The 1963 Volkswagen Beetle was seen in the second and third movies of the Herbie franchise.

The Dream Factory auction held in New York by Bonhams and Turner Classic Movies saw the original 1963 Volkswagen Beetle auctioned for $86,250. It is the most expensive VW Beetle to be auctioned yet. The bug earned the fame it enjoys today through a series of Hollywood movies – the Herbie franchise. First introduced in The Love Bug (1968), the car sold at the auction was the original one featured in Herbie Rides Again (1974) and Herbie Goes to Monte Carlo (1977). It is only car in the world to leave its tyre print at the Grauman’s Chinese Theatre in Hollywood.

After disappearing for several years, the famed Beetle was found four years ago in a warehouse in Florida and was sold less than a year ago on eBay for $55,200.

Confirming the authenticity of the car is the steering column installed under the front seat connected by a series of sprockets and pulleys that allowed the stunt driver to drive from the back, making it look like Herbie was driving himself in the movies. The car auctioned also features the iconic livery, with the red, white, and blue racing stripes and the '53' decals on the hood and doors of the car. The buyer's details are unknown and  the car is currently not in pristine condition and will need a proper restoration to get its Hollywood charm back. 

Courtesy : Autocar

Kawasaki to give its middle-weight offerings Ninja 650 and the ER6n an update. Expected to be launched in early 2016

Kawasaki first brought the popular Ninja 650 to India shores in 2011. A year after that the Japanese motorcycle manufacturer was quick to introduce an updated version. However, it has been more than three years since then and now Kawasaki has finally decided to give its popular middle-weight a much needed update. Along with the fully faired offering, Kawasaki will also give an upgrade to its naked ER-6n. 

While details of the updates are still sketchy, sources close to the company revealed that both these bikes will receive mere cosmetic changes. The Kawasaki Ninja 650 will now get a new colour scheme, with the green fairing fading out into white at the bottom. The black plastics too get a gloss finish instead of the matte black. The only mechanical change on the Ninja 650 is a new fuel filter. Similarly, the naked sibling ER-6n too will get just cosmetic changes with an identical green spring at the rear. Although the 2015 ER-6n will continue to be sold in black, it will now get green highlights. The logos too have been changed. 

As far as the engine is concerned, both these motorcycles will continue to sport the same 649cc, liquid-cooled parallel twin unit that makes 72.1PS of power at 8,500rpm and 64Nm of peak torque at 7,000rpm. All of this power is sent to the rear wheel via a 6-speed transmission. 

Pricing of the 2015 Kawasaki Ninja 650 as well as the 2015 ER-6n is expected to be more or less the same. Deliveries of the updated versions of both these bikes is expected to commence soon. 

Courtesy : Zigwheels

Heavy rains and the resultant floods in the city of Chennai have forced automobile manufacturers such as Ford, Hyundai and Renault-Nissan to suspend operations at their plants. This is the second time in a fortnight that the auto majors have had to take this step.

Ford claims that it has stopped production at its assembly and engine plant in the interest of its employees' safety. The floods have rendered many roads in the city unusable.

Hyundai said that it has suspended three shifts at it main plant is likely to resume operations only when the conditions permit.

The Renault-Nissan Alliance has also kept it plant closed and will restart operations only after the conditions improve.

Ford's plant has an annual rolex replica watches production capacity of 3.4 lakh engines and 2 lakh vehicles. The Hyundai plant has the capacity to roll out 6.8 lakh vehicles annually and the Renault-Nissan facility can produce 4.8 lakh vehicles per year.

Courtesy : Team BHP

Under the Polestar badge, Volvo is looking at developing high-performance versions of the sedan and estate with focus on electrification.

 Volvo revealed the all-new S90 on December 2, 2015. The sedan, based on the SPA platform underpinning the new XC90, is set to replace the ageing S80 in the company’s line-up internationally. An estate version, to be called V90 is also being developed and is expected to be revealed sometime in 2016.

Following the global reveal, Volvo boss Håkan Samuelsson stated that the company is planning on developing performance versions of the flagship sedan and estate under the Polestar badge with hybrid powertrains.

Samuelsson also suggested that Polestar’s future direction would include hybrid models and the brand is definitely going to focus on electrification.

Volvo’s R&D head, Peter Mertens added that Polestar aimed to offer sophisticated performance in place of ‘boy racer’ models with large engines. He said that Tesla had legitimised electric performance and Polestar aimed to offer greater sophistication along with “performance without regrets”.

On the topic of Polestar models, Nick Connor, MD, Volvo UK, said that there was a clash of ideals currently between the brand’s environmental-led image and its performance model, and the use of hybrid powertrains could help to tie the two sides together.

“Polestar optimising the T8 hybrid powertrain would be very interesting,” he said. “That would present a very interesting technical solution, with the ultimate power being combined with an environmental powertrain.”

Courtesy : Autocar