Jaguar - Repair and Service Redwood City - Jaguar 2021 Jaguar F-Type gets facelift, new tech, more power - Bosch European Redwood City - (650) 368-3000

The Jaguar F-Type's design is art on wheels, and for 2021 the British sports car moves forward.

The refreshed 2021 Jaguar F-Type coupe and convertible made an online debut on Monday with tweaks to its sleek design, new in-cabin technology, more power, and a focus on fine details.

2021 Jaguar F-Type

It won't be hard to pick out the 2021 F-Type at Cars & Coffee next year. The LED headlights are now slim horizontal units (previously they were vertically oriented) to match new, slender LED taillights that are similar to those found in the all-electric I-Pace crossover. A wider, deeper grille gives the F-Type a wider appearance than before.

A new design for the clamshell hood features air vents positioned closer to the front bumper to aid with efficiency, according to Jaguar. The look is capped off with revised front and rear bumper designs to help differentiate the three F-Type trims; R-Dynamic and R models feature J-shaped aero-blades to guide airflow around the front of the car. Thankfully, the rear haunches haven't been touched and look as muscular for 2021 as they did when the F-Type debuted in 2014.

2021 Jaguar F-Type

Inside, the F-Type doesn't change much, which is a good thing. The main upgrade is to the technology with a 12.3-inch reconfigurable digital gauge cluster in front of the driver replacing analog gauges, while the 10-inch touchscreen infotainment system adds Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility, plus over-the-air software update functionality. The round knobs for the climate controls, center console-mounted volume knob, and joystick-like gear selector all carry over for 2021.

An emphasis has been put on the materials and details inside the 2021 F-Type's cabin with Windsor leather, suede, Noble chrome, and monogram stitching on the seats and door trim. In a nod to the brand's past, "Jaguar" is stamped into the seat belt guides and glovebox release.

 

2021 Jaguar F-Type

Base F-Types will are still powered by a 296-horsepower 2.0-liter turbo-4 with 295 pound-feet of torque, while the 3.0-liter supercharged V-6 continues with 380 hp and 339 lb-ft of torque. The most powerful F-Type, the R, is still powered by a 5.0-liter supercharged V-8, but output increases from 550 to to 575 hp and from 502 to 516 lb-ft of torque. The only way to get a rear-wheel-drive F-Type is to opt for the turbo-4 as both the V-6 and V-8 send power to all four wheels. All F-Types continue with an 8-speed automatic transmission (RIP 6-speed manual, a short-lived option that died for 2020).

No 2021 F-Type is slow. The base 4-cylinder model sprints from 0 to 60 mph in 5.4 seconds on the way to a top speed of 155 mph. The voracious V-8 drops the 0 to 60 mph time to 3.5 seconds and ups the top speed to an electronically-limited 186 mph.

The F-Type retains its aluminum double wishbone front and rear suspension, but the rear knuckles are now aluminum die castings matched with larger wheel bearings and new upper ball joints. According to Jaguar, the changes provide more precise control of the tire's contact patch for better steering feel.

2021 Jaguar F-Type

To increase grip, the R model gets 10-mm wider Pirelli P Zero tires all around. It now has 265/35ZR20s up front and 305/30ZR20s at the rear.  tires are 10mm wider than before on R models to provide increased grip.

The electric power steering system has been recalibrated for more immediate response. We'll have to wait until we have some time behind the wheel to judge if the new calibration is actually an improvement over the previous setup.

Pricing and U.S. availability for the 2021 Jaguar F-Type will be announced early in 2020.

source: https://www.motorauthority.com/news/1126251_2021-jaguar-f-type-photos-specs-info 

by Joel Feder

http://www.boscheuropean.com

 

BMW - Repair and Service Redwood City - 2020 BMW M2 CS costs nearly as much as a 7-Series - Bosch European Redwood City - (650) 368-3000

BMW in the not too distant past was known as the maker of the Ultimate Driving Machine, but the famous slogan doesn't sit too well with the automaker today—though thankfully there are still some exceptions.

BMW certainly churns out its share of segment busting niche fillers that aren't fit to sniff the tires of some of the classic hits, but it also continues to make a few cars that live up to the slogan. One of these is the M2, which for 2020 has spawned an even more intense version in the form of the M2 CS.

