Monday, August 24, 2015

McLaren Honda looks towards the Spanish Grand Prix 2015.

Grand Prix PreviewSpain 2015
Facts & Stats: Circuit de Catalunya
The Circuit
The Circuit de Catalunya is the sixth Spanish venue to host a world championship Grand Prix, after Pebralbes, Montjuic Park, Valencia, Jarama and Jerez. It’s located in the northern industrial suburbs of Barcelona and has been a permanent fixture on the Formula 1 calendar since 1991. 

However, it hasn’t always hosted motorised events; it was one of the many building projects ahead of the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, during which the track hosted the time-trial cycling events.


The circuit’s layout is a thorough test of man and machine. Only three of its 16 turns are taken at less than 100km/h (62mph); the remainder are all medium and high-speed corners, which test a car’s high-speed balance and aerodynamic efficiency. These challenges have made the circuit a popular testing venue over the years, the most recent tests taking place last February.

Overtaking is notoriously difficult. Eighteen of the 24 Grands Prix staged at the Circuit de Catalunya have been won from pole position, which is the highest ratio of any track on the calendar – including Monaco. As a result, a good qualifying performance is key.

A good start is also important because the run from pole position to the apex of Turn One is the longest of the season. A lot can be won and lost during this 730-metre dash and you often see drivers being very aggressive under braking for the first corner.

This is a challenging circuit for tyres because the combination of old, abrasive asphalt and fast corners puts a lot of energy through the rubber, particularly the front left. To combat these stresses, Pirelli are taking their two hardest compounds to the race, the Medium (Option) and Hard (Prime).
Vital Statistics
Spanish Grand Prix
8th - 10th May
Circuit de Catalunya
Race distance66 laps
Start time14:00 (local)/13:00 (GMT)
Circuit length4.655km/2.892 miles
2014 winnerLewis Hamilton
2014 poleLewis Hamilton
2014 Fastest lapSebastian Vettel 1m28.918s 188.466km/h
First race1991
Don’t put the kettle on... Between laps 18-20 and 40-43. Last year's race was won using a two-stop strategy. The medium-compound tyre was the preferred race tyre, with most cars using the harder compound late in the race for a short dash to the flag
Full throttle63 per cent
Fuel consumption1.7kg per lap, making it fairly average in terms of fuel consumption
BrakewearMedium. There are eight braking events, but only 13 per cent of the lap is spent braking and there are two long straights along which to cool the brakes
WeatherThe long-term forecast looks good, with temperatures in the low-20s. The chance of rain is low
DRS zonesTwo – the first on the approach to Turn One, the second on the approach to Turn 10
Top speed330km/h on the approach to Turn One
Safety Car likelihoodLow. There have been five Safety Car periods since 2003 and four of those were for first-lap incidents
McLaren at the Spanish Grand Prix
Wins8(1975, ’76, ’88, ’89, ’98, ’99, ’00, ’05)
Poles8(1976, ’88, ’89, ’90, ’91, ’98, ’99, ’05)
Fastest laps7(1976, ’88, ’89, ’98, ’00, ’10, ’11)
Team Talk
#14 Fernando Alonso
Age33 (July 29 1981)
GPs237
Wins32
Poles22
FLs21
Fernando Alonso
“I’m incredibly happy to be heading back to Europe, to my home country and racing in front of the loyal Spanish fans. We’ve taken some useful steps forward during the flyaway races and I’m looking forward to getting back in the car after the three-week break and continuing our push.


“We are seeing improvements race by race, and I want to ensure that we maintain this consistency throughout this weekend. 

It will be very difficult, as other teams will also have been working hard to develop their cars too, but I’m hopeful that the start of the European season will be positive for us and allow us to carry momentum into the next few races.

“I really enjoy driving on this circuit – it’s high-speed and really tests the balance of the car, so we’ll be working to get that right as soon as we get out on track. 

There’s a huge amount of positivity in the team and all of us are working hard for better results in each race. Although we won’t be fighting for victory in Barcelona, I know I can count on the support of the fans to bring even more motivation during the whole weekend, which will be very special.”
#22 Jenson Button
Age35 (January 19 1980)
GPs269
Wins15
Poles8
FLs8
Jenson Button
“Coming into Europe after four flyaways and a three-week break is always an exciting feeling. It’s like the second phase of the season is beginning and, especially after my difficult weekend in Bahrain, I’m raring to get back out there and see how our car fares around this track.


“The Circuit de Catalunya is a great place to kick off the European season and a fun circuit to race on, with long straights, high-speed corners and tricky chicanes that require you to get the most out of the car throughout the whole lap. 

It really challenges the car and you need good balance and aerodynamic downforce to get the best consistency, and, ultimately, performance.

“It’s difficult to overtake there, so we’ll be working on our qualifying performance from the outset to try and push us up the pecking order. 

We’ve made good strides over the past few races, and that effort has continued right through the break between Bahrain and Spain, so I’m excited to see where we are and work with my engineers to keep pushing the boundaries of our previous performances at every opportunity. 

