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BMW M5 "Hans Nowack Edition"

Nowack Motors have released an upgrade package for the BMW M5 which was dubbed as the Hans Nowack Edition to honor the retirement of the M V10 engine. The cars upgrades are mainly in the engine compartment but this modified M5 also received a couple of styling changes such as two bespoke air collectors painted to match the exterior color.

Named the N635S 5.8 Hans Nowack Edition, the 5.0L V10 pushes out 718-hp over the factory 507-hp and revs up to 9000 rpm. This engine conversion is available for all the M5s and M6s sporting the 5.0L V10, and Nowack offers a 12 month warranty with no mileage constraint for those opting to have the work done. So while BMW is pushing ahead with their twin turbo setups and abandoning the joy of torque-heavy V10s, Nowack motors continues to embrace and give current owners a new option to compete with the new technology.

Since the HNE is just an engine makeover, all current M5s / M6s can be converted into a N635S 5.8 Hans Nowack Edition. Furthermore, since every engine is brand new after conversion, the company offers a 12 month warranty without a kilometer limitation.

Source: Nowack Motors




Press Release

A farewell celebration for the naturally aspirated V10 masterpieces of the BMW M GmbH: NOWACK MOTORS created a world unique state-of-the-art masterpiece to celebrate the end of the era of high revving naturally aspirated BMW M engines, the N635S 5.8 "Hans Nowack Edition", offering an unmatchable maximum power output of 718hp at 9.000rpm.

NOWACK MOTORS, the world's no. 1 specialist company for engineering and manufacturing unique high performance engines on basis of all BMW M engines (4-, 6-, 8- and 10-cylinder) unveils a world unique naturally aspirated masterpiece, the N635S 5.8 "Hans Nowack Edition".

The N635S 5.8 is a tribute from Oliver Nowack to his father Hans, creator of world famed race and road engines and one of the inventors of what is nowadays called ECU-Tuning. Hans Nowack was an overall technical genius who always had his own approach when engineering and building high performance engines, resulting in numerous glorious victories of his cars in international motorsports, like e.g. the victory of the European Touring Car championship with a BMW 635CSi with driver Helmut Kelleners. He never stopped to invent world-class high performance engines, and after his active career, he continued to be a mentor for his son Oliver, who followed him in his footsteps most successfully. Hans Nowack died in 2005, and Oliver created this engine to pay tribute to the lifework of his father.

It definitely is the pinnacle of all high performance engines ever built on basis of the M GmbH's 5.0ltrs. V10 offering a standard maximum power output of 507hp.

Classic mechanical tuning techniques, the usage of the latest, most advanced coating materials and techniques combined with a most sophisticated, individual remap of the ECU were always NOWACK MOTORS' no. 1 choice when increasing power and torque of naturally aspirated engines, further enhancing the thrill that only a naturally aspirated high performance engine provides. Forced induction, neither by supercharging nor turbo charging, never was an option to increase the performance of the 5.0ltrs. V10 engine as it does not suit the engine's overall technical layout and characteristics. Furthermore, a forced induction engine based on a NA engine never offers the refinement and reliability of a perfectly engineered and manufactured naturally aspirated high performance engine. Thus, it is the ultimate challenge for every high performance engine manufacturer.

Each NOWACK MOTORS N635S 5.8 ?Hans Nowack Edition" is equipped with two NOWACK MOTORS bespoke intake air collectors with a higher air volume in order to provide the engine with sufficient intake air quantity.

The colour of the paintwork for the air collectors is being determined by the exterior colour of the car.

Only this time, the name differs from all other NOWACK MOTORS creations. The name does not reveal the actual maximum power output of the engine, clearly separating this unique showcase of highly sophisticated manufacture of internal combustion engines from the N700 4.8 with 715hp, the latest high performance engine creation based on the new 4.4ltrs. BMW M Biturbo V8 engine of the new era being used in the X5M and X6M. As we all know, this engine will be used to propel the upcoming new M5 of the F10 series by next year.

