We can think of few better ways to spend our evenings than bending, welding and beating metal into submission to produce our own car and it seems that we are not alone. MAKE reader, Utah resident and Flickr user proximacentuari took the design of the Ariel Atom — currently one of the most desirable track cars in existence — and replicated it in his home garage. What’s more, he documented the entire process with pictures and uploaded the whole thing to the internet. This is the coolest show-and-tell ever.

Powering the beast, known by its builder as z59, is a Honda K-Series four-cylinder engine from a wrecked Acura RSX. It’s an impressive build, taking “15 months and at least 800 hours of work in the garage,” all done without any official Ariel schematics. “The frame is completely custom. I didn’t make a single measurement off the real car… what you see is a series of very educated guesses,” according to the builder. Much of the car is made from scrap parts, including the bodywork from a number of old appliances, a kayak and a doghouse. Check out a few pics in our gallery and click here to see the entire photostream on Flickr. Thanks for the tip, Pedro!

[Source:Autoblog]

Audi’s stoplight detection system, called Travolution, has been given the go-ahead for expansion in the company’s hometown of Ingostadt, Germany. Travolution establishes a connection between a red light and a vehicle, so that as a specially equipped car moves toward a red light at an intersection, stop light gantries fitted with communications modules can let the car know when the light will turn green. The car then lets the driver know what speed he should maintain in order to pass through the intersection without having to brake for the light and then accelerate again.

The system’s promise is in streamlining traffic flow, increasing gas mileage, and reducing emissions. An additional twenty A5 and A6 Avant models are being added to the fleet of cars with the technology, and fifty more stop lights will be fitted with modules. If you’re in Inglostadt and you want to save time and money on your commute, follow the Audis.

[Source:Autoblog]

BMW Assist — essentially the Bavarian’s version of GM’s OnStar — has made BMW Search using Google Maps available on the 1 and 3 Series. Previously, it was only available on BMW models from the 5 series up. If you subscribe to the BMW Assist Convenience Plan, you can use BMW Search to find businesses, then input the information directly into the navigation system, or call with your Bluetooth phone over the service’s AT&T Mobility Network (you don’t need to have AT&T, though).

BMW Search joins BMW’s MyInfo service, which allowed customers and businesses to send listings and street addresses directly to the car. BMW Assist is standard on 5, 6, and 7 Series, and included in the Premium Package or as a stand-alone option on all other models.

PRESS RELEASE

BMW ADDS NEW “BMW SEARCH” SERVICE TO BMW ASSIST(TM) POWERED BY GOOGLE MAPS(TM)

Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey – September 15, 2008… BMW introduces access to Google Maps (http://maps.google.com) search capability within the vehicle on 2009 BMW Assist and Navigation system – equipped 1 and 3 Series. For the first time, subscribers to the optional BMW Assist Convenience Plan can access “BMW Search” to quickly find a desired business with just a key word, benefiting from the world’s most famous online search engine. After finding what you want, you can immediately start route guidance or a hands-free call with your Bluetooth® – linked phone at just a simple push of a button.

Utilizing newly introduced hardware operating on the AT&T Mobility GSM network, this unique service identifies the current location and destination of the vehicle automatically and then displays the local results with details of address, phone number and distance. For example, you can look up business information like the names of restaurants, hotels, service stations, banks, supermarkets, cinemas and public facilities such as schools or city halls, all by the simple use of a key word. You can also easily ask for a search at another location.

In a nutshell, “BMW Search” using Google search technology and intelligence saves time and reduces frustration with destination entry on today’s navigation systems. The information you look up is continuously updated by Google. “BMW Search” is the next logical and consequential development of the link between the automobile and the Internet.

To allow customers to send business listings and street addresses with associated phone numbers from the internet directly to their BMW, Google and BMW began offering “MyInfo” with the introduction of the X6 back in April, now extended to all other 2009 BMWs except for X3. “BMW Search” now opens up access to the Internet directly from the vehicle, representing another building block in the BMW Assist services portfolio.

