Car FYI

Photo Credit: LAT Images for Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix Ltd. Saturday’s qualifying for the inaugural Formula 1 race in the Arab nation of Qatar has assembled what is certain to be a dramatic opening lap showdown between this season’s title contenders Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen. In setting the grid for Sunday’s 57-lap main event on the fast, high grip 5.380-kilometer Losail International Circuit, it was the driver of the #44 Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team race car that took honours. Lewis Hamilton’s pole-winning lap time of 1-minute, 20.827 seconds in the final Q3 session putting a cap on a time trial where the seven-time World Drivers’ Champion handily controlled through the three sessions. Joining Hamilton on the front row of the 2021 Qatar Grand Prix will be Max Verstappen’s Red Bull Racing machine. The Honda-powered entrant was 0.455 seconds slower than the rival Mercedes race car. With the race at Losail being the third-to-last event on the 2021 Form

Photo Credit: Steve Etherington for Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix Ltd. The 2021 Formula One season is quickly rushing to completion with the Brazilian Grand Prix being the fourth-to-last event. With Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton left with fewer chances to gain points, this weekend’s competition at the Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace contained the additional opportunity to gain up to three extra points as the race weekend was the last of three where the sport would stage a Sprint Qualifying session. After a typical time trial on Friday, Hamilton’s Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team race car registered the fastest lap time in Q3 but would receive a penalty for his DRS (Drag Reduction System) being out of compliance with the rules. While Hamilton was moved to the rear for Sprint Qualifying, drivers’ championship leader Verstappen received also entered Saturday with a penalty in the form of a 50,000 euro fine for making physical contact with the rear wing of the #44 Mercedes after Frida

Photo Credit: American Honda Motor Co., Inc. untitled In August, Honda’s luxury car brand Acura shared an intriguing teaser image accompanied by the revelation that a classic sport compact name would return. Included in a rather familiar close-up promotional shot capturing a headlamp and part of the Diamond Pentagon grille, the key focus was a nameplate reading “Integra”. A rear image of a five-door hatchback shape dropped in late September while a picture of a six-speed manual shifter released in mid-October clearly as a means to tantalize a modern premium sport compact crowd. After a 20-year hiatus, the Integra is once again part of the Acura lineup. A five-door hatchback touting a coupe-like shape, the 2023 Acura Integra will give entry-level luxury car buyers a strong taste of performance attitude. As was the case with the previous Integra models, the Honda Civic platform serves as the basis for this latest premium compact. While the new Civic hatchback’s silhouette i