A short and sweet article on the official Red Bull Racing website has confirmed that Sebastian Vettel has extended his contract with the team until the end of 2015.
Vettel is the youngest triple world champion in Formula 1 having won titles in 2010, 2011 and 2012. After victory in Canada on the weekend the 25-year-old currently enjoys a 36 point lead in the 2013 championship standings.
[Source: Red Bull | Pic: Red Bull/Getty Images]
Here’s a great behind the scenes look at the ever so sexy Alfa Romeo 4C being built. Like the 8C Competizione before it the good folk at Maserati have been given the job of building the 4C.
They start with a carbon fibre tub and carefully bond it all together to finally form one of the most highly anticipated cars of 2013. Tipping the scales at just 895kg (dry weight) the 179kW on tap from the all-aluminium 1750cc turbocharged four cylinder is sure to make this sportscar a real treat.
In fact the engine and 6-speed dual clutch combo weigh in at only 135kg combined, some 24kg lighter than the Giulietta.
[Source: sicurauto.it | Thanks to Craig for the tip]
Last time we brought you photos of BMW’s forthcoming new 2 Series we had a big smile on our face. We liked the front end that has done away with the gawkiness seen on the 1 Series hatch on which it is based.
This, we don’t like so much. Here you can see the aftermath of a 2 Series prototype following a coming together with the guardrail on the A72 near Zwickau in Germany.
As far as we can tell the driver suffered minor injuries and nobody else was hurt. Although, as many as four other cars travelling in the opposite direction were also damaged, forcing the highway to be closed in both directions while the mess was cleaned up.
Normally you’d reckon a cushy test driver gig with BMW would be a great job to have. But it just goes to show even factory test drivers have a bad day at work sometimes.
[Source: SZ-Online via 2addicts | Thanks to John for the tip]
Back whenever it was that the FIA started to interview the drivers on the podium after each race (2012 British Grand Prix) we thought it was a clumsy approach. To be fair, there were some teething problems and it did get better. It’s true, also, that fans at the track probably deserve to hear from the drivers they have paid, in many cases, several hundred dollars to watch.
And yet, when you read the transcript below, you won’t really get too much of a clue that all the while during Eddie Jordan’s interview with Sebastian Vettel the German was being booed while Fernando Alonso was being cheered along.
To be fair, the transcript does read a little odd and Jordan seems to cut-off Vettel. In fact he did cut-off the race winner mid-sentence partly to stop the jeering from the crowd we suspect. It was a bad look all around and perhaps the FIA may have cause to reconsider the practice of on-track interviews.
For now, we expect the status quo will remain, as it probably should, but as much as we dislike Vettel at times, he deserved better than the Canadian crowd gave him.
[Pic: Red Bull/Getty Images]
The Sebastian Vettel–Red Bull dominance of recent years was captured perfectly at the 2013 Canadian Grand Prix, as the three-time world champion converted his 39th career pole position into his 29th career victory.
Vettel wasn’t troubled during the 70 lap race and the 14.4 second margin back to Fernando Alonso (Ferrari) in second place flatters the rest of the field. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) rounded out the top three.
Mark Webber (Red Bull) flirted with the podium positions for much of the race, despite minor front wing damage suffered on lap 37 in a collision with Giedo van der Garde (Caterham). Webber was not pleased with van der Garde’s actions either, slamming the 28-year-old as a “a pay driver with no mirrors”.
“I got a sensational start, but I didn’t have too many places to go,” said Webber.”We lost some time with Nico in the first stint, and the car was getting hot behind him in the slip stream. Once I got in free air, the car was handling much better. Then we had the incident with Giedo van der Garde which caused some front wing damage and made it more difficult; the whole top section of the wing was gone on the left hand side, so it didn’t help from then on. I don’t know what he was doing.
“There were some positives from today, but it would have been nicer to have finished a bit further up the road.â€
Nico Rosberg (Mercedes) finished fifth, ahead of Jean-Eric Vergne (Toro Rosso) who finished a career-best sixth.
Daniel Ricciardo was well behind his Toro Rosso teammate and could only manage P15. “I got a really good start, making up two positions off the line,” said Ricciardo afterwards. “I felt we could have a good race, but after just four laps, the car was oversteering like crazy and I couldn’t manage the tyres anymore. As the race went on, we tried to improve the car balance and maybe we improved it a bit, but our pace was really slow.
