Fast Lane: Porsche’s super e-car; BYD Dolphin to launch next month
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Light is might: With around 1hp for every kg of weight, the Porsche Mission X will have very few rivals on the track.
PHOTO: PORSCHE
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Porsche’s retort to the upcoming Tesla Roadster
Behold the Porsche Mission X, an electric super-car concept which looks ready for production. Porsche expects it to be “the fastest road-legal car on the Nurburgring”, with a power-to-weight ratio of roughly 1hp per kg.
The Mission X will have significantly more downforce than the current 911 GT3 RS, and charges twice as quickly as the Taycan Turbo S via a 900v charging system.
Looking stunning with its Le Mans-style doors, the car measures 4.5m long, 2m wide and less than 1.2m tall, with a 2.73m wheelbase. Its dimensions are similar to the Carrera GT and 918 Spyder.
For aerodynamic purposes, the concept car has mixed-size tyres, with 20-inch wheels in front and 21-inchers in the rear.
Dolphin swims into showroom on July 3
The BYD Dolphin is a 70kW Category A COE car that does the century sprint in 12.3 seconds.
PHOTO: BYD
Chinese electric-car maker BYD will launch its Dolphin compact electric car here on July 3.
It is powered by a 70kW/180Nm motor driving the front wheels. Its 44.9kWh battery promises a range of 340km. The Dolphin hits 100kmh in a rather leisurely 12.3 seconds, but has a relatively high efficiency of 15.2kWh/100km.
Like the more powerful BYD Atto 3, it will be highly equipped, boasting features such as adaptive cruise control, lane-keeping, a 360-degree camera, PM2.5 filter in its climate control system, and Apple CarPlay.
The car qualifies for Category A certificate of entitlement, and may well be priced below the Atto 3, which starts at $174,888.
Track version of Lotus Emira
The Lotus Emira GT4 is more powerful than the road-going Emira.
PHOTO: LOTUS CARS
Lotus has unveiled the Emira GT4, a souped-up Emira sports car approved for races in global GT4 classes.
It has 455hp and 500Nm, up from 400hp and 420Nm in the regular Emira. And it gets a new six-speed paddle-shift sequential racing transmission as well as enhanced aerodynamics, brakes, suspension and cooling.
The track car is available for order on an indent basis.
Revised Merc A, B arrive
The Mercedes-Benz A-class Sedan (left) and Mercedes-Benz B180 Progressive.
PHOTOS: MERCEDES-BENZ
Mercedes-Benz has launched facelifts of the A-class and B-class. Both now come with a 48-volt mild hybrid system. A-class variants are the A180 Progressive, A200 AMG Line, Mercedes-AMG A35 and Mercedes-AMG A45S hatchbacks, as well as the A180 Progressive, A200 AMG Line and Mercedes-AMG A35 saloons. Only one B-class variant is available – the B180 Progressive mini multi-purpose vehicle. A-class prices start at $240,888, while the B180 is priced at $242,888.
550hp BMW M3 CS to be unveiled in Singapore on June 24
The BMW M3 CS will be unveiled at BMW M, an M celebratory event at Pasir Panjang Power Station, with music, food and drinks.
PHOTO: BMW
The extreme BMW M3 CS will make its debut in Singapore on June 24 at BMW M, an M celebratory event at Pasir Panjang Power Station (27 Pasir Panjang Road, Hall B), from 8 to 11pm. There will be live music with Singaporean singer Jasmine Sokko. Light bites will be available from The Maha Co as well as non-alcoholic and alcoholic beverages.
The M3 CS is powered by a turbocharged 3-litre inline-six engine making 550hp, allowing it to hit 100kmh in 3.4 seconds and a top speed of 301kmh.
Toyota slips to third place in local sales race
Mercedes-Benz has maintained its lead in local sales in the first five months of the year. According to Land Transport Authority (LTA) figures, the Stuttgart brand led with 1,662 new registrations, followed by BMW with 1,360. Toyota, which lost its long-held pole position to Mercedes last year, slipped to third position with 1,258 registrations. In fourth place is Nissan with 489 and Mazda with 378.
All these figures exclude parallel imports, which were tallied separately for the first time by LTA.
Small car with small battery charges up in less than 6 minutes
The Nyobolt EV promises a charging time of under six minutes and a range of up to 250km.
PHOTO: NYOBOLT
Nyobolt, a pioneering Britain-based developer of ultra-fast-charging batteries, has revealed a car resembling the Lotus Elise which takes less than six minutes to charge up. Granted its battery is small at merely 35kWh (the size of batteries found in newer plug-in hybrids), giving the car a relatively short range of no more than 250km, but this also means it is lighter than most electric vehicles.
The fast charging does not sacrifice battery life, according to Nyobolt. It has tested its batteries for more than 2,000 fast-charge cycles without significant performance loss.
Book a Porsche online for $1,500
Porsche Singapore has launched an e-commerce platform, which allows buyers to reserve a Porsche for a deposit of as little as $1,500. Along with the Porsche Shop E-Commerce platform, Porsche’s revised PorscheShop.SG online store stocks the latest Porsche Lifestyle merchandise. It offers free delivery for orders above $100.
Volvo electric construction machines launch in Singapore
Clean vehicles for dirty work: (from left) The Volvo EC55 excavator, the L25 compact wheel loader and the ECR25 compact excavator.
PHOTO: VOLVO CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT
Volvo Construction Equipment has launched its first electric construction machines in Singapore. The company aims to have 35 per cent of the machines it sells powered by battery by 2030. It already has the widest range of electrically powered construction machinery available today.
Three models were launched – the EC55 electric excavator, the L25 electric compact wheel loader and the ECR25 electric compact excavator.
The company says charging is not an issue, as the machines can be charged overnight via domestic 220v outlets. There are also fast chargers which can tap 415v power supply, which is also found at most construction sites. The fast chargers can provide fast charging during work hours too.
