Scooped here in South Korea completely undisguised, the 2011 Genesis sedan appears to get a reworked front bumper with newly styled air ducts and trim, more prominent side skirts, a chunkier chrome strip above the license plate and a new rear bumper with reshaped exhaust tips.
The upscale five-door model will compete with the new Mercedes-Benz CLS, and if the rumors turn out to be true, with the BMW 6-Series GT (or whatever else the Bavarian firm's decided to call the production Gran Coupe) also, when it goes on sale next year.
Now, Hyundai is teasing us with a conceptual rendering of the Elantra's interior that, like the exterior, promises a dramatic revamp relative to the current model Judging from the sketch, the 2011 Elantra's cabin design will continue the same "sculpted" theme seen on the new Sonata's interior.
Caught here in both four-door sedan and estate body styles while trailer testing, the new Passat is expected to receive a new front- and rear-end design that will bring it more in line with the automaker's latest products such as the Scirocco and more recently, the 2011 Jetta.
The production version of the LRX will go on sale in 2011 and will be offered in both 2WD and 4WD configurations - a first for the company. According to Land Rover, the front-wheel drive model will emit less than 130g/km of CO2 making it the 'greenest' and most fuel efficient Range Rover ever.
The F430's 4.3-liter V8 powerhouse receives a recalibrated engine control unit and a high-performance exhaust system, plus new air filters. Output climbs from 490 horsepower to 525HP. According to the company, the massaging has nudged top speed to 325km/h or 202mph. For those that want more power, Status Design offers an optional supercharging kit from Novitec that boosts output to 700HP.
Cummins, an independent maker of diesel engines, fitted its biggest powerplant on one of the smallest cars around. The QSK78 diesel engine, which is used to power mining industry dump trucks capable of carrying 360 tonnes, is a 78-liter, 18-cylinder monster with 12 turbochargers producing 3,500HP (take that Veyron) at 1,900 rpm and 10,157 lb-ft / 13,771Nm of peak torque at 1,500 rpm.
Weighing in at over 11 tonnes (24,912 lbs), the V18 unit measures an astonishing 3,327mm (131-in.) in length, 1,633mm (65.5-in.) in width and 2,429mm (95.6-in) in height.
According to the poster, even though there were plenty of spectators at the scene, and despite the fact that the driver of the BMW was inside the car at the time of the crash, no one was seriously injured. End of story? Not quite, as there is more to this story than what meets the eye.
First of all, the rally is pitched by the organizers as a reality show with amateur racers driving "on closed public roads in the heartland of America", which will air on television in Fall 2010.
A search on "The Robin Hood Rally [website]" returned some very interesting findings, including another serious crash during the first race of the series in May, and more intriguingly, a report from NBC stating that promotional material from "Robin Hood Rally" falsely claimed that the series would air on NBC...
However, buyers should expect an evolution of the current design sprinkled with styling cues from all the latest BMWs, including a protruding kidney grill similar to that of the new 5-Series and 7-Series saloons.
Our man with the long lens managed to snag a few shots of the prototype's interior giving us a glimpse of the new dashboard design with the 1-Series-esque air-vents.
For those wondering, the Z 423 was a Japan-only version of the Fairlady Z [sold as the 240Z in the States] equipped with the same 2.0-liter inline-six S20 engine producing 160-horsepower and 177Nm as the Skyline GT-R (PGC10). It was built in limited number of units for homologation purposes. The name '432' refers to the 4 valves [per cylinder], 3 carburetors and 2 camshafts.
Along with the GT-R's straight-six that was coupled to a five-speed manual gearbox, the Z 432 featured many other upgrades including Magnesium wheels and a unique exhaust system with dual vertical tail pipes. More photos after the break.
It will be offered with the company's new 2.0-liter Ecoboost turbocharged four-pot and a 3.5-liter V6 engine in both naturally aspirated and twin-turbocharged versions.
Another -though less likely- guess is that it's a replacement for the North American Chevrolet Colorado. Of course, we could be wrong in both cases. Either way, follow the break to check out the rest of the drawings and tell us what you think in the comments section.
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On sale from July 1 in a limited number of 500 units, the new MX-5 Miyako is available in two flavors, the 126HP 1.8i Miyako soft-top priced at £18,385 OTR and the more powerful 160HP 2.0i Miyako roadster coupe with a folding hardtop priced at £20,885 OTR.
The tuning shop brings output from the standard 270-horsepower and 350Nm of peak torque to 330HP and 450Nm. The power boost comes from a recalibrated ECU as well as a custom sport exhaust system for the car's 2.0-liter TSI engine.
