Polestar will be revealing its first ever vehicle in Shanghai on the 17th of October. It will be the first vehicle that Polestar, as a separate entity from Volvo, has designed and built from the ground up as a standalone electric performance brand.
This comes after an announcement made by parent company of both Volvo and Polestar, Geely, regarding its intentions to spin-off Polestar into is own sub-brand that specializes in building performance EVs.
Though Volvo will eventually turn into an EV manufacturer too, it’s main area of focus will be on building mainstream vehicles that the general public need, basically – a Volvo. The logic of this move is still unclear, because Polestar’s symbiotic relationship with Volvo can be likened to that of Mercedes-Benz and AMG.
Polestar’s wealth of knowledge on track has been incorporated into Volvos to produce vehicles that not only safe, but can handle just as well as their German rivals. That said, a separate entity called Cyan Polestar Racing still exists in Motorsport. It is effectively the remnant of the resulting buyout of Polestar by Volvo in 2015.
As such, how well Polestar is able to do without Volvo remains to be seen but we hope cross-platform sharing continues to take place because we have just gotten used to the idea of Volvos that offer incredible level of safety while having the ability of going head to head with a BMW M5.
It looks like cities around the world are taking turns to drop bombshells in terms EV regulations, in the recent weeks. Now, Oxford has decided to jump in and propose its own heavy-handed regulatory policy, which effectively bans all non-electric vehicles from its roads by 2020.
As absurd as that may sound, it gets a whole lot worse because the ban doesn’t just encompass the sale of new cars, rather it involves all vehicles, including taxis, buses and HGV (Heavy Goods Vehicles) used to transport shipments and cargo into the city.
Skeptics believe that the rushed effort reflects the lack of consideration given by the city council to the current infrastructure. Based on an article by Car Throttle, it is estimated that Oxford is home to about 160,000 residents but the current EV infrastructure isn’t able to match their EV demands.
The city plans on investing in this area by creating 100 more charging outlets, which wouldn’t be able to do much good considering the influx of electric cars by 2020. That said, the ban will only be fully enforced by 2035. Oxford only plans to banish fossil fuel burning vehicles from its busy city streets in the next couple of years, the complete ban, will only take place 15 years later.
This news can serve as an indication of things to come in terms of environmental regulations. Governments around the world are beginning to realize that the use of electric vehicles will help reduce our carbon footprint, improve air quality and lessen the effects of global warming.
Modern day cars, especially the higher end ones, are fitted with tyre pressure monitoring systems or TPMS. And even if that isn’t the case with lower end ones, there are plethora of aftermarket kits that offer the same level of functionality if not more.
A tyre pressure monitoring system does have its advantages. It serves as an early warning system to drivers, notifying them when there is a sudden drop in tyre pressure, which could indicate a puncture. This will allow him/her enough time to get the problem sorted out before its too late.
Apart from this, TPMS can also indicate to drivers when the air in each tyre requires topping up. As soon as air pressures drop below the normal values, TPMS will activate an indication light on the meter cluster to warn drivers of an issue.
Though this may seem like a Godsend, TyreSafe, a company in the UK has taken it upon itself to remind vehicle owners that they shouldn’t rely solely on TPMS for tyre safety. TPMS has its uses, it has proven to have improved driver awareness as far as tyre pressures are concerned.
That said, TPMS does not warn drivers of the condition of their tyres and whether they have sufficient tread depth left. These two criteria are just as important as air pressures are, when it comes to tyre safety. Tyres that have heavily degraded could disintegrate at any moment in time, posing a major threat to vehicle safety.
TPMS is a reliable technology and should work well for a significant amount of time, but this does not mean that they are safe from malfunctions or failures. This is because batteries of the wheel-mounted sensors can ran out of power or the sensors themselves, can provide inaccurate readings over time.
This is why the UK based company is urging vehicle owners to remain vigilant and ensure that their TPMS is monitored regularly for signs of failure. This way, the chances of them failing could be considerably less than usual.
Your tyres are what connect your vehicle to the road. And regardless of how sophisticated your on-board electronic driver aids are, they won’t be able to do much good if the tyres aren’t up to the task at hand. Looking after your tyres are just as important as the attention given to the engine and gearbox.
MINI is introducing a very special edition vehicle called the 1499 GT, all are bound for the UK market. It’s inception was inspired by the classic 1275 GT, which was based on the original Mini. The 1275 in the model name, was a direct reflection of the car’s engine capacity in cc, which was significantly larger than the standard Mini’s 998cc.
However, with the 1499 GT which is based on the current MINI One, This isn’t the case. The car doesn’t have a 1499cc engine, instead its the same 3-pot as the One but with a bit of a power bump. The automaker has slightly increaed the power, bringing the total to 102bhp.
The peppy turbocharged three-cylinder engine allows the car to sprint from 0-100km/h in 10.1 seconds, which isn’t quick by any means. Mated to it, is a 6-speed manual gearbox with sports-car inspired rev matching technology. The car also comes with disc brakes on all four corners that will allow for better stopping power.
