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Hyundai WRC

Chris Atkinson to race in Rally Mexico

Hyundai i20 WRC

Great news for Chris Atkinson overnight as word came through he will be making his debut in the Hyundai i20 WRC at Rally Mexico in early March.

Prior to this announcemnt Chris’ only confirmed drive for 2014 was at Rally Australia in September. You’d like to think with a good showing in Mexico he could be a chanec to fill his diary a few more times in the shared #8 i20.

Atkinson’s best ever WRC finish, a second place, was registered in the 2008 Rally Mexico and he is hoping to build on that experoence.

“It has been a great pleasure to have been involved in the testing of the Hyundai i20 WRC but to have the opportunity to contest Rally Mexico with the team is fantastic,” Atkinson said. “I have had several good results in Mexico, including my best WRC finish of second place in 2008, so I have some great memories of this event and the Mexican fans.

“It will be the competitive debut of the Hyundai i20 WRC on gravel so it will be interesting to see how we can perform. I know how hard everyone has been working to prepare for this season so I hope we can repay them with a good result!”

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Formula 1

2014 Force India VJM07 revealed

2014 Force India VJM07

Force India has given its 2014 F1 car, the VJM07, its first public showing prior to taking to the track at Jerez tonight. The VJM07 was one of the first F1 cars we saw for the year and at the time the full horror of the front nose designs was yet to be revealed. And that is certainly the case for the Force India challenger.

As they say, once you go black, you can’t go back. And while the official Force India pics don’t yet show the full scale of its front nose we’ve added another pic below to show you what is actually quite a comical solution.

You have to laugh, really. There’s not much else you can do.

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Formula 1 Mercedes-Benz

2014 Mercedes AMG F1 W05 revealed

2014 Mercedes AMG F1 W05

Mercedes-Benz has revealed its 2014 F1 car, the W05, moments before taking to the track for the first official day of winter testing in Jerez. Like the Ferrari F14 T the nose has a wider snout and looks a bit better than the Fiat’s vacuum cleaner approach.

The new regs have already got Paddy Lowe, technical director, waxing lyrical and making music for the ears of the marketing departments of Mercedes-Benz and Formula 1.

“From a technical and also a racing perspective, this is an incredibly exciting time for Formula One,” said Lowe. “We are introducing technologies that are new not just to racing but to the wider automotive world as well.

“The fact that we will be completing races with advanced Hybrid systems on just 100kg of fuel sends a great message about the technology that Formula One can deliver. But it is also about the technology that Mercedes-Benz can develop compared with our competition, both for the chassis and the new Power Unit.”

It is true that a V6 turbocharged engine has a much broader appeal to the road going cars we’re likely to drive in the future compared with the old V8 and V10 screamers of past years. Couple that with increased dependence and power from the energy recovery systems and F1 will once again be a true racing laboratory for future production cars.

More from Mercedes after the break, including a couple of pics of the W05 on the racetrack from its filming day at Silverstone a few days ago.

UPDATE 29 January: Four new pics added below, including a couple of the Mercedes PU106A Hybrid power unit.

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Formula 1 Red Bull Racing

2014 Red Bull Racing RB10 revealed

2014 Red Bull RB10

Red Bull Racing has just released studio images of its 2014 F1 car, the RB10. Yes, it has an anteater nose, but thankfully, Adrian Newey has overseen a clever use of paint and carbon fibre to help hide the ugly snout.

Overall, we think this is the best looking car we’ve seen so far in 2014. Thanks only to the disguised nose.

Not only because it is the defending world champion, Red Bull will be the team to watch in 2014. The arrival of Daniel Ricciardo will, of course, keep Australian interest high in the Milton Keynes outfit. It will be fascinating to see how well Daniel manages the step into the team and the expectations that come with.

Red Bull’s approach to the release of info for the RB10 has been low key and after a small series of images there’s an even smaller press release complemented by a quartet of video interviews with Sebastian Vettel, Daniel Ricciardo, Adrian Newey and Christian Horner.

It’s also worth noting the press release states the car you’re looking at now is the “first interpretation of F1’s radical new technical regulations”.

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McLaren

Entry-level McLaren P13 to target Porsche 911

McLaren P13 sketch by Autocar

McLaren’s entry-level P13 model will be launched at next year’s Geneva Motor Show, according to Autocar. When it does go on sale it won’t be badged as the P13, although it’s final model name isn’t known just yet.

