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Posted on May 3rd, 2012 by admin
Shank releases Jay Howard from Indy 500 contract
News from The Seattle Times:
Michael Shank Racing on Wednesday released driver Jay Howard from his Indianapolis 500 contract because the team does not have an engine.
“We are working every possible opportunity to make this happen and continue to hold our entry for the Indianapolis 500,” Shank said. “But at this point, we’ve not made the progress that we need to in terms of having our package finalized and having an agreement with a motor manufacturer.
“I know firsthand how hard it is to have the opportunity to race in the Indianapolis 500, and the last thing in the world I want to do is to hold Jay back from getting the chance to do that.”
Shank announced he had filed an entry for Howard, a former Indy Lights champion, last week. He said he had a sponsor, but no engine.
This week, he said he was on a time crunch to secure an engine lease from either Chevrolet or Honda, and if he didn’t reach an agreement soon, he couldn’t move forward with any reasonable expectation of putting forth a quality effort.
His withdrawal puts the Indy 500 in danger – at the moment – of not h…………… continues on The Seattle Times
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First Drive: Audi S7 & S6
News from Automobile Magazine:
Our 2012 Automobile of the Year — the swift, elegant, and luxurious Audi A7 — has the perfect engine for the times. The supercharged V-6 gracefully merges performance and efficiency, with its 5.0-second 0-60 mph time and 28-mpg highway fuel economy. Yet a luxury sedan of this caliber also makes a natural host for a V-8, a fact that we acknowledged in our story when we wrote, “A dealer friend of ours tells us that some customers are skeptical of the A7 because it doesn’t have a V-8. They shouldn’t be. The muscular six makes this sleek Audi as fast as it appears.”
Maybe you want an A7 that’s faster than it looks. For you, Audi has transformed the A7 into the quicker, sportier 2013 Audi S7 with an eight-cylinder engine, a new transmission, and an air suspension. Building on the rock-solid foundation of the A7, the S7 is even more rewarding to drive hard thanks to quicker acceleration, sharper shifts, and flatter handling.
We drove the new S7 in Munich, Germany, back-to-back with the 2013 Audi S6. Mechanically, the two cars are identical, but the S6 replaces the…………… continues on Automobile Magazine
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Posted on March 31st, 2012 by admin
From production to product, Rosslyn plant thinks green
News from Creamer Media’s Engineering News:
BMW South Africa’s (BMW SA’s) plant in Rosslyn has, since 2007, cut electricity consumption per 3 Series produced by 25%, waste by 50%, carbon emissions by 25% and water use by 50%, culminating in savings of R48.5-million.
This year, the plant has started production of the F30, or new 3 Series, with Rosslyn responsible for 25% of all 3 Series production in the world, says BMW SA technical and logistics director Johannes Gingelseder.
Around 80% of BMW SA’s production of more than 50 000 units was exported last year, with one in every second car assembled outside Pretoria going to the US.
Yearly production of the new 3 Series is scheduled to exceed 90 000 units.
It is not only the BMW plant that has seen substantial savings in its environmental footprint – the same is true for the 3 Series.
While emissions and fuel consumption have dropped on the newly launched model range, power and performance remain as before, or even better, indicating that no one can yet perform the funeral rites on the internal combus…………… continues on Creamer Media’s Engineering News
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SAIL Chairman inaugurates emission free Coke Oven Batteries at Bokaro Steel Plant
News from India Education Diary:
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Students discuss “Heroes, Resisters and Survivors” of the Slave Trade via video
Saturday, March 31, 2012
How can the history of the transatlantic slave trade be linked to the places where people live today? What is the best way to share local stories about heroes, resisters and survivors? How to raise awareness of the widespread resistance to slavery? What are the links between the legacy of slavery and racism?
To discuss these issues and identify actions that can be taken, UNESCO Associated Schools from Ghana, the Gambia and the United States along with schools in Bermuda and the Dominican Republic are taking part in a videoconferen…………… continues on India Education Diary |
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Posted on March 27th, 2012 by admin
Danica Patrick done in by engine woes from debris in latest Nationwide …
News from Washington Post:
FONTANA, Calif. — Danica Patrick got nothing to celebrate on the eve of her 30th birthday.
Patrick dropped out with engine failure near the midway point of the Nationwide race at Auto Club Speedway on Saturday, finishing 35th in another disappointing result during her first full season in the series.
Patrick’s car picked up debris in the front grill at some point early in the race, apparently puncturing her radiator. The JR Motorsports Chevrolet eventually seized, and Patrick was left disappointed.
“That’s just what happened,” Patrick said in the garage. “It’s not a Chevy issue. It’s not a team issue. It’s just a bad luck issue, and unfortunately, I feel like we’ve been catching a fair amount of it at the beginning of the season.”
Patrick hasn’t finished higher than 12th in five Nationwide races this season, taking a step back from her promising results last season when she ran a part-time NASCAR schedule and a full IndyCar slate.
