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Audi Sport readies championship-winning car to defend DTM title

It’s interesting that even with the push towards electrification of cars, Audi’s Head of Motorsport, Dieter Gass, says that for the foreseeable future, Audi will sell more cars with internal combustion engines than with electric drive. He made this remark by way of explaining why the company supports a racing series (DTM) with modern, efficient combustion engines in parallel with its involvement in the Formula E all-electric championship.

So in 2020, Audi Design has given its six factory-entered cars a fresh look, starting with the RS 5 DTM of title defender, Rene Rast. The designs of the other five RS 5 DTM cars, which will be driven by Loic Duval, Robin Frijns, Jamie Green, Nico Muller and Mike Rockenfeller are following.

Audi Sport has been relying on the RS 5 Coupe in the DTM since 2013. In accordance with the new regulations, last season’s championship winning car will contest the 2020 season with a number of detailed changes aimed at making the DTM even more exciting and cost-effective.

Fundamental technical changes are not allowed by the Class 1 regulations introduced for the series in 2019, which are designed for a level playing field and cost-efficiency. Therefore, the basis of the 2020 model year RS 5 DTM corresponds to the 2019 champion’s car. With the Class 1 regulations, which will also form the basis for the Japanese SUPER GT Championship from 2020, DTM last year technically started a new era.

The introduction of turbo technology has given DTM a stronger connection to road car development. The TFSI engine of the RS 5 DTM of model year 2020 has an engine output reduced by around 5% compared to the previous year. For the 2020 season, DTM has reduced the amount of fuel that may flow to the engine per hour from 95 kgs to 90 kgs. By means of the ‘Push-to-Pass’ function, the engine output can be increased to around 640 bhp in the short term, as in 2019.

Therefore, from the 2020 season onwards, DTM drivers will be able to use the ‘Push-to-Pass’ system – for overtaking, for example – twice as often during the race as before. During 24 race laps (previously 12), the additional power may be switched on for up to five seconds at a time.

This new qualifying rule also applies to the use of the DRS function (Drag Reduction System) which flattens the rear wing, reduces the car’s drag and increases top speed. From 2020, DRS may be used in races more often than before. With the combined use of DRS and ‘Push-to-Pass’, the RS 5 DTM reaches a top speed of almost 300 km/h, depending on the track.

Audi DTM 2020 — *New Audi Sport RS 5 DTM of Rene Rast, the title-defender.*

Alongside Formula E and customer racing, the DTM forms the third pillar of Audi’s motorsport program. DTM’s spectacular Class 1 racing cars feature highly efficient 4-cylinder turbo engines with a displacement of 2 litres. This type of drive is used by Audi in many production models with various performance levels worldwide and is a pillar for increasing efficiency and reducing fleet emissions.

Rolls-Royce recalls the Roaring Twenties with the Dawn Silver Bullet Collection

We’re now starting the ‘Twenties’ and in another era, there was a period known as the ‘Roaring Twenties’. This was the 1920, a time after World War I when there was economic growth which led to societies (mainly in America and Europe) experiencing social change and a more liberal attitude. The auto industry offered more flamboyant cars to customers who wanted change.

Rolls-Royce has now created its first Collection Car of the new decade – the Dawn Silver Bullet Collection – which relates to decadence, to frivolity, to heady heydays and irreverence of that era. The Dawn, like a silver bullet, embodies the spirit of the Roaring Twenties.

Drawing inspiration from the fabled roadsters of the 1920s – rare, glamorous machines forever associated with bright young things and rakish Hollywood rebels – the Dawn Silver Bullet Collection captures the carefree attitude of those far-off days in a bold, contemporary expression designed for today’s non-conformists and pleasure-seekers. Seductive and effortlessly cool, this Collection is limited to just 50 cars worldwide.

The Dawn Silver Bullet Collection is a powerful, artfully tailored addition to the Rolls-Royce Collection Car ensemble. It uses an ultra metallic finish in silver, a shade found frequently in the marque’s enigmatic history on special cars such as the Silver Dawn, Silver King, Silver Silence and Silver Spectre.

The hero of the Collection is undoubtedly the Aero Cowling, which shifts the persona of the car’s high-shouldered silhouette, heightening the sense of speed and purpose. The rakish silver centre spine brings the bodywork into the cabin, giving it the intimate, connected feel of a true two-seater. A vapour-blasted titanium finisher completes the Aero Cowling windbreak and proudly displays the Silver Bullet name and silhouette.

