Monday, March 31, 2014
RaceCraft Restored: LeMans-Spec 1957 Lotus Eleven
This
1957 Lotus Eleven (Chassis 256) is said to be one of the 91 examples
built to LeMans-spec trim, and was completely disassembled for a
cosmetic restoration by RaceCraft, whose work we have featured here many
times before. The original factory build card indicates the car is a
genuine example, while details like the de Dion rear suspension and
inboard Girling disc brakes give it away as well. The car has been
professionally maintained, and the seller indicates the car is
completely fresh and ready for the track. Find this one here on eBay in Woodinville, Washington with reserve unmet.
The body has been painted to match the 1957 Road and Track cover model, although it is pointed out that the R&T car is chassis number 214. The frame has been sandblasted and powdercoated, while a new aluminum floor has been fitted, and the work appears to be well executed, and all surfaces look satisfyingly clean. The car wears the original Dunlop knock-off hub wire wheels, and the body wears a high-quality repaint that still looks fresh.
The interior shows new upholstery, including the head rests, seats, dashboard, and leather steering wheel wrap in a dark blue shade that matches the center stripe on the body. The custom-built coilover suspension has been dialed in to exhibit ideal handling characteristics, so we know the harnesses likely work well. Once you’re tucked in to the snug cockpit, we can imagine the view over the long hood, framed by the undulating hips over the front wheels, must be exhilarating.
The 1490cc FWB Coventry Climax engine was rebuilt by Hutton Motor Engineering, and has approximately 6 hours of runtime since the rebuild. As fitted to the Lemans spec cars, the de Dion rear suspension with inboard brakes has a rebuilt rear differential using a new correct magnesium housing from Crosthwaite and Gardiner. All studs, nuts, bolts and various fasteners are said to be of aircraft quality, and looks clean and essentially new. We wish more cars were built with tubular space frames, as accessing the mechanicals looks like a breeze.
With so many reproductions in the field, it’s refreshing enough to find the real thing, let alone a race-ready example that’s ready for a driver. This is one of the nicest builds
Power surges into history books with St. Pete win
Power surges into history books with St. Pete win: Will Power and
Gordon Johncock now have something more in common than 20-plus Indy car
victories.
On March 30, Power matched Johncock (1977-78) as the only drivers in the modern era (since 1946) to win the final two races of one season and the opener of the next.
Race winner Will Power, second place Ryan Hunter-Reay, third place Helio Castroneves
It's a modest streak in sports, but taken in the context of the Verizon IndyCar Series' depth of competition it's nonetheless impressive.
Power has also won four of the past six races, whereas registering four top-five finishes in the preceding 14 races.
This is a Mustang breadvan
Bizarre Ford pony car combines the nose of a 'Stang with the rear of a Volvo estate. And a big V8. Whuh?
The original Ford Mustang
was launched on 17 April 1964 in New York. It sold over one million
units in its first 18 months, creating a new breed of performance car as
it did so.
It's now in its seventh generation, and not once in the Stang's
50-year history has anyone thought: "My, if only I could combine my love
of classic American muscle cars with the rear end of an old Volvo".Well, not until now, anyway. Here we present to you a 1966 Ford Mustang that's been restomodded with the rear end a Volvo 240 DL estate. Restomodding of course, is the process of restoring classics, but not to their original factory spec. Hence why this Mustang's got a Volvo rear end.
It's up for sale on eBay, built by a professional Mustang restorer who, we're told, took a standard six-cylinder coupe he'd owned for 20 years and spent more than $120,000 creating this one-off show car.
The new front valance and bonnet are all made from fibreglass, there's new chrome all round, a custom cream interior with bucket seats and ‘period correct' pony inserts, and - in an incongruous blend of Yankee and Scandi - the roof panel and hatch assembly from a Volvo 240 DL estate.
It's also been equipped with an 8.4-litre V8, and we're told "everything works as it should!" Quite how a MustVan is supposed to work, we're not sure.
Fancy it? It's currently up for sale on eBay with a starting bid of $35,000. Which is, in proper money, some pounds. Sacrilege, or the family car you've been crying out for?
WORLD'S MOST POWERFUL PROTOTYPE ELECTRIC SPORTS CAR
APPLUS+ IDIADA SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETES WORLD'S MOST POWERFUL PROTOTYPE ELECTRIC SPORTS CAR
The project undertaken by the Spanish company on behalf of the
European Commission* shows that electric vehicles can have sporty
performance
BARCELONA, - Applus+ IDIADA, a company specialized in
engineering for the international automotive industry, has successfully
completed the Volar-e project, an innovative prototype electric car
with high performance, comparable to or even better than
conventionally-powered sports cars.
Volar-e has been presented today at the Circuit de Catalunya during the
F1 Test Days, in an act that has been attended by, among other
authorities, Antonio Tajani, Vice-President of the European Commission,
Sebastian Salvado, President of RACC, and Carles Grasas, CEO of Applus+ IDIADA, a division of Applus+ specialized in the provision of
design, engineering, testing and homologation services, was awarded the
project by the European Commission in late 2012 in a tender in which
companies across Europe took part. In just four months, the company has
managed to meet and exceed the performance features required by the EC,
among others:
- Powertrain:
-- Provide maximum motor power and torque to the vehicle (1000 HP, 1000 Nm)
-- Achieve fast-charging (15-20 minutes)
- Vehicle dynamics:
-- Regenerative braking system
-- Aerodynamics
-- Independent power control for all 4 motors, iTORQ original by Applus + IDIADA
Mazzanti Evantra hits the track!
Mazzanti Automobili has issued the following press releaase:
We have long-tested it on the roads, but Evantra wanted the track. We have fulfilled it... and it was a great success!
We have promised it and now just before our return to Top Marques
Monaco Show, we have kept our word and took the Evantra to the track to
see its performance in a sporty test.
Evantra had the Autodromo di Modena for a whole day only for itself. In
a private session, the facility closed for the public the Evantra had
its baptism on the racetrack, performing a large number of laps and
grinding many kilometers, to sharpen all of the numerous details of the
sporty setup.
