Category: Fun

A new British sports car is being developed by a former McLaren engineer, Jim Dowle, who expects to launch a prototype within the next 18 months.

The future sports car will aim at taking on the established Lotus Exige model. It will be powered by a mid-mounted powertrain whose power output will be around 200bhp. At this moment Dowle is reviewing several engines that could match the car’s requirements. Following the example of Lotus, the future Exige challenger would focus on weight reduction and will weigh 870kg. Doyle wants the car to be offered at a competitive price tag of £35,000 although he didn’t mention how many units would be built every year.

Jim Doyle brings a proven expertise to the project as he worked on the F1 road car and the SLR under the leadership of Gordon Murray. I think readers will agree that there is no better classroom than that!’

Source: Pistonheads

A new world record has been broken as someone paid the highest amount ever for the number plate “1” in the Middle East.

An Emirati businessman placed a bid of 52.2 million dirhams, about £7.4 million, for plate number ‘1’ at an auction in Abu Dhabi. The owner was ready to bid up 100 million dirhams to acquire the plate.

Buyer Saeed Abdul Ghaffar Khouri told local reporters from ArabianBusiness that he hadn’t bought the plate as investment but predicted its value would likely double within two years.

Source photo: ArabianBusiness

The Yes! roadster will be sold in the U.S. this year as company plans to display its model at the next Chicago Motor Show.

Despite its characteristics, the Yes! roadster is not British but German. Do not expect a power feast as engineers have focused on weight reduction. The Yes! only weighs 1,960lbs on the scales. Powered by the Audi 3.2-litre V6 petrol engine, the Yes! offers an attractive power-to-weight ratio of 281bhp per tonne.

If you’re still unsatisfied by the figure, the Yes! will be soon offered with a turbocharged engine whose power will reach 355bhp. With a weight of 2,050lbs, the power-to-weight ratio will jump from 281 to 382bhp per tonne. With such figures, the turbocharged Yes! will run the 0-60mph in 3.9 seconds just like the future SL 65 Black Series and will have a top speed of 174mph.

If you are a Top Gear aficionado, you have probably watched all the seasons. Well, if you a son, it’s time to educate him to the best things in life thanks to Top Gear which sells various toys which will likely remind you the best episodes.

Let’s start with the great Aygo football match that featured two team of Aygos and a giant ball: £29.50

Don’t forget the Areil Atom: £9.99

We all remember the Reliant Shuttle which did rather well for a first attempt: £19.99

If you want to be generous, jump on the Top Gear circuit: £65.

Generally, supercar features carbon fiber material in order to save weight but it’s very expensive. So a group of students from North Carolina State University have had the idea to build a wooden supercar. Purpose is to explore the use of new materials in the automotive industry and you won’t remain stony-faced.

Dubbed Splinter, the supercar features a wooden platform on which are assembled various components made in part of wood such as the suspension or the alloy wheels. The car is powered by a Cadillac Northstar V8 engine. With the help of two superchargers, it pumps out 600bhp. The team will have to solve the heating problem generated by the wooden body which should reflect the heat back to the engine.

Nobody has forgotten the diving Lotus Esprit driven by James Bond in the movie The Spy Who Loved Me but truth is that only gadgets inventor Q was crazy enough to invent such a car until Rinspeed has announced the sQuba model, the submersible car, due to be unveiled at the next Geneva Motor Show.

At the push of a button, the car becomes a small submarine able to dive up to 33ft under water. The car is powered by an electric engine on the road and propelled by two small electric units under water. Secrecy surrounds the exact spec of the unique car but let’s thank the company’s CEO Frank N.Rinderknecht to make us to dream again.

According to the Italian importer, the Noble M15 will feature a Volvo V8 instead of the current Ford V6. The launch date remains unknown. Available on the Volvo S80 and XC90, the 4.4 litres V8 will gain a couple of turbochargers. The power will jump from 313 bhp to 650 bhp.

The current V6, which was available on the former Ford Mondeo ST220, allowed Lee Noble access to a reliable and competitive engine. Unfortunately, its replacement by the Ford Duratec 35 led Noble to revise his copy. Designed by Yamaha, the Volvo’s V8 has a unique 60 degree cylinder bank instead of the usual 90 degree cylinder bank.

The Noble M15 will also lose 100kg compared to the original prototype unveiled in early 2006. With only 1100kg and a new V8 engine, it will run the 0-60mph in around 3.0 seconds.

Car configurators are never very much fun. They are dedicated either to mainstream cars with dull packages or supercars with few options. At least, that was the case before the configurator for the new Gran Turismo went online. With the Maserati configurator you do not waste your time on the optional packages but on the colours for the paintwork and the brake callipers. On the inside, you can change every piece of leather and every trim. There is only one downside to this configurator: you have to register to use it. This involves filling in a long and complicated form. But do not let this put you off. The reward is worth it.

Click here to configurate your future Maserati Gran Turismo

On July 17 the German tuner MTM tried to achieve a new speed record with its famous Audi TT Bimoto. The target was to crack the Bugatti Veyron’s record but, despite all efforts, the Audi TT failed by a few miles. It reached 244.2mph/393km/h on the Papenburg test track in Germany.

As the name suggests, the MTM Audi TT distinguishes itself from the crowd by its two engines, one under the bonnet and one in the boot. Both are turbocharged 1.8 litre engines coupled with DSG gearboxes. Altogether, both engines produce more than 1000 bhp, transferred to the ground via a four wheel drive system. The car runs the 0-60ph in 3.5 seconds and reaches 120mph in less than 10 seconds.

For the record attempt, MTM engineers added a a new air intake on the rear window to cool the new intercooler. MTM will make another attempt in Nardo, Italy, in the autumn.

Here is a masterpiece that only the internet allows us to find. A thirty minute video of the legendary Indy 500 made in 1941 and filmed in colour! Pure bliss.