Automotive Academy

There is a new champion is the world of mega-horsepower saloons, and it comes in the shape of a 750BHP BMW M5. The BMW was recently timed recently at 367.4km/h 228.3mph, the G-Power Hurricane RS has stolen the record from established speed junky and former record holder Brabus. The Merc tuner has a long history of building silly horsepower record breakers, its 227.2mph CLS-based being most recent in a line of super quick Mercede’s.  

After months of speculation GM has pulled the plug on Saab, which has left the loss-making Swedish car company no option but to file for ‘Chapter 11’-style bankruptcy. The move means a Swedish court-appointed administrator will oversee efforts by Saab to reorganise itself once more into a fully independent entity, while offering short-term legal protection from its creditors, which will give the car firm the opportunity to try and get itself back on its feet and get protected against bankruptcy. 

However the company has reiterated it can only survive as in independent in the future with significant external funding, it has been reported that last year the company lost nearly £250 million.

‘We explored and will continue to explore all available options for funding and/or selling Saab and it was determined a formal reorganisation would be the best way to create a truly independent entity that is ready for investment,’ said Jan Ake Jonsson, Managing Director for Saab Automobile.

‘With an all new 9-5, 9-3X and 9-4X all ready for launch over the next year and a half, Saab has an excellent foundation for strong growth, assuming we can get the funding to complete engineering, tooling and manage launch costs. Reorganisation will give us the time and means that help get these products to market while minimising the liquidity impact of Saab on GM.’

The company produced a press release today putting on a brave face in regards to the situation, stating Saab’s intention to re-concentrate the marque’s design, engineering and manufacturing operations in Sweden over a three month period, assuming the administrator agrees to the plans. But in the meanwhile the GM decision which was made to cut Saab loose has put the Swedish government under increasing pressure to stump up a taxpayer bailout.

When you first purchase a car you are eventually going to want to sell it on at some point, so it is important that from day one of the purchase you start to maintain it so when you come to sell the car on, or complete a part-ex deal, you can get the highest resale value in the future.

While your engine is new and still shiny and beautiful, you should have it sealed to keep it that way. An engine sealer can help to keep under the bonnet looking clean and shiny and this should not cost very much but it looks incredible! And the effects of it lasts. 

The manufacturer of your vehicle probably recommends you to change the oil in your car every 6,000 miles, but to be on the safe side, I recommend every 3,000 miles. Also, keep the records using an envelope and put it in your glove box for all of your oil change receipts. On the outside of the envelope list the date of each oil change, records of any manual work on the vehicle will always be an attractive feature to possible buyers. 

Regular ‘tune ups’ and maintenance at the dealership always reflects well when you show a possible buyer the history of your vehicle, go at the recommended increments and always replace tires and repair breaks regularly. Once again, get a separate envelope for tune ups and maintenance and keep your receipts in 

Keep the inside and outside of your car clean, cleanliness is far easier to maintain than it is to clean something that has years of build up. Use the appropriate leather, vinyl and wheel cleaners for best results.

And always ensure you repair any damage promptly and correctly straight away, as if left they will just get worse and become harder and more expensive to fix. Keep your receipts for your repairs at home with your insurance paperwork.

One of the most annoying things about owning a car is coming out of the shops to your parked car, to find it has a scratch… small but noticeable, on the vehicle side panel. It wasn’t there yesterday or a week ago, but today it is prominent. How frustrating! If this is a small scratch, it is simple to fix and here’s how!

First you need to look closely at the scratch. If it is minor and only scratches the paint surface of the car, but not destroyed the paint or gone further than the top coating, it can be fixed it. You will need a thin lined sharpie marker that is the same color as your car. Black marker for a black car, blue marker for a blue car etc.

Wash the panel the scratch is on to make sure it is completely rid of any dirt or grim. Wipe it dry with a paper towel. Make sure there is no dirt on the area around the scratch or in the scratch itself or this process won’t work. Take the sharpie marker and fill in the scratch very carefully. This needs to be an exact line, spread evenly where the paint is lacking. 

You then need to carefully apply wax the area of the scratch, place the wax on the surface, but before moving or polishing, allow the wax to set for 15 minutes. After the time allotted is finished, polish the panel as directed on the package directions.

Once you are done polishing, you will notice the scratch has disappeared or considerably lightened. The wax builds up in the scratch and allows the surface to smooth out. This is can be repeated if necessary and will last for up to a year before fading.