There are several differences between the special edition MINI and the standard car, which include the John Cooper Works Sport Pack, 17” Track Spoke alloy wheels in Black and white indicator lenses. The styling pack includes distinctive John Cooper Works front and rear bumpers, side skirts, a split level spoiler and John Cooper Works door entry plates.
Its a similar story for the inside because the car gets John Cooper Works Sports seats in Dinamica and leather, JCW badges, a JCW steering wheel in perforated leather with Chilli Red stitching and multi-function controls, Piano Black interior trim as well as a Carbon Black interior details and an Anthracite headlining.
This John Cooper Works treatment extends to the performance aspect of the car as well because it benefits from a sports suspension. It is tuned to offer an experience that matches the looks of the sporty bits.
MINI will only be making 1,499 cars and they will be available in two different body colours, which are Pepper White or Midnight Black. In Midnight Black, the car gets gold 1499 GT side stripes, while the one in Pepper White, gets the same style graphics, but in black.
You may have heard of miniature RC or remote controlled vehicles, the same machines that have brought joy to children and adults all over the world since the 1980s. In fact, special RC tournaments are conducted annually, in several parts of the world to prove who has the best reflexes at successfully maneuvering their vehicles past challenging miniature circuits.
Nissan has decided to take this one step further by introducing a full-size RC vehicle in the form of the latest iteration of the GT-R supercar. It has done this to celebrate the launch of the highly acclaimed Gran Turismo Sport game for the PlayStation 4 console.
Called the GT-R/C the vehicle is a fully standard car with the stock V6 engine that puts out 542bhp and an all-wheel-drive system. Engineered in the UK by JLB Design Ltd, the car has been fitted with four robots that operate the steering, transmission, brakes and throttle. Six computers mounted in the boot update the controls at up to 100 times a second.
The vehicle is driven/controlled though operating an unmodified DualShock 4 controller that connects to a micro-computer which interprets the joystick and button signals and transmits them to the GT-R /C’s on-board systems. From an operator’s perspective, there is no discernible difference between the game and the real life car with the exception of the viewing angles.
This vehicle was driven around the Silverstone circuit by NISMO racing driver Jann Mardenborough. If that name sounds familiar, it is because he is one of the most successful winners of GT Academy, Nissan’s unique driver discovery and development programme.
Mardenborough controlled the GT-R/C via the DualShock controller from the cockpit of a Robinson R44 Raven II helicopter. Since the controller had to be within a 1km distance of the car to safely control it, the helicopter had to fly at a very low altitude for the duration of the session.
As a safety net, the GT-R/C was fitted with two independent safety systems, operating on different radio frequencies, which allow two additional operators to apply full ABS braking and cut the engine, should there be any signal interruption from Mardenborough’s controller.
Speaking of the event, Mardenborough said, “This was once-in-a-lifetime, truly epic stuff. The GT-R /C has brought my two worlds together – the virtual of gaming and the reality of Motorsport – in a way I never thought possible.”
“The response from the car when using the controller was far more engaging than I thought it would be. JLB Design has done an incredible job at making everything respond really well,” he added.
Next year, Nissan will be taking this car on a tour to primary and secondary schools in the UK to promote future careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths subjects. And maybe, inspire the next generation of engineers to turn to Nissan’s R&D platform.
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles CEO and effectively head honcho of Ferrari, has confirmed that a Ferrari SUV or a FUV if you will, is in the cards. Sergio Macrchionne confirmed to Bloomberg that the Italian automaker will be building such a vehicle but admitted that they won’t be rushing into anything.
Marchionne’s reasoning behind this is, the brand needs to understand the new relationship and ensure that the new vehicle remains exclusive while still remaining attainable. Unlike Porsche with the Cayenne, Ferrari isn’t interested in creating a high volume SUV to improve its bottom line.
Rather, the automaker wants to make an SUV that is blessed with Ferrari credentials, be able to build them in a ‘sufficient enough volume’ yet, making sure that like many vehicles that preceded it, a certain level of exclusivity is maintained for added value.
Regarding rumours of a potential sell off of Jeep to Chinese automotive giant Great Wall, Marchionne refuted the claim stating that such a move was not be in the company’s best interest at the moment. Jeep holds great value to FCA and though it is opened to a tie up with other automakers to improve its product portfolio, it won’t happen overnight.
This comes after rumours surfaced in August that Great Wall Motor had placed a bid to FCA for the aqquistion of its highly coveted SUV brand, Jeep. In recent years, Chinese automakers have been attempting to establish a beachhead in western markets. Like Geely with the acquisition of Volvo and Lotus, Great Wall may be trying to mimic the move with Jeep.
Whatever the case maybe, FCA’s decision to turn down the proposal, will enable Ferrari to employ the expertise of Jeep’s engineers and their wealth of knowledge as the Italian firm goes to work on creating their very own SUV. Much to the dismay of Ferrari purists, the allure of luxury SUVs has proven too strong for the automaker to resist.
In as little as 30 months, we might be able to get a glimpse of the new SUV, which is the timeframe that Marchionne has given before they decide on production details. This, is a case of never say never, which begs the question, when will we see another Lamborghini SUV?
