For the record

Posted by Car Magazine MotorPlay under News

Andy Green and Richard Noble, the last two holders of the World Record for Land Speed, are teaming up in an attempt to break the 1.000mph barrier. That’s Mach…. something, I don’t really know, but it’s a lot. The project is called Bloodhound, and although the current world record is 760mph over 1 kilometre and 766mph over one mile. I may not be Dexter’s brother, but that means almost five seconds for a mile. It’s almost teleportation.

They’re going to take it step by step, starting with 800mph, then making one quick stop at 900 and then, somewhere during 2011, they’ll go for the full speed. This would be a 31% improvement on the current world record, which is, by any standards, amazing. But they’re not alone. A joint team from the USA and Canada are also planning an attempt with their vehicle, called the North American Eagle. Yeah, it looks like a jet-plane with no wings, but if does the job nobody will care. Anyway, their target is much lower - 800mph. Amateurs…

Plugging Mini E

Posted by Car Magazine MotorPlay under BMW

It’s BMW’s time to lease the Americans an electric car and tease the rest of the civilised world who, for some reason, never get to drive this kind of vehicles. I’m thinking here, of course, about GM’s EV-1. Needless to say that I wish Mini E all the best and not to follow his predecessor’s fate.

There will be 500 of them. The owners will be able to recharge them using any ordinary socket, but Mini will provide a wallbox which will guarantee full charging times of nearly two and a half hours. In case you missed it, the cars are fully electrical so there will be zero emissions. We’ll have to wait for one year to see if it’s just a marketing move or the electric Mini will eventually make it for real, so to speak, considering where it will be used.

Time to be a man

Posted by Car Magazine MotorPlay under Motorsport, News

If you asked me a few days back, I would have said that the Chinese GP is the most important race. Win this one and you’re more than half way there. Hamilton, that is. Now I realise that the Championship is far from over, and no matter how much I’d like for Hamilton to win it (or how much I would hate it if he lost on the last race of the season again) I must say I’m glad the stakes will still be high in Brazil.

But in the end, whether Hamilton wins it or not, he’s still a long way from becoming a real legend. He’ll have to win it next year too. And then the next year once again. And maybe then, when at the beginning of every season he’ll be the favourite, you can call him an F1 legend. Don’t get me wrong Lewis, I think you’re a great driver with a great personality, but don’t let it all go to your head. Schumacher did it, and he turned into a prick for a while. Don’t be a prick and win this one.

The kitschy Lone Ranger

Posted by Car Magazine MotorPlay under Entertainment, News

I’m no art expert, but no ignorant either. Actually, considering where art is going, saying that you don’t know art has become pretty nonsensical. Well, so is Matthew Harrison’s work of art, engineering, or motoring - I haven’t decided which yet, and neither has he.

The idea is simple in principle, not so easy to put in practice, though, considering that you have to support a few tons of metal on four puny wooden wheels. The people seem to have liked the idea, as you can see from the pictures. There were lots of laughs and camera flashes going off in its vicinity, so you could call this a success. At least as far as GM interests go. But don’t be so quick to share a tear for Matthew either, I’m sure he got a nice cut.

In case you still had any doubts

Posted by Car Magazine MotorPlay under Entertainment, Motorsport, News

The KTM X-Bows have secured the first three places in the debut season of the Sports Light Category of the GT4 European Cup. Yes, one - two - three. And this is not extremely impressive because they’ve come ahead of debutants like Donkervoort or Lotus, nor because not even more experienced companies with more powerful cars like Aston Martin, Ford Mustang or BMW Z4M managed to beat them - it’s because the KTM X-Bows that competed had near-standard specifications, with minor revisions made only to meet FIA safety regulations.

I’m telling you, if this car also had a mirror in which the passenger could reflect herself (because it’s a “she” I’m talking about), it would be the perfect car. Or at least the perfect two seater.

Cruze all dressed up

Posted by Car Magazine MotorPlay under Chevrolet, Motorsport

This is the car Chevrolet will be outing starting the next WTCC season. It’s based on the recently launched Chevrolet Cruze and it looks as though it’s gone through the hands of some tunner with fine tastes, and that’s something pretty hard to come by. The car is currently undergoing pre-season tests and all kinds of other tests so it will be ready for the first race of the 2009 season which will take place in Brazil. For now, perfromance-wise, they plan not to go below the current Chevrolet WTCC car, the Lacetti, which has won 12 races so far.

Seat goes large

Posted by Car Magazine MotorPlay under News, Seat

It’s been quite a while since I saw a decent sedan from Seat, and I must say this one came very much as a surprise. A very pleasant one, too. Exeo is looking like the kind of car that makes the Passat a buying prospect only for retired old men and people upgrading from an older Passat version. Not to mention Skoda Superb.

To be honest, I see Exeo as a competitor for Mitsubishi Lancer, because they both appeal mostly to younger, performance oriented clients, the difference being that those who’re after opulance choose the Lancer and those more secure with themselves will go for the Exeo. And, withiut saying the Lancer is a bad car, what a bloody good choice that would be.

Expect it to hit the market sometime in the first half of the next year. It’ll have most of the VAG engines, so there won’t be any shortage of choices for either petrol or diesel fans. The vehicle on show at Paris had a 2.0 litre TSI engine and a double exhaust pipe to match. Which is nice.

Hami left frustrated again

Posted by Car Magazine MotorPlay under Entertainment, Motorsport

What has happened to F1? Where are all the boring laps and people shaking hands at the end of the race? Do they really want to win it this time? Every single one of them? Do they want to win it so bad that they’re turning every race into a Destruction Derby? It seems so. It’s Carmageddon time, as The Clash would sing it.

Well, you couldn’t see much from all the rumble and debris flying everywhere, but the main story is that Hamilton finished 12th while Massa got two points after Sebastien Bourdais was given a time penalty. Hamilton’s lead in the driver’s Championship Table has dropped to only five points. All these should make the following two races something to die for, and, given the latest developments, I might just mean that literally.

Posted by Car Magazine MotorPlay under Entertainment

This is the new SEAT Ibiza SC commercial you’ll be seeing when you go to the movies. There are a few things you should know before you watch it: first, the guys scrambling for the car are SEAT race drivers and second, the hand that whishes us a very rich and varied sex life in the end, belongs to a woman. She too is a pilot for SEAT in DTM. Now watch it!

Mini Mazda 6

Posted by Car Magazine MotorPlay under Mazda, News

The new Mazda 3 Sedan will be making its debut at the Los Angeles Motor Show later this year. Well, if you like more precise dates, on the 19th of November 2008, between 12:20 and 12:45 local hours. There isn’t much to say, except for the fact that the previous (actually, current) Mazda 3 is the bestseller of the Mazda range, with one sold for every three other Mazda models. If you liked the Mazda 6, you’ll like the new smaller one at least just as much, because we all know smaller things tend to look better.