Month: February 2010

Categories
Citroen

Citroën DS3 Racing – another Geneva preview

Citroen DS3 Racing

The pre-release of images and details prior to Geneva continues with Citroën showing off its new DS3 Racing. It will be limited to just 1000 cars and is schedlued for European relase in the latter half of this year. Looking at the images, well, she’s a bit lairy, don’t you think! But in a good way. Although that opinion will vary wildly among readers I am sure.

Based on the DS3 THP 150 we first saw last August, the DS3 Racing version trades off the company’s rally success and has been sent to Citroën Racing for a bit of a going over. Le boffins fiddled around with the 1.6-litre engine and its electronic brain to increase peak power by 30% and torque by 15% to 200bhp and 275Nm.

While they were doing that some spare boffins found time to sharpen the steering, drop the ride height by 15mm and, perhaps most significantly, widen the front and rear tracks by 30mm. That last tweak should offer superior road holding to ensure there is plenty of fantastique froggy cornering goodness.

As if the orange paint detailing didn’t scream loudly enough that this is a more sporty DS3 there’s also a bunch of stickers plastered all over the car to help ram the point home. In a weird sort of way the more Citroën pushes the envelope in this regard, the more appealing it becomes.

More pics after the break, I’d love to hear what you think of the DS3 Racing’s wild looks.

UPDATE: Press release from Citroën Australia has been added below, which drops a hint that we might see the DS3 Racing in Australia.

UPDATE 21 Feb: When asked if the DS3 Racing would be coming to our shores Citroën Australia spokesman Edward Rowe replied, “It’s possible, we will not know for certain until the end of the year.”

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Categories
Aston Martin

Aston Martin Rapide video

Aston Martin Rapide

Here is some official footage released by Aston Martin of their new Rapide four-door saloon being driven around Valencia. The Rapide has just been launched around the globe, including Australia, and local deliveries are expected before mid-year. You’ll need a smidge under AU$400K if you want one.

The video itself is not spine-tingling as one might have hoped for, however you get a good look at the car and the 470hp 6.0-litre V12 sounds fantastic. For a more in-depth initial look at the Rapide take a look at Anthony Crawford’s report on CarAdvice. He was fortunate enough to have been on the ground in Spain to witness the launch of Aston’s new super-saloon.

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Categories
Formula 1

VR masters of PR

Virgin Racing - Life's a beach

Virgin Racing looks set to be making the most of the PR opportunities that Formula One offers. Here is a YouTube clip which is described on the team’s official twitter page as being a “Jerez round-up”. Now, if the F1 pitlane was a government it is becoming clear that Virgin Racing would be the minister known as the master of spin.

Most of us would probably think a round-up from pre-season testing might include some feedback on the new VR01 racecar, a bit of discussion on lap times and general info on how the team is settling into F1. But not the guys at Virgin Racing, check it out below…

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Categories
Audi BMW

Audi takes another swipe at BMW

Audi takes on BMW

The rivalry between the Audi and BMW in the United States has been reignited with this new TVC from Audi of America. They’re pretty chuffed that they have beaten BMW in a few recent magazine comparos.

This new ad follows material on a similar theme, which you may remember from October last year. Now, I’m all for a good gag and all, but to me, all this does is put a massive target on the HQ at Audi of America. This latest ad is okay, but it’s not a knee-slapper in the comedy stakes. Yeah, it’s a just a bit of harmless fun, but you should never start a war unless you are certain of victory.

Anyway, check out the ad for yourself after the break and let us know what you think.

[via autoblog]

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Categories
Jaguar

Supercat on the prowl in Geneva

2011 Jaguar XKR

Jaguar will be revealing their fastest XK model ever in Geneva next month. At the same time they will be revamping the XK lineup with revisions for the 2011 model year.

If you throw the Jaguar technicians £3500 for the optional Speed Pack the lads at Coventry will fiddle about with the electronics of your XKR and increase its top speed to 174mph (280km/h), up from 155mph (250km/h). They’ll also splash a bit of extra paint around on your body kit and throw in some extra chrome trim so you don’t actually have to take your car up to 280 clicks to prove you have the Speed Pack. The 20″ Kasuga alloy wheels also help you stand out from the povo spec XKR.

