The RP-4, dual supercharged big blocks, dual props - contra rotating variable pitch props

built by Eric Hereth, master machinist, fabricator and welder, built all components of this remarkable aircraft from scratch, with the exceptions of engine long blocks, wheels, and hydraulic components. Jerry Baer assisted in all phases of construction. The RP-4 is the brainchild of David Rose

Found on http://alternateissues.tumblr.com/ but for any information, see http://www.coonfield.net/blog/2007/06/tomorrow-record-breaker-rp4.htm

First Canadian Nissan LEAFs Sold Out within two hours

Over the weekend, Nissan Canada opened the reservation process for the Nissan LEAF, with all Model Year 11 inventory reserved by Canadian consumers within two hours. At noon on Saturday, August 27th, those registered at www.nissan.ca/leaf and living within the vicinity of one of the 27 Nissan LEAF certified dealers, were invited to reserve a Nissan LEAF, bringing them one step closer to having the all-electric car plugged into their home garage.

"Response from Canadians since we first revealed the Nissan LEAF in 2009 has been astounding so we're not surprised that our first inventory of 40 model year '11 cars were snapped up so quickly," said Judy Wheeler, Director of Marketing, Nissan Canada, Inc. "We expect this momentum to continue when we reopen reservations for model year '12 cars in the coming month, so keep your eyes open for more and more Nissan LEAFs driving around Canadians cities soon."

Delivery to the first wave of consumers will begin in September and continue into the fall. Nissan is carefully managing the purchase process from the first step, when consumers sign up on www.nissan.ca/leaf, until the customer drives the Nissan LEAF home and plugs it into a personal charging dock. Through Model Year 12, Nissan expects to release around 600 Nissan Leaf on the Canadian market through several waves of reservations into next year.

Reservations for Model Year 12 Nissan LEAFs will open in the coming months.

MPV on eurobippu style cars

catch-up some big ride on vipstyle..those people don't really care much of their ride on lowride the comfortness, what they really need is the stance and fitness their spirit in modification..that's reall dope guys

Cosworth Tuned Subaru WRX STI info

Legendary tuner Cosworth has collaborated with Japanese car maker Subaru to develop the Cosworth Impreza STI CS400 based on the Impreza WRX STI 'hot-hatch'.

The first genuine Cosworth-developed road car since 1996, the Cosworth Impreza STI CS400 is powered by a heavily tweaked 2.5-litre turbocharged ‘Boxer’ engine that produces 33 per cent more power than the donor car. Ddrawing heavily on Cosworth’s extensive Formula 1 experience, the engine, which drives all four wheels via a six-speed manual gearbox, boasts an impressive 294 kW and a 0-100 km/h time of just 3.7 seconds, making it one of the world's most accelerative hatchbacks. The quarter mile is covered in a brisk 12.75 seconds at a terminal speed of 172 km/h. Top speed is limited to 250 km/h.

The Cosworth Impreza STI CS400 features an extensive range of Cosworth-engineered components in the engine, turbo system, exhaust, suspension, brakes and wheels, plus subtle improvements to the exterior and interior styling to create a truly distinctive high performance car with everyday hatchback practicality.

Available in a choice of three exterior colours - Spark Silver, Dark Grey and San Remo Red - the Cosworth Impreza STI is, quite sadly, for the UK market only and is priced from £49,995 (AU$86,727). Only 75 units will be produced.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS
New Cosworth Impreza STI CS400

Body and Chassis
Five-door, five-seat hatchback, with all-steel unitary construction body shell. Longitudinally-mounted petrol boxer engines driving the front and rear wheels (AWD) via a six-speed manual transmission.

Engine
STI 2.5-litre / 400 PS
Name – Subaru Boxer
Type – DOHC, horizontally opposed ‘flat four’
Capacity – 2.5-litres, 2457 cc
Bore & Stroke – 99.5 x 79.0 mm
Compression ratio – 8.2:1
Max power – 400 PS (295 kW) @ 5,750 rpm
Max torque – 542 Nm (400 lb.ft) @ 3,950 rpm
Valves – 16 (4-per-cylinder) with Dual AVCS
Fuel system – Multi-point injection
Construction – Aluminium cylinder block and heads
Emissions class – Euro Stage 5

Transmission
Manual, Six-speed

Gear Ratios
1 – 3.636:1
2 – 2.235:1
3 – 1.590:1
4 – 1.137:1
5 – 0.891:1
6 – 0.707:1
Reverse – 3.545:1
Final Drive (rear) – 3.900:1

