Auto News 5

Skoda is challenging value brands such as Hyundai and Kia in Europe's key compact hatchback segment with the launch of its Rapid Spaceback.

It's been a month, but Ron Burgundy is still staying classy. Weiden+Kennedy and FunnyorDie.com jointly created the campaign that pairs comedian Will Ferrell's 70s era "Anchorman" with the new Dodge Durango, and at least virally, it has struck gold.

2015 Nissan GT-R

Benefiting from a revised suspension that improves grip and handling, the 2015 Nissan GT-R rides on 20'' Dunlop SP Sport Maxx GT 600 DSST CTT tires. The braking calibration has been re-tuned for a firmer, more linear response at everyday speeds, while the steering has been fine-tuned to reduce the effort required for in-town manoeuvres.

Outside, designers added an Adaptive Front Lightning System that automatically adjusts the angle of the light beam according to the speed of the car. The four LED units are configured with new intensive LED high beam and three different LED low beams including long-distance-illumination and wide-illumination.

The interior of the 2015 Nissan GT-R offers a choice of three colour schemes including a new pale ivory trim option. The steering wheel is trimmed in leather, while the part-aniline leather seats are further embellished with stitched accents.

Performance figures for the 2015 Nissan GT-R have yet to be announced.

Photo: Nissan

2015 Nissan GT-R NISMO

Making its world debut, the 2015 Nissan GT-R NISMO produces 600 horsepower and 481 lb-ft of torque from a 3.8L twin-turbo V6 engine (with new high-flow, large-diameter turbochargers used for GT3 racing). It uses custom Bilstein DampTronic dampers, and offers three suspension modes: Comfort, Normal, and R (for track applications).

The 2015 Nissan GT-R NISMO will be available in five body colours: Brilliant White Pearl, Meteor Flake Pearl Black, Ultimate Metallic Silver, Vibrant Red, and the NISMO-exclusive Dark Matte Grey. It features a black front lip spoiler, side skirts, and rear wing.

From GMM

Nico Rosberg has described the performance of Sebastian Vettel's Red Bull as "crazy".

After a disappointing weekend of pace in Austin, the Mercedes driver admitted that watching onboard footage of F1's dominant champion did not cheer him up.

"I just sit and think 'Are you crazy? How does that work?'" Nico Rosberg told the German newspaper Bild.

"What Sebastian's car can do in the corners is madness," he added.

On Sunday, Vettel surpassed Michael Schumacher's old record of seven wins on the trot in a single season.

The statistic was one of the only talking points of the US grand prix, with the possible exception of Red Bull's new all-time pitstop record of 1.923 seconds.

Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull. (Photo: WRi2)

Part of the reason for the questionable spectacle in Austin was undoubtedly because of Vettel's imperious dominance.

"I have to admit," Mercedes' Toto Wolff told Austrian journalists, "when the audience can predict the winner with 90 per cent probability, this might be seen as boring."

But some blame should fall on Pirelli's shoulders, after the Italian marque - tired of the constant criticism of its heavily-degrading tires - made an ultra-conservative hard compound choice for the weekend.

F1 has been warned by Pirelli that if the lack of cooperation remains the same up and down pitlane, fans will have to get used to the spectacle of one-stop races in 2014.

"It will be a topic of conversation in the coming weeks," Ferrari boss Stefano Domenicali is quoted by L'Equipe, "because we cannot always have races where the show is absent."

The Mercedes-Benz AMG Vision Gran Turismo will celebrate its world premiere on Tuesday, November 19th, at the opening of the new Mercedes-Benz Research & Development Center in Sunnyvale, California.

This super sports car marks the 15th anniversary of the popular Gran Turismo series. Gran Turismo 6 will go on sale next month.

Producing 585 horsepower and 590 lb-ft of torque, the low-slung, metallic grey-coloured Mercedes-Benz AMG Vision Gran Turismo has extremely bulging wheel arches and a low, menacing front grille. Inside are F1-style racing seats and a floating glass centre display.

Photo: Mercedes-Benz

Our colleague Craig Scarborough of ScrabsF1 was in Austin for the US Grand Prix and we talked about the 2014 V6 power units to be introduced in Formula 1 next season.

In a technical article we published November 14, titled “Eight fixed gear ratios for 2014” we wrote that for the new year F1 cars will require gearboxes with eight fixed gear ratios.

We asked Scarborough why the move to a “standard gearbox” in which the ratios are set was implemented for the entire season.

