In the earlier part of the last decade, the king of the hill was a model called the Vanquish. More muscular than the DB7 it superseded, the Vanquish was offered first with a 450-horsepower V12, and then as the Vanquish S with 514 hp on tap. The flagship model from Newport Pagnell was replaced in 2007 by the , but before it went the way of the proverbial dodo, Aston offered a final run of 40 examples called the . And now that its successor is itself due for replacement, sources expect Aston to offer a DBS Ultimate Edition, as well.
What separated the Vanquish S Ultimate Edition from its penultimate basis were a special black paint job, an enhanced interior and – most significantly – a conventional manual gearbox to replace the maligned sequential transmission in the regular model. What the DBS Ultimate Edition might comprise remains to be seen, but sources don’t expect a manual gearbox to factor into the mix.
The Ultimate Edition, then, may boil down to something largely similar to the above-pictured that, like the Vanquish special, also featured a special black paint job and unique wheels, but little in the way of powertrain or suspension upgrades. Whatever the Ultimate Edition does encompass, though, is expected to cost nearly $300,000 and limited in production to just 100 units, of which only 30 are expected to make it to American dealerships.
is on a bit of a naming spree. Back in April, it was revealed that the Italian automaker (and hopeful SUV maker, too…) put its legal stamp on the names and , the first of which, as you’re likely aware by now, is the moniker adopted for the concept version of its future sport utility vehicle.
Deimos, on the other hand, has yet to grace any bullish Italian supercars, at least none shown to the public, so we’re curious to see where that ends up. Muddying waters even further is a report from Car and Driver that Lamborghini has also recently trademarked the name Huracán.
Huracán, in case you hadn’t made the connection yourselves, is the Spanish word for hurricane, but it’s also the name of a Mayan god of fire, wind and storms, according to C&D. That dovetails nicely with Deimos, which was the name of a terrifying mythological Greek god.
What either of these as-yet unused names has to do with Spanish bulls or matadors (if anything), we have no idea. We also can’t say with any certainty what future Lambos, concept or production, will be graced by these names. But we certainly look forward to finding out.
It’s almost DLC time again at – Tuesday, May 1 will bring with it the Top Gear pack, a true goulash of automobilia. At one end you have the 2012 Hennessey Venom GT, a car that automotive historians will look back on and say “Wow.” At the other end you have the 1977 AMC Pacer X, a car that we look back on and say “Wow.” In ‘between’ are the: 2011 SuperSportVan, 1965 Austin-Healey 3000 MkIII, , 1966 Lotus Cortina, 1992 Galant VR-4, , 1990 RS and .
The bad news is that the TG pack won’t be part of the Season Pass, so you’ll need 560 MS points, or $7, to make it yours. But if you throw down the fresh amounts you’ll be able to enter the new Community Rivals Mode with the Hennessey Venom GT. Set a leaderboard time with it and you could win one of the 100 unicorn cars Forza will be handing out every week.
to check out the video and have a look at the wares in the gallery of high-res screenshots.
“The past four months have been really tough for us,” admits CEO Dany Bahar to Autocar magazine. “We were working at a pace nobody had seen at Lotus for many years,” Bahar continued, alluding to the British sports car maker’s planned rollout of four models over five years that recently had recently hit the skids thanks to a 60-day financial freeze at Malaysian parent DRB-Hicom. “The shut-down, as I call it,” Bahar continued, “was very hard for us,” but the Lotus boss forcefully rejects media reports that his company is being shopped to potential buyers.
Production at Hethel is reportedly swinging back into action within the next few days now that DRB-Hicom has slid money across the table to re-start , and production. Lotus will also reportedly continue to develop the new and its V8 engine and automated transmission. Bahar went on to dispute reports that KPMG was looking for a buyer to take on Lotus, though there are likely to be management shuffles and continuing developments between Lotus, DRB-Hicom, , and who know what other parties, as the re-start doesn’t completely short-circuit the rumors of a possible sale.
