The amazing Y2K

The name Marine Turbine Technologies (MTT) may not immediately strike recognition, though we are pretty sure that if we said the company was repsonsible for the turbine-powered Y2K hyperbike, you would know what we mean. Built in time for the turn of the millennia, the Y2K features a Rolls-Royce-Allison Model 250 turbine motor that makes 320 hp at 52,000 rpm. Yes, that rpm figure is correct.

Unlike other turbine-driven road machines, which use the trust of the turbine jet engine for locomotion, MTT mated the helicopter turbine system to a two-speed gearbox, which in-turn drives a shaft to a final chain-drive system. Not exactly a huge success on the market, the MTT Y2K was still made famous by celebrity owner Jay Leno, who had a tendency to melt plastic car bumpers at stop lights.

Now reports say Marine Turbine Technologies is working on a new model of turbine-powered hyperbikes, awkwardly dubbed the 2013 MTT Y2K 420R.

Upgrading the drive package with a Rolls-Royce C-20B gas turbine engine that produces an apt 420hp. Other highlights include carbon fiber wheels and fairings, radial-mounted calipers on the front brakes with ABS, and a 240mm rear tire.

2020 BMW Peview

2020 BMW Peview 

The BMW i Future Vision concept at CES 2016 explores what it might mean to balance future automotive tech against the primary directive of driving machine, showing off a high-res head-up display and a minimalist interior that changes depending on the driving mode. We aren’t talking Eco and Sport here – rather the difference between the driver being in control and fully autonomous motoring. In the latter, the steering wheel shrinks away to give occupants more space and the seats change profile to make viewing the 21in panoramic display screen more comfortable; in the former what’s shown on that screen is reduced to the essentials for getting your back-road groove on. Meanwhile the head-up display is so comprehensive it’s approaching true augmented reality. 

McLaren 650S Spider (2015)

Month 3 running a McLaren 650S Spider: track and touring, ticked and ticked

A couple of unforgettable consecutive days brought the McLaren’s versatility into focus. On the Thursday, a Pure track day at Silverstone. More on this later but suffice to say the 650S, with its assists pegged back but not switched off and its twin-turbo V8 savaging anything resembling a straight, was an awe-inspiring ally. And the next morning two of us, together with an unfeasible number of bags, cruised to the Goodwood Revival, enjoying the McLaren’s immaculate road manners. 

By Ben Miller

here you have the torque

It’s the invisible force that keeps our cars moving. We don’t mention it much, but what is torque? Carbuyer explains…

This is the question that has plagued physicists, engineers and humble motoring journalists alike for generations. We all know what torque is, but trying to explain it without resorting to language that wouldn’t be out of place in a physics PhD thesis is tricky. 

Essentially, torque is a force – like gravity – but instead of causing objects with mass to attract one another, torque is a measure of rotational force. So, in respect to internal combustion engines, torque is how much rotational force the engine produces. 

Different measures of torque 

Torque is generally expressed in two different units. Like power, there are metric and imperial measurements. Newton meters (Nm) is the metric measurement and the default for engineers, physicists and car manufacturers in Europe. 

Us contrary Brits, however, occasionally like to hold on to the old imperial measurements and expressing torque in pounds-feet (lb/ft) is still fairly common here. 

They’re very different units, but you can convert between them like this: To convert a lb/ft figure to Nm, you need to multiply it by 1.35581794833. To do the opposite, multiply your Nm figure by 0.737562149277. Easy! 

What does that torque figure mean? 

You’d imagine that a car with more torque would generally be faster than a car with less – and in general, you’d be right. By now, you may have read our article stipulating precisely what horsepower is.. 

That article states power – measured in brake horsepower – is “the rate at which work is done”. Essentially, an engine with lots of power produces torque very quickly. They’re not one and the same, however. Diesel engines, for instance, often produce more torque than power, while a non-turbocharged petrol engine will often do the opposite. Turbocharging and supercharging are common ways of extracting more power and torque from an engine.

However, like power, maximum torque is not produced across the whole rev range (except with electric motors). Instead, maximum torque – or pulling power – is produced across within a certain band of revs. For maximum performance right across the rev range, you want maximum torque to be produced low down in the range and then have power take over the further up the rev range you go. This provides good acceleration from low to mid revs: the more torque you have low down, the quicker you’ll accelerate. Electric motors produce all their torque at 0rpm, which is why the Tesla Model S accelerates so quickly. 

Cars with more torque will also be better at towing heavy items – so if you’ve got a large caravan or regularly tow a heavy horsebox or trailer, it's a good idea to go for a car with plenty of torque. A big, six-cylinder diesel SUV is generally a good choice.

Hopefully, this guide has gone some way to clearing the murky fog that surrounds the concept of torque.

Skoda VisionS concept previews new large SUV

The VisionS concept has been previewed for the first time with a series of official design sketches, prior to the model's official debut at the next month.

Offering a close preview of , the concept will come with three rows of seats offering space for six passengers and their luggage. The VisionS features a prominent Skoda grille at the front with raked back headlights, a large lower grille with side air intakes and a long bonnet. The roofline dips towards the rear, ending in a lip spoiler. Dual rear exhausts also feature.

The car's styling is also in line with 2014's , which ushered in a new design language for the brand.

The VisionS is 4700mm long by 1910mm wide, with a height of 1680mm, making it longer, wider and lower than the . In production form, Skoda’s SUV will be pitched as an upmarket rival to the Sorento and its sister model, .