She crashed in the Nationwide race in Daytona after winning the pole before getting caught up in a…………… continues on Washington Post
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Dodge enters rally car racing with Dart
News from Detroit Free Press:
Dodge and SRT Motorsports is getting into rally car racing with its new Dodge Dart and a one of the sport’s biggest stars: Travis Pastrana.
The 2013 Dodge Dart will participate in the 2012 Global RallyCross Championship Series with Pastrana — a four-time Rally America Champion and 17-time X Games Gold Medalist — behind the wheel.
The new Dodge Dart Rally Car will make its official public debut at the New York International Auto Show next month.
The car will be powered by a 2.0-liter, 4-cylinder, 16-valve turbo-charged engine with 600-plus horsepower engine with 550 pound feet of torque.
“At Dodge, racing is an integral part of our heritage and embodies our competitive spirit,” Reid Bigland, president and CEO of the Dodge brand said in a statement.
Pastrana, 28, is a stunt performer and a proven winner in freestyle motocross and rally car racing and has competed in NASCAR.
“To be able to partner with Dodge to field my own program this year is a dream come true,” Pastrana said in a statement. “The new Dodge Dart offers the perfect plat…………… continues on Detroit Free Press
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Posted on March 12th, 2012 by admin
Energy grants boost research, from new fuels to batteries
News from USA TODAY:
Tobacco as a source of fuel? Batteries to power a car for 500 miles on a single charge? A wave disk engine — the size of a cooking pot — that boosts a vehicle’s fuel efficiency?
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By Paul J. Richards, AFP/Getty Images
Microsoft leader Bill Gates invested in a start-up company to create safer, smaller and more efficient nuclear power plants.
By Paul J. Richards, AFP/Getty Images
Microsoft leader Bill Gates invested in a start-up company to create safer, smaller and more efficient nuclear power plants.
These ideas are a few of the dozens being funded by the Obama administration as…………… continues on USA TODAY
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Chevy Volt wins ‘Car of the Year’ – days after company halts production
News from New York Daily News:
The Chevrolet Volt has won the prestigious top prize as European Car of the Year – but nobody is buying it. Battery-operated cars are electrifying environmentalists, progressives and award-givers. The only ones who aren’t juiced about them, it seems, are autobuyers. The ‘Best Car’ tag was awarded only days after General Motors said it has suspended production of its electric Chevy Volt for five weeks in order to match supply to weak demand. “We’re going to take five weeks of downtime at the plant as we are going to build to what the market demands,” said apokeswoman Michelle Bunker Malcho. “We had a great month in February (over 1,000 in sales) and are very pleased with what we see happening in the marketplace especially with Volt now being eligible for HOV lanes in California.” Despite the low volumes, the Volt has paid dividends in terms of helping the once-struggling automaker’s attract new customers and burnishing its green credentials. The Volt was the first plug-in to reach the U.S. market. Is the Volt headed for the scrap heap? No one is sa…………… continues on New York Daily News
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Posted on February 8th, 2012 by admin
Man Steals Car Engine From Auto Tech
News from Patch.com:
Suffolk Police are searching for a man who stole a car engine from an auto repair shop in Huntington.
According to police, a white male was observed on surveillance video Jan. 19 taking a Subaru car engine from Auto Tech, at 116 Spring Rd. in Huntington. The man loaded the engine into his vehicle, possibly a white Toyota Matrix with Hello Kitty seat covers, according to police, before fleeing the scene at about 10:30 p.m.
Anyone with information is asked to call 1-800-220-TIPS. All calls will be kept confidential, according to police.
…………… continues on Patch.com
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Elantra GT Makes North American Debut At Chicago Auto Show – Sacramento Bee
News from Elantra GT Makes North American Debut At Chicago Auto Show – Sacramento Bee:
CHICAGO, Feb. 8, 2012 – /PRNewswire/ — Hyundai Motor America today introduced the all-new 2013 Elantra GT in a North American debut at the Chicago Auto Show. Elantra GT brings five-door functionality and European driving dynamics to the expanding Elantra lineup and is slated to hit dealerships this summer. The lineup now includes Elantra Coupe – also making its world debut today - and the popular Elantra sedan, the 2012 North American Car of the Year. Elantra GT is based on the new-generation i30 model designed for the European market.
To view the multimedia assets associated with this release, please click: http://www.multivu.com/mnr/54626-hyundai-elantra-gt-north-american-debut-chicago-auto-show
(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120208/MM49520 )(Logo: Elantra GT Makes North American Debut At Chicago Auto Show – Sacramento Bee
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Posted on December 23rd, 2011 by admin
Car parts stolen from local vehicles, a month after Carmel thefts
News from Fox 59:
An Indianapolis man contacted FOX59 after he heard about a rash of tire and rim thefts in Indianapolis. He is also a victim who is out $ 500.
“First thing I saw was my car with no wheels and on cinder blocks,” said Mike Sholty, the victim of the thefts who is now driving a rental car.
Someone stole his tires and rim overnight right outside his Indianapolis apartment on the northwest side in a well lit area. A police report filed reveals the rain prevented an officer from dusting for fingerprints.
The Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department also revealed Sholty was not the only victim.
Enter to Win a $ 500 Gift Card from G. Thrapp Jewelers! Just “Like” the Fox59 Facebook page to enter!
“There was another car I could see on cinder blocks,” said Sholty as he recalled the mor…………… continues on Fox 59
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Monster Energy is the Latest Addition to Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam
News from Side x Side News:
by Jon Crowley on 22/12/11 at 7:49 pm
Aurora, Ill (December 22, 2011) – Feld Motor Sports® announced today the newest touring monster truck – Monster Energy – which will debut January 7th at Houston’s Reliant Stadium for the upcoming Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam® season.
With a rumbling that could only be created by a supercharged, methanol fed 540 cubic inch, 1500 horse power massive engine, the 10,000-pound beast of a monster truck that is Monster Energy has broken through its cage and been unleashed. Complete with a four link suspension and four feet of ground clearance, the ravenous mechanical beast that will crush anything getting in its way will be guided by driver Damon Bradshaw, a Monster Jam World Finals? champion and former championship-winning supercross racer. There are monster trucks and then there IS Monster Energy!
“Monster Energy has always had a passion f…………… continues on Side x Side News
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Posted on October 20th, 2011 by admin
p>By Doron Levin, contributor
FORTUNE — It sounds like a next-generation iPhone — voice recognition, multitouch, a slick interface. But it’s not. Instead, this is General Motor’s upcoming in-vehicle communication system, dubbed CUE for “Cadillac User Experience,” due next spring in the company’s flagship car, the Cadillac XTS. And it’s the American luxury manufacturer’s latest bid to make its mark in the hard-fought and lucrative full-size, high-end sedan market.
For years, auto companies have promised the technologies that have become commonplace in people’s smartphones would make their way into car dashboards. Until recently, the results have been mixed. Now, high-tech features are increasingly influencing shoppers to choose one model over another. And GM (GM) wants in.
The company is betting that it can make technology a key differentiator for the XTS, which is likely to compete with some of the most expensive vehicles from the likes of BMW, Toyota’s (TM) Lexus and Mercedes-Benz. “Cadillac wants to bring young buyers to its brand, buyers who already own iPads and know how to use high-tech gadgets,” notes Brandy Schaffels, senior editor for TrueCar, an automotive consumer website. “But Cadillac also doesn’t want to al …CNN
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Posted on October 1st, 2011 by admin
p>By Doron Levin, contributor
FORTUNE — General Motors Co. decision to back down from a change in the terms covering OnStar customers shows that the automotive giant — no less than Facebook — has readily learned the lessons of other firms’ mistakes when it comes to the touchiness of consumers when it comes to privacy concerns in cyberspace.
GM (GM) inadvertently stirred a hornets’ nest by amending a user agreement that would allow its OnStar telecommunications link, used in about six million vehicles, to gather data about those vehicles even after customers’ subscriptions expire. GM made the change in part to make it easier to renew contact with car owners who had allowed their subscriptions to lapse or had sold their vehicles.
The change was generally overlooked by consumers, who rarely read the fine print on such agreements. But at least one miffed OnStar subscriber did notice and blogged about his decision to end the service:
I canceled the OnStar subscription on my new GMC vehicle today after receiving an email from the company about their new terms and conditions. While most people, I imagine, would hit the delete button when receiving something as exciting as new terms and …CNN
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Posted on September 15th, 2011 by admin
p>The C-X16 concept could very well become a production model as a competitor to Porsche’s entry-level Cayman and Boxster sports cars. It’s a two-seater with a 375-horsepower 3.0-liter V6 engine and, in this concept version at least, a hybrid system that provides 94 horsepower more at the press of a button.
NEXT: Maserati Kubang
…CNN
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Posted on June 30th, 2011 by admin
ompact sport utilities, the pint-sized crossover SUVs known as “cute utes,” remain the hottest product segment in the car business, continuing an amazing ten-year run.
In 2002, customers bought 802,217 cute utes, representing a market share of just 4.8%, according to Edmunds.com, for an average price of $ 22,219. Over the next eight years, the number of individual models jumped to 19 from 11, and sales reached 1,139,971 in a much smaller overall market; share doubled to 9.8%. The hot upward trend continues in 2011. The market share for compact sport utilities is now 10.2%, and the average transaction price is $ 25,481.
The popularity of the utes stems from their smart packaging of popular SUV features, like command seating, all-wheel-drive, and lift gates, in a smaller size that is more economical.
The formula has proved scalable for a wide variety of customers. Prices start below $ 20,000 and go up from there. The BXW X3 sitting in my driveway has a 3.0 liter twin-turbo engine, and a full portfolio of advanced technical, safety, and luxury features, and it carries a sticker price of $ 52,025.
The compact SUV has come a long way from its humble beginning, as this historical gallery of nine of the most popular models shows, and continues to evolve.
By Alex Taylor III, senior-editor-at-large
NEXT: Suzuki Sidekick – 1988
…CNN
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