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Tuesday, July 20, 2010
RPMGO.com (former Auto Unleashed) |
- Lamborghini planning new SUV and entry-level V8 supercar, scraps sedan plans
- Video: Seat Leon touring car flips during race
- Toyota objects to NHTSA accusations of planting unintended acceleration driver error story
- BMW still considering X4 crossover, X4 M also a possibility
- 2011 Ford Explorer with EcoBoost 2.0-liter engine is 30% more efficient than outgoing V6
- 1966 Volvo P1800 reaches 2.8 million miles driven, sets new world record
- Mini and Prodrive to announce WRC entry this week, report says
- Nissan planning Leaf-based electric sportscar model
- Mercedes-Benz working on nine-speed automatic gearbox
- Motorsport Weekend: Moto GP German GP and Nascar Gateway race results (video)
| Lamborghini planning new SUV and entry-level V8 supercar, scraps sedan plans Posted: 20 Jul 2010 02:49 AM PDT  The rumor mill has started spinning once more, this time powered by Car and Driver which says that Lamborghini is planning two new models that will take it into new directions, even though they have some predecessors. According to the magazine, Lamborghini is planning a new luxury super-SUV. Lambo fans are sure to remember the company’s eccentric LM002 SUV, which was something like a cross between a Hummer and a regular Lamborghini supercar, being off-road ready and powered by a V12 engine. According to the report, the new Lamborghini SUV might use the platform of the 2011 Volkswagen Touareg and Porsche Cayenne. It will definitely use a bigger engine though, in order to produce adequate performance for regular Lambo fans. Secondly, C/D says that an entry-level Lamborghini supercar, powered by a smaller V8 engine, as opposed to the V10 Gallardo or the V12 Murcielago, might also appear. This would also act as a spiritual successor to older Lambo models like the Urraco or Jalpa. Last but not least, the super sedan plans of Lamborghini are reportedly scrapped, as the Estoque concept we saw some time ago hasn’t really generated the desired response. As such, Lamborghini will continue with the coupe body style. Frankly, we’re a bit overwhelmed by these rumors, but seeing as how Volkswagen wants to further develop Lamborghini, an SUV and a smaller supercar are a possibility. What do you think? Share your thoughts below. Source: Car and Driver via Autoblog Post published on Rpmgo.com Related posts:
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| Video: Seat Leon touring car flips during race Posted: 20 Jul 2010 02:20 AM PDT  Crashes are, sadly, an essential part of motorsport, as contact between cars, either Formula 1 dedicated racers or touring cars, ends up pretty badly. The latest car crash comes from the UK’s Brands Hatch circuit, where a race in the Seat Leon Euro Cup competition was held. During the race, Portuguese driver Francisco Carvalho was touched by a fellow racer, which sent his Leon touring car out of control. The car crashed into a barrier which sent it flying over the heads of race officials. Miraculously, no one was hurt, not even Carvalho, who now has one heck of a story to tell. Check out the terrifying crash in the video after the jump. Source: YouTube via Automarket Post published on Rpmgo.com Related posts:
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| Toyota objects to NHTSA accusations of planting unintended acceleration driver error story Posted: 20 Jul 2010 01:55 AM PDT  Toyota has officially backfired against the accusations from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration that it planted a story with the Wall Street Journal in order to clear its name from the unintended acceleration scandal. In case you aren’t familiar with the story, the WSJ cited inside sources that said that investigations on unintended acceleration incidents up until now cited, in most cases, driver error to be the main cause. More specifically, the drivers were pressing the gas pedal instead of the brake. An unnamed NHTSA spokesperson immediately backfired, saying that Toyota planted that story itself, and the investigations led by the NHTSA aren’t even finished, so no information could’ve come from the federal body. Toyota has now replied, saying that the NHTSA hasn’t revealed anything to Toyota, and that the company doesn’t have access to the findings from the NHTSA. As such, the information couldn’t have come from Toyota itself. We still can’t say for sure who is to blame for the leak, but everything will be cleared out when the NHTSA eventually reveals its findings. Until then, you can be sure that more speculation will ensue. Source: Just-Auto via Autoblog Post published on Rpmgo.com Related posts:
