Posts

Showing posts from March, 2018

F1's passing 'force field' already being addressed - Ross Brawn

Ross Brawn says Formula 1 has already made progress on finding solutions for its overtaking problem and addressing the "force field" that makes it hard for cars to race

How do centrifugal superchargers work?

Image
Your car arrives from the factory. Bolted under the hood is an engine that makes modest power, and it does so by breathing just fine on its own. It could make more power though and that extra motivation could easily come by way of a bit of forced induction. It's time to supercharge your ride. But first, you should probably learn how a supercharger...

Why Ferrari's 2018 F1 car's front end is helping Kimi Raikkonen

Kimi Raikkonen's resurgent form in Formula 1 has been helped by Ferrari's decision not to pursue a complicated suspension set-up with its SF71H, suggests Motorsport TV's technical analyst Craig Scarborough

Sauber's aggressive tech push to hit Formula 1's midfield group

Sauber is pushing design boundaries as it attempts to catch its Formula 1 rivals in 2018 with evolutions of its "aggressive" new car concept

Red Bull F1 team calls for qualifying 'party modes' to be abolished

Red Bull has called for the FIA to end "party modes" on Formula 1 engines by ensuring drivers qualify and race with the same engine settings

This Week's Top Photos: the 2018 New York auto show edition

Image
Cadillac's brand renaissance continued this week at the 2018 New York International Auto Show with the unveiling of the XT4 compact crossover SUV. The segment is booming right now and the XT4, with its combination of handsome styling, generous size, and sharp pricing, should prove a hit. Hyundai's new luxury brand Genesis continued its theme of...

Peter Horbury: the British designer behind fast-growing Geely

Image
Horbury helped Geely develop a brand identity Horbury is designing the future of Chinese firm Geely – and its Lotus, Lynk&Co and Proton brands. We find out how Peter Horbury, Geely’s global head of design since 2011, reckons few things about the car business surprise him these days. We’re chatting comfortably on Ford’s Geneva motor show stand, surrounded by Blue Oval-badged cars Horbury didn’t design, yet some of the Alnwick-born master-designer’s comfort with life undoubtedly flows from the fact that over a 45-year career he has worked twice at Ford, first at a junior level and later as the global boss in charge of icons like the Mustang and F-150 . Horbury has been active in car design since finishing his master’s degree at the Royal College of Art in 1973 and joining Chrysler UK. Since then, he’s had stints at Volvo (three times), Ford (twice), Premier Automotive Group (heading Jaguar, Land Rover , Volvo , Aston Martin and Lincoln) and Coventry-based MGA design group.

Nissan Leaf vs VW e-Golf vs Renault Zoe: sub-£30k EV group test

Image
About 50bhp and £10k separate the Zoe and Leaf Which is the best electric car you can buy for less than £30,000? We pit the second-generation Nissan Leaf against the e-Golf and Zoe to find out We can assure you the irony of this opening gambit is not lost on us but, from the media attention Tesla receives, you might think it was the sole purveyor of electric cars . Perhaps we shouldn’t be too surprised. After all, when you have an outspoken, entrepreneurial polymath in the form of Elon Musk at the helm and your family saloon can reach 60mph faster than a Lamborghini , people are going to notice. Similarly, when you launch an example of your old whisper-quiet roadster into the silence of space, people are going to jabber. And if you can also promise nearly 400 miles of driving range between battery charges, they’re going to queue around the block. The kicker? Simple: a Model S saloon costs £80,000 and, while a smaller, more mainstream Model 3 with an asking price less than half

Jaguar considers skipping R models in favor of SVR

Image
Jaguar dropped a wonderful bit of news at the 2018 NY auto show. The British automaker decided that stuffing a supercharged 5.0-liter V-8 into the F-Pace makes good sense, and we're inclined to agree. That's how the compact crossover earned the SVR badge. But that also means Jaguar jumped right past an R model to the full-on SVR, and Jaguar might...

Genesis Essentia concept, Lincoln Aviator, 2019 Toyota RAV4: The Week In Reverse

Image
Genesis unveiled the Essentia concept; Lincoln brought back the Aviator nameplate; and Toyota introduced the fifth-generation RAV4. It's the Week in Reverse, right here at Motor Authority. Genesis introduced the Essentia concept at the New York auto show with an electric powertrain, an F1-style suspension, and an impossibly wide stance. The...

