, and inlays finished in Piano black or the new Aluminium Race look.
There's also a revised instrument panel and S tronic selector lever, along with a specially configured Driver's Information System that displays boost pressure and oil temperature and doubles as a lap timer.
Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at the carsales mobile site
Mitsubishi's i-MiEV hits 5000 mark
It's taken about 15 months for Mitsubishi to get 5000 units of its i-MiEV off the assembly line. But the company expects volume to rise dramatically with LHD release
discount new cars » Get the best price on a new Mitsubishi Mass production never starts as mass production. Mitsubishi's i-MiEV had been in production for 15 months when the company announced its 5000th unit rolled off its Mizushima commercial vehicle assembly line on Nov 23.
Of the 5000, about 3000 units of the world's first mass production EV have sold into the Japanese domestic market since production started in June 2009. Australia has taken delivery of 110, in an initial batch of 40 in August and a subsequent batch of seventy. Local spokeswoman Lenore Fletcher says demand has far outstripped supply.
"We've had hundreds and hundreds of enquiries and 300 firm offers," Fletcher told Carsales Network.
"And that's at early adopter prices [a $1740/month lease deal, which calculates out to a list price of about $63,000]."
Mitsubishi worldwide is doing everything in its power to bring it down ASAP, she said. "That's already happening to considerable effect in Japan and the UK. It helps that EVs attract all manner of subsidies and concessions overseas -- Australia's the only country not giving consumers any tax relief."
All i-MiEVs sold locally have gone to business buyers and to federal, state and local government fleets. Without exception, every one has gone out covered in the corporate livery of its buyer, no doubt delivering compound benefits on the taxation front,over and above its value as a promotional platform.
There's plenty of cause for optimism that prices will drop into the realosphere sooner rather than later, with pressure from Nissan via announcements about the affordability of its LEAF EV and with the economies of scale that go with its arrival in left-hand drive markets. The company expects a substantial hike in sales as of October 2010, when the car went into left-hand drive Euro-spec production.
It expects another boost in 2011 with the rollout of a US-spec i-MiEV production, after which it will shift production from the commercial vehicle assembly line to its higher-volume minicar plant nearby.
For more on the Mitsubishi i-MiEV, click on this link
Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at the carsales mobile site
discount new cars » Get the best price on a new Mitsubishi Mass production never starts as mass production. Mitsubishi's i-MiEV had been in production for 15 months when the company announced its 5000th unit rolled off its Mizushima commercial vehicle assembly line on Nov 23.
Of the 5000, about 3000 units of the world's first mass production EV have sold into the Japanese domestic market since production started in June 2009. Australia has taken delivery of 110, in an initial batch of 40 in August and a subsequent batch of seventy. Local spokeswoman Lenore Fletcher says demand has far outstripped supply.
"We've had hundreds and hundreds of enquiries and 300 firm offers," Fletcher told Carsales Network.
"And that's at early adopter prices [a $1740/month lease deal, which calculates out to a list price of about $63,000]."
Mitsubishi worldwide is doing everything in its power to bring it down ASAP, she said. "That's already happening to considerable effect in Japan and the UK. It helps that EVs attract all manner of subsidies and concessions overseas -- Australia's the only country not giving consumers any tax relief."
All i-MiEVs sold locally have gone to business buyers and to federal, state and local government fleets. Without exception, every one has gone out covered in the corporate livery of its buyer, no doubt delivering compound benefits on the taxation front,over and above its value as a promotional platform.
There's plenty of cause for optimism that prices will drop into the realosphere sooner rather than later, with pressure from Nissan via announcements about the affordability of its LEAF EV and with the economies of scale that go with its arrival in left-hand drive markets. The company expects a substantial hike in sales as of October 2010, when the car went into left-hand drive Euro-spec production.
It expects another boost in 2011 with the rollout of a US-spec i-MiEV production, after which it will shift production from the commercial vehicle assembly line to its higher-volume minicar plant nearby.
For more on the Mitsubishi i-MiEV, click on this link
Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at the carsales mobile site
Mazda 'i-stop' reaches Oz
Local testing of the Mazda Axela fitted with innovative green tech begins in earnest
discount new cars games » Get the best price on a new Mazda
Mazda may be late to the party launching an auto-start system in Australia, but the company says it will be worth the wait.
The importer is providing technical and logistical support for a number of Japanese engineers out here to evaluate how 'i-stop' will cope in the Australian environment. Accompanying the engineers on the long flight from Hiroshima is a Mazda Axela (known locally as the Mazda3) fitted with the new feature.
Designed to work with direct-injection engines (the company's SKYACTIV engines specifically), the 'i-stop' system can restart an engine in 0.35 seconds -- half the time of a conventional auto-start system
Unlike conventional systems, i-stop ensures that the engine's pistons always stop at the optimum point for restarting. When the driver lifts the foot off the brake pedal, fuel is injected into the cylinder with the piston at Top Dead Centre at the start of the power stroke. The spark plug ignites the mixture and as the gases resulting from combustion push the piston down the cylinder, the starter motor engages to assist the engine starting. It is, according to Mazda, very fast and very smooth.
"The real-world fuel savings that i-stop brings has helped it to become firmly established in both Europe and Japan," Alastair Doak, Mazda Australia National Marketing Manager was quoted as saying in a press release issued by the company.
"And with much of Australian driving taking place in suburban environments, i-stop will bring significant real-world fuel savings to Australian Mazda customers from next year. i-stop is just one of the many improvements that the new SKYACTIV technologies will offer customers as Mazda strives to improve global average fuel economy by 30 percent by 2015."
Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at carsales' mobile site...
discount new cars games » Get the best price on a new Mazda
Mazda may be late to the party launching an auto-start system in Australia, but the company says it will be worth the wait.
The importer is providing technical and logistical support for a number of Japanese engineers out here to evaluate how 'i-stop' will cope in the Australian environment. Accompanying the engineers on the long flight from Hiroshima is a Mazda Axela (known locally as the Mazda3) fitted with the new feature.
Designed to work with direct-injection engines (the company's SKYACTIV engines specifically), the 'i-stop' system can restart an engine in 0.35 seconds -- half the time of a conventional auto-start system
Unlike conventional systems, i-stop ensures that the engine's pistons always stop at the optimum point for restarting. When the driver lifts the foot off the brake pedal, fuel is injected into the cylinder with the piston at Top Dead Centre at the start of the power stroke. The spark plug ignites the mixture and as the gases resulting from combustion push the piston down the cylinder, the starter motor engages to assist the engine starting. It is, according to Mazda, very fast and very smooth.
