RPMGO Car Blog |
- BMW 328 Hommage Concept – A “Futuristic Déjà vu”
- Green Recalls – Zero S & Zero DS Electric Motorcycles
- Indianapolis 500 – 100 Years Of Racing
- Top 10 Worst Car Names
- Aptera 2e, Still Far Away From Production Phase
- Citroen Recalls 20,000+ C3 Picasso Units In UK
- Superchips MINI Cooper S R56 Now Available
- Fiat’s 0.9-liter Twin Air Wins “International Engine of the Year 2011” Award
- Vieria Concept Car – the City „Housewife” that Cleans the Air
- Dog safe driving keeps your entire family safe
| BMW 328 Hommage Concept – A “Futuristic Déjà vu” Posted: 21 May 2011 03:00 AM PDT  BMW 328 Hommage Concept The German automaker BMW has revealed its 328 Hommage concept, right before the car's debut at the upcoming Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este near Lake Como in Italy. This exquisite concept is based on the company's Vision Connected Drive Concept that we saw during the 81st edition of the Geneva Motor Show this year. Back in 2008, BMW launched another similar concept, the M1 Hommage.  BMW 328 Hommage Concept The 328 Hommage is a modern interpretation of the 1930s classic sports car, featuring a lightweight construction thanks to the use of carbon fiber reinforced plastic, achieving a curb weight of only 1720 lbs (780 kg). The car is powered by a 6-cylinder 3.0-liter engine but we don't know how much power it produces.  BMW 328 Hommage Concept This concept celebrates the 75th anniversary of BMW's 328 roadster, a model manufactured between 1937 and 1939. The BMW 328 Touring Coupe still holds the record on the Mille Miglia circuit for the highest average speed. That car managed to achieve an average speed of 103 mph and it all happened way back in 1940.  BMW 328 Hommage Concept The original 328 also featured a lightweight construction as the German engineers used a lot of aluminum and magnesium. As you can see, both models are basically cut from the same cloth to reach a lightweight construction, although the ways to achieving a low curb weight are very different.  BMW 328 Hommage Concept Source: BMW via AutoBlog Post published on Rpmgo.com |
| Green Recalls – Zero S & Zero DS Electric Motorcycles Posted: 21 May 2011 03:00 AM PDT  2009 Zero DS The electric motorcycle maker Zero Motorcycles announced yesterday a recall of certain 2009MY and 2010MY Zero and Zero DS motorcycles in order to replace the front brake caliper bracket. There is a risk that under heavy braking, the motorcycle's front brake caliper bracket may deform, causing brake pad misalignment and reducing the performance of the front brake. This recall affects the 2009MY Zero S motorcycles that were built between September 2, 2009 and December 22, 2009; 2010MY Zero S units built from February 1st, 2010 to March 31, 2011; 2009MY Zero DS motorcycles produced from July 27, 2009 until December 28th, 2009; and the 2010MY Zero DS motorcycles that were manufactured between January 20th, 2010 and March 31st, 2011. The recall should start before the ending of this month, once the dealers get the necessary supplies of the updated brake caliper bracket. They will have to replace the old one with the redesigned front brake caliper bracket as well as replace the front brake pads in order to provide accurate alignment between the rotor and the brake pads. In addition, they will also check the brake fluid for signs of overheating and replace it, if necessary. Source: NHTSA via AllCarsElectric Post published on Rpmgo.com |
| Indianapolis 500 – 100 Years Of Racing Posted: 21 May 2011 01:15 AM PDT
The Indianapolis Motor Speedway was built in 1909 for small events. It was a gravel-and-tar track where various types of vehicles, including motorcycles raced. In its inaugural year, the first long-distance event was held. It was the 100-lap Prest-O-Lite Trophy, won by driver Bob Burman in his Buick. The very first Indy 500 event was held in 1911 at the Speedway on May 30th, Memorial Day. There were 40 cars on the starting line, all powered by a 600 cu in engine. The race was won by Ray Harroun in his Marmon Model 32-based Wasp racer, a car that featured his invention, the rear view mirror. At the race, there were 80,000 spectators and many of them considered Harroun a real danger during the race, being the only one driving without the mandatory riding mechanic. The second race was held in 1912 and was won by Joe Dawson who was driving a National. He managed to win the race after the Mercedes drove by Ralph de Palma broke down. Only 33 drivers were allowed to participate in the race and all of them had a riding mechanic. Despite the fact that the first race was won by an American pilot who drove an America car, many European automakers started developing cars especially for the event. Some relevant examples are Fiat and Peugeot and they managed to win between 1912 until 1919. In 1936 a tradition was born when the winner of the race, Louis Meyer drank a bottle of buttermilk right after the race was over. 1955 was a tragic year for the Indy 500 when the two-time defending champion Bill Vukovich died. He was leading the race by 17 seconds when a pileup ahead sent him over the retaining wall of the backstretch. 