Year: 2015

2014 Mini Cooper S Hardtop Long term test

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Long-Term Road Test Update WHAT WE LIKE: The modern Mini is one of the most lively, playful front-wheel-drive cars you can buy. Credit for the fun and snappy personality goes to the alert steering and the nimble chassis, and yet the powertrain is really this Mini’s strong suit. Where the stiff suspension returns a harsh ride quality, the turbocharged 2.0-liter inline-four delivers both performance and refinement. Borrowed from the BMW 320i, the Cooper S engine offers a smooth, broad powerband, so the car charges hard from idle and revs willingly…

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2016 Mercedes-AMG GLE63 S Coupe – 0-100 in 3.9 second monster

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A blatant me-too that proves it’s not copycatting if you improve the breed Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but it’s also a safe money grab. If you’re a car company and one of your competitors strikes gold with a niche product, you fill that niche in your own lineup. This author recently called the Ram Rebel “a blatant me-too” on account of it basically being a Ford F-150 Raptor rip-off without the substance. You might also look at the Mercedes-Benz GLE coupe as a blatant me-too. You should.…

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Mazda’s Confusing Plan to Resurrect the Famously Dirty Rotary Engine

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The Wankel rotary engine is a wonderfully visceral thing. It clatters and sings and produces an absurd amount of power for its size. But it’s also archaic, in the way old cars often are, which makes it odd to think Mazda wants to bring it back. Rotaries are what made Mazda, in cars like the 1968 Sports Cosmo. The sleek two-seater I drove at Mazda’s top-secret Mine test track smelled of gasoline and weathered leather and wood. The houndstooth interior only added to the vintage vibe. No power steering, sticky…

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Audi’s New R18 Race Car Revamps an Incredible Design

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You don’t hear Audi talking much about diesels lately, what with the EPA accusing it (and corporate parent VW) of programming cars to cheat on emissions tests. Such tests don’t apply in auto racing though, and Audi wants everyone to know diesels still dominate when it comes to endurance contests like the 24 Hours of Le Mans. This weekend, the company showed off the R18 racer that will compete in the World Endurance Championship series that includes the grueling race at Le Mans. Endurance racing is all about covering the…

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Watch Chris Forsberg And Ryan Tuerck Drift Through An Abandoned Mall In 1000bhp Nissan 370Zs

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These guys show off their immense talent by somehow not wrecking in the tight confines of this abandoned shopping mall

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Mercedes-Benz C-Class Cabriolet spotted in motion on rainy day [video]

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Mercedes-Benz C-Class Cabriolet spotted in motion on rainy day The Mercedes-Benz C-Class Cabriolet (A205) was caught on camera performing testing procedures on public roads in the pouring rain. After coming out with the C-Class Coupe (C205), Mercedes-Benz is getting ready to chop off its fixed metal roof and replace it with a soft top as seen in the attached footage. The video was recorded recently in Germany and shows a prototype being tested on public roads in heavy rain, so obviously the electrically retractable fabric roof was in position. Aside from…

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Volkswagen Passat Launching Now in SA

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The new Volkswagen Passat will make its way to South Africa in the next few weeks and will go up against the likes of the bmw 3 series and the Toyota Camry along with cars like the Audi A4 and the Mercedes-Benz CLA. Expect prices to start around the R300k mark and go all the way post the R500k mark for the larger engine versions. On the exterior front, the sloping bonnet, angular headlamps and wide grille running from end to end with prominent chrome slats give it a sense…

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Project 156-based production engine will power forthcoming new Victory

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VICTORY has today revealed that a production version of the engine used in the Roland Sands Project 156 Pikes Peak race bike will power a forthcoming new model. The liquid-cooled four-valve 60-degree V-twin engine will be used in Victory’s new 1200cc production model, which looks set to be announced soon. Victory hasn’t revealed any technical details, but has said that it’s been ‘designed to deliver the strongest power and performance in its class.’ A pre-production version of the new engine was used in the Victory Ignition Concept, built by Swiss…

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Impreza Concept Looks Great and Teases All Future Subarus, Skin to Bones

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 And it will be made in the good ole U.S.A. Subaru revealed the Impreza sedan concept at the L.A. Auto Show, and we must say, it looks pretty good! The company had already released a concept of a hatchback version at the Tokyo Auto Show, but we’re glad to see that the four-door maintains the same styling. Of course, the production version will vary from the concept (door handles are nice to have, after all) and will likely be a bit boxier (it is a Subaru), but this sleeker Scoobie is at least a good indicator of the brand’s…

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Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio: A Million Rand, 375KW, Italian Super Sedan

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 And the base Giulia will be R550 000 and have 203 KW. We’ve been waiting for Alfa Romeo to return in earnest to South Africa with a Super car for what feels like an eternity. Yes, they sent a few of the 8C Competizione here a couple years back, and you can now buy the 4C, but neither one of those cars are a volume proposition. The Giulia totally changes that. And it’s the first car Alfa is bringing to the SA that is actually an Alfa Romeo. What I mean…

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Watch the LaFerrari, Porsche 918, and McLaren P1 Battle Flat Out on Track