The testing, very challenging and divided into a large number of runs,
involved on one hand the drivetrain, focusing on how the power is
delivered and on the other hand the chassis, with particular attention
to the road holding in critical conditions.
The foggy day and the damp track were then found to be the ideal
context to test the behavior of Evantra at high speeds even in
situations of losing grip and at rather critical temperatures.
Great satisfaction in the pits at the end of the day of testing:
Evantra in fact responded in a more than positive way, for both the
drivetrain and dynamism. Where the tests gave satisfactory results even
better than it already was expected based on the evidence made so far,
on road and highway: Evantra in Modena has demonstrated the ability to
go fast also on the track. Finally, for all the fans who follow Mazzanti
automobili with more enthusiasm, we have uploaded a short photogallery
of this first major test, which will be followed by the release of the
video that we will publish in the coming days through our channels.
2,000-hp Trion Nemesis great supercar
You can add one more name to the list of boutique builders hoping to
break into the automotive industry. This time it's a California-based
outfit called Trion Supercars that is launching the 2,000-horsepower
Nemesis. It's supposed to be a driver-oriented sportscar and is aimed at
the wealthiest people in the world. At the moment it still only exists
in renderings, though."We want to be the Nemesis of the Europeans," said company leader Richard Patterson to Autoblog about in the inspiration for the name. The company claims the it's going to be one of the world's fastest cars when it's ready, theoretically packing a twin-turbo V8 with more than 2,000 hp and an eight-speed sequential gearbox. The company believes that its creation could hit 60 miles per hour in 2.8 seconds and reach a top speed of over 270 mph. If that is the case, then it would put the newcomer against the heavyweights like the Hennessey Venom GT and Koenigsegg Agera One:1.
All of these figures are just speculation until its wheels actually hit the road, though. Patterson says a prototype will test this year, and sales will begin next year for around $1 million each.
The Nemesis has a body and chassis made from carbon fiber, and the interior features digital panels to display the gauges, plus a screen for Internet connectivity. The company is also touting the car's Predator Mode that modifies the interior lighting, ride height, suspension tuning, exhaust and rev limits to make it even more aggressive. With a trunk large enough to accommodate a set of golf clubs, it even has a touch of utility.
The problem with these high end, boutique automakers is that until they launch a product their claims are difficult to believe. The Nemesis is making some huge promises that are going to be a challenge to live up to, to say the least.
BMW designs new subway for Kuala Lumpur
Between the unfortunate saga of flight MH370 and the grand prix this weekend, Malaysia
has been on our radar more than usual lately. And now the Southeast
Asian country has popped up again, once more related to transportation
issues, as Kuala Lumpur is working on a new subway system. Which isn't something we'd normally care about, but this subway just happens to have been designed by BMW.Or one of its divisions, anyway. While BMW makes all manner of automobiles and motorcycles and even has a background in aviation, its subterranean transportation business is handled by DesignworksUSA, a network of design studios that fall under the BMW Group umbrella. The California studio recently designed a refresh for San Francisco's BART trains, and has now turned its focus on the Malaysian capital.
The trains penned by BMW DesignworksUSA are based on the Metro Inspiro system engineered by Siemens and will be built in Malaysia by domestic constructor Mass Rapid Transit Corporation Sdn Bhd. The 58 driverless, four-car trains feature LED lighting, handicapped access and contrasting-color doors for easy embarking and disembarking. Larger wheels make it ride quieter and after their planned 30-year life-cycle, they'll be 95 percent recyclable. But our favorite part (whether it makes it onto the finished product or not) is the signature BMW racing stripes flanking the stainless steel coachwork... you know, because racing.
Ford investing $500M in engine plant for 2.7L EcoBoost production
Ohio is a hot area for Ford at the moment with the announcement just a few weeks ago that production of the next-generation F-650/F-750 medium-duty trucks would move from Mexico to the Ohio Assembly Plant in Avon Lake, Ohio. Now, Ford is investing $500 million to hire 300 workers at its Lima Engine Plant in Lima, Ohio, to add production of the twin-turbo 2.7-liter EcoBoost V6 for the 2015 F-150.
The latest investment will be used to add a new flexible engine assembly system and renovate 700,000 square feet of the plant for machining and assembly areas. The Lima factory already builds Ford's 3.5-liter and 3.7-liter Duratec V6 engines. The plant opened in 1957, and it's on track to build its 40 millionth engine later this year.
Ford claims that the 2.7-liter EcoBoost will offer V8 performance with better efficiency in the F-150. It comes standard with intelligent stop/start that doesn't activate when the truck is towing or in four-wheel drive, and it's made from a combination of compacted graphite iron and aluminum for low weight and high strength. The company says that V6 engines have already proven popular in the F-150 with 57 percent of trucks in 2014 being equipped with either the naturally aspirated 3.7-liter or turbocharged 3.5-liter EcoBoost engines.
The new F-150 is scheduled to hit the market in the fourth quarter of this year, and it will be offered with the naturally aspirated 3.5-liter V6, 2.7-liter EcoBoost V6, 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6 and 5.0-liter V8.
Morgan Stanley predicts radical auto industry consolidation
A lack of technological foresight and changing economic conditions may
bring dramatic consolidation to the auto industry in the next 15 to 20
years. Industry analyst Adam Jonas at Morgan Stanley believes that the
number of major automakers could go from around 30 today to as few as 6
in that time. However, a catastrophe is avoidable.
Jonas' argument is that the world has more automakers than it can sustain. He contends that too many of them are more focused on next year's models than attempting to adapt to technological change. Without looking forward, they won't survive.
Tesla might be the lighthouse leading automakers away from the rocks. While still quite small, it has disrupted the status quo and shown that there's more than one way to prepare for new innovations. "With proper execution, Detroit may thank Tesla Motors for being that stiff board in the back of the head right when they needed it," said Jonas to The Detroit News.
This isn't the first time there has been such doom and gloom about the industry. During the financial crisis, there were similar forecasts, but in most cases governments helped support weakened automakers. According to The Detroit News, there's been some consolidation among parts suppliers, but not as much as originally predicted. If Jonas' theory is correct, it could mean not only a huge shakeup in the industry, but a massive change in the world economy given how many jobs are connected to building cars.
