Tuesday, 11 March 2014

Mazda Hazumi pictures and eyes-on: Mazda 2 concept car has ...

Mazda Hazumi <b>pictures</b> and eyes-on: Mazda 2 concept <b>car</b> has <b>...</b>

Mazda Hazumi <b>pictures</b> and eyes-on: Mazda 2 concept <b>car</b> has <b>...</b>

Posted: 07 Mar 2014 11:15 AM PST

If there's a prize for car with the coolest name from this year's Geneva Motor Show then we think it would have to go to the Mazda Hazumi concept. Although, really, it's less concept and borderline reality and what you're currently feasting your eyes on will be the Mazda 2.

And it looks rather lovely. It's got that distinct Japanese style about it that oozes cool and, in this instance looks like an Alfa Romeo 4C has had a facelift. Maybe it's the red paint and strong lighting, or perhaps it's that curvaceous "smile" tucked in among the Transformer-esque front grille.

We were only able to see the Hazumi from afar rather than get inside, but from what we can see this 5-door super-mini has all the guts it needs to take on the likes of a sporty Ford Fiesta. Mazda has squeezed in plenty of details that caught our attention: the dual exhaust to the rear and those 18-inch alloy really set off the low-slung chassis.

Under the hood there's a new 1.5L Skyactiv-D diesel engine able to deliver CO2 emissions under 90g/km - an key element in the UK to keep its tax on par with the likes of the 88g/km Ford Fiesta or Focus.

Other details are somewhat limited - this is a concept after all - so sit back and click through the gallery and adsorb what we think is a striking little car to look at. In many ways its a shame the concept name will die as we keep saying it with our best Japanese accent and think it's got a wonderful ring to it even from a Western tongue. Looks and sounds good to us.

BMW X4 (2014) first official <b>pictures</b> | Automotive <b>...</b> - <b>Car</b> Magazine

Posted: 06 Mar 2014 02:00 AM PST

By Ollie Kew

First Official Pictures

06 March 2014 10:00

This is the new BMW X4. BMW’s latest niche-buster was previewed as a close-to-production concept in April 2013, but now you’re looking at the showroom-ready X4 that’ll reach UK dealerships in July 2014.

Is the BMW X4 just a shrunken X6?

In effect, yes. BMW is applying its purist-riling but commercially successful SAC (Sports Activity Coupe) template to the BMW X3 to create the new X4, just as the last-gen X5 begat the sloping-roofed X6.

The dimensions of the X4 follow suit: it’s 14mm longer than an X3 and 36mm lower overall. BMW’s tried to hint at a sporting character inside the car too: the driver and front seat passenger sit 20mm lower than they would in an X3 â€" the rear-seat passengers lower still, by 28mm.

Unlike the bigger, pricier X6, which remains a four-seater unless the owner ticks a three-abreast bench option, the X4 can seat five people as standard. However, the roofline’s highest point is directly above the driver’s head â€" rear passenger headroom is likely to be at a premium.

There’s a cargo capacity penalty too. Open the X4’s motorised tailgate and you find a 500-litre boot, expanded to 1440 litres with the rear seats dropped. The frumpier X3 boasts 550 litres with all five seats up, and 1600 in van-mode.

Is the X4 more expensive than an X3?

Yes â€" you pay lots more for less practicality. The X4 starts at £36,590 for the entry-level model, a 187bhp/295lb ft 2.0-litre diesel with all-wheel drive and a six-speed manual gearbox. That’s a £3600 premium over an equivalent X3.

Why am I being charged more for less car?

BMW claims the X4’s dynamics put the X3 so far in the shade that the space trade-off is worth it. The proof of that pudding will come in the form of two rumoured M Performance flagships: the X4 M40i and X4 M40d.

Yet coupes aren’t just sold on smiles-per-mile (even ‘four-door’ ones) â€" they’re bought for their looks too â€" and that’s where the X4 is more controversial. Seen here in M Sport guise, it’s a divisive design: distinctive and controversial in equal measure. Tell us your thoughts about the new BMW X4’s looks in the comments.

Which other engines can I have in my X4?

It’s diesel only for the UK, like the X3 range. Top of the heap is the six-cylinder X4 xDrive35d, good for 309bhp, 465lb ft, and 0-62mph in 5.2sec. BMW claims this X4, which will hit 153mph flat out, can achieve up to 47.1mpg.

