Most of the time, we have the impression that celebrities are persons from somewhere outside of our world, preoccupied only with fashion, looking good and making lots of money. This is why we have the tendency to omit that, during their daily life, they are regular people too, with regular concerns and regular problems too; that sometimes they cannot honor their “celebrity” duties.
It’s the case of the fashion icon Victoria Beckham, who gave birth to her third child a couple of days ago, which is why the launch of Land Rover’s “Victoria Beckham Special Edition” is currently delayed. The Evoque is the product of company’s new creative design director and has already been finalized, waiting to be launched as soon as Posh Spice is ready to work again.
Here you can see the presentation video of the car:
The launching date and the technical specifications have not been yet indicated. But taking into account Victoria’s fashion style, we expect the car to present some of her influence in the interior design.
So, even famous pop stars are women when it comes to their family, children and personal fulfillment. But still, we cannot wait for the car!
In the last period, serious discussions were started about the increasing number of accidents caused by using cell phones without the hands-free system while driving. Consequently, the idea of introducing a nationwide ban on handheld cell phones while being behind the wheel (except in certain emergencies) is actually in the work. Everything seems to be quite important, and it was time for car manufactures to get involved in this legal initiative. The first of them who expressed a position is Ford and it totally supports the cause.
According to Pete Lawson, Ford’s vice president of government affairs, this legislation “represents a practical, commonsense approach to a national problem” and that Ford believed “drawing drivers’ eyes away from the road – whether (by) text messaging, manually dialing a cell phone or reading maps – substantially increases the risk of an accident or near misses.”
This complements Ford’s integration of hands-free calling technology widely in its model range, in addition to SYNC and MyFord Touch infotainment system. However, we congratulate their courage and initiative.
Apparently, General Motors and Chrysler are still waited to express their opinion, as they are both known old supporters of the efforts to reduce hand-held phones while driving.
For the moment, the ban refers only to handheld phones; hands-free systems aren’t included. According to The Detroit Free Press, a study was already ordered to see whether phones are dangerous or not while driving, even hands-free used.
What do you think about Ford’s position on the matter?
Starting this month, Fisker will begin delivering its luxury plug-in hybrid sedan Karma, and we all know women just love luxury cars and would like one in from of their porch. But, ladies, Fisker’s first beauty already has an owner, and this is one of the most talented actors from Hollywood, Leonardo Di Caprio. And we actually know that he does not have a female “owner” yet, so your time is not completely lost. Who else is famous and has this car? The former US Vice President Al Gore and Colin Powell, the former National Security Advisor and Secretary of State.
Now that we have finished with women, it’s time to pass to men. So, dear gentlemen, for you, Fisker Karma comes with a completely series of print adverts for this car, accompanied by a spicy model. Any other words are useless. Unfortunately, this lady doesn’t come with the car.
This car is the result of the former Aston Martin designer Henrik Fisker and it features a battery pack and two electric motors and a gasoline 260HP 2.0-liter turbo four, which charges the battery when needed. The company declared that they have already received other 3000 pre-orders, and their waiting list is until 2012. Impressive, we say!
Henrik Fisker sais about its company’s customers that “are split 50:50 between early-adopting car enthusiasts and total non-car enthusiasts who just like that we are bringing something totally new to the market”.
So, in which category are you: early-adopting car enthusiast or total non-car enthusiast? Because we have already assumed you like the car.
If you’re a heavy gadgets user, you certainly have experienced problems with fitting your devices into the same mount on your car windshield. We know: it’s annoying, it’s frustrating, it’s a problem that should get a solution. And the solution came: Bracketron Universal GPS Window Mount.
How does it work? This Universal GPS Window Mount is the results of mixing two of the Bracketron’s most popular products: the Grip-iT Universal Holder and the Rotating Window Mount.
This invention is designed to be functional while using almost any electronic gadget you might own: with the 9? flexible windshield mount, the 360-degree rotating head, and Grip-iT adjustable arms (that can open up to 4.5?), your device is safe and well-fixed, to avoid incidents.
The Universal GPS Window Mount can be bought with $29.95.
