Test Drive : BMW 330i - Temptation on Wheels

Anamit Sen spent a whole day evaluating a BMW 330i in and around Delhi and the NCR. I'm starting this review with a bit of news.

Auto Bild magazine in Germany has just reported that the 2012 version of BMW's 3 Series, which will be the 6th generation of the 3 Series, is ready to be showcased at the Frankfurt Motor Show later this year. The reports say that this new BMW, classified internally as the F30 and going up against the Mercedes C Class, Audi's A4 and Volvo's S60, has borrowed quite a bit in terms of design from the 5 Series. It will break new ground in terms of safety and will have new four-cylinder turbocharged engines. The reports also says that though BMW may not be vorsprung durch technik (borrowing from Audi) or advanced/ahead through technology any more because competitors also have the equivalent of the advantages of Efficient Dynamics, the boffins DO have access to the parts and accessory shelf of the 5 Series. Which means it is quite possible that the F30 may offer features like night vision assistance, heads up display or HUD, lane changing assistance as well as automatic parking.

So how is that bit of news relevant to this driving impression? Well, if you have not noticed yet the car featured here is the BMW 330i Edition Sport, internally classified as the E90. OK, let me explain the internal classification over the years, which starts way back in 1966 when the 1600-2002 series came in as a family saloon. It was sporty too with an 80bhp engine that could reach 96kph in 13 seconds. The 2002 Turbo was part of the 02 Series, with a 170bhp engine and BMW churned these out till 1976. The internal E classification kicked off with the E21 ,the first generation of 3 Series cars, production of which ran from 1976 to 1982. These cars still used small engines, with capacities of 1.6 and 1.8 litres. BMW introduced their first six-cylinder engine in the 3 Series at the Frankfurt Motor Show in 1977, the 323i which had 143bhp on tap.

The E30 that followed in 1983 was the second-generation 3 Series. These cars were bigger than the previous generation cars, had more power, but were lighter, the perfect recipe for performance. The 325i topped the range and had a straight-six engine developing 170bhp out of 2.5litres, good for 135mph or 216kph which would be adequate even today. The E30 was especially notable because it was the base for the first M car, known simply as the BMW M3 E30, launched at the Frankfurt Motor Show in 1985. This particular car was VERY successful in race trim, winning several touring car championships. The M badge had arrived.

Yo Bike

Amazing skeleton bike, 05 more images after the break...

Cruise InteriOr

Cruise Interior, 08 More images after the break...

Review: 2012 Volkswagen Jetta GLI

Volkswagen is serious about taking on the best in the small-midsize sedan market. So much so, they brought us to the Mosport Driver Development Centre near Bowmanville, Ontario to put the all-new 2012 Jetta GLI through its paces. A sunny day, comfortable sports seats and time on a race track. It doesn’t get much better than this!

The 2012 Volkswagen Jetta GLI comes standard with a 2.0-litre TSI turbocharged inline 4-cylinder engine. Performance rates at 200 horsepower and 207 lb.-ft. of torque.
Matched to a 6-speed manual transmission or the optional 6-speed automatic Direct Shift Gearbox (DSG) with Tiptronic and Sport Mode, we spend the afternoon doing hot laps of the track, exploring the outer limits of adhesion and driver confidence. Both are in relative abundance, with the driver holding on as long as the car. It helps that I have taken the Bridgestone Racing School course on this track in the past. If you haven’t as of yet, put it on your Christmas Wish List.

Power assisted front vented and rear solid disc brakes provide excellent stopping power. Safety features include ABS, EBD and HBA (Hydraulic Brake Assist). I do experience some amount of brake fade as our time on the track progresses, even running out of brakes once approaching a tight right-hand turn under hard braking. But I chalk this up to racing on a track, rather than the potential for fade during every day driving conditions or even somewhat aggressive stints on a regular basis over winding country roads.

Traction Control is standard featuring a host of acronyms such as ASR (Anti-Slip Regulation), EBA (Engine Braking Assist), EDL (Electronic Differential Lock), XDS (Electronic Transverse Differential Lock) and ESC (Electronic Stability Control). Hill hold assist is also included to stop unwanted rollbacks.

Exterior design cues exude the typical Volkswagen front/rear fascia and side profile. But the GLI is no slouch in the styling department. Lines are clean and crisp like a finely tailored suit, business professional, of course, being an upstanding German car.

