Valencia, racing around the docks

A return venue this weekend, with the ‘round the houses’ of Valencia for the European Grand Prix.

This was a new circuit a couple of years ago for the F1 circus and it has been universally boring every time since then. Monaco without the boat harbor.

 Or the mystique. Yet, here it is - still on the calendar. Money has been paid under the table? (Or was that pesetas?) Surely not, in the clean and pure environment of Formula 1.

After one boring race in Valencia, our editor at large, John Weinthal even suggested there must have been a street sign saying, “Welcome to Valencia - please drive carefully - no overtaking!”

I have the sinking feeling that we will all be annoyed at the lack of racing, but, ever the optimist, I will be watching. Perhaps the instantly wearing Pirelli’s or the DRS zone will save it. Or perhaps God will throw down buckets of rain on half the circuit.

Or perhaps… We may even see Lewis Hamilton barging into somebody again. Who knows?
The Qualifying is at 7 p.m. on Saturday 25 and the race is 7 p.m. on Sunday 26. We watch the racing on the even bigger new screen in Jameson’s Irish Pub, Soi AR, next to Nova Park.

We get there around 6 p.m. and have something to eat (the Sunday roast is great value) and a small drink or two before the start. Why don’t you come and join us.
 

Tesla S - a battery powered seven seat sedan

Tesla S

Following on from the Tesla Roadster, the Tesla company is close to releasing a production version of their second electric car, the Tesla S.

The American electric vehicle maker, whose $220,000-plus plug-in Tesla Roadster was the first factory EV to become readily available, has been conducting ‘Alpha’ phase testing of the Model S since last year.

Priced between about $120,000 and $150,000 depending on the size of the battery pack, the Model S will enter the final - or ‘Beta’ - range of tests before production commences in the middle of 2012.

Initially it will be in LHD, but RHD production will start in 2013. Three battery options are likely to be offered, all of them giving a 0-100 km/h time of under six seconds and a top speed of around 200 km/h.

The top of the line Tesla S will be marketed as the ‘Signature’ with a greater range of colors and options not likely to be available on lesser models, and will come with the maximum 480 km range battery pack - up from 255 km for the entry-level Model S and 370 km for more expensive variants.

If you are thinking that perhaps you will wait for it to appear in a showroom, forget it. A $40,000 reservation deposit is required for the Signature, but the standard Model S can be reserved for a more sensible $6,000 down payment.

Tesla Motors is putting their Model S up against established premium large sedans like the BMW 5 Series and Mercedes-Benz E-class, but is touting the advantage of the third row of seats to be classified as a seven-seater.

Tesla’s latest press pictures feature a chrome grille design that was absent on the original Alpha prototype first revealed earlier this year, but which mirrors the sleek design of the original Model S concept from 2009.

Tesla has big plans for the S, expecting to produce a total of 20,000 Model S vehicles annually and claims the battery packs will retain 70 percent of their initial capacity after seven years or 160,000 km.

Tesla also has plans to make a public offering of 5.3 million shares to help fund the development of a Model X crossover SUV. This model is shrouded in mystery at present, though the prototype should be running by the end of 2011 before releasing it in the US by the end of 2013.

Pro Races at Bira this weekend

Thomas Raldorf in the Pizza Company Honda

The Bira circuit is host to the Pro Racing series this weekend 24/25/26 as well. This classification is one step down from the more prestigious SuperCar series, but above the more “clubby” atmosphere of the Nitto-3K series which ran three weeks ago. Most categories will be running, including the pickups.

I believe the Thailand Touring Car Championship rounds will be held, plus Pro Trucks, Pro Car, Pro Car Open and Pro Car Lady.
Racing generally starts around 10 a.m.

The death of the dinosaurs

Mercedes-Benz B Class

The automotive world has returned to the small capacity engines of over a century ago. The large capacity, fuel gulping behemoths have had their day. The dinosaurs are dead.