When it comes to car servicing, battle of the sexes has definitely a winner: man. It’s not that all women are not good at cars, but statistically, only 3 in 10 women take their cars for servicing on their own (compare this with seven out of ten men who does this). At least this is the situation in United Kingdom.
The research was conducted by a car servicing network, Bosch Car Service, on 1022 British adults over eighteen. It revealed the fact that the problem comes from women’s fear they have no good experience with that (35% of participating women indicated this reason, while 24% of men have chosen the same answer). However, women might have lately made efforts to improve their driving skills, but men are still better at car servicing duty. No offense, ladies!
The interesting part comes with the next results: three out of ten drivers under the age of 24, regardless of sex, are letting their parents deal with the duty of car maintenance. The same number of persons have indicated they take the car for servicing on their own, while the rest of questioned persons recognized they leave this job to mum and dad. The reasons for this latter category of drivers could be inexperience and also costs.
So, do you take your car for servicing on your own?
Brands from BMW Group are well-known for their innovative campaigns. And this is in addition to their development and ideas in design and technology, which is why we appreciate them even more.
This time, the surprise comes from BMW. They have made a clip showing its 1 Series cars on the assembly line and its soundtrack, get prepared, is actually the sounds created by the car during this process. If you cannot believe it, the end of the video really helps you wrap up this idea: all the percussive elements such as the bass synthesizer, the vocals and the melodies were produced by the vehicle itself.
The idea was great, and BMW succeeded doing this with a the help of Munich artists Jonas Imbery and Mirko Borsche. The result: a very interesting and attractive musical composition, called “Check my machine”. It uses only vehicle sounds, such as the blinkers, GPS voice, closing noises, seat belts, doors, safety alarm, and it has potential to be played in clubs too.
“The process of manufacturing a car is an exciting one, and so it has already been filmed many times over. As an innovative company, the BMW Group wants to show that the product also ion of a vehicle can also be presented quite differently – without the authenticity of the processes getting lost in any way”, says Bill McAndrews, Head of Communication Strategy, Corporate Communications, at the BMW Group.
You can convince yourself about the piece of “innovative” communication released by BMW by watching the video below and listening to the sound of BMW 1 Series. Enjoy!
“We wanted to set a new standard, to create a unique visual language and to stand out clearly from how a classic image film looks. The aim was that the film should become an independent, artistically challenging work”, said Mirko Borsche.
Have you ever considered buying Lego parts for a real car to the man next to you? I think it could a nice gift, as it perfectly blends two important parts of men’s personality: cars and prolonged childhood. For quite a long time, Lego game has stopped being a preoccupation only for kids. Actually, it has mostly become a game for adults. This is especially because of the increasingly more passionate Lego builders, who, regardless of age, compete in construction styles and techniques, setting higher and higher the bar.
However, the latest cunning is the 911 Turbo Cabriolet PDK, a 3500 Lego parts vehicle, a Lego car that is more than this. Surprisingly as it seems, but this car actually works, including eight electric motors, all-wheel drive system three, remote controls and around 21 feet of wire. Consequently, we are talking about a dynamic model. The steering even turns 2.6 rotations lock-to-lock, just like a real 911.
Watch the video and be impressed:
After all, maybe the idea of gift for building a Lego Porsche is not so bad. He can even use the details provided by others if you somehow consider giving him this demanding job of making the Lego chassis and axles himself.
With the occasion of the 40th anniversary of international cultural commitment, BMW has thought to reward its lovers with a virtual tour in the legendary BMW Art Car Collection. This actually gives public access inside the creative process of BMW cars, giving them the chance to catch a glimpse into the production of their most favorite cars. It’s like a virtual museum for car lovers.
In order to create the art car gallery, the auto manufacturer collaborated with world-renowned artists and created 17 unique art cars (“works of art on wheels”), many of the them well-known from different racing competitions (e.g. the first 3.0 CSL painted by Alexander Calder, the latest M3 GT2 by Jeff Koons). From now on, the fans of the Bavarian car maker can enjoy online the exhibit and presentation film of each car’s creation.
