is getting closer to the next generation “tire” that could be used on wheeled rovers for space exploration. We highlight the word tire because those on the original lunar rover were made of piano wire with treads made of titanium cleats – no rubber, no air. A few years ago , the project another co-development with Goodyear, which made the originals.
The modern version is called the Spring Tire, so-called for the 800 load-bearing springs that make up its bulk, mounted to a six-spoke metal hub. The springs can conform to the varying terrain of other planets and satellites without transferring undue shock to the vehicle, and a malfunction is likely to damage only a few of them, leaving the tire operable.
for more info from Goodyear on the tire, and check it out in the gallery of high-res photos. When it’s time for another group of astronauts to go “ridin’ dirty,” this is likely how they’ll do it.
Every form of motorsport requires a certain level of integration between man and machine. Drivers need to be able to quickly and accurately interpret what’s going on with their vehicle and react accordingly, but superbike racing pushes that requirement to new bounds. Overshoot a corner, get too close to a competitor or simply get too greedy and riders can find themselves personally acquainted with the track surface.
Taro Russel recently took the time to attempt to capture the kind of partnership that grows between rider and bike in a new promo for superbike racing. Set to some solid Killers tunes, sketches of bone, muscle and organ grow before our very eyes. The ad is properly innovative, and the clips lifted from various races all but ensure an uptick in pulse by the time the screen goes black. Too cool. so you can check it out for yourself.
Former and current driver Neal Bates started his rally career over 20 years ago. While that seems like a long time to have been racing, even back then a 1980 Toyota was pretty old school. Mr. Bates and his friends at Toyota set out to prove that the old Celica is still cool by giving the RA40 dirt runner a full restore ahead of its ARC debut in Melbourne.
Bates, Coral Taylor and the 32-year-old Celica took first in the opening round of the 2012 Australian Rally Championship, and if you , you’ll see why. Bates put the beefed-up Celica through its paces, and it looks like he hasn’t lost a step.
Two months with our is enough for me to know that history will not look back kindly on this generation of VW’s long-running compact sedan. As has been covered, rather exhaustively I might add, the 2011 refresh of the Jetta brought with it a significant reduction in interior fit, finish and overall quality. Sadly, the more time you spend in the Jetta, the more its interior bits and pieces wear on your senses, as does the dour black color palette.
Perhaps the interior deficiencies of the 2011 Jetta wouldn’t be so noteworthy if hadn’t set such a heady precedent in past models, offering an upscale alternative to its competitors at a slightly higher price. As you’re likely aware, VW’s latest strategy puts its products on an equal footing with more mainstream brands while boasting a highly competitive price. Based on the brand’s , the plan is working to perfection.
We hate to harp on the point, but have to wonder if moving downmarket will have long-lasting repercussions with diehard VW fans.
Keep your eyes locked on the official for the majority of our updates, as well as the official Autoblog Twitter account (, look for the hashtag).
We weren’t exactly smitten with the when we got the chance to tae one out for a spin, thanks in part to the eAssist wizardry aimed at improving the vehicle’s fuel economy. With a lackluster drivetrain, regenerative brakes and low rolling resistance tries, the simply isn’t capable of keeping its head high among the competition. Even so, we were told to wait for the Ecotec 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder set to debut this year. Now we know why. According to General Motors, the engine is good for 269 horsepower and 260 pound-feet of torque. More importantly, all that torque comes on at a very low 1,700 rpm.
The direct-injection engine helps the Malibu hit 60 mph in a scant 6.3 seconds. Trust us when we say that’s an improvement over the Eco model. While there’s no word on fuel economy, we would expect the engine to return well better than the 17 mpg city and 26 mpg highway supplied by the outgoing 3.6-liter V6, an engine that was only good for 252 horsepower.
This isn’t the first time GM has dabbled with a turbocharged four-cylinder. The company supplied buyers with a 2.0-liter Ecotec in vehicles like the Pontiac Solstice GXP, HHR SS and Cobalt SS that put out 260 horsepower. for the full press release.
Malibu’s turbo four rated at 269 HP, 0-60 in 6.3 seconds
Like pretty much any driver, we’ve had our share of car trouble over the years, both with vehicles loaned to us for review by automakers and our own private rides. What we haven’t experienced is being the first media outlet to plunk down over $100,000 for a luxury plug-in hybrid, only to have it konk out before we even put 200 miles on it.