"The real-world fuel savings that i-stop brings has helped it to become firmly established in both Europe and Japan," Alastair Doak, Mazda Australia National Marketing Manager was quoted as saying in a press release issued by the company.
"And with much of Australian driving taking place in suburban environments, i-stop will bring significant real-world fuel savings to Australian Mazda customers from next year. i-stop is just one of the many improvements that the new SKYACTIV technologies will offer customers as Mazda strives to improve global average fuel economy by 30 percent by 2015."
Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at carsales' mobile site...
Renault unleashes its latest group N rally weapon
Keen to try your hand at asphalt rallies? This is arguably one of the more cost-effective ways to do it
discount new cars » Get the best price on a new Renault
Renault has released the first images and details of its latest factory-prepped motorsport weapon, the Megane Renaultsport N4, conceived for private teams and drivers aiming to have a crack at tarmac rallies.
Based on the road-going Megane RS 250, which has already won much acclaim for its punchy engine and finely honed chassis, the N4 extends Renault's tradition of offering group N-homologated factory racers.
It follows in the wheeltracks of group N versions of the 5 GT Turbo, R11 Turbo, R21 2l Turbo, R19 16V, Clio Williams and Clio Renaultsport.
Intended to keep costs down, group N regulations impose strict rules on the modifications that can be made to the original car, and Renault says this constraint works to the advantage of the Megane Renaultsport N4, which gets the full benefit of the technology used on the production model.
The PerfoHub independent steering-axis front suspension design has allegedly allowed the engineers to put together a chassis that combines traction, stability and driving comfort, according to the manufacturer.
Meanwhile, the use of three-way adjustable shock absorbers also enables the suspension to be tailored to different driving styles.
The road car's 2.0-litre turbo engine is carried over largely unchanged, but the use of an optimised electronic engine control system significantly boosts outputs to 195kW and 470Nm (versus 184kW/340Nm for the road car).
Drive is relayed to the front wheels by a five-speed H-pattern gearbox that's said to be developed specifically for the rally version.
Renault claims the Megane Renaultsport N4 is a reliable and high-performance package that takes on board the notion of cost control at every stage of development.
"The intention is to make Megane Renaultsport N4 accessible to all drivers, and be both easy to handle and economical to run," says the company.
Like all vehicles in its rally range, Megane Renaultsport N4 is to be sold by Renault Sport Technologies in the form of a kit comprising all the specific parts.
MEGANE RENAULTSPORT TECHNICAL DATA
N4 Kit Price 57,500 euros (ex-factory)
ENGINE
Layout Front transversally-mounted
Type 1998cc four-cylinder turbo
Bore x stroke 82.7 x 93 mm
Fuel injection / ignition Cosworth Electronics Management System
Maximum power 195kW from 4000rpm
Maximum torque 470Nm at 3000rpm
Maximum revs 6700 rpm
TRANSMISSION
Type Front-wheel drive
Gearbox 5-speed gearbox + reverse
Layout In H configuration
Differential ZF type, limited slip, self-locking differential
Clutch Hydraulically-controlled single disc
CHASSIS
Type Steel monocoque with welded roll cage
Bodywork Steel
AXLES AND SUSPENSION SYSTEMS
Front PerfoHub independent steering axis suspension, Öhlins double-piston shock absorbers, 3-way adjustable + hydraulic rebound
Rear Programmed deflection, torsion beam suspension with coil springs, Öhlins twin tube shock absorbers, 3-way adjustable + hydraulic rebound
Discs 355 mm ventilated discs (front) and 290 mm solid grooved discs (rear)
Calipers Four-piston one-piece (front) and double-piston one-piece (rear)
Handbrake Hydraulic
WHEELS AND TYRES
Rims 8x18 one-piece aluminium wheels
Tyres BFGoodrich 225/40 R 18
DIMENSIONS, WEIGHT AND CAPACITIES
Length 4302mm
Overall width 1848mm
Height 1423mm
Wheel base 2640mm
Front and rear tracks 1627mm – 1600mm
SCx 0.75
Fuel tank 60 litres
Kerb weight Info available upon FIA homologation
Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at the carsales mobile site.
discount new cars » Get the best price on a new Renault
Renault has released the first images and details of its latest factory-prepped motorsport weapon, the Megane Renaultsport N4, conceived for private teams and drivers aiming to have a crack at tarmac rallies.
Based on the road-going Megane RS 250, which has already won much acclaim for its punchy engine and finely honed chassis, the N4 extends Renault's tradition of offering group N-homologated factory racers.
It follows in the wheeltracks of group N versions of the 5 GT Turbo, R11 Turbo, R21 2l Turbo, R19 16V, Clio Williams and Clio Renaultsport.
Intended to keep costs down, group N regulations impose strict rules on the modifications that can be made to the original car, and Renault says this constraint works to the advantage of the Megane Renaultsport N4, which gets the full benefit of the technology used on the production model.
The PerfoHub independent steering-axis front suspension design has allegedly allowed the engineers to put together a chassis that combines traction, stability and driving comfort, according to the manufacturer.
Meanwhile, the use of three-way adjustable shock absorbers also enables the suspension to be tailored to different driving styles.
The road car's 2.0-litre turbo engine is carried over largely unchanged, but the use of an optimised electronic engine control system significantly boosts outputs to 195kW and 470Nm (versus 184kW/340Nm for the road car).
Drive is relayed to the front wheels by a five-speed H-pattern gearbox that's said to be developed specifically for the rally version.
Renault claims the Megane Renaultsport N4 is a reliable and high-performance package that takes on board the notion of cost control at every stage of development.
"The intention is to make Megane Renaultsport N4 accessible to all drivers, and be both easy to handle and economical to run," says the company.
Like all vehicles in its rally range, Megane Renaultsport N4 is to be sold by Renault Sport Technologies in the form of a kit comprising all the specific parts.
