Saturday, 15 August 2015

Mexican review proves VUHL 05 track car exists - Autoblog

Mexican <b>review</b> proves VUHL 05 track <b>car</b> exists - Autoblog

Mexican <b>review</b> proves VUHL 05 track <b>car</b> exists - Autoblog

Posted: 12 Aug 2015 12:15 PM PDT

It's been almost two years since we've seen or heard anything about the VUHL 05. But if this video review is anything to go by, it does actually exist. And what's more, it looks pretty awesome.

The VUHL 05, for those who haven't committed every obscure sportscar to memory, is a Mexican track toy. Think of it along the same lines, then, as the KTM X-Bow, BAC Mono, or Ariel Atom. It's the brainchild of Guillermo and Iker Echeverria, two brothers who set about building a world-class performance machine for the circuit. It packs a 2.0-liter Ford EcoBoost four, mounted in the middle of a lightweight carbon monocoque chassis and driving 285 horsepower to the rear wheels through a six-speed manual transmission. With just over 1,500 pounds to move, it's quoted for a 0-62 time of 3.7 seconds and a top speed of 150 miles per hour - with no windshield to speak of.

So on paper, at least, the VUHL 05 has the performance chops. But anyone can draw up a spec sheet. Actually following through is another matter entirely, and far too many of these projects end up vaporizing into thin air. This clip would seem to show that the VUHL 05 isn't one of them. Though it's hardly the most professional video review we've brought you recently, it's worth checking out – if you can understand Spanish, at any rate.

On the road: Hyundai i30 Turbo – <b>car review</b> | Technology | The <b>...</b>

Posted: 07 Aug 2015 10:00 PM PDT

It's the sportiest in the Hyundai range; it has sportier wheel arches, a sportier, more shapely grill, an all-round aura of sportiness.

But I wasn't struck by it, not at first. Who reads a car's personality in its grill? Then I got in and it all changed: the steering wheel is leather with red stitching. Visible stitching shouts "fun", because it subconsciously reminds you of saddlebags and other horse paraphernalia. It shouts, speed for the hell of it, speed you didn't know was coming; it has been yelling, "You are about to go much faster than walking" since the 1880s.

The sports-bucket seats have a leather effect, so feel like being held by a giant, determined glove. The pedals are silvery and dynamic, and gleam. The three-door design sends the message that you don't want passengers if you can help it. The ignition is with a button, which I've come to prefer, and the binnacles protrude in an ironic, Back To The Future sort of way. It's the kind of car you expect will start making arch remarks at you.

I didn't get to the top speed of 136mph, but I had no doubt at all that it could make it. The 1.6-litre petrol engine tops the range, and is a blast. It swam into sixth gear with discernible enthusiasm; the torque could blow your cheeks back. It's pretty unusual to be able to entertain children by going from first to second in a 20mph zone, but even its zero to 18 felt pretty sudden. Acceleration in the higher gear is not as good; the changes are smooth enough, but you're not going to sail past an Audi on the motorway, which, let's face it, is the car you habitually want to sail past. The Flex Steer system means you can choose between comfort, normal and sport: I couldn't tell a huge amount of difference between them, but they're all sharp and neat. Road imperfections are damped, the brake feel inspires confidence. Maybe the steering response is a bit jerky, but more in the service of mischief than by accident.

It's not immediately clear what driver this car has in mind. It was, plainly, exciting enough for me, but it's not the hottest of hatches. It's roomy – the space in the boot is a surprise – but it's not what you'd call a family car. The engine comes at a price for emissions and efficiency: 149g/km is a little bit last century, ditto 44mpg on the combined cycle. So it's not emphatically one thing – family, sporty, titchy, eco, ergo – over another. But it's fun, goddamit.

Price £22,500
Top speed 136mph
Acceleration 0-62mph in 8 seconds
Combined fuel consumption 44mpg
CO2 emissions 169g/km
Eco rating 7/10
Cool rating 7/10

Seat X-PERIENCE: <b>car review</b> | Martin Love | Technology | The <b>...</b>

Posted: 08 Aug 2015 10:00 PM PDT

Toughen up: Seat's 4x4 taps into a fast-growing sector.

Price £25,495
MPG 58.9
Top speed 129mph

There are a few shameful episodes hiding in my motoring memory bank (the reckless speeding on country roads, the KFC family bucket emptied out of the window at 60mph, the middle finger to that old lady), but this was a real low-point. I'd been on the road all day lugging my daughter's stuff home from university (where did she get all this junk?) and was reversing into a tight spot outside our house. I noticed in my mirror that there was a bloke waiting behind me in a new Jag. He took exception to something, I'm still not sure what, and decided the best course of action was to pull alongside me and shout through my open window: "ARSEHOLE!"

