What did we learn from the Italian GP?
The first thing we learned that it was
wet, wet and wet. The second thing we learned was that
Sebastian Vettel is the rising star of the future. On second
thoughts, forget the future, he is already a star, winning
his first Grand Prix in conditions that beat everyone else.
To finish 12 seconds in front of a McLaren, acknowledged as
one of the best cars on the grid, while he was in a Torro
Rosso, acknowledged as one of the poorest cars on the grid,
was simply sensational. A very well deserved win, driven
with maturity that belies his 21 years. The new Schumi? He
could be, and without the personality flaws!
Let’s go back to Qualifying before we look at the race. I
have it on good authority that McLaren had placed a Moses
sticker on the dash of Lewis Hamilton’s car, rather than the
more usual St. Christopher medal. This was to part the
waters so that Lewis could go straight to the top while
fitted with intermediate tyres, while everyone else was on
extreme wets. And to compound the problem, McLaren kept him
in the pits waiting for God to turn off the water from the
heavens. By the time he got out, there was not enough time
to come back in and fit the correct tyres, so the boy wonder
qualified 15th and thus compromised his race from the
outset. This is a world championship team? Who is making
these decisions at McLaren (like keeping Hamilton on worn
out tyres, showing canvas, at the Chinese GP last year)?
Probably the cleaning lady.
Now, forgetting the hype and the excuses, Heikki Kovalainen
(McLaren) hardly covered himself with glory, even though he
did finish second. He is certainly not showing himself to be
a leading driver. Solid, dependable and dull (like his
performance at interviews).
Kubica, of the scythe-like aerodynamic nose, had a good
race, well timed pit stops, going to the intermediate tyres
at just the right time and deserved his third place. His
publicist should tell him to smile at post race interviews,
however.
For a driver who gets a multi-million dollar salary and has
just signed another two year contract with Ferrari, Kimi
Raikkonen’s drive was amateurish, at best. Qualifying almost
as poorly as Lewis Hamilton (14th grid position) he
languished in the middle of the field and then suddenly at
the end produces a string of fastest laps. He should be made
to stand outside the headmaster’s office on Monday with his
excuse written out 100 times.
Massa kept it all on the island and his sixth place was as
good as he was going to get. No fire, no brilliance. Massa
has always been known for his lack of consistency and he
demonstrated that again at Monza. He is in the box seat to
become world champion this year, but if he does, he doesn’t
deserve it. When a ‘top’ driver says, “I tried to attack
Heidfeld (BMW) but then I thought it wasn’t worth taking too
many risks and I chose to just bring the car home.” Not the
thoughts of a champion in my book.
Mark Webber in the sister Red Bull team to Sebastian Vettel
had qualified third but then faded from view after the first
pit stops, as he always seems to do. He did mount a late
race challenge, but it was a ‘too late’ challenge and he was
certainly beaten on the track by both Massa and Hamilton.
With Vettel as his team mate next year, he will have to pull
his Nomex socks up.
The next race is in Singapore on September 28, and at night.
Pray for rain.
Chevy Volt -
electrifying news!
GM seems to be on target for the release of their
electric car, the Volt, in 2010, complete with
“accidentally” released photographs of the production
vehicle. Whilst not as futuristic as the Volt concept which
was displayed last year, it is still a clean looking design.
“Accidentally”
released photo of production Volt
The Volt is designed to run on an electric motor powered by
a battery pack, which can be recharged from a standard home
wall outlet. There is a very small petrol engine included in
the package, but its only function is to drive a generator
to recharge the car when running. The petrol engine is not
mated to the transmission in any way, as opposed to the
Toyota Prius or Honda Insight hybrids.
GM is currently testing new lithium-ion battery packs that
will enable the Volt to travel 65 kilometers when fully
charged. After that, the small petrol engine will recharge
the batteries to keep the car rolling at an equivalent of
1.5 liters of gasoline per 100 kilometres.
GM says it will bring the car to market late in 2010. It is
expected to cost $US30,000 to $US40,000 which, although
expensive by US standards, is not totally out of the ball
park.
