Automan 185

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March 2017 // Issue no 185

THIS MONTH

Face 2 Face 6-7 We Meet With OMani Gt RaceR al

Faisal al ZubaiR beFORe his neW seasOn With the PORsche Gt3 challenGe Middle east

Oman and regiOnal news 8-11 launch OF the neW bMW 5 seRies

in OMan, launch OF the baic bJ40 and bJ40l, nissan KicKs launched in the ReGiOn, nissan bRinGs bacK its Y61 suPeR saFaRi, haRleY-davidsOn dubai tO PaRticiPate in battle OF the KinGs, buGatti deliveRs its FiRst chiROns, MOPaR tO OFFeR sPecial editiOn dOdGe challenGeRs as it tuRns 80.

Brandwatch 12-21 austRalian autO MaKeRs lOOK

CoverDrive Jeep Grand Cherokee RoadTest – Lexus IS350

at neW stRateGY, Psa On buYinG sPRee, heist OF the YeaR at JlR sOlihull, lexus and Kia tO enteR india, vOlKsWaGen lOOKs tO easteRn GeRManY, detROit electRic tO MaKe suv in china, JlR ReGisteRs velaR badGe, lOtus tO GO tO china, tata and vW tO cOllabORate, bMW tO MaKe enGines FOR MclaRen, hOnda and GM tie uP FOR hYbRid ManuFactuRinG, dubai tO intROduce PassenGeR caRRYinG dROnes, tesla sells 200 caRs tO Rta in dubai, PinninFaRina tO MaKe FittiPaldi eF7 visiOn GRan tuRisMO, GORGiO PlatFORM tO undeRPin Fca MOdels, bMW GROuP tO add x2 and x7 tO line-uP, audi sPORt hOt On suvs

cOver stOry 22-29 the JeeP GRand cheROKee

is launched tO nOn-us Media in GeRManY and We dRive the neW suMMit, tRailhaWK and sRt vaRiants

rOad tests 30-35 We dRive the 2017 lexus is350 and the F-sPORt in OMan

36-41 We dRive the 2016 PORsche

RoadTest – Porsche Cayenne GTS

caYenne Gts 42-47 We dRive the Kia sOul secOnd GeneRatiOn caR 48-51 We dRive the FORd ecOsPORt

alsO driven 52-54 2017 tOYOta FORtuneR 55-57 2016 lincOln MKx Previews 58-61 FeRRaRi 812 suPeR Fast 62-65 MeRcedes-MaYbach G650 laundalet OPel cROssland x nissan KicKs cROssOveR

66-69 70-73

mOtOrsPOrts 74-77 FORMula One lead uP and caRs 78-79 FORMula e seasOn Five caR and RObORace cRash

chicane 80 in seaRch OF a neW benchMaRK

editor-in-chief Mohammad Al taie

AL roYA PreSS & PUBLiShinG PO Box: 343, Postal Code 118 Al Harthy Complex, Sultanate of Oman

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some major changes have occurred over the past few months, changes that don’t immediately impact us as customers, but that will change the face of the automotive industry, as we know it. companies like toyota and Ford have invested in software start-ups that could see migration of various technologies to the field of cars. as it is, today’s cars bear little in terms of resemblance to the cars our parents drove. Yes, they are styled differently, but more to the point, their controls are different too. Yes, we still have the steering wheel, but with the way technology is developing that may also fall by the wayside. driver controls now include features like adaptive cruise control, lane keep assist, automated parking, rear cross traffic alert and obstacle avoidance and automated braking.

Features like hill start assist and hill descent control are almost ancient, considering that they came into vogue almost a decade ago. combine these features, along with highly accurate GPs and the host of cameras and sensors available around the car and you have the structure of an automated pilot system. All that’s really missing is the adaptive artificial intelligence that can handle real-life traffic conditions.

So what we find ourselves in is a sort of middle ground, as cars become more aware and intelligent, the drivers of these creations have a choice. in most cases we see a dumbing down of the driver as we learn to use the car’s features, choosing to let the car make the decisions of speed and distance and indeed of avoiding an accident. On the other hand, an involved owner will need to learn a lot more, having to delve into electronics, communications, sensors, a bit of programming and even some logical reasoning. elon Musk used a recent press conference to propagate his view that driverless cars are not just a certainty, but will be the bulk of the car pool in 25 years. he is known for his aggressive tilt towards the future, but just think of the perfect storm he could cook up as he launches tesla in dubai. the authorities there are as bullish about making tomorrow happen today, even announcing plans for a Mars colony last month. Will we see Rta exempt electric and driverless cars from salik? Will they set aside special lanes for these cars to zip through, thereby making them evermore desirable as well as serving as a self-fulfilling move into the future? and what with the emirates focus on 2020, will all of this happen in time for the World Fair?

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Face2Face Racer from Oman Automan interviews Omani racer Al Faisal Al Zubair on his chances in this season of the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Middle East

How would you describe your experience in this season’s Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Middle East so far?

This season of Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Middle East has been great so far. The championship is very interesting and the whole team working here is very welcoming. You are able to focus on your driving rather than any external issues, this helps me to concentrate on my driving and focus on my career progression.

Season 8 is entering the final two rounds, were do you see yourself at the end of this season in comparison to where you started?

I have been achieving good results this season, I am in 4th position in the overall standings, I am leading my two classes and I have been on the podium in almost every race. My position isn’t very far away from the guys at the top. My aim is to stay in the top 5 by the end of the season which could be a challenge looking at the level of competition, but I am confident and to achieve this in my debut season would be incredible.

This year, the series welcomes new joiners from around the region 6

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as well as more experienced drivers from Porsche Supercup and Carrera Cup. How would you describe the level of competition?

Who would you name your biggest rival?

The level of competition is amazing as it includes a bit of everything. In Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Middle East we have quick drivers who compete in Porsche’ European competitions and we also have mid-level racers who aren’t so far from the top.

Sometimes, it seems to be difficult and challenging but this is what pushes everyone to perform better. I would say my biggest rival is Bandar Alesayi, who is also in the silver category and is doing his best to reach the Gold category.

What are your ultimate goals in your motorsport career? How does participating in the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Middle East help you achieve them?

My goal is to be a professional driver and to be able to race at the highest level of professional motorsport. I would definitely want to keep racing in GTs rather than single-seaters and would be great to become a works driver in future.

Motorsport fans have been treated to a thrilling opening four rounds of the region’s most competitive and most professional racing series, the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Middle East. The new season got underway on 18th November at Bahrain International Circuit as part of the well-known World Endurance Championship.

Regarded as the purest form of racing with all drivers competing in identical fifth generation Porsche 911 GT3 Cups, the unique one-make series consists of 12 races between November 2016 and April 2017.

How do you assess the series’ efforts in helping develop motorsport in the region?

What special physical and mental training do you need to do to prepare yourself for the race?

Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Middle East is a great series and it all comes back to how the organizers succeed in keeping it focused on racing which allows the driver to be fully focused on their performance and progress. We arrive at the races and find everything well-prepared. Also the coaches provide and explain the data needed to enhance our performance. It is generally a very helpful environment, which concentrates on the progression of the drivers. It is great that more younger drivers for around the region are participating in motorsport. It takes a while to develop a racing culture anywhere but the passion for the sport is developing here and the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Middle East is a great platform to enhance your racing career.

I prepare myself both physically and mentally. When you drive for long distances, you need to be on top of your game in both capacities. A race is usually decided on stamina, focus and how quick your reactions are. To be both physically and mentally strong is very important.

What is the one thing you like to do before getting behind the wheel for a race?

Before every race, I like to listen to music and visualize how I can do my best. This helps me to get in the zone and find that next level of concentration.

Tell us how you got into racing and what you like most about being a car racer?

It all started when I began Karting at 14. Since my early childhood I liked being around cars and loved Motorsports so I felt at home when I started to race and compete. Some people enjoy playing football or other sports; I get my thrills at the steering wheel and enjoy the speed and power of the cars I drive.

Has the opening out of the competition changed the way you approach the races?

At first, I started out hoping to develop my learning of the car and build my experience race by race. We managed to get some very good results early on and with this came the pressure of maintaining the high standard set. It is always good to push yourself and get the most from your ability and now I want to keep pushing and finish the season in the highest position possible.

Has it been a challenge to continuously improve each race from the start of the season?

It was challenging during the testing round as this was the first time I have really driven the car. After studying the data with my team in order to find out what needs to be improved, I have been managing to improve each race and getting more and more comfortable with the car. I am currently feeling good and driving well, now the challenge is keeping the level high and getting closer to the drivers at the front.

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All-new BMW 5 Series Sedan makes its debut in Oman Al Jenaibi International Automobiles, the official BMW Group importer in Oman, welcomed the eagerly anticipated BMW 5 Series last month.

The seventh generation of the BMW 5 Series Sedan cuts a sporty, elegant and stylish figure with further enhanced dynamics and an unbeatable line-up of assistance systems.

It also offers an unmatched degree of connectivity and a new innovative operating system to give drivers in Oman a redefined experience behind the wheel of the much-loved luxury sedan.

Achint Chaudhary, Business Head of Al Jenaibi International Automobiles, said: “We are thrilled to have the much-anticipated all-new BMW 5 Series available in our showrooms for our customers in Oman. We are confident that our customers will enjoy 8

MAR 2017

the elegance, aesthetic appeal and the driving experience it delivers. Al Jenaibi International Automobiles has gone from strength to strength in the Omani market, continually delivering exceptional customer service and offering the latest models from the BMW Group. Now, with the BMW 5 Series, we have another strong product for those seeking a unique combination of luxury and performance.”

The design and aerodynamics of the seventh-generation BMW 5 Series have been heavily upgraded to add higher levels in efficiency, comfort and performance. Use of the BMW EfficientLightweight lightweight design concept, with increased use of aluminium and high-strength steels, reduces the weight of the 5 Series Sedan by up to

100 kilograms from that of its predecessor. The newly designed chassis, a low centre of gravity, BMW’s hallmark even weight distribution and a lightweight body offering exceptional torsional stiffness combine a wonderfully dynamic driving experience with the long-distance comfort for which the BMW

5 Series is renowned. Various chassis options such as Integral Active Steering, which can now be teamed with xDrive intelligent all-wheel drive, add further talents to a dynamics-focused overall package designed to ensure the BMW 5 Series once again stands at the top of its class.

Oman & Region News

Gulf Great Sands launches BAIC SUV BJ40 in Oman Gulf Great Sands LLC, the exclusive importer of BAIC Passenger Cars, SUVs and LCVs in Oman, launched BJ40, the legendary 4-wheel drive SUV from BAIC at an exclusive event in Oman recently. With a Robust SUV styling, Smart functionality and a powerful SAAB engine, the BJ40 packs excellent performance and control to explore all types of terrain on-road and off-road.

Being made since 1961, BJ40 from BAIC has a past spanning more than half a century of tough All-terrain experience. BJ40 comes in 2-Door and 4-Door options to cater to the customers looking for an SUV which is strong, simple and imposing.

BJ40 is separate body on frame design which enhances the torsional stiffness for handling severe road conditions.

The engine is designed to deliver almost 90% of its peak torque at very low rpm ensuring large availability of torque at low vehicle speed. The large over-fenders, full size spare tire mounted on rear door for easy access, add to the appeal of a classic SUV. You can explore all terrains offroad and on-road in style and comfort.

BAIC offers 5 years or 100,000 kms manufacturer warranty on all passenger vehicles and 3 years/100,000 kms manufacturer warranty on commercial vehicles in Oman.

What’s on offer?

Engine Capacity: 2.3Turbo (B231R); Net Power: 231 hp; Torque: 35.7 Kgm, Part time 4WD; Length of the 2 Door version is 4350 mm and of the 4 Door version is 4630mm; Transmission: 6AT. Ground clearance is 210 mm.

Interior: Interiors: Leather seats, multi-function leather steering wheel, power window, driver seat six-way manual, seven-inch display screen, six speakers, Bluetooth, USB, Rear AC outlet, Compass/Altimeter

/ Declinator, Rear Seat fold with overturn and front armrest.

Safety: ABS + EBD, ESP, Hill Hold Control, Dual Airbag, Central Door Lock, Parking Sensor, Rear View Camera, TPMS, Anti-roll cage Exterior: Tyre - 245/65 R17 17� Alloy Wheel, Door Mirror Electric Fold & Adjust, Rear window defroster, Rear Wiper, LED combination tail light, Removable hard ceiling, Door mirrors with turn signal, Fog Lamp MAR 2017

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Nissan launches its all-new crossover ‘Kicks’ Nissan has launched the allnew Nissan Kicks compact crossover in the Middle East, its latest addition to the crossover segment.

The all-new Nissan Kicks was first rolled out in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil during the 2016 Summer Olympics held there, and is poised to add a whole new dimension to the compact end of the crossover field in more than 80 countries.

Samir Cherfan, Managing Director of Nissan Middle said: “The all-new Nissan Kicks was developed with the modern urban commuter in mind, with the aim of delivering the most innovative, stylish and

functional crossover in its class. These commuters will appreciate the car’s ability to deal with the rough and tumble of the urban jungle courtesy of its advanced chassis control technology.

They will also love the ease of parking thanks to the Around View Monitor and the amazing functionality of the 7-inch color touchscreen. From the cosseting interior to the bold styling to the advanced technology, everywhere you look on the car there is evidence to back up our belief that Kicks will be a big hit with young people all over our region.”

Patrol Super Safari revived for the region Nissan announced the rebirth of its legendary Patrol Super Safari in the Middle East, one of the most coveted off-road vehicles ever sold in the region. The Patrol Super Safari’s long standing heritage in the region has lasted with every passing generation, achieving iconic status among gulf nationals and expats alike.

“The return of the legendary Patrol Super Safari reflects Nissan’s willingness not only to listen to its regional customers, but to also respond to their wishes,” said Samir Cherfan, Managing Director of Nissan Middle East.

“The Patrol Super Safari’s return is the direct result of customer demand for this

legendary vehicle which has a strong heritage with the deserts of the Arabian Peninsula. Widely considered as one of the few truly allterrain vehicles of modern time, the Patrol Super Safari continues to impress with its inherent ruggedness, durability and ability to cope with the extremes of the varied terrains and temperatures prevalent in this region.”

The Y61 Patrol Super Safari boasts a 4.8L DOHC in-line 6-cylinder engine producing 280hp and a mighty 451Nm of torque. The engine is mated to a 5-speed automatic transmission with manual mode.

Nissan Middle East has announced a radical new concept which will eventually revolutionise the way vehicles are evaluated for desert performance. Developed by Nissan engineers, “Desert Camel Power” uses a scientifically proven formula to determine, in an accurately measurable and reproducible way, how a given vehicle will perform in typical desert off-

road conditions.

