German Car Scene

Month: January 2014

  • DRIVE 2014 trailer

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    When the very first DRIVE trailer debuted back in 2011, our exact words were: The world has been crying out for a credible car show and, judging by this promo, it’s going to happen. Fast-forward to 2014 and it turns out that we were correct.

    Free from all the staged nonsense and tired old clichés seen in certain other shows, DRIVE caters for true motor enthusiasts in a totally refreshing, entertaining and educational manner. Today, it has in excess of 820,000 subscribers who have viewed its content over 128,000,000 views.

    The 2014 trailer casts an eye at the year gone by, while offering a glimpse of what’s to come. We’ve also added a few of our personal favourites from 2013. Enjoy!
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  • D2 Edition Mercedes-Benz CLA 250

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    Yonkers aftermarket specialist D2 Autosport has revealed its styling program to suit the Mercedes CLA 250.

    Designed to be offered as a customized option straight from the dealership, the D2 Edition program comprises a piano black lower bumper insert, grille, grille surround, and headlight surrounds, with the mirror casings, roof section, rear plate recess, badging and tailpipes all receiving the same treatment. A pair of tinted Euro-spec tail-lights were also fitted.

    Side stripes, a custom three-piece rear spoiler and a set of 18-inch multi-spoke alloy wheels in black complete the changes.

    This particular vehicle is currently at Mercedes-Benz of Huntington, and if you’d like to drive something similar away you’ll have to part with an additional $7,000 on top of the standard car’s price of $35,000.
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  • Audi Sport quattro laserlight concept

    Audi Sport quattro laserlight concept
    Audi has announced details of its plug-in hybrid Sport quattro laserlight concept which will be revealed at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas (January 6 to 10).

    An evolution of the sport quattro concept, painted in Plasma Red, this homage to the historical Sport quattro utilizes the same combination of laser light and matrix LED technology seen in Audi’s 2014 R18 e-tron quattro racecar.

    Along with the twin trapezoidal LED units, the laser diodes are much smaller than LED diodes – only a few micrometres, but they emit a range in excess of 500 metres. The beam comes about twice as far and three times as bright as LED high beam.

    As mentioned, the Sport quattro concept uses a plug-in hybrid drive that makes use of the twin-turbo V8 from the RS 6 Avant, which develops 412 kW (560 hp) and 700 Nm of torque, along with a disc-shaped electric motor. Located between the 4.0 TFSI and the transmission, it produces a peak output of 110 kW and 400 Nm and is fed by a 14.1 kWh liquid-cooled lithium-ion battery in the rear, allowing a range of 50 km (31 miles) on electric power alone.

    In Hybrid mode, route data is used to compute the optimal combination of the combustion engine and electric motor for fuel efficiency. However, this mode can also be customized by the driver should they want to retain a certain amount of electric range or to drive certain route segments on electric power, while the Hold or Charge function adjusts the charge of the battery even without charging from the power grid.

    In Sport mode, the operating strategy sets the drive system for maximum power and performance. With 515 kW (700 hp) and 800 Nm pumping through a modified eight-speed tiptronic gearbox to the quattro powertrain with sport differential on the rear axle, the Sport quattro concept rockets to 100 km/h in 3.7 seconds before reaching a top speed of 305 km/h (190 mph).

    “This show car embodies our development expertise and pioneering electronics shows features such as high-power laser beam headlamps,” said Prof. Dr. Ulrich Hackenberg, Member of the Board of Audi AG.
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  • Lamborghini Aventador LP988 Edizione GT by DMC

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    Duesseldorf tuner DMC has revealed further details and pricing of its new LP988 Edizione GT program to suit the Lamborghini Aventador.

    A more extreme version of the company’s Molto Veloce kit, the Edizione-GT carbon fibre aero package consists of a new front bumper and spoiler with air intakes and canards, side skirt extensions, a herculean diffuser, and an imposing GT rear wing. As with the front spoiler, the rear bumper is also Veneno-inspired, with triangular cut-outs accommodating the re-routed tailpipes and a replacement engine cover.

    As the name implies, the Aventador has received a performance upgrade resulting 726 kW (988 HP) from the 6.5-litre V12. DMC is yet to reveal how it arrives at that figure, but we do know that its LP900 package ditches the factory injection system in favour of 12 separate single intake throttle plates, uprated fuel pumps and nozzles and optimized ECU software.

    Pricing for the complete conversion stands at an eye-watering $288,888, but if you’re only interested in the performance upgrade that figure slides down to $134,530, while the body package weighs in at $89,990.
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  • Happy 2014!

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    We just wanted to say a massive thank you to all ten of our readers for your support throughout 2013 and wish you all the very best for 2014.

    It’s been a mixed year; our personal highlights being Volkswagen’s domination of the World Rally Championship along with Audi’s Le Mans 24 Hours success, with the most notable low point being the loss of the brilliant Sean Edwards. Competing in the Porsche Supercup and at Le Mans, Sean’s talent was undeniable. It also goes without saying that our thoughts remain with the critically injured Michael Schumacher.

    A timely reminder that we should cherish those important to us and value every single day we spend on Earth.