Cars,Travel and Military in Germany

Germany to help curb smuggling of weapons…

“The navy will help on one hand to prevent the smuggling of weapons (to Hezbollah) and on the other will help the Lebanese army to protect its coast and border,” Merkel said Thursday after holding talks with Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora.

Siniora urges Israel to get out of Lebanon

Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora called on Israel on Thursday to speed up its withdrawal from Lebanese territories and to stop what he said were repeated forays into his country’s sea and air space.

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The Team McLaren Mercedes MP4-20 Formula One cars are designed, developed and manufactured at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, England. The team’s engineers are continually challenged to shave all important fractions of seconds from the lap times of the MP4-20’s, one area where this improvement can be gained is through the constant development of aerodynamics.

Team McLaren Mercedes use CFD to simulate the flow over their Formula One racing cars primarily in order to develop the shape of the car. One objective is to create downforce. This helps in providing enhanced grip, predominantly during cornering (braking, turn-in and exit) when the driver relies on grip to carry as much speed as possible through the corner.

Another major objective is to minimise the drag of the airflow around the car to maximise top-end speed. CFD can also help the understanding and insight into the behaviour of the car in yaw (cross-wind, cornering), steer (with the front wheels turned) and roll (ride-height variations).

“SGI enables us to develop design solutions using CFD simulations, with the aim of providing improved performance on the track,” said Jonathan Neale, Managing Director, McLaren Racing. “In obtaining the integrated SGI Altix and Prism solution we will be able to deliver fast and more accurate CFD simulations.”

Here’s a comparison of the Audi TT and BMW Z4, no doubt cause for comparison. So which car wins?

The first generation Audi TT was one of the big automotive hits of the last few years - and with waiting lists for the new model already growing, it’s continued sales success looks pretty much assured. But does Audi’s sporting coupe deserve the plaudits that have been heaped upon it - does it have what it takes to enter at the top of its hard-fought segment?

Against it we’re putting the 3.0 Si Z4, meaning a straight six engine and 263 bhp channelled to the rear wheels via a six-speed manual gearbox. In “SE” trim as tested here it will set you back £31,400.

May the best coupe win.

Two brilliant cars - but only one winner. Congratulations to Audi for taking a well-deserved victory with what proves the better all-rounder. Visit Audi

The new Audi Q7 si schweet!   It sort of looks like a sports car / wagon /suv/  But boy oh boy does it haul ass!!

Beefy, powerful and curiously substantial, the Q7 takes all of the poise of Audi’s time-tested Quattro AWD system (not to mention 350 horses of 4.2 liter V8 power), boosts it up, stretches it out and puts together an all-weather people-and-cargo carrier that’s cutting-edge stylish, comfortable.

The Q7’s clearly not the vehicle of choice for everyone, but for those seeking SUV largess with Audi quality and refinement, this may be a good choice; expect to see a load of them on the (paved) mountain roads this fall and winter.

I personally can’t wait.  I think I’ll buy a new Audi!!

Get the Audi Q7 specs

A little German History - 1871 - 1918

After the French defeat in the Franco-Prussian War, the German Empire (Deutsches Kaiserreich) was proclaimed in Versailles on January 18, 1871. As a result, the new empire was a unification of all the scattered parts of Germany but without Austria — Kleindeutschland. Beginning in 1884 Germany established several colonies. The young emperor’s foreign policy was opposed to that of Bismarck, who had established a system of alliances in the era called Gründerzeit, securing Germany’s position as a great nation, isolating France with diplomatic means and avoiding war for decades. Under Wilhelm II, however, Germany took an imperialistic course, not unlike other powers, but it led to friction with neighbouring countries. Most alliances in which Germany had been previously involved were not renewed, and new alliances excluded the country. Specifically, France established new relations by signing the Entente Cordiale with the United Kingdom, and got ties with Russia. Austria-Hungary and Germany became increasingly isolated.

Check out the German Timeline