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Rossi wins at Sepang as Lorenzo clinches championship!

October 12, 2010 at 2:07 pm By Harvinder Sidhu Filed Under Bikes, Motorsports

Motorsport fans enjoyed a double whammy over the weekend as both the 2010 Japanese Formula 1 GP took place with Sebastian Vettel emerged winner and at the same time, the Malaysian round of the MotoGP was held at Sepang. Jorge Lorenzo, from the Petronas-backed Fiat Yamaha Team went on to win the 2010 championship, after starting from pole position.

Lorenzo managed to seal the deal with his third place finish, after losing out to second place man Andrea Dovizioso from the Repsol Honda Team. Lorenzo’s teammate Valentino “The Doctor” Rossi who gave the tittle to the former won the race.

Rossi suffered from a poor start on the opening lap and dropped to as low as 11th. The Italian who became world champion back to back in the past two years continued the fight and managed to sling shot himself into the lead midway through the way.

Lorenzo became the first Spaniard to win the MotoGP championship since Alex Criville back in 1999. “I was really impressed to be at the front and to not lose any time until the end of the race,” said the Yamaha rider. “When the tyres started sliding I thought to myself, ‘Today we have to finish the race and get the maximum a rider can get in the motorcycling world…’. Today is the happiest day in my life and we have to celebrate it,” he added.

The season isn’t over just yet. There are three more races to go, starting off with the Australian round in Phillip Island this coming weekend. The circus will then head back to Europe for the Portugal and Valencia races.

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Aston Martin’s tiny Cygnet confirmed for production

October 12, 2010 at 1:29 pm By Harvinder Sidhu Filed Under Aston Martin, Cars

This piece of news doesn’t come as a surprise. British-based sports car maker Aston Martin, yes the same company that has been giving us Bond cars has confirmed the production of the Cygnet super mini. The Cygnet which apparently “sets a new benchmark for compact luxury” is pretty much a refaced Toyota iQ.

Although the powertrain has not been confirmed, the Cygnet is likely to be motivated by Toyota’s 97hp 1.33 litre engine with 123Nm of torque. No mouth watering, rumbling V8s here. The compact vehicle is scheduled to go into production sometime next year and it will be built at Aston Martin’s Gaydon headquarters.

“Our customers need a small car for urban and city use, and they want the right tools for the right job, to downsize creatively without compromising intelligence, artistry and personality,” said CEO Dr Ulrich Bez. “The Cygnet is designed to support our sports cars by providing a greater degree of freedom in the urban context; it is a very special car, a premium but compact package with heart, soul and personality,” he added.

Despite being given the weird look by a few, Aston Martin’s venture into the compact car business is getting the blessings my many at the same time. Take Lotus for example. The company recently shown the CityCar concept at the Paris Motor Show. Just like the Cygnet, the CityCar concept is also a small sized vehicle. Although being just a concept at the moment, the CityCar is likely to go into production. More details including pricing and specifications of production Cygnet will be released by year end.

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Google’s latest invention – The driverless Google Car!

October 12, 2010 at 1:21 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, International News

You Google. You use Google Maps. You hold Google’s Android phone. One day, you could be a passenger in “Google Car”. Mere passenger because Google’s latest venture is to remove the driver from the car; it’s a self driving car! This isn’t something new however – there have been many projects to create autonomous cars, and you might have heard of Stanley, the Stanford University developed VW Touareg that won the 2005 DARPA Challenge – but it’s still surprising to hear Google doing this.

The man behind Google Streetview who also worked on Stanley, Sebastian Thrun, is part of the team behind Google Car alongside engineers from DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency). DARPA is the organiser of the Urban Challenge, which Stanley Junior (a VW Passat Wagon) won in 2007.

Equipped with gadgets like video cameras, radar sensors, a laser range finder, and detailed maps, Google’s fleet of self-driving vehicles have racked up over 140,000 unmanned miles so far. Seven vehicles (six Toyota Prius, one Audi TT) have travelled 1,000 miles without human intervention around San Francisco, going down Lombard Street, across the Golden Gate Bridge, and around Lake Tahoe. Sounds scary, but the fleet only recorded one crash, and that was when one of the Google Cars were rear-ended by another car.

Knight Rider and KITT was a fantasy 20 years ago. The autonomous car may be reality for the masses very soon!

