There has been no shortage of entrepreneurs over the last couple of decades hoping to play host to a Formula One race. But as many of them have discovered, hopping into bed with Bernie Ecclestone is a surefire way to prove Roger Penske’s motorsports maxim: “The quickest way to make a small fortune in racing is to start with large fortune.”
Tavo Hellmund and his team at Full Throttle Productions have some mighty big dreams for a new dedicated F1 race track in Austin, Texas. So far, however, they don’t seem to have land, financing or much of anything else. The owners of the Donington Park track in England already had a track and more time to get ready to host the British Grand Prix and they still failed.
According to , the $200-300 million estimate for the track seems very low compared to the $250 million spent on Texas Motor Speedway – a facility that was built 15 years ago. The odds of a brand-new track being ready for a race in Austin by 2012 seem pretty slim unless the cash starts flowing and the bulldozers start moving the dirt very soon. Now, a street course, on the other hand…
The Mondeo is due for a mid-cycle refresh for the 2011 model year and all signs point to a debut at the Paris Motor Show this September. But ahead of its big reveal, spy photographers have caught the new Mondeo out in the open, and while the basic shape hasn’t changed, there’s something far more interesting under the hood.
The major stylistic upgrades are up front, where the Mondeo’s fascia picks up a few cues from the and the , including a larger lower grille and slimmer upper section. The front foglamps have been re-shaped and a strip of LED running lamps tie the design into Ford’s B-segment hatch.
At the back, the tailgate gets a subtle re-shaping above the license plate pocket and it appears the lights have been modified under the camo tape. The most important changes will be in the engine compartment, where the Mondeo will get the new 2.0-liter Ecoboost inline-four and the Powershift dual-clutch transmission. Expect all the details to be revealed shortly ahead of the Paris show this fall.
The clearest images yet of the 2011 have turned up ahead of the compact sedan’s launch this fall. Like the latest MK VI , the Jetta is expected to be built on an updated version of the MK V platform, although the sedan is believed to be slightly longer and wider. This will allow it to be more competitive against the and next generation .
Under the hood, the 2.0-liter TDI diesel will carry over, but the unloved 2.5-liter inline-five will probably be replaced by a 1.4-liter TSI inline-four. The TSI is a direct injected and turbocharged gasoline engine already available in Europe with several versions from 120 to 180 horsepower being offered.
A hybrid version of the Jetta will join the lineup in 2012 with a full electric version rumored in 2013. The current Jetta Sportwagen, sold as the Golf Variant in Europe, will continue unchanged for at least several more years after getting the MK VI Golf nose and interior for 2010.
Kelley Blue Book Top 10 Cars for under $18k – Click above for high-res image gallery
Being in the market for a cheap new car used to mean resigning yourself to time bombs like the Citation or windups like the Geo Metro or Aspire, but the times, they are a-changin’, and the good folk at Kelley Blue Book have worked up their very own top 10 list of cool cars for under $18,000.
Not surprisingly, the 2011 nabbed a mention thanks to its 28 mpg city, 40 mpg highway EPA rating and mile-long standard feature list. Likewise, the new 2010 received a spot on the list. The Korean automaker’s new long roof manages 23 city and 30 mph highway thanks to its 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine.
The base also made the cut – another 2.0-liter bruiser, the baby brother of the Evolution nabs 22 mpg city and 31 mpg highway. also got some love on the KBB list with its . When optioned with the five-speed gearbox, the car walks away with 23 mpg city and 33 mpg highway. Rounding out the list is the ever lovable . Just like the Suzuki, if you want a few more miles per tank, you’ll need to opt for the manual transmission. Thusly equipped, the little Honda can 28 mpg city and up to 35 mpg highway.
Want to see what else made the list? or visit KBB for the whole list.
Last week, we heard rumors that had finally decided to produce the but no official announcement came from General Motors headquarters.
This morning as U.S. media gathered to drive the Regal in California, the GS officially became a reality. And while our man Michael Harley is on the launch, we also just received an email from Dayna Hart in GM communications proclaiming:
“At wave 1 of our drive program for Regal we just confirmed that the Regal GS will be added to the Buick portfolio. We are not providing any additional details at this point.”
As the quote notes, Buick isn’t sharing any other details about the GS such as timing, or what engine will be in the car. We’re expecting that Buick will stick with the 2.0-liter turbocharged and direct-injected Ecotec inline-four that was listed on the spec sheet for the shown at the Detroit Auto Show last January. However, now that has announced the with 276 horsepower, we’re expecting that Buick will try to ensure that the Regal GS will have more than the 255 hp announced back in January.
