Categories
Lamborghini

It’s another new Gallardo, but this time it’s real

Lamborghini Cabrera prototype

Lamborghini is well known for releasing new iterations of its very fine Gallardo supercar and now we’re facing the prospect of another one. But the good news here is that this is an all-new model and not another “one-off” limited edition finale.

A new Lambo prototype, codenamed LP724, has been snapped at the Nürburgring in recent days. It’s expected the Gallardo-replacement will be ready for sale around the middle of 2014, after making its show debut in Geneva next March.

Believed to be called the Cabrera the new name follows tradition by referencing a family of Spanish bulls and not likeable golfers from Argentina.

Parent company Audi won’t be missing the boat here either and the Cabrera and the next-gen R8 will be built around a common modular spacefame. There will still be major differences between the two cars with the R8 to have its wheelbase extended by 30mm to allow for greater interior comfort.

Meanwhile, the new entry-level Lambo supercar will look to the ball-tearing Sesto Elemento for its exterior inspiration. Lamborghini will stick with a 5.2 litre V10 for the Cabrera with revisions expected to deliver as much as 600hp (450kW).

Interestingly Autocar reports the car will come standard with a 6-speed manual transmission, leaving a 7-speed DSG from the R8 to be an option only. This would contradict a two-year-old rumour suggesting Lamborghini would not be using manual boxes for any future models.

[Source: Autocar]

Categories
Volkswagen WRC

Ogier wants to win WRC title in style

Volkswagen Polo R WRC, 2013 Rally Italy

Sebastien Ogier has displayed the petulance of a world champion by saying he deserves to win the Rally de France-Alsace (3–6 October) on the way to clinching his maiden WRC crown.

On current form you’d think Ogier doesn’t have a lot to worry about, but all-time great Sebastien Loeb will emerge for one final hurrah in France and on his home tarmac Loeb could pose a genuine threat to Ogier’s ascension plans.

Talking about his approach to racing in France Ogier said: “I will go there for the victory. The only point which would make a bad situation for me, of course, [is] if Seb Loeb wins the rally and I got trouble or something.

“Then it will be a bit of a shadow on my championship against his victory again and I think I don’t deserve that.”

Hmm, getting a bit ahead of yourself there Sebastien?

So far in 2013 Loeb has competed in three WRC events: Monte Carlo (win), Sweden (second to Ogier) and Argentina (win). It’s been 12 months since Loeb competed in a tarmac event. But let’s face it, the nine-time champ is no rookie and he will be up to speed in no time.

Ogier missed securing the WRC title in Rally Australia by a single point, as such he only needs to finish in the top 10 in France to inherit Loeb’s title. If we were him we’d take a conservative approach in France and be prepared to lose a battle on the way to winning a very satisfying war.

[Source: Autosport]

Categories
Lamborghini

Lamborghini Urus moves closer to green light

Lamborghini Urus concept

Lamborghini boss Stephan Winkelmann says he now expects the Urus SUV to be signed off for production.

Speaking at the opening of a new showroom in Tokyo, Winkelmann said: “We’re working on it and it will come, which will be good for the brand.

“We’re going low profile now. I can’t tell you much on details now, but when we get close to the launch, we will have more.”

Those keen on getting dirty in the Urus have time on their hand with the model not expected to be launched until 2016 or 2017. When they do have an SUV ready for sale Lambo reckons they can shift up to 3000 units annually.

[Source: Automotive News Europe]

Categories
Caterham F1 in pictures Ferrari Lotus McLaren Mercedes-Benz Red Bull Racing Toro Rosso

2013 Singapore Grand Prix in pictures

2013 Singapore Grand Prix

Sunday night lights! We bring you another mega-gallery of images from the world of Formula 1, this time from under the lights of the Singapore Grand Prix. For the third race in a row Sebastian Vettel dominated the weekend and further tightened the screws on securing a fourth straight championship.

Categories
BMW

BMW teases technical details for M3/M4

BMW M3/M4

The new BMW M3/M4 will have “approximately” 320kW (430hp) and “substantially more” than 500Nm of torque. It will be powered by a “high-revving” 3.0 litre inline six cylinder engine with two mono-scroll turbochargers.

A 6-speed manual gearbox will be available, along with an optional 7-speed DCT featuring launch control. The M4 coupe will weigh less than 1500kg, around 80kg less than the E92 model.

Carbon Fibre Reinforced Plastic has been used throughout and will be used for the roof of the M3 (sedan) for the first time. Even the pro-shaft is made from CFRP, which saves 40% in weight compared with the old M3’s prop-shaft.

These are some of the key highlights for the new F80 M3/F82 M4 and you can read more detail after the break.

Categories
Alfa Romeo

Alfa Romeo 4C to be priced from AU$75,000?

Alfa Romeo 4C

Everybody loves the Alfa Romeo 4C. And all of us have probably, at some stage, thought about buying one. So what would you think if us Australians could buy a 4C for $75,000? Hmm, an A45 AMG hot hatch or a rear-wheel drive sportscar?

The 4C has the potential to mix it with the exalted Porsche Cayman and for almost half the price. Of course the truth may bear some difference, but a $75K starting price was the word coming out of the 4C’s recent launch in Italy.

A sub-$80K price rumour has been on the cards for several months now. However, it’s always nice to hear such rumours continue as the local launch draws closer.