 

2020 BMW M2 CS

The car doesn't come cheap, though. BMW this week confirmed a starting price of $84,595, which is just a couple of grand shy of the starting price of the 7-Series flagship sedan. The regular M2, which is certainly no slouch, starts at about $55,000.

We should point out that the M2 CS is a limited-edition model. Just 2,200 will be built for worldwide sale starting next March, and right now it isn't clear how many of these will reach the United States. We've reached out to BMW for clarification and will update the article as soon as we hear back.

 

2020 BMW M2 CS, 2019 LA Auto Show

Beyond the limited-edition status, the M2 CS offers a few more extras to get excited about. For example, peak output registers at 444 horsepower, thanks to the addition of the 3.0-liter twin-turbocharged inline-6 fitted to the M3/M4 instead of the regular M2's single-turbo engine. The regular M2 makes 365 hp while the M2 Competition added for 2019 makes 405 hp.

The car also comes with a 6-speed manual as standard, while a 7-speed dual-clutch transmission is offered as an alternative. BMW said with the dual-clutch transmission, the M2 CS will sprint from 0-60 mph in 3.8 seconds while that drops to 4.0 seconds with the manual. Top speed should be about 174 mph.

 

2020 BMW M2 CS

Then there's all the carbon fiber goodies. The list includes the hood, roof, and multiple aero parts. The vehicle can also be further enhanced with carbon-ceramic brake rotors, some very tasty matte gold wheels, and Michelin Cup 2 tires.

Note, the M2 CS isn't expected to be the end of the road for the current-generation M2. We hear that an even more hardcore M2 CSL is still a possibility.

 source: https://www.motorauthority.com/news/1112548_2020-bmw-m2-cs-costs-nearly-as-much-as-a-7-series

by Viknesh Vijayenthiran

http://www.boscheuropean.com

 

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Audi - Repair and Service Redwood City - First drive review: 2020 Audi RS Q8 rides a wave of blisteringly fast family SUVs - Bosch European Redwood City - (650) 368-3000

It’s a short throw between Audi’s hot family wagons. 

Yet, the 2020 Audi RS Q8 and RS 6 Avant are far apart in mission and execution. Despite their shared engines—a fire-breathing twin-turbo V-8 shared with Lamborghini and sourced from Porsche—the RS Q8 and RS 6 Avant are distant like the sun-drenched beaches and snow-capped mountaintops on the Spanish island of Tenerife off the coast of Africa. More than 50 degrees separate the air between two; the Audis are even further apart.

The Canary Islands’ impossibly long clouds; tall pines and palms; and purple, red, gold, and brown volcanic rock valleys are where I’ve been given the chance to dash the RS Q8 up a dormant volcano above the clouds and back down to soft, yellow sand in time for siesta. 

The RS Q8 squats, screams, then springs toward the next curve with a violent but restrained holler every time. The 4.0-liter V-8 is muffled until it isn’t, deep stabs awake its reserved power and sonorous temblors in this far-flung island ringed by palm trees. Audi officials in the U.S. say our versions will be even louder. 

Despite what you may have heard, we’re living in a car-enthusiast paradise. The RS Q8 is only one of five recent Audi Sport models available in the U.S., up from one not too long ago.  

The RS Q8 shares its powertrain with the RS 6 Avant and RS 7 hatchback, yes. But the RS Q8 will be the one that matters most simply because it’ll be the best-seller among the three—if not the most popular RS model in the U.S. of all time. 

 

2020 Audi RS Q8 first drive

The RS Q8 is unassuming but wicked. An SUV with more drama than a beach sunset, it rises above the clouds in a literal and figurative sense. The RS Q8 accelerates up to 62 mph in 3.8 seconds, just a heartbeat slower than the RS 7 and RS 6 Avant, despite its massive size and the need to move air around its bulky crossover frame. The RS Q8 tops out at 190 mph, electronically limited, because moving mountains of air is a helluva chore. 

