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Pictures 4 Sep, 2013

GAZ Group says it will deliver 330 PAZ-32053 chassis to Cuba by the end of 2013, with Havana planning to start their own production of buses on the base.

GAZ Group says it will deliver 330 PAZ-32053 chassis to Cuba by the end of 2013, with Havana planning to start their own production of buses on the base.

GAZ Group says it will deliver 330 PAZ-32053 chassis to Cuba by the end of 2013, with Havana planning to start their own production of buses on the base.

News 4 Sep, 2013

Vauxhall Adam supermini fails to score full five stars in latest round of crash testing

News 4 Sep, 2013

Vauxhall Adam supermini fails to score full five stars in latest round of crash testing

UK car sales have risen for seventeen consecutive months and local automaker bosses believe the volume gains will continue as competitive finance deals and low interest rates drive sales.

Ford of Europe will launch a badge called Vignale for upscale cars at the Frankfurt auto show with a concept based on the new Mondeo.

The idea that GM would be interested in buying more Peugeot shares, as rumored earlier this summer, defies common sense. Even more ridiculous is the rumor that the Peugeot family will sell off to the Chinese.

The executives chosen as 2013 Automotive News Europe Eurostars achieved success by exceeding expectations. Gestamp Chairman Francisco Riberas is this year's Eurostar winner for Supplier CEO.

Ford of Europe will launch a badge called Vignale for upscale cars at the Frankfurt auto show with a concept based on the new Mondeo.

Renault's Dacia brand has given its best-selling model, the Duster SUV, a face-lift to make the model more rugged looking to increase its appeal.

The idea that General Motors would be interested in buying more PSA shares, as rumored earlier this summer, defies common sense. Even more ridiculous is the rumor of the Peugeot family selling off to the Chinese.

Formula 1 teams will travel to Italy this weekend to contest the famed Italian Grand Prix held on the toughest circuit of the season on engines.

Monza -- nicknamed the “Temple of Speed” -- represents the ultimate test for an engine's outright performance and reliability.

“Over three quarters of the lap is spent at full throttle and the maximum speed goes over 320 km/h four times each lap,” said Remi Taffin, Renault Sport F1's head of track operations.

Image: Caterham-Renault

“In fact the RS27 will be at full throttle for nearly 20secs in two sections of the track - twice as long as a drag strip. It is only the grip generated from the wings stop the cars from lifting - a small plane would take off in the time and the speed reached down the pit straight,” he added.

The single seaters will also be at the highest average speed of the year; very close to the 240 km/h mark.

The blue line represents the speed of the car. It's easy to see the 4 long straighaways. (Image: Caterham-Renault)

“Only three chicanes break the flow of the lap so drivers try to straightline them as much as possible, however this places its own demands on the engines as the drivers ride the kerbs, momentarily unloading the rear axle and making the engine hit the rev limiter. The phases of heavy braking and acceleration run huge loads through every part so we tend to use a new engine where possible,” he said.

“Even though the engine is running at full throttle for three quarters of the lap, fuel consumption is actually one of the lowest of the year and the race starting fuel load is one of the lowest of the season. It is actually the most fuel efficient of the year as the engine is working at a largely constant rev and the car is running a very low downforce package,” Taffin explained.

From GMM

Mario Andretti, F1's world champion of 1978, has backed Red Bull's decision to sign Daniel Ricciardo.

Some, including the German newspapers Welt and Bild, have criticised the signing of young "nobody" Australian Ricciardo over a champion candidate like Kimi Raikkonen.

But Andretti insisted: "I can understand the decision absolutely. They have this training team, Toro Rosso, that has already created Sebastian Vettel.

"So why would they have a training team if not for situations like this?" said the 73-year-old, referring to Mark Webber's departure for Le Mans.

"This is a great signal to all young racing drivers that there is a way without having a big name," Andretti told Welt.

Daniel Ricciardo. (Photo: Red Bull Racing)

And, anyway, some take serious issue with the description of 24-year-old Ricciardo as a "nobody".

"He is one of the most talented drivers," said Colin Kolles, who was Ricciardo's first F1 team boss at HRT.

