Author: autoevolution

Although Virgin Racing already secured a test/reserve driver deal with Brazilian racer Luiz Razia, the British team is still looking for a second driver to fulfill the aforementioned duties throughout the 2010 season of Formula One. And it seems that Madrid-born driver Andy Soucek has the best chances of inking that contract in the days to come.

A few days ago, we have reported to you that former test/reserve driver Alvaro Parente was ousted by Virgin Racing because of his lack of sponsorship… (read more)

A couple of years ago, French-licensed Romain Grosjean was listed as one of the most promising young drivers in formula racing. At his very debut in the GP2 Series, he emerged as winner of the Asian series and later challenged for the title in the main series. Mid-way through last season, while leading the GP2 Series, he was offered a seat with Renault F1 and took it without thinking of the repercussions.

According to his former teammate at Barwa Addax – in the GP2 Series – this was the mista… (read more)

Earlier today it has emerged that Skoda is working on a new model that would join the range between the Fabia subcompact and the Octavia sedan. However, according to a report by Autonews, the car is specifically aimed to act as a low-budget model and thus compete against other cheap models sold across Europe, including Dacia’s already-popular Logan.

According to the aforementioned source, Skoda’s latest contraption would be specifically designed to fit consumers looking for a larger family ca… (read more)

Together with a very, very short press statement, South Korean manufacturer Kia released over the weekend on the company’s blog the first renderings of the future generation Kia Optima/Magentis.

The renderings of the new model come after during the past two years, Kia released two new facelifted versions of the Optima/Magentis, with the last hiting the South Korean market last August.

Although, as said, details on the upcoming model year are not known (Kia says it will release them in se… (read more)

As we previously announced, the 2010 Geneva Auto Show next month will also represent the official return of Cadillac in Europe. Cadillac Europe will manage import, distribution and marketing of a selected range of Cadillac models specified for the European markets.

"Europe is an important market for Cadillac," said Bryan Nesbitt, Cadillac general manager. "Re-establishing distribution of our premium offerings is good news for those who seek import exclusiveness."

Moreov… (read more)

China’s government has decided to introduce a new law, which will bring all the primary school buses to an imposed safety standard, in order to keep the kids safe on their daily journey, as Xinhua reports.

The authorities define school buses as vehicles that are able to accommodate more than 10 children. This new set of standards is a premiere for China, as the country has never had a law for these type of public transportation. According to the Beijing News, it will require that all school b… (read more)

Spanish billionaire Jose Ramon Carabante may have purchased the majority stake in the Campos Meta racing team last week, but things seem to have complicated over the weekend. According to a report coming from Brazilian publication Globo, it seems someone by the name of Tony Teixeira – you might know him for his ownership of A1 GP World Cup of Motorsport – may challenge the takeover in court.

As some of you might remember from some of our previous reports over Campos Grand Prix, the South Afri… (read more)

Dacia will launch its first ever SUV at the Geneva Motor Show next week but, prior to the public release in Switzerland, here are some new details included in a leaked brochure that reached the web a few days ago. The information is obviously unconfirmed and we still don’t know whether this is indeed a leakage or just a marketing technique to promote the Duster but here’s what we have just found out.

First of all, the car will be offered in four different configurations, Duster, Ambiance, Lau… (read more)

The first Sprint win this season for the 2009 champion Jimmie Johnson came this weekend at the Auto Club Speedway, but not before a fair enough amount of good luck, or inspiration, helped the Hendrick Motorsports driver.

On lap 223, Johnson pulled onto pit road only seconds before the sixth and final caution flag came out, following a contact between Brad Keselowski and David Reutimann. Johnson managed to beat the pace car to the scoring line at the exit. As the lead cars pitted, Johnson inh… (read more)

The 2010 Chicago Auto Show ended yesterday, when it also announced the name of the Best in Show winners in the contest’s five categories. Consumers voted throughout the 10-day public run of the event and each of the first four winners beat out seven other vehicles.

However, in the fifth category, "Vehicle I’d most like to have in my driveway," voters could choose from the nearly 1000 vehicles on the show floor. Finally, it was the 2010 Ford Shelby GT that won the tightest race of al… (read more)

Flavio Briatore keeps making the headlines for the wrong reasons lately, as it has emerged that the former Formula One manager has stepped down as chairman of London football club Queens Park Rangers.