“Over the past two years we have been researching what elements make a vehicle such as the Nissan Patrol so well-suited to desert driving,” said Engineer Joseph Rachid El Hachem, Desert Camel Power Unit Engineer.

“Basically, we found that it comes down to the interplay between the vehicle’s weight, its velocity and its

Nissan Introduces Desert Camel Power

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trajectory. Other factors including manoeuvrability, engine torque and of course the skill of the driver do come into play and cannot be discounted. However, if we standardise a vehicle’s approach speed and trajectory in a given environment we can time how quickly it travels a set distance and subsequently factor in its weight to work out its Desert Camel Power.”

Oman & Region News

HARLEY-DAVIDSON DUBAI GETS READY TO RUMBLE IN ‘BATTLE OF THE KINGS’ The Harley-Davidson dealership in Dubai is competing to become the top custom bike builder across Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA), in a contest of ultimate customisation using one of the latest models. The dealership’s entry, the ‘Desert Warrior,’ was recently unveiled to the public at an event held at the brand’s flagship store in the UAE. This is the first time that the Dubai-based dealership has taken part, with last year’s Middle East entrants including Kuwait and Morocco.

This year’s competition, hailed as the largest bike customisation contest in the industry, will be based on customising any model from Harley-Davidson’s Dark Custom Sportster range, namely the Iron 883, Forty-Eight and Roadster.

MOPAR turns 80, launches limited edition Challenger The official automobile service, spares and customercare destination of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, MOPAR is commemorating its 80th anniversary with the launch of limited edition 2017 Dodge Challenger. Only 80 exclusive models in 2 colour options will be produced and they will begin arriving in dealerships in the second quarter of 2017.

Owners of these special editions will receive a special commemorative kit and a serialized badge.

The MOPAR service centres are best known for their express lane service, which is performed under 45-minutes or offered completely free of cost.

Bugatti delivers first Chiron super sports cars This week, the doors of Bugatti’s “Atelier” at the brand’s headquarters in Molsheim opened for the delivery of the first customer vehicles in the Chiron1 series. Three of the world’s most powerful, fastest, most luxurious and most exclusive production super sports cars are now starting their journey to their owners in Europe and the Middle East. They were sent off on their journey by the 50 or so production, quality assurance and logistics team members. Bugatti intends to produce up to 70 Chiron at its plant this year.

Cadillac’s 2017 V-Series Models now in the region Engineered with high performance and everyday usability, the Cadillac 2017 CTS-V and ATS-V have arrived in the Middle East. Built with precise craftsmanship and ingenious technology the new 2017 models deliver outstanding performance and track capabilities.

After a sold-out 2016 model year, the 2017 Cadillac CTS-V and ATS-V adds a Carbon Black sport package and upgrades and enhancements for the Cadillac

CUE infotainment system.

Almost every exterior panel on the Cadillac CTS-V and ATS-V is unique, from the fascias and front fenders, to the hood, rear spoiler and rocker moldings – and every one was designed to support the car’s capability, contributing to lift reduction, enhanced cooling, and improved aero management.

The various elements give the sporty line-up an athletic stance, wide body and low height.

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2017 J.D. Power’s annual Vehicle Dependability Study findings released

Ford’s Australian connection

Key automakers in Australia to adopt new business strategies With the demise of Australian territory as a major automotive manufacturing hub, at least three big names – Ford, Toyota and Holden are now in the midst of transforming their businesses into profit centres by diversifying into areas of opportunities like engineering, design, marketing and retailing. The transformation has already begun as the deadline for ceasing manufacturing looms in the not so distant future.

On a positive note there is a genuine effort to minimise industry job losses either by retraining or using the assets in appropriate operations. Local media tracking the developments have reported that all the three companies mentioned above have been on a hiring spree for skilled staff to handle anticipated workload of vehicle development and new-model launches in booming market conditions, both in Australia and overseas.

Of the three players, the most active is Ford. Ford has added at least 250 engineers, designers and technicians this year to take its Victorian-based AsiaPacific Vehicle Development operation from 1,500 to 1,750 employees by 2018.

It may be recalled that Ford president Mark Fields flew into Australia last year to announce a 50per cent increase in R&D spending from $300mn a year to $450mn plus additional $50mn for infrastructure development. Ford’s designers and engineers are also working on projects for Ford luxury brand Lincoln and a budget small car based on the current Fiesta, 12

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presumably for China and possibly India.

With all these investments, Ford’s R&D operation in Australia will become the biggest and will work on projects like the next-generation Ranger and Everest for global markets and also a born-again Bronco SUV for the North American market.

For Holden, about 700 engineering jobs were lost due to the discontinuation of the global Zeta platform program, but Holden has been hiring engineers for its powertrain calibration team as it expands.

Meanwhile, GM’s Oz-based design studio is said to be fully engaged with various projects and concept fabrication for General Motors and its affiliates. Some of Holden’s engineers have responsibility for the chassis development of the V6 version of the next Holden Commodore to be imported from Germany next year, while others are working on projects for Cadillac, GMC, Chevrolet and Opel.

While Toyota shed about many engineering jobs after the Toyota Technical Centre Australia shut its doors in Melbourne last year, Toyota has kept the flame alive by confirming that it has expanded its Australian product planning and development division workforce. In recent years, Toyota Australia’s portfolio of designs have included the Toyota 86 Shooting Brake concept last year and a HiLux TRD concept shown at the Bangkok motor show.

Lexus and Porsche are at the top of the J.D. Power’s list for 2017. Lexus makes it to the top for the sixth consecutive year while it is the second time that Porsche has followed in second place. The top five slots are shared by Toyota, Buick and Mercedes-Benz. Hyundai is # 6, BMW is # 7 and Jaguar # 10. America-based producers like GMC, Acura, Ram, and Lincoln didn’t feature in top ten this year.

The study cited an average of 156 problems per 100 vehicles that it tested, up four problems per 100 vehicles from last year. The new problems were driven largely by audio, communication, entertainment, and navigation system issues, which J.D. Power says combined for 22per cent of all reported problems.

At the bottom of the list, Fiat, Jeep, and Infiniti saw the most problems per 100 vehicles at 298, 209, and 203, respectively.

In total, 14 brands fell below the industry average of 156 problems per 100 vehicles, including a few typically near the top of the list like Subaru and VW. Toyota continues to lead with two of the three top spots with 10 segment awards for both brands. GM took home four segment awards, while Mercedes, Ford, Honda, and VW recorded one award each.

BrandWatch

PSA on buying spree?

French carmaker PSA, the parent company of Peugeot and Citroen is in expansion mode from both product and market perspectives.

Recent business meeting of senior executives have focused in talks with General Motors for its European brands Opel and Vauxhall. It’s is no secret that both entities are familiar to each other as they have worked together on three projects since 2012.

If the talks end on a positive note then it could be a win-win for both buyer and seller. Opel has been core to GM’s European operations since 1929 and offers global engineering expertise for GM and its other brands. Peugeot which can traces its car manufacturing roots to the 1880s can benefit from the scale

to compete with larger global automakers.

For GM, offloading the European brands means it will be able to focus more on mobility efforts and autonomous technology as focus areas of its business operations while consolidation of various brands and operations progresses worldwide.

In another development, Indiabased C K Birla group which owns the manufacturing and naming rights of the famous and now discontinued Ambassador sedan has inked a deal with PSA for the sale of the Ambassador brand, including its trademarks. This comes following a joint venture agreement between both entities for the initial production capacity of 1,00,000 vehicles per year

besides manufacturing capacity for powertrains for domestic market and global OEMs. The long-term partnership inked will allow both companies to participate in the growth of the Indian automotive market, which is expected to reach 8-10mn cars by 2025.

security gates unmolested. The theft has reportedly happened on the night of January 31, 2017.

and knew exactly which trailers to target.

Automan’s take French automaker brand Peugeot is no stranger to India. The brand had a partnership with Premier which ran till 2001. Eight years later the brand made several attempts to return to the Indian market but went on hold mode mode due to global economic slowdown.

Heist of the year?

February was not a good month for Jaguar Land Rover. No, we are not referring to sales drop or anything like that but an incident that saw assorted engines worth US$ 3.7mn being stolen by crafty thieves from the Solihull, UK plant.

At the time of going to print, Midlands Police detectives are said to be investigating the case. What has baffled both JLR security and the cops is that closed circuit cameras failed to notice an unauthorised truck with trailer rig attached entering the engine assembly plant after clearing

On the Solihull production line

Automan’s take From initial accounts, it seems the thieves had all the inside information and had meticulously planned the job unchallenged.

This is borne out by the fact that they managed repeated runs MAR 2017

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2016 Lexus RX-450h

Two global brands ready for India entry Lexus and Kia have been watching the growth possibilities in India for a while and have concurred that it would not be wise not to invest in this market. Toyota India seems to have fast tracked the market introduction of three models -- RX450h, the LX450d and the ES300h.

Initially, Lexus will be bringing its cars into India through the CBU [completely built up] route. Local assembly will begin in 2018 at Toyota’s manufacturing facility

in the country. The first Lexus dealership in India will be in the country’s finance capital Mumbai followed by New Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai among others.

Meanwhile, Kia Motors is using a slightly detailed route before entering the Indian market. Kia’s strategy is to have a standalone manufacturing facility and for that it has been scouting for industrial land suitable for setting up its manufacturing and downstream units.

It seems that there’s a fair bit of competition amongst the Indian states to attract investments of this magnitude.

It seems that Indian state of Andhra Pradesh is the possible location to be finalised given its proximity to Tamil Nadu which is home to plants of Kia’s sister brand Hyundai. Kia intends to produce small sedans and small sport utility vehicles at the plant from July 2019.

VW looks to East Germany in switch to electric Volkswagen seems to be inspired by the success of electric car maker Tesla.

Now it wants to build more electric cars in former eastern Germany. VW has three factories in eastern Germany located in Dresden, Zwickau and Chemnitz. VW is pursuing a multibillion-euro investment in battery-powered cars and new mobility services as Europe and China seek to encourage sales of plug-in cars and regulators tighten 14

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emissions rules. VW’s glasswalled factory in Dresden embodies the company’s postdieselgate transformation better than any of its 120 plants worldwide. This unit will now produce a version of the all-electric e-Golf from April. Meanwhile, the Zwickau factory will use a new modular platform for electric vehicles [EVs] to build the ID hatchback from 2019.

Detroit Electric inks deal with China for manufacturing EVs will have its HQ in Hong Kong. It opens business with total investment worth US$1.8bn. The joint venture is set up for the development and manufacturing of electric vehicles, parts and related technologies.

It will be. Production will be located in the Yixing Environmental Technology Industrial Park, based in Yixing City in China’s Jiangsu Province, and operated by ES&TP.

BrandWatch

US based EV-maker Detroit Electric has signed a deal to manufacture electric SUVs in China.

The agreement is a three-way joint venture with local firms China Smarter Energy Group [CSE] and the China Yixing Environmental Technology Industrial Park Development Corporation [ES&TP].

Emperor Electric Car Company Ltd is the new company which

Detroit Electric’s SP-01 sportscar

JLR registers Velar as brand trademark

A fourth pillar member of the Range Rover family and parent company Land Rover is about to hit roads soon under the Velar subbranding nomenclature. The name Velar was used for the early 1970 Range Rover prototypes to denote the camouflage they wore. The all-new large Velar

SUV has been conceived to slot in between the mid-sized Evoque and larger Range Rover Sport and is expected to hit markets in 12 months.

The BMW X6/Mercedes-Benz GLE Coupe competitor is expected to be based on JLR’s aluminium-intensive IQ platform that underpins Jaguar’s

F-Pace and will also benefit from the new diesel and petrol Ingenium 4-cylinder family of engines.

Meanwhile, the Ford sourced V6s currently used in a variety of JLR products will also be used until JLR’s own Ingenium-based V6s are ready to be shoehorned.

Is Lotus going to China?

It seems so as Chinabased Zhejiang Geely Holding Group has reportedly made bid for a 51per cent stake in Malaysia’s Proton Holdings, the owner of the Proton and Lotus brands. The current owner is DRB-Hicom has long been looking for a “strategic partner” for Proton Holdings.

Cash rich Zhejiang Geely currently owns the Geely Auto, Sweden’s Volvo, and the recently

launched luxury Lynk & Co. brands.

However, the main contender for the stake in Proton Holdings is the PSA Group, owner of the Peugeot and Citroen brands, and partly owned by China’s Dongfeng Motors. PSA may back out as it is negotiating to acquire Opel nd Vauxhall from General Motors. Other bidders are said to be Suzuki Motor and Renault.

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VW-Tata Motors to collaborate Tata Motors and Volkswagen are in the advanced stages of discussion for a platform-sharing tie-up. Volkswagen has been building market-specific cars for India and has been discussing about a partnership. An official announcement to this effect is expected to be made at the upcoming Geneva Motor Show. This partnership will have a significant impact on the Indian market as well as other emerging markets.

The partnership is likely to focus on technology tie-ups and more specifically vehicle architectures. Volkswagen’s flexible MQB A0 platform could underpin future Tata Motors models as the Indian brand is in the process of looking at solutions that will help reduce greatly dependency on the ageing current six platforms.

BMW to develop engines for McLaren Britain-based McLaren Automotive has announced that it will seek the expertise of BMW Group in designing and developing technology for its next generation of powertrains. McLaren is looking at delivering a higher power output per cubic capacity, while reducing emissions at the same time. McLaren currently uses a 3.8-litre twin-turbo V8 in its Sports Series and Super Series models.

A possible engine from the BMW stable

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could be the 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8 that powers several M-badged cars such as the M5, M6, X5 M and X6 M. McLaren can also expect part funding from the United Kingdom government through low-emission development institution, the Advanced Propulsion Centre. While, the project initiative will be lead by McLaren with the technology destined for use in McLaren engines, but there will be a total of six

contributors involved in developing the new engines. Other contributors will include Sussex-based high-performance engine developer Ricardo, engine casting company Grainger and Worrall, composite specialist Lentus Composites and the University of Bath will be called upon for their research and development capabilities for efficient internal combustion engines.

BrandWatch

Honda and GM tie up for Hybrid drivetrains General Motors and Honda have announced a joint fuel-cell technology venture. The project will see large scale production of hydrogen fuel-cell systems for vehicles of both brands starting in 2020. The Fuel Cell System Manufacturing [FCSM] venture is the

result of $US85mn total investment from the two companies. The announcement is the latest step in the partnership between the two companies which was inked in 2013.

