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More than 3,000 Jaguar Land Rover staff will go to three-day week

Jaguar Land Rover Castle Bromwich move comes after carmaker was accused of ‘scaremongering’ about Brexit Jaguar Land Rover employs 40,000 people in the UK. Photograph: Bloomberg via Getty Images Jaguar Land Rover has announced that more than 3,000 staff will move to a three-day week at its Castle Bromwich plant in the West Midlands, only… Continue reading More than 3,000 Jaguar Land Rover staff will go to three-day week

British engineering firm brings lightweight race car design to production cars

Gordon Murray Design iStream construction
British race car design company Gordon Murray Design showed off its new lightweight race car body last week at the Low Carbon Vehicle Show in England.

The company calls its body-in-white—an industry term for a car body with no components attached—iStream, and it says it's the result of a new process it patented to make lightweight racing technology easier to manufacture.

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Cutting weight can make all kinds of cars more efficient, from pure electric, to hybrids, to conventional cars. Automakers have known how to make cars lighter for a long time, but the lightweight, affordable, and easy to manufacture trifecta has been a challenge.

Gordon Murray Design said that thanks to its patented manufacturing methods, the iStream is expected to be half the weight of a comparably-sized conventional steel body at the same cost. Like the BMW i3, the iStream uses a carbon fiber reinforced body structure paired to an aluminum pan that holds the vehicle's mechanical components.

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Gordon Murray also released concept specs for a sports car based on the body based on the body in white.

The company says it would weigh just 1,874 pounds. Using a 220-horsepower, 1.5-liter 4-cylinder engine would give an iStream race car a power-to-weight ratio of 8.5 pounds per horsepower. With a six-speed manual transmission geared for maximum acceleration, that could give it a 0-60 time of just over 4 seconds.

Gordon Murray Design iStream construction

Reducing the weight of the body reduces the need for even heavier batteries for an electrified version and would the use of smaller, lighter brakes and other components, too.

Along with the iStream body, Gordon Murray showed a lightweight seat that the company says weighs 30 percent less than conventional seats. The seats use a tubular frame and fiberglass or carbon composite structure, and can fold for access for cars that need it.

Gordon Murray didn't specify the cost of the race car body or the racing seat.

Jaguar workers put on three-day week

About 1,000 workers at Jaguar’s Castle Bromwich plant in Birmingham will move from a five-day to a three-day week from October until Christmas. Jaguar Land Rover said it was making “temporary adjustments to our production schedules” at the factory. It affects about half the plant’s 2,000 workers, who will remain on full pay. Jack Dromey,… Continue reading Jaguar workers put on three-day week

Go-Jek plans to raise $2B more for Southeast Asia ride-hailing battle

Indonesia’s Go-Jek is planning to raise $2 billion from investors to fuel its ride-hailing battle with Grab in Southeast Asia. Go-Jek raised $1.5 billion earlier this year from investors that include Chinese trio Tencent, Meituan and JD.com, as well as Google, Allianz and Singapore sovereign fund Temasek. Now it is planning to raise a further… Continue reading Go-Jek plans to raise $2B more for Southeast Asia ride-hailing battle

Ferrari investors want assurance on targets and SUV plans

MILAN (Reuters) – Ferrari’s (RACE.MI) new boss has his work cut out on Tuesday to convince investors that the supercar maker can hit mid-term targets he described last month as “aspirational”. FILE PHOTO: The new Ferrari 488 Pista during a presentation at the 88th International Motor Show at Palexpo in Geneva, Switzerland, March 6, 2018.… Continue reading Ferrari investors want assurance on targets and SUV plans

Jaguar Land Rover boss ‘scaremongering’ on no-deal Brexit, says Tory

Brexit Hard Brexiter Bernard Jenkin says worries about border delays are unfounded Bernard Jenkin is a member of the European Research group collection of hard Brexit-backing Tories. Photograph: Chris McAndrew A leading Conservative Brexiter has accused the head of Jaguar Land Rover of inventing dire consequences for his company of a no-deal Brexit, saying people… Continue reading Jaguar Land Rover boss ‘scaremongering’ on no-deal Brexit, says Tory

UPDATE 1-Go-Jek aims to raise $2 bln for Southeast Asia expansion -sources

SINGAPORE/JAKARTA (Reuters) – Indonesian ride-hailing firm Go-Jek is seeking to raise about $2 billion from existing investors, including Tencent Holdings Ltd and JD.com, to fund its expansion plans in Southeast Asia, sources familiar with the matter said on Monday. A Go-Jek driver rides a motorcycle on a street in Jakarta, Indonesia, December 15, 2017. REUTERS/Beawiharta… Continue reading UPDATE 1-Go-Jek aims to raise $2 bln for Southeast Asia expansion -sources