In fact, resuming production could potentially even position Lotus more attractively for a potential suitor, rather than putting a shuttered, down-at-the-mouth boutique carmaker on the block.
When rolled out their outrageously styled three years ago, car buyers took notice. It’s eye-catching exterior styling, well-appointed interior and affordable price was just what a lot of family sedan buyers wanted.
Few will admit it, but carmakers sat up and paid attention, too. However, Andy Palmer, executive vice president for global planning, doesn’t mind telling the world that his company certainly saw the significance of the midsize Korean sedan. So much so that they briefly halted design work on the 2013 .
“We even delayed development by a short amount just to check that the (new Altima’s) proportions were right, the (package) was right (and that) the product overall was right,” Palmer tells Ward’s Auto. “I’d say they (Hyundai) are our major point of reference.”
But with the Altima as the second-best selling car in its segment, Nissan is focusing not on the Sonata, but on and the No. 1 best seller: .
“If you keep coming with better cars and better communications, telling better stories, over a period of time,” Palmer says. “I guarantee you’ll be talking about Toyota and Nissan.”
You wouldn’t think $7.7 million is something to complain about, but then again, you’re probably not in the running to be CEO of General Motors. Despite the fact that GM is no longer the largest company in the world – or, depending on whom you ask, even the largest carmaker – it’s a big job. On most days, we imagine it’s a pretty thankless one too. So when you compare the salary of GM CEO Dan Akerson to that of his cross-town rival at , perhaps $7.7 million does seem like chump change compared to Alan Mullaly’s .
And according to a report in The Detroit News, GM apparently isn’t happy to see its CEO sitting in third place among Big Three CEOs when payday comes. GM’s proxy statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission yesterday said that the company is having an “extremely difficult” time hiring qualified executives because of limits to compensation set by the U.S. Treasury Department. The Treasury has capped the amount Akerson and other execs can make as part of GM’s 2009 bailout.
Here’s a thought: Maybe GM just needs to do a better job emphasizing all the benefits that come with working for the General, like getting to drive a gratis.
The new Opel minicar has been so long in gestation that it has worn three names (so far). From the Junior and Allegra, we are now being told that it will now be called the Opel Adam, no doubt a nod to company founder Adam Opel.
Still clothed in enough camo to hide a barn, we can’t tell much about how it looks, but with the latest spy shots we do know its sporting chops have been tested at the Nürburgring. That’s a necessity since a longer version of the Adam’s platform will go under the next Opel/Vauxhall Corsa. Beyond that, we aren’t sure what will power it at launch but three-cylinder engines co-developed with are . The electric version, however, .
At 3.70 meters, the Adam extends 15 cm beyond the Volkswagen Up! but is smaller than the Opel Agila. It is expected to go on sale in the Spring of 2013 for a base price of under €10,000 (Roughly $13,000 USD). If it does, that would be a turnabout from last year when former Opel chief Nick Reilly said the “Junior” and cost more than the larger Agila, which currently ($14k), but still wouldn’t to the .
Stay tuned, for those and other mysteries will begin to be solved on May 8, which is when Opel will officially announce the car. So the rumors say. The showcase reveal will come at this year’s .
We’ve had the good fortune of getting up close and personal with quite a few of Icon 4×4’s creations, from their off-road wares like the and to one-off restomod hot rods like their . While few people may be able to afford the company’s offerings, the creativity and thought that goes into each of their vehicles is something everyone can appreciate.
We have a particular affection for Icon and its latest project, the Bronco. We went for a brief drive in the very first example just before it made its debut at last year and fell in love with every detail of the modernized off-roader. Every trim piece on the car has been laser cut or machined from stainless steel. The unique gauge cluster is inspired by Bell & Ross watches. The interior aluminum is the same found on the inside of luxury skyscraper elevator doors. The Icon Bronco is capable of proving its worth both on and off-road too, thanks to an Art Morrison chassis, custom-built Dana 60 and 44 solid axle assemblies, and a 5.0-liter V8 under the hood.
