The Best Motoring Themed Christmas Presents

Struggling for gift ideas this Christmas? Here are a selection of motoring related presents for all different types of car enthusiasts with a range of budgets from modest to incredibly generous.

Read More

Audi A3 E-tron

Priced from £30,000, the A3 E-tron is Audi’s first plug-in hybrid that makes its debut of a special customer test drive opportunity in November.

The innovative A3 e-tron delivers strong performance, with a top speed of 138mph and accelerating to 62mph in 7.6 seconds. On battery power alone, the Audi A3 e-tron’s top speed is limited to 81mph and can cover 31 miles without the need for the petrol engine.

Based on the five-door A3 Sportback, A3 e-tron can seat five people and accommodate 62 gallons of luggage.

The A3 e-tron it’s a step into the future of Audi’s plug-in hybrids. According to A3 e-tron project leader Jens van Eikels, Audi’s next generation model line will be provided with an e-tron plug-in hybrid.

Read More

Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat

The 707hp Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat is the world’s most powerful and fastest (204mph) four-door car. It is powered by a supercharged 6.2 litre HEMI V8 engine that produces a whopping 707hp and 650lb ft of torque, and it accelerates from 0-100mph in less than 13 seconds.

Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat is not only brute force, but it is also technologically advanced and most capable four-door muscle car in America.

Remarkable as it sounds, the Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat puts all of the established German musclecars into the shade. The BMW M5, Audi RS 6 and even the 600hp M5 30 Jahre, look positively puny in comparison to Charger SRT Hellcat.

And the price is pretty accessible too, because it costs around £43,750. Quite a bargain for the world’s most powerful car, if you ask me.

Read More

The Best, Worst and Weirdest Car Gadgets

In-car gadgets are nothing new but current products on the market range from the highly practical to downright bizarre.  Here is a selection of new gizmos available:

Garmin Dash Cam 20

For people who drive for a living, it could be very helpful to be able to record their journeys especially when things go wrong.
This dash board mounted HD video camera records footage of the road while plugged in to a power source.  It records the date, time and location of the journey and even has an automatic incident detector that tells the camera to automatically save the current, last and next recordings to provide a record of exact what happened.
Garmin's model has GPS and a 2.3inch LCD display screen.

Parrot Asteroid Tablet

This Bluetooth hands free entertainment and communication system connects to a wide range of smartphones, has options for different satellite navigation software and allows you to access your music through iTunes, Spotify and other systems.  It has a steering wheel control hub and an option to search your music by saying the names of artists, tracks or albums out loud.  Very useful for people who endanger themselves and other drives while scrolling through tracks or attempting to change CDs while the car is moving.

Rolls Royce Starlight Heading

Rolls Royce have installed some very pretty but almost completely useless fibre optic lights in some models of their cars.  They are visible though perforated leather on the roof and the brightness is adjustable.

Sirius Back Seat TV

To keep children occupied on long journeys, this back seat system comes as an optional extra with some new cars and can also be installed after purchase.  It streams kid friendly TV channels such as Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network and The Disney Channel into the car through an antennae on the roof. Picture quality is not quite HD but reviewers have said it is adequate for distracting restless children.

Night Vision for Cars

Different car manufacturers have different systems for bringing night vision into their cars.  Mercedes use an infrared light projected onto the road and shown on a monitor to allow drivers to spot hazards in the dark. BMW use a system that detects heat signatures to show up people and animals on the road.  It looks pretty cool and rather spooky too.

Auto-Mixing Travel Mug

This self-stirring travel mug is perfect for preparing diet drinks, sports drinks, baby formula etc. on the move.  It runs on batteries and has a spill-resistant drink through lid.  How many times a person would actually use it is not an easy question to answer.

Drivemocion Car LED Sign

Disgruntled or particularly happy drivers can now express their emotions with LED smilies.  Different versions of the device come with different options.  One model even allows drivers to make their own faces or messages.  The road rage potential is enormous.

Dual Heating Travel Mug

These mugs keep drinks warm by plugging into either a USB port on a computer or a 12-volt DC socket in a car.  Useful for long journeys or for students writing very long essays.

Read More

Top 10 UK's Best Selling Cars: May 2014

Last month a total of 194,032 new cars were registered. The figures released by the new car registration shows that the UK market has increased for a record 27 consecutive months.

At the top spot, once again, the Ford Fiesta leads the way with 9,450 registrations, followed by Volkswagen Golf. In third place is Vauxhall Corsa, moving the Ford Focus down to fourth place, tailed by Vauxhall Astra.

Have a look at the below gallery to see the top 10 bestselling cars in May 2014.

