February 2010

Sunday, February 28, 2010

Koenigsegg to reveal Agera in Geneva

In terms of design, it looks like an evolution rather than a radical new design. The same 4.7-liter V8 engine has been kept, but it now develops 910 hp and 1100 Nm of torque. Considering that Agera weights only 1290 kg, it's no surprise that it reaches 100 km/h in 3.1 seconds and 200 km/h in 8.9 seconds.

The chassis is made out of carbon fibre with aluminium honeycomb, having the fuel tanks integrated for optimal weight distribution. The whole chassis weights just 72 kg.

In terms of aerodynamics, the Agera features a flat underbody with Venturi tunnels at the rear, resulting in 300 kg downforce at 250 km/h.

Among others, it features ventilates and drilled ceramic disc brakes, paddle-shift transmission with limited slip differential and even invisible nanotubes illuminating the aluminium buttons in the interior.

Production will be limited to 16-20 cars per year.

Source: GTSprint via Autoblog

Friday, February 26, 2010

Daytona Bike Week - Get a Start on the Rally Season

The 69th anniversary of Daytona Bike Week is being held February 26 - March 7, 2010 in Daytona Beach, Florida. The start of Daytona Bike Week is often announced on the morning TV news shows. You know, where somebody sticks their face in front of the camera and announces: "We're at the opening of Daytona Bike Week. Good Morning America," and then you see a whole line of bikes roar off in front of

Modulo and Mugen bits & pieces for Honda CR-Z

Yesterday, Honda launched the new CR-Z in Japan and sales begin today. As you would expect, Mugen already released its products, with some spoilers looking... eeer extreme (just trying to be polite). Honda in Japan also has some nice accessories for its models under the name Modulo and CR-Z is no excemption.

Honda is really trying hard to convince people that the CR-Z (earlier post) is a sporty hybrid, but due to the fact that the Insight was a huge letdown, it's not going to be an easy task.

Below you can find the Modulo catalogue for CR-Z

Thursday, February 25, 2010

Officially official: Lexus introduces its first premium compact model

Photos of the new Lexus CT 200h leaked a few days ago (earlier post) and now, Lexus has made it official. The press release doesn't include anything new, just the fact that it will go on sale globally in late 2010.

The only nice thing I can see from the photos is the C-pillar design, which should provide good visibility.

Source: Lexus GB

2010 Yamaha XT1200Z Super T�n�r� launched

For those motorcycle adventure sports fans out there and I count myself as one of them, Yamaha has revived a great model name from the past with the launch of the 2010 Yamaha XT1200Z Super T�n�r�. You can read the full details of this exciting new model on the main www.inter-bike.co.uk website here.Ride safeJon BoothEmail: webmaster@inter-bike.co.ukBlog: http://bestmotorstyle2011.blogspot.com//

New Porsche Cayenne: The available engines

Following the official images of the new Cayenne (earlier post), Porsche revealed also the available engines.

The entry-level Cayenne will be powered by a 3.6-liter V6 engine producing 300 hp. Fuel consumption has been reduced (Porsche claims 20 percent reduction in the New European Driving Cycle) as it is mated to the new eight-speed Tiptronic S transmission.

Cayenne S will be powered by a 4.8-liter V8 engine producing 400 hp and fuel consumption is down by 23 percent.

Cayenne Turbo gets a twin-turbocharged version of the V8 engine, which produces 500 hp. Again, a 23 percent in fuel consumption is claimed.

The Cayenne Hybrid S features a parallel full hybrid system and a 3.0-liter supercharged V6 engine with a total power output of 380 hp. No performance or economy figures have revealed yet.

If you are really interesetd in low fuel consumption and saving the environmet though (... and you must have a big SUV), the Cayenne Diesel will make more sense that the Hybrid S. The 3.0-liter V6 diesel engine has 550 Nm of torque and 240 hp, while consuming 7.4 ltr/100 km (in average).

The new Cayenne goes on sale in UK from May 29.

Source: Porsche GB

A smart luggage tag!

