Pever's Cars

Zagato spotlights work with Aston Martin

Engineering and design firm Zagato has been known for its works on Italian car brands. Since the early 1920s, Zagato has designed a ton of rides for the Alfa Romeo, Maserati, and Lancia. It has also worked with brands like Shelby, Cadillac, and Aston Martin.

Zagato first collaborated with Aston Martin for the DB4 GT in 1960 that was penned, assembled, and produced in Milan. The Aston Martin DB4 GT made by Zagato was known as a light weight coupe which can speed up to 174 miles an hour. This car had a very limited run and only 19 units rolled out of their factory. The current value of this Aston-Zagato is at a whopping $6 million.

In the 1980s, Zagato came up with the V8 Vantage coupe and the V8 Volante spider which were produced in limited quantities. The 33 spiders and 50 coupes were sold in a matter of days and became an instant collector’s item.

In 2002, Zagato worked with the the DB7 V12 and the DB-AR1 the next year. These Aston Martin’s were designed thinking of the high end ride as all about performance and luxury, and not for the mass market. The run only produced 99 units to ensure exclusivity. The production of the vehicles however were finished in England.

Last year, Aston Martin rolled out the V12 by Zagato inspired by the V8 Vantage designed by the same company. The run was limited to just 150 just like for the other models earlier. This time, the cars were modeled in Italy but engineered and assembled by Aston Martin.

The collaboration between Zagato and Aston Martin has spanned half a century and were are pretty sure we will be seeing more creations stemming out of this partnership. Another thing is for sure, the tag price will always be sky high but we can expect that each Aston Martin to remain a valuable collectible.

The BMW colorful HUD technology

In the past two decades, we are slowly seeing technologies first used for wars being implemented onto our everyday equipment, gadgets, and applications.

The HUD or Head-Up Display for example has been used for jet fighters since 1958 to keep feeding the pilot vital information. The HUD technology has been used by commercial planes sine the 1970s and in the early 2000′s used for cars.

BMW claims to be the first carmaker in Europe to make available to the market an HUD technology. Owners of the BMW 5-Series can get info about their rpm, speed and more while they keep their eyes on the road.

According to the German car builder, a driver normally takes a second to glimpse the instrument clusters on the dash. This gap is enough for a car to go for 14 meters more while cruising at a speed of 50 kph without his eyes on the road.

Aside from keeping the driver’s eyes on the road, BMW also found out that the driver can absorb the information via the HUD faster compared to conventional gauges on the dash.

On today’s fighter jets, the data is beamed to the canopy via mirrors then on a vertical panel just on the line of sight of the pilot. This system though might be impractical for cars, so BMW instaed makes use of a thin layer of foil attached to the windshield so the driver can get information about his car and his driving.

The new BMW 3-Series will be getting this HUD technology. BMW also makes use of different colors to make it easier for the driver to distinguish a set of information from the other.

The Bugatti Veyron

The Bugatti Veyron is considered the second most fastest car that is being manufactured, which means for those that follow the racing world, this is the car that they watch. The car has been in production for quite a while, the most notable achievement that the car has received was winning the 24 hours of Le Mans in 1939. The car is built by Bugatti Automobiles SAS, which is a subsidiary of Volkswagen AG, meaning that the car does utilize German engineering, some of the best in the world.

Another notable aspect is that the car is considered one of the most powerful cars on the market as well. The car can reach sixty miles per hour in 2.6 seconds, which as many point out far bypasses those cars that promise the fastest acceleration that are on the market. The top speed of the Bugatti Veyron is around 253.2 miles per hour, which is an amazing speed for any car to reach. The reason for this performance statistics is simply due to the sheer size of the engine. The engine is a 16 cylinder engine that has four turbochargers which help add to the speed that the car can reach. Because of the extensive size of this engine, there are ten radiators on the car that are working to keeping it cooled down and from overheating. This is an immense number of radiators, however are necessary in order to make sure that the car runs as it should. However, not all of these radiators are dedicated to the engine cooling aspect. For example, there are two radiators for the cooling system, one radiator for the spoiler, as well as one radiator for the transmission oil.

Since this car is pretty unique, it is not surprise that the car has specifically designed tires in order to accommodate the fast speeds that it can reach. These tires are designed by Michelin, and are flat run tires. According to The Bugatti Blog, these tires are supposed to be able to not wear down due to driving these fast speeds, however, street wise, most people will never reach the speed that the Veyron can actually rise.