Priced from £120,000—around 30% less than the price of a 12C—the P13 will use a detuned version of the 3.8 litre V8 twin-turbo found in the 12C. Peak power should be in the 335–372kW (450–500bhp) range.

The P13 will target the Porsche 911 and as such will carry a few different models in its range. For example, in addition to the standard coupé there’s likely to be a Spider and also a stripped out high-performance variant similar to the 911 GT3.

McLaren Automotive CEO, Mike Flewitt, says the P13 will be a “pure driver’s car”.

Annual production is hoped to as high as 2500 cars per annum, by which time McLaren should be making more than 4000 cars each year. Autocar also reports of a McLaren P15, priced at £400K, which will bridge the gap between the 12C and the more extreme P1.

[Source: Autocar]

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Honda

Your chance to buy “Ex-Ayrton Senna” Honda NSX

Ayrton Senna's 1992 Honda NSX

That’s not any old Honda NSX, that’s Ayrton Senna’s old NSX. Well, that’s the story at least. If you’re keen you can buy it for yourself too. The 1992 model will be up for grabs late next month at the Silverstone Auctions and is expected to fetch as much as £85,000 (approx AU$160,000).

Actually, on closer inspection of the auction listing it turns out that Senna used the car on a regular basis, it was owned by a close friend, but it wasn’t legally his own car:

Antonio Carlos de Almeida Braga was a close personal friend, manager and mentor of Ayrton Senna who purchased this NSX for the great driver to use when he visited his house in Sintra, Portugal north of Lisbon. Senna already had another red NSX that was kept at his villa in the Algarve. Antonia Braga ordered the same specification car that Ayrton had at his home in Brazil. Senna stayed with the Braga’s on numerous occasions and would have been a guest when competing in the Portuguese Grand Prix in 1992/3 at nearby Estoril, endorsing his Honda contract by commuting in the NSX.

Still, that’s good enough, isn’t it? We wonder where the other two NSXs used by Senna are now?

[Source: Silverstone Auctions]

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Formula 1 Toro Rosso

2014 Toro Rosso STR9 revealed

2014 Toro Rosso STR9

The 2014 Formula 1 season is almost upon us. This we know by the recent car launches, but also because the 2014 Toro Rosso F1 car, the STR9, was unveiled to the media at the Jerez circuit ahead of tonight’s first official test session.

And we’re sorry to report it’s another long and droopy anteater nose for F1. At least the STR9’s dark blue paint scheme tends to mask that fact to some degree.

As well as the major aero changes forced upon teams in 2014, Toro Rosso is switching from Ferrari power to Renault. Technical Director James Key says this adds to the challenge: “Changing your engine partner is always a bit of a step into the unknown for both parties, until that working relationship is established and everyone understands how best to operate together.”

The Toro Rosso press release points out that the team is independent to Red Bull Racing, although the switch to Renault power means there will be greater opportunity to share knowledge.

“Immediately, there’s a synergy there because we are using the same power unit,” added Key. “We’ve been able to join with Red Bull Technology in using their gearbox internals. They have a well-engineered solution to 2014 regulations for these components, so again, it makes sense for us to join with them in using those common internals while running the same power train.

“Otherwise, obviously, the rest of the car is entirely an STR design.”

You can read and see more after the break, including access to the team’s full 2014 press kit.

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Audi

Audi A3 Sedan – Australian pricing & specs

Audi A3 sedan

Audi Australia has rolled out the new A3 sedan across its dealerships and if you’re interested in this car we suggest you pop along and check it out because they do look really good.

Surprisingly, Audi says the sedan shares no body panels with its Sportback stablemate. That would stand to reason given Audi’s attention to detail these days, even on its volume models like the A3.

At launch we’ll have three engine choices to choose from in the three-box A3. A 1.4 TFSI (103kW250Nm) with cylinder-on-demand kicks off the range, while a 1.8 TFSI (132kW/250Nm) and 2.0 TDI (110kW/320Nm) fill the middle of the range. Until the S3 sedan arrives in Australia—it’s not too far away either—the 1.8 TFSI quattro tops off the A3 sedan line up.

List pricing starts at $39,800 for the 1.4 TFSI and goes up to $47,800 for the 1.8 TFSI quattro. A series of option packages are also available and information on these and the full pricing can be seen after the break.

