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German Car Blog, Performance, Tuning, Motorsport, and Modification News
Published on 02-15-2011 05:56 AM
Mercedes put up this video showing their engineers parking a car using a cellphone sending commands through twitter. Pretty cool we suppose but it does not seem they have pinpoint precise control. Still, definitely cool, click read more to see the video. Oh, and while we are at it, feel free to follow BenzBoost: www.twitter.com/benzboost ...Published on 02-15-2011 05:35 AM
We wouldn't put too much stock into this as it just seems the pics are renderings. Regardless, the German tuner says it is offering these parts to make their "seven sins" version of the new A7. They lower it on KW coilovers along with 20 inch Moz wheels also adding a "stripe" across the bottom of the car. The stripe we do not think is going to be too popular of an option. They also squeeze another 45 horses out of the 3.0 TFSI motor. It's interesting, we guess. ...Published on 02-14-2011 10:11 PM
All this time we were under the impression the F10 M5 would be getting a DCT gearbox. BMW apparently tried to get the M DCT supplied by Getrag to work but stronger actuators were necessary which slowed down the response time. Motortrend is now stating the car will be auto only. Uh, BMW, this is an M car, not M SUV. We understand why the X5 M and X6 M have autos, but the M5? No manual option? What the hell is going on? ...Published on 02-14-2011 07:53 PM
Weistec has released updated information on their C63 AMG supercharger kit. At just 5 psi on 91 octane the car puts out 498 horsepower to the wheels. The price has been set at $14,999 for the Stage I and we wonder if they will be able to go beyond these numbers with the transmission limits in place. The supercharger is a 2.3 liter twin screw with a liquid to water intercooler. Custom dyno tuning is included obviously, we look forward to seeing how this develops. ...Published on 02-14-2011 07:30 AM
The new W204 C-class coupe will debut officially at the Geneva autoshow. It will also be in showrooms in the United States by September. The car will initially be available in two trim levels, the C350 with the a 302 horsepower naturally aspirated direct injected 3.5 liter V6 and the C250 which will now have a 1.8 liter direct injected turbo motor putting out 201 horsepower. The 4 cylinder motor (M271) should become an interesting tuning platform. ...Published on 02-14-2011 06:32 AM
Right now, the wait time for a new Audi is approximately 3 to 4 months due to record demand. Bloomberg reports that the A6 and A3 in particular are especially popular. All the major German manufacturers have reported record January sales. Sales chief Peter Schwarzenbauer states they may add shifts in the factories, "We’re working at full capacity at our plants and may add extra shifts on Saturdays.” ...Published on 02-14-2011 04:19 AM
Audi has divulged more information on the upcoming (limited) TT-RS. First of all, the car will be limited to 1000 units. Take note BMW, this is how you produce a limited edition model. Secondly, the car will supposedly have more aggressive ECU tuning. How much more aggressive? Around 360 hp or a boost of about 20 hp over the European edition. It will be possible to delete the rear spoiler and also a sport exhaust option will be available. How much and when? Expect pricing in the low $60k range and for the car to be available by late summer. Well done Audi! ...Published on 02-14-2011 01:13 AM
OE Tuning recently completed a custom dyno tune on a 2002 E46 330i. These gains are seen on 91 octane pump gas. In addition, the car is completely stock other than the tune. Torque gains are seen throughout the curve as well as considerable gains down low in the rev range. The car gains almost 20 pound-feet at the wheels at peak. Pricing information to be available shortly. ...Published on 02-12-2011 05:25 PM
A Russian leak of the Volkswagen group ETKA software has confirmed horsepower, dates, and cars for the new 4.0 turbo V8 motor. The A8 will get the motor by October in Europe with 420 horsepower. An Audi S8 with 518 horses is confirmed. The S7 and S6 are slated to arrive at the end of the year both with 408 horsepower. ...Published on 02-12-2011 04:22 PM
The German publication Auto Motor Und Sport is reporting that BMW is working on a van. This would likely compete with the Mercedes R-Class. Rumor is BMW intends to call it the "Advanced Family Sports Activity Tourer" which is BMW speak for van. The name boils down to AFAST for short, as in, a fast way way to alienate your dedicated fans. We don't know what to think, guess we will have to wait for the M version... just kidding, maybe. ...Published on 02-12-2011 03:16 PM
