Mazda is today celebrating a landmark moment, with the humble Mazda3 breaking the five-million-unit mark in just twelve years. Sales of its most popular model broke the five-million barrier at the end of April this year. Surprisingly, it’s not the first model to hit this landmark figure, with the 323 […]
Alexi Falson
Alexi is an automotive road tester and news editor at PerformanceDrive. He appreciates the complexity of modern vehicle engineering and loves to keep his hands greasy working on motorbikes and cars. He prefers wagons over SUVs, vans over utes and reads more news than your Grandma.
Volkswagen considering second ‘MEB’ EV platform for large cars, new Phaeton?
Volkswagen is currently deliberating whether or not to produce another platform alongside the upcoming MEB layout for larger EV models, reports have revealed. As it stands, the only platform compatible with its EV concept the BUDD-e (pictured), is the MEB modular platform. But this may not be a suitable architecture […]
Tesla Gigafactory opens July 29, to help reach annual production of 500,000
Tesla has revealed the opening date for its mammoth Gigafactory, with the inauguration planned for July 29. The date was confirmed by Tesla in an email to customers that had won tickets to the opening event, at the factory based just outside Sparks, in Nevada. Powered by renewable energy, Tesla’s […]
Authorities seize big shipmment of Chinese counterfeit parts heading to Australia
Chinese authorities have seized a massive haul of counterfeit Toyota parts, headed for sale here in Australia. Authorities acted on information provided by Toyota Australia in relation with dealings in the south-east Chinese city of Guangzhou, discovering around 33,000 parts, with an estimated value of over $1 million. The counterfeit […]
Video: Lamborghini Aventador catches fire in Tokyo
The world sadly lost a Lamborghini Aventador overnight, following a fire in its engine compartment that completely engulfed the supercar in flames. The events transpired out front of the Eifukuchō station, late at night in Tokyo’s lavish Suginami district. The driver is nowhere to be seen, and reportedly left the […]
Tesla crash; Autopilot fails to see stationary van on highway (video)
An unlucky Swiss driver has discovered that Tesla’s Autopilot system isn’t completely free of flaws, and that you shouldn’t rely on the system entirely and not pay attention. The driver’s dash-cam recorded a low-speed rear-ending incident, while the vehicle’s Autopilot system was operating the Tesla Model S’ systems. Footage of […]
Major Mercedes engine revamp coming, particulate filters for petrol
Daimler has announced an investment plan of €3 billion into developing Europe’s most efficient engines, with the aim to reduce NOx emissions and even introduce particular filters for petrol units. With its latest batch of diesel engines, Mercedes-Benz is the first manufacturer to produce engines that are compliant of the […]
Twin-turbo Dodge Viper breaks half-mile speed record (video)
A heavily modified 1118kW Dodge Viper has set a record-breaking half-mile speed run in the US. The 3rd iteration of Dodge’s Viper (known as Gen-5 to fans) managed to set a blistering speed of 322km/h on a half-mile (800 meter) run at Heaven’s Landing Airstrip in Clayton, Georgia. The Dodge […]