Blog on 2040Parts

BaT Euro Alfa Adventure -- Part 2 -- Seeing our 1964 Giulia Sprint GT for the first time

Though the racing events were the original justification for this trip to Europe, the greatest anticipation was coming from picking up the Alfa Romeo. With Goodwood finished off, it was time to collect the 1964 Giulia Sprint GT that we had committed to buy just last week. We've never bought a car to bring back to the USA before, but we see it all the time on BaT and wanted to do it ourselves so that we could learn more about the details of such a transaction.

Olympic cyclist races against Skoda Octavia vRS

OLYMPIC GOLD medallist Ed Clancy took on a challenge of two wheels versus four testing his downhill racing skills against the Skoda Octavia vRS in a race against the clock. Covering a section of the famed Southern Borders Loop, part of the Tour of Britain stage one route, the race centred on a short, but brutally steep, hill climb with five major corners. To even the odds, Ed Clancy raced downhill from a rolling start whilst the new ŠKODA Octavia vRS raced uphill from a standing start.

New engines for BMW 3-Series, 4-Series and X5

The BMW 3-Series, 4-Series (pictured) and X5 ar getting new engine options. With a new BMW X5 recently debuting, together with the new 4-Series and recently updated 3-Series, there are already a number of variants on offer, but this autumn there are more to come. The BMW 4-Series range (the replacement for the old 3-Series Coupe) will see the arrival of a new entry-level model - BMW 420i Coupe – with a 184hp four cylinder petrol engine with a 6-speed manual as standard or the eight-speed auto as an option.

VW to go totally turbo

A Volkswagen AG executive announced Tuesday that the company is planning to turbocharge the entire VW fleet by the 2016 or 2017. VW's executive vice president, Mark Trahan, spoke with The Detroit News, saying they will replace the company's remaining three naturally aspirated engines, a five-cylinder 2.5-liter and two six-cylinders with turbo mills. The trend seems to be gaining popularity, seeing as Ford Motor Co.

Clay modeler turns steel sculptor in new exhibition

A GM Holden clay modeler who has used his skills to transform scrap metal into over 400 works of art will display his creations at an new exhibition in Melbourne, Australia.   Jamie Schena, whose sculptures will be displayed in his ‘Mechanisation' show at custom bike shop Gasolina, sold his first artwork in 2001 after starting to sculpt models from bits of scrap metal lying around his father's workshop. After helping to rebuild engines and design farm machinery in his family's mechanical and engineering business, he moved to Melbourne to study Industrial Design at Monash University.

Seat Leon ST wins five-star safety rating

SEAT'S SPACIOUS Leon ST has been awarded a five-star safety rating by car safety assessment body Euro NCAP. The estate version of the already-popular Leon goes on sale in the UK in October for January 2014 first deliveries. The rating is the result of exceptional scores in all areas of the industry-standard Euro NCAP test, but particularly the adult occupant safety and child occupant safety sections, for which the Leon ST scored 94% and 92% respectively.

Gold Lamborghini Aventador is the world's most expensive model car

You know that feeling when you think you've seen everything before? That sense that there's simply nothing left with the power to surprise. But then, without warning, along comes something else that takes your breath away.

Car production increases again

THE SOCIETY of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said UK manufacturers built 91,282 cars in August, up 16.2%, or 12,705, on the same period in 2012, leaving year-to-date volumes 3.1% ahead of 2012, at 984,545. The figures showed 20,298 cars were made for the home market this year, up 21.1%, while 70,984 were for export, up 14.8%. SMMT chief executive Mike Hawes said: "The past 12-months has been one of the most productive since late 2008." Samuel Tombs, of consultancy Capital Economics, said the CBI figures showed the manufacturing sector "continuing to go from strength to strength".

One Lap of the Web: Rally to Goodwood, Utah raises speed limits and Jeeps in Iceland

-- Today's vehicles are more than capable of safely exceeding the speed limit. This isn't any secret to us, but apparently lawmakers are just starting to clue in; Utah has joined a slowly increasing number of states in raising some speed limits to 80 mph. Their justification?

Help Kickstart this book of 75 top designers' innermost thoughts

New material from interviews with over 75 of the world's most talented designers of all disciplines will feature in a new book from the maker of the design documentaries 'Helvetica', 'Objectified' and 'Urbanized'. For the three documentaries director Gary Hustwit recorded over a hundred hours of interviews but less than three hours were used. But instead of keeping the treasure trove secret, he has collated them into a new book, ‘Helvetica/Objectified/Urbanized: The Complete Interviews' so designers in all fields can share in them.

