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New Audi A8 features artificial intelligence

Audi’s new A8 has been revealed and though it retains the signature design elements of its predessor, with every incremental upgrade, the German automaker makes certain adjustments to rejuvenate the design to a certain degree. And this time, the front end features a wide, upright single-frame grille that is complemented by fludic and muscular bodywork giving the car a sporty yet elegant look.

From the side, the steep curvature of the front end blends well with the gently inclined rear quarter for a sleek silhouette. The sophisticated HD LED headlights with Audi laser lighting are impressive additions that are complemented by the DRL LED light-strips and OLED lighting tech for the rear.

Available as either the A8 or A8L, with the later being the long wheelbase version and 13 centimeters longer than the former. Overall, both feature lightweight construction and quattro permanent all-wheel-drive system. That is complemented by the all-wheel-drive steering system that allow for better control and turning radius.

Inside, the vehicle features the usual luxurious upholstery as well as electric seats that warm the soles of your feet (A8L). The extensive use of high quality materials is evident throughout the cabin, including the centre stack where the 10.1-inch touchscreen (MMI) infotainment system resides. Auxiliary functions can be controlled through another touch interface located on the centre tunnel console, including accessing air-conditioning and other comfort related options.

Audi touts that the glass display system, is very responsive and behaves in a very elegant manor. The combination of acoustic and tactile feedback that it offers as well as common touch gestures makes for a pleasant and user-friendly experience.

As advanced as these systems are, the new A8’s crowing achievement is its reliance on artifical intelligence both for autonomous driving and the manipulation of its active suspension setup. Thanks to a slew of radar sensors, image cameras as well as other sensors that include the ultrasound ones, the A8 is able to drive and navigate through traffic jams and slow moving traffic of up 60km/h.

It’s able to do so on roads and highways where a physical barrier separates the carriageways. The system can be activated by pressing the AI button on the centre console. When activated, the driver can take his/her hands off the steering wheel and relax while watching content on the TV.

Audi’s AI remote parking and remote garage pilot systems give the car the ability to steer in and out of parking spaces or a garage. The best part of this, the driver doesn’t have to be in the car while this is being done. He/she only needs to tell the car to do so by using he myAudi app on their smartphone.

Then there’s the active suspension, that depending on driving conditions, is able to raise ad lower each individual wheel via electric actuators. by doing so, it will be able to alter the suspension setup from a firmer sporty one, all the way to a soft and supple configuration. The reaction time of this particular AI system is said to be lightning quick should it sense an impending lateral collision, which will help reduce the severity of the accident and injuries to the occupants.

The system requires a great deal of energy to function, which is why the A8 uses a 48-Volt electrical system. Depending on region, there will be a number of engines on offer, which include 3.0 TDI, 3.0 TFSI, 4.0 TDI and 4.0 TFSI as well as the top of the line 6.0-litre W12 powerplant. When equipped with a mild-hybrid platform the A8 is able to switch off its engine at certain times to save fuel as well as recover energy of up to 12kW when the conditions suit it.

The new Audi A8 and A8L are being built at Audi’s Neckarsulm site and will appear in the German market in late 2017. We will let you know when it eventually reaches our shores in the not so distant future.

Princess Diana’s Audi to be sold at auction

Princess Diana ‘s 1994 Audi Cabriolet will go under the hammer at Coys auction at Blenheim Palace on the 15th of July. This is only fitting considering that the location was also the birthplace of Winston Churchill and is also considered a World Heritage site.

This particular Audi is expected to sell between RM 193,288 to RM 220,900 due to the fact that the car was previously driven by, arguably, one of the most influential female figures of the 1990s. It was loaned to Princess Diana for personal use by Dovercourt Audi of St Johns Wood and is now up for sale just a few days after another Audi, also used by her, went under the hammer.

The car is still registered as L541 GJD and has been storage for many years. In 2004, the car was purchased by the current owner and used as a daily driver to ferry the family around until 2009. Once he discovered the importance and significance of the Audi, the car was promptly kept away in storage, to preserve it until it was put up for sale.

