Category: Interviews

Interviews with leaders in automotive, transportation and related fields including automation, design, fuel, materials, safety and security.

Mitsubishi’s Nate Berg Talks About The 2018 Outlander Plug-in Hybrid SUV & 2018 Eclipse Cross

RPM News Weekly recently spoke with Mitsubishi Director of Product Planning Nate Berg at the NEMPA garage about the sportiness of the Eclipse Cross and the usability of the Outlander Plug-in Hybrid (PHEV).

2018 Toyota Camry Comes To New England


This week RPM News Weekly travels to Middleboro, Massachusetts to welcome the completely redesigned, eighth generation Toyota Camry to the Boston metro region by way of a product demonstration presented at the headquarters of the New England Motor Press Association.

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Mecum Auctions J. Geils Collection of Italian Cars

This week RPM News Weekly pays tribute to legendary rock guitarist John J. Geils whose band amassed a string of popular hits in the 1970s and 80s including the #1 chart topper Centerfold.

It may seem strange to our automotive audience that RPM News Weekly would take the program in this direction, but there are couple of important connections here.

First, J. Geils, who passed away in April, was a good friend of Jim Barisano, CEO of WheelsTV with whom RPM News Weekly is closely affiliated.

And secondly, he was a passionate collector of classic Italian motor vehicles. This week, his outstanding treasure of Italian exotic cars and motorcycles will be auctioned without reserves to the highest bidders at the 2017 Mecum Daytime Auction in Monterey, California.

The collection includes five unforgettable cars and three wonderful motorcycles.

The flagship of the collection is a 1961 Ferrari 250 GTE 2+2 which comes equipped with its original 3-liter V12 engine and 5-speed transmission.

It was Geils goal to collect vehicles from the five celebrated Italian automakers Ferrari, Maserati, Fiat, Alfa Romeo, and Lancia as evidenced by the others vehicle to be auctioned – a 1967 Lancia Flaminia 2.8 3C, a 1967 Fiat Dino Spyder, and two vehicles whose restorations were still in progress at the musician’s time of death, a 1958 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint, and a 1966 Maserati Sebring.

For motorcycle enthusiasts, the Geils’ collection includes a 1983 Benelli 900 SEI, a 1976 MV Agusta 125 SS and a 1970 Ducati 350 Desmo.

Included are some excerpts from a 2013 WGBH video featuring J. Geils in his garage with the cars.

Formula E from NYC to Montreal

Formula E wraps up its 2017 race season this weekend in Montreal, Canada with the Renault e.dams team holding a dominating 65-point lead in the competition. Ten teams, twenty drivers have been battling it out across the globe in the sport’s 12-race third season that commenced last October in Hong Kong.RPM News Weekly was on hand, last week, for all the excitement and energy these all-electric super cars brought to the streets of Red Hook in Brooklyn, New York with the city’s first-ever Formula-e races.
Having transformed several blocks of a gritty, industrial neighborhood on Brooklyn’s waterfront that faces the Statue of Liberty into a 1.2-mile race course, Formula-e is destined to leave its mark, not only in New York but around the world.
The idea of all-electric racing is still new and building an audience. There’s something to be said, too, about who’s been attracted to participate. With teams from Audi Sport, Panasonic-Jaguar Racing, Virgin Racing, Venturi and others, that are sponsored by some of the most invested names in electric vehicle development, it’s clear that there’s a message about sustainability to be found in the not so typical, high-pitched whirring of the powerful electric motors motivating these vehicles.Alejandro Agag
Described by Formula-e CEO Alejandro Agag as the “noise of the future”, the sound of the motors as the cars whiz down the track at speeds up to 140 miles per hour speaks to a new era of racing.
A Formula-e race is as much spectacle as it is entertainment. Out on the grid before the race, there’s a rarefied mix of anticipation and awe, tension and intensity where color and charisma collide. But once the race is underway, the energy is pure adrenaline.
Much of the excitement gets focused in the tight turns where a driver’s skill and determination create opportunities for advancing in the pack. It’s also where contact often happens.
In New York, Virgin Racing driver Sam Bird put on a supercharged performance winning 1st place trophies in both Saturday and Sunday races.
The season finale in Montreal this weekend features races Saturday and Sunday on one of the ePrix’s longest tracks. To take a simulated ride around the track, go to fiaformulae.com. Meanwhile, here are more highlights from Formula-e New York City.

Inside the All-New 2018 Jeep Compass SUV

This week RPM News Weekly travels to New England Motor Press Association headquarters in Middleboro Massachusetts where representatives from Jeep were on hand with the all-new 2017 Jeep Compass compact crossover.

It was a Hawaiian themed night where between the floral print shirts and the barbeque burgers, NEMPA members had an opportunity to test drive three versions of the fully redesigned sport utility vehicle, the Base Latitude, the Limited and the extremely off-road capable Trailhawk.

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IONIQ Hybrid, EV & PHEV w/ Hyundai VP Mike O’Brien

 

Whether it’s the Ioniq hybrid, Plug-in Hybrid Electric or all-electric EV, New England Motor Press Association members learned more about this new compact vehicle from Hyundai than you’ll ever find in a brochure. Just remember to pronounce it ‘IONIQ’ – rhymes with ironic!

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