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29 ottobre The ultimate two-for-one deal  Photos: RM Auctions Dan Trent writes: "A race car for the road" is a much-used hack's cliche but in the case of the 631hp Mercedes CLK-GTR it is, for once, bang on the money. After all, the car was built to race in the FIA GT category in 1997, a class it then dominated for three years straight. It was only when someone piped up "erm, isn't it meant to be based on a road car?" that Mercedes coughed, said "oh, um, yes, sorry..." and hurriedly 'civilianised' the CLK-GTR for the street. Which is to say they put a normal interior in it and, well, that's about it really. They were supposed to make 25 of them and years after the car had been retired from racing they still hadn't sold them all. They added the 664hp 7.3-litre V12 from he Zonda to create the Supersports version. They even hacked the roof of five of them to make them into roadster versions. Maybe it was the €1m-plus price that put people off. Or maybe the fact that it had to be returned to AMG for a full strip down and service every few thousand km.  Anyway, they very rarely come up for sale. So to have two - one coupe and one roadster - at the same auction is a big deal. As is the fact you could have picked both of these cars up for the price of one if you'd been in Battersea last night at the RM Auctions sale. True, at £616,000 for the roadster and £522,500 for the coupe it's a bit pricier than the two for one deals on tins of beans at your local supermarket but it's not every day you get to pick up a half price super car. And with 35km and 25km (that's actual km, not abbreviated thousands!) on the clock respectively the 'as new' condition really is the truth. And no, though it looks similar, this isn't the same as the CLR that famously flipped at Le Mans in 1999. In case you were in any doubt about just how potent the 'roadgoing' CLK-GTR is just take a look at the following video. 243mph isn't too shady at all for a 10-year-old motor... Race car for the road? Sounds about right. Dan --- Links: RM Auctions Automobiles Of London sale --- Share It
Abarth's box of tricks Dan Trent writes: It's no secret my hot-hatch allegiances lie with Renault but that's not to say I'm entirely blinkered to the idea that there may be some other great Euro boom boxes out there. Indeed, the Fiat Grande Punto Abarth we've got in has been impressing me more and more each time I've driven it, the revvy, feisty turbocharged 1.4-litre engine being a particular highlight. With 155hp it feels pretty keen as it is. But I'm tickled by the fact that - so long as you do it within the first year of ownership - you can order in an Abarth hop-up kit to boost it to 180hp. There are two kits available, the Assetto Corse comprising new wheels, lowering springs, drilled brake discs and different brake pads and the EsseEsse. This adds some serious engine upgrades, including a different turbo, new exhaust manifold, fuel rail, ECU and more besides. The coolest thing? The traditional wooden crate in which it arrives at the Abarth dealer you task with the job of fitting it all. Like those Porsche pencils it's one of those things you'd just have to keep hold of and treasure, even if you didn't actually have any actual use for it. Dan --- Those Porsche pencils --- Share It
27 ottobre What’s going on here, then…cj hubbard writes:
Hmmm. That looks suspiciously like an early mk1 Mazda MX-5 on a garage lift. What could have possibly happened? Don’t tell me I’ve gone and bought one, just like I was threatening to back in August…
Er, yes. That’s right, folks. Much like Dan, who just couldn’t stop himself from buying a RenaultSport Clio, I’ve put my money where my typing fingers are and taken the plunge with an MX-5 dating all the way back to 1990. It’s a UK car, didn’t cost me very much, and although cosmetically a bit battered in places is actually very solid underneath as it turns out. Which, given the way these things are reputed to go through sills, is something of a relief.