It was been featured in several media images showing the Princess stepping in and out of the car with the number plate clearly visible. Despite the Audi’s relative importance, it will probably be overshadowed by the likes of the 1926 Bugatti Type 37 that will also go under the hammer during the auction. It is said that the car might fetch RM 2,209,000 to RM 3,313,500 because it is considered as one of three Type 37s supplied in 1926 to Bugatti agent and world speed record holder Malcolm Campbell.

How well both cars do remains to be seen. So, stay tuned and we will let you know later on, how much these cherished vehicles are sold for at the auction.

London Taxi Company gets name change and new car

The famous London Taxi Company, the very same one that used the iconic Austin black cabs to shuttle passengers in and around the city, has been renamed to LEVC. The move is said to be part of the company’s transformation under parent company, Geely.

The name change was done to help position the company as more of an international entity, that is poised to serve the needs and wants of customers all over the world. The Chinese automotive giant has pumped in RM1.8 billion worth of investments with a goal of turning LEVC into the urban commercial vehicle provider of choice around the world. And to bolster this claim, the company also unveiled a new fully-electric London taxi, called the TX.

The car features styling that is a mix-and-match of the old and contemporary styling that has resulted in a rather bizarre looking black cab. It seems as though certain design elements and trim pieces were taken from that of contemporary generation Volvos, is is especially evident when it comes to the interior.

The TX is powered by eCity technology that comprises of advanced battery electric powertrain that is aided by a small petrol powered generator. Working in tandem, the system provides the TX with a range of 644km including more than 113km on pure electric power.

Speaking of the latest addition and changes to the company, Chris Gubbey, CEO, LEVC said, “The launch of LEVC marks Britain’s leadership as a first mover in creating the world’s only dedicated electric vehicle company for the urban commercial market. Drawing on the best of British design and engineering as well as technical expertise from our sister company Volvo, our products will help transform city living.”

The company says that the TX will be launched in London later this year because LEVC is still finalizing the quality and testing methods to evaluate the car’s readiness to function around the world. So far, the car has been taken to the Arizona desert to endure torturous heat under the desert sun as well as freezing temperatures in the Arctic Circle, the other extreme to the scorching Arizona weather.

All of this is being done to prove that no matter where the TX is driven, irrespective of weather conditions, it will function as it should. LEVC’s first international order of 225 vehicles has come from RMC in the Netherlands, which is one of the country’s largest taxi operators.

London is one of the pioneers in setting out tough emission standards to reduce taxi and van emissions. This has spurred the adoption of electric vehicles by commercial transportation operators in the city.

Eventually, this will be common practice around the world as governments take steps to reduce the impact they have on the environment.

Ford to introduce retro design for 2018 Mustang

Ford has seen it fit to update the 2018 Mustang EcoBoost with a special option pack. Called the Pony Package, it offers a slew of updates for the new car, most notable of which is the iconic grille-mounted pony-in-corral badge design. This particular look was first introduced more than 50 years ago when the original car bust onto the scene.

This nostalgic front fascia design had even made its way onto pre-production cars such as the concept version back in the mid-1960s. Throughout the years, the design has morphed into different styles to fit in with the times but now however, Ford has decided that the only forward, is to go retro.

Besides the new Pony badge design, the package also includes other additions which include:

19-inch polished aluminum wheels
Bright beltline and window trim for fastback model
Premium carpeted floor mats with Ebony embroidered pony logo
Side stripes on lower body sides
Tri-bar pony badge on rear decklid appliqué

The EcoBoost Mustang is a major departure from what we are used to seeing from the nameplate. It introduced forced induction as a powertrain option, allowing the car with a smaller engine to produce power that is able to rival that of much higher displacement variants. Many enthusiasts lament its introduction, because it detracts from the core fundamentals of a true Mustang.