Upper and lower body character lines add to the professional look, while multi-spoke alloy wheels, an aggressive lower front grille and fog lights let you know there is plenty of sportiness to enjoy underneath the all-business exterior.

Brushed aluminum sport pedals and dead pedal (a place to rest your left foot while not on the clutch) add a sporty touch to what is already a racy interior package. Large, round white on black analogue gauges feature the obligatory speedometer and tachometer, as well as coolant temperature and fuel gauge, outside temperature and much more.

A 3-spoke flat-bottom leather steering wheel with red stitching offers multi-function controls and excellent feedback with electromechanical speed sensitive power steering. It also features telescoping and height adjustment. Additional leather wraps the manual gearshift knob and emergency brake.

Seats are superb, as is rear seat room and trunk space. VW is known for their excellence in space efficiency and roominess; the new GLI takes this to the next level. Power window controls are located where they should be, on the door as part of swooping armrest design element. Power mirrors and door locks are situated directly above. It is so logical to design and interior this way, why do other automakers make it so complicated sometimes?

Bluetooth mobile phone connectivity makes syncing your iPhone easy. A premium AM/FM, 6-disc CD changer with 6.5 inch touch screen, SIRIUS satellite radio and 6 speakers is standard. Upgrades including the RNS 315 Navigation System or the all-out 400 watt Fender premium audio system with 8 speakers and subwoofer.

Driving the all-new 2012 Volkswagen Jetta GLI on the track and the roads surrounding Mosport, the car impresses with a quietness belying the reasonable price and a ride quality equal to, or in some ways better than, the major competitors from Mazda, Honda and Subaru to name a few.

Priced to start at $27,475 for the manual transmission, Jetta GLI should command a strong following of contented, driving enthusiasts looking for fun, roominess and classic style all rolled into one exceptional package.
2012 Volkswagen Jetta GLI

Wheelbase: 2,651 mm
Overall length: 4,628 mm
Overall width: 1,778 mm
Overall height: 1,453 mm
Engine: DOHC I4/turbocharged
Transmission: 6/manual, 6/DSG with Tiptronic
Brakes: 4-disc, ABS/EBD/HBA
Airbags: 2 front, 2 side, side curtain 
Warranties: 4 years/ 80,000 km (basic)
Competitors: Honda Civic Si, Mazdaspeed3, Mitsubishi Lancer Ralliart, Subaru Impreza WRX
Base MSRP: $27,475-$28,875
Options:
Luxury leather package: $2,100
18”alloy wheels: $975
Technology package: $1,290
Power sunroof: $1,400
Freight and PDI: $1,365

Spyker Sells Stake in Saab to Chinese Automaker for $177 Million

 It seems Volvo is no longer the only Swedish automaker with fiscal ties to a Chinese car company. Saab announced yesterday that it received some short-term funding courtesy of the Hawtai Motor Group, a Chinese automaker that now holds a 29.9-percent stake in the company.

Billed by the automaker as a “joint venture on manufacturing, technology, and distribution,” the agreement essentially hawks a chunk of Saab-Spyker to the Chinese in order to give Saab the operating liquidity it so desperately needs.

Hawtai’s investment provides the company nearly 150 million Euros ($222 million USD) in funding, but only 120 million Euros ($177 million) are tied to the equity stake itself. The remaining 30 million Euros ($44.3 million) come from a convertible loan issued by Hawtai itself.

This announcement follows last week’s announcement that Saab managed to scrape up 60 million Euros ($88.7 million) in short-term funding, half of which is tied to a new loan from Gemini, a European investment firm that was already a Spyker shareholder. Saab also planned on making a drawdown request to the European Investment Bank for 29.1 million Euros ($43 million).

“Saab is now well financed,” CEO Victor Muller said in a prepared release. “It has secured its short and mid-term financing needs. That puts the credit crunch that the company went through in April to bed.”

Officials tell Automotive News that production within the company’s assembly plant in Trollhattan, Sweden, should resume “early next week.” Even so, the disruption in production makes selling 80,000 Saabs globally by the end of 2011 — already an optimistic goal, to say the least — completely impossible.

It may, however, have an improved means of selling its products in China. While the liason with Hawtai immediately gives Saab some liquidity, it potentially allows the company to expand its Chinese distribution market. Conversely, it theoretically gives Hawtai a consumer-focused offering, allowing it to round out its portfolio, which presently consists primarily of SUVs, trucks, and buses.

Although this appears to be a done deal, Saab notes the agreement is subject to the approval of several parties, including the EIB, the Swedish National Debt Office, and several Chinese regulatory boards.

