We’re moving to www.motacarblog.com

We’re moving to http://www.motacarblog.com

You might have been wondering why I haven’t been posting as often as I normally do over the past few days.
Well there’s a good reason for that, I’ve been working away behind the scenes to bring all our old posts to our new .com address.

The website has now gone live on our new .com address.
So from now on the website will be viewable at www.motacarblog.com
Remember you can also follow all of our updates on Facebook.
If you haven’t done so already please; like, subscribe and share for the latest news, reviews, updates from the car world.
And to launch the new website we will be holding a competition soon.
Thanks to everyone who’s followed me so far!

~~Mota Car Blog~~

Porsche reveals the new Cayenne GTS

This gallery contains 7 photos.

Originally posted on Mōtā Car Blog:
Porsche Cayenne GTS Front Porsche have revealed two new models to their range – the Cayenne and the Cayenne GTS. In 2007 the Cayenne GTS became the first Porsche of the modern era to revive…

Many drivers too vain to wear specs

Driver too vein to wear specs

Millions of British drivers are putting themselves and other road users at risk due to the fact they are too vain to wear their glasses.

A new survey, carried out by One Poll, revealed that one in eight drivers who require corrective lenses whilst behind the wheel admit to driving without them.

The survey was commissioned to assess the general public’s attitude towards wearing corrective lenses for driving. It asked 1,000 spectacle wearers whether they wore them while driving and if they answered no, their reasons for not doing so.

It’s a problem more prevalent amongst younger drivers, as motorists under 44 years old were 15 times more likely to leave their glasses at home than the over 55s.

However, many are unaware that drivers caught not wearing their glasses risk receiving hefty fines and could even potentially lose their licence.

Celebrity motoring lawyer, Nick Freeman, warned that drivers who flout the law by not wearing their glasses could find themselves behind bars.

“If you are involved in a serious accident one of the first things a police officer will do is check your vision and, if you aren’t wearing your glasses when you should, there are very serious consequences,” he said.

“If convicted you could find yourself facing a fifteen year jail sentence.

“I cannot stress it strongly enough. Don’t take the risk; always keep a spare pair of glasses in your car. It’s just not worth the risk.”

Do you require corrective lenses to drive? Do you sometimes not wear them for fashion reasons? Have your say in the comments section below.

This article was also featured on AOL Cars

Traffic jams to cost UK more than £300 billion by 2030

Traffic Jams

A recent study predicts that the cost of traffic congestion to the UK will rise 63 per cent by 2030 to a whopping £21 billion every year.

The investigation, carried out by leading international traffic information provider INRIX and the Centre for Economics and Business Research, revealed that drivers can expect to spend even longer stuck in traffic over the coming years.

As a result, the study found that between 2013 and 2030, the total cumulative cost of congestion to the UK economy is likely to reach a staggering £307 billion. This increase in costs has been attributed to population growth and increasing wealth as the UK economy develops boosting car ownership levels.

“This study is a warning of the worsening impact of gridlock on the British economy and on household budgets,” said Matt Simmons, European director, INRIX. “We now know that congestion will continue to have serious consequences for national and city economies, businesses and citizens in the years to come. If we think this problem is bad now, we are in for a terrible shock come 2030.”

The study continues to state that in the UK last year, almost 70% of the workforce commuted to work by car during peak times, with the average British driver spending 124 hours stuck in gridlock annually, and this is set to rise to 136 hours in 2030 – the equivalent of 18 working days a year.

This has both direct and indirect economic impacts on households commuting by car, with direct costs relating to the value of fuel and the time wasted, and indirect costs including higher freight transport and business fees from company vehicles idling in traffic – all of which is ultimately passed on as additional costs to household bills.

This article was also featured on AOL Cars

​Lady Howard fined after hitting pedestrian in her Porsche

Porsche Boxster

Lady Howard was fined £500 yesterday after ploughing her Porsche into a pedestrian while overtaking a queue of traffic on the wrong side of the road, back in January. The furniture designer impatiently overtook a row of stationary cars on her way to her furniture store in London’s fashionable King’s Road when she struck David Laing in nearby West Kensington.

The 49-year-old mother-of-two admitted driving her black Porsche Boxster without due care and attention, on January 14. Bench chairwoman Cathy Jago told Lady Howard at Lavender Hill Magistrates’ Court: “We have heard that you drove in a dangerous manner,” reports the Telegraph.

“You were driving on the wrong side of the road and that resulted in a pedestrian being hit by your vehicle and him being taken to hospital by ambulance.” She was fined £500, ordered to pay £85 costs, a £50 victim surcharge and received five penalty points.

Prosecutor Miss Melanie Hardwick told the court it was 10am when Mr Laing was crossing the road outside North End Medical Centre and Lady Howard was rushing to work.

“Mr Laing received injuries to his shoulder, leg, neck and head as a result of being struck by the defendant. She got out of her car to ask if he was okay and an ambulance was called.”

The court also heard that Lady Howard already had six penalty points on her driving licence for using a mobile phone and speeding. However, her lawyer Mark Haslam asked the court not to impose six or more penalty points, which would result in an automatic ban.

He said: “She is a married lady and her husband works in London, where he lives during the week.

“She works from home, but also drives to her work three times a week.”

This article was also published on AOL Cars

Lamborghini Countach Abandoned on Tower Bridge

The driver of a Lamborghini Countach was arrested this week, after he abandoned his car on Tower Bridge during peak time traffic.

After initially not being able to get in contact with the owner, a recovery vehicle was called to the scene with instructions to remove the vehicle.

The police were keen to speak to the driver due to the disruption caused as the classic supercar was left unattended on the busy city-centre road at around 6.30pm on Wednesday evening.

