One Pirelli P-6 Four Seasons, 255/40/19 P255/40r19 255 40 19, Tire # 11638 Q on 2040-parts.com

Porsche 918 Spyder: New specs and new photos

The Porsche 918 Spyder specification have been revealed Porsche has tried to keep weight in check on the 918 Spyder, but having a big, heavy electric hybrid setup on board hasn’t made that easy, and nor has making that setup 4WD. So Porsche has built the monocoque chassis from carbon fibre reinforced polymer to keep weight in check, despite which the 918 Spyder still comes in at a weighty 1640kg, even in ‘Weissach’ trim (more in standard guise). So Poprsche has had to be clever about the way they use the power they have on offer.

Mercedes launch new 9G-Tronic gearbox on E350 BlueTec

New Mercedes E350 BlueTec (pictured) gets 9-speed 9G-TRONIC auto It’s not exactly a million years ago that automatic gearboxes offered poorer performance and economy than manual gearboxes, and came as standard with just three gears. But now, automatic gearboxes are so good they can  change quicker than any driver and, with the proliferation of eight-speed auto ‘boxes, offer improved economy and performance too. The next logical step is even more ratios in an auto ‘box, and Land Rover has already revealed they’ll be fitting the Evoque with a 9-speed ZF ‘box from 2014, and the new Jeep Grand Cherokee gets a nine-speed auto ‘box too.

Bahrain Grand Prix 2014: Rosberg takes pole for Mercedes ahead of Hamilton

Nico Rosberg pips Lewis Hamilton to pole in Bahrain. It’s already staring to look like Mercedes is going to dominate F1 in 2014, and the performance of the two Mercedes in qualifying for the 2014 Bahrain Grand Prix did nothing to change that. Essentially a duel between Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton, it was Rosberg’s turn to take pole position with Lewis Hamilton having to settle for second place on the grid after driving too deep in to a corner on his last flying lap and giving up the fight to take pole from his team mate. It was Rosberg’s second successive pole in Bahrain.