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Auto Bavaria opens new BMW 4S centre in Kuala Lumpur

October 11, 2010 at 7:48 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under BMW, Cars, Local News

Dean Brigham and Geoffrey Briscoe

‘Tis the season to open new retail outlets, by the looks of it. Auto Bavaria Kuala Lumpur becomes the newest addition to the BMW Group Malaysia dealership network in Kuala Lumpur. The 4S centre is located at 362, Jalan Tun Razak, and if that address sounds familiar to Beemer customers, that’s because it’s where the Sapura Auto’s BMW dealership used to be.

Housed within the 60,000 sq ft, four-storey premises, which is of course compliant with BMW’s set of international standards and specifications for its dealerships, are a main BMW showroom, a Mini showroom, a dedicated Premium Selection area, sales office, service workshops with a 12 service bay capacity, four Fast Lane repair bays as well as a spare parts centre.

“The launch of Auto Bavaria’s newest outlet here in the heart of KL extends the BMW presence in the financial and commercial heart of Malaysia. The area is estimated to contribute more than four hundred cars annually to our business and we at BMW anticipate that the new dealership will prove to be a key contributor to our overall performance here in Malaysia,” said Geoffrey Briscoe, BMW Group Malaysia’s managing director.

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Wearnes VW opens new showroom in Bangsar

October 11, 2010 at 6:32 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, Local News, Volkswagen

Vollkswagen Bangsar

Expanding its presence, Wearnes VW has opened its latest Volkswagen retail outlet, and this one is located in Bangsar, or more specifically at 49, Jalan Maarof.

The Volkswagen Bangsar branch follows the approach mould taken by the company’s original showroom along Jalan Ampang, where customers are able to leisurely browse the range of Volkswagen cars on display over a cup of freshly-brewed premium cappuccino, and undisturbed at that. The knowledgeable and friendly team of sales advisors will only offer their services when required, leaving you to go about your viewing in peace.

“With the rapid rise in interest of Volkswagen cars in the country and the expansion of its impressive model line-up, we have outgrown our capability to effectively serve customers in the manner they deserve. Our new outlet is significantly more visible and accessible to customers who want to browse for their next Volkswagen car comfortably,” said Jack Zaal, general manager of Wearnes Automotive.

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Paris 2010: Nissan Townpod – Tokyo refugee found in Paris

October 11, 2010 at 6:21 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under 2010 Paris Motor Show, Cars, Hybrids and Alternative Fuel, Nissan

Looking more like a soft toy than a car, the Nissan Townpod looked like a refugee from the Tokyo Motor Show showing up in Paris. The rationale behind this creation is as amusing as the looks – Nissan says that the Townpod is for a new breed of entrepreneur, one whose business and social lives are blurred. This car is as multifaceted as the young people it’s targeting, with comfort and style of a passenger car and the utility of a commercial vehicle, they say.

Easy access is provided by Rolls-Royce style rear hinged doors with no B-pillars, while access to the load area is via barn style split doors that slide out sideways instead of opening outwards like on the Mini Clubman. Another trick is the ultra slim “disappearing rear seats” that can “merge” with the front units when slid forward. A hatch-like sun roof directly above the cargo area allows the Townpod to carry taller objects.

Underneath the skin, the Townpod is similar to the Nissan Leaf electric car, which will go on sale this December in the US.
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Vitaly Petrov gets five-place grid penalty for Suzuka crash

October 11, 2010 at 4:48 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under Formula 1, Motorsports, Renault

Renault driver Vitaly Petrov will be demoted five places from his qualifying grid position in the upcoming Korean GP. Stewards dished out the punishment for his role in the start-line incident at Suzuka yesterday, where the Russian charged ahead of Williams’ Nico Hulkenberg and veered left before fully passing the German.

His Renault clipped the Williams’ front wheel, catapulting the yellow car into the barriers on the main straight. Hulkenberg’s race also ended because of that. In defence, Petrov said he was trying to avoid Nick Heidfeld’s Sauber, but the stewards were unmoved and said he caused an avoidable collision.

“I made a good start and managed to overtake Massa. I was then going passed Hulkenberg with Heidfeld on my right when he started to move left and so I also had to move left to avoid him. Unfortunately I hit the side of Hulkenberg’s car and this is why I crashed,” the Russian rookie explained.

The Suzuka stewards also investigated the Turn 1 incident between Ferrari’s Felipe Massa and Force India’s Tonio Liuzzi that led to both retiring, but decided that no action was necessary.

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Kia POP Concept ‘could only have come from us’

October 11, 2010 at 3:34 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under 2010 Paris Motor Show, Cars, Hybrids and Alternative Fuel, Kia, Koreans

Kia Europe Chief Designer Gregory Guillaume is in an enviable position, admits the man himself, and the Kia POP concept is a typically wacky design that few of his counterparts have the freedom to explore. “Designers from other companies regularly approach me at motor shows and say ‘I would never even be allowed to try and carry that one off’ and it’s great to be in a position to operate with such freedom,” he said.