The Dawn Silver Bullet Collection features dark exterior detailing: dark headlights and a new dark front bumper finisher, providing a dominant and determined expression in heighted contrast to the silver hue. The part-polished wheels offer a translucent shadow finish with a single silver pinstripe.

Inside, the Dawn Silver Bullet Collection is alluringly tactile, resplendent in materials and craftsmanship of our own time. A unique open-pore carbonfibre fascia greets the driver and companion in a contemporary, dashing fashion. A quilted transmission tunnel, with design cues taken from the quintessentially rebellious fashion accessory, the leather jacket, runs through the centre of the cabin in a tailored fashion.

With this in mind, Rolls-Royce will curate a series of ‘Silver Bullet Drives’, epic road-trips for owners of this contemporary collection, made available via Whispers, Rolls-Royce’s exclusive, digital home for its clients around the world.

Black Badge Cullinan – The King of the Night completes the Rolls-Royce Black Badge family

Better protection for your wheels with 3D-printed locking nuts

It’s one of the worst experiences for a driver – finding their car up on blocks (or sometimes not even off the road) with all four wheels gone. Now Ford has developed unique rim nuts that can make wheels more secure using 3D printing technology.

Together with EOS, a leading supplier for high-end solutions in 3D additive manufacturing, Ford has created locking nuts with contours based on the driver’s voice. Like an iris scan or a fingerprint, a person’s voice can be used as a unique biometric identification.

Engineers record the driver’s voice for a minimum of one second, saying something like ‘I drive a Ford Mustang’, and use software to convert that singular soundwave into a physical, printable pattern. This pattern is then turned into a circle and used as the design for the locking nut’s indentation and key.

With the geometry in place, the nut and key are designed as one piece, then 3D-printed using acid and corrosion resistant stainless steel. When finished, the nut and key are separated, with a small amount of grinding required to make them ready for use.

Additional security features
The design also includes second-level security features that prevent the nut from being cloned or copied. The unevenly spaced ribs inside the nut and indentations that widen the deeper they go prevent a thief from making a wax imprint of the pattern, as the wax breaks when it is pulled from the nut.

If not using the driver’s voice to create the contours, the nuts could feature designs specific to a vehicle, such as with the Mustang logo, or use the driver’s initials. The design could also take inspiration from a driver’s interest, for example, by using the outline of a famous racetrack.

Expanding use of 3D printing
3D printing, or additive manufacturing, offers design flexibility to help reduce weight, improve performance and create parts that wouldn’t be possible using conventional methods. For more than 30 years, Ford has increasingly used 3D printing to make prototype parts which help reduce the development time for new vehicles.

The company has also used this technology to create parts that feature in the Ford GT, Focus and Mustang GT500, and will make more 3D-printed parts in the future. Special bespoke car parts are also 3D printed, including the intake manifold in Ken Block’s Hoonitruck and the pair of wind louvres found on the M-Sport Ford Fiesta World Rally Championship car.

On the Ford production line, 3D printing is used to create assembly line tools that are up to 50% lighter, which makes repetitive tasks less physically stressful and helps improve manufacturing quality. As many of these tools are made of nylon, Ford has introduced a recycling programme that turns old 3D-printed pieces and plastics from manufacturing areas into 100% recycled nylon.

Ford also creates 3D-printed safety equipment, such as protection sleeves for rotating tools used on the production line, which prevent operators from incurring finger and arm injuries.

“Having our very own plug-and-play printer enables us to make tools and parts exactly when we need them, and to replace them faster than ever before. For some tools, the delivery time was up to 8 weeks but with 3D printing, the turn-around has been reduced to just five days. Best of all, anyone can sit down, create the part they need and start printing it using recycled plastic,” said Lars Bognar, a research engineer for Advanced Materials and Processes at Ford of Europe.

Save money while switching to a more active and adventurous lifestyle with the Ford Ranger XLT

Sebastien Ogier wins Rally Mexico for sixth time – in yet another car!

Sebastien Ogier and co-driver Julien Ingrassia secured their first victory for the TOYOTA GAZOO Racing World Rally Team with a record-equalling sixth Rally Mexico triumph. It was also the first win on the gruelling gravel event for the Toyota Yaris WRC.

