Motor Trend - April 2013 PDF
English | 136 pages | HQ PDF | 111.00 Mb
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English | 136 pages | HQ PDF | 111.00 Mb
Sunday, March 31, 2013
Saturday, March 30, 2013
Road & Track April 2013 (USA) PDF
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Road & Track April 2013 (USA) PDF
English | 106 pages | PDF | 93.79 MB
English | 106 pages | PDF | 93.79 MB
Friday, March 29, 2013
Car and Driver - April 2013 PDF
Car and Driver - April 2013 PDF
PDF | 116 pages | 116.27 Mb | English
PDF | 116 pages | 116.27 Mb | English
Car and Driver is an American automotive enthusiast magazine. Car and Driver was founded as Sports Cars Illustrated in 1955. In its early years, the magazine focused primarily on small, imported sports cars. In 1961, editor Karl Ludvigsen renamed the magazine Car and Driver to show a more general automotive focus. click here to download
Thursday, March 28, 2013
Auto Maintenance 101: Oil and Filter
Imagine if all you did for exercise was bicep curls with your right arm. Or tried to lose weight by eating one moderate-sized/lower calorie meal a week. It might do some good – kind of like only changing your vehicle’s engine oil/filter regularly. But by neglecting the rest of it, you’re not doing as much as you could. Or should. Yet it’s exactly what a lot of people do – probably, because many of them don’t know much about – or think much about – other (and just as important) routine maintenance items. For instance:
* PCV valve -
This is a simple one-way valve that permits engine suction (vacuum) to scavenge combustion byproduct gasses from the crankcase (hence Positive Crankcase Ventilation) that would otherwise contaminate the oil rapidly or build up pressure inside the engine – and feeds these gasses back into the engine to be consumed harmlessly. But the valve does not last forever – and if it sticks or gets stuck, the PCV circuit no longer works as it should. Gasses can now build up – and in a modern, “closed system” emissions controlled engine, this can lead to problems that will cost you a lot more than the typical $10 or so a replacement PCV valve costs. Check your owner’s manual for the factory recommendations as far as mileage/time intervals for replacement – and heed them. You might even try to replace the valve yourself as the job is often very DIY-doable, even for people who are not mechanically inclined. The PCV valve is commonly located on top of the engine, near (or built into) the cam/valve cover. It’s typically a press-fit part, secured by a clamp. Removal/replacement usually involves loosening the clamp(s) and twisting/pulling out the old valve and popping in the new one. But whether you do it or have someone else do it – just make sure it gets done!
* Power steering fluid -
Talk about a wallflower – when it comes to people noticing (much less thinking about) this important service item. Well, it’s important if you’d prefer to spend maybe $10 on fresh power steering fluid once every four or five years vs. $200 (or more – probably a lot more) on a new power steering pump. Automotive fluids do not last forever (nothing does). They get heated – and cooled – and these cycles eventually result (along with the build of contamination of the fluid with small particles, moisture, etc.) in fluid that ought to be replaced. If you don’t wait until the fluid is badly contaminated – which you can usually tell just by looking at it (if it’s turned black when it was originally clear or red, it’s gone bad) – you can DIY this job, too. Use a clean turkey baster – or syringe – to draw the old fluid out of the reservoir and top off (there will be a “full” line) with fresh fluid of the appropriate type. Check your owner’s manual or read the warning on the filler cap. Some cars use different fluids. Dexron automatic transmission fluid is one common type – but check before you add.
