But wait on. Is there something we are missing? Yea, now as I said the preferences may differ and in one example of such a case, The UK council has decided to switch off the streetlights, or rather call it the road-lights as early as 9:00 pm. This could look even more daunting when you consider the fact that in winters, the days gonna be shorter. While on reading this piece of article up to this very point, you may start wondering about the effects of this on the transportation. But trust me you do not need to even flex a single brain muscle of yours.

From The Windshield

Meet this guy, Mr. Daan Roosegarde, a Dutchman. Roosegarde in partnership with the Hejmans infrastructure have developed an idea which can solve this problem with surprisingly positive effect. What this man from this RVPs country has come up with is worth admiration. They have come up with a design which would light up the road highways in the night using this glow-in-the-dark time photo luminescing powder. This powder would be used instead of the road markings on the roadways of the Netherlands. The characteristic of this powder is that it charges up in the sunlight in the day and can provide 10 hours of luminescence in the dark. This is not all. They have also collaborated with the paint companies and come up with paint markers to be put up on the road, for instance snowy flakes and clouds. When the temperature falls to a certain minimum level, these markers would glow up in order to indicate the drivers that the road is slippery and they better watch out for their tyre’s slip angles. This whole setup is going to be installed in the mid 2013 in the Brabant Dutch Province initially.

While In Winters

If you thought this was a genius idea, then hold on to it for a moment.  What they have got in the stock is a system of interactive lights along the highway that would light up once the cars approach and a special lane along the side of the highways which would facilitate the recharging of the electric vehicle while they are on the move. The complete scenario would take some three to five years to fall in place.

But then for now keep an eye on the Dutch Highways, as the mid 2013 could just be the time for people to facilitate their dropping jaws.

Watch out the video below for an interactive insight and the gallery for your downloads.

Video:

(Details courtesy wired.co.uk)

Adios,

Krish.

The post Stars To Lend Their Glitter To The Dutch Highways appeared first on AutoSpace.

A career that spanned over 20 years in the fast speed lane, gave the world some of the most historic moments Formula 1 has ever seen. He began as a German whiz kid and a master of go karts and debuted for Eddie Jordan’s Formula 1 team in 1991 in Belgium. He raced only once for the Jordans but no one ever knew that even this statistic would become so significant.

He then went on to join Benetton and straightway finished a classy 3^rd in the championship table in 1992. This mark becomes even more remarkable when you take account of the fact that he was racing in the field which also had Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost in one of the machines.1994 and 1995 were the turning points in his career as he swallowed the championship in the consecutive years.

A big call was due for a long time now and in 1996 he became a part of the legendary Ferrari Formula 1 team. At this point Ferrari was struggling to win even a consolation and Ross Brawn spotted this guy out of the blue. What Ferrari never knew  was this could well be the name that could turn its fortunes forever. And thus began the remarkable championship years from 2000 to 2004 where Ferrari Schumacher won five consecutive championships. His tally went up to 7 and  still it’s a record and I guess, it would take a “Hand Of God” to break that….. Among these years there were two 365 day spans where he would amaze people again and again. In 2002, Michael Schumacher finished on the podium in every single race of the season and in 2004 he won an astounding 13 races in the season. No wonder these two are also record stats.

2006 was the year when the master bid adieu to the world of Formula 1 with being regarded as one of the greatest drivers in the sport’s history. In the mean time, in subsequent years, Michael donned the role of advisor in Ferrari, he planned the design of the car and in 2009, it was also rumoured that he would replace injured Massa in the red cockpit once again.

Speculations were put to rest when he rejoined the Formula 1 grid with the Mercedes Petronas in 2010. This move is much speculated to be because of Ross Brawn’s influence, who was then the team principal of the team. All said and done, Schumacher has managed a single podium in the past three years, and that in the current season. As the speculations again started taking the centre stage that he could return back to Ferrari for the 2013 season as Mercedes signed up Lewis Hamilton, Michael Schumacher decided it to call it a day. But you somehow know from deep inside that until and unless this decision wouldn’t have been conveyed to the team, Hamilton’s move wouldn’t have been possible.

We, at Autospace would like to thank Michael for whatever he has given to us and taught us during his entire career. We thank you for treating our eyes and heart with some of the most fantastic drives we have ever witnessed.

This is An Ode to the Red Master From AutoSpace.

