2019 Nissan Micra Cup champion Macro Signoretti, right, with Nissan Canada president Steve Milette following the title-deciding race last Saturday in Quebec.Nissan Canada CIRCUIT MONT-TREMBLANT, Quebec Rookie Marco Signoretti took a bit of the drama out of the 2019 Nissan Micra Cup championship by securing the title on the first day of the season-ending double-header last weekend here in the Laurentian Mountains.The Toronto driver became the first Ontario-based driver and the first rookie to win the title in the five years the Micra Cup has been contested, a series in which drivers compete in identically speced Micra Ss.In Saturdays race in wet conditions, Signoretti started from pole but drove a conservative race, his goal to finish ahead of his sole title challenger, Kevin King, rather than win the race. The PayPal/Motorsports In Action Team driver placed fifth to Kings eight-place result, giving him enough points to seal the drivers championship. I thought back at my 12 years of experience in karting and the errors I sometimes made, Signoretti said following Saturdays race. I then managed my race the best I could knowing that the ultimate goal was to claim the title. Im very ecstatic to have won the Nissan Micra Cup in my rookie season.With Signoretti trying to keep his nose clean while navigating the slippery Circuit Mont-Tremblant, a great battle at the front saw Valrie Limoges (H.Grgoire Nissan), Jake Exton (Clarington Nissan) and Gavin Sanders vie for victory.At the checkered flag, Limoges won by less than six-tenths of a second ahead of Sanders, with Exton third. It was Limoges third win in the series.Sundays season-ending race was run under sunny skies, and with the pressure of the title fight off, Signoretti put an exclamation mark on his remarkable rookie season by winning the race, followed by Exton and Austin Riley, the young autistic driver whose third place finish rounded out an exceptional season.A notable footnote to the race was pole-sitter Ben Cooper, a triple world karting champion originally from Great Britain and currently residing in Mont-Tremblant. During the first few laps six drivers were going wheel-to-wheel for the lead, which resulted in Cooper, whose first-ever Micra Cup race was a day earlier, ending his day early following contact with Sanders and King.Sylvain Ouellets sixth place, combined with Frdric Berniers retirement after a contact with Limoges, gave Ouellet the Senior Class title. Both drivers were tied with the number of points but Ouellet was the holder of seven victories against Berniers three. In the final overall standings, Signoretti is the champion ahead of King, Limoges, Exton, Taylor Near, Riley, Ouellet, Bernier, Nicolas Barrette, and ric Chaput. At least 37 drivers took part in the 2019 Nissan Micra Cup season. The weekends two races can be watched on the series Facebook page and on Micra Cup TV on YouTube.The sixth season of the Nissan Micra Cup will begin in May
Origin: Marco Signoretti wins 2019 Nissan Micra Cup championship
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BTCC 2019: Ingram, Turkington and Butcher split Snetterton wins
Tom Ingram, Colin Turkington and Rory Butcher split the race wins in the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship’s visit to Snetterton, with a one-off tyre rule helping to spice up the racing. For the first time, drivers were required to run all three of the BTCC’s Dunlop tyre compounds in the three races at the Norfolk track. The difference in pace between the three compounds led to plenty of overtaking, particularly in the final race. Ingram started the opening race from pole position after topping qualifying in his works-backed Speedworks Toyota Corolla by 0.002s from works Honda Civic Type-R driver Dan Cammish. Despite an early push from Cammish, Ingram pulled clear for a comfortable victory, his second of the year. Sam Tordoff finished third in his Civic Type-R, completing a podium lock-out for drivers running the soft tyre. Works BMW UK driver Colin Turkington was the top driver on the medium tyre in fourth, extending his championship lead over his fifth-place WSR team-mate Andrew Jordan. The BMW 3 Series of Turkington and Jordan both ran the soft tyre for the second race. They quickly moved into second and third, putting intense pressure on leader Ingram, who was hampered by success ballast. Turkington finally made his move on lap seven, pushing Ingram wide – blocking Jordan’s path in the progress. That allowed Cammish to jump up to second, with Ingram sliding down the order. His day worsened when he picked up a technical problem, dropping out of the points. Turkington’s