As part of an induction programme for the 2012 season, a trio of McLaren GT drivers including Rob Bell, Alvaro Parente and Alexander Sims were given the opportunity to get behind the wheel of the latest MP4-12C sports car at the ‘figure-of-eight’ circuit, better known for its starring role as the BBC Top Gear test track.

I actually think I might have been quicker than ‘The Stig’ on the day…

Even though McLaren’s 12C GT3 race car shares its V8 twin-turbo engine and carbon ‘MonoCell’ chassis with its road car sibling, the drivers were awestruck that a car, almost as quick as their race car, could be driven on the road.

Rob Bell said: “Driving the 12C on track was a special opportunity and one that helped us learn a lot about the way McLaren develops its cars. I had a huge grin on my face because unlike any other sports car I have driven, it lacks nothing on track.

It is easy to drive very fast and very safely. I want to find the quickest way around a circuit in any car I drive, and the value of technology like Brake Steer and the 12C’s Airbrake is absolutely clear to me. I actually think I might have been quicker than ‘The Stig’ on the day…”

McLaren are gearing up for a full season of racing in the Blancpain Endurance Series, German VLN series, ADAC GT Masters, British GT championship, French FIA GT1 Championship and FIA GT1 World Championship, with a total of 25 cars built for the year.

The 12C GT3 will also compete in the famous 24 Hour Nürburgring endurance race in May, plus 24-hour races at Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium and Circuit de Catalunya in Spain.

Kimi’s Lotus F1 Team have obtained a 90-second preview of the show, to whet your appetite, with Kimi at the wheel of the well-worn (but awesome) Suzuki Liana. The time to beat is 1.44.0 seconds set by Sebastian Vettel, but with the top 6 times spanning less than 0.7 seconds it’s by no means certain that the Iceman will grace the top half of the league table.

After being let loose in the front wheel drive family runabout, Kimi declared it ‘better than expected’, after he explored the Liana’s gut-renching levels of adhesion.

The full program will be on BBC TWO this Sunday at 20:00 UK time.

Photo credit: Lotus F1 Team

Whereas Ferrari choose either the backdrop of a flowing mountain road, or some sideways action with Nando around Fiorano, their Italian neighbour Lamborghini usually adopt a more ‘edgy’ theme and with the more approachable 700 bhp Aventador, they seem more intent than ever to accentuate just how much rage there is left in the old bull.

These latest ads by the agency Philipp und Keuntje GmbH, Hamburg, Germany are beautifully illustrated by Herr Müller and depict four states of pain experienced when driving the Aventador.

Like the car, they’re unconventional, which is clearly Lamborghini’s intent behind the campaign, but it almost feels like they are compensating for the increased refinement and civility which has inevitably touched its most powerful of supercars.

But with Ferrari positioning itself as the automotive equivalent of Don Giovanni, the bull fighters from Sant’Agata are staying true to their heavy metal roots. On acid.

It’s good to see parent company Audi taking such good care of the brand.

The Truth Hurts: Gunshot

“It’s not a car, it’s a weapon. Sounds like a gunshoot and feels like one too.” - Michael Köckritz, Ramp Magazin.

The Truth Hurts: Delirium

“The acceleration is apocalyptic. It can deliver pure delirium on demand.” - James May, Top Gear.

The Truth Hurts: Eyeballs

“If you slam on the brakes at 100km/h, you come to a halt in just 30 meters. Your eyeballs should then pop back into their sockets.” - Ulrich Safferling, Auto-Illustrierte.

The Truth Hurts: Neck

“Gearshifts can be as unforgiving as a professionally executed punch in the neck.” - Jan Baedeker, Classicdriver.com.

Higher-res Image Gallery

20 years later and what was once primarily a consumer electronics company is moving ever closer to becoming a pure-play software and services provider, as the market for navigation systems moves away from its proprietary roots.

With the rapid success of in-car iOS devices (iPhones and iPads) and the move by manufacturers such as Renault, Opel and Mazda to offer semi-integrated systems in their new cars, sales of personal navigation devices have been tumbling – down by almost 25% in the last quarter.

So, what are TomTom to do?