I was incredulous – and then incensed. I rammed the car back into gear and drove after him, grinding both my fists into the horn as hard as I could. It was a weird slow-mo chase as he kept braking in front of me to go over each speed bump. After about 200 yards I started to feel a bit foolish as he had no intention of stopping to discuss the matter further. Then I realised the horn had got stuck and wouldn't stop blaring its head off. I sheepishly took the next right while Jag Man went straight ahead. It was only when I got back home and turned the engine off that the horn stopped… Anyway, that showed him!

The ironic thing is that the car I'd spent the day in, the Seat X-PERIENCE, is a calm, unruffled all-rounder which ate the miles to Bristol and back and swallowed all my daughter's worldly goods without a murmur. I should have been feeling relaxed and tranquil rather than going all Roy Keane.

The X-PERIENCE (novelty car names are so X-ASPERATING) is the newest member of the Leon branch of the Seat family. It has permanent four-wheel drive. The ride has been jacked up and it's been kitted out with metal bash plates, front and back, as well as plenty of plastic cladding around the bumpers and wheel arches. This makes it look like a bit of a bruiser – or a large Tonka toy at least.

Well put together: the roomy interior. Well put together: the roomy interior.

We've become obsessed with these soft roaders or "faux-by-fours". The Volkswagen Group, which owns Seat as well as Skoda and Audi, can't churn them out fast enough and the family estate in each range now comes with this "meaner" option. There's the Audi Allroad, VW Alltrack, Skoda Scout and now the Seat X-PERIENCE. The growing segment reflects the rugged, outdoorsy, triathlon-bragging lifestyles of those who buy them. But unlike most of these athletes, the cars actually deliver on their tough looks.

The X-PERIENCE costs £3,000 more than its weedier Leon ST sibling and it comes with a choice of two 2-litre diesels, either a 148bhp six-speed manual or a pokier 182bhp six-speed DSG twin-clutch automatic. In the flesh it exudes a resolute robustness. Despite the fact that Seat is officially at the bottom of the Volkswagen pecking order, everything feels well put together. Corners have not been cut. It's unexpectedly roomy inside and with the back seats folded the storage area is enormous. On the road, its extra height and the smooth, easy striding diesel make for a wonderfully fulsome ride.

My wife, who never comments on the cavalcade of cars that pass across our driveway, climbed out and said: "This is a nice car." Praise indeed. The new Porsche 911 she drove the week before elicited nothing. Maybe Jag Man was just jealous…

Email Martin at martin.love@observer.co.uk or follow him on Twitter@MartinLove166

Mazda MX-5: <b>car review</b> | Martin Love | Technology | The Guardian

Posted: 01 Aug 2015 10:00 PM PDT

Shore thing: the iconic MX-5 is the fourth generation of Mazda's bestselling roadster.

Price £18,495
MPG 47.1
Top speed 127mph

In the footwell of the seat I'm strapped into is a sign that reads: "If the driver's legs fall off, press here!" That must sound ridiculous to you, but then you aren't being driven hell-for-leather round the historic Goodwood racetrack by a man with no legs…

Davie Birrell is an ex-boxer and former corporal in the Black Watch whose life changed in an instant on 10 April 2010. While on patrol in Helmand, Afghanistan, his interpreter, walking a few yards to his left, stepped on a buried pressure pad which detonated an IED. In that instant, the translator lost his life – and Birrell lost his legs.

Earlier, over a coffee, I'd been unsure whether to ask him about his injury. He was joking about in the pit lane in full racing gear, with his helmet on his lap and a pair of prosthetic legs propped against the table. Finally curiosity got the better of me and I just came out with it. "So, Davie, what happened to your legs?" He happily launched into the story, recounting all the horror of the attack as if it was just a big adventure. He's a great talker and has an astonishingly unsentimental approach to losing his legs. It's obviously a mental strength that has got him through the dark days and months of his long rehab.

Man on a mission: Davie Birrell with his Mazda racing car. Man on a mission: Davie Birrell with his Mazda racing car. Photograph: Mission Motorsport

"Once we got hit by the IED, we came under fire straightaway," he says. "I was screaming my bloody head off so the boys knew I was still alive. All I could feel was this terrible burning in my back. My right leg was absolutely annihilated. I only had one tourniquet, so I tied that on and jabbed in the morphine. When the medics got over to me they jabbed me with more morphine…" he rolls his eyes and laughs. "Rounds were flying all over the place. One went right through the stretcher! The boys were brilliant. They had me back to Camp Bastion in 25 minutes. I was conscious through the whole thing…"

Davie is nothing if not a man who relishes a challenge. Working with Mission Motorsport, a charity which aids in the recovery and rehabilitation of those injured in war, he has not only realised his childhood dream of becoming a racing driver but has set his sights on becoming the first double amputee to compete in the British Touring Car Championships.

