Auto Racing

SIBERIA, Russia – Russian  race driver Roman Rusinov and auto journalist Andrey Leontjev pushed the Nissan GT-R across a frozen Lake Baikal, setting a new national speed ice driving record of 294.8 kph (183 mph).

The speed record on ice was a joint project of Nissan in Russia and LAV Productions company, taking place at Small Sea Strait – part of the Baikal water area between western coast and Ol’khon isle. The Nissan GT-R 2012 model year used winter non-studded Bridgestone tires.

The length of the track was divided into an acceleration part – 3.5 km, timekeeping part – 1 km, and breaking area – 3.5 km. The driving attempts were fixed and evaluated by a specially-created committee of the Russian Automotive Federation, and also a group of four judges from Yaroslavl, Omsk, Yekaterinburg and Moscow. The car starts from standing position and develops maximum speed on the distance of 1000 meters (1 km). RAF fixes average speed on this route.

The 540-horsepower GT-R production car had no modifications, running the 3.8-liter, V6 engine on the frozen surface of the world’s deepest lake in southern Siberia, with a result for the history books. Enjoy this video of their record ice escapade.

The beginning of April is a time where you start planning to shed your vehicle of their trusty winter tires for a nice set of summer performance tires. Unfortunately, the snow keeps on coming down in Toronto, so the change date seems to be pushed back a few weeks. 

It will be fun to test out some new summer tires when the time comes, but for now I want to talk about the last month and a half testing out the new Ice Blazer WSL2 tire from Sailun. I waited for a few late snowfalls in order to fully test these Ice Blazer’s out, because a dry test wasn’t going to cut it. It’s a strange time to do a winter tire review as we want to put that all behind us, but I want you to keep this review in mind for next season and perhaps you can always find a great deal on winter tires in the off-season.

Before I can talk about the specific Sailun Ice Blazer tires, I want to fill you in on the company that you’ve probably never heard about – Sailun. Sailun is a Chinese tire company and a division of Dynamic Tire Corp. They’re trying to be more noticeable in the Canadian market as a value tier competitor to the more visible bigger guns in the industry. They have a Chinese origin, but Sailun does perform plenty of tests in Brampton, Ontario and have a larger Canadian warehouse in Vaughan, Ontario. In 2011, they hit ten million in global sales within fifty countries and five continents and expanded that to twenty million in 2012.  

Sailun Tires are a growing company that we’ve already featured in the fall with their Atrezzo Z4+AS ultra-high performance all-season tire in a successful blind test versus Continental’s Extreme Contact all-season tire. But if you go back just two years prior, 70 percent of Sailun’s tires were winter tires. The rest of their products were built based on a winter focus, so I was very excited to see how the Ice Blazer WSL2’s would hold up in the Toronto winter.

They were fitted on my 2010 Mazda3 Sport, which has never had the pleasure of winter tires in its three years. I just don’t drive it that often, so there was never a big need to put them on. I might have been the only one praying for a few snowfalls in late February and March, but lucky for me and only me, I got my wish.

You hear it a lot that putting winter tires changes your entire driving experience. The key is how much of a change it creates? Do all winter tires have the same effect? Well I can only talk about these Ice Blazer’s as this isn’t a comparison test, but after testing them out it felt like I had a brand new Mazda3. What a difference it made!

The Ice Blazer is a studless performance winter tire specializing in slush, snow, and wet traction. Let me take you through my journeys on snowy and slushy roads as well as dry roads.

Starting with dry conditions, the Ice Blazer performed admirably. You don’t feel too much of a difference from the previous all-seasons which is exactly what you want on these dry, but cold days. They provide for you a firm ride with a tight cornering grip. It might not be the smoothest of rides, but it’s far from bumpy and uncomfortable. It’s a good feeling to have a firm ride knowing that you will be secure come the next major snowfall. 

Winter tires are not meant to be driven hard and fast, but unfortunately I had to suck it up and take it for an aggressive run. I was pleasantly surprised with the control they provide you as well as the lack of noise. In Toronto, we deal with many different weather conditions, but on most days we are blessed with dry conditions. Given that dry isn’t the Ice Blazer’s main focus it got a checkmark in my book.

Off to the good part – the snow. My front-wheel drive Mazda3 was ready for anything that came its way. I put it into drive and accelerated forward with ease digging right through the mid-range level of snow. It’s always nice to feel that confidence while driving and tackling the snow head-on opposed to searching for those grooves and following them up the side streets. 

The Ice Blazer’s gave new life to my Mazda3 similar to a hip replacement. It gave me a renewed spirit to want to be more adventurous and take on those corners head-on. Regardless if I was aggressive on turns or driving conventionally I didn’t have to deal with much sliding as the Ice Blazer’s found grip. Windy and slushy roads felt like nothing, as I drove at the speed limit experiencing no slipping or sliding whatsoever. 

When it came to some braking tests, the Ice Blazer’s passed again. Under normal stopping situations in medium-level snow I was able to stop reasonably quickly. The Ice Blazer’s braking performed as expected from my previous experiences testing winter tires over the years. To further test out braking I tried some emergency braking at 50 km/h. The Ice Blazer’s immediately dug into the snow and came to a full-stop once again in a respectable time. There wasn’t much sliding at all which made me feel safe and sound. In the slushy conditions, the braking was even quicker as the tires ripped through the slush and brought my Mazda3 to a full-stop impressively fast.

The confidence you gain from driving without stress is immeasurable. For all those people who don’t understand the need for winter tires and how much of an impact they provide, I say test it out for a day.  When you really think about, in the time that you’re using those winter tires – you’re not wearing out those summer performance tires allowing them to last longer.