10 years later in 1965, the event was aired on national TV for the first time. It was on tape-delay right until 1986 when the show was shown live. 1966 was the year when only seven cars finished the race, the all-time low for the Indy 500. During the 1973 race, three people died: two drivers and one crew member. Only 133 laps of the total 200 were completed. In 1981, after five months since the race was over, driver Bobby Unser claims triumph over the legendary pilot Mario Andretti, after a series of investigations and hearings that were necessary in order to find out the winner of the race. During that race, Bobby passed eight vehicles under caution while Mario Andretti passed two. After the end of the race, Unser was declared victorious but a day later, Andretti was declared winner. Tony George, Speedway president formed in 1994 the Indy Racing League, which rivals the existing CART league, with the Indianapolis 500 as the heart of the event. Two years later, CART boycotts the event after George said that 75% of all participant vehicles will be IRL cars. The new rules that became applicable in 1997 kept CART out of the event for the following three years. In 2001, Tony Stewart managed to race in the Indy 500 during the afternoon, finishing in an honorable 6th place and after that he went to Charlotte where he got the 3rd spot in the Coca-Cola 600 race, doing 1,100 miles in one day. Other drivers tried to imitate him, like Robby Gordon and John Andretti, but Tony was the only one to complete all of the 1,100 miles. Four years later, during the 2005 Indy 500, Danica Patrick became the first woman to lead the race, only four laps before the end. However, the female rookie driver was not able to hold off Dan Wheldon, who managed to win the race. In 2006, the first driver that managed to win the race after making a last-lap pass was Sam Hornish Jr. He won by catching up Mario Andretti with less than 450 ft. in the race. This year's race will be held on May 29th and it will premiere the IZOD IndyCar Series season. The race will be the third of the 3-year long Centennial era, celebrating 100th years since the track was opened (1909) and 100 years since the first Indy 500 (1911). The celebration of the 100th running event will be held in 2016 due to the reason that during the WWI and WWII the race was suspended. Source: sports.yahoo.com, Wikipedia Post published on Rpmgo.com |
| Posted: 21 May 2011 12:22 AM PDT
10. Subaru Brat
09. Oldsmobile Intrigue
08. Dodge Swinger
07. Renault LeCar
06. Daihatsu Charade
05. Buick LaCrosse
04. Mitsubishi Pajero
03. Nissan Moco
02. Mazda LaPuta
01. Ford Probe
Post published on Rpmgo.com |
| Aptera 2e, Still Far Away From Production Phase Posted: 20 May 2011 04:00 PM PDT  Aptera 2e The Aptera 2e is a three-wheeled EV which was supposed to enter the production phase in late 2008. Created by a startup automaker based in Southern California, the launch of the car was repeatedly delayed and we shouldn't expect to see it on the roads this year. This resin-bodied car was one of the finalists of last year's Auto X-Prize competition where it managed to return an incredible 178 mpg (combined city/highway number, using the current EPA test cycles).  Aptera 2e Just like many other startup companies, Aptera had to face several management turnovers and financing problems. They didn't get a low-interest loan from the U.S. Department of Energy, as opposed to Tesla (June 2009) and Fisker Automotive (September 2009). In the mean time, Nissan launched its very successful Leaf model while Chevrolet rolled out the Volt. In addition, next year we'll see the EV version of the Ford Focus. All these three models are mainstream alternatives from well-reputed automakers, but none have the flair of the 2e.  Aptera 2e Aptera sent an e-mail to its fans earlier this week, telling them that the company has decided to move its HQ from Oceanside to Carlsbad. Those of you that have put down deposits for the 2e, don't expect to get one before the end of this year. When it will eventually go into production, it will be made "outside of California". Let's hope that this revolutionary 3-wheeled EV will eventually reach the production phase. Source: Aptera via GreenCarReports Post published on Rpmgo.com |
