Blog

Volvo C70 gets new four-cylinder turbodiesel engine

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.
July 19, 2007
Rolls-Royce’s first used car scheme

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.
July 19, 2007
Bugatti’s open-top Veyron?

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
July 19, 2007
AC Schnitzer R56 Mini Cooper

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.
July 19, 2007
Zhonghua Brilliance M3
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
July 18, 2007
Spyshots: future Hyundai coupé

Here are some spyshots of the next Hyundai coupe out on public roads. Though its design is well known despite the body covers, the details remain secret and there are many rumours circulating about them.
According to some rumours, Hyundai may go upmarket with this new generation. The unveiling of the Genesis concept car at the New York auto show was a real surprise for observers. More than a concept car, the saloon is ready to be produced and Hyundai declared that it might extract a coupe from the saloon.
Since then, the coupe has been reported to be equipped with V6 and V8 engines. It may be powered by the V6 3.8 litre already available in the Grandeur executive saloon. With the coupe it is said that Hyundai will add a turbocharger. The top of the range will probably get a V8 engine still under development. The new V8, dubbed Lambda, produces over 300 bhp.
According to some insiders, the new Hyundai coupe will be revealed in March 2008 in South Korea.
Source: Autoblog
July 18, 2007
Record figures for Volkswagen group

The German group has announced records sales figures for the 2007 semester. It built 3.09 million cars, an increase of 7.8 percent over the same period last year.
1.62 million vehicles were sold in Western Europe while 238,000 cars found a buyer in Central and Eastern Europe. The figure for Central and Eastern Europe is 22.8 percent more than last year. Germany is still its biggest market with 515,000 delivered vehicles but its supremacy will soon be contested by China, since VW group sold 431,000 cars there in the first 6 months.
The American continent took delivery of 662,000 cars. South America rose by 27.7 percent to reach 339,000 cars. The deliveries in Brazil alone grew by 28.6 percent to 260,000 vehicles. This is considerably more than in the U.S. where low growth was registered with 163,000 delivered vehicles.
Concerning the brands of the group, Volkswagen is obviously the biggest, with 1.8 million delivered cars. This is an increase of 7.4% over the same period last year. The biggest growth has been made by Lamborghini, which delivered 1,200 cars, a 29.7 percent jump. Bentley ranks second with a strong 18.8 percent increase and 5,600 vehicles. Skoda has the most impressive growth with a gain of 13.2 percent and 311,000 delivered cars. Audi delivered 509,000 cars. Only Seat saw its sales decrease, by 1.8 percent to 222,000 vehicles.
July 18, 2007
Lancia Lybra to become Chinese?

An unknown and very small Chinese carmaker, Zhong Tai, surprised everybody last week by declaring that it will produce the Lancia Lybra. The company has acquired the manufacturing tools and the intellectual property rights for the Lancia from Fiat. The Chinese Lybra will enable Zhong Tai to produce 50,000 car this year compared to 11,000 last year. Up until now the Chinese carmaker has been producing a Daihatsu Terios clone.
The Lancia Lybra was a saloon sold by Lancia between 1999 and 2006. Despite some good qualities and a magical five-cylinder engine, the car never met sales expectations and in a sense symbolises the Lancia’s collapse.
What does this mean for Fiat? The Italian carmaker is struggling with its joint venture Nanjing Fiat. Despite the announcement of a £196 million/€290 million/$400 million investment in June, Fiat is also involved in negotiations with other Chinese carmakers. According to rumours, Fiat has signed a deal with Chery to produce engines. Although the latter already produces Alfa Romeo cars, it has no further capacity to take on further Fiat production. By selling the unsuccessful Lybra to Zhong Tai, Fiat can make some money from the car and potentially develop a partnership with a smaller partner, who will perhaps be easier to deal with than Nanjing.
July 18, 2007
Official picture of the Skoda Fabia Combi

This is the first official picture of the new Skoda Combi, due to be launched officially at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September. The former Skoda Combi, which could not really be described as sexy, was mainly appreciated for its huge boot capacity. Going by the picture, the design of the new model seems to be rather dull.
The Combi will probably offer the same range as the saloon. There will be a choice of a 60 bhp 1.2 litre, 70 bhp 1.2 litre, a 85 bhp 1.4 litre and a 105 bhp 1.6 litre for the gasoline engines. For the diesel, the car will offer the 80 bhp 1.4 litre TDI engine.
The car is set to compete with the new 207 SW estate but may also compete with the Skoda Roomster. Less expensive than the latter, it will offer a similar boot capacity. The Czech carmaker must think that the sex appeal of the Roomster will make the difference. We will just have to wait and see whether they are right or not.
July 18, 2007
E85 Viper breaks standing mile record

An E85 Viper has broken the standing mile record for street cars, achieving a speed of 220.07mph and beating the previous world record by 2.85mph.
To achieve such a record, the Viper inevitably had to undergo a certain degree of modification. The car was tuned by a company called SVS, a Chicago-based tuner which specialised in fitting Viper engines with turbochargers during the nineties.
The current generation has a V10 8.3 litre engine which produces 503 bhp/510 hp and 525 lb-ft/711 Nm of torque. In the record-breaking Viper, the turbocharged V10 produces 1085 bhp/1100 hp.
Although the record is likely to appear irrelevant to some observers, it may help to make E85 fuel to more appealing to the masses. Less polluting than the petrol fuels, it has nevertheless met with little success. This time, carmakers are not the guilty party as several of them already offer E85 powered cars. The problem stems from the reluctance of governments to promote E85 fuel. The E85 Viper’s record may help to change this, at least in the U.S.
Of course, it is better not to ask exactly how much E85 this Viper used to break the record.
July 18, 2007