Sitting in the middle of the range is the six-pot X4 xDrive30d. Power is down to 255bhp and 413lb ft, but it’s only 0.8mpg more frugal than the flagship model, according to BMW’s figures. Both of the six-cylinder diesel engines are mated with an eight-speed automatic gearbox as standard.

Anything else?

Amongst the enormous options list, there’s the choice of 17in ‘aero-wheels’ for the X4 xDrive20d and xDrive30d. While they won’t make your 4x4-coupe fly, BMW claims that their low-drag design, when twinned with low-friction tyres, cuts CO2 emissions by a 7g/km. That takes the least powerful X4 to 129g/km, making it cleaner than a Mini Cooper S with a manual gearbox (133g/km). Not bad for a big, bluff family SUV.

Standard X4 equipment includes speed-sensitive steering, 18in alloys, parking sensors and Xenon headlights. Heated front seats, BMW’s ‘Business Media’ infotainment package and split folding rear seats feature on all models too, plus that automatic tailgate.

>> Is the BMW X4 now the smart SUV choice, or just a nonsensical niche? The floor is open for your comments

Porsche 919 Hybrid (2014) first official <b>pictures</b> <b>...</b> - <b>Car</b> Magazine

Posted: 03 Mar 2014 11:50 PM PST

By Ben Pulman

First Official Pictures

04 March 2014 07:50

This is the new Porsche 919 Hybrid, and it signals Porsche’s return to the world famous Le Mans 24-hour endurance race after an absence of 16 years. The 919 Hybrid was unveiled this morning at the 2014 Geneva motor show â€" and a switch from Red Bull Racing to Porsche means this is also Mark Webber’s new company car.

Porsche 919 Hybrid? So what’s the engine in the new Porsche race car?

You’d be safe taking a punt and guessing it’s not a diesel engine like arch-rivals Audi, but it’s not a naturally aspirated V8 petrol like the one that’ll feature in the new Toyota TS040 either. It’s not a flat-six either. No, the engine that powers the new Porsche 919 Hybrid is a turbocharged 2.0-litre V4. Yes, this is a four-cylinder Porsche race car…

Err… why?

Because new-for-214 rules for the Le Mans 24hrs â€" and the wider World Endurance Championship, of which the famous French race is now the marquee round â€" focus on energy consumption per lap. There are no engine regulations (hence the three different layouts used by Porsche, Audi and Toyota) but this year the amount of fuel that can be used each lap has been cut by around 30%.

Correspondingly, the amount of power that can come from the (mandatory) hybrid systems has increased dramatically. So Porsche (and Audi and Toyota) have each picked the solution they think will prove most fuel efficient â€" and fastest.

What else do we know about the Porsche 919 Hybrid?

That the racing won’t be slow. While the new Formula 1 regulations have a fuel limit per race, and thus Vettel and co won’t be running at maximum attack throughout, the LMP-H racers will be optimised to make the most of their fuel allowance per lap, and therefore be flat-out.

As for the powertrain, the innovative V4 engine revs to around 9000rpm, and its boosted by two hybrid systems, one using regenerative braking on the front axle, and the other using recovery of thermal energy from the exhaust gases. Both systems then feed into a single electric motor powering the front wheels (with the petrol engine driving the rear axle) and despite the electrified gubbins, a carbon monocoque helps the 919 weigh just 870kg.

The 2014 WEC season starts on April 20 at Silverstone, with Le Mans the third round of the championship on 14-15 June. And it’s not just the car that will be the star, as ex-Red Bull F1 driver (and long-time Porsche enthusiast) Mark Webber will be one of the six drivers competing in the two 919s that are being entered.

Did Porsche unveil anything else at the Geneva motor show?

Another track star. Besides the 919 Hybrid was the 2014 iteration of the 911 RSR race car, which won the GT category at Le Mans in 2013. For the new season double wishbones replace the road car-derived MacPherson strut front suspension, there’s a new six-speed paddle-shift gearbox too and detail revisions to the 470bhp 4.0-litre flat-six.

Plus more carbonfibre parts lower the centre of gravity, improve the weight distribution and cut weight, and those carbon body parts are also more aerodynamically efficient and feature a new ‘quick-change concept’ so they’re easier to replace in the pits after an on-track incident.

Toyota FV2 <b>pictures</b> and eyes-on: Tron-like concept &#39;<b>car</b>&#39; that you <b>...</b>

Posted: 07 Mar 2014 01:10 AM PST

You are looking at the Toyota FV2. We know, it's one of those things that'll make you cock your head to work out exactly what it is and what's supposed to go where. Originally announced at the Tokyo Motor Show, it's taken until the 2014 Geneva Motor Show for us to lay eyes on this futuristic concept.