MEGANE RENAULTSPORT TECHNICAL DATA
N4 Kit Price 57,500 euros (ex-factory)
ENGINE
Layout Front transversally-mounted
Type 1998cc four-cylinder turbo
Bore x stroke 82.7 x 93 mm
Fuel injection / ignition Cosworth Electronics Management System
Maximum power 195kW from 4000rpm
Maximum torque 470Nm at 3000rpm
Maximum revs 6700 rpm
TRANSMISSION
Type Front-wheel drive
Gearbox 5-speed gearbox + reverse
Layout In H configuration
Differential ZF type, limited slip, self-locking differential
Clutch Hydraulically-controlled single disc
CHASSIS
Type Steel monocoque with welded roll cage
Bodywork Steel
AXLES AND SUSPENSION SYSTEMS
Front PerfoHub independent steering axis suspension, Öhlins double-piston shock absorbers, 3-way adjustable + hydraulic rebound
Rear Programmed deflection, torsion beam suspension with coil springs, Öhlins twin tube shock absorbers, 3-way adjustable + hydraulic rebound
Discs 355 mm ventilated discs (front) and 290 mm solid grooved discs (rear)
Calipers Four-piston one-piece (front) and double-piston one-piece (rear)
Handbrake Hydraulic
WHEELS AND TYRES
Rims 8x18 one-piece aluminium wheels
Tyres BFGoodrich 225/40 R 18
DIMENSIONS, WEIGHT AND CAPACITIES
Length 4302mm
Overall width 1848mm
Height 1423mm
Wheel base 2640mm
Front and rear tracks 1627mm – 1600mm
SCx 0.75
Fuel tank 60 litres
Kerb weight Info available upon FIA homologation
Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at the carsales mobile site.
Holden plans to ease off on big discounts
Profit, not market share, is the priority for 2011
discount new cars » Get the best price on a new Holden
Holden has turned into Ebenezer Scrooge in the lead-up to Christmas.
After two years of consistently offering some of the sharpest deals in the new-car business, Holden has vowed its days of drastic discounting are over.
As the Commodore is set to be crowned Australia's biggest selling car for the 15th year in a row, and Holden is destined to report its first profit in five years, the head of the company, Mike Devereux, told media at an end-of-year luncheon in Melbourne late this week that the car maker is not going to slash prices like it has since late 2008 when the Global Financial Crisis hit.
"The last two years have been extraordinary times for Holden, probably the toughest time ever for the business, but those days are behind us," he said.
"We are not going to chase [sales] for the sake of it. We are going to operate profitably and we've been doing that for some time now."
In late 2008, Holden offered discounts of between $8000 and $13,000 on some models, in an attempt to clear stock and quickly raise cash as the full impact of the GFC was still unknown. The deal was so lucrative, many Holden dealers bought cars themselves and put them on their used-car lots.
Since then, over the past two years, Holden has consistently offered discounts of between $3500 and $5000 on Omega and Berlina models, and $5000 and $6000 on SS V8 models. On stock older than 10 months, there was a further $2000 bonus -- and this is on top of the dealer's normal margin (approximately 11 per cent, plus dealer hold back).
"The old way used to be to force feed the system and push cars onto dealers," he said.
"It was a push model, and that was because we had high structural costs and had to keep the factory moving. We're not going to do that anymore, because when the market is full you have to pay [incentive money] to keep the cars moving. Since the GFC, we've found better ways to reduce our costs."
He said the move to be less generous with discounts should help resale values.
"When you buy a car you want it to be worth something when you sell it. If we keep discounting it during your ownership it won't be worth what you need it to be worth."
Devereux said the roll back in discounts will be gradual, to test what the market can handle.
"There's not going to be a sudden change, we're going to roll this back gently," he said. "Our business must be sustainable. Rather than chase volume with [Commodore], we think we're going to get a lot of growth from new models."
Holden believes it can afford to be more bullish with prices because it has a significant number of new models next year. Typically, most car makers don't discount new models in their first year on sale -- and Holden has been in runout mode with old models for a couple of years.
In 2011 Holden will introduce the locally-made versions of the Cruze sedan (Q1) and hatch (Q4), Captiva (Q2) and Barina (Q2), among others.
Devereux said Holden is expected to sell 133,800 cars this year -- up 12 per cent on last year -- and finish 2010 with a market share of 12.9 per cent, which is on par with last year.
Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at the carsales mobile site.
discount new cars » Get the best price on a new Holden
Holden has turned into Ebenezer Scrooge in the lead-up to Christmas.
After two years of consistently offering some of the sharpest deals in the new-car business, Holden has vowed its days of drastic discounting are over.
As the Commodore is set to be crowned Australia's biggest selling car for the 15th year in a row, and Holden is destined to report its first profit in five years, the head of the company, Mike Devereux, told media at an end-of-year luncheon in Melbourne late this week that the car maker is not going to slash prices like it has since late 2008 when the Global Financial Crisis hit.
"The last two years have been extraordinary times for Holden, probably the toughest time ever for the business, but those days are behind us," he said.
"We are not going to chase [sales] for the sake of it. We are going to operate profitably and we've been doing that for some time now."
In late 2008, Holden offered discounts of between $8000 and $13,000 on some models, in an attempt to clear stock and quickly raise cash as the full impact of the GFC was still unknown. The deal was so lucrative, many Holden dealers bought cars themselves and put them on their used-car lots.
Since then, over the past two years, Holden has consistently offered discounts of between $3500 and $5000 on Omega and Berlina models, and $5000 and $6000 on SS V8 models. On stock older than 10 months, there was a further $2000 bonus -- and this is on top of the dealer's normal margin (approximately 11 per cent, plus dealer hold back).
"The old way used to be to force feed the system and push cars onto dealers," he said.
"It was a push model, and that was because we had high structural costs and had to keep the factory moving. We're not going to do that anymore, because when the market is full you have to pay [incentive money] to keep the cars moving. Since the GFC, we've found better ways to reduce our costs."
He said the move to be less generous with discounts should help resale values.
"When you buy a car you want it to be worth something when you sell it. If we keep discounting it during your ownership it won't be worth what you need it to be worth."
Devereux said the roll back in discounts will be gradual, to test what the market can handle.
"There's not going to be a sudden change, we're going to roll this back gently," he said. "Our business must be sustainable. Rather than chase volume with [Commodore], we think we're going to get a lot of growth from new models."
Holden believes it can afford to be more bullish with prices because it has a significant number of new models next year. Typically, most car makers don't discount new models in their first year on sale -- and Holden has been in runout mode with old models for a couple of years.
In 2011 Holden will introduce the locally-made versions of the Cruze sedan (Q1) and hatch (Q4), Captiva (Q2) and Barina (Q2), among others.
Devereux said Holden is expected to sell 133,800 cars this year -- up 12 per cent on last year -- and finish 2010 with a market share of 12.9 per cent, which is on par with last year.
Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at the carsales mobile site.
Thứ Sáu, 23 tháng 3, 2012
Korando SUV ready for Oz
Ssangyong readies its latest crossover as more specifications announced
discount new cars » Get the best price on a new Ssangyong
The all-new Ssangyong Korando has been previewed at a UK car games avan and motorhome show, ahead of its local launch later this month.
