Auto News 5

SKODA cars may not be sold in North America, but we think this is news worth telling you about. As part of the launch campaign of the new SKODA Octavia vRS, the company produced an ad that features a number of oversized objects and vehicles including a baby stroller that rides on 20" wheels.

Called the "vRS Mega Man-Pram," it was actually inspired from a SKODA-commissioned survey of 1,000 dads which found that two thirds (76%) admitted they would spend more time pushing baby if they had access to a higher-spec and more stylish stroller.

In addition to the massive wheels, highlights include:

• Wing mirrors;
• Hydraulic suspension;
• Oversized brake callipers;
• Anti-stress grips;
• Headlamp for night walks;
• Sport-style upholstery;
• Adjustable lumbar support.

From GMM

Photographers and reporters still allowed in the pitlane during F1 track sessions do not have to wear a helmet.

After a flying wheel left a FOM cameraman in hospital after the recent German grand prix, F1 authorities clamped down on pitlane safety.

Access to media was severely limited, and team members in the pitlane all forced to now wear a helmet.

But does the new helmet rule also apply to the media?

"No, not yet," FOM spokeswoman Suzanne Eyre is quoted by the Kolner Express newspaper.

"We are working on a safe solution that doesn't interfere with their work," she added.

The newspaper said FOM has installed fixed cameras on the pitwall and the pit building in Hungary.

And the injured cameraman Paul Allen is quoted as saying: "I'm doing well so far.

"I hope to be in Singapore."

Another FOM cameraman, Uwe Hohls, said: "It's good that safety is continuously improved, but we all know that working in motor sport is always dangerous."

From GMM

The news swept through the Hungaroring paddock like wind -- the 2013 Concorde Agreement is signed at last!

In the long absence of a current Concorde, F1's confidential agreement binding the three corners of the sport, Bernie Ecclestone already had new 'financial' agreements with the teams in place.

The missing piece of the puzzle was a deal between the F1 chief executive, representing the sport's commercial rights holders, and the governing FIA.

"There's obviously been lots of things we've had to sort out," said Ecclestone in Hungary.

The most recent speculation is that Ecclestone has been holding out on releasing more revenue to the FIA, in exchange for more control over the accreditation of print journalists.

Ecclestone and Todt (Photo: WRi2)

But, in a paddock motor home on Saturday, the 82-year-old sat down at a table with FIA president Jean Todt, they shook hands and smiled, and they signed the papers.

But as the joint press release admitted, a Concorde Agreement it was not.

Actually, what they signed on Saturday was a "framework for (the) implementation of the 2013 Concorde Agreement".

It will only become the Concorde "upon approval by the respective governing bodies" in the "coming weeks".

From GMM

Nico Hulkenberg has admitted he is on the market for 2014.

Contesting only his tenth race for Sauber since switching from Force India over the winter, the German is undoubtedly concerned not only by the Ferrari-powered C32's lack of pace, but also the Swiss team's financial problems.

"I have no idea what will happen, we're still exploring all options," Hulkenberg is quoted by Speed Week.

Many in the paddock believe the highly-rated 25-year-old is now in pole position for a move to Ferrari next year, should the fabled Italian team not renew Felipe Massa's contract.

Hulkenberg said: "My manager and I are speaking with several teams, including Sauber.

"There's nothing official yet, and anyway I'm concentrating on the current season."

It has also been rumoured Lotus, possibly to lose its number 1 driver Kimi Raikkonen, is interested in Hulkenberg.

"There are so many rumours and not all of them can be true," he insisted.

"I'd also much rather be sitting in the car than reading everything that is written about me," added Hulkenberg.

Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton was the only man to turn a quicker lap than championship leader Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull), as the Formula 1 field qualified ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix, at the blistering Hungaroring.

Hamilton, who will start first for the fourth time this season, also beat Lotus' Romain Grosjean, his own teammate Nico Rosberg and Ferrari's Fernando Alonso, who all fell short of his 1min19.388s benchmark. Kimi Räikkönen and Felipe Massa duly followed in sixth and seventh aboard the other Lotus and Ferrari.

