Well, one RWD advantage comes to mind instantly!
These days, front-wheel-drive has become the drivetrain layout of choice for many manufacturers. Even BMW, famous in the past for criticizing the layout, has given into the temptation with the launch of the Concept Active Tourer. But many of us gearheads have pooh-poohed automakers for this, claiming that rear-wheel-drive is far superior. And in some ways, that’s certainly true. Let’s have a look at the facts so we can draw some conclusions.
Cars and fireworks – perfect combination!
So here it is, 2013. The Mayans were evidently wrong! Throughout 2012, the car industry continued to produce products both great and awful, with the pressure still on to improve fuel economy. 2013 is sure to bring about plenty of interesting changes to reflect the importance of fuel economy. Here’s hoping that they don’t forget to make something exciting while they’re at it – Happy New Year everbody!
PS: With the holiday season wrapping up, I should hopefully be resuming a normal posting schedule soon.
Image Credit: Jason Mrachina (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
I know it’s gone a little silent here over the last few days, but don’t worry, I haven’t forgotten about you guys! For those of you celebrating, have a very Merry Christmas today, and those who aren’t, I hope you have an excellent holiday nevertheless. While I’m sure it’d be great to spend the day hooning in the snow, make sure you spend some time with your loved ones and eat plenty of good food as well. Have you received any car-related gifts this year?
Image Credit: Stefan Sager (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
The Nissan GT-R, known by many as Godzilla, has received plenty of incremental changes ever since it launched in 2007 — little refinements to make it faster and a little more plush. At some point, however, a new iteration of Godzilla will have to step in. If rumours are to be believed, this next-generation car is due by 2017 and could end up being a hybrid.
As you might imagine, no one’s particularly happy about Infiniti’s new nomenclature. The fanbase has gone from being confused to downright outraged, with plenty of angry posts seen on their Facebook page. But Infiniti has reacted with a statement from President Johan de Nysschen, in which he promises a 550+ horsepower flagship sedan. How’s that for compensation?
Viewership here on The Blog of Cars hasn’t typically been particularly high – I expect about 200 views on a good day. But thanks to a bizarre fluke involving a comment on Reddit, today we’ve exceeded 3,000 views. In fact, we’re currently at 3,518 with just under 5 hours to go in the day. Being a fluke, this may not last particularly long, but to entice you guys to come back again, have this fantastic photo of a flamethrower Mazda RX-8 at the 2012 24 Hours of Daytona. Happy Tuesday everyone, and thanks for reading The Blog of Cars!
Image Credit: kabelphoto (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
Naming conventions in the automotive industry can get extremely complicated — just ask Porsche. But it looks like Infiniti has decided to join in on the fun as well, by streamlining their naming conventions to just two “series” for the 2014 model year — the Q sedans and coupes, and the QX crossovers and SUVs.
Living in Canada, it feels pretty ironic that I still haven’t seen any snow this winter. In fact, it sucks really. There’s just 9 days to Christmas after all. To alleviate my disappointment, I found this photo of an Audi Sport quattro S1 having a bit of fun in the snow. If only I could do the same. Maybe Mother Nature will get the hint and send some snow this way!
Image credit: Audi
I’ve always been one to sing the praises of diesel vehicles. North America has been hesitant to embrace them, but diesel cars tend to be more efficient and pack quicker acceleration. Unfortunately, it’s not always so bright and rosy. A number of Volkswagen and Audi owners have been reporting premature fuel pump failures in their diesel cars, enough to have prompted an investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration into the 2010 Audi A3, 2010 VW Golf, and 2009-2010 VW Jetta diesels.
It seems that my plea for diesels in North America was very well-timed. Since then, we’ve seen the rollout of several new diesels at the LA Auto Show, and now this – Mark Reuss, President of General Motors North America, says he is in favour of more diesels for the lineup, with one already confirmed and one being considered for next year.