Sunday, 31 July 2011
Lamborghini Embolado
Lamborghini Embolado
The Lamborghini Embolado is an extreme sportscar characterized by an aggressive design with sharp and steady lines. The author is Luca Serafini, an Industrial Design final year student at University of Parma, Italy.Lamborghini Embolado
The project idea came from the designer’s dream to work as a designer for Lamborghini; a very natural desire, since he lives in Modena, just a few kilometers away from Sant’Agata Bolognese. As Luca Serafini explains "the inspiration came from the research of a Spanish festival, named "Embolado Bull" (or Toro Embolado)."The choice of the name was the first step towards the creation of this concept".
"Based on the Gallardo dimensions, I started to define the main lines in a very marked and steady way, giving the front end taurin forms".
The movement of the side surfaces gives the car a natural sleek appearance. All the design is based on the "aggressivity" theme.
"After the recent launch of the Gallardo Superleggera, in order to make a tribute to it, I have adapted the Embolado Concept basing on the aestethic modifications of the new model, with some post-process in Photoshop."
The Embolado was modeled in Rhino; the final renderings were created in 3DStudio MAX, with some post-process in Photoshop.
Lamborghini Embolado
About the Designer
Ferrari Dino Concept sketch (source: deviantART)
Luca Serafini is currently in his final year of the Industrial Design Course at the University of Parma, Italy.For three years he participated in the chassis design of the Formula Student racing car, in partnership with the University of Modena.
Among his professional experiences are collaborations with the Milan Politecnico and with car cutomization projects. He is starting a career as a freelance designer
Saturday, 30 July 2011
Thursday, 28 July 2011
Land Rover Evoque Top Speed Cars
Land Rover Evoque
Land Rover Evoque
Land Rover Evoque
Land Rover Evoque
Land Rover Evoque
With many large and heavy luxury SUVs powered by 5.0-liter V8 engines in its lineup, Land Rover was likely to run headlong into stringent new carbon-reduction legislation around the globe. True, there are small utes, powered by V6 and four-cylinder turbodiesel engines, but these are entry-level models not completely representative of Land Rover's core image.
The Evoque changes all that.
Although it's the smallest Range Rover ever (it's shorter than a Ford Focus), the new model benefits from revolutionary packaging techniques that provide surprising interior and baggage space within the modest exterior dimensions. Rear headroom in the coupe model is 38 inches, and there is 36 inches of legroom. A panoramic sunroof improves the situation, and even this six-foot-five writer fit comfortably.
Based on the LR2 platform but with significant changes in key areas, the Evoque will be made available in the U.S. market in coupe and five-door form, powered by a direct-injection 2.0-liter turbo inline-four producing 240 hp and 241 lb-ft of torque. This powertrain accelerates to 60 mph in 7.6 seconds, according to Land Rover, and that's as fast as the company's V8-powered models. Top speed is said to be 135 mph.
In other markets, a specially adapted 2.2-liter turbodiesel is also offered, along with front-wheel-drive variants. Particular attention was paid to light-weighting the new vehicle, and selective use of aluminum (hood and roof) and plastic (fenders and tailgate) have resulted in a vehicle weighing about 3,500 pounds, fully 35 percent less than a 2010 Range Rover Sport.
Numerous fuel-economy techniques were adopted, among them electrical power-steering assist, a smart alternator that works hardest when the car is slowing down, an upshift indicator, early torque-convertor lockup, and stop-start capability. In combination, this provides a claimed 8 percent fuel-consumption improvement over the company's 3.2-liter V6.
To meet brand expectations, the new Evoque is packed with leading-edge technologies. The vehicle electronics network is fiber optic and coordinates the touch-screen and voice-command features that control the car's many entertainment and communications devices without needless control clutter. High-end audio with up to 17 speakers is supplied by Meridian, a company that claims to have invented surround sound, and it sounds brilliant.
To provide the on- and off-road agility necessary to a modern Range Rover, a new adaptive dynamics system with so-called Magneride was developed. Reading suspension status 1,000 times a second, the system uses dual coils at each shock to vary damping force in the rheological fluid. The Range Rover also claims better approach, departure and break-over angles than any other compact SUV, and offers a fully automated park-assist system that can parallel park the Evoque in a space 1.2 times its length.
We were allowed a brief drive in development vehicles at Land Rover's Gaydon works and found the new Evoque to be a responsive and nimble handler on the facility's bumpy and undulating course. The electric steering assist felt pretty lively and communicative, and the 2.0-liter turbo is clearly more than adequate for the task. With far less mass to control than the larger Range Rovers whose composure we've often marveled at, the Evoque tackles crests, dips, bumps and undulations with unflappable poise.