Daniel Ricciardo (Toro Rosso) and Sergio Pérez (McLaren) also made it through to the top 10. So did Mark Webber, but the Red Bull driver opted not to set a time, which means he still gets to pick which tire he will start the race on.

All the other drivers in Q3, except Pérez who set his time with the medium compound, will have to start on softs.

Paul di Resta (Force India), who struggled with car set-up, and Esteban Gutierrez (Sauber), with engine trouvles, were the two high profile victims of Q1.

Earlier in the day, Grosjean led the last free practice session, ahead of Alonso and Pérez, as Vettel, only fourth, focused on longer runs. Esteban Gutierrez (Sauber), 18th on the grid, missed the whole session while his mechanics changed his engine.


Qualiyfing results* - Hungarian Grand Prix (Hungaroring)
1.Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes W04) - 1'19"338 - Q3
2.Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull RB9-Renault) - 1'19"426 - Q3
3.Romain Grosjean (Lotus E21-Renault) - 1'19"595 - Q3
4.Nico Rosberg (Mercedes W04) - 1'19"720 - Q3
5.Fernando Alonso (Ferrari F138) - 1'19"791 - Q3
6.Kimi Raikkonen (Lotus E21-Renault) - 1'19"851 - Q3
7.Felipe Massa (Ferrari F138) - 1'19"929 - Q3
8.Daniel Ricciardo (Toro Rosso STR8-Ferrari) - 1'20"641 - Q3
9.Sergio Perez (McLaren MP4/28-Mercedes) - 1'22"938 - Q3
10.Mark Webber (Red Bull RB9-Renault) - no time - Q3
11.Adrian Sutil (Force India VJM06-Mercedes) - 1'20"569 - Q2
12.Nico Hulkenberg (Sauber C32-Ferrari) - 1'20"580 - Q2
13.Jenson Button (McLaren MP4/28-Mercedes) - 1'20"777 - Q2
14.Jean-Eric Vergne (Toro Rosso STR8-Ferrari) - 1'21"029 - Q2
15.Pastor Maldonado (Williams FW35-Renault) - 1'21"133 - QQ2
16.Valtteri Bottas (Williams FW35-Renault) - 1'21"219 - Q2
17.Esteban Gutierrez (Sauber C32-Ferrari) - 1'21"724 - Q1
18.Paul Di Resta (Force India VJM06-Mercedes) - 1'22"043 - Q1
19.Charles Pic (Caterham CT03-Renault) - 1'23"007 - Q1
20.Giedo Van der Garde (Caterham CT03-Renault) - 1'23"333 - Q1
21.Jules Bianchi (Marussia MR02-Cosworth) - 1'23"787 - Q1
22.Max Chilton (Marussia MR02-Cosworth) - 1'23"997 - Q1

*Unofficial

KV Racing Technology has until August 1st to finalize a program for next year's Indycar season for its star driver Tony Kanaan, after that the Brazilian will be free to shop around the paddock.

Kanaan is making a return this week-end to Indianapolis where he will be driving a Daytona prototype for Ganassi Racing on the same circuit where he won earlier this year the Indianapolis 500.

The veteran driver did not hide the fact that Ganassi could be an avenue for him next year.

"This could be a possibility," Kanaan said. "This could be the team like any other team."

The fact is, there aren't that many interesting options for him, so Ganassi is obviously one of the best, although Kanaan said that his first priority is returning to KV.

Another option could be Panther Racing but according to sources, the squad is apparently on the verge of signing Ryan Briscoe.

From GMM

Ferrari looks set to buy out the remainder of former technical director James Allison's Lotus contract.

That is the claim of Finland's Turun Sanomat newspaper, following reports the Briton is definitely headed to Maranello.

Correspondents Luis Vasconcelos and Heikki Kulta report that Allison neared an agreement with Honda, initially to build a test car ahead of the Japanese manufacturer's return as works engine supplier to McLaren in 2015.

But when McLaren "did not support the idea" of a Honda test car, Allison's eyes reportedly turned back to Ferrari, where he worked between 2000 and 2005.

