According to Auto, Motor und Sport, Volkswagen is currently working on a new logo. Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn apparently thinks it is time to refresh the company’s logo to reflect the new direction that the German carmaker is taking.
According to insiders, the new logo will be bigger, the letters will be separated from the circle and Volkswagen will use 3D technology to design it.
Launched in June 2001, the Honda Fit/Jazz has been built at more than 2 million units. It is a big success compared to its predecessor, the Logo.
Initially sold in Japan, it took first place on the sales chart, with approximately 962,000 Fits finding buyers there. The car was then sold in Europe in the summer of 2002. The Japanese carmaker was obliged to change the name of the car from Fit to Jazz for the benefit of European market, due to the Swedish and Norwegian meaning for the original name. In these countries, ‘Fit’ is a slang word referring to the female genitalia. It seems that Europeans are not prone to holding grudges, however, and a total of 467,000 were sold on the European market.
The Fit/Jazz has also convinced 77,000 American buyers of its merits since its introduction onto American soil in April 2006. In China the figure is 173,000 since 2003. Honda sold 230,000 cars in the rest of Asia and 151,000 units in South America.
Honda will unveil the successor of the Fit/Jazz at either the next Frankfurt Motor Show in September or the Tokyo Motor Show in October. The new model will be 2” longer and 1” larger than the current Fit/Jazz. It will feature two all-new i-VTEC engines, 1.3 litre and 1.5 litre to replace the current range. On the design side, Honda wants the next generation to be similar to the current model.
In an interview, Spyker’s chairman said that the company will delay production of the C12 Zagato in order to give priority to other models.
Unveiled at the last Geneva Motor Show in March, the C12 Zagato is set to be built at a level of only 24 units. The car is the result of a meeting between Andrea Zagato and Victor Muller, Spyker’s founder and former CEO. The latter was a fan of Zagato models and bought a Lancia Flavia Zagato at the age of eighteen. Naturally, he asked Zagato to design its own interpretation of the Spyker C12.
The C12 is powered by the 6.0 liter, 12 cylinder, 500 bph W12 engine from VW. The engine is coupled with a six-speed manual or automatic gear box with F1-style shifting. This enables the car to reach 193mph/310km/h and to run the 0-62mph in 3.6 seconds. Despite an all aluminium body, the car weighs 3265lbs/1480kg due to an incredibly luxury interior that includes Chronoswiss instruments and a Zagato-designed full leather interior with brushed aluminium instrument panel. On the outside, the sports car has a F1-inspired design, notably the nose and the air fenders. Of course, it features the legendary Double Bubble from Zagato.
All units have already been sold for £334,000/€495,000/$684,000 each.
Here is the first trailer of the new opus from the acclaimed Gran Turismo series. In the fifth generation, expect more detailed graphics of course, but also some new models like the Ferrari F430, the Nissan GT-R concept car and the Audi R8.
According to the Detroit Free Press, Chrysler will not produce the Imperial concept car that was presented at the 2006 North American International Auto Show. In January of last year, it was rumoured that the American carmaker would produce the luxury saloon, but the increasing cost of fuel and the expected introduction of more constraining fuel economy standards has led Chrysler to abandon the idea. The company’s Brampton, Ontario plant will be updated to build the next generation 300 instead.
Chrysler planned to build the Imperial on the LX platform used by the current 300 sedan. It was thought that the saloon would be given at least the 5.7 litre ‘HEMI’ V-8 that produces 340/350bhp. A diesel version was even considered. Chrysler was expected to couple the engines to a six speed automatic gearbox derived from the 300’s five speed automatic gearbox.
Until now, the Volvo C70 was available with a choice of three engines: a five-cylinder 2.4 litre petrol engine producing 168 bhp/170 hp, a five-cylinder turbocharged petrol unit producing 217 bhp/220 hp and five-cylinder turbocharged 2.4 litre diesel engine producing 177 bhp/180 hp. Today Volvo announces the c70 2.0D, which will have an entry-level engine: the four-cylinder turbodiesel that is shared between with the PSA and Ford groups.
The 2 litre engine has an output of 134 bhp/136 hp and a torque of 236 lb-ft/320 Nm. The C70 will reach 127mph/205 km/h and run the 0-62mph in 11s. It is not a true warrior but, as a convertible, the speed does not really matter.
Volvo expects sales of the Volvo C70 2.0D to reach about 2,000 units a year – which means that one out of ten C70s sold worldwide will have the four-cylinder turbodiesel.
According to the British magazine Car, Rolls-Royce has introduced its first used car scheme, called Provenance.
Like used car schemes offered by other carmakers, Rolls-Royce offers an extra 24 months warranty in addition to any remaining warranty for qualifying cars. In order to qualify, the candidate must be inspected by a Rolls-Royce dealer and will receive the label only if it is “virtually flawless“, according to Rolls-Royce. Each Provenance car will be provided with 24-hour roadside assistance, servicing and warranty up to the car’s sixth birthday.
After a difficult start, Bugatti is in great shape. It recently announced it will increase the annual production of its Veyron hypercar from the current 60 units per year to 75. If the rumours are to be believed, this revelation may lead to the production of an open-top version of the Veyron.
If it were to go ahead, the topless Targa model would be produced in an ultra-exclusive run of 80 cars. It would feature a detachable glass roof that cannot be stored in the car. Like the Lamborghini Murcielago, it would have a fabric cover while on the road.
This time, Bugatti would not try to reach the symbolic 252mph/400km/h speed: it is reported that the Targa model would have a top speed of 217mph/350km/h. It would, however, still be the fastest convertible on earth, just ahead of the new Mercedes SLR convertible.
Source: Motor Authority
Source Photo: Autoblog
The German tuner AC Schnitzer is well known for for tuning BMW cars. This time it has decided to focus on the BMW’s British brand Mini by presenting its interpretation of the Mini Cooper S.
The tuned Mini receives a new exhaust system and revamped suspension. The latter was developed and tested on the Nürburgring circuit. On the outside, the changes concern the front bumpers, which now have prominent corners. The rear end has a diffuser which will probably pull the Mini down to the tarmac. There is a choice of two wheel designs, the classic 17” AC Schnitzer and a brand-new Bicolor 18” wheel.
On the inside, the Mini gets an aluminium package that includes the handbrake handle, the gear shift knob, the foot rest and the pedal set.
Brilliance revealed the definitive M3 coupe at the Changchun auto car fair. There is nothing new on the exterior or under the bonnet. The biggest changes are inside with a revamped interior. The amateurish red/black interior has been replaced by black. It is reminiscent of BMW interiors: very serious, and very promising. The M3 might be the right car to help us forget the disastrous crash test endured by the BS6 saloon.
The Zhonghua Brilliance coupe is powered by 1.8 litre turbocharged engine, developed in collaboration with Porsche. The engine produces 170 bhp and can be coupled with a manual or an automatic gearbox. But the car’s real selling point is the price. In China, the coupe will be sold at £10,400/€15,350/$21,100.
With SAIC and its subsidiary Roewe, Brilliance is generally considered to be one of the most promising Chinese carmakers. It benefits from its joint venture with BMW, for which it produces the BMW 3 and 5 series cars for the Chinese market. The company also receives help from the German carmaker in developing its own cars.
Source: China Car Times