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Picking a color scheme for a race car is usually a straightforward matter, but when Lotus opted to revive the black-and-gold combination of the classic John Player Special livery for its new Formula One car, things got a bit complicated. Not because it was once associated with a tobacco brand, but because of the still-unsettled dispute with the other Lotus team.

The Malaysian outfit at the back of the field originally planned on adopting the black and gold for this season, but opted to stick with its existing green and yellow livery shortly after Lotus Cars assumed part ownership of the newly rechristened Lotus Renault GP team.

The naming rights may still be in dispute, but the livery issue is settled. And Lotus isn’t just applying it to the grand prix racer you see here. (Though Renault, incidentally, displayed the team’s car from last year in the new livery on its stand, and Pirelli a selection of last year’s cars as well, Lotus appears to have brought the new 2011 challenger…or at least a mockup.) The British outfit also brought along an Evora GT4 decked out in the same scheme. And it looks positively dynamite on both cars. But don’t take our word for it: check it out for yourself in the high-resolution image gallery below and see for yourself.

Photos copyright (C)2011 Drew Phillips / AOL

Geneva 2011: Lotus flashes the black and gold with new racing cars

Back in the days before every luxury automaker and its sister (company) got into SUVs, there was one name in the premium off-roading game: Range Rover. And keen to prove it’s still at the top, Land Rover unveiled the Ultimate incarnation of its premier line at this year’s Geneva Motor Show.

Called, appropriately enough, the Ultimate Edition, this top-of-the-line Range Rover is based on the already luxed-up Autobiography trim. Sure to be the new must-have item among oligarchs and oil barons, the Ultimate Edition is kitted out like a Rolls-Royce Phantom but with the added distinction of being able to take its pampered occupants anywhere a mountain goat can go.

There are individual rear bucket seats and tray tables like the first-class cabin on an airliner, a drink cooler, a teak-deck cargo area and – in what’s billed as an industry first – a pair of Apple iPad tablets mounted to the front seat-backs (for the use by rear passengers). Journalists and VIPs alike were clamoring for a chance to sit in the ultra-luxurious sport-ute, but we managed to capture the salient points for your viewing enjoyment with the gallery of high-resolution images below, and can tell you first-hand that it’s every bit as posh as Land Rover says it is. High-res galleries of all the sybaritic luxury below, official press release after the jump.

Live photos copyright (C)2011 Noah Joseph / AOL

Continue reading Geneva 2011: Range Rover Autobiography Ultimate Edition takes its place as king of the hill

Geneva 2011: Range Rover Autobiography Ultimate Edition takes its place as king of the hill

The list of finalists for World Car of the Year has been whittled down from 39 entries to just three, and the finalists were announced yesterday at a press conference hosted by Bridgestone at the Geneva Motor Show.

The finalists for overall Car of the Year are the 2011 Audi A8, the BMW 5 Series and the Nissan Leaf. The performance category is occupied by the the Ferrari 458 Italia, the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG and the Porsche 911 Turbo.

Representing the green catergory are the Nissan Leaf, Chevrolet Volt and the BMW 320d EfficientDynamics Edition. The green car of the year will be decided by votes from three of the world’s top green technology experts.

The final category in the World Car of the Year competition is design. In that category is the Aston Martin Rapide, Alfa Romeo Giulietta and the Ferrari 458 Italia.

The winner of the World Car of the Year award has to represent some aspects of each category in the competition and will be decided, along with the winners in from the other categories, at the New York Auto Show on April 21.

[Source: World Car of the Year]

Continue reading Geneva 2011: World Car of the Year finalists shortlisted

Geneva 2011: World Car of the Year finalists shortlisted

AC Schnitzer has showed up at the Geneva Motor Show with not one, but two fresh-off-the-press upgrade packages for 2011.

Not wanting to look completely unfriendly to Mother Earth, AC Schnitzer has taken their expertise to the Z4 and BMW’s EfficientDynamics system, working over a 320d mill to go under the Z4’s hood. The 2011 AC Schnitzer 99d gets a 70-hp boost to 190, hits 60 in 6.9 seconds, releases a scant 99g of C02 per mile and returns a handsome 63 mpg in the European cycle. That, according to Schnitzer, is better than any BMW on the market. Unfortunately, the 99d is just a concept, and won’t be available to the public any time soon.

