Autos

Rolls-Royce has just announced a partnership with Flanders Electric for the hybridization of mining trucks. Under its Rolls-Royce Power Systems umbrella, the deal will see the massive trucks retrofitted with mtu engines, batteries, hybrid control systems, and Flanders Electric’s drive train solutions. Scott Woodruff, Vice President for Mining and Oil & Gas at Rolls-Royce Power Systems, comments: “We are excited to shape the mining industry’s sustainable future together with Flanders and further leverage our advanced hybrid technologies, which are already proven in the rail industry. Together we will offer our customers integrated, future-oriented, hybrid solutions.” With this upgrade, braking energy will be stored using mtu EnergyPack battery systems and then reused t...

When Porsche unveiled the Carrera GT concept at the 2000 Paris Motor Show, the automotive industry stopped in its tracks as it’d been years since Porsche had done anything as wild as this. By 2003, the car actually launched and just 1,270 were built over a four-year period — and now this very rare and clean 2004 example has just sold on the auction site, Bring a Trailer. The Carrera GT is without a doubt one of Porsche’s most daring models ever built, as it steered away from what purists knew — a rear-engined flat-six engine — by putting a thumping 5.7-liter V10 in the middle of the car. This sent 605 HP and 435 lb-ft of torque to the rear wheels via a six-speed manual transaxle with a limited-slip differential. Altogether, it was a rather successful recipe, m...

Just in time for the highly anticipated release of No Time to Die, LA’s Petersen Automotive Museum is now hosting an exhibition showcasing some of the most iconic vehicles from the James Bond franchise. Named “Bond in Motion,” the exhibit spans across the British superspy’s cars, motorcycles, helicopters, boats and submarines as well as other scale models used during filming. Some of the highlights include the 1964 Aston Martin DB5 models used in the latest series of films, the 1977 Lotus Esprit S1 that could transform into a submarine from The Spy Who Loved Me, the Aston Martin V8 from The Living Daylights, the Aston Martin DBS from Casino Royale, the Aston Martin DB10 from built specifically for Spectre, and the 1999 BMW Z8 from The World is Not Enough. For the Bo...

Nissan has unveiled the all-new 2021 GT-R T-Spec, a special-edition model destined for the United States of America that pays homage to two of the Japanese marque’s most revered Skyline models. Immediately differentiating the T-Spec from the GT-R Premium — and subsequently slotting above the latter in the GT-R’s ranking — is its paint choices. Available in either “Millennium Jade” or “Midnight Purple,” the limited-edition pays homage to both the R34 GT-R V-Spec II Nür and the R34 V-Spec respectively. Notably, just 718 V-Spec II Nür units were produced and only 156 carried the “Millennium Jade” hue, and the T-Spec will now mark the first time this color has been offered in the States. As for “Midnight Purple,” it famous...

NOVITEC has got its hands on yet another supercar, this time around working with the Ferrari F8 Spider. While the custom convertible is not an N-LARGO-spec like its hard-roofed sibling, the F8 Tributo, NOVITEC has given the Spider a comprehensive carbon fiber-clad overhaul and has fettled with the twin-turbo V8 as well. The result is an engine that produces 802 HP, sending the F8 Spider to 62 MPH in 2.6 seconds and onto a top speed of over 211 MPH. Sound is produced via a new superlight INCONEL and 999 fine-gold-plated exhaust system, while a new set of sport springs lower the car’s center of gravity by 35mm — and for times when you need to get over humps in the road, NOVITEC’s new lifting system can raise the front of the car by 40mm at the touch of a button. As for visu...

Mercedes-Benz has just unveiled its more off-road-inclined trim of the 2022 G-Class — the PROFESSIONAL Line. Shown at the IAA MOBILITY motor show, the Copper Orange Magno-painted luxury SUV sees upgrades like headlight grilles, a PROFESSIONAL roof rack (with tent), PROFESSIONAL spare wheel holder,18-inch five-spoke wheels, mudflaps, 64-color ambient lighting, and black-tinted open-pore ash veneer trim. This unveiled demonstrates some of the accessories and the level of customization that Mercedes-Benz is looking to add to its future range of outdoor-ready vehicles, although it won’t be cheap as the paint job alone will cost an additional $6,500 USD. In other automotive news, the 2022 Subaru WRX combines its rally-bred underpinnings with new tech and luxury. Click here to view f...

