To get you in the mood for this weekend’s Canadian Formula 1 Grand Prix, I hope you enjoy this lap of the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve with commentary from BMW Sauber’s Nick Heidfeld. This clip was spotted at our friends from BimmerFile, via BMW-web.tv.
Month: June 2008
It is expected that Australian pricing for MINI’s new factory built John Cooper Works models will be confirmed within the next fortnight. The John Cooper Works range will be available in both coupé and Clubman models and will offer a new high-performance version of the 1.6-litre Twin Scroll turbo engine, producing 155kW, the highest output ever offered in the new generation MINI range. Internet rumours suggest the Coupé’s list price, less on road costs and any options, will be under $49,000 while the Clubman will come in under $52,000.
The MINI John Cooper Works Hardtop model will reach 100 km/h in just 6.5 seconds, while the MINI John Cooper Works Clubman covers the same sprint in 6.8 seconds. Peak torque now increases to 280Nm courtesy of a high performance Overboost feature between 2,000 rpm and 5,300 rpm. In less frenetic driving, peak torque of 260Nm is available between 1,850 rpm and 5,600 rpm. Deliveries of the John Cooper Works models to Australian customers are expected before the end of the year.
Keep reading AUSmotive.com for more details as soon as they come to hand.
Ford has released images of its new Falcon-based FG01 V8 Supercar ahead of the car’s track debut. Craig Lowndes will drive the only FG01 in the field in this weekend’s Sandown 400. There are five images in all, simply click on an image for a high resolution download (all images 3800px wide, approx 1.5mb).
Ford’s press release and additional high resolution images can be seen below.
After becoming the first ever MINI CHALLENGE UBER-STAR at Eastern Creek, Jason Bargwanna will complete the remainder of 2008 in the Series, this time with cousin, Scott in a two car super-team, starting this weekend at Sandown.
The arrangement has come together with major support from Trivett Classic MINI Garage in Parramatta (Sydney) and Matchmaster TV Reception Systems. It will be a family affair, the cars being run under the Bargwanna Motorsport banner out of Sydney.
Racing together isn’t new for the cousins – the Bargwanna/Bargwanna combination first teamed up at the 1992 Bathurst 1000 in a Corolla, taking a class win. The boys will continue the family connection by using the racing numbers of their fathers – twins, Alf (Scott) and Harry (Jason) Bargwanna – #79 and #97 respectively.
“Bargwannas have come out of the woodwork to get this deal pulled together for Sandown,†the former Bathurst 1000 winner said. “We’re looking good and cannot wait for the challenge. We want to be competitive in this deal, but we really want to have some fun as well.
“It’s a good opportunity for us to involve our families in our racing. Scott and I grew up at race tracks watching our fathers and this gives us the opportunity to do the same with our sons and also involve our fathers closely. MINI CHALLENGE is a great environment to go racing in and do this sort of thing.â€
The Audi R8 can now be optioned with full light-emitting diode (LED) headlights. The R8’s controversially styled LED day time running lights have set a new visual language for Audi’s lighting across their model range. But the R8 is the first car to have LED headlights to be used for general night time driving and can be used in both low and high beam. There are 54 LEDs that complete the set up—ouch, they come at a price though—approximately AU$5790!
Audi’s press release can be read after the jump.
In stunning news just to hand Max Mosley has won a vote of confidence and will remain in his role as FIA President. The vote, called by Mosley himself, returned over 60% of the count in favour of the embattled motorsport supremo, winning 103 of the 169 votes.
Mosley’s controversial grip on the FIA has been under question since news broke of his involvement in a ‘Nazi-style sex orgy’ in late March. The automotive federations of Australia, France, Germany, Japan, Spain and the USA all voted against Mosley. This follows public condemnation of the 68-year-old’s behaviour from prominent Formula 1 manufacturers such as BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Toyota and Honda. Even Formula 1’s main man, Bernie Ecclestone, has pleaded that Mosley step down. “He should go out of responsibility for the institution he represents,” Ecclestone told the Daily Telegraph.
Eddie Jordan, former Formula 1 team boss, has expressed concerns over Mosley’s ongoing tenure, “there are a lot of countries where F1 goes and lots of the rulers of those countries don’t want to deal with him. That is clearly not acceptable. My hope is that he will listen to the comments and then go.”
There are also suggestions from BBC journalist Adam Parsons that the FIA could face a damaging split, “he won by a clear majority, but among those who opposed him there is overt anger and resentment. The US, German and Dutch raised the spectre of breaking away from the FIA in protest is an unprecedented threat.
“Today the FIA is an organisation in crisis, facing the prospect of being ripped apart.”
Source: BBC
Categories
What will you be driving in your 90s?
Honda’s top brass couldn’t wait to trumpet this feel good story about Jazz owner Mary Taylor, a soon to be 90-year-old readying herself for her seventeenth round Australia trip. Seventeenth!
What’s more, young Mary will be singing her own tune as she plans to complete this latest journey solo. A woman after my own heart, Mary says “I’m addicted to solo driving. I love being by myself. I like to make my own decisions. Passengers always want to stop.â€
Mary was 75 when she completed her maiden round Australia voyage, and in preparation for her upcoming drive she booked herself in for a thorough driving assessment. The assessor’s report card read as follows: Mary Taylor’s driving ability is of a very high standard.
Mary will document her journey with a dash-mounted video camera and her laptop, complete with voice-recognition software. She will also take photographs of her Jazz at various locations she visits. She hopes to drive as many as 600 kilometers per day and anticipates her journey along the Australian coastline will take around six weeks, covering between 16,000 to 18,000 kilometers. With precision planning, Mary travels anti-clockwise in order to save petrol and reduce her impact on the environment. “The wind pushes you along. I’ve also done the trip twice in the Civic Hybrid.â€