win was the tenth for the new 3 Series this season, with Jordan recovering to third ahead of Ollie Jackson (Ford Focus RS). The third race was full of drama. Chris Smiley (Civic Type R) started from pole, but was soon overhauled by former champions Jason Plato (Vauxhall Astra) and Ash Sutton (Subaru Levorg). They staged an intense battle, while further back the Civic Type-Rs of Butcher and Josh Cook used their soft tyres to charge up the order from 12th and 15th on the grid. The battle for the lead culminated with Sutton, Plato and Butcher heading down the back straight side-by-side, with the inevitable contact at the next corner dropping the first two down the order and leaving Butcher clear for his second win of 2019. Cook finished second ahead of Smiley, Rob Collard (Vauxhall Astra) and Plato. Turkington finished tenth, and now leads Jordan by 36 points in the title race. Butcher is third, 22 points further back. The next round is the second visit of the year to Thruxton on August
Origin: BTCC 2019: Ingram, Turkington and Butcher split Snetterton wins
Mercedes-Benz Museum wins approval for driverless parking
The Mercedes-Benz Museum just got a little more futuristic. Parts supplier Bosch and Daimler have announced that they’ve been granted permission by local authorities to set up the world’s first fully autonomous parking system for everyday use in the Mercedes-Benz Museum parking garage in Stuttgart, Germany. The system functions with a smartphone app and Level 4 autonomous vehicles that communicate with Bosch sensors located around the garage to navigate the corridors and find the right spot without hitting anything (or anybody) along the way, and doesn’t require a human “safety driver.” “This decision by the authorities shows that innovations like automated valet parking are possible in Germany first,” Dr. Markus Heyn, member of the board of management of Robert Bosch GmbH, said in a release. “Driverless driving and parking are important building blocks for tomorrow’s mobility. The automated parking system shows just how far we have already progressed along this development path.” The pair of companies have been working on automated driverless parking since 2015. In 2018, they offered museum goers the chance to experience the system for themselves in the company of a safety driver. Now, the service will be available on a daily basis and without the safety driver. Upon arriving in the parking garage, drivers simply get out of the car and hit “Park” on the smartphone app. And then it parks itself in an assigned space, to return to the drop-off point once it’s summoned—no tip
Origin: Mercedes-Benz Museum wins approval for driverless parking
VW wins copyright claim against daughter of Beetle stylist
1978 VW Beetle Volkswagen has won a legal battle against one of the descendants of its head of design in the 1930s, who claimed he was the true designer of the Beetle.According to Automotive News, the daughter of late car designer Erwin Komenda claims the VW Beetle was entirely her fathers design, and therefore her family should be entitled to money on the sales of the Beetle.She limited her claim to Beetles built after 2014, as sales of earlier Beetles fell under a statute of limitations.The plaintiff claimed the newer Beetle still incorporated elements from her fathers design, one that was used for more than three generations, and sales of which have surpassed 22 million since production started after the Second World War. She sought 5 million euros in compensation.The court in Brunswick, Germany found that Komendas drawings resembled other vehicles of the era, and were not significantly unique enough to support the claim that he was the sole designer of the Beetle.The court also found that modern Beetle models are significantly different in design from the original Beetle, and thus they were deemed unaffected by any copyright claims.Komendas daughter was also not able to prove her father was involved in the design of the Kdf-Wagen, which VW largely based the design of the Beetle upon. The Kdf-Wagen was produced in 1938 and was designed by Ferdinand Porsche.Komendas daughter was not named in
Origin: VW wins copyright claim against daughter of Beetle stylist
Toyota wins Le Mans again despite late drama