At the end of the day it's clear that smaller and lighter is not necessarily less. The new Evoque's overall roominess, performance, equipment and ambiance should all measure up to anyone's expectations of luxury and prestige, all the while providing the necessary CO2 reductions Europe is calling for. With the Evoque's expected price starting at about $45,000, it will need to.
The Evoque changes all that.
Although it's the smallest Range Rover ever (it's shorter than a Ford Focus), the new model benefits from revolutionary packaging techniques that provide surprising interior and baggage space within the modest exterior dimensions. Rear headroom in the coupe model is 38 inches, and there is 36 inches of legroom. A panoramic sunroof improves the situation, and even this six-foot-five writer fit comfortably.
Based on the LR2 platform but with significant changes in key areas, the Evoque will be made available in the U.S. market in coupe and five-door form, powered by a direct-injection 2.0-liter turbo inline-four producing 240 hp and 241 lb-ft of torque. This powertrain accelerates to 60 mph in 7.6 seconds, according to Land Rover, and that's as fast as the company's V8-powered models. Top speed is said to be 135 mph.
In other markets, a specially adapted 2.2-liter turbodiesel is also offered, along with front-wheel-drive variants. Particular attention was paid to light-weighting the new vehicle, and selective use of aluminum (hood and roof) and plastic (fenders and tailgate) have resulted in a vehicle weighing about 3,500 pounds, fully 35 percent less than a 2010 Range Rover Sport.
Numerous fuel-economy techniques were adopted, among them electrical power-steering assist, a smart alternator that works hardest when the car is slowing down, an upshift indicator, early torque-convertor lockup, and stop-start capability. In combination, this provides a claimed 8 percent fuel-consumption improvement over the company's 3.2-liter V6.
To meet brand expectations, the new Evoque is packed with leading-edge technologies. The vehicle electronics network is fiber optic and coordinates the touch-screen and voice-command features that control the car's many entertainment and communications devices without needless control clutter. High-end audio with up to 17 speakers is supplied by Meridian, a company that claims to have invented surround sound, and it sounds brilliant.
To provide the on- and off-road agility necessary to a modern Range Rover, a new adaptive dynamics system with so-called Magneride was developed. Reading suspension status 1,000 times a second, the system uses dual coils at each shock to vary damping force in the rheological fluid. The Range Rover also claims better approach, departure and break-over angles than any other compact SUV, and offers a fully automated park-assist system that can parallel park the Evoque in a space 1.2 times its length.
We were allowed a brief drive in development vehicles at Land Rover's Gaydon works and found the new Evoque to be a responsive and nimble handler on the facility's bumpy and undulating course. The electric steering assist felt pretty lively and communicative, and the 2.0-liter turbo is clearly more than adequate for the task. With far less mass to control than the larger Range Rovers whose composure we've often marveled at, the Evoque tackles crests, dips, bumps and undulations with unflappable poise.
At the end of the day it's clear that smaller and lighter is not necessarily less. The new Evoque's overall roominess, performance, equipment and ambiance should all measure up to anyone's expectations of luxury and prestige, all the while providing the necessary CO2 reductions Europe is calling for. With the Evoque's expected price starting at about $45,000, it will need to.
Land Rover Defender
Land Rover Defender
Land Rover Defender
Land Rover Defender
Land Rover Defender
When you think of Queen Elizabeth's wheels, you probably think of some stately Rolls-Royce or her armored modified Bentley. But in the film The Queen, the vehicle old Liz actually drives herself is a Land Rover Defender when on her family's Balmoral estate. Despite Charles' suggestion to get something newer, the Queen is rather insistent about driving her trusty green Defender 110 about -- she even diagnoses the damage caused to its undercarriage when she goes too quickly through a stream. "I was a mechanic during the war," she says. Sure this was all in a movie, but if something's good enough for the Queen, the Defender should be good enough for off-road enthusiast Yanks searching for a rough-and-tumble SUV with decades of Land Rover pedigree.
That pedigree dates back to the original Land Rover Series 1, which was created in 1948 to serve the same general purpose as the U.S. Army's Jeep. The later "Station Wagon" body style -- typically with the spare tire mounted on the hood -- is the one closely associated with any movie featuring an African safari. This body style in two- and four-door form carried on into the 1980s as Series II and Series III. These Land Rovers were the go-to vehicle for folks hunting water buffalo in Botswana or herding sheep in Berwick-upon-Tweed.