Price wise, the Bugatti Veyron is going to run around $1.7 million dollars, which means that this is not the car that you are going to see driving around on many roads in the United States. There may be a few of these located in Hollywood, where movie stars do drive the car. Which gas mileage wise, it is understandable while only the rich and famous drive these since it is estimated that the Veyron only gets eight miles per gallon driving in city mode.

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The Jaguar XKR

The Jaguar XKR is part of the Jaguar XK series which was first introduced to the public in 1996, and still continues to be popular. These cars are very similar to the Aston Martin since they all utilize the same format. However, the XKR did make a few changes to improve and differentiate itself from the pack. What is interesting is that the top speed that the XKR will reach is 155 miles per hour, this is electronically controlled, so there is no way that you can go above this, even though the engine could outperform this number. Most people believe that this was done in order to limit the number of accidents that resulted from the speed of the car, which does help improve the safety ratings of the XKR.

There are many different limited editions of the XKR, which will of course cost more, however, most people view these as more collectible. The XKR Silverstone was only for the UK and Japanese market, which means finding one in the US is not going to be easy. The most notable aspect about this car was that it included a one of king interior with different colors than what people were normally use to seeing in the XKR, making it a surprise. However, it also included all the options on it, which made it a huge turner, as well as luxurious ride to own. There are several other limited editions to choose from, most of them are subject to one specific location, however, this only adds to the prestige of owning one of these rare vehicles, in addition, there may have only been a limited number of these editions made since they are expected to be those cars that are wanted and will be preserved for future generations.

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The BMW M3

The BMW M3 is one of those cars that BMW makes in a coupe, sedan and convertible version. For this reason, it is one of the most popular selling cars for BMW and are considered to be high performance vehicles. The M3 models are derived from past models such as the E30, E36, and E46. However, BMW made some changes to improve everything about the car to appeal to more consumers. The reason that BMW chose to make these changes and introduce a whole new line is diverse. However, most people believe that they wanted to be a better contender with Mercedes-Benz, which is their biggest competitor.

The BMW M3 Coupe is designed with a V8 engine, and offers one of the best performances as any coupe on the market. The car was designed with aerodynamics in mind that would not hamper performance. Unlike most other cars in the same field, the BMW M3 Coupe will not suffer in the slightest should there be sudden gusts of winds, many consumers report that they have the same continued great performance even during the worst conditions.

The BMW M3 Sedan takes the concept of the Coupe and puts a family spin on the car. Meaning that those with families do not have to sacrifice looks and performance just to have a vehicle that fits the entire family. The interior of the car still looks like a race car for the driver, so that they are not losing any thrill of the drive, however the interior is more spacious than other models. Those passengers who ride with you will never complain of being cramped, as it has more room than many other Sedan’s on the market.

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Price of 2011 Mercedes Benz R-Class Released

Mercedes-Benz is not taking your orders as they announced the price range got the newly released R-class cars. The prices of the 2011 Mercedes-Benz R-class start at 42,100. This is for the entry level models alone. The German car manufacturer also reported that they will be offering a total of nine basic versions of the R-class.

Making the top of the line is the R 500 4MATIC. This is a long wheelbased version selling for 62,400 euros. According to the manufacturer, the car’s exterior has been fitted with a horizontally crafted bonnet. It will also be sporting redesigned wings, surround, radiator grille, bumpers and headlamps. Packages for a chrome insert with LED daytime driving lights are also available upon request. This also comes with bi-xenon headlamps.

The standard features you’ll find on all models include eight airbags, a PRESAFE occupant protection system, a warning system for tire pressure, crash-responsive NECK-PRO, and adaptive brake lights.

Mercedes-Benz also guarantees optimum driving ease with their DISTRONIC proximity control and AIRMATIC air suspension. These will be paired with an adaptive damping system. Keeping up with the times, the car manufacturer also installed LINGUATRONIC voice-operated control systems on all R-class models.

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Brazilian Supercar: GT DR7 from Amoritz previewed

You might not be familiar when you hear Amoritz. Do not worry since most automotive circles are in the same boat as you. Amoritz does not ring a bell because it is not a brand from Europe or the United States but it hails from Brazil. Amoritz is a supercar startup which recently released a teaser of their first supercar, the GT DR7.

The GT DR7 was designed by Fernando Morita, a Brazilian native, but the source of funding seems to be still unnamed. The Moritz supercar follows the typical wedge shape with cab forward lines. Looking at the teaser, it looks like a Lambo on steroids.

Backing up its aggressive design lines, is a powerful engine underneath its hood. The GT DR7 will be fitted with twin-turbocharged V-10 8.4L engine that can also be found in the Dodge Viper.

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