Articles by Karla Pincott

F1 champion Michael Schumacher has now contracted pneumonia according to a report in German newspaper Bild-Zeitung. The racing legend, 45, is still in a coma in Grenoble hospital after a skiing accident,  with recent media suggesting he was not responding to external stimuli.The latest report raises more concerns about Schumacher's health, with pneumonia often having a severely debilitating -- and sometimes fatal -- impact on those who are already ill.However there has not been official confirmation of the pneumonia, with Schumacher's spokeswoman, Sabine Kehm, responding to Bild that the family is "not commenting on speculation."Schumacher had been placed in an induced coma by doctors after his December 29 accident on the slopes of the exclusive Meribel ski resort in France, in which his head hit a rock causing brain swelling.His medical team said a fortnight ago they had started reducing anaesthetic and slowly awaken him, but reports earlier this week suggested that while he had blinked early in the process, it was not an intentional response and that he was not reacting to stimuli.If Schumacher has contracted pneumonia, doctors may delay the processs of waking him, as the respiratory condition would undermine his ability to breathe, meaning he would likely have to remain on the artificial ventilator needed by those in induced comas.Rumours have flared about Schumacher's condition, with the Grenoble hospital having to deny a flurry of social media speculation last week that he had died.This reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott

There hasn't been a turbocharged engine in a Ferrari since the 1980s F40 model. But turbo has returned to add more power to the updated California T being unveiled at Geneva motor show on March 4.The Prancing Horse has been hinting for some time that the increasing push for more efficient engines and tightening emissions restrictions would see turbos reappear in the line-up, and the new California is spearheading the bid to achieve those aims while still offering performance.The Italian supercar brand hasn't yet released the full details of the car, but has confirmed the turbocharged 3.9-litre V8 (an uprated version of the one in the Maserati Quattroporte) will deliver 412kW of power and a hammering 755Nm of torque -- up 74kW and a massive 270Nm on the current model.It's also able to trump its 0-100km/h time by 0.4 seconds, with the needle hitting the mark at just 3.6 seconds, and topping out where the speedo say 315km/h. And Ferrari says the torque curve increases continually across the rev range. Fuel economy is claimed to be 15 per cent better than the current model. It rides on revised suspension with new springs and dampers, and has carbon ceramic brakes to pull it up.The revised styling sees the California retain much of the outgoing model, but with updates to nose and tail that mix fresher touches with references to some of the icons of Ferrari history.A new triple-fence diffuser and exhaust tips have beautified the tail, headlights now echo those of the rest of the family, and the pontoon-fender styling salutes the iconic 250 Testa Rossa. The interior makeover includes new trim and accents, plus a 6.5-inch infotainment touchscreen.The California T will head into overseas showrooms shortly after the Geneva debut, and it tipped to reach here in the final quarter of the year.Watch the desktop version of the 2015 Ferrari California T turbo video here. This reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott 

Honda's next Civic Type-R is heading for a global unveiling at Geneva motor show in early March, and is starting to tease out some glimpses of what we'll see when the silk comes off.A sketch showing the lines of the show concept -- which is expected to be fairly close to the production version -- has just been released, but reveals some features that haven't been evident on the prototypes that have been spy-snapped during test runs.For a start, the rear spoiler is mounted with high bat ears, with the line accented by integrated tail-lights -- neither of which might make it to the showroom car, of course.There are also large vents in the rear wheelarches, echoing those behind the front ones. If functional, these could survive to production, but possibly in a watered-down form.We recently test-drove a prototype with the front wheels powered by Honda’s new direct-injected and turbocharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder, and judged it as brilliant. In production spec -- with a six-speed manual -- the output could be as high as 225kW, and Honda has already signalled it has its eyes on a Nurburgring lap record, which means beating the Renault Megane RS Trophy's time of 8:07.97 set in 2011.The Civic Type-R will go on sale in overseas markets early in 2015, and is on the wishlist for Honda Australia, although no decision has been announced yet. However, with the US not taking the Type-R, there's the expectation that some of its development might feed off into creating a hotter iteration of the CR-Z, which we would see here.This reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott

A massive sinkhole six metres deep has collapsed part of the National Corvette Museum in the US state of Kentucky, claiming eight cars -- two of which were on loan from Corvette parent company General Motors.The loaned cars are a 1993 ZR-1 Spyder and a 2009 ZR1 Blue Devil, while the other six owned by the museum are a 1962 Corvette, 1984 PPG Pace Car Corvette, 1992 Corvette (the 1,000,000th one built), 1993 Ruby Red 40th Anniversary Corvette, 2001 Mallett Hammer Z06 Corvette and 2009 Corvette(1,500,000th one built).   Museum spokeswoman Katie Frassinelli said no one was in the museum when the sinkhole opened -- estimated to be about 5.40am yesterday, when alarms were set off. The damage is in the original domed part of the museum, which was built in Bowling Green in 1994.Bowling Green is also home to the sole facility in which GM builds the Corvette. The region is in the middle of Kentucky's largest area for karst -- a geological formation in which layers of soluble bedrock such as limestone can dissolve, leaving huge underground caves.This reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott

 Audi has unleashed the S1 that will add some pepper to the A1 hatch range, and as expected it will be powered by a turbocharged 2.0-litre engine delivering 170kW of power and 370Nm of torque.A six-speed manual transmission delivers drive to all four wheels with the brand's quattro system, and although an automatic transmission is likely to be added there's no sign of it just yet.The car will roll out in both three- and five-door bodies (the latter badged the S1 Sportback), and as shown in the images leaked earlier today it's turned up the sporty dial with aggressive styling.Large air intakes, red accents in the headlight clusters, a rear hatch spoiler and quad exhausts all signal purpose, while the standard 17-inch wheels -- which can be optioned up an extra inch -- get 310mm front discs.The cabin features sports seats with a nappa leather option, stainless steel pedals, S-line gunmetal instruments and a 6.5-inch retracting colour screen.Audi is claiming a 0-100km/h time of 5.8 seconds for the three-door and 5.9 seconds for the five-door, with both electronically limited to a 250km/h top speed.The cars will go on sale in Europe almost immediately after the Geneva motor show debut next month, with pricing in the UK kicking off at the equivalent to about $45,000. Audi Australia has this evening officially confirmed the five-door S1 will be arriving here in the third quarter of this year, at a price of about $50,000.This reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott  

Another recall has hit Toyota, with the brand issuing a notice on the hybrid Prius for a defect that can see the cars suddenly lose power or stop, creating a safety risk for occupants and nearby traffic.The problem has been traced to a fault in the software that controls a power converter, and affects 1.9 million Prius cars around the world built between 2009 and 2014, with 5500 affected in Australia. The software failure can activate the car's warning lights and cause it to enter 'limp home' mode, allowing it to still be driven but only slowly."Because, in the worst case, the car could stop while driving we do consider this a potential safety issue and that's the reason why we are implementing this recall," a spokesman at Toyota's Japanese headquarters told media.However, Toyota Australia spokesman Mike Breen said there have been no incidents reported locally. "We're contacting local owners, who can take their Prius to a dealer and have the software remapped," he said, adding that the fix would take about an hour. Breen said there were no extra precautions Prius owners needed to take until the issue was rectified.The recall follows two previous ones for the Prius -- in 2013 and 2010 -- however this is the largest in scale. It comes on the heels of news that Toyota is close to settling a US$1.1 billion claim from a class action lawsuit by 16.3 million owners of vehicles whose value was affected by previous recalls.Toyota also yesterday announced an overseas recall on other models, including the RAV4 and Lexus RX350, but there will be no impact on Australia as the defective feature is not available here. 

An advertising team in Australia is behind the latest Top Gear trailer to be screened in markets around the world, showing the popular motoring show’s tame racing driver impatiently waiting for season 21 to start. The footage features The Stig mooning wistfully over a car toy that falls out of his 'Captain Slow' cereal, trying to pass time by mowing the lawn with a slalom of witches hats, and watching a tap drip. The trailer is part of a campaign created by Sydney's Zspace studio, directed by Gavain Browne and produced by Sam Hall, with the part sharing the writing. It will run in several countries around the world – including Australia and the US – that make up Top Gears weekly audience of about 350 million viewers. Watch the desktop version of the Stig counts down to season 21 trailer here.   This reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott  

Graco has issued the safety recall due to an issue with the buckles on the child restraint harnesses, which may fail to unlatch -- making it difficult to get the child out of the seat in an emergency. In some cases, children have had to be cut free from the seats.The recall of the Graco models in the US includes several sold in Australia, both by major retailers such as Toys'R'Us and online importers. The complete model recall list covers the Cozy Cline, Comfort Sport, Classic Ride 50, My Ride 65, My Ride with Safety Surround, My Ride 70, Size 4 Me 70, Smartseat, Nautilus, Nautilus Elite and Argos 70, and the on-sale period is from 2009 through to the end of 2013.The number recalled in the US is 3.8 million, however there is no official recall at this stage in Australia. Seven other models, including the Snugride infant seat, have been requested to be recalled by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration."NHTSA's investigation will remain open pending its evaluation of the Graco recall and until the Agency's consideration of the review of the seven remaining seat models is completed," the agency said in a statement.Graco has responded that fault lies with children dropping food and drink while in the seats, and the buckles can become more difficult to open after being contaminated by food or dried fluids over time. The company maintains the Snugride infant seats should not be included in the recall as they can be detached completely from their bases in emergencies. 