Penned by Italian designed Giorgetto Giugiaro, Ssangyong's new mid-size SUV will compete in the same arena as Hyundai ix35, Kia Sportage, Nissan Dualis and Volkswagen Tiguan. Ssangyong says the Korando will offer a highly contemporary look that it believes will help improve its market share, currently represented by the slow-selling Actyon.
Available in two- and four-wheel drive variants and with a choice of six-speed manual and automatic transmissions, Korando will for the first time utilise monocoque construction, the predecessor featuring traditional ladder-rack architecture. Despite this change, Ssangyong says the new Korando will still offer a 2000kg (braked) towing capacity.
Power comes from a Euro5-compliant 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbodiesel engine developing 129kW/360Nm. The new mill can deliver fuel economy figures as low as 6.0L/100km on the highway cycle and emits just 157g/km of CO2.
A long list of standard safety features includes six airbags, stability and traction control, anti-lock brakes and anti-roll mitigation.
Cargo space sees a 486-litre boot expended by 60:40 split-fold rear seats.
Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at the carsales mobile site
discount new cars » Get the best price on a new Ssangyong
The all-new Ssangyong Korando has been previewed at a UK car games avan and motorhome show, ahead of its local launch later this month.
Penned by Italian designed Giorgetto Giugiaro, Ssangyong's new mid-size SUV will compete in the same arena as Hyundai ix35, Kia Sportage, Nissan Dualis and Volkswagen Tiguan. Ssangyong says the Korando will offer a highly contemporary look that it believes will help improve its market share, currently represented by the slow-selling Actyon.
Available in two- and four-wheel drive variants and with a choice of six-speed manual and automatic transmissions, Korando will for the first time utilise monocoque construction, the predecessor featuring traditional ladder-rack architecture. Despite this change, Ssangyong says the new Korando will still offer a 2000kg (braked) towing capacity.
Power comes from a Euro5-compliant 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbodiesel engine developing 129kW/360Nm. The new mill can deliver fuel economy figures as low as 6.0L/100km on the highway cycle and emits just 157g/km of CO2.
A long list of standard safety features includes six airbags, stability and traction control, anti-lock brakes and anti-roll mitigation.
Cargo space sees a 486-litre boot expended by 60:40 split-fold rear seats.
Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at the carsales mobile site
High-end hybrids ahead?
Porsche is committed to hybrid technology and by association, Bentley and Bugatti will benefit
Porsche made clear its intention to pursue hybrid drivetrain development with the reveal of the 918 RSR at the Detroit motor show this week but it's not just the sportscar maker that will exploit the technology.
Former Porsche board member for research and development, Wolfgang Durheimer told the Carsales Network that he is "a friend of hybrid technology" and therefore will investigate the potential to implement hybrid componentry to his new brand charges, Bentley and Bugatti.
Durheimer takes over from Franz-Josef Paefgen as managing director of the Bentley and Bugatti brands, as of February 1.
"I have to make these brands stable for the future as well. I think we have great possibilities to gain future synergies within this compound of valuable brands," says Durheimer.
"And probably nobody knows better what could be done in Weissach [Porsche HQ] and what could be in the carryover [brands] than me."
Durheimer's new job means the man behind the Cayenne and Panamera -- both to be released in diesel and hybrid forms this year -- will work with models like Bentley's 6.8 V8 Mulsanne and 6.0 W12 Continental Supersports, and whopping Bugatti 8.0 W16 Veyron.
Durheimer said he was under no pressure for a replacement Veyron. The next hi-po Super Sport version is reported confirmed and plans for the new model were likely underway before Durheimer agreed to the post. Perhaps equally important is lowering the consumption of the brands' current lineup...
Hybrid versions would certainly gain the makers green points: The Bentley models use around 17L/100km and the Bugatti wants 29L/km.
Durheimer received a handcrafted model of the 8.0-litre Bentley and the keys to W.O Bentley's 1930 8.0-litre Saloon from Paefgen during the handover ceremony at Detroit this week (pictured).
Paefgen retires after eight years as CEO and chairman of Bugatti and Bentley while 52 year-old Durheimer started with Porsche in 1999 after a long stint in BMW's motorcycle division.
Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at carsales' mobile site
Porsche made clear its intention to pursue hybrid drivetrain development with the reveal of the 918 RSR at the Detroit motor show this week but it's not just the sportscar maker that will exploit the technology.
Former Porsche board member for research and development, Wolfgang Durheimer told the Carsales Network that he is "a friend of hybrid technology" and therefore will investigate the potential to implement hybrid componentry to his new brand charges, Bentley and Bugatti.
Durheimer takes over from Franz-Josef Paefgen as managing director of the Bentley and Bugatti brands, as of February 1.
"I have to make these brands stable for the future as well. I think we have great possibilities to gain future synergies within this compound of valuable brands," says Durheimer.
"And probably nobody knows better what could be done in Weissach [Porsche HQ] and what could be in the carryover [brands] than me."
Durheimer's new job means the man behind the Cayenne and Panamera -- both to be released in diesel and hybrid forms this year -- will work with models like Bentley's 6.8 V8 Mulsanne and 6.0 W12 Continental Supersports, and whopping Bugatti 8.0 W16 Veyron.
Durheimer said he was under no pressure for a replacement Veyron. The next hi-po Super Sport version is reported confirmed and plans for the new model were likely underway before Durheimer agreed to the post. Perhaps equally important is lowering the consumption of the brands' current lineup...
Hybrid versions would certainly gain the makers green points: The Bentley models use around 17L/100km and the Bugatti wants 29L/km.
Durheimer received a handcrafted model of the 8.0-litre Bentley and the keys to W.O Bentley's 1930 8.0-litre Saloon from Paefgen during the handover ceremony at Detroit this week (pictured).
Paefgen retires after eight years as CEO and chairman of Bugatti and Bentley while 52 year-old Durheimer started with Porsche in 1999 after a long stint in BMW's motorcycle division.
Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at carsales' mobile site
Mercedes-Benz previews third-gen SLK
Open air enjoyment revived as Merc's newest cult roadster is revealed
prestige new cars » Get the best price on a new Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz has taken the wraps off its third-generation SLK roadster, which has been completely redeveloped for 2011.
Promising light-footed sportiness, style and comfort the striking new SLK brings vario-roof flexibility to the segment for the first time -- the performance model equipped with Mercedes' latest Magic Sky Control system, which switches the roof from light to dark at the touch of a button. A standard folding hardtop remains available in body colour.
Offered with a choice of four- and six-cylinder engines, each with stop-start as standard fit, the new SLK claims increased performance with economy improvements as high as 25 per cent. At this stage, the recently spied hyper drop top SLK 63 AMG has not been announced.
