2010 F1 season opens this weekend
All the conjecture and ‘informed’
guesswork will be over by Saturday night, as to which
car/driver combination has got it together for the first
Grand Prix of the 2010 season.
“You must not forget zat I go first. You
understand, Nico?”
With the increased fuel loads imposed for
the 2010 season it has been well nigh impossible to work out
from the restricted testing just who was setting quick times
by running on fumes, and who was setting realistic times
with full tanks. Several drivers have set fastest times of
the day during testing, but honestly, I do not expect
Kobayashi in the Sauber to be on the front row of the grid,
despite a great time a couple of weeks back. The same goes
for Hulkenberg in the Williams. However, I think you can
assume that the front rows will contain Ferrari, Red Bull,
McLaren and Mercedes.
The other big question which will have
been answered is will all the 13 teams have made it to
Bahrain? As I write this, the USF1 team will not be present,
and the Campos team highly doubtful. The only new teams
which have been testing are Lotus and Virgin F1, and they
have been slow, and very slow. After making the grid look
bigger, they will become mobile chicanes. There was also the
mysterious Serbian team which purchased the Toyota cars
designed by Toyota’s racing division before the Japanese
giant pulled out. Since they haven’t turned a wheel in
anger, they were hardly likely to be contenders, and have
not been given a grid slot by the FIA.
This first GP of 2010, being held in
Bahrain, will be televised at 7 p.m. Sunday March 14. We
will be lining up in front of the big screen at Jameson’s
Irish Pub (Soi AR next to Nova Park - turn right into Soi 4
Pattaya Second Road at the Bangkok Bank and follow it round
to the right and Nova Park and Jameson’s is on your left).
We will be getting there around 6 p.m. and watch the
previews, whilst indulging in some palate cleansing beers
and the famous Jameson’s carvery. Please come and join us.
By the way, the Qualifying is on the Saturday at 6 p.m. Thai
time.
Bangkok
International Motor Show
It is almost time again for the Bangkok
International Motor Show, the only internationally
accredited motor show in Thailand. Running from the 26th
of March, through to the 6th of April,
the theme is “Ecology Driving Save the Earth” and here is
the initial list of the new model releases: BMW X1, Mazda 2
(4 doors), Ford Fiesta, Nissan March. This Nissan is also
known as the Micra in some markets, and may be advertised as
Thailand’s first ‘Eco-car’. And the Hyundai Tucson.
Hyundai Tucson/ix35
In some markets the new Tucson is to be
known as the ix35. Following on from its overseas success
with the i30 small car, Hyundai is applying the ‘i’ badge to
its new compact SUV that replaces the Tucson.
A more street-oriented vehicle with less
ground clearance and a street savvy design, the new ix35
introduces a new diesel to the range as well as a revised
2.0 liter petrol four and a new 2.4 liter four cylinder
petrol engine that replaces the old 2.7 liter V6.
Fuel consumption is down and power is up
in all cases.
The six-speed automatic and manual
transmissions are new.
Just like the outgoing Tucson, customers
have the choice of a price-leading front-drive ix35 or they
can step up to the all-wheel-drive model.
Hyundai has thrown a full suite of safety
gear at the ix35 which comes standard with electronic
stability control and six airbags, including two roof
mounted curtain airbags.
Autotrivia Quiz
Last week I mentioned that Ferrari has
the name FIAT on their Grand Prix cars because of the
association between the two companies. However, this is not
the first time the name FIAT has been on Grand Prix cars. I
asked when was the last time a FIAT competed under its own
name in a car designed and built by FIAT. Hint, after this
last race the car was broken up, even though it only raced
once.
Quiz car
This must have defied the Googlers … As
the ‘last’ FIAT Grand Prix car was the 806. This had a 12
cylinder 1.5 liter supercharged engine (actually a twin
six). It only raced once in the 1927 Milan GP at Monza, and
won in the hands of Pietro Bordino. It is believed that the
factory built one car only, and it was broken up on the
orders of the FIAT management after the race. Why? Sorry, I
don’t know, but FIAT is not the only car company to be
saddled with crazy management decisions!
So to this week. There is a car preserved
in the Turin Automobile museum, which was built for the
Monaco GP of 1935. It was very radical, featuring an eight
cylinder radial two stroke engine, which was mounted ahead
of the driven wheels - which meant it was also front wheel
drive. It did not race after the early trials were not
positive. What was this car?
