Articles by Karla Pincott

It's a case of back to the future for the 2014 Pirelli Calendar -- the 50th anniversary edition -- with the Italian company raiding their vault for a set of unused photos originally shot for the 1986 edition by late legend Helmut Newton.The Newton images were commissioned in 1986 by Pirelli's Italian HQ, but at the same time their London office (which at the time handled 'The Cal') commissioned Bert Stern for the job. There was reportedly a bit of conflict, which evaporated when Newton had to leave the project unfinished to meet other commitments. However his close assistants finished the pages to his directions, and they were stored in Pirelli's Italy archive -- waiting for their day.That day has come, with the 2014 calendar year matching the 1986 one, and Newton's stunning -- and now wonderfully retro -- shots being published as the 50th anniversary Cal. There are the expected beautiful women, but also plenty of stunning cars (and a few tyres) ... features that have largely been missing from recent Pirelli calendars, which have focused either solely on the female form or used to illustrate environmental and charity themes.Last year's calendar was photographed by Steve McCurry – famed for the 1985 National Geographic cover of a green-eyed Afghan girl  -- who shot the 2013 Pirelli Calendar in Brazil with the models all fully clothed. The calendar featured Karlie Kloss, Summer Rayne, Isabeli Fontana, Hanaa Ben Abdesslem, Liya Kibede, Kyleigh Kuhn and a heavily pregnant Adriana Lima, all chosen because of their high-profile involvement with charities.The previous year saw fashion photographer Mario Testino shoot a line-up that included Kate Moss, with nudity strongly featured in the 2012 edition.  Other notable photographers who have created previous calendars include the star designer Karl Lagerfeld – the maestro of the Chanel fashion house – who produced a striking series of monochrome images based on the gods of Olympus for the 2011 Pirelli Calendar.Australian model superstars Kerr, Catherine McNeil and Abbey Lee Kershaw were among the eleven in the 2010 Pirelli Calendar, shot by Terry Richardson, the outrageous American fashion photographer whose images are often sexually provocative and can border on the graphic.Renowned wildlife photographer Stephen Beard and his wife shot and produced the 2009 Pirelli Calendar, which featured supermodels with rare animals -- and strange insects -- in somewhat dangerous poses in Africa.This reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott

The electric sports car unveiled at Tokyo motor show is a radical concept inspired by Nissan's innovative Deltawing Le Mans car, and the Japanese company is keen to develop it into a production version. The two-door BladeGlider is "a proposal for the future direction of Nissan electric vehicle development and an exploratory prototype of an upcoming production vehicle" the concept's press statement says. The concept's wedge shape -- 1 metre at the front spreading to nearly double that at the rear -- draws on the Deltawing's aerodynamic design and promises to echo its handling abilities. "I think that the excitement of the racing car should be mirrored in the excitement of driving the road car," Nissan Motorsport Innovation director (and Deltawing and ZEOD designer) Ben Bowlby said of the BladeGlider development his division supported. "I think there are elements we can bring from the race track to make these future road cars more exciting, more fulfilling and give greater driving pleasure." Behind the wing doors of the fighter jet body -- with its characteristics for downforce, low drag and centre of gravity -- are three seats in a triangle formation, with the driver at centre front of the high-tech cockpit. The driver's seat slides automatically when the door is opened, to allow access to the passenger seats. While the concept is powered by similar electric technology to the Leaf road car and the ZEOD race car, but Nissan says the BladeGlider would be a good candidate for in-wheel electric motors driving the rear wheels with a battery pack sited low towards the tail for better stability and handling. The carmaker believes the concept in Tokyo points to a new 'clean slate' direction for electric cars. "The goal was to revolutionise the architecture of the vehicle to provoke new emotions, provide new value and make visible for consumers how Zero Emissions can help redefine our conception of vehicle basics," said Nissan product strategy and planning general manager Francois Bancon. Watch the BladeGlider in action on our desktop site. This reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott

Jaguar has given us the closest look so far at the vehicle that will become their first SUV to hit the market -- likely within three years -- unveiling a C-X17 concept with some real-world practicality at Guangzhou motor show in China. This is the third motor show iteration of the C-X17, but the clue to be it being the closest to production reality lies in the number of seats. Rather than four impractical buckets and a couple of pop-up extras, the SUV in Guangzhou sported a family-friendly five seats. China will be a prime market for the Jaguar SUV, with buyers keen on luxury brands but having to cope with substandard roads that are an undercarriage-wrecking hazard for low-slung sports cars. Jaguar says the interior of the latest C-X17 was designed specifically for China, with a panoramic glass roof pouring light in onto the cabin trims of two-tone leather, black anodised metal, ruthenium, aluminium and walnut. Onboard technology includes a 28-speaker Meridian 3D surround audio system with speaker mounted in the door pillars, a touchscreen in the back of the centre console for rear passengers, and a doorguard sensor that raises an alert if a door is being opened in the path of approaching traffic, including China's ubiquitous mopeds and bicycles. This reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott     _______________________________________  

