Spy Video: 2014 BMW M3 Testing In Hot Weather
The redesigned 2014 BMW M3 goes to Spain for the usual hot weather testing.
Coming to market in late 2014, the F80 M3 will be powered by an inline-six engine. The engine of choice is a newly developed 3.2 liter unit that is rated at 450 horsepower, but it could reach 480 horsepower with a new performance package.
Judging by the video below, BMW managed to somewhat deliver the expected acoustics of an M3, but further improvements could occur before launch time.
The DCT is the transmission of choice, but we believe that a manual box will continue to be offered, especially for the demanding U.S. customers.
The F80 M3 will debut in concept form at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show, while the production version, will appear in September 2013 at the Frankfurt Auto Show.
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Fancy Eddie’s Harley?
Currently up for grabs on VintageAndRare.com is famed super rock star Eddie Van Halen’s 1991 Harley Davidson.
The motor bike is fully customized as one would expect and also features Eddie’s signature on the fuel tank and his name on the original pink slip. The odometer shows only 811 miles, none of which were done by the present owner.
The current asking price is of €87,000, which works out to about $ 110,000.
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| Photo: VintageAndRare.com |
Sexagenarian to Pilot EV up Pikes Peak for New World Record
Tajima and his EV Special. Photo: APEV
EV technology has reached motorsports-level performance for rally racing, and may even outrun combustion engines. Nobuhiro “Monster” Tajima and his design team have created the 2012 E-Runner Pikes Peak Special, an EV hill climber with which he’ll attempt to break all speed records, both for combustion and electric.
Designed for the 90th Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, the Special was designed “to help save our beautiful planet Earth for our children,” according to Tajima. Groan away, but sending an EV out on Pikes peak — all 14,110 feet, 12.42 miles, and 156 turns of it, with a legendary driver — is a realized next step in certifying EVs as legitimate performance vehicles.
Electricity has an edge in a race like this. EVs have high torque and the motors aren’t affected by the thin air at high altitudes. At just over 12 miles, range isn’t an issue, and regenerative braking is used to keep topping up the batteries during the run. A lightweight all-carbon-fiber body gives swift acceleration, and an enormous rear wing provides downforce when Tajima crests triple-digit speeds.
Tajima, now 62, isn’t the first driver to take on Pikes Peak with volts instead of fuel. Last year, Nissan sent a nearly stock Leaf (save for race seats and a roll cage) up the mountain in just under 15 minutes. Another model from Summit Motorsports conquered the course in an EV record time of just over 12 minutes – AC Propulsion’s technology from that model even ended up in the Tesla Roadster.
Nissan Tracks the Story of the GT-R in the 2012 Nürburgring 24h Race, Confirms Future Development
If you consider yourself a fan of the Nissan GT-R and have some 20 minutes to spare, you may want to head over the jump to watch a new film from the Japanese automaker that follows the story of the GT-R’s participation in this year’s edition of the demanding Nürburgring 24 hour race.
Perhaps more importantly, we learn from Nissan that the company plans to use the feedback it received from the race to continue the development of the supercar-shredding coupe.
Here’s an extract from what GT-R Chief Vehicle Engineer and Team Director Kazutoshi Mizuno said in the film:
“There are two major reasons for entering in this 24-hour race. First of all, after the debut in 2007, this vehicle has been evolving year after year. By changing it to a race specification to be implemented in the future, no matter what kind of super high performance feature or a new version is developed in the next five years, the durability and reliability in various conditions can be verified in this race.”
“Secondly, since we debuted this vehicle in 2007, customers have asked me time and time again, how their vehicle would perform if they were to race their own vehicles. Therefore, we are using a vehicle similar to those of our customers, we are not using a car with racing modifications.”
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R8 e-tron To Use Digital Rear-View Mirror
Published August 9, 2012
By Philippe Crowe
Audi’s R8 e-tron is a fabulous machine set to enter production soon, but its design and packaging prevents it from having a rear window.
To solve this, Audi created the rear-view mirror’s high-tech successor, the digital rear-view mirror, which is based on a camera/monitor system.
Audi’s digital rear-view mirror is said to deliver brilliant images and is due to enter small-scale production in the Audi R8 e-tron at the end of this year.
According to Audi, the small, ultra-lightweight camera is located in an aerodynamically optimized housing which is heated in cold temperatures. It uses a lens with a diameter of just a few millimeters and covers a much larger field of vision than a conventional rear-view mirror.
Consumer Reports lists five popular cars you should avoid
When it comes to all things automotive, many enthusiasts don’t care to listen to Consumer Reports – however, the general public does listen to the publication. Either way, Consumer Reports has listed out five vehicles that you should probably avoid.
“Just because a car generates a lot of buzz or is a best seller doesn’t mean that it’s a good choice for you,” says Consumer Reports. “The five models here may be on a lot of buyers’ shopping lists, but we suggest you steer clear. They didn’t perform well in our testing or they suffer from subpar reliability. Either way, there are better choices.”
Five popular cars you should avoid:
To find out why you should avoid these cars and for better alternatives, head over to the Consumer Reports to read more.
First Impressions: Savage Rivale GTR
Goodwood Festival of Speed 2012, Road Tests, Supercar News — By Lawrence on August 9, 2012 at 6:00 pm — No Comments
Goodwood’s organisers were placed with an impossible task this year. Several exclusive trackday tools had been granted admission to the Festival of Speed. But where to place them? They aren’t road legal, which makes the supercar paddock seem a bit of a stretch. They aren’t prototypes so we can’t see them included in FOS Tech.
The solution came through placing them with the endurance racers. So with that in mind, we find ourselves sitting in the Savage Rivale GTR, sandwiched between an FIA GT Championship winning Mercedes-Benz CLK GTR and a Le Mans winning Jaguar XJR9LM, waiting to head off up Goodwood’s historic hillclimb. Not a bad place to be.
For those that haven’t heard of Savage, the company headquarters can be found in the Hague, Holland. The Rivale GTR is one of two models currently on offer. The first is the Rivale Roadyacht GTS with an innovative periscope folding roof design. The second is the track-only Rivale GTR, based on the Roadyacht design. It’s the later that we’re interested in today.
