The Week in Cars #2
The F1 season kicks off, Dallara launches the Stradale and the new Ford Mustang is driven. VW unveils the new Tiguan.
F1 season
F1 2018, after many complaints of the cars sounding rubbish, the new 'halo' device (protection for drivers, shown below) looking hideous, the whole thing being a one-horse race... Basically a lot of abuse and groaning from the loyal fanbase negated Liberty Media's attempts to make people excited for the coming season. That isn't to mention Formula E's stunning looking Gen 5 car, polar-bear friendly propulsion and wheel-to-wheel races.
However, it has started off nonetheless with the Melbourne GP this year, and, annoyingly for all the keyboard warriors of the world, the Halo doesn't look all that bad on the cars. Speaking of looking, from Williams' recent onboard video, visibility does seem to be an issue. The central support arm blocks the driver's view on straights, which might make seeing - which, surprisingly, is quite important for F1 drivers - a bit difficult. Mind, it can support the weight of a double-decker bus, which solves the clearly pressing issue of rogue buses crashing right into Lewis' racing line.
Hamilton qualified on pole, and Vettel, in the end (and after a sneaky Safety Car pitstop move) won the race.
Dallara Stradale review: When 820kg of downforce isn't on a hypercar
Dallara should be no stranger to you as a motorsport firm. The legendary Italian chassis builder has created F2, F3, FE and GT3 cars, and has also worked with KTM, Alfa Romeo, Bugatti [among numerous others]... Well now they've made a road car themselves, available in three bodystyles: roofless track-car type, Trans-Am style T-bone or gullwing hard top. It's called the Stradale.
The headliniest figure is most likely the monstrous downforce coefficient: 820kg at the top speed of 174mph, in a car that only weighs 855kg dry. It is seriously close to being able to do the not-very-age-old trick of driving on the ceiling, and remember, the lighter the car, the greater the effect of the downforce.
It is powered by a 2.4l Ford-derived inline-four, tuned by Bosch until it pumps out 395bhp, sprints to 62 in 2.7s, and goes around corners searingly fast. The driving experience, while incredible, isn't very involving, because you barely need to work for the speed. The steering is great, the engine is the same, the ride is amazing, but the thing isn't the most interesting to drive yourself. Watching Jeremy Clarkson or The Stig blast it round a track will certainly be interesting, but being Jezza or Stiggy wouldn't be as great. Also, at £110k-ish, it certainly ain't cheap.
Verdict: 75%.
Ford Mustang facelift bullet-point review: Worth £3k more than before?
-The 5.0l V8 has a new, delicious-sounding exhaust system, and on US cars produces 446bhp
-Suspension changes (especially with the optional MagneRide tech) have made a big difference
-It looks better than people thought it would
-The best colour choice is probably Fury Orange
-Interior still could do with some better materials.
Verdict: 82%
Finally, the new VW Tiguan has a big screen, looks as you'd expect and generally isn't very exciting.
Leave a comment below to share your thoughts if you feel you need to.
Sorry for the late publishing date. We'll be back next Sunday (probably)
F1 season
F1 2018, after many complaints of the cars sounding rubbish, the new 'halo' device (protection for drivers, shown below) looking hideous, the whole thing being a one-horse race... Basically a lot of abuse and groaning from the loyal fanbase negated Liberty Media's attempts to make people excited for the coming season. That isn't to mention Formula E's stunning looking Gen 5 car, polar-bear friendly propulsion and wheel-to-wheel races.
However, it has started off nonetheless with the Melbourne GP this year, and, annoyingly for all the keyboard warriors of the world, the Halo doesn't look all that bad on the cars. Speaking of looking, from Williams' recent onboard video, visibility does seem to be an issue. The central support arm blocks the driver's view on straights, which might make seeing - which, surprisingly, is quite important for F1 drivers - a bit difficult. Mind, it can support the weight of a double-decker bus, which solves the clearly pressing issue of rogue buses crashing right into Lewis' racing line.
Hamilton qualified on pole, and Vettel, in the end (and after a sneaky Safety Car pitstop move) won the race.
Dallara Stradale review: When 820kg of downforce isn't on a hypercar
Dallara should be no stranger to you as a motorsport firm. The legendary Italian chassis builder has created F2, F3, FE and GT3 cars, and has also worked with KTM, Alfa Romeo, Bugatti [among numerous others]... Well now they've made a road car themselves, available in three bodystyles: roofless track-car type, Trans-Am style T-bone or gullwing hard top. It's called the Stradale.
The headliniest figure is most likely the monstrous downforce coefficient: 820kg at the top speed of 174mph, in a car that only weighs 855kg dry. It is seriously close to being able to do the not-very-age-old trick of driving on the ceiling, and remember, the lighter the car, the greater the effect of the downforce.
It is powered by a 2.4l Ford-derived inline-four, tuned by Bosch until it pumps out 395bhp, sprints to 62 in 2.7s, and goes around corners searingly fast. The driving experience, while incredible, isn't very involving, because you barely need to work for the speed. The steering is great, the engine is the same, the ride is amazing, but the thing isn't the most interesting to drive yourself. Watching Jeremy Clarkson or The Stig blast it round a track will certainly be interesting, but being Jezza or Stiggy wouldn't be as great. Also, at £110k-ish, it certainly ain't cheap.
Verdict: 75%.
Ford Mustang facelift bullet-point review: Worth £3k more than before?
-The 5.0l V8 has a new, delicious-sounding exhaust system, and on US cars produces 446bhp
-Suspension changes (especially with the optional MagneRide tech) have made a big difference
-It looks better than people thought it would
-The best colour choice is probably Fury Orange
-Interior still could do with some better materials.
Verdict: 82%
Finally, the new VW Tiguan has a big screen, looks as you'd expect and generally isn't very exciting.
Leave a comment below to share your thoughts if you feel you need to.
Sorry for the late publishing date. We'll be back next Sunday (probably)
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