The major auto manufacturers have finally discovered that the majority of drivers are commuters. City cars are the go. Look at the new car sales in Thailand - where once the three liter pick-ups were the chosen mode of transport, now the balance is going towards the smaller, cheaper to run, small cars. Look at the success Nissan has been having with the Nissan March. They can’t make enough of them.

However, even the luxury brands have found that the car buying public has an eye towards the price and the economy. BMW, for example, is set to launch several new city-friendly models over the next three years with a core focus on reducing fuel use; in the case of electric models such as the upcoming i-Series electric city car there won’t be any fuel used and, therefore, zero carbon dioxide emissions.

This new all-electric i-Series is expected to retain the BMW badge despite being a brand in its own right, which will be led by the city-sized i3 hatchback. This is in contrast to BMW’s model line-up which has traditionally been upper level luxury for the past 30 years. As with arch rival Mercedes-Benz, BMW’s luxury reputation has been largely build on larger limousines or the M-Series performance cars.

Like other luxury makers - Mercedes-Benz has the A- and B-Class and Audi the A1 and A3 - it’s a necessary move to ensure sales keep growing, as the upper luxury end of the market has shown shrinking sales for the past few years.

This slowing down has not just been with the German automakers, as Jaguar’s XJ has also seen sales plummet despite the arrival of an all new model for which it is claimed, “establishes a new benchmark for its class”.

BMW spokeswoman Michelle Lang says the brand was aware of the shift towards smaller premium cars years ago, and the success of its 1-Series range is testament to that urge to downsize.

“BMW identified the trend for smaller vehicles many years ago, hence the introduction of the successful 1-Series range,” Lang says. “The 1-Series customer comprises 80 percent conquest business - people who have never bought a BMW before - plus 80 percent of those conquest customers have never bought a premium vehicle before.”

Lang says the premium small car segment offers buyers economy and efficiency, but not at the expense of technology or luxury.

BMW’s Mini brand will evolve to offer several additional models, including the sleek-roofed Coupe and a new Roadster convertible version set to follow later down the track.

Other future models for Mini are likely to include a new smaller hatch (likely to arrive in 2014) and a new two-door variant of its Countryman SUV (likely to arrive by 2013).

BMW denies it is a challenge for a retro-inspired brand such as Mini to sustain buyer interest, instead suggesting that rivals such as Audi’s recently introduced A1 city car face a more difficult challenge.

However, forgetting inter-manufacturer rivalry, the trend is inexorably towards the smaller city car.

The dinosaur is dead.

Ford forging ahead

Ford, the only member of the Big 3 US automakers which did not ask for a government handout, continues to take a greater market share globally.

Ford’s master plan is to increase its global sales by 50 percent by 2015 and the company sees the ASEAN marketplace as the key to continue the expansion. In fact, they are talking about 1.6 million Fords to be sold annually in the Asia Pacific region and Africa by 2020.

These are not idle boasts, but I believe are well thought out future plans for the American company. After all, in China, Ford has less than three percent, while GM is enjoying a 14 percent share. FoMoCo wants to change all that.

What Ford has done, is to start making cars that people want, rather than making cars with a theoretically greater profit margin that people didn’t want - and then have to offer financial inducements to get the people to buy them.

Ford has rationalized its model range by using the same underpinnings for different vehicles, such as the Fiesta and Focus, whose basic chassis can be used to produce small SUVs as well as sedans. This means the small vehicles can now return a greater profit for the company than they could before.

All in all, I believe that the Ford future plan is well thought out, its new range of models well engineered and with an improved infrastructure will once again by a global power.

Autotrivia Quiz Last week, I asked what country banned Sunday driving, other than for doctors or vets? Yes, it was Switzerland, the country which also banned motor racing for many years. So to this week. A sewing machine manufacturer made the chassis for another company (still going today) in 1889. After that time the company went on to produce motorcycles. After that it produced cars in association with an Italian manufacturer. Which manufacturer was this, and what is it best remembered for? For the Automania free beer this week, be the first correct answer to email [email protected].