Whereas some other "concept" cars are actually early renditions of next year's models, the FV2 goes all out to look like it's been extracted from the set of Tron. Either that or it's a hypersleep chamber on wheels. All very science fiction. Or not, as we're staring at it in the real world.

The FV2 - which stands for "Fun Vehicle 2" - represents Toyota's car design team being given free rein to delve into their minds and see what they come up with. And it's very Japanese, with a firm focus on the interaction between man and machine. There are no pedals and no steering wheel, instead the lean of the driver's body interacts to control the vehicle.

Giving the FV2 an extra lick of life it even has a "mood-based" mirrored exterior that constantly moves and shifts colours and patterns. All this does sound a bit like a Windows screen saver, and does look somewhat strange, but we like the science fiction sentiment - of a machine with feeling that can interact with its surroundings. The sign next to it on the show floor instructed onlookers to wave to get a response. We waved and quickly felt rather silly as nothing happened. Perhaps the we're just not fun enough for the FV2 to take notice. 

From one design oddity to another: the whole vehicle itself. The resulting three-wheeler design that Toyota has made is as far from a Robin Reliant as you could get. If Only Fools And Horses made a return in 100 years' time we don't think that Del Boy would come flying around the corner on one of those. There's no boot for starters, and it's a one man only vehicle too. Poor Rodney, eh?

Toyota showed off the FV2 in an unmanned but semi-functional format on the show floor. And while you are probably, as we also assumed, thinking that someone sits inside this vehicle low to the ground, you would be wrong. Instead the 99cm-tall device's front panel rises up to 178cms to be used in a standing, feet-to-the-floor way. Like a space-age Segway or something.

Our conclusion? It's completely whacky, but that's the vey reason we seem to love it. To us it looks implausible to the extreme, particularly as at 3m long and with a 2.4m-wide wheelbase it's not particularly small, so we don't think anything like this will rule the future of the roads. But we appreciate how it represents a deep dive into the human creative mind - even if it's more Tron than true.

Honda Civic Type R Concept (2014) first official <b>pictures</b> <b>...</b>

Posted: 03 Mar 2014 04:01 PM PST

By Ben Pulman

First Official Pictures

04 March 2014 00:01

This is the new Honda Civic Type R Concept, a styling preview of the near-300bhp hot hatch that will go into production in 2015.

In a back-to-front chain of events we actually drove a prototype version of the new Honda Civic Type R in 2013, but this concept has just been unveiled at the 2014 Geneva motor show. Though CAR actually had a sneak preview of the new Civic Type R Concept a few weeks ago…

What does the new Honda Civic Type R Concept show us?

That if Honda’s designers get their way the new Civic Type R will look like a race track refugee. ‘It’s as if a World Touring Car has come into your garage,’ chief designer Masaru Hasegawa told CAR. ‘It’s race car for the road, not a high-performance Civic.’

Compared to the prototype we tested in 2013 the design is more extreme, but more homogenous too. The front splitter, complete with its cut-outs exposing the wheels, is bigger and more aggressive, as is the huge double-decker rear wing with its integrated smoked LED tail lights.

How will the Civic Type R Concept morph into a production car?

If Hasegawa-san gets his way, nothing at all will change: ‘We need to see how much is feasible for production, but of course we want to keep everything.’

Of course cost implications will limit those dreams, and the reality is the hugely blistered wheelarches, which blend neatly with new doors skins, will probably prove beyond Honda’s budget for the Civic Type R. Expect a more tacked-on look for the ‘arches, akin to the prototype.

Whatever final form the wheelarch vents take, legislation requires some safety mesh in there too, so stones don’t fling unimpeded back towards other traffic, but Hasegawa-san wants every feature on the Type R to have a purpose. ‘Everything on the Type R will be functional,’ he promised CAR. So although the position of the bonnet vents may change, they will remain in some form because the engine requires them for cooling, and the four exhausts pipes will feature too, and won’t be overly stylised either.

Expect those 20in wheels to be downgraded to 19s for the production Civic Type R, though we’re told the former will be an option. And so might an exterior package featuring the exposed carbonfibre trim.

What’s under the bonnet of the new Honda Civic Type R to produce 300bhp?