“A concept car like the POP could only have come from us,” said the Frenchman, who is based in Frankfurt. “The POP fits in perfectly with our ‘challenger brand’ ethos. We’re trying to stir things up in the automotive world, to surprise people even more. We wanted this car to act as a loose nucleus, a wild atom.

“Many of the things that influenced this design were non-automotive,” Guillaume explains. “We were looking at lightweight, aerodynamic things, such as gliders and high-speed bicycles. We realised that the automotive world wasn’t inspiring us to achieve what we wanted to achieve. The seats are designed to be non-automotive. They’re very pure, very simple, almost furniture-like,” he adds.

Not meant to preview any upcoming car, the POP is an EV with a 68 PS/190 Nm motor and a single-charge range of 160 km. It’s powered by compact lithium polymer gel batteries by LG Chem that’s fully rechargeable in six hours. Lithium polymer gel batteries offers the same performance as a typical Li-ion battery, but with 20% reduction in size and reduced manufacturing complexity.

Live gallery and studio shots are after the jump.
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Paris 2010: Peugeot HR1 Concept – Little urban crossover

October 11, 2010 at 2:26 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under 2010 Paris Motor Show, Cars, Hybrids and Alternative Fuel, Peugeot

If you have no idea what this is, don’t worry because its creators aren’t too sure either! Peugeot describes its HR1 Concept as a car that has genes from the city car, coupé and SUV. In combining all of the above, the HR1 “is creating its own identity and new and original benefits”.

It is compact at just 3.67m long, and has two electric “scissor” doors for easy access in tight areas such as in a small garage or parking in a narrow lane, for instance. The high riding HR1 has its wheels at the edges, good ground clearance and comes with SUV levels of visibility and manoeuvrability. In two-seat form, the HR1 has a massive load area of 734 litres, but put up the “stowaway seats” and it can carry up to four occupants plus 180 litres of cargo.

This urban concept sports Peugeot’s new design language seen on the SR1 and raised sections above the rear windscreen that recalls the double bubble roof design of the RCZ. Autocar UK says that the face you see here will be used for the next generation 208 supermini due in 2012.

The concept is powered by Peugeot’s HYbrid 4 system as per the 3008 you read about earlier (37 bhp/200 Nm electric motor driving the rear wheels), but here it’s paired to a new three-cylinder 1.2-litre THP petrol engine with 110 bhp and 195 Nm. Claimed fuel economy is 28.7 km/l.

Live shots from Paris and official pics are after the jump.
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Paris 2010: Peugeot 3008 HYbrid 4, world’s first diesel hybrid

October 11, 2010 at 12:11 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under 2010 Paris Motor Show, Cars, Hybrids and Alternative Fuel, Peugeot

The 2010 Paris Motor Show is still open for the public as we type, and this website will continue to “bring to you the show floor” by reporting on the many new cars and concepts that made their debut at the Paris Expo – while Lotus stole the show with their five car blast, there are plenty more to excite the car nut.

Touted as the world’s first production diesel full hybrid vehicle, the 3008 HYbrid 4 was one of the stars of the vast Peugeot stand. The logic is simple: modern diesels are more economical (by up to 30%, Peugeot says) and powerful than their petrol equivalents, so a diesel hybrid should outperform a petrol one. With an electric motor helping out, the HYbrid 4 offers performance of a much larger diesel car, but with low CO2 emissions, which is crucial in Europe.

Here, a 2.0-litre 163 bhp HDi oil burner (with Stop Start) works together with a 37 bhp electric motor – the former powers the front wheels while the latter powers the rears. Max combined torque is 500 Nm, 40% of that contributed by the electric motor.

There are no mechanical links between both powerplants – it’s all “by wire”. All the hybrid components including the Nickel Metal Hydride battery are located in the rear; Peugeot says there were no need for any redesign from the standard 3008, and weight distribution has improved with the added load in the rear.

No CVT here, as the 3008 HYbrid 4 uses an electronically-controlled 6-speed manual gearbox, which we presume works like an AMT. There are four drive modes: ZEV (Zero Emission Vehicle), Four-wheel drive, Auto and Sport. The headline figures are 26.3 km/l combined consumption and low CO2 emissions of 99 g/km.

The 3008 HYbrid 4 will go on sale early next year in Europe. Gallery after the jump.
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