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Added on the 21/09/2009 18:26:22 - Copyright : BlackBerry
Toyota is celebrating the title triple in the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) with an exclusive special series of the GR Yaris: The edition, priced at 42,490 euros, combines the powerful 1.6-liter engine with the “High Performance” package, a customer-specific vehicle setup and a paint finish in the GR colors. Interested parties can apply online at www.toyota.de for one of the 300 copies.The little model athlete is on the road with a built-in guarantee of driving fun: Inspired by the WRC series winner and world champion, the GR Yaris also features in the special series with the 192 kW/261 hp three-cylinder turbo petrol engine. The GR-FOUR all-wheel drive system distributes its torque between the front and rear wheels as needed. A Torsen limited-slip differential, which is standard in conjunction with the “High Performance” package, improves traction. The sprint to 100 km/h can be achieved within 5.5 seconds. An individual vehicle setup that uses the expertise of the Toyota Gazoo Racing World Rally Team guarantees even more agility and driving fun. The details of the setup cannot be communicated at the moment, but will follow in good time before the vehicle is delivered.
At CES, the BMW Group and Amazon showcase voice assistant LLM capabilities based on a current development project that the companies are working on in preparation for a potential series rollout. This makes the BMW Intelligent Personal Assistant the ultimate vehicle expert thanks to generative AI that is powered by the Alexa LLM. At CES, visitors experience how the voice assistant provides quick instructions and answers about vehicle functions in a much more human, conversation-like manner, while at the same time being able to control some vehicle functions.The BMW Intelligent Personal Assistant has been using artificial intelligence for speech processing for a long time and this demo is the latest proof point of the continued innovation BMW and its partners are bringing to customers. Complex processing capabilities, which enable human-like interactions and dialogs, have not yet been integrated into BMW series vehicles. Such capabilities are now made possible by LLMs, which are AI models that are designed to process human language at a high level and generate responses accordingly. The BMW Group is also taking careful steps to build a safe and trusted experience for customers, and continues to test and iterate these LLM capabilities over time with its partners.Since the introduction of the first BMW Intelligent Personal Assistant in 2018, language interaction has been an essential part of BMW iDrive. Today, the voice assistant gives customers control over many vehicle functions so that they can keep their hands on the wheel and their eyes on the road. Leveraging Amazon’s Alexa Custom Assistant — a solution that is based on Alexa technology and enables companies to create their own customized voice assistant — the next-generation of the BMW Intelligent Personal Assistant will soon become more powerful over the course of the year in vehicles with BMW Operating System 9.
The BMW Group and Valeo have entered a strategic partnership to work on the joint development of next-generation automated Level 4 parking solutions. This includes the development of solutions for automated valet parking (AVP). Here, the customer leaves their vehicle in a designated drop-off area. The vehicle then searches for a vacant parking space itself, manoeuvres into the space and later exits it again, and can even drive back to the pick-up area for collection by the driver. Either an autonomous driving system or a teleoperated valet system can be used as the underlying technology for this.CES 2024 visitors will have the opportunity to try out teleoperated valet parking for themselves. Teleoperation offers complete control in situations that could be very challenging for fully autonomous systems, such as in complex or unfamiliar environments.The teleoperator uses sophisticated technology and live camera images to guide and move the vehicle so that it can be parked and retrieved again in a carefully controlled manner. Possible future applications for this technology could include parking at events, at airports or in the logistics sector.
Morgan Motor Company is planning its electric future and sharing details of a new development vehicle that will act as the forerunner to all future electric Morgan sports cars. Referred to as ‘XP-1’, the experimental prototype will provide key information to the engineers and designers at Morgan as they embark on creating the company’s first production electric models. Developed over the last 12 months by Morgan’s team of engineers based in Malvern, Worcestershire, XP-1 is based on Super 3’s aluminium platform.The striking prototype is not intended for production but has been created to enhance thinking in several key areas including driving characterisation, powertrain development, in-house EV competence and training, and new feature ideation and testing. Following 12 months of design and build, XP-1 will now embark on a comprehensive testing programme during the next 18-24 months, undergoing continual evolution to test new technology and features.XP-1’s battery, motor and inverter combination represents Morgan’s first powertrain, internal combustion or battery electric. The powertrain, engineered specifically for XP-1, gives Morgan’s engineers complete control of calibrations that vary the throttle and regeneration level at different speeds, in order to create a range of driving modes featuring a mix of driving characteristics. To aid with the identification of suitable component combinations for the powertrain – both for XP-1 and future Morgan electric models – an in-house developed full vehicle toolchain has been created. This toolchain is key to modelling the compatibility and suitability of a range of different powertrain components, calculating the range prediction algorithm and simulating different scenarios that can help the company to benchmark against future requirements.Ensuring that future electric Morgan sports cars are lightweight – as they have been throughout the company’s 114 year history – is a key requirement. This weight requirement is fundamental in the decision for the company to create its own powertrain combination, working with key partners and utilising industry leading components. As such, XP-1’s weight is comparable to that of the production car it is based on.
French President Emmanuel Macron and Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape attend a signing ceremony for agreements between the two countries in the capital Port Moresby. IMAGES
Bentley’s ultimate grand tourer, the coachbuilt Batur by Mulliner, has completed its whole vehicle development programme, ensuring that it meets the highest standards of performance and durability. Work now commences on the build of customer cars, each of which will feature an exceptional level of bespoke craftsmanship and take around four months to handcraft – with the last one to be completed at the end of 2024.Following on from the creation of two development vehicles (known as Car Zero and Car Zero-Zero), just 18 Batur customer cars will be produced by hand in the Mulliner workshops. However, no concession has been made in Bentley’s rigorous testing regime, which includes durability tests on handling tracks, real-world road conditions, high speed testing beyond 200 mph, and rough surfaces. Other tests included 600 hours of solar loading, equivalent to five years in an Arizona desert, to ensure that the sustainable materials used in the Batur’s construction will be robust enough to endure a lifetime’s use.