New Lexus GS 300h costs from £31,440

The New Lexus GS 300h (pictured) will cost from £31,440 in the UK Lexus revealed a second hybrid version of the GS at Shanghai in the spring – the Lexus GS 300h – which offers better economy and lower running costs, especially for company car drivers, and it’s now on sale in the UK. Lexus has introduced a new entry-level SE spec for the GS 300h to make its headline price even more attractive, but the GS 300h SE still gets 17″ alloys, DAB, DVD, Cruise, push-button start, parking sensors, xenons and electric, heated front seats. Other trim levels are Luxury, F Sport and Premier – as on the rest of the GS range – which you’ll need to dig in to if you want stuff like leather and SatNav, but opting for the base trim isn’t too hairshirt and will save you a few bob if you have BIK to pay.

First 2014 Corvette Stingray coupes on the way to dealerships

Chevrolet reports it has begun shipping the all-new 2014 Corvette Stingray coupe to dealers starting today. The new C7 Corvettes are, of course, assembled at General Motors' Bowling Green Assembly -- about 1,000 Stingrays have been built so far for delivery. Most are expected to be delivered to dealers within the next few weeks.

The Woodward Dream Cruise with Ian Callum

Try describing the Woodward Dream Cruise—a pulsing expression of Amer-ican automotive enthusiasm condensed into an endless, eight-lane traffic jam—and your audience will fall into one of two groups: The ones who shrug it off as inexplicable gasoline-fueled hysteria, or the ones who simply embrace it as the day-long automotive flash mob it is. Ian Callum, principal designer for Jaguar, falls firmly in the second camp. That's right.

Watch two guys smash a BMW M6 with hammers and axes

Awhile back, a news story flitted past our collective consciousnesses, claiming that people who drive BMWs, especially blue ones, were the angriest and most aggressive drivers on the road. That may be so. But in the whole of human history, has a man with such purported aggression ever taken out his anger on himself?

Connected Car Expo is coming to Los Angeles Auto Show

A day before the start of the LA Auto Show will be the Connected Car Expo, which will show us the latest in singing, dancing, electronic gadgetry and advances in infotainment. In addition to the two press days, November 19th promises to feature some big companies making some equally big announcements. Audi will unveil its A3 and S3 models with the first 4G LTE system built into a car, complementing its already Wifi-enabled offerings.

One Lap of the Web: a diesel Audi, a mint Alfa and a Honda-powered Peugeot

-- Ever wondered how a Peugeot 106 with a Honda CBR900 engine sitting midships would perform at the track? Well, we have. A number of times just today before lunch, in fact.

Lister Motor Co. is back in business, apparently

This summer has been a big one for fans of limited-production British automakers. First, we heard that TVR has returned, or is at least planning to return, with production expected to resume in 2015. Now we're getting word that Lister Motor Co., which built the remarkable Lister “Knobbly” Jaguar cars, is getting a new lease on life.

Lada launches new design competition

Lada and Russian social network community VKontakte have announced a competition calling for amateur designers to express their visions for future Lada models. Designs can be submitted as hand-drawn sketches or created using computer programs, and there's no limit on style, class or models. The only condition is the design has to have the brand's logo on the grille.

Porsche whiffs on customer care

Porsche is making a mistake that could take years—and millions of dollars—to fix, and you might not even be aware of it. Well, that is, until now. The mistake started with Porsche 911 and Boxster models sold in the U.S.

Datsun GO+ MPV revealed in Jakarta

Datsun has returned, but not the way we last remember it. Nissan has brought back the Datsun brand for developing markets, and has just revealed the GO+ model, a compact MPV based on the Datsun GO hatchback. The premiere took place in Jakarta, Indonesia, which will be the first market where the GO+ will be offered.

625 cars per day found to be insurance write-offs

ONE IN EVERY 33 vehicles given a history check is found to be an insurance write-off, according to data gathered by HPI. In 2012 one in 33 vehicles checked by HPI was an insurance total loss – otherwise known as a write-off. This equates to 625 cars a day or over 223,000 cars per year being dangerously repaired and sold on to unsuspecting consumers.

World's most expensive Alfa Romeo sold at auction

The Alfa Romeo that was the brainchild of Mussolini has sold for nearly £6m at auction. The Italian dictator commissioned the Alfa Romeo 8C-35 to conquer Hitler's dominance of pre-war racing. Built in time for the 1935 Italian Grand Prix, the 8C-35 smashed the competition with racing star Tazio Nuvolari at the wheel and confirmed its fate as one of the most successful racing cars ever. At last weekend's Goodwood Revival, the 8C-35's place in the history books was confirmed as it became the most expensive Alfa Romeo ever to sell at auction. Selling for £5,937,500, the Alfa Romeo eclipsed the previous record of £4,245,118, held by a 1933 8C 2300 Monza, sold in 2010.