It’s pictured here in the process of being given the once-over by Southampton MX-5/Eunos Roadster specialists Autolink, and is heading back there for a cambelt service next week. Since buying it about a month ago I’ve already driven it round the Lake District, nothing’s gone wrong and nothing’s fallen off. So far I couldn’t be happier. All that remains* is to get the SportKa shifted from the parking space outside our flat so I’ve got somewhere to keep the Mazda. The Ford isn’t going too far (well, emotionally speaking, if not geographically), however, as my mum has decided she’s keen on it. Thank heavens. This way I know it’s going to a good home. No doubt more on the Mazda very soon. cj *I say all; it needs a matching set of rear tyres, and that’s just for starters. Gladly my girlfriend also rather likes it, so the MX-5 is yet to be qualified as a Stupid Boy Project (thank you, Danny Wallace) or anything of that description… I wonder for how long. --- Links: Mazda MX-5 mk1: Oh no. This is going to be expensive. Tyre barrier desk ornament ‘a step too far’ --- Technorati Tags: Mazda, MX-5, mk1, 1990, Autolink, garage, cambelt, stupid boy project, Long Termers, MSN Cars --- Share It:
The lifts of doomcj hubbard writes: The Hesperia Tower hotel in Barcelona is a very grand affair – but also rather odd. It’s one of those designer places where a) the architect apparently couldn’t quite make his mind up on the style so used several of them at once, and b) is so full of dark and glossy surfaces it surely can’t be uncommon for uninitiated punters to enter a room and either walk immediately into a mirror finished wall or not be able to find their way out again. It’s also slightly disquieting for being located adjacent to some of the Barcelona badlands – a position chosen for its convenience to the airport – and given this somewhat creates the impression of having been dropped at random from a great height. An appearance enhanced no doubt by the domed restaurant on the roof looking akin to a bulbous glass sided ufo. I loved the place; others were less keen. We were staying at there ahead of driving the new SEAT Leon Cupra R – 265hp of front wheel drive hot hatch, full first drive on the main MSN Cars site shortly. The main point of chagrin? The elevators.
Being a whacking big tower obviously it needs lifts – four of them, in fact. Making the point even more obviously, the only stairs we could find were on the outside of the building. Anyways, instead of the usual buttons, there’s a control panel, accessed by swiping your room keycard. This then tells you what lift you need to wait for. It’s no good getting in a different one, even if it should arrive earlier, because it won’t be stopping at your floor. Fine. Weird. But fine. Except in the morning, when everyone is trying to get to breakfast. And it turns out the staff have got over-ride keys. So you find yourself waiting 20 minutes for your assigned lift, only to then discover it’s been hijacked by someone else and you need to start the control-panel-card-request process all over again. Finally, just when you begin to think it can’t get any worse, this happens:
So, just to recap. You’re on the thirteenth floor of a towerblock hotel. There are no stairs. And the elevators apparently aren’t available. Exactly how are you supposed to get down? Genius. But if nothing else, certainly a talking point. --- Links: SEAT unveils 265hp Leon Cupra R Renaultsport Megane 250 first drive – the uncut version The smallest of dramas on the Citroen C3 launch Secrets of the Wolfsburg Ritz-Carlton --- Technorati Tags: SEAT, Leon, Cupra R, Hesperia Tower, hotel, Barcelona, lift, elevator, stuck, stairs --- Share It:
26 ottobre Citroen wins fifth WRC title ... for what? Dan Trent writes: The only thing more astounding than Sebastian Loeb’s sixth consecutive WRC title – and Citroen’s fifth manufacturer crown – is the firm’s complete lack of interest in cashing in on this incredible record with a range of suitably spicey hot hatches. Oh, hang on, they do make a ‘By Loeb’ special edition C4. With a 1.6-litre engine boasting – hold onto your socks – 150hp in its most potent form.  Sorry Citroen, not good enough, especially considering Mini has got well over 200hp out of a version of the same engine. Loeb’s name should be on a car trading blows with the Renaultsport Megane 250 and Focus RS, not peddling some bog standard C4 with little more than a set of white rims and a spoiler tacked on.  OK, rallying doesn’t have the profile it once did. But just look back over the years and see what success in the sport has done for the reputations of Ford, Subaru, Mitsubishi and others. Hell, even Skoda at the pits of its laughing stock status a few years back managed to convince people its cars weren’t totally hopeless by winning a few rallies. It’s a perfect opportunity too – unlike F1 you’re not spending millions on a car that has nothing whatsoever to do with the products you actually sell (yes Toyota, I’m looking at you…). You’re out there winning races – championships – in a car that looks to all intents and purposes the same as the ones in your showroom. You’ve got a rock-solid relationship with the most successful driver in the sport. So if brand image is all about credibility and success it seems Citroen is missing a golden opportunity to cash in.  Somebody please translate 'race on Sunday, sell on Monday' into French and ask Loeb to write it in tyre rubber on the tarmac outside Citroen’s HQ… Dan --- Links: Renaultsport Megane 250 - the geek's review First drive: Ford Focus RS --- Share It
The Vengaboys are in town
Dan Trent writes: No, not those Vengaboys. Though who could forget such hits as Boom, Boom, Boom, Boom! and We’re Going To Ibiza? Oh, you had…
No, the Venga boys in question here are the test team for the Kia Venga, who unlike seemingly every other manufacturer have eschewed the delights of the Nurburgring for … Hemel Hempstead. How do I know this? I spotted one whilst out shopping at the weekend. Fair play, they’d gone to some effort with the disguises front and back, tailored cover over the interior and even taped over window glass badges. And then parked it in a crowded shopping centre car park. Doh!
