Sep 12

Hybrid Porsche 918 Spyder beats Nordschleife track record by miles (actually, 14 seconds)

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Hybrid Porsche 918 Spyder sets Nurburgring lap record

Porsche’s hybrid 918 Spyder did double duty this week, making its first public appearance at the Frankfurt Motor Show and setting a world record at Nürburgring’s grueling Nordschleife circuit. Stuttgart’s pride burned around the North Loop at an average of 112MPH to finish the circuit in 6:57, a full 14 seconds faster than the previous record holder: the gas-burning Dodge Viper ACR. Check out the video after the break and you’ll discover that this Spyder is throaty — especially compared to those purely electric (and rather screechy) Formula E racers.

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Via: Autoblog (1)

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Aug 28

Volvo reveals the Concept Coupe, a two-seater 400HP plug-in hybrid

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DNP Volvo's Concept Coupe is a twoseater plugin hybrid

It seems as if all of Volvo’s recent efforts have been leading up to the unveiling of the Concept Coupe. The svelte two-seater is a plug-in hybrid, has a touchscreen-based center console and was built on the company’s Scalable Product Architecture, which at some point will allow for autonomous driving. According to Volvo, the gas-and-electric engine achieves “around” 400 horsepower out of a 2-liter motor thanks, in part, to the supercharger and turbo mated to it. The prototype two-door also features a touch-display console that’s tied into the car’s adaptive digital display as well as a heads-up display. The Swedish automaker tells us this new touchscreen is an evolution of what was seen in the Concept You, which only had five physical buttons in the entire cockpit.Volvo attributes the triumphs of the Concept Coupe and its related tech to the efforts of new Senior Vice President of Design Thomas Ingenlath. Not a bad showing for his first year on the job, is it?

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