Swedish hypercar maker Koenigsegg has long been a home for novel engineering, and that's evident in its new electric motor. Developed for the Gemera four-seater, this electric motor, dubbed the Quark, is a tiny powerhouse. In a package that weighs just 63 pounds, the Quark develops 335 hp and 443 lb-ft of torque. For scale, that's a 330-mL energy drink in the pictures seen throughout.
KOENIGSEGGThe Quark, announced Monday, combines both radial- and axial-flux constructions to offer a good balance between power and torque. Rather than explain the difference between the two, I'll turn you towards this article from EV trade publication Charged. All you really need to know is that this is a best-of-both-worlds solution—Koenigsegg claims the Quark has an industry-leading torque-power-weight ratio. Those peak power and torque figures are only available for 20 seconds, which is common among EV motors. After 20 seconds, the figures drop to 134 hp and 184 lb-ft of torque. That's fine for the Gemera, which has three electric motors and a 600-hp three-cylinder.
"The Quark is designed to bolster the low-speed range of the Gemera, where you need it, for brutal acceleration," said Koengisegg electric-motor design lead Dragos-Mihai Postariu in a statement. "The ICE then focuses on the high-speed range. What this means in terms of performance for the Gemera is a big power surge followed by a continuous record-speed push to 400 km/h [248.5 mph] without any torque or power losses."

Naturally, Koenigsegg uses all sorts of interesting materials for the construction of the Quark, including aerospace/motorsport-grade steel, and hollow carbon fiber—Koenigsegg's Aircore technology—for the rotor. The company hopes the Quark will find a home in more than just the Gemera, as it was also designed for aerospace and marine applications.
"The Quark is unique in its high efficiency in combination with its class-leading torque-to-power-to-rpm-to-weight matrix," said CEO Christian von Koenigsegg in a statement. "This means, when using the Quark in applications such as marine, aircraft or VTOL, there is no need for a step-down transmission, instead direct drive can be achieved, as the RPM of the motor is right from the get-go. Small high-revving motors can have higher peak power-to-weight ratio, but they need transmissions in most applications in order to get to the desired output rpm and torque, causing energy loss and adding weight and complexity to do the same job. So any benefit in size is lost."

Koenigsegg is also marketing an EV drive unit made up of two Quark motors, plus its small-but-powerful inverter, and small low-ratio planetary gearsets at each output shaft. The unit is called the Terrier, and serves up 670 hp and 811 lb-ft in a package that weighs just 187 pounds, and which offers torque vectoring across an axle. A Terrier can be bolted directly to a car's monocoque as well.

More information on the Terrier unit is forthcoming, and presumably, it will be featured on future Koenigsegg products. As ever, the numbers are deeply impressive and entirely unsurprising from the innovative Swedish firm.

When someone buys a new car, they generally expect to be getting a vehicle that's fully up-to-date, not one built with leftover parts. Tesla customers who don't read the fine print, though, could accidentally end up paying the price for a "new" Model 3 with a years-old battery, one which Tesla acknowledges may have already lost almost an eighth of its total capacity.
Use of older batteries in new Model 3s was first observed on Twitter, where user William Hummel shared images of a disclaimer on Tesla's website that notes up to 12 percent reduced range stemming from the cars' use of batteries built as far back as 2017. These screen captures were not of Tesla's online configurator as Hummel's use of "new car" might lead one to believe, but from Tesla's inventory page, where "new" Model 3s are indeed listed for sale with the range disclaimer shown, along with a partial explanation accessed via the "Learn More" button.
"This vehicle was built with a battery pack manufactured as early as 2017," reads the popup. "While this pack was brand new when the vehicle was built, the cells have reduced capacity due to their age and you can expect up to 12% reduction in range from current production specifications."

This passage doesn't explain why new Model 3s have been "built" with 2017 batteries and implies installation at the factory rather than refurbishment at a service center. It adds another layer of confusion as to why these cars are being sold as "New," though it may be one partially explained by another label: "Demo Vehicle."
What makes a demo car isn't formally defined by Tesla, though calling a Tesla showroom and speaking to a salesperson confirmed these are often retired test drive vehicles, and are sold as-is, possible cosmetic defects and all. Various sources online such as Tesla forums also indicate they may also be ex-engineering testbeds, or declined customer cars.
Not all ex-testers in Tesla's new inventory have range disclaimers, though evidencing some inconsistency in how old-spec batteries are installed, which the Tesla salesperson we spoke to couldn't explain—though they could confirmed these old batteries are usually installed at the factory, and that Tesla considers them to be "new." As for why old batteries end up in some Teslas, but not others, they might only be installed in cars destined for demo duty, while those without range disclaimers could be customer cars that weren't delivered for one reason or another.