It established the co-development arrangement for a next-generation fuel cell system and hydrogen

storage technologies. The companies integrated their development teams and shared hydrogen fuel cell intellectual property to create a more affordable commercial solution for fuel cell and hydrogen storage systems.

Tesla sells 200 cars to RTA

Dubai prepares for taxi drones The UAE could be the world’s first country to operate China-built Ehang 184 passenger drones on a commercial basis. The working model of the passenger drone was first displayed at CES in Las Vegas. Dubai’s Road and Transport Authority [RTA] has revealed that it has been testing Ehang’s personal taxi drone, with plans to launch real operations this July.

The battery powered drone can fly for 30 minutes at a time and take passengers as far as 40 to 50 km with a payload capacity of up to

100kg.

When operational, the services of the drone can be ordered via a smartphone application. It uses onboard navigation systems to carry passengers to their desired location without the need for a pilot.

Meanwhile, the Chinese company has already signed an agreement with the State of Nevada to conduct flight testing and also teamed up with a biotechnology firm to use its pilotless choppers to deliver artificial organs.

Dubai’s Road & Transport Authority [RTA] has agreed to buy 200 electric vehicles from US-based Tesla. The deal was announced a day after the carmaker confirmed it was opening its first Middle East office in Dubai.

For its taxi fleet RTA will buy Model S sedans and Model X SUVs. The cars will be used by the Dubai Taxi Corporation, which operates taxi services in the emirate. Tesla Founder Elon Musk and RTA Chairman Mattar Al Tayer signed the agreement to buy the cars on the sidelines of a summit in Dubai last month.

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Pinninfarina’s new project

‘Art meets speed: a champion’s dream, German engineering and Italian design’ is how Pininfarina describes its latest project which has been commissioned

by Emerson Fittipaldi. The Fittipaldi EF7 Vision Gran Turismo is the first of a series of cars from Fittipaldi Motors named after

the former F1 world champion and Indy 500 winner. Fittipaldi has closely worked with Pininfarina and aims to “apply all his track knowledge on creating a new experience that will elevate the driving ability of all supercar enthusiasts from around the world.”

Gorgio platform to underpin FCA vehicles That Gorgio is gaining significant importance at Fiat Chrysler Automobiles is becoming more evident each day and while information has been trickled, finally the confirmation has come from the top man. At a conference call a few weeks ago with media, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles CEO Sergio Marchionne did confirm that the Giorgio platform which underpins the Alfa Romeo Giulia and Stelvio is flexible enough to be used by other FCA brands including Dodge, Jeep and 18

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Maserati. The move, which was planned all along, is to help spread the cost of developing the platform and vehicles based on it, whose bill already totals more than US$2.7bn.

“The investment in Alfa Romeo and certainly the technical investment in the architecture was something that was designed to benefit more than Alfa,” Marchionne said. “I’m happy that we have finally found clarity of thought in the extension of these architectures well beyond Alfa.”

The car will be unveiled at the Geneva motor show this month and Fittipaldi appears to have both real and virtual intent for it – it’s also to appear in Sony PlayStation Gran Turismo.

Audi Sport to build on SUV market In an interview at the Bathurst 12 Hour race last month, Audi Sport managing director Stephan Winkelmann Audi confirmed that its line-up of RS-branded SUVs would grow beyond the RS Q3.

Currently, the S-badged variants include the Q5 and Q7 only and the RS badge was yet to be slapped on the boot of anything larger than its compact SUV. When asked if potent range of RS SUVs had place in the market, Winkelmann responded by saying: “Yes, for sure, yes,”

and explained that growth in the highrider markets was driving demand for high-performance versions. This is one of our tasks to have more and more Qs given the growth of the segment and given the acceptance of sports SUVs this is one of our challenges”. While a number will be newcomers to the crossover lineup, Mr Winkelmann said some would be replacement versions of longer-standing RS variants which is likely to include the eagerly anticipated RS4.

BMW Group to add SUVs Two all-new SUVs will join BMW’s model line-up soon as the brand looks at filling the gaps with a proper 7-seater and a smaller coupe styled CUV slotted above the current X1. The designations of these models will be X2 and X7 respectively.

At last year’s Paris motor show, BMW revealed in near-production concept form the X2. The X2 is expected to share mechanicals and drivetrains with its X1 sibling using BMW Group’s UKL platform.

The X7 will represent itself as the range topper.

Snippets Holden

Holden Special Vehicles [HSV] will sign off its Australian car manufacturing with a bang this year before HSV switches to modifying European imports cars from 2018 for the domestic market. The plan is to produce a limited run of the most powerful and most technologically advanced and most expensive sedan in the 69 years since Holden pioneered the ‘Made in Australia’ car. Designated as the HSV GTSR W1, the limited to 300 unit production will be powered by supercharged 6.2-litre LS9 V8 sourced from GM, USA mated to six-speed manual or automatic transmissions.. The sedan will offer jaw dropping supercar-like 474kW of power and more than 815Nm of torque. Like other models in the 2017 HSV range, the GTSR and its W1 spinoff get a throaty new exhaust note after HSV relaxed the bi-model system’s nanny controls. Externally, the GTSR W1 is set apart by liberal use of carbon-fibre on features such as the rear spoiler, front splitter and side vents. Suspension set-up is coilover springs and dampers from SupaShock instead of Magnetic Ride Control semi-active suspension of the GTSR. The GTSR and GTSR W1 sit on asymmetric forged alloy 20in wheels that are nine inches wide at the front and 10 inches wide at the back with the GTSR shod with roadgoing Continental ContiSportContact 5P tyres and for the GTSR W1 track oriented Pirelli P Zero Trofeos.

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Production Milestones Rolls-Royce

After a successful 13-year run, ultra luxury carmaker RollsRoyce has ended production of the Phantom Gen VII. The last car was a LWB special commission. The first new product produced after BMW purchased the rights to the brand in 1998, Gen VII Phantom was introduced in 2003 before the arrival of the Series II in early 2012. The Gen VII successor will be underpinned by a new all-aluminium architecture that will also form the basis of Rolls’ forthcoming first SUV, dubbed the Cullinan.

Mercedes-AMG

2017 is the 50th anniversary of AMG which was started business as an independent engineering firm specializing in performance improvements for Mercedes vehicles. Daimler-Benz AG took a controlling interest in 1999, then became sole owner of AMG in 2005. Mercedes-AMG GmbH is now a wholly owned subsidiary of Daimler AG and Mercedes-AMG is headquartered in Affalterbach, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. To celebrate the ocassion, Mercedes-AMG is rolling out three new special edition models including the Mercedes-AMG GT C Roadster Edition 50. The cars will be displayed at the 2017 Geneva Motor Show this month.

People in the news Carlos Ghosn of the Renault Group. Ghosn now wishes to focus more of his attention on the expansion and stewardship of the Alliance, as its Chairman and CEO and also move forward with latest acquisition Mitsubishi. At Nissan, Ghosn will be succeeded by Hiroto Saikawa San. “Having recently taken on new responsibilities at Mitsubishi Motors, and taking into consideration the upcoming Nissan general shareholders meeting, I have decided that the time is right for Hiroto Saikawa to succeed me as Nissan’s CEO,” said Ghosn. Saikawa San currently serves as Nissan’s co-CEO and a representative director.

BrandWatch

Brazilian national of Lebanese origin Carlos Ghosn perhaps is the most charismatic CEO the automotive industry has ever had.

His resume has an impeccable turnaround record and as always, there was million dollar question looming: who would succeed Ghosn eventually?

Part of the answer came in a few weeks ago after the recent expansion of the Renault-Nissan Alliance which now includes Mitsubishi Motors, positions the Alliance among the top automotive groups in terms of scale. Ghosn serves as Chairman of all three Alliance companies, and as Chief Executive Officer

Jozef Kaban It’s no secret that after BMW’s key design team members left the organisation, there was a senior level void that had to be filled. In the past few weeks, the German premium brand has lost Head of Design Karim Habib, MINI chief designer Anders Warming, i-brand designer Benoit Jacob and senior designer Richard Kim. BMW and design chief Adrian van

Hooydonk has announced former Volkswagen group designer Jozef Kaban will be in charge of BMW core brand design while Domagoj Dukec will take over as design head of BMW’s i and M vehicles. Both Kaban and Dukec are highly capable individuals and one can now expect fresh design approaches for the multibrand entity.

Xu Jianyi Xu Jianyi, the former chairman of one of China’s largest auto producers FAW Group Corporation was in the news last month for let’s say the wrong reason. Beijing No.1 Intermediate People’s Court sentenced the executive to 11-and-a-half years in prison for accepting bribes besides confiscating his personal property and ordered all illicit gains to be turned over to the national treasury.

The court found that during the

period 2000- 2013, Xu misused his position to help others with business contracts, promotions, and directly or indirectly accepted assets worth US$1.77mn. Xu had served as vice general manager, general manager and chairman of FAW Group Corp and was an influential member of the standing committee of Communist Party of China and and Party chief of Jilin city from 2000 to 2013.

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CoverDrive

Big Chief on a rampage Author: Raj Warrior

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The Grand Cherokee enters the region with a comprehensive mid-life upgrade, two beefed up and a whole new performance grade in the ‘Trailhawk’.

Automan drives this grade along with the new Summit and SRT versions on the roads around Frankfurt MAR 2017

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his is one model that has both literally and figuratively seen some tough terrain. The Jeep Grand Cherokee in its latest platform generation is a child of the tough times that Chrysler faced during the days during 2008 and 2009 when the company was rushing into bankruptcy.

Developed as a shared underpinning for both the Grand Cherokee and Mercedes’ ML, the WK2 platform was the perfect example of some solid engineering being throttled by financial woes. Even as the vaunted German-American partnership dissolved and Chrysler was left to face bankruptcy, the first moves to its current place in the FCA organisation were happening. And despite all the new models that have seen the light of day since, with the change to the Cherokee and the introduction of the Renegade, the Grand Cherokee takes its role of being the top dog rather seriously.

We were of course a little surprised when we received an invitation to explore the latest upgrades to the Grand Cherokee in Germany. After all we expected that the largest market and the one to which it has the deepest connect is the United States. Germany doesn’t have the same love of tiny hatchbacks that the rest of Europe has – but it hasn’t really evolved to being the favoured stomping ground of the large American SUV either. However, we shouldn’t forget that FCA is as much centred in Italy as it is in Detroit and as we were to learn later, the hills around Frankfurt provide some really demanding driving terrain in the snow of winter.

The Grand Cherokee with its new set of exterior panel work and interior suite was unveiled almost a year ago to the American public, while the Paris show served to present the car to Europe. What has changed, you may ask? Visually, not really so much – the tangible changes are in lighting elements, grille interpretations, hood shape and if you look closely, you’ll even notice the extra cameras and adjustable grille. The overall result is still very refreshing – the model is future 24

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proofed till the next major overhaul.

However, the interiors have undergone a major change. It still looks very familiar, with the UConnect 8.4-inch now in its high-definition screen and the dial type drive mode selector or the centre console. However, that is about the only commonality between the model variants that you will really notice. Even the instrument panel layout changes depending on the variant, with the SRT getting a large central tachometer, with a digital speed readout in the centre of the dial and a minimal layout of stuff around it. On the other hand the Summit and Trailhawk have a more regular layout, with the centred speedometer and flanking tach and other dials. All of this is of course made possible by the highly adaptable new IP backbone that has evolved across the FCA brands. Even the graphics and interface of the central screen has changed. Now, it is possible to call up pages, with detailed information about various aspects of the car. In the Trailhawk, a special off-road page details the nitty-gritty of ride height, wheel articulation and 4x4 modes.

Both the Summit and Trailhawk have a similar layout for the Selec-Terrain, linked to their Quadra-Trac II transmission as opposed to the Quadra-Trac offered on the SRT. This means that the low gear selector on the former two replaces the launch control that’s available on the latter. The Summit and Trailhawk are also offered with Quadra-Drive II. That’s of course not the end of the visual differentiators – the cabins are visually tailored for the three different identities these three trims offer.

The Summit is all luxury, leather and wood inserts and with chrome highlights that add to the shine, the Trailhawk is more down to earth, yet performance oriented, with black leather and suede, red motifs, shiny black inserts and brushed metal. The SRT is meant to communicate the interiors of the Dodge Challenger SRT or the likes.

Here the Black laguna leather is on sports bucket seats and the dashboard is very leather or metal.

The Trailhawk brings a new level of off-road performance to the Grand Cherokee, with extra ride height, longer wheel travel, beefed up axles and the ability to crawl at a variable speed with almost complete autonomy

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Now that the Grand Cherokee is so much more global, it is offered with a range of engines, with even the Summit coming in 3.0-litre multi-jet diesel, 3.6-litre V6 and 5.7-litre V8 options, while the SRT tops them all with the 6.4-litre V8. We don’t really expect to see the diesel on offer in Oman, but let’s take a look at the petrol engines on offer.

Engines The smallest of the petrol engines is by now the stalwart of not just the Grand Cherokee range, but is offered across many models in the CJD part of the FCA conglomerate. It dates back to the days of woe during the bankruptcy, but has added a very dependable powertrain that blends power and efficiency in its V6 layout. With 286PS on offer, the over-square dimensions of the pistons offer high torque of 347Nm, which go well with the eight-speed gearbox and the Quadra-Trac II transmission.

The larger 5.7-litre V8 is of course descended from the veritable push rod Hemis of yore, although now, technology and electronics has made the engine very modern, with fuelsaving technologies, like cylinder on demand.

The ratings are 352PS power and 520Nm of torque, the latter figure being the deciding factor in the Trailhawk’s performance across some really difficult terrain.

The largest of the engines is the over-bored 6.4-litre version of the Hemi, with larger bore and stroke as well as boosted compression ratio. Here too, fuel-saving technologies are used, but once you get the SRT into peak performance mode, that’s the last thing you have on mind. The power output is a staggering 468PS off a non-boosted engine, with a matched 624Nm of torque.

With all the talk of Quadra-Trac and Quadra-Drive, let’s also remind you that the basic Quadra-Trac doesn’t offer a low range transfer case, while the Quadra-Trac II does.

Additionally, the move to Quadra-Drive II adds in the electronic limited slip differentials along with the low-range.

Driving Impressions We had opportunity to drive all three variants of the Grand Cherokee. As luck would have it, our four-person team from the region was cut down to three due to one gentleman not joining and that gave the author the chance to be alone in a car through the event. On the drive out from the Hotel on Kennedy Alley in Frankfurt to the event location at Hofgut Mappen in the hills to the west of Wiesbaden, we covered the 60 or so kilometres in a 5.7-litre Summit. The Summit is designed for this sort of driving, perfectly suited to the needs of the German autobahn.

