Posted by febry on 11:33 AM
While surely not a mainstream choice, there's no shortage of private sports cars dressed in the historic, characteristic orange and blue colors of Gulf Oil. Needless to say, the two-tone paintjob looks awesome on some cars and not so much on
others. In the video after the jump, you'll see a very rare Mercedes-Benz CLK AMG DTM sporting the iconic hues. Check it out and tell us what you think in the comments.
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Posted by febry on 10:59 AM
With the new ML-Class unwrapped and ready for launch, Mercedes-Benz engineers have turned their development attention on the SUV's more spacious sibling with three-rows of seats, the GL-Class.
The development test car pictured is still hiding under a lot of camouflage but it's not particularly hard to imagine what the second-generation of the GL-Class will look like given that it is based on the 2012 ML.
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Posted by febry on 10:06 AM
Once upon a time, in the land of the free and the home of the brave, most consumers liked their cars with six- or eight-cylinder engines. Blame the rising costs of fuels or advances in technology, but now, American buyers are turning to smaller 4-cylinder units in increasing numbers. According to a report from IHS Automotive, in the first half of the year, more than 43% of the light vehicles sold in the US were equipped with four-cylinder engines, compared to just 30% five years ago.
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Posted by febry on 9:43 AM
A very bizarre incident in Stockton, California, involving a red Toyota Passeo coupe and a man…hanging on the passenger side of the vehicle was caught on film by chance on Friday while the news crew from ABC was covering another story. The man is seen on the video clinging to the open window and trying to jump in the vehicle while the car was on the move at an estimated speed of around 35 miles per hour.
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Posted by febry on 8:50 AM
There's more than meets the eye when it comes to the development of a new vehicle and its individual components, and like all automakers, GM pays particular attention to the design of the seats – let's not forget, that's where the driver and passengers will spend their time in the car. Understandably, the design process becomes more complicated in the event that the car is a global model like the 2013 Chevrolet Malibu, which will be offered in nearly 100 countries on six continents, including the U.S. where it will arrive in showrooms next year.
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Posted by febry on 8:02 AM
When it comes to Saab, it seems that for every dollop of good news that trickles out from Sweden there are multiple bad news. On Tuesday, the cash-strapped Swedish automaker said that its white-collar workers will not receive their next payment (at least not on time) because the company has not yet been paid by its investors.
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Posted by febry on 7:39 AM
After yesterday's announcement on the changes for the 2012 SRX, Cadillac has now put a price on its updated crossover model, a key highlight of which is the new 308-horsepower 3.6-liter V6 engine that replaces the current version's 265HP six-cylinder unit. The 2012 SRX goes on sale in August carrying a standard price of $36,060 including $875 destination charge for the front-wheel drive model. That's a $570 increase over the entry-level 2011MY SRX which starts from $35,490.
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Posted by febry on 7:23 AM
Yesterday, we told you about Red Bull Racing's intentions to enter the car-making business. With the team being in Germany for the local Grand Prix, Infiniti, which looks like the most probable partner if Red Bull Racing's plan receives the green light, grabbed the opportunity for a little promotion activity at the Nürburgring. Read more »
Posted by febry on 6:41 AM
The 24-hour race of Spa-Francorchamps that will take place the following weekend will be the first time a McLaren racecar premieres at a 24-hour endurance event since 1995, when the F1 GTR made its maiden appearance in the 24 hours of Le Mans. Read more »
Posted by febry on 6:29 AM
The 275-horsepower Mazda MX-5 GT racecar, which competes in the 2011 Britcar Production GTN Championship, has inspired the Japanese firm's UK division to develop a pair of limited edition models based on the MX-5 and the Mazda2 for the local market. The word "inspired" should be taken very loosely as the Sport Black Editions of the two Mazda models do not feature any performance upgrades and are all about bespoke color choices and additional standard features.
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Posted by febry on 5:55 AM
Four years after the presentation of the CTR3, and it's time for Porsche tuning specialist RUF to tweak its mid-engine supercar. The newest CTR3 continues to use the Porsche 911-derived 3.8-liter twin-turbocharged six-cylinder boxer engine, but thanks to a series of modifications, output has been boosted from 691bhp and 890Nm (657 lb-ft) to 750bhp and 960 Nm (708 lb-ft) of peak torque.
