Car Parts 2011

The new Chevrolet Malibu could be delayed until 2011, nearly a year after its original U.S. market launch date, according to a report from Businessweek citing sources within the company. Likewise, the next next-generation Chevy Malibu may also be delayed by six months, into 2013, the report said.

Don’t know what the hell’s going on today but here’s another broken embargo. We solemnly swear that we had nothing to do with the Chevrolet Malibu breach. Don’t believe us? Take a peek-a-boo at Edmunds Insideline, that’s where we got the pics.

Design-wise, apart from Avalanche, Tahoe etc. inspired front end, cant’ say that I ‘m in to it as Chevy designers seem to have borrowed (unsuccessfully if you ask me) styling cues from here and there –eg. the VW Jetta rear window line and the Infiniti G35 tail lamps. The interior on the other hand is simple but nicely conceived.

It seems as though Porsche has become this week's agenda here at Flappy Paddle Heads. And while Danny Chin was busy with the air cooled era 911s, he kindly left a bit of room for me to talk about this.

But I have a confession. I know just as much about the new 918 RSR as you do. No more, no less.

Yes, Porsche ran the 911 GT3 R hybrid in the 24 hours of Nurburgring to field test its flywheel generator. Yes, Porsche considered it to be successful. Yes, they carried it over to a very sexy 918 Spyder hybrid supercar concept, which brought journalists to their knees at the last Geneva Auto Show. Yes, Porsche did it again with the 918 RSR, this time it's at Detroit's NAIAS.

I'll run through the specs, but only because I feel that there's always somebody who has to ask, "Well, how fast does it go?" Well are we ready? You better be because this is straight from Porsche AG's website itself:

The V8 engine is a further development of the direct injection engine from the successful RS Spyder* race car and now offers an output of precisely 563 hp at 10,300/rpm in the 918 RSR. The electric motors on the two front wheels each contribute 75 kW, i.e. a total of 150 kW, to the peak drive power of exactly 767 hp. This additional power, which is generated during braking, is stored in an optimised flywheel accumulator.

*now we know they're serious... especially since they used the word "precisely."

But the numbers aren't the reason why I'm writing. No. I won't pretend like I understand even half the technology that Porsche put into the 918 RSR to achieve its figures. Moreover, I think we can better put the numbers into context if we got back to it after the RSR has raced a couple events rather than when it's only spinning on a pedestal, polished in a coat of wax...



A bit of what you just saw in the video made me understand something. When I look back into history, I don't believe Porsche was ever successful on first attempt. Take the 911; from day 1, Porsche has been criticized by many (ahem, Mr. Chin) for misplacing the engine behind the rear axle. Yet somehow, their decades of stubborn trial and error eventually brought us the masterpiece that it is today. The result? Now Porsche practically owns the copyright to the RR engine layout.

Now in this particular video, emphasis has been placed on another Porsche legend, the 917 race car. Porsche AG design chief, Mr. Michael Mauer says two things that captured my attention. First, "When we look back into the history, definitely the 917 plays one of the major roles." Second, "I always wanted to express as well that the 918 is not really the successor of the 917. This car was supposed to be a symbol for the company and that we are still able to build the best sports cars and racing cars."

Now if you're a fan of Porsche, you'll know that the 917K had won both the 1970 and the 1971 24 Hours of Le Mans. But sometimes you have to figure out what they AREN'T saying. While the 917 was put through its paces during development in 1969, test drivers said the car was incredibly unstable. Porsche responded by trying many ideas to curb the issue; modifying the frame, suspension, and aerodynamics but all to no avail. Because of this, privateers still preferred the predecessing 908 over the 917. Moreover, the first privateer driver to race a 917, John Woolfe, crashed his Porsche 917 on the first lap of Circuit de la Sarthe, at Maison Blanche, tragically ending his life.

One could say the rest is history. Porsche stuck to their guns, stubbornly unwilling to give up on the car, fully believing its potential. Their capstone achievement is of course their overall win of 1971. Martini Racing team's Helmut Marko and Gijs van Lennep ran the #22 917 to a record setting distance of 5,335.313 km. This record has not been broken until just last year, when Audi's R15 TDIs beat the record by 13.629 km. Obviously, Porsche will make sure that you never forget that. Even after Le Mans, the 917's success continued. Porsche transitioned its participation to North America and raced in the Can-Am series from 1972-1973. In this period of participation, the 917 reached its final iteration, the 917/30. This beast flexed 1,580 bhp in qualifying tune, dominating the 1973 season of the Can-Am series. That said, the Porsche 917 is one of the few race cars that dominated multiple series events.

It will seem somewhat weird to explain it this way, but maybe Porsche thrives on doing things the hard way. And maybe they don't win by being clever, or even by being practical, but win by simply never giving up.