The cars now come with the latest generation of driver aids including adaptive 26

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AT A GLANCE

Jeep Grand Cherokee ON SALE First Quarter of 2017 ENGINES 3.6L V6, 24-valve Power 286 PS @ 6350rpm Torque 347 Nm @ 4300rpm 5.7L V8 Hemi, 16-valve Power 352 PS @ 5200rpm Torque 520 Nm @ 4200rpm 6.4L V8 Hemi, 16-valve Power 468 PS @ 6250rpm Torque 624 Nm @ 4100rpm TRANSMISSION Eight-speed automatic LAYOUT 5-door, 5-passenger, QuadraTrac (SRT) Quadra-Trac II or Quadra-Drive II (Summit and Trailhawk) SUSPENSION Quadra-Lift Air suspension Front: Short- and long-arm independent (SLA), coil springs, gas-charged, twin-tube coilover shock absorbers Rear: Multi-link rear suspension, coil spring, twin tube shocks (including load leveling for towing) Bilstein adaptive damping suspension (ADS) on SRT DIMENSIONS Wheelbase: 2,915mm Length: 4,822mm Width: 2,154mm Height: 1,761mm

The Summit variant brings the best elements of an upmarket interior including wood and leather trims as well as matched leather, while the SRT’s interior is transposed from a sportscar, including sports seats, a central tachometer and launch control

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cruise control, blind spot monitoring, lane departure warning and lane keep with active feedback on the steering wheel.

Put a large hearted engine and the smooth eight-speed gearbox in that car and you are cruising along with the best on the

autobahn, with a tap on the accelerator pushing you into speeds that would be highly illegal in Oman. We topped out at 220km/h on stretches and the car didn’t even seem taxed by the effort. Of course, the new generation of navigation also

helps in a strange environment. It is far more precise and uses the larger display area to offer visuals of autobahn exit ramps and proper signage to follow that keeps you in the correct lane.

On reaching Hofgut Mappen, we were

The three separate versions of the Grand Cherokee sport unique IP layouts as well as tailored Selec-Terrain options. Here the Trailhawk features low range as well as hill descent control.

The Trailhawk is available in both the 3.6-litre V6 and 5.7-litre V8 engines, while the SRT gets the 6.4-litre V8.

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taken through a brief product presentation before setting out on various drive loops from the getaway. The hills of the region are a fairyland in white in winter, with deep piled snow and temperatures in the range of minus 5 to minus 7 degrees Celsius.

In the first of the loops, we took on the challenge of the four-wheel drive track set out in the grounds of the estate. The combination of thickly wooded grounds, undulating terrain and deep snow made for a very challenging track. That’s really where the benefit of Quadra-Lift air suspension comes into play, with the ability to increase ground clearance, while selecting the low range. The lowest ratio is 44:1 and the car allows you to crawl through the muddy topsoil without having to do more than tap on the accelerator.

The Terrain modes are quite good and it is really nice now that the LSDs come into play instead of the older brake based torque splitter.

Hill descent mode brings with it the ability for the car to crawl at speeds up to 9km/h in increments of ½ km/h decided by taps on the gearshift paddles. That’s right, in that mode the gearshift paddle acts as speed selector rather than gear selector, another advantage of the flyby-wire platform the Grand Cherokee

now sports. Try threading yourself down a tight, winding path, over boulders and fallen trunks in snow and you realise why the team keep on reminding you not to hit the brakes as the car immediately starts sliding towards the nearest tree.

A little further down the track you hit the obligatory performance section with pits dug up to amplify the car’s wheel travel. This gives an interesting idea of how tight the monocoque body is as there is almost no noise other than the tyres banging off the course.

Once we got back to the holding area, we took out the SRT for the longish loop around the hills towards Bad Schwalbach and through a visit to the gates of a local winery as well. The air suspension on the SRT allows the car to sit lower, with the default settings also at a lower ride height. The Quadra-Trac on-demand AWD is rather useful in distributing the torque fore-aft. When you really stomp down on the accelerator you can feel the transfer of the torque to the rear. The weight transfer is also noticeable, with the curves actually communicating the length of the car behind you. The tyres sit on exclusive 20” alloys and provide decent grip even on slightly icy roads. In fact, it’s fun to push the SRT on sport setting through sharp

bends as you can feel the tail slip out and then come back.

Verdict The largest of the Jeep’s still stays a very capable 5-seater, but now comes tailored to the rather exacting demands of an increasingly choosy clientele. And that is especially true of the three variants at the top of the range. You can buy the sumptuous offerings of the Summit even in the V6-engine. The Trailhawk is however another ballgame altogether. If you are really serious about the Trailhawk, take it with all the bells and whistles including the 5.7-litre engine and the Quadra-Drive II transmission and even throw in a winch if you must. The advantage of the QuadraLift air suspension is pretty obvious, with the Trailhawk allowing for a higher ride height than normal. We would be surprised if it doesn’t become a runaway success among the breed of GCC weekend warriors.

And then of course there is the SRT. In some ways it is a simpler vehicle than both its siblings although way more powerful.

It doesn’t try to out-SUV anything. In essence it is a muscle car in some bulky hardware packaged with tons of attitude.

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RoadTest

Redefining the threshold Author: Raj Warrior | Photography: Elvis John Ferrao

Lexus IS350 brings a potent mix to the table when it entices the first time buyer of a premium compact sedan

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n many ways Lexus is as much an American brand as it is Japanese. The whole thrust to develop it as a separate identity began in the United States and the models increasingly grew to fulfil the needs of the affluent American customer.

And the competition was well and truly taken to the premium American brands that somehow had quite misread the ability for this upstart Japanese marque to appeal to their customers.

However, over the years, the brand has internationalised not just its presence but also some of its product mix and one of the early movements in that direction was with the introduction of the IS range in 1999, which targeted a new breed of customers across Europe and Australia as much as it remained integral to Lexus in the US. It is this global appeal that has made the IS so much a part of the Middle East’s

motoring culture too. Even in it’s third generation, the car offers a potent mix – a very tight, well-engineered rear-wheel drive platform in the XE30, premium interiors, with a focus on blending hints of luxury appeal with sportiness, a compact footprint and a range of engine’s that allow the customer to draw a balance between performance needs and the price of the car.

The car’s length is 4,680mm and it sports MAR 2017

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AT A GLANCE

Lexus IS350 ENGINE Cooper Countryman 3.5 litres (3,456 cc) 2GR-FSE V6 with aluminium block and cylinder heads. DOHC 24 valve with dual continuously Variable Valve Timing with intelligence (VVT-i) Power: 312HP @ 6,400rpm Torque: 378Nm @4,800rpm TRANSMISSION 8-speed Electronically Controlled automatic Transmission with intelligence (ECT-i) LAYOUT 4-door, 5-passenger, monocoque with rear-wheel drive SUSPENSION Front: Double wishbones with high-mount upper arms, coil springs, gas-filled shock absorbers, stabilizer bar Rear: Multilink, coil springs, gas-filled shock absorbers, stabilizer bar DIMENSIONS Wheelbase: 2,800mm Length: 4,680mm Width: 1,810mm Height: 1,430mm DRIVING STABILITY SYSTEMS Four-wheel power-assisted disc brakes with Anti-lock Braking System (ABS) and Electronic Brake Force Distribution (EBD), Brake Assist (BA), Vehicle Stability Control (VSC) and Traction Control (TRAC) - all systems integrated with Vehicle Dynamic Integrated Management system (VDIM) 32

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a wheelbase of 2,800mm. You can see the way in which the longer wheelbase affects the proportions of the car. As it is, the rising profile manages to include a rather prominent hood and the A-pillar seems slightly offset to the rear. The resulting wedge shape is further enhanced by the way in which the C-pillar rakes back, taking with it an almost fastback rear window that meets a raised and chopped short rear deck. The Lexus standard adapted Hoffmeister kink is visible on the rear quarter glass area, sitting rather nicely with the slightly aggressive over-fenders and the rising beltline.

Over the years in the third generation,

the tweaks to the fascia have resulted in defining the double spindle grille a lot more, especially in the F-sport that flanks the grille with huge scoops and some rather catching bodywork. This is one Lexus model that seeks to define itself visually without seeking a safer field of blandness and the bulk of customers will love the effort.

The interiors have undergone the same level of exacting design. The dashboard is multi-layered and multi-dimensional.

While the cabin is split into clearly defined cockpit spaces, with an emphasis towards the driver, the connection is kept across the horizontal sightline as well, largely

The IS brings some of the most telling design inputs of Lexus’ new direction, from the double spindle grille to the ‘fastback’ profile and a ratio that puts the driver in the centre of the wheelbase. The IS also uses its rear-wheel drive platform to the maximum

due to the almost flat top surface of the dashboard. The difference between the cabins of the IS350 Elegance and the F-Sport versions are focussed on the sporty elements of the equation. You get a different choice of leather combination colours, a sportier seat profile, the F-sport steering wheel and the dedicated instrument panel with a tachometer centric layout.

This time around, we drove both the top of the line versions of the 350 in the Exclusive and F-Sport. The question we asked ourselves was why would someone actually pay a couple of thousand Rials extra for the F-Sport, when the Exclusive

offers almost everything except Lane departure keep and warning, adaptive cruise control, active height control and rear cross-traffic alert? And of course the F-Sport badging and accoutrements that make the car visually stand out? Did we forget to mention the 15-speaker Mark Levinson surround system too along with active noise control?

As we were to learn in the follow up drive we had on the F-Sport, you fall in love with the combination. We’ll tell you more about that in the Driving Impressions section of this story.

While the F-Sport is available with the entry-level 2.0-litre turbocharged engine,

we would rather that you chose the 3.5-litre V6 version.

The IS range is available with either a 241hp, 350Nm turbocharged inline-four engine or the better known 3.5-litre V6 unit with 312hp and 378Nm. Both of these engines come mated to an eight-speed automatic gearbox.

Driving Impressions We had the IS350 exclusive with us for an extended period and you quickly learn why this sedan challenges the German C-segment so effectively. For a start, the sporty nature of the car is instantly tangible MAR 2017

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While the IS350 Exclusive already offers a host of features that benchmark the segment, it is the F-Sport variant that pushes ahead with sport layout tachometer, lane keeping, rear cross traffic alert and adaptive cruise control. Of course the best is also the 15-speaker Mark Levinson system with active noise cancellation.

Additionally the F-sport gets a Sport+ drive mode and adaptive suspension elements.

The IS350 Exclusive offers a more luxury oriented interior, although the treatment is black leather on piano black plastic and brushed metal inserts.

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from the tight handling, quick responses from the gas pedal and gearbox and the snug feel of the driver’s cockpit. The rearwheel drive is so welcome that you can and do try to push the car into sport mode and turn off traction control. The chassis is very responsive, with just a little degree of give, although the suspension is not as hard as its competitors.

You get drive mode selection on both the Exclusive and the F-Sport, although the F-Sport tops the genre with an extra Sport + mode that means you don’t have to play around with the TCS. The performance envelope does get significantly larger, with the ability to throw the tail out a bit before the yellow lights and nanny comes back into play. The torque available in the 3.5-litre is good and with the car’s ability to keep the gears low, pushing the engine to rev to 5,000 before reacting, the IS does bring some smiles on test roads. You also notice the reaction from the F-Sport’s adaptive suspension, especially around

tight corners.

The electric power steering on these grades is set up slightly differently and so is the immediacy of gearshifts, especially when you are in Sport+ mode. The added stiffness thrown in by the adaptive suspension also serves to allow you 1020km/h extra entry speeds as you take a curve.

But the IS is also very much at home just cruising around town on the mundane commute. You will notice the F-Sport’s active noise cancellation especially when you think you are revving the engine and the sound takes forever to build up.

Combine this feature with the awesome sound system on board and even the shabby local FM broadcast gains some mellifluous timbre.

features to the equation. You get one of the best-equipped interiors with a new generation 10.3” screen, the full safety package, a responsive engine and some really worthwhile driver aids.

Add to that the overall value the car offers and its price point and you have a car that appeals as much to your need for performance as it does to your pocket.

As for us, we think that of the two you should opt for the F-sport, not just for the additional driver assist elements it has, but for the slight boost in road manners as well as those amazing LED headlamps.

And let’s not forget the sound system that makes the interior almost completely detached from the mayhem that’s being belted out on the tarmac.

Verdict If you are in the market for a C-segment premium sedan, the IS350 brings many

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RoadTest

Not quite the top dog!

But it’s still a handful Author: Raj Warrior | Photography: Elvis John Ferrao

The Porsche Cayenne GTS sits along with the more powerful Turbo S as the performance pair at the top of the line.

Although limited to a V6 engine, the GTS still proves to be a bundle of fun 36

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he Porsche Cayenne is the model that makes Porsche among the most profitable car companies in the world. When it was introduced, few people actually understood the rationale behind a sportscar manufacturer wanting to make an SUV. Admittedly, the SUV market itself was opening up, with brands outside the continental United States beginning to find favour with their customers as they moved them into the utility platforms of the SUV from their regular cars. And

that appeal was certainly being felt in Germany, after the runaway success of the BMW X5 and the Mercedes-Benz M-class.

Volkswagen were ready with their model for the demand and it was just a little bit out of the normal when the model was understood to be a joint VW-Porsche development.

However, the Cayenne has proven to be the right product at the right time. In the early days it was seen as an aggressive attempt to transpose the sportscar genes

of the Porsche brand into the larger format of the SUV. So much so, that the Cayenne took on a very determined profile in its attempt to communicate the 911. While most buyers understood that this was rather overstated, the end result still saw an influx of entirely new customers into the brand’s fold, people who loved the idea of power and speed and who were happier at the rather affordable entry point for Porsche.

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The Porsche Cayenne GTS pairs with the more powerful V8-equipped biturbo Turbo S as the performance versions of the SUV. The GTS is itself powered in this generation by a 3.6-litre V6 turbo engine, while the car sits 20mm lower

evolved, shedding weight, moving to a more rigid Type 92A platform and delivering an expanded range of variants that take customers from those previously described affordable price points to almost obscene heights.

It was only a matter of time before the Turbo S became the de facto range topper, while the GTS evolved ever so nicely as the not-quite a Turbo S variant.

That’s where the GTS is positioned.