That 2021 Model 3 Long Range AWD has been equipped with Tesla's $10,000 "Full Self-Driving Capability," which itself is a shaky value proposition, to put it kindly. In short, Tesla CEO Elon Musk has promised for years that his cars would drive themselves any time now, only for Tesla to admit that its "Full Self-Driving Beta" will never surpass SAE Level 2 Autonomy. Tesla's Full Self-Driving development has hit a figurative wall, all while legacy carmakers pull ahead with functionally superior systems.
Why exactly old batteries are ending up in late model Teslas, unfortunately, remains unclear. Tesla could be putting new-old parts stock to use, as Jalopnik speculates, or it could be refurbishing its demo cars, though that seems like something Tesla might disclose. In either case, Tesla dissolved its U.S. public relations department long ago, so the best explanation available short of tweeting at Musk himself is the incomplete one we already got from a salesperson. And Tesla's secretiveness isn't going unnoticed, even by its own dedicated customers.
"I think the idea of Tesla putting 'new' old batteries into brand new vehicles is appalling," commented Tesla customer William Hummel, who has a car on order. "If you bought any other product (car, iPhone, whatever) with a lithium-ion battery that was years old (and thus, already chemically degrading) wouldn't you be mad? You're getting less than what you paid for and what was promised on the sticker. At minimum, Tesla should discount these vehicles below MSRP. Selling them for full retail is insulting."
What is certain is that if you're looking at a Tesla, be extremely careful how you spend your money. These discounted "new" EVs aren't the deals they may outwardly appear to be; not with their reduced range, sometimes blemished bodies, and overpriced driving assist software that can't tell the moon from a traffic light. And that goes without mentioning what may lurk where owners are never meant to look.

Starting in January, a huge boat will attach itself to an enormous kite in a first-of-its-kind test to try and alleviate harmful carbon emissions from toting stuff to and fro across the high seas.
Emissions from shipping are a huge problem. About 80% of all the world’s goods are transported on around 50,000 ships, which use a particularly dirty fuel known as “bunker fuel.” It’s estimated that this cheap fuel is responsible for more than 2% of global carbon emissions, and between 10% to 15% of the world’s sulfur oxide and nitrous oxide emissions, both major public health menaces.
Enter the humble kite. The parafoil kite that will be used is made by a company called Airseas. It measures around 5,380 square feet (500 square meters) and will be attached to a ship 505 feet (154 meters) in length called the Ville de Bordeaux. The ship is a “roll on/roll off” vessel, which refers to the fact that these ships usually carry wheeled cargo. (The shorthand term for this type of ship is, incredibly, a “Ro-Ro.”) This particular boat carries airplane parts between France and the U.S. The ship will test out the sail—er, sorry, kite—technology for six months before being used for its regular route.
Airseas said it “was founded out of the need to act urgently for our planet and climate” and is “committed to provide all ships with the means to harness free and unlimited wind energy.” That sounds an awful lot like a fancy way of saying “sailing,” which, in case you were unaware, is something we used to use a lot back in ye olden days to get our stuff around.

It’s important to note that unlike the cargo sailing ships of old that relied on their big sails, the Airseas kite isn’t meant to be the sole source of power for ships. The Ville de Bordeaux will still use its engine. But the kite, which Airseas calls a Seawing, is meant to reduce fuel use on the journey.
Airseas has promised a super-sized version of the Seawing that measures 3,280 square feet (1,000 square meters) and flies 984 feet (300 meters) above the boat on a figure-8 track, has the potential to reduce emissions on shipping trips by up to 20%. Computer technology helps the kite move around to maximize the carbon-free wind energy being used to propel the ship.
What’s more, the company says the installation process is pretty easy. You basically mount the kite to the ship’s deck, where it can pop out into the air with the touch of a button. The company says the kite kit can be retrofitted to basically any type of ship type.
A 20% cut to emissions might sound small, but the shipping industry has been really struggling to figure out how to clean up its act. Some of the alternative fuels that the industry has developed that are intended to lower emissions have raised new environmental questions. Shipping products for just four companies alone—Amazon, Walmart, Target, and IKEA—accounted for 20 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent over the past two years being dumped into the atmosphere. Emissions could rise even more sharply in the coming decades; some analyses predict that cargo volumes could grow by as much as 130% by 2050 as online shopping becomes more and more popular.

