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Lotus’ financial health showing signs of improvement

For the first time in a while, Lotus is showing signs of financial stability. This comes after a statement from Lotus Group International Limited (LGIL), saying that it had finished financial year (FY) 2016/17 on plan with a EBITDA profit of £2.0m. This is a marked improvement over the £16.3m EBITDA loss for the same period for the financial year (FY) 2015/2016.

Apart from that, the company has also seen an improvement in Profit Before Tax. This year, it has made a profit of £11.2m, which is a commendable feat considering its dismal £41.2m loss in FY15/16. That said, the bulk of the profit for the FY16/17 came in the second half of the year with a figure of £10m.

Lotus attributes this ‘key’ turnaround to a more streamlined portfolio of sports cars, which includes the Evora, Exige and Elise model range as well as the availability of the new Lotus 3-Eleven. Unlike most automakers, Lotus has stuck to its roots by producing lightweight sports cars with driver enjoyment as the core necessity.

By focusing on its core strengths, the automaker believes that its cars are the finest they have ever been and should pave the way for future investments and developments of new models. And the demand for Lotus vehicles is evident by the company expanding its global markets to include the US. As a result there is now a total of 215 Lotus dealerships in the world compared to 138 that were recorded in 2014.

Speaking of the automaker’s financial feat, Jean-Marc Gales, CEO, Group Lotus plc said, “This is a proud moment for Lotus and to have achieved so much is testament to the hard work of all our staff. Our vastly improved profitability, together with an increase in revenue means that for the first time in many years Lotus is now a self-sufficient and sustainable business.”

Geely’s recent aquistion of Proton, which is Lotus’s parent company, has not changed the governmance of the small scale sports car manufacturer, yet. Though that might soon change as the Chinese giant automaker looks to increase efficiency and synergy between the brands in the near future.

Prototype 9 finally revealed to the masses

Infiniti, Nissan’s luxury arm, has finally unveiled its pet project, the retro sports car that was touted for being a modern interpretation of vintage racer. Called Prototype 9, the car is said to be a celebration of Nissan and Infiniti’s ingenuity, artistry and craftsmanship.

It’s basically a 1940s racer, reimagined through the eyes of Infinit’s current designers and engineers. It began as an ‘after-hours’ project where the automaker’s employees would devote a considerable amount of their leisure time into making this car a reality.

Sporting the same basic dimensions of the racing cars of 1940s, Prototype 9 has a rather squarish tubular design at the front that morphs into more of a rounded one towards the rear. Also a nice a touch, is the massive finned front grille design that is reminiscent of custom American hot rods.

But what’s unique about it is the metallic trim panel that stretches across the entire grille and meets the bodywork of the front axles. In terms of looks, Infiniti broke convention with the car’s paint scheme. Unlike most concepts, this one has a matte silver finish that is similar to what the Silver Arrows racers used to have back in the day.

In total, the car is 4,330mm long, 1,820mm wide and 910mm high with a ground clearance of 65mm. It’s a pretty big vehicle but its overall weight, including the powertrain, weighs about 890kg, which should make it an agile vehicle around corners.

The car has a leading-arm rigid axle with transverse leaf spring front suspension and a De Dion axle with transverse leaf spring for the rear. And despite it being an electric car, it does not have power steering.

Regarding Prototype 9, Alfonso Albaisa, Senior Vice President, Global Design, said, “Prototype 9 celebrates the tradition of ingenuity, craftsmanship and passion of our forebears at Nissan, on whose shoulders we stand today. It started as a discussion – what if INFINITI had created a race car in the 1940s?”

He then added, “If one were to imagine an open-wheeled INFINITI racer on the famous circuits of the era, such as Japan’s Tamagawa Speedway, what would that look like? The sketches were stunning and the idea so compelling that we had to produce a prototype. As other departments became aware of this, they volunteered their time to create a working vehicle.”

Under the rather suave handmade exterior sits a steel ladder frame that should be period correct for the 1940s but be more rigid thanks to modern construction methods and the use of tougher materials.

The car is powered by a single speed powertrain that delivers 148bhp and 320Nm of torque to the rear wheels. Juice is supplied to the motor via a Lithium-ion battery pack and as such, the car is capable of sprinting from 0-100km/h in 5.5 seconds and reaching a top speed of 170km/h.

Infiniti will probably use this car as a design study or a show piece of the talents and capabilities of its design and engineering teams. We doubt that Prototype 9 will be of any use to Nissan’s road-going vehicles in any point in its lifetime.

Mayweather’s rare Koenigsegg is up for auction

One of only two in existence, a 2010 Koenigsegg CCXR Trevita, formerly owned by boxing legend Floyd Mayweather is up for sale. The car will join a line-up of special vehicles that are expected to hit the auction block of Mecum’s Daytime Auction in California.