There isn’t anything that would set it apart visually except that its body kit is made just that little bit more aggressive. It gets the skirts and intakes of a sportscar, dedicated 20” alloy wheels and for some 38

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reason, practically every GTS we have seen is in a bright red. It helps that the exterior design shares some elements from the Turbo; they are very in your face and aggressive like the large air intakes that beef up the fascia. Our test car had the slightly better looking 21” tyres and wheels of the Turbo S. The interiors are also distinctly different from the regular Cayenne’s. You still get the rising centre column and its stacked switches leading up to the display, but the elements are very red on black, with sports seats tailored for the GTS and the tachometer with the GTS logo.

Of all the model variants, the GTs is

supposed to find that perfect balance between power and handling. The specifications of the car include a 3.6-litre V6 engine with 430hp of power and 600Nm of torque mated to an eight-speed tiptronic S transmission and the quick reaction times of the Porsche Traction Management system. In addition the car gets the Porsche Active Suspension Management variable ride response, with the default ride setting being 20mm lower than on other Cayenne models.

The move to the V6-engine in this generation of the GTS saw it drop from the smaller of the V8’s on offer. Despite the new format and lower volume, the

AT A GLANCE

Porsche Cayenne GTS ON SALE Currently in showrooms ENGINE 3.6-litre V6 twin-turbo engine Power: 440 hp @ 6,000rpm Torque: 600Nm @ 16005000rpm TRANSMISSION Eight speed Tiptronic S LAYOUT 5-door, 5-passenger, Longitudinal V6 with Porsche Active Transmission Management SUSPENSION Chassis combines a steel suspension with the Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM) system. Ride height lowered compared to other Cayenne models – 20 mm with standard air suspension Front: Aluminum double wishbone Rear: Aluminum multi-link DIMENSIONS Wheelbase: 2,895mm Length: 4,855mm Width: 2,165mm Height: 1,685mm (Normal) WHEELS 21” Turbo Design Wheel 10J x 21” ET 50 295/35 R21 Tyres instead of the standard 20” RS Spyder Design Wheels in Black (Satin finish)

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The Porsche Cayenne GTS brings the best of the sports element to the platform without the excesses of the the biturbo V8-engine. The cabin sports deeply bolstered sports seats with red piping and the GTS emblem, while the central tachometer in red is flanked by four dials, that include the speedometer.

The centre console is the Porsche specific unit that gives one-touch access to different drive and suspension modes as well as to a rather elaborate air-conditioning layout.

The lighter yet tighter platform has shed weight due to targeted use of high-tensile strength materials, allowing for additional consumer facing weight.

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engine carries over elements from the top of the line V8 like its high availability of torque from the twin-turbo layout. In fact, the current GTS is rated higher than the 4.8-litre non-turbo unit that it replaced.

Driving impressions Take the car around Muscat to any destination and the combination of the aggressive body kit; bright red colour and the GTS badge make other drivers want to try to race you. The temptation is overwhelming, because you can opt for a tighter ride package, select the Sport setting and really let loose. While the car comes with the obligatory engine auto start/stop, it disengages in Sport mode, the throttle opens up and the baffle descends in the exhaust. The sound of a burbly turbo engine settles in and you gradually stop trying to stay in the speed limits as the car brings out the firepower.

Typical to any turbo – the sweet spot comes in around 2,000 plus rpm but the power delivery isn’t too peakish. It looks like the power curve has also been

tempered to deliver like a V8 and you don’t really need to keep the car in lower gears to pull away hard. What is really amazing is the sheer breadth of the response envelope. Shift a gear too high and the engine’s torque jumps in to compensate, try to push too low and the power boost is ever ready to tell you to shift up. It is a forgiving drive train, but one that allows you to really hammer down when needed.

Steering response is very direct and this is one time you don’t miss the slightly elevated boost of an electrical system.

As with the turbos on the engine, the steering effort is variable, very direct at highway speeds without too much boost, while parking lot turns are catered to by adequate boost.

But it’s not just the impetus and braking of the car that impress. Take the GTS into any series of turns and you feel the car squat down into them. The weight isn’t something to trifle with – after all much of the weight shed by the platform has been regained in equipment. But the physics of large tyre patches from the low profile 21” tyres, a lower CG and a chassis that allows

itself to be loaded without desperately rocking back make for a very stable corner.

The traction management also shifts torque around to compensate for the steering inadequacies, neutralising most of the understeer and placing the body in a good position for the boost of speed as you come out of the corner.

Verdict The way to best connect to the GTS is not so much a poorer version of the Turbo S, for after all with a price tag that’s north of RO 40,000 it still isn’t a cheap car. What it does is to offer a very good handling package with the high output V6 engine and it takes the very best elements of the variable response of the chassis and ties it in with the adaptive suspension. And you get the sort of visual distinction that tells people that you appreciate a finer Cayenne, through the badges and body kit, the sportier interiors with the crossstitched leather and the large GTS labelled tachometer.

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RoadTest

Soul Shifters

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KIA depends on the Soul to establish its character as a trendy, lifestyle-oriented brand. And the Soul lives up to the challenge.

Meet the Crossover of ideas.

Author: Raj Warrior | Photography: Elvis John Ferrao

T

he KIA Soul is a model that is linked to the development and growth story of KIA Motors. A decade ago, as the brand looked at becoming a truly global player, one realisation was that design needed to be influenced by disparate markets, not just by the home office in Seoul. The original Soul was the result of American influence in the design process and served to connect with the new design idiom being projected from the very top. In many ways, the Soul served as a departure from the accepted for company identity.

Despite its striking new face, the Soul did suffer from the niggles of any first generation product. In its eagerness to create a youthful interior, there were questions raised about the quality of the plastics used, but the company was quick to respond with mid-model upgrades and rejigs.

Now, the second generation of the Soul has been with us from a couple of years and we picked up a 2016 model to do a quick test drive on. The platform has been rejigged for this generation, with a longer wheelbase and wider stance accompanied by new styling inspired from the KIA Track’ster concept. The idea is of a very urban focussed vehicle, with the snub nosed fascia blending on into large headlamps, a towering A-pillar and a flat roof that implies a rearward slope because of the graphical elements. The MAR 2017

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The second generation of the KIA Soul continues the brand’s attempt to define a lifestyle car that focuses on design and utility to offer a younger audience an interesting ride. To that effect the floating roof and large wheels make this a visually distinct crossover

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AT A GLANCE

KIA Soul ON SALE Currently in showrooms ENGINES 1.6L I-4 DOHC Gasoline Direct Injection (GDI) Power: 123HP @ 6,300rpm Torque: 152Nm @ 4,850rpm TRANSMISSION 6-speed automatic transmission with sportmatic and active Eco Selectable drive modes between Normal, Eco and Sport LAYOUT 5-door, 5-passenger Unibody with transverse inline-4 engine and front-wheel drive SUSPENSION Front: MacPherson Strut Rear: Coupled Torsion beam axle (CTBA) DIMENSIONS Wheelbase: 2,570mm Length: 4,140mm Width: 1,800mm Height: 1,600mm WHEELS & TYRES 7.5J x 18 alloy wheels P235/45 R18 tyres DRIVING STABILITY SYSTEMS Four-wheel power-assisted disc brakes with Anti-lock Braking System (ABS) and Electronic Stability Control with Tyre pressure monitoring system (2017 MY).

Motor driven power steering with selectable assist levels between Comfort, Normal and Sport

rear of the car is rather unique with its C-shaped vertical light elements, uniquely designed hatch and squat bumpers.

This sub-compact crossover has a wheelbase of 2,570mm on a length of only 4,140mm, thus pushing the wheels into a very ‘in the corner’ stance and delivering a large usable cabin space.

The overhangs are hardly noticeable.

As for the unique profile, the use of a blacked-out pillar makes the roof look like it is floating over the glasshouse and the brand has taken that to heart by also offering colour combinations that in true lifestyle fashion allow the roof to standout. It looks likes lessons learned from MINI in the first generation are also being carried over in the second.

The interiors have also evolved nicely. The cabin is now longer and thus offers better legroom at both front and rear, The steering wheel is a rather elaborately done three-spoke unit with four-way switches on both arms, as well as additional flanking buttons for the menu controls and Bluetooth control of the phone.

The instrument panel is a hybrid of two analogue dials with a large display area in between which works very nicely

to serve up tripmeter and audio info. Of course no lifestyle vehicle can get away without a larger, better looking central display and the Soul gets that too in the form of 5” colour touchscreen flanked by the selector buttons for various functional groupings. This screen sits under the central air-conditioning louvers and above the dedicated a/c control unit itself.

Below that you get the Drive mode selector button that allows you to control the response of the gearbox and engine between an Eco, normal and sport mode.

The gearshift lever gets its own acreage with a nice leather sleeve and chromed rims. The centre console has room to accommodate the needs of a modern day existence like a mobile phone and the like, along with the necessary USB slot to provide power to the gadget and link it up with the media console.

The car has a lot of storage spaces built in over the cabin, including enough cup-holders. The other highlight of the new dashboard is the way in which the flanking air-conditioning louvers have been paired with the front tweeters in a sort of air-tower. All of this is very MAR 2017

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The KIA Soul manages to stand apart visually while using many of the mechanicals of the rest of the brand’s crossovers, like the 1.6-litre engine, the motor assisted steering with variable modes as well as the drive select modes on the 6-speed automatic transmission.

The compact layout builds on a tallboy feel that is broken by the use of a different colour on the roof, giving it a floating effect.

The car is specified with the largest 18”-wheel combination with a very upmarket interior and a 5”-colour display that integrates most functions.

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distinct from anything else in the segment, without trying to mimic a benchmark.

The rear bench is another utility feature, with the ability to fold down and enlarge the storage volume available.

The Soul comes to the market with the 1.6-litre Gamma engine with CVVT and an output of 123hp@6,300rpm and a reasonable torque of 152Nm. This engine is mated with a decent six-speed automatic gearbox.

Driving Impressions The beauty about the KIA Soul’s drive is that you never start out picturing it as anything but a cornice cruiser. It doesn’t communicate hot hatch despite its shape; it is more about attitude. And you won’t be far out thinking that. The hot hatch version of the Soul is sold elsewhere with a 7-speed dual-clutch gearbox and a turbocharged 1.6-litre engine. Here it is meant to appeal to the neophyte, with its style and substance staying distinct from any hard performance zone. Admittedly

the car does have the usual combination of a Sport mode button and the means to adjust steering response to Sport as well.

What this does is to change the character of response from a very US-centric lifestyle car to something very much more European, slightly quicker off the blocks, slightly firmer in the turns and overall a bit more interesting as a package. We’ve got to admit we went Sport and stayed there.

That’s not to say the car is bad in terms of handling. The suspension pairing of MacPherson strut at the front and Torsion beam at the rear is predictable. This time around the rear springs are vertical so wheel travel is slightly enhanced although the arrangement still remains very compact and space saving. The electric steering assist is the weak point in the handling package, often not keeping up with the immediacy and intent on the curves. That’s why we kept it in Sport mode as we flogged the Soul through the climbs.

One very big plus is the presence of the large 18”-wheels that don’t just fill-up the

space in the wheel bays, they also provide for a very stable ride.

Verdict If you are young, need a first car and want to stick out from the crowd, you don’t really get too many other options in this price range. Over the past decade the Soul has managed to serve itself up as a clear lifestyle vehicle and KIA has profited from the model’s appeal. Frankly, nothing has changed in the model’s second generation, the car still has this unique mix of standout styling, roomy packaging, compact exterior footprint, thoughtfully crafted interiors and a choice of features that is only limited by the appetite of the market to spend on a small car. The Soul is a buy of passion and is available currently in either the 2016 or 2017 model years, with the only difference being the addition of ESC and tyre pressure monitoring on the newer model. This pushes up the price by around RO 750 to RO 7,150 Rials. It’s definitely worth a look.

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RoadTest

Challenging the compact order Photography: Elvis John Ferrao

T

he Ford Ecosport CUV represents the ability of Ford to look at global product lines to target niches in specific markets. While the EcoSport name has been used before [it was used in a mini sport utility vehicle (SUV) built in Brazil

by Ford Brazil since 2003], the secondgeneration concept model bearing the same name was launched in 2012 and the production version is also assembled in a new facility in Chennai, India. The Middle East variants are being imported from this facility.

Since the Ecosport is a crossover, it is mechanically based on the Ford Fiesta B2E platform/subcompact architecture but in no way does it appear as a Fiesta on stilts.

Despite its size, the EcoSport’s chunky styling and bold front-end treatment are more soft-roader-ish than a typical supermini. The most interesting design cues are at the front, where a corporate flattened nose and large grille dominate the styling. The futuristic trapezoidal grille will also feature on future Ford SUVs 48

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and the SUV/CUV treatment is further confirmed with the angular headlamps and a short bonnet that folds into the thick front A-pillars. That product build quality has moved up at Ford is evident with the finish of the EcoSport’s sheetnmetal.

While the EcoSport may appear like a tallboy, its aerodynamically sculpted lines ensure a coefficient of drag of 0.365, which is quite good for the class and good for the quietness inside the cabin. At the rear, a large rear window wraps around to the sides along with oblique taillamps and instead of a lift gate arrangement [not possible since the spare wheel is attached], it uses a side hinge arrangement. The gate handle is smartly built into the tail-lamp assembly.

Since it is a new product, it gets a lot of new technology and applications and some common corporate stuff. Stand out features include the latest Ford SYNC driver connect system, a unique voice command system co- developed with Microsoft.

Advanced climate control and a centrally

mounted LCD screen with SYNC controls are also included. The main infotainment panel is familiar, and uses the same old mobile phone-theme inspired interface that Ford has been promoting since 2008.

Rest of the interior is stylish, modern and well equipped for five adults. Stand out features influenced by the Mustang are the gear shifter and from the corporate stable is the location of the manual shifter toggle switch on the left hand side of the gear knob. The 333litres of cargo space is surprisingly practical, extending to 1,238 litres with the rear seat folded down.

Safety features include dual front airbags anti-lock brakes (ABS), electronic stability program (ESP), Hill Assist and rear parking sensors.

The EcoSport is offered in the region with top-of-the range 1.5-litre fourcylinder SOHC iVTEC engine offering 118hp at 6,600rpm and torque of 148Nm at 4,800rpm. Power is transferred to the front wheels via 5-speed automatic transmission.

Ford’s EcoSport CUV continues to prove its worth for the barnd as an effective entrylevel crossover. Automan checks out the car


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The Ford Ecosport may be at the entry level for the brand’s crossover presence in the region, but that doesn’t prevent it from featuring bluetooth connections, Sync and some very good specifications for the Titanium grade.

The 1.5-litre Ti-VCT engine is at the heart of the crossover’s performance, nicely matched to a 6-speed automatic shift with Ford’s traditional +/- button to manually shift gears. The Titanium also gets 16”-alloy wheels and 205/60R16 tyres.