VW celebrates 40 years of playing Golf
On March 29, 1974, the very first Volkswagen Golf rolled down the assembly line. That little car has gone on to spawn seven generations, while the Golf name has become one of the models in the hotly contested compact segment, selling over 30 million units during its 40 years on sale.
While we look forward to the seventh-generation Golf, which will spawn three distinct hot hatchbacks - the GTI, GTD and GTE - as well as fuel-sipping diesel-powered variants, Volkswagen has put together a look back at the first six generations of the venerable Golf. It briefly pays homage to each generation of the car, from its roots as a simple people mover onto its larger, better trimmed, contemporary version.
Tesla Model S prone to password hacking?
As more and more technology gets crammed into our automobiles, replacing once simple mechanical systems with electronics and other such wizardry, hackers and people much smarter than ourselves are finding more and more ways to exploit them. The latest such case comes from a man named Nitesh Dhanjani, who has reportedly managed to send wireless codes over the internet to the Tesla Model S that can unlock the car's doors.
According to an article from Reuters, the six-digit passcode required to gain entry into Tesla's electric sedan isn't the only flaw in the car's security Dhanjani – himself a Tesla Model S owner – has found. That said, the car's electronic key fob is still required to start and drive the vehicle, meaning thieves would only have the ability to steal things left inside the car and wouldn't actually be able to operate it or drive it away.
"It's a big issue where a $100,000 car should be relying on a six-character static password," said Dhanjani, who has shared his findings with Tesla.
We agree, sort of. While we certainly don't like the idea of unlocking anyone's automobile for nefarious means, nobody can deny that thieves and other not-so-pleasant people have been breaking into and stealing cars ever since their invention. Ford has used manual-entry keypad entry systems for decades, remote access keys have been hacked in the past, and, of course, the old-fashioned brick-through-the-window approach happens more times every day than we'd like to think about...
Still, this potential security flaw is worth investigating, especially, we'd imagine, to current and future Tesla owners. We've reached out to Tesla for comment and will update this story if and when we hear back.
Magnussen: I’m sorry for the team that I messed things up
31 March, 2014
McLaren new boy Kevin Magnussen apologised to his team on Sunday after a rookie error which ruined his Malaysian Grand Prix – and that of Kimi Raikkonen – just a fortnight after his sensational F1 debut.
The 21-year-old had been the toast of the sport after he brilliantly reached the podium in his first ever Formula One drive at this month’s Australian Grand Prix.
But Magnussen tasted the lows of F1 on Sunday when he was at fault for an early collision with Ferrari’s former world champion Raikkonen from which neither driver fully recovered.
Magnussen blew out Raikkonen’s right rear tyre in the incident and earned a five-second penalty. He eventually finished just in the points in ninth, with Raikkonen down in 12th.
“I’m sorry for the team that I messed things up going into the second corner, with the incident with Kimi. I think we could have scored some good points today, so I’m disappointed with, and for, myself too,” he said.
“Grands prix are long races, so I shouldn’t have made a mistake like that so early on in the afternoon. But that sort of stuff happens sometimes – and, when it does, you just have to learn from it, and I will.”
McLaren Racing Director Eric Boullier called the race a “Formula One rookie’s rights of passage, inevitable and unsurprising” and praised Magnussen for apologising to his teammates.
But there was little consolation for Raikkonen, who has had a difficult start to the year after returning to Ferrari and is trailing in the standings after the first two races.
“I am very disappointed with how this race turned out, because I got a good start, but then the collision with Magnussen damaged my right rear tyre, which meant I had to make an extra stop,” he said.
“That wiped out any chance I had of fighting for a good finish. It was a really unlucky day.”
Ferrari: The car has improved but not enough
Fernando Alonso insists that his Ferrari team “will improve” despite being outpaced by rivals Mercedes and Red Bull in the first two races of this year, while team boss Stefano Domenicali believes that although there are improvements they are not enough.
Alonso finished fourth for the second time this season on Sunday.
“It is not the perfect start to the championship but the team is doing a massive effort to catch up,” he said. ”We will improve, that’s for sure. We are analysing the areas we need to improve. They seem very clear to us.”
Domenicali said after the race at Sepang, “I don’t think the gap with Red Bull was so big. We were suffering with the Hard tyres, the drivers were struggling with traction and did not feel the car as they wanted.”
“With Mercedes I see a big gap but with the others we are close. It is not easy to solve but I am asking my engineers to put in place a plan to close it. I think the car has improved but not enough,” added Domenicali.
It is now 30 grands prix since Ferrari were on pole – their most recent was Germany 2012
The Ferrari has good performance in high-speed corners but its engine is uncompetitive compared to the Mercedes, which can produce much more power per unit of fuel, the key measurement of performance under F1′s new efficiency-focused rules.
The Ferrari car is also lagging behind the Red Bull in areas such as traction.
Despite the problems, Alonso’s consistency and Ferrari’s reliability mean the 32-year-old double world champion is third in the championship, only one point behind Malaysian Grand Prix winner Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes.
“Looking at the performance we have in these two races we have one point less than Hamilton and nine points more than Vettel is the less negative thing from these two races,” said Alonso, who finished second in the championship behind Vettel in three of the last four years, twice taking the battle to the last race of the season.
“We have a strong car with no mechanical problems so we could finish both races and score some strong points. We know we miss a little bit of performance at the moment compared to the top guys. I was not quick enough to follow Mercedes and Red Bull. We need to improve.”
He insisted that Ferrari were not as far behind Mercedes in Malaysia as they had been in Australia because the flowing nature of the circuit better suited their car. (Reuters)
Hamilton: Why I blew Nico away
31 March, 2014
Lewis Hamilton has upped the ante ni his thus far amicable rivalry with Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg by claiming that “I blew him away” in the Malaysian Grand Prix at Sepang.
The 2008 world champion comfortably won the Malaysian Grand Prix from pole, and although German Rosberg finished second in the sister Mercedes, Hamilton claimed it was one of the easiest triumphs of his eight-year career.
“It’s massive. I don’t remember the last time in my career I had a gap like that, particularly with a teammate driving the same car,” said the Briton.
