Race starts at 3:10 pm in Belgium/8:10 pm in Malaysia
Black is back, right? How black can the colour be? But there is one black finish which is uniquely black and BMW has chosen to use it on the third-generation X6 which will have its world premiere very soon. The finish is known as Vantablack VBx2 and is a nanostructure paint finish never before applied on a car.
Exclusively for the launch of the X6, the one-off display model is the result of a collaboration between BMW and Surrey NanoSystems, the inventors of the Vantablack technology. The new X6 is the first and only vehicle in the world to feature a Vantablack VBx2 paint finish.
“We turned down numerous requests from various automobile manufacturers in the past,” explained Ben Jensen, Founder and Chief Technical Officer of Surrey NanoSystems. “It took the BMW X6 and its unique, expressive design for us to entertain the idea.” With design highlights like the optional Iconic Glow kidney grille, distinctive twin headlights and striking taillights, the new BMW X6 provides fascinating contrasts to offset the Vantablack VBx2 paint finish, which changes the viewer’s visual perception of an object’s three-dimensional shape.
Vantablack looks two-dimensional
A surface coated in Vantablack loses its defining features to the human eye, with objects appearing two-dimensional. This can be interpreted by the brain as staring into a hole or even a void, making Vantablack a rather unsuitable vehicle paint finish as it blots out virtually all the design details and highlights.
For this reason, theX6 was coated in the VBx2 variant initially developed for use in architectural and scientific applications. This coating can be sprayed on and has a 1% total hemispherical reflectance (THR), meaning it is still considered ‘super black’ while enabling a small amount of reflection from every angle. Thus, materials painted with it seem to lose their three-dimensional appearance.
Developed for aerospace applications
The name Vantablack has already become synonymous with an entire range of extremely black coatings and paints such as VBx2. It contains an acronym of the technology enabling this superior black in its first two syllables, which stand for ‘Vertically Aligned Nano Tube Array’, a matrix made out of carbon. Each of these carbon nanotubes has a length of 14 to 50 micrometres, with a diameter of 20 nanometres, making it around 5,000 times thinner than a human hair. As a result, around a billion of these vertically aligned carbon nanotubes fit into one square centimetre. Any light striking this surface is almost completely absorbed rather than reflected, and effectively converted into heat.
This technology was initially developed for coating space-borne components. As Vantablack can be applied at temperatures from as low as 430 degrees C., it is suitable for delicate materials such as aluminium, and optical components coated in Vantablack enable observation of faint stars and distant galaxies that stray light from the sun makes difficult to detect. The first generation of Vantablack introduced by Surrey NanoSystems in 2014 absorbed up to 99.965% of light, almost completely eliminating reflectance and stray light.
Future option for customers?
When asked if Vantablack VBx2 could become a regular paint finish option for customers buying a car in the future, Jensen said that it works really well on the new BMW X6, because of the size of the car, its distinctive shape, and how imposing it is. “But putting a paint like that on a conventional car lacking a distinctive design would probably detract from it in some way. In addition, developing a Vantablack VBx2 car paint durable enough for daily use is a huge technological challenge,” he explained.
However, Hussein Al Attar, Creative Director Automotive Design at Designworks and the designer responsible for the new X6, is keen to see it as an option. “BMW X6 drivers are among our most extrovert and free-spirited customers. If anyone were to opt for a Vantablack paint option, it would definitely be a BMW X6 driver!” he said.
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A newly upgraded Proton 3S Centre in Jelutong, Penang is now officially opened by Autobinee Oriental Sdn Bhd which offers sales, service, and spare parts. The new facility offers better total ownership experience as part of Proton’s network strategy rollout. (more…)
Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport has confirmed that it will retain Valtteri Bottas for the 2020 Formula 1 season. The 30-year old Finn, currently second in the world championship standings on 188 points, joined the team in 2017. Racing alongside Lewis Hamilton, he has played a key role in its victory in the Constructors’ championship in the past two seasons.