The 2022 Subaru WRX is here and it’s coming to a stateside dealer near you soon. Following on from the hugely successful iteration that launched back in 2015, the fifth-generation model maintains its rally-bred underpinnings but combines this with a new sense of purpose, making it a car that’s more refined than the previous generation but by no means is it a slump. Powering the 2022 iteration is a 2.4-liter turbocharged BOXER engine that’s mated to either — and thankfully — a six-speed manual with optimized gear ratios, or an automatic Subaru Performance Transmission “which offers up to 30% faster upshifts (2nd to 3rd) and 50% faster downshifts (3rd to 2nd),” and also features “adaptive shift control that can quickly respond to perform rev-ma...

Korean automaker Hyundai is going all-in on hydrogen as a power source, debuting its “Hydrogen Wave” initiative which aims to foster a “worldwide hydrogen society by 2040,” starting with commercial vehicles. According to Hyundai, the company has been developing hydrogen-based technology for the past 20 years and began the development of a hydrogen fuel cell car as early as 1998. It has recently revealed innovative concepts for what future hydrogen mobility may look like. Highlights of the showcase include a 670 horsepower hydrogen fuel cell sports car being developed in conjunction with Rimac and a fully autonomous Trailer Drone cargo transport system. The plug-in hybrid sports car dubbed the Vision FK runs 0 to 100 km/ph in less than four seconds with over 600 km i...

Film and car buffs will now be able to get their hand on one of the monster vehicles used in Mad Max: Fury Road. This month Lloyds Auctioneers is heading up the sale to give film enthusiasts with deep pockets a chance to purchase an iconic film prop. Charlize Theron’s character, Imperator Furiosa’s heavy-duty War Rig as well as the Doof Wagon which saw the flaming guitar-rocking Doof Warrior strapped to its side, are both up for auction. The film featured a total of 13 cars from the 2015 Mad Max production. In addition to the two aforementioned vehicles the Gigahorse, Nux Car, Razor Cola, Pole Car, Sabre Tooth, Fire Car, Caltrop: El Dorado and Buggy: Ratrod Chev are all up for grabs. Also listed is the Convoy Car Elvis and Flamer and the Buick: Heavy ARtillery with Hummer Weapo...

Rare car collectors will be delighted to learn that a 1972 Range Rover 4×4 Shooting Brake is now available for auction over at Bonhams. Just one of six prototypes every made by the automaker, the experimental shooting brake was designed with an extended chassis and wheelbase in order to serve as an ambulance for areas harder to reach. In fact, this chassis number 355-04063A currently on offer is only one of two built in 1972 as a stepped roof ambulance, with the other model constructed as a left-hand drive. The rare vehicle first passed through the hands of a Stratford-upon-Avon Land Rover dealer, who sold it to the local branch of the St John’s Ambulance Brigade a year after it was produced. There, it would serve for 44 years before being purchased by the current seller in 2017...

The ’96 BMW 750IL that Tupac was shot and killed in while leaving an altercation at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas is back on the market. The car which was originally registered under Death Row Records is now being sold by Celebrity Cars Las Vegas for $1.75 million. Tupac’s black BMW made an appearance on the reality series Pawn Stars back in 2018 at an asking price of $1.5 million but has yet to find a buyer. According to the seller, the car has been fully restored but retains a small indentation where they believe one of the bullet holes may have been. The ’90s era 7-series sports a 5.4-liter 12-cylinder engine and five-speed automatic transmission with 121,043 miles showing on the odometer. As most of the car’s value comes from its place in hip-hop history, records p...

SCOPES, driven by Porsche, is throwing in yet another dynamic wrench in its virtual event format by collaborating with Wonderfruit, a popular festival that takes place annually in Thailand. Known initially as a music festival, Wonderfruit’s sustainable efforts over the years have expanded and transformed the event into an inspiring social movement, in the pursuit of a true community experience. SCOPES features a series of videos and interactive formats that showcase the Wonderfruit community and its driven individuals, shaping the future with avant-garde approaches in art and wellness. SCOPES — who’s branding direction is headed by graphic artist Theseus Chan — presents an in-depth exploration and discovery exercise with Wonderfruit to shine a spotlight on the power of a global platf...