Articles by Karla Pincott

This year, the dream sports car is celebrating its 75th birthday and BMW has created one of its special "hommage" concept models to celerbrate the event. To this day, the BMW 328 Touring Coupe still holds the record for the highest average speed on the Mille Miglia circuit and, in 2010, was again able to win the historic revival of the race. The BMW 328 Hommage translates the principles and the character of the vehicle of that time into present times. It offers a possible interpretation of how the designers of that time, Fritz Fiedler and Rudolf Schleicher, might have built the car in the present day using current technology. Like the original car the BMW 328 Hommage has no doors. Then as now, deep recesses allow ac-cess to the inside of the car. The original BMW 328 was notable for its use for the first time of lightweight materials, keeping the car's gross weight down to just 780kg. The Hommage replicates this design principle through the use of carbon fibre reinforced plastic. Four wide leather straps run across the bonnet, which appear to dive under the side shoulder surfaces to be continued on the side. Combined with the high-gloss aluminium safety buckles, the leather straps provide a touch of class in contrast to the very technical-looking carbon fibre. The modern quick-release fasteners for securing the bonnet bring racing of the past into the present.

There was always a question mark over whether Mercedes-Benz could take the SLS AMG Gullwing and successfully turn it into a soft-top roadster. But would there be enough of the coupe left to make the roadster a standout? The answer is yes, judging by the first official photos of the car, which will debut at Frankfurt motor show in September and arrive on our shores early in 2012 with a price tag tipped to be a fair bit more than the coupe's $468,820 RRP. The SLS AMG Roadster features a light-framed triple-layer fabric roof that helps keep both weight and the centre of gravity down, and opens and closes in a swift 11 seconds at driving speeds of up to 50km/h. The roof – available in beige, black and a very attention-seeking red – wastes very little boot space, reducing the capacity by 3 litres to offer 173 litres. At just 40kg heavier than the Coupe at 1660kg, the Roadster will carry the same drivetrain -- a 420kW/650Nm 6.2-litre V8 mated to a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission -- and get to 100km/h in a matching 3.8 seconds, with top speed limited to 317km/h. Fuel economy under the official European calculations is 13.2L/100km with CO2 emissions of 308gh/km. Under the skin is a lightweight aluminium spaceframe -- with extra rigidity to compensate for being lidless -- and three-mode adaptive suspension, while it rolls on 19-in front wheels and 20-in rear. The equipment list includes all the leather, comfort and techno tricks you’d expect as standard at this level of luxury and performance, plus the option in Europe of a race-bred telemetry system. Called AMG Performance Media, the system also provided high-speed internet access – and is unlikely to ever be offered here while faced with Australia’s glacial-speed third-world broadband network.

The attention being given to the little two-door, four-seater Audi at Michelin Challenge Bibendum forecasts there'll be a queue when it arrives. And there would have been a queue to drive it, but the baby on display in its Sunday best was strictly hands-off. So it was left to its big brother, the A3 Sportback e-tron, to demonstrate on the test track some of what we can expect from the A1. The A3 at Challenge Bibendum is a research model, and an Audi engineer at the event said it is not being considered for production at the moment as the model is nearing renewal, but the A1 e-tron would be on the market overseas late next year. The system in the A3 relies on an electric motor with a continuous power output of 60kW, with peak outputs of 100kW and 270Nm of torque, which drives the front wheels via a single-speed transmission. There are three driving modes - Dynamic, Auto and Efficiency - that change responses to throttle input and also raise or suppress the amount of power used. There are also four settings that adjust how much energy is recovered during braking and in the 'sailing' mode where the system decouples and the car essentially coasts until more power is needed. The lithium-ion battery rank can be recharged from dead-flat in nine hours from a household supply, and in four hours 400-volt three-phase current. Audi says a single charge will give you 140km in the A3, but the lighter A1 e-tron will have a 45kW motor that can peak at 75kW, working with a range extender in the form of a single-rotor Wankel engine and 15kW electric generator to give a 200km drive. On the track, the A3 e-tron's overall driving feel is close to a normal compact car, with all strong torque on offer and quite responsive handling. The dynamics are helped by positioning the battery rank through the centre tunnel and under the rear seat and luggage floor to improve balance and give a low centre of gravity. The change into sailing mode is unnoticeable, and can extend for quite a distance unless extra load is demanded. It remains to be seen how well the system would do in a long highway run, but the performance of the A3 e-tron suggests the A1 will be a star in the city car stakes. More stylish - and with more brand integrity - than the rebadged Toyota iQ that Aston Martin will sell as the Cygnet, the A1 e-tron is likely to be the next CBD status symbol. This is the car the early adopters will want to be in, and the uber-chic will want to be seen in.