That “honor” goes to Consumer Reports and their brand new , which broke down during calibration tests, just a few days into CR’s ownership period. After the dashboard flashed a warning, the driver stopped to see what was wrong, and then couldn’t get the PHEV into gear again. Self-repairs (i.e., let’s leave it alone for an hour and see what happens) didn’t work and the manual was no help, so the nearby dealer sent out a flatbed truck to haul the Karma away. As CR writes:
We buy about 80 cars a year and this is the first time in memory that we have had a car that is undriveable before it has finished our check-in process.
The Karma’s problems are widespread. It has been plagued by a variety of problems, including two recalls, one for a and one for , following a long delay getting the car to market. Owners commenting on the FiskerBuzz forum are also . Not exactly behavior that leads to a “Recommended” rating.
has given the world another glimpse of the upcoming in the form of the video after the jump. While we’ve already seen a quick glimpse of thanks to a previous clip and via the very first official teaser, the newest video gives us our best look yet at the front fascia and headlight array. Judging by the quick peek, the 2013 Altima will rock a much more stylized front end than in the past, complete with design elements borrowed from the likes of the and .
Word has it Nissan will also make use of the same character line we’ve seen on the 2013 Nissan Pathfinder. Look for the next-generation Altima to debut at the 2012 New York Auto Show next month. In the meantime, for the newest, albeit brief, teaser.
Morgan and OAK Racing have put together a video to showcase the car that Morgan will be in a jubilee celebration its GT2 class win in 1962. It’s got just about everything you’d want from an LMP2 teaser: engine guts, carbon fiber, track time and roaring.
It might be missing an actual Morgan, though: the car is built by OAK’s Onroak Automotive constructor division with a Pescarolo chassis and a Judd engine. When they’re finished painting it, though, it will at least say “Morgan.”
Even without the stickers, however, the video is still totally worth it.
If you’re looking at and thinking, “Who in the hell would pay six figures for a derelict van covered in graffiti?,” just go ahead and check out or something.
Whatever. Never mind.
Because to those of us who watch Portlandia and never stopped buying records (yes, hipster Millenials, they’re called records, not “vinyls”), this van might as well be a time machine. Just thinking about a band like the Melvins takes us back to being young, to a time where anything was possible …
Well, that’s just patently untrue.
When the current owner of this 1972 Dodge Sportsman van acquired it from the mother of Melvins bassist Matt Lukin in 1992, nothing was possible. Or at least that sort of nihilism was the zeitgeist of the era.
The van itself was the seminal grunge band’s tour vehicle, reportedly having been both driven and illustrated by none other than Kurt Cobain, a great admirer and friend of the band in the late 1980s. The van’s value is derived almost entirely from a mural of the band Kiss that Cobain drew on its side, which is why the “Melvan” is not listed on eBay Motors, but in eBay’s art section.
Cobain, of course, went on to later fame as frontman of Nirvana, but committed suicide in 1994, the same year the van last saw use. If there’s one thing that Cobain made clear through his suicide, it’s that angst-as-religion doesn’t play out well. With his passing, grunge began to die off, and the rest of us were forced to grow up.
We’re old now, most of us fans are at least pushing 40, if not already “over the hill.” This makes an artifact like the Melvan desirable for sheer nostalgia, but there’s more to it than that. Most Cobain-related memorabilia seem unfortunately tarnished by his ultimate demise, while this piece harkens back to an earlier, more hopeful point in Cobain’s life. A time before the fame and drugs and pressures of public life conspired to destroy him.
Think about it: Who would draw Kiss on the side of a junky old van with a Sharpie other than a goofy kid? That seems like the best imaginable way to remember Kurt.
Nine times out of ten, if the Autoblog crew isn’t talking cars, we’re discussing cameras. Or cat videos. But mostly cameras. We love shooting the world’s newest vehicles almost as much as we enjoy driving them, and odds are we aren’t alone.
If you’ve ever wondered how the real pros manage to get their best photos, wonder no more. The crew at FStoppers.com tagged along while Blair Bunting trained his lens on the . The shot you see above was crafted using around $60,000 in lighting equipment, a full staff of assistants and a professional retoucher.
Bunting says he actually uses Forza Motorsport 4 to plan his shots before the vehicle ever arrives. Using the game’s Free Look mode allows him to spot interesting aspects of the car that would otherwise be missed by viewing the stock photography.