In the video below you can find out a synopsis of the film about the history of this program:
“After four decades and a total of 17 BMW Art Cars, they can now all be admired by everyone. (…) Whilst the originals are often exhibited individually at the BMW Museum in Munich or at significant cultural institutions throughout the world, people are now able to discover for the BMW Art Cars in their entirety. A comprehensive online tour is now available anywhere and anytime” says Bill McAndrews, head of BMW Group Corporate Strategy and Communications.
The BMW Art Cars can be viewed at www.bmw-artcartour.com.
What do you think about BMW idea? Are you a fan of BMW Art Car Collection?
Women are naturally romantic persons, with very few exceptions. They dream about moments with the dear and beloved man from their lives, about romantic evenings spent in the candle light or, for more pretentious ones, about gondola rides in Venice. But what about some rides in the same Venice and with the same lovely guy, but in this futuristic space, called CAT (City Aquatic Transport)?
CAT is the result of Irish industrial designers from the Curve Creative studio, working at alternative vehicles to automotive traffic from the current urban roads. The project aims at being integrated to the bigger city plans, based on the fact that it integrates a user-friendly pre-booking system, impulsive climbing at docks and imagines city seaports.
In addition to this, CAT has a capacity of four passengers in 360-degree rotating captains chairs surrounding a central table and is connected to current trends too – it uses silent electric motors. The designers have thought about passengers too, so they used a glass roof, in order to offer a non-obstructed view and to make this transportation to be used in all kinds of weather.
Curve Creative studio still have much work to be done on it, for not transforming it in a floating hothouse, but it’s a great, classy and stylish alternative to current road vehicles.
So, ladies, what do you think about a ride in Venice by the water taxi?
[Source: Cleantechnica]
Post tags: Tags: concept vehicle, electric water taxi, water taxi
Nowadays, each car in the market comes with built-in GPS systems, which help disoriented drivers not to get lost and also to look for alternative routes to avoid traffic jams. This technological system is one of the greatest inventions of our times, but what about the “future” times? We all know that electric vehicles are the new trend in cars, and apparently the current GPS systems don’t go well together, because the latter are designed to be used only in gasoline cars.
In addition to this, many routes displayed by the current generation of in-car satellite navigation systems don’t take into account energy efficient routes. For example, 100 mile range electric cars are barely capable of 50 on steep inclines and fast roads (routes which demand larger amounts of power from an electric car’s battery pack), which can delay your EV’s cross-country trip quite a lot.
This is why the Japanese electronics company, Pioneer, has developed AVIC-ZH09-MEV Satellite Navigation System, which they claim to be the first ever on the market satellite system for electric vehicles. What this GPS system brings in addition to the conventional ones is the route planning based on energy consumption, driving style and the charging stations available in the area.
What other options do you think this GPS system for EV should have in order to improve even more the driving of electric cars?
DETROIT –The Cadillac brand is now ranked among the top 10 in the industry for initial quality (ranking 9th overall), with the Escalade topping the large premium crossover/SUV segment in the U.S., according to the 2011 J.D. Power and Associates Initial Quality StudySM. Escalade is the highest-performing vehicle in its segment in America for the second consecutive year.
Escalade’s highest-in-segment leadership showcases Cadillac’s commitment to our customers,” said Don Butler, vice president of Cadillac Marketing. “We’re now focused on continuing and expanding our brand’s quality improvement in every segment in which we compete.”
The 2011 IQS is based on responses from more than 73,000 U.S. purchasers and lessees of new 2011 model year vehicles surveyed after 90 days of ownership. The study includes a 228-question survey designed to provide manufacturers with information they can use to quickly identify problems and drive improvement.
Cadillac continues to gain momentum in the market, registering 16 consecutive months of year-to-year retail sales increases in North America. Cadillac’s marketplace gains have been driven by consistently strong demand for the Escalade line of luxury SUVs, the CTS family of luxury cars and the SRX crossover.
About Cadillac in Canada
Cadillac has been a luxury automotive manufacturer since 1902 and has a prestigious history of safety and technology innovation. This legacy continues today as Cadillac engineers and builds technologically advanced, dramatically styled vehicles with a reputation for luxury, performance and quality. More information on Cadillac can be found at www.cadillac.ca.