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Driving impressions One of the benefits of having a tallboy approach is that not only does it allow designers to create generous head room but also facilitates a high driving [command] position for the driver. Besides good visibility, it also becomes comfortable for the driver access to the controls on the instrument panel. The small SUV’s comfort is also evident in the ergonomically friendly seating with anatomical cutouts and side bolsters, which support the body comfortably.

Assuming the garb of a typical user in Oman, we decided to stretch the test beyond the usual. The car is basically a two-wheel drive and its on- and off-road performance is pretty impressive due to the robust engine and the gear shifting is quite smooth. Considering the tiny displacement of the naturally fed engine under the bonnet, the car is surprisingly agile and swift on the move. While driving in typical city conditions, the automatic gearbox upshifts a bit early, but maintains a relatively low engine speed. This type of mapping helps improve fuel economy.

A tap on the accelerator pedal gets good

response. One would normally expect a flat delivery, but that doesn’t happen, as power delivery is linear. However, the engine’s lack of sporty oomph in the midrange comes through.

Under heavy loads where the engine is taxed to the maximum, it can get a bit noisy but this is when the S drive mode comes in handy. The correct thing to do in such a situation is to stick the car in Sport mode where for starters gears will be held for longer and the torque band gets wider.

In this mode, the CUV feels peppier and more responsive to drive. The fun part comes when you know that in S mode, the transmission will also allow manual selection gears. In terms of acceleration from standstill it will do the 0 to 100km/h sprint in respectable 13.5secs, which isn’t too bad either.

On the handling side, the Ecosport lives up to its promises. Unlike the Fiesta which has been the toast of its class since 2008, the MacPherson strut front and twist-beam rear suspension in the CUV had to be well tied down to control the high-mounted body. Although, the suspension set-up is calibrated for a soft ride we know this is a tough balancing job considering the car’s

smaller diameter wheels. As expected, there’s a bit of body roll in corners, but the damping system is very fast to react and ensure there’s no excessive wallowing.

In general, driving the car is pleasurable, thanks to nice steering weight and feedback, which is almost as precise and responsive as the Fiesta. What’s more, the tyres offer good grip and the ride is surprisingly comfortable. Off-road, the Ecosport takes full advantage of its weight distribution and the light duty trails we went around with the car offered virtually no resistance or rude shocks, this despite having no all-wheel drive systems.

Verdict Like the new trend of compact CUVs, the Ecosport has been conceived and executed very well under the Ford One global strategy. Punters will find the Ecosport an aspirational compact utility vehicle and a befitting alternative to a typical 2WD small car. The EcoSport is roomy and practical, with expectedly good on-road manners.

A version with a four-wheel-drive option [not available yet] would have given the car more USP and so does the price point.

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AlsoDriven

2017 Toyota Fortuner

Building on its Fortunes Photography: Elvis John Ferrao

The Toyota Fortuner continues to appeal to the newly prosperous middle class having lost its rather utilitarian image and gaining a degree of style

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he Fortuner is one of those vehicles that steer clear of having an identity crisis. You would never mistake it for a crossover, what with the large unbroken mass of the doors and the high seat height.

Then once the engine cranks in and settles down into a rumble, the communication of extra power on hand comes through. And then when you really want to take it on the road, or indeed off-road, the Fortuner communicates its rather Spartan origins.

The amazing bit is how Toyota have managed to take their learnings in the Fortuner and apply them to deliver a better vehicle all-around. Admittedly an SUV that was designed for use in third-world countries, the Fortuner was evolved from the common platform of the IMV designed and engineered in Thailand. Now consider – the stalwart on this platform is the HiLux and we have all seen how this generation of the HiLux itself has evolved into a much more refined creature. Yes, you can still throw a ton of goods into the load bay, but the style and the cabin comforts are

on hand to make you feel like the owner of the company rather than just a mundane employee.

The Fortuner takes this mindset ahead with a vengeance. Whether it is the styling, with the new grille, reworked headlights, the aggressive C-pillar with the blacked out and notched in treatment of the glass between the C and D-pillars that seems to be Lexus-inspired, or indeed the reworked rear end, the Fortuner is keen to communicate a sense of modernity.

One of the problems with body on frame vehicles is the height of the body as it sits on the frame. This is especially true when the end result is intended for off -road use. The proportions are better handled now, with a metallic hued running board managing to lower the sightlines and the beefed up fender compensating for the height. Around the rear of the Fortuner, the emphasis is again on giving an impression of width as the framing and taillights are laid out horizontally, with a nice mix of chrome inserts. In the higher-

grade car that we picked up – a 4.0-litre VX – you cannot fault the interior. It’s the sort of cabin that you would see in competition from a segment above at the very least.

The leather feel seats, wooden steering wheel and inserts, instrumentation and soft-feel plastics all speak of a class of vehicle that seems a little detached from the utilitarian reality of the Fortuner.

It’s going to be the single most important factor in getting new customers into the Fortuner. The IP panel is combined with a large central display and the dashboard itself is designed to maximise the legroom available. It seems a little vertical but that’s nicely compensated by the use of layering, double-stitched seams and surfaces that can be used. You don’t get caught out by any ungainly instrumentation.

Cabin comfort is top notch, with a new colour of leather on offer, a better than expected sound system, quick release access to the third row and a power tailgate. The large display also doubles up as a rearview monitor for the camera. The MAR 2017

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vehicle comes with two choices of engine, like before. The 2.7-litre four-pot generates 165hp and the V6 4.0-litre has an output of 235hp. And the automatic gearbox on offer is a six-speed unit with rather short gearing in the lower reaches. The parttime 4WD system uses a selector knob to engage 4WD and low range and there is a proper rear di lock available. Added ruggedness comes from the reworked frame, strengthened to handle greater twist and stresses while the suspension has been reworked to include coils on all of the wheel points and a better damping. The Fortuner can take on rocks like a champion, showing a good level of articulation – the benefit of all that height we spoke about.

There are a few dummied up switch positions as you would expect in an SUV allowing you to add in some mods as required without cutting into the dash any further. We consider ourselves a little bigger than average, but even we need to clamber aboard – the hip point is relatively high but the running board helps as does the grab handle on the A-pillar. Once on board, housekeeping features like pairing your i-Phone and getting the music blasting over the Bluetooth take no time at all, handled very well by the system. It’s all touch screen interface nowadays anyway.

We didn’t check the mapping out because our test car didn’t have the map SD card on-board but we would expect the high resolution of the display to generate a clear grid.

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Driving Impressions On the straight and narrow, you can decide how noisy the Toyota Fortuner gets. Floor the accelerator and you feel the grind of the shorter ratios before the car gets it legs out and away. The Fortuner’s NVH is way better than before and the cabin is well isolated. You barely feel a speed breaker. The only time you remember the origins of the SUV is when you take turns – weight shift is apparent and the roll sets in, but this time the recovery is much quicker and the power steering handles it like a champ. There is a decided lightness to the steering’s feel, which is good in most cases.

It’s only on sand that we feel there should be a little more directness of feel through the column. Low gear is well chosen, as you can literally crawl up steep inclines.

You can’t really fault the drivetrain and the suspension combination – the engineers have ironed out any shortcomings of past iterations.

Verdict The new generation Fortuner takes the story of the IMV platform ahead – it’s better looking; seems better engineered and it is de nitely classier than the vehicle we are used to. The price point remains in the same zone and it looks like the brand is looking at buyers who would normally be buying into crossovers.

AT A GLANCE ENGINE 4.0L V6 DOHC Dual-VVTi Power: 235HP Torque: 376Nm LAYOUT 5-door, 5-passenger body on frame with longitudinal V6 engine and rear-wheel biased selectable part-time 4WD DIMENSIONS Wheelbase: 2,745mm Length: 4,795mm Width: 1,855mm Height: 1,835mm

AlsoDriven

2016 Lincoln MKX

The challenger from Lincoln Photography: Elvis John Ferrao

The all-new Lincoln MKX takes its bourgeois origins with the Edge’s underpinnings and produces a crossover that combines utility and luxury elements

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he MKX is built using the CD3 platform of the Ford Edge and the last generation (that’s the post 2010 model) looked very much like an Edge with a new front end tagged on to the front.

That has changed dramatically. Finally the entire outer panelling has been re-skinned so that the MKX actually looks nothing like the Edge.

The main changes are around the front fascia – the headlights are designed from the outset to incorporate the LED light piping that mirrors the piping at the outer points of the lower airdam.

The car we got for our test drive was the top of the line variant that came specced out with the 2.7-litre Ecoboost engine and some other interesting kit. Part of that kit is the 360-degree camera setup that has lenses in the pop-out logo on the fascia, under the mirrors and in the tailgate release. Another feature is the inclusion of a very large panoramic sunroof. Both of these do their bit to de ne the exterior impression with the roof rails o setting the glass roof. The tail of the car is as 56

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interesting as the front – the design now offers a small lip on top of a horizontal arrangement of the taillights across the width of the tailgate and onto the D-pillar area, where they open out like wings. The rear pane is quite large for the wedge like style lines.

The large door panels hog the profile of the car and the rear hatch seems to slope away much more aggressively than before although that effect is largely an result of the styling around the C and D-pillars.

The interiors are very much modern day Lincoln. The interiors are clad with a leather feel plastic and soft-feel surfaces that match with the wood and brushed aluminium elements of the panel inserts and centre console. The cabin has a distinct cockpit feel with the centre console taking pride of place.

Buttons that run down the sides of the console include the gearshift buttons on the driver’s side and buttons for automated parking, the 360-degree camera and the parking sensors.

The MKX is available with either the

3.7-litre Ti-VCT V6 engine for the lower two models or the 2.7-litre V6 Ecoboost engine. The difference in power output is quite significant – with 303hp for the naturally aspirated engine and 335hp for the boosted one. What’s even better is that the torque on the boosted unit rises to 380 lb-ft (515 Nm).

The transmission is a six-speed Selectshift automatic transmission and the car is provided with paddle-shift controls.

The car’s all-wheel drive arrangement is still very much in tune with the crossover nature of the SUV. There’s no elaborate locking controller or drive mode selector other than choosing the S mode over D. The Reserve edition, the one that we were driving, comes kitted out with fullleather feel seats and the whole roof panoramic layout. The seats are very much an evolution of the American norm, with lots of padding and soft centres.

Driving Impressions The engine is a new element to the MKX equation – we haven’t had turbocharged

engines in the class before and the use of the 2.7-litre Ecoboost is being encouraged both for more power and torque and better efficiency. When you get moving, the better NVH levels of the cabin filter out most sounds including road and wind noise. Even engine noise is deadened but there is a particular harmonic around the turbocharger that feeds back into the cabin. So as you speed up, the engine noise is almost a faint whistling sound against the backdrop of the class leading sound from the Revel audio system.

Gearshifting is smooth and well co ordinated with the torque band on the turbocharged unit. There’s a hint of lag at lower speeds but once you get rolling, the relatively light weight of the platform gives a seamless and linear pickup. You need to hold the gears down a notch to give the engine a real sense of urgency and Highway driving is the forte of the MKX. Smooth, effortless acceleration, quick response to the electronic power steering and linear braking are all on offer. The handling through curves has improved

too – in this case the undercarriage has improved its responses and offers continuously controlled damping too. The front suspension offers MacPherson struts with L-shaped control arms (aluminium to reduce weight) and an integral-link rear suspension that uses a sub-frame to isolate vibrations. This too uses aluminium control arms. We took the car on to a tight handling course that it seemed very eager to conquer. Highly accurate steering feel helps, as does the fact that the body doesn’t roll significantly, nor does the tail pull out. Torque shift is smooth and you do feel the vectoring come in on hard turns.

Verdict The MKX scores high on the feeling of aspirational opulence. But it may just not have the additional off-roading tricks that allow it to compete with other premium contenders. The question you need to ask yourself is whether you are buying a Lincoln or are trying to figure out where the MKX stands against other premium mid-segment Crossovers. For the Lincoln

aficionado the equation is much clearer – you get a whole lot of crossover for the money you pay, although the price has gone up for the Reserve.

AT A GLANCE ENGINE 2.7L V6 Ecoboost turbo Power: 335HP Torque: 515Nm LAYOUT 5-door, 5-passenger monocoque with transverse V6 engine and front-wheel biased AWD DIMENSIONS Wheelbase: 2,850mm Length: 4,826mm Width: 1,999mm Height: 1,682mm MAR 2017

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PreView Fast goes faster Ferrari couldn’t have chosen a better venue and timing to celebrate the brand’s 70th anniversary with a very special creation -- new 812 Superfast Author: Chandan Basu Mallik

Ferrari has been consistently delivering extraordinary machines for aficionados over the years so much so it has become a tradition. For Geneva this year, it has prepared something extra special with a V12 engine as it coincides with the brand’s 70th anniversary. This V12 powered car is the latest GT that will get pole position in the range as it pays tribute to the 400 Superfast of the 1960s. This GT also replaces the F12berlinetta. The new 812 Superfast will be offered as the most powerful and fastest Ferrari in the

marque’s history as a limited-run model.

This new front engine rear wheel drive car introduces an array of innovative features as it pays homage to the V12 series which marked the official start of the glorious Prancing Horse story in 1947, 70 years ago this year.

With the mission specific 812 Superfast Ferrari wants to recreate history building on the invaluable legacies of the F12berlinetta and F12tdf in particular.

So what’s in store with the Ferrari 812 Superfast? Its

The Ferrari 812 Superfast is equipped with leadingedge control systems and components, resulting in unparalleled handling and roadholding 58

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credentials clearly suggest that has been conceived as an exclusive Ferrari in the range offering uncompromising of a performance sports car for both on road and track usage. As a successor of the F12berlinetta and a key prospect, the 812 Superfast was designed at the Ferrari Styling Center in Maranello, Italy and faithfully continues with the two-box design with a high tail reminiscent of the 1969 365 GTB4. Although several key design features have been inspired by the modern F12berlinetta, the 812 which

is 4,657mm long, 1,971mm wide and 1,276mm tall gets individual styling cues like full LED headlamps, air vents on the bonnet, quad circular tail lamps and a body-coloured rear diffuser. At the rear, four round taillamps are said to be inspired by Ferrari tradition which emphasises a design crafted around horizontal lines and visually lowering both spoiler and cabin. In particular to be noted is the design of the flanks and the way it visually shortens the tail that complements the bulky wheel arches. For the 70th

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anniversary, the 812 car is being launched in a special new colour called Rosso Settanta.