About BMW Assist:
BMW Assist provides the driver with services that enhance on-the-road security and convenience, for added peace of mind. The BMW Assist and Bluetooth® System is standard on all 5, 6 and 7 Series models, including the M5 and M6, and is included in the Premium Package or available as a stand-alone option on all other models. BMW includes the Safety Plan for 4 years at no additional cost. BMW is the only manufacturer that offers this duration of service as other manufacturers only include the first year of service. The BMW Assist Safety Plan is a subscription based service that is subject to certain limitations.

The in-vehicle equipment integrates GPS technology and hands-free wireless communication functions to deliver emergency and other services, accessed via buttons in the overhead or center console. The BMW Assist system transmits the location and vehicle information to the BMW Assist Response Center. A response specialist speaks with the vehicle occupants to coordinate dispatch, notify emergency contacts on file, and link BMW Roadside Assistance or emergency services as needed and/or requested. A severe accident automatically activates the Automatic Collision Notification function.

The BMW Assist Safety Plan also includes Door Unlock and Stolen Vehicle Recovery services, which can save the driver time and money. New to BMW Assist is MyInfo, which allows users to send business listings and street addresses with associated phone numbers from the internet, directly to their BMW. TeleService automatically notifies the BMW center when the vehicle will need service. A service advisor then proactively calls the customer to set up a convenient appointment and have the needed parts ready.

BMW Assist subscribers can also enroll in the BMW Assist Convenience Plan (available at an additional cost of $199 per year) to avail themselves of BMW Assist concierge services; from finding the lowest fuel price or the best French restaurant in the area to information on flight arrival gates or times, as well as receiving directions, traffic and weather information. On most models produced September 2006 and later, a selected destination and its phone number can be sent directly to the BMW Navigation system and the subscriber’s Bluetooth – linked mobile phone, after a push of the Concierge menu option. New for 2009 is BMW Search, which allows online access to the Google Maps database inside the vehicle to quickly find a desired business with just a key word. The Convenience Plan also includes Critical Calling, a service that can connect the driver to a requested party via a response specialist in case their mobile phone is not in the vehicle or its battery is discharged.

Lastly, the BMW Assist system includes Bluetooth hands-free calling and phone connectivity with phonebook access and speech recognition for dialing by name or number via steering wheel controls. Use of this feature requires a customer-provided compatible Bluetooth mobile phone. To learn more about BMW Assist, please visit www.bmwassist.com.

[Source:Autoblog]

This is the kind of computerized world we can get behind — not the kind that drives for you whether you like it or not, but the one that allows you to do your human thing even better. Futuremark has created a concept instrument and dash cluster for Audi that is rendered entirely in 3D graphics. In the Nissan GT-R, you can change the center console screen to show or highlight the gauges you want. With Futuremark’s dashboard, you can create any kind of dashboard layout, color scheme, gauge look… you name it… that you want.

Using its Open GL ES engine (that’s Open Graphics Library for Embedded Systems) for the API (that’s Application Program Interface), Futuremark wants to show what’s coming — or at least, what’s possible — for in-car information and entertainment systems. We’re not really worried about the acronyms; as far as we’re concerned, we’re talking about the tweakability of video games brought to life in hot cars. Amen to that. The system will be on display at the NVISION in San Jose. Follow the jump for the full press release, and a word for Audi: yes.

PRESS RELEASE

San Jose, California – Aug. 25th, 2008 – Futuremark, creators of the industry standard benchmarking software for graphics performance for OpenGL ES and DirectX APIs, has created a demonstration for Audi’s In-Car Graphics System future concept to be shown for the first time at NVISION in San Jose. It delivers a fully rendered car dashboard and all instruments shown in a 3D view, including 3D navigation using stunning and realistic effects and viewsas well as a 3D car infotainment system with vehicle info and cool 3D environmental controls rendered in real-time for on-road Automotive usage.

“We are delighted to work with Audi due to their professional expertise in the car industry,” said Petri Talala, Vice President and General Manager of the Handheld and Embedded Group at Futuremark Oy., “Audi is a leader in this field with sophisticated, real-time rendered and high quality content available for future infotainment systems, and being able to have our graphics engine experts and artists contribute to this effort is very special for Futuremark.”

