Tesla Catches Fire, Media Goes Up in Flames

Any time the Tesla Model S is involved in anything—be it a five-star government crash test or being the number-one-selling car in Norway—it makes headlines. And now, there’s one on fire. Fire, we tell you!

On Tuesday, a Model S driver on a state highway outside Seattle crashed into a “metallic object” and then left the electric car before the front end started burning, according to Tesla and Washington State Police. Firefighters put it out, the driver was okay and Tesla again touted the solid construction of the car’s frame for containing the flames. As Lamborghini and Ferrari owners know all too well, cars can spontaneously combust. Normal, gas-powered cars also catch fire in accidents quite often, so it shouldn’t be unusual.

Until we hear the final word from authorities, we’re hesitant to blame it all on Tesla’s lithium-ion batteries. It’s tempting, seeing as Boeing had to ground its 787 Dreamliner planes for months due to lithium-ion batteries overheating, and because other high-profile fires affected the Chevrolet Volt (post-mortem after a government crash test) and a whole fleet of charred Fisker Karmas during Superstorm Sandy (which Fisker later confirmed was because of its 12-volt battery). Lithium-ion batteries are extremely volatile to water and don’t tolerate spikes in temperature particularly well. According to the Washington State Police, it took firefighters “several attempts” to put the Tesla fire out as it kept “reigniting”—which sounds like it could be a battery fire—but again, we’ll leave that for investigators to decide.

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Bentley: 'SUV has to change'

The Falcon’s styling met with a mixed reception at Geneva, although, significantly, few showgoers questioned whether an SUV was right for Bentley.

This design — born in the era of current CEO Wolfgang Dürheimer — departs from a previous SUV proposal that was circulated internally at Bentley five or six years ago, one insider told Autocar.

There will be a major opportunity to tweak the styling as the design moves to production. The concept is two metres wide and needs to be narrowed to a more practical, real-world size.

But the most important critics will be potential customers — both existing Bentley owners and conquests — who will clinic the design immediately after the show.

Bentley is also considering developing its own V8-based plug-in hybrid to power the production car.

The new powertrain would borrow from the Volkswagen Group’s MLB longitudinal engine platform and promises strong headline figures for CO2 emissions and fuel economy.

Much of the hybrid technology has already been developed for the Porsche Cayenne and VW Touareg and mated to a V6 supercharged petrol engine. But the V6 is seen as lacking the power and image required for the imposing Falcon.

“That’s one of the benefits to Bentley of being in the group: we can borrow technology as we want,” said one insider.

Inside, the Falcon has been designed to maximise visibility for the driver. The dashboard is set low and the seating position relatively high — 50mm higher than in a Cayenne — to give a Range Rover-like view over the expansive bonnet.

The small-diameter steering wheel, borrowed from the Continental GT, was chosen to lend a sporty feel. There’s air suspension, but no low-ratio gearbox. A controller in the cabin allows the selection of off-road settings tailored for sand, rocks, mud and snow, which use pre-selected programmes for the traction control and air suspension. Insiders reckon that electronic aids can give enough off-road performance without resorting to a low-ratio ’box.

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Peugeot/Citroën slash EV prices

Peugeot and Citroën have slashed the price of the Peugeot iOn and Citroën C-Zero electric vehicles by £6939 to £21,216 (including the government’s £5000 plug-in car grant).

Both firms have also confirmed that the availability of both cars will be improved; Citroën will ramp up sales of its C-Zero from 11 dealerships to 21, while the iOn will be sold in 23 Peugeot dealerships.

Both firms have also introduced new contract hire rates, which cost from £249 per month, based over three years and 30,000 miles.

The iOn and C-Zero electric pair are powered by a rear-mounted 64bhp electric motor, while the 88-cell, 16kWh lithium ion battery pack is mounted under the centre of the vehicle. They take six hours to charge from a domestic socket and will do 93 miles in free-flowing traffic with the air-con turned off. A crowded city with the air-con blowing will reduce that range to around 46 miles.