The best part about Sailun that might tip the scale for those debating to pay for winter tires is the cost. As a value tier tire company – those money concerns slowly dissipate when you can pick-up a 16” tire ranging from $80 to $100. In comparison, if you look up the same size in a Continental, Bridgestone or Pirelli brand – you’re looking in the $150-$200 range. The Ice Blazer’s performed at a level above their retail price and that makes me more than happy to recommend them for next year’s winter season. It doesn’t hurt that you can save some money in the process, so if you’ve always worried about the cost of winter tires or are looking for a great deal on a new set – the Sailun Ice Blazer might just be the one for you. 

PALO ALTO, CA -- Tesla Motors announced today that, in partnership with Wells Fargo and US Bank, it has created a revolutionary automotive financing product that provides the best elements of ownership and leasing to Model S customers.

Most people throughout the world prefer to own their belongings, rather than rent what is essentially someone else’s property via a lease. However, leases do provide some key benefits, particularly a low initial payment, tax deductions, lower risk on resale value and the convenience of returning a car without the hassle of reselling it personally.

Working with some of the largest and most respected banks in the country, Tesla has been able to create a new kind of financing product that combines the security and comfort of ownership with all the advantages of a traditional lease. Like the Model S, this product was created from the ground up to provide maximum benefit to consumers, rather than simply duplicating other financing programs that tend to favor companies at the expense of the individual.

How does it work?

US Bank and Wells Fargo have agreed to provide 10% down financing for purchase of a Model S (on approved credit.)

The 10% down payment is covered or more than covered by US Federal and state tax credits ranging from $7,500 to $15,000. New Jersey, Washington and DC also have no sales tax for electric vehicles. These advantages are not available when leasing.

When considering the savings from using electricity instead of gasoline, depreciation benefits and other factors, the true net out of pocket cost to own a mid-range Model S drops to less than $500 per month.

After 36 months, you have the right, but not the obligation to sell your Model S to Tesla for the same residual value percentage as the iconic Mercedes S Class, one of the finest premium sedans in the world, made by Daimler (also a Tesla partner and investor).

Not only is Tesla guaranteeing that resale value, but Tesla CEO Elon Musk is personally standing behind that guarantee to give customers absolute peace of mind about the value of the asset they are purchasing. 

TORONTO - Sales of cars and light trucks in Canada slipped every so slightly last month compared with the recording-setting pace set in March 2012.

According to data compiled by DesRosiers Automotive consultants, sales totalled 156,680 in March, down 0.7 per cent from 157,749 a year ago.

"March 2012 was the best March sales total on record, so the 2013 performance is certainly encouraging," DesRosiers wrote in a report to clients Tuesday.

However, the firm noted that the near identical sales hid shifts in the market which saw those at Ford and Chrylser make gains, while General Motors lost ground.

Ford Motor Co. of Canada says it was the bestselling automaker in the country last month as sales of its popular F-150 pickup truck helped push results higher.

The company says overall sales were up two per cent compared with a year ago for a total of 25,092, up from 24,690. F-150 sales were up 23 per cent.

Meanwhile, car sales slipped to 6,046 for the month, down from 6,157 in March 2012. Total truck sales came to 19,046, up from 18,533.

While Ford claimed the top spot, Chrysler Canada reported a six per cent increase in monthly sales for March to bring its sales to 24,173, up from 22,703 in March 2012.

Chrysler said it was the company's best March sales since 2000 and marked 40 consecutive months of year-over-year sales growth.

Sales at General Motors, according to DesRosiers, fell 10.9 per cent from a year ago to 20,218 from 22,684.

DesRosiers noted that Honda and its Acura nameplate posted gains, while Toyota and its luxury Lexus brand saw sales drop compared with a year ago.

"Both high volume Japanese manufacturers finished the quarter with market share losses, Toyota/Lexus experiencing a more pronounced 0.9 point slide versus Honda's 0.5 point year-to-date decline," DesRosiers said.

"Honda/Acura's gains were isolated entirely to the Acura luxury brand, with mainline Honda models pacing last year's March total almost directly. Toyota/Lexus, on the other hand, saw similar volume reductions across both Toyota and Lexus brands."

Honda reported sales totalled 12,769 for the month, about the same as a year ago, while its Acura division sold 1,728 vehicles, up 92 per cent compared with a year ago.

"While not enough to offset our declines in January and February, the March results show that Canadians are strongly accepting Honda's core sedans, the 2013 Fit, Civic and Accord," said Dave Gardner, Honda Canada's vice-president of sales and marketing.

"We expect a solid second quarter to get us back into positive year over year growth."

Toyota sales totalled 15,065, down from 16,054, while Lexus sales fell to 1,221 compared with 1,288 a year ago.

Meanwhile, Nissan reported its Infiniti brand recorded its best-ever sales month at 1,024 units, up 16.1 per cent over the same month last year.

Nissan division sales were 7,437 units for March, down 12.9 per cent.

Mazda Canada said it sold 8,153 vehicles in the month, up five per cent from 7,779 in March 2012, led by the Mazda3. The compact car put in its best March since 2010 and second-best March ever with 4,848 sold, up 25 per cent from a year ago.

Volkswagen Canada reported sales of 5,884 new cars and light trucks for the month, up from 5,064 a year ago, as sales of its popular Jetta totalled 3,001.

Kia Canada reported 5,877 new vehicles sold in March, down 11.3 per cent from a year ago.