Wheelers Blog & News

Last month it was revealed that Mini will be teaming up with Toyota to co-develop a small city car platform. In other words, the Rocketman concept Mini revealed in 2011 will finally see production, only it’ll be called the Mini Minor. And now a few project updates have come to light. Toyota is very much a full partner in this project because the basic platform will also underpin a successor to the disappointing (sales wise) iQ. At the moment, it’s being called the Toyota Starlet but this may...

After a 13-year absence from competition, Mohammed Bin Sulayem is stepping out of retirement this weekend to contest the second round of the 2015 UAE National Rally Championship.   Bin Sulayem’s last competitive appearance was at the 2002 edition of the Dubai International Rally but the UAE driver has accepted an invitation to compete in the Sharjah Rally from the founder and President of the Emirates Motorsport Club, Sheikh Abdullah Al Qassimi.   Bin Sulayem, who has a record 14 FIA...

Williams has leapt back into contention as a likely 2015 force.   After the first two tests at Jerez and Barcelona, it was suggested that in light of the Grove team's low-profile performance, rivals might be set to overtake Williams as 'best of the rest' behind Mercedes this year.   But as upgrades were added up and down pitlane on Thursday as the final test before Melbourne began, it was Felipe Massa who set the headline time.   His laptime, in fact, was easily the quickest of all the...

Audi unveiled the S3 Cabrio at last year's Geneva Motor Show and now it's returning with 426 PS (313 kW) thanks to MTM. Set to be unveiled next week, the high-performance convertible has a 2.0-liter TSFI four-cylinder engine that has been equipped with a new turbocharger, a sports exhaust system and an MTM Engine Management Unit.  Thanks to these modifications, the engine produces an impressive 426 PS (313 kW) and 530 Nm (390 lb-ft) of torque. This enables the drop top to accelerate from...

Two weeks before the 2015 season begins, the participation of McLaren-Honda's star driver is in doubt.   Team supremo Ron Dennis addressed the media in Barcelona on Thursday and admitted it is possible Fernando Alonso will not be in Melbourne.   Five days after the Spaniard's mysterious crash at the circuit last Sunday, Dennis insisted the British team is not "concealing" anything about the circumstances, not "protecting" the team or its driver.   It is amid an air of confusion and...

McLaren has joined fellow creditor Ferrari in helping the former Marussia team to survive.   Ferrari, owed millions by the struggling backmarker, has agreed to keep supplying its 2014-spec turbo V6 engine to the team reborn as 'Manor' for 2015.   McLaren, a separate technology partner, is also owed millions by Manor.   But the struggling team has come out of administration in the past days according to a Company Voluntary Agreement, under which creditors agree to be repaid over a...

Flavio Briatore says Fernando Alonso does not remember the crash that has left him in a Barcelona hospital.McLaren has denied wild conspiracy theories about the cause of the accident that so far has seen the Spanish driver spend two nights in hospital recovering from concussion and the effects of his post-crash sedation.His manager, Luis Garcia Abad, eased the F1 world's gravest fears late on Monday when he published to social media a photo of the 33-year-old smiling and giving a thumbs-up...

A car wrap – even one as cool as this Tron-themed wrap – doesn’t necessarily add value to a car, but it certainly doesn’t hurt it either, especially when its finished in chrome and covering a Lamborghini Aventador. If you like what you see, then this gorgeous supercar is currently up for sale with Ferrari-Maserati of Fort Lauderdale. It has less than 6,000 miles on the clock, rolled off the production line in 2012, and is being offered for $379,900. Complementing the chrome Tron wrap is a...

Honda has announced a management shakeup which will see President Takanobu Ito being replaced by Takahiro Hachigo. Set to occur in June, the change is a big promotion for Hachigo as he will become President, CEO and Representative Director.  Ito, on the other hand, will remain on the company's board and assume the post of Director and Advisor to Honda Motor. While Hachigo isn't widely known, he began his career at Honda as an engineer in 1982.  Over the course of his employment, he oversaw...

Fernando Alonso was "conscious" as he was airlifted to hospital on Sunday after a crash on the final day of the Barcelona test.   The Spaniard was initially taken to the circuit medical centre by ambulance, after his McLaren hit the unprotected concrete wall at turn four.   The Circuit de Catalunya said Alonso is "ok and conscious"; a brief message reiterated by his manager, Luis Garcia Abad.   "It seems that he is ok," circuit officials added, explaining that the trip to hospital is...