Porsche's forthcoming rival for the Range Rover Evoque is set to start rolling off the line at an expanded Leipzig plant from 'late 2013', the Volkswagen subsidiary has announced.
Skoda has started production of its new Rapid car for European markets in the Czech Republic. The Rapid will debut at next month's Paris auto show and will go on sale in Europe in October.
The covers have been pulled off the third generation Mazda6 sedan at the Moscow motor show. The car, which brings with it a new platform, is notable for having a longer wheelbase than all rivals, with the exception of the Ford Mondeo.
Europe's struggling mass-market carmakers are furious with Volkswagen for ramping up production at a time when the continent faces huge overcapacity, but the profitable German market-leading automaker shows no sign of slowing down to save its rivals.
Europe's struggling mass-market carmakers are furious with Volkswagen for ramping up production at a time when the continent faces huge overcapacity, but the profitable German market-leading automaker shows no sign of slowing down to save its rivals.
Volkswagen is investing 550 million euros ($691 million) in auto-parts manufacturing in Russia and China to prepare for further growth in the countries' vehicle markets.
Vitaly Petrov's manager has warned she will find another pursuit for the Russian driver if they cannot make money in formula one.
Since 2010, when the now 27-year-old made his debut for Renault (now Lotus) before switching to Caterham this season, Petrov has funded his race seats through private backing and sponsorship.
But his manager Oksana Kosachenko warned that they may change direction for 2013.
Vitaly Petrov and Oksana Kosachenko (Photo: WRi2)
"If the presence of a Russian driver in formula one will be interesting to no one else but Vitaly Petrov and Oksana Kosachenko, we'll find what to do outside the grand prix," she told Sport-Express.
"Formula one is great and very prestigious, but for Vitaly it's a job that brings no money. Why? There are many reasons.
"In Russia, it's difficult to sell an athlete, but to sell a formula one driver is almost impossible," added Kosachenko.
Former race car driver Alessandro Zanardi will be representing his country, Italy, during the Paralympic Games held in London.
Zanardi, now 45 has been entered in three competitions in road cycling.
Ironically, all road cycling competitions will be held on the road circuit of Brands Hatch! Zanardi drove at Brands Hatch in 1989 and 1991 when he was competing in the International Formula 3000 Championship.
Road cycling at Brands Hatch. (Photo: London Paralympics)
Zanardi, a member of the GSC Giambenini club of Verona will be competing in:
Men's Individual H 4 Time Trial (held Wednesday September 5 at 15:10 at Brands Hatch)
Men's Individual H 4 Road Race (held Friday September 7 at 16:30)
Mixed H 1-4 Team Relay (held Saturday September 8 at 17:45)
A day after U.S. President Barack Obama confirmed higher fuel economy standards by 2025, his Republican opponent in the presidential race spoke against excessive regulation in the auto industry - even though automakers representing 90% of American sales have previously agreed to these new standards.
Rather than forcing them to develop more fuel-efficient vehicles, Mitt Romney said that he prefers market-based solutions such as tax incentives.
He also believes that the government, which still has a 26.5% stake in General Motors, shouldn't be owning the manufacturer's shares at all. Should he be elected to the White House on November 6th, GM would have to find a new major shareholder.
Romney didn't stop there, labelling electric vehicles as "a technology that people aren't interested in." He pointed out that the Chevrolet Volt has suffered from weak sales so far in the U.S.
Jenson Button has admitted he thinks Lewis Hamilton will still be his teammate in 2013.
McLaren chiefs including Martin Whitmarsh have insisted they are "close" to signing a new deal with the 2008 world champion, but rumours suggest the two sides are at odds over Hamilton's right to keep his original trophies, and money.
Fellow Briton Button, who is already signed up for 2013, reportedly 'laughed' when Brazil's Totalrace asked him if he thinks Hamilton will ultimately follow suit.
"Yeah, I think so," he is quoted as saying.
"I don't know what options he has, but Lewis entered F1 with a team that gave him opportunities to win races and fight for championships.
"He might not have the chance to be champion every year, but the team gives him the conditions to fight for victories every year, and when you have that, it's very difficult to go somewhere else and try to build a winning team.
"Some drivers, like myself, needed to do this (move teams), but once you're in a team like this you don't want to look back.
"I don't know what his options are," Button continued, "but I don't think it's Ferrari and nobody knows if Michael is going to be at Mercedes or not (next year).
"It would be a big change for him (Hamilton), but sometimes you do need a change."
