The F1 steering wheel is not as easy as the Xbox 360 controls nor the modern real steering wheels come close to its complexity. Although the cars today have steering wheels that can control almost anything from phone, cruise control, to the entertainment system, the F1 steering wheel is just too much.

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The steering wheel of Formula 1 race car is the control panel, communication hub, and information display of the F1 driver . Aside from the paddle shifters, the steering wheel is used to alter setups of the torque of the engine by changing the fuel mixture and differential settings.

There are also buttons to get the race car to neutral and limit the speed as it gets to the pit lane. There are also buttons to let the pit crew know of the unscheduled stop of the F1 driver or maybe add some 80 horsepower for a few moments using the KERS or the Kinetic Energy Recovery in some parts of the track.

The blue button is for reverse which every driver hopes he will not be using during the race. There are also rotary switches to set the clutch, accommodate diameters of tires or scroll thru the different menus.

The speed of the ride during race day make s it quite fascinating how the drivers handle all these controls on the steering wheel. Faster than highway speeds and controlling different factors of the car just does not make sense but we guess that is why they are only driven by the best of the best.

PG has been popular with their attempts to integrate the latest automobile technology with sophisticated car design. This recipe is reflected thru their new creation PG Electrus. The e-Roadster is actually a city racer based on the British creation Lotus Elise that boasts of a composite and carbon fiber chassis.

The project represents about three decades of theory and practical application of the Dusseldorf based car manufacturer. The PG Elektrus is a more potent successor to Michale Frohlich’s Phoenix Cobra creation.

The PG Elektrus has a very distinct wide face and a rear end highlighted with crossed stop lights. It is a really lightweight ride with its body constructed from plastics reinforced with glass-fiber. It has a very simple and straightforward design that somehow saves it from any potential failure.

Depending on the driving style, the batteries of the car may go up to 350 kilometers. Another advantage of the car is the capability of the car to charge its own battery pack using the solar panels installed on the rear portion of the PG Elektrus.

The driver can also flick a switch to use either the automatic transmission for a more convenient driving or manual transmission for a more sporty driving experience. It also comes with a V8 sound or a Formula One sound depending on your preference.

The PG Elektrus can go beyond 100 kilometers per hour in less than 3 seconds and easily gets to its top speed of 300 kph.

The PG-Frohlich creation sounds like a fun and exciting ride blending excellent body design, drive form, and equipment.

Only two versions of the Juke-R will be produced. One of the versions will be a left hand drive, and the other a right hand drive. The vehicle was developed by Japanese car manufacturer Nissan and built by motorsport firm RML collaborating with Nissan Technology Center – Europe. The first round of testing will happen next month.

We might be able to see this speedster on the Nurburgring soon.

If you havent heard of the the Juke-R, basically it is a combination of the Nissan Juke and the Nissan GT-R. It promises to be the fastest crossover today. The car is still street legal but will never hit the production line. Too bad we will only see two units of the Juke-R.

The vehicle explores the territory of being a sports derivative which will provide a magnificent driving experience whether you are on the normal road or on the track. It features the technologies and innovation of the two most exciting vehicles in Nissan’s rane.

The Juke-R will have the GT-R’s V6 twin-turbo 3.8L engine that is capable of producing 520 horsepower. The power of this engine will be transferred to the 20 inch fRays orged wheels by the 6-speed gearbox.

The interior will highlight new gauges, new looks for the dials, and a 7-inch LCD. The center console of the Juke R takes inspiration from a gas tank of a motorcycle. It also sports race-seats, a roll cage, and 5-point harnesses.

Customers in the United Kingdom can purchase these wheels for £5,569. For cars with featured tire pressure monitoring systems, the price tag is slightly higher at £5,866. This new conversion kit is also available for cars which have dual-clutch PDA gear boxes installed. Porsche currently tenders metal paddles, although these are only available for the 911 Turbo for now.

This particular kit includes brand new split-spoke steering wheels and paddles. This is pegged at £940. The Porsche 911 range will also be given a brand new Aero Cup body kit. This body kit was based on the GT3. It comes with a new set of side sills, a new front bumper, a big rear wing, and a new rear bumper. The rear wing was added to improve the vehicle’s handling capacity when it’s running on high speeds.

The Aero Cup Body Kit for the 911 is pegged at £4,968. Owners of Cabrio and Targa models can purchase the same Aerokit at a lower price, though. The entry-level tag is pegged at £2,368. The Aerokit Cup package is sold in the United States for $5,883. Not all Tequipment accessories are available in all countries. You should check with your dealers first.

For those who may not know yet, the model is Aston’s first four-door coupe since the Lagonda. The production of the Lagonda was stopped in 1989, and for a long while, the company has been producing a long trend of two-door coupes. The model boasts of highly attractive styling details with bi-xenon headlights and clear LED tail lights. The headlights will also be trimmed with LED side lights and stylish direction indicators.

For the interior, Aston gave the Rapide leather upholstery with iridium silver accents and walnut trimmings. It will also have a center console at the rear, individual seating for four people, automatic climate control, and an electroluminescent instrument display. The hatchback design of the car allows it a 750-liter capacity for the cargo or 301 liters when the rear seats are up.