From 2013, Peugeot and Citroën will introduce electric vans into their ranges. Both the Peugeot Partner electric van and Citroen electric Berlingo van will be available with the government’s maximum £8000 EV grant.

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Facelifted Audi Q5 spied

A facelifted version of the Audi Q5 has been spied almost completely undisguised during testing ahead of its expected launch at the Paris motor show in September. The five-door SUV, which was introduced in 2009, is currently being mildly tweaked to bring it into line with the newer Audi Q3.

See spy pictures of the Audi Q5 facelift

Our spy photographers caught two development models: a black Audi Q5 fitted with the plush S-line trim package and a red version of the SUV, which is the standard Q5.

These pictures reveal the new large single-frame six-corner front grille, which is the same shape as the one featured on the brand-new Audi A3 unveiled at the Geneva motor show earlier this month. The Q5 also gets Audi’s latest ‘boomerang’ LED daytime running lights design and a new bumper treatment at the front and rear.

The Q5 is expected to get some new engine variations when it goes on sale in early 2013.

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TONY STEWART HITS JACKPOT IN VEGAS

It took 27 races for Tony Stewart to find Victory Lane in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series last year. Four additional wins followed in the remaining nine weeks and Stewart earned his third Cup championship in one of the more dramatic finales in the sport’s history.

Stewart made it known on Sunday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway that his No. 14 team will not only be a force in the Chase, but in NASCAR’s 26-race regular season, as well. Stewart dominated the Kobalt Tools 400, leading a race-high 127 laps, holding off all challengers through three restarts in the final 34 laps to score his first win of the 2012 season.

“It seemed like if we could get six or eight laps under our belt, we could start building that margin out again,” Stewart said of leading the field in the closing laps. “As soon as you started pulling away, the caution would come out again. You hate having to reset it like that, knowing for the first three laps you had to be spot on and not let them take advantage of a restart like that.

“You sit there and go, ‘How many times are we going to risk losing this race because of a restart? Something is going to get taken away from us because of this.’ It's very nerve-wracking.”

Stewart’s eventual race-winning move came on the first of the final three restarts. When the green flag waved with 34 laps remaining, Stewart, lined up in row three, shot his car to the tri-oval apron and around Brad Keselowski for the lead in Turn 1.

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NASCAR HORSEPOWER RANKINGS

1. Greg Biffle  Biffle’s team was the one under the Roush Fenway banner that laid low during the offseason. The result has been third-place finishes across the board. Bristol is usually good to them, too.

2. Jimmie Johnson  It’s highly unlikely Chad Knaus’ appeal is overturned, but by appealing, Hendrick Motorsports bought Johnson a pair of top-5 finishes. Win or lose with the committee, this team remains a lock for the Chase.

3. Denny Hamlin  We’ll take the 20th-place finish at Vegas as a hiccup. Although, after fourth- and first-place runs at Daytona and Phoenix, the dip at an intermediate track was notable.

4. Tony Stewart  “Hey Darian, anything you can do, I can do better!” One week after Stewart’s former pit boss earned his first win with Hamlin, Stewart and new boss Steve Addington even the score.

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THE LONG AND SHORT OF IT: NNS RENAISSANCE, GORDON'S FLIP & BABY OTIS

Have you noticed the oddity already taking place in NASCAR this season?

Don’t see it?

Look at the Nationwide Series where all three races have been won by drivers not competing full time in Cup this year.

James Buescher won at Daytona, points leader Elliott Sadler at Phoenix and defending series champion Ricky Stenhouse Jr. at Las Vegas last weekend.

Consider that only six of 34 Nationwide races last year were won by drivers not competing in Cup full time. In 2010, only one race was won by a Nationwide regular not competing in Cup.

The odds are likely that the current streak will end this weekend at Bristol. Kyle Busch has won the last three Nationwide races there and is entered, along with Cup drivers Kevin Harvick, Brad Keselowski, Kasey Kahne, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Joey Logano.

Still, a tide is turning.

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