“We didn’t change so much on the car since Friday, so why we were so slow is a mystery to me at the moment.â€
Both McLaren drivers finished outside of the points in P11 and P12, ending McLaren’s 64-race run of at least one car scoring championship points.
In awful post-race news it emerged that a marshal was killed in a terrible accident with a crane removing Esteban Gutierrez’s Sauber. The marshal slipped while out of sight of the crane driver and was run over. He was rushed to hospital and passed away last night. Our thoughts are with his family and colleagues.
[Pic: Red Bull/Getty Images]
Rain and a red flag couldn’t stop Sebastian Vettel from claiming his 39th career pole position overnight. The Red Bull driver set the fastest time (1:25.425) at the Canadian Grand Prix and will start ahead of Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes, 1:25.512).
Next is a surprise result for Valtteri Bottas (Williams, 1:25.512), who will start from P3, easily the best qualifying position in his short F1 career. Nico Rosberg (Mercedes, 1:25.512) may have started the last three grands prix from pole, but the best the Monaco Grand Prix winner could manage was fourth.
Mark Webber (Red Bull, 1:25.512) will line up on the third row of the grid in P5, with Fernando Alonso (Ferrari, 1:25.512) alongside from P6.
Jean-Eric Vergne (Toro Rosso, 1:27.946) outqualified his teammate Daniel Ricciardo (1:27.946) and it’s the first time this year both made it into Q3. Vergne will start from P7 and Ricciardo qualified tenth but will start from P11 (see below).
Felipe Massa again found trouble in qualifying, following up his crash at Monaco with another barrier-finding moment here in Canada. That brought out a red flag in Q2 with just under two minutes left to run. When the track re-opened all the remaining cars lined up in pit lane to chase entry into Q3.
Several drivers were side-by-side in pit lane, leaving some drivers outside the designated fast lane, which is not strictly allowed. However, only Kimi Raikkonen (Lotus) and Daniel Ricciardo were penalised. Both were given two-spot penalties and will now start from P10 and P11 respectively. In a quirk of process both drivers only move back one grid place, as explained by the FIA.
In a rare show of inter manufacturer love BMW has passed on an official note of congratulations to Porsche for the 50th anniversary of the 911. They’ve done so as stewards of their own 50-year-plus icon the Mini/MINI.
There’s a full statement and more pics from BMW after the break, but this paragraph gets to the heart of the message:
It’s tempting to wonder how different history would have been without the creators of these two successful cars. Neither Sir Alec Issigonis nor Ferdinand Alexander Porsche had any inkling that their designs would come to be considered immortal icons of modern times. Indeed, you would have needed a very clear crystal ball to see that Porsche had just dreamt up the most successful sports car of all time and Issigonis the “world’s only cool small carâ€.
BMW also makes reference to that questionable MINI v Porsche publicity stunt at Road Atlanta back in 2010.
Skoda brings us an official preview of its all-new Octavia vRS, which have a full debut at the Goodwood Festival of Speed on 10 July. New car launches are always accompanied by a raft of attention grabbing headlines and this new vRS is no exception, carrying the tag of “fastest Octavia everrrrr!”
Of course, the Octavia vRS has the luxury of nicking the drivetrain from the Mk7 Golf GTI which gives the car a great head start. Although, it’s interesting to note that in the Octavia vRS the 2.0 litre turbocharged four cylinder has been capped at 220PS (162kW); they’ve not been granted access to the extra 7kW made available in the GTI Performance Pack.
Fans of oil burners can also rejoice in the new Octavia vRS for it is also available with a 184PS (135kW) 2.0 litre turbocharged diesel.
You can choose from a 6-speed manual or 6-speed DSG with either engine and with the manual and 2.0 litre petrol boxes ticked you’ll reach 100km/h in 6.8 seconds.
As you’d expect the vRS model has the sporty bits bolted on, meaning uprated suspension running 12mm lower than the regular Octavia. Also featured is the XDS electronic differential lock, although it’s worth noting this is not the trick mechanical XDS+ from the GTI.
Safety features and driver aids get a good run in the new vRS as well. Things like Front Assistant with city emergency braking, Lane Assistant, Automatic Post Collision Braking System, Driver Fatigue Sensor, Adaptive Cruise Assistant, Intelligent Light Assistant and more can be had to help make your driving experience a safer and more pleasurable one. We do like the keyless entry system which has been titled KESSY.
