The Rolls-Royce 102EX was in Dubai last month. Jaime Puebla / The National
The Rolls-Royce 102EX was in Dubai last month. Jaime Puebla / The National

Traffic fines - for loud cars



Traffic fines - for loud cars

Supercar owners beware - a pilot scheme in Canada is trialling a "Noise Snare" device that, when proven operational, will enable authorities to fine drivers with excessively loud vehicles.

Working very much like a speed camera by pinpointing the source of noise and determining if it exceeds the acceptable decibel level under the local laws, it will then take a photograph of offending vehicles so an appropriate fine can be issued.

The technology, which is being pioneered by the city of Calgary, is aimed at drivers who modify their vehicles so the exhaust produces loud noises.

According to the Calgary Herald, the city will set up several free noise check stations so motorists can see if their vehicle exceeds the limits.

As well as being a way of reducing nuisance noise, reports have found that loud traffic noise can increase the risk of heart attacks.

A Swedish study in 2009 found that people who were regularly exposed to traffic noise in excess of 50 decibels were 40 per cent more likely to suffer a heart attack than those who lived in quieter areas.

Rolls-Royce customers aren't finding the 102EX electrifying

Rolls-Royce may not include an electric car in its lineup anytime soon after all, even as the company's experimental, all-electric 102EX continues its worldwide tour.

At the Dubai motor show two weeks ago, Torsten Müller-Ötvös, CEO of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, said clients' reaction to the one-off testbed for an alternative drivetrain Phantom has been cool.

"We have seen on one side a great reception of the car, but on the other side a lot of commentary on the range of the car, only 120km, the charging time is not acceptable, at over eight hours. So, too much compromise for many of our customers. And so, I don't have a cheque yet on my desk that tells me to build that car. There is no customer yet that has asked me if he could buy one.

"The whole project is not ended yet; I don't want to make an assumption of 'are we doing that, yes or no'. But it's still in the United States, and I'm very much looking forward to what the US, our biggest market, is saying about that car. So let's wait and see."

Read what we thought of the electric Rolls at www.thenational.ae and search for 102EX.

Karting finals in Al Ain today

The Al Ain Raceway today plays host to the final day of the Rotax MAX Challenge Grand Finals, a karting event involving 264 drivers from around the world from age 13 upwards. It's the largest karting event in the world.

Practice rounds were scheduled for Monday and Tuesday before the qualifiers on Wednesday and Thursday and the first day of finals in the four classes was set for yesterday. But there's still time today to get along to check out the final and deciding races, as well as the podium celebrations.

Now in its twelfth year, the Rotax MAX Challenge Grand Finals is an international CIK event which has become the most prestigious championship in the world of karting.

Drivers qualify for the Grand Finals via the National Rotax MAX Challenge in their home country - approximately 3,700 competitors take part worldwide. The season's winners of each class are invited to the Grand Finals.

Al Ain Raceway is a 1.4km-long track with Level B homologation - the highest in the region. It hosted the same event in 2007, shortly after it opened.

Today's event starts at 9.30am with prizes being handed out from 5pm. Entry is free.

Scottish police charge more than just criminals - their cars, too

You can't imagine it being that successful during a high-speed chase but in the other important pursuit of cutting carbon emissions, police in Scotland have added an electric Mitsubishi I-Miev to its ranks.

Police now stationed at the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh will use the vehicle as police enact plans to have more carbon-neutral vehicles in its fleet.

"The acquisition of these electric vehicles signals our intent to continually look to the future and provide the highest quality of policing while, at the same time, take significant steps to reducing our carbon footprint," chief superintendent Derek Robertson told Britain's Daily Mail.

Lothian and Borders Police has also invested in a zero-emission Ford Connect Electric van.

"There is definitely a place for it in our operations," says Dave Kennan, fleet manager for the force. "These cars are great at low speeds and are ideal for city centre driving."

Mercedes-Benz tuning company Brabus opens facility in Dubai

On Wednesday November 16, German tuning company Brabus, in the presence of HH Sheikh Saeed Bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, officially opened its new workshop and showroom facility in Al Quoz, Dubai.