Once you have finished washing your car the next step is to complete a wax. And even if the vehicle has been corrected with a swirl remover it is still recommended to apply a pre wax as part of the entire system.

Pre-wax is just as the name implies, to get the surface ready for wax to be applied. Tar spots, some tree saps and various other surface contaminates are usually not taken off by a product that is termed wax only.

The wax/cleaners with high solvent content in them need to be avoided, as they will eventually deteriorate the surface to which they are applied. Pre Wax Cleanser is especially formulated to be used prior to applying Car Wax. If you’re trying to get a really incredible deep, vibrant shine from your wax, you need to use a pre wax cleanser to properly prepare the surface prior to use Car Wax.

The benefit of Pre Wax Cleanser is that is prepares the surface after you wash it, so that the paint surface doesn’t get contaminated by dirt or anything else that may keep you from getting the ultimate protection.

The application of the car wax is the final stage, again we like to apply the wax by hand and remove by hand using a super flush Micro fiber towel. With a good car wax you don’t need multiple products to accomplish astonishing results, it doesn’t get any easier.

Tire Dressing is best to be applied as a tire gel using an applicator with a very thin layer of tire gel to the tire sidewall if more shine is desired a second coat can be applied, most of the time one coat is enough, it’s a nice finishing touch after all your hard work!

We are often facing the question of what is the best way to achieve maximum results to detail a car. To start your detail job, you want to make sure your car is not in direct sunlight and that the surfaces on the outside aren’t hot, de-tailing a car in hot weather will just create bad results.

Vehicle surface evaluation is one of the most important aspects of a successful detail job. This evaluation will allow us to prepare ourselves with the correct products and steps, things like light scratches, swirl marks and other paint imperfections can be evaluated at this time, from here we will have a plan of what products are needed and in what order.

Begin with a pre-wash by rinsing all the loose debris from the top of the car working downwards. You want to make sure to get all of the loose grime off of the surface so you don’t have to use your wash mitt. Using this process we can avoid causing swirl marks, at least to a certain point.

Do not use the same wash water or tools on the paint as you did your wheels. Prepare your wash materials and get started doing the wheels, tires and wheel wells one by one. Don’t do all of them at once, you don’t want any of these cleaners to dry. Use the detail brush first to get to the backside of my wheels and get all that brake dust out of there. When you are done with each wheel, rinse the wheel and make sure the entire cleaner is off the wheel.

After the tires and wheels have been done and before wetting the paint, you will want to prepare your wash bucket and tools for the paint in this step you will use a Car Shampoo that is highly lubricated formula with unique foaming quality and quick rinse characteristics.

The use of the wrong shampoo that doesn’t remove the grime and dirt combine with a low quality sponge/applicator will eventually leave swirl marks in your paint surface something that all of us try to avoid.

When you are done rinsing the car of all the soap, you need to dry your car. Make sure if you see a spot of dirt you missed, or loose debris on the car, don’t touch it with your drying towel, re-wash the area and then dry. A great tool is the chamois and we can go as far as using leaf blowers to completely remove all the water from all the tight spaces and trim.

The next step will be a tutorial guiding you how to complete your de-tailing process by waxing your car, come back tomorrow for the next tutorial! 

Do not impair the quality of your driving with dirty windows. Here are a few tips on how to clean those car windows.

Always choose a cleaner that does not contain ammonia, most ammonia based products, like household cleaners are not safe for any type of tinted glass, are not healthy to breathe in and some can leave streaks on your windows. The best cloth to use is a microfiber cloth or towel. Clean windows after doing the rest of your car so you don’t mess it up again while working on other areas.

Wipe up and down and side to side with long strokes giving special attention to the windshield since that is the glass you will be using the most.

Roll down windows to get at the top edges of the glass – if you leave dirt in these areas when you put your windows down it will just smear over your clean windows.  

Clean the mirrors and headlights too whilst you are doing this.

Maintain clean windows by keeping your windscreen wipers clean and in good condition. You might also want to use a windshield washing additive to the wiper fluid to help clear any dirt from the windows. 

Oil and grease stains are unfortunately a common problem for car interiors, due to oil being leaked onto driveways, parking spaces etc and then being stood in and wiped onto the carpet of the car. I was recently asked the best way to remove oil stains from carpets without making it worse, so here is a tutorial to get rid of any nasty stains! 

1.) Remove excess oil or grease by blotting or scraping, using a blunt knife, this will make it easier to get the stain out as the move you remove beforehand the better the result. 