After several days testing the all-new Next Gen Cup Series car at Charlotte Motor Speedway last week, NASCAR has decided to use 670 hp cars with 4-inch, low-downforce spoilers at every track next year other than the super speedways.
The move eliminates the 550 horsepower package recently used at most intermediate-length tracks, which has often been criticized for not delivering exciting racing, but also takes away the 750 hp package featured on short tracks and road courses this year.

This means the same setup will be used for short tracks, road courses and intermediates, while the Daytona and Atlanta superspeedways will continue to feature lower power "plate" setups.
The redesign goes far beyond the power and aerodynamics, however. Among the changes are a lighter chassis, independent rear suspensions, sequential 5-speed gear boxes, and larger wheels and with wider tires.
"I’m a racer and will race anything/anytime. This #NextGen car for @NASCAR is an incredible opportunity for drivers to be drivers. Car is new school and old school at the same time," 23XI Racing driver Kurt Busch said.

"So the bottom line of all this, and you’ll hear this from the drivers is that this package with the Next Gen car puts it back in the drivers’ hands and we’re excited about what that will do in 2022, for sure," NASCAR's chief racing development officer Steve O'Donnell said.
Atlanta may be added to the superspeedway list after tests are conducted on the track, which is being redesigned with steeply banked turns.
The Next Gen car will make its debut at the Busch Light Clash at the Coliseum the weekend of Febuary 5-6 on a temporary track being built inside the L.A. Memorial Coliseum.

Tributes have flooded in for German racing driver Sabine Schmitz, who has died at the age of 51.

Widely known as the "Queen of the Nürburgring," Schmitz was one of motor racing's highest-profile female drivers and a regular guest on UK TV motoring show "Top Gear."
She died on Tuesday after a "brave fight against cancer," according to a tweet from Frikadelli Racing, a motorsport team Schmitz founded with husband Klaus Abbelen, a fellow racing driver."Klaus Abbelen and all relatives and friends are deeply saddened by the immeasurable loss," the tweet reads.

Schmitz grew up close to the Nürburgring circuit in western Germany. In 1996, she became the first woman to win its famous 24 Hours race, driving a BMW. The following year, she repeated the feat.
Schmitz also worked as a driver on the circuit's "ring taxi," which offers visitors the chance to do a lap of the course as a passenger.
"The Nürburgring has lost its most famous female racing driver," the circuit wrote on Twitter.
"Sabine Schmitz passed away far too early after a long illness. We will miss her and her cheerful nature. Rest in peace Sabine!"

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Schmitz also raced for the Porsche motorsport team, which posted its own tribute on Twitter.
"Very sad to hear that Sabine Schmitz (1969-2021) has passed away. The "Queen of Nordschleife" was a crowd favourite due to her open, humorous way," the tweet reads. "Our sympathy goes to her family and friends."
Schmitz went on to make regular appearances on "Top Gear," and the show's former host, Jeremy Clarkson, tweeted: "Terrible news about Sabine Schmitz. Such a sunny person and so full of beans."Current host Paddy McGuinness also posted a tribute.
"She gave me pointers on how to drive a Ferrari very fast and hunted me down in a banger race," he tweeted. "Brilliantly bonkers and an amazing human being! RIP the great Sabine Schmitz."

tags: breed of speed , breedofspeed , sir drifto , nathan finneman , nathan james , sabine schmitz , queen of nurburgring , bmw m5 woman , top gear sabine , sabine , 

A SUPERSONIC jet which could fly from London to New York in just 90 minutes has revealed what passengers could expect from the flight.
Inside the Spike S-512 Supersonic Jet cabin would be a large seating area, which can be converted to beds or a dining area and flat-screen TVs.


The flights, which would have a maximum 18 seats, will have no windows, due to window sections being the weakest part of a plane.
They also bring in a lot of noise, making the plane not just stronger and more fuel-efficient but quieter as well.
Spike Aerospace founder and CEO Vik Kachoria told the Telegraph: ““The Concorde was ridiculously noisy.
“Most conversations between two people are between 65 and 75 decibels and the noise level found within most plane cabins is around 85 decibels.
“Our windowless aircraft will be about 60 decibels, so lower than the sound of a conversation.”

