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Fernando Alonso could only secure P12 and P14 during practice in China, but he thinks Ferrari are making progress. The problem of getting tyres up to temperature in Shanghai has been not as big a headache as in Australia or Malaysia, Alonso: “Things have improved here. We didn’t get the tyres up to temperature in Australia. In Malaysia, the hard compound wasn’t especially quick on the first few laps either. For some reason or other, performance here is increased.”

Consequently, Ferrari hope to do better in qualifying. With that in mind, everyone in the team is focused on the latest updates, Alonso: “If the car goes well, then qualifying goes well, and we’ll do better in the race. We’ve got to get the best lap times out of the car, and if we can improve, then the rest will follow. Read the rest of this entry »

Led by the hot-selling 3.2TL sedan, the introduction of a more powerful CL coupe, and the prospect of an all-new Integra on the near horizon, Acura is on a certifiable roll. Missing, though, is the one model almost every automotive lineup must have: a sport-utility vehicle. Sure, there was—until this year, anyway—the rebadged Isuzu Trooper sold as the Acura SLX, although no one expected that stopgap to last as long as it did. But the company was constrained by overtaxed research and development resources, busy with the development of the CR-V and Odyssey for Honda and the TL and CL for Acura. Read the rest of this entry »