If it’s a bit of bling you’re after Jaguar have you covered there, as well. For a lazy £4000 you can tick the Black Pack option box and be rewarded with some gloss black alloys, fancy red brake calipers and a few bits of black trim. The only downside is you can only get the Black Pack if you have already signed up for the Speed Pack.

Take the jump for more pics and a full press release from Jaguar UK.

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Categories
Volkswagen

Volkswagen Polo GTI breaks cover ahead of Geneva

Volkswagen Polo GTI

Volkswagen have released three images of its new Polo GTI ahead of next month’s Geneva Auto Salon. As expected, the latest baby GTI will be powered by a 1.4 litre twincharge engine, which has a supercharger providing low down boost before a turbo chimes in to keep the smile on your dial up to redline.

The headline stats of the TSI powerplant are, peak power of 180PS (132kW) with 184ft/lb (250Nm) of torque. Tipping the scales at a modern day lightweight 1184kg the Polo GTI can accelerate to 100km/h in 6.9 seconds. This is achieved, in part, thanks to a 7-speed DSG transmission and and electronic XDS differential, similar to the system found in the Golf GTI.

Aside from all that, the new Polo GTI looks fantastic. There’s been a huge step in interior layout and refinement over the underrated model it replaces and the new exterior styling of the regular Polo has been enahnced by LED daytime lighting and a subtle body kit.

The Polo GTI promises to be one cracker of a hot hatch. A press release from Volkswagen UK is below and when we hear from Volkswagen Australia you’ll be able to read it here.

UPDATE: Volkswagen Australia have confirmed with AUSmotive that the Polo GTI will be on sale locally before the end of 2010. No news on pricing or final specs at this stage.

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Categories
BMW

BMW M3 Competition Package

BMW M3 Competition Package

BMW have just announced a new Competition Package that can be added as an option when ordering a new M3. For BMW, pricing is quite inexpensive really, at just £3,315 (AU$5,820). Nothing official from BMW Australia just yet, but you’ll read it here when it’s available.

For your extra cash you get restyled and lighter 19″ alloy wheels, a 10mm suspension drop and re-mapped settings for the Dynamic Stability Control and  Electronic Damper Control which offer “a more enthusiastic driving style“.

The Competition Package will be available for the 2011 model year, which, according to the release below, starts from late March production.

Also being introduced for MY11 is an Auto Start-Stop function. It will be available right across the M3 range and with both manual and DCT transmissions. This brings minor improvements to fuel efficiency and list of revised figures has been provided by BMW.

Included with the release of the M3 Competition Package are a few images of some carbon fibre add-ons, although nothing is said about these in the release below. It would appear these are some extra money-grabbing options that can be added to your M3 to help individualise it from your neighbour’s M3.

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Categories
Porsche

The “lightweight” Panamera

Porsche Panamera V6

Porsche have taken the Panamera one step further by releasing a new “lightweight” version. It’s not sure if lightweight refers to lite, as in the car only has a 220kW V6 engine. Or are is Porsche actually being serious and trying to fool you by referring to the car’s 1730kg kerb weight as light. I think it’s the latter.

To be fair the V6 engine does drop 30kg over the normally aspirated V8 found in the Panamera at its original launch. But let’s not get too carried away here, this is no stripped out GT3-style model.

The 3.6-litre V6 has a 90° cylinder angle and in addition to its 220kW peak power there is 400Nm of torque on offer. It will be dropped into two models, badged as the Panamera and Panamera 4. Fuel consumption in the two-wheel drive model is a respectable 9.3l/100km, while the all-wheel drive variant adds 0.3l/100km to that figure. Similarly, the Panamera 4 yields a small 7g/km CO2 emissions penalty over the 213g/km figure of the rear-wheel drive.

Standard fitment of Porsche’s dual-clutch PDK transmission and Auto Stop Start technology help the new entry-level Panamera achieve these figures.

Beijing will host the premiere of the V6 in late April and the car will be on sale in Europeans markets shortly after.

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Categories
Formula 1

F1 pre-season: Jerez test #2 schedule

Scuderia Toro Rosso - Sebastien Buemi, Jerez 2010

Tomorrow night (Australian time) the F1 circus returns to Jerez for the third of four sanctioned pre-season test windows. There will be four days of testing and as with the previous sessions the teams generally run one driver per day. The schedule of who will be driving when is available below.