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After two teasers and months of anticipation, Chris Harris has finally released his near-hour-long comparison between a Ferrari LaFerrari, McLaren P1, and Porsche 918. Here it is, the video enthusiasts have all been waiting for—a 52-minute celebration of the Ferrari LaFerrari, McLaren P1, and the Porsche 918. We’ve already shown you the results from a couple match ups of these ridiculously-powerful hyper cars, but they were all quick and to the point. They wanted to know which one was the fastest, and that was it. Unfortunately, we haven’t gotten a chance to put…

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FIAT 124 SPIDER REVEALED – FIRST PICTURES AND DETAILS

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While Fiat has yet to confirm performance figures, sources suggest that the 0-62mph time could well match that of the more powerful 2.0-litre MX-5 (7.3sec), since the 124 Spider trumps that car’s torque but is said to match the kerbweight of the lighter 1.5-litre Mazda. The Fiat 124 Spider is a new rear-wheel drive, two-door, two-seat sports vehicle which is based on the Mazda MX-5. Fiat says that positioning the engine far back in the engine bay has improved the car’s handling. Paying homage to the original 124 Spider almost…

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Ten Things You Learn Driving The New Turbo Porsche 911 Carrera

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Much has changed, much has stayed the same. Does a turbo ruin the car? We drove the 2016 Porsche 911 Carrera last week on Tenerife, a Spanish island off the coast of Africa. Don’t ask why Porsche decided to launch the face-lift of its most important car on the rim of the western Atlantic. Do ask whether or not the base 911 needs to be turbocharged, and whether or not that serves the model’s character. Answers below. 1. Don’t call it the Porsche 911 Turbo. Because it’s not. Because that car is…

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Watch a 2000-HP Lamborgini Huracán Shatter the Half-Mile World Record

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From zero to 238.6 MPH in a half mile. That’s scary fast The Lamborghini Huracán? is already quite fast. With all-wheel drive and more than 600 horsepower coming from a massive V10, it’s able to hit 60 miles per hour in well under 3 seconds. If the driver has room to keep his foot down long enough, the Huracán? has a top speed of more than 200 miles per hour. This Huracán? just hit 238.6 miles per hour. In a half mile. Obviously it’s not stock. With a twin-turbo setup from Underground Racing, it makes a…

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Is the 1.5 Liter Mazda Mx-3 More Fun Than Its Faster Brother?

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The world gets the option of two engines for the Mazda mx-3. There’s the familiar 2.0 liter SkyActiv that’s on every US market car, but there’s also a smaller 1.5 liter unit that the base engine in nearly every other market. While the 2.0 liter makes 155 horsepower, which isn’t a lot, it’s basically a Hellcat compared to the 1.5 liter’s 129 horsepower. But the 1.5 also revs higher and makes the car slower, which means you can thrash it harder without exceeding the speed limit.  Which is more fun?…

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Volkswagen Can’t Keep Up With Huge Surge In Sales

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 Thanks to heavy incentives, bonus programs, and financing tools, Volkswagen dealers sold more cars in October than the car maker can replenish. It wouldn’t be crazy to assume Volkswagen dealers would be struggling to sell cars in the wake of the company’s diesel emissions scandal. It’s been several months since the news broke, millions of cars are affected, and it feels like every week we find out that it’s even worse than we initially thought. But in actuality, that would be a wrong assumption. As ?Automotive News? reports, many dealers are running…

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Bugatti Chiron Prototype Caught by Instagrammer on Italian Highway

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 This test mule sure looks a lot like a production-ready version of the Bugatti Vision Gran Turismo show car. When Bugatti debuted the Vision Gran Turismo concept at the Frankfurt Auto Show in September, the hypercar company hinted quite loudly that whaat we were looking at was the probably Veyron replacement. Now, Instagrammer Erico Hessel seems to have captured further proof, when he snapped this photo of an apparent Bugatti test mule on an Italian highway. Just look at the lines, and compare them to the Vision Gran Turismo show…

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BMW’s electric S1000RR revealed

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HERE’S BMW’s just-unveiled electric superbike using the chassis of an S1000RR. Called the eRR, it’s been created to unite the high-speed performance of the S1000RR with the apparently even better 0-30mph acceleration of BMW’s electric scooter, the C evolution. BMW Motorrad head Stephan Schaller said the S1000RR was ‘setting standards’ in sport for acceleration, top speed and handling, adding: ‘However, if acceleration on the first metres, up to 50 [or] 60kph, is the point, the RR’s 199hp have to admit defeat by another BMW product: the C evolution with its electric drive.…

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KTM 1050 Adventure Bikes

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KTM unveiled the 1050 Adventure at the 2014 EICMA motorcycle show in Milan, Italy. The 1050 Adventure will be the first litre-class offering from KTM in the SA two-wheeler market. Powering the bike is a 1,050cc V-twin motor churning out 96PS of peak power. The 1050 Adventure is a modern KTM ADV bike, well equipped with Ride Mode Technology, ABS, and traction control. The ABS can be shut off, as well as the traction control, and the level of electronic intervention is dependent on the chosen ride mode. Though the…

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Harley-Davidson Dark Custom range Review

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We ride the new Dark Custom trio of the Harley-Davidson Street 750, Iron 883 and the Forty Eight on the busy streets of Tokyo It is said that change is the only constant in life and Harley-Davidson seems to adhere to this thought rather seriously. 2014 was a great year for Harley-Davidson India as they rode in the Street 750 and many other products along with constant dealership expansion. Despite the healthy sales, the American bike maker felt that it needed to improve its current portfolio. And for this purpose…

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