"It is believed Allison could get to work (at Ferrari) in the early autumn", working alongside Pat Fry and Nicolas Tombazis, Turun Sanomat added.

With the spotlight turned on the recent Open Championship, Mercedes-Benz introduced the Vision Golf Cart after hundreds of golf and car enthusiasts took part in an international competition by submitting their ideas for a golf cart of the future.

The Mercedes-Benz Advanced Design Center in Carlsbad, California, developed the Vision Golf Cart by combining the aspects of Mercedes-Benz vehicles with the functionality of a golf cart. It's a street-legal, electrically powered cart with headlights, turn signals, and taillights.

The vehicle is controlled in innovative and intuitive fashion via a joystick mounted on the centre console, so either passenger can drive the golf cart.

The trunk is large enough to hold 2 golf bags, while the lightweight door panels feature a click-in function that makes them very easy to install if the weather is not so good.

Other highlights include a rotatable docking station for an iPad or iPhone, Bluetooth connectivity, head-up display, communication with the clubhouse and other golf carts, as well as the ability to share the digital score card or even photos from the golf game directly on social media channels.

Oh, and let's not forget the “Fore” button which can be used to quickly warn other players of a misplaced shot.

Starworks Motorsport's Ryan Dalziel and Alex Popow swiftly took over the lead in the Daytona Prototype championship standings, Friday with a win at the Brickyard Grand Prix, in Indianapolis.

Aboard their newly BMW-powered Riley prototype, Dalziel and Popow beat Ganassi's Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas, whose second-place finish was enough to earn them the $100,000 prize of the North American Endurance Championship (NAEC), a three-race series within the Rolex championship.

Alex Gurney and Jon Fogarty (No. 99 GAINSCO Corvette DP) completed the podium.

Former F1 and IndyCar driver Rubens Barrichello finished fifth alongside co-driver Doug Peterson in the No. 77 Doran Racing Ford/Dallara. His countryman Tony Kanaan, who won the Indy 500 earlier this year, finished ninth in the second Ganassi entry, which he co-drove with DTM driver Joey Hand.

Jeff Segal and Max Papis won their first GT race of the season in the No 61 AIM Motorsport Ferrari 458, beating John Edwards and Robin Liddell (No. 57 Chevrolet Camaro) to the brickyard finish line. Like Rojas and Pruett in DP, Edwards and Liddell won their class in the NAEC by finishing second.

Sylvain Tremblay and Tom Long (No. 70 Mazda 6) won their fifth consecutive GX race in front of NAEC winner Jim Norman (No. 38 Porsche Cayman).