If you've watched even a single episode of Top Gear, you'll wonder why it took this long for police to catch the hosts speeding. Staple fare on the popular BBC show includes segments with Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond -- and occasionally James 'Captain Slow' May -- speeding supercars on public highways all over the world. However, this time they've been caught, fined on the spot, and banned from driving in France after the gendarmes clocked them allegedly doing more than 140km/h in a 90km/h zone. That 50km/h over the legal limit puts them in the instant no-drive bin on French soil. The pair ended up in passenger seats, with the Top Gear camera crew driving the Aston and Porsche back to the UK. It has not been revealed how long the driving ban will last, and the show could argue that their segments shot in France are valuable tourism publicity for the country. They'd been caught on radar with Clarkson behind the wheel of an Aston Martin Vanquish and Hammond helming a Porsche 911 GT3, and then pulled over when they went through a later tollbooth – a common practice on French highways, where the registration numbers of offending cars are sent on ahead to police waiting at each toll point. And Clarkson, it seems, was not happy, judging by his column in The Sun newspaper. "If you are going to break the speed limit, make sure you are not in France," he wrote. "You would be advised to pay attention to what happened next. Because the on-the-spot fine was everything we had in our wallets. We were left penniless. And they took away our driving licences. No court case. No arguing. Nothing." What they did get was some extra publicity for the Christmas DVD they were filming at the time, titled The Perfect Road Trip -- which coincidentally went on sale the day after Clarkson's column appeared.   Watch the desktop version of "The Perfect Road Trip" DVD trailer here.   This reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott  

Subaru debuted several cars at Tokyo and Los Angeles motor shows this week -- including their all-new hot hatch WRX -- with volumes of information to accompany them. Or at least, most of them. Ironically, the car about which we're most curious was unveiled with close to no information being revealed.The Cross Sport Concept on their Tokyo stand looks like they've morphed their rear-wheel drive BRZ sports hero into a sharp sports wagon or shooting brake version. The higher-riding body's nose looks distinctly BRZ, but it flows back into a sleek roofline with sharply raked rear two-piece decklid under which is a wood-lined luggage floor.Subaru has said close to zilch about the Cross Sport except that it is a "combination of sport and utility" that measures 430cm (up 6cm on the BRZ). Oh, and that they view it as "the next trend in urban SUVs". Comment from the unveiling is that it weighs in at 1250kg (the auto BRZ is 1238kg) and is riding on the BRZ's rear-wheel drive platform.That last part of the two-paragraph official information suggests that we're looking at a pointer to a future shooting brake-like model: a handsome, sporty three-door elongated hatch aimed at urban streets and likely to carry at least the choice of having a single driven axle rather than only Subaru's all-wheel drive system.This reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott _______________________________________ 

Nissan's performance division Nismo is putting effort into rolling out a wave of variants that put some heat under their cooking brand models. And they've injected a 'big, bad shot of adrenaline' into the mild-mannered  Nissan Pulsar (Sentra in the US market) Pulsar, unveiling it at Los Angeles motor show as a hi-po Nismo version.It's dressed to thrill far better than its Pulsar seed -- even the SSS -- with aggressive race-inspired body kit, track-tuned suspension with custom springs and shock absorbers, muscled-up arches housing 19-inch wheels behind which are the Brembo brake calipers swiped from the 370Z, and some show cues such as smoked headlight glass. Nissan says the  interior gets Recaro sports seats, chunky little steering wheel, Alcantara suede and carbon 'fibber' accents.But it's not a case of style without substance. Under the bonnet is a turbocharged 1.8-litre four-cylinder engine developing 179kW of power and 325Nm of torque -- trumping the Pulsar SSS by about 40kW and 85Nm -- delivered to the front wheels via a six-speed manual transmission and limited-slip differential.Nissan hasn't announced that they'll put the car into production, but have given some strong hints in the statement that they are "revisiting the small car performance genre and teasing the future with ... the Nissan Sentra Nismo Concept"."Fans have asked that we bring back a high-performance Sentra straight from the factory, just like in generations past," Nissan vice-president of product planning Pierre Loing said in the press statement. "With Nismo, our in-house motorsports arm already producing versions of the 370Z Nismo, Juke Nismo, Juke Nismo RS and upcoming GT-R Nismo, we wanted to demonstrate where we could go in the future." Watch the desktop version of the Nissan Sentra Nismo unveiling here.  This reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott_______________________________________ 