Autotrivia Quiz
Last week I mentioned that when we pull
up at the traffic lights, why should we remember Herbert
Frood? That was easy, as Herbert Frood was the father of
‘Ferodo’ brake linings - which became popular after 1905.
So to this week. The trend to rear engined Indy cars is
often thought to have come after Jack Brabham raced the rear
engined Cooper-Climax at the Brickyard in 1961. However, was
he the first with this layout?
For the Automania FREE beer this week, be the first correct
answer to email [email protected]
Good luck!
Hyundai really coming
to the fore
It is the avowed intention of Hyundai to be in
the top five auto manufacturers in the world. To get to that
objective, they have tightened up their quality control, so
much so they have recently scored very well in customer
satisfaction and expanded their vehicle line-up.
Hyundai
i20
Last year, for the first time ever, the Hyundai brand
produced the most leaders on Strategic Vision’s Total
Quality Index™ (TQI), leading in three segments. The 2007
results were based on the ratings of new vehicle owners in
19 product segments.
The only other brand to produce three leaders was Nissan.
Hyundai Motors had a total of five leaders (the Kia brand
earning two more), Ford Motors and BMW Group each earned
three (one for BMW, two for Mini); GM, Honda, and Mercedes
each earned two with Dodge, Lexus and Volkswagen each
earning one.
Hyundai are producing a vehicle to run against Mercedes-Benz
in the luxury car segment this year (Genesis), and have a
new small car, which is a potential leader in the fuel
efficiency stakes as well. This is the new i20.
Hyundai claims the diesel version of the i20 will use just 4
liters per 100km, less than the Fiat 500 diesel (4.2L/100km)
and the Toyota Prius (4.4L/100km). This would also make it
conform to some of the guidelines for Thailand’s eco-car.
The i20 is the second small hatch to be designed at
Hyundai’s European Design Centre in Russelsheim, Germany,
following the release last year of its bigger brother, the
i30.
As with the i30, the i20 has been designed to appeal to
European driving tastes, which means it is likely to have
excellent road holding, brakes and steering. It is said that
the i30 is the best handling Hyundai yet and the i20 is
likely to retain the focus on increased driving enjoyment.
The interior fit and finish will be a big leap forward
following on from the quality parameters that Hyundai has
set for itself.
The exterior design is also a big improvement over the
Korean maker’s current offerings, with sharp European lines
reminiscent of the Volkswagen Polo.
In a press release, Hyundai Motor Europe president Kun Hee
Ahn says the i20 will offer more standard equipment than its
European rivals, as well as more interior space, strong fuel
economy and competitive road manners. In January of this
year, Hyundai Motor also launched its new rear-wheel drive
Genesis luxury sedan, a car the South Korean company sees as
its ticket into the ranks of the world’s top-end automakers.
Hyundai Motor said it has invested 500 billion won ($533
million) to develop the Genesis over the past four years,
and sees it as a competitor to luxury models such as
Toyota’s Lexus and similar European cars from BMW and
Mercedes-Benz.
Genesis “symbolizes our determination to enter the highly
competitive arena of luxury cars now dominated by the
Europeans,” Hyundai chairman and CEO Chung Mong-koo said.
“Genesis will consolidate our position as the leader of the
Korean auto industry and will pave the way forward for our
leap into the global market.”
Thai Ford Fiesta plant
tribute to Thai quality
The new generation of the Ford Fiesta (and its
Mazda twin, the Mazda2) will be built at the Auto-Alliance
plant in Thailand (AAT).
Thai-built
Ford Fiesta
This is the plant at which the Ford Ranger and the Mazda
BT50 are built, and they have earned good reputations
outside of Thailand for their quality. Locally this region
is known as the ‘Detroit of Asia’ with the GM plant next
door, and scores of automotive suppliers in the vicinity.
The Thai government settled on promoting the manufacture of
automotive products and electronic consumer goods as two
additional props for the local economy and followed the
model established by the Japanese, with the Thais developing
the domestic market for vehicle sales by low tariffs for the
one-tonne pick-up segment before turning an eye towards
exports.
With the world waiting for the Fiesta/Mazda2, the AAT plant
should return the investment by Ford/Mazda very quickly.