* Fuel filter -
This one used to be one that most people (well, many people) knew to keep track of because the filter was obvious – it was right there under the hood, usually spliced into the fuel line that led to the carburetor. But carburetors have been history since the late 1980s. All cars built since then are fuel injected. And the fuel filter is typically located out of sight – and so, out of mind. It is either (typically) underneath the car, or in/near the gas tank. Very easy to overlook. Yet changeout intervals have not changed. Gas is still gas (well, if you don’t count the 10 percent ethanol) and particles and other contaminants still get pumped into your gas tank from gas pumps – as well as accrue there from internal sources. But there’s a twist: With a modern fuel-injected car, the computer will sometimes shut the system down if pressure drops below a certain pre-set value, which can happen if the filter gets clogged up. That means you’re stuck – and because the filter is often not easily accessible it is not easily fixable by the side of the road, as in the good ol’ days. And – because so many people have dropped the fuel filter from their To-Do lists, it’s easy to forget about it – until the car reminds you. As a general rule, fuel filters last about two years and 15,000 miles. Check the “service and maintenance” chapter of your vehicle’s owner’s manual to know the score for your particular car. Then, don’t forget to do it – or have it done!
* Gearbox (and axle) lube -
People often fixate on their car’s engine – forgetting about the half of the drivetrain. It doesn’t do you much good to have an engine that’s well-cared for … bolted up to a neglected transmission that just croaked on you. The happy – and sad – thing about this is maintenance is generally easy and inexpensive, yet very often not done. Or not done when it should be done. Maintenance consists of draining the case and refilling it with the appropriate quantity and type of lubricant. There are usually two plugs – one on the bottom of the transmission case, for draining the lube – the other higher up on the side of the case, for refilling it with fresh lube. Doing this service is often even easier than changing engine oil, because (usually) there is no filter to deal with and – usually – the drain/fill plugs are very easy to get at. The drain one especially so. If you have the ability/inclination to jack your vehicle up enough that you can slide underneath with a catch pan and some basic hand tools, you can probably handle this job yourself. Thus, the only expense will be $20 or $30 or so for the quantity of fresh lube you’ll need. Here again, be sure to use the right type – and be sure to add the right amount. For added protection – as well as smoother operation – you might consider using synthetic gear lube, if allowable. It’s more expensive, but you’ll more than get your money’s worth in the form of easier/smoother gear changes (especially in cold weather) reduced wear and tear and possibly a noticeable uptick in your gas mileage.
As a general rule of thumb, gear lube should be changed out every 50,000 miles or so.* Battery … and alternator –
This one can sneak up on you – and your wallet. Batteries, like people, get weaker as they age. But the weakness may not be apparent. The cars starts normally – but because the battery is now at say 60 percent of its capacity after starting the engine, the alternator – which is a kind of mini-generator that is turned by the running engine and which produces both the electricity to power the car’s ignition and electrical systems as well as recharge the battery - works harder and harder to “refill” the dying battery after each start-up cycle. At a certain point, the battery is perpetually under-charge and the alternator therefore works harder to try to keep it charged up. The long and short of it is that eventually, the battery’s weakness will manifest in a no-start or weak start, but it may not become obvious for some time – during which time, your alternator has been picking up the slack. Alternators are expensive.
With
some late-model cars, you may be looking at $400 – or more. It’s
therefore wise to get as much life out of the one that came from the
factory as possible. And you can do that, in part, by keeping abreast of
your battery. Its condition (capacity to hold a charge) ought to be
checked at least every two years – and after about 4-5 years, it’s very
likely you’re approaching (or have already reached) replacement time –
even if there are no obvious external signs of a problem and the car
seems to be starting up normally. Ideally, replace the battery before it croaks out.Your alternator will thank you – and so will your wallet.
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Wednesday, March 27, 2013
Luxury Auto Direct Vol.7 Issue 39 2013 PDF
Luxury Auto Direct Vol.7 Issue 39 2013
True PDF | English | 66 Pages | 47.52 MB
True PDF | English | 66 Pages | 47.52 MB
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
NZ Autocar April 2013 (New Zealand) PDF
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NZ Autocar April 2013 (New Zealand) PDF
English | 116 pages | PDF | 97.15 MB
English | 116 pages | PDF | 97.15 MB
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Monday, March 25, 2013
Autocar UK - 20 March 2013 PDF
Autocar UK - 20 March 2013 PDF
English | 108 pages | HQ PDF | 61.00 Mb
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English | 108 pages | HQ PDF | 61.00 Mb
Saturday, March 9, 2013
Friday, March 8, 2013
Thursday, March 7, 2013
Wednesday, March 6, 2013
LaFerrari: The fastest Ferrari road car ever comes with just one name
After months of anticipation, Ferrari’s replacement to
the legendary Enzo supercar was unveiled today at the Geneva
International Motor Show. It’s called LaFerrari; it’s Ferrari's first
hybrid, and the fastest road car ever built under the Prancing Stallion
logo.