Instead, long computer screens along the wall of the cabin will simulate panoramic views.
Images of the galley show a fancy coffee machine, built-in sink and counter space as well as a large fridge with chilled drinks.
The seating is convertible so it can turn into flat beds, seating areas or conference seats.
While the flights won’t be cheap, they could eventually be a similar price to Business Class tickets.


Mr Kachoria said: “Remember, almost every technological innovation we’ve had has started out for the uber-rich: cars, telephones, computers, flat screen TVs – the first ones cost $25,000 in the 90s and now they’re $200.”
A number of airlines are looking into supersonic travel between the UK and the US, following on from the Concorde jets which launched in 1976.
Travelling at 1,354mph or Mach 2.04 — twice the speed of sound — it captivated the world’s imagination as it whisked elite passengers from London to New York in just three and a half hours.
However, the Concorde jets were retired in 2003 after a fatal accident in 2000 in Paris.

tags: concorde , supersonic , aviation , concorde replacement , nathan finneman , sir drifto , breed of speed , aircraft future , future

While the relatively short range of the Dethleffs e.home solar motorhome concept might trigger a bit of range anxiety in some, it might actually make sense for slow travel.
Electric transportation is moving forward rather quickly as a viable option for both individuals and public transit (and soon commercial transport), thanks to rapid improvements in electric motor and battery technology, and we're seeing more major automakers committing to adding electrified vehicles to their product lines. However, when it comes to larger consumer vehicles, such as pickups and motorhomes, the choices are few and far between, but that may start to change soon, if the announcement from the German RV company Dethleffs is any indication.
Whether you call them caravans, RVs, or motorhomes (or tiny homes), the idea of a home on wheels is one and the same for all of those monikers, and owning one is a dream for many these days, either as a nomadic tiny home (#vanlife) or as a vacation or retirement vehicle. Having borrowed a friend's rather large RV this summer for a family trip, I can attest to the ease and convenience of traveling with your home on your back, but that feeling was also somewhat offset by the reality of having to frequently fuel up a heavy RV that gets 5 to 8 miles to the gallon, which can put a hurting on your wallet on a long trip. An electrified motorhome, on the other hand, could be much cheaper to drive, and have zero tailpipe emissions, with the tradeoff of either settling for shorter trips or having longer 'refueling' stops -- at least until battery technology takes another leap forward in capacity and a step down in costs.
German caravan company Dethleffs seems to have seen the writing on the wall about electrification, or at least an opportunity for first-mover advantage, as it has revealed an electrified version of a Class C motorhome that goes above and beyond just being fully electric, as it's completely wrapped in thin-film solar cells that can be used for topping off the RV's batteries. The cabin of the e.home is built onto an Iveco Daily Electric chassis, which has an 80 kW motor and a 228 Ah battery pack of sodium-nickel-chloride cells that boasts a range of up to 174 miles (280 km) per charge in its pre-conversion state. Once the vehicle is fully kitted out as a motorhome, however, that range per charge may be significantly shorter, suggests New Atlas, saying the range "might fall as far as 103 miles (167 km)."

The cabin is fully fitted with all of the amenities of a modern motorhome, with all-electric appliances, several sleeping areas, a kitchen, a bathroom, etc., but also includes some cutting-edge components that are aimed at increasing the efficiency of the heating system and augmenting the privacy and comfort of the residents of the e.home. By incorporating "latent heat accumulator plates" made with a phase change material that can absorb excess heat and store it to be released after the sun goes down, and by integrating infrared heating elements in the floor and furniture, the e.home is designed to feel cozy to the occupants without consuming excessive amounts of electricity. Two different applications of a foil-based technology, in both the lighting and the windows, one of which allows for "a bright planar light" inside the cabin, and the other enables the windows to be "electrically dimmed" for both sun and heat protection as well as for privacy.