Drivetrains
Full-time all-wheel drive with centre differential and viscous coupling, plus Vehicle Dynamics Control, Rear limited-slip differential, Front limited-slip differential and Si-Drive adjustable centre differential

Suspension & Damping
Front – Fully independent subframe-mounted MacPherson Struts, with Eibach coil springs and gas-filled Bilstein shock absorbers. Anti-roll stabiliser bar
Rear – Fully independent subframe-mounted Multi-Link, Eibach coil springs and Bilstein gas-filled shock absorbers (adjustable) anti-roll bar

Steering
Type – Electric power-assisted rack & pinion
Gearing – 2.5 turns lock-to-lock
Turning circle (m) – 11.0

Brakes
Front – 355 x 32 mm ventilated discs with 6-pot callipers
Rear – 316 x 20 mm vented discs with single-pot callipers
ABS – Four-Channel anti-lock system with EBD

Wheels & Tyres
Alloy 18 x 8.5 inch, with 245 / 40 R18 directional tyres

Dimensions (mm)

Exterior
Overall length – 4,415
Overall width – 1,795*
Overall height – 1,475
Wheelbase – 2,625
Front track – 1,530
Rear track – 1,540
Ground clearance – 140
*excluding door mirrors

Interior (all models)
Headroom – 1,024 front / 951 rear
Legroom – 1,091 front / 960 rear
Shoulder room – 1,430 front / 1,426 rear
Hip room – 1,384 front / 1,370 rear

Capacities (all models)
Fuel tank – 60 litres
Luggage (VDA) – 301 litres (rear seats up) / 1,216 litres (rear seats down)

Weights (kg)
Curb weight (min.) – 1,505
Gross weight – 1,980

Performance
Top speed / mph – 155 (electronically limited
0-to-62 mph / sec – 3.7

Fuel Economy (mpg)
Combined cycle – [tbc]
CO2 g/km – [tbc]

Novo Land Rover Defender

A Land Rover apresentou a primeira imagem do DC100 Concept que adiante como será a nova geração do Land Rover Defender a principal atração do estande da fabricante no Salão de Frankfurt.



A produção do novo Defender está prevista para 2015.



De acordo com a Land Rover, o novo conceito Land Rover DC100 baseia-se nos elementos essenciais do carácter do carro e permite à Land Rover abrir um debate e inspirar as pessoas a sonhar com o futuro do Defender.

Frankfurt preview: Ford Evos concept videos # 2

Citroën launches its first diesel hybrid, the Citroën DS5 [video]

The final production version of the new Citroën DS5 will star at the Frankfurt motor show next month, and will usher in the HYbrid4 technology the French firm shares with sister marque Peugeot.

The five-door hatchback is the third model in Citroën's 'premium' DS line, following on from the DS3 and the recently launched DS4.

DS5 is the first Citroën model to feature HYbrid4 diesel hybrid technology, providing enhanced performance and class leading environmental credentials. The advanced HYbrid4 system delivers 200bhp; four-wheel drive capability; emission-free electric power for the city; and an acceleration boost function for the open road - with total CO2 emissions of just 99g/km.

The DS5 is Citroën’s first car to feature a full-hybrid drivetrain combining a two-litre HDi diesel engine with electric power. HYbrid4 technology offers 200bhp, four-wheel drive, electric power and will come with an automatic six-speed gearbox with optimised shift function and a stop/start system.

Co2 emissions are as low as 99g/km depending on which performance setting is used. Like other cars featuring HYbrid4, the DS5 will offer a choice of: 'auto', which automatically switches between the diesel engine and the electric motor to optimise fuel consumption; 'zero emission vehicle', for driving with the 27kW (37bhp) electric motor alone, at speeds of up to 37mph; ‘four wheel drive’, where the front wheels are powered by the diesel engine and the rears by the electric motor and ‘Sport’, which improves the engine response by maximising the use of the electric unit and the diesel.

The car's cockpit, which Citroën says is 'aviation-inspired' is fitted with premium materials including club leather and brushed aluminium.

Technology such as intelligent traction control, a new-generation lane departure warning system; an automatic high-beam function that activates and deactivates depending on light conditions and surrounding traffic and a reverse parking camera is included.