BMW set to test subscription service in Tennessee

Image
The act of purchasing a new car or truck is evolving. Automakers are looking to keep up with the latest trends, and the latest is the subscription-based model. Several automakers have tried it, and now BMW is about to test out its own program. BMW is going to offer a pilot subscription program starting April 2 at a dealership based in Nashville...

From concept to (virtual) reality: How the Genesis Essentia concept coupe came to be

Image
Two months after the 2017 New York auto show, lead Genesis designer Luc Donckerwolke and his assembled team set to work. Their goal wasn’t to rest long after the success of the New York concept car that precipitated the Genesis G70, it was to pronounce to the rest of the world that Genesis had arrived with its own style. “Last year in...

123,000 Tesla Model S cars recalled

Image
A recall for the Tesla Model S has been issued Power steering bolt found to corrode in certain circumstances; only pre April 2016 cars affected 123,000 Tesla Model S cars are being recalled due to a problem with a power steering component. The recall affects only cars made before April 2016, and does not affect the Tesla Model X or Tesla Model 3. Read more: Tesla Model 3 production delayed Affected customers have been emailed by Tesla. In it, Tesla explained that a review of affected cars had highlighted "excessive corrosion" of power steering bolts on affected vehicles. Were the part to fail, Tesla stressed that the car could still be steered, albeit with the application of increased force. Read more: Tesla Model S Shooting Brake revealed "This primarily makes the car harder to drive at low speeds and for parallel parking, but does not materially affect control at high speed, where only small steering wheel force is needed," said the Tesla email, which als

2019 Mercedes-AMG C43 and C63 video preview

Image
Those in the market for a sporty luxury compacts will find fresh entries from Mercedes-AMG. For 2019 both the C43 and C63 have been updated with updated powertrains, new tech, and design tweaks. Let’s get right to the meat of the matter with these German bruisers: the powertrains. The tamer of the two options from Affalterbach is the...

Lincoln Aviator, Jaguar I-Pace design, Jaguar I-Pace SVR: Car News Headlines

Image
The hits just keep coming from the New York auto show. Check out our video previews of the Genesis G70, Genesis Essentia Concept, and Lincoln Aviator. The Genesis G70 shares much of its engineering with the Kia Stinger, but it's shorter and slimmer, and that should make it sportier. The Aviator looks like the sexiest Lincoln in a long time, so it...

2019 Cadillac XT4 video preview

Image
Better late than never. Cadillac is finally diving into the compact premium crossover game with the 2019 XT4, an XT5 that’s been given the Honey I Shrunk The Kids treatment. Blessed with clean, stylish lines, the XT4 is a sharp looking crossover that should stand out from the pack. The wide grille, sharp headlights, and wreathless Cadillac...

Silverstone F1 lap times expected to be one second faster with new surface

Formula 1 lap times at the British Grand Prix will be a second faster this year after Silverstone recently completed a full-circuit resurfacing project

2019 Acura RDX video preview

Image
Acura has never risen to the lofty heights of its European rivals. Judging by the looks of the 2019 RDX, Acura might soon be considered with the best. The 2019 RDX marks some important changes versus the last model and for the Acura brand. Like its German rivals, power comes from a 2.0-liter turbo-4. It replaces the 3.5-liter V-6 and spins out 272...

2019 Kia K900 video first look: 2018 New York auto show

Image
Kia plunged into old-school luxury a few years ago with the big K900. Then it had a better idea: it sidetracked into BMW territory and came out with the terrific Stinger. Now it’s applied those lessons learned, as it revamps its most expensive model, the 2019 Kia K900. The new K900 strips away some of the formal lines and looks of the past...

2019 Genesis G70 video preview

Image
Genesis isn’t just challenging rivals on their own turf—they’re challenging them at their own game. The Genesis G70 is a luxury sport compact sedan, the kind you’d expect from another brand. It’s rear-wheel drive, big power, manual transmission—but is it too late? READ MORE: 2019 Genesis G70 makes US debut at...