The key to all of this, though, is reliability, and that’s the most important element if we are to really push our package to its limits from Spain onwards.”
Eric Boullier
Racing director, McLaren-Honda
“We’re certainly going into the beginning of the European leg of the season with a positive frame of mind. 


Of course, we can never be satisfied with our results until we’re fighting for regular victories. However, I’m very pleased with our progress and the efforts of the entire team – both within McLaren and Honda – and we go to Spain hopeful that we can make further progress there.

“During the three-week break between Bahrain and Spain, we’ve been working very productively on every front to bring improvements to the car.

We know that one fix or upgrade won’t provide a significant upturn in performance, so we’re united in our continued efforts to bring further gains to both chassis and power unit, in terms of both reliability and outright performance, step by step.

“The Circuit de Catalunya is a great test of man and machine, and proving the balance of the MP4-30 will be crucial to enable us to get closer to our rivals. Qualifying is also key, given that this is a circuit on which it’s relatively difficult to overtake. 

For our drivers, it’s an important race for Fernando in front of his home fans, and for Jenson we will be focusing on maximising his time on track following his disappointing weekend in Bahrain. 

The paddock – complete with the addition of the teams’ motorhomes and hospitality units for the European season – will be buzzing, and we look forward to the great atmosphere in and around the grandstands.”
Yasuhisa Arai

Chief officer of motorsport, Honda R&D Co Ltd

"The short break before the Spanish GP has been good for Honda, to calmly reflect on what has happened in the first four races, to analyse what we have done well or not so well, and to make preparations ahead of the European races.



“We hope that Spain will see another incremental step forward for Honda, in which we’ve prepared updates on the power unit to help with driveability and reliability. And like us, McLaren has had a productive two weeks and will be bringing more updates to test at the track and we’ll see how the car will run together as one.



“We’re confident that every step we take together as a team is in the right direction, and hopefully this weekend will once again prove our continuing progress."


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2016 Nissan GT-R 45th Anniversary Gold Edition


Nissan has released more photos of the 2016 GT-R 45th Anniversary Edition, a limited run series of which fewer than 30 units will reach the United States (of a global production of 45 units).
Based on the GT-R Premium model, the limited edition commemorates the GT-R’s long heritage of high performance. All 2016 Nissan GT-R 45th Anniversary Edition models feature a special gold paint color, the same “Silica Brass” hue seen on the 2001 Skyline GT-R M-Spec (R34 Type).
The limited edition model also sports a special gold-tone VIN plate located inside the engine compartment and a special commemorative plaque on the interior center console.
The 2016 GT-R 45th Anniversary Edition is priced from $102,770, making it $1,000 more expensive than the base Premium model. With the exception of the gold-tone VIN plate, nothing changes under the hood, as the anniversary model features the same VR38DETT 3.8-liter twin-turbo V6 engine from the base model which produces 550PS (542hp) and 463lb-ft (627Nm) of torque.

PHOTO GALLERY

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Finance Director pops out for a bag of sugar and comes back with three brand new MG3 cars.

Rebecca Allen only popped out for a bag of sugar – and came back with three shiny new MG3s! But Rebecca, the Finance Director of a specialist engineering company in Sheffield, says she got better value with her fleet of cars than even special supermarket offers.

She explained: “It was one of those amazing coincidences – we were looking for cars for our sales team but nothing we looked at matched our list of requirements.

“At lunchtime I’d just nipped out to our local supermarket when I saw a line-up of MGs at the MG dealer just across the road and decided to pop in. My dad had owned MGs in the past so I knew the brand, but hadn't got up close to the latest models.”


An hour or so later and Rebecca had solved her company’s fleet issue and ordered three new MG3s.

She said: “The more we looked at the MG3 the more they made sense. The price was extremely competitive alone, but then when we looked at all the extra equipment we got on the MGs as standard, it made even stronger financial sense.

“Our sales team all love them and they get a great reception when we go to see clients. Buying the MG3s was a really good move by us and the dealer has provided an excellent service. We couldn't be more pleased.”

Rebecca works for Straaltechniek UK Ltd; an independent specialist shot blasting and engineering company with links to a large Belgium-based group. The UK company was founded 16 years ago by Rebecca’s father and now employs 26 people. 

They supply, install and service shot blasting and shot peening equipment throughout the world and also provide a wide range of specialist engineering services ranging from advanced CNC machining to laser and plasma cutting, welding, fabrication and paint shop work.

The company is very proud of the engineering heritage of Sheffield and is a member of the ‘Made in Sheffield’ group. 

Rebecca said: “MG’s an iconic British brand and it’s good to know that the cars we have were largely designed and engineered in Britain.”

Chris Grace, Sales Executive at Eric Stead (Garages) Ltd, who supplied the MG3s said: “We are delighted that Rebecca and her team are so pleased with the cars.

“Straaltechniek is a very well known local company and it’s great that they have put their confidence in the MG3. It’s a great car and was way ahead on value of any of the cars that Rebecca had been looking at.” 
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2015 2016 SEAT Alhambra minivan Show Updates



SEAT presented an updated minivan Alhambra, has received a number of cosmetic and technical changes. Outside, the car features new headlamps with LED light sources, a new logo, new wheels and new exterior colors. Inside, you will notice new: the steering wheel, decoration materials, buttons and knobs, the infotainment system MirrorLink technology and 6.3-inch touch screen.

