Driving a Porsche 911 in the Netherlands and the cops take you on their radar? What do you do? Our advice, don’t run away, coz here’s what happens when you’re not a very good drive, yet you’re trying to escape the police.
Source: Alex Ion
The spiritual successor to the 300SL Gullwing has officially arrived and the good news is that it has hit the production floor. The Mercedes Benz SLS AMG, factually speaking, the successor to the SLR McLaren, is now being produced with sales beginning in March this year. It is the first Mercedes automobile designed in-house by AMG and the gamers know that the luxury automobile is the cover car for GT5 on PS3. The very tangible version features a 6.3-liter V8 AMG engine capable of churning 563hp with 650Nm of torque. Courtesy of this stunning power, the car pelts from 0 to 100km/h in 3.8 seconds and it has an electronically limited speed of 317km/h. Power transmission happens through a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox, which is ideal for a heavy-duty powerplant like the AMG V8. On the outside, a lot of aluminium has been used (space, dual wishbone suspensions) but the SLS AMG still weighs 1620kgs, which is a good 60kgs heavier than the Audi R8.
Source: Alex Ion
The brains from Modena cannot ignore the fact that the world is turning “green” (protecting the environment, more or less, that is) hence why Ferrari has confirmed the debut of a 599 hybrid, a fuel efficient version of the 599GTB.
The Ferrari 599 hybrid will be break cover at the Geneva International Motor Show in March. Ferrari made the decision public at the introduction of the 2010 Ferrari F10 Formula 1 car. Ferrari is keen on bringing the F1 technology to the street vehicles and the 599 hybrid is being considered as the stepping stone where the KERS (kinetic energy recovery system) has been evolved to reduce fuel consumption in tandem with regenerative breaking. It will run on a system based on Li-on batteries and an electronic motor which will be placed on either side of the transaxle. The KERS system will serve as electric power boosting the energy produced. The entire petrol-electric combination will improve the fuel consumption by 35% rendering combined economy ratings of 14mpg.
Source: Alex Ion
Been getting some of those nasty tickets for speeding and try to find a way to beat the speed camera? The good chaps from myth-busters have it. Of course you may end up in jail, but still, you just beat the speed camera!
Source: Alex Ion
It seems BMW is out there in the cold with all its latest bimmer model from the M3 and M5 to the latest catch, the 2012 BMW 3-Series F30. Spy photographers caught a glimpse of the 2012 model in the northern part of Scandinavia at a BMW facility close to a frozen lake.
BMW has been testing the compact commuter in the cold for more than a month and spy shots have poured in relentlessly. The latest set of images reveals the LEDs on the rear and a roofline which meets the backend at a steeper angle than the present generation model. The elongated wheelbase and a bigger body talks though remain a speculation and images do not confirm the changes apparently. The engine speculations for the 2012 BMW 3-Series F30 include a petrol-powered four-cylinder turbo and a hybrid unit. There may also be a smaller twin-turbo six-cylinder power unit I the works for the best selling bimmer. [via WCF]
Source: Alex Ion
Shadow Shogun, The Destroyer and Backroom Fixer.
Japan’s ruling party kingpin, Ichiro Ozawa, has earned several less-than-flattering nicknames for an approach to politics that has seen him shaking up government in the country for decades, culminating in his party’s historic election victory last August.
Ozawa’s tough, combative image was reinforced when he vowed in public to fight against prosecutors after three of his current and former aides were arrested on suspicion of misreporting political funds. He has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing and said he would stay in his key position as the Democratic Party’s secretary-general.
But Ozawa’s tone seems to have changed slightly recently as voter support for the party has increasingly eroded due to the deepening scandal, ahead of a mid-year election .
I was at his news conference after Ozawa was questioned by prosecutors for more than four hours over the scandal. He appeared his usual determined and confident self, but seemed to choose words carefully to avoid provoking either prosecutors or the Japanese media.