First, let’s define what “patriotic” means in this case: it’s not so much about love for the country as about preference for domestic manufacturers, regardless of the place their products are actually manufactured.
The survey looked at shopping trends over the last six months using CarGurus DealFinder service. However, the results of TheDetroitBureau.com study placed Detroit and Saint Louis on the first two positions: those are the cities with the largest slice of domestic car buyers (consumers from these two cities prefer buying American cars 67% of the time). On the third place came Cleveland, Ohio, with 59% US majority in the CarGurus.com study.
Apparently, more than two-thirds of car sales in the Midwest go to Ford, General Motors or Chrysler, while three in four shoppers on the Left Coast turn to either Asian or European marques.
The study also revealed the fact that a bit further you move towards the cost, the numbers change: San Francisco, Los Angeles and San Diego chose domestic products 27% of the time, while East Coast buyer are decidedly less “loyal” than those in the Midwest. They tend more towards import vehicles: only 40% of Atlantans, 35% of Miami buyers, 33% of those from Boston and just 32% of New York residents opt for American brands.
So, are you a patriotic car buyer?
[Source: Thedetroitbureau, Photo]
Post tags: Tags: car buyers, patricotic car buyers
Real-life Cars 2 vehicles – exhibited in Hollywood
If you have kids, you surely know all the characters from Disney animation Cars and your kids already talked over and over again about the racing scenes, sounds or catchy details from the movie, Cars 2. Even if they have enjoyed mostly the storyline, the action scenes or the cars, they have all become fans of this Disney production.
So, for all those persons who have children who liked Cars, we announce you that Peterson Automotive Museum has organized an exhibition in Hollywood of some the most representative Cars 2 characters.
Here are the vehicles presented in the exhibition: “Acer” (1976 AMC Pacer)
“Queen” (1954 Rolls-Royce Silver Dawn Saloon)
1968 Lamborghini Espada
1985 Renault R5 Turbo 2
“Finn McMissile”
“Mater” the tow truck (inspired by a 1952 International Harvester)
It’s a great place to take your kids. We can not wait to share with us your impressions about the exhibition!
We have all seen those movies with flying cars! At that moment, they looked like a fantasy that never could become reality. But how would you feel about traveling between homes and working places or flying at low altitude in your city? We know: it would be great. Apparently, this could be possible: the European Union is preparing for the next generation of city cars with MyCopter project, combining ground-based and air-based transportation. In fact, this could be the solution to traffic jams.
In order to finalize this project, a personal air transport system (PATS) could be created, which to overcome the environmental and financial costs associated with all of the current methods of transport.
Although this flying car generation raises a set of other problems (such as careless drivers, preventing accidents, lack of orientation lines etc.), the idea behind the EU project is to set up a framework which allows even the most unwise drivers to safely “fly”. So, the project will use new automation technologies for obstacle avoidance, path planning and formation flying, which could also be used in other aerospace applications.
Women drivers are somehow different of men drivers, especially when it comes to car features that arouse their interest. This is why car makers constantly try to come up with specific features which to meet their needs. Apparently, women are more interested in functionality and comfort of their cars than men are.
So, here is the list of some car features that women generally like:
- electric pedal extenders: which help shorter stature drivers to seat at the right distance from the steering wheel, so that the airbags to deploy properly.
- gentler liftgate: in order to avoid injuries on the chin or nose when opening or closing the liftgate.
- adjustable seats: for any size and weights.
- interior materials and textures of higher quality: women have the quality to feel the quality by only casting an eye on the fabric, not to mention by touching it.
- buttons, knobs, levers and handles: every woman has sensitive small hands, with long nails, so they need special car accessories.
- longer intervals between mechanical service and better reliability: as every woman hates taking her car to have it checked.
- package holders for shopping: women are shopping more often than men.
- removable and fold-flat seats: for make the vehicle proper, for example, for child carrying.
- climate control: in order to create comfort for each passenger.
- dual radio, stereo and CD systems: for women with children, who don’t care to hear children songs over and over again.
So, what would you add to this list? Which is the car feature that you like most?
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