Week 28 has been a fairly quiet week in the motoring industry, but as always there’s a few announcements that keep us talking including the unveil of the second generation Porsche Panamera.
Porsche unveil second generation Porsche Panamera
Since its launch in 2009, the Porsche Panamera has reconciled two contrasting characteristics: the performance of a sports car and the comfort of a luxury saloon. After sales of more than 150,000 worldwide, the second generation of the Panamera, that was unveiled earlier this week, advances further its benchmark performance in the luxury class.
The engines and transmissions have been redesigned, the chassis and suspension optimised, and the driver display and control interfaces reinterpreted for the future – yet available today. The new Panamera also further extends the boundaries between the world of sports cars and that of luxury saloons, with technical dynamic highlights such as rear axle steering, active body roll compensation and innovative three-chamber air suspension.
All-new 2017 Ford GT pays homage to Le Mans 1966 GT40 Mark II
The all-new 2017 Ford GT will be available in a limited-edition Heritage theme honoring the GT40 Mark II driven to victory by Bruce McLaren and Chris Amon at Le Mans in 1966 – part of the historic 1-2-3 Ford GT sweep. The car will feature unique interior and exterior color themes, and wheels.
“Celebrating the anniversary of Ford’s historic victories at Le Mans has always been a part of the return of the Ford GT,” said Raj Nair, Ford executive vice president, product development, and chief technical officer. “The 2017 Ford GT ’66 Heritage Edition is a stunning tribute to the car that kicked off Ford’s string of Le Mans victories in 1966.”
The Ford GT ’66 Heritage Edition can be viewed at FordGT.com using the configuration tool. Limited quantities will be available for the 2017 model year only.
H.R Owen begin expansion with the launch of H.R Owen Ecurie
H.R. Owen revealed on July 1st an exciting new approach to classic, performance and luxury car buying, with the launch of H.R. Owen Ecurie. H.R. Owen Ecurie will showcase exceptional, sought-after high performance cars and bring them together under one roof.
The newest H.R. Owen location is based in Cheltenham, and will allow buyers access to a wide selection of the most desirable cars. As well as hosting a carefully chosen selection of high-performance and luxury vehicles in the new showroom, H.R. Owen will also be able to source and acquire cars of the highest standard on behalf of customers, accommodating a variety of needs and desires.
H.R. Owen Ecurie opened on 1 July 2016.
Fiat reveal Riva collaboration : The Fiat 500 Riva
Two symbols of Italian style and elegance, converge in the form of the FIAT 500 Riva created by Fiat and Riva, to give the exclusivity expected of the Aquqariva Super yacht in an accessible, everyday package. The model comes in an exclusive colour for this limited edition model and one of the most popular for the Aquariva Super, successor to the legendary Aquarama.
The convertible version also gets a new blue soft top, created exclusively for this version, while the hatchback gets a panoramic glass roof as standard, but what really sets the FIAT 500 Riva apart is the detailing. More detail on this can be found here.
The new FIAT 500 Riva will be available in the UK from the end of August with the 1.2 69hp, TwinAir 85hp and TwinAir 105hp engine options. The FIAT 500 range starts at £11,050 OTR while the UK pricing for FIAT 500 Riva range will be announced closer to its launch date later in the summer.
BMW Group, Intel and Mobileye make autonomous driving statement
BMW Group, Intel, and Mobileye are joining forces to make self-driving vehicles and future mobility concepts become a reality. The three leaders from the automotive, technology and computer vision and machine learning industries are collaborating to bring solutions for highly and fully automated driving into series production by 2021.
The future of automated driving promises to change lives and societies for the better. But the path to get to a fully autonomous world is complex and will require end-to-end solutions that integrate intelligence across the network, from door locks to the data center. Transportation providers of the future must harness rapidly evolving technologies, collaborate with totally new partners, and prepare for disruptive opportunities.
Together with Intel and Mobileye, the BMW Group will develop the necessary solutions and innovative systems for highly and fully automated driving to bring these technologies into series production by 2021. The BMW iNEXT model will be the foundation for BMW Group’s autonomous driving strategy and set the basis for fleets of fully autonomous vehicles, not only on highways but also in urban environments for the purpose of automated ridesharing solutions.
Jeep unveiled plans to enhance the Grand Cherokee range for 2016-2017
Plans to continue the success of the popular and successful Jeep Grand Cherokee range of SUV vehicles were announced earlier this week, with details of a raft of enhancements to the current model for 2016/17.
In addition, and to celebrate the iconic 4×4 brand’s 75th birthday, Jeep has also revealed details of a 75th Anniversary limited edition Grand Cherokee for the UK, which was first revealed at the Geneva Motor Show in March. Meanwhile, an addition to the SRT range of Grand Cherokees, the SRT Night limited edition – which features exclusive styling – has also been announced for sale in this country.
Further details on all three models can be seen here.