This very rare Koenigsegg only has 3,133 km on its odometer, which means that since the car was purchased, it has spent most of its time being a garage queen.

It is part of the Ash Crest Collection and is predicted to be one of the most talked-about vehicles at the event. Its expected to sell for a price that is between $2.7 million to $3 million (RM 12 million to RM 13 million).

That said, there are number of other high value supercars that will grace the auction floor on the same day. They include two Ferrari LaFerraris and two Bugatti Veyrons (including 2015 Grand Sport Vitesse edition).

Other notable mentions include a 2016 Aston Martin Vulcan and 2007 Maserati MC12 Corsa. Each of these vehicles are expected to fetch between $2.3 million to $2.7 million (RM 9.9 million to RM 13 million).

Expect to see huge sums of money being spent on this selection of rare and exquisite supercars. Each of them were made in extremely limited numbers, which include the LaFerrari. It was only made available for purchase via invitation from Ferrari.

Supercar auctions command tremendous amounts of money and the one taking place this month at Mecum’s Daytime Auction in Monterey, won’t be any different. Till then, enjoy the picture gallery below.

Nissan to sell battery business to GSR Capitol

There’s going to be a bit of a shake up at Nissan’s EV division. According to a statement by the automaker, it has entered into a sale and purchase agreement with GSR Capital (GSR), a private investment fund, for the sale of Nissan’s electric battery operations and production facilities to GSR.

This agreement includes Nissan’s battery subsidiary, Automotive Energy Supply Corporation (AESC), as well as battery manufacturing operations in Tennessee and Sunderland. The one in Tennessee is owned by Nissan North America Inc., while the one in Sunderland belongs to Nissan Motor Manufacturing (U.K.) Ltd.

The sale includes assets such as part of Nissan’s Japanese battery development and production engineering operations located in Oppama, Atsugi and Zama. This is a major move for the automaker considering its position as a pioneer in mass production of EVs for global markets.

Speaking of the sale, Hiroto Saikawa, president and chief executive officer of Nissan, said, “This is a win-win for AESC and Nissan. It enables AESC to utilize GSR’s wide networks and proactive investment to expand its customer base and further increase its competitiveness.”

Saikawa later added, “In turn, this will further enhance Nissan’s EV competitiveness. AESC will remain a very important partner for Nissan as we deepen our focus on designing and producing market-leading electric vehicles.”

Nissan’s current workforce at all facilities that have been acquired by GSR, which include the production plans, will be maintained. Apart from that, both the headquarters and development centers of the business will remain in Japan too, with no relocation plans for the time being.

We aren’t too sure how the effect of the sale will eventually pan out, but we do hope it doesn’t disrupt Nissan’s current plans of pushing the boundaries of what’s possible for electric vehicles both on the race track as well as off it.

Mika Häkkinen to drive legendary McLaren M23 around Laguna Seca

Former Formula One champion and arch rival of Micheal Schumacher, Mika Häkkinen has been tasked with belting a McLaren M23 at the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion, this August. The car belonged to F1 legend, Emerson Fittipaldi and helped him clinch the 1974 championship.

Häkkinen will complete a couple of 15-minute exhibition laps to entertain fans as well as showcase the capabilities of the vintage racer. Back in the 1970s, Formula was still a crude, unsafe and unfiltered sport that offered both the best as well as the worst of Motorsports racing.

Between 1973 to 1978, this McLaren-Ford M23 won 16 of the 80 grand prixs that it competed in. Three world championship titles were won with it, including the 1974 drivers’ and constructors’ title and 1976 drivers’ title.

Häkkinen will be sitting in for Jenson Button who was the original choice of McLaren. Since the latter wasn’t able to fulfill this task, the automaker turned to its most trusted ambassador and icon of Formula One.

Nicknamed ‘The Flying Finn’. Häkkinen drove 130 grand prixs for the McLaren team between 1993 and 2001, and winning 20 of them. This included two Drivers’ World Championship titles in 1998 and 1999 respectively.

The rivalry between the Finn and Schumacher was extremely fierce, which gave rise to exhilarating edge-of-your-seat action that is seriously lacking in the current F1 era. Their battles were so intense that they have become part of Formula 1 folklore.

“Though we were looking forward to having Jenson Button at the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion, we are delighted that a driver of Mika’s caliber is able to take his place,” said Gill Campbell, Senior Vice President of Event Operations at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.

He later added, “Formula 1 is the pinnacle of racing advancement, and Mika will be able to showcase a car with great racing history during his spirited exhibition laps. Fans will surely enjoy the link between past and present during the exhibitions and throughout the event. Thank you to McLaren for making this happen.”

