Auto News 5

Austrian Franz Tost, team principal of Toro Rosso, said Jean-Eric Vergne needs a big result soon to validate the progress he has made this season.

In his third season of F1, Vergne had to face a new teammate, rookie Daniil Kvyat.

Tost admitted reliability problems with the Renault-powered STR9 had denied both Vergne and Kvyat of several opportunities to score big points.

However, Tost says Vergne must clinch a solid result soon.

"He made a lot of progress during the winter months so he is much more [mentally] stable this year," Tost told Autosport magazine.

Jean-Eric Vergne, Toro Rosso STR9 (Photo: WRi2)

"He is doing a good job. Unfortunately he has had a lot of reliability issues with his car, but from the driving point of view he is fast, skilled, and I just hope he gets a really good result.

"Monaco [where Vergne ran as high as sixth before an unsafe release and ignition problems] would have been the kick to give him self-confidence to score a lot of points, and then everything becomes much easier.

"You need the results because this is the confirmation. Otherwise it's just talk, philosophy,” Tost conluded.

With ongoing rumours about the possible arrival of Red Bull Junior drivers such as Carlos Sainz Jr or Max Verstappen at Toro Rosso next year, Vergne knows what to do next.

According to La Presse, Tesla Motors will open its first factory store in Quebec just a few months from now, more specifically on Ferrier Street in Montreal's Côtes-des-Neiges-NDG borough, close to Jaguar, Rolls-Royce and Mercedes-Benz dealerships.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk will reportedly spend more than $1 million to turn the 45,000-square foot location, which previously sold Infiniti and Chrysler products, into a dedicated Tesla store. La Presse also claims that it could become the electric carmaker's largest retail facility in North America.

A Tesla service centre has been operating in Laval since late 2012. There, potential customers can test drive the Model S and order a copy.

Fewer than 300 Tesla vehicles are currently found on Quebec roads, but the opening of a factory store in the province's largest city, combined with the upcoming launch of the all-new Model X crossover and the arrival of a Model 3 compact sedan in 2017, could alter the landscape dramatically.


_{Source: La Presse}

On August 30th, Jaguar Land Rover will recall 46,515 Land Rover SUVs in the U.S. and Canada. Affected models include the 2010-2015 LR2 and 2012-2013 Range Rover Evoque.

Apparently, a component in the occupant classification system's electronic control unit may fail, disabling the passenger airbag partially or completely.

No accidents or injuries relating to this issue have been reported so far.
Land Rover dealers will update the restraint control module software at no cost.

Source : autonews.com

Jaguar has expanded its relationship with British luxury watchmaker Bremont to create six unique wristwatches for the six customers who purchase a new Lightweight E-type.

The watch will make its public debut alongside the car at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance on Thursday, August 14th.

Drawing inspiration directly from the Jaguar Lightweight E-type, the 43mm watch features a black dial based on the look of a Lightweight rpm gauge and featuring a subtle 'red zone' quadrant. The chamfered hour and minute hands replicate the instrument's tachometer needle, while the chassis number of the relevant car is printed at the six o'clock position.

“Bremont was the obvious choice as a partner, both because we have worked closely together in the past on the clocks for the C-X75 and XJ75 Platinum concept cars and because, like Jaguar, it is a quintessentially British brand,” said Jaguar's director of design, Ian Callum. “We didn't want a watch that was too obvious in terms of design, but something which captured the spirit of the Lightweight in a subtle yet relevant way and I think Bremont has certainly achieved that goal.”

So, just to be perfectly clear: If you're not one of the six lucky buyers of a Jaguar Lightweight E-type, you won't get the chance to wear this exclusive watch.

Source : Jaguar

From GMM

Bernie Ecclestone's bribery trial and charges have been officially dropped, after the Formula 1 supremo lodged his controversial $100 million settlement with Munich authorities.

After the deal was announced recently, the 83-year-old Briton had one week to actually pay the funds -- $99 million to the Bavarian state, and $1 million to a German children's charity.

"After the payment of the agreed amount to the recipients, the court ceased criminal proceedings", Munich spokeswoman Margarete Notzel confirmed to the German news agency DPA.

Bernie Ecclestone (Photo: WRi2)

Ecclestone is celebrating the end of proceedings by holidaying aboard his huge luxury yacht Petara off the Croatian island of Havr, the Daily Mail reported.

"The bottom line is it's been three and a half years of aggravation, travelling, meeting lawyers, and god knows what else, so it is good it is out of the way," the billionaire said.

It is not yet clear what Bavaria will do with Ecclestone's millions, the largest criminal court settlement in German history, but minister president Horst Seehofer insisted: "We are certainly not breaking into cries of joy."

The first Range Rover ever built (chassis #001, model-year 1970) will be auctioned off at the Salon Privé Sale in Silverstone, England, on September 4th. Its estimated worth ranges from £100,000-£170,000, or approximately $182,000-$310,000.

