German Car Scene

Month: June 2013

  • Prodrive tests the MINI RX

    Prodrive MINI RX
    Prodrive has been testing its new MINI RX at Turweston aerodrome today ahead of this month’s X Games in Munich where Liam Doran will be behind the wheel.

    The Banbury motorsport specialist didn’t provide exact figures, but pointed out that the RX is 50% more powerful than its 224 kW (300 hp) WRC counterpart, while enjoying a 10% reduction in weight, a far better chassis and more controllable throttle. To quote Prodrive – it shifts.

    “The acceleration is phenomenal. When combined with the inherent balance of the MINI WRC chassis and its ability to be driven so precisely, it is going to give the 2.0 litre cars something to think about,” said Prodrive WRC Team principal Dave Wilcock.

    Following Munich, the MINI will then head to America for the Los Angeles X Games and two Global Rallycross events.
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  • Volkswagen groove up!

    Volkswagen groove up!
    Volkswagen has announced details of its groove up! model, which comes complete with an upgraded Fender sound system.

    Externally the groove wears orange paintwork with contrasting black mirrors along with tinted side windows, while the 16-inch ‘upsilon’ alloy wheels are standard fare. Moving inside past the aluminium sill plates, the cabin features leather on the handbrake lever, steering wheel and shift lever – all with orange stitching. The orange theme continues on the dashboard panel and piping on the new ‘groove’ design seating.

    As with Volkswagen’s Beetle Fender Edition, the groove up! enjoys the benefits of a sound system from the instrument and amplifier specialist. Packing 300 watts of power, there are two tweeters with neodymium magnets in the A-pillars, two woofers in the front doors, two full-range speakers in the rear and dual voice coil subwoofer located in the spare wheel well.

    Available immediately, the groove can be specified with either a 44 kW (60 hp) and 55 kW (75 hp) petrol unit. Pricing starts at €13,775.
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  • BMW X5 ute conversion

    BMW X5 ute
    Utes are a way of life down under, so Motorline BMW – a dealership in Queensland, has created what it sees as the best of both worlds – an X5 with the practicality of a pickup.

    Taking a pre-facelift E53 3.0d automatic model, the crew at Motorline welded up the rear doors before removing a large section of the roof and fabricating a new back panel with Toyota window. A chunky rollover bar completes the changes.
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  • ABT Sportsline AS4 Audi A4

    ABT AS4 Audi A4
    Slotting in between its AS3 and AS5, Kempten-based ABT Sportsline has revealed details of the AS4 program for – you’ve guessed it – Audi’s current A4 Saloon and Avant.

    Visually there’s a front spoiler with central lip, side skirts, horrendous fender vents, a roof or boot lid spoiler and rear bumper apron with diffuser section and apertures for the double-twin tailpipes. The car can either be lowered with a sport spring kit or height-adjustable coilover system, while the CR and DR alloy wheels are available in 19 or 20-inch diameters.

    ABT’s performance upgrade for the 3.0-litre V6 TFSI sees an impressive increase of 79 kW (108 hp) and 100 Nm of torque to 279 kW (380 hp) and 500 Nm. Other engines catered for include the 1.8 TFSI, which climbs from 125 kW (170 hp) to 155 kW (211 hp) and the 2.0 TFSI with 199 kW (270 hp) – up from 155 kW (211 hp).

    Moving on to the oil burners, the 2.0 TDI can be made to produce either 103 kW (140 hp), 125 kW (170 hp) or 151 kW (205 hp) depending on base model, while the 180 kW (245 hp) 3.0 TDI no churns out 221 kW (300 hp).
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  • Volkswagen slashes Golf R Cabriolet price

    Volkswagen Golf R Cabriolet
    Volkswagen UK has announced that a colossal £5600 will be sliced off the price of it’s meaty Golf R Cabriolet, with the rest of Europe following suit.

    At the time, many fans needed reviving after being told that Volkswagen would be asking £38,770 for the range-topping model, making it more expensive than such vehicles as the Porsche Boxster. Thankfully the company has done the right thing.

    “The price and premise were wrong, and with the benefit of independent perspective we pushed very hard to get the pricing modified,” confirmed Robert Hazelwood, Volkswagen UK boss.

    The six customers who are currently awaiting delivery of their R will be refunded the difference, but if you’ve just taken possession of yours the news isn’t quite as cheery…

    The R Cabriolet is powered by VW’s 2.0-litre FSI engine, which develops 195 kW (265 hp) and 350 Nm of torque and is mated to a six-speed DSG transmission, allowing a 0-100 km/h time of 6.4 seconds and a 250 km/h top speed.

    [Source: Autocar]

  • Chris Harris drives the Porsche 991 GT3

    Porsche 991 GT3
    In what appears to be a world first, DRIVE‘s Chris Harris has got the jump on everyone else by reviewing Porsche’s new 911 GT3 model.

    The 350 kW (475 hp) track weapon hits 100 km/h in just 3.5 seconds, 200 km/h in less than 12 seconds, and enjoys a top speed of 315 km/h (195 mph). It also eclipses the 997 GT2’s ‘Ring time.

    So, does it live up to the hype? And will GT3 fans be smashing down the dealership’s doors when there is no manual option?
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