Two cars, two different approaches on the same topic. But which one is better? To answer this question, British magazine Auto Express took both sports cars and tested them to see which one comes on top in typical everyday use.
If you read between the lines - or in this case, the tester's words, the RCZ is a better car picking up the title in fuel economy, performance, interior styling and quality, as well as exterior looks. But -there's always a but, isn't there?- the entry-level RCZ Diesel costs £5,251 [about US$7,900 or €6,500] more than the basic CR-Z, which ultimately makes the comparison unjust.
Video and some quick facts we gathered on both cars after the jump.
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Measuring 2.4 meters or 94.5-inches in length, 1.3 meters or 51.2-inches in width and 1.5 meters or 59-inches in height, the T.25 is smaller than Smart's minuscule Fortwo, yet Murray has managed to fit in three seats in a McLaren F1-style 1+2 layout with the driver sitting in the center of the car. The two passenger seats can be folded down allowing a luggage capacity of 720 liters.
Instead of using traditional doors, Murray opted to utilize the entire front section of the T.25 that pivots forward to allow entry into the car.
It's very likely as in a recent webchat on GM's Reinvention site, Mark Reuss, the man in charge of the automaker's core North American operations, strongly suggested that a coupe variant of the Cruze could be on the horizon.
And while most of us would assume that a coupe model would basically translate to a reshaped Cruze with two-doors less and perhaps a sportier roofline and other unique styling cues, independent designer David Cardoso has a different idea in mind.
Citing two people familiar with the matter, the report claims that Lutz, who left GM this past April at age 78, has been in talks with the British sportscar-maker but has not yet received an official offer.
All variants of the MINI sport a new from bumper design engineered to improve pedestrian protection courtesy of larger deformation zones, new light elements in the headlamps, revised side indicators that sit in the redesigned side gill housings, restyled rear bumper and standard LED tail lights on all models. The five new paint colors and fresh alloy wheel designs complete the exterior upgrades.
Here's a short clip from Dacia's Romanian factory (unless we're mistaken and it's from one of Renault's other plants that also produce Dacia models), showing a worker on the production line trying to fix a problem with the passenger-side doors on what looks to be a Sandero hatchback.
The poor guy tries everything; from repeatedly tapping the locks with a hammer and slamming the doors in numerous ways to even trying to pull the door down, but nothing seems to be working as the doors simply refuse to close properly. Watch the video after the break.
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Unwrapped at this year's Geneva Motor Show in March, the soft-top version of the E85-compatible Continental Supersports coupé is said to be fastest convertible ever to roll out of Crewe's factory going from zero to 60mph in 3.9 seconds and topping out at 202mph (325km/h).
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The automaker is already using a mix of alphanumeric and product names in South Korea and some other markets. For example, the recently revealed 2011 Optima and Cadenza sedans are known as the K5 and K7 respectively in the company's home market, while the Forte is said to become the K3.
The most prevalent changes have been made cosmetically to the front end with a new front bumper featuring a re-shaped lower intake, a bright finish radiator grille and reworked headlight bezels. The re-sculptured side sills, silver brake calipers, 20-spoke diamond turned alloy wheels and clear rear light lenses round off the external revisions.
Although hidden under bodywork from the current car, the blistered and wider wheel-arches are a clear indication that the test mule is running the next generation Golf's underpinnings.
More specifically, the Mk7 will be built on the VW Group's more space-efficient and, according to sources, substantially lighter, MQB platform that comes with a longer wheelbase and shorter overhangs. First seen on the new Sharan minivan, the flexible MQB platform will be used on a raft of VW Group models including the next Audi A3, which is expected to be revealed either in late 2011 or early 2012.
All proceeds from the auction will benefit The Elton John AIDS Foundation, which is said to be one of the 10 largest AIDS grant making organizations in the world, managing over £14 million in programmes across 15 countries.
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"The Ford Thunderbird is one of the most iconic products in the history of the automobile," said Jim Farley, Ford's group vice president of Global Marketing. "Each generation of the Thunderbird had a unique personality that ushered in a new generation of breakthroughs in design or technology."
The Japanese automaker said that during the Lexus HS 250h's development phase it had tested the hybrid car using the same protocol and found the vehicles to comply fully with the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 301.
"Even though our own testing of the Lexus HS 250h shows full compliance with federal fuel system integrity standards, we are working intensely to duplicate the noncompliance issue that the NHTSA identified and to determine the reason behind the different test results," said Steve St. Angelo, Toyota chief quality officer for North America. Full press statement after the jump.
