Proton Motorsports (R3) MEGASALE!

Proton Motorsports also widely known as R3 to the public is having its year end SALE. Lots of body parts and performance upgrades available attractive price. Some of the discounts are insane. You guys can check Proton Motorsports FB page for more details : 

http://www.facebook.com/ProtonMotorsportsR3?fref=ts.

Pagani Zonda Race Car Massive Crash

A Pagani Zonda GR racer was totaled the Most Circuit in the Czech Republic. Pictures and video showed what happened when the race car got bumped from behind and was pushed straight into a concrete wall. The final aftermath shows that the vehicle is almost certain a total loss.

The Zonda GR was modified from a Zonda S by Carsport Modena and debuted at 24 Hours of Le Mans 2003. It didn’t do well and was sold on. Two Zonda GR’s exist, another better known example now sits in a garage in the US. The Zonda GR features a 7.0 liter AMG V12. Aside from that facts are a little thin on the ground!

Understanding OCTANE and RON for your car.

To understand the function of octane, which is basically a measure of the chemical resistance of gasoline to auto ignition – the higher the number the less likely it is to explode under pressure – you first have to know the basics of how a gasoline internal-combustion engine functions.

The engines found in almost all vehicles today function on something known as a four-stroke cycle. Within each engine are pistons that move up and down inside cylinders. The pistons are attached to connecting rods, which spin on a crankshaft. What are the four strokes of this all-important process? Well, in order of operation they’re intake, compression, power and exhaust.



The cycle starts as a piston moves downward in a cylinder. This is called the intake stroke. As it drops, a precisely controlled mixture of air and fuel vapor is drawn into the cylinder through open intake valves. Next, the intake valves shut and the piston rises, beginning the compression stroke where the air-fuel mixture is squeezed. Just as the piston reaches the top of its travel the spark plug fires, which ignites the air and fuel resulting in a potent bang. The power stroke has begun. This pushes the piston down again and provides the driving force that keeps the engine running and the vehicle moving. No sooner does the piston reach the bottom of its travel than it’s time to go up again. This begins the exhaust stroke, where all of the hot, leftover gasses from the combustion process get pushed out of the now-open exhaust valves. Once the piston reaches the top the intake valves open and the whole process starts again.

Stephen Russ, Technical Leader with Ford Motor Company’s engine engineering department is a fuels expert. According to him, “octane is just a measure of the chemical resistance to auto ignition.” He also said “high-octane fuel is more resistant to auto ignition.”

So what does that have to do with anything? Well remember, during the compression stroke a piston is squeezing a combination of air and fuel. If this mixture gets put under too much pressure it will spontaneously ignite, which is a serious problem should it happen before the spark plug fires.

Auto-ignition, more commonly referred to as “spark knock,” can result in an audible pinging noise. This potentially destructive clatter sounds a bit like pennies rattling in an empty pop can.

According to Bill Studzinski, Fuels Technical Specialist at General Motors, auto ignition can lead to “pressure waves that run into each other that cause the ringing or the knocking that you hear.”

Beyond noise, spark knock can wreak havoc on internal engine components. Surprisingly it can melt holes in pistons and even bend connecting rods. Thankfully Russ said “it’s really, really rare nowadays” because of advanced engine-control computers.

“We have knock sensors on our vehicles,” Studzinski said. These are small electronic transducers attached to an engine’s block that listen for specific sound frequencies associated with spark knock. If it’s detected the powertrain control module can do a number of things to get combustion under control again. It can lower boost levels on forced-induction engines, pull spark timing or enrich the air-fuel mixture to prevent internal damage.

High compression ratios allow engines to create more power while burning less fuel.  A compression ratio is basically how tightly the air and fuel mixture inside a cylinder gets squeezed. Modern engines typically have ratios right around 10-to-1, but they can exceed 12-to-1 or more if they have direct fuel injection. Also, forced-induction engines will be a little bit lower.

Automakers have to walk a fine line though; they can’t go overboard. This is where octane fits into the equation. Engines with higher compression ratios – often found in performance cars – almost always need higher octane fuel because it is less likely to automatically ignite. Russ said higher octane gasoline “does enable us to put more spark advance in and get more efficiency.”

To recap, higher cylinder pressures require higher octane, which prevents engine-damaging auto-ignition. But mistakes can happen, what if you put the wrong grade of fuel in your vehicle?

“If you’ve got a premium-required car and you put in 87 octane and you start hearing audible knock, you need to baby that car until you can get that fuel changed” Studzinski said, adding “even if you don’t hear the audible knock the vehicle is reacting.” It’s reducing performance, lowering fuel economy and sending more heat into the exhaust catalyst, which reduces its durability.

So, how is an octane rating calculated? According to Studzinski, in the United States the average of two separate tests is used to determine the number you see on a gas pump.

You’ve probably noticed the formula (R+M)/2 before. A lot of times it’s printed right on fuel pumps. The “R” stands for “research octane” and the “M” for “motor octane.” Each of these is one of the tests just mentioned. The average is designed to give an acceptable rating for all drivers in all different conditions. The fuel needs of someone towing a trailer up a mountain pass in the desert are quite different from someone driving a small passenger car at sea level.

