All posts by Francis Mitterrand

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Dacia Sandrider

The 2024 Dakar Rally ended last month, and Romanian manufacturer Dacia unveiled its vehicle for next season, the Dacia Sandrider. It is a vehicle that the team will use next year in the Ultimate T1+ class in the Dakar Rally, but also in the World Rally-Raid Championship.

The buggy is inspired by the Manifesto model that Dacia revealed two years ago. The carbon body of the racing car is placed on a tubular chassis, and experts from the British company Prodrive participated in the development of the car.

The Sandrider will have to undergo numerous tests before its first appearance scheduled at this year’s Morocco Rally, which will be run from October 5 to 11. Next season, Team Dacia will have three cars that will be used on difficult terrains around the world, and they will be driven by top rally drivers Sébastien Loeb, Cristina Gutierrez Herrero and Nasser Al-Attiyah.

When it comes to the powertrain, the Sandrider is the most powerful car in the history of Dacia. It is powered by a 3.0L biturbo V6 engine with 360 hp (268 kW) at 5,000 rpm and 398 lb-ft (539 Nm) of torque. power is sent to all wheels via a 6-speed sequential gearbox. The car is mounted on 17-inch rims wrapped in tires suitable for all types of terrain on which the Sandrider will compete.

Source: Dacia

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Dacia Sandrider
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Germany predicts a drop in demand for EVs in 2024

In the last year, the demand for electric vehicles in Europe has been on the rise. One of the largest manufacturers, the BMW Group, achieved an increase in EV sales in 2023 by 74.4% compared to 2022. However, now the German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA) is predicting a drop in demand for EVs in 2024.

Of course, this does not apply to the world market, which expects a growth in demand for EVs this year as well. This could ultimately bring export growth (19 percent to 1.45 million vehicles) but also higher profits for German manufacturers.

At the end of last year, the coalition government of Chancellor Olaf Scholz completely abolished subsidies for electric vehicles, a year earlier than previously planned. Germany will sell over 524,000 fully electric cars in 2023 – more than any other market in Europe. The predicted drop in sales this year means that the share of EVs in Germany will drop from 18 to 16 percent (about 74,000 vehicles less than in 2023).

Inflation, high prices and poor infrastructure of charging stations mostly affected demand, so many manufacturers postponed the introduction of new electric models. Even the leading car rental companies are looking for alternatives for their fleets due to the high cost of maintaining electric vehicles.

The VDA expects the German car market to drop by 1 percent to 2.82 million in 2024. At the same time, the global market is forecast to grow by 2 percent to 77.4 million cars. “Problems in the supply chain have largely been resolved, but the business environment for German carmakers remains challenging,” said VDA chief economist Manuel Kallweit.

Source: German Association of the Automotive Industry – VDA

News

Bugatti announced the arrival of a new hypercar this year

After perhaps the most controversial edition of the Chiron model, the Chiron Profilée, Bugatti has announced that it will introduce a new hypercar in the middle of the year. There is not a lot of information about the car at the moment, we know that it will be powered by an internal combustion engine, but not a W16.

Earlier, the CEO of Bugatti-Rimac, Mate Rimac, said that the public will be amazed by the Chiron’s successor, which will have unprecedented performance and that its drive will be “significantly electrified”, but based on a very attractive ICE. The former director of Bugatti’s design, Achim Anscheidt, said last year that the new model will be even more impressive than the Mistral.

Bugatti has been working on the new hybrid hypercar for three years, and the design will be done by Anscheidt, who retired last year after nearly two decades at the head of the design department.

The new Bugatti model will have a new chassis, and when it comes to the powertrain, some rumors say it will be powered by an 8.3-liter naturally aspirated V16 Cosworth engine, while others speculate a smaller engine like the V12 in the Lamborghini Revuelto or the V8 engine from Volkswagen Groups. The least chance is that it will be a new engine.

Source: Bugatti