Mercedes-Benz has revealed the two-door coupe version of its flagship S-Class, featuring everything from Swarovski crystal blinged headlights to world-first technology that lets it 'bank' on corners.The crystals are an extra option -- 17 for the daytime running lights and 30 for the indicator lights in each cluster -- that combine with the standard LED light clusters.The 'curve tilting' system allows the car to lean into bends in the same way a motorcycle would "reducing the lateral acceleration acting on the vehicle's occupants," the press statement says, adding that it improves ride comfort particularly on country roads. By which they mean European country roads rather than the rutted goat tracks with which some parts of Australia are blessed.Integrated into the vehicle's 'Magic Body Control' and 'Active Body Control' systems that monitor the road ahead and adjust the suspension in preparation, the tilt tech works to counter the laws of physics by leaning the vehicle almost instantaneously up to 2.5 degrees. The new system uses cameras to scan up to 15 metres ahead and calculate when and how far to tilt.Apart from the bedazzled headlight clusters, the styling is largely a toned-down version of the coupe concept that was unveiled in Frankfurt last September, with a face set off by an imposing grille and sleek roof line.Under the bonnet in S500 form is a twin-turbocharged 4.6-litre V8 engine developing 335kW of power and 700Nm of torque, driving the rear wheels. More versions will join the line-up after the unveiling, paralleling the sedan with an S63 carrying a 430kW/900Nm 5.5-litre turbo V8, while an AMG variant is also in the works.The S-Class Coupe is expected to arrive in Australia in the final quarter of this year, and while pricing has not yet been confirmed, it's unlikely to move too far from the CL-Class coupe it replaces as the S sedan's companion."We don't expect there will a significant change in pricing (from the CL-Class which opens  with the $336,500 CL500)," Mercedes-Benz Australia spokesman David McCarthy says, adding that there could be some increase on the usually single-figure annual sales."There'll be some uplift in volume -- there always is," he says. Plus CL buyers are some of our most loyal. After the launch of the last one, a customer stopped by Mercedes-Benz Express to drop his three-year-old CL off before a flight, saw the new one sitting there and bought it the next day."McCarthy says the Australian range will over time grow to four variants. "We will of have V12 models in Australia -- there are customers that, no matter how good the V8 is, will always want the V12."So the S500 will be followed by the AMG, the S600 and S65 -- we're not bringing the 65 in the sedan but we will with the coupe.  The time frame is probably a bit stretched out for them to arrive, and at this stage don't know definitely what it will beAnd the Mercedes-Benz Australia is keen on getting the new curve tilt technology here as an option. "If it's available to us, we will have it. This is what our technology is about -- improving your life. If live is a matter of degrees, in the case of the S-Class coupe it's actually 2.5 degrees to make a difference."And having seen the car in the flesh, it's ... gorgeous isn't the right word, nor is stunning. It's just ...right."Watch the desktop version of the 2014 Mercedes-Benz S-Class Coupe trailer video here. This reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott 

Audi will be officially taking the wraps off the eagerly-anticipated S1 tomorrow, but an image leaked onto the internet is already giving a good idea of what to expect.The pocket rocket version of the A1 has been given aggressive looks, with large air intakes in the strongly-styled front bumper, black-framed mesh grille, gunmetal mirror housings and red accents in the headlight clusters. The bodykit includes pronounced side skirts and a rear-hatch mounted spoiler.As expected, in addition to the S1 badging it sports the quattro decal that tells us it's underpinned by Audi's all-wheel drive system. Drivetrain details will be revealed tomorrow, but look for a turbo 2.0-litre four-cyllinder engine under the bonnet -- with outputs of 170kW of power and 370Nm of torque -- mated to a six-speed manual and possibly a seven-speed dual clutch auto.The engine is tipped to be a detuned version of the one carried by the larger and heavier S3, with the S1 hopefully still able to near its bigger sibling's 0-100km/h times of 5.4 seconds manual and 5.0 for the auto.The A1 range is currently topped by the Sport version at $39,990, so the S1 is likely to sit somewhere in the mid-to-high 40s.