Aussie drivers could save thousands at the bowser if the coming arrival of Opel beings the low-consumption vehicles on its stand at Michelin Challenge Bibendum in Berlin.Opel CEO Karl-Friedrich Stracke told Carsguide at the event that the cars could be considered for our market. "We are looking at everything we can bring for Australia. If we have the right business case then anything can come," Stracke said."We have already some in mind, and it is (too) early to detail this. But we are confident to introduce more of our technology there in the future. Theoretically we can do so because we have right-hand drive architecture."That means we could see the stop-start diesel Astra, low-emission diesel Insignia and LPG Corsa - all three of which offer fuel economy that will appeal to the Aussie hip pocket.Corsa ecoFlex LPG The Barina-sibling Corsa ecoFlex LPG has just been launched in overseas markets in both left and right-hand drive with a choice of 59kW /114Nm 1.2-litre and 66kW/126Nm 1.4-litre engines.The 1.2-litre available for short tests in Berlin drops its outputs to 55kW/110Nm when it switches to LPG, but this impacts only very slightly on acceleration with the 0-100km/h extended to 14.1 seconds - an increase of 0.2 seconds and hardly likely to be noticed against the already laid-back effort you get by using petrol.The tall-geared five-speed manual transmission is unpleasant to use, especially with the busy changes needed for the short test track we put it over, but its job is mainly to help shave fuel consumption. The petrol tank offers a range of 818km with economy of 5.5L/100km and 129g/km CO2 emissions, while the LPG gives an extra 494km at 6.8L and 110g/km respectively.A big hurdle for us on this little Corsa is that its gas tank is a spare-wheel sized one that cleverly leaves a flat cargo area floor - but no room for a spare wheel. We already have a wide LPG network in Australia, but the question will be whether we'll line up at the gas pump to fill a small car that will already have good economy in other petrol-only versions.The Corsa is not as strong a drive as the local Barina - which is no performance hero itself, but returns 6.9L/100km, and that may not be enough of a difference to drive people to the newcomer.Astra Ecoflex Opel has whittled the compact Astra turbodiesel's economy from 4.1L/100km to 3.9L/100km by adding a start-stop system to the 70kW/190Nm 1.3-litre common-rail engine.Coupled with a diesel particulate filter and water cooling on the exhaust cycle, this means the hatchback also cuts CO2 emissions by 4 per cent at 104g/km. The wagon version is only marginally less green at 4.1L/100km and 109g/km.Both use aerodynamics to help keep the figures down, with a smoothed underbody and an active aero shutter on the grille that allows air to flow over the engine at low speeds but closes at high speeds to reduce fuel-sucking drag.Like the Corsa, the Ecoflex Astras come only in five-speed manual versions, with a 'shift-up' indicator telling you when to start rowing. Holden has dropped the Astra from the local line-up in favour of the Adelaide-built Cruze, which battles the Astra with more room, a stronger diesel engine and an auto option - but economy of 6.8L/100km.Even the 5.8L of the manual is 52 per cent more than the European car. And buyers might start doing the sums.Insignia ecoFlex diesel Opel's Camry-sized flagship, the Insignia, is also getting the 'ecoFlex' fuel-trimming treatment with two 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbodiesels.The 118kW/350Nm version - a popular choice for caravanners in Europe, Opel says -- is comparatively frugal at 5.2L/100km and 136g/km. However the lower-tuned 96kW/300Nm version we tasted delivers even better fuel economy of 4.9L/100km, and emissions of less than 129g/km CO2.The downside for our petrol-focused and increasingly auto-centric market is that like the Astra you'll have to go to diesel and self-shifting to achieve that. If buyers can get past those hurdles, they'll find themselves in a well-designed and pleasant cabin with plenty of space and an upmarket feel.For large car buyers who are happy to give up complete reliance on petrol, it shops well against the hybrid Toyota Camry's 6L/100km and - even with the lower cost of LPG -- should do the same against the current larger gas Commodore's 13.4L/100km.The new EcoLPi Falcon that arrives mid-year, and the Commodore that quickly follows it, are both promising cuts in consumption but it remains to be seen exactly how much.And for those who are teetering on the brink of moving away from petrol, it could certainly offer a convincing wallet argument against the normal Holden's 9.1L and the Falcon's 9.9L as the lowest consumption in each model range, leaving them to increasingly depend on patriotism for market support.