Photo: Grand-Am.com

Race results - Brickyard Grand Prix (Indianapolis Motor Speedway)
1 - Dalziel-Popow (Riley-Ford) - Starworks - 107 laps
2 - Pruett-Rojas (Riley-BMW) - Ganassi - 107
3 - Fogarty-Gurney (Corvette DP/Riley) - Stallings - 107
4 - Hartley-Mayer-Kaffer (Riley-BMW) - Starworks - 107
5 - Barrichello-Peterson (Riley/Dallara-Ford) - Doran - 107
6 - Taylor-Westbrook (Corvette DP) - SpiritOfDaytona - 107
7 - Negri-Pew (Riley-Ford) - Shank - 107
8 - Potolicchio-Valiante-Sarrazin (Corvette DP/Coyote) - 8Star - 107
9 - Hand-Kanaan (Riley-BMW) - Ganassi - 106
10 - Allmendinger-Yacaman (Riley-Ford) - Shank - 106
11 - Di Guida-Bourdais (Corvette DP/Coyote) - 8Star - 106
12 - Cameron-Nonnamaker (Riley-BMW) - Sahlen - 106
13 - Nonnamaker-Nonnamaker (Riley-BMW) - Sahlen - 103
14 - Papis-Segal (Ferrari 458) - AIM - 103
15 - Edwards-Liddell (Chevy Camaro) - Stevenson - 103
16 - Lally-Potter (Porsche 997) - Magnus - 103
17 - Assentato-Lazzaro (Ferrari 458) - AIM - 103
18 - Balzan-Keen (Ferrari 458) - Scuderia Corsa - 103
19 - Randall-Wilden (Ferrari 458) - Scuderia Corsa - 103
20 - Davis-Snow (Porsche 997) - Snow - 102
21 - Curran-Said (Corvette Z06) - Marsh - 102
22 - Carter-Espenlaub-Sandberg (Audi R8) - Fall-Line - 102
23 - Hart-McCutchen (Porsche 997) - ParkPlace - 101
24 - Barbosa-Fittipaldi (Corvette DP/Coyote) - ActionEx - 101
25 - Angelelli-Taylor (Corvette DP/Dallara) - Taylor - 97
26 - Long-Tremblay (Mazda6) - Speedsource - 96
27 - Lindsey-Long (Porsche 997) - Park Place - 95
28 - Pumpelly-Norman (Porsche Cayman) - BGB - 92
29 - Miller-Nunez (Mazda 6) - Speedsource - 92
30 - Frisselle-Frisselle (Corvette DP/Coyote) - ActionEx - 81
31 - Auberlen-Della Lana (BMW M3) - Turner - 75
32 - Grant-Grant-Grant (BMW M3) - Turner - 64
33 - Albuquerque/Mortara (Audi R8) - Audi - 40
34 - Costabal-Faulkner-Salazar (Porsche 997) - Muehlner - 23
35 - Kauffman-Aguas (Ferrari 458) - AF Corse - 21

DP championship
1. Popow-Dalziel 229; 2. Fogarty-Gurney 219; 3. Taylor-Angelelli 210.

GT championship
1. Potter-Lally 229; 2. Liddel-Edwards 225; 3. Balzan 219.

From GMM

Dr Helmut Marko has played down fears Austria's return to the F1 calendar next year might stumble at hurdles.

A deal for a grand prix next July at the relaunched A1-Ring, now called the Red Bull Ring, has been agreed between Dietrich Mateschitz and Bernie Ecclestone.

But the race actually going ahead is conditional on environmental and decibel permissions, and the raising of the allowed daily spectator limit beyond 40,000.

Red Bull's Marko, however, insists: "I see nothing serious that would be a problem."

F1 team bosses met at the Hungaroring and argued that next year's calendar should not extend beyond 20 races.

With Austria, Russia and New Jersey all set to join the schedule, however, that would mean at least two existing races are axed.

Reports from the paddock say India and Korea are the most likely to fall victim.

Marko told Kleine Zeitung newspaper: "There are some monumental tracks in Asia, but (they have) no atmosphere."

From GMM

Paul Hembery has denied the missed Silverstone test will continue to affect Mercedes.

As a result of the 'test-gate' scandal, Mercedes was ordered to sit out the young drivers test, at which every other team got an early taste of Pirelli's new Hungary-spec tire.

But Pirelli's Hembery told Auto Motor und Sport: "From now, I do not expect Mercedes will be disadvantaged.

"These tires are well known from last year, and Mercedes got all the (test) data.

"But unlike the other teams, they were unable to test any upgrades on their car.

"That was their disadvantage of not running at the young drivers test," he insisted.

Hembery also denied that some teams have been unfairly advantaged, while others disadvantaged, as a result of the latest change in Pirelli's 2013 tire specification.

"As far as we are concerned, it looks as though nothing has changed," the Briton said.

"The order is the same as before."

Kasey Kahne's future got a shot in the arm with the announcement that Great Clips will extend its' sponsorship through 2016 and adds 10 more races as primary sponsor of the No. 5 Chevrolet.



Great Clips, will be featured on Kahne's Chevrolet this weekend at Indianapolis, marking the second of three scheduled primary races for the company in 2013. The world's largest salon brand also will be the primary sponsor at New Hampshire on Sept. 22.

“We are very proud to have Kasey drive the No. 5 for Great Clips,” said Terri Miller, vice president of marketing and communications for Great Clips. “On behalf of all of our corporate staff, franchisees and stylists, Kasey has become a special member of our family over the years.