Gallery:
Live photos by Sam Abuelsamid / Copyright (C)2009 Weblogs, Inc.
The first images of the new three-door Opel Astra have turned up and the new hatch appears to be shaping up to be even more attractive than its predecessor. The prototype appears to have a more steeply raked windshield than the five-door currently available in Europe and China where it’s badged as a and sold under the Excelle nameplate.
Power will come from a range of gas and diesel engines, including the 1.4-liter turbo that debuts this fall in the , a normally aspirated 1.6-liter and 210 horsepower 1.6-liter turbocharged engine for the GSi. The top of the range VXR will likely a get a version of the 2.0-liter direct injected turbo inline-four putting out around 240 hp.
We know the sedan version of the Astra is joining the Buick lineup here in the U.S., but Buick officials declined to comment on whether this model will join the four door model.
According to Mibz.com, the Suzuki SX4 won’t be pimped to just Fiat anymore (see: ), is getting in on the act. Going after the small end of the market, VW is reportedly set to take advantage of its of and swiping the lovable little SX4 as the basis of a new model tentatively dubbed Rocktan.
Positioned as a city-sized crossover, the Rocktan theoretically slots in between the similarly tiny and , though this is all unconfirmed at this point. Power will apparently not be from Suzuki, but rather from VW, likely the 1.4-liter TSI gasoline engine and 1.6- and 2.0-liter TDI diesels. This could be mere grist for the rumormill, or we could soon see a -sized VolkZuki. For now, all we’ve got are dreams of another flavor of the friendly SX4.
Along with eight-cylinder engines and manual transmissions, six-cylinder motors appear to be on the outs, relatively speaking. In the first quarter of this year, USA Todaynotes that four-cylinder lumps made up 46.5 percent of new car sales, almost a five percent jump over the same period last year.
This movement to fewer cylinders is likely to continue, as more and more mainstream models like the , and are only being offered with four-cylinder powerplants. That’s partially because modern technologies, including direct injection and forced induction, have closed the power deficit, and partly because automakers’ need to raise their CAFE figures and play to growing consumer appetites for better fuel economy.
The trend has caused J.D. Power to raise its four-cylinder sales prediction for 2012 from 48 percent to 51 percent. If that ends up being the case, that will leave 35 percent for six-cylinder cars, and just 17 percent for V8s.
As Europe’s second largest automaker, it’s no great secret that France’s PSA has got the Group squarely in its sights. As if the on-track rivalry between Peugeot and in Le Mans racing weren’t enough, the Lion brand recently launched its offensive against the likes of the Vokswagen Scirocco and Audi TT in the form of the . Now the French are taking another shot, this time against the Volkswagen GTI with… their own GTi.
Not only is the name the same (save the discrepancy of the lower-case I), but the specs follow a similar formula as well: The VW packs a 2.0-liter turbocharged four with 200 horsepower. The Peugeot? A 1.6-liter turbocharged (and direct-injected) four with – you guessed it – 200 horsepower. Even torque is also on a (relatively) level playing field, with the Volks offering 207 lb-ft and the Pug 202. The heavier Peugeot, however, takes 7.7 seconds to get up to highway speed, compared to the seven seconds flat it takes the Volkswagen.
The engine in the 308 GTi – co-developed with – is the same that debuted on the RCZ, this time powering a five-door hatch and mated to a six-speed manual. There are other suspension, aerodynamic and trim upgrades to differentiate the 308 GTi from its bread-and-butter stablemates, more of which you can read about in the press release after the jump and view in the gallery below. The ultimate question is, after listening to its customers and doing an about-face on its plans to get out of the hot hatch game altogether, does the Peugeot deserve the GTi badge? Leave your thoughts in the comments section below.
When debuted the at this year’s Detroit Auto Show, they made it very clear that the car on stage, which looked production-ready, was purely a concept – nothing more. Even though the white show car with its beefed up appearance and 20-inch wheels looked like it was ready to roll (it was, after all, a rebadged Opel Insignia OPC), no final decision had been made about whether or not the automaker would actually produce the turbocharged version of the new pride-and-joy sedan. Lest anyone forget, this is an important car for , as it’s charged with attracting a significantly younger crowd of buyers to the brand. The GS would certainly help do the trick, and now, it sounds like all systems are go for the hotter than hot Regal.