To quote AstonMartinCarsFan.com, at the heart of the machine is a 6.0-liter V12 engine. This can generate 470 bhp and 600 Nm of torque. The engine will be mated with a six-speed Touchtronic2 transmission which can sprint from zero to sixty miles per hour in just 5.1 seconds. The recorded top speed of the Aston Martin Rapide is 188 mph.

Currently, the entry price of the Aston Martin Rapide is $199,950 in the USA and £139,950 in the United Kingdom.



This will serve public and private partners of Strasbourg and its region. The project is supported by the Research Fund of the French Environment and Energy Management Agency called ADEME.

The new Prius plug-in hybrid is equipped with a li-ion battery pack with an electric range of up to 20 kilometers. The vehicle can speed up to 62mph or 100 km/h on a full charge. Its CO2 emission, based on the European homologation combined cycle reads a mere 59g/km.

This project is actually only a part of Toyota’s global project involving 600 Prius hybrid vehicles. These Prius units will be deployed to Australia, Canada, Japan, and the US. The company’s objective is to further delve into the study of the technology and monitor the performance of its PHVs.

According to ToyotaFan.co.uk, the EDF-Toyota partnership can be traced back in 2007. In France, they teamed up for European trials of hybrid, plug-in vehicles. This collaboration was expanded to the United Kingdom in 2008. EDF wants to evaluate the various operational methods that can be used in the charging stations. Through the demonstration, EDF will be able to get feedback from the consumers, and know just how well accepted the driving concept is.

This study should prepare all parties for the vast commercialization of the plug-in vehicle in the near future.



According to a report filed with Bloomberg, Ferrari has discussed the situation with the local worker’s union that it may sever around 270 jobs. The company will also have to lay off around 600 workers by mid-May to adjust to the drop in orders for engines from their sibling brand Maserati.

A spokesman of Ferrari confirmed that they plan to maintain the production of about 6,000 vehicles for 2010. Last year, they were able to sell about 6,300 units.

Maserati has been experiencing a slow down in orders for the engines that they produce. They received orders for 9,000 engines in 2008 but this figure drastically dropped to 4,500 in 2009.

Ferrari and Maserati operates under the umbrella of the Fiat group. More information about these car makers is available at this, that and this other site!

Theirs is a scoop that Audi is working to produce two other variants. Soon to be on the Audi garage is an RS version which might be introduce before the end of the run of the R8 and a more pocket friendly R8 Spyder that will depend on a V-8 engine.

The R8 Spyder is only available with a V-10 engine that gives you a peak output of 525 horsepower and is currently the most expensive car on the lineup of Audi as it goes to your local dealers before the end of this year.

Naturally, a smaller engine from the original R8 will make the Spyder less expensive. A move from the V-10 to a V-8 engine can chop off around $30,000 from its tag price. The output of the engine will still be around 420 hp and will be paired with an automatic R tronic transmission or a six-speed manual.

The V-10 fitted R8 Spyder will be available this fall while the V-8 variant is due on the early part of 2011.

Looking at the possible specs of the R8-RS, it will definitely deserve a V-10 that is twin turbocharged and revving to give out about 600 horsepower. It might be out before the end of next year.

The FedEx trucks which mostly are models from 2000 or 2001 were transformed into hybrids in Charlotte, North Carolina in a span of six months. These delivery units which have accumulated about 300K to 500K miles use the hybrid systems designed by Eaton Corporation and the Freightliner Custom Chassis Corporation.

The conversion of the vehicle did not only help the environment but also saved FedEx a lot of money since the trucks got their service lives extended. The move avoids creation of scrap and waste from old vehicles but promotes a reuse program.

A lot of work was involved in transforming the FedEx trucks into hybrid systems. The engine, transmission, drive shaft, and fuel tank of the vehicles had to be replaced.  The converted vehicles use a 6.7L  Cummins ISB that outputs 200hp and runs on diesel. This was configured to work in combination with the electric engine from Eaton which is dependent on Lithium ion batteries.

The vehicles are also equipped with a hybrid controller which picks the most efficient source of power during operation— electric, diesel, or combo of the two— considering the need of the driver and working conditions.

The retrofitting of the FedEx delivery fleet will save as  much as 44% fuel and decrease harmful emissions by as much as 75% compared to the standard vehicles used for delivery.

These hybrid FedEx trucks will service the areas of San Diego, Los Angeles, and San Francisco in California.

The Associated Press reveals that the deal may just not push through since the Chinese government will not approve of the Tengzhong’s move to buy Hummer from GM. The NDRC or the National Development and Reform Commission calls the shot with regard to these matters. The government agency is also not confident that the Chinese firm has the expertise to handle the global market of Hummer.

How the negotiations which almost got the signatures it needed went through is not clear. Tengzhong spokesperson reveals that the company has not sealed a deal with GM yet so the former has not submitted any documents or proposal to the government of China. According to The Hummer Blog, things might become a little difficult in the next few weeks…

Followers of the squarish SUV brand may be happy that it will not be going under a Chinese company. The sad news for them is that there is no much interest by other companies to buy Hummer. The Tengzhong company promised in an earlier press release that they will still produce the Hummer brand in mainland U.S.

If the Hummer brand will be killed, it will be an unfortunate affair for the 3000 men and women in the U.S. headquarters that help plan and produce the SUV.