"His driving style is similar to the young Fernando Alonso and Ayrton Senna," he added.

However, even if Ricciardo does live up to that promise, it is unlikely he will be fully up to speed by the very first race of 2014 in Australia.

Dr Helmut Marko has said the Australian will be given a grace period of "three to five races", by which time he will be expected to get "at least enough points for the constructors' championship".

Indeed, while Marko has revealed Ricciardo's contract is for "at least three years", Italy's Autosprint said the deal would include an initial assessment at the mid-point of next season.

One thing Ricciardo can bank on, however, is a pay rise.

Andrew Heathcote, rich list editor at the Australian business magazine BRW, said the driver's current $600,000 salary will rise to "about $2 million" now that he is at Red Bull.

That is an awful lot cheaper than Raikkonen, but another factor may also have played against the laconic Finn.

"A very important consideration is the new set of rules next year," Marko told Austria's Servus TV.

"This requires a lot of work with the technology and in the simulator, for both drivers. This made a difference for Daniel," he said, perhaps hinting that blase Raikkonen's work ethic would not have been as good.

Finally, Red Bull designer Adrian Newey played down the saga about Ricciardo's wide hips, insisting the 24-year-old will fit in the 2014 car.

"Actually it's slightly easier now," said the Briton, "as he is not as tall as Mark."

Former Indy car and Formula 1 champion, Jacques Villeneuve is involved in a new track project based in British Columbia, called South Okanagan Motorsports Club's Area 27.

In an article written by Andrew McCredie of the Vancouver Sun, the author explains that the project is a country club for driving enthusiasts.

The consortium is made of Villeneuve, South Okanagan Motorsport Club founders David King and Bill Drossos and Osoyoos Indian Band Chief Clarence Louie.

The location of the Area 27 facility is 20 kilometres north of Osoyoos in Oliver, the self-proclaimed wine capital of Canada, and sits on land owned by the Osoyoos Indian Band (OIB).

The consortium behind the proposal needs to sign up members to the private club. And while 300 is their target, the SOMC president says 200 will be enough to get Phase 1 of the planned four phases completed.

The concept will offer members to drive their performance cars on a purpose-built track, with on-site facilities to service, fuel, store and detail their machines.

Bill Drossos thinks the new track will be able to host four racing events each year, categories such as the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series, Canadian Superbike and vintage racing.

McCredie says the estimated cost of Phase 1, expected to take between six to eight months when approved, is $7.5 million. The overall budget is $10 million to $12 million. The group hopes the first cars will take to the track as early as the summer of 2015.

From press release

Hyundai Motorsport's intensive testing schedule continued as the i20 WRC car made its tarmac debut in France, as well as a productive test on the high-speed gravel conditions in Finland.

Test drivers Bryan Bouffier and Juho Hänninen were both in action over a total of ten days with both drivers sharing duties on tarmac before gravel specialist Hänninen assumed control on his home turf.

The latest iteration of the i20 WRC car hit tarmac roads for the first time in the Vosges region of France from August 12 to 16 with the main objective of gathering experience and data on this terrain.

Photo: Hyundai Motorsport

“For our first time with the 2014-spec i20 WRC on tarmac, we adopted a deliberately broad test plan with the main goal of defining the base set-up for that surface,” explained Team Principal Michel Nandan. “We completed good mileage with no major issues, and obtained valuable feedback from both Bryan and Juho, which will allow us to concentrate next on fine-tuning the individual components. Overall, it was a very positive tarmac debut”

From the tarmac test, the team moved to Finland last week to tackle the fast gravel roads and the well-known jumps, which characterise Rally Finland, one of the most technically demanding rallies of World Rally Championship. With local hero Juho Hänninen behind the wheel, the test featured an upgraded version of the 2014-spec of the i20 WRC.

Photo: Hyundai Motorsport

“In Finland we used an evolution of the 2014-spec car, different from the one which we used in France,” added Nandan. “We applied some changes to the shape of the body and during the test we worked on the aerodynamics of the car. The i20 WRC was fitted with a new aerodynamics package and we focussed our efforts in finding a good balance. We wanted to check that all aspects of the car worked properly at high speed, as well as on the jumps, which are extremely demanding. The car can reach extreme acceleration through these jumps so it is essential to study the behaviour of the car and all of its components upon landing. We've also tried different suspension and differential solutions to develop the best set-up for next year's rally.”