Thankfully, much to the relief of their shareholders, TomTom has recently announced a EUR50 million restructuring program with a move away from devices, which are expected to decline by a further 19% in 2012, and given fresh impetus to their OEM fitments and software apps (the silly voices and suchlike).

Bert & Ernie

So hopefully that should have provided some background to TomTom’s latest foray into the world of Sesame Street.

Far from being a trivial bit of fun, the partnership with Jim Henson’s Muppets is a serious commercial endeavour to increase sales of TomTom’s voice add-ons, which at the price of a music CD (£7.95) can add up to quite a serious amount of income.

Currently there are 93 separate voices including Yoda, SpongeBob Squarepants, Snoop Dogg, The Simpsons, John Cleese and Darth Vader to name but a few.

The latest campaign is all about Sesame Street’s Bert and Ernie, and it’s the perfect accessory to deal with bored kids asking, “..are we nearly there yet?”

Following on from the success of the Darth Vader and Yoda campaigns, this latest behind-the-scenes film sees Bert & Ernie clowning around in the recording studio as they progress slowly through the script.

Goodness knows how they managed to complete the whole package, but that’s part of the great appeal of these voice add-ons, they provide a genuinely entertaining addition to any car journey (with or without the kids) and serve to underline TomTom’s unique personality in a crowded marketplace of mainly functional products.

 Here are Three samples of the finished recording
• 
• 
• 

If you like that, then you’ll probably like these..

It can become something of an obsession, collecting more voices for your TomTom navigation system, so to help you decide, here’s some of our other favourites promotions including a new limited edition package for Top Gear fans.

For the marketing statisticians there’s one final question to answer, “Are these campaigns successful?” Without venturing too far into the specific performance of each campaign the Darth Vader viral has been watched 4,224,559 times and received 18,916 likes (since May 2010), Yoda has attracted 2,260,677 views and 9,381 likes, whilst our friends Bert & Eddie have already attracted 338,123 views in the past 10 days.

Ultimately what matters is how many viewers then go on to buy the voices from TomTom, but I suspect you would agree that several million views is not a bad starting point.

The basic principles behind online video consumption still apply – if a brand would like to engage new customers, then it must first produce content that people actually want to watch.

This future form of branded content will cannibalise today’s unwanted display ads, and the chances are the mode of persuasive communication will be just as peripheral as Bert & Ernie’s video – but with sufficient cognitive hints to convert the resulting good vibes into a purchase.

Top Gear Edition

For a limited period, TomTom are offering this special Top Gear Edition package, with unique Top Gear points of interest, car icons, start-up and shut-down screens, the voice of Jeremy Clarkson and a special ‘Stig Mode’ for muting the device.

Darth Vader – behind-the-scenes

Watch Lord Vader during the recording of his GPS voice for TomTom.

Yoda – behind-the-scenes

Ready are you? What know you of ready? For eight hundred years have I trained Jedi. This one a long time have I watched and now the time for direction to change, it is.

Disclosure: This article was brought to you by the letter ‘A’ and sponsored by TomTom, however all views expressed within are entirely our own. Sponsored articles are accepted at our own discretion and only where we believe the increased perspective will benefit our readers. If you have any questions or would like to discuss this further, then get in touch via email or using the contact tab on this page.

As each new Hilux is launched, the task gets harder and harder to convey just how tough and indestructible it has become – but they’ve pulled out all the stops for this latest Hilux. The 2012 model has been given a comprehensive re-style from the A-pillar forwards, with a new bonnet, radiator grille, headlamps and bumper, plus new wheel designs and new side bars and steps for the top-of-the-range Hilux Invincible.

Interior materials have been improved, CO2 emissions have been reduced (194 g/km for 2.5-litre Double Cab) and of course Toyota reckon it’s even more unbreakable than ever. It will be on sale here in the UK from October, priced at £16,090 for the entry-level Single Cab HL2 4WD 2.5-litre.

So, how unbreakable is it now? Well, Toyota’s Australian, New Zealand and South African teams have kicked off their campaigns with the following ads. They’re good, but are they as good as our all-time favourite Toyota Hilux ad (“Bugger”)? – which up until now has reigned supreme.

Take a look below and let us know what you think. We’ve also included the original Top Gear episodes to remind you why the Hilux has such an enviable reputation.

