Maxxd.com – Modified and Performance Car News

  • BMW I4 GOES DRIFTING

    The new BMW i4 is entering its final phase of testing, and with that, BMW decided that the best way to test it was to go drifting…

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    What is the new BMW i4?

    The BMW i4 is BMW’s latest electric-drive push and the first new electric car from Munich since the introduction of the i3. BMW revealed its plans to enter into the gran coupe sector with a new electric vehicle alongside a concept car, which was unveiled at the online equivalent of the Genvea motor show.

    The BMW i4 is capable of a 0-62 time of just four seconds, thanks to a 523bhp motor. However, BMW hasn’t just focused on straight line speed, as the video above proves. BMW has attempted to stay true to its driving dynamic roots by developing a new traction control system its calling ARB. This new system will mean its able to put down its power in the most sensible way. And of course by that it means you can send it sideways at the dab of the throttle.

    BMW i4

    ‘For the first time, we’ve developed a BMW with sporty DNA for purely electric driving entirely from scratch,’ explained project manager David Alfredo Ferrufino Camacho. ‘The BMW i4 offers everything BMW stands for – and it’s fully electric, too.’

    If you’re a BMW M fan you may want to listen up. BMW suggests that an i4M could well make its way into production. That has only been confirmed by prototype i4s spotted on the roads around Munich. Those cars featured M-style wing mirrors and a wider rear track, with signature blue brake calipers.

    BMW i4

    BMW i4 production cars are expected to start rolling out in 2021.

    Source

  • Bloodhound land-speed record project up for sale, again

    The Bloodhound Land Speed Record (LSR) project is once again up for sale. A team blog post said Bloodhound is still looking to make a World Land Speed Record attempt in 2022, providing a new owner (and additional funding) can be found.

    The coronavirus pandemic hindered fundraising efforts and delayed the project by a full year, current owner Ian Warhurst said in the post. Warhurst rescued Bloodhound from oblivion in 2018 after another funding shortfall, but he has reached his limit.

    “At this stage, in absence of further, immediate, funding, the only options remaining are to close down the program or put the project up for sale to allow me to pass on the baton and allow the team to continue the project,” Warhurst said. “I will, of course, be cheering from the sidelines when Bloodhound smashes through 800 mph.”

    Bloodhound LSR

    Bloodhound LSR

    Bloodhound last ran in November 2019, reaching 628 mph on the Hakskeenpan in South Africa’s Kalahari Desert. The goal of the project is to become the first wheeled vehicle to reach 1,000 mph, and beat the current record for a steerable car of 763 mph, set in 1997. Bloodhound’s driver is the man who set that record, former Royal Air Force fighter pilot Andy Green.

    For the 2019 test, Bloodhound relied solely on a Rolls-Royce EJ200 jet engine from a Eurofighter Typhoon fighter plane. For the record attempt, the team will add a cluster of hybrid rockets from Norwegian defense firm Nammo. Combined output from the jet engine and rockets is estimated at 135,000 horsepower.

    Installing the rockets and transporting the car to South Africa for the record attempt will cost about $10 million at current exchange rates, according to the team. Work needs to restart within the next few months in so the car can be ready for a 2022 record attempt, the team said, adding that the alternative would be to put the car into long-term storage “with no certainty of being able to restart the project.”

    Source

  • SINGER ACS IS THE OFF-ROAD 911 KING

    Built to demolish off-road stages, the Singer ACS is a 2021 interpretation of the legendary 911 rally cars that Porsche built in the 1980s. Watch as Tuthill Porsche shows what it can do.

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    What is the Singer ACS all about?

    The Porsche 911 Reimagined by Singer All-terrain Competition Study (ACS) was undertaken by Singer, in partnership with Richard Tuthill. The idea actually came as a result of a request from a Singer client for a modified air-cooled Porsche 911 that could compete in off-road racing.

    The client didn’t just request one, though, no, he requested two. The first of which is featured here in Parallax white, and focuses on high-speed desert rallying. The second is finished in Corsica Red and is built for high-speed, high-grip tarmac stages.

    Modifications developed for the Porsche 911 Reimagined by Singer All-terrain Competition Study include:

    • Off-road competition capability, conceived with events such as the Baja 1000 and Dakar Rally in mind, but suitable for a range of surfaces
    • Dramatically increased ride height, suspension travel and overall strength
    • Carbon fibre body panels suited to quick replacement and easy underbody access
    • Permanent AWD
    • A twin-turbocharged, 3.6L, air-cooled flat-six with power starting at 450hp
    • Sequential racing transmission with front, centre and rear limited-slip differentials

    Singer ACS: Tech Specs

    • 1990 Type 964 Porsche 911
    • Core strengthening to monocoque for heavy duty off-road use, carbon fiber body panels and off-road race modifications including:

    Suspension, wheels and brakes:

    • Specialised long-travel suspension with twin, 5-way adjustable dampers per corner (8 dampers total)
    • Forged aluminium 8×16” wheels with BF Goodrich All-Terrain tyres
    • 4-piston, monobloc steel disc brakes with hydraulic handbrake

    Engine:

    • 3.6L twin turbo-charged, air-cooled, Porsche flat-six
    • Water-to-air intercoolers, with individual-bank charge coolers housed within the plenum and cooled by clamshell-mounted radiator
    • Tuned for the demands of each event, power starts at 450hp and 420lb ft torque

    Transmission:

    • 5-speed sequential dog-box enabling flat-shifting. Manual and paddle-shift capable
    • Permanent AWD
    • Front, centre and rear, mechanical, plated limited-slip differentials

    Additional Specialised Equipment:

    • Long-range fuel tank
    • 2 x full-size spare race wheels and tyres in front trunk area and rear storage area
    • Full FIA specification roll cage
    • Bespoke competition seats with FIA certification
    • Rehydration system for driver and navigator
    • State-of-the-art GPS race navigation system

    Source