“The FIA wants to simplify things a bit by making the new power unit one complete package, and that would include the 1.6L V6 engine itself, the exhausts and the turbocharger, the Energy Recovery System (ERS), Motor Generator Unit - Kinetic (MGU-K), Motor Generator Unit - Heat (MGU-H), gearbox and transmission,” Scarborough replied.

The V6 power unit of Renault Sport. (Photo: Renault)

This would prevent customer teams from having to shop around to find the right bits and pieces. The three power-unit manufacturers -- Ferrari, Mercedes, and Renault -- can propose complete packages to their customer teams.

“The idea behind this is to reduce costs as much as possible. The new power units will be extremely expensive, massively more than the current V8s. That's also why the FIA has cut down on the number of power units that each driver will be allowed to use during the 2014 season,” Scarborough explained.

The Brit continued by telling us that most people are missing the point with the introduction of the turbo hybrids next year.

“It's a shame that the main message being broadcasted is about the sound these power units will make. For me this is irrelevant. The big news should be that F1 will be using an engine that will use 30% less fuel for the same amount of power as this year. Imagine your reaction if your car salesman tells you that this new road car uses 30% less fuel! I think most people are missing the point here,” he added.

Next year, the cars will be limited to using only 100kg of fuel to cover the 300km of a Grand Prix. Not only will the size of the fuel tank be limited, but the fuel flow feeding the engine will also be restricted.

“Although there will be a mandatory 15,000 rpm rev limit put on the new engines, they will not rev that high. They will probably not exceed 10,500 rpm or around that figure,” Scarborough told Auto123.

“Since the engine will be fitted with one homologated FIA fuel flow sensor fuel restrictor, engineers realised through simulations and bench testing that revving the motor above that figure will be useless. Worst, the engine would then run much leaner, which is no good at all for reliability. But I am convinced that these power units will sound fantastic!” he said.

What about this gearbox with eight fixed gear ratios?

“Next year's power units will generate so much torque that four or five speeds would be plenty enough. On certain tracks, the driver will only use five speeds; while on others, they'll use seven or eight,” Scarborough explained.

Honda has developed a direct-injected, turbocharged variant of its popular VTEC engine. It will fall under the brand's Earth Dreams Technology umbrella, which combines fun driving dynamics with excellent fuel economy.

The lineup of VTEC TURBO engines will include:
• 2.0L 4-cylinder VTEC TURBO: More than 280 horsepower, compliance with Euro6 emissions standard (2014);
• 1.5L 4-cylinder and 1.0L 3-cylinder VTEC TURBO: Output TDB.

The new VTEC TURBO engines will be adopted by Honda's future global models in accordance with characteristics of each model and needs of local customers.

Photo: Honda

From GMM

Bernie Ecclestone will be fired by CVC if he is convicted amid the Gerhard Gribkowsky corruption scandal.

That is the claim of CVC co-founder Donald Mackenzie, who gave evidence on Monday as the $140 million civil case against Ecclestone continued to play out in the London high court.

F1 chief executive is also being pursued in a criminal case by German authorities, who have charged the 83-year-old with allegedly bribing former banker Gribkowsky to the tune of $40 million.

"If it is proven that Mr Ecclestone has done anything that is criminally wrong," Mackenzie said on Monday, "we would fire him."

He also told the court that Ecclestone claims he "forgot" to tell him about the $40 million payment to Gribkowsky, and had subsequently apologised.

"He (Ecclestone) told me he had never lied to me and I must say that I had trouble believing you could forget payment of $40 million," added Mackenzie.

Bernie Ecclestone and Donald Mackenzie. (Photo: WRi2)

It is not the first time Ecclestone and Mackenzie have clashed.

In 2009, Mackenzie said Ecclestone should have stepped down after admitting in an interview that he admired Adolf Hitler.

Mackenzie said on Monday: "It (F1) is a successful investment (for CVC) apart from the adverse publicity, and this (Gribkowsky scandal) is a good example."

Bernie Ecclestone, however, told British television Sky that the case is not damaging the sport's reputation.

"I don't think so," he said. "It's good because a lot of facts come out of it."

From GMM

Nico Hulkenberg has agreed a EUR 1.9 million deal to return to Sahara Force India in 2014, according to the veteran F1 correspondent Roger Benoit.

Mere hours ago, Lotus team boss Eric Boullier said the German driver remained Enstone's top choice to replace Kimi Raikkonen full-time next season.

But while the long wait for the Quantum investment group's cash injection continues to stretch out, the Frenchman acknowledged that Hulkenberg could not be blamed "if he signs somewhere else".