Emphasising SLK's classic proportions, designers have tailor-made the new body to promote the driving attributes traditionally associated with long-nosed, short bodied roadsters, a key attribute Mercedes-Benz says will tempt many sporting buyers back to the brand. Stylistic changes include a more upright and wider grille, and clearly defined all-LED headlamps that are said to resemble those of the legendary 190 SL of the 1950s. The bonnet and wings are now made of aluminium. Benz designers have naturally drawn a close visual link with the styling of the company's latest supercar, the "Gullwing" SLS AMG.
"The new SLK embodies the role of the trend-setter like no other car," said Mercedes-Benz Cars boss, Dr Dieter Zetsche. "I am convinced that with its passionate design, its high-quality interior and its modesty at the filling station it will continue to provide an enormous amount of fun on the road in future, too, consolidating its status as a cult roadster."
In profile the new SLK comprises fine details and is "said to embody the care taken by its designers". Ventilator grilles in the front wings are topped with a chrome fin, again reminiscent of Mercedes-Benz roadsters of the 50s. From here, a feature line flows to a muscular rear wing sculpted to use light and shadow to add style and 'timeless aesthetics' to the sides.
Inside too, a long list of revisions see not only improved style, but enhanced space utilisation and increased creature comforts. As well as the aforementioned magic roof, Mercedes-Benz has also bettered its draught-stop system Airguide for new SLK, further taming turbulent air flow. The much-loved neck-level Airscarf heating system, familiar to the predecessor, remains.
Cabin decor is characterised by stylish, high-quality materials which, naturally, are customisable through a range of wood and metal finishes. Four round, galvanised air outlets integrated in the dashboard emphasise SLK's place in Mercedes-Benz sports car family, their shape another nod to the SLS.
The instrument panel sees a pair of generously proportioned gauges flank a central information display for the onboard computer. The centre stack's colour display houses all of the SLK's infotainment systems and is topped by a fine analogue clock said to 'subtly underline the roadster's stylish character'.
The new SLK is suspended by three different arrangements: conventional steel set up as standard, optional sports arrangement with stiffer springs and dampers and alternative Dynamic Handling package featuring electronically controlled continuously adjustable damping. The Dynamic Handling package also includes a direct-steering system and torque vectoring brakes.
Maintaining Merc's highly reputed safety credentials, the new SLK features the latest driver assistance systems, including the drowsiness detection system ATTENTION ASSIST. Developed in-house for the new SLK are safety aids such as Intelligent Light System, Speed Limit Assist, Pre-Safe and the optional Pre-Safe Brake, which can autonomously apply the brakes in the end of an impending rear-end collision.
The new SLK will launch in the UK in June with pricing and specifications to be revealed closer to that time. Australian launch timing is yet to be announced, though we anticipate sometime towards the middle of the year.
2011 Mercedes-Benz model line-up (from launch):
SLK 200 BlueEfficiency 1796cc direct injection four-cylinder 137kW (7.0 secs)
SLK 250 BlueEfficiency 1796cc direct injection four-cylinder 152kW (6.6 secs)
SLK 350 BlueEfficiency 3498cc direct injection six-cylinder 228kW (5.6 secs)
Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at the carsales mobile site
prestige new cars » Get the best price on a new Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz has taken the wraps off its third-generation SLK roadster, which has been completely redeveloped for 2011.
Promising light-footed sportiness, style and comfort the striking new SLK brings vario-roof flexibility to the segment for the first time -- the performance model equipped with Mercedes' latest Magic Sky Control system, which switches the roof from light to dark at the touch of a button. A standard folding hardtop remains available in body colour.
Offered with a choice of four- and six-cylinder engines, each with stop-start as standard fit, the new SLK claims increased performance with economy improvements as high as 25 per cent. At this stage, the recently spied hyper drop top SLK 63 AMG has not been announced.
Emphasising SLK's classic proportions, designers have tailor-made the new body to promote the driving attributes traditionally associated with long-nosed, short bodied roadsters, a key attribute Mercedes-Benz says will tempt many sporting buyers back to the brand. Stylistic changes include a more upright and wider grille, and clearly defined all-LED headlamps that are said to resemble those of the legendary 190 SL of the 1950s. The bonnet and wings are now made of aluminium. Benz designers have naturally drawn a close visual link with the styling of the company's latest supercar, the "Gullwing" SLS AMG.
"The new SLK embodies the role of the trend-setter like no other car," said Mercedes-Benz Cars boss, Dr Dieter Zetsche. "I am convinced that with its passionate design, its high-quality interior and its modesty at the filling station it will continue to provide an enormous amount of fun on the road in future, too, consolidating its status as a cult roadster."
In profile the new SLK comprises fine details and is "said to embody the care taken by its designers". Ventilator grilles in the front wings are topped with a chrome fin, again reminiscent of Mercedes-Benz roadsters of the 50s. From here, a feature line flows to a muscular rear wing sculpted to use light and shadow to add style and 'timeless aesthetics' to the sides.
Inside too, a long list of revisions see not only improved style, but enhanced space utilisation and increased creature comforts. As well as the aforementioned magic roof, Mercedes-Benz has also bettered its draught-stop system Airguide for new SLK, further taming turbulent air flow. The much-loved neck-level Airscarf heating system, familiar to the predecessor, remains.
Cabin decor is characterised by stylish, high-quality materials which, naturally, are customisable through a range of wood and metal finishes. Four round, galvanised air outlets integrated in the dashboard emphasise SLK's place in Mercedes-Benz sports car family, their shape another nod to the SLS.
The instrument panel sees a pair of generously proportioned gauges flank a central information display for the onboard computer. The centre stack's colour display houses all of the SLK's infotainment systems and is topped by a fine analogue clock said to 'subtly underline the roadster's stylish character'.
The new SLK is suspended by three different arrangements: conventional steel set up as standard, optional sports arrangement with stiffer springs and dampers and alternative Dynamic Handling package featuring electronically controlled continuously adjustable damping. The Dynamic Handling package also includes a direct-steering system and torque vectoring brakes.
Maintaining Merc's highly reputed safety credentials, the new SLK features the latest driver assistance systems, including the drowsiness detection system ATTENTION ASSIST. Developed in-house for the new SLK are safety aids such as Intelligent Light System, Speed Limit Assist, Pre-Safe and the optional Pre-Safe Brake, which can autonomously apply the brakes in the end of an impending rear-end collision.
The new SLK will launch in the UK in June with pricing and specifications to be revealed closer to that time. Australian launch timing is yet to be announced, though we anticipate sometime towards the middle of the year.