Expect the new Mustang to hit US showrooms this October, but it won’t be long before it is offered over here, provided that there is enough interest in it. We think it does add a certain classic element to the car, which should make it appealing to a wider demographic.Let us know what you think of it in the comments section below.

XC60 optimised with Polestar powertrain

Polestar, Volvo cars’ performance arm has fitted an optimized powertrain to the XC60, which moves it inline with the XC90 T8 as the most powerful models the Swedish automaker produces at the moment. It’s engine now offers 421bhp, putting it in the big leagues of powerful 4×4 vehicles that you can buy today.

The work that Polestar did has resulted in improved engine performance and gearbox functionality specifically in the mid-range. The gear-hold function maintains the same gear when cornering with high lateral g-force in order to avoid unsettling the balance of the vehicle.

“Our goal is to create usable performance in everyday driving situations for Volvo owners who want an enhanced driving experience,” said Henrik Fries, Vice President, Research and Development at Polestar. “The new XC60 has provided us with an excellent base to work on with a dynamic chassis and a state of the art powertrain. With the Polestar optimization, it makes the new Volvo XC60 a true drivers’ car.”

Polestar’s expertise in making super Volvos, is a culmination of more than two decades’ worth of motorsport derived R&D with Cyan Racing, its on track partner. As such, the XC60 now has better engine performance, throttle response, off-throttle response, gearshift speed and hold.

In total, there are five variants of the XC60 that have been made available with the Polestar optimization option, which are the T8, T6, T5, D5, and D4. We don’t know if the option will be made available over here, but we are sure it will be welcomed with open arms.

Ferrari wins prestigious Red Dot award for J50

Ferrari has picked up the Red Dot award for the J50 supercar. Based on the 488 Spider, the car, manufactured in very low numbers, was built to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Ferrari in Japan. It won the Red Dot’s ‘Best of the Best Design’ award because it displayed ground-breaking design language and conveyed a sense of quality that was unmatched in the competition.

The J50 is a two-seater supercar with the engine placed in the mid-rear section of the body that features a radically futuristic design language that won over the Red Dot jurors. Penned by Ferrari’s own design team under the leadership of Flavio Manzoni, the contours are a major departure from the car it is based on.

Just 10 of these cars will be built, which makes it an extemely rare Ferrari. It wasn’t the only Ferrari that received recognition though, the GTC4Lusso, LaFerrari Aperta and 458 MM Speciale also received Red Dot distinctions for high quality designs.

The GTC4Lusso is Ferrari’s flagship GT car that is able to seat four occupants and offer amazing performance while being relatively practical.

Ferrari’s LaFerrari Aperta on the other hand, is the pinnacle of performance supercars. Basically the roadster version of the fixed roof LaFerrari supercar. Built in limited numbers, the car is said to represent the finest expression of the marque’s technical capabilities in both GT and Formula 1 engineering.

Considered a one-off programme from the Italian automaker, the 458 MM Speciale is a sports car built around a bespoke service for customers who wants a car tailored to their individual tastes. It’s basically for those who want a car that is very different to anything else including Ferraris that you can buy off the showroom floor.

This year’s award marks the third consecutive time that Ferrari has bagged a Red Dot award, which says a lot about the Italian automaker’s latest crop of cars.

Dodge Durango SRT given a HEMI V8 and impressive performance characteristics

Dodge’s Durango SRT is set to be one of the most powerful 3-row SUV in existence. Based on the standard Durango, this SRT version gets a whole host of upgrades most notable of which is the 6.2-litre (392 cubic-inch) HEMI V8. It produces 475bhp and is able to launched the car from 0-100km/h in just 4.4 seconds, mind-blowing numbers considering what is supposed to be a people carrier.

New exterior tweaks include a widebody design that include aggressive new bumpers, fenders and skirting that give the entire vehicle a sporty appearance. The SRT hood scoop on the bonnet, is fully functional with an air inlet duct flanked by head extractors.

