First Audi wins the prestigious 24 Hours of LeMans with a diesel-powered sports car, and now Volkswagen is trumpeting the success of not one but three turbodiesel-powered Touaregs at the annual Pikes Peak Hillclimb. Has diesel become the 21st century's new race gas?
Probably not, but both companies-and surely others to come-are trying to demonstrate that diesel fuel isn't just for buses, 18-wheelers, and other utilitarian vehicles. With the new availability of ultralow-sulfur diesel (ULSD) fuel in the U.S., auto- and truckmakers want to exploit it as a power-packed, clean-burning alternative to conventional gasoline.
The Touaregs, powered by VW's 5.0L V-10 diesel burning ULSD fuel, tackled the Peak's 12.4-mile, 156-corner course and made it to the 14,000-foot summit in just over 14 minutes-very respectable times for what were essentially stock vehicles modified more for safety requirements than anything else.
VW's V-10 puts out 310 hp and a whopping 553 lb-ft of torque. The TDI Touareg had been on sale a couple years ago, but was pulled from the U.S. market for emissions reasons. New emissions control systems, in combination with the ULSD fuel, make the '06 diesel Touareg now emissions compliant in all 50 states, and it will go back on sale in the U.S. in September.
Big Three Modifies Trucks for Diesel
Speaking of the new ultralow-sulfur diesel, Dodge, Ford, and GM will all make changes to their diesel-powered trucks so they can burn the new fuel and meet revamped EPA regulations that go into effect January 1, 2007. According to Automotive News, Dodge will add a diesel particulate filter and oxides of nitrogen absorber to the Cummins diesels in its Ram 2500 and 3500 trucks as a running change during the '07 model year to meet the new requirements. Ford will replace its 6.0L Power Stroke (shown) with an all-new, 6.4L engine, and GM is upgrading its Duramax engines with new variable geometry turbochargers, a new exhaust-gas recirculation system, and other modifications.
There's been no word from any of the makers regarding what these changes will do to the engine's power output or, for that matter, cost. We'll bring you more detail about these changes as the makers release the information.
Toyo Wins at Crandon
The guy you see in the air is Ben Wandahsega, CORR's current Sportsman 2 class champion. He and his 600hp Chevy Silverado had a great weekend at the summertime 2006 Forest Potawatomi Brush Run in Crandon, Wisconsin. After taking a Second Place in the Saturday race, he came back for an outright win on Sunday. Likewise Kyle LeDuc, who wheels a Ford Ranger in the CORR Pro-Lite class, also grabbed a First Place at the Potawatomi Brush Run. What do these guys have in common other than winning races in Crandon? Both of their race trucks are shod with Toyo Open Country M/T tires. Toyo has made a significant investment in off-road racing lately, an investment that seems to be paying off for their sponsored racers.
National Anthem Project Gets Graphic
No, that isn't just crooked handwriting. Those are 300-some Chrysler Group employees wearing white Jeep T-shirts and spelling out the first few words of "The Star Spangled Banner" as part of the National Anthem Project, an educational initiative whose goal is to reteach Americans those very important lyrics. Jeep is a sponsor of the project, and this graphic representation of the song's opening words was done on the lawn of Chrysler's Auburn Hills, Michigan, headquarters as the project came to metro Detroit.
Toura- Huh?
Turns out we're not the only ones who think the name of VW's current SUV is hard to pronounce. It's a problem worldwide, so much so that Volkswagen doesn't trust itself to name its new compact SUV (which we'll see some time in 2008). Instead, VW is holding a contest, asking readers of a German enthusiast car magazine to vote for one of five names: Nanuk (Eskimo for polar bear), Namib (an African desert), Rockton (a made-up name playing up the strength of a rock), Tiguan (mixing "tiger" and "iguana"), and Samun (a hot African desert wind).
No one asked us, but we like Samba, the nickname given to some of VW's old-school minibuses.
Hummer Markets Customized H3
Looking for some custom touches for that new Hummer? Now you can order an accessorized H3 straight from the factory. Called the H3x, this '07 Hummer is fitted with lots of chrome-18-inch wheels, a brushguard, tube steps, appearance package, a fuel filler door, and bright roof-rack crossbows-plus a body-colored grille and hard spare-tire cover. Like the rest of the '07 H3s, this model receives GM's new, 242hp Vortec 3.7L I-5. Look for it at a Hummer dealer near you for just a tick over $38,000.
Bye-Bye Freelander, Hello Maria Sharapova
Well, this news item should be about Land Rover's new LR2 sport/utility, which takes the place of the Freelander and goes on sale in the U.S. next spring. But since the LR2 will share a platform with Volvo and Ford sedans, we figured you'd find this space more interesting if we shared a photo of tennis superstar Maria Sharapova posing with the LR2 at a prelaunch party.