Although nothing is official at this stage, Skoda’s SUV, which is expected to take the Kodiaq name for production, should cost from around £24,000 when it goes on sale in the UK early next year. That price neatly undercuts its rivals from Kia and Hyundai, which start at £28,795 and £31,845 respectively.

The new SUV will be based on the VW Group’s MQB platform, and will share most of its underpinnings with Volkswagen’s own , which is due to be launched later this year.

Power will come from four-cylinder engines already offered in the new Superb, with a 1.6-litre turbodiesel forming the base engine. A diesel-electric hybrid version will also be offered, and four-wheel drive will be optional on most models.

Beyond the launch of its first SUV, Skoda is already planning a more to join the range soon after the full-size version goes on sale. That car will be followed by a sportier model with tweaked styling, and the SUV family will be completed by the new , which is due to go on sale in 2018.

In a statement accompanying these images, Skoda said: "Over recent years Skoda has completely renewed its model range and the next phase will involve broadening the range of models in the SUV segment."

Audi Q2

Audi's SUV range is about to get bigger with the launch of its smallest SUV yet. The Audi Q2, which will be shown at the Geneva Motor Show in March, is designed to capitalise on the soaring demand for SUV and crossover models.

Under the skin, the Audi Q2 will be based on the VW Group's clever chassis, which can be constructed in a variety of sizes. Dubbed MQB, it can form the backbone of models as small as the Volkswagen Golf or as big as the Volkswagen Passat, thanks to the use of modular components.

That means it's possible for the group's brands, which also include SEAT and Skoda, to launch new models of different shapes and sizes comparatively quickly and cheaply.

Audi Q2 design

Because Audi is targeting the Q2 at a younger audience, its styling will be a little more daring than we’re used to from Audi. As these artist impressions published last year show, the sides will be more sculpted than other Audi models.

We expect the production version of the Q2 to share more design features with the handsome Audi Prologue concept car (below), meaning a more angular front end than our pictures show and a lower grille that’ll stretch across the front of the car.

Volkswagen Tiguan SUV

The last Volkswagen Tiguan was with us for an impressive nine years, but in that time the market has moved on significantly. SUVs have become one of the dominant driving forces in new car sales around the world and buyers want then to be more comfortable, more stylish, more spacious and more upmarket than ever before. 

Fortunately for VW, the new Volkswagen Tiguan ticks all those boxes. It's as practical as aNissan Qashqai, but has the same sort of upmarket appeal as a BMW X1. Its place as VW's third biggest-selling car in the UK – behind the Volkswagen Golf and Volkswagen Polo – won’t be under threat for a while yet. 

The new Tiguan will be available with a choice of 1.4 and 2.0-litre petrol engines, but most buyers will plump for one of the diesels. A 1.4-litre TDI will be the entry point, accompanied by a pair of 2.0-litre TDIs. In time, a twin-turbo 2.0-litre diesel will be available, while a plug-in hybrid version called the Tiguan GTE is likely, too.

Two and four-wheel-drive versions will be available when the car goes on sale in April, as will automatic and manual gearboxes. It's worth pointing out that all automatics are four-wheel drive and all manuals two-wheel drive.

Running costs should be around the average for this type of car

Volkswagen hasn’t yet confirmed the Tiguan’s fuel economy and carbon-dioxide emissions figures, but numbers we’ve seen suggest they won’t be the lowest in the compact SUV class.

When equipped with four-wheel drive and the 148bhp version of the 2.0-litre diesel (a 178bhp version will also be offered), emissions are likely to be around the 149g/km mark. That’s about the same as a Mazda CX-5 automatic.

Manual front-wheel-drive models see emissions drop to 125g/km and if you’re one of the 10% of buyers who’ll choose a petrol, emissions there are rated at around 170g/km, which will make it rather pricey to tax.

The old model had flexible service intervals, meaning the cars of average-mileage drivers could cover between 10,000 and 18,000 miles before a service was required, depending on how the car was driven. This is likely to continue in the new Tiguan, which will almost certainly be covered by VW’s standard three-year/60,000-mile warranty.

We’ve only driven the 2.0-litre TSI 150 petrol and 2.0-litre TDI 150 diesel engines, which both produce 148bhp. Both were also fitted with a seven-speed automatic gearbox and had VW’s 4MOTION four-wheel-drive system. 

Our drive was on Volkswagen’s Arctic Circle test track, so it’s hard to deliver a definitive verdict on how the car will feel on UK roads just yet. What we could tell was that the new Tiguan felt sure-footed, with controlled movement over bumps at speed.

Ferrari GTC4Lusso

The Ferrari FF, possibly the most practical model in the illustrious Italian brand's range thanks to its four seats and four-wheel drive, has been updated for 2016. It's also been given a new name: the Ferrari GTC4Lusso.

Ferrari says the new name references classic models such as the Ferrari 330 GTC and the Ferrari 250 GT Berlinetta Lusso, with the ‘4’ referring to the number of seats. Under the bonnet, a 680bhp V12 engine gets the car from 0-62mph in 3.4 seconds and on to a top speed of 208mph.

The GTC4Lusso upgrades the FF's four-wheel-drive system by adding rear-wheel steering, for greater stability at high speed or on slippery surfaces. Aerodynamics have also been improved thanks to the addition of new air vents on the front wing, a roof spoiler and a rear diffuser.

Inside, there's a new infotainment system with a 10.25-inch high-definition screen, a more compact steering wheel and a ‘Dual Cockpit’ setup that sees the front-seat passenger get their own display.

The GTC4Lusso will be on show at the 2016 Geneva Motor Show in March, while prices are yet to be released.