This slip up aside Hertfordshire’s crumbling roads and the notorious ‘magic roundabout’ in Hemel town centre will, respectively, evaluate suspension settings and test driver bottle as much as anything at the Nurburgring and, let’s face it, probably have more real-world relevance too. What next? Mercedes testing the new SLS’s ability to deal with speed bumps and traffic jams around St Albans? Porsche and Nissan duking it out for lap records around Harpenden common?
Given that official press pics of the Venga have already been released you’ve got to wonder why they went to the effort of putting the disguise on too – this made it stand out more than if they’d done without. Dan --- Links: 23 ottobre Renaultsport Megane 250 first drive – the uncut version
Dan Trent writes: Say what you like about some of the new Renaultsport Megane’s more questionable styling features (I’m looking at YOU, cheesy fake exhaust and chavtastic optional 19-inch wheels) when it comes to understanding its fanbase Renault really has got it dialled. Which is why the Megane 250 comes packed with the kind of details only
Things like the Renaultsport Monitor telemetry system. The independent steering axis front suspension struts. The limited-slip differential. The fact you can get it with a Cup chassis option with spring and damper settings more than a third (a third!) stiffer than the standard Sport set up. Still reading? Welcome to my world.
After all, film makers get to do their own self indulgent ‘director’s cut’ versions of their films so I think it’s only right I get to geek out on some of the Megane’s more nerdy details. Like the fact adding more aluminium parts to the PerfoHub suspension system saves 2kg of unsprung weight. And that the hub level offset is reduced from 56mm on the standard Megane to 40mm. And furthermore achieves this with the huge four-pot Brembo brakes – if these were fitted to a conventional front strut set up the offset would be a whopping 75mm, increasing torque steer. It gets even more geeky. No, really. The Renaultsport Monitor – a £300 option – is really cool, at least for a generation of drivers raised on games console driving. For instance you can vary the throttle mapping between ‘Snow’ and ‘Extreme’ (via ‘Progressive’, ‘Linear’ and ‘Sport’) to vary the response from chauffeur smooth to neck-jarringly snappy. Handy if you’re letting your mate/other half/airport valet driver out in your Megane and don’t want them getting too excitable in your pride and joy. And much like the Nissan GT-R (and Skylines of old) you get all sorts of
This snippet according to Renaultsport development head Steve Marvin, who much to his credit, doesn’t suffer the press conference fools gladly. So having seen his refreshingly no-nonsense approach to some of my journalistic colleagues’ more inane questions I was a little concerned when he approached me at the track yesterday and asked “so, what do you think then?” Gulp. “Well, it feels like there’s a lot of Clio 200 in there in terms of the character and the way it handles,” I offered, taking a deep breath and eyeing the exit. “You’ve hit the nail on the head there,” he replied, going on to explain how, like the Clio, this was more a bespoke Renaultsport product than simple hop-up of a ‘civilian’ family hatch. Phew, glad I got that one right. Oh, and as you’ll have sussed from the pics, it drives brilliantly, not that I can take the credit for this particular piece of tyre-smokin’ action. Dan --- Links: Renault PerfoHub vs Ford RevoKnuckle --- Share It
22 ottobre Rain stops play … again Dan Trent writes: Once again it seems the rain in Spain falls mainly on Ascari circuit. I was here in February for the Audi R8 launch when a set of arm bands and a paddle would have been more use than fancy driving shoes and a Nomex suit. So hearing the launch for the Renaultsport Megane would also include a visit to this millionaires’ playground I was looking forward to another go. But as you can see, once again Ascari resembles less a racing track and more a white water rapids course. Rafting anyone? Because we’re sure as hell not going to be driving the Meganes any time soon.
