Archive for Automotive Videos

BMW has developed a parking-assist technology that can park your car for you while you stand outside the car and watch as the internal robotics and gizmos park it. A prototype of the system has been completed and a demo video was recorded using a BMW 730i, which is available after the jump. BMW group research and technology managing director Raymond Freymann says the system will be available in 3 years, and will be very easy to use – just press a button and watch the car park itself.

Of course, this parking system isn’t for the car to park itself anywhere. It involves components both on the car and components to be installed in the parking spot designated, for example your garage. You have to install a reflective lense against the wall of the parking space. A video camera on the car’s front windshield measures the distance and angel of the car in relation to the lense, while other sensors ensure there is at least 8 inches of space on the left and right of the car. Through information gathered from these input devices, the gas pedal and steering wheel is controlled.

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BMW is using Kermit the Frog from The Muppet Show to promote it’s BMW 1-Series hatchback. It showcases Kermit driving the 1-Series around the desert having a whole load of fun showcasing the car’s agility and performance. Have a look at the video after the jump!

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I’m sure most of you have heard of the saying “breed like rabbits”, or another variation of it using crude alternatives to the word breed that I do not think is very appropriate to say here. The Volkswagen Golf that we all know and love is marketed as the Volkswagen Rabbit in the US. Here is an ad campaign for the 2006 Volkswagen Rabbit (Golf Mk5) which plays on the “breed like rabbits” saying. There’s even dogs chasing after the car, like how dogs chase after rabbits in real life. Video is after the jump.

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Photo: Jussi Koskinen

The Lotus Carlton was born during the days where General Motors owned Lotus, before Proton bought them. It was based on the 1986 Vauxhall Carlton/Opel Omega Mark 2 3.0GSi, a family saloon sold in the US as a Vauxhall and in Europe as an Opel. The Carlton earned the European Car Of The Year award in it’s year of launching.

Lotus basically took the Carlton, added a rear boot spoiler, air intakes on the bonnet, Lotus badges, and souped up the engine. It turned the 3.0 inline-6 into a monster twin turbocharged 3.6 liter inline-6 making 377 hp at 5,200 rpm. The car came in only one colour; Imperial Green – a colour which looked like black except under very bright lights.

General Motors originally had a sales target of 1,100 units, but only managed 950 (320 Vauxhalls and 630 Opels). This was due to the early 1990s recession, not many could afford a £48,000 car.

Look after the jump to watch Tiff Needell review the Lotus Carlton.

Click here to read the rest of 1990 Lotus Carlton (Lotus Omega)

BMW has been testing their new BMW 1-Series soft top cabriolet over at the Nurburgring track in Germany. The small cabriolet is based on the BMW CS1 Concept (picture above) shown back in 2002 at the Geneva Motor Show. The CS1 featured a 1.8 liter Valvetronic engine mated to an SMG gearbox. What differentiates this from it’s older brother the BMW 3-series convertible is the latter has a powered hard top while the 1-series cabriolet will be smaller and will have a normal canvas top. Technically, according to BMW’s naming scheme this should be called a 2-series, but it appears that BMW is leaning more towards calling it a 1-series cabriolet.

Click here to read the rest of 2007 BMW 1-series Cabriolet Spy Video

AutoExpress has this nice spy video of the Audi R8 making test rounds around the infamous Nurburgring track in Germany. I’m sure all of you will enjoy the sounds of the R8’s engine which is supposedly a Lamborghini-derived V10. It is said that the car will feature a 4.2 liter V8 FSI and a 5.2 liter V10 FSI, with a possible turbodiesel option considering Audi’s success with the turbodiesel Audi R10 race car. I’ve hosted it on my server for you to enjoy better streaming speeds.

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I’m sure some of you have heard of anti-lag systems or sometimes known as misfiring systems, thanks to anime like Initial D. You might have noticed that most of the cars have flames coming out of their exhaust when they shift gears. If you’ve watched Top Gear’s review on the Prodrive P2, you will see that the P2 has it too. That’s a misfiring system in action. Let’s just call it anti-lag from now on. So what does anti-lag do?

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A video of an accident between a Toyota Yaris and a very lucky motorcyclist. Apparently the motorcyclist had a green light while the lady in the Toyota Yaris had a red light. The accident purportedly happened in Greece.

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These videos demonstrating the handling capabilities of the Proton Satria Neo are thanks to “Wajakuat” who originally hosted them on Youtube. I’ve put them on my server for faster loading speeds. There are three videos, one with the Proton Satria Neo 1.6, one with the Proton Satria Neo 1.3, and the last one is a Proton Waja with a turbocharged Lancer Evolution engine complete with a 4WD drivetrain.

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Ever wonder how the Smart ForTwo would fare in a car accident? Sure the car looks small and fragile, but apparently it has good passenger protection because of it’s Safety Cell unibody. An independant German team did an experiment, orchestrating a simple head-on collision between a Smart ForTwo and a Mercedes Benz S-Class to see what would happen. What I really want to see though is a collision between a Smart ForTwo and an SUV. Video after the jump.

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