Latest news with #Fernie
BBC News
13-04-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Somerset in Pictures: Artistic rats and sunny beach days
As spring continues to bring sun to the county, people have been enjoying Somerset's beaches this a nurse from Somerset has trained her pet rats to draw miniature paintings and 40,000 tulip bulbs have burst into colour at the Bishop's a look at some of the best pictures taken across our county this week. Cheeky cow: Fernie in Glastonbury captured a cow enjoying the blue skies this week. Spring sunset: Minehead looked a lot like Venice this week, with the sun colouring the sky and sea orange. Artistic rats: A veterinary nurse's pet rats have been providing some "pawsitivity" by creating mini paintings for people around the world. Steph Toogood, from Somerset, has owned rats since 2016 and they have created hundreds of mini masterpieces, as well as other rat related products including jewellery and magnets. Colourful tulips: More than 40,000 tulip bulbs have burst into colour this April at The Bishop's Palace and Gardens in Wells. Back in November, 20,000 new tulip sylvestris bulbs were planted along the ramparts bank. Cricket success: Tom Banton of Somerset made his way off after scoring 344 not out, the highest individual score in Somerset history, following day two of the Rothesay County Championship Division One match between Somerset and Worcestershire at The Cooper Associates County Ground. New kit: Bath Romans wheelchair basketball team received a £24,045 donation from Omaze to cover training, coaching and tournament costs for the next three years.
Yahoo
01-04-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Volkswagen Put An Experimental W10 Engine In BMW's Best M5
The legend of the Volkswagen Group's rebellious, daring, and absurdist creations pitched and produced under the rule of Ferdinand Porsche's grandson, the late Ferdinand Piëch, continue to enchant and mystify the automotive community. The team at DriveTribe uncovered and drove a perfect example of this daring absurdity in a YouTube video about an E39 BMW M5 that hid quite an oddity under its hood: A one-of-two experimental W10 engine that Piëch ordered to be created. No, my fat fingers didn't accidentally press the wrong key — this 10-cylinder engine was created by connecting two narrow-angle V5 engines in the same way VW did with the Passat's W8 and the Phaeton's W12. Now, why would Volkswagen go and put this experimental engine under the hood of a German competitor? Drivetribe presenter Mike Fernie explains that it was due to Piëch's desire to produce an M5 competitor, but since the Volkswagen Group didn't have a comparable model at the time, Piëch himself signed off on putting his experimental W10 right into an M5. Then, he reportedly used it as his daily driver because he was so impressed by the outcome. Must've been a mighty compelling thing, then. Read more: 2024 Acura TLX Type S Is A Different Kind Of AWD Sport Sedan Now, if you're familiar with the unique wail of a five-cylinder engine, then you are probably desperate to hear what two narrow-angle V5 engines connected at the crank sound like. Unfortunately it doesn't have quite the throaty growl that you may expect, though it does sound interesting. But as Fernie points out, that's kind of the order of the day when it comes to the VW Group's W-oriented engines. Neither the W12 used in an array of Volkswagen Group products, nor the quad-turbocharged W16 used in the Veyron and other Bugattis are particularly sonorous engines. Go on YouTube and type "straight piped W8 Passat" into the search bar, though, and you'll find a few videos showing the ripper of a sound that the W8 produces. Anyway, back to the W10. The owner of the W10 E39 M5 mule tested it out on a dynamometer and found out that it produces 480 horsepower and about 436 pound-feet of torque. Unfortunately I cannot offer any driving impressions from my own experience, but Fernie seems quite smitten with the manual-equipped, W10-powered E39 M5, and I can't blame him. He's experiencing a one-of-one driving experience, as the only other W10 known to exist is mounted to a post in the owner's garage. What a cool experience — I'm only slightly irate with jealousy. Apparently it's for sale, though, if you happen to have a spare $500,000-ish laying around. If you're like me and you don't have a cool half-mil to burn, then we can just watch this video on repeat. Want more like this? Join the Jalopnik newsletter to get the latest auto news sent straight to your inbox... Read the original article on Jalopnik.
