With a production run starting in 1979, 2009 marks the 30th anniversary of the Mercedes-Benz Geländwagen. Year after year, the ‘German Land Rover’ has soldiered on, tackling the roughest terrain, or the most stylish boulevards as has recently been the case. There’s not much else to say besides here’s hoping for another 30!
The redesigned A4's taillights, which are all BMW is currently seeing in the never-ending sales race.
First off, I’ll admit to a small bit of hyberbole in the title. The A4 is the best-selling ‘premium car’ in the German Domestic market, and follows only the VW Golf in sales across the board. That said, this acheievement is still incredible, because Audi is almost an upstart company even with it’s rich history that includes the original Auto Union raccers and the legendary Quattro rally car. They have also spent plenty of time attempting to challenge BMW and Mercedes in the premium market, a task that, until recently, they weren’t doing with the greatest of ease. It was not until just a few years ago that the A4 passed the C-Class offered by Mercedes, and even then it was still thousands upon thousands of units behind the venerable 3-Series from BMW. This year, with the introduction of the completely redesigned 2008/2009 A4 Sedan and Wagon, Audi was out to stick it to both of it’s countrymates, and hard. THeir efforts have paid off, as the A4 is now on top of Mercedes and (more notably) BMW, dethroning the king of decades.
[SOURCE: Autoblog]
BMW's 4.4 Liter TT V8.
Like what you see? Take a nice long look at it. You won’t be seeing nearly as many, at least not from BMW. The Bavarian company has reported that they can have just one shift work four days a week, and still meet the world’s annual demand for BMW V8s. While this is great news for the workers, it means shrinking profit margins for BMW.
BMW’s six cylinder engines will also be taking on cuts in the near future, as demand for the bread ‘n’ butter of their line-up dwindles. “We are producing the wrong engines,” says a member of BMW’s supervisory board. Look for many more four cylinder Beemers in the future. In the words of Jonathan Ramsey, of Autoblog, “716i, anyone?”
[Via Autoblog]
Better looking than the coupe? It's close.
A mule of the soft top Camaro was caught in Australia this week, showing Holden’s influence over the car’s development. Depending on who you ask, the convertible may look even better than the hardtop that was just introduced. Keeping a profile that is almost identical, the convertible gives up nothing in the way of style, but gains a whole lot in the way of fun. And if the Corvette convertible is anything to go by, cutting the roof off shouldn’t have a terribly negative effect on the handling. As long as the price stays low, it’s possible the convertible might outsell the hardtop, at least below the Mason-Dixon line. An additional detail is the intake just below the hood, suggesting that this is an SS mule.
Gallery:
Posted in Chevy, Convertibles, Spied | Tags: 2010, Camaro, Chevy, Convertible, Corvette, Coupe
Based on the Scirocco, the new Golf 6 has some crisp new lines and a snazzy new grill, which is a bold departure from the VW corporate "face."
Supposedly, Volkswagen was planning a mid-week reveal for the 6th generation of Europe’s favorite small car. Sadly, the internet never lets car companies do what they want. This time, the culprit was Autoblog.nl, revealing several pictures and a good bit of speculative, well, specs. So far, we know the engine range will include a whole bunch of 4 cylinder engines, including the 14.L TSI and 1.8 FSI petrol engines, as well as the 1.9L and 2.0L TDI powerplants. THhe inclusion of the 2.0 TFSI gas engine at launch is all guesswork. What is for sure is that the Golf will make full use of VW’s transmissions, offering a manual, automatic and DSG transmission from the day it hits showrooms, which, sadly, won’t be until late 2009 for the US.
Posted in Uncategorized
It's hard to say a new Corvette is better looking or more fun than this one.
In the vein of Autoblog’s “Future Classic” series, I’m starting “Classic of the Week.” Every week I will, hopefully, highlight a classic I have seen in my various travels. To start things off, here’s one of my favorite cars of all time, the 1996 Corvette GS. Coated in Admiral Blue with a wide white “go fast” stripe down it’s midsection, the special edition ‘Vette was noticed wherever it went. Stealthy black rims and a pair of red dashes on the driver’s side fender gave the car a fully custom look, straight from the factory. Although only 1,000 of them were made, I was lucky enough to catch one at the Gilmore Auto Museum, near Kalamazoo, MI. As if that wasn’t lucky enough, it was parked right next to a 50th Ann’y Coupe. The GS uses the LT4 engine, top-of-the-line at the time. Being the special edition to end the 4th generation of Corvette, everything had to be the best available. The LT4 certainly was, managing 330HP and 340lb-ft of torque. Very impressive for it’s day, but not quite as good as the LS1, slated for the 1997 C5.