Zooming around a track while demolishing targets with paintballs fired from a bonnet-mounted cannon.The catches? It's in a Captiva rather than an 007-styled Aston Martin -- which limits the dynamic potential of the zooming a little -- and it's being done only in the UK at the moment to mark the launch of the vehicle there.However, if the new sport catches on as Carsguide thinks it deserves to, maybe we'll see it here before long.Holden Commodores at 20 paces, anyone?

There's a future for the electric car if they can make it as sporty as the two Porsche Boxster plug-ins at Challenge Bibendum.

Sports cars made the Porsche name, but what made its fortune was an SUV and a sedan. The Cayenne offroader and the Panamera ‘family car’ have been two of the best decisions the brand has made. And they’ve kept remaking them with a continuing roll-out of variations. So, following in the trail of the five Panamera variants already here, and the diesel arriving in August, comes the hybrid version. Or two.VALUEYou can knock $5300 off the $298,300 price by shelling out a mere $290 for the set of low rolling-resistance tyres that drop fuel consumption to 6.8L/100km -- bringing it in under the Luxury Car Tax 7L/100km discount barrier for a final price of $292,927.But with the standard wheels and tyres, the car’s economy is still claimed to be a low 7.1L/100km – so if you want to show green cred but not give up speed or luxury, it’s just as viable.For that you also get a stack of luxury equipment, including the touchscreen ‘comms’ and Bose audio system, adaptive air suspension that adjusts ride firmness and height, dynamic cornering lights, bits of leather, 14-way power-adjustable heated front seats and two-zone climate-control airconditioning. But no spare tyre – there’s a sealant kit instead.TECHNOLOGYThe drivetrain is from the Cayenne S Hybrid: a 245kW/440Nm 3.0-litre petrol V6 supported by a 34kW/300Nm electric motor connected to a nickel metal hydride (NiMh) battery that stores energy captured while braking.It’s the first Panamera to get the Cayenne’s 8-speed sequential auto, with gearchanges adapted to better suit hybrid driving and the top two gears set for reduced revs to help economy.The fuel-saving story also includes a stop-start system and the separating clutch that at speeds up to 165km/h disengages the engine when you lift off the accelerator, allowing you to ‘sail’ (as Porsche calls it) without drawing on the fuel tank.It gives an electric-only range of 2km on flat ground – not a great distance, but enough to make for a guilt-free run to the corner shop, thumbing your nose at cyclists and walkers along the way.But the Panamera still has Porsche bloodlines under its greenish skin, so there are performance tricks like the boost mode triggered by accelerator kickdown, which combines the engine and electric motor’s outputs and delivers a total 279kW and 580Nm for a brief few seconds. And it’s no slouch at 6.0 seconds for 0-100km/h, with a top speed 270 km/h.To bring the go back to whoa, there’s a dual-circuit brake system with separate circuits for each axle, with six-piston anchors at the front and four-piston at the rear.DESIGNThe Aston Martin Rapide and Maserati Quattroporte both succeeded in adding a couple of doors to a largely coupe design, and coming out stunners. Panamera… not so much. Its bulbous butt looks awkward attached to what is essentially a 911-themed nose. But it’s form following function: in the Panamera’s back seat you get usable space and comfort for two adults. In the Brit and Italian you get leg cramps.SAFETYIt hasn’t been crash-tested yet, but with a strong body and arsenal of safety features, it should rate the full five stars.DRIVINGWith our initial drive an economy challenge on the ‘green’ tyres, running the Panamera on the electric side was surprisingly pleasant. The changes as it switches from engine to battery are barely perceptible – although you notice when it changes back again – and the sailing mode is nearly seamless. Unless you have the ‘E-power’ mode activated to suppress the swap to engine, it tends to flick over there on the slightest accelerator input.On an economy run, we managed to hit 6.9L/100km at one stage, and bring it in at 7.1L at the end of 90km. So the claimed fuel figures are achievable, but only if you keep constant watch on the instrument panel – and nobody wants to drive like that. Or at least, not in a Panamera.The ride is firmer than you’d expect for a luxury sedan, but that isn’t helped by the low rolling-resistance tyres, which clatter over patchy bitumen.But while you’re not going to push the car to track limits on that kind of rubber, they perform better than expected, holding on well enough for mildly enthusiastic driving even on a damp road.What works against their fuel-saving is that the Panamera is so smooth that it’s too easy to have the speed creep up without you noticing – which could be a danger to your wallet in other ways too.