If you are frequently traveling by plane, you already know the last-minute panic when you realize that your case weights too much... I have experienced it many times in the past. However, now there is smart liggage tag, which not only shown your name and address, but works as a weighting scale as well! So, no more excuses anymore...

Weight To Go is produced by Quirky and costs $33.

Source: Gadget Lab

2010 Kawasaki Versys

The 2010 restyled Kawasaki Versys is now in UK Kawasaki dealers, with changes to the headlamp, fuel tank, bodywork and frame covers.In 2007 www.inter-bike.co.uk rode one of these great mid-range bikes, you can read our Kawasaki Versys road test here.Ride safeJon BoothEmail: webmaster@inter-bike.co.ukBlog: http://bestmotorstyle2011.blogspot.com//Swicki: http://motorcycling-swicki.eurekster.com/

Photos of the new Porsche Cayenne revealed

This is the new Porsche Cayenne. Technical details have not be officially released yet, but a hybrid version will also be available.

Source: Inside Line

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Hummer may be already dead...

Based on GM's statement below, it seems that Hummer will not be as lucky as Saab, which was saved with a last-minute deal. I never liked this kind of vehicles, but Hummers were special and it's a pity.

"One year ago, General Motors announced that we were going to divest Hummer, as part of focusing our efforts on Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac going forward. We have since considered a number of possibilities for Hummer along the way, and we are disappointed that the deal with Tengzhong could not be completed."

Source: Autoblog

Alfa Romeo Sketch Battle: Round 1

I have to admit that I really appreciate the "aggressive development" that the Cardesign.ru web-site is having recently. There is a decent amount of innovations that they introduced in the last 6 months which made the site become more popular and entertaining. One of the innovations is a series of sketch-fights (I wrote about that alredy here: http://artemiev.blogspot.com/2009/12/fight-good-fight-c.html).

Well guys, I can congratulate you all,- the new season has started! This time the Fight has a theme that will go through all the 7 rounds - Alfa Romeo (yeah!!!). The rules have changed a bit. Instead of a one-hour-long-fight it's 24 hours now. So the assignment is given at 20.00 Moscow time (+3 GMT) and the pictures have to be uploaded by 20.00 next day.

Here's the link to all the rules of the event:
http://www.cardesign.ru/articles/konkursy_i_seminary/2010/02/19/3717/
Sorry, it's all in Russian, but you can try to Google-translate it.

So these are the sketches for the first round - a luxurious sport 4-seater for 2013-2015 production years. The main rivals are Porsche Panamera and Aston Martin Rapide.

Here's the link to the other entries,- check'em out:
http://www.cardesign.ru/forum/SketchFighter2009/SketchBattle/1888/page1/

What is going on with mobile apps

Since the introduction of smartphones and Apple's iPhone, there is a boom in the available mobile apps. I always used to own a PDA, but I had to wait for almost fours years in order to find a new model, since I never fancied a device combining PDA and mobile phone functionality. Palm stopped producing them and focused on Treos, while it took ages for HP to introduce new models and now, I don't think HP will ever replace its lineup.

The big business nowadays is smartphones and it is interesting to see what is going with mobile apps. In terms of quantity, Apple's store and Google's Android market are in the lead. The later one though has a faster growth rate relative to the number of apps housed. According to the report, "Android�s growth is picking up with 3,000 new apps per month (15 percent). Apple is growing with about 14,000 new apps added per month (9 percent)". One other interesting point is that Android has the most free apps.

With Android becoming better and better, soon you will be able to find also decent hardware coming with Google's OS and thus, Apple has to try hard in order to continue to be in the lead.

Source: ReadWriteWeb via Wired

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

First details about the upcoming Apple MacBook Pro 2010 emerge

Many of us thought that 27th February would be the date when the new MacBook Pro would be revealed, but it ended up to be iPad's solo debut. The next day, I went with relief to buy my Mac (earlier post) knowing though, that the inevitable will happen. Soon it will be replaced.

Anyway, a screenshot showing memory modules for the MacBook Pro 2010 is a proof that suppliers are getting ready... and where there's smoke, there's fire. The memory frequency has been raised from 1066 MHz to 1333 MHz.

