The pace of technological change is
only going to hot up this year, says Jesse Crosse
1.
Golf GTI Makes Welding Sexy!
The new VW Golf GTI has a few tech tricks
up its sleeve as it aims to reclaim the hot-hatch throne in 2013.Alongside the
standard 164kW GTI an optional performance pack adds bigger brakes, a power
boost to 172kW and, crucially, adds the VAQ differential (a ‘front axle
transverse lock’) which should sharpen up on the limit handling. But the real
genius is in VW’s patented welding technique, which allows aluminum to be
‘glued’ to steel. That means GTIs can roll off the standard Golf line, and be
up to 100kg lighter, thus faster, more fun and cheaper. A hot-hatch revolution?
The
new VW Golf GTI has a few tech tricks up its sleeve as it aims to reclaim the
hot-hatch throne in 2013
2.
Carbon Fiber Goes Mainstream
The new BMW i3 will become the first car
made from lightweight carbon fiber in significant numbers. CFRP is expensive,
but three-quarters of the cost is due to the manual processes involved rather
than the material itself. So BMW’s partner, SGL Group, aims to teach robots to
do something they’re not so good at: handling the floppy carbon fiber mat
instead of rigid aluminum sheets. Hope it works as, according to an insider,
volume production of carbon fiber parts would otherwise be ‘absolutely
impossible.’
The
new BMW i3
3.
Cars Become More Autonomous
With its vast array of new tech this year’s
Merc S-Class seems to herald the age of the self-driving car. One of the
‘innovations’ destined for the mainstream is Pre-Safe Brake, which uses a
stereo video camera and radar to identify pedestrians who you’re about to harm;
it brakes for you. Another is Pre-Safe Impulse which harnesses all-round sensor
tech to pull the driver or front-seat passenger away from the impact using the
seatbelts, while Pre-Safe Plus ‘spots’ an incoming rear-end shunt, applies
brakes and readies airbags.
With
its vast array of new tech this year’s Merc S-Class seems to herald the age of
the self-driving car
4.
More Than Likely, Your Next Car Will Have
Tire Pressure Sensors
From the end of 2012, every all-new
European car must be fitted with a tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS) as
standard. ‘Indirect’ systems, which compare the rpm of each wheel, have been
around for a while, but now Continental has come up with an experimental
‘direct’ TPMS, with tiny radio transmitters inside the tire to instantly alert
drivers of low pressures via the instrument panel. Due in 2015, the system even
has the potential to detect tire deformation, a sign of aquaplaning. A phone
app, called Filling Assistant, makes checking pressures easier too. Green GT
H2: all set to make an entirely clean debut at Le Mans.
Green
GT H2: all set to make an entirely clean debut at Le Mans
5.
Fuel-Cell Cars To Race At Le Mans
Diesel-powered race cars are old hat, but a
hydrogen-fuel-cell- powered Le Mans car? It’s happening at this year’s 24
Heures in June. The drop-dead gorgeous, carbon fiber Green GT H2 (below) might
be emissions-free but this 1240kg special packs a mean punch, with 403kW and a
hardly feasible 4000Nm of torque. Dunlop is developing special tires to handle
a torque vectoring system, which helps steer the car by varying torque to each
rear wheel. A SymbioFCell fuel-cell stack delivers electricity directly to the
motors without the need for a buffer battery, quaffing 12.6kg of hydrogen per
hour (equivalent to 36 liters of petrol) from two 160-litre carbon fiber tanks.
The 306kph Green GT is due to make its debut in the Garage 56 category for
‘specials’.
Green
GT H2: all set to make an entirely clean debut at Le Mans
