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2010 Acura TL, Mitsubishi EVO X, and Other Car News – Automobile Spectacle News – Turbo – High-Tech Spectacle Magazine

2010 Acura TL, Mitsubishi EVO X, and Other Car News

Grab Your Stick: Acura Tl Gets Manual Transmission

OK, so you’re very likely wondering what Acura’s grandpa-spec TL is doing on the hallowed pages of Turbo. Well, in addition to a raft of switches made for the ’09 model year, Acura has determined to bless the SH-AWD-equipped TL with a manual transmission for 2010, eventually providing the midsized sedan a decent chance at endearing itself to spectacle enthusiasts.

The fresh six-speed cog swapper will be available on the TL this fall and will be the very first model with Honda’s SH-AWD system to feature a manual gearbox. The six-speed manual also weighs significantly less than the standard five-speed auto unit, delivering a weight saving of one hundred ten pounds and improving the TL’s front-rear weight balance.

The 6MT all-wheel-drive TL also gets re-valved dampers, firmer springs, thicker front driveshafts, and stiffer engine and transmission bushings. Not only that, but the standard Trio.7L VTEC-equipped V-6 drools out a very handy three hundred five hp and two hundred seventy three lb-ft of torque. With a curb weight of Trio,893 pounds, the TL is still a little bit on the porky side, but hey, with 300-plus horses, all-wheel drive, and a decent stick shift, the ‘Ten TL has all the makings of a fine VIP rail.

Mitsubishi Engages Flux Capacitor And Brings Back Rally Car Of The Future

As their conformity to the L.A. Auto Demonstrate’s annual design challenge (theme: Motorsports 2025), Mitsubishi exhibited its incredible and somewhat shocking MMR25 rally car concept.

Looking like the bastard lovechild of a Formula one car, and one of those giant robots from Neon Genesis Evangelion, the MMR25 flaunts an elaborate figure that emerges to be constructed entirely out of spoilers. The driver sits in a windowless central pod and views the MMR25’s progress through a panoramic movie screen, which uses a 360-degree array of cameras to film the outside world.

Movie pod and outlandish bodywork aside, the most mental aspect of the MMR25 concept would have to be the vehicle’s all-electric drivetrain. There are four “wheels,” just like any normal car, however, the difference is that the MMR25’s rollers are made up of eight individual mini-wheels, each with their own internal electrical motor. Mitsubishi calls it 8×4-wheel drive, but we call it a maintenance nightmare.

So, what’s the likelihood we’ll see the MMR25 come in production? Do you reminisce how twenty years ago we all thought we’d be zooming about in fusion-powered hover cars by 2001? Well, Mitsubishi’s vision of the future of motorsport is kind of like that.

Among magazine readers, Honda’s Civic hybrid likes its reputation of being the car of choice for economy-conscious retirees and grown-up tree-huggers. However, the youngsters over at the British stiff Oaktec have a different view of the fuel-sipping compact sedan. They see it as a viable platform for rally and circuit racing.

Oaktec built a Honda Insight rally car, which already brought home five class victories in Old Blighty, however, they’ve now determined to explore the motorsport potential of the Civic hybrid, calling in chassis tuning legend, Lotus Engineering, to help do the job. While the 1.3L motor, CVT gearbox, and hybrid drive system remain largely unchanged, Lotus has determined to tweak the regenerative braking system and batteries to boost power production and keep those electrons flowing. If you drive this thing sensibly, Oaktec says you’ll get fifty mpg without any problems. Attempt and do that in your 18-year-old 240SX drift hatchback.

The suspension has also been fettled for circuit racing duty and the entire car has been built to Group N specifications, meaning much of the interior has been deleted in favor of a utter ‘box and there’s now a fire-suppression system in place to deal with any unwanted flames.

While we still get the feeling that you’d get laughed out of pit lane if you displayed up to an American track in this thing, Oaktec’s efforts to develop a truly thrifty race car are commendable. After all, less money spent on petrol means more cash for tires, parts, and post-race hookers.

Mitsubishi Evo X Makes Its Circuit Debut At Silverstone

The Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X has been with us for well over a year now, and dozens are already slogging it out on racetracks worldwide. In September, Mitsubishi U.K. determined to up the ante and sent a mildly tuned Evo X out onto the battlefield that is 24-hour stamina racing. Not only did they want to see how it fared against the more-established competition, but Mitsubishi also desired to know how well the all-new 4B11 engine and S-AWC drivetrain would hold up against the rigors of unceasing competition.

The race in question was the annual Silverstone Britcar 24-hour race, and after an inauspicious qualifying round that witnessed the turbocharger set itself on fire, the stripped-out Evolution ended the race in Twenty-Fifth place overall and Fifth in class. Not bad when you consider that a problem with the fuel tank meant the car couldn’t be downright packed up nor let to run close to empty–meaning the Mitsubishi team had to bear a total of forty five time-wasting pit stops.

However, mechanical failures were notable by their absence, and the internally standard 4B11 mill and factory-issued S-AWC all-wheel-drive drivetrain took the penalty with no complaint. In fact, bar the fresh turbo, fatter injectors, and ECUtek computer, and racing the Evo’s engine was not all that far from stock condition.

On Sept. 20, Hideki Tanabe, the founder and proprietor of the world-renowned Japanese tuning house Powerhouse Amuse, passed away after suffering a long battle with an unknown illness.

Famous for the featherweight R34 GT-R-based Carbon-R time attack car and the S2000 GT1, which was arguably one of the best tuner cars in Gran Turismo Four, Tanabe was also Amuse’s own parts designer, dyno tuner, and race driver, and always relished getting his forearms dirty in the course of running his business. It’s tragic that his life was cut brief in such a way, particularly because he was a refreshingly fair and down-to-earth individual who embodied the very essence of his company and the entire car-tuning scene in general.

Tanabe’s wifey will proceed to run Powerhouse Amuse as she had done via her spouse’s illness. Our thoughts are with her and their family in this time. Rest in peace.

Subaru ContemplatingWorld Touring Car Campaign?

While Subaru’s iconic WRX STI may be better known for its successes in the World Rally Championship, the Japanese automaker may soon be considering campaigning the turbocharged all-wheel-drive hatchback on the sleek tarmac circuits of the World Touring Car Championship.

Proposals to share the same set of rules inbetween the WRC and WTCC disciplines have opened up the possibility for Subaru to field its WRX-based WRC two thousand eight rally car in the popular touring car series, with only minor modifications. At the time of this writing, Subaru’s WRC team wasn’t exactly going from strength to strength, so a budge into the world of circuit racing may be just the thing to help bring in the trophies, and the sales. Then again, branching out into a fresh racing series just might stress Subaru’s already-overstretched motorsports division, which is scrambling to produce some consistent victories.

If you’re too impatient to wait for Subaru to get their act together, then perhaps a budge to Japan is advised. Over there you can get your pack of touring car activity in the form of the local Super GT championship, which features a GDB Impreza WRX running in and winning the GT300 category.

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