Blog

Audi TT-S and R8 concept to be unveiled at Detroit
Audi will unveil a R8 concept car and the TT-S at the next Detroit Motor Show in January. Secrecy surrounds the R8 concept car, although it is rumoured that it will be either the long-awaited convertible or the V10 powered version.
In a previous post, it has been reported that Audi is currently working on a R8 convertible. The sports car would be powered by the 4.2-litre V8 engine used in the coupé. The V10 engine has also been reported previously and seen around the Nürburgring.
Th TT-S will be a sportier version of the current TT, a bit like S3 or S4. From the S3, it will inherit its turbocharged four-cylinder engine, which produces 261bhp. It will be associated with the quattro four-wheel drive transmission.
November 30, 2007
Bertone fills for bankruptcy protection

Italian coachbuilders are in the doldrums. After Pininfarini, which is looking for more manufacturing contracts, Bertone announced that it was asking for a ‘concardo preventivo’ equivalent to a bankruptcy protection and the Italian government to pay its 1,300 employees.
Like Pininfarina, Bertone suffers from a unpredictable and highly volatile manufacturing business and to date, Bertone has no contract despite having the capacity to build up to 70,000 cars a year. It’s not that Bertone rested on laurels, but some planned contracts collapsed: TVR, Fiat refusing to build the Suagnà…
Nevertheless, Bertone have some hopes with Massimo Di Risio, owner of a large dealer network in Italy. Indeed, the Italian CEO plans to sell its own small SUV on the Italian market. Designed in Italy, the SUV will have its platform and body built in China by Gonow. The car will be imported in Italy where it will receive a Fiat Multijet engine. Bertone is in the running for the job of producing 12,000 units per year while it needs to build 30,000 cars to break even. Let’s hope the future will be better for the coachbuilder.
November 30, 2007
Mitsubishi RA-Concept revealed

Mitsubishi has released the first sketches of the concept-car it will reveal at next year’s Detroit Motor Show. It might be a styling exercise that previews the next-generation Eclipse coupé sold on the US market. Dubbed RA-Concept, the coupé is based on an aluminium space frame and features a diesel engine, the first concept-car with such an engine to be revealed at an American motor show.

The coupé features an aggressive overall shape with sharp lines, air intakes and an arched roof line. The rear end reminds us the Porshce Bosxter while the front features the new corporate fascia. The sketches are appealing but Mitsubishi has a habit to discard the most innovative and interesting ideas when moving from the drawing board to reality.
Sitting on an aluminium space frame, the RA-Concept features an all-wheel drive transmission coupled with an improved version of the Dual clutch gearbox called Twin Clutch SST. The car will be powered by a 2.2-litre four-cylinder turbocharged diesel which has an power output of 201bhp and a torque of 310 lb ft thanks to the MIVEC, a continuously variable valve timing control, and a turbocharger with variable geometry. The car is equipped with a new catalytic converter that combines a diesel oxidation catalyst, a NOx trap catalyst and a diesel particulate filter in order to comply with the US regulations.
November 30, 2007
Audi RS label to go mainstream

In a recent interview with Auto Motor und Sport, Werner Frowein, the director of Quattro GmbH revealed that the RS label is intended to go mainstream in the future. In an attempt to increase its sales, the Audi’s sports subsidiary will shorten its development cycle in order to release RS models sooner. At this moment, RS models are being sold in the last two years of the vehicle’s lifecycle. Audi has a target of releasing a RS model within the first two years of the vehicle’s life.
This change of strategy will boost sales despite a strong growth recorded in the previous years. The sales jumped from 2,500 vehicles in 2000 to 9,300 units this year. By model, Audi sold 5,300 RS4s and 4,000 R8s. Next year the company will sell 5,500 R8s, 5,000 RS6s and 1,000 RS4s. It will also reveal the eagerly awaited Q7 powered by a V12 TDi, the TT-RS and the expected R8-RS, which will be equipped with the same engine found in the RS6, but without turbochargers.
November 30, 2007
Nissan Silvia comes back in 2010

This is not the first time we heard about a future Silvia, but this time the rumour might be true. According to various sources, the car has already been given the green light by Carlos Ghosn and the carmaker’s COO Toshiyuki Shiga. The coupé will be introduced within three years. A new model beneath the Z and the GT-R would reinforce Nissan’s line-up. It would also help Nissan to seduce young buyers on the Japanese market where sales have been sluggish for many years.
Mystery surrounds the future model, although some observers try to guess the car’s spec. According to the Japanese magazine, Best Car, the future Silvia would share its underpinning with the future Z and would feature a 2.0-litre 4 cylinders engine provided by Renault Sport. The coupé would provide seating for four persons. On the Japanese market, the car would be sold at around £10,000. There are no information regarding a potential sale in Europe. If Nissan sold it on our market, the car would likely be twice more expensive than the Japanese model.
In Europe, Nissan would benefit from the image generated by the previous generations, and might be a serious contender for German carmakers and, of course, the future Laguna coupé.
Source: Best Car
November 30, 2007
Porsche Boxster RS 60 Spyder

Porsche will unveil the Porsche Boxster RS 60 Spyder at the Bologna Motor Show in Italy next week. This limited edition takes its inspiration from the classic Porsche racing cars of the ’60s, especially the Type 718 RS 60 Spyder.