But it won't be next year. We will have to wait until the 2013 season to see another (highly competitive) make in the premium A1 class of WRC. VW last week unveiled the concept of the Polo R WRC, the car with which it will compete from 2013 onwards.With "the hottest Polo of all time" VW is looking forward to this new challenge and is working on the project with the same passion with which it won the Dakar Rally in the past three years. VW will leverage its involvement in the Dakar for its WRC campaign.The race car will have a 230kW, 1.6-litre, TSI engine and four-wheel drive based on the Polo. New technical rules have come into effect in the WRC this year. For the first time, engines with a maximum displacement of 1,600 cc, direct injection and turbochargers are prescribed.These new regulations are an ideal fit for Volkswagen's production car philosophy - downsizing, high efficiency and reliability are top priorities. VW will prepare and enter the Polo R WRC as a factory commitment.The Wolfsburg-based squad can build on structures which have been established over the past few years.

Try a bridge that flips you from left-side driving to right-side. On the border between China and Hong Kong, Dutch design company NL have solved the problem with a unique bridge. It’s called the “Flipper” and it does just what the name suggests… it flips the lanes over. Left-side drivers from Hong Kong are seamlessly shunted over to the right and vice-versa for those coming in from China. The bridge separates and twists the two sides of traffic, using a figure-eight shape. It’s a stress-free change that guarantees you arrive safely on the other side… on the other side.

What makes for a good city car? If you want something that's small and nimble enough to nudge right up to your favourite barista's elbow - and won't bust your fuel budget idling through the traffic to get there - slip into the Holden Barina Spark.But if you want to spend the peak hour pretending you're Michael Schumacher, look elsewhere. The Spark lacks, well, spark.However it's cheerful, economical transport with enough features to keep you comfortable and amused around town.The base model CD at $12,490 is the choice against the Suzuki Alto at the same price. And while the Proton S16 and Chery J1 are $1000 and $1500 less respectively, they both feel even cheaper.Hyundai's Getz from $13,990 feels more solid, but lacks features the baby Holden has even at base level.The Spark CD gets all the usual kit, but also has stability control, six airbags, traction control and anti-skid brakes with electronic assistance systems, 14-in alloys, sporty body kit accents, and the crucial - for its target market - iPod/iPhone and USB inputs.Spending $13,990 for the Spark CDX doesn't get you much more: 15-in alloys, colour-accented vinyl seats, power rear windows, sporty steering wheel and a rear spoiler that adds to the looks but has no practical reason to exist.The bodykit touches give it a perky and cheerful face, and behind that there's a lot of practical space.Concealed handles on the rear doors and a larger spoiler on the CDX help disguise the blunt lines of the tail. But that squared-off butt coupled with the high roofline means you can get five adults in there reasonably comfortably, although the three in the back won't thank you after a long trip.The cabin combines function and funky, with a lot of backlighting on the centre stack, and instrument clusters styled to resemble aftermarket tech additions. The coloured seat accents and saddle stitching liven them up, but the mock sports design isn't as comfortable as it looks.When they named it Spark, they weren't thinking of the engine. The 1.2-litre four-cylinder will give you an anaemic 59kW of power and 107Nm of torque. The low outputs are probably the main reason there's only a five-speed manual transmission - an automatic would risk making the engine even more apathetic.It's frugal, no doubt, with a claimed fuel consumption of 5.6L/100km that is never going to break the budget.But you can't help thinking that a slightly larger engine with a bit more oomph, coupled to even the simplest four-speed auto, would be a better bait to lure the city driver.We shouldn't quibble about it having a four-star ANCAP crash rating, which is pretty much par for cheaper end of the light car class. And the Spark gets applause for having that well-stacked list of safety features.But a stronger body and swapping the rear drums for disks would add more confidence.It's happy enough on the urban circuit where it can show off its tight turning circle and compact body by slipping into tiny parking spots and skipping through narrow back alleys. And doing it all on a mere whiff of petrol.In town, also, hills and fully-laden trips are bound to be short. The Spark will struggle with both those tasks on any longer-term demand, and the engine's buzzy fretting as you raise the revs will let you know it's unhappy.The vague and relaxed gearing is frustrating in city traffic, and on the highway it takes planning - and a bit of courage -- to tackle overtaking. You'll need to push it hard to build up jousting speed. And even then, it will take fair amount of fortitude to tackle getting past a semi, and the Spark's light body will have you wondering if you can break free of the 18-wheeler's vortex.Long trips are also where you'll start to feel the cheapness of the seat design and the lack of noise dampening. The Spark is a city dweller, and happiest there.It's a good town car. If Holden added substance rather than dubious style for the up-specced CDX, it could be a great one.