For the family minded executives attending the show, AC Schnitzer started with the 2011 BMW 550i, bumping the car from 407 to 540 horsepower. According to Schnitzer, the result is a 4.5-second 0-60 sprint and a whopping 198 mph top end. The engine exhales through a new set of the tuner’s own mufflers capped with chrome surrounds. The resulting executive express has been dubbed the ACS5 Sport S.

Hauling all that energy to a stop is a revised set of brakes sporting eight-piston calipers. Outside, Schnitzer went all-out to ensure that the car would be stable at its newfound velocity. The laundry list of exterior mods includes a front spoiler, carbon ducts for the brakes, new engine bay vents and, of course, your choice of 20 or 21-inch AC Schnitzer custom wheels.

Check out the official videos and press releases after the jump.

Photos copyright (C)2011 Drew Phillips / AOL

[Source: AC Schnitzer]

Continue reading Geneva 2011: AC Schnitzer comes strong with sporty diesel BMW Z4, tuned 550i [w/videos]

Geneva 2011: AC Schnitzer comes strong with sporty diesel BMW Z4, tuned 550i [w/videos]

The F10 BMW M5 is nigh upon us, and to make sure we’re excited, BMW has released a tantalizingly short and non-descript video of the M car in action. As with most BMW M teaser videos, there’s not much to see, other than some headlights at high-speed, so the vocals are probably the most important thing.

While we’ve seen plenty of spy shots of the next big M car, this is the first official video BMW has produced. By the look and sound of things, the car’s 578-hp twin-turbo V8 might just be worth the hype. Hit the jump for the video.

[Source: BMW via YouTube Images: CarPix]

Continue reading Video: BMW teases new M5… barely

Video: BMW teases new M5… barely

Novitec Rosso has thing for the Prancing Horse. It routinely turns its wrenches on the cars of the Ferrari stable and shows them a new level of power. At this week’s 2011 Geneva Motor Show, Novitec has focused ts attention on the Ferrari 458 Italia, and the results are stunning.

The “standard” Ferrari 458 Italia produces 562 horsepower and 398 pound-feet of torque from its mid-mounted 4.5-liter V8. Novitec utilizes new engine mapping, and a different exhaust manifold and exhaust system to raise output to 609 horsepower and 420 pound-feet of torque. The tuning company has also managed to raise the redline from 9,000 to 9,100 rpm, which doesn’t sound like much but could help earn a few more ticks at the top end of the speedo.

Besides the engine work, Novitec has upgraded the 458’s suspension, lightened the wheels and added carbon fiber to various locations all over the car. The resulting Novitec Rosso 458 is lighter, louder and faster than your run-of-the-mill Italia. It’s also pretty damn good looking to boot.

Photos copyright (C)2011 Drew Phillips / AOL

Geneva 2011: Novitec Rosso Ferrari 458 Italia makes sexy and fast look sexier and go faster

There’s a reason tow truck drivers charge so much money for their talents. Extricating a vehicle from a sticky situation is an art that requires more skill than simply knowing where to hook the cables and what lever to pull. If you aren’t extremely careful, you can easily turn a bad situation worse just by applying too much force in the wrong area at the wrong time. Need proof? Have a look at the video after the jump. The clip shows a poor GMC Sierra capsized on a frozen lake and the ensuing attempt to get it back on its feet.

Rather than enlist the assistance of a qualified tow truck operator, the helpful hands on scene apparently decided to take matters into their own hands with a little boost from a piece of heavy equipment. Unfortunately, the truck had other ideas. Hit the jump to see what happens for yourself. Just be warned, there’s a lot of swearing on the video that’s completely NSFW.

