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Formula 1 Mercedes-Benz News

Lewis Hamilton wins dramatic title decider

Lewis Hamilton - 2008 F1 World Champion

In case you’ve been hiding under a rock you’ll have heard that Lewis Hamilton was crowned Formula 1 World Champion yesterday in the most dramatic of circumstances. Needing to finish the race in the top five to fend off the points challenge from a dominant weekend by race winner, Ferrari’s Felipe Massa, Hamilton watched his title lead slip by when Sebastien Vettel relegated the Briton to sixth place with an overtaking move on the second last lap. This moment of high drama was only to be eclipsed by Timo Glock’s struggles in his Toyota on the last lap, which enabled both Vettel and Hamilton to pass and, crucially, slip Hamilton back into fifth position with just two corners remaining. And with that Lewis Hamilton won the 2008 F1 World Championship by the narrow margin of 5.4 seconds, the gap between himself and Glock back in sixth.

At the age of 23 years, 10 months and 26 days, Hamilton is the youngest champion in Formula 1 history. He is McLaren’s 12th drivers’ world title, the first since Mika Häkkinen’s back to back titles in 1998 and 1999.

Speaking after the race Hamilton was quick to acknowledge those who have assisted him throughout his career, “The most dramatic race of my whole life. It’s pretty much impossible to put this into words: I’m still speechless. It’s been such a long journey, but I’ve always had the support of my family, the team, our partners and the fans. We did a fantastic job throughout the whole year and, with all the sacrifices we made, I’m so thrilled to be able to win this for everyone.”

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Top Gear

Top Gear – Series 12, Episode 1

Top Gear - Series 12, Episode 1

The lads are back! A cracking episode to kick off Series 12. From the Porsche 911 GT2 v Lamborghini Gallardo 560-4 comparo that was classic Clarkson, to the arsing about in the £5000 Lorry Challenge, this was Top Gear at its absolute best. In the middle was an entertaining news package and a thoroughly enjoyable interview with Sir Michael Parkinson.

If you’ve not see this episode I suggest you use the powers of the internets to find it and watch it. If you have seen the episode, and were wondering, yes, Jeremy Clarkson did hurt himself in that smash!

Oh, one other question about Series 12 has been answered, the Vietnam special will air in this series, and I’d pencil in 28 December as a possible broadcast date.

I didn’t want to make comparisons with Top Gear Australia, but, well, the original is better isn’t it. To the SBS guys, watch this episode. If you reach this level you’ll have done very, very well!

Update 5 November: Jeremy’s ‘murder a prostitute’ quip during his summary of a lorry driver’s daily routine has dropped him and the BBC in hot water. Read more…

Categories
Lamborghini

Telegraph.co.uk – Lamborghini legends

Lamborghini Miura

A short and sweet entry here, a collection of Lamborghini images I stumbled across at the Telegraph.co.uk website. See them now! Which one is your favourite?

The car featured above—the Lamborghini Miura—is one of the most stunning sports car designs of all time. Just 746 Miuras were made between 1966 and 1972. Powered by a V12, of course, the Miura weighed in at around 980 kilograms. The Miura’s V12 was revised over the years, but at first release was producing almost 260kW (345bhp). Despite a retro 40th anniversary concept in 2006, they just don’t make cars like this any more. Although, that’s not always a bad thing, haha!

Categories
Formula 1

Who will be 2008 F1 world champion?

This weekend marks the last race in the 2008 Formula 1 calendar. Can Lewis Hamilton (94pts) maintain his seven point lead and claim his first World Championship? Or will Felipe Massa (87pts), in front of his home crowd in Brazil, snatch glory for Ferrari again, just as Raikonnen did in 2007? A win for Massa will take his season points tally to 97. So, can Hamilton finish in fifth place or better and earn the four points he needs to secure the title? Will McLaren play it safe and try to guide Lewis to a reliable points finish. Or will Hamilton, a racer at heart, chase the ultimate success, victory in the last race to claim the championship? So many questions, but only one answer will matter. It’s a shame that we have to wait until 4am Monday (AEDST) to find out!

