Lotus Esprit – possibly the fastest car from the UK

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News from Lotus: The small British company with a big heritage toots its horn once more, this time they claim their future Lotus Esprit may end up being the fastest car made in the UK.

Quite an impressive claim, and as we will find out in just a few, attached to quite some impressive numbers. Interestingly enough, it’s not the first big promise Lotus makes about their upcoming Esprit.

Lotus Esprit Concept

Earlier this month, Lotus’ CEO promised the Esprit would be even better than the 458 Italia and MP4-12C, at least in terms of handling and driving feel.

This time however, Lotus reminds us of how they want to stick to their old philosophy and make the next generation Esprit as light as possible. We’re not given any details on how far down the line they plan to take this lightness but I suppose that new standards are being set as we speak.

That is almost predictable, after all, we can’t ever remember a heavy Lotus having ever existed. What is really interesting is that Lotus promises to make this Esprit the fastest car made in the UK.

Lotus Esprit Concept

Light and aerodynamic is one thing, but this sort of target will require the usage of a lot of power.

Lotus is aware of this and not only do they plan to develop an in-house fire-breathing V8 engine, there’s even word of it being turbocharged to produce as much as 612 horsepower.

That sort of horsepower puts it on top of the two big rivals of the day, the Ferrari 458 Italia and the McLaren MP4-12C. Lotus is still ambitious with their claims.

Lotus Esprit Concept

Apparently, a possible top speed figure for the new Esprit is rumored to stand at 212 mph courtesy of that power figure and a 7 speed dual-clutch semi-automatic gearbox.

Again, that is faster than the Ferrari and McLaren and further still than the Noble M600. Unfortunately for the plucky Brit, us petrolheads have a sharp memory and we will remember that the McLaren F1 was quite a lot faster than that.

Moving past this little detail, I’m willing to give Lotus the benefit of the doubt. So far, they’ve been going through some considerable changes and as far as the next Lotus Esprit is concerned it sounds like an amazing car.

Lotus Esprit Concept

If the British company actually meets its own ambitions and succeeds in making something as great as they claim it’s going to be, the Lotus Esprit will be the supercar to have.

Lupica G. 01 Jul, 2011

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Source: http://www.automotorblog.com/lotus-esprit-possibly-the-fastest-car-from-the-uk/
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Bugatti launches “L’Or Blanc” Veyron Grand Sport Special

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The last Bugatti Veyron may have been produced but that doesn’t mean the whole factory came to a dead stop.

Even quite a reasonable distance away from the uber-car maker’s future model, in the form of the Galibier’s factory version, the Royale begins assembly, the Molsheim based company is very busy.

Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport L'Or Blanc

Working with the one of the two models currently in production, the Grand Sport, they created an “even more special” edition of it.

Imagine that you live in a plain where even the Bugatti Veyron needs something to make it special. You can either get the Grand Sport convertible or the record shattering Super Sport coupe.

Now imagine some more, imagine that even these two models need something to make them stand out.

Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport L'Or Blanc

I’m guessing not all of you believe such a place could exist but, as it turns out, it does. Not only that, Bugatti claim it is right here on Earth where they had to make a unique version of the Grand Sport convertible Veyron.

This incredibly mind numbing beast is the unique Bugatti Veyron “L’Or Blanc” Grand Sport Special. For those of as unaware of the weird naming as me, it turns out it stands for “white gold”.

Don’t get repulsed just yet, the chaps at Bugatti weren’t as foolish as to plate the exterior of their incredible car with such a vulgar material. In actuality, the very special shade and color of the exterior and interior of the Veyron “L’Or Blanc” is obtained courtesy of porcelain.

Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport L'Or Blanc

After all, ceramics are used in car construction materials for some time now, why not explore some of its relatives?

Truth be told, it is very doubtful that a ceramics car is right around the corner or anything. On the even more important side of the story however Bugatti did this as a show stopper and I have to concede here; nobody could walk past it without turning their head or stopping.

Seing a Bugatti Veyron “L’Or Blanc” Grand Sport Special is something you jolt down in your petrolhead diary as a great day. The almost psychedelic design totally describes the technological and presence clout of a Veyron.

Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport L'Or Blanc

Dreaming over however, the harshness of reality strikes us when we read of the asking price this special edition demands. No amount of sugar can make it sound better, it is 2.4 million dollars, roughly the price of a Veyron SS.

