Showing posts with label new. Show all posts
Showing posts with label new. Show all posts
Wednesday, December 5, 2012
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Lexus GS 350 AWD (2013)
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
EVs present at Newcastle low carbon congress
The Baltic centre for contemporary art hosts the first Green Vehicle Congress this week.
Only a week after the announcement that the Nissan plant in Sunderland would be manufacturing Nissan's new EV the Leaf, the Baltic gallery and Gateshead will be hosting a conference on green vehicles, focusing on EVs, hydrogen vehicles and hybrids. Visitors will be arriving from all over the world, from as far away as Japan, Korea and the USA.
Tarmac stumbled across the conference today and was able to grab some photos of the alternative-fuel vehicles on display.
The congress has been organised by Cenex, the UK’s Centre of Excellence for Low Carbon and Fuel Cell Technologies.
Hot on the heels of the announcement that the North East of England will be building Nissan's new EV and benefiting from over a thousand new re-charging points, the conference will discuss the importance of alternative fuels and low carbon transport.
More information is available here.
(All images ©Tarmac 2010)
Only a week after the announcement that the Nissan plant in Sunderland would be manufacturing Nissan's new EV the Leaf, the Baltic gallery and Gateshead will be hosting a conference on green vehicles, focusing on EVs, hydrogen vehicles and hybrids. Visitors will be arriving from all over the world, from as far away as Japan, Korea and the USA.Tarmac stumbled across the conference today and was able to grab some photos of the alternative-fuel vehicles on display.
The congress has been organised by Cenex, the UK’s Centre of Excellence for Low Carbon and Fuel Cell Technologies.Hot on the heels of the announcement that the North East of England will be building Nissan's new EV and benefiting from over a thousand new re-charging points, the conference will discuss the importance of alternative fuels and low carbon transport.
More information is available here.
(All images ©Tarmac 2010)
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Facelifted Elise - lower drag, new engine
Autocar brings news that Lotus has given the Elise a mild facelift and some new mechanicals. The new look brings the car in line with the styling of the Evora, but importantly also reduces drag which, combined with the new engine option, improves fuel economy and reduces emissions.
That new engine is a VVTi Toyota powerplant similar to those currently used in the Elise, but in a new 1.6 litre displacement. The new motor will power the basic Elise S model, and reduces emissions to 155g/km of CO2. As a conservative estimate, fuel economy should be in the early forties mpg, yet coupled to a new close-ratio six-speed gearbox, performance even from the basic 1.6 should be as impressive as ever.
The car is expected to start arriving in showrooms in April.
(Image: Autocar)
That new engine is a VVTi Toyota powerplant similar to those currently used in the Elise, but in a new 1.6 litre displacement. The new motor will power the basic Elise S model, and reduces emissions to 155g/km of CO2. As a conservative estimate, fuel economy should be in the early forties mpg, yet coupled to a new close-ratio six-speed gearbox, performance even from the basic 1.6 should be as impressive as ever.The car is expected to start arriving in showrooms in April.
(Image: Autocar)
Friday, February 12, 2010
New VW Touareg sheds 200kg
Following in the Polo's footsteps, Volkswagen has revealed that the next version of their Touareg will shed as much as 208kg in the base model and offer up to 20% improvements in economy.
The weight saving amounts to as much as 10% removed from the kerb weight of the previous Touareg, and coupled with improved aerodynamics and updated engines, including a new hybrid motor, the new Touareg promises to be one of the most efficient large SUVs on the market.
According to Volkswagen's press release (available on ABG), the new Touareg also offers more space, more equipment (including stop/start technology) and more off-road biased options packages. Visually, the new car shares Volkswagen's family face first seen on the Scirocco, and it works well with the slightly more chiselled body, making the car look much smaller and more dynamic.
Of course, the weight savings on the Touareg will be reflected in the upcoming Audi Q7 and Porsche Cayenne, which share the same platform. Perhaps Volkswagen's step onto the treadmill will encourage other manufactures to do the same with their larger vehicles - the biggest gains can be found from improving the efficiency of the biggest vehicles.
(Image: Volkswagen)
The weight saving amounts to as much as 10% removed from the kerb weight of the previous Touareg, and coupled with improved aerodynamics and updated engines, including a new hybrid motor, the new Touareg promises to be one of the most efficient large SUVs on the market.
According to Volkswagen's press release (available on ABG), the new Touareg also offers more space, more equipment (including stop/start technology) and more off-road biased options packages. Visually, the new car shares Volkswagen's family face first seen on the Scirocco, and it works well with the slightly more chiselled body, making the car look much smaller and more dynamic.Of course, the weight savings on the Touareg will be reflected in the upcoming Audi Q7 and Porsche Cayenne, which share the same platform. Perhaps Volkswagen's step onto the treadmill will encourage other manufactures to do the same with their larger vehicles - the biggest gains can be found from improving the efficiency of the biggest vehicles.