Still, at least I got a run in before the heavens really opened. Something to be said for an early start and shamelessly barging my way to the front of the queue for the track. Despite my best efforts I didn’t quite manage to be the first here though, being overtaken in the fog on the way by some of the Renault event staff in a diesel Clio, much to the amusement of my journalistic colleagues. My fragile ego recovered slightly when I found out who was driving - namely two-times French rally champion Emmanuel Guigo, also on his way to the circuit for some demo laps in the Megane. Dan --- Links: Audi's incredible amphibious R8 --- Share It
21 ottobre Honda signs up the EuroRichard Aucock writes: There is a new car over here in Tokyo that Japanese show-goers are flocking to in droves. The Honda Civic Type-R.
What's that, I say - all new? Am I mad? For isn't it the same Civic Type-R that's been on sale in the UK for years now?
It is indeed. When I say new, I mean new for the Japanese market. Yes, Honda's shipping them over here, at last: the Civic (and the Type-R) being, of course, built in Honda's fine factory at Swindon. To celebrate this, the firm not only stuck it on a monochrome version of the set of Saturday Night Fever, but also stuck on a badge:
I predict a UK onslaught of aftermarket firms offering such in-the-know styling upgrades to keen Brit owners sharpest. --- Share It
Whoops, Subru...Richard Aucock writes: ... Or should that be Subaru?
As if I'm in any place to talk, mind, following last night's language-blind supper disaster... --- Share It
Tokyo food challengeRichard Aucock writes: In my room and starving last night, I failed to decipher the room service menu, so thought I'd brave it on the streets of Tokyo. After panicking for a bit following a withdrawal of 1000 Yen (actually, less than a tenner), I hit the stores. 20 minutes later, I was back in my room. With, pretty much the only things in the entire shop whose contents I could work out.
Yep, good old brand names. Cereal bites and coffee it was, then. Along with, err, a bar of orange-flavoured Tofu-type stuff, and what seemed to be a sort of mad Milky Bar with rice pops. Not quite the muesli bar I had in mind: couldn't find any more brand names, you see. It quickly brought home how alien we Brits are over here. Everything is written, quite rightly, in Japanese. Whose symbols we don't stand a chance of deciphering. At least with French and German, you can kinda guess. Not here. That's also why I got lost. And, well, why I didn't order room service in the first place.
Paying for it was straightforward, at least. I gave the nice lady a seemingly-huge denomination, and she gave me back some coins, including what looks like a tap washer. If I'm brave enough, I might try spending it tomorrow...