Jonathan Ward, creator of Icon, recently invited a documentary filmmaker inside his facility to take a closer look at the Bronco. The resulting film will give you a better idea of what went into developing the Bronco as well what makes Ward tick as both a designer and a builder. If you’ve like any of Icon’s creations, it’s definitely worth a watch. Just and hit play.
Three years ago, released the documentary Truth in 24 highlighting its three-car effort at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Despite the Four Ring’s success at the race in the last decade, they were undoubtedly the underdogs to the much faster Peugeot teams that year, making for a Hollywood-like ending when Audi managed to take home the victory with teamwork and a little help from the weather.
The first film was such a success that Audi , once again featuring their three-car team battling Peugeot at the world’s most famous endurance race. We’re fully expecting the film to be packed with drama, as last year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans was one of the most action-packed and closest races of all time. Two bad crashes ended the race for two of the Audi teams, leaving a single R18 TDI to battle the Peugeots.
Sadly, with Peugeot having quite suddenly in January, it will also be the last such battle at Le Mans for the foreseeable future – all the more reason to watch the documentary when it comes out in a few weeks. For now we just have the trailer, which you can watch by .
And now for some good news from : it is doubling the run of its limited edition Spirit R, adding 1,000 more units to production due to demand. Announced late last year, this Japan-only model celebrates the end of the RX-8’s nine-year existence. The final Wankel-engined four-door is scheduled to roll off the line in June.
The Spirit R doesn’t skimp on the extra trim bits inside and out, with larger brakes clamped by red calipers, piano-black transmission tunnel trim, Recaro Sprint R bucket seats, leather-wrapped steering wheel and an enhanced traction control system among the bonus features.
Both automatic and manual transmissions are offered, but takers have gone decisively for the row-your-own cogswapper, making up 66 percent of orders. Compared to the automatic, they receive larger 19-inch wheels on lower profile tires, a “hard suspension,” alloy pedals and aero bits. for the press release with more details.
The breadth and scope of the Chinese car market has ballooned to such an extent that it makes sense for many foreign automakers to design cars specifically for China. Case in point: the new Renault Talisman.
Instead of building the Talisman in China through a joint venture, manufacturing is handled in nearby Korea by Renault Samsung Motors – the same division that has already brought Renault eight awards and sales increasing fourfold since 2009 due to the success of the Koleos crossover.
As for the Talisman itself, Renault has releases suspiciously little information, and even less photos. It’s billed as a “casual luxury” sedan, whatever that means, but more than that we couldn’t tell you. Which is just fine, because unless you live in China, you’ll probably never see one. Feel free to peruse the press release .
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration head-honcho David Strickland is big on emerging vehicle-to-vehicle communication, according to The Detroit Free Press. As a keynote speaker at the Society of Automotive Engineers World Congress in Detroit this week, Strickland lauded the technology, saying it could eliminate up to 80 percent of crashes.
We’ve recently heard General Motors speaking enthusiastically about , using portable devices like smartphones to share information about traffic conditions and what’s going on in nearby vehicles to alert drivers and even pedestrians and cyclists. GM has been talking about vehicle-to-vehicle communications for a few years now, incorporating the idea into its like the one pictured above, “cars” that promise a future in which autonomous driving is a reality.
More immediately, Strickland said NHTSA will be “finalizing a rule to improve rear visibility in passenger vehicles,” and that the agency is “beyond proof of concept” for a system to prevent an intoxicated person from driving, according to the report.
Looks like is finally getting a handle on this YouTube phenomenon. The French supercar firm has uploaded a trio of videos showing off its current and future cars; namely, the coupe and the 16C Galibier.