When the sheets were removed, the Ferrari stand at Geneva erupted into cheers, clapping, and rather a lot of pushing and shoving. And for good reason, too. LaFerrari is simply beautiful. In fact, it looks better than expected, as it presents sleek, swooping lines, and limits the aggressive edge of the Enzo. That ferociousness is still present at the front with its massive hood vents and sharp chin, but it blends elegance and speed in a wondrous fashion. The interior looks as breathtaking and futuristic as you would expect as well, with its digital display cluster and Alcantara wrapped surfaces.
Beneath the skin, LaFerrari does not disappoint. A V-12 motor punches out 800 hp, but when you add the 163 additional hp provided by the coupled electric motor, a grand total of 963 raging ponies are unleashed, comfortably outdoing the 903 hp produced by LaFerrari’s arch nemesis, the McLaren P1.
The hybrid system is composed of two electric motors developed with Magneti Marelli. One motor powers the driven wheels while the other the ancillaries. The battery is located on the floor of the all-carbon chassis, and consists of cells assembled in the same department as their Formula One team’s KERS system.
Battery regeneration switches on under braking as well as when the V-12 produces more torque than needed, like when cornering. Rather than sending that excess torque to the wheels, the torque is converted into energy and stored in the batteries.
Unsurprisingly, the motor is coupled to a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox and carbon ceramic Brembo brakes. Combining all of this ensures LaFerrari will burst to 60 mph in well under three seconds, and surpass 124 mph in less than seven. It will also eclipse the 1 minute, 20 second barrier for lapping Ferrari’s Fiorano test track, which is five seconds faster than the Enzo and three seconds faster than the F12berlinetta. Prices for the beast were not revealed, but expect the sticker to read an equally impressive $1.3 million.
Only 499 LaFerraris will be produced, and Ferrari already has 700 written requests from eligible buyers. With the big guns in the hypercar world now unveiled, only time will tell whether LaFerrari has what it takes to become the champion of the world's asphalt. Regardless of how that plays out, this is, without question, a fantastic era for the enthusiast.
I just wish Ferrari used a better name.
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
Better Ways to Save Gas
“We” (as the statists always style it) waste a lot of fuel in this
country. No doubt you’ve heard that one before. But let’s examine the
cliche from a slightly different perspective: The many ways via which
the government wastes our fuel.
* Out-of-synch traffic lights -
Broad avenue, three or four traffic lights – each spaced say 500 yards apart as you proceed down the road. The first goes green just as the one up ahead turns red. Or vice-versa. Writ small, a Clover Conga. Inch forward a bit – then stop and wait some more. It takes 15 minutes to clear a mile or so of road that – if the lights all went green at once – you could probably traverse in two minutes or so. Write large – extrapolated nationwide – a massive waste of gas as millions of car engines idle while the cars themselves go nowhere. The government itself concedes that as much as 10 percent of the fuel used by Americans each year is burnt up by cars idling uselessly at lights. With all the AI-type computers and cameras everywhere, it surely can’t be much of a technical challenge to coordinate traffic signals so they encourage free-flowing traffic as opposed to mucking up the flow of traffic. It’s a no-cost solution to a real problem.
Which is probably why the government is doing nothing about it. Or rather, doing more to make it worse.