1. Ford Focus 

Sales: 9,450

 2. Volkswagen Golf

Sales: 7,134

3. Vauxhall Corsa

Sales: 6,536

4. Ford Focus

 Sales: 5,824

5. Vauxhall Astra

Sales: 5,035

6. Nissan Qashqai

Sales: 4,144

7. Audi A3

Sales: 3,889

8. Volkswagen Polo

Sales: 3,607

9. Fiat 500

Sales: 2,896

10. Vauxhall Mokka

Sales: 2,801

Read More

Tyre Wear

Nothing will wear out your tyres quicker than uneven wear.  Not only will it cost you money to replace tyres before you should, uneven wear can be an indication that something else is wrong with your vehicle.

The most common cause of uneven wear is poor wheel alignment.  Hitting curbs, going over speed bumps and driving through pot holes can all contribute to your wheel not being properly aligned.  When you hit a curb, for example, the wheel gets pushed out of alignment with the one on the other side.  This means that they are not quite pointing the same way resulting in one tyre being dragged slightly along the road.  While driving, you can detect poor wheel alignment because the steering wheel will slightly pull to one side or the other.  Not only will this wear the tyre out very quickly on one side, it is also bad for fuel consumption.  Fortunately, this is a common problem that is easily fixed with a few adjustments.

Another problem that causes uneven tyre wear is over/under inflation.  This usually occurs when people find that their tyres keep going down and they keep pumping them up.  If you tyre is going down then it has a hole in it.  Getting a puncture repaired is much cheaper than buying a new tyre.  Running your tyres under-inflated will not only wear out the edges of the tyre on the outside, it can cause damage to the lining of the tyre inside.  Damaged lining is fatal to tyres.  They will need replacing.  Similarly, running them over-inflated causes them to wear right down the middle of the tread, making them illegal and thus, will need to be replaced.

Random patchy looking tyre wear can be due to faulty suspension.  It can also be due to wheel problems such as buckling.  Either way, these problems can be dangerous as well as costly if not sorted out.

Therefore, check your tyres when ever you think of it and stop these problems before they become a big expensive issue.

Read More

Could Kevin Magnussen Be the New Wonderboy of F1?

There's no doubt about it – McLaren did not have a very good campaign in the last F1 season.  But with the introduction of a promising new F1 driver McLaren’s fortunes could be just about to change for the better.  If the first race of the season is anything to go by, McLaren may even have a shot of winning the Championship, and if this dream turns into reality then McLaren will probably have their new driver Kevin Magnussen to thank.

The lacklustre Sergio Perez of last season has been replaced by Kevin Magnussen. Magnussen is a 21-year-old Danish driver with a racing pedigree and a clear skill for driving – evident from an early age.  He participated in many racing cups and championships as a youngster, though it was in 2012 that he began to draw some serious attention – not least from the sporting director of McLaren – and near the end of 2013 it was confirmed that Magnussen would be racing for McLaren starting in the 2014 season.

He is only young, but already Kevin Magnussen is proving to be a talented racing driver.  During testing in Bahrain he made the fastest lap – 1.5 seconds faster than second best –and he achieved third place in his debut race in Melbourne (raised to 2^nd place afterwards with the disqualification of Daniel Ricciardo).  His driving was aggressive and determined, and yet he displayed the sort of maturity you would expect from any top veteran driver. 

Melbourne was the first time McLaren has seen a driver on the podium since Jenson Button won the 2012 Brazilian Grand Prix, and thanks to the disqualification Button also achieved a podium place, making not one but two drivers on the podium.  It is only the first step of the Championship, and there may have been a certain amount of luck involved, but McLaren can certainly be proud of their initial lead over rivals Mercedes, Red Bull, Williams and Ferrari.  Added to the strong performance of Magnussen and Button, the McLaren team also appeared to make all the right choices and out-wit the other teams. 

McLaren has faced engineering problems over the last few seasons, and although their latest motoring rendition is not the fastest car on the track, the strength and consistency of their first race gives them a firm foundation to build on this season.  But for now it is all eyes on Kevin Magnussen.

Read More

2014 Car of The Year Award goes to: Peugeot 308

With 307 points from the 58 jury members, Peugeot 308 has won the European Car of Year 2014 award.

Peugeot 308 is a stylish 5-door hatchback, and fought off competition from the likes of the tech tour de force Mercedes S-class and also bested BMW’s i3 EV.

Have a look at the seven finalists that have been shortlisted from a 32-strong crop of nominees. The Car of the Year finalists has been selected by 59 motoring journalists from 23 countries.

BMW i3

Citroen C4 Picasso

Mazda 3

Mercedes S Class

Tesla Model S

Skoda Octavia vRS

Peugeot 308

Do you agree with their decision? Let me know your comments below.

Read More

Nissan Reveals New London Black Taxi Cab

 

A new taxi for London has recently been unveiled, made by Japanese car manufacturer Nissan, which will go on sale in December.


Nissan has reworked one of its existing minivan designs to look like the capital's trademark black cabs. The design is sleek and modern with a new front grille, though the overall shape and size still comforms to the existing black cab design. The Executive Vice President of Nissan, Andy Palmer, said that it was important to retain the classic "bowler-hat" look, so that this new generation of taxis will be instantly recognisable with pedestrians on the busy streets of London.

