2011 Volkswagen Passat Facelift to be revealed at 2010 Paris Motor Show

Referring to our previous posting on Volkswagen Passat 2011 Leaked Photo, we found a spy video of the redesigned 2011 VW Passat. As mentioned previously, Volkswagen Passat will make official world premiere in this year’s Paris Motor Show in October and arrive in dealerships early next year.

The 2011 Volkswagen Passat is expected having new front and rear designs that identical to their current line-up like Scirocco, Golf and the 2011 Jetta. Apart from there, the Passat’s interior will receive a new design entirely. In the video, you will notice the new steering wheel and door panel.

Moving forward to engine and transmission, I foreseeing Volkswagen will be remain using the award winning TSI engine (EA888) as well as the Direct Shift Gearbox (DSG) from the current model for the upcoming 2011 Passat.-fastmotoring.

Spyshots: 2011 Ford Kuga Facelift

The revised Kuga will hit the market next year, just in time to fight the Volkswagen Tiguan compact SUV, which will also receive a mid-life makeover for next year. The revised Kuga is expected to make its world debut at next year’s Geneva Auto Show, with the SUV to reach showroom floors shortly after that.

Our spy photographers have caught a Ford Kuga test vehicle during a road driving session, with the vehicle wearing pre-production parts that offer us an image of the upcoming makeover.

The vehicle’s front fascia will receive a set of changes aimed at making the car more aggressive and offer it more of an “off-road” look (please notice the quotes). The automotive producer will use the same treatment for the rear fascia.

Yesterday, Ford’s UK arm announced that the Kuga range has received additional engines that offer increased efficiency, coming with enhancements both in the performance and the emissions areas.

The Kuga received the 2.0 liter Duratorq TDCI diesel unit that delivers 140 hp, as well as the beefed up version of the powerplant, which puts 163 hp at the driver’s disposal. In addition to that, the PowerShift six speed dual clutch automatic transmission is now offered for the entire range of all-wheel drive models. The updates will be available starting from August.-autoevolution.

Spy shots: Roewe 750 revised version

 
We can see rarely differences on the car's flanks including the chrome trims on the curves.

The transmission panel of the revised model has a chrome trim, as well as the quadrate air outlet.

The new model will keep using the turbocharged Kavachi1.8T engine with a maximum of 118kW power and 215Nm torque. The top speed of the new model will reach 205km/h, and acceleration time to reach the 100km/h from zero only takes 9.5 seconds.

According to Chinese media, the Roewe 750 revised version will be launched before Guangzhou Auto show at the soonest.-autos.globaltimes

Zerotracer motorcycle throws down gauntlet to electric cars

The Zero Race will see contestants dash around the globe in 80 days in zero emission, electric powered vehicles... and one of the most distinctive entries is the Zerotracer. Designed by a group of engineers from Winterthur, Switzerland, the Zerotracer is an electric motorcycle that encloses its two occupants in a Kevlar shell and is capable of a top speed of 250 km/h (155 mph) and a range of 350 km (217 miles) on a single charge.

The vehicle is based on a MonoTracer body but replaces that vehicle’s 4-cylinder in-line BMW K-engine with a battery-powered electric motor that provides 135 kW/183Hp to propel the Zerotracer from 0-100 km/h in 4.5 seconds. Without passengers the vehicle weighs less than 80kg (176-lbs) and the 18 kWh, 400V battery pack can be fully charged in two hours, while a quick charge can charge the battery pack to 80 percent capacity in less than 30 minutes.

Since the driver and passenger are enclosed in the vehicle’s Kevlar composite outer shell and can’t use their legs to stay upright when the Zerotracer isn’t moving the vehicle uses a pair of retractable wheels to stabilize itself when stationary. When retracted these wheels protrude from the side of the cabin to act as a “knee” to skim the road when cornering at high speeds.

Inside the cabin the occupants are treated to an almost noiseless ride thanks to the silent electric motor, unless of course they are listening to the Zerotracer’s stereo system. The vehicle also boasts a heating system and two bucket seats from which to enjoy the panoramic 250 degree-plus views provided by the plexiglass windshield.