Hamilton said he had built his advantage from the very start of the practice sessions, “I felt I had the edge. We learned a lot from practice but it is one thing learning it, another applying it. But it worked and that is why I blew him away.”
Rosberg won the season opener in Melbourne but only after Hamilton – again from pole – retired with an engine problem.
“I’m pushing myself more than my teammate is pushing me. That’s where the push is coming from,” Hamilton said at Sepang late on Sunday.
“Nico is very quick, he’s won the first race, he’s always there, so naturally we are pushing each other.
“But this year I’m pushing myself that extra. I’m eking out more than I’ve ever been able to eke out.”
Jenson Button, a former teammate of Hamilton’s, thinks that Sepang on Sunday was a psychological as well as an actual victory for the 28-year-old.
“Looking at what Lewis did is going to hurt [Rosberg] a little bit. He was super-fast,” he said.
“That is a lot to put between you and your teammate when you have both had a clear race. I am sure that is strike one to him,” Button added.
Ex Formula 1 driver and BBC pundit David Coulthard agrees: “If that was a pure driver-to-driver battle, then Nico psychologically will have taken a bit of a hit.”
Mercedes Chairman Niki Lauda is quoted by Speed Week: “I have no idea why Nico could not drive at Lewis’ level. But I am glad that they were not fighting with each other. Now we have to analyse what was the issue with Nico’s car as it must be corrected and then we move to Bahrain.”
Rosberg himself admitted after the race, “I was trying to chase Lewis but he was a bit too quick.”(GMM)
Red Bull: With a better engine we would be at the top, but we have 80 horsepower deficit
Red Bull’s Helmut Marko is continuing to pile pressure on the world champion team’s engine supplier Renault, despite a good showing at Sepang.
Although the total calamity of the winter season was overcome, the always-outspoken Marko insists Renault cannot even take the credit for the resurgence.
He told Formula 1′s official website that when the seriousness of the winter problems became clear, Red Bull “intervened”.
“Together with Toro Rosso and Renault we started a collaboration to move forward,” said Marko.
However, he still claims the only “sick” part of the RB10 package is the engine, insisting that designer Adrian Newey’s 2014 car is better than the dominant Mercedes.
“Yes, [with a better engine] we would be at the top again,” said the blunt Austrian. ”But right now with a deficit of around 80 horse power that’s simply not possible.”
Marko hinted that if it was technically possibly to simply dump Renault and switch to a better engine, Red Bull would do it.
“You are bound to what you have,” he said, “as there is no way of saying ‘hey, from tomorrow we will use a Mercedes engine’ – if they would give it to us – because this car is built around the Renault powertrain,” he said.
Marko claimed that Red Bull had to use Renault’s Melbourne-spec software in Malaysia because the Sepang version was “not working”.
But Renault insist that they are now ready to take the next development step for Bahrain.
“The positive is that, unlike Melbourne we don’t go to the next race with a substantial job list of rectifications, rather items that will deliver more power and performance in Bahrain,” said Remi Taffin.
Marko, however, suggested Red Bull is taking the problem of its straight-line speed deficit into its own hands.
“We are trying everything possible to find more speed on the straights without affecting the corners,” he is quoted by German television Sky, “and I have to say that from this point of view we are progressing.”
Marko told Bild newspaper: “We are bringing a few new parts from our factory to Bahrain, and also Renault has yet another update for the engine software.” (GMM)
Williams in damage control mode to diffuse tensions after team orders embarrassment
Team orders triggered another Malaysian Grand Prix controversy on Sunday, with Brazilian Felipe Massa defiant after refusing to obey an instruction to let Williams teammate Valtteri Bottas overtake, leaving the team in an embarrassing situation and with damage control high on their agenda before the next race in Bahrain.
Massa, no stranger to unwelcome radio messages at his previous team, Ferrari, finished the second race of the Formula One season in seventh place, just ahead of his frustrated Finnish teammate.
McLaren’s Jenson Button was sixth, managing to hold off the Williams pair despite struggling for straight line pace.
Williams Chief Operations Engineer Rod Nelson said that the team felt that Bottas had fresher tyres than Button and would have been able to challenge the Briton better than Massa, whose rising engine temperature was causing concern.
The Brazilian didn’t see it that way and said he had been surprised to hear the message “Valtteri is faster than you, do not hold him up” over the team radio.
“What I did was correct and I try and do the best for the team. I’m sure the result would not have changed if I let him by. What I did in my opinion was correct and I’m doing everything I can to help the team,” he told reporters.
“The team respect me 100 per cent and they showed they respect me after the race so I have no problem at all. What happened today was not what I expected but what I did was correct,” added the Brazilian.
“The problem was that I was much quicker than McLaren [for] the whole race, but going out the last corner they had very good traction…Valtteri had the same problem, overtaking McLaren was not easy.”
Nelson said thatthe plan had been for Bottas to attack Button, but if he wasn’t able to overtake, then Massa would have been allowed to reclaim seventh from the Finn.
Choosing his words carefully, Nelson said that there would be a discussion with both drivers later regarding the matter and that it was “a strategic decision” rather than team orders.
“He didn’t do what we would have preferred him to do,” he said of Massa.
“We look to maximise our constructor points whenever we go racing, Felipe was running high temperatures on his engine and we were a little bit concerned about it and Valtteri had much fresher tyres, certainly than Jenson did.
“We thought it would be good to give Valtteri a go against Jenson and then if he hadn’t achieved that in two or three laps we would have swapped our drivers over again.”
Nelson said that Williams did not have team orders.
“Its not like other teams where they have a No 1 driver and a No 2 driver, we have two No 1 drivers. And its a race situation,” he explained.
“We will go through with the drivers tonight and discuss what we expect.”
Bottas was in sombre mood after addressing reporters after Massa, initially trying to steer questions off the subject, which took the shine off Williams moving into fourth in the constructors standings, on 20 points.
The Finn said that he had followed a subsequent instruction by not overtaking Massa in the final two laps before contradicting the Brazilian’s version of discussion in pre-season.
“We have spoken beforehand about these situations but I think we need to go more into the details,” the Finn said, adding that he believed that he could have overtaken Button.