What Bugatti has clearly not figured out, on the other hand, is the definition of a teaser. While the slowly drawn out shots showing the upcoming super sedan from just about every angle are pretty impressive, aren’t teasers just supposed to whet the appetite? And if we’re honest, the narrative that goes with it is a bit… disarming. Finally, while most teaser videos are done and over with in a minute or less, this one is more than four times that length.
Oh well… nobody ever accused Bugatti of being subtle.
You can see the new Galibier teaser video by below, and if that’s not enough, we’ve also included two new videos showcasing the Bugatti Veyron and its most impressive bits and pieces.
It was only a matter of time, folks. As soon as finalized its of the brand, we knew to expect a slew of comparison tests pitting the German automaker’s finest wares against the two-wheeled exotica rolling out of Italy’s .
The scribes from Germany’s Auto Bild have indeed taken up the challenge. But what machinery to choose? Naturally, the mind first turns to the supercar and its -derived V10 engine, but, in reality, Audi officials have conceded to us that its 360-horsepower is actually quicker around most race tracks. So, the all-wheel-drive it is.
Holding the mantle for Ducati is none other than the 1199 Panigale – an easy choice, as this is the marque’s premier superbike for 2012. Sure, there was a replica MotoGP machine a few years back called the Desmosedici RR, but that bike is sold out and the Panigale is likely faster in the hands of all but the most talented riders anyway.
So, who wins? You’ll have to and watch the video to find out, but suffice it to say that it wasn’t even close.
One day, someone will make a list of all the unique special-edition Pagani Zonda models and all the one-off one-offs produced over the past few years. It’ll be a gargantuan task, because there have been many of each, and we suspect that we only hear about some of them. And you can bet that most of the buyers ordering them have little to no idea how to get the most out of their new rides. However, if new reports prove accurate, the Modenese atelier’s latest customer sure will.
That customer, according to reports, is one Lewis Hamilton. The 2008 Formula One World Champion has reportedly ordered his Zonda (dubbed 760 LH) with 760 horsepower – the same output as the we reported on a couple of weeks ago – 20 more than the track-spec Zonda R and 90 than the Zonda Cinque. And what else did Lewis ask for on his? A manual transmission. Apparently he has enough time with paddle-shift gearboxes at work. Solid.
In addition to the McLaren grand prix cars he drives “at the office,” Hamilton’s also got a very rare upon clinching the World Championship, and something tells us that he’s got a new MP4-12C waiting for him at home, too. Bringing a Zonda home, then, to park beside them would be high praise indeed.
SpeedTV has piped Le Mans racing action to American television sets since 1995, and with the signing of a new multi-year television deal, the annual Frankish displays of 24-hour madness will continue to have a home on the cable network. The length of the deal wasn’t disclosed, but it does include expanded digital rights, which we’ll hope is network code for “live streaming.” Now you know where to turn on June 16.
And in case you didn’t know, the channel also for 30-minute recaps of each day’s action this year, starting with this weekend’s Rally Argentina. It will also be covering the MotoGP race in Spain this weekend and live-streaming qualifying on Speed2. So double hurray and yay for SpeedTV emerging yet further from its NASCAR shell.
A few members of the Autoblog team have been grappling with the issue of our ages recently. Yes, some of us are feeling old. Given that a primary motivation for getting into this automotive journalism racket in the first place was a desire to avoid growing up by spending our whole lives playing with cars, it is frustrating to find out that having Peter Pan Syndrome does not prevent man from turning 40.
So how’s this for some much needed perspective: Carroll Shelby will be 90 in January.
His exploits on the track made him an American hero and his success as a car designer and businessman only reinforced his status as one of the great ones. But it’s no secret that the octogenarian racer and legend has not been in the best health lately. It’s the sort of thing you have to expect when you start pushing nine decades on this planet, especially when you have lived the sort of life that Carroll Shelby has, pushing the limits in a way that most of us will never experience. He’s even got his fair share of aftermarket parts, having had both heart and kidney transplants.
Shelby shared this message concerning his health on Facebook yesterday:
There have been some rumors about my health lately. So I wanted to clear them up.