He shows me the prosthetic legs he uses to drive. "They're the same as my walking ones," he says, "but much shorter and lighter, so I can get a sense of the pedals through my stumps. I used to be over 6ft, but in these I'm only 5ft 5in. The only thing I can't do in the car is heel-toe!"

Inside story: the nicely appointed interior. Inside story: the nicely appointed interior.

He's currently racing a Mazda MX-5 which isn't modified to his needs in any way. It has a full roll cage and racing suspension – and on the front is a sticker that says @DavieNolegs. "I walk and drive like everyone else," he tells me. But I know that's a lie. Yes, he walks perfectly well, but his driving is anything but ordinary.

He offers to give me a few passenger laps of Goodwood. It's terrifying. The car shrieks round each bend at the limit of its tolerances. Why isn't it bouncing end over end across the grass? Davie, meanwhile, passes the wheel through his hands like a Zen master. He's totally calm and unflustered, almost bored. He says he's "not pushing it". Racing drivers don't feel fear like the rest of us – and a racing driver who is also a war veteran and former boxer is clearly not going to be bothered about going sideways at 100mph on a wet track. Maybe if someone started taking pot shots at us his pulse might spike up to 73 or something… but I'm not sure.

After half a dozen laps, I've had enough (a combination of fear and nausea) and we blast back into the pits. We clamber out of his race-prepared Mazda and go and look at the new MX-5 parked nearby.

It's the world's bestselling roadster and has just celebrated its 25th anniversary. We love them here in Britain – in fact we buy more than half of the MX-5s sold in Europe. I like what it says about our national psyche that we have so taken this little two-seater to our hearts. There are plenty of cars out there which are posher, more powerful and more imposing. But when it comes to likable, affordable, roof-down thrills, nothing comes close.

Ship shape: the chopped rear end. Ship shape: the chopped rear end.

This is the fourth generation of the MX-5 – and the best thing about it is that it's so very like the first. It exudes an irresistible joie de vivre. The controls are straightforward. The roof is old-school fabric and has a simple, easy-to-use mechanism. There are no fancy-pants gadgets here. It is what it is.

This latest model is lighter, shorter, lower and wider than the outgoing one and has the lowest centre of gravity yet. All of which gives it a dynamic edge on the road. It's powered by a 1.5- or 2-litre engine which is nippy rather than fast, and the handling is nimble and responsive. You really do feel at one with it.

The design has been sharpened. Pointy headlamps and a chopped rear now make it look like an old Alfa Spider. Peering through the windscreen your view of the road rushing towards you is perfectly framed by the twin front wheel arches. It's exhilarating and makes you feel like James Dean. (Note to self: buy another polo neck.) The cabin is comfortable and despite its modest proportions has a plump fulsomeness to it. The boot, though, is still a bit crap.

One thing, however, that really has changed is the price. When it was launched in 1990, it cost £14,249 (that's £31,687 in today's money), yet 25 years later, with vastly more standard equipment, it costs just £18,495. No wonder we Brits love it so…

Fit for a king: the big pink Caddie. Fit for a king: the big pink Caddie.

Elvis's pink Cadillac has arrived at the O2 and we have five pairs of tickets to give away. One of the world's most iconic cars, the King's Pink Cadillac is on display at Elvis at The O2, having been shipped over from Graceland especially.

Bought by Elvis on 7 July 1955, the car was originally blue with a black roof, but he had the body painted pink to replace his first pink Cadillac, which was destroyed after the brake lining caught fire and set the car alight while Elvis was driving back from a gig on 5 June 1955.

With over 300 artefacts from the Graceland archives, the exhibition includes other automobiles, personal items, historical documents, stage costumes, guitars, photography and gold and platinum records.

To win one of the five pairs of tickets, send an email with your name and address to martin.love@observer.co.uk. The first five to arrive will be the winners.

The exhibition runs until 10 January 2016, from 10am to 8.30pm, seven days a week. For more details and to buy tickets, go to elvisattheo2.com

Terms and conditions available on request.

Email Martin at martin.love@observer.co.uk or follow him on Twitter @MartinLove166

On the road: Skoda Fabia – <b>car review</b> | Technology | The Guardian

Posted: 31 Jul 2015 10:00 PM PDT

I can seriously see the point of the Skoda Fabia. I can't stand the convention that, as soon as you have a family, you have to start driving some lumbering bison of a car, destined to stick out in car parks and squeeze down urban roads. I would much rather drive something that looked like a hot hatch and just happened to have a bunch of people and animals in the back.

OK, the Fabia does not look like a hot hatch. It doesn't look hot. It looks like your existing girlfriend. No, just kidding! That kind of sexist objectification has no place in car reviewing. It looks dependable and friendly, but not particularly invigorating. I'm not sure that it would wow the younger audience, but then I always think the young car buyer who has money is a figment of the industry's imagination.