--- Technorati Tags: Tokyo 2009,motor show Share It
Man on the tellyTom Evans in Tokyo writes: The Lexus LF-A is an impressive-looking piece of kit, and now here at last in production guise, after many years of concept appearance. I had long assumed it was going to be pitched into 911 country, but Lexus have other ideas and the new car will be around £300,000. This sounds… courageous, as Sir Humphrey might have said. Lexi are more usually associated with making comfortable and reliable saloons and SUVs for America’s suburbia; can the Lexu badge really cut it in the hypercar arena? We shall see. It does look awesome:
and the triple-pipes are quite fun:
Along with the Leaf – the electric car for Joe Sixpack – the car is the star of the show and it proved a total nightmare to get anywhere near the car after it was first unveiled such was the throng of hacks, video folk and snappers. I managed to get some shots when it was quieter later on however, and after I had done so a nice young Japanese man approached me to interview me for a Japanese TV channel, a moment witnessed by Kyle:
He wanted to know what I thought about the fact that so many European car firms hadn’t turned up this time around, and what the future of the show was. I replied that the economy has forced many harsh decisions on car makers recently, and that at least Tokyo is having a show, unlike the next London show in 2010 which has been cancelled… Japan remains one of the world’s biggest car markets, and I said I was sure the big Europeans would be back in 2011 when presumably the economy will be better. After our chat ended he said he lived in London for a while as a reporter, which he enjoyed. I observed that the UK and Japan were similar in being small islands with big populations; not an ideal prescription for happy driving… The night before the show Sampled the fabled Tokyo metro last night with my old friend Greg (below left), who lives out here with his delightful Japanese wife Hitomi and young son Ricky, and Olly (below right), a Dubai-based video-man come businessman come reporter who is out here with the middle east journo contingent. None of the famous people who help to push commuters onto packed trains, as it was well after rush hour. The metro is quite astonishingly clean:
And there is no litter, anywhere. The Japanese strike me as a highly polite and assiduous people who have far too much self-respect to go around dropping litter all over the place. Having said that, they are not all saints; the metro also has signs stating in moral tones that sexual harrassment and so on on the train can leave mental scars on the victims. Indeed, this is such a problem that at rush hour there are female-only carriages. We head off to Tokyo’s ‘East end’ to a restaurant in the sumo district:
En route, I see that even Tokyo has its own version of £1 stores:
Greg tells me that they are very popular in Japan, which has been in a state of virtual recession for nearly 20 years… After we arrive at the restaurant we discover we need to book many of the dishes a day in advance, which is tiresome. Luckily Greg can speak the utterly impenetrable Japanese language and was able to navigate a solution:
A fun night had by all:
Tom Tokyo Motor Show: Live from the floorTom Evans writes: Up bright and early, the idea is to leave before the traffic gets too nasty. Which is fine and dandy, but means we get to the show over an hour before it starts…
Into the hall, and it’s clear that the mood is somewhat subdued:
All of the major European car companies failed to show up at all, in marked contrast to previous years (the show is held every two years). Ironically, two Europeans here include Lotus, and bizarrely, Caterham. The latter is bringing the R300 superfast Seven to Japan; Caterhams are something of a cult car over here it seems:
The Nissan press conference was the usual bunfight as Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn unveiled the new Leaf electric car: Mr Ghosn arrived on stage at the wheel of the Land Glider concept car, a sort of tandem motorbike-cum-car. I thought for a brief moment he couldn’t get out of the thing, which might have been amusing to say the least. He is the closest thing the industry has to a rock star, and has hero status in Japan for saving Nissan from seemingly certain oblivion ten years ago. A highlight for me was Dave our group’s snapper barking instructions at Ghosn-san to move to various positions in front of the car so he could get his shots. All of the major Japanese car makers did turn up though, and nearly all of them have interesting cars to unveil. You don’t see Harley-Davidson at a motor show every day of the week:
I want one of these.com:
Stories, features and of course galleries to come. 20 ottobre Ask me no questions…Tom Evans in Tokyo writes: Most motor press conferences end with a Q&A session. The questions from the journalists can be grouped as good, bad, and totally inane. And the press conferences here are no exception. Last night, we heard from Carlos Ghosn, the boss of the Renault/Nissan alliance. After his speech, he was asked questions such as “why are your cars in such and such a market" so expensive” (answer: it’s the market, and if we weren’t competitive we wouldn’t sell any at all), “what do you think about the collapse of the Penske deal to buy Saturn” (answer: ask Penske (I almost detected a slight sigh, as if “I have enough problems to deal with without worrying about other people’s companies…”), and how long he was intending staying in the job "(answer: ask my shareholders). Today we were at a sneak preview unveil of the new V-platform car, which will come to the UK next year in the guise of the replacement for the Micra and – presumably – the Clio after that. Photos were strictly banned and it wouldn’t be fair to Nissan to go into much detail so far ahead of their formal unveil, but the car is smaller than I thought and more of an evolution than revolution design-wise. But the Q&A fun continued: “How much will the car cost?” (answer: we don’t know yet and even if we did we wouldn’t tell you, but, durgh, maybe it will be priced close to the competition…), “how big are the wheels?” (answer: [man points at wheels]), etc. The car will be built in most of Nissan’s main markets but notably not Japan, presumably because it is not economic to make such a low-margin model. It is 50kg lighter than the old one, and the primary engine will be a new 3-cylinder petrol engine, available with manual, auto and CVT ‘boxes. Perhaps its niftiest feature are the double-U markings on the roof, but these serve mainly to underline the conservatism of the overall design. Nissan went into great detail about the new production technology behind the car, and especially the fact that local factories in India, China and so on that will build the car will get 80% of their parts from local suppliers, which will simplify logistics and reduce exchange-rate risks. Nissan hope to sell 1m cars a year based on this platform in hatch, saloon and mini MPV variants. No 4-wheel-drive versions, and Nissan left the door open as to hybrid and stop-start technologies. Motor show kicks off tomorrow – can’t wait to check out those crazy concepts for which the show is infamous! Tom Sat nav, Caterham style
Dan Trent writes: The Caterham R300 I’ve been driving round in is, let’s be frank, rubbish on the motorway. So for the drive back from North Wales I decided I’d take the long way home and keep it on the A- and B-roads all the way back to Hertfordshire. But this was going to require some serious navigation.
I didn’t have a TomTom and, even if I had, the first decent bit of speed would have seen it blown off the windscreen by the slipstream and it’s not like I’d have been able to hear the instructions either. Besides, a super light car should have a super light sat nav system, my high tech and suitably minimalist solution pictured below.
Worked like a treat too. And the drive was simply epic. OK, it took the best part of seven hours but the roads were fabulous, empty of traffic and bathed in gorgeous autumnal light with golden leaves fluttering like confetti in my wake. If you fancy having a go yourself the full route is below! Caterham will even rent you a car if you get in there quick - the hire season runs until the end of the month.
Looks quite involved, right? Well yes, but the very action of writing it out meant I was able to memorise most of it and I only had to check the atlas a couple of times along the way. Who needs sat nav? Dan --- Links: Superlight versus … super slow Hire a Caterham--- Share It
Nissan LEAF logisticsRichard Aucock writes: Driving the Nissan LEAF was an impressive experience, as Tom's already mentioned. Equally impressive, however, were the logistics behind it. There were loads of people, one car, and a strict timetable. Only one thing for it:
This made perfect sense to the Japanese organisers. Luckily. For the rest of us, it was incomprehensible. They knew this, so helped us out with lanyards:
Even these didn't really help, though. They knew this too. So had also set up a classroom session for us.
Eventually, at 11:28:45, my number was up. I was going to drive the LEAF test showcase. The grin here was in expectation: pretty soon, you'll be able to read what I actually made of driving the development mule.
It was easy to get going, though. None of the faffing of some other prototypes - indeed, this control interface is very similar to the one that will make production.
I loved the dials, too. Particularly the battery meter on the left, which you really could see going up when you used the regenerative brakes.
Know what's REALLY impressive, though? Nissan has developed a suite of battery monitoring apps for smartphones - and later demonstrated these to us.
One click on your smartphone will take you to a control panel, allowing you to remotely see what the car's up to, how much charge is left, whether it's finished charging - indeed, even turn the air con on and off. Why on earth would you do this? To get it cool, of course, while it's still connected to the grid. Thus using less juice from the batteries...
All this can be done on timers, so you can set it to chill or heat 10mins before you leave. You can even set the battery to only draw charge during 'cheap rate' electricity hours. Very, very clever indeed.
