Daily Archives: September 12, 2017
2018 Audi R8 V10 RWS Sets New Standards
The 2018 Audi R8 V10 RWS looks to be the reason why Audi decided to rename its performance division from Quattro GmbH to Audi Sport. It’s definitely nothing like any model the Quattro came up with. The 2018 Audi R8 V10 RWS is on a whole new spectrum of its own with the RWS actually standing for Rear Wheel Series.
So, the 2018 Audi R8 V10 RWS is going to have a rear-wheel-drive setup, something that we might see in future high-performance Audis seeing as what RWS stands for. That’s nothing new to enthusiasts, of course, though it’s still a a missed opportunity if Audi will not come up with another vehicle that sends torque to its rear wheels.
Exterior and Interior
Visually, the second-generation R8 looks menacing. It has a matte black grille and front and rear airflow openings, as well as a gloss black upper side blade on the coupe. For coupe owners, you’ll also get a chance to have that red vinyl trim stripe that extends from the front left to the right rear. Capping everything off are the massive black 19-inch wheels wrapped in 35-series rubber.
Once inside, you’ll see that the R8 RWS received sport seats (standard on all trim levels).
Power
The R8 RWS will pack a power of 540 horsepower, which is enough to match the base R8 V10 Quattro but not the 610 horsepower of the R8 V10 Plus. The R8 RWS will use the naturally aspirated 5.2-liter V-10 engines. Since the car is not being offered in an all-wheel drive configuration, this means that the car will be a little lighter in weight and there will be less mechanical drag in the powertrain. By comparison, the all-wheel-drive R8 has a curb weight 3,615 pounds, according to Audi.
The R8 RWS can go 0 to 62 mph in just 3.7 seconds. The top speed is put at 199 mph on the coupe and 198 mph on the Spyder.
There will only be 999 units of the Audi R8 V10 RWS available. It will probably be less expensive than the R8 V10 Quattro, which is being sold for $31,000 in Germany.
4 Things To Know About The Honda Urban EV Concept Retro Design
The Honda City garnered a cult following because it was cute and functional. Can we fault Honda for wanting to maximize the potential of the City? At the 2017 Frankfurt Motor Show, Honda unveiled a new concept called the Honda Urban EV. It is basically a City, but fitted with a retro design that we all adore.
1. City with Retro Touches
Think of the City, but with more compact dimensions, round headlights, rectangular grille, and a hood decal reminiscent of City’s previous generations. To complete the look, there’s also an upright tail with square taillights. Overall, the car looks every bit the compact sedan Honda has been updating every year, but with funkier exteriors and interiors.
The suicide doors all the more emphasize the concept’s retro design. The driver and passengers will enter through it and sit on a pair of benches. At their front is perhaps one of the largest displays ever to be fitted on a car. They should be able to view conventional information that shows infotainment details and everything related to the car’s all-electric powertrain.
2. Power Manager to Take Care of the Drivetrain
There is no word yet on the powertrain, but Honda has been vocal about the Power Manager, which debuted alongside the Urban EV concept. The new technology will be able to transfer energy between a vehicle, a home, and the broader energy grid. If you are familiar with Tesla’s Power Wall, wherein owners can store renewable energy and upload it to the grid, the Power Manager sounds a lot like it.
3. Modern Touches Can Be Found Too
Sure, the retro design will make the Urban EV Concept stand out, but there are modern touches, too. There’s a blue backlighting in the Honda grille badge, a programmable display screen between the headlights, and a display screen between the taillights that shows the charge status. Aside from those, there’s also the huge multi-spoke wheels.
4. Concept to Go Into Production
The Honda Urban EV Concept will not remain a concept. It will go into production for European markets in 2019. There is no word yet if this will cross the shore to the United States, but let’s hope that it will since the retro design is too cute for words.
Photo Source: CarBuzz
2018 Honda Clarity Plug-In Hybrid Has 47 Miles Electric Range
More good news for people who are looking forward to keeping the environment safe for the next generations. Instead of the 42-mile range on a single battery charge that the Honda Clarity plug-in hybrid model promised back at the New York Auto Show earlier this year, we’re instead getting a 47-mile electric range.
The Japanese automaker just announced that the production version of the 2018 Honda Clarity Plug-In Hybrid was able to travel 47 miles on battery power alone. This is official by the way, since it was during the EPA testing that the Clarity managed such range and power.
It also got a rating of 110 mpg-e and a gasoline-only rating of 44/40/42 mpg city/highway/combined. Though these are quite impressive numbers, it’s the overall range that has us questioning the Clarity. The official number clocked in at only 340 miles. The Toyota Prius Prime plug-in version, which is the Honda Clarity’s biggest competition, has a 25-mile EV range but can go up to 640 miles without a single fill-up.
The Honda Clarity Plug-In Hybrid uses a single electric motor that produces 181 horsepower and 232 lb-ft of torque. It also has a 1.5-liter inline-four that mostly acts as a generator for the 17-kW-hr battery pack.
Ray Mikiciuk, Honda’s assistant vice president in the United States, argued that Clarity’s “luxurious five-passenger package” should give the Japanese brand an advantage over its competitors in the plug-in hybrid market. Mikiciuk said that the combination of the “class-leading” 47-mile range and the cabin space should give the Clarity a top space on the hybrid plug-in ladder.
The move for a 47-mile-range vehicle proves that Honda is now ready and willing to usher in the brand to an electrified future. Seeing as even luxury carmakers have been moving to an electrified technology, this is a sound decision for the Japanese automaker.