The rules of the Zero Race state that the race teams must produce their own electricity using renewable sources such as solar, wind, wave and/or geothermal. This electricity must be then fed into the grid system in the home country of each team to offset the electricity used by the vehicles during the race. Taking care of this aspect is the team’s main sponsor, Oerlikon Solar, which will generate electricity from thin-silicon solar panels at the company’s headquarters in Trubbach, Switzerland.

With its aerodynamic design and impressive performance statistics the Zerotracerstands to be a real contender to take out the honors when the Zero Race kicks off in Geneva, Switzerland, on August 15. 2010. We’ll take a look at some of its competitors in the coming weeks.

AMG shows High Voltage Gullwing SLS E-Cell

The Audi e-tron has been at the top of our list of awesome electric cars for some time. Now there's a new contender – the SLS AMG E-CELL. Mercedes-AMG hinted at the possibility of an electric drive SLS gullwinglast year and has now rolled-out a prototype which looks set for small series production. Along with a very hard to miss fluorescent "AMG lumilectric magno" paint job, the prototype features four electric motors positioned near each of the wheels which produce 392 kW and 880 Nm of instantaneous torque and acceleration of zero to 100 km/h in 4 seconds – just 0.2 seconds under the performance of the 6.3-litre V8 SLS AMG.

Instead of hub motors, the gullwing SLS E-CELL uses four compact electric motors positioned near to the wheels (two for each axle) to reduce unsprung weight. Each motor achieve a maximum rpm of 12,000/rpm for a combined output of 392 kW.

The electric-drive SLS retains the lightweight aluminum spaceframe as its petrol driven sibling but the suspension has been altered to accommodate the electric drivetrain. The double wishbone axle makes way for an independent multilink suspension with horizontal damper struts operated via separate push rods and transfer levers.

In addition to regenerative braking in the motors, the SLS E-CELL gets over-sized, carbon fibre-strengthened ceramic brakes which reduce weight and improve stopping distance and steering response through high speed bends.

Modular battery

The prototype is powered by a liquid-cooled, 48 kWh lithium-ion battery pack with a capacity of 40 Ah (at 400 V). The three battery modules are positioned in front of the firewall, in the center tunnel and behind the seats which keeps the center of gravity low for better handling.

Power is delivered to the wheels via an electronic control system that converts the direct current from the high-voltage battery into three-phase alternating current for the synchronous motors. The use of four motors allows for an intelligently controlled, permanent all-wheel drive system that maximizes traction, handling and safety.

There are two separate cooling systems – one for the electric motors and the power electronics and one for the battery. An electric heating element helps get the battery up to operating temperature when the weather is cold and on the other end of the scale, battery cooling can be boosted by the air conditioning system on hot days.

Extending front splitter

In addition to the in-your-face paint job, the SLS E-CELL features a wider radiator grille with transverse slats instead of a diamond-pattern, full LED headlamps and an extending front splitter that drops down seven centimeters at speeds above 120 km/h. The air outlet openings on the bonnet and the vehicle sides have also been tweaked and with no exhaust, the rear diffuser has been designed on a steeper angle to increase downforce.

Interior design elements

Inside the E-CELL, a redesigned instrument cluster displays speed, battery charge and estimated range and a 25 cm touch-screen on the center console gives access to infotainment and climate systems as well as information on the flow of power from the four electric motors. As well as push button start, buttons replace the gear shift for selecting the three drive modes - Drive, Park and Reverse.

"The gullwing offers the prospect of a possible small series production run and at the same time reflects the innovative strength and development competence of the AMG performance brand," says Ola Källenius, chairman of the board of Mercedes-AMG GmbH. "We take social responsibility very seriously and with the SLS AMG E-CELL we are demonstrating a further milestone in our 'AMG Performance 2015' strategy. It is our goal to continually reduce the fuel consumption and emissions of new models in the coming years, while at the same time enhancing the core brand value of performance."