Land Rover's utilitarian off-road SUV became known as the Defender Ninety and Defender One Ten in 1985, with the numbers respectively representing the two- and four-door models' wheelbases (rounded to the nearest 10). These models were changed to the numerical 90 and 110 from 1991 on and continue to be sold in Great Britain today. (They are also the British Army's primary troop vehicles, much like the American Humvee.)
Of course, this is the history of the Land Rover Defender in the United Kingdom and elsewhere in the world. Here in the United States, the Defender is a rare beast, having been sold in low numbers for only four years. Airbag requirements ultimately doomed Land Rover's ability to import the Defender (it didn't have them), and with so few sold, finding one should take considerable time and effort. But for those looking for a dedicated off-road SUV fit for a queen, the Defender is certainly worth the effort.
Most Recent Land Rover Defender
The two-door Land Rover Defender 90 was sold for 1994, 1995 and 1997. (Emissions requirements and low sales resulted in no 1996 model.) There were two body styles available. The convertible came with a standard second-row bench seat and a choice of a full soft top (with roll-up side windows), fastback soft top, "Bikini" half top or no top at all. The hardtop body style debuted in 1995 featuring an aluminum roof with pop-up sunroof, an internal/external "safari cage" and four center-facing rear seats. The latter allowed this relatively small vehicle to seat up to six people.
For 1994 and '95, the Defender 90 was powered by a 3.9-liter V8 that made 182 horsepower and 232 pound-feet of torque. This engine drove a full-time four-wheel-drive system and was connected only to a five-speed manual transmission. For 1997, Land Rover fitted the Discovery's 4.0-liter aluminum V8 that yielded 182 hp and 233 lb-ft of torque into the Defender. Mated only to a four-speed automatic, this engine wasn't any more powerful than its predecessor, but it had lower emissions, which granted the Defender a brief re-entry into the United States.
Those expecting to find an interior similar to those found in Land Rover's other products will be greatly disappointed. The Defender represents the definition of bare-bones, with a simplistic dashboard designed in the mid-1980s and a utilitarian cabin fashioned to be more easily vacuumed out after a Serengeti trek. There were also no airbags. (Even to this day, the thoroughly updated Defender sold elsewhere doesn't have them.) This lack of creature comforts and safety features doesn't even take into consideration the profuse amount of noise emanating from the road, wind and engine.
The Land Rover Defender 90 does the job it was intended to do well. But beyond tackling off-road trails, however, it is ill-suited for any significant journey involving pavement. Other off-road specialists like the Jeep Wrangler will probably suit your trail needs just as well as the Defender at a lower price, although none boast the Land Rover's British pedigree.
Past Land Rover Defender Models
In 1993, Land Rover sold 500 units of the four-door Defender 110 in the United States. Featuring a stretched version of the later two-door model's frame, it featured a wheelbase that surpassed that time's Range Rover. The 110 came only in a fixed hardtop body style with center-facing rear seats that allowed nine people to sit in all the comfort of a troop transporter. Power came from the 3.9-liter V8 that made 180 hp and 227 lb-ft of torque. The same praise and criticism levied at the Defender 90 can be directed at the 110 as well, but its extreme rarity should at least make it more of a collector's item some day.
That pedigree dates back to the original Land Rover Series 1, which was created in 1948 to serve the same general purpose as the U.S. Army's Jeep. The later "Station Wagon" body style -- typically with the spare tire mounted on the hood -- is the one closely associated with any movie featuring an African safari. This body style in two- and four-door form carried on into the 1980s as Series II and Series III. These Land Rovers were the go-to vehicle for folks hunting water buffalo in Botswana or herding sheep in Berwick-upon-Tweed.
Land Rover's utilitarian off-road SUV became known as the Defender Ninety and Defender One Ten in 1985, with the numbers respectively representing the two- and four-door models' wheelbases (rounded to the nearest 10). These models were changed to the numerical 90 and 110 from 1991 on and continue to be sold in Great Britain today. (They are also the British Army's primary troop vehicles, much like the American Humvee.)
Of course, this is the history of the Land Rover Defender in the United Kingdom and elsewhere in the world. Here in the United States, the Defender is a rare beast, having been sold in low numbers for only four years. Airbag requirements ultimately doomed Land Rover's ability to import the Defender (it didn't have them), and with so few sold, finding one should take considerable time and effort. But for those looking for a dedicated off-road SUV fit for a queen, the Defender is certainly worth the effort.
