More 370Z! - NFS:UC Trailer

EA has released one more trailer of theit upcoming NFS: Undercover game. This one marks the debut of the 370Z in the virtual world!

Game On!: Flatout Ultimate Carnage Review

When we got our hands on the Flatout: Ultimate Carnage DVD, we thought it was just another racing game. But while the game was installing itself on our hard drive, we went through the manual and it quickly suggested that the game was anything but ordinary racing – it’s a blend of destruction derbies, circuit racing and a lot of stunts. The moment we played the first event, we were hooked on. Flatout starts off with the plain vanilla race mode, where the gamer races across three different tiers of difficulty with the most basic being derby cars and the highest being ultra-fast supercars. The victories and destruction earn the racer ‘credits’ which can be used to buy more cars.

The ‘Carnage’ mode engages the player into four non-traditional racing types – Carnage, Deathmatch Derby, Stunts and Beat-The-Bomb. This mode stresses on earning as many credits as possible by destroying everything in sight – from fences and bridges to starting poles and fellow racers. The racer’s position isn’t relevant; it’s the credits that decide the standing.

The ‘Stunts’ is what the Flatout franchise is acclaimed for on the consoles. With the use of Rag-doll Physics, the developers have created a unique arcade experience where the gamers crash their cars in order to send the driver flying into various arenas like basketball, baseball curling etc.

For many who have shed their teenage attire and got themselves strangled into the nine-to-five routine, the day ends on a hectic note. But amongst all this, if you were to keep your passion for gaming alive, you definitely wouldn’t want a game that needs you to put your brains to work. You need a game that helps you relax, bust all the stress out of you and give you the chance to destroy everything in sight – something you wish to do every time your boss cribs. Flatout is definitely that kind. It’s the ultimate blend of Quake-style mayhem packaged with arcade racing into a game that also looks visually appealing. And at a legit price of INR 999, the game is definitely the cheapest stress therapy you can buy! 

Official Pics: Nissan 370Z

Following the Z-series of sports cars that Nissan is famous for, the 370Z would be the newest offering for 2009. While there were a lot of spy pics and videos floating around the net, a lot of artist gave us their impressions on what the car would look like. Since the car wasn't of much relevance to India, we didn't post the spy pics earlier. But since its once of the hot favorites amongst the enormous NFS fans we have in the country, and the fact that the 370Z is going to be one of the most significant cars in NFS:UC, we decided to post the first official pictures of the car. Here you go then:

2010 Porsche Boxster and Cayman

Auto Week claims these photos to be the official 2010 Porsche Boxster and Porsche Cayman. They dont exactly look like a rendering and might just be the real studio shots. Upon global launch, expect a 6-month gap before these entry level Porsches come to India.

2010 Porsche Cayman:

2010 Posrche Boxster:

Leaked: Sketches of future Audis

The internet is definitely an unsafe place. Recently, the sketches of Audi's future models leaked onto the net and show the brief designs of the A5 Cabriolet, A7 four-door coupe and the 2010 A8 luxury sedan. Here you go:

New Toyotas coming your way....

A few ago, we scooped you on Toyota's plans for India with the new Yaris hatch, Yaris sedan and RAV4 softroader. Though there has been no further news on the RAV4, the Car India magazine has confirmed this month that the Yaris sedan is coming soon.

The other news though is Toyota's plan to finally get the Fortuner to India after a long internal debate. The SUV will be imported as a CKD and will be assembled locally. Since they are targeting the CR-V with the Fortuner, the RAV4 plans for India look a little meek now. The Fortuner will most probably hit showroom floors by mid-2009.

Also on the cards is the diesel variant of the Altis. Unfortunately though, the engine mountings for the 2.0-litre diesel mill that is already sold in the Altis in the UK are different than the petrol. Toyota hence is considering a tuned version of the 1.4-litre mill from the Yaris sedan in the diesel Altis. This will further help reduce costs due to the platform sharing.

The hottest news though, is that of two low-cost cars that Toyota are working on. 

An entry level sedan, which is said to be based on the Yaris platform again, is being developed with a $8000 (INR 4-lakh) figure in mind. The car is in its final stages of development and will be produced in India by 2010 and in Brazil by 2011. Both the countries will play as a mass production hub for this car to export to the rest of the world. Another low cost car is a hatch which is being targeted at $5000 (INR 2.5-lakh) to penetrate into the fast growing ultra-low-cost-city-car segment which will soon see TATA, Hyundai and Nissan-Relnault-Bajaj as the major players. The car though will be launched ages after the others come out into the market, with the most probable year being 2015. Since the two cars will be ultra cheap as compared to other Toyotas, it may harm their brand image, and hence the Jap firm is considering a new brand for these apart from its current siblings - Lexus and Dihatsu. 

Ferrari may write off F1 by 2010

The most prominant livery on the F1 enviorns - the scarlet red Ferrari, may soon disapprear from the grid, come 2010. Max Mosley's latest brainwave of using a similar engine on all the race cars to drop produciton costs, has led to this debacle. While most F1 teams are against this rule, Max seems pretty stern on implementing this rule. 

Ferrari amongst all other teams believes that such a rule will question the very basis of Formula 1 - which in iteself is an engineering challenge. If the FIA goes ahead and implements the rule, the Italian marquee will walk out of F1 and find solace in some other motorsport. The official statement from Ferrari is as follows:

"The Board of Directors of Ferrari SpA met today under the chairmanship of Luca di Montezemolo, to examine the third quarter results. The Board of Directors also examined the proposed changes to the Formula One regulations, in the light of the current global economic crisis.
"Whilst reiterating its wholehearted commitment to a substantial and needed reduction in costs in Formula One, starting with propulsion, the Ferrari Board of Directors expressed strong concerns regarding plans to standardise engines as it felt that such a move would detract from the entire raison of a sport with which Ferrari has been involved continuously since 1950, a raison d’etre based principally on competition and technological development.
"The Board of Directors expressed the opinion that should these key elements be diminished, it would have to re-evaluate, with its partners the viability of continuing its presence in the sport."

100 posts and Happy Diwali!

We have reached a 100 posts in the last 5 months. Thanks to everyone for all the support and appreciation. We will continue to serve in the times to come. Keep checking the blog and post your comments! It will only help us get better.

Oh yes, and Happy Diwali to all our readers! Have a great time this week....