2.) Place a sheet of butcher paper or a portion of a brown paper bag on the stain, glossy side up and then gently press the tip of a warm iron over the affected area whilst holding the paper flat.

3.) Lift the paper from the carpet after the paper has absorbed the grease.

4.) Apply carpet shampoo with a moist sponge if any residual stains remain and then wipe away the carpet shampoo foam with a clean, dry towel.

5.) Finish by hovering the area, if a stain still remains repeat the process again until clean. 

Other products which i have heard apparently work well - but i have not tried - are Head and Shoulders Shampoo and men’s shaving cream straight from the can.

1.) Clean your rims before you wash the rest of the car. At first, do one rim at a time. After some practice, you will learn how long each step takes and can work on multiple wheels at once.

2.) Spray the dry rim with wheel cleaner, which will get rid of any brake dust etc. Let the chemical sit on the wheel for a while. This chemical will eat through the brake dust that has built up on the wheels and make the hand-cleaning easier.

3.) Rinse off the wheel cleaner and as you rinse, direct the spray toward the ground to keep the potentially abrasive wheel grime from splattering on to the rest of your car. High-pressure is not recommended due to splattering. 

4.) Mix a soap-and-water solution in the bucket, then soak the sponge and use it to clean away any remaining visible grime. When it’s time to re-wet the sponge, first rinse it with the hose outside the bucket. This will cut down on the grime that gets into your water/soap solution.

5.) Rinse the soap off the wheel use the soft-bristle toothbrush and soap and water solution to clean any areas you weren’t able to reach with the sponge. 

6.) Rinse the soap off the wheel and when you wash the rest of the car and it’s time to dry the rims, use an old cotton towel to dry the rims. The towel will pick up any remaining bits of grime and help you avoid water spots.

Do you usually clean your cars tyres by giving them a quick wipe round with a dirty soapy sponge and then quickly hose the soap off? You might want to consider a more thorough cleaning that is highly beneficial for you and your tires. Not only does it make the tires look nice, a good wash job allows you to keep regular watch on wear-and-tear. This helps prevent unexpected blow-outs from worn or damaged tires.

Here is a quick tutorial on the best way to clean your cars tyres. 

1.) Wet the tires using a garden hose and water. If there is a lot of tar, road debris or film from brake fluid on them, you may wish to spray them with a pre-treatment product prior to beginning the washing step. 

2.) Use a soft brush and car soap to scrub the tires briskly, using a circular motion to loosen any dried-on dirt. A brush that is too firm could scratch the rims or hub caps on your car.

3.) Rinse with clean water. If the tires still look dirty, repeat the previous steps.

4.) Dry the tires with a soft towel.

5.) Spray on a tire dressing which is available in any hardware or discount store in an automotive section. This will act like a protectant much like wax does for the car body, helping to keep the tires in better shape.

The Porsche 959 is a sports car manufactured by Porsche from 1986 to 1989, first as a Group B rally car and later as a legal production car designed to produce a minimum number of 200 street legal units be built.

When the Porsche 959 was going through its production run, it was hailed as being the most technologically advanced road-going sports car ever built and a preview of future of sports cars: it was one of the first high-performance vehicles to use an all-wheel drive system and provided the basis for Porsche’s first all-wheel drive Carrera 4 model; and it convinced Porsche executives of the system’s viability so well that they chose to make all-wheel drive standard on all versions of the 911 Turbo starting with the 993 variant.

During its lifetime, the vehicle had only one other street legal peer with comparable performance, the Ferrari F40. The 959’s short production run and performance have kept values high. In 2004, Sports Car International named this car number one on the list of Top Sports Cars of the 1980s.

In its day, this was the most technologically advanced road-going sportscar ever built. But just 337 were made, each with a 2.8-litre turbocharged flat-six out back.

Honda’s attempt to right-size its development schedule and cope with the economic downturn apparently extends beyond the cancellation of the next NSX. Honda changing its plans for the next two years, and that includes rethinking the development of a range of rear-wheel-drive Acuras, a new V8 and the S2000’s successor.  

Acura seems to be carrying the weight of the bad news, with its RWD 7-series rival, originally due out in 2015, cancelled indefinitely, along with development of a V8 engine that would allow the brand to compete with the best and brightest from Germany. 

Unfortunately, the cancellation of development also extends to Honda’s smaller offerings, Honda planned to release a drop-top version of its CR-Z after the hybrid goes on sale next year, but that model has been axed too.

Even more disturbingly, 2009 will be the last year of production for the S2000, with no new model waiting in the wings. This will be very disappointing for Honda as these were exciting plans and it is very unfortunate that it is hitting them so hard.