Frankfurt preview : Ford Evos concept

 

In less than two weeks at the Frankfurt Motor Show, Ford will take the wraps off of a new four-door, four-seat fastback concept car with a plug-in hybrid powertrain that will serve as a centerpiece for both its future design and technology.

The Evos concept car signals a new design direction for Ford.

 Watch the other video

“We wanted the Ford Evos Concept to give a clear message about where Ford design is heading,” said J Mays, Ford’s design chief. “Our exciting new design DNA has been developed and refined by an intensive effort by all of our talented global design team.”

Penned in both the United States and Europe, the Evos is a fastback coupe-like car with four gullwing-style doors. While we wouldn’t look for those unique portals to make production, it’s safe to say that the more aggressive front fascia with its angled, almost Aston Martin-esque front grille will serve as inspiration for future Ford products.

Evos is about the length of a C-segment compact car, but it’s wider than typical in order to give it a more sport-oriented stance.

Inside, Evos boasts a driver-oriented cabin with limited switchgear. Instead, the car features a high-tech, cloud-based system of displays that actively grab information to both present it to the driver and to modify the vehicle for various conditions. For example, Ford says that Evos will automatically change steering and suspension response in accordance to varying weather conditions it might discern from cloud-based information sources.

Ford says it thinks of the Evos as a personal assistant, not a vehicular smartphone. The automaker says it is considering new systems that will help better integrate its infotainment devices – like those powered by its Microsoft Sync system – into the driving experience. For example, it says that the Evos could be programmed to automatically close a garage door or turn off lights when it senses it is leaving a user’s house.

“The cloud-connected vision shows the enormous potential of tailoring the driving experience to suit the exact personal tastes and moods of the driver,” said Paul Mascarenas, the company’s global research and innovation chief. “From recommending a great driving road from friends on your social networks or resetting your alarm clock to let you sleep in when a morning meeting gets cancelled.”

Powering this concept is a lithium ion plug-in hybrid powertrain that Ford says offers the same performance and fuel economy as the Ford C-MAX Energi the automaker will introduce here next year. [via : Leftlane]

Land Rover hints next-gen Defender with DC100 concept

The future of Land Rover’s iconic Defender model – a direct descendent of the original military-inspired models of 1948 – has long been in doubt, but a new concept car set to debut in less than two weeks at the Frankfurt Motor Show should clear things up.

Land Rover says that a new Defender will launch in 2015, and while the automaker hasn’t released many details, the next-generation off roader will have to be quite a bit different to meet increasingly stringent global safety and emissions regulations. Land Rover isn’t commenting on North American availability, although the British brand hasn’t officially ruled out such a possibility.

The DC100 is what Land Rover calls a “modern interpretation” of the Defender. Penned under the watch of design chief Gerry McGovern, the DC100 clearly departs from the current Defender in a number of ways – like its much larger wheels and almost vintage Ford Bronco-like side profile.

For now, Land Rover is keeping quiet on just what platform the concept car rides on and the automaker hasn’t made any hints about what’s under its hood. We’d guess it features a shortened version of the LR4 and Range Rover Sport architecture and a 3.0-liter turbodiesel. A hybrid system is also a distinct possibility since Land Rover is likely needing to show off a greener image for the Defender.

As for off road capability, the DC100 concept looks like it will rely more on a sophisticated traction control system than the big rubber and articulating solid axles of the current model. That’s a trick that has worked well for those few LR4s and Range Rovers that venture off the pavement, so it should combine well with the DC100′s approach and departure angles to make a surprisingly adept performer.

For worst case scenarios, Land Rover has chosen to include a built-in winch. [via : Leftlane]

Siemens and Volvo Form Electric-Car Venture

German industrial conglomerate Siemens AG said Wednesday it has agreed with Sweden's Volvo Car Corp. on a strategic cooperation agreement on electric cars.

The focus will be on the joint development of electrical-drive technology, power electronics and charging technology as well as the integration of those systems into Volvo C 30 Electric cars, Munich-based Siemens said in a statement.

It added that the first vehicles will be on the test tracks at the end of this year.

Beginning in late 2012, Volvo will be delivering a test series of up to 200 vehicles to Siemens, which will then be tested as part of an internal Siemens test fleet, the German company said.

Volvo Car Corp. was last year acquired by China's Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co. from Ford Motor Co.

For Siemens, the partnership is another step toward a greener image. Siemens touts itself as a pioneer in electric vehicles, and developed electric trams as early as the end of the 19th century.