Toyota took full advantage of its open goal to win a second consecutive Le Mans 24 Hours on Sunday. But even without opposition in the top LMP1 hybrid class the Japanese manufacturer offered a story befitting its 30-year drama-filled epic at the great endurance race. The #7 entry driven by Briton Mike Conway, Komui Kobayashi and Jose-Maria Lopez comprehensively outpaced the #8 sister TS050 Hybrid driven Fernando Alonso, Sebastien Buemi and Kazuki Nakajima from the first qualifying session on Wednesday evening until one minute before 2pm on Sunday afternoon. Lopez had just pitted with just over an hour to go of the 24 hours, when a sensor reported a puncture to his front-right Michelin. As it turned out it, was his right-rear tyre that had failed and the Argentinian was forced to pit again – handing victory to Alonso, Buemi and Nakajima. The victory ensures a second consecutive Le Mans victory for the trio, and also confirmed the World Endurance Championship 2018/19 ’super season’ title that would have been theirs anyway had they finished in the runner-up position they truly deserved on this occasion. It means Alonso adds a third FIA world title to the pair he won in Formula 1 with Renault back in 2005 and ’06. The puncture robbed the #7 crew of a win that had been theirs on merit. From pole position, the crew had an edge on their team-mates and rivals, with Conway in particular putting in a performance that suggests he is the world’s top sports car driver at this moment in time. Yet he is yet to boast the Le Mans victory his talent deserves. Ferrari claims close-fought GTE honours Ferrari beat Porsche to class honours in the hardest fought category at Le Mans, as GTE once again offered the best racing at the 24 Hours. Briton James Calado – a lost Formula 1 talent if ever there was one – spearheaded AF Corse’s victory, joined by Italian Alessandro Pier Guidi and Brazilian Daniel Serra. The trio in a 488 GTE saw off a double Porsche assault from Gianmaria Bruni, Richard Lietz and Frédéric Makowiecki in the #91 911 RSR and Michael Christiensen, Kevin Estre and Laurens Vanthoor in the #92 car. There was heartbreak for both Corvette, on the 20th anniversary of Chevrolet’s modern-day Le Mans programme, following accidents, and likewise for Aston Martin, with both Pro-class Vantage entries falling within 20 minutes. Ford signed off its GT programme at Le Mans without a podium in the Pro class, but all four entries at least made the finish in fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh in class. But there was joy for the Keating Motorsports team – the first to run a privateer Ford GT – in the Am class as Jeroen Bleekemolen, Ben Keating and Felipe Fraga claimed victory in their luridly purple and orange Wynn’s livered car. Lapierre remains unbeaten in LMP2 In the secondary prototype class, Frenchman Nicolas Lapierre kept up his remarkable four-race unbeaten run at Le Mans by helping the Signatech Alpine team to a third class victory in four years. He was joined by team-mates André Negrao and Pierre Thiriet. The trio benefitted from the misfortune that befell the G-Drive entry headed by ex-F1 star and current Formula E champion Jean-Eric Vergne. The team that was disqualified from LMP2 victory last year for using an illegal refuelling rig dominated the class this time until the 19th hour, when a starter motor problem at a pitstop cost the entry 20 minutes – and robbed the team of a victory that Vergne had described as potential “revenge” for the disappointment of
Origin: Toyota wins Le Mans again despite late drama
Golfer wins tournament, gifts classic Dodge prize to his caddie
Professional golfer Kevin Na recently gave his longtime caddie a tip worth more than many people’s salaries. After winning the Charles Schwab Challenge in Fort Worth, Texas – and the top prize, which included a modified classic Dodge – with a birdie on the 18th, Na embraced his friend and 11-year caddie, Kenny Harms, and said “That’s your car, baby!” We’re not talking some beater, either. Harms was handed the keys to a fully resto-modded 1973 Dodge Challenger. Taking a shining to the automotive prize in practice rounds earlier in the week, Harms had asked Na if he could have the car if he won. Na agreed. With the win Kevin Na gets this 1973 Dodge Challenger car! pic.twitter.com/IRtx83wyOZ PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) May 26, 2019 After @kevinna915 wins this week #charlesschwabchallenge This beauty is mine,” Harms then posted to Instagram, making the pledge public. He’s a good salesman, I guess, Na said after the tournament. He sold me into it. But I’m more than happy to give it to him. He deserves it. There’s no question it was a generous tip, but Na didn’t leave empty-handed. His cash prize for winning the tournament was nearly US$1.3 million. Check out the video of Na handing the keys over to his buddy. How
Origin: Golfer wins tournament, gifts classic Dodge prize to his caddie
#WeTheCongested: What do the Raptors’ wins mean for Toronto traffic?