[Source: Streetfire]

Continue reading Video: How not to rescue your truck from a frozen lake

Video: How not to rescue your truck from a frozen lake

Chrysler Tries Harder

Among the most famous advertising slogans of all time is the Avis classic: “We try harder.” Conceived of in the early ’60s, when Avis was the number two rental car company behind Hertz, the tagline made a virtue out of second place. With its mid-lifecycle refresh of its minivan line, including both the Dodge Grand Caravan and Chrysler Town & Country, Chrysler is making a similar case.

But wait a minute here, isn’t Chrysler the long-time industry leader in minivans? Well, that depends. The Honda Odyssey took the minivan sales crown in 2008 and 2009, while the Town & Country triumphed last year. Honda would contend that’s only because its rival sells so many minivans to fleets, while Chrysler might point out that if you add sales of its nearly identical Grand Caravan to the numbers, it’s the minivan leader by a Reagan-esque landslide.

No matter which side of this argument you’re inclined to believe, the fact remains that Chrysler no longer has a lock on minivan mindshare. In fact, among a certain slice of the status-conscious, import-loving populace, Chrysler minivans don’t even rate second – more like a distant third or even fourth, behind the Odyssey, the recently redesigned Toyota Sienna and the brand-new Nissan Quest.

Chrysler finally seems to have adjusted to this reality, making some major upgrades to its minivan lineup for 2011, including a complete overhaul of the engine, suspension and interior. After a week behind the wheel, we can enthusiastically endorse the new engine and suspension, and we liked the new interior a lot. The end result might not be quite as polished as the all-new models from its three main competitors, but the Grand Caravan has been changed dramatically since its 2007 debut, receiving as close to a complete overhaul as you’ll see in this business without starting from scratch.

Continue reading Review: 2011 Dodge Grand Caravan…

Photos copyright (C)2011 Drew Phillips / AOL

Continue reading Review: 2011 Dodge Grand Caravan

Review: 2011 Dodge Grand Caravan

We’ve shown you the Koenigsegg Agera R, and now, making its debut at the Geneva Motor Show is the boring old run-of-the-mill Koenigsegg Agera. If the R is too hardcore for you, or you don’t need a ski box, then this is the low-volume Swedish supercar of your dreams.

Even the ‘regular’ Agera gets power from an in-house developed twin-turbo 5.0-liter V8 that pushes out 940 horsepower and only weighs 430 pounds. Even more impressive is that the quoted weight figure includes the clutch, flywheel, exhaust, turbos and oil system.

Backing up the engine is a seven-speed dual clutch transmission also developed by Koenigsegg. Though nobody is going to call a 940-hp supercar eco-friendly, Koenigsegg has made an effort to reduce C02 emissions, and the Agera manages a none-too-shabby 16 mpg in the European cycle.

Photos copyright (C)2011 Drew Phillips / AOL
[Source: Koenigsegg]

Continue reading Geneva 2011: Koenigsegg debuts production version of Agera supercar

Geneva 2011: Koenigsegg debuts production version of Agera supercar

Jamie Hresko, head of General Motors Powertrain since June 2010, is stepping away in pursuit of other opportunities. While that’s often code for “I was forced out, but we’re keeping it quiet,” the Detroit Free Press reports that a source close to the situation asserts that Hresko is leaving of his own accord. Hresko has been at GM for 28 years, spending time in roles ranging from managing the Orion Township assembly plant to overseeing global quality.

Report: GM powertrain head Hresko resigns after 28 years

The fuel economy wars have heated up in the hotly contested C-Segment. The latest salvo from Ford comes in the form of the Focus SE SFE (Super Fuel Economy) capable of 40 miles of highway travel on a single gallon of petrol. That ties the similarly new 2011 2011 Hyundai Elantra (40 mpg) and it’s close to the 42 mpg from the 2011 Chevrolet Cruze ECO. But like its competitor from Chevrolet, most Focus models won’t be able to keep pace with the big four-oh.

According to Kicking Tires, the rest of the Focus lineup will return a slightly less exciting 38 mpg on the highway and 28 mpg around town (31 mpg combined) when equipped with a six-speed automatic gearbox. The manual transmission Focus will hit 36 mpg on the highway and 26 mpg in city driving (30 mpg combined). Not best-in-class, but not too shabby, either.