Brabus, founded in 1977 by Professor Bodo Buschmann, who still owns the company, is the world's largest independent Mercedes-Benz tuning company (AMG is now a subsidiary of Mercedes) and its emphasis has always been on huge power.

At the opening ceremony for the 3,000 square metre regional headquarters, Prof Buschmann said: "We consider this to be an outstanding centre of excellence, that will not only service the needs of our traditional customers but also those of our trading partners in the region."

Many of the company's current range of modified Mercedes and Smart cars are on display, and a team of engineers, predominately from Germany, is now based there.

THREE
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Electoral College Victory

Trump has so far secured 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, exceeding the 270 needed to win. Only Nevada and Arizona remain to be called, and both swing states are leaning Republican. Trump swept all five remaining swing states, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, sealing his path to victory and giving him a strong mandate. 

 

Popular Vote Tally

The count is ongoing, but Trump currently leads with nearly 51 per cent of the popular vote to Harris’s 47.6 per cent. Trump has over 72.2 million votes, while Harris trails with approximately 67.4 million.

Kanguva
Director: Siva
Stars: Suriya, Bobby Deol, Disha Patani, Yogi Babu, Redin Kingsley
Rating: 2/5
 
Citadel: Honey Bunny first episode

Directors: Raj & DK

Stars: Varun Dhawan, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kashvi Majmundar, Kay Kay Menon

Rating: 4/5

The specs
Engine: 2.7-litre 4-cylinder Turbomax
Power: 310hp
Torque: 583Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh192,500
On sale: Now
The specs
 
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
COMPANY PROFILE

Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed 

DMZ facts
  • The DMZ was created as a buffer after the 1950-53 Korean War.
  • It runs 248 kilometers across the Korean Peninsula and is 4km wide.
  • The zone is jointly overseen by the US-led United Nations Command and North Korea.
  • It is littered with an estimated 2 million mines, tank traps, razor wire fences and guard posts.
  • Donald Trump and Kim Jong-Un met at a building in Panmunjom, where an armistice was signed to stop the Korean War.
  • Panmunjom is 52km north of the Korean capital Seoul and 147km south of Pyongyang, North Korea’s capital.
  • Former US president Bill Clinton visited Panmunjom in 1993, while Ronald Reagan visited the DMZ in 1983, George W. Bush in 2002 and Barack Obama visited a nearby military camp in 2012. 
  • Mr Trump planned to visit in November 2017, but heavy fog that prevented his helicopter from landing.
How it works

A $10 hand-powered LED light and battery bank

Device is operated by hand cranking it at any time during the day or night 

The charge is stored inside a battery

The ratio is that for every minute you crank, it provides 10 minutes light on the brightest mode

A full hand wound charge is of 16.5minutes 

This gives 1.1 hours of light on high mode or 2.5 hours of light on low mode

When more light is needed, it can be recharged by winding again

The larger version costs between $18-20 and generates more than 15 hours of light with a 45-minute charge

No limit on how many times you can charge

 

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
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UAE SQUAD

 Khalid Essa (Al Ain), Ali Khaseif (Al Jazira), Adel Al Hosani (Sharjah), Mahmoud Khamis (Al Nasr), Yousef Jaber (Shabab Al Ahli Dubai), Khalifa Al Hammadi (Jazira), Salem Rashid (Jazira), Shaheen Abdelrahman (Sharjah), Faris Juma (Al Wahda), Mohammed Shaker (Al Ain), Mohammed Barghash (Wahda), Abdulaziz Haikal (Shabab Al Ahli), Ahmed Barman (Al Ain), Khamis Esmail (Wahda), Khaled Bawazir (Sharjah), Majed Surour (Sharjah), Abdullah Ramadan (Jazira), Mohammed Al Attas (Jazira), Fabio De Lima (Al Wasl), Bandar Al Ahbabi (Al Ain), Khalfan Mubarak (Jazira), Habib Fardan (Nasr), Khalil Ibrahim (Wahda), Ali Mabkhout (Jazira), Ali Saleh (Wasl), Caio (Al Ain), Sebastian Tagliabue (Nasr).

COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The specs

Engine: 1.5-litre turbo

Power: 181hp

Torque: 230Nm

Transmission: 6-speed automatic

Starting price: Dh79,000

On sale: Now

SPECS

Engine: Two-litre four-cylinder turbo
Power: 235hp
Torque: 350Nm
Transmission: Nine-speed automatic
Price: From Dh167,500 ($45,000)
On sale: Now

If%20you%20go
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If you go

The flights 

Emirates flies from Dubai to Funchal via Lisbon, with a connecting flight with Air Portugal. Economy class returns cost from Dh3,845 return including taxes.

The trip

The WalkMe app can be downloaded from the usual sources. If you don’t fancy doing the trip yourself, then Explore  offers an eight-day levada trails tour from Dh3,050, not including flights.

The hotel

There isn’t another hotel anywhere in Madeira that matches the history and luxury of the Belmond Reid's Palace in Funchal. Doubles from Dh1,400 per night including taxes.

 

 

Final results:

Open men
Australia 94 (4) beat New Zealand 48 (0)

Plate men
England 85 (3) beat India 81 (1)

Open women
Australia 121 (4) beat South Africa 52 (0)

Under 22 men
Australia 68 (2) beat New Zealand 66 (2)

Under 22 women
Australia 92 (3) beat New Zealand 54 (1)

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: ARDH Collective
Based: Dubai
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Sector: Sustainability
Total funding: Self funded
Number of employees: 4
List of alleged parties

 

May 12, 2020: PM and his wife Carrie attend 'work meeting' with at least 17 staff 

May 20, 2020: They attend 'bring your own booze party'

Nov 27, 2020: PM gives speech at leaving party for his staff 

Dec 10, 2020: Staff party held by then-education secretary Gavin Williamson 

Dec 13, 2020: PM and his wife throw a party

Dec 14, 2020: London mayoral candidate Shaun Bailey holds staff event at Conservative Party headquarters 

Dec 15, 2020: PM takes part in a staff quiz 

Dec 18, 2020: Downing Street Christmas party 

england euro squad

Goalkeepers: Dean Henderson (Man Utd), Sam Johnstone (West Brom), Jordan Pickford (Everton)

Defenders: John Stones (Man City), Luke Shaw (Man Utd), Harry Maguire (Man Utd), Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool), Kyle Walker (Man City), Tyrone Mings (Aston Villa), Reece James (Chelsea), Conor Coady (Wolves), Ben Chilwell (Chelsea), Kieran Trippier (Atletico Madrid)

Midfielders: Mason Mount (Chelsea), Declan Rice (West Ham), Jordan Henderson (Liverpool), Jude Bellingham (Borussia Dortmund), Kalvin Phillips (Leeds)

Forwards: Harry Kane (Tottenham), Marcus Rashford (Man Utd), Raheem Sterling (Man City), Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Everton), Phil Foden (Man City), Jack Grealish (Aston Villa), Jadon Sancho (Borussia Dortmund), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal)

Honeymoonish
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Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
Rating: 4/5
Cricket World Cup League 2

UAE squad

Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind

Fixtures

Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE

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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Voices: How A Great Singer Can Change Your Life
Nick Coleman
Jonathan Cape

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%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EJames%20Gunn%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Chris%20Pratt%2C%20Zoe%20Saldana%2C%20Dave%20Bautista%2C%20Vin%20Diesel%2C%20Bradley%20Cooper%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Squads

Sri Lanka Tharanga (c), Mathews, Dickwella (wk), Gunathilaka, Mendis, Kapugedera, Siriwardana, Pushpakumara, Dananjaya, Sandakan, Perera, Hasaranga, Malinga, Chameera, Fernando.

India Kohli (c), Dhawan, Rohit, Rahul, Pandey, Rahane, Jadhav, Dhoni (wk), Pandya, Axar, Kuldeep, Chahal, Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar, Thakur.


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