In a sign that not everyone is “fit” to write about cars, this video shows a supposed part-time automotive writer called Dominic Littlewood in England, being taken for a ride in a Mercedes-Benz SL by none other than Damon Hill.
Tesla broke into the scene with the promise of an all-electric sports car that was extremely quick and required no petrol whatsoever. They recently fulfilled that promise with the showroom-ready Tesla Roadster, which are already on their way to early buyers. Their latest plan is to offer a more practical car, but with the same ideas of sportiness and efficiency as the Roadster. That new car is the Tesla Model S, and its first prototype was publicly shown in the United States.
So your neighbour went ahead and got himself “the most masculine Porsche Cayenne in the world” while you are left holding your garden hose, feeling disgusted by your gay BMW X5. To save you the embarrassment, European tuner G-Power is now offering a beef-up package for the X5, calling it the G-Power TYPHOON, complete with a massive power upgrade that makes it the manliest X5 around.
European tuner JE Design claims they’ve created the “most masculine Porsche” in the world! So if you’re a total phussy who needs a pricey vehicle to prove your limited manhood, beat all your like-minded compatriots with the Cayenne PROGRESSOR.
The respected American Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has launched a new roof strength rating system to help consumers pick vehicles that will help protect them in rollover crashes. Twelve small SUVs were the first to be put to the test. Only 4 earn the top rating of good. The Subaru Forester and even the Jeep Patriot, among others, have the strongest rated roofs, while the Kia Sportage has the weakest among the 2008-2009 models evaluated. A report like may be enough reason for some consumers to keep shunning Korean cars. But the Honda CR-V and the Ford Escape only did slightly better.
A year-old club in the UAE called Emarat 4×4, in association with the Dubai Offroad Club, regularly arrange off-road trips for members, and last month they organised a “ladies drive” for women who wanted to try dune-bashing.
So we went on a whirlwind tour of various ad agencies last month in a bid to get sponsorship for this “little” website, which happens to be the biggest English car portal in the region. After wasting all that time, all we’ve got are lame excuses and clueless rejections, while our smaller competitors enjoy the fruits of a good income. I have come to the conclusion that I will not waste this much of my own time any more, and will concentrate on my other income sources. Oh, but DriveArabia is going to continue as is, and every review I write will be a favour to the manufacturer,
The first Gulf Bike Expo 2009, which ran from the 19th to the 21st of March, turned out to be an interesting affair, with up-close bike stunts and a variety of customised motorcycles. The entry tickets for Dhs 30 was steep (although we went in for free), so we are unsure about the value of the small show for Dubai Festival City visitors. But we really were surprised at how many ways something on two wheels can be customised, sometimes by adding a third wheel.
Terrafugia, a new aircraft company, announced the first test flight of their Transition Roadable Aircraft, where it flew a few metres up in the air for a brief period. They are not exactly calling it a “flying car,” but the two-seater Transition aircraft is designed to take off and land at local airports and drive on any road. Transforming from plane to car takes less than 30 seconds by folding up the wings. The Transition cruises up to 720 km at over 184 kph, can drive at highway speeds on the road, and fits in a standard household garage.
The Lincoln MKZ, while never a bestseller even in its home country, let alone here, has still received a makeover for the 2010 model year instead of being killed off outright. The upgrade comes in line with the redesign of its mechanical sibling, the 2010 Ford Fusion.