Sunday 31 July 2016
Friday 29 July 2016
Mercedes-Benz and Tesla See a Future in Electric Self-Driving Buses
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It makes sense. Moving people on buses networked with the traffic signals might ease gridlock without making other (far costlier) changes such as building new subways or light-rail lines, or adding politically loaded policies like urban-area tolling for private vehicles. According to the Union Internationale des Transports Publica (UITP), an international organization for transport authorities and operators, a single, large articulated bus could replace 40 personal vehicles and take up just one-eighth of the road space.
The Mercedes-Benz Future Bus, a semi-automated city bus with a technology suite called CityPilot, is a front-runner in this field. It can journey up to 12.4 miles (20 km) without a need for the driver to touch the steering, accelerator, or brake pedal. With a dozen cameras plus long- and short-range radar systems monitoring the route ahead, the Future Bus can spot obstacles and pedestrians, follow lane markings, and function as part of a new Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system, employing networked data about traffic and signals along the route.
Tesla Sees Future for Smaller Semi-Autonomous Buses
Over the long term, Tesla says it intends not only to enter the bus business, but to produce a pilotless bus. As part of the much-discussed Tesla Master Plan Part Deux for the company to expand and “cover the major forms of terrestrial transport,” CEO Elon Musk said: “In addition to consumer vehicles, there are two other types of electric vehicles needed: heavy-duty trucks and high passenger-density urban transport.”
Musk suggested that a fleet of smaller semi-autonomous buses could transition the role of the bus driver to that of a fleet manager. In the Tesla scenario, you’d arrange to ride these buses via a cellphone app, although Musk also suggested placing fixed summon buttons at existing bus stops.
Tesla says its bus design would have car-like performance, so as not to impede traffic flow, and would include a flexible seating layout that could accommodate wheelchairs, strollers, and bicycles.
The Mercedes-Benz Future Bus, as it stands, is diesel-powered, but the company has announced an all-electric propulsion system for its buses on the way for 2018; that should beat Tesla by many years. Would getting the Tesla name, or Mercedes-Benz’s active-safety reputation, into city buses make Americans more likely to ride them? It’s too early to say, but with these two names involved, the future of public transit now looks not only safer but a little more glamorous.
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Bristol and the Blue Sky: England’s Most Eccentric Sports-Car Maker Launches the Bullet
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It’s been two years since we first told you about the plans of Bristol, arguably Britain’s most eccentric low-volume sports-car maker, to build a new model. Back then, we were told that the company was planning its relaunch for 2015, and that the new car would have a hybrid powertrain.
Neither of those things has happened, and although development of the gasoline-electric version is said to be still underway, the Bristol Bullet will be powered by a BMW-sourced V-8. We’re also told that production is expected to begin in early 2017, although it’s fair to say that we’re not holding our breath on that one.
We’re not going to be rude about the way the Bullet looks; that’s what the comment section is for. We’ll limit ourselves to observing that if, as Francis Bacon said, there is no excellent beauty that hath not some strangeness in the proportion, then the Bristol’s bathtub stance and contrasting sharp and curved detailing make it very excellent indeed. The official line from the factory is that the car was styled by an eminent Italian designer who “chooses to remain anonymous.” To the point where, we imagine, has since gone into hiding.
Bristol says that the new Bullet is based on a prototype discovered at the back of its factory. We’re told that it has carbon bodywork over a bonded-aluminum chassis, materials that Britain’s low-volume carmakers seem to prefer since the nation’s ash trees started to die out. The company claims that the car weighs just over 3000 pounds, and that its naturally aspirated 370-hp 4.8-liter BMW V-8 will enable it to dispatch the 0-to-60-mph dash in under four seconds on its way to a 155-mph top speed.
Both left- and right-hand-drive versions will be available, although Bristol isn’t planning to sell the Bullet in the U.S. The company says it hopes that future models, which will use an electric powertrain with a small, range-extender engine, will come here. Only 70 Bullets will be built with the official price given—with aristocratic inexactitude—as being “around £250,000.” That’s $331,000 at current exchange rates.
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Mercedes-Benz Pulls E-class Ad over Autonomous Confusion
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In an advertisement introducing its new E-class sedan, Mercedes-Benz touted the car as “a self-driving car from a very self-driven company.”
Well, not exactly.
Though the German automaker’s new sedan contains some automated-driving technology, it’s not a car capable of driving itself in all scenarios. Under pressure from consumer groups that said the advertising campaigns overstated the capabilities of the actual vehicle, Mercedes-Benz said Friday it would withdraw a similar ad, the TV spot “The Future,” from the market in hopes of avoiding any consumer confusion.