Posted in Classic of the Week | Tags: 1980s, Corvette, COTW, GS
Don't bank on a sequel to the new Camaro.
So by now every blogger and their mother has covered the 5th Gen. Camaro. But not me, because I like to take my sweet time to provide you with the best I can. And because I’m lazy, but that’s beside the point. What matters is that the Camro is back, and at the worst possible time. It’s seven years too late, 300 pounds to heavy and not the car Chevy needs. The mileage, while not terrible for a 3700 pound V6 car, is nowhere near enough to meet the impending doom that is CAFE. And the V8 SS model will be lucky to average 20 MPG! But it’s a Camaro, so it will be a great car to own and drive, just not pay for. With dismal mileage and prices starting a few thousand dollars above the Mustang, don’t look for the Camaro to be the smash hit everyone wants it to be. That’s simply not possible.
Now none of this necessarily means that the Camaro is a bad car. In fact, I believe the exact opposite. With a thundering 420 horse SS model, and a not-to-shabby 300 from the V6 fitted to the LS and LT spec, the Camaro is a performance bargain, as it should be. Chevy does produce the car that defines ‘bang for your buck,’ the Corvette, so the fact that the Camaro follows this up is fitting.
The new Camaro should have immediately followed the 2003 model. It would have pre-dated the Mustang, and been the first to “go retro” in the styling department. But, alas, it is coming nearly 7 years too late, and a car that could be very swuccessful under the right circumstances should not be released right now, becasue GM is banking too much on it, and the odds are stacked against the 2010 Camaro. We’ll just have to wait and see who’s right.
The VW 1 Liter car is a concept developed in 2002 with the sole purpose of going 100 km on a single liter of gasoline. If this car does in fact enter production, as the recent rumors have said, VW may not have to worry about CAFE standards for a while. Just 50,000 of these per year would offset the entire brand’s mileage!
Posted in VW
This is the follow-up post to the “Ferrari is Such A Tease” post you can see below. Ferrari recently released pictures and some preliminary information of its “Entry Level” model, a hard-top convertible similar in concept to the Lexus SC430, and styling that recalls the 550 and 575 models. The idea is where the similarities end. While the SC starts at “just” 66k, the California is expected to cost no less than an Aston Martin Vantage, between $110,000 and $150,000. Keeping with the trend of suspense that is prevalent in the car world today, Ferrari is revealing information bit by bit, so procing is still up in the air. One additional similarity is the size of the car’s V8 engines, with both displacing 4.3L. Again, the Ferrari is more upmarket, producing 460 horsepower, which is well over the Lexus’ 288 and the 100 hp per liter mark! That is becoming more & more common, but is still an impressive accomplishment. The California is expected to be able to reach 60 miles per hour from a standstill in just under four second, putting it near the Corvette Z06 in performance. Except it’s going to be twice as expensive. It’s odd that Ferrari would stoop so low as to compete in the entry-level luxury sports car market. I have to say I’m glad they did. The Ferrari California is a looker, and one heckuva car!
AutoBlog Ferrari California Gallery
[Source: AutoBlog]
So I was Stumbling around the internet today and found another car blog. After reading the “About” section and looking at some of the posts, I realized that it’s run by an old frined of mine! Before I moved away, I got him hooked on cars. Apparently even more than I thought! Nice work, Pete!
Ferrari has long been denying the existence of a 2+2 in any capacity, but with the launch of Ferrari GT Countdown teaser site, the boys from Maranello have given proof to the rumors. Reffered to as the Ferrari GT California, the new model is expected to be the “cheap” base model Ferrari, with a price well north of $150,000. With the F430 replacement creeping into the $200,000+ range, a lower priced model will create even more cars for the overworked factory tradesmen to build. With a three year delay on production, think what this car will do! The 2009 Ferrari California, arriving at a dealer near you in 2019!
And if you visit the site, remember to turn up your speakers! Unless you’re at work. Then you shouldn’t be here at all.
[Source: Left Lane News]
Posted in Convertibles, Coupes, F1, Ferrari | Tags: Cali, California, Ferrari, GT, Italy, Maranello, Paris, Rosso, Scuderia, Toro Rosso
VW’s wonderfully prepped Scirocco Endurance Racer that will be competing in the 24 hour race at the Nurburgring this month captured the hearts of many with the first picture just showing the front clip. Now, in profile, we see it is truly a great looking car. Nice work VW!