We have a video from Bahrain showing an X6 M with eisenmann race exhaust on MS109 vs. an N54 135i with an AR Design downpipe. The X6 M traps 1 mph higher and also gets a better ET. A bit of a surprising result considering the X6 M is not even running an aftermarket tune. ...Published on 02-12-2011 04:47 AM
AWE Tuning has released their new Gen 2 exhaust for B8 2.0t's. The exhaust is available in a variety of configurations: single outlet, dual outlet, and dual outlet with quad tips. A resonated downpipe is also available ($296). The rear section starts at $854 and goes to over $1300 depending on configuration. Gains are only about 9 horsepower at the crank and 7 crank torque. ...Published on 02-11-2011 03:53 AM
We just received these videos of an HPF turbo M3 which lost control at the Irwindale 1/8 mile strip and ended up going into the wall. The car looks like it is running bias-ply slicks with radial street tires up front. This may have contributed to the driver losing control as the general rule is not to mix due to instability up top. Additionally, once the car starts to sway it looks like the owner stays in it and then tried to brake too late which causes him to lose it. Hopefully we will have more details on the car and the setup soon. ...Published on 02-11-2011 03:41 AM
The Unimog produced by Mercedes is part of a range of medium to heavy duty trucks. They come equipped in a variety of different ways and are capable of towing your car to competing in the Dakar rally. Brabus has modified what they are calling a "Black Edition" Unimog sure to to help you ford a river or run over your average SUV. ...Published on 02-11-2011 01:21 AM
Piecha Design has released their tuning program for the Mercedes ML SUV. This tuning program is called the Evorian RS. They start by lowering the car on H&R springs mated to a set of 22 inch Piecha rims. Tires are 315/30/22 in back and 275/35/22 up front. The front diffuser has integrated LED's which seem to be all the rage right now. Side skirts, a roof spoiler, and a rear diffuser contoured to the quad exhaust round out the package. Pricing is as follows: ...Published on 02-10-2011 09:23 PM
BMW is set on releasing an all electric car. You may remember BMW released a test program featuring an electric Mini (Mini E) and this is now the next step. This is the test bed for the electric system which will serve as the underpinnings of the Megacity Vehicle. The ActiveE has 170 horsepower and a range of approximately 100 miles on special low resistance tires. The range may improve in the lighter Megacity Vehicle. The battery is fully charged in 4 to 5 hours and BMW plans on leasing 1,000 of these ActiveE's beginning in the fall. Good for you BMW, can we have our Z4 M now? ...Published on 02-10-2011 04:54 PM
Here we go again, for the second time Singh is claiming to be the first to tune a motor without anything to substantiate it. We do know tuners have been working on this motor but Singh claims to be the first in North America to offer an upgrade. To substantiate this they have provided... nothing. No dyno chart as support, no customer impressions, no pricing, just a shot of the engine bay. We saw these claims from Singh previously and they were dismissed as unsubstantiated. We have to do the same here, but know that 600+ hp tunes are coming. ...Published on 02-10-2011 06:08 AM
PAW Motorsport has officially released their N55 flash tune. This tune is for all 2011 on BMW 135i's, 335's, F10/F07 535's, and xDrive 35i's with the N55 single turbo 6 cylinder motor. Special pricing is in effect for BimmerBoost members for February only at $645. Regular pricing is $835. Power gains are about 50 whp. This is the "mild" mail order tune available to anyone. This does require sending your ECU in unless you are located in Florida. The free trial tune is available to one member only who will report on their experience with the tune. ...Published on 02-10-2011 05:17 AM
Hot on the heels of MTM we have ABT releasing their take on the new Audi A7. ABT adds their sideskirts to give a muscular side profile. Their rear diffuser is made to house their unique quad pipe exhaust. The vehicle is lowered with the ABT lowering module on top of ABT rims that are available for the A7 in 19-21 inch sizes. For the 3.0 TFSI supercharged V6, ABT tunes it to 410 horsepower. ...Published on 02-10-2011 04:25 AM
Kleemann makes a variety of supercharger setups for Mercedes vehicles. They use a roots blower for their kits which makes for a clean install which you can see as well as a car that is a fun to drive. Our friends at DC Performance did a supercharger install of a used kit on a W209 CLK500 and they did a great job documenting the install. No dynos yet although we intend to ask for them, Kleemann claims 455 horsepower and 433 pound-feed of torque. ...
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