The E-class is “a technological tour de force and is a significant step towards achieving our vision of an accident-free future,” a company spokesperson said in a written statement. “We do not want any potential confusion in the marketplace to detract from the giant step forward in vehicle safety the 2017 E-class represents.”
The company’s decision comes amid fresh scrutiny of how automakers label and portray their advanced-driving technologies. In May, a motorist using Tesla Motors’ “Autopilot” semi-autonomous feature died in a crash when neither he nor the system applied the brakes as a tractor-trailer crossed the vehicle’s path. Tesla offers Autopilot as a “beta” technology, and reminds drivers they remain responsible for vehicle operations. Federal investigators are probing the incident and examining how the driver’s reliance on the technology contributed to the crash.
With “Autopilot,” Mercedes-Benz’s “Drive Pilot,” General Motors’ upcoming “Super Cruise,” or any of the other advanced driver-assistance features offered by an increasing number of car companies, it’s still important for drivers to pay attention, look past the brand names, and understand the systems and their limitations.
“
“The misrepresentations by Mercedes-Benz could give consumers a false sense of security in the ability of the car
to operate autonomously.”
”
In its guidance to automakers, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration parses autonomous functionality into four levels. Level 1 automation involves specific control functions where the vehicle automatically assists with stability control or braking. Level 2 involves the automation of at least two primary control functions designed to relieve the driver’s burden in controlling the vehicle. Examples might include adaptive cruise control combined with active lane centering. Level 3 automation contains vehicles that can handle all driving functions in limited scenarios; the driver is expected to be available to take occasional control. In Level 4 automation, the vehicle performs all driving functions and monitors road conditions for an entire trip.
Good luck packaging all that into a marketing campaign. Yet that’s exactly the challenge automakers face.
“We need to be cognizant with our messaging to build this trust over time,” said Kristin Kolodge, executive director of driver interaction and human-machine interface at J.D. Power. “Trust is extremely fragile. It takes years to build, seconds to break, and forever to repair. The Tesla incident is extremely unfortunate. We need to focus on ‘How do we message around this, built trust in these capabilities in terms of what they can and cannot do, and what the driver’s role will be.”
Outside groups are ensuring that warning is followed. Consumer Reports, the Center for Auto Safety, Consumer Federation of America, and former NHTSA administrator Joan Claybrook signed a letter to the Federal Trade Commission earlier this week that called on the agency to take enforcement action against Mercedes-Benz. In a letter to FTC chairman Edith Ramirez, they wrote, “the E-class does not meet the definition of either a fully or partially self-driving car, yet it is marketed in a way that a reasonable consumer would believe it does. In addition to a consumer possibly purchasing a car while being misled about its capabilities, the misrepresentations by Mercedes-Benz could give consumers a false sense of security in the ability of the car to operate autonomously.”
“The Future” ad features Mercedes’ F015 autonomous research car. The ad intends to draw a connection between a vision of the self-driving future and the advanced driver-assistance features available on the E-class today, according to the spokesperson.
In fine print, the ad says, “Vehicle cannot drive itself, but has semi-automated driving features. Always observe safe driving practices.” In their letter, the consumer advocates said the fine print “does not let Mercedes-Benz off the hook.”
While car companies love to portray themselves as technically leading-edge, nowhere more so than in the push toward self-driving cars, we can bet that they will tread more carefully in making claims on that front—at least with regards to their current models.
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Obama Plugs Into an EV Legacy, Funds National Plan for Fast Charging, Battery Research
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That 2015 goal, of course, proved to be overly ambitious—we passed a million EVs worldwide late last year—yet it hasn’t tamped down the administration’s enthusiasm for EVs. Instead it’s led to a more expansive, holistic approach that endorses electric-vehicle technology from the power station to the pavement. The release of a briefing and fact sheet this past week highlighted this approach, announcing an executive action that will unlock up to $4.5 billion in loan guarantees to support a wide range of federal and public-private partnership projects for renewable energy and energy efficiency. Those guarantees come via the Department of Energy’s Loan Program Office (LPO), which issued a supplement clarifying that vehicle-charging facilities, charging hardware, and associated software are now eligible for these loans.
It’s essentially the same funding gateway that enabled nearly $2.6 billion in Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing (ATVM) loans to Fisker, Nissan, and Tesla to establish assembly facilities in the U.S., and a $5.9 billion loan in 2009 to Ford Motor Co. to upgrade facilities for more fuel-efficient vehicle components and EcoBoost engines.