(Image: Volkswagen)
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Honda CR-Z finally revealed in full
Having been the subject of brochure leaks and other sneak previews for many months now, Honda's hybrid CR-Z has finally been officially unveiled at the Detroit motor show.
The production car, though less dramatic than the concept, still looks great and remains remarkably close to the original design. Sharing styling cues with both the first and second-generation Insight hybrids and the first two generations of CRX, Honda claims that the car will be great fun to drive despite its modest power output of 122bhp and 128lb/ft of torque (at a low 1000-1500rpm). All this is provided by a 1.5 litre VTEC four-cylinder with Honda's IMA (Integrated Motor Assist) hybrid system.
The 60mph from rest benchmark comes up in just under ten seconds - not a figure that will set the world alight, but enough in a compact and lightweight hatch to have some fun, especially on UK roads. Honda's intentions for a great drive are spoken loudly by their decision to offer a six-speed manual transmission as well as the CVT typical of normal hybrids, and the CVT itself offers a paddle-shift mode. As with many modern cars with "sporting" intentions, the CR-Z offers a three-mode drive system with normal, sport and economy settings.
Economy on America's EPA cycle is estimated (in UK gallons) at 43mpg city and 46mpg highway for the CVT model and 37mpg/44mpg for the manual transmission, though this is of course determined by whether you choose to drive it like a hot hatch or like a hybrid...
The CR-Z is expected to go on sale in the Summer. If there's one car that Tarmac test drives this year, the CR-Z will be it! (Yes, those promised drives will start happening eventually...)
(All images: AutoBlog)
The production car, though less dramatic than the concept, still looks great and remains remarkably close to the original design. Sharing styling cues with both the first and second-generation Insight hybrids and the first two generations of CRX, Honda claims that the car will be great fun to drive despite its modest power output of 122bhp and 128lb/ft of torque (at a low 1000-1500rpm). All this is provided by a 1.5 litre VTEC four-cylinder with Honda's IMA (Integrated Motor Assist) hybrid system.The 60mph from rest benchmark comes up in just under ten seconds - not a figure that will set the world alight, but enough in a compact and lightweight hatch to have some fun, especially on UK roads. Honda's intentions for a great drive are spoken loudly by their decision to offer a six-speed manual transmission as well as the CVT typical of normal hybrids, and the CVT itself offers a paddle-shift mode. As with many modern cars with "sporting" intentions, the CR-Z offers a three-mode drive system with normal, sport and economy settings.
Economy on America's EPA cycle is estimated (in UK gallons) at 43mpg city and 46mpg highway for the CVT model and 37mpg/44mpg for the manual transmission, though this is of course determined by whether you choose to drive it like a hot hatch or like a hybrid...The CR-Z is expected to go on sale in the Summer. If there's one car that Tarmac test drives this year, the CR-Z will be it! (Yes, those promised drives will start happening eventually...)
(All images: AutoBlog)
Monday, August 3, 2009
Smart Roadster to return?
This is the news Tarmac has been waiting for - Autocar has released details that Mercedes-Benz has applied for several patents for a new three-seater Smart, touted to be known as the ForThree, in keeping with the names of other Smart models.
As you can see from the images, the new car will have a seating layout similar to that of the McLaren F1 supercar, with the driver sitting centrally and passengers behind and to either side of the cockpit.
According to the drawings and Autocar, the central seat is designed to swivel and slide towards the door to ease access. The car could potentially use both petrol and diesel units that Smart currently produce, and it may even be available with an EV option by the proposed 2014 release date. Mercedes are also developing a dual-clutch seven-speed transmission for use in the next A-Class, and this may even find it's way into future Smarts such as the ForThree.
The first generation roadster was nowhere near as popular as it was expected to be, selling just over 43,000 units in its two year production run. If Mercedes and Smart can find the right price for the ForThree, they may well overcome the main hurdle the first model faced - it's expense compared to more powerful and practical rivals.
Tarmac will be keeping a keen eye on the progress of this story and will bring you further developments as they happen.
As you can see from the images, the new car will have a seating layout similar to that of the McLaren F1 supercar, with the driver sitting centrally and passengers behind and to either side of the cockpit.According to the drawings and Autocar, the central seat is designed to swivel and slide towards the door to ease access. The car could potentially use both petrol and diesel units that Smart currently produce, and it may even be available with an EV option by the proposed 2014 release date. Mercedes are also developing a dual-clutch seven-speed transmission for use in the next A-Class, and this may even find it's way into future Smarts such as the ForThree.
The first generation roadster was nowhere near as popular as it was expected to be, selling just over 43,000 units in its two year production run. If Mercedes and Smart can find the right price for the ForThree, they may well overcome the main hurdle the first model faced - it's expense compared to more powerful and practical rivals.Tarmac will be keeping a keen eye on the progress of this story and will bring you further developments as they happen.
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