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With a wink and a nod to their compact 2002 Touring of 1971, BMW have announced the new 1-Series coupé to the world. When the original four door 1-series was launched back in 2004 it drew plaudits for its ability to carve through the curves but won no prizes for the rather cramped back seats. The coupé therefore makes more sense, a compact two-seater with occasional rear accommodation that broadens the car’s appeal in the fast-expanding ‘premium compact’ sector. It’s also notable for incorporating BMW’s EfficientDynamics programme, a brace of fuel-saving innovations the company is starting to roll out across its entire product line. Due to be be built in BMW’s Zaha Hadid-designed factory in Leipzig, the 1-series coupé is a welcome return to the compact, yet chic, car.
The H2R is the most recent incarnation of BMW’s ongoing Hydrogen research program, and is the 16th edition in their Art Car Collection. Not only merely a work of grand artistic proportions, the research vehicle has already achieved nine records for hydrogen-powered cars on the high-speed of track of Miramas in France.
Featuring a combustion engine, the H2R prototype can accelerate from 0-62mph in six seconds, achieving a top speed of over 186mph. Further to the prototype, BMW have manufactured the Hydrogen 7 - a hybrid and petrol road going car, 100 of which have been produced so far.
The Hydrogen 7 is the first virtually emission-free hydrogen powered luxury saloon in the world and has been designed for every day use. The engine, suspension and body are all based on the BMW 760i and 760Li Saloons, but at the same time the Hydrogen 7 features a dual-mode twelve-cylinder combustion power unit that can be run on either liquid-hydrogen or conventional gasoline. In fact, one of the most impressive features of the Hydrogen 7 is the ability to switch between the two whilst driving via a button on the steering wheel. In addition it doesn’t cause any noticeable changes to performance or engine noise.
The Hydrogen 7 and H2R demonstrate the effectiveness of liquid hydrogen in automotive design and is BMW’s fuel of choice for zero emissions. Although liquid hydrogen has to be kept at minus 252 degrees Celsius in a double walled vacuum tank, it has a higher energy density than hydrogen gas and none of the disposable difficulties of electric batteries.
In fact, the technology employed by BMW on the Hydrogen 7 works. and it works well; but it is taking this to the mass market that could prove tricky. An entire worldwide network of hydrogen fuelling stations is now required, which may take some time to put in place. However, a glimmer of hope can be found in the sunshine state of California, where they are in the process of building a hydrogen highway from the North to the South, encouraging more of it’s citizens to actively participate in reducing damaging fuel emissions. More Here
Calling all you greeny gadget lovers out there…this is the epitome of sleek, environmentally friendly and above all….cool science!
The H2 Hydrogen Racer is the dream that energy giants and governments and automobile designers have been relentlessly chasing after for years…but to no avail! Everyone wants to be the first to creat a mass-produced, energy efficient, hydrogen-fuelled car that is not only affordable but that gives off only water as it’s one emission! Given that the whole world is trying to get their hands on these little beauties, we suggest you grab yours as quickly as possible.
The genius boffins at Horizon have come up with the world’s smallest hydrogen-powered fuel cell car which has been nominated for the Intel Environmental award in Silicon Valley’s Tech Museum – a grand honour for those of you who are not so technically inclined! The H2 Racer has all the notches on its belt, design, engineering and most importantly is as green-friendly as you can get without being a tree! This wicked little racer comes as a kit so it’s perfect for those of you who fancy themselves as being ‘good with your hands’, or just those of you who have some serious time on their hands! Full instructions are included of course.
In a nutshell, you power up the fuelling station using just good old H2O (water) in a matter of minutes…siphon it off into the H2 Racer and you’re all set to run for up to 100feet ( or around 4 minutes)! The fuelling station can be powered using batteries or solar panels so you can charge up the racer over and over and over and over and over – well, you get the idea!
The H2 Racer is like mini-me for the future…the design and power-model of this car is undoubtedly where we will see life-sized car design headed in the not so distant future. So start getting used to it with your very own Hydrogen Racer today!
More here
The Mercedes-Benz name is synonymous with well-crafted luxury cars. Using auto racing to showcase its engineering prowess throughout most of the 20th century, Mercedes popularly campaigned their cars under the nickname “Silver Arrows” intermittently between 1930 and 1955. Regrettably, after recording the fastest Mille Miglia time in history, the 1955 300 SLR served as Mercedes’ last serious racing effort until the late 1980s.
Staking a return to former motorsport greatness, Mercedes-Benz began supplying engines to an ailing Team McLaren in 1995. The pairing soon became the hottest relationship in Formula 1 racing, cemented further when DaimlerChrysler purchased a 40% interest in McLaren and assured an enduring partnership.
Parlaying the 10-year Formula 1 friendship in 2005, Mercedes-Benz and McLaren merged their racing experience and produced an offspring worthy of both nameplates. The Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren aimed to recapture a racing pedigree that was lost 50 years prior.
