British Mini E driver upset that he has to give back car
Filed under: EV/Plug-in, MINI
MINI E – Click above for high-res image gallery
BMW has handled its Mini E test program quite differently in the United States and Europe and at least one British test driver isn’t happy. In America, people who signed up for the program were given one-year leases at the start of the program in 2009 and then got the option to sign up for a second year. In Europe, testers could only get a six-month lease with no extensions.
That difference has David Beesley annoyed. Beesley has been driving a Mini E near the factory in Oxford, England since last December and will have to return the car next week. While he was disappointed that the 100-mile range dropped below 40 miles during some sub-zero weather, he also acknowledged that such weather is uncommon where he lives. The main lesson he has learned is that driving an electric car requires some planning of trips and, as long as people take care, they shouldn’t have a problem. Beesley’s cold weather experience does however, show again that EVs won’t be suitable for everyone in the near term. For others, though, once they get a taste, they don’t want to give it up. A tip of the hat to Mos!
Gallery: MINI E
Ford F-150 SVT Raptor proves popular (U.S)
The Ford F-150 SVT Raptor with the optional 6.2 litre V8 is shifting like there’s no tomorrow, with 3,000 orders already booked for the $41,995 pick-up.
The V8, taken from those used in Ford’s Super Duties, has a unique cam profile to help get extra power for the Raptor. The final result is 411bhp and 434 lb-ft of torque.
SVT chief functional engineer, Kerry Baldori explains, “We spent a lot of time developing our desert durability test so that it’s very close to replicating the Baja 1000. Desert testing proved to be a very quick way to learn about the reliability of the truck and it put another level of extreme loads on the engine that our normal durability testing doesn’t cover.”
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Vehicle downloads for Garmin Nuvi (sorta) make us want one
Filed under: Technology, Toys/Games
With an increasing number of new cell phones offering free, integrated turn-by-turn navigation, the days of the standalone navigation device must surely be numbered. Of course, those dedicated navigators still offer some features you can’t (yet) get elsewhere, such as the Darth Vader or Dennis Hopper voices for TomTom and downloadable vehicles for the Garmin Nuvi.
Garmin users can replace the regular old arrow that shows your direction with dozens of vehicles ranging from classics like the BMW Isetta, to space shuttles, to Bumblebee, as seen above. Does it improve the functionality of your Nuvi in any way? Of course not, but it can make the little screen more fun to look at. The Nuvi vehicle downloads are free from a non-Garmin-affiliated third party, while most of the TomTom voices cost extra. Will this sort of thing have us trading in our Droid? Not a chance.
[Source: Vehicles for Garmin Nuvi]
Vehicle downloads for Garmin Nuvi (sorta) make us want one originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 05 Jun 2010 14:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Australian police hope to attract stares with Alfa MiTo cruiser
Filed under: Hatchback, Alfa Romeo, Police/Emergency, Australia
NSW Police-spec Alfa Romeo MiTo – Click above for high-res image gallery
If your aim in choosing a new car is to get noticed, there’s no shortage of attention-grabbing wheels to pick from, but few cars get noticed as quickly as a police cruiser. Sure, the flashing lights and blaring sirens might help, but not as much as the looming threat of being ticketed. Still, Australia’s New South Wales police department seems to think it needs some help getting noticed.
That’s precisely why Sydney-area law enforcement has taken delivery of an Alfa Romeo MiTo. Noticeably bereft of emergency lighting, the MiTo will be used for community outreach and safety awareness programs. Whether the wee Alfa will prove more effective in its assignment than a Hummer H3 or Holden Commodore remains to be seen, but it might help the authorities catch up with the next F1 champion who tries spinning donuts on city streets.
Nissan Micra Variants, Features and Colours
Nissan Micra is offered in four petrol variants in India.
- XE
- XE+
- XL
- XV
Nissan Micra XE Features:
Exterior:
- Roof Antenna
Interiors:
- Drive Computer
- Manual AC
- Interior Colour Scheme-Black
Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG available in Alubeam – If you have patience
Filed under: Coupe, Performance, Mercedes-Benz
2010 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG in Alubeam silver – Click above for high-res image gallery
If you’re shopping for a Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG finished in Alubeam silver here in the United States, you’re in luck, but you’ll have to be patient. A reader dropped us a note to let us know that a Dallas, Texas dealer apparently informed a friend of his that Alubeam had not been released for the American market yet.
We checked with Mercedes-Benz USA spokesman Rob Moran, who tells us that the special finish is indeed available. Alubeam first appeared on the 40th anniversary CL65 AMG several years ago. If you haven’t seen it, Alubeam is a stunning metallic finish that looks like molten silver.
According to Moran, the Alubeam bodies are hand-painted at Mercedes-Benz’s Sindelfingen factory, while other colors are applied at a Magna Steyr body shop. The more labor intensive process means that only about 2-3 cars a week are available for U.S. market allocation. Hopefully the customer and dealer are just having a miscommunication about the longer wait time, because the special paint is definitely available. A tip of the hat to Ross!
New artist impression of Volkswagen Vento
Soon to be launched Volkswagen Vento has been rendered by Jorge L Fernandez. The picture above looks very similar to the VW sketches of Vento released some days ago. Autocar India magazine had also rendered the pictures of Vento which was published in the May 2010 issue. However we feel this picture is very clear and will be very close to the actual shape of the car.
Volkswagen Vento Specifcations