The first turbocharged engine to ever power a Type R. Out goes the high-revving and naturally aspirated 2.0-litre VTEC engine that’s screamed away in the past two generations of Civic Type R; in comes an all-new turbocharged and direct-injected 2.0-litre four-cylinder.

Honda promises “a class-leading output of at least 276bhp” but despite the heady outputs of the BMW M135i and Mercedes A45 AMG, don’t expect the new Civic Type R to boast the full 300bhp. ‘The specific output is not one of our core values,’ Patrik Ponec, part of the advanced product planning team at Honda’s European R&D centre, told CAR. ‘Creating a high output turbocharged engine is relatively easy, but our aim is to retain the VTEC characteristics, so it’s high revving, with great responses and easy to control performance.’

That’s promising news for enthusiasts who were worried the new Civic Type R might have lost its unique character, and builds on our encouraging first impressions after a stint behind the wheel of a prototype in Japan in 2013. Click here to read that review of Honda’s Civic Type R prototype.

Will the Civic Type R need a proper LSD to deal with all that power going through the front wheels?

That’s what we’d have thought, but Ponec cautions otherwise: ‘We will need to consider how to deal with high performance at the front wheels, but the industry is moving away from mechanical systems to drive-by-wire and electronics…’

It remains to be seen which solution Honda will choose, but we do know the Civic Type R will come with a six-speed manual gearbox, and the interior will feature a set of sports sets in iconic Type R red trim (this concept doesn’t any an interior all)

Prices will start at under £30k, and sales will commence in spring 2015. With the Civic Type R, the new NSX, and a return to F1, 2015 will be quite a year for Honda.

Maserati Alfieri concept (2014) first official <b>pictures</b> <b>...</b> - <b>Car</b> Magazine

Posted: 04 Mar 2014 01:00 AM PST

By Ollie Kew

First Official Pictures

04 March 2014 09:00

This beauty is the Maserati Alfieri concept. It’s a 460bhp, V8-powered coupe that points to the styling of the next GranTurismo, and Maserati’s soon-to-swell range of sports cars.With Maserati in the midst of a massive expansion programme, we’re getting used to seeing Maserati SUV concepts and diesel saloon cars at motor shows. Refreshing to see Maser take on the Porsche 911 again, isn’t it?

Maserati Alfieri: the stunning design

Anyone else reckon the Maserati Alfieri owes the Jaguar F-type Coupe a paternity test? That raked rear screen, and the way in which it flows into the squat rear haunches: very Ian Callum. Very F-type, in other words. Still, you can never have too many pretty cars on the road…

The Alfieri concept car is made from carbonfibre, but Maserati insiders confirm that the production cars it will spawn (read: next GranTurismo, GranCabrio and so on) will be aluminium bodied, with some composite panels to conform to the weight-saving zeitgeist. Also included on the concept car are carbon-ceramic brakes straight from the hardcore GranTurismo MC Stradale.

An in-house design team has been entrusted with the Alfieri project, not Pininfarina. They were apparently inspired by the classic Maserati A6 GCS-53, and cues like the cab-back stance and exaggerated bonnet length have been carried over onto the Geneva concept car.

Take the all-aluminium wheels: they measure 20in up front, and 21in on the rear, yet their decorative designs are inspired by wire-spoke wheels from the 1950s. A modern design with retro garnish â€" that’s the crux of the Alfieri concept.

Underneath, the concept car sits on a GranTurimso MC Stradale chassis that’s had a whopping 240mm chopped out of the wheelbase. It should be agile then â€" and that points to a whole new era for sporting Maseratis. Click here for CAR’s complete scoop on those next-gen Masers.

Inside the Alfieri

It’s less production-ready than the outside, which frankly looks like a good-to-go Ghibli coupe. Inside the 2+2 Alfieri, Maserati has gone for minimalist modernism: it takes the button-free approach of the Ghibli to extremes, in the best concept car tradition.

The instrument panel uses TFT displays rather than analogue dials. The numbers rotate around the dials rather than a needle, with a magnifying-glass effect accentuating the current speed and RPM.  The screens complement a larger screen in the car’s dashboard.

Single aluminium billets have been milled to create the gear selector and trademark oval clock, and the pedals, gearshift paddles and steering wheel’s spokes are also aluminium. Meanwhile, the bucket front seats are inspired by 1950s racing bucket chairs. There’s one feature we hope remains resolutely a concept car flourish…

>> What’s your take on Maserati’s sports car future? Add your thoughts by clicking ‘Add your comment’ below
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