The 4C ‘Launch Edition’ is confirmed for Australia and is expected to be around $20,000 more than the regular model.

Limited to 1000 examples worldwide, 400 ‘Launch Edition’ models will be shared between Europe, Africa and the Middle East; 500 to the United States and the remaining 100 cars to be shared between the rest of the world.

We asked Alfa Romeo’s Australian contact for a comment on the $75K rumour. Our question and the official reply can be read after the break.

Categories
Ferrari Formula 1 Red Bull Racing

Mark Webber talks taxi rides

Mark Webber aboard the Alonso Taxi

Mark Webber has taken to twitter to share his views on being reprimanded for his post-race taxi ride at the Singapore Grand Prix. It’s fair to say he doesn’t agree with the ruling.

Earlier today Autosport reported: “Not only did Webber not have permission from the marshals to enter the track at Turn 7, but he was in fact explicitly told by track officials not to do so.”

However, Webber refutes that allegation in his tweets, which you can read after the break. Mark also shared a photo of Derek Warwick, one of the stewards for the Singapore race, hitching a ride aboard Gerhard Berger’s Ferrari.

According to the official report Mark was reprimanded for failing to have permission to enter the track. Alonso was reprimanded for stopping in an unsafe place. And it’d be hard to argue the middle of Turn 7, partially obscured on entry, was not an unsafe place to stop.

That’s to say the taxi ride itself was not subject of the stewards’ inquiry. Anyway, in true F1 fashion a mountain is being made out of a molehill. While having sympathy for Mark—it did make great television—it’s his accumulation of three reprimands that has unfortunately dictated the penalty he has been handed down.

It’s probably best for everyone if they just move on.

Categories
BMW

New BMW M3/M4 promises more than 317kW

BMW Concept M4

We’ve already been given a visual preview of the new BMW M4 and now Bimmerpost is promising an unofficial preview of the much awaited technical details. So far they say we can expect the F80 M3/F82 M4 to have more than 425hp (317kW) and over 370lb-ft (500Nm) of torque.

For comparison, the old E92 M3 produced 309kW/400Nm from its 4.0 litre normally aspirated V8. So far we only know the new M3/M4 will be powered by a turbocharged inline six cylinder, probably of 3.0 litre capacity. Exact specs remain unknown.

Apparently we’re going to be impressed by the new model’s weight, or lack thereof. For now though, wait is all we have. Hopefully we’ll know more very soon.

[Source: Bimmerpost]

UPDATE 25 September: Here’s the official word from BMW.

Categories
Porsche

Porsche 911 Turbo Cabriolet revealed

Porsche 911 Turbo Cabriolet

If you put a 911 Turbo and a 911 Cabriolet together you get a missed opportunity. Oh, you also get a 911 Turbo Cabriolet, of course. And speaking of missed opportunities, Porsche doesn’t do them with its 911, so that’s why they’ve just given us an all-new 911 Turbo Cabriolet.

Why anyone would actually want a 383kW 911 hairdresser’s car is anyone’s guess, but it’s a free world and all that. Perhaps they don’t, they might want the 412kW Turbo S version, and good luck to them.

We’d just stick to a GT3 and perhaps a Boxster, too, if we were that desperate to the feel the wind rush past where our hair used to be.

For those of you do want a roofless 911 Turbo there’s more pics and a couple of press releases waiting for you after the break. There’s a video as well, but even Porsche understands the pointlessness of it all; there’s as much air time for the hard top models as there is for the cabrios.

Australian buyers will have to wait until the second quarter of 2014 to get their hands on one of these and you’ll need the best part of $390K for the regular model and over $460K for the Turbo S. Yes, really! And that’s without on road costs.

Categories
Alfa Romeo Video

Chris Harris plays with the Alfa Romeo 4C

Alfa Romeo 4C

As you know the Alfa Romeo 4C was launched last week. Alfa did this by inviting a bunch of motoring hacks to Italy and threw them a set of keys. Initial thoughts via Top Gear were less flattering than perhaps we wanted. So what did Chris Harris think?

Well, we’ll let you watch the video of course, suffice to say he thinks the basic ingredients are right: “There’s something about a light, mid-engined, car that just feels right, isn’t there.”

Categories
Alfa Romeo Audi BMW Chevrolet Citroen Ferrari Infiniti Jaguar Lamborghini Mercedes-Benz Motor Shows Nissan Porsche Rolls-Royce Seat Skoda Subaru Tesla Volkswagen

2013 Frankfurt Motor Show in pictures

2013 Frankfurt Motor Show

The lights have been turned off at the 2013 Frankfurt Motor Show and the mammoth task of dismantling the huge displays has begun. To recap what you may have missed here’s a selection of 120+ pics reminding you what was on show.

Categories
Motorsports Porsche Video

Take me to the river

Porsche 964 911

Left 3, 100, then into barrier and drop me in the water!

We’re guessing that’s not the actual pace notes read out to amateur racer Harry Kleinjan in the moments leading up to this spectacular accident. And, thankfully, we can joke about it because both driver and navigator escaped without harm.

The incident happened in the Hellendoorn Rally held in the Netherlands on the weekend. You can see before and after footage after the jump!

[Source: autoblog.nl (translated) | Thanks to Paul & John for the tips]