You get the feeling Audi thinks the A3 sedan will do quite well. We wonder if interest and novelty value will translate into sales. Certainly, Andrew Doyle, Audi Australia MD, isn’t hiding his expectations.

“The all-new A3 Sedan is very impressive. It looks powerful on the road, yet sips fuel frugally,” Doyle said. “It offers luxury appointments inside and out, yet it has the sharpest pricing in its segment. Judging by early interest in this new model, we are very confident of its success.”

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Formula 1

2014 Sauber C33 revealed

2014 Sauber C33

Sauber has taken a low key approach to unveiling its 2014 F1 car, the C33. Just two photos have been released before official testing begins tomorrow night (Australian time). From that we can probably surmise that the C33, like a lot of its rivals, looks absolutely terrible from the front.

Reading through the Sauber press release you get the feeling they have no idea what is about to happen next. Such is the state of anticipation the teams find themselves as these new 2014 regulations are about to get real.

Eric Gandelin, Chrief Designer, takes the lead in trying to explain the feeling within the team: “The radical changes to the technical regulations for 2014 mean that it’s even harder than usual to make predictions for the new season.

“We know what kind of package we’ve put together here, but it is difficult to foresee what shape our rivals are in. The earliest opportunity to gain an impression of where the teams are in relation to one another will come during testing. The path we have followed with the design of the Sauber C33-Ferrari allows us maximum flexibility, so that we can react quickly.

“It is also clear that reliability will be an important factor in the first few races in particular. So this is an area which we have given very high priority.”

Gandelin goes on to add that the C33 which turns up to race in Melbourne will be quite different to the car that starts testing in Jerez this week, with new performance parts scheduled for the two Bahrain tests next month.

“On the one hand this gives us time to maximise the development of these performance relevant parts, and on the other hand we can run the car during the first test and check all the systems, which we feel is crucial, considering all the technical changes,” Gandelin said.

UPDATE 28 January: Sauber tweeted a close up of the C33 nose overnight—it’s a boy! (See below.)

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Ferrari Formula 1

2014 Ferrari F14 T revealed

2014 Ferrari F14-T

Ferrari has just released images and brief details for its 2014 F1 car, the F14 T. On the one hand we’re thankful that we don’t have another skinny anteater nose. But we can’t really say this is the prettiest Formula 1 car we’ve ever seen.

The most common comparison with the F14 T is the Beluga cargo plane. Which is a shame really. It’s been too long since we’ve been able to look at an F1 car and think of it as a thing of beauty.

The name F14 T was chosen from the results of an internet poll. You can read the name as FIAT if you like, but it does actually reference the current year and the fact the car is now turbocharged. A nice bit of serendipity then.

Official photos and press material are available below. We’re still trying to work out if this looks better than any of the other 2014-spec F1 cars we’ve seen so far. It’s a bit like trying to choose the best needle to stick in your eye.

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Formula 1 Mercedes-Benz Video

2014 Mercedes AMG W05 drive by

The Mercedes AMG F1 Team has completed a filming day with its new 2014 F1 car, the W05, at Silverstone. While we heave to wait a few more days to see official photos the actual car itself they did release this brief video of the car driving at full noise.

So what will this brand new 1.6 litre V6 turbo “power unit” era sound like? Not as bad as most people were expecting.

You can hear a bit of turbo whine as the W05 flashes past and then plenty of energy recovery gubbins as the car exits stage right and brakes going into Copse corner.

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Formula 1 Lotus

2014 Lotus E22 previewed

2014 Lotus E22

Lotus has thrown its toys out of the cot and spent a fair portion of the time McLaren was launching its new car by publishing a series of childish tweets (see below). The episode reached a climax when the team released this teaser image of its 2014 F1 car, the E22.

Of course, Lotus is pissed off at McLaren for what appears to be the certain poaching of its Team Principal Eric Boullier. We have to question, though, are schoolyard antics and name calling the correct response for what is supposed to be a professional F1 team, albeit one who does like to communicate with a very informal voice?

Anyway, that’s the side show, the main event is that two-pronged nose on the E22. The car won’t make its debut until the second week of pre-season testing in Bahrain (19–22 February).

[Source: Twitter]

UPDATE: Lotus has revealed a new photo from above, clearly showing the uneven twin forks on the nose of the E22.

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