Turbo

Filed under: Concept Cars, Motorcycle

Anyone who’s anyone knows that motorcycles and leather go together like gin and tonic. But usually the leather’s on the rider. Yamaha evidently figured it was time to turn that particular convention on its head, and teamed up with no less prestigious a clothier than Hermès to pull it off.

Now as you may recall from the Bugatti Veyron Fbg par Hermes – or for that matter from their Citroën 2CV or Smart ForTwo – the French fashion house knows a thing or two about trimming a motor vehicle. So they started with the Yamaha VMax, the very epitome of the muscle bike. With its four-cylinder engine and brushed metalwork, the VMax is about as mean as they come, until Hermes came along and decked it out in fine buffalo skin, covering everything from the head lamp to the exhaust pipe.

The special VMax was just recently unveiled at a motorbike show in Cologne, Germany. Unfortunately it’s a one-off creation at the moment, but it’s not the first time the two powerhouses have collaborated: go back fifteen years and you’ll find evidence of Hermes having similarly worked its magic on the Virago, the first Japanese V-Twin cruiser to give the likes of Harley-Davidson a run for its money.

[Source: Yamaha]

Yamaha and Hermès mix business with leather for special VMax originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 20 Oct 2010 18:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments
Autoblog

Champagne sales have not been very strong over the past few years, there has been one brand however that has shown impressive figures. Jacques Cattier, president of Cattier Champagne, Armand de Brignac’s producer with just 20 staff based in the village of Chigny Les Roses in Champagne-Ardennes, found out a little celebrity endorsement can go a long way. Armand de Brignac, the brand adopted by Jay-Z, has found great success thanks to the rapper’s promotion. Jay-Z was a fan of Cristal until 2006 when Frederic Rouzaud, the managing director of Louis Roderer Cristal was quoted in The Economist calling the namechecking of the Cristal brand in hip-hop songs “unwelcome attention.” Jay-Z found the remark racist. He called for a Cristal boycott and switched his allegiance to the new brand Armand de Brignac, part of Cattier Champagne. He featured the distinctive gold bottle with the Ace of Spades logo in his video to his single “Show Me What You Got” in 2006. Celebrity endorsements are particularly powerful in the rap world. The song “Pass The Courvoisier” by Busta Rhymes sent sales of the French cognac soaring.

Since then the brand has taken off, showing up in celebrity gift bags and becoming a new symbol of extravagant taste. David Beckham and George Clooney are among those won over to Armand de Brignac, which is referred to by drinkers as “Ace of Spades”. The Independent, reports that demand is so high that the winery could sell their 60,000-bottle production run several times over. The brand will reach its maximum production of 82,000 within three years. The Armand de Brignac Cuvees are priced from 0 per bottle and come in three varieties, Champagne Rose, Champagne Blanc de Blanc, and the Brut Gold.

Aroma/Bouquet: Produced in a traditional, old‐world style, from grape to glass. Bouquet is complex and full‐bodied, fresh and lively with light floral notes. On the palate, Armand de Brignac has a racy fruit character perfectly integrated with subtle brioche accents. Texture is deliciously creamy, with great depth and a long, silky finish.

Awards: Selected as the preferred Champagne of Chef Alain Llorca's Le Moulin de Mougins, Jacques Chibois' La Bastide St. Antoine, and the Pourcel Bros' Le Sens, all French Michelin‐starred restaurants.

Full Text RSS Builder

Note: There is a rating embedded within this post, please visit this post to rate it.The Evora 414E Hybrid concept is the first ever Lotus Hybrid, and has been shown a few days ago at the 2010 Geneva Motor Show. Despite using a fuel efficient drivetrain, this concept vehicle is still a thrilling car, that manages to sprint from 0 to 60 Mph in under 4 seconds, thanks to its output of 408 hp.

The Lotus Evora 414E has two electric motors (one for each rear wheel) and uses an extended-range electric vehicle (E-REV) system, which means it can run on battery power alone for a range of 35 miles, before an optimised 1.2 litre, three-cylinder gas engine with an output of 47 hp, kicks in and acts as a generator, offering an additional range of about 300 miles.

The electrical power is stored in a lithium-ion battery pack, which is placed at the center of the car, for stability and safety. Since the car will run most of the time on electricity, this Lotus concept car features a HALOsonic Internal and External Electronic Sound Synthesis system that makes it sound like a vehicle with an internal combustion engine, making it safe for pedestrians.

[via Autoblog]

Concept Supercars

AUTO SHOW

Filed under: Concept Cars, Technology

Florida-based Avera Motors is beginning to part the veil of secrecy surrounding what the company has been up to for the past few years. The KGB is a downright chatty bunch compared to the start-up automaker, and until now, we’ve only had one very info-light web site and a handful of rumors to give us an idea of what to expect from Avera. We knew that CEO RJ Scaringe had assembled a team of engineers who had worked on projects like the Ford GT, Dodge Viper and Koenigsegg CCX and that the company was planning to build a new take on the efficient automobile, but beyond that, it was anyone’s guess.

Now the company has released a teaser of its first operational prototype – a yet-unnamed, rear-wheel-drive hatch (?) powered by a direct-injection, turbocharged gasoline engine mounted amidships. Scaringe and the rest of the Avera Motors crew are hoping that the vehicle will be able to best every hybrid in the game in terms of fuel economy and driving fun simply by reducing weight as much as possible. We were able to spend a few quick minutes with Scaringe to find out a little more about the vehicle and his company as a whole. Hit the jump to see what we learned.

[Source: Avera Motors]

Continue reading Avera Motors teases high-efficiency prototype

Avera Motors teases high-efficiency prototype originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 21 Oct 2010 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments
Autoblog

Scott’s blog drawthrough jr. Scott on concetships and bots. More images from DRIVE. Some of the nicest concept vehicle art I’ve seen in a while. This book is now on Amazon and will start shipping November 10th at the latest. It’s going to be a MONSTER!

Keywords: realistically rendered concept cars trucks vehicles by scott robertson design studio press culver city ca california drawthrough jr blog digital images drawings art from drive book concept vehicle art book

Concept cars and trucks

Vote now and you could win a perfect family break.

Volkswagen has been looking for ultimate family heroes to put their ultimate family cars to the test. We gave our three finalists a new Touran or Sharan for three days along with a super challenge to complete. To see how they got on, and to help decide who wins the car and £5,000 for a community group of their choice, visit www.ultimatefamilyhero.co.uk. Vote now and you could win a family break for four.

Vote and win!

AutoGeeze | Latest Sports Cars News Insurance Photos Wallpapers Rentals Price Reviews

Matt’s web portfolio site mattmatters.com. Check Matt on conceptships.

Keywords: concept automobile transportation car motorcycle vehicle art design by matt tkocz born in rybnik poland in 1986 concept design visual development high definition large format design blog web site

Concept cars and trucks

Note: There is a rating embedded within this post, please visit this post to rate it.The Saab Spyker 9+ Tribute is a concept car imagined by Swedish designer Eduard Gray, graduate of the Coventry University (UK), with a Bachelor Degree 2:1 in Industrial Product Design.

The 9+ Tribute supercar features low aerodynamics and uses a Spyker chassis with a mid-mounted engine, while Saab comes up with the design details and the engineering. The power will probably be provided by an Audi-sourced V8 engine.

The exterior design is pure Saab, featuring simple lines, turbine-style wheels, trademark headlights and the Saab grille, but also a big windshield that extends over the entire roof top. To quote Eduard Gray: “This design, the 9+ Saab Spyker Tribute, is just a quick expression of my optimism for the future of the brand.”

[via Diseno-Art]

Concept Supercars

AUTO SHOW