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All-new 2017 Ford GT Concept — New 600 Horsepower Supercar
Ford today unveiled the all-new GT, an ultra-high-performance supercar that serves as a technology showcase for top EcoBoost performance, aerodynamics and lightweight carbon fiber construction.
The GT is one of more than 12 new Ford Performance vehicles coming by 2020. It joins Focus RS, F-150 Raptor, Shelby GT350 and Shelby GT350R in the growing Ford Performance lineup.
Beginning production late next year, the GT hits the road in select global markets to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Ford GT race cars placing 1-2-3 at the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans.
“As we at Ford drive innovation into every part of our business, it’s worth remembering that our first innovation as a company was not in a laboratory, but on the racetrack,” said Mark Fields, Ford president and chief executive officer, referring to Henry Ford’s win of a 1901 car race that inspired financial backers to invest in his company. “We are passionate about innovation through performance and creating vehicles that make people’s hearts pound.”
The all-new GT supercar features rear-wheel drive, a mid-mounted engine, and a sleek, aerodynamic, two-door coupe body shell. It is propelled by the most powerful EcoBoost production engine ever – a next-generation twin-turbocharged EcoBoost V6 producing more than 600 horsepower.
A glimpse of the Toyota FT-1 Vision GT concept coming soon to Gran Turismo
Toyota has released a teaser video for their FT-1 Vision GT, a continuation on the popular concept car design shown earlier in the year. Building on the wildly popular FT-1 concept, the new car will soon enter the digital realm of Gran Turismo 6.
When the wild Toyota FT-1 concept was unveiled in January, the online world was buzzing with hype. Toyota used to be known for their exciting sports cars, but over the years had fallen into a continuous cycle of tasteless sedans and minivans. With the FT-1, people were suddenly reminded of the company’s earlier sports cars like the Supra, MR2, and the Celica. Now, with a more aggressive take on the FT-1, it looks as though the sporting pedigree of Toyota could return.
Here is a sneak peek of a very special version of the Toyota FT-1 sports car concept vehicle that will soon be available for download in Gran Turismo®6, exclusively on PlayStation®3.
This exciting concept was designed by Toyota’s Calty Design Research in Newport Beach, CA.
The amazing future of car tires?
The high performance tyre of the future will be very different to the tyres we drive on today, if the results of a recent design competition are a guide.
A Hankook Tire competition in the US has challenged some of the country’s brightest industrial design students to imagine the role of tyres in automotive design from new angles.
The winning entry by University of Cincinnati student Ben Zavala took the brief somewhat literally, with his Tiltread car tyre rolling into corners at an angle like a motorcycle tyre.
Zavala’s breakthrough idea was to split the tyre into three parallel ring sections, each mounted on a corresponding split section of wheel.
As the wheel turns and leans, the three tyre sections are individually raised or lowered, allowing them all to maintain traction with the road surface.
Tiltread’s wheels are hubless and contain an electric drive motor which varies power to each tyre section, allowing the sections to spin at different rates during cornering.
University of Cincinnati associate professor Ralph Zammit said the competition demonstrated just how great an impact improvement in tyre design could have upon the overall efficiency, ecology and economy of road transportation.
“Hankook proposed a very challenging assignment that provided the students with real-world insights as to how tyres are currently designed, manufactured and the performance issues they must address,” said associate professor Zammit.
“Students were especially encouraged to consider sustainability needs such as reducing and reusing raw materials.”
Second place in the competition was taken by Mark Hearn who imagined an off-road tyre called Motiv, which features numerous height-variable, non-pneumatic tread blocks that can adapt to extremely rough terrain without risk of blow-out.
Third-placed Miranda Steinhauser’s proposal for an eco-friendly tyre also impressed the competition judges.
The Tessela tyre’s easily removable tread components allow consumers to replace worn-out tread when required, rather than the whole tyre carcass, reducing tyre waste and landfill.
Models of the first, second and third placed tyres were displayed on the Hankook stand at the 2012 SEMA automotive show in Las Vegas.
Discover all-new 2014 BMW X4
The new BMW X4 is based on the technical blueprint of the BMW X3, but displays a sporting character very much its own and takes dynamics to another new level. That much is clear when you view the new model head-on. The look & feel is similar with BMW X6
The large air intakes positioned on the outer edges of the front end and the character lines in the front apron allow the BMW X4 – with its signature BMW twin headlights and front fog lamps (both optionally with LED technology) – to maximise its visual presence on the road. The roofline reaches its highest point above the driver and then swoops down smoothly to the trailing edge of the tailgate, mimicking the design language of a classical sporting coupe. The signature swage line running along the flanks of BMW models is split into two on the X4.
The new BMW X4 (fuel consumption combined: 8.3–5.0* l/100 km [34.0–54.3 mpg imp]; CO2 emissions combined: 193–130* g/km) blends the hallmark features of the successful BMW X family with the sporting elegance of a classical coupe, and introduces the unique Sports Activity Coupe concept to the premium mid-size segment.
Its dynamic pedigree is underlined by a wide range of cutting-edge high-performance engines, the xDrive all-wheel-drive system and an exclusive spread of standard equipment features such as variable sport steering, Performance Control and a sports leather steering wheel with gearshift paddles.
In keeping with the vivacious character of the new BMW X4, customers can choose from three petrol engines and a trio of diesel units from the BMW EfficientDynamics engine family, whose output ranges from 135 kW/184 hp to 230 kW/313 hp. All the engines meet the EU6 exhaust gas standard.
The BMW TwinPower Turbo technology of the state-of-the-art engines offers a promise of superb performance married with exceptionally low fuel consumption. For example, the flagship petrol unit in the BMW X4 xDrive35i (fuel consumption urban/extra-urban/combined: 10.7/6.9/8.3 l/100 km [26.4/40.9/34.0 mpg imp]; CO2 emissions combined: 193 g/km) develops an outstanding 225 kW/306 hp and peak torque of 400 Nm (295 lb-ft). The BMW X4 xDrive35i requires just 5.5 seconds to sprint from 0 to 100 km/h (62 mph).
And an equally impressive performer in terms of power delivery and CO2 efficiency is the BMW X4 xDrive35d (fuel consumption urban/extra-urban/combined: 6.7/5.5/6.0 l/100 km [42.2/51.4/47.1 mpg imp]; CO2 emissions combined: 157 g/km). Its 3.0-litre six-cylinder in-line engine generates 230 kW/313 hp and peak torque of 630 Nm (465 lb-ft).
The BMW X4 xDrive35d accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h (62 mph) in 5.2 seconds. The new-generation 2.0-litre diesel engine in the BMW X4 xDrive20d (fuel consumption urban/extra-urban/combined: 5.8–5.4*/5.1–4.8*/5.4–5.0* l/100 km [48.7–52.3/55.4–58.9/52.3–56.5 mpg imp]; CO2 emissions combined: 141–131* g/km) with eight-speed Steptronic transmission also sets the benchmark when it comes to fuel economy and CO2 emissions. Its four-cylinder unit produces 140 kW/190 hp and peak torque of 400 Nm (295 lb-ft).
The new BMW X4 Media Gallery
2014 BMW X4 | Source BMW, please read more.