With petrol engines under the hood, these new cabs will be cleaner than the current diesel-fuelled cabs. They will also conform to London's strict public transport regulations.

With only two London taxi manufacturers currently in play, this move show that Nissan is challenging the status quo. Nissan is already a popular taxi supplier to Tokyo, Barcelona and New York. We can expect to see these black cabs on the street by the end of 2014.

Read More

Vrrooom: The 10 Fastest Production Cars in the World 2013/2014

For us mere mortals the dream of owning a true supercar will remain just that. But we still love to dote over the fastest cars for their gorgeous looks and superb engineering, and who knows? Maybe we will get lucky! The following list includes the 10 fastest cars in the world yet!

10. Lamborghini Aventador LP700-4 (220mph)

The 2012 Aventador comes with a bran new V12 engine capable of producing 700 horsepower. This makes the car faster and more powerful than its predecessors, capable of reaching 62 mph in 2.9 seconds. Keeping with the tradition of this manufacturer, this car has been named after a bull that fought valiantly in the bull ring of Saragossa, Spain, 1993.

9. Noble M600 (225mph)

The Noble M600 was unveiled to the world in 2011. Released to little fan fare and relative anonymity, this car has since won the hearts and minds of many for its modest profile and styling. It has 4.4 litter V8 under the hood, reaching 60 mph in less than 3 seconds. Fewer cars boast this sort of performance for the price.

 8. Pagani Huayra (230mph)

The Pagani Huayra, created by the Italian supercar manufacturer Pagani (most famous for the Zonda), stunned all when it was unveiled at the 2013 Geneva Autoshow. With a carbon-titanium shell the Huayra is very light, and this added to a horsepower of 720 gives the car a zippy acceleration of 0-62 in 3 seconds. This car is a fitting replacement for the Zonda.

7. Zenovo ST1 (233 mph)

The Zenvo is the first supercar made by the Danish sports car company Zenvo Automotive. This car is made entirely from Danish components, with a twin-charged 7 litter 8V and a whopping 1,104 horses under the hood. Zenvo are clearly making a statement with this car and we can expect to see great things from this company in the future.

6. McLaren F1 (240mph)

  The McLaren F1 was the fastest car of the century, and when it first appeared on the scene it was a breakthrough for the automotive industry. With an unsurpassable engineering pedigree it's great to see the latest F1 high on the current list - if McLaren have their say the F1 will always be very difficult to beat. It has a mid V12 engine and 327 HP.

5. Koenigsegg CCX (245 mph)

 The Koenigsegg CCX is the latest model in super-successful line of supercars. It has been the aim of the Swedish Koengsegg to become one of the biggest supercar auto makers in the world, and they certainly living up to their own high expectations. Constructed from a carbon fibber and Kevlar body, the CCX boasts a 32-valve DOHC V8 engine capable of delivering 806 HP.

4. Saleen S7 Twin-Turbo (248 mph)

S7 was one of the fastest and most technically advanced cars ever to be made in America, and the latest Twin-Turbo V8 rendition is Steve Saleen's response to the increasingly competitive supercar market. It breaks the 3 second 0-60 mark (2.8 seconds) and has 750 horses under the hood.

3. SSC Ultimate Aero (257 mph)

This car was verified by Guinness as the fastest production automobile in the world from '07 to '10, trumping the original Bugatti Veyron. Created by Shelby SuperCars, who are known for creating replicas of exotic cars, the SSC Ultimate Aero is truly an engineering marvel. It comes with a custom V8 engine and has a staggering 1287 HP, reaching 60 mph in 2.78 seconds.

2. Hennessey Venom GT (260 mph)

Hennessy Performance Engineering takes some of the best supercars in the world, and uses their amazing skill to make them even better. The Venom GT is a car that has very few peers, and it could even be the fastest car in the world. Very few of them have been made. There is a 775 HP version and a 1,200 HP version, and the latter could be capable of reaching 275 mph!

1. Bugatti Veyron Super Sport (267 mph)

The original Bugatti Veyron lost its crown to the SSC Ultimate Aero in 2007, but they reasserted their prowess with this latest Super Sport version, beating the SSC's top speed by at least 11 mph. It is officially the fastest production car in the world, with an 8 litter W16, quad-turbocharged engine, 1200 HP and an acceleration of 0.60 mph in 2.4 seconds. This will be the car to beat in the coming years.

Honourable Mentions

There are a number of cars which tie with the ones mentioned in this list. These are the Koenigsegg Agera R (joint 2nd), the 9ff GT9-R (joint 3rd), the Gumpert Apollo (joint 9th), and the Aston Martin One-77 and the Ascari A10, which are both tied with the Aventador for 10th place.

Read More