Inside, there’s (in Dodge’s words) Demonic Red Laguna Leahter upholstery a new carbon fibre trim with Durango SRT branding, paddle shifters, as well as heated and ventilated front and heated second-row captain’s chairs with embroidered SRT logos .

As icing on the cake, owners of this vehicle will be given a one full-day session at the Bob Bondurant School of High Performance Driving, to help them hone their skills of taming this beast of an SUV.

“The new 2018 Dodge Durango SRT is America’s fastest, most powerful and most capable three-row SUV,” said Tim Kuniskis, Head of Passenger Cars Brands, Dodge, SRT, Chrysler and FIAT – FCA North America. “This is what you get, when you take everything great about the Durango and combine it with the performance of the Charger SRT: a 12-second quarter mile, 8,700-pound-toy hauling, three-row muscle car.”

Changes that were made that set it apart from the base vehicle include the following:

New performance-tuned AWD system
Standard TorqueFlite eight-speed automatic transmission specifically calibrated for the Dodge Durango SRT
New Brembo high-performance six-piston (front) and four-piston (rear) calipers and vented rotors
New SRT seven-mode drive system
New Track Mode delivers maximum performance track driving with 160-millisecond shifts and up to 70 percent of engine torque to the rear wheels
Sophisticated Active Damping System opens and closes the Durango SRT’s suspension’s damper valves
Stiffer front springs (3 percent), stiffer rear springs (16 percent) and stiffer rear sway bar (18 percent)

Dodge is offering the vehicle with seven different exterior colours, which include B5 Blue, Billet Clear Coat, Bruiser Grey Clear Coat, DB Black Clear Coat, Granite Clear Coat, Octane Red Pearl Coat and White Knuckle Clear Coat.

Customers of the Dodge Durango SRT can expect to see this vehicle in showrooms by the end of 2017 with prices near to that of the automaker’s high performance muscle cars.

BMW 8-Series is an iconic vehicle that deserves praise

BMW is known for building luxury cars with sportscar-like credentials, something not many have been able to replicate. Over the years, the Bavarian automaker has produced some absolute stunners including the E46 M3. But what many tend to forget is, it also made a Grand Tourer called the 8-Series.

Meant to entice the upper echelon of society, the car was an over-engineered and sophisticated machine that featured many firsts for a road car and for BMW in general. It was the first to use a multiplex type of wiring system that has since become the industry standard. It was also one of the first to use a drive-by-wire throttle, which meant that there was no real mechanical connection between the accelerator pedal and the throttle opening or closing.

The body was designed through the use of Computer Aided Design or CAD software. A technology that was still relatively new back in the 1980s. The result, was a body that was 3kg lighter than if it had been designed with conventional tools during that era. The car had a significantly better drag coefficient that that of the then BMW 6-Series, which was an impressive achievement at the time.

The car was built between 1989 to 1999, and during its 10 year production run, the it was offered with either a V8 or V12 engine. There were two variants of the former and three of the latter but only two choices of automatics (4-speed & 5-speed) and a single 6-speed manual.

Despite the boxy 80s’ styling and the absence of the fluidic contours of contemporary BMWs, the 8-Series was a marvel in its own right. The absence of the B pillar made the car look considerably larger and more spacious, couple that with cool pop-up headlamps, and what you have is an iconic vehicle that is still revered till this day.

Unfortunately, the car never sold well due to the steep asking price, stricter emissions regulations as well as a sequence of events that led to some economic turmoil during that period.

There is a new version of the 8-Series that is scheduled for launch next year with dimensions and design that isn’t far off from the current generation BMW cars, but we digress.

The original 8-Series has a special place in the hearts of many BMW enthusiasts especially the one in this awesome Petrolicious video. Check out Taylor Patterson’s story and tell us what you think of the iconic 8-Series.

Jaguar F-PACE wins World Car of the Year and World Design of the Year awards

Jaguar Land Rover has racked up another accolade and this time, its for the highly sought after F-PACE. It was awarded World Car of the Year and World Design Car of the Year 2017 by a panel of jurors. The mild off-roader has been tasked with leading Jaguar’s foray into uncharted waters for the UK based automaker, which is the SUV market.

