Daily News: Monday 9/11/17

Mercedes-AMG Project One: It’s Here 

Since the inception of the first automobile, people have been trying to make the ‘race car for the road’ that enthusiasts say they want. With the advent of safety laws on the road and a huge increase in racing technology, this goal seemed less and less achievable by a production company.

Until now.

Mercedes’ AMG tuning arm is turning 50 this year, and to celebrate, they have attempted to translate their F1 engine into road-use with as little change as possible. As modern F1 units are small-displacement, high-revving electrically assisted, turbocharged V6’s, that is exactly what the AMG Project One receives.

The two-door sports car is powered by a 1.6L V6 hybrid gasoline engine with direct injection and electrically assisted single turbocharging. The four overhead camshafts are driven by spur gears. To achieve high engine speeds of over 11,000RPM, the mechanical valve springs have been replaced by pneumatic valve springs.

To preserve mechanical reliability and allow the use of ‘Super Premium’ pump gas–sorry California–the rev limiter has been lowered from the racer’s 16,000RPMish limiter. When combined with four electric motors–one bolted to the crankcase, one integrated into the turbocharger, and one powering each of the front wheels–this results in a usable 1000hp and a top speed of 217mph.

AMG’s own press release acknowledges the responsibility and the risk such a move represents, saying,

“This is a world first. The overall responsibility for the realization of Project ONE lies with Mercedes- AMG. The complex development work was carried out in close cooperation with the Formula 1 experts at Mercedes-AMG High Performance Powertrains in Brixworth and with the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport Formula 1 team in Brackley.”

To maintain the responsibility–and the success–Mercedes and AMG used as much internal-development as they possibly could.

The company has provided the below graph for technical details at a glance:

	Mercedes-AMG Project ONE show car
Rear-wheel drive	1.6-liter V6 with direct injection, four valves per cylinder, four overhead camshafts and electrically boosted single turbocharger, electric motor connected to the crankshaft
Engine capacity	1,600 cc
Rear-wheel drive output	> 500 kW
Front-wheel drive output	2 x 120 kW
System output	> 740 kW (> 1,000 hp)
Electric range	25 km
Drive system	Variable AMG Performance 4MATIC+ all-wheel drive with hybrid-drive rear axle, electrically driven front axle and torque vectoring
Transmission	Automated AMG SPEEDSHIFT 8-speed manual transmission
Acceleration 0-200 km/h	< 6 secs
Top speed	> 350 km/h [>217mph]

No further availability or pricing details have been announced, but I expect if you want one to accompany your Zonda and Bugatti, you have already spoken to someone at Mercedes…

Porsche Kills 911R Market, Releases GT3 Touring Package

In a move long expected, Porsche has announced a ‘Touring’ package for their 911 GT3 models. While normally equipped with a very large, very visible rear wing, the Touring package deletes this in favor of a an adaptive rear spoiler similar to that of the 911 Carrera models. The rest of the body remains unchanged.

Powering the car is the same four-liter naturally aspirated flat-six engine develops 500 horsepower and generates 339 lb.-ft. of torque. The only available gearbox is a manual six-speed transmission.

This is a move by Porsche to sweep the feet out from under the market for the limited-edition 911 R wingless variant of the GT3. With only 911 made, some of these R versions sold for as much as $800,000, well over three times the MSRP. Porsche did not like this, and this variant caps off a series of measures to curb such aftermarket trading.

Good on you Porsche.

Bugatti Chiron Sets World 0-400-0 KM/H Record at 42 Seconds 

Juan Pablo Montoya, winner of the Formula 1 Monaco Grand Prix, two-time winner of the Indy 500 and three-time winner of the Daytona 24 Hours, set a world record acceleration-to-deceleration time using the new Bugatti Chiron. Going from a standstill to 400km/h (248.5mph) back to a standstill took only 41.96 seconds and covered only 3.112 kilometers (1.934 miles).

Driver Juan Pablo Montoya was quoted as saying, “It is really impressive how stable and consistent the Chiron is. Its acceleration and braking are simply incredible […] It really was incredible to see that you didn’t need the complex preparations we have to make in racing for the 0-400-0 drive. With the Chiron, it was all quite easy. Just get in and drive off. Incredible.”

While the officially certified run by SGS-TÜV Saar is wickedly impressive, the long, beautifully flowing press release from Bugatti is almost even more impressive. While it can be found HERE, it is a login restricted site, and if anyone is interested, I can post the full text separately.

300 of the 500 Chirons have been sold, with the remaining 200 sure to be sold eventually. 

Land Rover Reveals Discovery SVX, Disappointed at Normal Windows

Land Rover has today revealed the first non-Range Rover to be built by their Special Vehicle Operations (SVO) division, in the form of the Discovery SVX. While reminiscent of an old Subaru with funny windows, the SVX joins the Range Rover SVR and Range Rover SVAutobiography to complete SVO’s market SUV offerings. While the SVR is built for the best on-road performance, and the SVAutobiography is built for the most opulent luxury, the SVX is built for the most intense off-roading fans Land Rover has.

The Discovery SVX is powered by Jaguar Land Rover’s 5.0-litre supercharged V8 gasoline powertrain, tuned to deliver 525PS peak power and 625Nm torque, along with suspension modifications designed to help tackle the worst obstacles. Hydraulic Active Roll Control (H-ARC), is new to the platform, offering increased wheel articulation and improved body control.

Improved approach, departure and break over angles, achieved by raising both the lightweight aluminum monocoque architecture and the four-corner air suspension system, employing long-travel dampers and revised knuckles, and fitting larger 815mm diameter 275/55 R20 Goodyear Wrangler all-terrain tires on forged aluminum alloy wheels.

With the prowess of the Range Rover SVO offerings, there is everything to suggest that this SVX will be one killer off-road vehicle. The SUV is currently debuting, with no release or pricing information as of yet.