Our evaluations are grouped under two categories: luxury and practicality. In each category, 50 possible points make up a total of 100.
Luxury ride
Many racing enthusiasts will know that 300 SLRs only raced professionally in open-cockpit form. Therefore, the new SLR McLaren takes on the personality of the rare, hardtop test version of the 300 SLR named the Uhlenhaut Coupe. For 2007, a sleek, long-flowing hood line and functional side gills behind the front wheels pay tribute to the 1955 race car. However, with only racing greats such as Sterling Moss restricted to using his 1955 SLR for business, the 2007 SLR is show business for a new generation of elite drivers.
The SLR McLaren’s dimensions (183.3 inches long, 106.3 inches wide and 49.6 inches tall) allow the car to cut through the air with the precision of a surgical knife. The car’s front end, evidenced in the pointed nose contour, is inspired by the Formula 1 McLaren. The tri-star emblem, which usually serves as a proud accent to the grille, has actually become the grille and part of the air-induction system on the SLR. The SLR’s long hood surface, which transitions to a near horizontal windshield and to a radically low roof, helps the car achieve a 0.37 drag coefficient. Additionally, the SLR’s body, a high-quality carbon-fiber composite, is 50% lighter than steel.
The 5.5 liter, 617-horsepower V8 operates with two spark plugs per cylinder to increase the potency of the ignition during combustion. The SLR McLaren also takes advantage of MB’s in-house performance division, AMG, which provides a belt-driven supercharger and a dry-sump oiling system to master a top speed of 208 mph and a 3.8-second 0-60 mph time.
Additional AMG performance expertise was used in the SLR McLaren’s five-speed automatic transmission — the only tranny available on the car. Being the fastest automatic supercar in the world, this transmission is heavily programmable to suit the driver’s preference: If you desire edge-of-your-seat supercar performance, there are three manual modes (Sport, Supersport and Race) that can be engaged via the levers on the steering wheel or with the touchpad. The automatic modes include the Sport, for everyday use, and Comfort, which aids the driver with a second-gear take off on bumpy or slippery surfaces.
To slow down from its incredible speeds, the SLR uses high-performance carbon-ceramic brakes (with eight-piston calipers in the front and four-piston calipers in the rear) and a very extraordinary air-brake system that features a rear spoiler. The SLR McLaren stops faster than any other car in its class, coming to dead stop from 62 mph in a mere 114 feet.
Another design cue that the SLR McLaren takes from the 300 SL is the set of gullwing doors that open up to a two-seat oasis. Inside, carbon-fiber bucket seats with lumbar support are draped with Grand Nappa leather or with the optional Silver Arrow leather upholstery. Occupants rest their feet on velour floor mats while they enjoy individual climate control, which is aided by the sun sensor that adjusts for the effects of direct sunlight. Other goodies inside include a seven-speaker Bose surround-sound stereo systems with a six-disc CD charger (and a concealed cassette deck), and an integrated cellular phone.
Unlike many other Mercs, the SLR McLarens are hand-built away from Deutschland: composites are made in Portsmouth, England and assembly takes place at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, England. With the mass-production equipment found on the assembly line, 500 SLRs are built each year on a floor originally intended to produce carbon-fiber parts for the F1 racecar.
More on Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren
Lexus has the best car dealerships in the UK and Japanese firms in general tend to be of the highest quality.
That is according to a new piece of research by Auto Express, which gauged the opinions of the UK’s drivers.
It found that Japanese car dealerships are generally considered to be better than their rivals with four of the top six makes being from Japan.
Lexus was voted as top dog, with drivers praising the firm for its customer service and good technical knowledge.
Second place went to Honda, while third and fourth went to Skoda and Toyota respectively.
Jaguar was the highest ranked British firm, being voted into sixth place, with Hyundai, Porsche, Chevrolet and Suzuki making up the top ten.
The worst car dealership was named as Alfa Romeo, with drivers unhappy with the workmanship, helpfulness and attitude of their staff.
More on Lexus cars
At a press conference presented by the MIDWAY GROUP and hosted by the New York International Auto Show at the Jacob Javitz Centre in Manhattan, New York, the Audi TT was declared the 2007 World Car Design of the Year.
The Audi TT was chosen from an initial entry list of twenty-eight (28) contenders nominated by World Car jurors from 22 countries throughout the world.
Style sells.
No matter how rational a buyer’s approach to a new car purchase may be, the ultimate decision is typically based as much on emotion as on reason - perhaps more so.
Nothing evokes that emotion more strongly than the vehicle’s appearance, be it a sports car or a minivan or anything in between.
Good design knows no boundaries or borders, which is why we established an award for the World Car Design of the Year in 2005.
The World Car Design of the Year category, and the corresponding award, is meant to highlight new vehicles with innovation and style that push established boundaries.
All vehicles eligible for the overall award are also eligible for the Design award.
A global panel of acknowledged design experts reviewed all the entries and established a short-list of five vehicles that demonstrate design excellence, from which the overall jury made the final selection.