Bottas made his F1 debut in 2013 with the Williams Renault team and had his first win at the 2017 Russian Grand Prix. During his two and a half seasons with the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport team, he has scored 5 race wins and 10 pole positions.
“I am very happy and proud to be part of the team for a fourth season and wish to thank every team member and the board of Mercedes for their trust and belief in me. My performances have been getting better and better each year, and this is a great way to kick start the second half of 2019,” said Bottas.
Aiming to be world champion
“My overall target is to become Formula One world champion. I believe that on paper, and from my experience with the team, Mercedes is the best option for me to achieve that goal in 2020. We have 9 races to go this season and I am determined to keep improving at every one of them. Now, all my thoughts are on Spa and delivering a strong performance with the team this weekend,” he added.
Commenting on the retention of Bottas, Team Principal and CEO of the team. Toto Wolff, said: “For 2019, we set Valtteri the challenge of coming back even stronger than we saw him in the first part of 2018 – and he has achieved that, with some really impressive performances in the early races this year. Although it has been his most successful first half of a championship so far, he is hungry for more and determined to keep on improving and raising his level. That’s the mindset we want from all our team members.”
“The results we have achieved together with Valtteri are no coincidence: he has been an integral part of our championship success in the past two seasons, his teamwork with Lewis has been exemplary and he has shown real strength of character in how he has responded to setbacks. I’m delighted that he will stay with the team for another season at least – and look forward to seeing him raise the bar even further,” he said.
We often take pride in being a developed country with modern facilities and infrastructure. Yet when it comes to keeping our environment clean, it can be often seen that we are lacking. Apart from indiscriminate dumping of rubbish by the roadsides and in the jungles, we also see occupants of motor vehicles thinking nothing of throwing their rubbish out of the window onto the road.
To help discourage littering from vehicles, Perodua is working together with a Malaysian government agency to educate the public on maintaining a cleaner environment, starting with the nation’s roads. The Malaysian carmaker will collaborate with the Solid Waste Management and Public Cleansing Corporation (SWCorp) – an agency under the purview of the Housing and Local Government Ministry – on the latter’s 1:0 ‘One Vehicle, Zero Litter’ campaign
Mini-bins for motorists
To start of the campaign, volunteers from Perodua and SWCorp recently gave away 500 in-vehicle mini-bins to motorists and motorcyclists at a petrol station next to the Jalan Duta toll plaza on the PLUS Highway. The mini-bins were presented with a message reminding them to bring their litter home instead of throwing it out of their vehicles.
The volunteers also held up colourful placards displaying anti-littering messages, while prominently-placed banners and buntings duly caught the attentions of motorists exiting the toll plaza.
“Perodua shares the government’s vision for a cleaner and greener Malaysia. We believe a combination of education and enforcement will have a lasting impact on our society,” said Perodua President & CEO, Dato’ Zainal Abidin Ahmad. “It is Perodua’s hope that as Malaysia enters her 62nd year of independence, we can all play our part in showing the maturity of our mindsets and allowing cleanliness to be part of our lives.”
Reduce, reuse and recycle
“We hope Malaysians can reduce, reuse and recycle their waste as far as possible. We all have to start somewhere. After our own homes, the car is the next place we spend the most time in, and if we can keep our cars clean, the rest of our lives will follow,” he added.
Within Perodua’s headquarters and manufacturing campus in Sungai Choh are its Laman Hijau recreational common and its 1,500-square metre ECO Garden, both of which incorporate many sustainable elements. Solar panels and rainwater-harvesting systems also feature on many of its campus buildings.
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Ford together with Sime Darby Auto ConneXion (SDAC) organised the brand’s global Driving Skills for Life (DSFL) programme as part of their ongoing effort to promote safe driving behaviour as well as road safety awareness here in Malaysia.