I’ve been in the hospital over the last several months with pneumonia. But I’m resting comfortably with my family and working on getting better. My kids are taking good care of me.
I am sorry that I can’t make any appearances right now. If you want someone from Shelby at an event in my place, contact Scott Black at TimePiece PR in Dallas. He’ll give those requests to my team, who will determine the right person to represent me.
I also have asked them to post on my behalf to keep you up to date.
Thanks for the all good wishes and thoughts.
Here’s another: Let’s hope he has a great party on January 11, 2013.
Watching television news can be depressing. Between the political rancor of election season and the “if it bleeds, it leads” mentality of most news directors, positive stories are scarce. But here’s one that should make any lover of fine automobiles pleased.
The story, as reported by CBS This Morning, starts when the owner of a Los Angeles-based rental car company that specializes in exotics and luxury cars noticed that one of his vehicles was uncharacteristically sitting still for a few days after being rented. The $2,000-per-day 2010 was equipped with a GPS tracking system, and the Italian Stallion’s lack of use made Eric Blumberg suspicious. So he notified the police, who eventually found the car – in Hong Kong. It had been shipped through the Port of Los Angeles, labeled as “used fitness equipment,” according to the Los Angeles Times.
It seems that the would-be joyrider who had “rented” the was part of an international crime syndicate worthy of a screenplay, according to the CBS report. When the police investigated further, they found between 15 and 20 other vehicles that were being loaded into shipping containers and exported to Asia, a total of $1.5 million worth of four-wheeled loot.
The investigators told CBS that the vehicles can command up to twice their value overseas. While no arrests have yet been made in the case, at least these cars now have a chance of being returned to their rightful owners.
Whenever Consumer Reports weighs in on the automotive landscape, we’re always eager to hear what its editors have to say. We value their opinions, not because we necessarily agree or disagree, but because CR plays it straight. And sometimes, amidst all the folderol spewed about new models in the pages of car magazines and on the myriad websites devoted to automotive minutiae, it helps to read someone write things like this:
Overall, CR’s testers found the is functional and easy to live with, if not particularly exciting to drive. The Touring… is more athletic and engaging to drive, thanks to its agile handling, taut cornering, and responsive steering.
Now this may strike most of you as nothing more than CR displaying its usually astute command of the obvious. But it reads that way for a reason – call it art imitating life. So when the mainstreamers read that the CR-V narrowly beat out the CX-5, it will not just reflect the reality of a market in which the brand lags well behind , but confirm their worldview. The Honda CR-V will continue to appear on the magazine’s “Recommended” list, while the jury will await reliability reports before nominating the Mazda CX-5.
The sun will rise in the east and set in the west.
To read CR’s full press release, which also spills the beans on the June issue’s head-to-head test between the and , as well as road tests of the hatchback and , . We also have the magazine’s video reviews of the crossover pair in video form, so .
You’ve never seen a 1981 Yenko Camaro? Maybe that’s because only 19 were made and they usually sell for well north of what a new will cost you from your local dealer.
One gorgeously restored, matching numbers example is on eBay Motors for the eye-watering Buy-It-Now price of $180k. But please consider the car’s claimed history and stat sheet before passing judgement.
As the legend goes, in 1969, of Murray, Pennsylvania took a 12-year break from modding Camaros. But low compression ’80s engines got under the skin of , and in 1981, the tuning legend proceeded to cram a turbocharged, four-barrel, 350 V8 under the hood of the second-generation car. Horsepower on the rare Yenko is unclear, but it should definitely be way more than the stock Z-28’s meager 175 hp. Reports suggest this was to be , and the owner of this eBay find says this one is the very last 1981 Yenko produced.
On top of all that, the Charlotte, North Carolina seller says that the car has fewer than 30k miles, some of which were supposedly put there by curious automotive journalists. The winning bidder will get the original build sheet, window sticker and a production intent letter signed by Don Yenko.