In therms of new applications, expect Apple to reveal iLife '10 (I suppose that the new MacBook Pros will ship with the '10 version) and iWork '10.

Source: ThesMaC via we want Apple Greece

In case that someone is interested, that's the new Lexus CT 200h...

Lexus teased us in the past with a photo of the upcoming hybrid CT 200h (earlier post), but once again, images from a brochure leaked early and now we have the complete picture. Hmm, in order to put it simply, just another non-exciting car from Lexus.

Power will come from Lexus' HybridDrive powertrain, which uses the same 1.8-liter engine as the Prius, and there will be three drive modes: Eco, Normal and Sport!!! Don't expect much from the later one, it's just a marketing trick...

Performance figures have been revealed in the brochure, but I don't think that many people will be interested in that.

Source: WorldCarFans

Details about the oily bits of the new Audi RS5

So, we have already seen the new Audi RS5 (earlier post), but now Audi has revelaed all the info about it. So, it�s going to be powered by a high-revving 4.2-liter V8 producing 450 hp @ 8,250 rpm and 430 Nm of torque. The engine operates via direct fuel injection (FSI) where the common-rail system generates up to 120 bars of pressure.

Power will go, via a seven-speed S tronic gearbox, to all four wheels (40:60 is the standard ratio, but up to 70 percent can flow to the front or as much as 85 percent toward the tail end). Audi uses a new self-locking central crown-gear center differential attaining a high efficiency ratio.

The 4.2 FSI engine propels the coup�s 1,725 kilograms in 4.6 seconds from 0 to 100 km/h to an electronically governed top speed of 250 km/h. Audi can increase that to 280 km/h (173.98 mph) upon request.

The RS5 is equipped with a standard Audi drive select (a vehicle-dynamics control system) allowing the driver to switch among three modes of operation � comfort, auto, and dynamic � to adjust steering, the seven-speed S tronic, the sport differential, the engine, and the exhaust system (controls the exhaust system�s two throttle valves and the sound flaps). And if the car is equipped with the MMI navigation system, a fourth mode allows the driver to customize their own profile.

Source: Audi MediaServices

Triumph motorcycles announce two brand new special edition models for 2010, the Thunderbird SE and Daytona 675 SE

Triumph has announced two special editions of their very popular Triumph Thunderbird and Daytona 675 for 2010.The Triumph Thunderbird SE has a brand-new metallic colour, Carnival Red, the ABS-equipped SE comes factory-fitted with genuine Triumph accessories, to transform the Thunderbird into a soft bagger.The Daytona 675 SE has a highly sophisticated suspension, plus new graphics on the flanks,

Monday, February 22, 2010

Breaking news: TVR is alive!!!

Now, that's great news, TVR will be back from the dead soon! Rumours suggest that the new model will be powered by an American V8 engine, which is very likely to be revealed at the Goodwood Festival of Speed in July.

The fact that something is going on is also evident by TVR's website where it is stated that a new website is coming soon. The only "bad" rumour is that the car may be manufactured in Germany, but at this stage, nothing can be taken for granted.

Source: PistonHeads

Sunday, February 21, 2010

Rolls-Royce Phantom Vs Ghost

British magazine Autocar has tested Rolls-Royce Phantom and Ghost and you can read the comments below.

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"What staggered me was just how different the Ghost feels to the Phantom. And those differences are apparent from the second you slide into the driver�s seat."

"You sit far lower in the Ghost, and far snugger too. Yes, you're still sitting higher than in most saloons, but it feels far more conventional than the Phantom�s imperious driving position - which still feels totally unique. As does its control layout. The Ghost�s cabin looks and feels exceptional but there are still myriad more buttons on display than in the bigger car."

"Away from the kerb there are huge differences too. The lighter, more powerful Ghost has an accelerative urge that the Phantom can�t even hope to match. It also feels a good deal more nimble on tight, twisty roads."

"On plenty of road surfaces it rides just as well too. But the Phantom is simply about being the best riding car on the planet, and on really broken surfaces and over expansion joints it can still show the Ghost a thing or two about bump absorption and noise suppression."

Source: Autocar