It would have been a big win for the Focus if it could best the Elantra at the pump. On the other hand, the Focus does pack 12 more horsepower than the Hyundai and we’re thinking it looks every bit as good. It’s a good time to be in the market for a compact car.

[Source: Kicking Tires]

Rest of 2012 Ford Focus line tops out at 38 MPG

Walking out to find a boot on your car is about the third worst thing that can happen to your parked vehicle. (One and two would have to be finding out your car was towed or broken into.) Jessica Davey of Southern England walked out to find her Renault Clio wearing the extra metal on one of its wheels and was afraid that the tow company was next to pay her a visit. She decided to stay with the car and fend off any tow trucks… for the next 30 hours.

According to reports, the reason she got the boot in the first place is that her parking permit was not displayed on her windshield. It was, however, sitting in plain sight on the dashboard but not follow the rules to a T is apparently grounds for a bootin’ in her neck of the woods.

Davey was worried that the cost to retrieve her car, should it be towed, would be more than the vehicle was actually worth. Her boyfriend tried removing the boot and was quickly arrested, but later released with no charges filed.

The parking enforcement officer, Anthony Brindley, stuck around to make sure the boot stayed put. Brindley said he could remove the boot if Davey paid the £110 ($180 USD) fee. She continued to stick to her guns and the seat of her Clio. Brindley also hung tough, but 30 hours later he moved on. That’s when Jessica Davey set to work and removed the boot herself.

In the end, Jessica Davey and her Renault Clio persevered and tasted freedom. Davey did miss a day of work because of the matter, and we’re curious how much that cost her.

[Source: News.com.au Image: ecastro/Flickr via CC2.0]

Report: UK woman wins 30-hour standoff with parking enforcement officer

To the uninitiated, the choice of tires in motor racing can look about as insignificant as what refreshments they’re serving in the grandstands. But those in the know are all too aware of the enormous effect the right – or wrong – rubber can have on a race’s outcome. So in the world of Formula One racing, the switch from Bridgestone to Pirelli as the official tire supplier is pretty big news.

The Italian rubber company is suitably proud of its selection, and to show off its wares, Pirelli brought a trio of contemporary grand prix racers – a Red Bull, a McLaren and a Ferrari, no less – to the Geneva Motor Show, wearing their new boots. These look to be last year’s cars wearing this year’s tires, but that’s to be expected as the front-running teams in question frantically prepare their cars for the new season. Take a closer look in our high-res image gallery below.

Photos copyright (C)2011 Drew Phillips / AOL

Geneva 2011: Pirelli shows off 2011 F1 tire with trio of racers

We’re up to 62. That’s 62 cars we’ve covered at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show. And no, we’re not done. Our all time record is 72 vehicles covered in one auto show, thanks to a bountiful Frankfurt Motor Show in 2009. Will we beat our record tomorrow? Um… absolutely, because we’ve still got a lot more cool cars from Switzerland to show you. See you tomorrow morning when the fun continues. Until then, check out our updated batch of Geneva cars below.

Lamborghini Aventador	2012 Ferrari FF	Pagani Huayra
2012 Jaguar XKR-S	2012 MB C-Class Coupe	Porsche Panamera S Hybrid
MB C63 AMG Estate	Saab 9-5 SportCombi	Alpina B5 BiTurbo Touring
Koenigsegg Agera R	Aston Martin Virage	Gumpert Tornante
Toyota Prius+	Chevy Cruze Hatchback	Lancia Ypsilon
De Tomaso Deauville	Morgan Threewheeler	Porsche Boxster S Black
Maserati GranCabrio Sport	Ford B-Max	Ford Ranger Wildtrak
VW Golf Cabriolet	VW Tiguan	Hyundai i40 Wagon
Opel Ampera	Mansory Cormeum	Fab Design SLS AMG
ABT R8 GTS	MTM R8 Biturbo	Lexus LFA Nurburgring
Audi RS3 Sportback	GTA Spano	Bentley Supersports ICR
2012 Kia Rio	Fiat 500 by Gucci