Cooperations between companies are increasingly common in the development of environmentally friendly vehicles as a means to share the high entry costs and risks. General Motors Co. and LG Electronics Inc. also recently announced their partnership in the development of electric vehicles.

Peugeot 2020 HX1 MPV Concept to Debut @ Frankfurt Motor Show

The French car manufacturer Peugeot will officially present an MPV Concept at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September, under the HX1 name and as a 2020 model year.

According to the automaker, the HX1 will be a diesel-electric plug-in hybrid and will come with the most advanced version of Peugeot’s all-wheel drive, while it will take its power from a 2.2 liter HDi unit, delivering 204 BHP and mated to a six-speed automatic transmission sending power to the front wheels, while the 95 BHP electric motor, fed by a lithium-ion battery pack will drive the rear wheels.

The new Peugeot Concept has an amazing fuel economy, burning only 88.2 mpg and emitting just 83g/km, while the 5008 model, with the 1.6 HDi 112 BHP unit, has a combined fuel consumption of 55.4 mpg and 134g/km of CO2 emissions.

French designers haven’t been too inspired while creating this concept and the grille has been seen on the SR1 and HR1 show models, but what catches the eye best are the doors, which open in a scissor style, upwards and outwards, for an easy access to the interior.

Further details about the 2020 HX1 MPV Concept will be revealed at the Peugeot stand at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September.

More in the odd animals pulling carts that I've posted, there were zebra, a rhino, dogs, sheep, and ostrich... now here are Moose carts

all photos from the article on moose carts at http://tywkiwdbi.blogspot.com/2011/02/can-moose-be-used-as-beast-of-burden.html

Starting July 1st, solo drivers of hybrid cars in California will see their special pass to the car pool lane disappear.

85,000 were issued to hybrids. Prius and Honda Civic and others.

Since 2004, hybrid owners with a special permit were allowed entry into California’s High-Occupancy-Vehicle (HOV) lanes even when driving alone. 

The special yellow key-shaped decals that denoted access quickly became a must-have for traffic-weary hybrid owners, and added up to $1,500 to the resale value of the hybrid that sported one against its more mundane siblings.

read the whole story at

http://www.thecarconnection.com/news/1062439_california-hybrid-drivers-lose-car-pool-lane-privileges

Why is it called a dashboard?

What we know as dashboards, not the one on your computer, in cars- are evolved from the early dashes in horse carriages and buggys. The dash board was the boards or material dropcloth that kept the horses back feet from splashing mud and muck onto the driver and carriage... the carriages became motorized and the dashboards were the best place for the first gauges, so the dashboards became the instrument panels

from the above splash guard behind the horse, to

Sparked by an article http://tywkiwdbi.blogspot.com/2011/02/why-is-it-called-dashboard.html

Ford Fiesta Speed Cars

Ford Fiesta
Ford Fiesta
Ford Fiesta
Ford Fiesta
Ford Fiesta

fire engine loses a tire, that rolls away, and tackles a taxi

Munsters and pinups from Oldschoolking33

Awesome damn couch. Pistons and conrods for couch legs

found on http://oldschoolking33.tumblr.com/

2011 BMW X1 sDrive20d EfficientDynamics Edition

Bmw X1 coming to the U.S. in 2013, after it gets a facelift

BMW’s X1 is much-awaited in U.S. shores but its arrival has been delayed further to this fall instead of in the spring of 2011. It has been offered in Europe for some time now and it had already gone on sale in Canada and in several countries in Asia. One of the primary reasons for the delay is the high demand in Europe. As a result, its plant in Leipzig, Germany has been operating at full capacity.

In addition, BMW is faced with the rising demand in the U.S. as the economy is recovering, according to Insideline.

Last May, BMW’s US chief Jim O’Donnell revealed that the X1 may be pushed back further and arrive only towards the end of next year. This was said to be due to the demand for the X3, which has significantly boosted BMW’s profits. Inside Line said that there may be even more delay as it’s likely to arrive together with the facelifted version, which may come in 2013.[via - 4wheelsnews]

Photo : 2011 BMW X1 sDrive20d EfficientDynamics Edition

What the? Ever seen long upswept headers like these? I haven't

weedburners I get, but the 3 cars with zoomies up to the drivers head height.... never seen them before

found on http://oldschoolking33.tumblr.com/

EARLY bikini car wash... more like one piece swimsuit car wash, but that really doesn't grab attention

found on http://oldschoolking33.tumblr.com/

Batgirls motorcycle and the catmobile

ridiculous props, but somehow that generation loved the Batman tv show.

