IT’S ALL ABOUT THE NUMBERS
Image © LEGO
It’s not that factors such as the aesthetics or handling prowess of the Bugatti Chiron are insignificant, but they play on the non-existent back seat of the French-German hypercar compared to its quotable facts.
Instead, the Chiron lives in a dimension of data such as zero to hold-on-to-your-face times, and rumoured top speed claims from intrepid speed hunters.
Now though, Lego has decided to build on the legend of the Chiron by creating a version that is not restricted to the 500-vehicle limit.
The Lego Bugatti consists of 3,599 pieces and features everything from functional doors and hinges to a moving W16 engine and eight-speed gearbox. Priced at R5,500, anyone can now own a Chiron — albeit one they must build themselves.
TECH THAT HONES IN
Image © CTRACK
The 21st century is all about data, information, and efficiency. We know it, and so do the data boffins at CTRACK who recently launched their newest software to help small and medium business owners keep a vigilant eye on one of their primary investments: their vehicles.
Called ‘Drive’, the software allows business owners to not only keep a watchful eye on the comings and goings of their entire fleet, but also optimise operations that can ultimately lead to significant savings in day-to-day operational costs.
Drive, which operates on an app-like platform, can calculate real-time routes and provide updates, calculate driver behavioural scores and even serve as a communication go-between for business owners and drivers to ensure the fleet operates like a well-oiled machine.
It’s not all informational overload, though, since Drive also offers peace of mind features such as Fleet Protector Lite that provides emergency medical assistance, while Ctrack’s Stolen Vehicle Support is also integrated.
GRIP, GRIPPIER, GRIPPIEST
Image © PEXELS.COM
It’s strange, this whole car business. Cars are getting bigger at a Big-Mac-a-day rate, while speedometers are also growing longer legs. Yet, the total contact area between a car’s tyres and the road rarely strays north of an A4 page size.
While it is slightly worrisome, this size also strikes a compromise of sorts between grip and rolling resistance.
Dunlop has, however, decided to make lemonade and launch its SP Sport FM800 range of tyres. Using a silica-based compound, the tyre maker has managed to reduce rolling resistance, while also increasing grip thanks to the surface rubber that forms around the small indents in the road surface.
As a result, it outperforms Dunlop’s current range by nearly 15% in wet braking distances, while also showing a significant improvement during wet handling.
The FM800 is rolled out in 42 different sizes, ranging from 14 to 18” wheel sizes.
WIRELESS APPLE CARPLAY
Image © APPLE
Android’s Auto Wireless may now be arriving on select phones and head-units, but iPhone owners wanting wireless CarPlay don’t have to wait. It’s available now, and we recently tried it out in the BMW 220d.
CarPlay has been around since iOS 7.1, while it’s only with the arrival of iOS 9 that wireless support was added.
Still, the tech theory remains the same. To encourage you to leave your distracting phone out of your hand, it offers the basics that drivers might need: calls, messages, Siri, and music are the main features integrated into an interface that is designed to be easier (and safer) to use while driving.
With more vehicles supporting wireless charging, and CarPlay wireless available in a growing number of vehicles, it’s worth spending more on the option if you’re buying a new car.
POTHOLES AND DRONES
Image © PEXELS.COM
It won’t likely happen within the next 30 years, but the legend of potholes might eventually become a bloodcurdling bedside story thanks to a tech-savvy approach to infrastructural headaches.
Using the combination of drones and advanced 3D printing techniques, scientists and engineers at the University of Leeds are starting to dabble with the idea of a self-mending city, where prevention is at the forefront of infrastructure repair.
According to Autoblog, drones will scan the road surface at night, looking for any cracks or small holes that can be potentially problematic. If any issues are found, a second drone will use sci-fi-like 3D printing techniques to print asphalt and repair the damage.
The project forms part of an R86-million tech research grant that was allocated to the University of Leeds in 2015.