In-Car graphics systems are evolving rapidly with an increasing amount of digital instrumentation used inside of automotive designs. Khronos APIs such as OpenGL and OpenGL ES will be widely adopted for rendering backend of digital instrumentation. With this new automotive demo, Futuremark is showing the flexibility of both its OpenGL ES engines and its art pipelines that were used to deliver this project on an entirely new platform to Audi’s delight. The Engines and Pipeline Tools used to create the demo are all available for licensing directly from Futuremark. Also offered are custom demo services for Automotive companies who want to show off tomorrows User Interface and Digital 3D designs for Automobiles today. Futuremark’s has an upcoming automotive benchmark that is in development which will utilize real-world use cases such as car dashboard, info-system, and navigation workloads based on OpenGL ES 1.x and ES 2.0.

For more information on having Futuremark create your Automotive vision or for more information concerning Futuremark’s Mobile and Embedded products, in Europe and Asia, contact Petri Talala. In North America contact Oliver Baltuch at the contact information below.

About Futuremark Corporation Futuremark Corporation serves the mobile industry with professional application performance analysis tools and workloads. Our world renowned product portfolio includes 3DMark®Mobile for OpenGL ES 1.x and OpenGL ES 2.0, VGMark™ for OpenVG 1.x, and SPMark™ for Symbian, Windows Mobile, Linux and mobile Java. In addition, we license digital content creation tool chain middleware to 3D application developers, chip vendors and handset manufacturers. For more information, please visit www.futuremark.com

© 2008 Futuremark® Corporation. 3DMark®, PCMark®, SPMark™, VGMark™ and YouGamers™ trademarks and logos, Futuremark® character names and distinctive likenesses, are the exclusive property of Futuremark Corporation.

[Source:Autoblog]

We truly do appreciate the custom-car scene, in all of its various guises. There is, however, a problem with the custom Prius you see above . Generally speaking, the goal of modifying a car is to either A) make it go faster or B) make it look better.

When Classe Gustafson, Elvis Häggbom and Kenny Kyrk from Sweden had finished spending $184,000 customizing a Toyota Prius, they had accomplished neither. This Prius-trocity, which was modified for a television show, is anything but subtle. It lost two doors during its transformation from mild-mannered hybrid eco-mobile to whacked out sport compact that just happens to get good fuel economy, though it did get scissor-style portals that are nearly impossible to open in the process. And it also gained a huge honkin’ stereo and the body-kit from a Volvo SUV. The over-the-top paint-job is the final touch. The Hybrid Synergy Drive powertrain, however, went untouched save for the obligatory fart-can exhaust. Nice.

[Source:Autoblog]

BorgWarner’s dual-clutch DSG (direct-shift gearbox) transmission systems have been showing up in Volkswagen and Audi vehicles since 2003. The system utilizes two clutches to select gears, allowing for smooth, uninterrupted power delivery. The clutches are electro-hydraulically actuated, allowing for virtually instant gear changes and control logic that pre-selects the next required gear. While BorgWarner’s original DSG design has allowed for greater fuel-efficiency over traditional automatic transmissions, it has had room for improvement. The original design is a wet-clutch system, meaning the clutches operate in a bath of oil to keep temperatures down and eliminate wear. The oiling system requires large pumps to keep up the constant flow through the system and it also creates hydraulic drag that affects efficiency.

However, with recent announcements coming out of the BorgWarner camp, it is apparent they are still on the leading edge of dual-clutch transmission development. The company is slated to provide systems for the upcoming Nissan GT-R and BMW M3. These are high power output applications that would be hindered by BorgWarner’s original DSG design without improvements. For these next generation systems the wet-clutch system has been changed to a moist-clutch system requiring less lubrication and therefore a smaller oil pump. This also reduces hydraulic drag on the system, thus reducing drivetrain losses. The clutch materials have also been improved for heat transfer and wear properties. The use of materials that do not degrade with friction or waste mechanical energy through heat generation allow the clutch design to live in these more stressful environments and to do so more efficiently.

[Source: BorgWarner via CNNMoney.com]