All posts by Francis Mitterrand

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Tesla’s future plans

March 4, 2023 Francis Mitterrand

Tesla recently announced its future plans, and one of them was a surprise for some, but also a reminder of the past. It is the construction of a building that would include a restaurant, a drive-in movie theater and an electric vehicle charging station.

In the video shown at Investor Day, the plan of the future building could be seen for a few seconds. The goal is to improve the current customer service, which is considered the most advanced in the world and with the best user experience. A possible wireless drive-over charging dock has also been hinted at, although details are scarce for now.

Tesla has been developing its charging network for a long time, so this idea with a restaurant and a drive-in cinema to provide a better atmosphere for visitors while charging their electric vehicles is not a surprise.

Back in 2018, Elon Musk mentioned something like this for the first time, and last year the Tesla company submitted an application for the construction of a building on Santa Monica Boulevard, Los Angeles. The building will have two floors, two different movie screens and 28 supercharger stations.

Are we going back to the 60s and 70s, but this time with electric cars?

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Source: Tesla

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Gold Porsche 963 LMDh ready for the new WEC season

March 4, 2023 Francis Mitterrand

In July 2022, Porsche unveiled a new racing car that the Porsche Penske Motorsport team (Hertz Team JOTA) will use in the Hypercar class in the WEC (World Endurance Championship) starting on March 17. The Porsche 963 LMDh is ready for the race and the external appearance was done in cooperation with the American company Singer.

The car is finished in gold and has a large rear wing with LED lights on the sides, an LED light bar, large wheel arches and Michelin Pilot Sport tires. The drivers will be Yifei Ye, Antonio Felix da Costa and Will Stevens, and among the sponsors who supported the British team is the American company Singer, which is considered the first name in the world of Porsche 911-themed restomod projects.

Hertz Team JOTA, led by David Clark and Sam Hignett, is happy to be among the participants of the legendary French Le Mans 24 Hours race, which is celebrating its 100th birthday this season. It is certain that the past successes in the 24 Hour Le Mans, which Team JOTA achieved in the lower categories, promise success.

When it comes to powertrain, the LMDh is powered by a 4.6-liter turbocharged V8 engine that, combined with an electric motor, delivers a total power of 670 hp (493 kW). These may not be large numbers, but according to current regulations, the engine power must not exceed 680 hp (500 kW).

Source: Hertz Team JOTA

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Gold Porsche 963 LMDh ready for the new WEC season

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Lamborghini celebrates its 60th birthday with 251 cars at Suzuka Circuit

March 3, 2023 Francis Mitterrand

This year, the Italian car manufacturer Lamborghini celebrates its 60th birthday. On this occasion, he exhibited 251 cars at the Suzuka race track, from the first production model 350 GT to the Countach LPI 800-4, which will premiere in 2021. It was the largest exhibition of any car manufacturer ever seen.

Among the many cars, you could see Islero and Countach models restored by Polo Storico. There were also the Huracan STO and Aventador SVJ models, but also the special Huracan Sterrato designed for off-road.

The all-terrain super sports car Lamborghini Sterrato will be the last Lamborghini with an internal combustion engine. It is powered by a centrally located naturally aspirated 5.2 L V10 engine with 610 hp (449 kW) and 413 lb-ft (560 Nm) of torque. Power is transmitted to all wheels via a 7-speed dual-clutch transmission. It reaches 62 mph in 3.4 seconds with a top speed of 162 mph (260 km/h). Lamborghini will produce 1,499 units of this model.

Although it was previously announced that the last Lamborghini with a V12 engine will be the Ultimae model, recently the Italian manufacturer has decided to introduce two new cars that will be powered by a V12 engine, the Lamborghini Invencible and the Lamborghini Autentica.

Under the hood, which is taken from the Essenza SCV12, will be the most powerful version of the V12 engine ever installed in a Lamborghini. It is a 6.5-liter V12 engine with 769 hp at 8,500 rpm and 531 lb-ft (720 Nm) of torque. Power is sent to all four wheels via a seven-speed ISR gearbox.

Also, the previous years were very successful for Lamborghini, when it comes to sales. In 2022, the manufacturer made a record sale of 9,242 cars, which is a 10 percent increase compared to 2021. This shows that Lamborghini is on the right track and 2023 could be very successful as well.

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