The production of the SLR McLaren is due to end in May and Mercedes have come up with a spectacular farewell edition. The last SLR leaves the Woking production line this year, and work will then start on a strictly limited run of the SLR Stirling Moss.

Stripped of roof, windows and doors this is the most extreme SLR yet  and harks back to the 300SLR racing car in which Stirling Moss famously  won the Mille Miglia, Targa Florio and other sportscar races back in 1955.

The car will have 650BHP and a top speed of 217mph, just 75 will be  made and only what Mercedes describes as ‘the most loyal SLR  customers’ will be given the opportunity to buy one, at a cost of £600,000. A totally revised interior including a numbered plaque with an engraved signature by Moss himself underlines the car’s exclusivity, this special edition being Mercedes’ farewell to the SLR.

The Nissan GT-R has had such an impact over the last 12 months it would be impossible to ignore and the scale of Nissan’s achievement deserves to be recognised.

Even the most hardened roadtesters have struggled to get to grips with just how fast the GT-R actually is. Put simply the mighty Nissan offers 911 Turbo pace for M3 money and deploys an incredible array of technology in its single-minded pursuit of redefining what a modern performance car is all about. 

It’s one of the most talked about cars of recent times and it’s easy to see why there is such a fuss about Nissan’s new GT-R. It’s certainly one of the most dramatic looking cars of recent years. And while carrying various classic GT-R styling cues it’s resolutely futuristic, the origami-style creases and detail distinctively Japanese in flavour. The super aggressive styling certainly shouts loud about the car’s potential. 

At every step of its development the GT-R has been benchmarked against the 911 Turbo. But while the 911 is devoted to the past, the GT-R looks only to the future, ripping up the supercar rule book.

The Nissan has already lapped the Nurburgring in 7min 29sec, three seconds faster than the 911 GT2. And while the Porsche retails at £131,000 Nissan is asking just £55,900 for the GT-R.

Watch the video below of the GT-R reaching a top speed of 190 MPH

There is no doubt there has been some huge upheavals in the car industry over the last year of 2008. And there is also no doubt there is likely plenty more to come too, but for now we should put that aside and look at and celebrate some of the best cars of 2008.

Obvious highlights include a brave new start from Jaguar and Nissan’s GT-R - by any stretch one of the most exciting cars of recent years. It wasn’t all about fancy sports cars and supercars though, more everyday family hatches and superminis from the likes of Vauxhall and Ford have also shown that class isn’t confined to the upper names in the car market.

Ford Fiesta

As household budgets shrink this causes many drivers to reconsider their options, it’s nice to know the Fiesta - for many the benchmark of accessible, everyday transport - proves budget motoring needn’t feel cheap. Excitingly styled and brilliant to drive, the all-new Fiesta deserves every one of its glowing reviews. Ford are masters of building cheap to run, efficient, good-looking and fun to drive mass-market cars like the Fiesta. 

Audi Q5

It appears that Audi can do no wrong when it comes to designing cars. The firm continues to dominate the premium sector with hit after hit. And though both its key rivals have faltered in the mid-sized SUV field Audi has inevitablycome up trumps with the sleek Q5. The Q5 is a more sensible, usable size and its A4-derived running gear means it’s decent to drive too. 

BMW X6

The polar opposite of the discreetly luxurious Q5, the X6 takes in your face SUV style and ramps it up to a whole new level. The result is a segment-busting luxury four-seat ‘coupé’, with looks best described as unapologetic and running gear derived from the superb X5, suitably upgraded to suit the X6’s sporty aspirations. The X6 is available in both the hard-hitting 286 BHP Diesel and 408 BHP Turbocharged Petrol V8. 

Jaguar XF

2008 has been a tough year for Jaguar and, 2009 doesn’t look like it’s going to get any easier. The reinvention of the product range, symbolised by the XF could be a positive for the company in 2009 though. Jaguar desperately needed to get with the times and this sleek, sporty saloon commands the best of the firm’s traditional strengths with a new, forward-looking attitude. 

Volkswagen Scirocco

Some people have claimed the Scirocco, is just a Golf in fancy, far less useful clothes. The Scirocco has proved how performance and practicality don’t have to be mutually exclusive and debuting a discreetly sporty, aggressive new look carried over into the new Golf, also unveiled this year. The Scirocco is available in Turbocharged petrol and diesel and has smooth shifting gearboxes and adjustable damping systems.