Extra features

Vuhl steam ahead

MEXICAN sportscar manufacturer Vuhl has confirmed its mad and minimalist track-car will go in to small-scale production, following a positive reception at its unveiling last month.

The 05 attracted a great deal of interest when it debuted at the Goodwood Festival of Speed and Vuhl has reported that it “accrued sufficient orders for a batch of 20 Edition One models”.

Production will commence in November this year with the first customers taking delivery of their new $90,000, 212kW racers around the middle of next year.

Ford looks to the sky for inspiration

FORD is exploring technology used in the International Space Station, which could link cars together on the road to reduce traffic accidents and congestion.

Researchers at the St Petersburg Polytechnic University in Russia are analysing the super-fast communication system which currently allows machinery on the station to ‘talk’ to each other and back to earth.

Ford says that if the same system is applied to cars, it could allow vehicles to share information about traffic flow, conditions and hazards, and even communicate with traffic signals and buildings.

Micro-electric car unfolds in Korea

THE Korean Advanced Institute of Science and Technology has unveiled a concept car that curls up when parked and, at 1650mm long, uses just a third of a parking space.

The Armadillo-T has a drive motor situated on each of its four wheels but a fifth motor is employed to fold the rear section over to the front, reducing the interior space which isn’t required when parked.

A smart phone can be paired to the tiny car to control its folding function, and can even be used to maneuver it in to a parked position.

VW Kombi says adeus

THE world’s longest running car model, the Volkswagen Kombi, will finally cease production in Brazil this year, ending an astonishing 63-year run, which began in 1950.

Brazil’s tightening safety legislation has sealed the fate of Volkswagen’s iconic bus, which lacks the ABS and airbags necessary to comply with the new rules.

The second-longest running production model - Britain’s Morgan 4/4 - now has to stick around another five years if it wants to equal the Volkswagen’s record.