According to Studzinski the research-octane test favors larger, older vehicles – cars and trucks typically powered by big-bore, naturally aspirated engines.  It features higher in-cylinder temperatures than the motor-octane test, which is geared more toward small, efficient, turbocharged engines.

In America the average of two tests determines octane, but Studzinski said “we don’t have a harmonized global octane standard,” and “the rest of the world only uses research octane numbers.”

If you’ve ever been to Europe for instance you may have noticed something like “95 RON” on their fuel pumps. RON, of course, stands for “research octane number.”

Interestingly, Studzinski said Europe’s regular-grade gasoline, which is rated at 95 RON equates to about 90 in the (R+M)/2 test. That means European vehicles have to be recalibrated to run on America’s regular-grade fuel, which is only 87 octane.

One thing Studzinski asked was “is (R+M)/2 an appropriate rating for modern engines?” a question many fuels experts and oil refiners are no doubt asking themselves. For the average driver though, it’s best to follow what’s in their vehicle’s owner’s manual by running the recommended grade of gasoline for the best performance and highest efficiency

Source: AutoGuide.com

RX7 Touge Battle

One of the most tightest Touge Battle so far...loving it to the max..

Lotus to sue Ex-CEO

Lotus under its parent company Proton has fired the British sports car manufacturer’s CEO Dany Bahar after it was bought over by DRB-Hicom in June.

It was announced that the decision to fire Bahar and several other executives was based on the results of an investigation that looked into possible misconduct, though no official reason was ever given for their ousting.

Less than two months later Bahar retaliated with a $10 million wrongful dismissal suit that claimed the executives, including himself, were fired in order to avoid contractual payments in the event that Lotus was sold.

Now Lotus is suing Bahar for approximately $4 million for, according to court filings obtained by Bloomberg, unauthorized expenses and overpaid salary and bonuses. Some of the expenses are said to include a chauffeur, helicopter travel and 10 watches.

Specific complaints made in Lotus’ court filings was a $1.6 million expense for renting and renovating two private properties and another expense of almost $2 million for travel.

The filings also mention damaging statements made to the media, which is likely to be the bizarre Facebook rant made by Lotus in April of this year.

Since taking control of Lotus at the start of this year, DRB-Hicom has set about ousting Bahar and his overly ambitious plan for a six-model lineup, injecting some funds into the company, and reaffirming its commitment to future products, the first of which will be the new Esprit supercar.

Nine Motorists Killed in Tunnel Failure

A major road tunnel has collapsed in the Yamanashi prefecture Japan, trapping a huge number of vehicles and leaving at least seven people missing, media reports say. Survivors described how large sections of concrete ceiling fell on top and around their cars in the Sasago tunnel. A fire broke out and rescuers have found a number of charred bodies.

The incident started at 08:00 local time (23:00 GMT Saturday), about 80km (50 miles) west of Tokyo on a road that links it to the city of Nagoya. The tunnel is one of the longest in Japan.

Revelations that aging bolts and rods may have led to the devastating highway tunnel collapse that claimed at least nine lives in Japan over the weekend has sparked nationwide anxiety over the safety of decades-old infrastructure.

Yamanashi prefecture police said on Monday. The victims had been traveling in three separate cars through the 4.7-kilometer Sasago tunnel, located in a hilly region on a major highway linking the cities of Nagoya and Tokyo, when thick concrete slabs plunged onto the vehicles Sunday morning. Fires that charred two vehicles made it initially difficult for rescue workers to reach the victims trapped inside. About 270 concrete slabs, weighing over a ton each, collapsed onto the vehicles over a 110-meter stretch of road. Two people have been sent to the hospital for injuries, according to the police.

Central Nippon Expressway, the operator of the Chuo Expressway, said age could have played a role in the cave in. For example, the rods that were supposed to hold the concrete panels against the inner wall of the tunnel could had become loose over time or the deterioration of key metal fittings like the anchor bolt may have caused the pieces to fall out. The tunnel was first opened to traffic in 1977. A company spokesman said it is unknown whether the metal parts have been replaced since the tunnel was built.

Ford Escape 2013 Recalled

Ford Motor Co.’s latest model Ford Escape Crossover has been the subject of a series of recalls since it made its mid-year debut – and now faces another recall as the automaker warns versions of the popular CUV equipped with a 1.6-liter EcoBoost engine could get overheat and catch fire. The problem also impacts the 2013 Ford Fusion.  In all, about 89,000 of the two models – among Ford’s best-selling nameplates – are affected.

The latest recall could prove a setback not just for the 2013 Fusion and Escape models but for Ford itself. The maker has been hammered in recent months in a series of customer satisfaction, quality and reliability surveys. The 2013 Fusion was named Green Car of the Year just last week.




According to Ford, the problem involves vehicles that is equipped only with the 1.6-liter turbocharged EcoBoost engine, an optional power train designed to deliver both better mileage and improved performance.  Ford says the engine can overheat and leak coolant. That, in turn, could catch fire if it comes into contact with hot engine components such as the exhaust pipes.“We have identified an issue and are taking actions in the best interest of our customers,” said Steve Kenner, director of Ford’s automotive safety office. “It is important that affected customers not ignore this recall and contact their dealer as soon as possible. While we recognize the inconvenience recalls cause our customers, we are taking these actions on their behalf to help ensure their safety.”