A reminder that you can get the latest news from testing as it happens by subscribing to the AUSmotive F1 list on  twitter.

Fernando Alonso topped the time sheets at the first session in Valenica, while Jaime Alguersuari (pictured above) was on the pace in Jerez. Alguersuari posted the second best time last week, behind Lewis Hamilton who was able the most of the infrequent dry weather available on the last day of testing. The teams encountered mostly wet weather last week and the forecast for this week is pretty ugly as well. Let’s hope there’s dry weather in Barcelona for the final test window, which starts 25 February.

This week will be the first official test program for the new Lotus-Cosworth T127.

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Categories
MINI

MINI UK announces Countryman pricing

2010 MINI Countryman

MINI have just announced UK pricing of the Countryman range. While these numbers won’t directly translate to the Australian market, it will give an idea as to where we can expect the Countryman to sit in MINI Australia’s hierarchy.

Prices have been released as OTR figures and a two-wheel drive Countryman Cooper S is priced at £20,810. For comparison a 6 speed manual Cooper S hatch will set you back £17,015 OTR. The two-wheel drive Countryman Cooper D is priced at £18,810, the regular hatch version £15,185.

At initial launch MINI’s new ALL4 all-wheel drive system will only be available in either Cooper S or Cooper D spec. The ALL4 Cooper S will cost a further £1,220 or an extra £1,065 if you take the diesel option.

So, there you have it, expect the Countryman to be somewhere between 5-10K more than their regular hatch counterparts when they land in Australia. If you tick the ALL4 option box you’ll probably pay $2000 for the privilege. Hmm, this is starting to add up isn’t it.

A full list of UK prices and specifications is shown below.

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Categories
Peugeot

The “5 by Peugeot” Concept Car – 508 preview

5 by Peugeot Concept Car

Peugeot have just released images of this new Concept Car. Peugeot are pushing it as a “new luxury saloon driving experience”. Its full title is rather clumsy—5 by Peugeot Concept Car—but just look at it. There’s nothing clumsy about the exterior. It is a very, very good looking car. Nothing revolutionary in terms of overall shape or concept, but a beautifully executed design.

Okay, perhaps the bonnet and rear lights might be a bit fussy. And, yes, LED headlamps are becoming over played (get used to that), but given the rest of the detailing on the car, it’s easy to excuse those frivolous moments. When you’re going through the images below make sure you take the time to appreciate the side profile of the glasshouse. The way the B-pillar has been hidden behind the windows is a wonderful piece of design. If, in fact there is a B-pillar, being a concept car you’re never quite sure what is beneath under the skin.

Peugeot’s press release makes no comment about the Geneva Motor Show, but we will see more of this car then. After making such a grand statement with the exterior one can only hope they have created an interior to match.

The 5 by Peugeot is powered by the company’s Hybrid4 technology, also seen in the RCZ concept, which is a mix of electric and diesel power. Good for 200bhp and CO2 emissions under 100g/km the car is driven by all four wheels.

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Categories
Audi

Audi RS5 to debut at Geneva. Promise!

Audi RS5

Yes, okay, any post speculating on the debut of the Audi RS5 is going to look a little bit foolish given the previous prediction of an Essen debut failed to materialise. However, if we take a look back to 2008 we can see that AUSmotive is not the first site to go hard with an RS5 tip and get it wrong.

Anyway, the new word I have been given is the RS5 will be revealed at the Geneva Auto Salon next month. The show is open to the public from 4–14 March, so if this latest mail is correct, we should know for sure in a around two weeks, as Audi will most likely release details to the assembled media a day or so prior to the public opening.

All other details should remain as reported last October. So, expect the RS5 to be powered by a normally aspirated V8, labelled 4.2 FSI HDZ. The 4163cc engine should be good for 330kW (450PS) and at initial launch the car will be offered with a 7 speed S tronic transmission only. The RS5 should be good for a 4.6 second 0-100km/h sprint.

As good as the RS5 should be, this new model may come at the cost of the über RS4. AUSmotive understands there are no plans at Ingolstadt to build an RS4 on the B8 platform. I really hope that information is wrong. The RS4 can trace its roots back to Audi’s first RS model, the RS2 Estate. For that reason, the RS4 should never die.

UPDATE:  There’s a small chance we may hear of concrete RS5 info in around one week from now. Watch this space!