| Citroen Recalls 20,000+ C3 Picasso Units In UK Posted: 20 May 2011 03:00 PM PDT  Citroen C3 Picasso The French automaker Citroen has issued a recall that concerns more than 20,000 C3 Picasso units that were sold in UK due to a rather strange, yet very funny reason: the brakes of the car can be activated by the passenger sitting in the front when pushing their feet in the footwell. This issue was discovered by Watchdog, a BBC TV show that was alerted about this problem from a cleaning company that owns three C3 Picassos. That UK TV show has figured out the reason behind this problem and they said that a manufacturing error occurred during the right-hand drive assembly process of the units made for the United Kingdom market. Although the brake pedal is installed to the right, it still remains connected to a mechanism located on the left passenger side. This mechanism is apparently covered only by a very thin piece of felt, making it very easy to activate from the passenger side. Watchdog did some further testing with other two Citroen C3 Picassos that were on sale at the company's dealerships in the United Kingdom and they discovered that both units had the exact same problem. Citroen replied that they didn't receive any reports regarding this issue before, but they will issue a recall action to take care of the problem on those 20,000+ units. Source: Citroen, Carscoop Post published on Rpmgo.com |
| Superchips MINI Cooper S R56 Now Available Posted: 20 May 2011 02:00 PM PDT  Superchips MINI Cooper S R56 The engineers over at Superchips revealed this week their phase 2 upgrade for the Mini Cooper S R56. This ECU is compatible with the units manufactured after March 1st, 2010; the ones with the turbocharged 1.6-liter engine that produces 181 hp (184 PS) in its standard configuration. With this phase 2 upgrade, the power is raised by 25 hp @ 3,765 rpm and 32 Nm from 3000 and 6000 rpm. Despite the fact that this upgrade program increases the power of the engine, Superchips says that the fuel consumption of the car remains exactly the same, at 48 mpg. If you own a Mini Cooper S R56 and you want this ECU, prepare to pay 455 pounds. This upgrade program comes with a 12-month / 30,000 miles supplementary full vehicle warranty. Source: Superchips via ZerCustoms Post published on Rpmgo.com |
| Fiat’s 0.9-liter Twin Air Wins “International Engine of the Year 2011” Award Posted: 20 May 2011 01:00 PM PDT
The event was held on Wednesday in Stuttgart, Germany, at the Engine Expo. BMW also did pretty well, managing to win four awards for the following categories: "3-liter to 4-liter" (M3's V8 4.0-liter); "2.5-liter to 3-liter" (3.0-liter DI Twin Turbo); "1.8-liter to 2.0-liter (2.0-liter Twin Turbo diesel, available in the X1 and the 123d models) and "1.4-liter to 1.8-liter" (Mini's 4-cylinder 1.6-liter turbo, co-developed with PSA Peugeot Citroen). In the overall competition, the second place went to the 1.4-liter TSI Twincharger engine developed by the Volkswagen Group, an engine that won in the "1.0-liter to 1.4-liter" category. The "2.0-liter to 2.5-liter" category was won by Audi with its 5-cylinder 2.5-liter turbocharged engine that powers the RS3 and the sexy TT RS. The Italian automaker Ferrari triumphed in the "above 4.0-liter" category with its V8 4.5-liter engine that powers the beautiful 458 Italia model. In addition, this engine also won in the "Best Performance Engine" category, rounding up Fiat Group's total number of wins to six, accounting half of all the awards that were given at the ceremony. Source: Carscoop Post published on Rpmgo.com |
| Vieria Concept Car – the City „Housewife” that Cleans the Air Posted: 20 May 2011 07:57 AM PDT
Pollution caused by cars has lately been the hot topic for car manufacturers. We have to recognize that they have lately done some efforts to limit their impact on the environment by developing eco-friendly cars or electric vehicles. However, they haven't made a car that not only protects, but also cleans the air. But finally, someone thought about the idea of creating such a car. For the Michelin Challenge Design competition, Gunwoong Kim and Suji Kim have designed an electric concept car that solves that issue, the Vieria car.
As you can see it in the article's title, we named this car "the city housewife":
Our only regret for this car is that it's just a concept. However, its designers would like to see it unfold in 2021, and we totally hope for that thing to happen. Actually, it will probably be the most extensive joint action for cleaning the polluted air, came from car drivers. What do you think about this concept car: could this be a dream about to come true? [Source: Michelinchallengedesign] Post published on Rpmgo.com |
| Dog safe driving keeps your entire family safe Posted: 20 May 2011 07:56 AM PDT
Any woman has the maternal instinct to protect her family and kids, family's pets included, and keep them safe in any circumstances. And driving doesn't make an exception. This is why we have chosen to talk about dog-safety in the car. Here there are some rules that should secure your pet's ride: What other rules do you think should be respected? Post published on Rpmgo.com |
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