* Too many stop signs – not enough “proceed with caution” signs -
Other than it being “the law,” is there any sensible reason for coming to a complete stop at an intersection where sight lines are open and you can clearly see there are no other cars in the immediate vicinity? Losing momentum – and having to regain it – wastes a tremendous amount of fuel. It does not take much horsepower – and so, not much fuel – to keep even the biggest “gas hog” SUV moving. But it does take a great deal of fuel to get the thing moving in the first place. A vehicle that weighs say 3,200 pounds and which is powered by a 270 hp V-6 may only need 30 or 40 hp to cruise in top gear at a steady 45 MPH. But it needs a whole lot more than 30 or 40 hp to push (or pull, if FWD) that 3,200 pounds to 45 MPH from a dead stop. The more stop-and-go, the faster the gas needle moves from right to left. Stop less – and save more. Some (Clovers) will object to the idea of people exercising discretion and judgment – as opposed to worshipful blind obedience to signage. But then they ought to mewl less about “wasting gas.”
Which of course, they won’t.
* Make-work “safety” zones -
It used to be that if work was being done on a stretch of road, they’d put up cones and so on to direct traffic around the area being worked on. Apparently, one-too-many Clovers ran down one-too-many workers and the result is the “pilot car” safety zone. You sit and wait – burning up fuel and time – awaiting the “pilot car” to lead the Clover Conga through the perilous work zone. The “pilot car” is piloted by a bored and indifferent person who always takes his time. Or rather, yours. Plus of course, your fuel. All because a Mr. (or Mrs.) McGoo type of Clover didn’t see the standing army of orange cones or the sea of blinking lights – and mowed down some unfortunate highway worker. Instead of taking Mr. McGoo off the road, the government’s solution is to make the rest of us wait by the side of the road for the “pilot car” to safely guide us through the gantlet. And naturally, the “pilot car” is invariably a large truck – probably with a large (and hungry) V-8 under its hood – running back and forth and back and forth all day long.
On our nickle.
* Lower speed limits for big trucks -
In many areas, heavy trucks are restricted to a lower speed than other traffic (for example 55 MPH vs. 65). The one-dimensional idea being that this will make the roads “safer” by dint of limiting the speed of the heavy trucks. Without deconstructing that shibboleth (again) let’s look at another dimension – and unintended side-effect – of this policy: Congealed traffic – and wasted fuel. Heavy trucks rely on momentum to maintain their pace. They go faster on the downhills in order to avoid slowing to a crawl on the uphills. But when they are legally restricted to go slow on the downhills, it’s a guaranteed thing they’ll go even slower come the uphill. Instead of maintaining 60-ish because they started out with a decent head of steam, they gimp down to 40-ish…. with all the rest of us forced to slow down – and burn up more fuel than we otherwise would have. Driving an OTR truck requires a great deal more skill than putting a Corolla’s shifter into “D” and pushing down on the gas pedal. Yet the government restricts the freedom of action of the OTR trucker even more than it does the Corolla driver.
That’s Uncle for you, though. He’s irascible, controlling – and violent. Rarely sensible. And always wasteful.
Unfortunately, he’s always along for the ride, too.
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* Out-of-synch traffic lights -
Broad avenue, three or four traffic lights – each spaced say 500 yards apart as you proceed down the road. The first goes green just as the one up ahead turns red. Or vice-versa. Writ small, a Clover Conga. Inch forward a bit – then stop and wait some more. It takes 15 minutes to clear a mile or so of road that – if the lights all went green at once – you could probably traverse in two minutes or so. Write large – extrapolated nationwide – a massive waste of gas as millions of car engines idle while the cars themselves go nowhere. The government itself concedes that as much as 10 percent of the fuel used by Americans each year is burnt up by cars idling uselessly at lights. With all the AI-type computers and cameras everywhere, it surely can’t be much of a technical challenge to coordinate traffic signals so they encourage free-flowing traffic as opposed to mucking up the flow of traffic. It’s a no-cost solution to a real problem.
Which is probably why the government is doing nothing about it. Or rather, doing more to make it worse.
