German Car Scene

Month: May 2012

  • DTM Brands Hatch: Gary Paffett wins home race


    Britain’s Gary Paffett turned pole position into his first DTM win at Brands Hatch this weekend, making for a near perfect start to 2012 for the popular Mercedes driver.

    31-year-old Paffett controlled the race from the start, building a five second cushion over the BMW M3 of Bruno Spengler by the chequered flag and stretching his championship lead over the Canadian by 25 points. Audi’s Mike Rockenfeller wasn’t far behind in his A5 Coupe, but failed to capitalise on Spengler’s diminishing pace due to a damaged splitter, eventually having to settle for the third step of the podium.

    BMW’s Martin Tomczyk dropped one place from his grid position but still managed to secure fourth – his best finish of the season, while Mattias Ekstrom rounded off the top five in his Audi, after starting from eighth spot.

    “It’s a great feeling to win my home race. I’ve now finally secured my first DTM victory at this track. The team and my THOMAS SABO Mercedes AMG C-Coupé were simply terrific. Three races, two wins and one second place – let’s hope this season continues just as it began,” said a jubilant Paffett.

    (more…)

  • 2012 Life Ball MINI Roadster goes under the hammer


    This year’s Life Ball MINI went under the hammer last night in Vienna in support of AIDS LIFE, making an impressive € 54,000 euros for HIV projects around the world.

    Designed by the editor of Italian Vogue, Franca Sozzani, the one-off 137 kW (184 hp) MINI Roadster is finished in Deepest Purple matt paintwork with a high-gloss black front spoiler and wheel arch trims, gold MINI rally stripes, mirror casings and wheel edges, and features a decorative floral theme that begins on the Roadster’s fabric roof and moves inside to the seats, dashboard and sun visors.

    “Flowers are a symbol of joy and life. And the Life Ball is always fighting for life and joy,” said Sozzani, who is also a UN Goodwill Ambassador for Fashion 4 Development.

    (more…)

  • Porsche flybys at Spa Francorchamps [video]


    Here’s another new video from supercar stalker Gumbal. Recorded during the Porsche Days event held at Belgium’s Spa Francorchamps circuit, there’s an abundance of 997 GT3 RS models with a smattering of earlier models in there. We particularly like the flybys filmed just prior to Eau Rouge. Enjoy.
    (more…)

  • Vorsteiner GTS-V Edition 1M Coupe


    Vorsteiner has released details and images of its GTS-V Edition program for BMW’s 246 kW (335 hp) 1 Series M Coupe.

    All components in the aero package are constructed from carbon fibre, including the lower front spoiler with built-in brake ducts, a finned diffuser insert for the rear bumper, and a direct replacement boot lid with integrated lip that tips the scales at a featherweight 11.5 lbs.

    The twin-seven spoke alloys are Vorsteiner’s lightweight forged three-piece VS-400 items, which improve performance thanks to the reduction in unsprung weight, while the company’s sport exhaust system – available in either stainless steel or titanium – releases an extra 11 kW (15 hp) and 7 Nm (5 lb/ft) of torque from the bi-turbo 3.0-litre straight-six.
    (more…)

  • Skoda at Worthersee


    Following on from the recent rendering, Skoda has released live photos of its two most notable Citigo-based cars making an appearance at this year’s Worthersee Treffen in Austria.

    Jozef Kaban, Head of Škoda Auto Design, was on hand to introduce the Citigo Rally concept, which wears colossal wheel arches, 18-inch OZ Racing alloys, an oversized fascia complete with large intake and rear wing. Could this be the car to replace Skoda’s Fabia S2000 rally car?

    Also at the show was the Citigo DJ Car. Basically a rolling-disco, this highly entertaining vehicle drove onto the stage before going to work on the crowd with 100,000 watts of sound.

    (more…)

  • Audi S5 by Eibach


    German suspension specialist Eibach has put this foil-wrapped Audi S5 project car together, displaying a sample of its wares.

    The Audi sits on a B12 Pro-Kit, which includes the company’s -40 mm springs along with a set of Bilstein gas struts, while corners are dealt with thanks to replacement anti-roll bars (f:28 mm/r:23 mm) soaking up the curves. Widening the car’s track is a Eibach aluminium Pro-Spacer Kit, adding 30 mm to the front track and 40 mm to the rear.

    Depending on where the S5 is, Eibach has three different sets of OZ wheels; for Show & Shine occasions there’s the 8.5 x 20-inch Ultraleggera in matt graphite, while Performance mode uses 8.5 x 19-inch Superturismo LM in the same finish. Finally, for High Performance days, the S5 wears titanium coloured Alleggerita HLT, sized 9 x 18-inches and wrapped in rain-unfriendly Toyo R888 semi slick tyres.

    (more…)