UK car industry: an opportunity for talent

Image
Britain is home to one of the world's most innovative car industries A sector of innovation and progress has a major skills shortfall; we call on more to fill the gap Funny, isn’t it, how society treats different professions? Estate agents? Boo. Bankers? Well, fat cat brokers get a double boo, but your high-street branch manager was - and, in some cases, still is - a pillar of the community. Journalists and politicians, meanwhile, have seen a spectacular fall from grace in recent years. What about the car industry? First reactions are usually uncertain, thanks largely I think to its reputation of yesteryear in the UK, when workers were usually picketing, bloated car companies were profiteering and everyone knocked off for a half day on a Friday. Loveable rogue Arthur Daley and his sheepskin coat didn’t help, either, nor the variety of recent scandals that have tarred everyone with the same brush, regardless of the clear evidence of the industry’s record for innovation and progr

Porsche lists its top 5 most iconic race cars

Image
Porsche has tapped Derek Bell for the latest video in its Top 5 series. In this clip, Bell shares Porsche's list of of its most iconic race cars. Now might be the time to bail out of that conference call and find some earbuds. Bell should know about iconic race cars. He's won Le Mans five times. He's won Daytona three times. His first pick for the...

Jaguar I-Pace designer Burgess says I-Pace would've never followed tradition

Image
The days of all long-hood, shapely Jaguar sedans and coupes may be numbered. The automaker’s 2019 Jaguar I-Pace electric car made its U.S. debut this week at the 2018 New York auto show and its designer Wayne Burgess said that drawing the I-Pace required him to skip what made his Aston Martin DB9 and Jaguar F-Types universally admired...

Lincoln test-drives used-car subscription service

Image
Lincoln announced on Thursday it will launch a pilot for its car-subscription program in West Los Angeles and San Francisco. Unlike rival services, the vehicles will be used 2017 models, not new cars. The pilot will run through the Ford Canvas program, Ford's own subscription program that also offers used vehicles. Subscribers will have their...

Koenigsegg Agera RS owner encouraged top speed run

Image
Many of the automotive industry's records and accolades are specifically sought after by the companies themselves. Not so for the Koenigsegg Agera RS' top speed record run. Actually, the owner of the car came up with the idea. Koenigsegg's founder, CEO and namesake, Christian von Koenigsegg, told Driving in an interview that the owner approached...

F1 tech insight: The aggressive changes Red Bull made for 2018

Red Bull made a big push to prepare its 2018 Formula 1 car early as it bid to hit the ground running with its new RB14

Land Rover Discovery 2.0 Si4 SE 2018 review

Image
Four-cylinder petrol from the Ingenium family is installed in Land Rover's seven-seat SUV. Is it up to the job? The Land Rover Discovery Si4, a four-cylinder petrol variant of the seven-seat luxury SUV, has been added to the range at a useful time to capitalise on the continuing slump in popularity of diesel engines. The question is: can this turbocharged 2.0-litre inline four with 296bhp and 295lb ft really be a match for the kind of oil-burning unit that is traditionally found under the bonnet of practical-but-posh workhorses such as the Solihull-built Discovery?The engine, part of Jaguar Land Rover’s Ingenium ‘AJ200’ family constructed at the engine manufacturing centre in Wolverhampton, has previously been added to the line-ups of the Land Rover Discovery Sport, Range Rover Velar and Evoque.On the Discovery Si4, it is mated to the eight-speed ZF automatic transmission and four-wheel drive system that are ubiquitous across the fifth-generation Discovery’s range, which you can r

Jaguar I-Pace designer Burgess says I-Pace would've never followed tradition

Image
The days of all long-hood, shapely Jaguar sedans and coupes may be numbered. The automaker’s 2019 Jaguar I-Pace electric car made its U.S. debut this week at the 2018 New York auto show and its designer Wayne Burgess said that drawing the I-Pace required him to skip what made his Aston Martin DB9 and Jaguar F-Types universally admired...

Lincoln test-drives used-car subscription service

Image
Lincoln announced on Thursday it will launch a pilot for its car-subscription program in West Los Angeles and San Francisco. Unlike rival services, the vehicles will be used 2017 models, not new cars. The pilot will run through the Ford Canvas program, Ford's own subscription program that also offers used vehicles. Subscribers will have their...

Haas says rivals' Ferrari F1 allegations 'based on no facts'

Haas Formula 1 team principal Gunther Steiner has hit back at suggestions the US-owned team is getting more technical support from Ferrari than the rules allow

McLaren's pre-season reliability woe delayed key upgrades

McLaren has admitted its pre-season reliability problems delayed the introduction of upgrades in the early stages of the Formula 1 season

Matt Prior: Has Alpine peaked already?

