On March 17th, the auto tuning world lost a very special individual when Richard Hamann, the man behind Hamann Motorsport, passed away due to lung cancer. He was 53.
Still recovering in the wake of Uwe Gemballa’s gruesome murder less than a year ago, the auto tuning industry was given another jolting shock with Hamann’s untimely death. While words won’t begin to express our deepest sympathies and condolences to the Hamann family, we nevertheless send our love and prayers in this time of sorrow.
Richard Hamann was a man of many things. He was a celebrated race car driver in his early years and later on, he traded away the cockpit for the tuning shops when he founded Hamann Motorsports in 1986. In the 20-plus years of its existence, Hamann became one of the world’s premier tuning companies.
We’re going to remember Richard Hamann as somebody who never compromised in his work and his last works before his untimely passing, the "Hamann Hawk" and the "Hamann Guardian" epitomizes the kind of impeccable tuning quality he was always known for.
With his death, the team of Hamann Motorsport will honor his memory and, as per his wishes, will continue on with the business.
Rest in Peace, Richard Hamann.
Here we are again. Another German tuning company, DMC, has taken its own stab at a Porsche Panamera, giving the popular flagship sedan a performance and aerodynamic package that keeps in line with the company’s vision of designing ‘simple yet dynamic’ tuning programs.
Among the additions given to the body of the Panamera are a new carbon fiber front lip spoiler, carbon fiber side grills, and a carbon fiber rear diffuser. All three parts not only give the Panamera aerodynamic improvements, but also showcases a more aggressive Porsche sports sedan.
In terms of performance, DMC took the sports car’s 4.8-liter twin-turbo engine and bumped up the output from its standard 500 horsepower and 516 lb/ft of torque all the way up to 580 horsepower and 605 lb/ft of torque, courtesy of an OEM integrated sports button.
The changes aren’t as drastic or overwhelming as what we’ve seen from other tuners, but where DMC lacks in flair and pizzazz, it certainly makes up with a no-nonsense approach that gives the Panamera the aerodynamic and performance improvements it needs to become more powerful and look more aggressive than a standard Panamera.
Welcome to the tuning world, EDS! Unheralded, small-time, and maybe even a little known to a lot of us, the German tuning firm recently caught our attention for the work they did on turning an otherwise mundane Opel Astra into some piece of work.
Combining a powerful performance upgrade with a few aerodynamic touches, EDS’ tuned-up Opel Astra Turbo has become the personification of a lion trapped in a deer’s body.
Make no mistake, the Astra’s stock 1.6-liter turbocharged engine with 180 horsepower is no slouch by every definition of the word. But when you add a comprehensive engine tune-up that includes a new Garret GT28 turbo-charger, a new sports exhaust system, a new manifold, and an ECU optimization, then you get a car that bumps up its overall output to an incredible 360 horsepower and 354 lb/ft of torque.
Not to be outdone by the attention being given to the modified engine under its bonnet, EDS also gave the Astra a number of aerodynamic upgrades, including new black grilles on the front, side sill, a new rear apron with a diffuser and quad tail pipes, and a set of 20” wheels wrapped in Pirelli P Zero - 235/35ZR20 in the front and 275/30ZR20 at the back – high-performance tires.
All told, the changes done by EDS on the Astra Turbo aren’t something that should be taken lightly, lest you happen to see one on your mirror and it proceeds to leave your car eating its dust.
For an upstart tuning firm from Germany, EDS certainly did their homework on the Astra Turbo, and the result certainly speaks for itself.
You know that you live in a world that’s dominated by the internet and social media when you have an automaker that makes a special edition model because it’s social media fan page has reached 1 million fans.
Look no further than German automaker Porsche, who thought it would be a good idea to celebrate the milestone that is 1 million fans on their Facebook page by coming out with a special exhibition inside the Porsche Museum in Stuttgart solely dedicated to a unique custom-made 2011 Porsche 911 GT3 R Hybrid. So what exactly is so unique about this particular model? Take a look at its exterior and you’ll notice that it has been adorned with signatures of more than 27,000 Porsche fans on Facebook. While this particular model is expected to be just a special exhibit piece, we do know that the 911 GT3 R Hybrid embodies the very spirit of our fast-paced world with the company’s new Porsche Intelligent Performance program, and as such, makes it the ideal car to be chosen to honor the company’s ever-growing fan base on the popular social network site.
More details along with the press release after the jump.
Full story
We rarely hear from the Musketier tuning firm, but that doesn’t mean that mean these guys have fallen off the face of the earth. Recently, the German tuning company that specializes on aftermarket works done on Toyota, Citroen and Peugeot vehicles unveiled their latest work on the Citroen C3.
Taking inspiration from the higher-spec DS3, Musketier went out and added some new aesthetic touches on the C3, including the addition of LED daytime running lights on the car’s vertical front bumper with a matching contrasting color painted on the edges of the C3’s fenders and the lower edge of the bumper. On top of that, Musketier also reshaped the car’s rear lower lip to be able to install the twin exhaust system. The tuning firm also lowered the car’s overall ride height by 35 mm and while also installing a set of 18” wheels. Over at the interior, Musketier dressed up the C3 with leather upholstery while adding touches of carbon fiber and aluminum. Finally, the German tuning company also tweaked with the C3’s electronic system, resulting in a boost in output from 115 horsepower to 129 horsepower.
At face value, there doesn’t seem to be a lot of changes done on the C3, but nonetheless, Musketier’s work is still worth noting, especially if you’re as big fans of the C3 as we are.
