Auto News 5

What Is It?

and#8220;The Fabulous 500and#8221; may have been a subtle plug for Firestone Tires, but it also happens to be a great look at the Indianapolis 500 during racing's golden era.

-- The roach motel lives on in these postcards from Petrolicious.

When Infinti sent us a statement that it was the official car of the Boston Red Sox, we had to translate it into a language more easily understood by

News 23 May, 2014

Lexus reveals prices for the new NX, with the six-model lineup starting at £29,495 rising to £42,995

Pictures See all 13 pictures 24 May, 2014

Renault has been forced to re-think its ambitious electric vehicle plans, a top executive said. "We're not in a situation where the market has followed our forecasts," Chief Performance Officer Jerome Stoll said.

Jaguar says it will complete a project started in 1963 by manufacturing six all-new XKEs with lightweight aluminum bodies at its plant in Castle Bromwich, England.

Google has come so far so fast with its 5-year-old experiment in autonomous driving that the company is talking about the next phase of its ambitious research project: moving the technology into real-world vehicles.

Aston Martin is planning to revive the Lagonda brand with a sedan, according to UK press reports. Lagonda has been owned by Aston Martin since 1947.

PSA's Madrid factory was facing closure two years ago, but now the plant has a brighter future thanks to the C4 Cactus, which Citroen began producing there in April.

Spanish auto supplier Grupo Antolin has opened a 13,750-square-meter U.S. factory in Missouri that will produce headliners for the Transit van made nearby at Ford's Kansas City assembly plant.

Ford's incoming CEO Mark Fields is well known in the auto industry as a dynamic executive, but residents in his U.S. hometown of Paramus, New Jersey, remember him as a bright, good-looking kid.

Daimler CEO Dieter Zetsche says it is important not to lose sight of the many benefits of a united Europe. One he never takes for granted is peace.

Daimler CEO Dieter Zetsche says it is important not to lose sight of the many benefits of a united Europe. One he never takes for granted is peace.

Daimler CEO Dieter Zetsche is concerned by rising anti-EU sentiment in Europe as voting begins for the European parliament.

From GMM

Romain Grosjean has not ruled out leaving Lotus at the end of 2014.

Earlier this week, while backing the troubled Pastor Maldonado, team owner Gerard Lopez said Frenchman Grosjean had emerged from a similar slump to be among the most coveted drivers on the grid.

"We've lived the same thing with Romain, and people wrote him off, but now we've got people knocking on our door to see if he can be in their team," he said.

When asked about Lopez's comments, Grosjean told RMC: "It makes me happy -- they are flatting words that are nice to hear.

"But I think it is only the sixth grand prix of the season, there are still a lot of twists and turns and the future is still relatively far away," said the 28-year-old.

Romain Grosjean, Lotus E22-Renault. (Photo: WRi2)

However, Grosjean indicated that it is possible he will not be driving a black and gold car in 2015.

Enstone based Lotus has had an horror 2014 season so far, initially uncompetitive and unreliable and still besieged by rumours of financial strife.

Referring to the annual driver 'silly season', Grosjean explained: "Usually it always starts to unlock a little during the summer break.

"For sure I want to win races and try to be world champion, and that requires a team with a car capable of doing it," he concluded.

From GMM

Nico Rosberg says he feels well equipped for 'mind games' with Lewis Hamilton.

With Mercedes so far ahead of any other 2014 rival, the pair look set to joust for the world championship at the wheel of identical silver cars.

Currently, Hamilton has the upper hand, having won the past four grands prix on the trot.

And the 'mind games' have also started, with the Briton suggesting he is hungrier for victory than Rosberg, due to the German's more affluent upbringing.

For the moment, Rosberg is unmoved.

"For sure there is a mental element, like any sport," he told Frankfurther Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper.

"Michael Schumacher was incredibly good at these mind games, so it was very interesting for me to learn from him -- I learned a great deal," Rosberg said, recalling his three years alongside the great seven time world champion.

"But it's not yet a psychological war between Lewis and I -- it's more still just out on the track."

Nico Rosberg, Mercedes W05. (Photo: Mercedes AMG F1 Team)

And Rosberg said he feels capable of taking Hamilton on in wheel-to-wheel combat.

"Lewis is on a roll, that's quite clear," he said.

"There are always times in sports when everything is going one way, but eventually the pendulum swings back in the other direction.

"I have lost none of my confidence, because I know how fast I was in the last three races.

"And another thing is that a world championship is all about consistency, and I have always been on the podium this year, which no one else has managed," Rosberg insisted.

But while it is not yet 'open war', it's also not all hunky-dory behind closed Mercedes doors.

For example, Rosberg admitted he doesn't actively try to help Hamilton.

"I wouldn't go to him and say 'Look Lewis, this is the best way to go!' In Barcelona I found the best way to set up the differential, the data was available but he had to try to find it himself," he explained.

And Rosberg also said it is an advantage that he knows Hamilton's character so well.

"Almost every day I notice something that was just as it was in the past," he said, recalling their days as karting teammates.

"Lewis' strengths and weaknesses have not changed. He is incredibly fast on track, but he can snap if something is not quite right for him.

"I know where I can beat him," Rosberg added. "Everything is the same (as before), which makes it a bit easier for me."

But when a karting trophy was the prize, Hamilton won.

Rosberg thinks that is irrelevant.

"Formula one is more than karting," he said. "It is far more technical and I am very interested in the setup and analysing the data.

"For me it's incredible fun to find advantages over the others like that. Formula one is driving, yes, but it's also thinking."

Can a crossover be faster than a McLaren P1? This modified Nissan Qashqai R sure can! Using an SVM-tuned version of the Nissan GT-R's 3.8L twin-turbo V6 engine, it produces 1,100 horsepower, accelerates from 0-100 km/h in just 2.7 seconds, and reaches a top speed of 322 km/h.

The custom-built Nissan Qashqai R also features a new exhaust system, larger wheels and brakes, as well as specific bumpers. Meanwhile, the dashboard has been tweaked to incorporate the various gauges and indicators from the GT-R.

Source : topgear.com