The Detroit News reports that Tom Stephens, Vice Chairman of Global Product Development for GM, has confirmed that the Regal GS has been approved for production and that it could hit showrooms at some point next year. If the specs outlined for the Detroit show car are anything to go on, this means that a turbocharged 2.0-liter four will be under the hood, likely producing 255 horsepower and 295 pound-feet of torque. What’s most interesting, though, is that the show car routed this power to all four wheels via a six-speed manual transmission. On top of that goodness, the Regal GS uses a new system called Interactive Drive Control, which allows drivers to choose from normal and sport driving modes, as well as a top-thrill GS mode where the torque split has a stronger rear bias.
If the production car is largely unchanged from the concept we saw back in January, we’ll jump for joy. And while we’re definitely getting our hopes up, we’ll wait until GM issues the official word before we start saving our pennies.
Back in January, announced that OnStar would to be used in conjunction with the . The app allows owners to keep track of charge status, remotely lock and unlock the vehicle, along with providing diagnostic reports and a host of other features.
Last week, reports surfaced that about implementing the search giant’s Android mobile operating system into its vehicles, and while that may still come to fruition, GM’s announcement tonight is far less dramatic.
The app that GM demonstrated on Android-powered headsets earlier this year will now be available with a “navigation” tab that ingrates with OnStar to provide turn-by-turn, voice-guided directions, along with vehicle location (think: finding your Volt in a parking lot) and allowing users to perform voice searches through their Droid, Incredible or other Android smartphone.
While tapping Google’s massive location-aware search is an important inclusion, it’s less than revolutionary, particularly when is in the . Furthermore, GM says that the new functionality won’t be available on the Volt app at launch, but will be rolled out in the 2.0 version of the software. So if you’re keeping track, we’re talking about a yet-to-be-released feature for a yet-to-be-released car. Make the jump for the full details.
Say what you will about Alfa Romeo’s latest 8C-derived styling direction, but we’re going to miss the angular beauty of the current Brera and its drop-top Spider sibling. But before the achingly gorgeous two-doors sail off into the sunset – never having made it to American shores – Alfa has released an updated version.
The beneficiary of the latest from Fiat Powertrain Technologies, the Brera and Spider have now been made available with the 1750 TBi and 2.0 JTDM engines. The former is a turbocharged, direct-injection gas-burning four with 1742 cubic centimeters of displacement, 197 horsepower and 236 lb-ft of torque and propelling the Brera and Spider to 62 mph in 7.7 and 7.8 seconds, respectively, and a 146 mph top end. The latter is a 2.0-liter turbo diesel with 168 horses and 265 lb-ft of torque, capable of 8.8- and 9-second sprints to 62 for the coupe and convertible en route to a 135 mph terminal velocity.
In addition to the new engines, which you can read more about in the press release after the jump, Alfa is also making the Italia Indepenent trim level – previously a – available across the range, with matte titanium paint, 18-inch black alloys hiding red brake calipers and special interior trim. Have a closer look in the gallery below to see what we’re missing on the Atlantic’s Western shores.
2011 Audi TT – Click above for high-res image gallery
This is the 2011 . It looks the same, it steers the same and it sticks the same. But there’s one major difference: torque. has managed to coax an from its ever-evolving 2.0-liter TFSI four cylinder. The result? The standard TT isn’t just the Bauhaus design icon that propelled Audi into the luxury limelight at the end of the last decade – it’s finally a proper sports car. And it’s about damned time. to see what we’re torquing about.
Gallery:
Exterior photos by Damon Lavrinc / Copyright (C)2010 Weblogs, Inc.
The Hyundai Elantra is currently produced in Ulsan, South Korea, with about 100,000 of those vehicles earmarked for the U.S. each year. But while the Elantra is currently most successful export product, word on the street is that production of the affordable compact could come to the Korean automaker’s Montgomery, Alabama plant in April, 2011, with volumes reaching 150,000 units per year.
Wards Automotive reports that Hyundai is considering the move, though Hyundai was quick to tell the auto-focused publication that no decision has been made. To make room for the Elantra, Hyundai could consider moving Santa Fe production to West Pointe, GA plant. But while Hyundai has the available production capacity here in the U.S., the Elantra’s 2.0-liter engine would still likely need to be made in China and exported to the States.
If Hyundai does indeed bring Elantra production to the U.S., it would likely mean more high paying manufacturing jobs at a time when high-paying jobs are very tough to find, and that certainly wouldn’t suck.
