Daily Archives: March 4, 2018
Spanish Carmaker SEAT Removes Veil On Cupra e-Racer
Volkswagen-owned SEAT announced that it has come up with the Cupra e-Racer, a fully electric racing touring car that will be unveiled at the Geneva Auto Show. The Spanish automaker calls it the world’s “first 100 percent electric racing touring car,” which, based on its specs, is truly one of a kind.
Everywhere you look, fully electric racing cars are hitting the track, promising to revolutionize the race car industry. There were previous reports that even at the 2020 World Rallycross Championships, electric racers would be part of the program. In fact, they would headline the show. An electric touring car series was also reported to be supporting the Formula E.
Aside from that, Jaguar also announced that an I-Pace eTrophy racing series will be featured alongside Formula E during the 2018-19 season. There is certainly quite a turn and change in the industry as manufacturers scramble among themselves to come up with an enticing fully electric (sometimes, even automated) racing touring car for the tracks.
The Cupra e-Racer is based on the Cupra Leon TCR touring car, and is expected to headline a new E TCR category. The Cupra e-Racer can produce 400 horsepower that will peak at 670 horsepower.
The Cupra brand is new, so that e-Racer will probably act as the best vehicle the Spanish automaker can come up with now. It is expected that the brand will take over SEAT’s entire motorsport and racing division, given that it has done a fantastic job in the last touring car it produced and developed.
SEAT’s motorsport and racing division is originally under the SEAT Sport brand. If you are still unsure how SEAT wants to market its Cupra brand, or what it plans for it, you better take a look at what it tweeted earlier: “It didn’t come here to play games. It’s coming strong. And coming to stay. Discover CUPRA’s launch at https://t.co/RW2yM88LCi pic.twitter.com/F1vfqrByqi.”
The New Ford Focus RS Will Be A Hybrid
Ford is planning for another RS-badged Focus as the current generation Ford Focus RS is preparing to stop production by April 6 this year. The next-generation Focus RS will reportedly be a hybrid that can produce up to 400 horsepower.
Dutch publication Auto International started the rumor last week when it reported that the next-generation Focus RS will have a 48-volt, mild-hybrid system that will boost the power production of the vehicle. That is reason enough for the RS-badged Focus to be able to choke out a nice 400 horsepower output.
The current-generation Ford Focus RS produces 350 horsepower, though a 370-horsepower version was also available, thanks to a Mountune performance kit. The 370-horsepower Focus RS was aptly called the Focus RS Heritage Edition.
The same report said that the current 2.3-liter turbocharged inline-4 engine will be carried over to the next-generation Focus, but it is believed that the hybrid will have a bigger starter motor that will seriously boost the powertrain capability. Aside from the 400-horsepower output, the new Focus RS will allegedly also come up with an additional 44 pound-feet of torque, bringing the total to 394 pound-feet of torque.
These are just rumors, of course, but there’s credence to it since Ford plans to electrify most of its vehicles in the coming years. In fact, it even teased a future battery-electric performance crossover that would carry the “Mach 1” name. There was also a report that a hybrid version of the Mustang and F-150 might be coming out.
Jim Farley, executive vice president and president for global markets, earlier said that Ford plans to distribute seven fully-electric cars in North America by 2022. This might be the start of that project.
There’s no timeline as to when the next-generation Focus RS will come out. What we do know is that the next hatchback will make its bow at the 2018 Geneva Auto Show. The sedan version might make its debut at the 2018 New York Motor Show.
4 Self-Driving Cars We Expect To See At The Geneva Auto Show
Whether they’re merely concepts for now or in planned production, the Geneva Auto Show will be home to some of the most fantastic innovations of modern time—self-driving cars.
Here is a list of the top 4 self-driving cars we are anticipating at the show:
1. Volkswagen I.D. Vizzion
The I.D. Vizzion is fourth on Volkswagen’s futuristic I.D lineup of concepts. The Vizzion is a long, low sedan with no steering wheel or pedals. Much like the other I.D. concepts—the Buzz bus, the Crozz crossover, and the original I.D.—the Vizzion will be quick and powerful. It will pack a 111kWh battery car that can go 413 miles on a single charge. It will have dual motors with an output of 302 horsepower and a top speed of 112mph.
2. Rinspeed Snap
The Snap is Rinspeed’s latest concept vehicle that first debuted at the 2018 Consumer Electronics Show. As promised, the Snap is more than just a self-driving car, but it’s a “mobility ecosystem” that is pieced together. The Snap has a skateboard for the mechanicals and technology components and a pod where the riders sit. The idea is for the skateboard piece to be able to retire without necessarily diminishing the whole function of the vehicle. The pod will be able to survive even without the skateboard.
3. Renault Self-Driving Concept Car
Still unnamed at this point, the latest self-driving concept car from Renault was spotted being filmed in Barcelona ahead of its debut at the Geneva Auto Show. The pod-like vehicle is a testament to Renault’s “vision for shared urban mobility.” It is also designed for ride-hailing services like Uber.
4. Icona Nucleus
Italian design house Icona will attend the Geneva Auto Show for the first time with its self-driving car concept called the Nucleus. Icona calls it “the ultimate self-driving living room” because it focuses more on the cabin and how to make the interior functional.
Europe’s New Honda CR-V Will Get Third Row Seats
The European version of Honda’s latest iteration of its popular CR-V will have the option of third-row seating, the Japanese automaker announced days before the Geneva Motor Show. The American version, with its turbocharged 1.5-liter four-cylinder, has been available in the US for months. This version, though, offers no option for third-row seating.
This is the very first time that Honda is offering its most popular compact SUV with third-row seats, considering the past few years have seen the automaker’s contemporaries going into this route. The move will place Honda on the run again as the best in its segment, competing well with the long-wheelbase VW Tiguan and the Nissan X-Trail (known in the use as Rogue). Both have available third rows.
The third-row seating option for the new European CR-V will only be available on the gas-powered variant, so we can expect that it will soon arrive in US shores. However, Honda refused to give any details if and when will that happen. All these are purely speculations and we hope we’re right thinking a third-row CR-V is in the worls for American showrooms, too.
Hybrid CR-V Powertrain
Honda also took the time to announce that there’s another new CR-V option—a hybrid powertrain. Honda just announced that it will go on sale in Europe in early 2019. Since last year’s Shanghai Auto Show, the Japanese maker has been hinting a hybrid version of the CR-V.
We’re not sure if this will be available in the United States, though reports point out that it will be. The hybrid version of the CR-V uses Accord Hybrid’s 2.0-liter four-cylinder hybrid powertrain, an engine that has already passed US regulations for emissions. In the US, it could very well compete with the Nissan Rogue Hybrid, the Toyota RAV4 Hybrid, and the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV.
