‘(00) goes to: Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric Launch in Gold Coast Australia

It’s 6am and I just arrived at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport. The meet-up time is actually at 7 but I had stayed up the whole night working on the site, so I decided not to sleep, go to the airport earlier and get some early breakfast there. The 15-hour journey to Gold Coast Australia for the regional launch of Goodyear’s finest, the Eagle F1 Asymmetric, had now started earlier than expected, for me at least. Read more

A1GP: Sepang International Circuit – Race Day

At today’s A1GP race at Sepang in Malaysia, Fauzy had a storming start to the Feature race keeping his fourth place start and pushing hard for position but a clash between India and Switzerland brought out the safety car and the Malaysia car had to hold position. When racing resumed Fauzy was straight on to the PowerBoost and out braked the third placed car of Lebanon to claim third place.

Malaysia held position until the first round of pit stops, with the team pitting as soon as the pit window opened and with quick work from the crew, Fauzy was back out and settling in to the race. Disaster struck for the team when radio interference from another team, who were calling in their driver, resulted in Fauzy unnecessarily pitting. The team could do nothing but wave him out onto the track, but the damage was done. Fauzy had dropped to the back of the grid and had to climb back through the field. He reached 11th place with seven laps remaining, but with the Malaysia car lying over five seconds behind 10th place Italy, a championship point looked unlikely. Fauzy had other thoughts. Over the next seven laps he pushed as hard as he could and reeled in the Italian ahead, finally claiming a coveted point on the last lap. Read more

Obama Talks About Our Oil Addiction

President-Elect Barack Obama thinks we have an oil addiction and he wants to do something about it. That something is developing a plan for energy independence. While that might have seemed easier to discuss when oil was at $147 a barrel, Obama thinks it’s even more important to talk about now, with oil hovering around $60. “It may be a little harder politically, but it’s more important,” Obama told 60 Minutes in his first post-election interview. Obama explained that our addiction to oil causes a mental transition from “shock to trance.” As oil and gas prices go up, it creates “a flurry of activity.” When the prices go back down, however, people seemingly forget, and “we act like it’s not important. And, as a consequence, we never make any progress.” He considers it an addiction and knows it needs to be broken. Our next top executive thinks now is the time to break it. Read more

Part 3: Renault Fabulous-5 Test Drive – The Megane R26

The Megane R26 is a completely different machine than the Clio RS. Minus the badges and decals, it’ll be hard to believe that the R26 is Renault’s best hot hatch. The design of the R26 may not sit well in everybody’s eyes especially the rear but it’s a look that grows on you, more so after you drive it. Read more

A1GP: New Australian Event Is Good News For Team Malaysia and Partners

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 12 November 2008. A1 Team Malaysia warmly welcomes the announcement that the A1GP World Cup of Motorsport will be racing at Surfers Paradise, Gold Coast, Australia next season. A temporary street circuit in the centre of the city will host the A1GP series, a track which has been used for motor racing events for the past 18 years. This long history of racing in Surfers Paradise has resulted in the venue being recognised as the jewel in the crown of Australian motorsport.

The event, which will be held from 22-25 October 2009 is a particularly important addition to the A1GP calendar for the Malaysian team. Australia is one of the key commercial markets for the two main commercial partners of A1 Team Malaysia namely Proton and Tourism Malaysia. Proton has a significant presence in the country with buoyant sales of the company’s vehicle range, while Australia is one of Malaysia’s most important tourism markets, with over 320,000 visitors arriving from the continent each year. Read more

Nissan Uses Nuclear Physics To Study Engine Oil Flow

In a joint announcement on Monday, Nissan and the Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) said they were working on a…we just have to quote them on this…”neutron imaging system that has provided the world’s first precise visualization of oil flow in an engine operating at high speed.”

Got it? Well, here’s our attempt at translating that:

Nissan is studying, using sophisticated photography, the interaction of engine oil (its speed, density and composition at various points) to look at how it flows and creates friction inside of the engine. They’re doing so in order to find designs for engines that optimize oil viscosity, or oil flow. Read more

Part 2: Renault Fabulous-5 Test Drive – The Clio RS

So it continues, fresh from lunch, coffee, scones, and the Clio 1.6, you can just imagine my excitement when I was handed the keys to the Clio RS. You should know that every sports edition that comes from Renault is specially built by their Renault Sport Technologies arm, better known as RST. This basically means that it’s not just made and sold for the money but it’s made and sold by enthusiasts for enthusiasts. Read more

Renault Fabulous-5 Test Drive – Part 1

Renault has been producing cars for more than a 100 years now; they have been racing for almost as long and at one point during World War 1, Renault even produced ammunition, military airplanes and tanks! Now just imagine the experience gained from such bold productions and racing and winning.

That’s why when Tom handed me the chance to attend the Renault Fabulous-5 Drive up Cameron Highlands, there was no second thought, even when he told me at 1am and the event was at 8am.

So I made it on time and after a quick Read more

Sebastien Loeb Clinches Record 5th World Rally Championship

As grippingly dramatic as it was in its closing rounds, the past weekends Brazilian Grand Prix wasn’t the only motor sport event held this past weekend. In fact, it wasn’t the only top-level championship decider, either, as Sebastien Loeb sailed to his record-beating 5th consecutive World Rally Championship yesterday at Rally Japan.

The achievement beats Loeb’s own quadruple title record, which he shared with Tommi Makinen and Juha Kankkunen (both Finns). But with the fifth under his belt, Loeb emerges from the ranks as the sole quintuple champion. Even more remarkable is that championships were earned in succession and uninterrupted. Also remarkable was that Loeb secured the title one rally early, and didn’t even have to win the event to lock up the championship. Here’s how it happened: Read more

Lewis Hamilton – 2008 FIA Formula 1™ World Champion

In only his second year in the sport, McLaren Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton became today the 2008 FIA Formula 1 World Champion at the season finale in Brazil.In one of the most dramatic finishes to a World Championship ever, Hamilton took the title by a single point after securing fifth position on the final corner of the final lap of the final race of the 2008 season.

Hamilton finished the year with 98 points, one point ahead of Ferrari’s Felipe Massa who won his home race at Interlagos this afternoon.

Heikki Kovalainen finished seventh – a result that helped the McLaren Mercedes team to second in the constructors’ championship with 151 points. Ferrari amassed a title-winning total of 172 points

At the age of just 23 years, 10 months and 26 days, Lewis is the youngest champion in Formula 1 history. He takes McLaren’s 12th drivers’ world title, and the third for the McLaren Mercedes partnership, which won the drivers’ title in 1998 and 1999 with Mika Hakkinen. Read more

Next Page »