Although initial reports following the crash-gate have suggested that the 59-year old Italian will keep his position at the helm of the English 2nd division football club, it now surfaced in the media that he decided to step down and let steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal increase his share in the te… (read more)

The not-so-good NASCAR debut for Danica Patrick (considering all the publicity surrounding her NASCAR entrance) continued this weekend at Auto Club Speedway, where the JR Motorsports driver managed to end the race in 31st place.

Patrick started the race 36th and, faster than predicted, fell to the back of the pack and was passed by Joey Logano, the man who led most of the Stater Bros. 300 race, after only 17 laps.

Patrick didn’t do so well during the pit stops either, being penalized for… (read more)

Skoda, Volkswagen’s low-cost brand, is planing to introduce a new model to its vehicle line-up, as Reuters reports, surfacing information from the carmaker’s union weekly newsletter.

Although the information was clearly stated in the newsletter, no specific details about the pricing and production schedule have been released.

According to Skoda union chief Jaroslav Povsik, a test model of the new car has been presented. The model, bearing the internal code A Entry, will be aimed for the l… (read more)

Kyle Busch’s 31st win in the Nationwide Series came this Sunday at the Auto Club Speedway, where the Joe Gibbs Racing driver managed to overtake Greg Biffle on the final lap and end the race 0.051 seconds in front. The win came as somewhat of a disappointment for his teammate, Joey Logano , who was in front for 130 of the scheduled 150 laps.

"We went off into Turn 1, and Joey got loose and slid way across the race track, and I had to turn underneath him and try to not get boxed in,"… (read more)

Japanese driver Hideki Mutoh will continue to race in the IndyCar Series for a 3rd consecutive season in 2010, only this time it will not happen under the guidance of Andretti Autosport, but as a Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing driver.

Mutoh lost his seat at Andretti Autosport to North American racer Ryan Hunter-Reay, who is yet to secure the sponsorship for a full-time campaign this year. Although the Japanese driver managed to impress his former team after his maiden campaign in the series back … (read more)

Russian businessman Vladimir Antonov, who was initially involved in the Spyker-Saab deal but was ousted soon after the talks began, said he wants to remain a co-owner of the group and provide Spyker CEO Victor Muller’s company Tenaci with loans. He thus hired an investigation group to clear his name and demonstrate GM that his family and the business he runs has no criminal connection, which is one of the reasons that led to GM ousting Antonov from the deal.

"In response to all this nois… (read more)

MotoCzysz, the motorcycle team founded by designer Michael Czysz, confirmed it will return to the Isle of Man in 2010 to participate in the TT Zero Clean Emissions race. The MotoCzysz E1pc electric motorcycle generated a huge amount of interest during the inaugural event in 2009 and was widely accepted as having a similar level of integration as a traditional race bike. 

 The team’s 2010 electric machine is already believed to have received significant improvements on their 2009 bike and they h… (read more)

The new Volkswagen Scirocco R Cup will be staged as the partner series of the DTM in its 2010 debut season. There are a total of nine races are on the calendar, of which six will be in Germany and one in Great Britain.

There will be some 30 contenders in the series, driving the racing version of the Scirocco R, powered by an innovative biogas engine that achieves an 80 percent reduction of CO2 emissions compared with conventional powerplants. This reportedly makes the Volkswagen Scirocco R Cup … (read more)

The North American division of Aprilia released an update to its RSV4 recall, stating that new replacement engines have arrived at RSV4 qualified Aprilia dealers and the company expects certified technicians to complete all work on RSV4 models in about two or to three weeks. The recall, announced last month, affected a limited number of 2010 Aprilia RSV4 motorcycles. 

Only a small number of production units are affected, but the recall impacts all RSV4 motorcycles delivered within the US market… (read more)

The tuners at ENCO Exclusive have just released details on their new ENCO Audi Q7 program which brings both exterior and interior modifications to the German SUV. The ENCO Audi Q7 receives the exterior aerodynamics package of the Q7 V12, including the giant radiator grill, LED daytime running lights and wider wheel arches. 

The ENCO Audi Q7 also features a new carbon fiber bonnet with built-in ventilation slits. Creating the visual and physical connection to the road of the ENCO Audi Q7 are 23 … (read more)