All internal parts of the engine are being replaced by NOWACK MOTORS' high performance parts, thus every M5/M6 (also cars with a higher mileage), can be converted to a NOWACK MOTORS N635S 5.8 "Hans Nowack Edition".

As every engine is brand new after the conversion, NOWACK MOTORS provides an engine warranty of 12 months without kilometer limitation.

Please visit NOWACK MOTORS' website at: www.nowack-motors.com for further informations.

TxtStopper: Probably Illegal

I saw a press release about a device called the TxtStopper, which is a cell phone jammer you wire into your car's 12v power line to jam cell phones when your engine is running.  The idea is to keep your teenager from texting while driving.

This device is probably not legal in the U.S., since it interferes with legal and regulated cell phone signals.

Also, I don't see how they keep it just to your vehicle.  If it is so low powered that it doesn't extend much beyond about a 5 foot radius, it may not be powerful enough to reliably jam your phone.

Also, cell phones in vehicles have legitimate safety uses, such as 911. 

Bad idea.

Boycott BP?

Should you boycott BP?

Yes, maybe, no.

Yes because reduced wholesales of their products will hurt them in their pocket books and teach them a harsh lesson.

Maybe not, because chances are if you have a 401(k) or pension plan, you are infact a shareholder of BP, one of the largest (by capitalization) companies in the world.  You will help to damage your own retirement funds.

No, because you will hurt your local small-business owners who own BP stations, which are almost all franchises.  And BP is one of the largest employers in oil producing regions.  Many more people will lose jobs, than already are.

Myself, I am ambivalent.  I don't actively avoid BP stations these days, but I don't really seek them out either.  Besides, near me, Speedway and Valero brands are usually cheaper!

Want Less Oil Use? Raise Gas Taxes!

The laws of economics are nearly as immutable as the laws of physics.

If you want to reduce consumption of an item, increase its price, or reduce its supply (same effect, different mechanism).

David Frum points this out in a very lucid piece on CNN.com, here.

We want to get the country off oil? Tax it. (Politicians may not wish to say it, but their advisers can at least think it.) Then liberate people to find their own best alternative -- and incentivize industry to develop alternatives that make sense at the new higher price. And be prepared to argue candidly and straightforwardly in the marketplace of ideas why this new tax is right and justified.

If not, then kindly please spare us the grand speeches about how the status quo is the thing you will not accept. It is precisely the thing you are accepting.

However, as Frum correctly points out, a politician who raises gas taxes by $1+ per gallon will soon be an ex-politician.  That's because there is not really a strong consensus on reducing our use of fossil fuels in this country.  As I write here so often, people want cheap gas and high fuel efficiency, but they aren't willing to pay much for it.

One sensible solution to the sting of higher taxes is to do a "feebate" scheme, where the taxes which are collected are distributed back to the taxpayers as tax rebates.  This way, you would nudge the consumer to consume less fuel, but on average wouldn't hurt the economy much.  Congress can even play with the rebate rules, to penalize higher income consumers less than low income consumers, exclude business and agriculture uses, etc.

Instead, we have the perverse system of CAFE, which tells automakers what cars to build and in what mix they can sell them, but is largely invisible to the consumer except on the window stickers at the dealership.  

Well, CAFE isn't free either.  Getting to 36mpg is going to have some nasty side effects on the vehicles available on the marketplace, foremost of which is that cars are going to get more expensive.   So instead of slightly less expensive cars and pricier gas, we are going to have cheaper gas and more expensive cars.  You still pay in the end, though--efficiency costs money.  The advantage of the market approach is that the consumer has choice--if someone wants to drive a thirsty vehicle, and they can afford the gas tax,they can choose to pay.  With CAFE, the very choice of the thirsty vehicle may be taken away, depending on how the fleet average works out.

