Automotive

Honda Japan has launched a special website featuring the all-new compact Fit Shuttle, scheduled to debut in March. The big news is that in addition to a petrol Fit Shuttle, Honda will offer a hybrid model equipped with Integrated Motor Assist making it the first wagon-type hybrid model in its class. Clearly the hybrid is now beginning to permeate every class of vehicle. Read More

Total production of the Mazda MX-5 sports car reached 900,000 units today at Mazda's Hiroshima plant in Japan. The milestone was achieved 21 years and 10 months after mass production of the first-generation MX-5 commenced in April 1989 and further extends the Mazda MX-5's lead as the best selling two-seater sports car of all time. Indeed, the MX-5 took that title from the MGB (1962-80) in May 2000 when production reached 514,853 units to exceed the iconic British sportster. Second place on the list is now held by Porsche's 911 series (1964-present and pictured) which has sold over 700,000. It's also fifty years this year since Jaguar launched the first affordable super sports two-seater, the E-Type (pictured), but more on that shortly. Read More

The MINI Cooper S name first graced the classic Mini back in 1963 and during the ensuing half century it has represented the ultimate performance Mini, having won the Monte Carlo rally three times plus countless other races and rallies around the globe. Now for the first time there’s a diesel version too – though not as fire-breathing as the petrol Cooper S, the SD’s 2.0-litre turbodiesel four produces 143 bhp at 4,000 rpm, and an almighty torque figure of 305 Nm (225 lb-ft) from 1,750 to 2,700 rpm endowing it with rapid acceleration all the way to its top speed of 215 km/h (134 mph). It’s the ecologically balanced nature of the pocket rocket which appeals most though, as despite this performance, it’ll return EU test cycle figures of 4.3 litres per 100 kilometres (65.7 mpg imp) with CO2 emissions of 114 grams per kilometre. The Cooper SD will debut in Geneva in March and hit showrooms in Q2. Read More

Steam-engined vehicles are quaint, retro and obsolete ... right? Well, maybe not. The current land speed record for a steam-powered vehicle currently sits at 148 mph (238 kph), set by the British car Inspiration team in 2009. Now, Chuk Williams’ U.S. Land Steam Record (USLSR) Team is hoping to steal that title in its LSR Streamliner, powered by a heat-regenerative external combustion Cyclone engine – an engine that could someday find common use in production automobiles. Read More

When weighing up the impact of electric-vehicles on the environment two factors come to the fore. EV's produce no emissions locally, but depending on where the energy comes from, they can still be producing greenhouse gases back at the power plant ... the so called "long-tailpipe" argument. That's one. The second is batteries – or more specifically, how much energy goes into making them and what to do with the massive battery packs in these cars once they've passed their lifespan. Auto manufacturers building EV infrastructure are taking this second factor into consideration and now EV pioneer Tesla has announced a battery recycling program throughout Europe that will help reduce the carbon footprint of its vehicles. Read More

Pneumatic Futurama-style transport systems were proposed as far back as the late 1800’s following the invention of pneumatic tubes for carrying mail around buildings. Swiss company Acabion sees such vacuum tube-based mass transport systems becoming a reality by 2100 and has conceived a vehicle capable of traveling at speeds of almost 12,500 mph (20,000 km/h) on such a platform. The company envisages a global network that would let users circle the globe in less than two hours and make transcontinental journeys possible in less than the time it currently takes to get across town. Read More

More than two million people witnessed the live presentation of the Ferrari F150 2011 F1 car on friday when the first F1 contender of 2011 was presented live on the internet. The most innovative aspects of the new car have been largely dictated by changes to the regulations. The double diffuser and the blown rear wing are banned, as is the use of apertures in the front part of the floor, while the use of an hydraulically adjustable rear wing has been introduced and KERS is back. Though engine performance has been regulated to be the same as 2010, the wing and KERS are effectively two new power sources with approximately an extra 82 BHP from the KERS and 60 BHP from the rear wing. Controlling the use of these additional technological parameters will tax the concentration of drivers but it is hoped that overtaking might happen occasionally during 2011 as a result. Read More

On January 29, 1886, Karl Benz filed a Patent No. 37435 at the Reich Patent Office in Berlin – it is generally regarded as the birth certificate of the automobile and became the first of over 80,000 patents awarded to the Mercedes Benz marque. Benz’ Patent Motor Car was equipped with a horizontal single-cylinder four-stroke engine, which developed an output of 0.55 kW at 400 rpm from a displacement of 954 cubic centimetres. The vehicle’s top speed was 16 km/h. Happy birthday to the automobile and congratulations to the company which today remains at the forefront of personal transportation. Extensive detailed images Read More

Watch any of those Caught on Tape!-type shows, and you’ll know just how valuable an in-car “black box” camera can be. Not only does it provide a visual record of who was at fault in an accident, but you can also use it to record any other questionable activity that takes place in front of your car. While most of the “sensational” footage comes from cameras in police cars, civilian versions such as the CarCam Voyager and the envisionCAM are available for us regular folk. You can go ahead and pay US$100 to $575 for one of those ... or you can shell out 99 cents for the iCar Black Box iPhone app. Read More