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12 months ago
Mercedes-Benz revealed the Mercedes-Benz Places | Binghatti, a new state-of-the-art venture to merge the worlds of automotive and architecture, at an event held at the Meydan Hotel in Dubai. This will take the form of a 65-story residential tower that will deliver a holistic, connected, and desirable luxury living experience. This business venture underlines Mercedes-Benz’s strategy to transfer the brand’s design DNA, emotion, and intelligence to branded residential living spaces. The residences will showcase mixed-use facilities comprising restaurants, sports and wellness zones, lounges, non-automotive retail, exhibition spaces, and parking. Mercedes-Benz Places, in conjunction with local Mercedes-Benz subsidiaries, developers, and third-party providers, will deliver a spectrum of advanced and innovative mobility solutions. These will include EV charging, smart mobility apps, ride-hailing, bike and scooter sharing, chauffeur services, and automated valet parking. Added together, these features will set new standards for intelligent and luxury living by offering individualised homes that are unmistakably “Mercedes-Benz.”. From automotive to architecture: translating the design philosophy of Sensual Purity Mercedes-Benz Places | Binghatti is characterised by its distinctive elliptical exterior, reminiscent of the flowing lines on a host of ultra-modern Mercedes-Benz cars. These include the futuristic VISION EQXX, the high-performance Vision One-Eleven and the Concept CLA Class […]
1 year ago
Toyota’s chairman and former CEO, Akio Toyoda, is at it again: providing the public with a dose of reality that electric vehicles will never dominate the global car market. Toyoda, the grandson of the founder of the world’s largest car manufacturer, expressed at a business event this month, as reported by The Telegraph, that EVs will never capture 30% of global market share. He explained that gasoline-burning vehicles and hybrids, along with hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, will dominate. Toyoda made the point: How can EVs be the future when a billion people on Earth have no electricity? Data from Statista shows nearly a billion people in the world are living without electricity. He noted: “Customers—not regulations or politics—should make that decision.” Over the years, Toyota has openly demonstrated defiance against governments and NGOs pushing for 100% EVs in just a few decades, if not earlier. In October, Toyoda told reporters at an auto show in Japan that EVs aren’t the silver bullet against the supposed ills of carbon emissions they’re often made out to be. Toyota has a history of being at the forefront of adopting new technologies. However, its slow EV adoption is because of its mistrust of lithium-ion batteries, and it has positioned itself […]
1 year ago
The largest edition of the Unmanned Systems (Umex) and Simulation and Training (SimTex) exhibitions is offering glimpses into the UAE’s majestic march into electric mobility for military operations. Kintsugi, the Abu Dhabi-based tech startup, is hogging the limelight on the opening day of the exhibitions with a locally made multi-purpose AI-powered hybrid vehicle named Magnus from its subsidiary Eneron. The ‘Made in UAE’ imposing six-seater 4X4 features an autonomous vehicle stack, six drones, robotics powered by AI, a payload capacity of 2,000 kg, an 805 HP electric motor, a top speed of 130 kmph, a driving range of 200km (electric) to 800km (hybrid), a ground clearance of 350mm, and standing on a massive gross weight of 6,000kg. “Kintsugi is a new but leading UAE government AI company that is finding innovative solutions for the private and public sectors. Magnus is a hybrid vehicle. i.e., electric and petrol. This concept vehicle has been made by our subsidiary Eneron,” Waleed Al Blooshi, corporate communications manager of Kintsugi Holdings, told sources. A command centre on wheels As the fully armoured doors open 90 degrees like a chopper, there are six exoskeleton-crafted seats, with foldable rear ones ensuring massive space for equipment, robots, laptops, radios and […]
1 year ago
Recent advances in computing power and fast-paced innovation across the world have resulted in a paradigm shift in how humans travel, and technology has made it possible for the world’s first flying cars to go into mass production. And with this, science fiction has now become a science fact, and the next evolution in transport is here and, most importantly, accessible. With flying cars set to change the way we travel, our lives are about to become immeasurably integrated with futuristic technology. The entity producing Alef’s Model A, a flying car prototype, Alef Aeronautics, says it plans to begin delivering the vehicles to customers by the end of 2025. The California-based tech company says it has been test-driving and flying its prototype vehicles since 2019. Alef’s Model A will cost $300,000 and presales are currently open, so customers can pay just a $150 deposit to get on the waiting list or $1,500 for a “priority” spot on the list. Also, HT Aero said their unnamed flying vehicle is slated to enter mass production by 2024 at a cost of less than $157,000. A new way to fly The result of cutting-edge technologies and years of research and development, a flying […]
1 year ago
Audi made history as, for the first time, a low-emission prototype with an electric drive, high-voltage battery, and energy converter won the world’s toughest desert rally with the Audi RS Q e-tron. The Spaniards Carlos Sainz and Lucas Cruz secured Audi’s first victory in the Dakar Rally after around 7,900 kilometres with a lead of 1 hour, 20 minutes. Mattias Ekström and Emil Bergkvist also crossed the finish line. The Audi RS Q e-tron has electric all-wheel drive, where the energy supply is ensured by a high-voltage battery and an energy converter that runs on residual fuel-based reFuel, thus saving 60 percent of CO2 emissions compared to conventional fuels. At the Dakar Rally, Audi was up against the two brands Toyota and Ford, as well as the experienced opponents from Prodrive, who proved to be tough challengers. Carlos Sainz/Lucas Cruz secured their big lead after having been in the lead without interruption since the sixth stage. For the two Spaniards, who finished first in 2010, 2018, and 2020, this is their fourth success with a different brand, including the second from the Volkswagen Group. However, two-time World Rally Champion Sainz and his experienced co-driver could not be sure until shortly before […]