2011 Mercedes-Benz model line-up (from launch):
SLK 200 BlueEfficiency 1796cc direct injection four-cylinder 137kW (7.0 secs)
SLK 250 BlueEfficiency 1796cc direct injection four-cylinder 152kW (6.6 secs)
SLK 350 BlueEfficiency 3498cc direct injection six-cylinder 228kW (5.6 secs)
Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at the carsales mobile site
Thứ Năm, 22 tháng 3, 2012
MOTORSPORT: Liberals split on grand prix
January has been the month of floods but now Melbourne's lord mayor Robert Doyle has lit a fire with comments that the city's Formula One grand prix has run its race - and he has GP chairman Ron Walker -- like Doyle, a Liberal - mighty hot under the collar
Comment
Two months out from the Australian Grand Prix the future of the Formula One event in Melbourne is at the centre of a new storm.
There's a rift in the ranks of the Liberal Party, which snatched the GP from Adelaide in the mid-1990s.
Melbourne's lord mayor, Robert Doyle, a former Victorian Liberal parliamentary leader, says "time's up" on the costly GP -- that it ought to end in Melbourne when the existing contract expires in 2015, predicting that annual losses will have hit $70 million by then.
New Victorian premier Ted Bailleau is not that categorical, although he says the GP may have to go unless the costs -- i.e. losses, now running at $50 million a year -- can be substantially cut.
Then there's Ron Walker, the Liberal Party's former federal treasurer who has been the Australian Grand Prix Corporation's chairman for its entire life in Melbourne, who has stoutly defended the event he grabbed for the Victorian capital soon after former Liberal premier Jeff Kennett came to power.
Not surprisingly, Walker has taken a swipe at Doyle, calling his comments "sad", and it's certain he will be working hard behind the scenes on Bailleau, who rose to the Liberal leadership with the endorsement of the unelected but nonetheless powerbroker Walker.
The GP has become a political football in Victoria as its losses have mounted since the modest $1.7 million bill to the state's taxpayers on Melbourne's first Melbourne F1 event in 1996.
The red ink became a flood in the mid-2000s as revenues -- ticket sales and sponsorship -- sank while costs -- including F1 commercial master Bernie Ecclestone's annual fee for the race -- continued to escalate.
Yet this latest storm has erupted -- with Doyle's views splashed in Melbourne's Sunday Herald Sun newspaper -- at a time that Australia has a very competitive F1 driver, Mark Webber, and may soon have another on the grid, Daniel Ricciardo.
Webber, winner of six GPs now and third in last year's world championship after having led it longer than any driver, will come home for this year's March 24-27 event with his best -- and a very realistic -- chance of winning it.
Ricciardo, 21, from Perth, will take part in Friday F1 practice with Scuderia Toro Rosso, the former Minardi and now the second of the teams owned by the Red Bull energy drink.
The other, for which Webber races, is the reigning world champion team.
Ricciardo has almost been guaranteed an F1 race drive by Red Bull's motorsport chief, Dr Helmut Marko, by the start of next year.
Doyle says that Melbourne's GP is no longer value for the money it costs -- that it has outlived its welcome.
Doyle says that getting the GP for the city in the 1990s was "a stroke of genius" but that it has run its course, that there "will be no successful negotiation" with Ecclestone on reducing the annual race fee, and that it's time to find a replacement major event for Melbourne.
"In the end, it [getting rid of the GP] will be a government decision and one of the tough ones that Ted Bailleau faces in his first term," Doyle said. "Does he undo the legacy of Jeff Kennett, his mentor, in his very first term?
"My judgement would be: Get ready. Time's up."
Bailleau said -- ironically at the Australian Open tennis, another of Melbourne's major international events -- that the GP had been great for the city and would see out its contract to 2015.
However, he added: "We look forward to the GP performing financially better than it has and we will be looking to make sure that happens.
"I am confident we can reduce costs and we look forward to that happening."
Beyond that, Bailleau said he would not be drawn on "speculation and hypotheticals".
Walker said his AGPC did its best every year to contain costs and that the event was worth $180 million a year in economic benefits to Victoria, although in another breath it was $160 million.
"All Mr Doyle's hotels, all his restaurants do a very good trade," Walker said. "Then, of course, there's the tax that's collected of about $18 million a year.
"It's a huge profit for Melbourne."
And then there was the "priceless" international exposure that came with the GP.
"It is one of the few free-to-air television spectacles Australia has," Walker said. "The F1 GP goes free-to-air to 300 million in 132 countries and, because we now have a twilight race, it goes into some of our biggest trading partners -- Russia, India and China -- at midday on Sunday.
"This is huge penetration for the brand of Melbourne."
Walker said there was not a major event in the world, apart from the soccer World Cup and the Olympics, that went free-to-air to as many people as F1.
The latter point is valid, although there is no substantiation for Walker's claimed audience numbers -- something we have noted here before.
Last year's TV numbers from Ecclestone's Formula One Management, announced at the weekend, claim 527 million viewers for the 17 races in the 2010 world championship.
What weekend reports on that 527 million did not make clear was that that is a cumulative figure for the season -- not the audience for each race.
That's an average of 31 million per race -- and, based on the authoritative work of London research firm Initiative futures + sport to which we have referred here previously, Melbourne is right on that average -- i.e. 31 million viewers in the 55 countries that account for 95 per cent of the world's gross domestic product.
If Walker is claiming "penetration" of 300 million viewers, without substantiation, he's exaggerating the proper interpretation of the FOM figure(s) and the credible Initiative research 10 times.
If there have been recent increases in countries like Russia, India and China they may have been at the expense of viewers elsewhere, as Planet-F1.com reports that the FOM TV figure for 2009 was 520 million -- 7 million less than 2010 -- and that for 2008 it was "over 600 million".
And now the Liberals in Victoria are arguing among themselves over the value of Melbourne's GP.
The recently ousted Labor government in Victoria had the same concerns that Ted Bailleau now expresses about the costs of the GP -- and how to contain or reduce them.
It is remarkable that under governments of both political persuasions Walker has remained chairman of the AGPC as these losses have mounted into, cumulatively, hundreds of millions of dollars now -- after he and then premier Kennett told Victorians in December 1993, when news broke that they had snatched Adelaide's GP, that it would effectively cost Victoria nothing and perhaps operate at a small profit.
Now that the GP is again the centre of controversy perhaps it's time to ask whether Ron Walker has been trying to serve two masters in all of this -- Victoria, in dealings with Bernie Ecclestone, and Ecclestone, in dealings with the Victorian government? And whether it's possible to serve two masters, or whether that is at the nub of the problem with the GP in Victoria.
