Mason Gibbons

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff says his team's collaboration with Racing Point is "very different" to the Ferrari/Haas model, and that its future depends on new Formula 1 rules for 2021

More efficient drive unit, faster charging and chassis upgrades for largest Teslas, entering production this week Tesla has announced a series of upgrades for its Model S saloon and Model X SUV, including a range improvement of more than 10% for Long Range models.  The Californian EV maker claims to have substantially upgraded the drive unit fitted to both cars, introducing the “optimised permanent magnet synchronous reluctance motor” from the Model 3 , and using silicon carbide in the unit’s electronics. Redesigned gearing, new bearings and improved cooling and lubrication boost all-round motor efficiency.  The secret tech behind the Tesla Model 3 The result is a claimed EPA cycle range of 370 miles for the top-spec Model S and 325 miles for the equivalent Model X. This is apparently achieved without any changes to the 100kWh battery pack in both cars.  At the same time, Tesla claims to have improved power and torque “significantly” without quoting spe...

The Haas Formula 1 team has signed Carlin Formula 2 frontrunner Louis Deletraz as a simulator driver for the 2019 season

Tesla on Tuesday announced a series of updates for its 2019 Model S and Model X, and key among them is an increase in range for both models including as much as 370 miles for the Model S. The updates see the return of a Standard Range option for both cars, bringing the starting price down to $79,200 for the Model S and $84,200 for the Model X, and...

Engineers have been caught driving what is likely to be an early test mule for a redesigned SL-Class due around 2021. The test mule, spotted outside the Nürburgring racetrack, is hidden beneath the makeshift body of an E-Class sedan but features a number of clues that suggest we're looking at a future SL in the making. A dramatically...

Honda will introduce its first upgraded engine of the 2019 Formula 1 season at this weekend's Azerbaijan Grand Prix, following the discovery of a quality control problem

High-riding version of Britain's cheapest car is still a relative bargain, even with extra equipment – if not quite the steal of models lower down the range In recent years, Dacia’s design team have admitted their surprise at having to create an ever-growing range of optional extras in order to keep up with demand from customers keen to add a few luxurious touches to their budget-conscious buys.That’s now being reflected in the model line-up: this new range-topping Sandero Stepway Techroad is effectively what happens when you tick all the options boxes on the high-riding version of Dacia’s supermini.It comes equipped with a rear parking camera, 7in touchscreen with smartphone syncing, LED headlights, electric windows and door mirrors, a raft of safety systems and a number of other shiny extras.It’s all wrapped up with new exterior and interior design flourishes, which include Techroad decals and new paint colours.It’s the most expensive version of Britain’s cheapest car. But is it...

These red carpet-worthy wafters offer class, speed, refinement and comfort in equal measure Leasing can be an affordable, practical route into having your own private car, but it's not always easy to tell the good deals from the duds.  The experts at our sister magazine What Car? work hard to find you the best pay-monthly schemes, taking into account mileage allowance, montly outlay, contract length and initial deposit. We'll be bringing you the best deals they find from a different segment each week. This week, it's luxury saloons:  1. Mercedes-Benz S350D AMG Line £696 per month, £4174 deposit, 48 months, 10,000 miles per year ​  Not as seductive as a Jaguar XJ but otherwise the S-Class is just about the champion in this class. It does exactly the job it was created to do, and in our book, praise doesn’t come much higher. More Mercedes lease deals 2. Audi A8 50 TDI Quattro S Line Tip £686 per month, £4118 deposit, 48 months, 8000 miles per year ...

Aston's new convertible DBS manages the same top speed as the hard-top, making it the fastest soft-top Aston ever Aston Martin has pulled the wraps off the fastest convertible in its history: the new DBS Superleggera Volante. Capable of hitting 211mph – identical to the hard-top DBS – the British firm’s newest addition is available to order now, priced from £247,500. That headline figure is £22,500 more than the coupé, but Aston claims the “extra level of sensory overload that only an open-top super-GT can deliver” justifies the premium. The roof itself is the most advanced soft-top the firm has ever produced, with eight layers of insulation and the ability to fully open it in 14sec – from inside the car or externally via the remote. The mechanism is said to have been put through more than 100,000 cycles in development in everywhere from Nevada’s Death Valley to the Arctic Circle.  The roof compresses to a claimed class-leading height of 26cm in the boot, maximising availa...

The FCA Group’s CO2 fleet average for 2018 was 125.3g/km Pooling its line-up with Tesla is allowing FCA to cut its EU fleet-average CO2 liability Tesla boss Elon Musk has admitted that making money from selling electric cars is tough. But in the past few years Tesla has made millions by getting rival car firms to pay it for a surprisingly valuable commodity: nothing.  In the US, several states require car firms to produce a certain number of zero-emission cars, or face fines. But firms can buy EV ‘credits’ from other car makers, and because Tesla only makes electric cars, it has a huge number of those credits. In one financial quarter last year it made more than $190 million (£164 million) – more than two-thirds of its profit in that quarter – selling such credits to rivals. Tesla has now found a way to turn nothing into profit with its European arm, through a new deal with the FCA Group , which owns Alfa Romeo , Fiat , Jeep and Maserati . In this case, the ‘nothing’ FCA is ...

Autocar magazine 24 April - on sale now This week: Britain's hottest hatchbacks face off, our guide to buying a second-hand Ferrari, we drive the Mercedes-AMG C63 S and loads more... It’s big, it’s fast and it’s this week’s cover star. The Jaguar F-Pace SVR packs a 5.0-litre V8 pumping out 542bhp and 502lb ft.  Were it a sports car, these would be impressive performance stats in their own right, but this is a family SUV - it needs to ride smooth, seat five adults and drop the kids to school. We find out if Jag’s got the performance SUV recipe down to a tee. Leading the news this week, murmurings from Wolfsburg suggest a utilitarian electric SUV is on the way to rival the reborn Land Rover Defender . We take a look at what Volkswagen’s design boss has called “a more rugged thing than we’ve seen” so far in the brand’s range of ID electric vehicles.  Last week, we were in China to bring you all the news from the Shanghai motor show . It was a big year for established dom...