* Too many stop signs – not enough “proceed with caution” signs -Other than it being “the law,” is there any sensible reason for coming to a complete stop at an intersection where sight lines are open and you can clearly see there are no other cars in the immediate vicinity? Losing momentum – and having to regain it – wastes a tremendous amount of fuel. It does not take much horsepower – and so, not much fuel – to keep even the biggest “gas hog” SUV moving. But it does take a great deal of fuel to get the thing moving in the first place. A vehicle that weighs say 3,200 pounds and which is powered by a 270 hp V-6 may only need 30 or 40 hp to cruise in top gear at a steady 45 MPH. But it needs a whole lot more than 30 or 40 hp to push (or pull, if FWD) that 3,200 pounds to 45 MPH from a dead stop. The more stop-and-go, the faster the gas needle moves from right to left. Stop less – and save more. Some (Clovers) will object to the idea of people exercising discretion and judgment – as opposed to worshipful blind obedience to signage. But then they ought to mewl less about “wasting gas.”
Which of course, they won’t.
* Make-work “safety” zones -
It used to be that if work was being done on a stretch of road, they’d put up cones and so on to direct traffic around the area being worked on. Apparently, one-too-many Clovers ran down one-too-many workers and the result is the “pilot car” safety zone. You sit and wait – burning up fuel and time – awaiting the “pilot car” to lead the Clover Conga through the perilous work zone. The “pilot car” is piloted by a bored and indifferent person who always takes his time. Or rather, yours. Plus of course, your fuel. All because a Mr. (or Mrs.) McGoo type of Clover didn’t see the standing army of orange cones or the sea of blinking lights – and mowed down some unfortunate highway worker. Instead of taking Mr. McGoo off the road, the government’s solution is to make the rest of us wait by the side of the road for the “pilot car” to safely guide us through the gantlet. And naturally, the “pilot car” is invariably a large truck – probably with a large (and hungry) V-8 under its hood – running back and forth and back and forth all day long.
On our nickle.
* Lower speed limits for big trucks -
In many areas, heavy trucks are restricted to a lower speed than other traffic (for example 55 MPH vs. 65). The one-dimensional idea being that this will make the roads “safer” by dint of limiting the speed of the heavy trucks. Without deconstructing that shibboleth (again) let’s look at another dimension – and unintended side-effect – of this policy: Congealed traffic – and wasted fuel. Heavy trucks rely on momentum to maintain their pace. They go faster on the downhills in order to avoid slowing to a crawl on the uphills. But when they are legally restricted to go slow on the downhills, it’s a guaranteed thing they’ll go even slower come the uphill. Instead of maintaining 60-ish because they started out with a decent head of steam, they gimp down to 40-ish…. with all the rest of us forced to slow down – and burn up more fuel than we otherwise would have. Driving an OTR truck requires a great deal more skill than putting a Corolla’s shifter into “D” and pushing down on the gas pedal. Yet the government restricts the freedom of action of the OTR trucker even more than it does the Corolla driver.
That’s Uncle for you, though. He’s irascible, controlling – and violent. Rarely sensible. And always wasteful.
Unfortunately, he’s always along for the ride, too.
Please bookmark us
Monday, March 4, 2013
Motor Trend - April 2013
Motor Trend - April 2013
English | 136 pages | PDF | 111.00 Mb
English | 136 pages | PDF | 111.00 Mb
Every issue of Motor Trend informs and entertains with features on the testing of both domestic and import cars, car care, motor sports coverage, sneak peeks at future vehicles, and auto-industry news.
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Road & Track USA - April 2013
Road & Track USA - April 2013
English | 106 pages | PDF | 93.79 MB
English | 106 pages | PDF | 93.79 MB
Drive off with Road & Track for the ultimate in automotive journalism. Road & Track caters to vehicle enthusiasts by focusing on automotive subjects such as design, engineering, driving reports, road tests, racing coverage and detailed technical discussions. Also included in each monthly issue are profiles of personalities in the auto industry as well as auto-related books, art, history, and humor.
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