Black L Joe Rocket Ufo 2.0 Textile Mesh Jacket on 2040-parts.com

German car makers are dropping big engines

[ad#ad-1] It’s the trend at the moment, and one that won’t go down very well with our American cousins, who are fond of saying that ‘There ain’t no substitute for cubic inches’, as the three big luxury German Car Companies – Audi BMW and Mercedes – are planning to move away from their big ‘V’ engines. BMW V10 - on the way out The news started last week, when Audi let it be known that their new S5 will not use the V8, but will instead use a supercharged V6. Earlier this week, news came from BMW that its next generation of ‘M’ cars will forsake the V10s so beloved of M owners, and will instead go for turbo versions of the V8.

BMW Vision Gran Turismo

Ok, so it's only a virtual car for the computer game with which it shares its name, but the BMW Vision Gran Turismo is the result of a project undertaken by the BMW design and engineering departments in Munich. Loosely based around the 2 Series, the car is a neat amalgamation of current BMW design themes and the flamboyance of 1970s touring cars. You don't have to look too hard to see the influence of the CSL Batmobile and fire-spitting E21 320i Turbos.

Monterey in a Mulsanne – a Bentley mission to Pebble Beach

After a ten-and-a-half-hour flight from London, the idea of steering headlong – and solo – into the early Los Angeles rush-hour traffic in a five-and-a-half-metre-long, left-hand drive Bentley Mulsanne (worth some £230,000 with extras) and on the other side of the road to which I am familiar, might seem a little daunting. But as soon as I sink into the super saloon’s big leather seats, Bluetooth my iPhone to stream some music via the Naim premium audio, turn up the air-conditioning and press the accelerator gently, all becomes well. LAX Airport may be my starting point but the final destination is the Monterey Peninsula towards San Francisco, some 400 miles northward, for the world-famous annual classic car show Pebble Beach.