Both found on http://are2.tumblr.com/

Dirty ol men need love too... it's what the rear spoiler has written, but is that why she's hanging around the race car?

found on http://flaviendachet.blogspot.com/

Old Top Gear EV1 Electric [video]

Old Top Gear from 1997 Quentin Willson roadtests the EV1 Electric

This clip was extracted from the episode that was first broadcast on the 24th April 1997

Toyota set new EV Lap Record @ Nürburgring [video]

Toyota Motorsport GmbH (TMG) has set a new lap record for an electric vehicle (EV) at the legendary 20.8km Nürburgring Nordschleife circuit in Germany.

The TMG EV P001, with 100% electric powertrain and Jochen Krumbach at the wheel, set a new lap record of 7mins 47.794secs to beat the previous lap record, which stood at 9mins 1.338secs, by a very substantial margin.

Using two electric motors, the TMG electric powertrain has a top speed of 260km/h which combined with 800Nm of torque to achieve impressive speeds on the extremely challenging Nordschleife track, which includes significant elevation changes and lengthy flat-out sections.

TMG's target prior to the 29 August record run was to become the first electric vehicle break the eight-minute barrier and this was achieved comfortably on a day when the notoriously changeable Nürburgring weather stayed fine, although track temperatures were relatively low.

Such performance shows TMG's electric powertrain is ideal to power any future single-make electric motorsport series and TMG will begin commercial sales of this technology in 2012. TMG continues to advance its electric vehicle capability for motorsport applications with in-house development of the electric powertrain and ongoing investigations into alternative chassis solutions.

Pascal Vasselon, TMG's Technical Director, said: "The goals for this project were twofold: obviously we wanted to set a new EV lap record and I am very pleased we could achieve that so comprehensively. On the other hand, we also wanted to learn more about the operation of our electric powertrain in extreme circumstances; in motorsport there is no more extreme circuit than the Nürburgring. On the record lap the TMG EV P001 performed better than in testing due to the improvement we already could make based on that experience. We have enhanced our electric powertrain development thanks to the information our engineers have gained and our future EV products will benefit from this project."

Rob Leupen, TMG's Director Business Operations, said: "This is a very impressive achievement which really shows the huge potential for electric powertrains to deliver fast, exciting action on the race track. There's no doubt that electric motorsport can be every bit as thrilling as traditional racing and it was an amazing sensation to watch the TMG electric vehicle fly past on the Nordschleife, with only the sound of wind rushing past and tyres squealing. To achieve a new lap record at the first attempt, and by such a huge margin, is a great achievement and I am very proud to see TMG's name in the record books. But this is not the end of the story for TMG and I hope we will see our electric powertrains in action on the track again soon."

The new lap record was completed on road-legal tyres, using the complete Nordschleife track. It was verified by independent lap timing.

TMG extends its thanks to its partners in this achievement: Aguti created and implemented the livery concept while rational motion integrated the electric powertrain, traction battery and control strategies. EVO Electric motor technology delivered the power. The TMG EV P001 is based on a Radical chassis as modified by TMG for e-WOLF.

FIA call for Expressions of Interest for 2013 Electric Racing Series

The Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile is the governing body for world motor sport
and the federation of the world's leading motoring organisations. It is a non‐profit making
association and brings together 228 national motoring and sporting organisations from 132
countries on five continents. Its member clubs represent millions of motorists and their
families.

In the context of an increasing environmental pressure on human activities, motorsport
occupies a particular position of responsibility and has a long tradition of pioneering
technological progress. The FIA holds a unique position to offer a perfect showcase for the
development and the promotion of innovative solutions to ensure that mobility remains
environmentally friendly.

One of the federation's main objectives is to work on the creation of a new high profile
championship, designed to be the flagship of the FIA's sustainable strategy: the FIA Formula
E Championship ("Championship").

The FIA has set itself the target to launch this Championship in 2013. As such the federation
calls for expressions of interest to identify a candidate interested in acting as the official and
exclusive agent of the FIA for the organisation and promotion of the Championship under
the Key Parameters defined in Appendix A, with a view to concluding a three year contract
(2013, 2014 and 2015).

The selection process is open to all candidates capable of conducting such a role for the
organisation and the promotion of this Championship.

2012 Cadillac SRX