1 year ago
Sébastien Loeb rounded off the Dakar Rally in Saudi Arabia with another impressive stage victory for Bahrain Raid Xtreme today to secure third place in the event, as Carlos Sainz confirmed his fourth outright win. Loeb and Fabian Lurquin in the BRX Prodrive Hunter recorded their fifth stage success of the rally on the final 175km time trial, which started and finished in Yanbu, and they did it with more than five minutes to spare from Guillaume de Mevius in a Toyota Hilux. The BRX duo just fell short in their attempt to overhaul the Belgian to take what would have been a third successive overall runner up finish on the world’s toughest rally, although their final day display underlined what might have been but for some earlier misfortunes. The result means that Prodrive ended the 46th edition of the Dakar as the most successful manufacturer, with six victories overall for the Hunter, which had given Loeb the same number of stage wins in succession last year to set a record. The nine-time World Rally Champion had given BRX a strong chance of a first overall Dakar triumph before a combination of navigational and mechanical issues, and punctures, took their […]
1 year ago
Saudi Arabia’s Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Company (EVIQ) has announced the commencement of its first fast-charge station operations for electric vehicles in Riyadh city. The station features two high-voltage quick chargers, each with a capacity exceeding 100 KW, allowing up to four electric vehicles to charge simultaneously. The CEO of EVIQ, Mohammad Baker Gazzaz, expressed the company’s determination to install more than 5,000 fast chargers in 1,000 locations across the Kingdom by 2030. EVIQ, a joint venture between the Public Investment Fund (PIF) and the Kingdom’s Electricity Company (SEC), is dedicated to delivering cutting-edge electric vehicle charging technology in a timely manner, Gazzaz added.
1 year ago
The BMW Group delivered a total of 2,555,341 BMW, MINI, and Rolls-Royce vehicles to customers last year (+6.5%), a new all-time sales high for the company. The BMW, Rolls-Royce, and BMW Motorrad brands also reported new record highs in 2023. In the fourth quarter, BMW Group sales climbed to 718,778 units, up +10.3% on the previous year. The BMW Group managed to significantly increase its worldwide deliveries of fully-electric products last year to 376,183 units. This represents a year-on-year sales growth of +74.4% for the company. In the fourth quarter, the BMW Group delivered 129,316 fully electric vehicles to customers (+47.7%). Its sales of fully electric vehicles for the year 2023 significantly outperformed the total market for fully electric vehicles, underscoring the company’s role as an e-mobility pioneer. With a range of 18 fully electric models spanning all its brands’ main segments, the BMW Group is laying a strong foundation for dynamic BEV growth in the coming years. One in every five of the company’s newly delivered vehicles will have a fully electric drive train this year; by 2025, it will be one in four. With a total of 2,253,835 vehicles delivered to customers worldwide in 2023, the BMW brand […]
1 year ago
Porsche has delivered 9,135 cars in the Middle East, Africa and India region in 2023. This contributed to the 11 per cent growth registered by the auto brand compared to 2022. It also reflects a 20 per cent increase over 2019. New car deliveries since 2020 have now grown 47 per cent. Dr Manfred Bräunl, CEO, Porsche Middle East and Africa, said that 2023 “was another year of growth for our region thanks to our exceptional Porsche product line-up, in conjunction with the efforts of our importers and staff”. He added: “We continue to work hard as a team to deliver ‘dreams’ to our customers. It was a busy year of exciting events and new product launches, as we celebrated 75 years of Porsche sportscars.” The Cayenne was again the best-selling model for the brand in the region, in a year when a new, updated model was launched. It was the strongest year yet for sales of the Taycan all-electric sports saloon, which enjoyed growth of 80 per cent compared to the prior year. Icons of Porsche festival The third edition of the Icons of Porsche festival in Dubai attracted over 27,000 fans in November, almost twice as many fans attended one year earlier. […]
1 year ago
In 2021, rental car company Hertz Global Holdings Inc. tapped Tom Brady to promote its massive push to electrify its fleet. Fast forward to late October, when Hertz Chief Executive Stephen Scherr told investors on a third-quarter earnings call that the company would start reducing its EV fleet because of high repair costs compared to the rest of the fleet, which has hurt its bottom line. “EV’s will be slower than our prior expectations,” he said. In late October, Scherr told CNBC’s Jim Cramer that EVs are seeing more damage than combustion engine cars, and the cost to repair them is much higher. Hertz began dumping 20,000 EVs on the used car market last month and will be a seller through 2024. The sales are expected to record a non-cash charge in the fourth quarter of $245 million related to incremental net depreciation expense. “The company expects to reinvest a portion of the proceeds from the sale of EVs into the purchase of internal combustion engine vehicles to meet customer demand,” Hertz said, adding, “The company expects this action to better balance supply against expected demand of EVs.” As of last October, Scherr said EVs were about 11% of Hertz’s […]
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