[Source: AutoBlog]
The Kelley Blue Book has been providing the standards of automotive pricing since before many of you were born. For 2008, the pricing geniuses have released a “Best for 18k” list, giving you some ideas for a good car on the cheap. While $18,000 is a lot, there are some great deals to be found. Here’s the list.
KBB Best for 18k (Model/MSRP/KBB Value)
Any of those sound appealing? If they do, it just takes a little haggling and some patience to get a dealer down to the KBB price.
[Source: AutoBlog]
The new-for-2009 Volkswagen Scirocco is only offered to those in Europe (not fair), but even us Americans can enjoy this car. The car you see has been lowered, widened and receives a 300 horse version of the TFSI 2.0 liter four cylinder that seems to be in every VW these days. Except none of them get 300 horsepower. Built to race in the 24 hours of the Nurburgring in May, the Scirocco will be up againts some tough competition, including the Lexus LF-A mules and the Gumpert Apollo Hybrid.
[Source: Carscoop via Jalopnik]
The Cadillac CTS was redesigned for the 2008 model year to much critical acclaim. Now, with the CTS Coupe Concept from the Detroit Show and the TS Wagon being caught in spy pictures, the only mystery left is whether or not there will be a convertible. Coach Builders, Inc. wants to make sure that it’s no mystery. After some months of work, CBI has created a convertible that looks even better than the sedan! Except for the “bling” aftermarket rims. One interesting feature: the ‘vert reatian the four door setup, rare for a convertible these days. No pictures with the roof up were released, but if the looks top-down are anything to go by, it’s sure to be a stunner. While the modification isn’t cheap (19k over the CTS’s base price of 34k!), it might just be worth it for those with money to burn.
[Source: Jalopnik]
Posted in Cadillac, Convertibles, Customs | Tags: Caddy, Cadillac, Caoch Builders Inc, CBI< Coach, Coachbuilt, Convertible, CTS, Drop top, Droptop, Florida, Vert
The Beijing Auto Show was in full swing over the weekend, and the Koreans decided to have their say at the Chinese dominated show. And boy did they ever. The Spirra S is a new sports car powered by Hyundai’s 2.7L supercharged V6 and the styling borrows from Lotuses and (in my book) the Saleen S5S Raptor. I personally think it looks great! No performance numbers are avaiable, but the Tiburon from which the engine is sourced gets to 60 in just over seconds, so expect a high 6-second time. Also, the Hyundai engine is naturally aspirated so the S’s supercharger shopuld add a good 30 or 40 horsepower, totalling about 210. Production, expected to start next year, is currently limited to 300.
[Source: Jalopnik]
Mitsubishi is looking to get back into the small hatch business. With the Prototype S, they may have a winner. In a package that looks like a 5-Door Evo X, the S won’t lose any buyers on looks. In fact, it will gain many because of it’s appearance. The specs aren’t nailed down yet, but a 240hp Turbo 4 is expected. While it is now just a European release, every car guy and gal in the US is probably in the process of writing letters to Mitsu to get this here. And becuase the STi is now hatch only, with a sedan and 5-door, Mitsubishi would kill in sales. Ship this across the Atlantic! Please! [Scroll down for pictures and a leaked press video]
Posted in Concepts, Geneva, Hatches, Introduction, Mitsubishi
The Ariel Atom was a giant killer. With a power-to-weight ratio unlike any other car, it zipped around 911s and F430s like they were economy cars. The Atom 500 ups the ante, to the tune of 200 horsepower per liter an over 1000hp per ton. That’s twice the ratio of the Bugatti Veyron, and is matched by only a handful of other race cars. Powered by a 2.4L supercharged V8, the Atom 500 is all but a road going F1 car. It certainly looks the part. With massive sculpted carbon wings front and rear, as well as two jet fighter sized side intakes, the 500 looks like speed. If it could talk, it might say something along the lines of “Porsches? Ferraris? Midnight Snacks. I eat NASCARs for breakfast.” Although the top speed won’t set any records, the new Atom will likely have acceleration numbers not seen anywhere but motorcycles. Now who’s wiling to loan me a blank check?
Source: PistonHeads via AutoBlog
Posted in Ariel, F1, Race Cars, Track Days
The GMC Terrain (Read: Badge Engineered Saturn Vue) will be shown for the first time on American soil in Chicago, possibly with a frame extension of up to 6 inches! The Terrain uses the same engine as the Vue, which means you get 169 horsepower from a 2.4L I-4, with a 4 speed automatic transmission and combined mileage of 22 MPG.
UPDATE: No dice. The Terrain rumored to appear was a no show. Keep you fingers crossed for New York!
Posted in Chicago Auto Show, GMC, SUVs