“We are going to talk through it and what we need to do next time in similar situations so everything is clear. What are the rules… and [hopefully it] allows us to get more points.”
The wording of the message would have been particularly painful for Massa, who was famously told “Fernando is faster than you” while leading the 2010 German Grand Prix.
On that occasion, he moved over to let teammate Fernando Alonso win in what he later described as the toughest moment of his career with Ferrari.
Last year’s Malaysian Grand Prix had two similar controversies, with Red Bull’s world champion Sebastian Vettel ignoring a coded ‘multi 21′ instruction and passing teammate Mark Webber for victory.
Mercedes’ Nico Rosberg, who finished second behind teammate Lewis Hamilton in Sunday’s race, obeyed an order last year to hold station behind the Briton. (Reuters)
Saturday, March 29, 2014
Sepang Qualifying: Hamilton smokes them on the water
Lewis Hamilton claimed pole position for the Malaysian Grand Prix after a tense, rain delayed Qualifying session at Sepang International Circuit, but it was a close call as world champion Sebastian Vettel gave Mercedes a run for their money.
Shortly after FP3 the clouds dumped their load on Sepang, as it tends to do this time of the year every afternoon and apparently more so when the Formula 1 rain magnet is in town. For most, bar Mercedes, this was a gift, because there is no way the Silver Arrows were going to be troubled in the dry, where their outright pace was at least a second faster than the next best.
Hamilton and Nico Rosberg are clearly going to be slugging it out this year, and as a result we have scenes reminiscent of the Hamilton-Alonso days at McLaren back in 2007, where they even raced each other to the pit exit. Fast forward to 2014 and Hamilton-Rosberg are pretty much in the same zone, albeit with no animosity present for now, as they dart for top spot in the pit lane exit..
Formula One World Championship, Rd2, Malaysian Grand Prix, Qualifying, Sepang, Malaysia,
Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton in parc ferme after qualifying
From the outset of the session Hamilton appeared to have a slight edge on Rosberg, and it so transpired in Q3 as Hamilton set the best time on Wets which was over half a second up on his teammate Rosberg , whose best was only good enough for third on the grid.
Hamilton, who equalled Jim Clark’s British record of 33 pole positions in Formula 1, said afterwards, “I’m all over the place at the moment. I’m really happy with how well we’ve done over the weekend, but today was incredible – how heavy was the rain? It was tricky out there for everyone because at the end it was almost impossible to see. I couldn’t see where the track went, where the corners were, where to brake. I had to bail out of my final fast lap, so it was very close.”
Rosberg summed up his afternoon in the wet, ”I was a little bit less comfortable on the Full Wets, especially [under] braking. But third is still a decent place to be – who knows what the weather is going to do tomorrow? I’m looking forward to the race now, to try and make the most of third.”
Splitting the Mercedes duo was Sebastian Vettel in the Red Bull, which proved to have handy amount of grip in the prevaling conditions. There was a scare early on as the software went on the blink, but a reset appeared to solve the problem and ultimately the quadruple world champion was a mere 0.055 of a second adrift of pole, which suggests that in a wet race he could well take the fight to the Silver Arrows.
Vettel reflected, ”At the beginning of Q1, the heartbeat was rising very quickly when we realised there was an issue. I came in, we restarted the car and that seemed to solve the problem. After that it was fine. It was good to go out and get another feel in the wet conditions. Q3 was not perfect. I would have loved to have a second go. My first attempt, I felt there was time to gain here and there. It was very close, too close. I should be on the good side for tomorrow but it depends on how good the start is. I’m happy with the result.”
Fernando Alonso had an incident packed afternoon, a coming together with Daniil Kvyat in Q2, an incident which broke one of the upper front suspension rods. Remarkably the Ferrari crew repaired the damage and sent their man out again. He promptly delivered, to take fourth place on the grid.
Fernando Alonso was fourth fastest
Daniel Ricciardo will head up the third row in his Red Bull, ending the session with the fifth best time, albeit almost a second down on his teammate.
Alongside the Australian on the grid will be Kimi Raikkonen who again was out-qualified by teammate Alonso, although only by 0.176 of a second.
As is his trademark, Nico Hulkenberg reveled in the tricky conditions and ended best of the rest of the Mercedes powered brigade. He will start from seventh on the grid, alongside McLaren rookie Kevin Magnussen who again outqualified his far more experienced teammate Jenson Button.
Magnussen survived an excursion over the grass and gravel , to keep himself in contention for Q3 where he delivered another strong performance on a track that he has never driven on, under extremely challenging conditions.
Magnussen said, ”It was not easy to get it right – we should have gone out on the Wets in the beginning, but I’m still learning about the conditions and the tyres. It’s all good experience for me. Position eight is not bad, though it’s not good either. I do feel the car is quite good in those conditions – we just got the timing a bit wrong. The car is behaving well.”
Button was tenth fastest, victim of a dubious call to run Q3 on Pirelli Intermediate tyres, while everyone else was on the Wets. A gamble that backfired.
“When you’re probably going to be eighth on Wets it’s worth a punt to put on Intermediates. It is what it is. I, we, didn’t think it was going to rain again so it was worth a go, but it was pretty wet out at the back of the track. I chose to go on inters – I normally make the call and get it right, but I didn’t today,” admitted Button.
Splitting the McLaren duo on the timing sheets in ninth place was Jean Eric Vergne who scored Toro Rosso’s best ever starting position at Sepang.
Q1 came to an end with less than a minute to go when Caterham rookie Marcus Ericsson got caught out by the slippery kerbs exiting Turn 3, slithered into the barriers, then bounced off them across the track before coming to a stop just before Turn 4.
Perhaps the biggest surprise, and disappointment to many, was the below par performance by Williams in conditions that clearly did not suit their car and as a result Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas will start 13th and 15th on the grid.
Massa said, “We’re missing some downforce on the car. Again, we’ve not qualified where we should be but we’ll see tomorrow what happens in the race.”