Toyota FT-86 II	Alfa Romeo 4C	Volkswagen Bulli
Audi A3 Sedan	Wiesmann Spyder	Fiat 500 Zagato Coupe
Saab PhoeniX	Volkswagen Giugiaro Go	Volkswagen Giugiaro Tex
Mitsubishi Global Small	BMW Vision ConnectedDrive	Mazda Minagi
Nissan Esflow	Renault R-Space	Smart ForSpeed
Rinspeed BamBoo	Infiniti Etherea	Mini Rocketman
Renault Captur	RR Sport diesel PHEV	Rolls-Royce 102EX
Bertone Jaguar B99	Suzuki Swift S-Concept	Tata Pixel
IED Abarth Scorp-ion	Ssangyong SUT-1	SEAT IBX

Peugeot 908 Hyrbrid4

2011 Geneva Motor Show: Day 2 – 62 cars and counting

We’re currently bombing around Mallorca, Spain on the launch of the Porsche Cayman R, and to make up for the massive monsoon that’s coated the roads and nearly made a glorified go-kart track undrivable, our gracious hosts from Stuttgart brought out a legend. Actually, two of them.

None other than Walter Röhrl was flown in to show us “professionals” how a proper racing driver does it, and in between laps in the hotter, lightweight Cayman, the German racing legend took us for spin in something far more exotic.

According to Porsche, if there’s a vintage, racing equivalent of the Cayman R, it’s the historic Porsche 904, and this 911-powered 1965 example is one of only 20 ever made and came right from the personal garage of one of Ferdinand Porsche’s progeny. This particularly immaculate 904 is probably worth over $1 million, but that didn’t matter to Röhrl, who flung the featherweight (and seatbelt-less) coupe around the track with the kind of sideways fervor we’d expect from a World Rally Champion. Oh, and when we said “spin” we meant it. Follow the jump for the in-car footage, and excuse our incessant cackling – we’re still trying to pry the grin off our face.

Continue reading Video: Walter Röhrl spins a million-dollar Porsche 904… with us inside

Video: Walter Röhrl spins a million-dollar Porsche 904… with us inside

GTA Motor has just rolled out its brand-new supercar, the V10-powered, 820-horsepower Spano here at the Geneva Motor Show. The car has a carbon fiber-kevlar composite and aluminum chassis, and will be limited to a run of 99 examples worldwide.

With all that power and very little weight, the Spano makes it to 60 mph in under three seconds, and GTA says it will top out at 217 mph. The car carries massive 380 mm (nearly 15-inch) six-piston caliper AP Racing disc brakes with ABS, and the brakes sap off speed with the help of a ridiculous wide set of Pirelli PZero Rosso 330s (19- and 20-inches wide, respectively).

The car is designed with performance in mind, but it’s not a totally stripped-out track-day car, keeping things civilized with a panoramic roof and a carbon fiber luggage compartment complete with fitted bags.

[Source: GTA Spano]

Continue reading Geneva 2011: 2012 GTA Spano makes world debut with 820 horsepower

Geneva 2011: 2012 GTA Spano makes world debut with 820 horsepower

There’s no easy way to say this, America: You’re getting fatter and older every year. Over a quarter of the population is obese, and the rate of obesity increases 0.5 percent each year. The amount of folks aged 65 and up currently stands at 40 million, but that number will increase to nearly 90 million by 2050. What does any of this have to do with automobiles? A lot – if you’re a safety engineer.

The systems that help keep us safe during a crash will need to be redesigned to cope with our ever-increasing mass and aging bodies. Seatbelts and airbags are being developed that can work with the larger, older occupants of future vehicles. Adaptive airbags and load-limited seatbelts will better conform to the person sitting in the seat.

As we travel down the road to our Wall-E style future, it’s comforting to know that today’s engineers are working to protect tomorrow’s driving population. The solution to our weight problem is, of course, to battle the ever-expanding waistlines found throughout our nation. That, however, is easier said than done. Let’s just hope that the four-wheeled products that result don’t resemble sculptor Erwin Wurm’s ‘fat car’ series, as shown above.

Now if you’ll excuse us, a 20-piece Chicken McNugget meal is calling from the kitchen. Oof, that’s an awfully far walk for our aging bones, though.