Toyota Australia – ‘Unbreakable’

Toyota New Zealand – ‘Tougher Than You Can Imagine’

Toyota South Africa – ‘Toughness Rubs Off’

Toyota New Zealand – ‘Bugger’

Made as a follow up to the beloved Barry Crump/Lloyd Scott Toyota ads, “Bugger” follows a series of farming mishaps each provoke the laconic comment — “bugger”. The role of ‘Hercules’ the dog plus the performance of the hapless farmer made for one of New Zealand’s most iconic advertisements and a symbol of Kiwi pop culture.

The Advertising Standards Authority received 120 complaints about the ad, but subsequently ruled that it was not in breach of the advertising codes and was unlikely to cause serious offence. It was originally released in August 1999.

Killing a Toyota Top Gear – BBC

Jeremy Clarkson drives a Toyota Hilux around in the hope of disproving the manufacturer’s claims about its indestructibility. He crashes the Hilux into bits of Bristol and trees, parks it in the sea and then drives it through a shed and drops a caravan on it. His final act involved parking it on a tower block before it is raised to the ground by a demolition team. Did he manage to kill the Hilux? Nope. Eventually he concedes that it might, just might, actually be indestructible.

Part 1:

Part 2:

Part 3:

UPDATE: If you missed the live event, the edited highlights video is now available to watch. Take a look at the bottom of this page.

The race which will be broadcast live from 3pm (BST) later today will be run within a purpose-built game within GT5 called, the Mercedes-Benz Driving Event.

With Coulthard in the driving seat, Martin Brundle and Jonathan Legard will provide commentary and present the live broadcast. To add to the drama the track will remain a secret until the day to give all competitors a fair chance at victory, although perhaps in a deliberate faux-pas Legard announced on Twitter this morning “F1 star v virtual racers. Who’ll be champion around Dunsfold? #topgeartrack TODAY”.

He later corrected himself by tweeting, “Assuming it is there, of course. Like the stig, Some things aren’t always what they seem. Watch this space…”.

Jeremy Hart interviewed Martin Brundle for The Telegraph last week, who said, “When I first heard about this competition I thought it was DC racing gamers on a computer game, and he’s absolutely hopeless at that,” chortles Brundle. Then he gets serious. “But in a real SLS I think he’ll give them a good run for their money.”

“When I drive a car on a game, it amazes me how real it can feel. I recognise some of the traits of the real car in the digital version. But until you have felt the real car, the grip, the fear, you haven’t got a reference point. That’s why a digital racer needs the racing experience as well.”

Brundle then goes on to say, “In a real car you have to trust you can turn into a bend at 180mph and the car will stick and you won’t go off and kill yourself,” says Brundle. “If you go off the track during a game, it doesn’t hurt. That’s why we are still a long way from someone coming from virtual racing becoming a world champion. There are so many levels to being a top-flight racing driver. How to set up the car, read the weather and race wheel to wheel.”

Meanwhile at Mercedes-Benz World, Surrey, 24 prize draw winners will be battling it out to qualify for their place in the big race, and the lucky few who set the top six qualifying times will then compete against Coulthard in real time at Mercedes’ Brooklands venue, where visitors are welcome to come along and watch the action for themselves.

The GT5 contestant that sets the fastest lap will win an all-expenses-paid trip to the 2011 Brazilian Formula 1™ Grand Prix on 27 November.

If you weren’t lucky enough to make it through to the final 24 players, then you can still compete against Coulthard in the SLS AMG by entering the specially created in-game ‘seasonal event’ on GT5. Leaderboard information for the Mercedes-Benz Driving Event will be available on www.gran-turismo.com

The in-game Mercedes-Benz Driving Event will be available until Monday 26 September so there’s plenty of time to earn those bragging rights, but make sure you tune in this afternoon to gain some pointers on how to beat an F1 driver..

Edited Highlights

To mark the release of EA Games’ highly anticipated Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit on November 19th, EA have teamed up with Urban Music Awards winning and MOBO nominated group Roll Deep and Ben Collins (The Driver Previously Known As The Stig) to film a series of teaser videos in the build up to a Hollywood-style cinematic trailer featuring both Roll Deep and Ben Collins which is available now [View on SkiddPlayer].