A 2020 Vision for Charging
One of the most important projects related to the announcement is the formation of a partnership between the Department of Transportation (DOT) and the Department of Energy (DOE) for “a 2020 vision for a national network of fast charging stations for EVs in order to facilitate coast-to-coast, nationwide zero-emissions travel.” The declaration makes this project part of the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act, the massive five-year, $305-billion bill that the President signed last September.
And all of this, we should note, is separate from the $2 billion in fines for Volkswagen’s diesel-emissions scandal that will go toward electric-vehicle infrastructure.
A recent survey from the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), for instance, found that there’s widespread enthusiasm for EVs in the Northeast, yet the infrastructure has lagged, as has the number of available plug-in vehicles. “As our recent survey showed, there’s a real interest out there in electric vehicles—but a lot of drivers don’t know much about them, and worry that there isn’t infrastructure to keep them charged,” said Don Anair, the research and deputy director of UCS. “The White House’s new initiative is a real step in the right direction.”
Speedier Charging, More Power and Energy Per Pound
Another portion of the money (up to $10 million a year for five years) will go toward research aiming to bring battery costs below $100 per kWh, while tripling the specific energy to 500 watt-hours per kilogram at a durability of 1000 cycles.
Meanwhile the Department of Energy is also planning to partner with private companies “to examine the vehicle, battery, infrastructure, and economic implications of fast charging of up to 350 kW,” which could provide energy equivalent to 200 miles of range to a battery pack in about 10 minutes. The federal government plans to purchase up to 500 vehicles in the 2017 calendar year, and it invites state and local governments to join forces. There’s also a municipal fleet electrification plan aimed at smaller communities.
For the most part, this is good news to the industry. Wade Newton, director of communications for the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, a policy and advocacy group representing 12 vehicle manufacturers and about 77 percent of the U.S. vehicle market, pointed to the hard work on behalf of some automakers in making charging infrastructure more available, accessible, and affordable. He called those “some of the key challenges facing wider consumer acceptance [of electric vehicles].”
Automakers Embracing This Kind of Intervention
“Going forward, ongoing efforts by government and private-sector partners will be critical to wider consumer adoption and affordability,” added Newton. Charging companies, automakers, public utilities, and academic institutions are all part of this extensive plan—which could potentially change with a new administration.
“We see electric vehicles as a key part of the future of transportation and it seems that the White House and their partners see it the same way,” said Anair, of the Union of Concerned Scientists. “Whoever the next president is, they’ll need to continue to support a growing electric-vehicle market if we’re going to meet our goals of cutting oil use and reducing the risk of climate change.”
Whether that’s Drumpf or Clinton, the national stage for electric cars is amplified in a way it’s never been before.
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Baby’s Got The Bends: 2017 Hyundai Sonata Adds Dynamic Headlights
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The 2017 Hyundai Sonata enters the new model year with the modest addition of dynamic headlights. The headlights, which turn their beams when cornering to help drivers see more of the road around the bend, are only available on the top-of-the-line Sonata Limited. Hyundai also adjusted pricing and equipment levels across the Sonata range.
As last year, the Sonata is offered with one of three four-cylinder engines: a 2.4-liter four-cylinder with 185 horsepower, a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine with 245 horsepower, and a 1.6-liter turbocharged four-cylinder with 178 horsepower that’s exclusive to the fuel-efficient Sonata Eco. The former two engines are paired to a six-speed automatic transmission, while the latter engine relies on a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission to swap gears.
The price for the entry-level Sonata is up by $300 to $22,435, while an SE costs $200 more than before, at $22,785. Eco models, priced from $23,960, cost $600 less than last year, while the Sport with the 2.0-liter turbo sees its price fall by a whopping $2325 to $27,435 (Sport trim with the base 2.4-liter engine remains priced from $24,235). The massive price drop comes at the expense of deleting some previously standard features, such as HID headlights, LED taillights, a proximity key, dual-zone climate control, and a blind-spot monitor.
Meanwhile, the luxury-oriented Sonata Limited costs $200 less than the 2016 model, starting at $27,985. Consumers can add the aforementioned dynamic headlights as part of the $3400 Technology package, which also includes heated and vented front seats with memory, a navigation system, and more. Finally, springing for the Limited 2.0T includes the items in the Technology package and more. At $34,910, the Limited 2.0T is priced the same as last year’s car with its passive headlight system.
