Question: are you one of those people who gets carsick when you’re not driving? Carve a corner, pull over and hurl? This basically happens because your inner ear sends a different signal to your brain from what your eyes see. Like your highschool crush, these confusing mixed messages can really make you sick to the stomach. Sitting in the passenger's side, in your driverless ride, trying to hurler at me... Let's face it. We’re soon going to live in an age where we never get behind the wheel. And that means, we’re resigned to throwing up err’time all the time whensoever we need to get into town. If Elon Musk’s prediction of a driverless future is on the horizon, then get your motion sickness tablets ready, because it’s gonna be a bumpy ride. Or not, if Jaguar Land Rover has a say in it. While Musk and Musketeers are pushing through the five levels of cartonomy, JLR has been working on a software, which will be able to determine the driving conditions that lead to motion sickness so that they can be reduced in self-driving cars. Oh yeah. The Wellness Score offers up a score from 0 to 100 per…
The year is 2025. There’s been a shift in the automotive world, with petrol-driven cars taking a bow and soundless EVs dominating the streets. Somewhere in a bustling metropolis, a crazed hermit decked out in a fireproof racing suit, peppered with all kinds of car badges, is stopping people left, right and centre, handing leaflets out. His message: “Save the manuals!” In and among this throng of passers by, Marty McFly and the Doc exchange looks of excitement. They’ll have to fire up the DeLorean, send 1.21 gigawatts of electricity through the flux capacitor, floor it to 88 miles an hour, and go back a few years to 2021, when the last of the six-speed manuals left the production line. What's the fuss about manual transmission? There’s something truly enlightening about shifting gears at the precise moment. It’s almost like this moment right here: Zing! Just ask Gordon Murray. He’s one of those guys that gets a kick out of feeling a gear change, and who can blame him? Instead of going hybrid or electric, Murray focused his attention on creating the best driver's car in the T.50. And an Xtrac 6-speed manual gearbox was the key player in his…
Okay, first things first, check this out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b0AGiq9j_Ak That’s His Airness Michael “Money” Jordan, dunking his way to becoming the basketball GOAT, and rightfully taking his place in the highest echelons of sporting brilliance. And, basketball or not, we all want to be like Mike. Well, as it turns out, you can actually be like Mike, albeit in a way that doesn’t require you to reach the pinnacle of NBA action. All you need to do is have some cash in hand, pop over to eBay and place your bid on this MJ sidepiece. All about the rides Okay, who didn't binge on Netflix’s ten-part epic docuseries centred on Michael Jordan and the mighty 90s Chicago Bulls? One thing you’ll notice off the bat from The Last Dance is Michael's impressive lineup of fun cars. From the Porsche 911 Cabriolet Slant Nose he drives away in after winning a third championship with the Bulls to signing a young fan’s baseball from behind the wheel of a Chevy Corvette ZR-1, MJ loved his cars, and we loved MJ. A piece of the GOAT When I say fun, I mean fun. You'll notice MJ tearing away from the Paparazzi in a customised…
The COVID era has proven to be a make or break situation for the world. Some people have succumbed to the pressure of social distancing, while others have reinvented themselves. Landlord Andrew Mear from Norwood Green, UK, falls in the latter category. Andrew was Mearly (#dadjoke) taking his pet pooch out for a stroll, when he ended up some 20 miles north of his home in remote Skipton. After a pint (or two), and a little restroom business, he figured he’d make the 20 miles back home and call it a day. A diamond in the ruff Now I see this playing out as a film, even though it’s probably jam packed with hyperbole. For the sake of this next bit, we’ll call the dog Rover. Andy and Rover embarked on the long trek back to Norwood Green, Halifax, oblivious to what treasures they may find on the trail. Suddenly, something catches Rover’s attention, and he bundles right off the track into the field. “Rove!” Andy calls, but to no avail. When something tickles a canine’s curiosity, there’s no reeling it in. Following Rover’s incessant barking, Andy stumbles upon an entanglement of twisted metal and moss. There’s no mistaking the…
Unpopular opinion: Joaquin Phoenix did a better Johnny Cash than Johnny Cash himself. But this isn’t about country music idols and their film portrayals. This is all about that 1970 Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow that once belonged to the man who fell into a ring of burning fire, and lived to tell the tale. Metaphorically speaking, of course. Ain't that a fine piece of eye candy... Well, my fellow Petroheads, it seems as though we’re resigned to a future of Electric Vehicles. And while most of us are lamenting the end of the manual gear box, companies like Shift EV are absolutely milking it. That’s right, Johnny Cash’s beloved Rolls has returned to road action, with a zero-emission twist. A wonderful gift Johnny Cash, aka The Man in Black, was riding high towards the end of the 60s. Coming off the back of hit singles like “Walk the Line”, it was only natural for the hunky Country star to make the leap into television. Gotta love a man and his guitar ABC snapped the hall of famer up, and handed him his own show. The Johnny Cash Show (sigh). Fifty-eight episodes aired between 1959 and 1961, with a slew of superstars…