[Source: Ward's Auto Image: Dorotheum]

How being fat and old is the newest threat to auto safety

This question is for all of our Bentley buying readers in attendance today: Do you prefer the Flying B in your driveway to be of the limited-edition variety? If you answered “Harrumph! Of course I do, you peasant!”, then we’ve just gotten up close with your next purchase. It’s called the Bentley Continental Supersports Ice Speed Record Convertible and just 100 examples will be produced.

The Bentley ICR Convertible was created to commemorate the achievements of Juha Kankkunen. Last month, Kankkunen took a lightly-modified (tires, aero bits and roll-cage) out to a long stretch of sea-turned-ice. Once there, he fired up the twelve-cylinder engine and set a new ice speed record by hitting 205.48 miles per hour.

Bentley is producing 100 examples of the Supersports ICR and each will boast standout features that make them stand out from non-ICR versions. Just three exterior color choices will be available to compliment the Dark Grey Metallic top; Beluga, Quartzite and Arctica White. Inside, carbon fiber has fitted on the dashboard and center console, while the familiar Breitling dashboard clock gets red accents.

The Bentley Continental Supersports Ice Record Convertible is the most powerful Bentley ever (going by horsepower alone). Its 6.0-liter twin-turbocharged W12 engine produces 631-horsepower and 590 pound-feet of torque – enough to push the hefty two-door from 0-60 miles per hour in 3.8 seconds and on to a top speed 202 miles per hour.

Check out both the actual record-setting car (shown above) and the special production model it inspired in our galleries below, then click past the jump to check out the official press release.

Photos copyright (C)2011 Drew Phillips / AOL

Continue reading Geneva 2011: Bentley Supersports ICR Convertible is a classy drop-top rocketship

Geneva 2011: Bentley Supersports ICR Convertible is a classy drop-top rocketship

A company like Fiat has proven itself eager to take on new challenges. Dominate Italian industry? Done. Undertake a partnership with the world’s largest automaker, then extract billions after pulling out? Done. Take over one of the Detroit Three and complain about the terms of a government bailout? Done. Making the 500 even more fashionable and quintessentially Italian may have seemed undoable, but as with those challenges before, it has risen to the occasion.

The latest version of its designer hatchback has been tweaked by Gucci and features all of its hallmarks, from the red and green stripes to the logos on the seats and wheel hubs. The Fiat chairman’s stylish kid brother, Lapo Elkann, saw the project through to completion, displaying it in a dedicated boutique section of the automaker’s show stand. And while it may not be as exciting as Zagato’s coupe version, for those who (like the model standing next to the car) prefer to match their car to their purse, it very well may be the best thing since artisanal sliced bread.

Live photos copyright (C)2011 Noah Joseph / AOL

Geneva 2011: Fiat 500 by Gucci will match your fake purse

The Suzuki Swift is a genuinely good car, standing as something of an exception in Suzuki’s lineup until recent additions like the SX4 and Kizashi came along. But calling it “swift” might be a bit of wishful thinking, if not a huge exaggeration. Enter the Swift S-Concept, which Suzuki has just presented at the Geneva Motor Show.

Few details have been released as to what has gone into the S-Concept and where it’s going, but anyone can tell straight off the bat that it’s a Swift taken to the extreme. In fact, it looks as close to an S2000-spec racer for the street as we’ve seen in some time, sporting 18-inch wheels, aerodynamic upgrades, Recaro racing buckets… the works.

The result looks good. Seriously good. Which is sadly probably more than we can say for its production prospects. But for the company behind such an eclipsing Pikes Peak campaign, with the right mechanical upgrades to match the sporting pretensions of its own styling, a hotter Swift could be just the ticket to inject some much-needed excitement into its range.

Check it out in the gallery of live images from the show floor below, and the stock shots in the gallery below that.

Photos copyright (C)2011 Noah Joseph / AOL

Continue reading Geneva 2011: Suzuki Swift S-Concept puts its money where its name is

Geneva 2011: Suzuki Swift S-Concept puts its money where its name is