The RS Q8 borrows its skeleton from the Q8 crossover and, by extension, the Q7 crossover. Both of those are family vehicles and the RS Q8 is a family vehicle, too. Its interior isn’t compromised at all by the hulking V-8 underhood, standard rear limited-slip differential, air suspension, or available 23-inch wheels. The RS Q8 seats up to five in supreme comfort and speed—not an inch has changed from the interior space, cargo capacity, or even the ride height. The standard air suspension in the RS Q8 raises or lowers the crossover more than 3.5 inches between off-road and dynamic modes, which is the same as the regular Q8.  

In that way, it feels about as special as the Q8 crossover from the inside. The touchscreens are all there along with the copious leg room. The same goes for the reserved color scheme and light steering feel perfect for parking lots. 

The RS Q8 gets a flat-bottomed, Alcantara-wrapped steering wheel, stitched with red threads, that’s bezeled at the best angle to wrap, grip, and twist your knuckles around—no matter how light it feels. The wheel is thinner than those found in Mercedes-AMG models or BMW M cars, although the Audi’s wheel feels a little more luxurious and less overconfident about its credentials. Only a red-ringed start button could be considered the flashiest hardware in the RS Q8, and that’s all. “Restraint” may be the first word a German baby learns. 

 

2020 Audi RS Q8 first drive

And its raucous 4.0-liter twin-turbo V-8 fires up with a hushed burble inside. Audi’s teeter-totter shifter tips into drive and engages the 8-speed automatic that rifles power through a standard permanent all-wheel-drive system that shuttles up to 80 percent of its torque to the rear wheels. Even with the torque split that never forgets the front axle, the RS Q8 rears up and thrusts forward from the tail through the nose like an uppercut that starts at the bellybutton and pushes through your forehead.

There are two RS-specific drive modes, both accessed via steering wheel-mounted button at 3 o’clock. The drive modes are hotkeys: via the infotainment system, drivers can specify RS 1 or RS 2 drive modes that toggle the steering, throttle, transmission, dampers, intake sound, differential behaviors and ride height. RS 2 is the same but can set the stability control to Sport for more freedom around corners. 

 

2020 Audi RS Q8 first drive

Not that there’s much freedom anyway. The big SUV that weighs more than 2.5 tons with people and fuel aboard bites hard into the narrow roads in Tenerife. The wide 295-millimeter Continental Sport Contact 6 tires dig their heels into the Teide National Park roads that squiggle up toward the island’s dormant volcano. Audi pro driver Frank Stippler, who set the production SUV record lap in the RS Q8 around the Nurburgring-Nordschleife at 7 minutes, 42 seconds, used Pirellis on his lap in Germany but didn’t mind subbing in a set of the Continentals for his drive through the island.

“The car is bloody fast,” he said. Yep.

Rear-wheel steering that can countersteer up to 5 degrees from the front wheels virtually shortens the car’s wheelbase to trace an even tighter line around the twisty roads. Coupled with a standard sport differential on the rear end and wide rear tires, the RS Q8 begs for hard corners out of the daily slog. Its steering is a shade too light and a shade too numb to feel like anything but a luxury SUV—even at its firmest setting. And for more than 150 miles, the RS Q8 skittered along glassy roads in the Canary Islands without interrupting any of my conversations. 

 

2020 Audi RS Q8 first drive

The Spanish islands were the virtual bridge between Europe, Africa, and the Americas; a port stop for traders (and slave traders) and pirates. The sun clings to the water as the waves roll into the volcanic island, and the sea air wafts past the Spanish colonials painted in muted pastels and terra cotta. 

The RS Q8 is a virtual bridge, too. For well-heeled buyers willing to plunk at least $120,000 down for one—even though Audi hasn’t yet said how much it will cost when it arrives next year—the RS Q8 will be a bridge from the automaker’s conservative crossovers to the wild child Audi Sport brand and their hot wagons and hatches. (By extension, the Lamborghini Urus and Porsche Cayenne, too.) If it’s any indication of what Audi expects from the RS Q8, the RS 6 Avant is build-to-order, while the RS Q8 will be ready to go when you are. 

It’s ready to go. Oh, hell, is it ready to go.

source:  https://www.motorauthority.com/news/1126434_first-drive-review-2020-audi-rs-q8-price-details-specs-photos

by Aaron Cole

http://www.boscheuropean.com