For Button, it has been an up-and-down 2012 season, who after winning the opening Australian grand prix is now 6 places and 88 points behind Fernando Alonso in the drivers' standings.
"The first races were good," he said, "and then I had a hard time when we tried new things for the car which I don't think were ideal.
"After some races we decided to go back to where we were. The reasons we did what we did was to try to understand the behaviour of the tyres.
"In some ways it was my fault for not going back earlier. I insisted on following this path. From Germany onwards things got better for us," said Button.
As for Alonso's 40-point lead in the world championship, Button said the Spaniard has done a "phenomenal job" in 2012, but warned that the situation can quickly change.
"Each of the coming races will be difficult," said Button. "He could easily lose 10, 15 points to someone each time."
Reminiscing is fun. I do it, and I'm 36 years old. I often think back to a time when the roads were littered with K-Cars, Chevettes and Escorts, and life seemed better then. OK, not good examples... How about thinking back to a period in my life when late '70s Monte Carlos, Cordobas and Thunderbirds were all the rage?
Those were the good ol' days... Not!
I just read an article in the local paper about Baby Boomers complaining that today's cars are boring and look like toasters. Talk about being stuck in the past! Memories and personal experiences certainly have played tricks on these people's minds.
The old line, "they don't build 'em like they used to" is another example of being disillusioned and totally out of touch with the present. It's understandable, as technology and design have never progressed at such a rapid rate. Losing track of the times is easy to do...
I would invite those who think that modern cars all look the same to step into a Ford, Hyundai or Volkswagen dealership. If these people walk out still thinking that there's no hope for the future of car design, I might be inclined to say that age has affected their vision.
Let me put it this way: How many out there can make out the dissimilarities between a 1965 Ford Fairlane, Chrysler Newport and Chevrolet Impala? Bingo. Unless you were in your late teens or twenties then (and into cars), you'd never know.
Fast-forward to the present and consider the 2013 Ford Focus, Hyundai Elantra and Mazda3. Exactly. Unless you pay attention to cars today, or are in the market, it is tough to make out the real differences.
The point then is that evolution has taken place. Look-alike, yacht-sized muscle cars have been replaced with look-alike, compact, nimble, efficient and safe cars.
The mass produced, cookie-cutter car has always been. It's only a question of perception. Luckily for me, I'm a car enthusiast as opposed to an old guy who's got nothing better to do than complain about nothing.
The day will come when I'll complain about not being able to figure out how the telepathic remote control for the television works, or about not being able to unlock my front door without a key because it was so much easier with a key (when I didn't lose the key)!
I'm all about opinions, but when they are given by people who were "current" 30, 40 or 50 years ago, especially in the 21st Century, I say keep them to yourself or share with those from the same generation.
Alex Zanardi thinks it is now "inevitable" Ferrari will replace Felipe Massa at the end of the season.
The Italian, whose return to F1 in 1999 ended after just one disappointing season with Williams, thinks struggling Brazilian Massa has "run out of excuses" as he continues to flounder behind his standout teammate Fernando Alonso.
"For me, Felipe is a driver with great qualities, but his anxiety crisis got the better of him," Zanardi, who returned to American open-wheeler racing after leaving F1 and lost his legs in a crash in 2001, told the Italian magazine Autosprint.
"I think if he had tried to be himself, and not Alonso, I'm sure that by now he would have seen the podium quite often.
"But, after all, he is a human being, and more 'Latin' than Fernando in the sense that the British give to the word.
"It's a difficult job, and definitely not easier if you drive for Ferrari. For me, though, at this point of the season, the time for excuses has run out.
"Ferrari will have to stand by him and see if the guy comes out of the crisis, because there are important points that they can bring in 2012.
"But I have to say at this point that I think it is inevitable that they (Ferrari) will replace him."
Zanardi, now preparing to race in the hand-cycling classes at the Paralympics, said that in a 'free market' situation, Lewis Hamilton would be his number one choice to replace Massa.
"Number two," he explained, "is Edoardo Mortara."
Mortara, 25, was the 2010 F3 euroseries champion who now races for Team Rosberg in DTM.
"If I was Ferrari, I would do with him (Mortara) what McLaren did with Lewis. But if we're talking about someone for just one season, then I would take someone like Paul di Resta or Nico Hulkenberg," said Zanardi.
The best car of 2012, Zanardi said, is the black and gold one fielded by Lotus.
"You know why?" said the 45-year-old. "Because as I always said to Morris Nunn -- the best car is not the fastest, it's the one that allows you to put the wheels where you want them."