Dethleffs has added some 31 square feet of thin-film solar cells to the exterior of the e.home, creating a 3 kW (peak) solar array and adding a little bit of energy autonomy to the e.home. However, there's at least one major issue with the solar array, which is that it's on all sides of the vehicle, so no more than half of it can be exposed to direct sunlight at any given moment. Perhaps that's intentional, as it would allow some solar electricity gains to be had during the day no matter which direction it's facing, but there's no indication of what the average solar output from the array is, nor how long it would take to charge the e.home battery pack from solar alone. According to Victron Energy, which supplied a number of the electrical components to the build, high-power capacitors ("Supercaps") are installed in the e.home, which "allow a faster recharge and delivery of the electrical energy in comparison to the usual batteries."

Although the e.home in its current configuration isn't well suited to extended long-haul or cross-country trips without having to stop every 150 miles or so to recharge (which may take some time to do), it actually seems well suited to a slow and wandering pace, with long breaks and overnight charging along the way, so perhaps it's the perfect slow travel vehicle.

This aircraft is half jet ski and half plane. The FlyNano combines marine and aviation technology, creating the lightweight plane that only weighs 70kg. 
A pilot's license is not required to fly the aircraft however, it is not for beginners as some flying experience is recommended before attempting to fly the seaplane. 
FlyNano is powered by an electric motor that can reach speeds of up to 75 mph.
The aircraft is still in development and the price has yet to be confirmed, but it could cost around $40,000.

hanks to Ken Block, we know an 8,000-pound Ford F-450 Super Duty can indeed drift. But how about 40-ton dump truck? Surely something as heavy and cumbersome as that has no right partaking in maneuvers usually reserved for lightweight rear-drive sports cars, right? Wrong, as one dump truck driver will demonstrate below.
The big yellow dirt transporter can be seen coming down a wet clay ramp then going into a righteous six-wheel drift before seamlessly backing into position to receive its payload from an excavator. Something tells us this isn't the first time the operator has flamboyantly slid dump trucks into place. I mean, if you can do this in a Cat 740 without putting a tire out of place, you have to be pretty well-practiced, right?

On top of the obvious style points, we gotta hand major props to this guy for efficiency, using the wet, slippery surface to his advantage. Turning lemons into lemonade and all that jazz. Not only would carefully making a U-turn and slowly backing the dump truck in have been a lot less video-worthy but would've also taken way more time. Time is money, people. Although, we suspect this worksite's local occupational health and safety agency won't be nearly as impressed as we are.

Those who were driving on the highways near the Miramar Naval Base in San Diego on Tuesday may have witnessed a strange scene: two planes of unusual shapes and painted in black landing on the runway, famous for being the setting for the film Top Gun.
The mysterious planes were F-117 Nighthawk fighters, the first jet invisible to radar in history. But what did the two US Air Force aircraft at the Marines base do anyway? What’s more, why do they keep flying despite being retired in 2008?
The official answer does not exist since the US government does not admit that Lockheed Martin planes are in fact active, but it has become increasingly evident that the Pentagon has used some units to conduct military tests and exercises.
Miramar, for example, hosts the training of Navy fighter pilots and has aggressor aircraft, used to simulate enemy fighters. And nothing better than evaluating tactics and maneuvers with a jet that is difficult to detect.

In service since 1983, the F-117 was the precursor to stealth technology. Developed by the Skunk Works team, also responsible for the SR-71 spy plane, the Nighthawk used a fuselage concept with faceted surfaces and radar-absorbing material to remain undetected.
In addition, both engines had covered air intakes and exhaust fans with cooling systems. The V-tail, like that of the single-engine Bonanza, was chosen to be hidden behind the wings.
The unusual design means that the F-117 is only able to fly because it has a fly-by-wire control system, being unstable in various flight conditions. The USAF only operated 59 units of the attack aircraft (although designated as a fighter, its role has always been different).

When it decided to retire them in the past decade, the Air Force stored them in a pattern known as “Type 1000”, which it plans to keep them able to fly again. Almost all of the remaining units were eventually preserved at Tonopah air base.
It looked like the end of the F-117’s career, but as of 2017 some fighters began to be seen in desert regions and near Edwards Air Force Base in California. Last year, rumors emerged that the USAF would have used some Nighthawks in attacks in Syria in 2017, information that has never been confirmed.
In May 2020, two of these planes were seen next to a KC-135, denoting an unusual activity. Until then, these sightings occurred in sparsely populated areas, so the landing of the two F-117s in San Diego may be an indication that the Pentagon no longer plans to hide from the public that the “Wobblin ‘Goblin” is back.