With test sessions planned almost every two weeks, Hyundai Motorsport now faces the busiest time of the development phase ahead of its entry into next year's FIA World Rally Championship.

I had an interesting conversation with a Volkswagen rep over Californian wine while staying in Napa Valley, recently. I asked him if VW was “worried” about other car companies finally waking up to bringing affordable, well-performing diesel cars to North America. Since the German automaker has, essentially, held a monopoly over that market in NA for decades now, the idea of competition must make them a bit nervous, no?

No.

Don't think he was being all haughty about Volkswagen's superiority, he wasn't. The German juggernaut isn't worried because they hope companies like Honda, Mazda and Chevrolet will work with them to bring out more diesel buyers in general.

Instead of competition, VW sees the Chevy Cruze diesel, the upcoming Mazda6 diesel and the (hopefully soon) upcoming Honda Accord diesel as allies, a means to bringing more diesels to North America even if they aren't under the VW badge.

Instead of splitting an already small market percentage amongst the different diesels that will be available on the market in the near future, VW just wants to make that percentage grow overall. Instead of 3.4% diesels in Canada, let's make it 10.1% spread across a few different brands. That's the goal here.

Why? Because North America truly is a fabulous market for diesels, we've just not opened our eyes wide enough to the idea yet. Just like that dreadful word “wagon,” we've got to warm up to the idea of diesel and how good they can truly be -- and the fact that they aren't just for pickup trucks and commercial vehicles.

Our aversion to diesel always kind of baffled me. It used to be a cheaper gas option, lasts longer in the tank, and the torque is generally quite fun - so what's the problem? The engine is a bit loud? So what. The gas can smell a bit rank while you're pumping? Keep gloves in your car or carry hand sanitizer in your glove box. The exhaust is dirty and causes the rear bumper to turn black? Um, nope, not anymore. Manufacturers have gone to great lengths to develop clean diesel that not only keeps your car exterior clean, but the environment, too.

As a final thought, the Volkswagen gentleman I was having this conversation with said that one other reason VW truly isn't worried, and is more excited about the prospect, about other manufacturers offering diesel models is their variety of diesels. They've got six different models available with diesel engines. Perhaps that monopoly's not quite over after all. In fact, 75% of diesel passenger cars and SUVs carry a VW badge in the US. If you add Audi and Porsche, that number jumps to well over 80%.

Here's to diesels for all; time to wake up and smell the burning lowered-sulfur.

Photo: Alexandra Straub

The IndyCar Series has confirmed that veteran Ryan Briscoe has been asked to join Graham Rahal to conduct test on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course on September 4th.

As we had already revealed, this test has been organised by the IMS and the IndyCar Series to gather information about the track's different configurations as part of the planning process for what is estimated to be a $100 million upgrade program.

The IMS officials as well as IndyCar are in the process of evaluating the idea of holding an IndyCar event on the road course.

Meanwhile, Graham Letterman Lanigan Racing will be testing Indy Lights frontrunner Jack Hawksworth at the Sebring road course on September 17th.

With two races remaining Hawksworth is currently fourth in the Indy Lights standings, albeit just nine points behind current leader Sage Karam.

Graham Rahal at Indianapolis. (Photo: IndyCar)

Bentley will be adding a member to the Continental GT family next September 10th at the Frankfurt Auto Show, the GT V8 S, available in both coupe and convertible versions. It's powered by a twin-turbo 4.0 liter V8 that produces 528 hp and 680 lb-ft torque at 1,700 rpm. The engine is mated to a close-ratio 8-speed ZF automatic transmission.

The Bentley Continental GT V8 S goes from 0-100 km/h in 4.5 seconds (4.7 for the convertible) and has a top speed of 309 km/h (308 km/h for the convertible).

The first deliveries of the Bentley Continental GT V8 S are planned for early 2014.

Photo: Bentley

Photo: Bentley