All posts by Francis Mitterrand

News

Audi RS6 e-tron sedan coming in 2025

In 2021, Audi started the all-electric RS6 e-tron concept, and now, two years later, they are working on a production car in a hurry to catch up with competing models from Mercedes and BMW. This all-electric four-door Audi model is expected to hit the market in 2025.

This sedan will join the Avant e-tron version in this performance line 15 years after Audi discontinued it, keeping only the Avant. The automaker from Ingolstadt decided to stop production of the RS 6 sedan in 2010 out of fear that the RS 6 could “destroy” the RS 7 sedan at the time. Audi plans to equip both versions with a newly designed powertrain that the company is working on in partnership with Porsche. A two-engine setup, similar to the powertrain in the Taycan, will power this wild duo.

The car will use the Premium Platform Electric (PPE), which was also developed in collaboration with Porsche for large cars for which the MEB architecture is not suitable. It will be equipped with an 800V Silicon Carbide (SiC) inverter. Models such as the Audi Q6 e-tron SUV and Q6 e-tron Sportback, as well as the Porsche Macan Electric will also be built on the PPE platform.

According to Autocar, both models will come with more power than their combustion engine predecessors, with over 1,000 hp (735 kW) and around 738 lb-ft (1,000 Nm) of torque. Power will be sent to all wheels via a dual-clutch transmission.

Source: Autocar

Auctions

1963 Porsche 356B Cabriolet is for sale

It has been 75 years since Porsche began to conquer the market and the hearts of car enthusiasts. It all started with the first production car, the Porsche 356, which was produced in several versions, and at the beginning of the 60s, the model 356B was presented. It was produced until 1963, and one of them, the 1963 Porsche 356B Cabriolet is for sale.

The Porsche 356B is powered by a 1,600cc flat-four engine with dual Weber carburetors. Power is sent to the rear wheels via a replacement four-speed manual gearbox. It sits on chrome-finished 15″ steel wheels, with Porsche-logo hubcaps, wrapped in 165-series Vredestein Sprint Classic tires.

This 356B is finished in Ivory and is in good condition. It is equipped with a black soft top, body-color bumpers with overriders, dual mirrors, a Lietz luggage rack, a passenger-side fender-mounted Reutter badge, rocker trim, Super 90 rear badging, and dual exhaust outlets exiting through the rear overriders. It should be noted that the car had an accident ten years ago and since then the left headlight bucket, driver’s door skin, and windshield have been replaced.

Inside, the seats are covered with tan leather, which also covers the door panels, the upper part of the dashboard and the steering wheel. Additional equipment includes a height-adjustable rearview mirror, RJS Racing Equipment safety belts, a locking glove box, and a Becker Europa push-button radio. The VDO clock is inoperable. The five-digit odometer shows 4,020 miles (total mileage is unknown).

The car comes with a copy of the Kardex, correspondence from Porsche Cars North America, service records, a tool kit and jack, spare parts, 356 workshop manual, manufacturer’s literature, and a Virginia title in the seller’s name.

The auction ends on August 14, and the current highest bid is USD $85,356.

Source: Bring a Trailer

Gallery:

1963 Porsche 356B Cabriolet is for sale
News

EU Bans Chrome Plating From 2024

According to recent news, the EU is considering banning the use of chromium from 2024. The reason for this decision could be the toxic emissions resulting from this process, which can lead to major health problems, including cancer.

The EU states that emissions from chrome production are hundreds of times more toxic than CO2 emissions from diesel engines. This could be reduced by using special substances, however, these substances are also toxic.

Although chrome is used less and less in the automotive industry, the decision to ban its production could pose a problem for owners and restorers of classic cars. Therefore, companies that still produce chrome parts will switch to trivalent chromium, another method of decorative chrome plating which is considered the environmentally friendly alternative to hexavalent chromium, which is not so toxic.

So far, there is no official confirmation of such a decision, nor when, if it is made, it will start to be applied. However, the ban on covering decorative parts will surely come into force soon. This will not be the first time that a government has banned the use of chrome. For example, in California, that measure was voted starting from 2027, while the ban on industrial use will be from 2039.

Source: Autocar