Pop Quiz: what do you call the employees of Elon Musk? The Musketeers. Musk me? Musk you! Elon Musk and his Musketeers have gained quite a reputation for themselves. They’re not afraid to dream big, and they back their words up with results. They set impossible deadlines and crush them. They've got their head in the clouds, but their feet are planted firmly on the ground. In hindsight, companies like GM should’ve raised the alarm bell long ago. But they haven’t. They dismissed the electric revolution as improbable. As it turned out, the black swan effect kicked them in the teeth. And boy, did it hit hard. (Note: black swan effect refers to improbable events with potentially disastrous consequences, like an earthquake, volcano eruption, and asteroid crashing into Earth.) Among established brands playing catch-up with Tesla, GM arguably leads the pack. Their Ultium batteries are on par with Tesla's lithium pack, just as an indication. Moreover, GM’s upcoming Hummer EV poses a serious threat to Tesla’s Cybertruck as the battle for new EV niche begins. I mean...it's a Hummer... Yet, GM picked a fight with the odds stacked against it. And not just because of Elon’s outrageous Tweets (our favourite…
In the ancient times, three brave brothers discovered the path to immortality. They hid away in a mystical Himalayan cave, vowing to return in the age of mechanical progress. Driven towards a common goal of serving families in the tiny blue dot, Kodiaq the iconic, Karoq the mid-weight and Kamiq the compact, have returned once again at the hands of the master welders at Skoda. Three SUV brothers for every family. Admit it, it’s an epic tale. And none too shabby for a Skoda SUV. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KiPYfPURKE8 One for every family Satisfyingly understated Forty seconds dishing out pure 60s vibes with Wanda Jackson’s Whirlpool setting the tone for this fun and funky bit of advertising is literally all the feels. The ad is pretty understated, yet packed with engaging energy. It's a brilliant follow-up to Skoda’s earlier campaign, which featured Paloma Faith and her delicious track, I Gotta Be Me. The Kamiq SE L was the star of I gotta be me featuring Paloma Faith The new Each as Splendid as the next ad aired yesterday, Saturday 8th August during The Voice Kids. Directors Graham Lakeland, Hayley Power and Steve Robertson have executed this brilliantly, bringing Skoda's entire SUV range together…
If you’re a petrol head and are visiting the UK between September 18th and 20th, you definitely don’t want to miss out on this. Get your filthy fender over to the picturesque Bicester Heritage, in Oxfordshire, and bring your best pair of ride-spotting eyes. Because 500 fabulous classic cars brought to life on the cinematic big screen, will feature in a COVID-compliant drive in experience of a lifetime. It's like seeing Margot Robbie in a two-piece...#eyecandy When I find myself in times of trouble, Brand Events will come to me... 2020 has been pretty harsh on everyone, not in the least petrol heads. We've had to ride the lockdown, making do with simulators and the like to get our driving fix. Which is why the Classic Car Drive In Weekend is an occasion to celebrate, as Petrol Heads crawl out of their homes to marvel at 500 fan favourites. Glory to the engine! With challenging times, comes great innovation. No pandemic can stand in the way of great ideas. And we’re so pleased that the award-winning team at Brand Events got their creative juices flowing to bring us this ground-breaking first-of-its-kind drive in dedicated to cars. If you’ve never heard…
In case you’re wondering, no. Miss Sofie is not a person. Not in this case anyway. Although, by the end of the piece, you might feel otherwise. Exactly 70 years ago, a gorgeous dove blue panel van, chassis number 20-1880 rolled out of Wolfsburg’s production line and into our lives. I’m of course talking about the first generation VW Transporter who, for the best part of two decades, served as a commercial trading vehicle as an alternative to the Type 1 VW Beetle. Time to werk! You see, the Beetle was cute and all. But like a Beverly Hills housewife, she wasn’t equipped for the working life. That’s where Sofie came in, dashing around Hildesheim’s narrow lanes before going into early retirement when she was sold to a collector. A star is born While visiting VW’s factory, Dutch businessman Ben Pon took a keen interest in a parts-mover. He had a ‘Eureka!’ moment: what if the Type 1 Beetle could be turned into a commercial vehicle? As with any good businessman, Ben got his notebook out and sketched his idea on the spot. Does this give you chills? At this point, VW were pretty much preoccupied with pushing out its trademark…
Twenty one years in Formula One. Thirty years as a car designer. Fifty years of excellence. That’s Gordon Murray in a nutshell. But what makes him so special and why is he revered in the automotive world? For fifty years, Gordon Murray’s consistently pushed out remarkable car designs. From his first ever T.1 racing car right up to the T.50, his creations pivot on three main tenets: light weight, agile and fun to drive. And for the last 50 years, he’s relentlessly pursued one overarching mission: to build the best driver’s car ever. Gordon Murray and Niki Lauda: two absolute legends Pure, simple geometry, no interference with the driving experience, and, very importantly, light, light weight. He doesn’t give a toss about performance. Doesn’t care about the top speed. You won’t find any of these stats recorded anywhere for the T.50. He acknowledges there are other supercars out there that can better his creations in those fields. One area where Murray's hands down the King, is in sheer driveability. Gordon Murray builds cars for the driver, and that’s what makes them so, so special. No imitators The first question that comes to mind is: why hasn’t anybody copied the McLaren…