But the pro lets us all in on another little secret toward the end of the video. Amateurs and enthusiast photographers like ourselves can get a very similar effect with a small light box and a lightbulb on a stick. Now we just need a car worth shooting in the middle of the night. to watch the video yourself. It’s a long one, but completely worth it.
In the stratospheric zone of the automotive atmosphere, being unique is every bit as important as going blindingly fast or bathing oneself in luxury. To address the need, has introduced Q, a service that goes far beyond standard paint palettes, leather finishes and wood trims. In the automaker’s own words, Q is defined as “a team that brings Aston Martin’s designers together with the company’s engineers and highly experienced craftspeople, allowing customers to enhance and personalize their Aston Martin with meticulous attention to detail.”
The automaker recently sent Q a for the full treatment (a blank check was apparently stuffed in the glove box). What emerged is emphatically unique, but it is also fascinating and rather odd at the same time. Nevertheless, we found it on display at the .
The show car is a Virage Volante sporting a Mariana Blue satin paint finish. The interior is configured with blue carbon-fiber, saddle leather floor mats, and yellow detailing. Other components include lightweight forged diamond-turned wheels, a track-day HD video camera mounted on the header (looking much sleeker than any GoPro) and a completely silly rear luggage rack.
Check out our from the floor, read through the and then take a look at some of the including a Cherry Tree Cygnet, a bespoke city car.
How many times have you said to yourself, “Self, I’ve modded every single part of my car, but those tires, they’re just so… black. And boring.” Bridgestone has the answer in the form of its Tire Printing Technology.
Comprised of two layers of ink – one below and one above a protective coating – you can fully customize the design of your sidewalls using any kind of vector-based graphics. Bridgestone claims the outer most layer won’t succumb to scrapes and scratches, and neither the durability or the weight of the tires are compromised by the technology.
Bridgestone hasn’t set a date for production, but the tires could be available as early as this summer. And if it hits in time, there’s little doubt we’ll be seeing plenty of horrid designs lining the halls of .
You know things aren’t going to well for Artega when one of the bullet points in its press release is “a completely redesigned infotainment system – and smaller mirrors.” But the ambitious niche automaker is still plugging along, preparing to expand its dealer network beyond Europe and into Japan, Singapore, Malaysia and China later this year.
In addition to the new infotainment systems and mirrors, Artega is adding another model to its GT range, this time with a glass panoramic roof – the closest thing Artega will get to a convertible.
Power is still provided by a VW-sourced 3.6-liter V6 mounted amidships and sending power to a six-speed DSG. The all-electric Artega SE is still under development with no firm on-sale date, but reps we spoke to at the show continue to claim there’s plenty of consumer interest, even if Artega has only offloaded a few hundred GTs in the past several years.
Between the , van concept and the new Kuga (that’s to us Yanks), Ford had plenty to showcase this year at the . But one of the most pivotal – for its European operations, anyway – is the .
A mini-minivan based on the platform, the B-Max takes an innovative form. At least, its doors do. Because as Ford has highlighted () recently, the automaker has managed to eliminate the entire B-pillar, integrating it into the door itself to form an extra wide opening on both sides of the extra-small people-mover.
It strikes us as a useful feature, and while the B-Max itself will not be making the transatlantic voyage back with us from Europe to North America, we’re hoping that the door system will, in some shape or form, anyway. In the meantime, you can admire from afar in the gallery of high-res live shots from the Palexpo show floor and delve into the press release for all the details.
The may have debuted (time flies, huh?), but we’re just now seeing it in person for the first time here at the . The prolonged debut almost makes sense for BMW’s big coupe, since it’s a late entry in a segment that already includes stunners like the , , and even the (if you’re really reaching).
But that doesn’t make the 6 Series Gran Coupe any less interesting – or stunning. We still don’t 100 percent love the 6er’s new front fascia, but there’s no question that the sloping roofline and squat hind quarters are anything less than sleek and shapely. Oh, and get a load of that interior. The two-tone leather surfaces and two-passenger rear compartment look absolutely stunning.
will launch the 640i Gran Coupe in the United States first, powered by the automaker’s widely popular N55 3.0-liter turbocharged inline-six, good for 315 horsepower and 330 pound-feet of torque and mated to an eight-speed automatic gearbox. The eight-cylinder 650i and xDrive models will follow suit in short order, as well.
Cost of entry: . Get your wallets ready, and see a full brace of live images direct from Geneva in our attached high-res gallery.