Lupica G. 01 Jul, 2011

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Source: http://www.automotorblog.com/bugatti-launches-lor-blanc-veyron-grand-sport-special/
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Rolls-Royce 102EX successfully passed the tests for the upcoming World Tour

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The first electric model of the British luxury brand is being tested at the MIRA1 research facility in Warwickshire in order to assure that the Phantom Experimental Electric prototype its able to withstand the high temperatures of different regions as the British model will go in a World Tour, countries such as Dubai being possible threads due to extreme conditions such as high temperatures and humidity levels.

Rolls-Royce 102EX

The Rolls-Royce 102EX concept revealed by the British company at the Geneva Motor Show packs two electric motors able to deliver a total amount of 394 horsepower and 800 Nm of torque. The top speed is limited at 160 km/h while the acceleration from 0 to 100 km/h is possible in less than 8 seconds.

The British electric model is equipped with a 71 kWh lithium-ion battery able to store enough power for around 200 kilometers. According to Rolls-Royce CEO Torsten Mueller-Oetvoes, the estimated driving range of the electric model would not be enough for the needs of the customers. Therefore, a hybrid variant of the Rolls-Royce Phantom is more likely to be seen on the road as the electric model is not going to enter the production. The negative feedback received from the customers is also an important fact, the British company taking some risks by going electric with their supercars in the range.

Rolls-Royce 102EX

“The tests have furnished us with important data about the effects of heat and humidity on 102EX’s battery and management systems. For example we are clear that the battery management system, which maintains safety and optimal operation of individual cells, will inhibit charging at extreme temperatures. Practically speaking, this may mean finding locations in which the car’s cells can cool after test drives before a re-charge can begin,” said Andrew Martin, 102EX chief engineer.

Rolls-Royce 102EX

The World Tour of the Rolls-Royce 102EX began in May at Goodwood while late July and early August, the British model will arrive in Singapore and Beijing. Until the end of this year, the electric supercar will arrive in North America, Europe, Dubai, New York, Las Vegas, Florida, Miami and Los Angeles Motor Show.

Rikk 01 Jul, 2011

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Source: http://www.automotorblog.com/rolls-royce-102ex-successfully-passed-the-tests-for-the-upcoming-world-tour/
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Opel Astra ecoFlex boasts with 3.7 liters/100 km fuel consumption

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The Germans from Opel decided to introduce a new fuel-efficient version of the current Astra, a model able to provide optimized fuel consumption and CO2 emissions while the power amount and performance figures remain the same. To be more precise, we talk about Opel Astra ecoFlex, a model which packs a bunch of cutting edge systems and technologies able to offer a fuel economy improved by 17%.

Opel Astra ecoFlex

The German model is able to reduce the fuel consumption by 0,8 liters which means that it returns an economy of 3.7 liters/100 km in the combined cycle while the 99 g/km of CO2 emissions make the model the greenest Astra ever.

Even the figures above are great, this does not mean that the new Astra ecoFlex is a slow model, the 1.7-liter CDTI turbo-diesel unit being able to develop 130 horsepower and 300 Nm of torque. The diesel unit comes together with a six-speed manual transmission while the pricing follows to be released later this year together with the market launch. According to Opel, the ecoFlex version is bundled with various systems able to reduce the energy and fuel consumption through an intelligent recovery system based on the brake energy recuperation, reduced rolling resistance and also active aerodynamic components for an improved drag coefficient.

Opel Astra ecoFlex

The 1.7-liter turbo-diesel unit received a remapped ECU unit, cylinder pressure sensors able to deliver a precise combustion control, the well-known Start/Stop system but also an innovative active aeroshutter in the radiator grille which improves the drag together with the low rolling resistance tires. The Clean Tech Combustion technology with the thermal management and friction-reduced six-speed transmission plays an important role too while the German model gets LED daytime running lights in order to achieve a reduced energy consumption. As mentioned above, the new Astra ecoFlex provides a 17% improved fuel consumption over the standard model while the CO2 emissions decrease to 99 g/km which means a 20 g/km improvement.

Opel Astra ecoFlex

"The new Astra ecoFLEX is another milestone in Opel's strategy for leading the industry in reducing fuel consumption and environmental effects while providing our customers with great performance and driving pleasure"," says Karl-Friedrich Stracke, CEO of Opel/Vauxhall. "We will continue to pursue this strategy, which includes the launch of four new ecoFLEX models over the next six months, as well as the revolutionary electric Ampera that we will start to deliver by the end of the year."

Rikk 30 Jun, 2011

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Source: http://www.automotorblog.com/opel-astra-ecoflex-boasts-with-3-7-liters100-km-fuel-consumption/
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