Read the latest Cars games ales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at the carsales mobile site
Comment
Two months out from the Australian Grand Prix the future of the Formula One event in Melbourne is at the centre of a new storm.
There's a rift in the ranks of the Liberal Party, which snatched the GP from Adelaide in the mid-1990s.
Melbourne's lord mayor, Robert Doyle, a former Victorian Liberal parliamentary leader, says "time's up" on the costly GP -- that it ought to end in Melbourne when the existing contract expires in 2015, predicting that annual losses will have hit $70 million by then.
New Victorian premier Ted Bailleau is not that categorical, although he says the GP may have to go unless the costs -- i.e. losses, now running at $50 million a year -- can be substantially cut.
Then there's Ron Walker, the Liberal Party's former federal treasurer who has been the Australian Grand Prix Corporation's chairman for its entire life in Melbourne, who has stoutly defended the event he grabbed for the Victorian capital soon after former Liberal premier Jeff Kennett came to power.
Not surprisingly, Walker has taken a swipe at Doyle, calling his comments "sad", and it's certain he will be working hard behind the scenes on Bailleau, who rose to the Liberal leadership with the endorsement of the unelected but nonetheless powerbroker Walker.
The GP has become a political football in Victoria as its losses have mounted since the modest $1.7 million bill to the state's taxpayers on Melbourne's first Melbourne F1 event in 1996.
The red ink became a flood in the mid-2000s as revenues -- ticket sales and sponsorship -- sank while costs -- including F1 commercial master Bernie Ecclestone's annual fee for the race -- continued to escalate.
Yet this latest storm has erupted -- with Doyle's views splashed in Melbourne's Sunday Herald Sun newspaper -- at a time that Australia has a very competitive F1 driver, Mark Webber, and may soon have another on the grid, Daniel Ricciardo.
Webber, winner of six GPs now and third in last year's world championship after having led it longer than any driver, will come home for this year's March 24-27 event with his best -- and a very realistic -- chance of winning it.
Ricciardo, 21, from Perth, will take part in Friday F1 practice with Scuderia Toro Rosso, the former Minardi and now the second of the teams owned by the Red Bull energy drink.
The other, for which Webber races, is the reigning world champion team.
Ricciardo has almost been guaranteed an F1 race drive by Red Bull's motorsport chief, Dr Helmut Marko, by the start of next year.
Doyle says that Melbourne's GP is no longer value for the money it costs -- that it has outlived its welcome.
Doyle says that getting the GP for the city in the 1990s was "a stroke of genius" but that it has run its course, that there "will be no successful negotiation" with Ecclestone on reducing the annual race fee, and that it's time to find a replacement major event for Melbourne.
"In the end, it [getting rid of the GP] will be a government decision and one of the tough ones that Ted Bailleau faces in his first term," Doyle said. "Does he undo the legacy of Jeff Kennett, his mentor, in his very first term?
"My judgement would be: Get ready. Time's up."
Bailleau said -- ironically at the Australian Open tennis, another of Melbourne's major international events -- that the GP had been great for the city and would see out its contract to 2015.
However, he added: "We look forward to the GP performing financially better than it has and we will be looking to make sure that happens.
"I am confident we can reduce costs and we look forward to that happening."
Beyond that, Bailleau said he would not be drawn on "speculation and hypotheticals".
Walker said his AGPC did its best every year to contain costs and that the event was worth $180 million a year in economic benefits to Victoria, although in another breath it was $160 million.
"All Mr Doyle's hotels, all his restaurants do a very good trade," Walker said. "Then, of course, there's the tax that's collected of about $18 million a year.
"It's a huge profit for Melbourne."
And then there was the "priceless" international exposure that came with the GP.
"It is one of the few free-to-air television spectacles Australia has," Walker said. "The F1 GP goes free-to-air to 300 million in 132 countries and, because we now have a twilight race, it goes into some of our biggest trading partners -- Russia, India and China -- at midday on Sunday.
"This is huge penetration for the brand of Melbourne."
Walker said there was not a major event in the world, apart from the soccer World Cup and the Olympics, that went free-to-air to as many people as F1.
The latter point is valid, although there is no substantiation for Walker's claimed audience numbers -- something we have noted here before.
Last year's TV numbers from Ecclestone's Formula One Management, announced at the weekend, claim 527 million viewers for the 17 races in the 2010 world championship.
What weekend reports on that 527 million did not make clear was that that is a cumulative figure for the season -- not the audience for each race.
That's an average of 31 million per race -- and, based on the authoritative work of London research firm Initiative futures + sport to which we have referred here previously, Melbourne is right on that average -- i.e. 31 million viewers in the 55 countries that account for 95 per cent of the world's gross domestic product.
If Walker is claiming "penetration" of 300 million viewers, without substantiation, he's exaggerating the proper interpretation of the FOM figure(s) and the credible Initiative research 10 times.
If there have been recent increases in countries like Russia, India and China they may have been at the expense of viewers elsewhere, as Planet-F1.com reports that the FOM TV figure for 2009 was 520 million -- 7 million less than 2010 -- and that for 2008 it was "over 600 million".
And now the Liberals in Victoria are arguing among themselves over the value of Melbourne's GP.
The recently ousted Labor government in Victoria had the same concerns that Ted Bailleau now expresses about the costs of the GP -- and how to contain or reduce them.
It is remarkable that under governments of both political persuasions Walker has remained chairman of the AGPC as these losses have mounted into, cumulatively, hundreds of millions of dollars now -- after he and then premier Kennett told Victorians in December 1993, when news broke that they had snatched Adelaide's GP, that it would effectively cost Victoria nothing and perhaps operate at a small profit.
Now that the GP is again the centre of controversy perhaps it's time to ask whether Ron Walker has been trying to serve two masters in all of this -- Victoria, in dealings with Bernie Ecclestone, and Ecclestone, in dealings with the Victorian government? And whether it's possible to serve two masters, or whether that is at the nub of the problem with the GP in Victoria.
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MOTORSPORT: Rome won't get a grand prix
While there's a squabble over whether Melbourne should keep its GP, Rome's chances of hosting an F1 race on its streets have been shot
Ecclestone says countries should only have one F1 race
Rome is out of the running to stage a Formula One grand prix on its streets.
Bernie Ecclestone (pictured), who encouraged and entertained the idea for several years, has now told the Italian city that the country -- and indeed any country -- should only have one GP a year.
Mauricio Flammini, organiser of the World Superbike Championship and who had pushed the idea of a GP on the streets of Rome, had hoped that the historic city could at least rotate with Monza, home of the Italian GP in Milan.