We note that the 911 GT3 R Hybrid was the only hybrid racing car out of the 200 vehicles on the grid. It raced hard, led for 11 hours of the 24 Hours of Nurburgring before it broke down only 2 hours from the finish. Although the result was a DNF, and should've been considered a failure, the telemetrics were enough to convince the team that a hybrid system is definitely the future for Porsche Racing.

Porsche has shown us that they will be just as stubborn in their latest racing endeavor, and I can't wait to see the 918 RSR make some hybrid history in motorsports.

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You didn't think I was just going to end the post without some car porn, did you?

Toyota has been trying to repair their public image ever since that whole driving into a wall accidentally scandal.  Lately, these kinds of commercials have been popping up to bolster that goody-goody joy joy feeling inside us all.  I'll let you know what I think about it after the jump and you can voice your opinion in the comments below.



Let's get right to it.  I think this commercial is utter garbage, plain and simple.  If we walk through the basics of a roller coaster in nerd terms, it goes something like this.  The cart is brought to a certain height through the use of mechanical work to increase its potential energy due to gravity.  Then , it's released from that height and all the potential energy is turned into kinetic energy.  Up and down it goes, trading potential and kinetic energy back and forth until the brakes are applied once it returns to the station to park.

As we all learned in physics during our high school years, energy can neither be created nor destroyed but changed from one form to another.  The potential/kinetic energy transfer in this situation would only be ideal in a frictionless vacuum.  This means that the cart would be able to return to the same height if there was no friction between it and the rails and there was absolutely no wind resistance.  Well I'm about to let you in on a little secret, Toyota.  The real world has air and friction exists between two materials, too.  Sorry!

Want me to explain it again with those two factors?  Ok, here goes.  A motor of some sort, which itself isn't 100% efficient, pulls the cart up the first, biggest hill.  It's released at the top and as the speed increases so does the friction of the cart passing through the air.  Meanwhile under the cart, the wheels are losing energy to friction between it and the rail and most likely in the wheels' bearings too.  The ups and downs are still there but each one is smaller than the last.  Finally, as the cart comes back into the station, there's only a fraction of the original potential energy left in the form of kinetic energy and poof!  Most of that energy just turned into heat as the brakes were applied.  Whatever energy was captured in that brake application can be redistributed to the motor that pulls the cart up the big hill.  Oh yeah!  There's electrical resistance too...

What does all this mean?  It would seem that Toyota is in a bad spot right now.  The biggest recall in history was their fault last year and has resulted in Ford, who was on the brink of extinction, to gain accolades from Consumer Reports for customer perception.  The biggest Japanese company in the world built their reputation on the buying public's focus on reliability, practicality, and safety.  All those have gone out the window with Wide Open Throttle Gate.  So they look to save the world in other ways with these side projects that supposedly use Toyota technology.  Get back to making cars for people who actually love cars and this smoke show isn't necessary.  If somebody can truly love what they drive, nobody has to justify what they drive with the ancillary world saving technology behind it.

Back in October, I posted my thoughts about Hyundai becoming the next Honda, or more importantly the Honda of the 90s.  Back then, Honda had several exciting cars in their lineup that showcased cutting edge technologies like four-wheel steering, VTEC, and aluminum unibody.  Today, the excitement can be felt in Hyundai's entire range of cars.  There's the sporty rear-wheel drive Genesis coupe, the mega-mile consuming Genesis luxury sedan, and the jack-of-all trades Sonata.  While the two Genesis cars cater to a very distinctive audience, the Sonata is the car that everyone can enjoy for its good looks, perfect size, adrenaline pumping turbo power, and frugality at the pump.

courtesy autoblog.com

With those reasons in mind, Flappy Paddle Heads is proud to bestow its inaugural "Can't Think of a More Witty Phrase than 'Car of the Year" award to the 2010 Hyundai Sonata.

The Sonata took top honors for a litany of reasons.  Its design language sets a new direction for a Korean car manufacturer that gets attention on the street instead of just trying to be a Japanese clone that neither offends nor entices with stale sheet metal.  The swooping body work resembles those premium (read: more expensive) four door coupes from the Germans that are all the rage but is executed in a much less flamboyant manner.

The engine options also take the road less traveled.  Instead of offering a V6 in their top trim model, the Sonata comes exclusively with 4-cylinder propulsion systems.  There's a conventional motor, as well as turbocharged and battery supplemented versions.  Both petrol powered motors provide class leading power while sacrificing nothing to their rivals, not to mention that the turbo-4 provides superior driving dynamics due to its lower weight than a heavy V6.  For the green hypermilers, the hybrid model provides better gas mileage than the Camry hybrid and is cheaper at the showroom too.  Power mongers, green weenies, and penny pinchers can all be happy with these options.