Leaf and Prius stomp the Volt on greenest car list

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- The Chevrolet Volt didn't rank as one of the top-ten "greenest" cars in America, coming at no. 12, according to the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy's annual list.

The fully electric Nissan Leaf ranked second among all 2011 model year cars on the same list. First place went to the compressed natural gas powered Honda Civic GX.

Vehicles are ranked according to a "Green Score," factoring fuel economy and emissions, including emissions from electric power plants. The relative impact of a vehicle's manufacture and disposal, based on the car's weight, was also considered.

The top 12 cars include gasoline-powered cars, plug-in cars, gasoline/electric hybrids and natural gas powered vehicles. No diesel cars made the top ranks because of their relatively high emissions compared to very fuel-efficient gasoline-powered cars.

The Volt can run on electricity or gasoline. For the purposes of these rankings, the ACEEE assumed the Volt was driven on plug-in electricity 64% percent of the time and on gasoline 36% of the time. The ratio was based on a standard recommended by the Society of Automotive Engineers, an ACEEE spokeswoman said.

"As a gasoline vehicle, the fuel economy's not stellar," said Shruti Vaidyanathan, a spokeswoman for the ACEEE.

When operating under gasoline power, the Volt gets EPA-rated fuel economy of 35 miles per gallon in the city and 40 on the highway.

That's not as good as the third-ranked Smart ForTwo, which gets 41 mpg on the highway, 33 in the city or the fourth-ranked Toyota Prius, which gets 48 on the highway and 51 in the city.

A car's weight is considered an important factor into the rating system, so the Volt's nearly 3,800 pounds dragged its rankings down. The Chevrolet Cruze Eco, a gasoline-powered car that's otherwise very similar to the Volt but weighs 750 pounds less, ranked 8th on the list. Most of the Volt's additional weight comes from its lithium-ion battery pack.

For electric and hybrid cars the organization accounted for battery weight separately. Nickel-metal batteries used in hybrid cars like the Prius have a greater impact, pound for pound, than the less toxic, but far larger, lithium-ion batteries used in the Leaf and Volt.

Weight accounted for roughly 40 pct of the Volt's overall score.

All told, the Volt ended up ranking lower than six non-hybrid gasoline powered cars.

"I find it kind of laughable," said GM spokesman Rob Peterson when told of ranking and the rational behind it.

Peterson objected to the idea that the Volt's weight counted so heavily against the Volt.

"It's one group's interpretation of a measurement of 'green'," he said.

The ACEEE gave every 2011 model year a "Green Score" base on its overall environmental impact. Among the lowest-scoring vehicles of all were the Ford Expedition and the Chevrolet Suburban.

The ACEEE is a Washington-based non-profit group dedicated to "advancing energy efficiency as a means of promoting economic prosperity," according to its Web site. The group has produced an annual "Green Cars" guide since 1998.
 

First Look Inside the Boeing 747-8 Airplane

The 747-8 is the largest and newest 747 version, the longest passenger aircraft in the world.  The 747-8 is offered in two main variants: the 747-8 Intercontinental (747-8I) for passengers and the 747-8 Freighter (747-8F) for cargo. he aircraft will be capable of carrying up to 467 passengers in a 3-class configuration over 8,000 nmi (15,000 km) at Mach 0.855.
 

 

 

 

 

The 747-8 Intercontinental will have the lowest seat-mile cost of any large commercial jetliner, with 12 per cent lower costs than its predecessor, the 747-400. The airplane provides 16 per cent better fuel economy, 16 per cent less carbon emissions per passenger and generates a 30 per cent smaller noise footprint than the 747-400.

 

 

The 747-8 applies interior features from the 787 Dreamliner that includes a new curved, upswept architecture giving passengers a greater feeling of space and comfort. 

 

The entrance to the plane has a wide-open foyer area that includes a curved staircase to the upper deck.

 

 

 

 

Korean Air has joined launch customer Lufthansa in ordering a total of 33 747-8 Intercontinentals. First delivery of the 747-8 Intercontinental is scheduled for the fourth quarter. Air China also has agreed to order five Intercontinentals, pending government approval.

 

The Boeing design concept for the 747-8 VIP, showing view from the top of the spiral staircase, with the dining area and a ladder extending to library shelves.

 

Cars – HQ Wallpaper Collections [2-2]

Cars – HQ Wallpaper Collections [1-2]