Prior to the introduction of the F-PACE, Jaguar, since its inception, has never produced an SUV before. And as such, getting it right on your first attempt, is a remarkable feat that deserves praise. Like the rest of the current line-up the SUV shares the same design language utilised by the XF and XE cars. The prominent honeycomb grille occupies most of the front fascia and are complemented by the equally wide projector headlamps.

Overall, the proportions of the exterior have been well thought out and designed with respectable attention to detail. As a result, its no surprise that Jag walked home with both awards. And to commemorate the win, the UK representatives of the panel of jurors visited Jaguar Land Rover’s Solihull plant, the location where the F-PACE is being produced.

Steve Fowler, World Car of the Year Juror and Editor in Chief at Auto Express said, “It’s been wonderful to present these awards to the Solihull workforce. The Jaguar F-PACE looks great, looks sporty and it looks like a Jaguar should. It’s built brilliantly.”

Jaguar Land Rover CEO, Dr. Ralf Speth and Solihull Operations Director Nigel Blenkinsop were handed the awards by World Car of the Year. Later, Blenkinsop paid tribute to the Solihull workforce who were responsible for the manufacture of the F-PACE as well as contributing to it being the fastest selling Jaguar of all time.

The F-PACE will face some serious competition as it goes up against more established models from Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi. However, based on past experiences, Jaguar has managed to carve out a section of the market due to its unique styling, sporty attributes and general appeal of the brand. We shall have to wait and see if it’s looks are able to win over many potential buyers and provide the brand with better sales numbers.

Mercedes-Benz posts record sales for first half of 2017

Mercedes-Benz has had an awesome six months for 2017, the automaker has posted its best sales figures yet for the month of June as well as for half the year. It was reported that 209,309 vehicles were delivered to its customers in June which is an 11.1% jump compared to the same month last year.

Overall, from January to June of this year, the company shifted 1,144,274 cars, which is a 13.7% increase compared to the same period last year. This means that Mercedes-Benz has outdone itself by surpassing last year’s performance by a considerable margin.

This result was bolstered by year’s second quarter sales, which happens to be Mer’s best quarter ever. During this time, the company sold 583,649 vehicles which is said to be an 11.6% increase overall.

Demand for its cars were so great, that Mercedes-Benz was the most preferred premium brand in markets such as Germany, Italy, France, Belgium, Portugal, Austria, South Korea, Japan, Australia, Taiwan, the USA, Canada and Brazil.

“We have posted the strongest half-year in the history of Mercedes-Benz with sales of significantly more than a million cars,” stated Britta Seeger, Member of the Board of Management of Daimler AG responsible for Mercedes-Benz Cars Marketing & Sales. “Not only the popularity of our E-Class family contributed to this success; demand for our SUVs is also as high as ever in all regions.”

As a means to put this remarkable achievement into context, in Europe alone, the Stuttgart based automaker sold 484,120 vehicles which is a substantial 8.9% increase over last year’s figures. But the market that witnessed the most growth for Mercedes-Benz vehicles was Asia-Pacific.

Asian car buyers purchased 438,710 cars which is a 26.7% increase from last year with the bulk of the sales coming from China. The results were positive overall as China saw a 34.5% increase in sales, South Korea with 47.3%, Australia with 8.5%, Taiwan with 10.9% and India with 8.7%.

The car that contributed the most to Merc’s fantastic sales numbers was the C-Class. Combining sales of both the Sedan and Estate variants, the automaker sold 210,000 C-Class cars, making it the best selling model of its line-up yet again. That said, demand for other Mercedes-Benz vehicles were considerably high as well, especially with regards to the E-Class which saw an increase in sales of about 68.4%.

It looks like 2017 is shaping up to be a great year for Mercedes-Benz and if demand for its vehicles continue to rise, we expect these figures to be a whole lot higher by the time this year rolls to a close.