Photo: Kasey Kahne

“He has brought great value to our brand and helped our system grow. Being a partner of Hendrick Motorsports is truly an honor as we share the same values, integrity and passion to win.”

“The people at Great Clips have been committed to NASCAR as a marketing platform for many years,” said Rick Hendrick, owner of Hendrick Motorsports.

“They continue to see a great return on investment, and we're focused on continuing that trend by performing at a high level on the racetrack while delivering business wins. Great Clips is a terrific partner, and we look forward to building on the success we've already had together.”

“I'm happy to see Great Clips make a long-term commitment to the No. 5 team,” Kahne said.

“I'm thankful for the support they've provided throughout my career, and I look forward to representing them for years to come. Bristol was our first Sprint Cup win together, and everyone on the team expects to deliver many more.”

2014 Porsche 911 GT3 Second Drive

The most seriously scrutinized 911.

"The real question will be whether the new GT3 feels alive like the old one, and whether it has the same kind of driver involvement. If the new car allows me to drive harder in the corners, I'll love that. But if it's too distilled unless you're at 10/10s, maybe not." That's what a Porsche collector named Darren told us as we drove his 2011 911 GT3 RS 4.0 shortly before heading to Germany for the launch of the new GT3.

Photo Gallery: 2014 Porsche 911 GT3 Second Drive - Automobile Magazine

Photo Gallery: 2014 Porsche 911 GT3 Second Drive - Automobile Magazine

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Volkswagen and Suzuki are exploring options to either revive cooperation efforts or enter a settlement to end a two-year legal battle over a failed partnership, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg.

2013 Mini John Cooper Works GP

The most hardcore version of the Mini Cooper is so, so fun.

The 2013 Mini Cooper provides such a great blank canvas for customization and sport upgrades. Our John Cooper Works Grand Prix test car looks great in dark gray paint with red accents, a substantial front apron, chunky red brake calipers, and the "GP" graphics on the side. A friend was amused, however, when I pulled into his driveway and he saw the "0069" sticker on the roof above the driver's door. Apparently our tester is #69 of 500 JCW GP editions to be manufactured for the U.S. market. (Mini Cooper JCW GP production is limited to 2000 units worldwide.) Customers who own the first-generation GP have the first option to buy the new one with the same number, as long as it falls in the range of 0001-0500. I wonder who had #0069 last time?

Photo Gallery: 2013 Mini John Cooper Works GP - Editors' Notebook - Automobile Magazine

Photo Gallery: 2013 Mini John Cooper Works GP - Editors' Notebook - Automobile Magazine

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The Deep Dive: Does BMW Really Need Toyota?

Toyota has something BMW wants. No, it isn't the Camry.

Size matters in the auto industry. Bigger automakers can cut better deals with suppliers and can subsidize expensive technologies. Here, BMW finds itself at a distinct disadvantage. Audi can rely on the Volkswagen Group for economies of scale, and Mercedes-Benz has engineered deals with Renault and Nissan/Infiniti. BMW has looked for ways to increase volume on its own. It has entered just about every market segment and invented a few more (5-series Gran Turismo, anyone?). It is also exploiting Mini for all it's worth; as we've reported, the two brands will share a front-wheel-drive architecture and several engines going forward. However, it's unclear how much more BMW can squeeze out of luxury vehicles and a kitschy British brand. Although the carmaker keeps posting record sales, the bottom line does not shine quite so brightly anymore because fleet sales and price wars are taking their toll. The Bavarians need a bigger partner. Much bigger.

Photo Gallery: The Deep Dive: Does BMW Really Need Toyota? - Automobile Magazine

Photo Gallery: The Deep Dive: Does BMW Really Need Toyota? - Automobile Magazine

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BMW will unveil the i3, its first all-electric car, on Monday, hoping to stir demand for an expensive luxury model just as some other makers hit hurdles in selling battery-powered vehicles.

Just months before increasing its production of Highlander large crossovers, Toyota says it will add still more Highlander capacity next year.

If there is one classic car event in the Midwest this summer, it'd be Michigan's Concours d'Elegance of America.