Adios,

Krish

The post An Ode To The Red Master – Schumacher ‘Ferrari’ Michael appeared first on AutoSpace.

And the Mother Nature has indeed graced The Planet Earth with personalities, feats and events, in every single field which keeps inspiring people in some nook and corner of this planet.

Being a so-called auto freak, I have always been in an awe, following “Ferrari”- its development as a trend-setter, the legacy that the company holds, the “fairy-tale like” lives of the people involved with the Italian giant, and the red goose bumps that it serves you on a platter when you read about it, hear about it or watch a video on it on the internet. And then you do not stop hearing about the strange things that their models have achieved in their run up to being the world’s most beautiful and the most astonishing and the most beautiful and the most……

One such model of theirs is the Ferrari 365GTB/4 aka “Daytona”. The name Daytona was given to it by the people instead of the company as a memorabilia of Ferrari’s 1-2-3 finish at the 1967 24 hours Daytona. The Daytona succeeded the 275GTB/4 in the Ferrari;s line of production cars and also marked the last front engine Ferrari before the company moving into Fiat’s hand.

Daytona. designed by Leonardo Fioravanti at Pininfarina, boasted 4.4 litre V-12 engine and could give 352 horses their run for the money @7500 rpm. The fact that Fioravanti came up with this beautiful sleek design in just 7 days puts this automobile in a completely new arena. Launched at the 1968 Paris Motor Show, the Ferrari Daytona coasted a heavy $10,000. Ferrari had launched the Daytona in a direct competition with the mid-engine classic Lamborghini Miura. The car hit the highly appreciated 174mph barrier in that era and till date does Enzo proud when people talk about it.

Ferrari Daytona (left) and Lamborghini Miura (right)

Yes the Ferrari’s have never been questioned of their stature in the automotive sector, but every now and then you hear a so called “petrol-head” putting his old fashioned debate of The Ferrari vs The Lamborghini vs The Porsche vs….. and so does the fool carries on…..But wait a minute, are we worth even commenting on the kind of cars these “legendary” automakers have been producing!    .

Ferrari Daytona interiors

There are many cars like The Daytona in the history of car making that make us go WOW!

But The Ferrari Daytona was one of its kind, never was it created before and never can it be created again. The Bible says that – “In six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.”  Maybe the seventh second of the seventh day was dedicated to the Daytona. Maybe.

Ferrari Daytona interiors

In the end, I leave you with a gem of a documentary on the beautiful, gorgeous Ferrari Daytona aka , 365GTB/4. In the meantime, it is important for you to know that am not a Ferrari-head, just, a petrol-head!

By the way, what do you think of the term “Legendary”…..

Keep thinking.

Adios,

Krish.

Documentary on Ferrari Daytona:

The post A Seven Day Wonder: The Ferrari Daytona appeared first on AutoSpace.

But among these baffling battles going on for the podium finishes and points, the middle section of the race has been really congested this season. Every race has seen 10-12 drivers cramming within that 1.5 seconds gap for most part of the race. The story off late, off the racing park has been revolving around a Ferrari car in that congested middle section.

Indeed Felipe Massa is clearly struggling in his F2012, and everyone expected him to, not because we do not believe in his credentials, but because we are wary of the fact that The Ferarris, off late, have been quite tricky to handle. Massa was excellent in the F2008 and had a shot at the title till the very end, but when we talk about the previous two seasons, he hasn’t been that good and has been clearly off the pace. It remains a fact that both the F10 (used for the 2010 season) and the 150° Italia (of the 2011 season) has been  very tough on the handling characteristics, but the fact that Alonso managed incredible lap times and outscored Massa by a whopping margins hasn’t quite helped his cause.

The matter now seems to be really complicated and these are not merely rumours was highlighted by the statement on the Ferrari’s official website earlier this week which said“Everyone, he more than anyone, is expecting a change of gears straightaway.” This would definitely have not soothed Massa who was already hinted after his horrendous 2011 season that his future in Ferrari was not as safe as it seemed to be.

2012 so far has not been one to be much talked about for Massa. With mere two points from the five races so far, and Alonso leading the pack with 61 of them, one can’t completely take his eye off from the extent to which Ferrari suffers from this wide gap. The current Championship Table sees Ferrari sit at an agonising 4^thposition, when they could have done a lot better. The retirements, the wheel spins at the several occasions and the inability to maintain gaps have really brought Massa into the limelight big time.