Nissan has given the Juke baby crossover a serious performance boost with the Nismo RS version revealed at Los Angeles motor show. It follows the styling cues of the Nismo sold overseas, but gets a slightly more aggressive body kit with red and black accents, with those colours continuing into the leather and Alcantara interior set off by carbon-look trims. But the more welcome news is that the Juke's 1.6-litre four-cylinder engine has been poked to now put out 160kW of power and 285Nm of torque -- a respectable lift from the current standard Juke top-spec Ti-S's 140kW/240Nm (and the 147kW/250Nm of the slightly warmer Nismo in overseas markets). The poking largely took the form of a reprogrammed CPU and larger-breather exhaust, but the transmissions weren't left out. The six-speed manual gearbox also gets shorter lower ratios and a limited-slip differential to better deliver the outputs to the front wheels. Paddle-shifters have been added to the all-wheel drive version's continuously variable transmission, but the downside to the auto is reduced outputs of 158kW and 250Nm. The good news is that handling is sharpened by reprogramming for the torque-vectoring system. The RS sits lower than the standard Juke and gets a stiffer chassis with extra bracing, with other underpinning tweaks including more responsive electric power steering, and larger front and vented rear brakes -- all wearing red calipers. Nissan hasn't announced which markets it will roll out to -- or when -- but with the standard Juke having only recently arrived here, and the current Nismo still a 'business case in progress' for Nissan Australia, it could be a while before we can get our hopes up of seeing the Nismo RS here.   Watch the desktop version of the Nissan Juke Nismo RS official video here.   This reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott   _______________________________________  

Mercedes-Benz performance arm AMG has revealed photos and details at Los Angeles motor show of the new GLA45 AMG concept we got glimpses of yesterday in a teaser video.

The fourth-generation Subaru WRX has made its global debut in LA, severing the ties to its Impreza lineage and becoming an independent model that shares only a couple of body panels with the Impreza.It will be offered only as a sedan, with hatch sales not strong enough -- even here in the car's third-biggest market -- to warrant another five-door body. As we reported earlier this week, the current 2.5-litre engine has been ditched in favour of the WRX's first turbocharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder boxer engine since 2005 -- although the WRX STi will continue to carry a 2.5-litre.The WRX also gets new transmissions and technology, and sleeker styling -- although, as predicted, far more conservative than the WRX concept from New York motor show earlier this year.The 2.0-litre mill is related to the one used in the Forester XT and Subaru BRZ, and for the WRX delivers 199kW of power at 5600rpm and 349Nm of torque between 2000-5200rpm – not a big lift on the current model's 195kW and 343Nm -- and peak power arrives 800rpm later. But manual transmission fans will applaud the addition of an extra cog to raise the count to six, although there may be some dissension over the automatic getting a continuously variable transmission, although Subaru says the CVT with it's Sports mode eight faux gears is more responsive and sports-oriented than the garden variety boxes.There were suggestions earlier this week from leaked information that there could be an acceleration penalty, with leaked figures reporting the new manual WRX getting to 100km/h in 5.6 seconds compared to the current 5.3, and the CVT auto in 6.1. However Subaru has not released official performance data, but is promising the new car will slice time off the outgoing model -- and be more efficient than the current 8.1L/100km fuel economy.The manual car's all-wheel drive will have a centre differential with 50:50 default torque split, while the auto gets Subaru's Variable Torque Distribution with 45:55 default front-to-rear split. The new WRX has better torsional rigidity, firmer suspension and bigger brakes and tyres (235/45 17-inch) plus faster-tuned electric power steering.The car is slightly longer and has a bigger wheelbase, with a promise of more rear and luggage space -- the latter enhanced by a split rear seatback. The cabin has been given an airier treatment with more glass, and gets a flat-bottomed sports steering wheel, large central screen -- and smaller one with boost data -- premium HarmanKardon nine-speaker audio, carbon-fibre look and red-stitched trim. On the safety list are seven airbags (including driver's kneebag) and reversing camera.Prices and local specification are yet to be confirmed, and more information will be available closer to March next year, when the WRX rolls into Australian showrooms with its new looks and smaller engine. Let the arguments begin...

Ford has revealed the next-generation Edge SUV that is expected to replace the Territory after the carmaker closes its Australian manufacturing operations in 2016 -- although the company has so far declined to discuss the SUV's future.The Edge concept revealed in a preview for the Los Angeles motor show is tipped to launch in US markets late next year, to be sold there as a replacement for the current Edge. However it would also be a contender to slot into the Australian Ford SUV range above the small Kuga and below the Everest. Ford has not revealed any details, but the Edge is likely to be based on the same platform as the coming Mondeo and to be powered by a choice of both diesel and petrol engines. Ford has suggested the line-up will include an efficient EcoBoost unit with stop-start technology, with fuel economy helped by active grille shutters that open and close to optimise both engine operating temperature and aerodynamics, reducing drag at higher speeds.The lower front fascia also includes air curtains and ducting to channel air from the nose through the wheel wells and and down the flanks.It may also later add a hybrid drivetrain and new tech features, including a self-parking system that can parallel park itself and operate remotely with the driver outside the vehicle -- showcased on the car in LA along with collision avoidance systems, adaptive steering and LED headlights.The cabin focuses on a premium feel with a 10-inch touchscreen interface, leather for the steering wheel, hand-stitching on the instrument panel and chrome accents.