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Make Tracks on Your Fridge Instead of Cooking Dinner or Whatever Else with Blipshift’s Racetrack Magnets
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How often do you visit your fridge on a weekly basis, really? You go, you grab some snacks or some soda/beer, and you move on with your life. Just think of the togetherness time you’re missing out on with your food cooler! If only there were a way to draw you in for some intimate refrigerator action that involved cars . . . Now there is, courtesy of Blipshift’s new Formula Fridge magnet sets, which include a passel of straightaways and curves of varying radii with which you can build your own racetrack. On your fridge—or any other surface a magnet will stick to.
If this sounds like we’re shilling for Blipshift, well, we are. But the Formula Fridge sets are just that cool, just like Blipshift’s crowd-sourced T-shirt designs and other automobilia. Going on sale today, the FF set comes with 43 track pieces and 10 traffic cones. We found that number to be perfectly adequate for whipping together a mini Laguna Seca—if we squinted, it sort of looked like Mazda Raceway—a fairly long track in non-magnet form. Because our office lacks photo-worthy, light-colored surfaces on which we could have stuck the magnets (and our office fridge is a horrifying place of decay and misery no outsider should be forced to look at), we decided to stick some magnets on our long-term Mazda MX-5 Miata. To honor its Japanese heritage, we tried to arrange the FF magnets into a facsimile of Tsukuba on the Mazda’s quarter panel, to mixed effect. Why not, ahem, Mazda Raceway at Laguna Seca? It wouldn’t fit on the Miata’s haunch, and the car’s hood and trunk are aluminum and we knew if we faked it, someone would call us out—most likely our testing director Don Sherman.
Anyway, so the point is this: If you have $15 and want to goof around on your fridge or give the appliance something back for once, instead of always stealing from it, then buy the Formula Fridge set. Heck, buy two so you can cover your ferric surfaces with your favorite racetracks.
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Four Squared: BMW M4 GT4 To Start Racing in 2018
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Welcome BMW’s latest GT4 racing entrant, the BMW M4 GT4. Set to start testing before the end of the year, the GT4 will draw heavily from the production M4, going so far as to use the hood from the water-injected M4 GTS.
Under that hood, expect to find the same basic 3.0-liter twin-turbo inline-six as found in the M4, as GT4 rules note that the basic engine—including its position, location, and orientation—must remain original. GT4-specific features include a racing exhaust system, doors made of carbon fiber, and a specially designed front splitter and rear wing. Other motorsports items include a seat, pedal box, and brake system taken directly from the bigger BMW M6 GT3 race car.
BMW notes that customer deliveries will begin in the middle of 2017, and that the first race that the new M4 GT4 will be eligible to compete in is the 24 Hours of Dubai in January 2018. The M4 GT4 will compete against entrants from Aston Martin, Chevrolet, Lotus, Maserati, Porsche and others.
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Thursday 28 July 2016
(Q) Sixty Dollars: Infiniti Announces 2017 Q60 Pricing
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Nissan’s luxury division has made quite a bit of noise about its nearly here Q60 sports coupe. And with good reason: the thing’s an absolute looker and a necessary step in the brand’s return to relevance. Today, Infiniti released initial pricing for the Q60 2.0t and 3.0t models in both RWD and AWD trim. Act in the near future, and the company promises to throw in extra goodies in an attempt to make it worth your while.
The most basic model, the Q60 2.0t with rear-wheel drive, starts at $39,855. Add AWD for $2000 more, or for $42,205, you can move up a rung to the 2.0t Premium model. All-wheel drive once again carries a $2000 premium. If you can’t live without Nissan’s new twin-turbo V-6, a 3.0t Premium model starts at $45,205, and AWD will add—you guessed it, Marty—2000 ducats to the sticker. Those with a jones for the hotter Red Sport 400 model will need to sit on their hands a while longer, as Infiniti has yet to announce pricing for the sportiest of Q60s, although we expect it to come in around $60,000.
In an attempt to make early reservation more appealing, Infiniti is offering a thank-you goodie for those who order now. Buyers can choose from a GoPro Hero4 Silver action camera, a Bose SoundTouch 20 Series III wireless music system, one night at a Rosewood hotel, or a Tumi Tegra-Lite carry-on bag. But that’s not all! Act quickly and receive a “specially curated culinary experience”! We like to think this involves dining atop a pile of rare books with a Vermeer used as a tabletop. We did not call Infiniti to confirm this, as we did not want our hopes dashed. Intenders, however, might want to give their local dealer a ring to confirm our dream’s veracity.