Smart fortwo ICE special edition revealed

The British division of smart has just announced the launch of a new special edition fortwo model that “sounds as good as it looks.” Dubbed smart fortwo ICE edition, The Smart ForTwo ICE comes with a deep black exterior paint finish and a black carbon fiber finish tridion safety cell.

The new Smart ForTwo ICE edition is the first UK created special model to be released this year. Only 200 units of the Smart ForTwo ICE are going into production so you’d best be quick if you fancy getting your hands on one.

The interior of the Smart ForTwo ICE features the latest Pioneer audio and navigation technology including the AVIC-F920BT Navgate package that has a two-way speaker system and an active subwoofer. The multimedia system of the Smart ForTwo ICE can playback sound from either iPod, iPhone or MP3 player. It's also equipped with a touch-screen display that lets you control the playback device.

Standard equipment includes 15-inch BRABUS Monoblock VII alloy wheels, panoramic roof, black leather heated seats, leather optic dashboard, 3-spoke leather steering wheel, air conditioning, electric windows, lockable glove compartment and dashboard mounted clock and rev counter. You also get an ECO Graph package to analyse your driving performance too.

Its Navgate system also offers information about traffic jams and accidents as well as highlighting more than six million points of interest in 44 countries. Customers can also get a new ECO Graph package to analyze their driving performance.

The Smart ForTwo ICE prices tarts at 10,495 BGP for the petrol version and only 140 units will be offered while the diesel models will go on sale starting at 11,245 GBP and in this case the manufacturer will offer only 60 exemplars.






Press release

The smart fortwo ICE edition is the height of automotive cool and is a car that genuinely sounds as good as it looks.

The stunning special edition model, available in striking deep black with black carbon fibre
finish tridion safety cell, takes in-car entertainment in the smart range to an even higher dimension by featuring the very latest Pioneer audio and navigation technology.

smart and Pioneer collaborated to ensure the state-of-the-art AVIC-F920BT Navgate package - incorporating a two-way speaker system and active subwoofer - could be seamlessly custom-fitted into the soundproofed spaces occupied by the factory-supplied audio equipment. And with its supremely rich sound reproduction, the result is music to the ears of would-be owners, who can listen to their favourite tunes via their iPod, iPhone or MP3 player.

A user-friendly touch-screen displays album artwork and enables customers to scroll through their music collection with ease.

Drivers can also select tracks according to their mood or journey via Pioneer’s innovative MusicSphere technology. Categorised by tempo, rhythm, vocal and pitch, it can create up to 40 different playlists from an iTunes library that can then be accessed using a dedicated interactive 3D sphere interface.

In addition to its hands-free Bluetooth capability, the ICE edition’s Navgate unit is streets ahead when it comes to navigation – issuing pre-warnings about traffic jams and accidents as well as highlighting more than six million points of interest in 44 countries, such as cash machines or petrol stations.

Owners can use the system’s ECO Graph package to analyse their driving performance too. It reveals how efficiently and economically they are driving by displaying the smart’s fuel usage as well as its CO2 emissions.

Big on technology, the smart fortwo ICE edition boasts a specification to match. Its striking black exterior is complemented by 15-inch BRABUS Monoblock VII alloy wheels and panoramic roof.

The smart’s interior is equally impressive, with black leather heated seats, leather optic upper dashboard and 3-spoke leather sports steering wheel with steering wheel gear shift amongst its luxury appointments. Its extensive specification also includes a lockable glove compartment, air conditioning, electric windows and dashboard-mounted clock and rev counter.

Only 200 smart fortwo ICE edition models will be available for purchase in the UK. There will be 140 micro hybrid drive petrol versions priced from £10,495 on-the-road as well as 60 diesels, which will cost £11,245.

2010 Seat Ibiza Good Stuff Special Edition

Seat has released a new special edition Ibiza in partnership with Shakira, the name of this special edition is given after Shakira’s forthcoming Good Stuff European tour.