The interior styling feels a bit hire car: it's pretty anonymous, and the cabin is comfortable but not especially inviting, and there are no luxurious touches. The most impressive thing is that it's small, but doesn't feel small. Most of the space has been saved from the boot, which nevertheless remains large enough for normal boot activity, until you try to add a proper-sized dog. I think it's a no-pets car.

Apart from daintiness, the main thing to recommend it is the economy. The 1.2l petrol engine (there's a one-litre model, and a diesel) delivers 60.1mpg on the combined cycle, which is impressive. It is not what you'd call nippy. Third gear really runs out of puff, and second is very short; I was constantly surprised by how much changing down I'd have to do mid-manoeuvre. This makes it not huge fun to drive, although the handling is fine and on a motorway it tootles along with something like enthusiasm. It helps that it's quiet: the external noise is minimal and nothing rattles. It can be bumpy on rough surfaces, but it never said it was a tank.

I can't vouch personally for its safety features, having never even skimmed another vehicle in it, but it scored five stars in the Euro NCAP safety ratings last year, most likely down to the six airbags and the Isofix child seat fittings.

Look, it didn't set my world on fire. It probably thinks setting things on fire is irresponsible. If it were a person, it would eat sensibly, go to the gym a lot (or maybe powerwalk), probably not do triathlons. You'd want to live next door to someone like this – her hedges would be neat and she would recycle. But would you want to be her?

Price£13,390
Top speed 113mph
Acceleration 0-62mph in 10.9 seconds
Combined fuel consumption 60.1 mpg
CO2 emissions 107g/km
Eco rating 8/10
Cool rating 5/10

Cop <b>Car</b> · Film <b>Review</b> · The A.V. Club

Posted: 06 Aug 2015 06:00 AM PDT

Truth in advertising: Cop Car is almost entirely about a cop car. Parked on the outskirts of a wooded area, with no corresponding officer anywhere in sight, the vehicle is discovered by a pair of 10-year-old boys, Travis (James Freedson-Jackson) and Harrison (Hays Wellford), who stumble onto it while running away from home together. Finding the keys, and possessing maybe one-sixteenth of a lick of sense between them, they immediately decide to take a joy ride, heading out onto the highway despite barely being able to see over the dashboard. Meanwhile, the car's owner, Sheriff Kretzer (Kevin Bacon), has to scramble to recover it before anyone else with a badge learns that it's been stolen. Or, rather, borrowed.

If that sounds like the premise for a goofy comedy, think again. Co-written and directed by Jon Watts (who's since been tapped to helm the next Spider-Man movie), Cop Car is a surprisingly nasty piece of work, more reminiscent of old John Dahl thrillers from the '90s (Red Rock West, The Last Seduction) than of Let's Be Cops. As it turns out, Sheriff Kretzer didn't leave his car to take a leak, or even to score with some chick—he was digging a shallow grave some distance away, and the body he planned to dump in it is still in the trunk. Consequently, his efforts to retrieve the vehicle take on, shall we say, a certain urgency, which contrasts nicely with Travis and Harrison's clueless euphoria behind the wheel.

Initially, Cop Car feels a bit toothless, if only because it's hard to believe that there's any serious threat to the boys' safety—American movies aren't big on killing off cute little kids. Bacon partially solves the problem by delivering a performance that's wholly devoid of empathy, making the sheriff seem like someone who'd stuff a newborn infant down a garbage disposal if that somehow served his interests. Much of the film's anxiety level, however, actually derives from Travis and Harrison themselves, as they both seem like a Junior Darwin Award waiting to happen. There are loaded guns in the car, which they predictably treat like cool toys; watching them toss a pistol around with no conception of how a safety works is as nerve-wracking as watching a puppy scamper across terrain festooned with live land mines.

For all its ghoulish black humor, Cop Car never quite revs up past about third gear. There are a couple of mildly clever and/or startling twists, including one involving a civilian driver played by Camryn Manheim, but the film's screenplay (which Watts co-wrote with Robot & Frank's Christopher D. Ford) is more a series of consecutive incidents than a tightening vise, and its final scene trails off in a way that suggests nobody ever managed to think up an ending. But Watts demonstrates a sadistic patience that's refreshing, especially compared to the usual blockbuster breathlessness. This is a film that stops cold at one point for several minutes while Sheriff Kretzer tries and repeatedly fails to unlock a car door with a shoelace; its outlandish premise is rooted in credible detail, and even its most malevolent figure comes across as somewhat ineffectual. The Marvel Cinematic Universe—or whatever bloated franchise Watts' Spider-Man reboot will belong to (who can keep track these days?)—could definitely use more of his sensibility.

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