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BMW Just Can’t Wait to Show Off the New 2017 5-series
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BMW would like you to know that development of the next-generation 5-series sedan is coming along nicely. Scheduled to make its debut within the next few months, the G30 generation of the Bimmer mid-size luxury sedan is the subject of a new press release about 3D modeling technology—but the real story is the quick glimpse we have of the new 5er’s bodywork, admittedly under camouflage.
Like the spy shots we published a year and a half ago, these photos show that evolution, not revolution, is the name of the game. Translation: The new 5-series won’t look too different from the old 5-series. The car’s overall greenhouse has a similar shape to the current, F10 5-series, and the rear end features rather familiar-looking LED taillights.
There’s more change in store under the skin; the 5-series is reportedly going on a diet. Extensive use of aluminum (and possibly carbon fiber) in the structure likely will slim things down by a few hundred pounds, potentially increasing fuel economy and—we hope—reversing BMW’s recent trend toward duller, less involving driving dynamics. Based on what we’ve heard from BMW’s product director for the new 5-series, Johann Kistler, new calibration for the car’s electric power-steering system should provide better feel.
Under the hood, expect the new 5-series to carry BMW’s newest generation of turbocharged four-cylinder (B48) and six-cylinder (B58) engines. New model designations, likely 530i and 540i (names that bring us back to the E39 5-series), will call out the updated powertrains. The diesel inline-six currently used in the 535d probably will carry over, and a plug-in-hybrid version is in the cards as well. We’re not sure what will happen to the 550i and its 4.4-liter twin-turbo V-8; that engine is still used in the 7-series, but BMW is rumored to be working on a new 4.0-liter V-8 that could make its way into the 5-series.
As for the M5, we’re told that at least 600 horsepower will be on offer, although that car will likely debut a few months later than the standard 5-series lineup—which will also include a Gran Turismo hatchback. Look for our first official look at the 5-series sedan before the end of this year, possibly at the 2016 Paris auto show in September.
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Up to 472 HP: Ford Performance Unveils Power Packs for 2015–2017 Mustang GT
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With 435 horsepower onboard, Ford’s Mustang GT isn’t exactly a blubbering puddle of automotive sadness. It’s a swift coupe—or convertible—with a sweet-sounding V-8 that, in our testing, is capable of hitting 60 mph in as little as 4.4 seconds. That’s all fine and well, but for those who must have more power and quicker acceleration, Ford Performance has released a trio of “power packs” that kick the Mustang GT’s power up a notch (or three).
The first kit, Power Pack 1, will become available next month and comes with a high-flow air filter and a new engine calibration good for an extra 13 horsepower and 16 lb-ft of torque. Power Pack 1 not only moves the needle on the GT’s power peaks, but also reshapes the torque curve, such that at 1500 rpm, the Mustang’s 5.0-liter V-8 gains 40 lb-ft over stock. Power Pack 2 is more comprehensive, swapping the GT’s air-intake assembly for the cold-air intake and 87-mm throttle body from the Mustang Shelby GT350 and a more aggressive engine calibration that adds 21 horsepower and 24 lb-ft of torque over the baseline Mustang GT. For those keeping score, that’s 456 horsepower and 424 lb-ft; for the Chevrolet fans keeping score, yes, that horsepower figure barely eclipses that of an off-the-shelf Camaro SS—while still falling short of the Chevy’s 455 lb-ft of torque.
The wildest setting comes in the Power Pack 3, which uses the same Shelby intake components and throttle body as the Power Pack 2, but features an engine computer calibration that bumps output by 37 ponies and 51 lb-ft to 472 horsepower and 451 lb-ft of torque. Although that horsepower number falls short of the Mustang Shelby GT350‘s 526 ponies—that model uses a unique 5.2-liter V-8 with a flat-plane crankshaft—it far outguns the Shelby’s 426 lb-ft torque peak. Besides adding power, all three Power Packs are 50-state (CARB included) emissions legal, include a no-lift shift feature for manual models, and a new shift map for automatic Mustang GTs. The software also requires a switch from regular gas to premium. The really good news is that there is a Power Pack for every budget: Pack 1 costs $539, Pack 2 costs $949, and Pack 3 runs $2395.
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You Can Buy the Lotus Elise in the U.S. Again, But You Can’t Drive It on the Street
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For the first time in five years, you’ll be able to buy a brand-new Lotus Elise in the United States. But there’s a catch: it’s for track use only. Yep, American Lotus freaks will soon be able to head to their local dealers to order this, the Elise Race 250—as long as they trailer it home.