Image
A110: first of many new Alpines? It remains to be seen Our man asks if departing executives highlight problems at Alpine; plus, he questions if electric car demand is about to take off Could it be, we wondered, the start of something big? When Alpine launched the A110 last year, they talked of bespoke retailers and making “the lightest cars in whatever class we’re in”. It all seemed a lot of trouble to go to if Alpine was only going to create a single model. Sure, a convertible and a faster version of the A110 were, and surely remain, in Alpine’s plan too. But beyond that, was this just the first launch of many? Could Alpine be for Renault what Mini is to BMW ? Hmm. This week, Alpine boss Michael van der Sande is leaving, to replace John Edwards at Jaguar Land Rover’s SVO division. Meanwhile, Alpine chief engineer David Twohig has moved to electric car start-up Byton. Maybe that’s simply because they’re so in demand – what with having created a brilliant new car – that they h

Ferrari 328 GTS-based Conciso is one weird creation

Image
Perhaps a Ferrari 328 GTS is simply too standard. If that statement rings true, RM Sotheby's has consigned quite a quirky take on Ferrari's late-'80s sports car. It's called the Conciso, a brainchild of German designer Bernd Michalak. Aside from the radically different shape, the Conciso's body is made entirely from aluminum to shed...

Autosport podcast: the ominous signs from the Australian Grand Prix

Sebastian Vettel may have won in Melbourne but the latest episode of The Autosport Podcast explains why signs from the race were ominous for the rest of Formula 1 2018

Jaguar interested in building I-Pace SVR

Image
The future may hold another performance-oriented Jaguar SVR model, but rather than one based on a raucous supercharged internal-combustion engine, the brand is reportedly considering an I-Pace SVR, based on its first purely electric SUV. At the 2018 New York auto show, Hanno Kirner, Jaguar Land Rover’s executive director and head of Special...

Lincoln Aviator video preview

Image
Lincoln has been Ford's wayward son for decades. But suddenly the brand that didn't seem to have a direction has one. The future at Lincoln involves more SUVs and more electrification, and both are embodied in the reborn Lincoln Aviator. We last saw the Aviator in 2006, when it was a gussied up Explorer. Now it's a 7-passenger crossover that looks...

Jaguar E-Pace D150 FWD Manual 2018 UK review

Image
Entry-level engine and transmission prove that cheaper is better for Jaguar’s downsized SUV. Refined, rounded and pleasingly real-world. The entry-level version of the Jaguar E-Pace compact SUV – almost. You can actually go one trim level lower on the car’s equipment roster and, in theory, depart from your local dealer with a car costing less than £29,000 at list price – but Jaguar didn’t have one of those for us to test.The car uses an ‘Ingenium’ 2.0-litre turbodiesel engine closely related to those of Jaguar’s more powerful oil-burners, that produces 148bhp and 280lb ft of torque, and drives the car through a six-speed manual gearbox and also exclusively through the front wheels.Only one other engine in the range can be combined with a manual gearbox, and no other misses out on four-wheel drive, so this really is the E-Pace at its simplest. And it’s lightest – which, in a car we’ve already criticised for a bit of excessive bulk, is worth noting.Stick with entry-level trim in your E-

2020 Mercedes-AMG GT R 'Clubsport' spy shots

Image
Mercedes-AMG is known to be working on a range-topping Black Series version of its GT sports car, but before it arrives the Affalterbach tuner will introduce a new version positioned between it and the current GT R. A prototype for this new version has just been spotted testing at the Nürburgring. We know it isn't one the earlier testers for...

Cadillac XT4 will add Super Cruise (eventually)

Image
Cadillac’s Super Cruise promises cutting-edge semi-autonomous driving, and the Cadillac’s 2019 XT4 has just been revealed before it goes on sale later this year. An obvious pairing? For now, Cadillac says, its newest crossover won’t offer its latest safety technology. Cadillac spokesman Donny Nordlicht confirmed to Motor...