With the young Mexican Sergio Perez already being linked with a possible Massa replacement for the 2013 season, it would be too soon but not all that wrong to think that the Brazilian is in a spot of bother. The latest news even hinted at Force India’s driver Paul di Resta being the other possible candidate. An end of Massa’s career at Ferrari may probably mean the end of his Formula 1 career as his age of 31 puts his place in jeopardy, in an era where teams look to nurture drivers from a young age.

All said and done, we hope that an able driver of Felipe Massa’s calibre can claim his stake at Ferrari for the next season with some authoritative performance in the upcoming flyaway races of the season.

The fact that he ignored the yellow flags at the lately concluded Spanish Grand Prix didn’t do much good to him, did it?

Adios

Krish

The post What Really Is The “Massa Mystery”? appeared first on AutoSpace.

Being a petrol-head and a motorsport freak, I have always been wondering time and again about this forgotten epic battle that almost took the eye off the rest of the field for a decade! While going through so many ideas on a topic to write, well of course, on a serious note finishing up my noodles, I thought what could be better than publishing about arguably the most famous battle of all time in the Formula 1 history : The late Ayrton Senna-Alain Prost tussle. Well then, a nice idea to kick-off blogging at autospace.co. With a strong racing foundation back home and two F3 championships (a French and an European) under his belt, Frenchman Alain Prost raced in Formula 1 for the first time for the Mclarens in 1980. After switching teams from Mclaren to Renault, Prost was back at Mclaren for the 1984 season. Having won two championship titles already with McLaren in the forgone seasons (’85 and ’86), the Frenchman was riding high at the British outfit.

Meanwhile, a charismatic Brazilian had forced his way up to Formula 1 in 1984, when Toleman first signed Ayrton Senna. Senna burst into the scene with his breathtaking drive at the 1984 Grand Prix at Monaco, where he stood second to Alain Prost’s flying Mclaren. With ambitions too high to be satisfied by Toleman, Senna moved his way up to first Lotus in’85 and then to Mclaren in ’88.

The stage was set for the biggest spectacle of the century to unleash in the motorsport arena as Senna joined Prost at The Mclaren.

The amazingly talented duo set up a treat for Mclaren as the 1988 season was literally, all about the two McLarens bursting past each other.  The Mclarens won an arrogant 15 out of 16 Grand Prixs with Senna, the eventual champion conquering 8 of them. This was an indication of something unexpected for the further seasons and as it turned out, 1989 season saw Prost taking Senna out at the Suzuka chicane at the season-ending Japanese Grand Prix for his 3^rd championship title.

The scores had to be settled and this time, the ball was in Ayrton Senna’s court. The stage was set up at the same Suzuka circuit but the players were, swapped. This time, Ayrton Senna would win his 2^nd championship if Alain Prost was not to finish, and inevitably, Senna would take out Alain Prost on the first corner, thus becoming a double World Champion.

The story after this, saw Senna winning the Championship in ’91 as Prost struggled with his Ferarri and was ultimately fired at the end of the season. Prost joined Williams for the ’93 season, after serving as TV commentator for 1992, and went on to win his fourth Championship. The retirement of Prost from Formula 1 in ’93, saw Senna joining Williams for the ’94 season, in which the infamous crash at the Imola took place. Prost meanwhile, went on to be a TV commentator and an advisor for Mclaren before buying the then Ligier team in 1997, which he renamed as Prost Grand Prix. He had to ultimately shut it down in 2001, citing political and financial reasons.

The 1980s indeed saw two legendary drivers fight it out for supremacy. While many engage themselves in figuring out the best among the two, I like to admire them both and their charm, and their battle, and their spirit for the sport, and ……..I could carry on forever. While one is regarded as the best racer, the sport has ever seen; the other stands as the driver to have won the most number of World Championships, only next to the legendary Michael Schumacher and the great Juan Manuel Fangio.

Its time to put a full stop to this article of mine, as I take a sip of the coffee besides my laptop and settle my goose bumps I felt while typing this down; But wait,

I would rather end it with an exclamatory mark!     If you know what I mean!

…. Adios.

Krish

The post Battle Of The 80′s : We Call It “The Pro-Senna Era” appeared first on AutoSpace.