Articles by Karla Pincott

The car chase is usually the prime sequence in any action film worth the name. And usually it’s mandatory for the car chase to feature cars. But that hasn’t stopped Carlton from mounting their own carless chase. In the latest of their series of Carlton Draught beer ads, created by Clemenger BBDO in Melbourne, we’re treated to the classic scenario of four bank robbers being chased by police. But in this version they’re on foot, with beer in hand. Car movie buffs will spot salutes to Bullitt, The Italian Job, Blues Brothers – and quite a few more top chase scenes.  The hilltop air-time, the culvert bank, the police roadblock: all the favourite clichés are there. The campaign launched online today, and will also be seen on TV during the AFL and NRL  finals on Seven and Nine on September 7, followed by a run in cinemas around action movie screenings. Enjoy the video… responsibly.  

Armoured limousines are no rarity in Russia, where oligarchs, politicians and - if possible - even shadier characters - have a mind on keeping luxuriously safe from critics. That usually means the country’s leading security vehicle builders, Armortech, are stretching and strengthening BMWs, Audis and even a Bentley Mulsanne. However for the Moscow motor show, Armortech’s star will be a bullet-proof Hyundai Equus sedan, stretched to 5.5m and beefed up with an extra 1.4 tonnes of protection and equipment to tip the scales at a whopping 3.5 tonnes. The Equus, which is not sold here, is already on the market as a limousine in Asia, but the Russian treatment takes it to a much tougher level. Dubbed the Hyundai Equus Limousine Security, the car has been engineered to a VR7 rating of ballistic protection against heavy-calibre ammunition and explosives. Special attention has been given to weaknesses such as door gaps - where a blast-resistant material overlaps the doors under the skin – and reinforcing door hinges, fuel tank and engine bay. If the car is attacked, passengers can resort to a high-tech communications system to call for back-up, and air filters, fire-suppressants and an extra battery for power while they wait for the cavalry to arrive. And waiting is probably the wisest option, as a fast getaway seems unlikely with the weighty armoured Equus still relying on the standard 5.0-litre V8 engine that powers the normal car.  

Swiss artist Dante Rubli has created a 24-carat gold 1:24 scale sculpture of the original Lamborghini Miura that was unveiled at the 1966 Geneva auto show. Lamborghini made the show car available to Dante to work from, and the solid gold result will go on display at the 2012 Formula 1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in November – and for sale at around $100,000. The 24-carat Lamborghini Miura is a one-off, but if that figure is a bit steep for you, there will be another 50 of the model created in silver and gold plated at around half the price each. This is the fourth gold car artwork from Dante, who has previously created an interpretation of the Mercedes Benz ‘Gullwing’ 300SL owned by Pablo Picasso, followed by a Ferrari 250 GTO and an Aston Martin DB5.  

The high-performance Mitsubishi Evo has been given extra equipment, and more attractive pricing across the range.The base model Evo X with five-speed manual has dropped $5400, now coming in at $56,990.   Adding the twin-clutch sport shift transmission (TC-SST) will set you back $5000, but the new price of $61,990 is also a drop of $5,400 – and comes with an upgraded brake package.The Evo X gets a new 6.1-in colour screen infotainment system with Apple device connectivity and Bluetooth streaming.The top-spec Lancer Evolution MR has dropped a whopping $8900, which lowers the price to $65,990. And the goodies list gains a new 7-in colour touchscreen audio/comms/satnav system with 3D maps.The options price list has also been spannered, with the performance suspension, brakes and 18-in wheels package slicing $2000 off the previous $5000 price.The 2013 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X is powered by the current model’s 217kW/366Nm 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine.PricesMitsubishi Lancer Evolution five-speed manual $56,990Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution twin-clutch auto $61,990Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution MR twin-clutch auto $65,990

The Mercedes Drive Thru will be built in the lobby of the prestigious Old Selfridge Hotel in London’s upmarket Mayfair area, allowing diners to pilot their cars through the pop-up eatery.In true drive-in diner style, they’ll be served by wait staff on rollerblades, who’ll be dishing up food from Bompas and Parr – the Brit wonderchefs who have tuned the jelly mould into haute cuisine.The Mercedes Drive Thru opens in September, and includes a light show to keep driving diners entertained, while they’re also treated to a close look at the brand’s new A-Class small car.The four-day event is being mounted in collaboration with digital magazine "The Avant/Garde Diaries" and British multimedia collective Jason Bruges Studio. Mercedes-Benz said the Drive Thru was about “setting the artistic stage for the new A-Class”.“The new A-Class is all set to bring the trend towards monotony in the compact car segment to an end,” Mercedes-Benz head of brand communication Anders Sundt Jensen, said in a statement.  "It is all about questioning what exists already and unleashing unimagined synergies"The German brand says it is aiming the novel marketing exercise at the youth demographic – although the food is bound to be better than nuggets and fries, and there’s no word on whether you get Happy Meal toys. 

