Racer celebrates win with drifting

Racer celebrates win with drifting

Sebastian Vettel does ‘the finger', Fernando Alonso gives it ‘a thumb', Jenson Button grabs an invisible parachute, and Shane van Gisbergen drifts.Celebrating a win at last weekend's Skycity Triple Crown V8 Supercar race at the Hidden Valley Raceway in Australia, the 22-year-old Mr van Gisbergen decided ‘yee-ha' and an emotional thank-you were for the weak. No, he correctly decided to drift nearly the entire length of his victory lap.

The Electric Car Wars

Electric Car

Electric Car

Electric Car

Toyota announced today that their global cumulative sales of hybrid vehicles have reached 3.03 million worldwide. They entered the market with the Coaster Hybrid bus in August 1997 followed by the original Prius in December of the same year. 

The Toyota Prius, now made in still drives almost all of its hybrid car sales. It is now joined by the hybrid version of the Auris, global production being in the UK. Other electric versions of all its car models are being rapidly introduced. Toyota is not very keen on pure electric cars at present levels of battery performance and focusses on the hybrid versions of their model.

Many car companies only realised the potential too late and the only way they had a chance of competing with Toyota from a position a long way behind, was to form alliances with other car companies. 

Now the BMW cooperation with PSA Peugeot Citroen is being solidified into a 50:50 joint venture, functioning in the second quarter, to share the formidable cost of developing hybrid powertrains and seek early volume.

Before that, Daimler AG, bought 10% of Tesla, and developed electric Smart and Mercedes models. They have struck a partnership with Renault Nissan to develop small cars, notably pure electric ones. Renault Nissan also partners with Mitsubishi on this. Mitsubishi promises electric versions of all new car models. Like Nissan and Fiat, it seems to prefer the pure electric small car route.

2012 Acura RL

2012 Acura RL

2012 Acura RL

2012 Acura RL

2012 Acura RL

Acura is a brand well known for innovation in motor vehicle technology, and 2012 promises to offer groundbreaking new features for the RL model. While Acura has been reticent about new models of the RL, the 2012 RL will most likely be released in autumn of 2011, in keeping with the RL’s tradition of being a midyear sedan that vastly improves upon other sedans unleashed in the same year.

The well-known car manufacturer has not yet released how the next generation of the RL model will differ from previous years, but predictions can be made based on how Acura has revamped other vehicles recently. One possible option is for the RL to be revamped as a rear-wheel drive car with a V8 engine, making it a more powerful version of the V6 2010 RL. While V8 engines are not yet standard in any sedans, the 2012 RL promises to subvert this paradigm.

In the past, the RL has been known for mid-year updates that combine the features of the Acura high-performance cars with the comfort of a sedan. The 2006 RL showcased the Super Handling All-Wheel Drive that could invest all of the vehicle’s power into one turn of the wheel, and was one of the initial Acura sedans to include a 300 horsepower V6 engine as a standard inclusion. These capabilities allowed the Acura RL to successfully compete with rival BMW vehicles with similar features at a much lower price tag.

The 2012 RL will integrate a number of features previously included in earlier models, all of which will be standard. The braking systems will include the vehicle stability assist and tire pressuring monitoring system aspects, as well as a variety of general security aspects including active front head restraints, child safety locks, and body modifications that protect both sides of the car from collisions.

Historically, the Acura RL has been compared to luxury class sedans such as the BMW 5 Series and the Lexus GS 350. The Acura RL generally costs less than both of these models, even when equipped with extra features, and the 2012 edition will likely have extra incentives in the form of competitive fuel economy and superior residual value