This year’s Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion will be held at the Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. The event will see more than 550 historic cars taking part in the race weekend. Like many shows of this nature, fans will get to see a range of vehicles ranging from the pre-war era cars to more modern ones.

TVR reveal more details of upcoming sports car

TVR has released a teaser picture before the official launch of its first ever production vehicle since going under. According to the automaker, its entire team have worked tirelessly to ensure that the new vehicle is engineered to offer class leading strength, reliability and functionality, but still maintain lightweight and high performance attributes.

Based on the available image, we can see that extensive time and attention have gone into designing the intricate details of the interior. The gear knob, seems to have been machined out of a block aluminium or alloy, the switchgear arrangement seems very aircraft-like but the gauges and thier arrangement on the centre console is reminiscent of 1960s race cars.

What this could be then, is a TVR that has the best elements from the past and present mashed into a slender body that should be on par with the rest of the performance heavy hitters. The premise of this notion is the fact that the automaker has been working closely with Gordon Murray Design to complete the new car.

In case you didn’t know, Gordon Murray was the guy behind the legendary McLaren F1 supercar. It was his brainchild and proved to be the most powerful car of its era. In fact, It held the record for being the fastest production car in the world until recently. Murray has now opened his own design house in the hopes of creating another game changer.

Speaking of the new TVR, Murray, said, “We developed the new TVR as a product that builds on all the magic and excitement of our hand-crafted British motor cars of yesteryear. We combined this with the most rigorous engineering and assembly process design to ensure outstanding consistency, build quality and reliability.”

The car will be revealed in September at the Goodwood Revival Earls Court Motor Show and will only be sold in limited numbers. This year also marks TVR’s 70th birthday and its entry into the high performance vehicle market.

Regarding this, Les Edgar, chairman of TVR, said, “On the 70th birthday of our marque, we are entering a new era with a precisely engineered car that delivers exhilarating performance on road and track, as well as everything discerning customers expect of a car intended for everyday use.”

TVR has’t divulged much regarding the car or what it will be called. They will probably continue to keep mum till the actual release date, as a way to build more hype. Based on what we have gathered though, the new car should be an interesting addition to the current line-up of sports cars and should serve as an alternative to what we are used to seeing from the German and Italians.

Infiniti has created a retro modern racer

Infiniti will be unveiling a new prototype vehicle at the 2017 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. It is supposed to be a heritage inspired car that combines the stylistic elegance of vintage racers with modern technology and powerful powertrains.

According to the company, the introduction of the car not only celebrates Infinit’s passion for design, but also the great roots of the company’s pioneering spirit and innovation-mindset. It was developed after careful research into the automaker’s roots and combining that with a fusion of advanced EV technology.

Speaking of the car, Alfonso Albaisa, Senior Vice President, Global Design, said “It started as a simple thought: What if we found a car, down at the southern tip of Japan, buried deep in the bush, hidden from all eyes for 70 years? What if in this car we found the seed of passion planted during our first Japanese Grand Prix and the power and artistry of Infiniti today?”

Unlike Jaguar’s Project 7, which was based on the F-Type but customized with inspiration from the legendary D-Type, here the approach is very different. Based on the published pictures, we can surmise that the car will probably sport the looks and dimensions of a pre-war era of Formula One.

The long and narrow bodywork that becomes even narrower at the rear to form a canoe-like shape. The front and rear axles protrude from the body where they combine with the rather thin wheels. As a whole, it looks like a 21st century interpretation of what a pre-war racing car would have looked like had the designers and engineers of that era had the tools and hardware we take for granted today.

We are completely lost on the logic of introducing such a vehicle. It’s possible that Infiniti plans on using it as a design study or a marketing tool to showcase what its team of designers and engineers are capable of if given free reign.

Muscle cars steal spotlight at Mecum Auctions

Classic American muscle cars are some of the most sought after vehicles in the world, especially in places like the US, Europe and the Middle East. Many of these cars change hands for exorbitant sums of money.

This was especially true at the recent Mecum Auctions in Harrisburg, USA where 858 vehicles passed through the auction floor at the Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex. The event achieved a total of $20 million(RM86 million) in overall sales.

There were a huge selection of cars that were up for auction, but the muscle cars were the ones that stole the spotlight. Seven out of the ten most expensive cars at the auction were that from the muscle car era. That’s because, these cars were from a time that is considered the golden era of American design and ingenuity.

A 1970 Plymouth Hemi Superbird was auction off for a cool $415,000 (RM1,779,935), which is a lot higher than many of the other vehicles there including a 1991 Ferari Testarossa. It was a multi-award winning car that is considered a major collector’s item.