Chuck in probable integration with navigation systems, to see if there's enough power in the car to get you where you want to go before you set off, and Nissan could have yet more weight behind its claim that the LEAF really will be the first mass-production electric car... --- Share It
At Nissan’s R&D HQTom Evans writes: It is boiling hot in Japan. I presumed that Japan had broadly the same climate as the UK, but I gather Britland is freezing right now, so some disconnect clearly. Up early to travel to Nissan’s R&D centre about 90 minutes south-west of Tokyo. This has a factory next door, which will make the Leaf electric car which is a key item on this trip's to-do list. Japan remains fascinating: the same, but very much different. Life through a lens, with Alistair Weaver and Kyle Fortune:
Arriving at the centre, and it’s straight into a demo of Nissan’s new “Forest air” air conditioning system. It is based on the premise that human beings are most relaxed in forest environments, due to humankind having lived there for most of its existence prior to the evolution of civilisation. The assembled hacks battle to identify with their pre-evolved selves, which rapidly leads to discussion about re-incarnation, and the fact that people always believe themselves to have been Napoleon in their former life, rather than a cobbler in Droitwich:
Thence off into an Infiniti to try out its new 4-wheel active steer system, which uses active braking on individual wheels to aid steering through sharp corners. We sampled it off and on, and it did make a real difference on the tight high-speed coned-off course:
Linda and Gabi from Nissan with colleague. Gabi, I hope this photo is more to your liking!
And thence to the Leaf. It looks like a humble family car, which of course is the idea. Within 18 months, you will be able to buy one of these. With a range of around 150km, it should be enough for 90% of UK journeys made on an average day. It needs infrastructure, hence Nissan is negotiating with governments all over the place to install recharging points. A full overnight charge at 200v, takes 8 hours, but perhaps of greater interest is the high-speed recharge which gives the car 80% of its range after just 30 minutes, so expect to see plenty of these spring up all over the place:
The assembled hacks all queue up to be snapped in various comedy poses:
Including me:
So, what’s the car like? Well, we will publish Richard’s First drive review shortly, but my reaction was that it is fast, stable, smooth, and utterly relaxing to drive as it wafts along in serene silence. I can definitely see it catching up, especially given that running costs will be a fraction of those of ‘normal’ cars. Is it just me or does the headlight of this Nissan MPV resemble a cylon’s helmet?
We spend the afternoon at a museum which is hosting an exhibition of Nissan through the ages. I love this Silvia, whose European design influences are obvious. from the back it could be an Alfa, complete with dinky twin-exhausts:
This concept was a star of the 2007 show, a reminder of the mad concept cars that await us when the Tokyo Motor show kicks off tomorrow:
On the way back we catch a glimpse of the mighty Mount Fuji, which you can see if you stare closely at the centre of this photo:
And then an evening with Nissan/Renault boss Carlos Ghosn at Tokyo’s foreign press club, who spoke eloquently on why electric is the future. Speaking for half-an-hour without notes, he remains one of the most persuasive motor executives, with a clear vision of where he wants to go. Richard has a full write-up here. I was most intrigued by his bodyguard, who was one of the biggest people I’ve ever seen… Today’s menu include a presentation on Nissan’s new “V-platform” car, and then some time off this afternoon. Tom Nissan gets a second lifeRichard Aucock writes: Nissan has just announced the 'last piece of the puzzle'. It has launched a joint business with Sumitomo Corp, to recycle electric car batteries. This 'second life business' will lead to a 'net reduction of CO2'. Answering another big gripe of EV doomsayers - what to do with the batteries when the car's done with.
Even at the end of their life, said Nissan COO Toshiyuki Shiga, EV car batteries retain around 70-80% of their charge. There's plenty of life left in them. So Nissan, with its new partner, is developing a business to capitalise on this second life potential. The business has '4R' as its strapline: Reuse, Resell, Refabricate and Recycle. What's it all about? Well, there are all sorts of things you can do with a car's lithium ion batteries, said Shiga-San. Use them for residential energy storage, for example. In fork lift trucks. As load levelling for the electricity grid. Even to store solar energy harvested in the day, for recharging your new EV battery set at night. The partnership with Sumitomo gives the firm a world-first business model to achieve this.
