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20,000 pre-ordered Smart ForTwo
Could the U.S. market save Smart? According to Detroit News, the answer to this question could be a yes. Despite a price of around £5,900/€8,700/$12,000 for the entry model, more than 20,000 reservations have been made in total across the U.S. for the upcoming city car.
The future buyers have each put down a deposit of $99 on the car, which is set to create the city car segment in the U.S. If it proves to be successful, the Smart will have revolutionised the American market. It could potentially open up the market for Japanese car makers to start shipping over their K-cars. Imagine a Los Angeles filled with hundreds of thousands of Suzuki Wagon R!
To avoid any embarrassment for Smart’s parent company Mercedes, the compact cars will not be sold through traditional Mercedes car dealers. Instead, the Smart ForTwo will be sold mainly through a network of dealers under Roger Penske’s United Auto Group.
July 13, 2007
Calibra to be reborn?
When Opel unveiled the GTC concept coupe at the last Geneva motor show, everybody thought that it was a preview of a future coupé. Opel denied considering to build one derived from the next Vectra/Insignia Saloon due to belaunched next year. But the GTC was so acclaimed that Opel has altered its position. The German carmaker is now looking at a possible production version.
The car would offer a wide choice of petrol and diesel engines, both in four and six cylinder units. Some have quickly dubbed it the reborn Calibra. The Calibra was famous for its aerodynamic shape resulting in an incredibly low CX value of 0.26. Even the smallest engine allowed the coupé to reach 130mph. Aswith all Opels of that time, the car suffered from a erratic front drivetrain that could not withstand a speed of more than 115 bhp. The Calibra formed the basis for Opel’s DTM efforts in the nineties.
July 13, 2007
Range Rover gets its own studio director
Land Rover would like to build a brand under the Range Rover badge in the future. There have even been rumours that the Freelander LR2 could drop its Land Rover badge in favour of the Range Rover badge. Until recently it was pure speculation, but the nomination of Phil Simmons as studio director of the iconic Range Rover model is being seen as possible confirmation of the rumours. This is the first time the Land Rover has employed a studio director specifically dedicated to the Range Rover model.
Phil Simmons is not a stranger at Land Rover, where he spent 10 years of his career. He participated in designing the exterior of the Range Rover which is currently on sale. He subsequently moved to Ford Motor Company in the US, where he was responsible for Ford’s family of mid-size vehicles such as the Ford Fusion, Mercury Milan and Lincoln MKZ. He was appointed Chief Designer for Ford of Europe in September 1999.
The current Land Rover Design’s studio director, Dave Saddington, keeps his position and will focus on the Land Rover products Defender and Discovery. Both men will report to Land Rover’s Design Director, Gerry McGovern.

July 13, 2007
Mercedes launches its own WebTV channel
At at time when more or less anybody can have his own TV Channel or at least put a video on YouTube, carmakers are starting to launch their own TV channels. Following in Audi’s footsteps, Mercedes-Benz is today launching today the website Mercedes-Benz.tv.

The program is initially expected to be 20 minutes long and as well as providing the obvious content about the Mercedes brand it will also include a sports program thanks to sponsorship. The web TV will be available in English and German only.
On the first day, the 20 minute show will feature the new McLaren stars Lewis Hamilton, a variety of historical Mercedes models and live broadcasting from the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week show in Berlin.
July 13, 2007
100,000th 911 997 built
Last week Porsche built the one hundred thousandth 911 997 model. Launched in April 2004, the 997 is the first Porsche 911 to be produced so quickly since the first generation sold in 1963.
The hundred thousandth 911 is a red Carrera S with manual gearbox. It will to be delivered to a customer in the Frankfurt/Main area of Germany within the next few days.
By the end of the 2006/2007 fiscal year, Porsche will have sold around 36,000 911 units in the world, another record for the Porsche legend.
July 13, 2007
ABT AS5
The German tuner ABT has revealed its interpretation of the Audi A5. The car distinguishes itself from the crowd with a two-tone paint scheme. This paint scheme takes inspiration from the 70s sports cars. In addition to the traditional black bonnet, ABT created an original paint theme: cream for all body panels except for the bonnet and boot,which are white. Not everybody will like it, but it emphasises its muscular look.
Under the hood, the 3 litre TDI power jumps from 237 bhp/240 hp to 268 bhp/272 hp. For those who want more power, ABT also offer a 296 bhp/300 hp option.

July 12, 2007
Maybach may build a convertible
Some considerable time ago Maybach developed a open top Maybach 57/62 for a rich Swiss customer. The customer ended up not paying the bill and the car was left at Maybach. The story could have ended there, but it is rumoured that Dieter Zetsche would like to produce a batch of the cars, probably between 25 and 50 units in total. It is likely to be built based on customer order only.

After the Mercedes GL-based SUV, this convertible seems like yet another attempt by Maybach to make itself look ridiculous. Once again, comparisons will be drawn between the German carmaker’s offering and the Rolls Royce. And once again there is no doubt that the British flying lady will triumph.
It is now urgent that Mercedes pays careful attention to Maybach. If they do not, the latter is in danger of becoming the new Saab or Lancia.
July 12, 2007
Mitsubushi reveals more technical details about the next Evo

In anticipation of the official launch at the next Frankfurt motor show, Mitsubishi is continuing to release more details about the next Evo at regular intervals. Compared to the Subaru Impreza, which was not well received, the Evo is rather an appealing compact saloon. We could even go so far as to call it Mitsubishi’s 156 model. Yesterday the carmaker revealed that the new Evo will have a twin-clutch gearbox and an updated four-wheel drive system.
Dubbed the Twin Clutch SST (short for Sport Shift Transmission), the new gearbox will offer the same characteristics as the VW’s gearbox. One clutch will deal with the first, the third and the fifth gears while a second clutch will deal with the second, fourth and sixth gears. The gearbox will offer three modes: city, sport and super-sport.
The current four-wheel drive system has been updated and has a new name, S-AWC (for Super All-Wheel Control). The three differentials are still present but an active stability control, ASC*1has been added to the Active Centre Differential, ACD*2. The ABS system has also been improved, making it sportier. The S-AWC also adds a yaw rate back control.
Coupled with the sporty 2 litre 300 bhp engine, the new twin-clutch gearbox and the updated four-wheel drive system promise to provide a lot of fun.
July 12, 2007
V6 diesel engine for Honda cars

In an interview with Automotive News, Honda CEO Takeo Fukui said that a V6 diesel engine was likely to be built in a near future. The V6 engine will be available in Europe on the Honda Accord’s top version. The Honda Legend may also be equipped with the engine in order to improve its sales in Europe, which have so far been lower than predicted. Honda has also not ruled out the possibility of sell SUVs with the V6 diesel engine.
The engine will also be sold in the U.S. market on the bigger models such as the Honda CR-V, Pilot, Ridgeline, the Acura but also the Element. Honda could import the latter with the V6 engine in Europe. For the smaller models, Honda wants to rely on hybrid technologies.
July 12, 2007
Paulin VR Concept

A previously unknown designer named Daniel Paulin has revealed his first car, at least in virtual terms: the VR Concept. The car is the Paulin’s interpretation of the 2012 performance car. It is stylish, muscular and we love it.
Critics will say that it is not revolutionary. It looks like the Saab Aero X or the 1954 Corvette concept cars, but so what? As a consultant for Hyundai, Kia or Tata, we can hope to see their future models taking inspiration from the VR Concept.
In the past, Daniel Paulin worked for Ford, where he was involved in the design of the Focus Concept, the C-MAx and the funky Fab1 for the Thunderbirds movie.
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July 12, 2007