Topgear News
Posted on January 29, 2007 @ 11:56 am [Comments (0)]
DRAMATIC footage of the high-speed crash which nearly claimed the life of Top Gear presenter Richard Hammond was screened for the first time last night.
The 36-year-old had a remarkable escape when he crashed a jet-powered dragster travelling at 288mph while filming a stunt for the programme at Elvington airfield, near York, in September. Hammond suffered brain injuries as he attempted to break the British land speed record.
The footage showed the moment a tyre burst on the Vampire jet car. It skidded and flipped over and was still travelling at 230mph as it careered upside down over a grass verge bordering the runway.
Posted on January 26, 2007 @ 9:58 am [Comments (1)]
Nissan’s new UK designed, engineered and built QASHQAI crossover is now available for test drive and ordering at the company’s dealers with deliveries due to start March 1. Business should be brisk if early interest from press and customers is anything to go by.
Talking of press, the Nissan QASHQAI has already picked up its first commendation: ‘Best Small Family Car Buy’ in the £13,000 – £14,500 category of the What Car? Car of the Year 2007 awards. Not surprising, considering the vehicle combines the best attributes of an SUV – a high driving position and solid build – with those of a conventional hatchback – great driving dynamics, good fuel economy and low insurance ratings.
Posted on January 25, 2007 @ 3:26 pm [Comments (1)]
Honda launched its RA107 car for the 2007 Formula One season in Barcelona Thursday with top driver Jenson Button saying he hopes to be in a position to seriously challenge for the drivers’ title this year.
“We enjoyed a strong second half to the season last year and of course our first win together will always be special,” said Button in reference to his win in the Hungarian Grand Prix last August.
The Briton finished the 2006 season in sixth place with 56 points but thinks the team is on an upward trajectory.
Posted on January 24, 2007 @ 5:51 pm [Comments (0)]
The beaching on the Devon coast at the weekend of the ship Napoli holed in gales off Cornwall on Friday - leading to a spectacular and dangerous rescue of the crew from a liferaft - has provided a bonanza for beach scavengers of automotive items.
Around 105 containers have come off the ship and the 40 or so that reached the beach either split open or were forced open by hundreds of scavengers. Media reports said 15-50 brand-new BMW motorcycles had been removed from the beach along with BMW car parts such as gearboxes, steering wheels and rear windows. One report said the bikes, packed in cardboard shipping packages, and liberated from a locked container by scavengers with bolt cutters, all had keys, paperwork and some fuel in their tanks.
Posted on January 22, 2007 @ 11:26 am [Comments (0)]
Renault Sport is on a roll. On the road, its latest creations, Clio Renaultsport 197 and Mégane Renaultsport 230 F1 R26, have attracted widespread critical acclaim for their mesmeric handling and scintillating performance, while on the track, the eagerly anticipated 2007 Clio Cup Championship looks set to become the biggest and best race series yet. It was only fitting then that the French marque should steal the show at Autosport International which ran at the National Exhibition Centre last weekend.
Posted on January 18, 2007 @ 4:36 pm [Comments (0)]
Ford’s two UK engine plants are confirming large 2006 production increases and creating hundreds of new jobs, putting each on course for 1,000,000 engines-a-year output by 2009. Ford’s global centre for diesel engineering and manufacture at Dagenham, in Essex, saw a 24% rise in volumes last year to 683,729 units. Two additional variants new to Dagenham – 1.4 and 1.6-litre engines – will be launched within months, increasing output further in 2007. In an ongoing recruitment drive which has created 250 jobs to date, engine production and maintenance specialists are being taken on by Ford Dagenham in readiness.
Posted on January 16, 2007 @ 4:35 pm [Comments (0)]
Electric car pioneer ZAP (OTC Bulletin Board: ZAAP - News) announced today that a feasibility study is being carried out in its joint development of new electric car designs with Lotus Engineering.
ZAP is moving forward with an aggressive programme to stay at the forefront of advanced transportation with new technologies and products. ZAP selected Lotus Engineering, one of the world’s leading automotive design consultancies, to undertake engineering concept studies for a number of electric vehicles.
The feasibility study is a comprehensive research project into the creation of a new generation of ultra-efficient electric automobiles from concept to production. Of particular interest in the project is the challenge of advancing the electric car market by incorporating new technologies which will maximize the consumer appeal.