A woman has filed a $1.7 billion ($1.6b AUD) claim against the city Santa Monica, California, saying that new wi-fi parking meters are affecting her health. Denise Barton, who suffered neurological damage after a car accident when she was a child, says the parking meters are causing her ear infections, neck tightness and irregular menstrual cycle. "I figured ($1.7b is) the value of my life and health considering how much I had to go through as a child,” Barton told ABC News in the US. It's also the value of taking away my choice of the best way to protect my health without my consent." A spokesperson for the city of Santa Monica said the parking meters – which can process payments via credit card and smartphone – use a wi-fi network for about two to four seconds in each operation. "The meters use basic wireless technology that is commonly available and utilized in wi-fi and cellular communications," he said. Claim officials at the municipal authority are examining the complaint.  

While Chinese cars are known more for imitation than innovation, that might change with the launch yesterday of the world's first remote-control car.Revealed in concept form at April’s Beijing motor show, the Su Rui -- a small Corolla-like sedan -- goes on sale with a handheld controller that lets you manoeuvre the car while outside it. Buttons on the controller allow you to directing the car forward, in reverse and turn it.Before you start picturing unmanned high-speed havoc, you should know the operating distance is limited to 10 metres, and the speed to 2km/h -- although we suspect some clever young boffins are already trying to work out how to crack the limiter system.BYD said in the statement the Remote Driving Control technology would be welcomed by people with tight parking spots – or who lack umbrellas. “It is a perfect solution when the parking space is not wide enough for the driver to exit the car once parked. In windy and rainy weather, drivers can even remotely move the car to his or her side without getting wet,” BYD said.The Remote Driving Control technology won Best Leading Science and Technology in the 2012 Beijing Auto Show. 

Connected cars are just a whisper away – and bound to get closer if results are successful in two large trials on opposite sides of the world: the US and Germany. Ann Arbor, Michigan, is rolling out the largest ever fleet of connected vehicles, with 3000 cars, trucks and buses driven by local residents with the aim of measuring how effectively such a large number of V2V (vehicle to vehicle) connections will communicate over a year. The vehicles are all equipped with a mix of Wi-Fi, cameras and radar, and will be driven by two groups of people for six months each as they go about their everyday lives. The US government’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) will analyse the results to see if the technology reduces collisions, road toll and injuries, and whether it should be made mandatory on new vehicles. The field trial in Frankfurt, Germany, will see 120 specially equipped vehicles from a range of brands – led by Mercedes-Benz parent Daimler – connected to each other and also to road infrastructure for the next few months. Daimler says the German government-sponsored trial is the largest ever of V2X – combining V2V and vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) – and results will determine whether the combination of communications not only reduces accidents but also congestion, with lights being able to respond to changes in traffic flow.   See our full feature on driving in the future in your Carsguide newspaper section this weekend.  

Ken Block has filed a suit to stop co-producer of first three Gymkhana videos using Gymkhana.com site. The world’s most famous hoon, Ken Block, filed the lawsuit against his former co-producers Mad Media, who co-produced and co-directed the first three of Block-busting viral videos. The suit claims Mad Media’s site Gymkhana.com is trying to profit from Block’s Gymkhana action despite having nothing to do with it, except “recording of Gymkhana videos”. The site covers rally and drift sports, and car news in general, but does not feature any of the Ken Block footage. The site carries a disclaimer stating it’s “not affiliated, connected, or associated with, and is not sponsored or approved by Ken Block or DC Shoes." Block is demanding Mad Media stop using the Gymkhana.com domain, transfer its ownership to him, and pay damages and compensation for any money made while using it. Mad Media’s Joshua Martelli commented in a report on auto website Jalopnik – who broke the story -- that the lawsuit was “completely without merit and we intend to defend it vigorously. Anyone who is familiar with our work can plainly see that it could hardly be described as a recording," he said. However Block told Jalopnik that the Gymkhana video creative concept, film direction and editing direction were done by him and his DC Shoes and rally team members. Block owns the trademark Gymkhana, but Martelli counters with the assertion that "gymkhana" is more than a brand, it’s a sport that has been around since the early 1900s. "No one has the right to prevent the public from using the word gymkhana," he said. Block said he tried to acquire the site from Mad Media in an informal approach, but was "blindsided" by the response. “He essentially told me to go f[] myself, which came as a huge shock to me," Block said, adding that he’d believed he had been on good terms with Mad Media up to that point. Both sides say they’re in the right, and in this for the long haul.  

The car would face off against the popular BMW Mini and Audi A1 in the booming premium small car segment. But partnership with another carmaker would be sought for such a project, a report in industry journal Automotive News Europe said. Volvo CEO Stefan Jacoby told the journal a subcompact car project would require a partnership to share costs, and a smaller engine – most likely developed in cooperation with the Swedish brand’s Chinese parent, Zhejiang Geely. Jacoby pointed to there being a reasonable business case for such a project, saying ‘small’ did not translate as ‘cheap’ in the entry-premium market, which even in Europe’s slumped economy saw 19 per cent growth last year with 332,262 sales – led by the Audi A1."Premium customers no longer define luxury based on the size of the car or number of cylinders, there are other attributes which will come into play," he said. However Jacoby told the journal there were other tasks to be cleared from his jobsheet before he could look at a new subcompact. "My priority is to bring the Scalable Platform Architecture online and to renew Volvo's core ranges, the 60, the 80/90 and the SUVs," Jacoby said. "When I have managed this, I will look to diversification, going into niches, doing a sportback and also looking to smaller cars."