Automobile supply giant GKN loses independence fight

Image
GKN parts are used on roughly half the passenger cars produced worldwide 'Turnaround specialist' Melrose Industries seizes control of British firm, which has £9.7bn automotive arm British engineering giant  GKN , whose Driveline division is one of the world’s largest automotive suppliers, is set to change ownership after investors backed an £8.1 billion hostile takeover by Melrose Industries. Redditch-based GKN has nearly 60,000 employees worldwide, and its Driveline division produces automotive components for major car firms including BMW, Volkswagen and Volvo. The automotive division generated revenue of £9.7 billion in 2017. GKN details next-generation lightweight EV powertrain The future of GKN, which also has major aerospace and freight services divisions, has been in doubt since it issued a string of profit warnings last year and launched a review into its US aerospace arm. GKN bosses developed a restructuring plan that would have involved splitting out Driveline, a

VW teases potential US pickup truck with Atlas Tanoak concept

Image
Might a unibody pickup truck from Volkswagen be on the cards? Quite possibly. The German automaker on Wednesday unveiled the Atlas Tanoak concept at the 2018 New York auto show. It's a mid-size pickup based on the Volkswagen Group's flexible MQB modular platform, and while there are no plans for a production version VW openly admits that it's keen...

Genesis Essentia video preview

Image
Concept cars this year are either fast, green, or coming soon. The Genesis Essentia Concept you see here is fast, and it’s green. Coming soon? We’re not so sure. Let’s get this out of the way right now. It’s highly unlikely that we’ll see this coupe on the streets within the next few years—if ever. That...

Video: 390bhp BMW M135i versus M2

Image
Two hot BMWs, one modified, another as it left the factory. Which is better? Over the last eight months we've been modifying a BMW M135i - it's now faster and more powerful than an M2 . In this video we explain exactly what work we've done to the M135i, then answer the big question: how does it compare to BMW's own baby M-car? More content: McLaren 570S Track Pack now available with Spider Volkswagen Up GTI review

2017 McLaren 570S Track Pack now available with Spider

Image
Optional pack is priced at £17,160; it adds carbonfibre seats and lighter alloy wheels The McLaren 570S Spider is now available with an optional Track Pack that adds performance-enhancing parts to Woking’s Sports Series drop-top two-seater. Following the introduction of the Track Pack to the 570S coupé in 2016, ticking the option on a Spider adds Alcantara upholstery instead of leather for the seats, dashboard and steering wheel, and the standard chairs are swapped for carbonfibre racing seats that save 13kg. Track Pack cars sit on 10-spoke forged alloy wheels that save a combined 15kg. They come wrapped in Pirelli P-Zero Corsa tyres as standard. The Spider comes as standard with a  taller rear wing, which extends 12mm higher than the coupé's standard item to generate an extra 29kg of downforce at 150mph. On the coupé, this wing only comes as standard on Track Pack cars. To cater for the demands of track driving, McLaren also adds the Track Telemetry system featured on the

Acura MDX A-Spec, Genesis electric coupe, Alfa Romeo black packs: Car News Headlines

Image
We're now into the second day of the 2018 New York International Auto Show but there are still many vehicles to report on. One is the Acura MDX A-Spec, which arrives for 2019 and adds plenty of aggression to the luxury mid-size SUV. Genesis used the show to roll out the Essentia concept. It's an electric grand tourer that has left us wondering...

Opinion: The problem with the Mercedes-AMG C63

Image
The new C63 is almost as quick as the GT AMG’s new hot coupé looks so good that it might tempt people away from its bigger brother I think Mercedes-AMG might have a problem with its new C63 coupé . It’s not that there appears to be much wrong with it. In fact, in matt black paint on the stand at the New York motor show , it never looked less than utterly gorgeous. And we know enough about its 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 to believe it's unlikely to be spoiled much by being linked to a gearbox with nine rather than seven speeds or, in the 476bhp C63, by having the same electronically controlled limited-slip differential already available in the 503bhp C63 S. No, while I think it will cause AMG a problem, I don’t think it will be for the C-Class. I think it might just make things a little tricky for the GT . I don’t mean either the GT R or GT C versions of AMG’s two-seat supercar, because they have power, performance and, in the latter, a focus that takes it far beyond the ambit of

Mercedes believes Lewis Hamilton protected his F1 engine in Australia

Mercedes is confident that Lewis Hamilton's engine did not suffer any damage in his pursuit of Sebastian Vettel at the Australian Grand Prix, despite getting close to its temperature limits

2019 Ford Mustang Bullitt starts at $47,495

Image
Drivers, open your wallets. Preorders for the 2019 Ford Mustang Bullitt are open at dealerships across the U.S., and the car is priced at $47,495 (including a mandatory $900 destination charge). That's $7,405 more than the Mustang GT Premium, but the extra dollars do a lot more than add Bullitt badges, wheels, and that beautiful Dark Highland...