The more powerful CTR3 accelerates from standstill to 62 mph (100 km/h) in 3.2 seconds and to 125 mph (200 km) in 9.6 seconds, and can reach a top speed of 236 mph (380 km/h).
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Posted by febry on 5:24 PM
Take a good look at the opening picture above: what you see are the backs of two men in racing costumes, what they see is the road from several feet above the ground in a 90-degree angle…
But let's rewind. What you're about to watch is two stuntmen trying an ambitious jump in what appears to be a Dacia of the 1300 series. According to the person that took the video, the time is 1995 and the place is the Romanian city of Alba Iulia.
For whatever reasons, the jump didn't go as planned and as a result, the Dacia flew into the air only to drop down like a brick well before reaching the ramp on the other side. Amazingly, at the end of the clip we can see the driver and the front passenger walking out of the car alive!
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Posted by febry on 4:17 PM
As you probably expected after the introduction of the 2012 Pilot, Honda also announced the first details on its updated for the new model year Ridgeline pickup truck. The big news is the addition of a new member to the Ridgeline family called Sport that supposedly targets customers looking for more personalized and slightly sinister looks.
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Posted by febry on 3:28 PM
The latest Cadillac SRX has been on the market for just two model years, but for 2012, General Motors is making some important tweaks to improve the crossover model's performance.
While GM had made the announcement on the 2012 SRX back in April, the company came out today with additional information and revised performance figures, just before the SUV goes on sale.
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Posted by febry on 2:42 PM
Two years ago, Chrysler was saved from oblivion when the federal government provided a $15 billion bailout and orchestrated a rescue plan that gave the Fiat Group the management control of the company.
Last week, the Italian automaker raised its share in Chrysler beyond 50% for the first time, to 53.5%.So Fiat saved Chrysler in 2009, right? Well, yes, but 2011 is another story altogether.
You see, Chrysler’s US sales increased by 21% in the first six months of the year, whereas Fiat’s European deliveries dropped 12.7% in the same period. But that's only half the story. With the exception of the Maserati and Ferrari brands, the Chrysler Group will contribute to the alliance €155 million for June alone, while Fiat €175 million for the past three months.
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Posted by febry on 2:12 PM
While American buyers will have to wait until October to see the iQ in Scion's showrooms, over in Europe, the Japanese carmaker's 3+1 seat mini has been on sale since the beginning of 2009. But despite being in the market for more than two years, the iQ hasn't really caught the attention of the aftermarket tuners. One of the few companies to warm up to the iQ is Bulgarian customizer Vilner, which has introduced a more luxurious take on the Toyota's interior.
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Posted by febry on 1:27 PM
Fisker’s environment-friendly hybrid sports sedan, the Karma, can hardly be called a slouch but if someone were to tell you that it could reach “Bugatti Veyron levels of performance” you'd probably look at them a little askance. But that's exactly what Henrik Fisker recently supported during an interview with British weekly magazine Autocar. More specifically, the founder of the company said that the development of a reliable multi-speed gearbox could offer electric-powered vehicles a huge boost in performance.
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Posted by febry on 12:54 PM
Hybrids and electric vehicles are more environment-friendly than conventionally powered models. However, one question many eco-conscious consumers bring up is what happens to the batteries at the end of their life cycle in the vehicles. GM and Nissan estimate that batteries in their Volt and LEAF models respectively will have approximately 70% of their “life” remaining after a decade on the road. So, far from being useless, they can be utilized as back-up power sources for home use.
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Posted by febry on 12:20 PM
While New Yorkers get ready to embrace a new generation of boxy taxis like the Ford Transit Connect and the Nissan NV200, city dwellers in Bangkok, the capital city of Thailand, were introduced to a different and far more appealing form of the yellow cab: a Porsche Boxster sports car. Read more »
Posted by febry on 11:35 AM
USA’s biggest car manufacturer, General Motors, is scheduling a series of new vehicle launches for its four brands in the next 18 months. And the dominant theme here, both in passenger cars and trucks, will be improved economy figures as GM prepares its vehicle lineup to meet the more stringent fuel-efficiency standards. For example, the Detroit automaker plans to introduce 8-speed auto transmissions and downsized turbocharged engines in its new pickups, and also intends to fit more models with the eAssist light-hybrid technology.
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