Over 30 drivers from SDAC’s corporate partners from telecommunications to utilities participated in the half-day workshop located at the Malaysia Agro Exposition Park Serdang (MAEPS) near Putrajaya. (more…)
What happens when a spontaneous unstoppable emotion is driven into building one of the best hypercars in the business? The result can sometimes be either outstanding or outrageous. For Pagani, their latest product is nothing short of extraordinary and it’s called the Pagani Huayra Roadster BC. (more…)
Volkswagen Passenger Cars Malaysia (VPCM) has officially launched their very own Das WeltAuto, Volkswagen’s global used car program which offers certified used cars customers can trust at great deals. The launch was held at the Volkswagen Fest 2019 currently happening now until Sunday (1 September 2019). (more…)
With the international premiere of the Porsche 99X Electric, Porsche has reached another milestone on the way to the works entry in the 2019/2020 season of the ABB FIA Formula E Championship. Porsche’s regular drivers Neel Jani and Andre Lotterer played an active role in the car presentation with videogamers from around the world. They were guided through the Porsche Digital GmbH premises in Ludwigsburg by specific instructions from the gaming community, first to find the Porsche 99X Electric and then to unveil it.
“It was a unique car presentation unlike anything the motorsport world has ever experienced before. It was great fun joining the gamers’ search for the Porsche 99X Electric both virtually and in real life at the same time. It is great that Porsche is breaking new ground and involving the young, digital generation,” said Jani.
“A different kind of car premiere; I really enjoyed the fact that Neel and I acted as live players. It is fantastic that we are communicating with the digital target audience as equals and that they were able to be part of it,” added Lotterer.
Significance of 9 and X
In terms of the design, the traditional Porsche motorsport colours were chosen for the Formula E racing car. From a bird’s-eye perspective, the Porsche emblem is clearly visible around the Halo system. As usual, the naming format is three digits which represent Porsche racing cars and 2-door sportscars.
The highest number, 9, was used twice, to re-emphasise the importance of the Formula E project for Porsche, while the X stands for the forward-looking approach and prototype racing. The 99X Electric also serves as a development platform for future fully electric production models.
Porsche E-Performance Powertrain
The development of the Porsche powertrain, referred to as the ‘Porsche E-Performance Powertrain’, has played a central role from the start. The Formula E regulations stipulate a standardised chassis and a standard battery, while the drive technologies are developed by the manufacturers. The engineers were able to make use of their LMP1 experience when developing the Porsche Formula E powertrain. With the hybrid technology, the foundations were laid for electric mobility.
“In hindsight, we laid the foundations for Porsche’s future involvement in Formula E during the LMP1 project. We used the insights gained during that time in the development of the Porsche Formula E powertrain. We focused on building a highly effective powertrain with the highest level of efficiency,” said Malte Huneke, Technical Project Leader Formula E.
The 800-volt technology used in Formula E is also used in the Taycan, Porsche’s first volume-produced fully electric sportscar. In addition, energy management and efficiency are the keys to success in both Formula E and series production. This is where the permanent synchronous motor comes into play which has an important role in optimising the drive concept.
TAG Heuer as Title and Timing Partner
TAG Heuer, the Swiss manufacturer of luxury watches, is the Title and Timing Partner of the Porsche Formula E Team, which will contest Season 6 of the single-seater all-electric championship under the name ‘TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team’.
By entering Formula E, Porsche is also breaking new ground from a commercial perspective. This environment addresses a young, different-minded and digitally-oriented target audience. This sphere allows the company to explore what customers expect from vehicles and mobility in general both now and in the future, also in terms of products and services.
Return to single-seater racing
It’s been more than 30 years since Porsche last participated in single-seater racing. Entering Formula E and the accompanying restructuring of the motorsport involvement can be derived from the 2025 Porsche strategy. In addition to traditional GT road-going sportscars, fully electric sportscars are also firmly anchored in the strategy. Both will be reflected in Porsche’s involvement in motorsports in the years to come.
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