Based on the Boxster S, the RS 60 Spyder comes with a unique front spoiler and a new exhaust with unique dual tailpipes. The modified Boxster sits on 19in alloy wheels and features the Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM) stability control. The engine gets a power boost raising its power from 276bhp to 299bhp.

On the outside, the car is available with a choice of two paint schemes. The first one combines a GT Silver metallic paint with a red interior in natural leather, dubbed Carrera Red and red roof top. The second paint scheme replaces the Carrera Red interior by a dark grey interior and the roof becomes black. The interior gets a visual revamp with the GT Silver paint featured on the instrument cluster, the seat backrests, the central console and the roll hoops. There is also a bespoke gear lever.

The car goes on sale in next spring with a price tag without VAT of €53,500/£38,400 and will be built at only 1,960 units.
November 28, 2007
VW Group to develop four new platforms

In an interview given to Automotive News Europe, VW brand board member for development, Dr. Ulrich Hackenberg revealed that Volkswagen group will release four new platforms in the coming years in order to achieve the 2018 target. With those new platforms, the German carmaker expects to reduce its cost by 40% thanks to components shared between the platforms and development times by one year.
The most important platform will be the MQB which will underpin up to 6 million vehicles every year. The platform will be flexible enough to equip a large range of vehicles from small cars to upper-premium models. According to some insiders, the MQB platform will be used as in many as 20 different models.
The second platform, dubbed MHB, will be featured by the new VW’s rear-engine models, which will be sold over the world as a low cost model. Once again, one does expect to see the platform underpinning a few million vehicles. At the opposite of the range, the luxury models will have their own platform already used by the Audi A4 and A5. Dubbed MLB, it features a longitudinally mounted engine for front-drive and all-wheel-drive transmissions. The next A6 and A8 models will use the MLB platform. The future Phaeton and Bentley models will likely use the same underpinnings.
Finally, a fourth platform will be devoted to sports cars and will be used by the future Lamborghini models and the Audi R8.
With this new platform range, Volkswagen plans to increase sales from 5.7 million vehicles in 2006 to 10 million cars in 2018.
November 27, 2007
First XF rolls off production line

The picture you see here might become the symbol of a new era for Jaguar. By rolling off the first XF model yesterday at the Castle Bromwich factory, Jaguar is sending its heritage to the history books and is moving forward a troubled future. The XF is a 4.2 litre V8 SV8 model in a Vapour Grey paint. It will be given to the Jaguar Daimler Heritage Trust collection.
The XF will be on sale in next March and first models will be delivered on the 65 markets on which the car will be exported. Thanks to a new labour agreement, Jaguar might use the Land Rover workforce to face a possible production increase due to high sales.
November 27, 2007
Hyundai vehicles might get the Haldex AWD system

The Swedish company Haldex has announced it had received an order from Hyundai to build a prototype equipped with the latest company’s technology known as XWD. Already offered by Saab on the re-designed 9-3, Hyundai might become the second carmaker to adopt the new system and the first Asian carmaker to get a Haldex system.
Originally, the Haldex system is an electronically controlled multi-plate clutch. It is not a permanent solution but a fully automated system that directs torque to the rear axle when slip occurs. The latest generation, dubbed XWD, includes an electronic limited slip differential and a pre-emptive engagement of rear wheels under hard acceleration. Up to 85% of torque can be sent to an individual wheel and during low load conditions, 96% of drive will go through the front wheels to improve fuel economy.
Haldex already supplies the Volkswagen group and Ford’s Land Rover and Volvo brands with its all-wheel drive systems.
Source: automotiveworld
November 27, 2007
Subaru Forrester leaked brochure and teaser

Subaru finally released a teaser on its Japanese website about the next Subaru Forester. Do not expect to see the overall shape as the website previews the rear end. In the meantime a leaked brochure emerged on some forums.

Despite the small pictures, we can see that altough being based on the new Impreza, the next generation Forester’s exterior styling will be closer to the Tribeca’s. Subaru will unveil the new Forester in 27 days.
Related Post: Unverified sketch of the future Subaru Forester
November 27, 2007