Aston Martin has dialed up the wow factor on its DBS Superleggera with the arrival of a new open-top version, which dons the automaker's Volante name used on convertibles. Unveiled Tuesday, the 2020 DBS Superleggera Volante will serve as the flagship of the brand until a new Vanquish supercar is added early next decade. And a proper flagship it is...

If there's any doubt GMC has intentions to build a new vehicle, the fact that General Motors has applied to trademark the "Granite" name four times is a good indicator. On April 11, GM filed for the "GMC Granite" name with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)—for the fourth time in the past 10 years. GM Authority first...

Nissan celebrated the Nissan Z's 50th anniversary at the 2019 New York International Auto Show with a special-edition model set to go on sale this year. Fans eager to toast Nissan's sports car will have to spend $37,315. The Japanese brand announced Tuesday that the 370Z 50th Anniversary Edition will cost an extra $2,600 atop the 370Z Coupe Sport...

Daimler's carsharing service, Car2Go, has been the subject of numerous thefts in the city of Chicago, the company and local police say. As many as 100 Mercedes-Benz vehicles have been stolen in Chicago from the carsharing service, The Verge reported last Wednesday. Motor Authority has confirmed with the Chicago Police Department that 21 people...

Toyota previously confirmed we'll see a second-generation of the 86 sports car (nee Scion FR-S), but it may not come on a Subaru platform. Both the next-generation 86 and Subaru BRZ may instead switch to Toyota's TNGA architecture, according to a Friday report from the Australian website CarSales. The site claims to have spoken with an unnamed...

As long as it's possible, Aston Martin will keep the V-12 engine alive. The commitment comes as automakers begin to take a hard look at large-displacement engines. New emissions and fuel economy regulations around the world will make it more difficult for an engine like the V-12 to comply. Marek Reichman, executive vice president and chief...

F1 2019 is just over a month away from launching on Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC and Codemasters has begun teasing the key features for the newest Formula 1 game

The Nissan Z car and GT-R just celebrated their 50th birthdays with special-edition models, but both are starting to feel chubby and middle aged, and both are overdue for a redesign. When's the rebirth coming? At the 2019 New York International Auto Show, the man known as "Mr. GT-R," Hiroshi Tamura, chief product specialist for the GT-R and NISMO...

Firm will unveil a new electric concept car next month; it's set to feature autonomous and artificial intelligence technology Citroën has confirmed that it will unveil a new future-thinking concept car next month.  Marking 100 years of the French firm's existence, the as-yet-unnamed model will follow the Ami One , shown at last month’s Geneva motor show . While that previewed a low-cost, quadricycle-class city car, the new concept is expected to be full-sized. It will be unveiled in the coming weeks, just ahead of its public debut at an innovation event in Paris called VivaTech on 16 May. Few details have been released, but Citroën calls it a “100% electric and autonomous object featuring artificial intelligence”. It also claims the concept “symbolises ultra-comfort and offers a unique travelling experience on board". Expect a more outlandish exterior look as a preview for the firm’s future, too, with the promise of “exceptional styling”. Citroën also int...

Electric vehicle start-up Siticars' new Me is an ultralight, compact two-seater for urban drivers London-based EV start-up Siticars has unveiled a two-seater microcar aimed at drivers living in the new Ultra Low Emission Zone . The Me, available in pick up, box van and passenger car forms, boasts a top speed of 48.5mph and claimed range of 93 miles from its 10bhp 72V electric motor.  It is not dissimilar to the Reva G-Wiz, an electric vehicle on sale during the noughties, which was widely criticised for poor safety. This is, in part, to the fact that quadricycles - of which both the G-Wiz and Me are defined - are not liable to the same stringent EuroNCAP tests as heavier, more powerful cars. Siticars says that, although the Me is “fully approved for use on UK roads by DVLA and has full EU certificates of compliance”, it is ineligible to be driven on motorways due to its top speed. While the G-Wiz was on sale during the early days of electric vehicles, there are now a plethor...

For buyers looking for a high-performance SUV, Jaguar's F-Pace has just spawned an SVR variant. It packs a supercharged V-8 spitting out 550 hp, or enough to make the F-Pace SVR the most potent in its class. BMW's 8-Series is about to spawn a 4-door option dubbed the 8-Series Gran Coupe, and the latest spy shots and video show its high-performance...

The current-generation Honda Civic Type R only arrived for 2017 but an updated version is slated to arrive in the coming year, as evidenced by camouflaged prototypes spotted testing at the Nürburgring. The only visible changes are the revised fascias front and rear. Each fascia appears to feature new flicks in front of the vents. Extra...

Formula 1 track designer Tilke has revealed what the new Vietnam Grand Prix track will be like from the cockpit with the release of an onboard simulator lap

An amazing collection that includes no less than four original Shelby Cobras heads to auction next month. The collection is from the estate of the late Steven Juliano and will be put under the hammer at Mecum's auction running May 14-19 in Indianapolis, Indiana. The cars include a 1967 Shelby Cobra 427 S/C Roadster, 1966 Shelby Cobra 427 Roadster...

Prototypes for Mercedes-Benz’s next-generation S-Class have been spotted again. The car is expected to debut at the 2019 Frankfurt International Motor Show in September and should be in showrooms in 2020 as a 2021 model. From earlier test mules, we know the size and proportions will match up with the current model but there will be a...