Regardless of what you might think of the spectacle of a slew of not-so-stock cars turning left and then left again around a large oval track, NASCAR enjoys a huge amount of popularity here in the good ol’ United States of America. As such, it comes as little surprise that the racing organization has no trouble at all finding willing and able licensing agreements all over the country.
Two of them, though, recently caught the attention of The Detroit Free Press, and they are just a wee bit off the beaten path for what’s supposed to be a high-level racing effort. But whatever… we all want to see clean cars and camping could very well be the ultimate American pastime.
That’s right, NASCAR’s latest marketing foray will put its logos and probably the likenesses of its biggest stars on camp grounds and car washes. Thirteen such RV Resorts are opening this month, and the organization has plans to launch 40 car wash locations within the next five years. Look for one near you soon… or avoid them like the plague. Whatever works.
AJ the Fiesta – Click above for high-res image gallery
While engineering students at the were figuring out how to turn the into a rolling iPad, engineers from Ford’s infortronics research group were doing the same thing. On Thursday, those engineers and students will set out from Dearborn on a road trip in separate though equally wired (wireless?) Fiestas to San Mateo, CA for the . The Ford engineers will be driving a green Fiesta they’ve dubbed AJ for American Journey 2.0.
AJ has a trunk full of computer gear including a router and two different mobile broadband modems to keep it connected. The Ford car will have three in-house developed applications in addition to a caravan tracker application developed by the UM students. Ford has launched a web-site at where people can follow the trip and participate as the two Fiestas make their way across the country. Read on to learn more about Ford’s effort to connect this Fiesta to the Internet.
2011 BMW 5 Series – Click above for high-res image gallery
The new hasn’t even gone on sale yet here in North America but there are now reports that might add a diesel engine option. According to , BMW will add diesel engine options to two more models in addition to the and already sold here with a 3.0-liter twin-turbocharged inline-six diesel.
The 3.0-liter with 265 horsepower and 425 pound-feet of torque would be ideally suited to the new 5 Series and has already been calibrated to pass U.S. 50 state emissions regulations. We drove a previous generation European specification two years ago, which was quite the stormer while also being extremely fuel efficient. A 535d would also go a long way towards helping BMW meet new CAFE regulations here in the U.S.
The second diesel addition could be one of several models. Diesel versions of the and both seem unlikely since BMW is already offering hybrid versions of both. The more likely scenario is the installation of the company’s in either the or . In twin-turbocharged form, this engine produces 204 hp and 295 lb-ft of torque, plenty for either car with a combined fuel economy in the 35-40 mpg range.
Anyone that’s ever done their own oil changes is familiar with the joys (or, ya know, not) of trying to access and then remove the filters on their engines. If you do manage to get it loose, there is the inevitable mess of oil dripping down your arm as you spin the filter off.
When the goes on sale later this year, both engines for the first time will feature a cartridge type filter that can be removed from above with almost no muss or fuss. Cartridge filters are basically just the internal paper element from traditional filters and they drop into a housing that’s integrated into the cylinder block. GM has been using the same type of filter on the 2.0, 2.2 and 2.4-liter Ecotec engines for several years.
Besides being easier to change and tidier, they are also more environmentally friendly. There is less material from the filter itself to dispose of or recycle and any oil that spills with old-fashion filters often ends up in the local water supply. Also, having the cover with its seal on the top of the filter makes it far less prone to leaks that mess up your driveway. All hail the cartridge filter!
2012 Volkswagen Passat – Click above for high-res image gallery
A fresh batch of photos has turned up in our inbox of the next generation Volkswagen Passat, which will be debuting next year. The only problem is that we are not certain if this is the larger North American specification Passat that will be built in Chattanooga Tennessee or the slightly smaller European model.
The new sedan does feature many of the same styling elements that we’ve seen on the sketches that has released of the new mid-size (NMS) sedan, as well as other recently introduced models like the Golf, Polo and Touareg. The new horizontal bar grille is visible through the front camouflage along with the rising rocker panel crease that flows into the rear wheel arch.
When the U.S. Passat arrives, it will be offered with a choice of the 2.0-liter TDI diesel found in the Jetta, a hybrid and probably at least two gas engines. Check out our gallery of high-res spy shots below.
Anyone that’s ever done their own oil changes is familiar with the joys (or, ya know, not) of trying to access and then remove the filters on their engines. If you do manage to get it loose, there is the inevitable mess of oil dripping down your arm as you spin the filter off.
