CARSCOOP |  |
- Three Darwin Awards In One Crash
- New Ford Mustang May Get Diesel, Hybrid or Electric Powertrain, Says Exec
- 1967 Aston Martin DB6 Vantage Shooting Brake Up for Sale, Only Two Known to Exist
- The Second Video Review of the VW XL1 Hybrid
| Three Darwin Awards In One Crash Posted: 07 Dec 2013 11:34 AM PST  Since we cannot decide who's the biggest halfwit of these three drivers – the one leading the pack in the front or the other two sheep following and filming from behind, we'll just hand them all a Darwin Award and call it a day. Possibly recorded in the Middle East (Saudi Arabia?), the video begins with the stunt man-wannabe in the white truck showing off his driving skills by riding on the curbed surface of the cement median divider. If you were thinking something along the lines of "just wait for it", you'd be spot on. Now head past the jump to see exactly what happened in the video that follows.        |
| New Ford Mustang May Get Diesel, Hybrid or Electric Powertrain, Says Exec Posted: 07 Dec 2013 09:55 AM PST  If your idea of profanity under the hood of a (new) Ford Mustang was the 2.3-liter EcoBoost four-cylinder that it's getting, then this will not be pleasing for you to read. Bob Bascetti, Ford's global powertrain boss, tokd GoAuto of Australia that the Blue Oval will might be going further in the quest for efficiency with the new Mustang and is now at the stage where it's considering several alternatives. "We're not looking at diesel at the moment, but given where we need to go with fuel consumption we are looking at all our options," said Bascetti, keenly pointing out, though, that "diesel is one of those options, along with hybrids and electric." Staying on the topic, he added that "We are turning the Mustang into a global product now so all of our options are open now… we have great diesels in Europe, we have an EcoBoost line-up in North America… so we can do almost anything." What we extract out of that is that a) you should never wholeheartedly believe statements such as the ones above and b) that Ford would be wise in considering all the alternatives, especially when it comes to the diesel/Europe combination. However, while it does have access to a turbocharged V6 gasoline it could use, as well as hybrid technology, its list of engines has no suitable V6 diesel they could use. The only one that kind-of fits the bill is the 3.2-liter straight-five from the Transit van. By Andrei Nedelea                |
| 1967 Aston Martin DB6 Vantage Shooting Brake Up for Sale, Only Two Known to Exist Posted: 07 Dec 2013 08:24 AM PST  This 1967 Aston Martin DB6 Vantage Shooting Brake is one of only three cars built by London-based coachbuilder FLM Panelcraft, and one of two that are known to exist today. Furthermore, it was bought new as a coupe by Formula One driver Innes Ireland in 1967, who took it to FLM Panelcraft two years later to have it converted into a shooting-brake. If you're a car collector, these are good enough reasons to call DD Classics immediately. Powered by a 3.7-liter straight six engine mated to a five-speed manual gearbox, the DB6 has not been seen in public since 1995, two years after the death of Innes Ireland. The car features a metallic Gunmetal Grey exterior paint and a Burgundy Hide upholstery and has been subject to a complete ground up and fully documented restoration by Aston Martin Works Service. The DB6 Vantage Shooting Brake has chassis number DB63310R and registration number YPP 798F and has been "virtually unused" since the completion of the restoration works, according to the seller. Offered with the complete file of original restoration receipts from Aston Martin, the DB6 can be viewed at DD Classics' showroom in Kew – West London. Just make sure you call to ask about the price before booking a trip, as a very rare classic car like this one is likely to be painfully expensive to your pockets. By Dan Mihalascu          |
| The Second Video Review of the VW XL1 Hybrid Posted: 07 Dec 2013 07:31 AM PST  UK magazine AutoExpress recently reviewed the VW XL1 hybrid, which is for all intents and purposes, a limited-run production car, but not the kind of vehicle you think of buying right now, yet you somehow know you kind-of will in the not too distant future – it's an important model to show the way forward. I mean, its powertrain, which combines a 47hp (48PS) two-cylinder diesel , an electric motor 27hp (27PS), a 7-speed dual clutch gearbox (DSG) and a 5.5 kWh lithium-ion battery, has already been transferred into a city-oriented Up! that promises astonishing efficiency numbers, while carbon fiber construction is also fast approaching the mainstream too. The British crew take it out for a spin, with a chaperon who's also a bit of a guide, and they try out its driving dynamics, which we already know are not bad from the prior review that we posted. The powertrain delivers enough punch not to leave you stranded on a faster road looking to accelerate – this is where the electric motor really comes in to help the two-pot diesel that would surely feel really strained even with the low curb weight and slippery streamliner shape. Watch the test for yourself below. By Andrei Nedelea    |
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