The finish of the event was brought forward to Saturday evening, a decision taken in the face of fast-changing travel restrictions connected with the global COVID-19 virus outbreak to ensure safe and timely travel home for officials, competitors and team personnel. Some countries in Europe are going into lockdown in view of the pandemic numbers increasing.

In his third start with Toyota – and first on gravel – Ogier dominated proceedings after taking the lead on Friday’s second stage. He led by 13.2 seconds coming into Saturday, and immediately extended that advantage with a stunning stage win on SS13 Guanajuatito. His final winning margin was 27.8 seconds.

With his sixth Mexico win in 8 years – behind the wheel of four different cars – Ogier moves into the lead of the championship ahead of team-mate Elfyn Evans, who finished a strong fourth with co-driver Scott Martin after running first on the loose gravel roads on Friday.

Kalle Rovanpera continued the impressive start to his top-flight WRC career in fifth place: the 19-year-old’s third top-five finish in as many rallies, together with Jonne Halttunen. Rovanpera was within a few seconds of a podium place coming into Saturday, but was disadvantaged by running early in the road order.

With its all-new driver line-up having taken two wins in its first 3 events, Toyota’s rally team has further increased its lead in the manufacturers’ championship to 21 points.

“The first two years in Mexico, we could not fight during the rally due to overheating. But our engineers have put a lot of effort into improve the cooling system and finally we reached the top of the podium! I also thank their fighting spirits for the kaizen,” said Akio Toyoda, the Team Chairman and President of Toyota Motor Corporation.

The fourth round, to have been held in Argentina from April 23 – 26 as the event organiser announced it is postponed. The postponement follows many other motorsport events around the world, including major championships. In most cases, the governments of the host countries have started to ban events with large crowds for a period of time. Malaysia, for example, has banned public gathering of more than 250 people until April 30, 2020.

2020 Land Rover Discovery Sport in showrooms, priced from RM379,800

A new Land Rover Discovery Sport is now in Malaysian showrooms, available in two variants priced from RM379,800 (excluding insurance and roadtax). Customers can choose from the 5-seater or the higher-spec R-Dynamic variant with 5+2 seating which is priced at RM409,800.

New design cues on the bolder front end and a sportier silhouette identify the latest Discovery Sport R-Dynamic. Modernity and refinement are also reflected in the new signature LED lighting systems front and rear. Of course, the traditional Land Rover design features are still present – a prominent clamshell bonnet, rising beltline and tapered roof.

Now with Driveline Disconnect
The driving experience is said to be improved with the new power transfer feature called ‘Driveline Disconnect’. Incorporated in the All-Wheel Drive system, this feature works by disconnecting the drive of the front axle to the rear wheels under steady state cruising, thereby reducing frictional losses and re-engaging AWD in less than 500 milliseconds.

In addition, the Terrain Response 2 system is now a standard feature. Developed with Land Rover’s decades of experience in 4×4 systems, Terrain 2 Response optimises performance, traction and control on a variety of surfaces. A simple twist of a dial selects the appropriate driving mode (Comfort, Sand, Grass-Gravel-Snow, Mud & Ruts) and adjusts the characteristics of the throttle, brakes, differentials, and transmission. An AUTO mode automatically adjusts torque delivery to suit the terrain.

As with other Land Rover models, the Discovery Sport uses an engine from the Ingenium family, in this case a 2-litre turbocharged unit. Power flows through a ZF 9-speed automatic transmission with a very low first gear for strong low-end acceleration and a tall top gear for reduced engine revs at higher cruising speeds.

Smart technologies
Unlike the early Land Rovers which were engineered to be extremely tough but were technologically simple (which was an advantage off-road), today’s Land Rovers offer advanced smart technologies. Drivers of the Discovery Sport have, for instance, ClearSight Ground View, Land Rover’s world-first technology which is a new feature for the Discovery Sport. It provides drivers with a clear virtual view of the ground ahead so they can navigate over rough ground, park in tight spaces and avoid hitting kerbs.

Connectivity is also advanced with a 10-inch high-definition Touch Pro infotainment system which includes Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. The system also allows the driver to control the climate system and Terrain Response 2, while an Interactive Driver Display with a large 12-inch high-definition screen displays multiple types of information. The new Discovery Sport also comes with wireless charging which can be used for devices that have the capability.

Also available is a Generation 2 Head-Up Display (HUD), with vehicle speed, gear position and navigation directions projected onto the windscreen ahead of the driver. The high-resolution, full-colour graphics are visible in any lighting conditions and allow the driver to keep his or her eyes ahead.