Most Recent Land Rover Defender
The two-door Land Rover Defender 90 was sold for 1994, 1995 and 1997. (Emissions requirements and low sales resulted in no 1996 model.) There were two body styles available. The convertible came with a standard second-row bench seat and a choice of a full soft top (with roll-up side windows), fastback soft top, "Bikini" half top or no top at all. The hardtop body style debuted in 1995 featuring an aluminum roof with pop-up sunroof, an internal/external "safari cage" and four center-facing rear seats. The latter allowed this relatively small vehicle to seat up to six people.
For 1994 and '95, the Defender 90 was powered by a 3.9-liter V8 that made 182 horsepower and 232 pound-feet of torque. This engine drove a full-time four-wheel-drive system and was connected only to a five-speed manual transmission. For 1997, Land Rover fitted the Discovery's 4.0-liter aluminum V8 that yielded 182 hp and 233 lb-ft of torque into the Defender. Mated only to a four-speed automatic, this engine wasn't any more powerful than its predecessor, but it had lower emissions, which granted the Defender a brief re-entry into the United States.
Those expecting to find an interior similar to those found in Land Rover's other products will be greatly disappointed. The Defender represents the definition of bare-bones, with a simplistic dashboard designed in the mid-1980s and a utilitarian cabin fashioned to be more easily vacuumed out after a Serengeti trek. There were also no airbags. (Even to this day, the thoroughly updated Defender sold elsewhere doesn't have them.) This lack of creature comforts and safety features doesn't even take into consideration the profuse amount of noise emanating from the road, wind and engine.
The Land Rover Defender 90 does the job it was intended to do well. But beyond tackling off-road trails, however, it is ill-suited for any significant journey involving pavement. Other off-road specialists like the Jeep Wrangler will probably suit your trail needs just as well as the Defender at a lower price, although none boast the Land Rover's British pedigree.
Past Land Rover Defender Models
In 1993, Land Rover sold 500 units of the four-door Defender 110 in the United States. Featuring a stretched version of the later two-door model's frame, it featured a wheelbase that surpassed that time's Range Rover. The 110 came only in a fixed hardtop body style with center-facing rear seats that allowed nine people to sit in all the comfort of a troop transporter. Power came from the 3.9-liter V8 that made 180 hp and 227 lb-ft of torque. The same praise and criticism levied at the Defender 90 can be directed at the 110 as well, but its extreme rarity should at least make it more of a collector's item some day.
Monday, 18 July 2011
Volkswagen Touareg R GT High Performance Cars
The dream of every high-performance tuner is access to the best, most durable, precise components; intelligent and adaptable control systems; and progressive, appealing styling.
It's the dream of every high-performance tuner to transform that excellence into the extraordinary, to create exhilarating answers to the question, "What if...?"
Volkswagen shares this drive to push the dynamic and aesthetic boundaries of its vehicles. The vast network of engineers and designers within VW's worldwide reach never need to be urged to challenge conventional wisdom, and this philosophy is reflected not only in the unique character of VW's production vehicles, it's also fully displayed in a stunning ultra-high-performance Touareg R GT built for SEMA 2005 in combination with HPA Motorsports.
The Touareg R GT is not just flights of fancy branding. The badging on this one-off tells a story of advanced platforms enriched with strategic applications of factory and aftermarket expertise.
The Touareg R GT is nothing less than the pure essence of a high-performance luxury SUV. What was formerly a 2005 model with a V6 engine and 6-speed automatic transmission is now a 500-horsepower road-carver that doubles as a luxurious limousine. Like the other R GT models on display at SEMA, the Touareg has an HPA-built twin-turbocharged V6 under the hood, special chassis enhancements, a KW Variant 3-way coilover suspension, and a high-performance braking system supplied by Brembo.
The Touareg's revised lines give it the look of a well-bred urban cruiser. A Volkswagen Individual body kit, gleaming silver paint, and 10 x 22-inch custom-built, forged-aluminum, mono-block Avus wheels mounted with Michelin ultra-high-performance Diamaris tires lend it a commanding visual presence that matches the powertrain's dominating performance.
Front sport bucket seats, an integrated single roll hoop, and the safety systems required for a weekend at the track are complemented by the luxury of black leather upholstery with gray suede centers, a Bugatti spun-aluminum trim kit by Volkswagen Individual, a black Apple iPod module, and rear PSP system.
Street and track performance has not yet been measured, but with its 500 horsepower and massive torque, the Touareg R GT will certainly be an extreme expression of "Fun to Drive.".
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)