The Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG's retro design evokes the 300 SL.
(Credit: CNET)
With all the very expensive new cars being unveiled at the Frankfurt auto show, you would think the economy never went into recession. It did, and yet here they are, a parade of new automotive objects of lust from the likes of Ferrari, Maserati, Porsche, Mercedes-Benz, Aston Martin, and Rolls-Royce. Some emphasize sport, some luxury, but all have way more of each than your standard economy sedan.
Leading the parade is the spectacular new Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG, a monster of a supercar with retro styling evoking the gull-winged 300 SL. Porsche shows off a couple of 911s, the styling only slightly updated but big improvement where it counts: in the engine, transmission, and suspension. Ferrari comes up with a replacement for the F430, managing to improve on that already fantastic supercar. And then there's Abarth, which offers up a tribute to Ferrari in the form of a heavily modified Fiat 500.
A number of convertibles follow, the tops chopped off of an Audi R8, Lamborghini Reventon, and Maserati GranTurismo. And finally, a couple of stately sedans from Aston Martin and Rolls-Royce take the floor.
Brabus added its own touches to this Tesla Roadster.
(Credit: CNET)
As is becoming common at auto shows these days, a number of electric cars were on display at the Frankfurt auto show, with automakers showing off research into next millennium's generation of vehicles. On hand were concepts from Peugeot, Renault, Audi, Volkswagen, and Ford. Two entrants from Tesla were on hand, one a Roadster tuned up by Brabus, the only current production car available out of this lot, and the other the upcoming Model S, expected to begin production in 2011.
(Credit:
Rory Reid/CNET UK)
We're seeing some pretty futuristic cars here at the Frankfurt Motor Show, but none more so than the Peugeot BB1. According to its maker, it's a totally original response to the current and future needs of urban mobility, and one of those needs is drive-anywhere Internet access.
If you look past the uber-beautiful models casually sitting inside the BB1 (it won't actually come with these), you'll see an iPod dock carved into the steering wheel. This connects your music collection to the BB1's entertainment system, and also feeds data to a centrally mounted display, on which you can fiddle with the radio, navigation options and Internet. Yes, you read that correctly--the Internet. The World Wide Web. The Jesus tubes, people.
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Audi shows off its e-tron electric sports car concept at the 2009 Frankfurt auto show.
(Credit: CNET)The most exciting concept shown at the 2009 Frankfurt auto show is an electric sports car, the Audi e-tron. Borrowing body lines from the Audi R8, it can't help but look good. And boasting specs like 3,319 pound-feet of torque, it can't help but make gearheads drool.
Audi achieves that torque number by using four electric motors, one at each wheel. The drooling gearheads should be able to close their mouths again after hearing that the combined horsepower is only 313, making for a zero to 62 mph time of 4.8 seconds. But electric car enthusiasts will be happy to hear that the e-tron's range is 154 miles.
The four electric motors meant that Audi could design a virtual Quattro all-wheel-drive system, integrating the power distribution program with vehicle dynamics sensors. By default, the rear motors deliver 70 percent of the torque, the high number compensating for the 58 percent weight distribution to the rear wheels. But as conditions dictate, the power software can give any wheel greater or less power, which should make for incredible road-holding, beyond even Audi's current Quattro system.
A two-seater, the cabin is relatively simple, featuring a minimum of controls and gauges. The car's navigation and communication electronics are designed to communicate with external roads infrastructure, receiving information about traffic and green lights, for example, and adjusting routes accordingly to maximize driving efficiency.
The Audi e-tron might sound like a serious competitor to the Tesla Roadster, but the Tesla has one huge advantage: it's already in production.
Nice try Audi, but I'm more of a Nikola Tesla kinda guy.
(Credit: Antuan Goodwin/CNET)We see our fair share of odd promotional materials in this line of work, but every now and then we get something that's just plain clever.
The package contained a kite branded with the new Audi logo, the ElectricityUntamed.com URL, and a date "9.15.09," which is the opening day of the 2009 Frankfurt auto show. Attached to the kite, Ben Franklin style, was a small metal key-shaped USB drive (a LaCie Iamakey, for all of our techies). The drive contained a few of the videos that we've already seen on Audi's microsite, as well as the following diatribe:
Ben Franklin refused to take lightning at face value.
So, on that fateful stormy day in June of 1752, armed with his now-famous kite and key experiment, he set out to prove that electricity was a force in nature.