The latest instalment in the Need for Speed promotional trailers is 'Pagani v Lamborghini: Need for Speed Hot Pursuit' - filmed on the winding mountain roads just outside Venice, the Hollywood style trailer demonstrates the monstrous power of the Pagani Zonda Cinque as it's pursued by a cop liveried Lamborghini Murcielago Interceptor - both of which can be driven in game. The trailer contains a combination of real video intermixed with gameplay. Click to watch in SkiddPlayer

We showed you the preview footage a few weeks ago featuring the first shots of Roll Deep as they don their police uniforms and strike up some friendly banter with Ben Collins.

The preview video offered a glimpse of the main cinematic trailer where the band races a new breed of Lamborghini police car in a high speed hot pursuit to the soundtrack of ‘TEAM’, one of the lead tracks from their new album.

To celebrate the release of this high-octane live action trailer, SkiddMark has teamed up with EA Games to give away 3 copies of the new Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit game, all you’ve got to do is answer the following simple question:

(Note: The competition closes on Friday 3rd December 2010 at 11:59pm GMT and we wish you the very best of luck)

The Competition Question

We will contact the winners within 48 hours of the competition closing, however if you’d like to find out even sooner then follow us on Twitter at (@DriversRepublic.)

A fleet of the sexiest, fastest, hottest cars are headed to the LA launch party which is the last leg of a 7-city roll out for the anticipated ”race of chase” driving game – accompanied by an entourage of Lamborghinis, Audi R8s, Spyker Spyders, Aston Martin DB9s and Mercedes SLSs.

Guests will be able to peep and take pictures with the launch super cars – most of which are featured in the game. Guests will also get to witness the rising star that is hip hop act Chiddy Bang, the MTV ”Buzzworthy” musical headliner.

The party, featuring HD game kiosks and all-night complimentary cocktails, is an invitation-only event but you can win a spot on the guest list by hot-footing over to the event website and registering your details.

Winning guests will be contacted directly by the promoter of the event, KingSize USA.

The game features several of Lamborghini’s finest including a Reventón and a LP560-4 and to mark the occasion Totally Dynamic wrapped three Lamborghinis to replicate their on screen appearance for the launch event at Longcross Test Centre in Surrey.

Speed was the order of the day for the work carried out by Totally Dynamic’s South London centre. Wrapped on the 25th October, the supercars were then used at the launch event on the 27th, unwrapped the same day and returned in mint condition on the 28th.

During the high profile launch event, the Lamborghinis were driven around the track by members of the grime music collective Roll Deep, recent winners at this year’s Urban Music Awards, with Ben Collins, formerly The Stig in Top Gear, on hand to drive a selection of Porsches around the track during the day.

A Demo version of the game is currently available from the EA Games website, for Xbox and PS3 consoles, whilst the full game will be on sale from November 11th simultaneously for all platforms (Xbox, PS3, PC, Wii).

Website: Totally Dynamic and on Twitter at @Totally_Dynamic.

When examining the vast array of videos, microsites and social media content we concluded that there was simply too much – the average viewer neither has the time nor the interest to wade through 24 videos (now 26 including the recent V60 promotions) and such dilution of their focus can subsequently undermine sharing on social media channels as our brief analysis of the views and shares appears to prove.

The response we received from readers at the time was one of suspicion, doubting the likelihood of a truly fun Volvo and figuring that with such a double-barreled charm offensive, Volvo were turning up the volume on their promotional activities to drown out any dissenters. “Let the car speak for itself…” they told us, rather than telling us how naughty it was – whatever that means!

So last weekend we joined Volvo’s Naughty Track Event and we brought along competition winner Kevin Matthews to provide a readers’s perspective. Kevin previously owned a Subaru Impreza Turbo, so he should be able to smell a rat if Volvo’s marketing team has been overly ambitous in it’s numerous references to the S60′s sporty nature.

You can read about Kevin’s impression of the day in the seperate article, “Naughty Volvo, The Competition Winner’s Story”.

What’s the S60 really like?

I’ve driven plenty of Volvos in the past, they’re safe, quite quick sometimes but ultimately a bit… beige. Let’s face it, Volvo’s average customer is a million miles away from the type that frequents a certain Munich brand, so when Volvo say that the S60 is a sporty and dynamic car to drive, I peg my expectations back a few notches.