AA celebrates 25 years of female patrols

ON SEPTEMBER 12th 1998 Georgina King became an overnight celebrity as she became the first female patrol to join the AA. Georgina says: "I was introduced at a press conference in Leicester Square and my picture ended up in all the papers. When I met customers out on the road they were a bit surprised to be confronted with a woman.

Pagani Huayra pretends to be a Koenigsegg to get in to the U.S.

The first road-legal Huayra in the States – or is it a Koenigsegg?! Regular readers may remember we cast doubts on Pagani’s claim that the new Huayra would be US road legal back in 2011, when we revealed that Pagani’s plans to gain an exemption from fitting advanced airbags was denied. That meant Pagani had to go away and get the Huayra to conform with airbag regulations to make it legal to sell in the US, which Pagani promised to do and declared everything would be fine and they’d have the first road-legal Huayras Stateside by 2013.

All-electric Nissan trialled in London

THE CITY OF LONDON Corporation has completed a successful trial of the 100% electric Nissan e-NV200 van as part of efforts to meet the highest levels of environmental responsibility across all areas of its operations. After a similarly successful trial of the 100% electric Nissan LEAF earlier this year, Nissan offered the City of London Corporation the chance to try the e-NV200. The City Corporation – the local authority services provider for the ‘Square Mile’ – supports and promotes the City as the world’s leading international financial centre.

Used car sales return to pre-recession levels

USED CAR SALES reached 7.1 million units in 2012, on a par with pre-recession levels and a climb of 6.4%, according to a comprehensive market report. The 2013 BCA Report by British Car Auctions valued the used car market a £38.1 billion in 2012, putting it £5.8 billion ahead of the new car market over the same period. In particular sales of younger used cars (0-2 years) increased significantly, rising by 18.6% to 762,000 and reversing a three year trend of falling volumes in this age sector.

Tesla planning self-driving car

Tesla are planning a self-driving car Now that car makers have been fitting radar and sensors to their cars for some time, which allow stuff like adaptive cruise – which automatically slows behind traffic and can even bring the car to s stop on its own – the race is on to make cars even more autonomous. We’ve reported recently on the Mercedes Intelligent Drive S-Class that negotiated its way – more or less – on a 60 mile route in Germany, and on Volvo’s self-parking system which will take your car in to a multi storey car park by itself, park, and meet you when you return. Google has also been playing with self-driving cars and has even gained permission to run its autonomous cars in California, and now Tesla are joining the fray with plans for an autonomous car in the next three years.

Renault designers on their interpretation of luxury [w/Video]

Renault's design chief Laurens van den Acker and his design team have stressed how the Initiale Paris concept previews how Renault design's tactics will help steer clear of its rivals within the premium segment.  The concept – the sixth to be developed in the design strategy inspired by the cycle of life, now in the Wisdom stage – heralds Renault's return to the high-end market after a number of years. It was, therefore, important that the design be a positive rejection of traditional ideas of luxury, design director of concept cars Axel Breun believes. Designer Choung Sun Oh goes to great pains to stress how the design team worked towards developing a highly original design to set them apart from rivaling brands upon re-entry.

Mercedes GLA Edition 1 announced

The Mercedes GLA Edition 1 (pictured) is a luanch edition for the new GLA SUV The new Mercedes GLA Compact SUV had its public debut at the Frankfurt Motor Show last week, and is due to go on sale in November. But when it does go on sale, sales will start off with a limited run of GLA Edition 1 cars, just as Mercedes did with the CLA 45 AMG Edition 1, but in the case of the GLA you’ll be able to spec the Edition 1 pack on any GLA model. With a choice of four exterior colours - Cirrus White, Mountain Grey Metallic, Orient Brown Metallic and Designo Magno Mountingrau – the Edition 1 comes with 19″ AMG alloys, bi-xenons, aluminium roof rails, extra chrome, leather flat-bottomed steering wheel, comfort seats and splashes of aluminium trim and stainless steel pedals.

Call for stronger penalties for texting drivers

DRIVERS convicted of causing death by dangerous driving should be given stronger and more consistent penalties, according to road safety charity the Institute of Advanced Motorists has said. An IAM analysis of eleven recent prosecutions involving mobile and smartphone use revealed that the average sentence for causing death by dangerous driving is four-and-a-half years in prison and a disqualification from driving for seven years. In all of the cases analysed, the convicted drivers were found to have lost their concentration due to using their mobile phone.