As safe as passenger cars
With 4X4 SUVs spending almost all their time on highways and able to travel at high speeds, safety is even more important and Land Rover has provided a host of advanced safety technologies. These include High-speed Emergency Braking, Adaptive Cruise Control, Lane Keep Assist and Driver Condition Monitor as well as the 360° Surround Camera that is equipped with Wade Sensing features. Should an accident occur, there are no less than 7 airbags to help reduce serious injuries.

All new vehicles distributed by Jaguar Land Rover Malaysia have been engineered and tuned for Malaysian conditions and fuel quality. They come with a ‘Land Rover Care’ programme which is based on whichever comes first – a warranty of 5 years or 150,000 kms; scheduled servicing for 5 years or 65,000 kms; and 3 years of Roadside Assistance.

The New Land Rover Defender can fly too! (w/VIDEO)

Battista Anniversario – the world’s first luxury pure-electric hyper GT

Automobili Pininfarina aims to offer what it describes as ‘the ultimate expression of the world’s first luxury pure-electric hyper GT’. Known as the Battista Anniversario, it celebrates 90 years since Battista ‘Pinin’ Farina started the Pininfarina coachbuilder and design house.

Laying claim to being the most powerful sportscar ever to be designed and built in Italy, 5 Battista Anniversario cars (there will be another 150 Battista hypercars made) will be hand-crafted in Turin, where Pininfarina has established its design centre and headquarters. Each is priced from 2.6 million euros (about RM12.4 million) and will be delivered to customers by the end of this year. Of course, with Italy now having a crisis and lockdown, production will be affected.

“For 90 years, the Pininfarina name has been at the forefront of automotive design and performance, and the Battista perfectly encapsulates these values. This ultimate expression of Battista, the Anniversario, is the distillation of everything that the brand has stood for in the past and which we now strive for in the future, creating a new pinnacle of desirability for sustainable and luxurious electric cars,” said Michael Perschke, CEO of Automobili Pininfarina.

“My grandfather always had the vision that one day, there would be a stand-alone range of Pininfarina-branded cars. The Battista Anniversario, named in his honour to mark 90 years of the carrozzeria that he started, is a glorious way to link our past with the future of motoring,” added Paolo Pininfarina, Chairman of Pininfarina SpA.

The Battista Anniversario delivers an added level of dynamic ability and a bespoke heritage-inspired anniversary livery. Each of the five cars is finished in a combination of three signature colours: Bianco Sestriere, the never-seen-before Grigio Antonelliano, and Automobili Pininfarina’s signature Iconica Blu.

The Battista Anniversario will have one of the most complex paint finishes in the world, with the process of creating akin to a great artist completing an Old Master painting. Skilled artisans will take several weeks to paint each car, building up the finish layer-by-layer and colour-by-colour – all by hand. The body is disassembled and reassembled three times so pinstripes in the three separate colours can be hand-painted directly onto the body.

The Battista Anniversario is also equipped with the ‘Furiosa’ package, comprising a revised carbonfibre front splitter, side blades and rear diffuser. Exclusively on the Anniversario, these parts are finished in a two-tone combination of exposed signature carbonfibre and carbonfibre tinted in Iconica Blu with pin stripes in Bianco Sestriere.

Besides the exclusive livery, a bespoke rear wing, rear aero fins and other bespoke details are unique to the Battista Anniversario. The aerodynamic enhancements enabled by the Furiosa exterior changes deliver increased downforce and greater stability at higher cornering speeds and a more dynamic balance to the car.

Four electric motors generating 1,900 bhp/2,300 Nm torque, apportioned to each wheel by the most advanced torque vectoring system, will take the car to a claimed top speed of 350 km/h. And faster than a current Formula 1 car in the sub-two second 0-100 km/h sprint, the Battista can also accelerate from 0 to 300 km/h in less than 12 seconds. This level of performance is unachievable today in any road-legal sportscar with an internal combustion engine.

“I have piloted the quickest road and race cars in the world and I’ve never driven anything as powerful as the Battista,” said Nick Heidfeld, Test and Development Driver at Automobili Pininfarina. “The Battista is faster than many race cars, but it is not a pure racing machine. Drivability in all situations is its primary focus. We will now concentrate our time testing and developing Battista to deliver a car that’s at the forefront of technological possibilities and innovation.”