”I told everything I knew today. They (the prosecutors) may not be fully satisfied, but they listened to me seriously,” Ozawa told the news conference. “I will continue to cooperate as they conduct a fair investigation.”
The 67-year-old Ozawa also adopted a somewhat humble tone a couple of days later, vowing his continued cooperation with investigators and saying he was ready to speak regularly to reporters, whom he often prefers to either dodge or chastise.
In an effort to soften his image, Ozawa, who has refrained of late from exclusive interviews, appeared on the cover of a monthly magazine, smiling and wearing a light blue turtleneck sweater instead of his usual sombre suit. Chatting with a well-known female TV personality, he revealed his views on women — he thinks they are “generous” and “consoling” — and how he cried as a child when he read a Japanese traditional love story. But there was nary a question nor a comment about the scandal.
And what would he want to do if he were born again? “Maybe not be a politician. For example, maybe venture business,” Ozawa said. “If I worked at a venture business as much as I do (as a politician) now, I could probably earn a lot of money, maybe like Bill Gates,” he laughed.
So, what’s your image of Ozawa?
Photo credit: Yuriko Nakao/REUTERS
Source: Yoko Nishikawa
Dirty Nissan 200sx s13 Drifter
Source: Alex Ion
Lots of talk at the moment about how Africa’s economy is looking up. The International Monetary Fund, for one, reckons sub-Saharan growth will be 1 percentage point above the world average this year and it has put eight African countries in its top 20 fastest growing economies list for 2010.
Reuters has written a special report on the subject as part of its Davos coverage. You can read it here.
But before taking its place alongside Asia and Latin America, the continent has quite a lot of work to do with investors. It could start by giving them something to buy (beyond commodities that is).
Polls of leading institutional investors conducted by Reuters asked a new question about allocations to Africa and the Middle East. The results were a bit grim. On average 44 large firms in the United States, Japan, continental Europe and Britain had less than 1 percent of their equities allocated to the region and the bond allocation was 0.1 percent.
The problem, according to investors, is that while Africa’s economies may be improving, there is very little in the way of a capital market structure. Nor, often, is there the liquidity needed to let investment in and out.
When things are available, however, investors will show up. The poll showed yield-hungry Japanese investors to be the biggest fans of Africa and the Middle East (albeit it relatively). South African rand-denominatd uridashi bonds are very popular with Japanese retail buyers — to whom they are marketed — what with an 8 percent yield and all.
Source: Jeremy Gaunt
It is no big secret that the 2011 BMW 3-series performance off-shoot M3 will not be available as a GTS variant in the US. This leaves us guessing what the M division of BMW will come up with to please the performance and aggression hungry Americans. Rumor has it that BMW will be offering an optional Competition Package on the 2011 M3 which once integrated will bring the car close to the M3 GTS. The Competition Package codenamed ZCP will please the performance seeking customers with differences like 19-inch wheels, a suspension system lowered by 10mm and an upgraded EDC sport-setting. For the cabin, the package will include Alcantara interior inserts. The package also might offer an exhaust and a transmission upgrade. Just like all those other ‘Competition Packages’ that have been around since 2005, ZCP will also cost between $4,000 and $5,000.
Note: picture of a BMW M3 GTS.
Source: Alex Ion
People waiting for the 2010 Porsche 911 Turbo to get a price tag in the US will probably be disappointed to know that the current model will be tad expensive compared to the one that sells as a 2009 variant. The advantage is that you get a better performing engine and an attractive spec sheet all over which makes it’s a supercar for performance and everyday drivability taking forward the 35 year old legacy.
The model comes with a beastly 500hp flat-six boxer engine which renders 516-lb-ft of torque. It can pelt from 0 to 60mph in 3.2 seconds and it has an overall top speed of 194mph. The 2010 model delivers better fuel economy numbers where the commuter fetches 17mpg in the city and 25mpg on the highway. The Coupe version of the 2010 Porsche 911 Turbo will cost $132,800 while the drop-top will be available for $143,800 and the sales for the car will begin by the end of this month.
Source: Alex Ion