Lotus announced the Elise Race 250 on Wednesday, and, as the name implies, it’s a track-only version of the magnificent Elise Cup 250. It’s undeniably sad that Americans won’t be able to enjoy the car on the street, but a new Elise for sale in our market is still something worth celebrating.
The Elise Race 250 will run you $76,200 before tax, and for that, you’re getting the fastest Elise Lotus has ever built. Thanks to a supercharger, this Elise squeezes out 243 horsepower from its Toyota-derived four-cylinder, weighing just under 2000 pounds dry. The Race 250 also comes with adjustable dampers, an adjustable front anti-roll bar, track-ready brakes, a carbon-fiber racing seat with a six-point harness, and an FIA-compliant roll cage.
Like the Cup 250, the Race 250 also gets an aero package with a big rear wing, a rear diffuser, a front splitter, and floor extensions. These aero bits help the Elise Race 250 generate 340 pounds of downforce at its top speed of 154 mph. An optional Carbon Fiber Aero package further reduces weight by 22 pounds. Naturally, shifting is done via a six-speed manual gearbox, as it should be.
Lotus says the Elise Race 250 is “eligible for many race series around the world,” although it isn’t homologated for any series in particular. Depending what type of racing is your choice, that $76,000 price might be a pretty affordable way to get on track.
Lotus, thank you for sending the Elise Race 250 across the pond. But we’re really looking forward to the next-generation car, which will be street-legal when it arrives in 2020.
This story originally appeared on Road & Track.
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Toyota Supra and BMW Z5: Everything We Know
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The BMW Z4 has reached the end of its life cycle, which means it’s time for a replacement, and Toyota inexplicably forgot to conceive a successor to the iconic Supra when that model was discontinued a decade and a half ago. It’s good, then, that both the automakers have teamed up on new sports cars—but they won’t exactly be Japanese or German.
BMW and Toyota have remained admirably officially silent on the progress of their joint venture, but there have been looser lips in, of all places, Austria. Austrian newspaper Klien Zeitung has reported that both the Z4 replacement and the reborn Supra will be built by the Canadian-owned Magna-Steyr operation near Graz. (There, the cars will use capacity once assigned to the Mini coupe, Paceman, and Countryman; the first two models are dead, while Countryman production will move to the Netherlands in its next generation.) The paper insists about 60,000 of the two-door sports cars a year will begin rolling out of the plant in 2018, which means there isn’t much time left in the cars’ gestation.
While information on the Supra is thin on the ground, we do know that the BMW carries a G29 internal code name and is slated to wear a Z5 badge. Our insiders tell us the new roadster is larger than the Z4, hence the new name; the increase in size has been made, we’re told, in part as a compromise with Toyota’s needs for the Supra and because BMW desires to leave a slot open beneath the Z5 for a possible smaller convertible model.
If our sources are correct, the Z4 roadster replacement won’t have a folding hardtop like the outgoing model, instead using a traditional cloth roof—you’ll have to order a coupe version to get a metal lid.
The new car won’t be heavier than the Z4, though, with BMW slated to resurrect the original Z4’s cloth-roof roadster layout, ditching the beefy and more difficult-to-package folding metal roof of the latest car. BMW also is promising a coupe version of the Z5, and our sources suggest it will be sold with both four- and six-cylinder power, and offer a performance-oriented hybrid system to lower its acceleration numbers. The inline six-cylinder engines will be variations of BMW’s existing turbocharged 3.0-liter family, the fours will belong to the next generation of BMW’s 2.0-liter unit, which will debut in Europe this fall. The Supra also will use a four-cylinder engine in the basic versions, but it won’t be sourced from BMW. Its higher-performance engine will be an all-new twin-turbo V-6, code-named 943F and allegedly making around 400 horsepower and 300 lb-ft of torque.
While the cars will use different internal-combustion engines, people we’ve spoken to say the BMW and Toyota get more closely related further back: It was implied that the cars may share transmissions, albeit with different ratios, and that their multilink rear suspensions and differential housings would be similar.
This makes sense, of course—even more so if the cars share the hybrid system. And it also would make sense for that system to incorporate a disc-shaped electric motor integrated with the transmission housing (as most current German plug-in hybrids use), but such a setup would rule out a manual transmission for what is sure to be the priciest and best-performing version of each car.