He was correct, to say the least.
Electricity is the mother of all natural forces. It can split a tree, ignite a forest fire, overpower a bespectacled 46-year old future Founding Father.
It is both feared and revered.
But it got dumbed down. Underutilized. Wussified. Relegated to toasters and toothbrushes. It helps run glorified golf carts with license plates.
Mr. Franklin would be so disappointed. It's time to let electricity run wild. Free. Completely untamed.
ElectricityUntamed.com
Umm, OK? Of course, behind all of the ranting about the raw power of electricity and a sad Ben Franklin, it's fairly obvious that Audi is developing an electric sports car. Whether that car proves to be the electric R8 or something smaller and more Tesla Roadster-like remains to be seen.
Stay tuned to our continuing coverage of the 2009 Frankfurt auto show for more details and photos as they emerge.
(Credit:
Ferrari)
While you wait for the newly unveiled Ferrari 458 Italia to be revealed in the sheet metal at the 2009 Frankfurt Auto Show, you can enjoy the sounds of the Italian supercar every time you receive a call or text message on your mobile phone. That's right, Ferrari has released official 458 Italia ringtones.
We'd call the automaker vain if the 458's 4.5-liter direct injected V8 didn't sound so mouthwateringly good.
Available sound bites include overtaking, acceleration, on board, and off the mark clips. Download the ringtones in MP3 format for most mobile phones or M4R format for your iPhone at Ferrari's 458 Italia microsite. While you're there, grab one of the mobile phone or iPhone-size wallpapers to complete your Ferrari fanboy package.
When new cars and old tech collide...
(Credit: Autobild.de/Audi)Audi's next-generation MultiMedia Interface (MMI) could feature handwriting recognition. You read that right, handwriting recognition. Not advanced voice command. Not some science-fiction extrasensory perception interface, but plain old 20th century handwriting recognition. I thought these cabin tech interfaces were supposed to be getting less complex.
According to German car blog Autobild, the new MMI should debut at the International Motor Show in Frankfurt on the new Audi A8. The handwriting-recognition portion, poorly Google translated as "Finger Ready," will feature a character input square where drivers will finger-paint letters on the screen a la first-generation Palm OS Graffiti, which to be honest is still probably much faster than the current MMI's rotary-dial-based input method.
We've already had a look at the first wave of MMI upgrades, which feature a relocated MMI controller and a much-improved interface. Audi has not officially announced the handwriting system as part of its MMI roadmap, but September and the Frankfurt auto show are just around the corner.
(Via Engadget, Autobild.de)
The new 458 Italia is a mid-engine sports car that should replace the F430.
(Credit: Ferrari)
It's a rare and good day when Ferrari announces a whole new car. Today we are treated to the 458 Italia, a new model mid-engine two-seater, which looks to replace the F430. Rather than the Ferrari California unveiled last year, which Ferrari had to defend as fitting into its GT tradition, the 458 Italia fits perfectly into the Ferrari stable, with front-end and cab elements that borrow from the Enzo and FXX. The car also shows a particular good-looking design from the front, with a uniqueness that hearkens to the Dino. Ferrari has had somewhat of a renaissance over the last decade, and the 458 Italia continues that trend.
Bringing in the modern tech, the headlight casings have stacked LEDs above a high-intensity projector. The 458 Italia uses technology Ferrari developed for its F1 racing efforts, a tradition with the company. Winglets around the grille are designed to deform as speed increases, covering portions of the grille to reduce drag. The car gets a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission, the F1 type Ferrari developed for racing and has been offering in the F430 and 612 Scaglietti. Other race technology appears in the form of the electronic rear differential, which gets integrated with Ferrari's traction control system, resulting in a claimed 32 percent better speed out of corners.
Ferrari says the 458 Italia uses "a new kind of steering wheel and dashboard that is the direct result of racing practice." Ferrari has incorporated a lot of controls on the steering wheel, along with the Manettino, the dial used to select driving style. As with previous Ferraris, the tachometer takes center stage on the instrument cluster, and a new color LCD on the left shows vehicle operating information.