In this file photo, vehicles makes their way into and out of downtown Toronto along the Gardiner Expressway in Toronto.Nathan Denette / The Canadian Press Are you an up-and-coming fair-weather basketball fan? You might want to get yourself some comfortable walking shoes—with the state of Toronto’s roads, and the team’s winning streak, the growing Raptors bandwagon ain’t going nowhere any time soon. Following the Eastern Conference victory Saturday night, fans everywhere were celebrating like never before. The honking traffic didn’t start driving around our mid-Toronto neighbourhood until after midnight, probably because the drivers simply couldn’t move before then. Recall this publication recently reported that 600 or so Toronto roads are getting the time-out this summer for around 140 km of roadworks. Consequently, Toronto’s current traffic functions as well as the Raptors’ defence circa 1998, or the Jays’ circa May 2019. Mind, you can’t accuse the city of not trying. This year, over $1 billion (a.k.a. Kawhi’s signing bonus) is being spent to remedy the situation. The gist? You probably won’t hear traveling called much throughout the finals in TO. Perhaps presciently, the Raps secured their first-ever finals run on the day following the kickoff of Hogtown’s annual Bike to Work Month. But with hilariously poetic timing, one of the city’s most vital bike paths, Bloor Street between Bathurst and Spadina, is being shredded today. The expected end date? Sometime in December. By then, invincibly optimistic Leaf fans (you know the sort) estimate their Buds will already have secured a spot in next year’s playoffs. So, what days will TO traffic reach its nadir, creating a Jurassic parking lot? Having won more games than Golden State this season, the Raptors enjoy home court advantage during these finals, which means at least two games will further clog our already Jurassic-ally clogged streets. The first game is this Thursday, May 30 at 9 pm; and the second three days later, Sunday, June 2, at 8 pm. If you worry that you or someone you love just ever-so-possibly may need to hurry to the hospital on either afternoon, evening or late night, consider arranging to be out of town. Or inflate the tire on your wheelbarrow because the ambulance is likely to be ambulatory. Now, not to get too far ahead of ourselves, but you also have to wonder what a victory parade would look like given the state of the city’s roads. There’s not much to compare it to: the closest we’ve got is the 1967 Leafs’ victory parade from the Gardens (which no longer exists) to City Hall (which was brand-new and actually capable of supporting fans on its now-crumbling grounds) to celebrate the Stanley Cup (which is what again?). A simple march from Scotiabank Arena to City Hall could be even more fraught. The population was 700,000 in 1967. Today it’s two million more than that. An undoctored screen capture of today’s road restrictions in Toronto. Steve Bochenek Will any parading Raps in size-20 kicks slip into one of the city’s as-yet unrepaired T-Rex-sized potholes and break an ankle? Stay tuned, sports fans! Don’t get us wrong. Of course, this victory is good for the city’s image. Tourism will flourish. And heaven knows Toronto’s long-suffering sports fans deserve a nod from God. But there’s one GTA collective who’ve suffered even more. We The Congested have endured a hell of a bad ride since long before Nick Nurse was even a candy striper, or Kawhi emitted his first awkward
Origin: #WeTheCongested: What do the Raptors’ wins mean for Toronto traffic?
Autocar Awards 2019: Daimler CEO Dieter Zetsche wins Issigonis Award for extraordinary achievements in motoring
It’s likely no boss at Daimler will wear a tie to a middle-ranking business meeting again. In 2015 the company’s long-serving, high-achieving CEO Dr Dieter Zetsche – winner of this year’s Issigonis Trophy, Autocar’s highest accolade – gave up neckware for meetings. His acolytes gratefully followed suit. Even after four years people still remark on this apocalyptic change at least as much as they do about the Mercedes CEO’s far more significant corporate achievements – such as demerging the company from a disastrous Chrysler alliance, changing company culture, surviving the worst of Dieselgate despite a huge recall of Mercedes models, beating BMW in 2016, vigorously embracing the new electrification age and leaving the company in a well-founded and profitable condition, stuffed with ideas to face the future. utocar Awards 2019: The
Origin: Autocar Awards 2019: Daimler CEO Dieter Zetsche wins Issigonis Award for extraordinary achievements in motoring
Jaguar IPace wins World Car of the Year award
Jaguar I-Pace wins World Car of the Year award The EV SUV has racked up the awards recently Jaguar’s I-Pace has won the World Car of the Year 2019 title, taking the overall prize from the Audi e-tron and the Volvo S60/V60. To have two pure-electric models in the last three says a lot about how quickly the electric car market has moved on. Two years ago, it was the Jaguar F-Pace winning the award, and Volvo’s XC60 took the title last year. Despite all three being SUVs, this is the first time since 2011 that an EV has won the prize, when the Nissan Leaf won. The I-Pace won its section in the World Green Car of the Year category, and also was awarded the World Car Design of the Year title. Of the six categories available to be won – including the outright prize – the I-Pace didn’t win the Urban, Luxury, or Performance awards. These were won by the Suzuki Jimny, Audi A7, and McLaren 720S respectively. Jaguar’s win comes soon after the prestigious Car of the Year 2019 prize, which is a European award, on the eve of the Geneva Motor Show in March. It also won the UK Car of the Year title, completing a hat-trick for the electric Jaguar.
Origin: Jaguar IPace wins World Car of the Year award
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