Today, the Z4 is the slowest-selling BMW model, but the tie-up with Toyota has slashed the development costs of its replacement while upping the tempo on technology. “We will occupy the segment once more,” BMW CEO Harald Krueger said earlier this year. “It’s not big, but it’s important for the strength of the brand. BMW has a long roadster tradition.” The Magna plant in Graz also builds the Mercedes-Benz G-wagen and assembled 103,904 vehicles in 2015; in addition to these sports cars, it will add a model for Jaguar next year.
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Wednesday 27 July 2016
Trick Out Your Lamborghini Huracan with a New Aero and Graphics Kit
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Sometimes, you may feel the need for more downforce on the Lamborghini. Other times, perhaps you just want the Lamborghini to upstage all the customized 2005 Shelby Mustangs at your local Cars and Coffee. Gosh, those guys can be annoying. That must be why Huracán owners can now ask their dealers for official bolt-on aero pieces and adhesive racing stripes.
Lamborghini just announced three new After Sales packages, available from dealers, to compete with the third-party “enhancements” already offered by aftermarket suppliers. A matte black front splitter, side skirts, rear splitter, and fixed rear wing—with winglets and open strut towers—come together in one kit. While the wing is boss, the exposed screws on all the splitters and skirts look rather low-grade. What do they think this is, a Mercedes-AMG G63?
Another kit adds thick double stripes along the center of the body in matte black, gloss black, or red. The mirrors can also be wrapped in a matching color. Should you change your mind, Lamborghini says the stripes come off without damaging the paint. For certain customers, these kits will radify their Huracáns to bro-tacular Challenger Hellcat levels. We’re just smitten with the Huracán’s body as it is—and we’d sooner wait for the Huracán Superleggera that’ll back up its aggressive aero upgrades with less mass and even more power.
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Urban eTruck: Mercedes Wants to Make All-Electric Semis for In-Town Deliveries
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Elon Musk recently announced Tesla’s plan to produce an all-electric semi truck, but it looks like Mercedes-Benz might beat him to it. Daimler’s new Mercedes-Benz Urban eTruck prototype is a fully electric, three-axle heavy truck meant for distribution and delivery within cities. It has an estimated range of 124 miles, supposedly enough for most daily delivery routes (at least in Europe), and Mercedes says it could be ready for series production by “the beginning of the next decade.”
With an electrically powered rear axle and wheel-mounted electric motors drawing power from a 212-kWh lithium-ion battery pack, the eTruck weighs around 3700 pounds more than an equivalent internal-combustion truck, according to the company. But Mercedes says the eTruck’s gross vehicle weight rating of 26 metric tons, or approximately 57,300 pounds, is roughly comparable to a diesel-powered truck. Rather than equip the eTruck with an on-board charger, Mercedes says that trucking companies could use stationary charging stations with 100-kilowatts of charging power that could refill discharged batteries in two to three hours.
Although the idea of an all-electric heavy truck is not entirely new—Mack Trucks recently revealed that it’s evaluating electric-powered garbage trucks using a turbine engine as a generator to extend range—Daimler’s Urban eTruck is a step forward because of its increased battery capacity. The Urban eTruck’s 124-mile range means it’s still ill-suited for the sort of long-haul trucking we most closely associate with heavy-duty trucks. But Mercedes says that increased urbanization, more stringent emissions requirements, and more advanced battery technology could make this concept a reality within a few years. We’ll see if Mercedes can make it happen before Tesla does.
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Tuesday 26 July 2016
Lather, Rinse, Repeat: VW 2.0-Liter TDI Remedy Clears Another Hurdle
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It’s been rough going for the past 10 months—not just for Volkswagen, as it struggles to extricate itself from the diesel emissions mess of its own making, but for owners of the affected models.
Those owners of VW models with the 2.0-liter TDI four-cylinder engine have had to deal with the knowledge that they’re polluting many, many times the legal EPA test limit of NOx—and decide whether in their right conscience they should be driving their vehicles. Yet now, with an important courtroom step this week, they’re one solid step closer to either getting a check or getting a fix that brings their vehicle into compliance.
A few weeks ago, Volkswagen laid out the scenario through which it could make good for hundreds of thousands of owners of products with this engine. Now the federal judge who presides over the civil claims issue has granted preliminary approval for Volkswagen’s plan. VW says that it will begin its remedy program as soon as the federal court grants final approval. Through the buyback plan, Volkswagen will pay up to 475,000 owners the “fair replacement value” of their vehicles as of September 17, 2015.