The V12 engine used in the F12berlinetta displaced 6.3-litre and for this application it has been bored out to enhance it to 6.5-litres. In this set-up the front-engined car produces 789bhp at 8,500 rpm and 718Nm of torque at 7,000rpm when mated to 7-speed automatic transmission.

Interestingly, 80 per cent of the torque is already available at 3,500 rpm which helps both driveability and acceleration even at low revs.

The car also has a claimed top speed of over 340 km/h with a jaw-dropping 0–100km/h acceleration time of 2.9sec.The engine’s power is underscored by a full, rich exhaust sound that exploits the acoustic clout delivered by its increased displacement.

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modifications include adaptation a 350 bar direct injection system for the very first time on a high-performance engine and pairing it with variable geometry intake tracts conceptually derived from those of naturally-aspirated F1 engines.

For such high performance figures to be transferred on road Ferrari uses dual-clutch transmission with specific gear ratios for the 812 which when combined with shorter up and down-shifting times between gears, sharpen throttle response still further.

The 812 also becomes the first Ferrari to use electric power steering and with the help of its integration with all the electronic vehicle dynamics controls like the latest 5.0 version of Ferrari’s patented Side Slip Control (SSC), Ferrari says this set-up make its powerful performance easier to handle and even more thrilling to exploit. Meanwhile, the

vehicle controls for the first time include the Virtual Short Wheelbase 2.0 system which is a further evolution of the software that improves the nimbleness of the handling and reduces the vehicle response times even further.

The road or track performance of fast car like 812 will also rely on aerodynamic efficiency and solutions included are active flaps at the front of the underbody, and the rear flank which features an unprecedented aerodynamic bypass to increase downforce.

Ferrari believes that a fast car should be comfortable too and hence the interior for this car has been revisited.

The cabin is now a sportier, more radical with a floating instrument panel presentation while the horizontal dash loops stylishly around the central air vents for a sophisticated, sculptural look. Newly designed ergonomic seats feature alongside the new steering wheel and

instrument clusters and the latest infotainment and airconditioning units.

Similar to other contemporary Ferrari models, we expect the 812 to use improved Ferrari’s third generation CCM3 high performance carbon ceramic disc brakes with ABS, SCM-E magnetorheological suspension, an electronic LSD, ESP Premium stability control and F1-Trac traction control.

The car’s stability and traction control set-up. As always, the suspension and other settings should be controlled by the Manettino dial on the steering wheel.

The Ferrari 812 Superfast had its global debut at the 87th Geneva Motor Show last month. An interesting observation from Ferrari watchers suggest that the 812 Superfast could be the last of the V12 powered motorcars as Ferrari gradually moves into newer technology applications in order to meet legislation and new emission standards.

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PreView Marriage made in heaven Author: Chandan Basu Mallik

We have heard about extreme machines and custom one-off SUVs. But this is a stock creation from Mercedes-Maybach where the duo have joined hands to create perhaps the world’s first raw-meets- ultra luxury in a limited production open top SUV – 2017 Mercedes-Maybach G650 Landaulet 62

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Mercedes-Benz has been using a platform which is over quarter of a century old for its iconic Gelandewagen or G-Class.

Starting its career as a special military commission for a Middle East country which never happened, the G-Wagen was quickly adopted in to a basic utility format for civilian use and over the years Mercedes has evolved the model and even involved AMG, its in-house performance arm to tweak the SUV into a performance-cum-lifestyle machine.

This aspect not only prolonged the career of the G-wagen but also earned it a cult status amongst aficionados. The versatile AMG version is extremely popular in the Middle East too.

With a model which has had such an illustrious career history and in a market scenario where economics and legislation now dictate the product direction, it was obvious that retirement was on the cards.

The question at Mercedes was to think of a befitting farewell model.

The best idea that came up was to utilise all the strengths within the organisation – engineering, performance and luxury – and create a package out of it. More specifically, to marry the capabilities of the Unimog into an ultra luxury open top G-wagen and hence the three entities --- Mercedes, Maybach and Unimog. And the idea was so good that instead of preparing just a symbolic oneoff, Mercedes has decided to limit the production to 99 units worldwide. The SUVs will be built by Magna-Steyr in Graz, Austria, alongside the regular G-Class.

So, what do we have with the MercedesBenz Maybach Landaulet G650?

Dimensionally, the G650 is 5,334mm MAR 2017

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The G650 is the second Landaulet-type of creation from Maybach

long and 2,209mm tall. The wheelbase is also longer and the pickup-styled rear is the focal point as it has a motorised rag top that helps give it its SUV shape when up. Meanwhile, the extra sheet metal between the front and rear axles has been totally dedicated to the rear passengers on an exclusive basis. By this we mean the stock bench seat has been dumped and replaced by two ultra luxury body hugging recliner seats with massage functions – straight from the S-Class stable. The Landaulet body style is reminiscent of the vintage luxury cars that offered open top experience for rear occupants has been faithfully recreated in this vehicle complete with bells and whistles. Privacy is also part of the package and there’s a switch on the centre console opens and closes the glass partition separating the front and rear compartments whenever needed.

The rear gets its own climate control system, aircraft-style tablets and even high-resolution screens. The soft top is operated electronically at the push of a button. A few new exterior features like carbon fibre wheel arches and an LED stop lamp above the spare tyre are included.

The G650’s engine bay is an interesting area to those who are power hungry. Shoehorned neatly is a twinturbocharged, 6.0-litre V12 engine that offers 630hp and 1,000Nm of torque when mated to 7-speed automatic transmission. Power is sent to all four wheels. As Mercedes has great faith in Unimog which also has military origins and hard core civilian application, it’s no surprise that the three locking differentials and portal axles come from the G63 6x6 and the G500 4x4 respectively. Ground clearance is 450mm.

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PreView Crossing into compact crossover territory General Motor’s Germany based Opel brand is better known for compact car presentations like the Adam and Mokka family. Now the brand has decided add another variant to its urban-oriented Mokka X called the Crossland X.

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Author: Chandan Basu Mallik

It is well established in the motoring circles that Europe offers very welldefined categorisation and subcategorisation of cars, crossovers and SUVs. And the latest trend noted in the compact sector is the deliberate transition from MPV-like boxy vehicles to trendy and stylish SUVs while ensuring clear cut demarcation from hatchbacks.

Opel takes its product line-up to the new level with this all-new offering the in the B-segment with the 2017 Crossland X. The positioning of this car is that it’s actually a mini-MPV pretending to be an SUV. And hence a convincing storyline has been built around it. First, it comes with 2WD only and its underpinnings and mechanicals are shared with the Peugeot 2008. In profile, its main attributes are its high-riding seating position and roomy interior. In terms of its proportions it is certainly more MPV. Interestingly, the Crossland X is 16cm shorter than an Astra at 4,200mm, yet 10cm taller.

Lifestyle attributes have been used extensively to appeal to a younger crowd.

Its two-tone factory paintwork with a contrast-colour ‘floating’ roof gives it a modern feel, and to some extent a visual resemblance to the Adam.

Cautiously, Opel is calling its latest design philosophy ‘sculptural artistry meets German precision’ and its Russelsheim studio has emphasised the grille with the ‘Opel Blitz’: this has two chrome winglets which point to the corners of the LED DRLs and headlights with adaptive forward lighting, supported by strong horizontal lines in the grille.

Again side body cladding has been used extensively to connect it with the SUV MAR 2017

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theme and a silver lower front section of the front bumper gives the impression of under-body protection. The rear sign-off is SUV with high-mounted tail lamps and under-body protection. The high waistline slopes upward to the rear, with the flanks sculpted below, giving a more solidlooking stance over the front wheels.

The chrome-highlighted interior is horizontally-aligned to the driver. A colour touchscreen up to 8in [depending on trim] and Apple CarPlay/Android Autocompatible infotainment are offered as stock. Wireless induction chargers for smartphones, a wi-fi hotspot, the OnStar ‘concierge service’, front- and rear-view cameras, parking assist and a head-up display are available.

Practical features include generous boot space of 410 litres without folding rear seats, and the 60:40 split rear seats can slide back and forward by up to 150mm to increase legroom or luggage capacity: 520 litres in the seats’ foremost position, and then up to 1,255 litres with the seats folded. It’s a roomier, more versatile package than the Mokka X. The Crossland X from design perspective is member of the Opel family and promises a very different character than the Peugeot from where it has been derived.

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PreView Kicks for fun and games The arrival of the hatchback styled Nissan Kicks subcompact in the Middle East reactivates the brand’s SUV line-up at entry level. It also has another purpose in the ranks Author: Chandan Basu Mallik

Till now the smallest member of Nissan’s SUV family was the life-style oriented Juke and if one factors in compact crossover or donor models, then safely we can include the Tiida hatch. Now a new member has arrived and it is called the Kicks.

The production version of is based on the 2014 Nissan Kicks Concept that debuted back in 2014 at the Sao Paulo International Auto Show. And the product model is quite similar to the concept but toned down and manufactured at Nissan’s plant in Aguascalientes, Mexico.

The new arrival in the brand’s Middle East line-up will launch its career in a double role – it will replace the Juke crossover and Tiida hatchback. And it seems there’s a good chance it will be able to do it successfully. Here’s why.

Kicks concept crossover was designed under the alliance of Nissan Design America (NDA) San Diego, California and Nissan Design America (NDA-R) – the company’s Brazil-based design studio as a global product. As a significant future model the entire concept design project was lead by Nissan’s Global Design Centre in Japan.

Unlike the quirky styling of the Juke, the Kicks design returns to the family design DNA convention in a kind of hatchback profile without actually being one. Exterior design elements 70

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include Nissan’s familiar V-motion grille, ‘boomerang’ head lamps and tail lamps and a floating roof with a “wrap-around visor” look which looks pretty impressive in the two tone coloured vehicles. The rear ends with a coupé-like roofline which gives it its characteristic stepped appearance.

Secondly, it uses a modern and tested Nissan V-platform that currently underpins the Sunny sedan and new soon-to-arrive Micra hatchback. As a result, the dimensions and proportions are well defined. The Kicks is 4,295mm long, 1,760mm wide and 1,590mm high on a wheelbase of 2,610mm.

Since platforms and components have been shared, designers have ensured that the cockpit of say the incoming Micra and Kicks are distinctive enough to ensure individual personalities. The two deck dashboard design is a classical example of such an effort. Compared to the sedan, the Kick has a more wraparound feel with a lot of curved surfaces while in the Micra the attempt is to keep it simple and straightforward. Nevertheless, in either case Nissan has brought in a good amount of premium features and befitting quality material with tight tolerances in the trim material.

The cabin of the Kicks promises best in class passenger space in the

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rear despite the coupÊ-like roofline. The interior has a two-tone colour scheme and front seat occupants face the latest version of Nissan’s modern and simple Gliding Wing dashboard design, which is highlighted by its shared centrally mounted seven-inch tab-styled LCD screen. The instrument cluster itself is something is a mix of traditional analog and digital.

The digital display serves as a driver’s information centre and provides information like fuel level and engine temperature. The model also features comprehensive infotainment system with Smartphone connectivity.

And despite its compact appearance Nissan claims it has one of the largest load areas in its class.

Besides a host of userfriendly standard features, among the other technology features on-board the car will get what is usually reserved for premium models kit like Around View Monitor and Moving Object Detection, which use four on-board cameras to present a view of the car and to warn the driver of any unseen hazards.

Practical features include rear 60:40 split seats.

Powering the Kicks is a 1.6-litre engine that produces 118hp and 149Nm of torque when mated to a 5-speed 72

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manual or a CVT (continuously variable transmission).

As a 2WD crossover derived from a sedan/hatchback and assigned the job of an SUV, there are some tweaks in the set up, with a newly designed rear twist beam being the major change in the hardware.

Included in Kicks is advanced chassis control technology that involves Active Trace Control, Active Ride Control and Active Engine Brake working in tandem similar to adaptive dampers found in expensive cars, actually without the adaptive damper hardware. What is does it applies individual brakes to prevent body pitch off the back of large bumps and crests, allowing softer spring rates, while still retaining body control. And to counter the rubber band effect often associated with automatic and CVT gearboxes, Kicks is equipped with Active Engine Brake. When the accelerator is released, typically approaching a corner, engine braking is applied to stabilise the speed. To ensure that the car is not perceived as a hatchback on stilts, it has been provided with generous ground clearance of 200mm, good enough for trail or beach duties. Overall, the Kicks should be a good contender in the premium compact segment market.

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New game rules for 2017

Author: Chandan Basu Mallik

New promoters are keen to revamp Formula 1 in 2017. Meanwhile, a major revamp of aerodynamic regulations is set to deliver faster laptimes, meaner-looking cars and perhaps more entertainment for the aficionados

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t’s no secret that many observers of F1 feel that it has become a bit outdated over the years compared to other sports especially when it comes to the entertainment or wow factor. The new season starts with now ownership of the franchise and changes recommended by FIA to ensure the cars are faster than before. Now, that calls for virtually reengineering the cars from scratch as dimensions and footprint have changed besides the further optimisation of aerodynamic downforces – a critical element in keeping the cars on the ground at high speeds.

And it’s not just the chassis that has been the focus area.

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four power units per season.

Here’s a rundown of what has happened in the past few months: Token system Out: Archaic engine token system and limited development clause. The token system was a logical move by the FIA ahead of the new turbo hybrid era, as it looked to keep spending and development contained by closing down development avenues over time.

In: Weight restriction and type of material to be used. This has been done dissuade teams chasing exotic and expensive alternatives. The weight of the MGU-K and MGU-H set up can be no less than 7kg

and 4kg respectively, plus the weight of the pistons, rods and crankshaft (no less than 300gm, 300gm and 5,300gm respectively).

Dimensional restrictions to the crankshaft bearings, limiting the compression ratio of the cylinders (no higher than 18.0) and limiting coating thickness for Gold, Platinum, Ruthenium, Iridium and Rhenium to 0.035mm.

Fuel Out: Unlimited choice of fuel and application.

In: Restrictions surrounding the fuel used by the teams have been introduced. Teams can select five fuel blends for the season of which only two can be used throughout a race

weekend. This has been done to narrow the teams’ abilities to make vast changes between qualifying and race conditions, along with restricting their choices as they visit differing circuits. But the impact will also be felt by the shuffle going on elsewhere – as Red Bull switches to Exxon/Mobil, and McLaren moves to BP/ Castrol. Renault too is poised to confirm a move away from Total imminently.

Aerodynamics Out: Old restrictions on design, dimensions or weight In: Changes to the regulations are expected to help the cars produce significantly more downforce and increase corner speeds by up to 40km/h.