Zanardi told the Canadian newspaper Globe and Mail recently that, after the Paralympics, his next goal might be to race a hand-controlled car at the fabled Indy 500.
"In a perfect world," he said, "Chip Ganassi would call me and ask if I wanted to do the Indy 500. That would be cool. Let me do this first and then we will see."
Nico Hulkenberg's manager has denied reports the German driver has gone without pay so far in 2012.
Austria's Sportwoche mentioned speculation Hulkenberg, 25, and his teammate Paul di Resta might have been the latest victims of Force India team owner Vijay Mallya's struggling Indian airline Kingfisher.
The report cited "several" paddock sources who believe the duo have not yet been paid anything this season.
Nico Hulkenberg (Photo: WRi2)
"These are rumours," Hulkenberg's manager Timo Gans is quoted by Germany's Sport1.
"I really wonder where this information comes from -- maybe people know more than we do," he added.
When asked specifically if Hulkenberg has been paid in 2012, Gans answered: "Yes."
Lada Sport works team continued the testing programme in preparation of their full season comeback to the FIA World Touring Car Championship in 2013.
Last week the Russian team completed a six-day test at Magny-Cours, France, with James Thompson at the wheel of the Granta Sport car.
During the test the team focused on setting up suspension, steering and engine parameters.
"I was very happy with the way the testing went, and the team can be very proud of what they have achieved in such a short time. We have worked through a very long test plan, which culminated in a big step forward both in drivability and performance, » Thompson said.
"Our two outings in Hungary and Portugal earlier this year, enabled us to collect a lot of information about the car,” team principal Victor Shapovalov said.
"Our engineers have analyzed all the issues we had, and during the summer we prepared a lot of new parts that we have tested in Magny-Cours. This test was very useful for the team and I'm very satisfied with the results. The car's reliability is very good, as we didn't meet with any technical issues over the six days. The car has been hugely improved, but will keep on developing it according to the plans," he added.
In September the Lada Sport Team will return to Russia to start working on the 2013 car. The name of the driver who will team up with James Thompson will be announced later.
Marussia will use a KERS system supplied by rivals Williams in 2013.
Technical consultant Pat Symonds also revealed on Wednesday that Marussia, the former Virgin team he joined after bowing out of F1 amid the 'crashgate' affair, will remain with Cosworth power next season.
The former Renault veteran said next year's Marussia, to be called the MR02, will be an evolution of the single seater currently raced by Timo Glock and Charles Pic.
"We will continue with the Cosworth engine. We are concentrating on improving the driveability of the engine and enhancing its performance as a unit with the car," said Symonds.
But the most surprising news is Marussia's decision to link up with Williams for KERS, having not used the energy-recovery technology since debuting in 2010.
Marussia already has a technical collaboration in place with another British team, McLaren.
"We will be using KERS next year," Symonds announced. "We plan to adopt the system that has been developed by Williams, which was used by them with the Cosworth engine last year and is currently with their Renault-engine car.
"Our 2013 unit is a development of this. We've been very impressed with the engineering, the efficiency and the weight. Williams are also a pleasure to work with both technically and commercially."
The National Motorists Association has recently analyzed data and comments from thousands of car drivers in order to reveal the worst speed traps in Canada and the United States.
Among cities with a population greater than 50,000, Windsor (3rd), Hamilton (4th) and Mississauga (5th) all wound up in the top five.
As for states and provinces, Ontario and Nova Scotia came in 1-2, with the former well ahead of the pack. Quebec ranked 52nd out of 53.
IndyCar, the sanctioning body of the IZOD IndyCar Series, has modified the activation delay to the overtake assist for the Grand Prix of Baltimore this weekend to zero seconds.
Push-to-pass has been utilized at Toronto and Edmonton with an activation delay of 5 seconds introduced at Mid-Ohio on August 5. It was reduced to 3.5 seconds for the Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma on August 26.
"We've had two races without the activation delay and two races with it,” IndyCar Director of Engine Development Trevor Knowles said. "Based on driver feedback, we're adjusting the parameters of push-to-pass to fit this particular circuit.”
A total of 90 seconds of boost will be afforded drivers, with a maximum of 20 seconds per activation on the 2-mile temporary street circuit. There's no recharge time between activations.
Ex-Formula One racer Patrick Friesacher took the wheel of a NASCAR to give the crowd at the ADAC Rallye Deutschland a little extra to cheer for.
Friesacher performed doughnuts and what not on Trier's 4.37-kilometre Circus Maxima Power Stage under the watchful eyes of spectators, last Sunday afternoon.
The car also also featured at the Messepark permanent service area.
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