David Coulthard will start his 246th and final Grand Prix on Sunday, so it is fitting that he talks us through a lap of the Interlagos circuit (graphic sourced from Telegraph.co.uk).

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Porsche

An inside look at the Porsche Panamera

Porsche Panamera interior

Some images have recently popped up on the Teamspeed forums which are claimed to be from the upcoming Porsche Panamera. From what we’ve seen of the Panamera so far, the four door Porsche is polarising fans just as quickly as the Cayenne did when it was released. From the image above you can see the Panamera is looking to have all bases covered when it comes to interior gadgets, with no shortage of buttons to play with, including a panel on the roof. If these pics are correct, then the key for the Panamera is a bit… well, you judge for yourself, check out the Teamspeed link below.

Source: Teamspeed via Jalopnik (earlier spy shots from Jalopnik)

Categories
Top Gear

Top Gear – Series 12 reminder

Just a quickie to remind you all that Top Gear, Series 12 starts in the UK on Sunday 2 November! In the meantime, here’s a sneak peek of what to expect…

UPDATE: TopGear.com gives a preview of this Sunday’s first episode.

Categories
Audi

Audi RS6 Avant opens up

Audi RS6 Avant

Audi’s bahnstorming RS6 Avant is now on sale in Australia. Starting at $270,946 it’s fair to say buyers of this car won’t be feeling the squeeze at the petrol pump. Which is just as well, because extracting 426kW from the 5.0 litre V10 twin turbo takes a fair amount of fuel. That said, some may consider a combined urban/highway fuel consumption claim of 14.0l/100km a small price to pay for such stupendous performance. Fair enough too.

Although, there’s probably not too many that wouldn’t wince at the Luxury Car Tax giving $50K a very serious nudge, this, on top of 20-odd-thousand in GST. Wowsers!

There’s not much else to say other than enjoy the pics and stats below. Oh, the RS6 sedan will arrive in Australia in the first quarter of 2009. If you’d like to check out video footage of the RS6 Avant in action, then check out Fifth Gear‘s take, filed by Tiff Needell.

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Audi

Audi S3 Sportback docks down under

Audi S3 Sportback

Back in April AUSmotive brought you pictures of the S3 Sportback, now, you can go to your local Audi dealer and see one for yourself. The five-door über hatch is 72mm longer than the three-door and Audi expects the Sportback to account for over two-thirds of Australian S3 sales. Local deliveries start in November, although I’ve heard of at least one customer receiving his S3 Sportback already.

The addition of the Sportback model ties in with a mid-cycle refresh for the 8P A3 range. Apart from the cosmetic tweaks, mostly to do with the light clusters, customers can now option some pretty trick gear on the S3 that has been previously unavailable. Technology such as Audi magnetic ride (as seen on the R8 and TT) and Audi Park Assist can now be added for $2,400 and $950 respectively.

The S3 is a lovely piece of kit, 188kW in a small car generally helps. Starting at $68,310 plus on roads, the introduction of a five-door model to the range will no doubt broaden the car’s appeal.

You know the drill, more pics and words below.

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Categories
Nissan

Nissan 370Z shows a need for speed

2009 Nissan 370Z

Nissan has jumped the gun a little by pre-releasing three official images of the upcoming 370Z. From what you can see here the more organic approach, compared to the angular 350Z, gives the updated car a stronger connection to earlier Z models, most notably the 240Z. Nice! Only a very short message was released with the images, which confirmed the 370Z will make its public debut at the LA Motor Show on 19 November.

What Nissan have been more forthcoming with is their deal with Electronic Arts’ new console game Need for Speed: Undercover, which will enable gamers to beat reality by one day. Need for Speed: Undercover goes on sale in the US on 18 November. Nissan’s Vice-President of Marketing in the US, Christian Meunier, is pretty happy about the match too,  “By launching the all-new 2009 Nissan Z first through Need for Speed: Undercover, we also gain the spirit and energy that EA gamers experience so strongly. Together with EA, we have truly integrated the all-new 370Z in the overall game experience in a meaningful, multi-layered and profound way.”

More images and full press statements after the jump.