New season, new rules and new cars It’s no secret that Formula One has introduced sweeping changes to car design for the 2017 season. Here’s a look at how key competitors have re-engineered the cars for the new season Author: Chandan Basu Mallik

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he new managers and owners of the F1 franchise, US-based Liberty Media have some new ideas in mind for this specific motorsport event. They want to ensure that it becomes engaging and more exciting for the die-hard aficionados.

The task begins with the revamp of the cars and looks at various aspects including dimensions and technology applications.

For starters, all F1 cars that we will see racing this season are longer and wider. They will come with bigger front and rear spoilers and extra bodywork. This, along with fewer restrictions on the shapes of individual body components has allowed designers to create more aerodynamic downforce, which pushes the car into the track and creates more grip. In addition to tweaks to the car’s

Williams FW40

2016 marked the French manufacturer’s return to Formula 1 with its own team, having taken over the Lotus squad the previous year.

Renault was third in the line to launch its RS17 in a London event with simultaneous online broadcast. The new car features Renault’s traditional yellow and black livery. The re-shaped rear wing and the thumb-tip nose design are similar to that of the two other cars. It also sports the shark fin expected to be seen on all cars this year. The RS17 will be powered by the new RE17

engine which has undergone an extensive overhaul after Renault felt the old design had reached its maximum potential.

Renault wants to make its presence felt after a dismal 2016 season where it finished in ninth position with just eight points scored. The team has been restructured and recruiting new staff ahead of what is set to be a stronger challenge in 2017. Former Force India driver Nico Hulkenberg joins Jolyon Palmer with the German replacing Haas-bound Kevin Magnussen.

aerodynamics, tyres are also expected to play bigger role.

According to Pirelli, the sole tyre supplier for F1 machines, the new design rules have also necessitated in tyre redesign and profile besides new compound formulation.

As a result, the season 2017 tyres are now much wider, and Pirelli was specifically asked by teams to create a setup that would not permanently lose its maximum grip after

being exposed to a certain amount of heat. Because such a happening so prevents drivers from running flat out in previous seasons because doing so would cause the tyres to overheat and become virtually lose its gripping power.

The current hybridpowertrain formula employed since 2014, with similar amounts of power as previous seasons will continue.

The Williams FW40 debuts the new look of F1 which aptly incorporates the new rules of the game. The car is loaded with aerodynamic ducts and flaps, with a rather unimpressive -looking nose.

In 2017, Williams will continue to use Mercedes-Benz powertrains.

The ‘FW’ in FW40 represents the initials of team owner and founder Sir Frank Williams, while the ’40’ denotes the 40th anniversary of the team’s first F1 season. Williams is one

of the respectedcteams in F1, with nine championships to its credit. Like most teams without full backing from an automaker, though, the British outfit has struggled in the modern, high-cost era of F1. It still finished a respectable fifth in the constructor standings last year, out of 11 teams.

Felipe Massa has postponed his retirement plans and returned to Williams. His partner will be rookie Lance Stroll.

Renault RS17

Mercedes W08

Formula 1 world champion team Mercedes officially unveiled its 2017 car, the W08, in a well attended event at Silverstone. The car completed a handful of laps under the FIA’s “filming day” allowance with Lewis Hamilton at the wheel. Hamilton and new teammate Valtteri Bottas revealed the car. Compared to the Williams, the Mercedes outfit has a cleaner look, but there is a massive amount of detail on the rear end and bargeboards where a lot of

work seems to have been done.

“Driving today, naturally the car feels wider, which it is, and the front tyres feel huge. There is quite a lot of grip already even in the cold conditions here. This is not a test, really the laps I did today were behind a vehicle to get filming in and just a shakedown. I got to go a little bit faster but it’s so gusty and it is wet,” commented Hamilton when asked by media to highlight the initial

feel behind the wheel during the launch. “It is a big day for me,” said Bottas. “Driving a Silver Arrow for the first time is something very special. I

have been waiting for this moment for quite a while and also for the test for a long time.”

Mclaren MCL32 McLaren presented its 2017 Formula 1 racer confirming the team has switched to a mostly orange livery. With executive director Zak Brown having taken over at the helm of the British squad, the MCL32 is the first McLaren F1 car since 1980 to not include the “MP4” prefix in its name.

The Woking-based outfit It’s no secret that the last few F1 seasons for Ferrari have been far from satisfactory in terms of podiums or wins. Unlike rivals, Scuderia chose an online launch by broadcasting live from Fiorano. From the images it appears the new car features some aggressively sculpted sidepods and has a T-wing fitted to its shark fin engine cover. Seems that

Sauber C36

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Ferrari engineering have also exploited the same loophole in the regulations as Mercedes.

Team principal Maurizio Arrivabene, chief technical officer Mattia Binotto and race drivers Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen were on stage for the presentation. The team had hoped to challenge for the title last year after winning three races in 2015 to finish runner-up to Mercedes.

had run an orange livery during pre-season testing in 1997, 1998 and 2006. The full orange livery had only been raced in Formula 1 from 1968 to 1971. McLaren enters the third season of its partnership with Honda, hoping to take a significant step forward after two disappointing years.

Ferrari SF70H Like Mercedes, the Swiss outfit, which finished 10th in the constructors’ championship last year and mark its 25th season in F1 this year, unveiled its blue and gold car during a filming day at Barcelona. Marcus Ericsson and Pascal Wehrlein will be the team’s drivers, though Antonio Giovinazzi will fulfil testing duties for the injured Wehrlein at the first test

which took place last month.

The C36 features a re-shaped rear wing, similar to that of the Williams FW40, thumb-tip nose design and a now familiar shark fin.

New technical director exAudi Jorg Zander said the team “put greater emphasis on stability as opposed to maximising downforce” with the C36 that will race with a year-old Ferrari engine.

Snippets Hamilton wants F1 to evolve Three-time world champion Lewis Hamilton said last month that Formula One was “outdated” as he urged Grand Prix racing’s new owners to lead a revival of the sport’s fortunes. Hamilton’s comments came on the eve of his Mercedes team’s launch of their new car for the 2017 season.

BMW says no to F1 BMW has no plans to return to Formula 1 as it still feels that such a move does not fit with its long-term strategy. This is despite the roaring success of arch rival Mercedes in this sport. BMW last F1 tenure lasted nine years from 2000 until the end of 2009.

The brand gave the global financial crisis as its main reason to pull out. F1’s new owners Liberty Media taking are keen to have more participants in order to boost in the championship’s rankings and it is felt that they may want to entice more manufacturers. The FIA also hopes car makers not currently involved in F1 can play a part in planned discussions to frame engine rules for beyond 2020, when the future of current engine formula will be up for discussion. Ford which also pulled out in 2009 said an F1 return was not on the agenda, with the huge costs involved in a programme the main deterrent. There have long been calls for more entertainment in Formula One, with many arguing the dominance of Mercedes - who’ve won 51 of the last 59 Grands Prix.

McLaren sign new driver British teenager Lando Norris has been signed by McLaren as part of their young driver academy after he impressed in junior series. Seventeen-year-old Norris will compete in European Formula Three. It’s definitely a step towards my dream of being in Formula One,” Norris said. “The facilities at McLaren are fantastic. I’ll know what level I need to be at to drive in Formua One. If that chance comes, I’ll be fit and ready to jump in straight away.” “I regard Lando as a fabulous prospect,” said McLaren’s new Executive Director Zak Brown.

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Season V Formula E car designs teased As the launch of the season-five model is expected before the end of the 2016-17 season, Spark Racing Technologies, the supplier of the current Formula E chassis, has released the first concept images

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s per FIA rules for the Formula E race series rules, one car per driver race policy from 2018 onwards will be effective for the nextgeneration Formula E car which is being built by Spark Racing technologies with help from chassis specialist Dallara.

Spark Racing Technologies [SRT] is owned by former Renault F1 team principal Frederic Vasseur.

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and development of the new Formula E car. SRT had supplied the initial batch of 42 first generation Formula E cars in 2014 is working closely with technical partner Dallara on the design of the new chassis, which will be known as the SRT-05.

Images released by SRT are only initial renders of what the season-five car could look like. The images released by Spark show an aggressivelypackaged car with an extended windscreen, similar

to that which was tested by Red Bull last season. This is believed to be one of several new safety devices that will be integrated in to the design.

Dallara has indicated that new chassis will feature more efficient aero design and could shed 40kg. Weight reduction will be achieved by using new composite materials. A more powerful but heavier battery will be supplied by McLaren Applied Technologies.

The new car for Formula E’s fifth season is significant with

almost double the energy set to be available for teams to use. The upping of the battery from 28 kw/h to 54 kw/h and the planned extra efficiency of aerodynamics is designed to enable the eradication of car-change pitstops and a running time of at least 45 minutes. Teams will be issued with more details about the design at the Formula E Teams meeting at Buenos Aires.

Flop show?

With a lot of anticipation two autonomous race cars went on a track, but the results weren’t exactly as planned

Roborace, the UK-based tech company behind the series created the DevBot as a prototype driverless racing car has faced mixed results on its first professional outing. The first official ‘race’ between self-driving cars on a professional track also used

by Formula E’s in Buenos Aires was spectacular in the sense that one of the cars crashed out of the competition after misjudging a corner while travelling at high speed.

Meanwhile, the second car successfully completed the course after achieving a top speed of 186km/h. “One of the cars was trying to perform a manoeuvre, and it went really full-throttle and took the corner quite sharply and caught the edge of the barrier,” Roborace’s chief marketing officer Justin Cooke said of the incident.

“It’s actually fantastic for us because the more we

see these moments the more we are able to learn and understand what the computer was thinking and how it interpreted and used the data.” Despite the initial setback, the company plans to stage a series of races with the cars, which will take place as part of the 2016/17 Formula E Championship for manually driven electric cars.

Automan’s take While it’ll be difficult to completely avoid crashes on track, such driverless machines will have to be intelligent enough so that most of the racers in a given racing event cross the finish line. This is the job of the developers of the concept that has to be fine tuned. The first public effort in that respect should be commended and not criticized without reason.

NISMO announces racing season initiatives The 2017 motorsport season is about to start, and on behalf of Nissan, Takao Katagiri, CEO and president of NISMO, has now officially announced Nissan/NISMO’s motorsport activities for 2017.

“We will be competing in this year’s SUPER GT GT500 class with a new model based upon the 2017 spec GT-R NISMO. We have a firm determination to retake the series championship and, with this in mind, we have reevaluated our cars, drivers, organization and so on in order to ensure we are more prepared than ever. Our team structure consists of four seriously competitive teams that will all be aiming for the title. We will be pouring our souls into this season so we hope to continue to receive the passionate support that we have received from our fans thus far.

“We will also be strengthening our global Customer Racing programs. While we continue to support Nissan GT-R NISMO GT3 customers around the world, we will also begin working on the development of newly evolved Nissan GT-R NISMO GT3. You can expect to see a new state-of-the-art, highly competitive machine that will ensure customers continue to choose the GT-R from amongst the increasingly large variety of European manufacturers and other rival companies’ GT3 vehicles.

“Furthermore, we will also be expanding our engine supply programs. We will be providing highly competitive racing engines and the technical support that we have cultivated throughout the LM P2 to numerous teams to facilitate their success in acclaimed race categories around the world, including the Daytona Prototype International (DPi), the LMP1 (privateer), and various LMP3 series.

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IN SEARCH OF A NEW BENCHMARK In the middle of a couple of car launches to the region’s media, Japanese car brand Nissan chose to slip in a further googly. It announced that it had begun moves along with the nodal standards body of the UAE to evolve a unit to measure the capability of off-road vehicles. Now, you have to understand that Nissan has had a bit of a history in chasing world records, especially in the region. Its move to evolve the Desert Camel Power (I joke not here) as a unit is another step in that direction. The premise is that the measure of a car’s horsepower does not give a proper benchmark for its ability off-road.

Yes, even a novice understands that.

Horsepower is a measure that is standardised from the real life ability of a horse, but no longer bears any real connection. Ergo, most horses have more than a horsepower available. Today, the only question normally asked is whether you want brake horsepower (at the wheels) or PS as measured at

the shaft. From the presentation that we sat through – Desert Camel Power is meant to measure usable power in desert conditions. That immediately means that unlike horsepower, DCP is subject to ambient conditions. Of course, we were given examples of measurement on slopes of sand with rolling starts and so on. Everything that we till now considered non-standard, by the way. Is there a standard sand surface? Famously the UAE itself is supposed to have seven types of sands. And then what about parameters like density, compression, moisture content and temperature? In the aim to standardise this, will the reference track only be available in a laboratory in the city? And we haven’t yet begun to standardise criteria for the vehicle itself.

Yes, we all know that horsepower doesn’t make for the best off-roader. The best off-roader is one that is designed for the task. You make a moon rover to, well, rove on the moon’s surface. The issue is that most off-roaders that we want to measure are basically all-rounders, comfortable on-road cars with the ability to take in bad conditions to various degrees. A dune buggy has way more Desert Camel power than any of this breed. As for the latter, so much is dependent on the sort of transmission, degree of step-down for low gear, presence of various differentials, type and quality of suspension, ground clearance, ability to vary ride height, wheelbase, approach and departure angles and just the plain weight of all this. Let’s not forget the size and profile and air pressure and type of tyres. Even if you manage to assign values and standardise on all this, a vehicle’s off-road ability is always subject to the skill of the driver. We all know that driver who can get a four-wheel drive stuck a couple of feet off the tarmac. Many also know driver’s who can take a recalcitrant crossover into the Sharqiyah sands. How on Earth are you going to standardise the driver?

We had a rather mixed message emanating from the press briefing – on the one hand management claimed that their aim was to replace horsepower as a measure of 4WDs, while engineers we spoke to said there was no connection. This is an exercise that could fall away by the wayside after the company has spent some serious money on pushing the idea of an exclusive standard, albeit one that they want other manufacturers to adopt. However some questions arise as a result of this self-gratification exercise. What have the armed forces of the world been using as a measurement standard when they buy their extremely expensive war machines? Do they have the equivalent of an African Bull Elephant power for tanks or Dolphin power for submarines? Or do they just use a panel of experts to select the best performer with a scientifically arrived at result based on a lot of empirical and deduced results. To be fair, even these big spenders use cost as a deciding factor, although we know that doesn’t connect with performance.

We hope that Desert Camel power doesn’t end up being purely a marketing exercise. It is a honourable idea that may not stand the challenge of evolving into a standard, largely because of the sheer complexity of the factors around it. It would help if the company drops the power bit – call it Camel ability if need be. But what happens if after all that hard work, some other company’s product has more DCP’s than they have?

Raj Warrior is managing editor of Automan and has been in the thick of the Automotive journalism field from the past 19 years.

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