The Ibiza GS features a Candy White or Speed Blue exterior, 16-inch ‘Sonda' alloy wheels, and tinted rear windows. Other goodies include TomTom satellite navigation, an 8GB iPod Nano, a Bluetooth hands-free phone system, automatic climate control, power windows and mirrors, and a six-speaker AM/FM/CD audio system.

The Seat Ibiza Good Stuff engines powered by 1.4-litre 16V petrol engine matched to a five-speed manual gearbox and returning 85PS at 5,000rpm. The sports coupe version is capable of 0-62mph in 11.8 seconds and a top speed of 110mph.
The five-door model takes 12.2 seconds to reach 62mph from standing and has a top speed of 109mph. Fuel consumption is recorded at 47.1mpg and CO2 emissions are as low as 142g/km in the five-door Ibiza.

The Seat Ibiza Good Stuff interior comes with cornering function, one touch electric windows, height and reach adjustable steering wheel, MP3 compatible AM/FM radio/CD player with combined USB and AUX in port, trip computer and speed sensitive electro mechanical power steering.

Prices start at £12,300 RRP (£12,710 RRP for the 5dr).




Press Release

SEAT'S LATEST SPECIAL EDITION HAS STAR QUALITY

SEAT is celebrating its partnership with Columbian pop sensation Shakira with the debut in UK showrooms of a special edition SEAT Ibiza that's packed with ‘good stuff'.

The new Ibiza Good Stuff is based on the popular Ibiza 1.4 SE, available in both practical 5dr and sporty SC bodystyles, and boasts a sparkling array of neat extras for its bargain £12,300 RRP (£12,710 RRP for the 5dr).

It has been named in recognition of SEAT's sponsorship of Shakira's forthcoming Good Stuff European tour and is available in a selection of smart paint shades including Candy White and Speed Blue.

As befits its moniker, the Ibiza Good Stuff adds a great selection of state-of-the-art extras including a TomTom satnav system and unique SEAT dashboard dock and cradle, black iPod Nano 8GB complete with etched SEAT logo and SEAT branded content, iPod cradle and charger, and Bluetooth hands-free phone system.

On top of this, Good Stuff buyers can look forward to keeping cool this summer thanks to the special edition's climate control system, and looking cool behind the wheel courtesy of the car's 16" ‘Sonda' alloys and dark tinted rear windows.

Of course there's much more to the car than this, as the extras add to the Ibiza's already generous SE spec which includes, as standard, the likes of electrically adjustable and heated door mirrors, front fog lights with cornering function, one-touch electric windows, height and reach adjustable steering wheel, six-speaker MP3 compatible AM/FM radio/CD player with combined USB and AUX-in port, trip computer and speed-sensitive electro-mechanical power steering.

Beneath the bonnet lies a newly EU V-compliant 1.4-litre 16V petrol engine driving the front wheels through a crisp five-speed manual gearbox. Offering 85 PS at 5,000 rpm, the engine carries the SEAT from rest to 62 mph in a sprightly 11.8 seconds (12.2 seconds 5dr) and offers a top speed, where legal, of 110 mph (109 mph 5dr). CO2 emissions stand at 142 g/km and, on the combined cycle, the Ibiza Good Stuff's official consumption is put at a frugal 47.1 mpg.

The car's name is taken from one of the tracks on Shakira's latest album, She Wolf, and reflects SEAT's ongoing association with the singer from northern Columbian city of Barranquilla.

Aside from the tour sponsorship and multimedia advertising campaign around the Good Stuff model, SEAT is also actively supporting Shakira's work with the Barefoot Foundation - the charity the singer set up when she was just 18 with the aim of making education for children universally available.

Welcoming the showroom debut of the new car, SEAT UK Ibiza Product Manager Andy McGregor said: ‘Adding these great features to the already generously-specified Ibiza creates a smart, sporty and brilliantly well-equipped supermini.

‘Our dealers nationwide are already seeing a massive interest in the new model as TV, press and internet advertising campaigns highlight its availability here.'