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Holden Motorsports News

Mark Skaife announces retirement

Mark Skaife

Mark Skaife took centre stage today as he announced his retirement from full time V8 Supercar racing. His decision will take effect at the completion of the 2008 season, with the Oran Park round (4-7 December) being his last. Skaife claimed he no longer has the passion required for full-time racing, due in part to the demands of his ownership/management role with the Holden Racing Team.

At his press conference today Skaife said he regretted not being able to make it to Formula 1, but once it was clear that pathway would not be possible, he promised himself to make the most of the opportunities presented to him in Australia. With five Bathurst wins and five Australian Touring Car Championships, it is fair to say that Skaife made good on his promise.

General Motors’ statement on Skaife’s retirement can be read below. Other coverage can also be found at the V8 Supercars website here and here.

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MINI

MINI John Cooper Works – power and economy

MINI John Cooper Works

Most readers here will know AUSmotive is a fan of most things MINI, and the recently released John Cooper Works is no exception. When casting an eye over the spec sheet one thing that stands out is the combined fuel consumption figure of 6.9l/100km (40.9mpg). A nimble pocket rocket that is kind to the wallet and the planet. Well, within reason!

Sure, achieving such consumption figures can sometimes be counter productive to the JCW’s raison d’être. But this hasn’t stopped UK magazine Auto Express from seeing just how frugal the most powerful production MINI can be. They recently entered the the MINI John Cooper Works in a two-day economy run. The aim was simple, each car must have a crew of two and cover the 660km test route using as little fuel as possible.

So, how did they go? The overall consumption achieved was an indicated 49.4mpg (approx 5.7l/100km). Having owned an R53 MINI for some time now, I can say the on board computer’s reading is often on the optimistic side. Having said that, this is still mightily impressive result for the turbocharged MINI, even if you knock off around 10% for the generous computer reading.

It’s not surprising to see that MINI UK was keen to make the most of the result, with a spokesman commenting, “You’ve proved this model is the UK’s greenest hot hatch. We believe this makes the JCW ideal for drivers who want to downsize, reduce fuel costs and environmental impact, but still own a sporting car.”

Read the full report on the Auto Express website now.

(Thanks to Chris for the tip.)

Categories
Top Gear Australia

Top Gear Australia – Series 1, Episode 5

Top Gear Australia - Series 1, Episode 5

Monday night’s episode of Top Gear Australia was a bit of a hit and miss affair. The amphibious car challenge (pictured above) was quite good, if a little predictable. But, like previous TGA segments, it didn’t really forge a meaningful conclusion. Although, watching the car start up first go and drive out of the water was pretty cool.

Charlie’s test of the Audi R8 had all the right ingredients, but he, and the SBS crew didn’t quite get the mix right. Good, but not spectacular. Oh, I love watching a car doing donuts as much as the next person, but it really is time for Top Gear Australia to drop the fascination. Repeated power sliding, good. Repeated donuts, bad.

The Toorak Tractor gag was actually pretty good I thought. However, where Top Gear (Series 12 starts in a few days) almost stumbled into being irreverent with similar stunts, being forced from the outset doesn’t always come off every time for TGA. Still, I liked this clip, even if the Saab at the end was probably a set up.

As much as I am loathe to say it, Shannon Noll was the surprise packet in this episode of Top Gear Australia. “Yeah mate!” Can’t say I’m too keen on his music, but the kid can drive. And more power to him for that.

Steve’s BMW 135i review was not too bad. Mainly because the 135i is shaping up as being a truly modern classic. The camera work was well shot, and despite sneaking in a few faster public road sequences, the let’s-drive-slowly-and-not-upset-the-wowsers still doesn’t look as exciting as the cars deserve. I expect there’ll be a few complaints from said wowsers, too, at the 135i crossing double white lines at one stage.

After last week’s episode, this week’s was a minor disappointment. Sticklers continuing to compare the show, blow by blow, to the UK original will no doubt be very harsh in their criticism. Those willing to judge the show for the light entertainment it is intended to be, however, will still be looking forward to next week’s show.

More pics after the jump.

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