The car's model designation, 458, indicates its engine, a 4.5-liter V-8. This is a new engine developed by Ferrari that uses direct injection, increasing power and fuel economy over the smaller 4.3-liter V-8 in the F430. The new engine puts out 570 horsepower and 398 pound-feet of torque, expected to drive the 458 Italia to 62 mph in less than 3.4 seconds. Ferraris have never been about fuel economy, but concern over climate change has Ferrari attempting to cut its carbon dioxide emissions, and the 458 Italia should get a little better than 17 mpg.
The best place to transfer
(Credit: Dr. Werner Hennies/FMG)When you fly to Europe from the West Coast, your choice of nonstop flights is rather limited. Outside of cities such as London, Paris, Amsterdam, or Frankfurt, you're usually forced to fly to a large hub airport and then change planes if you want to travel to another city. Such was the case when I flew to Barcelona for the recent GSMA World Congress. Since there are no nonstop flights to Barcelona from San Francisco, I had to fly to Munich first and then catch another flight from there. And all I can say is, I'm glad I did.
Munich's Franz Josef Strauss Airport is a prime example of how to run a busy hub. It's spacious and sparkling clean, the staff is polite, the buildings and facilities are new and high-tech, and (this being Germany) everything is prompt and efficient. The hofbrau restaurants and observation deck don't hurt, either. Both on my journey to Barcelona and my journey home, my flights were on time, and I had no problems navigating the relatively mammoth Lufthansa terminal. And even though I had only about an hour to spare each way, I still was able to pass through passport control and security and arrive at the gate before boarding started. This is exactly how an airport should be run, and when compared with the other European hub airports that I've used, Munich is my favorite.
You could eat off the floor
(Credit: Dr. Werner Hennies/FMG)Frankfurt would be a close second to Munich. It, too, is well-run, but its sprawling terminal seems to involve more walking. I've never changed planes at Amsterdam Schiphol, so I'm going to leave it out of this comparison, but Munich is far better then both London Heathrow and Paris Charles de Gaulle. You could fill a book with complaints that have been written about Heathrow, but as long as I'm not changing planes, I have to admit that I have a perverse attraction to the place. Maybe it's just that I have a thing for yellow signs, but Heathrow can be so chaotic that it's almost comical. The last time I passed through Heathrow on the way to Copenhagen, I marveled as a very un-British group struggled to stay in a massive queue. A very harried employee tried to keep everyone in line, but she was in over her head. Then in the security area, an employee turned on a very old ceiling fan positioned above the X-ray machine. When he did so, the cloud of dust that rained down on my bag was so thick that it looked like it was snowing. Add in the threadbare carpets, the soiled seating, the delays, the antiquated equipment, and the utterly appalling Terminal 3, and you have a real mess on your hands. But then again, you see the entire world at Heathrow, and with such a wide variety of airlines and aircraft, it warms an aviation buff's heart. But like I said, if I'm forced to be a transfer passenger at Heathrow, then the place is a zoo. Maybe things will get better with the new Terminal 5.
On the other hand, I have only disdain for Paris' airport. It's dirty, cramped, and horribly designed with much too few directional signs. What's more, the terminals collapse without warning, and and the food is terribly unrepresentative of the city it serves. But what really gets me about Charles de Gaulle (the airport, not the man) is the unbelievably rude employees who seem to be really angry at life. Yes, I know that the whole "the French are rude" thing is a stereotype, but in this case it's one stereotype that's deserved. And from what I've read from other travelers, I'm not the only one who thinks so. My point is this: if you're going to take a job in an airport that bills itself as a European hub for world travelers, don't give me attitude if I can't ask for directions to my gate in French. That's just wrong.
But these are just my experiences. If you feel differently, or even if you agree, I'd love to hear why.
The 2007 Frankfurt auto show officially opens to the public on Saturday, but we've been getting a preview of the automotive delights on display for the past couple of days. CNET Car Tech Senior Editor Wayne Cunningham has been busy scouring the show floor to bring you a whole slew of picture galleries. His roundup of the show's speed kings includes close-ups of the V-8 BMW M3, the Porsche 911 GT2, and the Mercedes C63.
Meanwhile, Frankfurt is showing off its fair share of concept cars, including the futuristic Nissan Mixim and the Porsche Cayenne hybrid. Among the new models on show, BMW's 1-Series sedan and updated 6-Series coupe have been real crowd-pleasers, as has the production version of Volkswagen's Tiguan crossover. As ever, you can check out all the coverage from the show on our new, dedicated Car Tech blog.