In a statement about the preliminary approval, as it relates to the fix and those who want to keep their cars, Volkswagen said that it “continues to work closely with the EPA and CARB on an approved emissions modification for each of the 2.0L TDI engine vehicles.”
Those who choose to get an emissions fix on the vehicles will get between $5100 and $10,000 in compensation for the reduced value—and with those software and hardware modifications all yet unconfirmed it’s possible they can expect some loss in performance and fuel efficiency.
Volkswagen also reiterated that it’s trying to secure approval for a remedy regarding the Audi-engineered 3.0-liter TDI V-6, which is featured in a range of Audi, VW, and Porsche models. Earlier this month the California Air Resources Board (CARB) rejected a plan to fix them, citing incomplete data, and possibly pushing the timeframe for that fix well into next year.
The final approval hearing is set for October 18. Clearing that final stage could depend on a California approval of VW’s fix. A hearing for the 3.0-liter TDI issue is scheduled for August 25.
Although customers may soon see some resolution, the drama continues for Volkswagen, which has suits from several individual states to settle. The customer remedy is expected to cost more than $10 billion, and as part of a deal with the U.S. Justice Department, the automaker is paying out $2 billion over a ten-year period to fund electric-vehicle charging infrastructure and other projects that curb tailpipe emissions.
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Streak’s Over: Fiat Chrysler Admits to Overstating U.S. Sales Reports
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Since the year started, Fiat Chrysler has faced a lawsuit alleging it padded monthly U.S. sales reports by paying dealerships to report unsold cars as sold. In a lengthy statement this afternoon, FCA said it has committed to “new methodology” in analyzing sales data and admitted its 71 consecutive months of year-over-year increases should have never occurred.
While FCA did not admit wrongdoing in the face of multiple investigations—including the lawsuit brought by two Chicago-area FCA dealers, plus fraud probes by the Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission—it revealed it had overstated U.S. sales by hundreds of cars each month since the start of 2011. That means FCA’s stated annual U.S. sales from 2011 until now have been off by thousands of cars each year or, as FCA puts it, “within approximately 0.7 percent of the annual unit sales volumes previously reported.” In 2015 alone, when FCA reported more than 2.2 million U.S. sales, that means more than 15,000 cars potentially weren’t actually sold.
At issue is what FCA calls an “unwind,” in which a dealer reverses a sales transaction after reporting it to FCA as sold. This happens frequently enough each month to all automakers, typically the result of a customer’s failing to secure financing or canceling an order, insurance claims, or any number of other valid reasons. But some FCA dealers, the company has admitted, have registered sales during one month and then reversed them the next month without FCA ever recording the change.
While FCA says its system only allows dealers to report a VIN once—so there can be no duplicates—the company, until now, had no method to exclude “unwinds” in one month or include previously reported sales that were actually delivered in the proceeding months. FCA says there were 4500 “unwound” cars in dealer stock as of June 30. Given FCA’s data, we can assume they’re referring to just this year alone, since new cars don’t sit on dealer lots for more than a few months at most.
FCA also said it was a “historical practice” to include a “reserve” of cars—press cars, employee cars, and fleet sales that hadn’t been delivered—into its monthly sales reports, since it was “probably originally designed to exclude from the reported sales number vehicles that were in transit to fleet customers, as well as vehicles that were not yet deployed in the field.” In other words, more cars that weren’t technically sold to anyone have been included in FCA’s monthly sales reports.
When FCA ran the numbers again accounting for these extra non-sales, it admitted that the company’s consecutive monthly year-over-year increases should have stopped in September 2013 instead of February 2016, as it had reported in March of this year. Instead of a whopping 71 months, the actual number was 40 months. Starting next month, FCA says it will report all of its future U.S. sales using this new methodology.
A sale, by definition, is when a customer takes delivery and the warranty period begins. FCA, in its own defense, also says that it will “reverse all incentives due or paid to a dealer that resulted from the unwound retail sales transaction.” It did not specify how it compensated dealers for such reported sales or take any stance on the lawsuit’s charges of fraud.
It’s not uncommon for dealers to report a sale when it didn’t happen, often to meet sales goals and free up allocation so it can order more cars, and then offer the “sold” new car at a discount as its warranty ticks away. It can also happen with loaner cars when the vehicles are registered to the dealer instead of a customer. Ultimately, dealers as independent franchisees only have to abide by as many checks and balances as their franchiser chooses to impart. We’re not certain how this gray area will affect FCA or any automaker in the long run, but it has certainly widened our skeptical eyes when all the latest sales reports come out next week.
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