The weather will be a major factor in the race, with Mercedes not enjoying such a big advantage in wet conditions. But also reason for optimism among their rivals is the possibility that the Mercedes W05 may not be too kind to its tyres in race mode at Sepang…
Malaysian Grand Prix, Qualifying – Saturday, 29 March 2014
Pos No Driver Team Q1 Q2 Q3 Laps
1 44 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:57.202 1:59.041 1:59.431 22
2 1 Sebastian Vettel Red Bull Racing-Renault 1:57.654 1:59.399 1:59.486 20
3 6 Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1:57.183 1:59.445 2:00.050 23
4 14 Fernando Alonso Ferrari 1:58.889 2:01.356 2:00.175 22
5 3 Daniel Ricciardo Red Bull Racing-Renault 1:58.913 2:00.147 2:00.541 20
6 7 Kimi Räikkönen Ferrari 1:59.257 2:01.532 2:01.218 21
7 27 Nico Hulkenberg Force India-Mercedes 1:58.883 2:00.839 2:01.712 23
8 20 Kevin Magnussen McLaren-Mercedes 2:00.358 2:02.094 2:02.213 20
9 25 Jean-Eric Vergne STR-Renault 2:01.689 2:02.096 2:03.078 23
10 22 Jenson Button McLaren-Mercedes 2:00.889 2:01.810 2:04.053 22
11 26 Daniil Kvyat STR-Renault 2:01.175 2:02.351 16
12 21 Esteban Gutierrez Sauber-Ferrari 2:01.134 2:02.369 16
13 19 Felipe Massa Williams-Mercedes 2:00.047 2:02.460 16
14 11 Sergio Perez Force India-Mercedes 2:00.076 2:02.511 15
15 77 Valtteri Bottas Williams-Mercedes 1:59.709 2:02.756 17
16 8 Romain Grosjean Lotus-Renault 2:00.202 2:02.885 17
17 13 Pastor Maldonado Lotus-Renault 2:02.074 8
18 99 Adrian Sutil Sauber-Ferrari 2:02.131 7
19 17 Jules Bianchi Marussia-Ferrari 2:02.702 8
20 10 Kamui Kobayashi Caterham-Renault 2:03.595 8
21 4 Max Chilton Marussia-Ferrari 2:04.388 8
22 9 Marcus Ericsson Caterham-Renault 2:04.407 7
Q1 107% Time 2:05.385
Friday, March 28, 2014
BMW makes X7 in Spartanburg official
"Plant Spartanburg was built to enhance and expand the BMW lineup, underscoring the BMW Group commitment to the United States" said Dr. Norbert Reithofer, chairman of the BMW board of management in a statement. "In addition to the X3, X5, X6, and the new X4, we are today announcing another all-new, larger X model to be manufactured exclusively at this plant for our world markets: the X7."
BMW will spend $1 billion by 2016 upgrading its South Carolina factory, which already produces the X3, X5 and X6. The plant is currently capable of producing 300,000 units per year, but with the big investment from BMW, capacity will climb to 450,000 units. 800 jobs will be added as a result of the investment and new and upcoming models.
We don't have any particulars on the new models, but compared to BMW's recent batch of niche-busters, a straight-up, full-size three-row utility to challenge the likes of the Range Rover and Mercedes-Benz GL is about as mainstream as BMW has done in a long time. Once some details on this new model arrive, we'll be sure to let you know about it. Until then, scroll down for the full press release on the announcement from BMW.
Tesla adds free titanium underbody shields to Model S to prevent fires
Following a garage fire incident with a Model S EV last year, Tesla Motors quickly sent out an over-the-air software update to adjust how the car charges. Following two on-road fires caused by road debris that struck the underside of different Model S EVs (one in Washington State and the other in Tennessee), Tesla basically said,
that it was a random thing, and the car is perfectly safe. The company
later sent out a software update to have the car ride a bit higher at
highway speeds. Today, Tesla is offering a more substantial solution.Tesla CEO Elon Musk has announced that all Model S EVs built since March 6 have a stronger triple underbody shield that should "bring this [fire] risk down to virtually zero." The company conducted 152 tests using, "every worst case debris impact we can think of, including hardened steel structures set in the ideal position for a piking event, essentially equivalent to driving a car at highway speed into a steel spear braced on the tarmac" and is now confident that there's basically nothing that can break through the new barriers. As you can see here, the shields prevent a concrete block, a three ball tow hitch and a steel alternator from puncturing the car's underside.
The new shields should "bring this [fire] risk down to virtually zero."
Any Model S owner who wants the new triple shield can ask for it, and
even if they don't ask, the structure will be installed whenever the car
is next in for service. The three layers of the shield include a
rounded, hollow aluminum bar, a titanium plate and "a shallow angle,
solid aluminum extrusion." The new shields, "only have a 0.1 percent
impact on range and don't affect ride or handling," Musk writes, which
means there's no reason for Model S owners not to get the upgrade. Zenos E10 coming to America priced from $39,500*
Tired of seeing all the coolest track toys just beyond your reach, across the pond in the UK and Europe? Well we've got good news for you, because as promised, Zenos is coming to America.
For those unfamiliar, Zenos Cars is the outfit started by former Caterham boss Ansar Ali and his engineering partner Mark Edwards. After working at Lotus together and leaving Caterham, Ali and Edwards (which sounds to us more like a boxing match than an engineering duo) struck out on their own and have been developing a line of lightweight sports cars.
The E10 is the first of them, and was unveiled a few months ago at the Autosport International show in Birmingham (England, not Alabama – or any of the other US states that have a town by that name). It's built around an innovative carbon and aluminum backbone and packs a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine from Ford with 200 horsepower on tap that, thanks to its low 1,430-pound curb weight, is enough to send it to 60 in 4.5 seconds.
The startup has now set up Zenos Cars USA and will begin delivering the E10 to American customers next year. Pricing will start at $39,500 (*plus destination and taxes), with the Launch Edition encompassing many of the options for $43,750. That, for reference, puts the Zenos E10 at about the same level as the entry-level Caterham Seven 280 (which starts at $40,900), but significantly less than even the cheapest Radical (the SR4 Clubsport that starts at $65k).
With the distribution channels already established, Zenos has an E11 convertible and E12 coupe in the works based on the same architecture.