It is hard to believe, but the gorgeous is pushing seven years on the market. In that time, the British automaker has worked hard to keep its sporty coupe relevant and current. Along those lines, and in a move expected to be embraced by enthusiasts worldwide, the 2012 model is on the receiving end of yet (its last was in 2008).
While the naturally-aspirated 4.8-liter V8 (pumping out 420 horsepower) and six-speed manual gearbox remain unchanged, the optional automatic transmission has been upgraded from last year’s six-speed Sportshift to a seven-speed Sportshift II sequential transmission. While it still remains a single-clutch unit (while the rest of the industry is migrating towards dual-clutch), it will deliver smoother and quicker performance when compared to its predecessor.
Other tweaks include a quickened steering rack and beefier brakes (now configured with Hill Start Assist). Lastly, the front fascia has been resculpted to improve and optimize airflow to the brakes and radiator – and to make it easier to differentiate from its siblings. Check out the press release . The first gallery is live from the floor, and we have also posted a few official images from Aston Martin.
Behold, the stars and stripes of the . As you may recall, this patriotic little hatchback isn’t headed to our shores anytime soon. has decided to offer up the America F-Yeah edition to European customers only, which seems like an odd move to us. Fiat seems to agree. The company is only producing a total of 1,000 units draped in the U.S. theme, with 500 of those leaving the factory in hard-top guise and the rest as convertibles. Changes are pretty scarce beyond the special decal treatment and unique wheel accents.
Fiat says the 500 America will go on sale this March, followed shortly by the new Fiat 500 Color Therapy edition in June. No matter how badly we wish it were, that’s not a joke. for the press release.
It was only a matter of time before spiced up its crossover with the application of its go-fast John Cooper Works kit, and it’s now made an official debut at the .
Boasting 211 horsepower and 207 pound-feet of torque (up to 221 on overboost), the is the most powerful production machine ever to wear the Mini badge. Those ponies are routed to all four wheels through a six-speed gearbox (either manual or automatic) and can propel the upright box to 60 in as little as seven seconds.
We’ll have to wait until the car’s official launch this fall to if this latest JCW lives up to its storied name, but in the meantime, check out our live photos above and the press release .
The Spanish automaker GTA has returned to the Geneva Motor Show, this time with a production version of the company’s Spano supercar. The coupe boasts a laundry list of exotic materials on hand, including a unibody shell constructed of titanium, kevlar and carbon fiber. All told, the package tips the scales at a scant 2,970 pounds.
A total of 840 horsepower comes courtesy of an 8.3-liter V10, all of which is dumped on the rear tires through a seven-speed transmission. According to GTA, the Spano can hit 62 mph from a dead standstill in just 2.9 seconds. If you’re keeping track, that’s faster than the just-unveiled .
As impressive as the go specs are, the vehicle has some stout stop-ware to match. AP supplied a set of front discs that are nearly 15 inches in diameter squeezed by mighty six-piston calipers. Too cool.
Of course, you’ll pay for the privilege of being faster than the new Prancing Horse. No list price has been announced just yet, but with the stack of wild materials and heady horsepower on hand, you can bet your last penny this thing won’t come cheap. GTA expects to deliver the first models by late 2012.
The all-new 991 variant of the has only been on sale for a few months, but renowned Porsche tuner Ruf is already hard at work applying its patented blend of power, handling and braking to the latest 911.
On hand at the are two new 991-based Rufs, the Rt 35 Anniversary (green, above) and the RGT 8 (yellow). The Rt35 is a rolling celebration of Ruf’s 35 years in business and beats Porsche to the punch by offering a twin turbo kit for the Carrera S, outputting 621 horsepower and an equally astounding 608 pound feet of torque through a standard seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox. Ruf isn’t citing a 0-60 time, but claims the Rt35 tops out at a little over 205 mph.
The original RGT 8 and shocked Porsche purists by packing a race-derived V8 where the flat-six would traditionally reside. This updated version based on the 991 uses a similar 4.5-liter V8 good for 543 hp and 368 lb-ft of twist, all routed through a proper six-speed manual gearbox.
Finally, Ruf has updated its flagship CTR 3 in a new Clubsport variant, with copious quantities of carbon fiber both inside and out and powered provided by a twin-turbo flat-six outputting 740 hp and 708 lb-ft of torque. A six-speed sequential gearbox puts the power down, further ensuring its status as a track machine that’s barely suitable for a run to the corner store. Bonus Ruf porn in the video .