First up in our Naughty Volvo experience is the Pro-Drive event, where a professional racing driver shows us around the Top Gear track at Dunsford. I step in beside Brazillian race driver Tommy Erdos – former British Formula Renault champion, BTCC competitor and race finisher in the Le Mans 24 Hours. As befits a top-level driver Tommy’s style of driving is smooth, economical and fearless.

He starts slowly showing me around the track, then after a lap he ups the pace. First up Tommy explains how much he enjoys driving the S60 around this track, “…it’s not boring, in fact it’s great fun to really get the S60 sliding – my passengers love that!” Tommy demonstrates just how balanced the S60 is when trail-braked into the left-right of Hammerhead, the S60′s tail kicks out as we brake and turn for the left-hander but the transition into the long right-hand corner exit is undramatic, there’s little understeer and the S60′s body control made the maneuver look easy.

The next trick Tommy wants to show me is the flat-right through Wilson Bend towards Follow-Through, his initial turn-in is aggressive to show how stable the S60 is at these high speeds (110 mph at this point), he really takes liberties with the S60 (and its Continental SportContact3 tyres), but despite the howls of protest from the tarmac beneath us the S60 isn’t fussed. He carries the speed into Follow-Through with his right-foot pinned to the floor – we’re well above 100 mph at this point and I can see that Tommy’s enjoying taking the S60 by the scruff of the neck in a way that would feel unnatural in most ordinary road cars.

Bacharach Bend is perhaps the most difficult on the circuit to get right, it’s unsighted and its exit leads into Gambon corner – another important corner which leads onto the longest straight and where the start/finish line is located. Surprisingly the S60 responds well to a lift of the throttle, so if entry speed is a little too ambitous into Bacharach the driver can still trim the S60′s line before tackling Gambon.

This is very un-Volvo like. Shouldn’t it be understeering horribly by now?

We're entering Bacharach Bend at around 90 mph and Tommy has lifted to dial in some oversteer before the next corner, Gambon. This is the maximum lean-angle you'll experience in the S60.

On our cooling-down lap Tommy explains that the S60′s chassis is essentially inert yet still responds well to a driver’s bidding, so the average driver will just feel confident and safe, whilst the more experienced driver can enjoy taking liberties safe in the knowledge that the S60 will not bite back. Ahh, so that’s why Volvo were calling the S60 the Naughty Volvo – strong and sensible on the outside, but when nobody’s looking it likes nothing better than to lay big black lines along the tarmac.

The S60 and I are going to get along just fine…

Behing the wheel

Our first taste from the driving seat of the S60 was with V70 Police car sat directly behind us – there’s nothing to fear but fear itself! A series of activities ensued – being chased through a slalom, practicing lift-off oversteer and testing out Volvo’s pedestrian detection with auto braking technology. As we progressed through the day our respect for Volvo’s achievements became ever more clear.

A scene we all dread, but this was just part of the fun on Volvo's Naughty Track Event.

The transformation Volvo have achieved over previous models is truly remarkable, the S60 steers crisply with just enough weight and feedback to suit enthusiast drivers Its brakes stood up with little protest to the punishment of repeated track use and it was genuinely fun to hustle around the various courses laid on for us on the day.

But does it stand comparison with BMW’s 3-series, or Mercedes’ C-class? Surprisingly the answer is yes. The S60 is solid, well made and a step above the Mondeo/Insignia crowd in terms of prestige and quality, but more importantly it’s been thoroughly well developed as a drivers car. Who’d have thought we’d be saying that about a Volvo?

[styledbox type="information" ]Thanks: I’d just like to thank all the drivers and instructors that made the Naughty Volvo Event such fun for all who attended. A big hand for the pro-drivers including James Rhodes, Tommy Erdos and Ross Hockenhull, who pounded around the track lap after lap in the S60, despite being used to driving much faster cars.

We’d also like to thank Fusion Events who ran the day smoothly with a smile on their faces and plenty of enthusiasm – we highly recommend them if you’re looking for a top-notch event management team.

[/styledbox]

Photos: Kevin McGlone