For now we’ve only been given a handful of pics, but we like what we see. Some interior shots would have been nice, but we expect Skoda will come good with all the detail during the Goodwood FoS.
And we’ve saved the best for last, too, the Octavia vRS is available in estate form—and it looks fantastic! Be cool, buy the estate.
Here are the official words and images for BMW’s new world order 1 Series. For now, we’re still in rear-wheel drive mode, but don’t forget there is a front-wheel drive 1er is on the way, too.
The slightly bloated F20 1 Series is 85mm longer and 17mm wider than the E87 model it replaces. Overall height remains the same. Other measurements of note to change include the wheelbase, 30mm longer, and, significantly, the front track is now 51mm wider and the rear track has had 72mm added. All that means there’s now an extra 21mm legroom for rear seat passengers and the rear cargo area now offers 360 litres of space, up from 330 litres.
Five four-cylinder engines are offered in this initial release and, for the first time in the compact class, an 8-speed auto is available. The 135kW 120d is the quickest model announced to date and can reach 100km/h in 7.2 seconds. You can thank a generous 380Nm of torque for that.
There are two other diesel engines provided, as well. The 118d has 105kW/320Nm and reaches 100km/h in 8.9 seconds. The entry-level 116d offers 85kW/260Nm and requires 10.3 seconds to reach the speed limit. All feature common rail injection, TwinPower Turbo technology and use around 4.5 litres of diesel per 100km.
Completing the engine range is a 125kW/250Nm 118i (7.4s 0-100) and a 100kW/220Nm 116i (8.5s 0-100). Like the diesels, the petrol engines rely on forced induction and boast fuel consumption in the high 5s per 100km.
So far it looks like the new 1 Series isn’t winning many fans for its looks. We’re still convinced feelings will soften once we start seeing the 1er on the road, but tend to agree it’s certainly not the prettiest car BMW has ever made.
After the break there’s a concise press release and a massive image gallery of 85 pics to help you get used to the new look.
UPDATE: The press material released by BMW Australia only lists info on the 118i, 116i and 118d; surely giving a hint to their model plans for the F20. They’ve also offered a far more detailed press release, which has now been added below.
UPDATE 6 June: BMW Australia is expected to launch the new 1 Series some time after October this year.
The resurgence in manufacturer support for the WRC could be set to take another step with word coming Fiat is keen to join the sport. The Italian auto giant would likely use its performance Abarth brand with a view to start racing in 2013 or 2014.
Already competing in lower level rally competitions such as the IRC, it’s expected Abarth would upgrade its current Punto S2000 to WRC spec. Although, it would be nice to see a Fiat 500-based machine in action.
It will be great news for WRC if this rumour comes to fruition and follows the recent additions of MINI and Volkswagen to the series.
[Source: Autoblog]
Following the written confirmation, here is video confirmation of Volkswagen’s plan to enter the WRC with a new Polo R WRC. The only shame of today’s announcement is we have to wait until 2013 for it to be realised.
Overnight Volkswagen confirmed two rumours, one directly, the other indirectly. First, Volkswagen confirmed its plans to enter a factory-backed team in the World Rally Championship from 2013. By nominating a new Polo R WRC as the car of choice we think VW has also indirectly confirmed plans to manufacture the on-again, off-again Polo R road car.
Speaking about the company’s decision to move into WRC Dr Ulrich Hackenberg, Member of the Management Board of the Volkswagen Brand, Development Division said, “The new Technical Regulations of the World Rally Championship are an ideal fit for Volkswagen’s philosophy with respect to the development of production vehicles.
“Downsizing, high efficiency and reliability are top priorities for our customers. The timing of the WRC debut is optimal for Volkswagen. The big task of engineering a vehicle that is competitive and capable of winning at a large number of challenges holds great appeal for us.”
Volkswagen reckon their strong success in Dakar not only gives them a solid grounding for a WRC effort, but also the desire to reach new heights. Kris Nissen, Volkswagen Motorsport Director explains, “We can draw on an experienced and proven squad which has done an outstanding job in top-calibre sport in the past few years. Even though the WRC is new territory for us and involves learning in many areas the team already meets some important prerequisites now as it brings an unwavering professional attitude and resolve to deliver absolute perfection to this commitment.”
One thing is certain, the Polo R WRC concept car you see in these pictures looks fantastic! A full gallery and press release can be viewed below.