This extends the life of lithium ion batteries by 10, even 20 years, says Nissan. It will also help boost the RVs of electric car batteries - 'the most important component' - meaning list prices will get cheaper, and running them more affordable. The two companies are now to work out just how to put this into practice, but say it will be running soon: Renault and Nissan will adapt the lessons learnt in Japan for European markets. The electric car just keeps on getting more and more viable. Solutions like this are little short of genius, and make immense sense. Nissan's not only given the batteries a second life, maybe it's given the car one, too. --- Share It
19 ottobre Nissan's Carlos Ghosn on the significance of EVsRichard Aucock writes: Editor Tom and I have just been to a very strange dinner at the Foreign Correspondents Club of Japan. Unusual in too many ways to describe here – but there was a highlight. President and CEO of Nissan, Carlos Ghosn, was speaking, on why the firm’s €4bn investment in electric vehicles - EVs - ‘is not a bet.’ Simple, he said. Today, the world’s transportation needs are reliant on one commodity – oil. How to get more transport based on more than one commodity? Yes, move to electric.
Electricity can be produced by coal. By wood. By nuclear. By solar. And so on… this is what has got Governments interested. So interested, they’re willing to stump up cash to ‘jump start’ an electric car future. ‘The day you have minimum mass production, EVs will start to be competitive on price.’ That point will take 3-4 years to arrive at, he said. Until then, EVs need support. Financial incentives should be there, simply to give the movement traction. Incentives ‘will fade away’ as higher volumes cut prices. Ghosn faces no shortage of critics. Some people are already writing EVs off. Tonight, he faced them down. For example, he's heard it said that the firm's aim of 10% of the market by 2020 is mad. ‘But already, 9% of consumers in Japan said their first choice of car would be an EV – when practically no EVs are available! We want 10 percent, in another decade’s time… why, even 8% of US buyers would buy an EV, right now!’
Those who moan there’s no electric infrastructure in place are also wrong, he said. ‘Electricity is actually the most commonly available commodity today…’ Nearly everyone, after all, has a plug socket. Even those public charging poles on the road only cost $1,000 to fit – ‘and many electricity companies are keen to install these, as it’s a way to increase market share.’ Indeed, if it’s a retail or Government building, some countries are making it law that they must fit them, in order to meet buildings regulations. There are yet more doomsayers, moaning all it’s doing is relocating the CO2 source. Not so, said the President. ‘Even today, EVs are 40 percent better in terms of CO2 performance than the best hybrids.’ This will naturally only get better in time. ‘With nuclear or solar production, your well-to-wheel CO2 is virtually zero.’ The ZIV: Zero Impact Car.
Basically, they've got it wrong. Meaning the public is under the misconception that the car industry is not doing enough to reduce CO2, said Ghosn. Indeed, most people reckon 50% of the world’s CO2 is caused by cars. ‘Actually, it’s 12-14%… but the impression is that we’re not doing enough. People expect more outgoing messages.’ That’s what, with electric cars, the Renault-Nissan Alliance is doing. Renault and Nissan are different because they ‘intend to be a big player in the battery industry’. They’re not buying batteries… they’re building their own – which is the ‘only way for car makers to be sustainable in EVs. The most important piece is the battery.’ Such is the scale of investment Ghosn has committed, he admits it’s only possible through the alliance of the companies. Alone, they would be too small to dedicate such levels of cash. (He also didn't rule out, in time, selling the batteries to other makers, too...)
Mind you, any debates over whether CO2 is real or not don’t actually matter in all this – it’s the public perception that counts. A telling insight. ‘The public expects a solution… frankly, ‘is it global warming?’ is a second debate.’ It’s not going to be easy. ‘We will be contradicted: it’s normal, I expect it. But one thing is for sure: the enthusiasm, contradiction and debate over EVs is here to stay.’ Which is why tomorrow, we're going to hear more about how they'll be underlining that future... --- Share It
18 ottobre The rising sunTom Evans writes: Sleep highly successful – amazingly comfortable beds here. Great full english. Phones still a no-go. 6am rising sun:
Now off to drive electric cars Well done Jenson! Tom |
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