The original Spen King-designed Range Rover went out of production at the end of 1996. It was renamed the Range Rover Classic when the Mk.II model was introduced in the autumn of 1994. In the various markets where it landed, including Japan, the U.S., Canada and Australia, demand often exceeded supply.

The Range Rover chassis #001 was manufactured from November 24th to December 17th, 1969. It was first registered on January 2nd, 1970 -- some five and a half months before the June 17th launch date.

Michael Forlong, producer of the two Range Rover promotion films, became the first private owner of this milestone vehicle on April 8th, 1971. Originally painted in Olive Green, the body was re-sprayed into the production colour of Bahama Gold.

During the following years, the vehicle changed ownership several times and the #001 plate mysteriously disappeared, making it harder to trace. Land Rover somehow got their hands on it in the early 1990s and began a thorough 6-year restoration process.

Who will be the lucky bidder, and how much will they spend to own the first-ever Range Rover? Look for the answers next month.

Source : silverstoneauctions.com

Adapted from McLaren

McLaren is one of the most famous Formula 1 teams and sporting marques worldwide. Here are 10 facts you may not know about it.

10
McLaren's longest-serving employee is Ray ‘Tex' Rowe, who joined Bruce McLaren Motor Racing Ltd in 1963. Tex still works three days a week in Racing's gearbox shop.

McLaren Technology Centre (Photo: McLaren)

9
The McLaren technology Centre is constructed from over 5,000 tonnes of steelwork and uses 43,000m3 of glass throughout the building. The MTC's footprint is big enough to house nine Boeing 747 Jumbo jets.

8
McLaren's first works F1 chassis was 1965's M2A/1. Since then, it has built more than 250 racing cars.

7
In 1993, McLaren built its first road car - the McLaren F1. Only 66 chassis were built. Recording a top speed of 391km/h (243mph, with a 0-100km/h time of just 3.2 seconds), it's still officially recognised as the fastest normally aspirated production car in the world.

Emerson Fittipaldi, McLaren M23 (Photo: WRi2)

6
Single McLaren car with most victories is the M23, which took 16 grand prix victories between 1973 and 1977.

5
In 1981 McLaren made F1 history when it raced the first carbon fibre composite chassis on the MP4/1, a concept which is now ubiquitous.

Kimi Räikkönen, McLaren MP4-20 (Photo: WRi2)

4
The most powerful McLaren Formula 1 car is the 2005 MP4-20A, which had a power output of 920bhp.

3
McLaren driver most wins is Ayrton Senna (35); he's followed by Alain Prost (30), Lewis Hamilton (21), Mika Hakkinen (20) and David Coulthard (12).

2
John Watson has the unique honour of being the lowest-qualified McLaren driver to have won a race - at Long Beach in 1983; John qualified 22 and finished first.

Ayrton Senna, McLaren MP4-7 (Photo: WRi2)

1
Naturally, the most pole-winning McLaren driver is Ayrton Senna - he set 46 poles, 20 more than joint-second-placed Mika Hakkinen and Lewis Hamilton.

Ford and Chevrolet are getting a jump-start on summer clearance deals to spur sluggish U.S. sales and stem market-share losses.

Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi said that Chinese carmaker Brilliance China Automotive had expressed an interest in opening a plant in Italy. Renzi is trying to encourage foreign investment in Italy, which has fallen back into recession.

Tony Posawatz, the former vehicle line director for the Chevrolet Volt who also briefly headed Fisker Automotive, has joined the board of directors for telematics company INRIX.

The Department of Energy has awarded more than $55 million in grants to companies including Ford, Delphi Automotive Systems and others for advanced vehicle technology randd projects.

General Motors will invest 6.5 billion reais ($2.8 billion) in Brazil over the next five years, CEO Mary Barra said today. She said GM remains committed to one of its most important markets.

General Motors' Technical Center is nearly back to full operations after Monday's record rainfall in Detroit caused flooding and power issues.

Axalta Coating Systems, DuPont's former auto-paint unit, is working with Citigroup and Goldman Sachs on an initial public stock offering with hopes of raising $1 billion, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg.

The Treasury Department said it will cut its stake in Ally Financial by selling stock on the open market in its first divestiture since an initial public offering in April.

Ford is tapping DTE Energy to build a solar array at the automaker's world headquarters near Detroit. The solar array will also serve as a parking cover to 360 spaces, equipped with 30 charging stations for plug-in electric vehicles.

News 14 Aug, 2014

Facelifted Audi A7 range is now on sale priced from £45,875 ahead of arriving in showrooms later in 2014

News 14 Aug, 2014

All-new Skoda Fabia to debut at Paris Motor show, teased for the first time

China's quality inspector has started an investigation into potential defects on a locally produced VW sedan after a growing number complaints from owners about the car's rear axle.

Foreign companies are protesting that Chinese authorities involved in an antitrust crackdown are abusing their power through intimidation tactics.