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| BMW still considering X4 crossover, X4 M also a possibility Posted: 20 Jul 2010 01:37 AM PDT  BMW shocked the automotive industry when it revealed the X6 ‘Sports Activity Coupe’ crossover, creating a whole new niche all for itself. Now, seeing as how the X6 is surpassing sales estimates and already saw 80,000 units sold this year, the Bavarian company is setting its eyes on the smaller crossover/coupe segment, as highlighted by the recent Range Rover Evoque. According to Autocar, not only is a regular X4 on the drawing board, but also a performance version of the future model, presumably the X4 M. The smaller crossover would pack the same twin-turbo 3.0-liter inline-six cylinder engine that is currently being prepared for the 1 Series M Coupe. No word yet on when we might see the BMW X4, but if X6 sales will continue to soar, then you can be sure that BMW will put the development pedal to the metal. Source: Autocar Post published on Rpmgo.com Related posts:
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| 2011 Ford Explorer with EcoBoost 2.0-liter engine is 30% more efficient than outgoing V6 Posted: 20 Jul 2010 01:07 AM PDT  Even though we’re a week away from the official unveiling of the 2011 Ford Explorer, the Blue Oval continues to spoon feed us little tidbits of information. The latest one concerns the Explorer’s new EcoBoost 2.0-liter inline-four cylinder engine. The turbocharged engine is 30% more efficient than the outgoing V6 Explorer. Sadly, that’s all we’re getting, as official EPA numbers for the 2011 Explorer haven’t been revealed by the federal body just yet. Still, considering the existing 210 HP 4.0-liter V6 is ranked at 14 mpg in the city and 20 on the highway, we can figure out that the 2011 Explorer EcoBoost 2.0-liter might achieve 18-19 mpg in the city and 26-27 mpg on the highway. The new engine is also expected to develop around 230 HP with 250 lb-ft of torque, making its efficiency mighty impressive. Source: Ford via The Examiner Post published on Rpmgo.com Related posts:
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| 1966 Volvo P1800 reaches 2.8 million miles driven, sets new world record Posted: 20 Jul 2010 12:50 AM PDT  After seeing the Bugatti Veyron Super Sport set a new world record for the fastest production car, we now get see a new type of record being broken by a very different car. The 1966 Volvo P1800 you see above, owned by Irv Gordon, has reached a whopping 2.8 million miles (4.5 million km) driven, owning the new world record for the biggest distance traveled by a non-commercial vehicle. According to 70-year old Gordon, the secret to the longevity of the Volvo’s life is partly due to the tough Swedish engineering, but also to regular maintenance. This means an oil change every 3,000 miles and a new transmission fluid every 25,000 miles. Besides that, the only large problem the Volvo ever had was at the 680,000 mile mark, when the engine had to be rebuilt. After that, it was smooth sailing. Gordon also says that he hopes to take the car over 3 million mark in the next few years, hopefully just in time for his 73rd birthday. We wish him the best of luck and plenty of safe miles driven in the old Volvo. Source: Autoevolution via RideLust Post published on Rpmgo.com Related posts:
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| Mini and Prodrive to announce WRC entry this week, report says Posted: 20 Jul 2010 12:26 AM PDT  British carmaker Mini and British rally team Prodrive are expected to announce their entry into the World Rally Championship this week, according to a new report coming from Autosport. After many batches of rumors and speculations from various ‘inside sources’, it seems that the two entities will finally announce their partnership this week. As most of you know by now, Prodrive will be preparing a rally-spec version of the Mini Countryman crossover, outfitted with a more hardcore version of BMW’s 1.6-liter turbocharged engine. Testing is set to begin in the following weeks, but the formal entry into the WRC circuit is still quite far. According to the same report, the official reveal of the Mini Countryman WRC model will be made next year, in Rome, ahead of May’s Rally of Sardinia (Rally d’Italia-Sardegna). This means that the Mini model won’t attend the first four races of the 2011 WRC season. Up until now, both parties have remained tight lipped so an official announcement would definitely help clear things up. Source: Autosport Post published on Rpmgo.com Related posts:
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| Nissan planning Leaf-based electric sportscar model Posted: 20 Jul 2010 12:12 AM PDT  Nissan is quite proud of its Leaf electric vehicle. With pre-orders going through the roof and people becoming extremely excited about the new EV, you can bet that Nissan’s Carlos Ghosn has a big smile on his face. The Japanese company is thinking ahead though, as according to Edmund’s Straight Line, a Leaf-based electric sportscar might arrive in the next few years. According to those sources, besides the Infiniti-badged Leaf, a sportscar would further cement the image of the Japanese company as a leader in EV technology. No other details are known, but you can guess that the electric performance model will use either technologies from the existing Nissan 370Z or might borrow cues from the Infiniti Essence concept. Either way, the Tesla Roadster should definitely be worried. Source: Edmund’s StraightLine Post published on Rpmgo.com Related posts:
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| Mercedes-Benz working on nine-speed automatic gearbox Posted: 19 Jul 2010 11:21 PM PDT  Gearboxes come in all shapes and sizes these days, some boasting as little as four gears, other boasting the maximum (at the moment) of eight. Heck, the CVT transmissions don’t even have conventional gears. Now, according to Mercedes-Benz engineers, the maximum number of ratios will be bumped once more, as the German company is working a nine-speed automatic transmission. According to Autocar’s sources, this nine-cog ‘box will be put to use on the company’s ‘large capacity’ engines. Sadly, no other details were offered. According to many voices, we might see such a transmission featured on the next generation S Class, as well as on the baby SLS AMG, which might get the SSK badge. Still, it seems that those same sources agree that nine is probably the biggest numbers of gears a transmission could support, from a mechanical standpoint, and the maximum a regular customer could support. What do you think? Will automakers stop at just nine-speeds? Share your thoughts below. Source: Autocar Post published on Rpmgo.com Related posts:
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| Motorsport Weekend: Moto GP German GP and Nascar Gateway race results (video) Posted: 19 Jul 2010 05:11 AM PDT  Welcome to a new edition of Motorsport Weekend, our own feature where we talk about the most exciting races from the last three days and share the results with you. This week, things slowed down a bit, but we still had plenty of interesting things to see. In Europe, the Moto GP championship held its German GP event at Sachsenring, while in the USA, Nascar’s Nationwide Series saw the Missouri-Illinois Dodge Dealers 250 race take place at the Gateway International Raceway. Curious to see how Valentino Rossi’s performance after missing four races because of broken leg, or want to check out a video of a massive crash sustained by Brad Keselowski in the Nascar race? Then hit the jump and find out. The race started out with pole sitter Jorge Lorenzo in the lead, but he was quickly overtaken by Honda rider Dani Pedrosa. Rossi, starting out in fifth, wanted to make a clean race and get back in touch with his Yamaha bike. A mid-race crash caused the race to be suspended, as Randy de Puniet’s bike was all over the place. The restart saw Lorenzo lose his lead in front of Pedrosa, who built a considerable gap. Meanwhile, the battle for third place was blazing hot, with Rossi duking it out with Casey Stoner. After multiple back and forth overtakes, Stoner managed to cross the finish line ahead of the Italian, thanks to a last corner overtake. Overall standings still show Lorenzo in the lead, with 185 points, followed by Pedrosa, with 138 points, and Andrea Dovizioso, with 102. Meanwhile, crashes were also plenty in the Nascar Missouri-Illinois Dodge Dealers 250 race, counting for the Nationwide Series. By far the most important happened in the final lap of the race, when Carl Edwards and Brad Keselowski were duking it out for first place. Keselowski traded paint with Edwards at the beginning of the last lap, and inched ahead of him. In the final straight however, Edwards did the unthinkable, and spun out Keselowski right into the concrete wall. This sent Edwards to cross the finish line first, while Keselowski was thrown into the interior where other drivers crashed into him. Runner up was Reed Sorenson, followed by Trevor Bayne. Nascar’s governing body has yet to publish its inquiry into the crash, but you can rest assured that penalties will be given. Overall Nationwide standings still show Keselowski in the lead, with Edwards trailing by 168 points and Justin Allgaier, trailing by 497 points. Check out the terrifying crash in the video below. Post published on Rpmgo.com Related posts:
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