CARSCOOP |  |
- New BMW 2-Series Coming on October 25, Watch the Teaser
- Ford Boasts About its Police Interceptors Beating Dodge, Chevy in Michigan Speed Tests
- Mercedes Ad Has Schumacher Walking By an S-Class With Intelligent Drive…
- Lamborghini's Exotic Veneno Roadster will Take You to 355KM/H or 221MPH Without a Top
- Get Your Very Own Iconic Virginia International Raceway Oak via Cloning
| New BMW 2-Series Coming on October 25, Watch the Teaser Posted: 19 Oct 2013 11:20 AM PDT  Over the past year, we have filled our knowledge box with plenty of details on the new BMW 2-Series, from its exterior and interior looks, to more recently, its launch specifications, so the time is ripe for the official presentation, which according to the first official teaser, will take place next Friday, October 25. The 1-Series Coupe replacing model will be followed shortly after by a soft-top convertible edition sporting the same range of exclusively turbocharged inline four- and six cylinder powerplants. Common engines for Europe, North America and other western regions will include the gasoline-fueled 240hp 2.0-liter four-pot turbo on the 228i and the 322hp (326PS) 3.0-liter turbo six on the M235i. The Old Continent will also receive a base 2.0-liter turbo gasoline with 181hp and a selection of diesel units. We expect some of the engines to be offered with all-wheel drive as well.        |
| Ford Boasts About its Police Interceptors Beating Dodge, Chevy in Michigan Speed Tests Posted: 19 Oct 2013 10:35 AM PDT  Automakers love to boast about their police vehicles: last month we had Dodge tell us about the Charger Pursuit AWD setting the fastest lap for an all-wheel-drive test sedan at Grattan Raceway, now Ford has news regarding its police vehicles. Ford says its EcoBoost-powered Police Interceptor sedan was faster than the Chevrolet Caprice V8 and Hemi-powered Dodge Charger Pursuit in Michigan State Police's acceleration testing, while the Police Interceptor utility bested the Chevrolet Tahoe V8. Preliminary results show the 365hp 2014 Ford Police Interceptor sedan with standard all-wheel drive posted a 0 to 60 mph (96 km/h) time of 5.66 seconds, compared to 6.04 seconds for the Dodge Charger Hemi with optional all-wheel drive and 6.01 seconds for the Chevrolet Caprice V8. The gap was even greater in 0-100 mph (161 km/h) testing: Ford Police Interceptor clocked 13.5 seconds, followed by the Caprice with 14.35 seconds and the Charger with 14.70 seconds. Ford's Police Interceptor utility vehicle powered by the 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6 and fitted as standard with all-wheel drive sprinted from 0 to 60 mph in 6.28 seconds and to 100 mph in 15.51 seconds, compared to 8.22 seconds and 21.95 seconds respectively for the Chevrolet Tahoe powered by a 5.3-liter V8. Michigan State Police also tested the base 3.7-liter V6 Interceptor utility, which was also faster than the Tahoe with 8.02 seconds and 21.0 seconds, respectively. "Agencies tell us if the bad guys see the police vehicle quickly close in pursuit, they're less likely to try to run," said Bill Gubing, Ford chief engineer. "If this can help reduce the number of high-speed chases, then we could improve public safety on our nation's roads." By Dan Mihalascu              |
| Mercedes Ad Has Schumacher Walking By an S-Class With Intelligent Drive… Posted: 19 Oct 2013 09:14 AM PDT  The life of an ad man must be a very difficult one nowadays – many good ideas have been done, many good punch lines have been said at least twice and in most known languages, adding on top of that the pressure of not having a truly innovative product to promote, in a copycat world of corporate interests. Actually, it seems that the rut they're in is so deep, that even when they are on to something new and interesting to tell the people about, they still overdo it. Whoever Mercedes-Benz hired to do a promo for their Intelligent Drive system did just that and ended up having Michael Schumacher (who can drive…quite well) walk by one of their S-Class sedans finished in one of the million shades of silver you can order – he could have at least sat in the car, and shown us the swoopy dashboard. I mean it's a luxurious car with one of the nicest-looking interiors in the world that will in the near future be able to drive itself – it's not really hard to sell the concept, and even if it was imperative to go down the retired F1 driver route, they could have at least used their time with Schumacher better. At least the previous ad in the series had more motion in it and actually had a purpose for the chickens to be there and be moved around in the manner that they were. The second video posted is a teaser for something bigger that is to come, also featuring the retired F1 star - check both out after the virtual jump. By Andrei Nedelea    |
| Lamborghini's Exotic Veneno Roadster will Take You to 355KM/H or 221MPH Without a Top Posted: 19 Oct 2013 07:51 AM PDT  Some people collect Vipers (the car or the venomous snake), some collect scale models and no doubt, there is someone, somewhere, who collects hubcaps from vintage Russian vehicles (hey, who are we to judge?). Then there are those extremely fortunate individuals who can afford to collect exotic and supercars from the likes of Lamborghini, which is more than happy to cater to their exclusive needs. After producing three Veneno coupes, Lamborghini has now announced the release of a permanently open edition of the (street-legal) racing prototype of which only nine cars will be built during the course of 2014, each carrying a pre-tax price of €3.3 million, or about $4.5 million. What you see in these pictures is what you get as the Veneno Roadster has no protective roof, just a rollover bar for safety. Other than that, it's the same Aventador-based supercar as the Veneno coupe we saw earlier this year, with highlights including a monocoque and a body made entirely from carbon-fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) and carbon-ceramic brake discs. There's plenty more carbon fiber to be found in the interior of the Roadster, from the central tunnel and the sills to the structure of the lightweight bucket seats. Lamborghini says it developed the "Rosso Veneno" seen in the (computer rendered?) photos exclusively for the Veneno Roadster, but each customer will be able to "individualize his own vehicle to suit his personal preferences". The Roadster tips the proverbial scales at 1,490 kilograms (3,278 pounds) with the mid-mounted 6.5-liter V12 thrusting out 740bhp (750PS) for a power-to-weight ratio of 1.99 kg/hp (4.38 lbs/hp). The standard sprint to 100km/h (62mph) is achieved in 2.9 seconds with the car topping out at 355 km/h (221 mph).                   |
| Get Your Very Own Iconic Virginia International Raceway Oak via Cloning Posted: 19 Oct 2013 07:07 AM PDT  Most racetracks intentionally don't have trees anywhere in close proximity to the driven tarmac, but the Virginia International Raceway had one, until it fell earlier in the year. Now, the track is a little bit safer since there's no massive oak to smash into on the inside of the tightening double-apex right-hander, but it's also a far less evocative place… The iconic old oak had been there for around 200 years, and the turn seems to have been made in such a way so as to curve exactly around it – it was a feature, and one that made all photos taken with it in the background better. Its loss was such a tragedy, that according to Road&Track, the management came up with the idea of trying to clone the tree, and then sell saplings on to whomever would be interested in having one. All of the tricky lab work will be done by Virginia Tech's Institute for Advanced Learning and Research, though, currently it is not a sure thing – the cloning process can fail. We'll have to wait and see if it's successful so that fans of the track then plant the result wherever they please, so that people two centuries in the future will be able to enjoy the sight of thousands of huge oaks planted randomly across the land. At the track, the place where the original stood may even be covered with tarmac, as it is widened and upgraded to host the new United Sports Car series. The videos posted below show what the turn was like with the tree and what it's like now. By Andrei Nedelea    |
| You are subscribed to email updates from Carscoops To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
| Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610 | |