For many years Italy's Imola circuit also hosted a San Marino GP, even though it was not in that principality.
Spain has two F1 GPs at the moment, in Barcelona and Valencia -- although the latter's "European' GP probably will rotate around Europe in future.
Rome will now concentrate on a bid for the 2020 Olympic Games.
Marlboro still a Ferrari sponsor
Although tobacco sponsorship is supposed to be long gone from F1, Marlboro and Ferrari are about to finalise renewal of a deal that somehow has continued, although the use of a barcode on the cars -- late alone the Marlboro logo - has been forbidden.
A spokesman for Philip Morris, owner of the Marlboro brand, said an extension of the existing deal to 2014 would be "wholly within international law".
Marlboro has been an F1 sponsor for 40 years, starting with the old British team BRM in 1971.
Williams contemplates stock market float
The Williams team, the third most successful in F1, is considering a stock market float -- although 68-year-old wheelchair-bound Sir Frank Williams wants to remain the majority and controlling shareholder.
The other existing shareholders in the team are Patrick Head, creator of all nine world title-winning Williams cars (most recently in 1997), and Austrian investor Christian "Toto" Wolf.
Sir Frank said he wanted the team to remain an independent constructor but that it was "prudent and necessary to plan" the company's future ownership.
Williams chief executive Adam Parr claimed the team had operated profitably the past three years, contrary to reports that it has only survived due to Bernie Ecclestone's benevolence.
It lost big sponsors RBS and Philips at the end of last season but has gained a reputed $36 million-a-year deal for five years from Venezuelan national energy company PDVSA for installing Venezuelan driver Pastor Maldonado in place of young German star Nico Hulkenberg.
Centenary 'Monte' rally to Peugeot and French driver
The centenary Monte Carlo Rally was won by French rally champion Bryan Bouffier in a Super 2000 Peugeot 207.
Australia's Chris Atkinson did only 700 metres in the event before an electrical fault put his S2000 Proton Satria Neo out.
Despite spinning into a bank at one point, Bouffier's combination of snow and studded tyres gave him the grip to jump from seventh to first when snow coated the roads on the second of the three days.
The event now is the opening round of the Intercontinental Rally Challenge rather than part of the World Rally Championship.
Bouffier is the 19th driver to win a round of the IRC since it began in 2007 and it was Peugeot's 21st victory in the series.
Belgian Freddy Loix was second in a Skoda Fabia -- 32.5 seconds behind Bouffier.
Brit Guy Wilks was elevated from fourth to third after a fellow Peugeot 207 driver, Frenchman Stephane Sarrazin, a one-time F1 driver and a Le Mans 24-hour winner, took a time penalty to assist Wilks, who is contesting the whole IRC, unlike Sarrazin.
Defending IRC champion Juho Hanninen of Finland finished sixth in a Skoda after winning three early stages but getting caught on the wrong tyres on the second day.
Veteran Frenchman Francois Delecour was fifth in a Peugeot, while Norway's former world champion Petter Solberg's Peugeot, second at one point, lost seventh place with alternator failure 13km from the finish.
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Ecclestone says countries should only have one F1 race
Rome is out of the running to stage a Formula One grand prix on its streets.
Bernie Ecclestone (pictured), who encouraged and entertained the idea for several years, has now told the Italian city that the country -- and indeed any country -- should only have one GP a year.
Mauricio Flammini, organiser of the World Superbike Championship and who had pushed the idea of a GP on the streets of Rome, had hoped that the historic city could at least rotate with Monza, home of the Italian GP in Milan.
For many years Italy's Imola circuit also hosted a San Marino GP, even though it was not in that principality.
Spain has two F1 GPs at the moment, in Barcelona and Valencia -- although the latter's "European' GP probably will rotate around Europe in future.
Rome will now concentrate on a bid for the 2020 Olympic Games.
Marlboro still a Ferrari sponsor
Although tobacco sponsorship is supposed to be long gone from F1, Marlboro and Ferrari are about to finalise renewal of a deal that somehow has continued, although the use of a barcode on the cars -- late alone the Marlboro logo - has been forbidden.
A spokesman for Philip Morris, owner of the Marlboro brand, said an extension of the existing deal to 2014 would be "wholly within international law".
Marlboro has been an F1 sponsor for 40 years, starting with the old British team BRM in 1971.
Williams contemplates stock market float
The Williams team, the third most successful in F1, is considering a stock market float -- although 68-year-old wheelchair-bound Sir Frank Williams wants to remain the majority and controlling shareholder.
The other existing shareholders in the team are Patrick Head, creator of all nine world title-winning Williams cars (most recently in 1997), and Austrian investor Christian "Toto" Wolf.
Sir Frank said he wanted the team to remain an independent constructor but that it was "prudent and necessary to plan" the company's future ownership.
Williams chief executive Adam Parr claimed the team had operated profitably the past three years, contrary to reports that it has only survived due to Bernie Ecclestone's benevolence.
It lost big sponsors RBS and Philips at the end of last season but has gained a reputed $36 million-a-year deal for five years from Venezuelan national energy company PDVSA for installing Venezuelan driver Pastor Maldonado in place of young German star Nico Hulkenberg.
Centenary 'Monte' rally to Peugeot and French driver
The centenary Monte Carlo Rally was won by French rally champion Bryan Bouffier in a Super 2000 Peugeot 207.
Australia's Chris Atkinson did only 700 metres in the event before an electrical fault put his S2000 Proton Satria Neo out.
Despite spinning into a bank at one point, Bouffier's combination of snow and studded tyres gave him the grip to jump from seventh to first when snow coated the roads on the second of the three days.
The event now is the opening round of the Intercontinental Rally Challenge rather than part of the World Rally Championship.
Bouffier is the 19th driver to win a round of the IRC since it began in 2007 and it was Peugeot's 21st victory in the series.
Belgian Freddy Loix was second in a Skoda Fabia -- 32.5 seconds behind Bouffier.
Brit Guy Wilks was elevated from fourth to third after a fellow Peugeot 207 driver, Frenchman Stephane Sarrazin, a one-time F1 driver and a Le Mans 24-hour winner, took a time penalty to assist Wilks, who is contesting the whole IRC, unlike Sarrazin.
Defending IRC champion Juho Hanninen of Finland finished sixth in a Skoda after winning three early stages but getting caught on the wrong tyres on the second day.
Veteran Frenchman Francois Delecour was fifth in a Peugeot, while Norway's former world champion Petter Solberg's Peugeot, second at one point, lost seventh place with alternator failure 13km from the finish.
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