The mid-size sedan segment is the highest volume car segment in America and it is hard to make any inroads.  The Accord and Camry are constantly vying for the most sales.  The Ford Fusion is set to break 200,000 sales this year, something that Ford hasn't accomplished since the Focus sedan, after having a major redesign.  The Sonata has accomplished that same feat for Hyundai for the first time in its company's history.  During a time when people buy Camrys and Accords due to brand loyalty and not knowing any better, it's refreshing to see that a newcomer has joined the ranks with something totally new and eyeopening.  I hope these sales figures show that a company doesn't need to follow the status quo to achieve success.

Congratulations, Hyundai!

Voltec is GM's name for its Chevrolet Volt electric vehicle technology, something that will be offered to consumers when its first electric vehicle hits the market in late 2010. Featuring a lithium-ion battery pack, GM expects that sales for its Volt line will be decent, but the automaker understands that the technology needs to be expanded to power other vehicles, hence the news that the Chevy Orlando could be next.

Convenience Features- The optional Navigation system not only gets you from point A to point B it also can direct you to gas stations, ATM machines, restaurants, and even playgrounds. The systems voice recognition software is programmed to recognize a range of commands. It even adapts to each individual, actually learning preferences and speech patterns. Every Sonata comes standard with 3 months of XM radio, and navigation equipped models come with real time XM. The navigation system also integrates into the Sonata's audio system. To use your iPod just connect it to the input jack or wirelessly stream music from mobile phones and potable music devices using Bluetooth. All Sonata's come equipped with built in iPod and USB input jacks. The trip computer calculates your miles per gallon and tells you exactly how far you can drive with the fuel left in your tank.

Engine- All 3 trim levels come equipped with a 2.4 liter 16 valve DOHC engine. The GLS has 198 horsepower @6300rpm with 184 foot pounds of torque. The SE has 200 horsepower @6300rpm with 186 foot pounds of torque. The Limited has 198 horsepower @6300rpm with 184 foot pounds of torque. Even with this impressive horsepower from a 4 cylinder engine the Sonata is able to average 22 mpg city and 35 mpg highway according to their online auto brochure. This fuel efficiency is accomplished in part due to a new fuel injection system called "Gasoline Direct Injection". This gasoline direct injection or GDI system injects a precise amount of fuel directly into the combustion chamber of each cylinder allowing it to squeeze the most fuel efficiency out of every gallon. The Hyundai Sonata is the first vehicle in its class with standard "Gasoline Direct Injection" technology.

Hyundai Designers and engineers spent four years developing the new Sonata. Its sleek coupe like design is a refreshing change from other sedans. The new 4 cylinder engine boasts 200hp while still offering great mileage. There are three trim levels available the GLS, SE, and Limited. Below is an overview.

If you still find the MKZ Hybrid's price steep, there's always the option of the car's corporate clone, the Ford Fusion Hybrid, which starts at $28,825 including destination and delivery.

The 2011 MKZ Hybrid makes use of a 2.5-liter Atkinson-cycle four-cylinder engine and an electric motor producing a combined output of 191HP. Lincoln's first-ever hybrid model has received an EPA-certified 41 mpg rating in city driving and 36 mpg on the highway, and can reach speeds of up to 47 mph (75 km/h) in pure electric mode.

The safety features of the car have been tested and have got a good rating overall in several tests. Also while conducting tests checking up on the driver's and that of the front passenger's safety it has got a satisfactorily good rating.

Paris Show
Following its introduction at the 2010 Paris Motor Show speculation began that the 2010 Honda Fit Hybrid might show up by the following year, but that information is being confused with news that the Honda Civic Hybrid will be receiving a significant update about the same time. The plans, at least for now, is for Honda to keep selling the Insight and Civic Hybrid stateside and reserve the Fit/Jazz for other markets.

Honda isn't satisfied, however. The Japanese automaker has been playing second fiddle to Toyota in the hybrid market for several years even thought they got their Insight to the market ahead of the Prius. Today, the Prius is by far the best-selling hybrid model on the market, a capable five-passenger sedan with hatchback.

If you have taken up a defensive driving course then your chances of reducing the monthly instalment can be more. So you can pay fewer premiums but gain the same advantages as that of others.

The Honda Fit is a proven hit for the Honda Motor Company, a car sold as the Jazz in some markets. Slotted below the Civic as a subcompact, the Fit recaptures what Honda was like when the automaker first began to sell cars in the U.S. in 1973. And that original Civic was a subcompact with a surprisingly cavernous interior, economical and affordable.

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Hyundai has created an all new four cylinder motor to power its new Sonata. This completely new engine--named the Theta II GDI (gasoline direct injection technology) uses less fuel, produces fewer pollutants, provides faster throttle response, and generates more power than traditional systems that provide fuel into the engine's intake ports. Gasoline mileage on the freeway will be an impressive 35 MPG for a midsize four door.

courtesy of Autoblog