Ferrari embroiled in legal battle over 21-year-old's Facebook page
Ferrari is facing a court battle in Switzerland due to alleged copyright infringement over taking over a Facebook fan site. If the suit is successful, it could cost the company millions and harm its reputation on social media.
Sammy Wassem started the Facebook fan page for Ferrari when he was 15 and eventually grew it to over 500,000 followers. In 2009, the company congratulated him on the site's success, but said that "legal issues" forced it to take over the administration, according to Automotive News Europe. Wassem could still use the site, but managers had oversight.
Wassem asked Ferrari for financial compensation to keep working on the page but continued creating content on it for the next four years. Eventually, the company terminated his administration rights. In 2013 he and his father Olivier filed the lawsuit against the business alleging it owes payment over 5,500 hours of work and copyright infringement for taking over the page. They are asking for 10 million Swiss francs ($11.3 million).
Ferrari is counter-suing them for misusing the company's trademark, including allegedly advertising other merchandise on the page and using it to send invitations to Sammy's 18th birthday.
"The issue isn't with Facebook or with our fans but with those who try to use Ferrari's intellectual property to make money out of it," said Stefano Lai, a spokesman for Ferrari to Automotive News Europe.
The case highlights the difficult balance companies have to maintain with social media. Even if Ferrari is right, the fallout from lawsuit could be a loss of fans.
Sammy Wassem started the Facebook fan page for Ferrari when he was 15 and eventually grew it to over 500,000 followers. In 2009, the company congratulated him on the site's success, but said that "legal issues" forced it to take over the administration, according to Automotive News Europe. Wassem could still use the site, but managers had oversight.
Wassem asked Ferrari for financial compensation to keep working on the page but continued creating content on it for the next four years. Eventually, the company terminated his administration rights. In 2013 he and his father Olivier filed the lawsuit against the business alleging it owes payment over 5,500 hours of work and copyright infringement for taking over the page. They are asking for 10 million Swiss francs ($11.3 million).
Ferrari is counter-suing them for misusing the company's trademark, including allegedly advertising other merchandise on the page and using it to send invitations to Sammy's 18th birthday.
"The issue isn't with Facebook or with our fans but with those who try to use Ferrari's intellectual property to make money out of it," said Stefano Lai, a spokesman for Ferrari to Automotive News Europe.
The case highlights the difficult balance companies have to maintain with social media. Even if Ferrari is right, the fallout from lawsuit could be a loss of fans.
Clarkson and Top Gear facing lawsuit over 'slope' remark
Indian-born actress Somi Guha is suing the BBC for airing "casual racism."
Season 21 of Top Gear
is over, which means it's high time we had some controversy surround
the world's most popular motoring show. The issue this time rests with
the show's last two episodes, which saw the three hosts buy second-hand
"lorries" and drive from Rangoon, Myanmar to the River Kwai, in
Thailand. The three hapless personalities were then tasked with building
a bridge across the river.
Towards the end of the episode, after the rickety bridge was constructed, Richard Hammond and Jeremy Clarkson stand at the end admiring it. As a local man is crossing the bridge, though, Clarkson remarks that "there's a slope on it," ostensibly commenting on the shape and slant of the bridge. Now, for those not up to date with their racist phrases, "slope" also doubles as a derogatory term for people of Asian descent. Knowing this, it certainly looks like Clarkson's statement could have been more than just unfortunate timing.
This whole affair has left Somi Guha, an Indian-born actress, rather angry. She's so upset by Clarkson's use of the phrase that she's retained a group of lawyers called Equal Justice to sue the BBC for one million pounds ($1.66 million), accusing the network of airing of "casual racism," according to her written complaint to the BBC. Anglophiles or Brits will know Equal Justice as the group behind the Big Brother racism lawsuits.
"Jeremy Clarkson has made derogatory comments about Mexicans. Now he bullies an Asian person. It has to stop," Guha said in her statement.
Clarkson, meanwhile, had some not so kind words for The Daily Mail, which published the story. We can't embed the tweets here - here's a link to his Twitter account if you'd care to read them - but Clarkson expressed his gratitude for the support, accused the Mail of not caring about the truth and explained that he couldn't be racist, because he was in a pub with someone that lives near Wales (way to dig that hole, Jezza).
You can read the full, blistering story on the suit from The Daily Mail. You can also view the scene in question from the final episode of season 21 below. What do you think? Has Clarkson and Co. made yet another misstep, or was the timing of the comment just a very, very unfortunate coincidence? Let us know in Comments.
BMW CS reinterpretation proves retro can be sexy
Designer David Obendorfer doesn't work for BMW,
but perhaps the German automaker should give him a call. His CS Vintage
Concept shows a singular ability to understand the brand's classic
style and reinterpret it for today. He isn't some amateur, either.
Obendorfer has an industrial design degree and has been penning the
interiors and exteriors of yachts from the Officina Italiana Design for
five years, which counts luxury shipbuilders like Riva and Sanlorenzo
among its clients. His website shows a real passion and knack for modernizing '60s and '70s European cars, too.Obendorfer prefers to reimagine classic automotive styles. "Retro cars are not copies of their predecessors or renovated specimens, rather they are carefully studied reconsiderations, strongly rooted in contemporary style," he tells Autoblog. For the CS Vintage Concept, he worked to update the looks of the seminal BMW 2000CS and its E9 chassis while placing them on a modern platform. Obendorfer's inspiration comes from his belief that the later CS models' design is partially responsible for defining BMW styling, with its shark-nose front and four round headlights.
The CS Vintage Concept's shape starts with a jutting hood and a quartet of LED headlights, but the whole design really comes together in profile. The Hofmeister Kink at the rear pillar with the BMW Roundel is a nice nod to the originals, yet the proportions still find the perfect fusion of classic and modern. The interior is minimalist, with a vast expanse of wood for the dashboard at first glance, but the latter opens to expose the car's infotainment system.
"The design with the four round headlights has proved to be a winning style pattern that BMW has been carrying on for over 35 years," said Obendorfer about his inspiration.