For the Automania FREE beer this week, be
the first correct answer to email [email protected]
Good luck!
The
problems associated with S/H car buying
Many of us buy cars in the secondhand
market. There are obvious reasons for this, as you can buy a
nearly new car at thousands of baht less than the same model
out of the showroom. But there are also disadvantages for
the unwary.
The first area the prospective buyer
looks at is the mileage (kilometerage?) of the vehicle. Most
cars travel 10-15,000 km for one year, so if you find a
three year old car with only 12,000 km on the clock -
beware. The odometer might have been tampered with.
In the ‘good old’ days of mechanical
counters it was relatively easy to wind back the numbers,
but it was also relatively easy to see signs of the unit
having been tampered with, marks on the screws and
misaligned numbers, but now with the electronic odometers,
it is even easier for the e-savvy crooks out there. And no
tell-tale screwdriver marks either.
On a genuine low kilometer vehicle there
will be very little wear on the rubbers of the accelerator,
clutch and brake, so check that out. There will also be very
little wear on the door strikers and door hinges will not
show play.
If you really know your cars, proceed
(but still with caution). If you are not an ‘expert’, then
take along a mechanic you can trust. It will save you money
in the end.
How much
money does the manufacturer make per car?
Prospective customers go into dealerships
intent on driving the price down on the car they want. For
the dealership to give a little, they need a sizable profit
margin in which they can negotiate prices.
So how much are they working with? Not
much, because the margin the manufacturer gives them is
almost as small as the manufacturers’ profits. According to
Detroit News, Toyota in 2009 had a global profit margin of
$108 per car, so the answer really is “not much”!
Ford did not even do as well globally
with a loss of $62 per car, so the dealership did not have
anything to play with.
In 2008, GM (on its way to the bankruptcy
courts) lost $2738 per car in North America. Frightening!
But Chrysler is reported to have lost $3800 per car in the
same region in 2008. How long could they keep going like
that? No wonder heads had to roll at the top. And they are
still rolling.
According to the respected Harbour
Results Inc. in the US, Honda Motor Co. has been alone in
continuing to make a profit per vehicle over the past two
years and increased its margin from $113 in North America in
2008 to $703 in 2009. The report claims this is because
Honda maintained an unyielding growth strategy and
engineering focus, not launching products before their time
or being influenced by outside forces to expand too rapidly
the way Toyota had.
Now you can see why the dealerships would
rather offer you extras at the same price, rather than
discount the bare vehicle.
UN looks
at road safety
NGO’s and governments have a particular
skill at stating the obvious. Ever since we invented the
motor car we have had accidents, injuries and deaths. Mind
you, we also had injuries and accidents and deaths from
falling off horses. However, Big Brother now wants to get
involved.
Through the next decade, Member States,
with the support of the international community, have
committed to actions in areas such as developing and
enforcing legislation on key risk factors including limiting
speed, reducing drink-driving, and increasing the use of
seatbelts, child restraints and motorcycle helmets. Efforts
will also be undertaken to improve emergency trauma care,
upgrade road and vehicle safety standards, promote road
safety education and enhance road safety management in
general.
This recent initiative comes on the heels
of the First Global Ministerial Conference on Road Safety,
hosted by the Government of the Russian Federation in
November 2009. The “Moscow Declaration” issued by ministers
and senior officials from 150 countries underlines the
importance of protecting all road users, in particular those
who are most vulnerable such as pedestrians, cyclists and
motorcyclists.
The statistics show that around 1.3
million people will be killed on the world’s roads this
year. Over 90 percent of these fatalities occur in the
world’s poorest countries. The economic cost to developing
countries is estimated at up to US $100 billion a year,
equivalent to all annual overseas aid from industrialized
countries.
Road traffic fatalities are already the
single biggest source of death among 15-19 year olds in
developing countries and the second leading cause among 5-14
year olds.
Where this all falls down is in the first
paragraph which stated “enforcing legislation on key risk
factors including limiting speed, reducing drink-driving,
and increasing the use of seatbelts, child restraints and
motorcycle helmets.”
However, in Thailand we already have the
legislation, but we do not have the enforcement, so where do
we go from here? Simple answer - nowhere, we will continue
to kill 500 people on the roads every Songkran. Ninety
percent will be motorcyclists and ninety percent will be
alcoholed up to the eyeballs.
What do we do now, Mr UN? Come down from
your ivory tower and see what happens in the real world.