Having said that, here is the list of the top ten cars that sold for the most money at the Harrisburg 2017 Auction:

1970 Plymouth Hemi Superbird at $415,000 (RM1,779,935)
1969 Dodge Daytona at $215,000 (RM922,135)
2012 Ford Shelby GT500 Super Snake at $178,000 (RM763,442)
1971 Dodge Hemi Challenger R/T at $165,000 (RM707,685)
1968 Shelby GT500KR Fastback at $162,500 (RM696,963)
1970 Plymouth Superbird at $160,000 (RM686,240)
1969 Dodge Hemi Super Bee at $140,000 (RM600,460)
1969 Chevrolet Camaro Z28 at $140,000 (RM600.460)
1991 Ferrari Testarossa at $130,000 (RM557,570)
1963 Chevrolet Corvette Split Window Coupe at $127,500 (RM546,848)

Despite these insane numbers, similar cars have sold for much more at other auctions. Some muscle cars like the original Ford Shelby GT500 have been sold for nearly two or three times the price of the Hemi Superbird in the aforementioned list.

Only street legal BMW M1 Procar to be put on display

The Thermal Club has announced that it will display the only street-legal BMW M1 Procar in existence for viewing at the 26th Annual McCall’s Motorworks Revival. Taking the experience a step further, it is also offering a virtual reality track experience during the same period, giving visitors a glimpse into what the car’s like on the track.

In case you hadn’t heard, the Thermal Club is a premier private motorsports country club that offers exceptional driving experience programmes to its exclusive membership. It operates on a 344 acre facility in the California desert.

It’s home to luxurious villas, three different tracks, a club house, fuel station as well as a tuning shop for repair and maintenance. Basically, its a motorsports enthusiast’s dream getaway. and if you would like to know more, click on the following link: The Thermal Club

Guests of the Motorworks Revival event will get to experience an immersive 360-degree virtual reality ride-along offering a lap around two of the club’s Alan Wilson-designed tracks. Apart from that, they will also get a virtual tour of the race shop, driver lounge, clubhouse, restaurant and a track-side villa.

“We look forward to bringing a piece of racing history and a state-of-the-art virtual tour of our club to this exclusive event,” said The Thermal Club Founder Tim Rogers. “Enthusiasts from around the globe head to Monterey Car Week to celebrate automotive history and enjoy the incredible amenities around the Peninsula.”

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BMW produced a total of 40 of these M1 Procars, which competed in a championship support series during the 1979 and 1980 Formula One seasons. The 1979 car that is on display was restored by Bruce Canepa, a renowned racing driver.

The event is said to also feature an amazing display of rare cars, coveted racers, private jets, vintage airplanes, live music and fine cuisine. The Motorworks Revival proceeds benefit the California Highway Patrol 11-99 Foundation.

VW Bus convoy party at Hannover

Fans of the VW Bus vehicles joined in on an open-air party on the grounds of Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles’ Hannover plant. A convoy of around 350 vehicles from all six generations of the platform traveled from Wolfsburg to Hannover, where the current T-series is being made.

The event was the final highlight of the four-day VW Bus Summer Festival in Wolfsburg’s Allerpark, of which Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles was the main sponsor. Members of the Board of Management and Works Council, Hannover Mayor Stefan Schostok, Hannover 96 Football Club President Martin Kind and a number of celebrities took part in the parade.

The convoy’s trip is symbolic of the 1956 relocation of T-series production to Hannover, the state capital of Lower Saxony, where the Transporter has been manufactured since. Though the idea of celebrating the relocation of a van plant may seem peculiar to some, many VW Bus fans consider it as important as a major religious holiday.

Dr Eckhard Scholz, Chief Executive Officer of the Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles brand, led the convoy from start to finish. He drove his own cumulus white, 1965 T1 with a near 44bhp engine for the journey. He then had a meet and greet sessions with fans at the Stöcken factory in Hannover.

Speaking of the event, Dr. Scholz, said, “It was a fantastic experience to drive to the Hannover production site with so many proud VW Bus owners in order to celebrate the conclusion of the VW Bus Summer Festival here with even more fans. Our VW Buses are more than just a means of getting from A to B.”

He then added, “They are part of a wonderful lifestyle feeling that constantly travels with you – and has done so across every vehicle generation. This easy-going lifestyle feeling could also be felt throughout the entire festival. It was simply lovely.”

During the event, many VW Bus enthusiasts had the opportunity to look at a number of T-series collector’s vehicles and reminisce about the good ‘ol days and their own past experiences. It is said that each Bus is rich in history, and that cannot be replicated or relived with another. It has offered generations, the freedom to travel where and whenever they desired.