Spectators and social media commentators were quick to compare the incident to the scene in ‘The Wolf of Wall Street”, where character Jordan Belfort (played by Leonardo DiCaprio) ruins his own Lamborghini Countach.

However, the owner was soon tracked down when police checked the car’s number plate. They discovered that the plate was registered to a Land Rover, the owner had a warrant out for his arrest for alleged harassment and the reason the car was abandoned was because it had run out of petrol.

Click play below to view footage of the rare supercar being removed from Tower Bridge.

This story was also featured on AOL Cars

Government Invests £11million in Hydrogen Cars

The arrival of hydrogen cars on UK roads moved a step closer today as Business Minister Matthew Hancock has announced up to £11 million of new funding.

This is part of the government’s drive to become a global leader in ultra-low emission vehicles and follows news earlier this month that Toyota has chosen the UK as one of the first markets for its FCEV (fuel cell electric vehicles) when it goes on sale next year.

Speaking in Japan where he met executives at Honda, Nissan and Toyota, Mr. Hancock said: “Hydrogen cars present us with a huge economic opportunity and can bolster our internationally renowned automotive industry. We want to make the UK one of the best places in the world to design, manufacture and sell ultra-low emission vehicles.”

“By 2040 all new cars and vans will be ultra-low emission vehicles and this could be delivered by a variety of technologies, including plug-in hybrids, pure electric vehicles and hydrogen.”

Of the £11million investment, £7.5 million will come from government and £3.5 million from the motor industry. This funding will help establish an initial network of up to 15 hydrogen refuelling stations by the end of 2015 and is just one of the ways the government plans to decarbonise road transport, alongside battery electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids, with £400 million of support available in the current parliament.

Establishing 15 hydrogen-refuelling stations by the end of 2015 will represent a significant first step towards the initial national network of 65 stations scoped out by the UKH2Mobility project run by government and industry.

Transport minister Baroness Kramer said: “By 2040 all new cars and vans will be ultra-low emission vehicles and this could be delivered by a variety of technologies, including plug-in hybrids, pure electric vehicles and hydrogen. We want to ensure that support is there for all of these vehicles and that the UK continues to lead the pack in providing the right infrastructure to drive the switch to electric.”

This article was also published on Motors.co.uk

Ferrari reveals limited edition F60 America

The Italian supercar creators have decided to celebrate 60 years of selling cars in the US with a special open-top version of the Ferrari F12, which has been suitably named the F60 America.

Only 10 units of this super exclusive supercar will be offered to American collectors for a hefty $2.5million (£1.5million), all of which have been snapped up already.

So what are buyers getting for their money? The F60 America is more than just an F12 with its roof removed, the front and rear end of the car has been redesigned. With the addition of sculpted aero-dynamic aprons and side vents, a more pronounced rear diffuser and tail lights that now protrude from the bodywork, it gives the car a more aggressive and purpose built look all round.

In addition to this, the car has been enhanced further with diamond cut wheels and a new bonnet that forces air down through the cars wings. Carbon-fibre trimmed roll hoops peer over the cockpit, which has been kitted out in a two-tone black and red colour scheme that separates the passenger from the driver. This two-tone effect is said to represent the 1960’s North American Racing Ferraris. The dash and gauges are awash of eye-popping candy red paint and carbon fibre, while the miss-matched seats have an American flag inset.

The America is powered by the same 6.3-litre V12 that rests in the F12, which delivers 730bhp to the rear wheels and is controlled via a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox. The car is capable of reaching 0-62mph in an eye-watering 3.1 seconds but the top speed has yet to be confirmed.

However, Ferrari have pointed out that the fabric roof that comes with the car must be put on manually and more importantly will only be guaranteed to stay on the car at speeds up to 75mph.

The F60 America will be properly unveiled to the world on 11^th October 2014 in Beverley Hills.

This article was also featured on AOL Cars.

100th Anniversary Maserati Ghibli featured in the 2014 Neiman Marcus catalog

Every year, luxury retailer Neiman Marcus releases a Christmas catalogue featuring high-end gifts and usually includes a limited edition car. The luxury Neiman Marcus models generally sell out very quickly with previous special editions including the Aston Martin Vanquish Volante,McLaren MP4-12C Spider and Ferrari’s flagship four-seater, the FF.

However, the car of choice this year pays tribute to the centenary of Italian carmaker Maserati, with a bespoke version of the 100th Anniversary Ghibli model.

Based on the top-of-the-line S Q4 model, the car comes finished in ‘Grigio Maratea’ grey paint and Maserati has added several unique features, including one-off 20-inch wheels with centennial centre caps and a black border that surrounds the car’s grille.

The cabin features premium tan leather, with contrasting black stitching throughout the cabin, and on the trident emblems stitched into the headrests, while piano black trim completes the interior nicely. Finally, the centre console bears a badge denoting the Ghibli’s position in the limited production run.

This article appeared on AOL Cars

APEX: The Story of the Hypercar

On Monday I was very excited to learn that the creators of /DRIVE have made a film on ‘The Story of the Hypercar’.
The film isn’t set for release until 2015, so for now we’ll have to just make do with the trailer that’s just over a minute long. Just from watching the trailer this movie looks set to be one to watch for any car fan, with visually stunning shots featuring some epic hypercars and an interesting soundtrack, it’s ticking all the right boxes for me so far!
For those of you who are lucky enough to be attending this years Jalopnik Film Festival in New York, a 30 minute preview will be screened there at the beginning of November.

“In the last decade, humanity has entered into a new era of engineering achievement: the dawn of the hypercar. These exotic machines represent the extremes of the human condition: our urge to surpass, our will to innovate, our love of speed. But besides are a driving force behind modern advancements in performance, aesthetics, and energy independence, not only in the automotive sector, but for society at large.”