Upgraded engines for the SEAT Alhambra is now meet environmental standards "Euro 6", and they have become 15% more efficient. Petrol motors consist of versions 1.4 TSI (150 hp) and 2.0 TSI (220 hp) and diesel include: 1.6 TDI (115 hp) and 2.0 TDI (150 hp or 184 hp .with.).

Home sales updated SEAT Alhambra and the prices will be announced in the autumn of 2015.
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AUDI sees growth in every market except Russia, but still manages to see significant growth in April

  • Around 152,850 deliveries worldwide in the month – up 2.5 percent
  • Sales chief Luca de Meo: “New all-time highs despite upcoming model changes”
  • Sales in the Americas grew by 12.7 percent
After the best first quarter in the company’s history, Audi also sold more cars in April: around 152,850 deliveries exceeded prior-year sales in April by 2.5 percent. Demand again increased in all regions of the world compared with the same month of the preceding year. 

AUDI AG’s business developed positively especially on the American continent: deliveries to customers climbed by 12.7 percent. From January to April, global unit sales of the company thus grew by 5.2 percent to around 591,050 premium automobiles.



“Audi remains on course and posted a solid sales performance in April. Despite the upcoming generation changes in key model families and sales markets we have surpassed the record figures of the previous year,” says Luca de Meo, Board Member for Sales and Marketing at AUDI AG. “In the coming months we intend to continue growing worldwide.”

In the U.S., Audi sales in the past month grew by 7.5 percent to 16,827 units. In particular, the brand’s SUVs were in high demand among U.S. customers: altogether, sales of the Q models increased by 35.6 percent to 6,447 units.

Across all models, deliveries by Audi of America have increased since the beginning of the year by 11.9 percent to 56,925 units, marking significantly faster growth than the U.S. market as a whole. Double‑digit growth for the month of April was reported in the region by Canada (up 36.6% to 3,219 cars) and Brazil (up 67.5% to 1,856 cars).


In Europe, Audi concluded the past month slightly above the figures for April 2014 and delivered around 71,750 cars to customers, 0.9 percent more than a year ago. Key Western European markets such as Italy (up 22.4% to 5,225 cars), Spain (up 15.8% to 4,100 cars) and Sweden (up 21.1% to 1,879 cars) led the monthly balance sheet as growth drivers. 

The Western European region reported a sales increase of 3.1 percent to around 67,300 cars for April. Cumulatively, Audi unit sales in this region amounted to around 262,550 cars, an increase of 4.6 percent. The brand’s full‑size category models in particular are experiencing significantly increasing demand in the Western European markets. 

Sales of the updated Audi A6 already available there have risen by 15.8 percent since January to around 32,250 cars delivered. Also the new Audi Q7 is drawing strong customer interest for the brand’s top segment: advanced orders for the full‑size SUV are already on a high level, ahead of its market introduction. The model will premiere at dealer showrooms in first markets from mid‑year on and will start to be handed over to customers at that time.


In Russia, the negative market trend continued also for Audi in April: since the beginning of 2015, local sales have declined by one‑third (down 31% to 8,248 cars). By contrast, the brand with the four rings has enjoyed strong momentum in Turkey; the A3 Sedan in particular has attracted customers to the dealerships. 6,829 additional Turkish Audi drivers represent an increase of 47.7 percent during the first four months of the year; growth for April even amounted to 54.8 percent.

In the Chinese market, Audi sold 178,612 cars so far this year, 5.2 percent more than in the same period of 2014. In April, 45,296 sales were at the high level of the prior‑year month. In Spring 2014, Audi introduced the new A3 Sportback and the A3 Sedan as an additional member of the model family to Chinese dealerships and thereby significantly strengthened its position in the strategically important segment of premium compact cars. With the A3 and the Q3, Audi is also the leading premium manufacturer in the compact segment in China. 

Audi is already selling more premium compact cars in China than in any other market, even though the share of compact cars in the Chinese market as a whole is still low compared to the international level.

Sales for AUDI AGIn AprilCumulative
20152014Change from 201420152014Change from 2014
World152,850149,046+2.5%591,050561,894+5.2%
Europe71,75071,152+0.9%279,000271,505+2.8%
  -Germany25,66325,503+0.6%98,87191,961+7.5%
  -UK13,12612,630+3.9%58,90756,301+4.6%
  -France5,7125,691+0.4%20,32120,272+0.2%
  -Italy5,2254,270+22.4%17,82116,807+6.0%
  -Spain4,1003,541+15.8%16,42215,060+9.0%
  -Russia2,1163,660-42.2%8,24811,946-31.0%
USA16,82715,653+7.5%56,92550,881+11.9%
Mexico957951+0.6%4,1524,026+3.1%
Brazil1,8561,108+67.5%5,8704,223+39.0%
China
(incl. Hong Kong)
45,29645,216+0.2%178,612169,736+5.2%
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