Idaho, Wyoming poised to get 80 mph speed limits
You
should be able to drive across the Northwestern part of the United
States a little more quickly in the coming months. Idaho and Wyoming
have just passed laws to raise some interstate speed limits to 80 miles
per hour.The Idaho law goes into effect on July 1, but there could be a delay because the Idaho Transportation Department is still conducting safety surveys to decide where to raise limits. It might be late summer before drivers actually see a change. According to a report from local television news station KMVT, the department actually opposed the bill, but it was pushed through by the state's legislature. Now, the agency has to find a way to implement the change.
The Wyoming law also begins on July 1, and according to the Casper Star-Tribune, the state's department of transportation is conducting studies to decide where to increase speeds. It hasn't said when changes start. However, the department strongly believes the increase won't cause more accidents, but if it does, then the limits could be lowered.
Currently, Texas has the highest posted speed limit in the country at 85 mph along a 41-mile stretch of toll road between San Antonio and Austin. Texas and Utah have posted 80 mph on some other interstates as well. So if you're in the mood for some higher-speed interstate cruising, the answer is clearer than ever: Go West, young man.
Raikkonen happy as he gets the better of Alonso on day one at Sepang
Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen was in a surprisingly positive mood after modifications to his car helped him keep pace with favourites Mercedes during Friday Practice at the Malaysian Grand Prix.
The Finn was second in both 90-minute sessions at the steamy Sepang circuit behind Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg to give him hope of being more competitive in Sunday’s race after a disappointing start in Melbourne a fortnight ago.
The 2007 world champion was hit on the first corner in Australia by Kamui Kobayashi’s Caterham, en route to finishing seventh, almost a minute behind race winner Rosberg.
Raikkonen was 0.035 seconds behind the German in Friday’s afternoon session, where he managed to better the times set by Hamilton, world champion Sebastian Vettel and his team mate Fernando Alonso – in Melbourne he was not quicker than his teammate in any session.
“This was definitely a positive day and I had a better feeling compared to Friday in Melbourne,” the Finn told reporters.
“I was more comfortable with the F14 today and even if we had no problems whatsoever, we know there’s still a long way to go and a lot to do.
“Our programme concentrated on car set-up and on testing the compounds that Pirelli has brought here. The handling seemed to be good.”
Raikkonen had dismissed suggestions that his struggles at the Albert Park race were caused by a braking issue.
He said instead that the car would need to be personalised to his liking if he was going to match the successes of his first three-year spell with the Italian team which ended in 2009.
Alonso was 11th fastest before improving to fifth in the second session, 0.194 seconds behind Rosberg.
The Spaniard was more guarded when talking about possibly improving on his fourth-place finish in Melbourne.
“We are on a learning curve, which is not unusual for the start of a championship and, to find out how competitive we are, as usual we will have to wait until Saturday and Sunday,” the double world champion said.
“Usually, Friday is a very confusing day, because everyone is working on their own programmes, but this year it’s even more the case because of all the new elements.
“Everything went well, with no reliability problems and we managed to do a fair number of laps, enough to get a good understanding of the tyres, which will be a very important factor here because of the high temperatures.”
Thursday, March 27, 2014
Switch to Mercedes power was not a fluke decision for Williams
Having struggled to just ninth in the 2013 standings with Renault power, Grove based Williams is now working with the field-leading Mercedes.
And the FW36 is regarded as probably the best 2014 car behind the works Mercedes.
Some think that Williams simply lucked into the best engine for the revolutionary new era, but Williams insists that is not so.
“We were in our second year with Renault after a long history with them,” she is quoted by Brazil’s Totalrace.
“But we did a huge amount of research into understanding how Renault and the other manufacturers would go with the rule changes.
“It was obvious early last year where some of the manufacturers were in the developmental stage,” Williams explained.
“We talked with Renault and Mercedes about it, and we decided to go with Mercedes. It was a very conscious decision,” she added.
Williams admitted that the team’s close ties to Mercedes’ Toto Wolff – still a co-owner and also husband of test driver Susie – helped the talks along.
“We were able to exchange information with him,” she revealed.
Fuelgate has Sepang paddock buzzing with speculation
The Sepang paddock is buzzing with speculation regarding Red Bull’s appeal against their disqualification from second place at the Australian grand Prix,and their action plan ahead of the Malaysian Grand Prix weekend.
Many are wondering if the world champion team risk an even heavier sanction by ignoring the new FIA-supplied fuel flow sensor.
Ricciardo, who lost his second place in Melbourne, said: “I trust the team to make the right decisions.”
And Sebastian Vettel also backed Red Bull to do the right thing for the team, “Of course we are always trying to exploit everything to the limit – but always within the rules.”
But Ferrari driver Fernando Alonso indicated that he cannot understand Red Bull boss Christian Horner’s claim that the accuracy of sensors will be the difference between success and failure.
“When it comes to incorrect measurements, we are talking about numbers after the decimel point,” said the Ferrari driver. “Nobody will win or lose a race [because of fuel flow],” he added.
Villeneuve: In the first three races Fernando is trying to destroy Kimi psychologically
Fernando Alonso is going all out to ‘destroy’ his new Ferrari teammate Kimi Raikkonen in the first three races of the season according to Jacques Villeneuve, Formula 1′s outspoken 1997 world champion.
Although Villeneuve acknowledged that the predictions of outright war between the two world champions have not yet been proven to be correct, he believes that the psychological war has most certainly begun.
“In the first three races Fernando is trying to destroy Kimi psychologically. He will try, at all costs, finish ahead of teammate and get the team to rally around him,” Villeneuve said.
“Fernando’s plan is obvious – he wants to beat Kimi at all costs,” said the French Canadian. ”In the tests it was all calm, but in Melbourne Fernando showed his true potential.”
Indeed, Finn Raikkonen struggled with the handling of his 2014 Ferrari throughout the Melbourne weekend, while Spaniard Alonso comfortably beat him in Qualifying and the race.
But Villeneuve tips Raikkonen to fight back and insists, “Kimi is not an ‘Iceman’ – he has created this image to isolate himself, but like any driver, he doesn’t like bad results.
“But I don’t think that Kimi’s fans should worry – he also had problems with the handling in 2007 but he still became world champion.
“I think the rule changes will even play into his hands,” Villeneuve told Germany’s Sport Bild. ”In qualifying, Alonso will be faster, but this year that’s not so important.”
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)