The Batmobile

Well if it isn't...the Batmobile! Damn. I'd like one of those. Apparently the car is build on a Corvette, and can do speeds up to 200 km/h. Oh, and of course it's fitted with machine guns.

Electrify your petrol car

Ford has applied for patent on a technology that will power all of a vehicles electrical systems using a large capacity battery with a plug-in system. Now what would this mean for an average consumer? All the electrics in a regular petrol (og diesel, for that matter) car will be powered by a battery that you can charge from an electric outlet at home, increasing the fuel efficiency by 15-20 percent.

Will there possibly be a kit I could install on my grotesquely thirsty SUV?

UK ends war on motorists

Finally thinks are looking a bit brighter for British motorists, as the new government promises to end the war on motorists, cutting funding to speed cameras, ruling out "pay as you drive" schemes and end the reign of "cowboy clampers".

Congratulations, Brits. It's been a downward spiral for 13 years, so it's about bloody time it changed. Now if only other countries could follow, the world would become a better place.

Some more info on speed cameras in the UK can be found here.

Ford Explorer 2011 with impressive fuel economy

The 2011 year model of the Ford Explorer was revealed yesterday, and I have to say I was impressed. The old Explorer looks like it was designed in the early 80's (which it probably was...), whereas this new model basically looks on par with the European and Asian competitors. Who would have though.

As if that wasn't enough, the Explorer has another ace up its sleeve: The 4-cylinder 2.0 liter Ecoboost engine delivering 240 hp and 340 nm torque. Not the most impressive figures perhaps, but the impressive part is the fuel consumption. Ford says it will do 19 mpg in city driving, around 12,4 l/100km. That means it will probably end up somewhere around 8 l/100km (close to 30 mpg!) in rural driving, and a combined consumption under 10 l/100km. For a full-size 4WD SUV. Wow! For the record there will be a 3,5 liter V6-enigine available as well, marginally more power and way higher fuel consumption.

My only question is: When will we get an Ecofuel version of the Ecoboost engine? I wouldn't mind driving a Ford Explorer on E85 doing 14 l/100km. Hell, that's less than my petrol-fuelled SUV uses today.

So Ford, pretty please, give us a 2.0 Ecoboost Ecofuel, thank you so much.

Tesla Rav4 in 2012?

Apparently Toyota and Tesla are working on an electric version of the compact SUV Rav4, with plans to bring it to market in the US as soon as 2012! We can only hope Europe will follow. Nothing would be better than seeing the end of the butt-ugly, tin-can size electric cars (those days have lasted for way too long!) and entering the era of the functional, good-looking electric cars.

Photo: S 400 Hybrid

Licence plate á la Bond

Apparently, in California car license plates might go digital. Yes, it seems the old metal plates with paint may be replaced by a screen showing ads and other messages while the car is stationary, parked or standing at a red light or something.

This might actually be the 21st century version of the revolving license plate made famous by James Bond and his Aston Martin in the movie Goldfinger. If these plates ever make it to Europe, I can assure you I will get myself one and hack it, so I can go into stealth mode by the push of a button when passing speed cameras and road tolls.

Rest assured, it will be hacked. For the good of mankind.

Renault Fluence Z.E - close but no cigar

I'm not a fan of French cars, to say the least, but Renault have actually managed to impress me a bit with their huge investments in electric cars that are actually usable for normally sized people who may also be carrying some luggage. One of these is apparently set to hit the market as soon as next year, and it's called the Renault Fluence Z.E.

This is a 4,75 meters long, 4-door sedan, so you should be able to fit your entire family in there. Of course there's always a downside... The range of the car is a mere 160 kilometers, and that's under perfect conditions. In other words this is a pure commuter- or city-car, completely useless for any kind of road-trip. What I don't get is why Renault didn't think to include a range extender in this car, making it a serious contender to the upcoming Opel Ampera/Chevrolet Volt? This is close, Renault, but no cigar.

Photo: Automotorblog.com

Audi A4 2.0 TFSI flexifuel

Finally an Audi A4 that runs on ethanol (E85) and comes with an optional Quattro four wheel drive. So what do I have to complain about? Well, first of all the E85 version doesn't come with any automatic transmission option, which is a bummer. Although the start-stop system is nice, and should bring you under 10 l/100km in E85 consumption (6.6 l/100km on petrol), making the A4 flexifuel the best E85 option out there. Quattro will add another 0,5 liters or so.

What's really annoying though is that some genius decided to fit the car with the 180 hp 2.0 TFSI engine instead of the brilliant 211 hp version!!! What the f*ck? The fuel consumption is the exact same on these two engines, so there would be absolutely no disadvantages going with the most powerful of them.

In short, if you get the 180 hp E85 version instead of the 211 hp version you're losing:
- 1 second on the 0-100 km/h run (8.1 seconds instead of 7.1!)
- 22 km/h top speed (228 km/h versus 250 km/h)
- 30 Nm of torque (320 versus 350)

And you gain absolutely nothing. Why oh why, Audi??? I want an A4 Avant 2.0 TFSI 211 hp E85 Quattro with a DSG transmission, thank you so much.

Photo: proforged