"It would just mean the timing was not right for him or for us," said Eric Boullier.

Photo: Lotus F1 Team

According to Benoit, writing in Blick newspaper, Hulkenberg has indeed decided to return to Sahara Force India, who also rescued his career in late 2010 when he was dropped unceremoniously by Williams.

All the Silverstone based team has to do, according to Benoit, is pay Hulkenberg's arrears from 2012 "and an advance" on his EUR 1.9 million fee for 2014.

Nico Hulkenberg raced for Sahara Force India in 2012, but for this year switched to Sauber, who have been suffering with financial problems throughout 2013.

Benoit quoted Hulkenberg as saying: "Don't worry, I will have a seat next year."

It is now widely believed that it is the PDVSA-sponsored Pastor Maldonado, and not Hulkenberg, who will be heading to Lotus in 2014.

Nico Hulkenberg admitted he is sceptical the Enstone based team's necessary millions in 'Quantum' investment will ever actually arrive to pay his salary.

"It (the Quantum deal) has been dragging on for so long to the point that it loses credibility," the German admitted.

"When it is repeatedly put off and put off, you eventually lose hope," added Nico Hulkenberg.

Kia has just confirmed that the all-electric version of the Soul will be available in Canada. It's been sold in Korea under the name ''Ray EV'' since 2011.

The 2014 Kia Soul EV will reportedly offer a range of 195 kilometres and a top speed of 145 km/h. The exact on-sale date and price remain undisclosed, however.

Photo: Kia

2015 Porsche Macan Debuts at 2013 Los Angeles Auto Show

The baby Porsche Cayenne is here.

The Porsche Cayenne SUV gains a younger brother in the 2015 Porsche Macan which makes its debut at the 2013 Los Angeles auto show this week. Based on the same platform as the Audi Q5, the Porsche Macan is a compact crossover that competes with other performance-oriented luxury SUVs like the BMW X3, the Infiniti QX70, and its own cousin the Audi SQ5.

Photo Gallery: 2015 Porsche Macan Debuts at 2013 Los Angeles Auto Show - Automobile Magazine

Photo Gallery: 2015 Porsche Macan Debuts at 2013 Los Angeles Auto Show - Automobile Magazine

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Honda, as if to underscore its commitment to downsized, turbocharged engines, unveiled a mock-up of the powertrain for its next NSX that relies on twin turbos to provide a power boost.

Honda has increased the output and shrunk the size of the new fuel cell stack that will power its next-generation hydrogen fuel cell vehicle due in 2015.

Tetsuo Iwamura, CEO of American Honda, says that for him, "The big challenge is Acura." He said Acura has a "very strong lineup" of SUVs and crossovers. But in reviewing the brand's sedans, he said, "We need to improve a lot."

Honda unveiled a series of downsized, turbocharged engines and an eight-speed dual-clutch transmission, rounding out its line of Earth Dreams powertrains with ones that offer more performance without sacrificing fuel economy.

With tongue planted firmly in cheek, American Honda has turned to much-mocked power ballad crooner Michael Bolton to pitch its year-end sales campaign.

Honda, Mercedes-Benz and the Toyota and Lexus brands picked up honors for building vehicles that are best at retaining their value after years of ownership.

25 Years of Automobile of the Year

Every AOY winner over the years.

The 2014 Corvette is our twenty-fifth annual Automobile of the Year. Looking back at its twenty-four predecessors, we make no apologies for our brazenly subjective decision-making process.

Photo Gallery: 25 Years of Automobile of the Year - Automobile Magazine

Photo Gallery: 25 Years of Automobile of the Year - Automobile Magazine

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The leading cause of death for teenagers is not murder, suicide or drugs. It's death by car accidents, often caused by distracted teen drivers taking their eyes off the road and hands off the wheel to yap on their cellphones or send text messages.

2014 Jeep Wrangler Willys Wheeler Edition Revealed

This 2014 Jeep Wrangler pays homage to the WWII original.

Most Jeep enthusiasts are aware that the modern-day Wrangler is a distant descendant of the Willys-Overland CJ that was used in World War II, but Jeep has decided to make that connection even more evident with this special-edition model. The 2014 Jeep Wrangler Willys Wheeler Edition, which debuts at the 2013 Los Angeles auto show, is designed to commemorate the 1945 Willys-Overland CJ-2A off-roader.

Photo Gallery: 2014 Jeep Wrangler Willys Wheeler Edition Revealed - Automobile Magazine

Photo Gallery: 2014 Jeep Wrangler Willys Wheeler Edition Revealed - Automobile Magazine

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