MERCEDES AMG PETRONAS simulator gets a shake down from Lewis Hamilton as he tackles the Shanghai International Circuit. With the longest straight of the year the cars will be reaching some 330km/h, Pole Position takes a look at Lewis preperation ahead of the 2014 Shanghai Grand Prix.
British supercar manufacturer McLaren launched its latest offering at the 84th Geneva motorshow, the 650S Spider. Stunning looks matching equally impressive performance figures make the latest release from the Woking company a sure fire winner.
Performance is similar in all respects to the Spiders fixed head cousin and will give McLaren an advantage over many of its competitors who do not offer this open top derivative. 0-62mph is achieved in 3 seconds identical to the Coupé, 124 mph is reached in 8.6 seconds, only 0.2 seconds slower than the fix-head. Maximum speed 204 mph.
McLaren 650S Spider joins 650S Coupé
Lewis Hamilton takes a virtual lap at the Shanghai International Circuit
Group Lotus plc, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Proton Holdings Berhad (PROTON), opened its first 4S Centre in Beijing, China in an event officiated by PROTON Advisor Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad yesterday. Tun was accompanied by Tan Sri Dato' Seri Haji Mohd Khamil Jamil, the Executive Chairman of PROTON and Chairman of Group Lotus, as well as Mr Aslam Farikullah, Chief Operating Officer of Group Lotus.
The Centre sits on a foot-print of approximately 1,000 square metres over 4 floors at theGolden Port Motor Park in Beijing. The Centre is set to offer a complete Lotus experience with a showroom and a comprehensive service centre, where owners will be able to service, and obtain spare parts for their Lotus cars.
The one stop 4S Centre – Sales, Service, Spare parts and Surveys (customer feedback) - also houses an administrative office, merchandise retail corner, customers lounge and a training centre. The building also comes with a complete customer service experience as it houses a club house for Lotus owners with a member's lounge, and other amenities.
Meanwhile, the advance and fully-equipped Lotus Service Centre comes with three hoists, an engine repair room, diagnostic and special tools for Lotus cars and many other advance workshop equipment to provide the highest level of customer service to current and future Lotus owners.
According to Mr Aslam Farikullah, China has been at the forefront of global economic development and consequently there has been a growing trend of international car brands taking an interest in China by opening factories and dealerships, “China's growth has not only opened the eyes of the international business community, but it has also inspired us to open this new Lotus 4S Centre.”
Aslam Farikullah also stated that opening the 4S Centre is a form of acknowledgment for a market that has been receptive of the brand since its first venture towards end of 2011, “The Company has been receiving positive demand for Lotus cars in China, hence there is a need for Lotus to position itself strategically and it is only fitting that these valued customers are able to enjoy the level of services and comforts that befit the brand's iconic status".
Lotus currently has eight dealerships in China, including in major parts of the country likeBeijing, Shanghai, Chengdu and Dalian amongst others. Lotus Evora, Exige and Elise models are currently available to the China market.
LOTUS OPENS FIRST 4S CENTRE IN GOLDEN PORTMOTOR PARK, BEIJING, CHINA
Unique design concept shown ahead of China tour
Bespoke upgrades developed by MSO offer optimised aerodynamic performance and more dramatic appearance
Range of new styling options available for the McLaren 650S Coupe and 650S Spider many of which can also be fitted to the previous 12C modelsMcLaren
McLAREN SPECIAL OPERATIONS SHOWCASES MSO 650S COUPE CONCEPT IN CHINA
Earlier this month, Nissan NISMO athlete Al Buncombe showed Porsche, Aston, Audi, Bentley, Mercedes, Lamborghini, BMW and Jaguar how to be the boss of the first lap of Monza.
In the opening race of 2014 Blanc Pain Endurance series, Buncombe climbed 17 places in the opening lap alone. He started the race way down the grid in 32nd out of 44 cars, but ended his second lap in 13th position, leaving the team in a great position.
This on board view catches all the action from Buncombe's point of view.
IS THIS THE BEST FIRST LAP EVER?
Refined 2015 Nissan 370Z NISMO makes global debut today at annual gathering of Nissan, Datsun and NISMO sports car owners and performance enthusiasts.
Refreshed 370Z NISMO features distinctive new exterior appearance, redesigned wheels and enhanced interior; 7-speed automatic transmission is also available.
Performance enhancements include retuned suspension and Recaro® co-developed seats exclusively designed for 370Z Nismo.
2015 NISSAN 370Z NISMO MAKES SURPRISE WORLD DEBUT AT NORTH CAROLINA "ZDAYZ" EVENT
CATERHAM CARS REVEALS KAMUI KOBAYASHI LIMITED EDITION SEVEN FOR JAPANESE FANS
Caterham Cars has taken the wraps off a brand new special edition Seven designed by Caterham F1 Team’s Japanese driver, Kamui Kobayashi.
Just 10 examples of the Kamui Kobayashi special edition go on sale in Kamui’s home country from today, priced at ¥6,000,000 (including local taxes).
NISSAN CONCEPT 2020 VISION GRAN TURISMO CREATORS REVEAL THE DESIGN BRIEF BEHIND THEIR VIRTUAL SUPERCAR
GOODWOOD, England – The NISSAN CONCEPT 2020 Vision Gran Turismo began life as dream project for young Nissan designers who were given free rein to create the perfect supercar for their own Gran Turismo fantasy garage.
The design from a team at Nissan Design Europe based in London was seen to have so much potential that it benefited from input from an engineering team based in Japan. Adapting design cues from current Nissan performance models, it was created from scratch using the latest digital design tools. The first, and to date only, physical representation of the car is the actual concept model.
In this video, the NISSAN CONCEPT 2020 Vision Gran Turismo creators reveal the design brief behind their virtual supercar. The full-size concept model will be presented at the Goodwood Festival of Speed in the UK.