Let’s take a moment to praise the original NSX, a previously unimaginable coupe from an equally unimaginable source that, as Lexus did with luxury, put every supercar maker on notice. Only the NSX went further than anything Lexus ever did; after all, there’s no clamor today for to make another car in the spirit of the LS 400.
Now, enthusiasts and NSX owners wait, hoping that the channels everything that made its (by then) 25-year-old ancestor so great.
And that’s why Honda has compiled more than seven minutes of NSX video eye candy, with special attention paid to the Le Mans car and the NSX-Rs. You’ll find it .
The concept shown at the 2011 was an unusual little car. We don’t want to get our hopes up about production (especially since we’d probably never get it in America anyway), but the Regina will return to the spotlight at the with some tweaks that have us wondering if plans to actually build the French-looking runabout. Despite its bold styling, the Regina’s drivetrain seems plausible enough; it’s powered by a conventional three-cylinder gasoline engine.
The Regina will apparently be renamed G70 when it’s shown in Switzerland. Tokyo publicity for the car centered around the five-door as “an idea for a 1,600-pound sedan that gets 75 miles per gallon.” Suzuki has officially pegged the weight of the G70 at 730 kg, or 1,606 pounds. The “70″ in the name likely comes from its 70g/km of carbon emissions, but Suzuki hasn’t divulged its numbers yet. for a press release on the G70 concept.
We’ve gotten various peeks at the Mercedes-Benz A-Class for a few months now, from the to to . Then, of all things in all places, a cyclist with a handlebar-mounted camera of the real deal while riding in Lanzarote, Spain for what we assume is a photo or video shoot.
If you liked the look of the patent drawings, then you’ll be happy with the glimpse here. It even looks close enough to the for us to give Mercedes props for truth-in-concept-car designing. There’s debate as to whether this is the , but regardless, the final version will be shown at next month’s . Until then, watch the video .
hasn’t exactly been secretive about its desire to offer a five-door hatchback version of its ultra-stylish sedan. After all, the first concept for the latest CLS, which was introduced as a 2012 model, introduced us to the at the in 2010. And yes, MB itself called the car a Shooting Break, not Brake.
Based on that concept, we have a pretty solid idea of how the CLS Shooting Brake will look. Judging by these spy shots that were snapped in Northern Sweden, there won’t really be any surprises. And that’s totally fine by us.
We’d expect Mercedes-Benz to deliver its super hatch in both CLS550 (with 4.6-liter twin-turbo V8) and (with 5.5-liter twin-turbo V8) flavors, which means the biggest question left to answer will be whether the company decides to call it the Shooting Brake or the Shooting Break. We, like pretty much everyone else in the world, vote for Brake.
Rumors typically have a limited shelf life. Either they come to fruition, or they just die off. But not this one. The automotive press has been anticipating a follow-up to the LM002 (pictured above) for decades now, but with anticipation building, they appear to finally be coming to a head this year.
Although not quite an official confirmation, a spokesperson for Lamborghini’s parent company has indicated that all the speculation regarding the imminent arrival of a new Lamborghini crossover are, essentially, true. The concept version is expected to debut at the in April with a retuned version of the V10 engine in the and an eye on the likes of the Maserati Kubang and – only likely higher-end in its market position.
The decision-making process in Sant’Agata Bolognese was reportedly to build (previewed by the Estoque concept at the 2008 ) as a third model line, but the current speculation suggests that Lamborghini could build both, with the four-door sedan to follow a couple of years down the line.
has named its electric concept car headed for next month’s Geneva Motor Show the EMERG-E. The company says that its showcar will be a coupe powered by a 1.2-liter gasoline engine with a range-extending electric motor. The powerplant will be mounted amidships for superior weight distribution, and the Japanese automaker promises the concept will offer impressive performance.
Infiniti has released very few details beyond saying the car’s pure-electric range will be “respectable.” The vehicle also promises zero-emission driving in most urban settings, so there’s a good chance the concept will show off some advanced charging tech as well. The automaker is intent on making us wait until the vehicle’s full unveil in Geneva before it drops any more clues, though a few more teaser images have surfaced to whet our appetite. Check them out in our gallery below.
Though the may be a niche player in the North American market, the small van market is big business in Europe. According to , it accounts for some 700,000 units annually, and that’s a pie of which Daimler wouldn’t mind getting a bigger slice. And so it has announced its new Citan.
Taking its name from a combination of City and Titan, the Citan will slot in below the Vario, Sprinter and Vito in order to meet the needs of workers who need to get around crowded city streets and take their gear with them. Mercedes plans to offer it in a broad range of configurations, lengths and engine options once it hits the market in the fall.
The concept was unveiled at a logistics symposium held at the Mercedes-BenzDesign Center in Sindelfingen, and will be presented for the first time in public next September at the IAA Commercial Vehicle Show. In the meantime, you can check out the details in the press release after the jump and the renderings in our high-res image gallery below.
The annals of automotive history are filled with nameplates that weren’t quite able to survive the boom and bust nature of the business, especially here in the United States. One of the most successful orphaned automakers was , for such design gems as the bullet-nosed post-World War II Starlight and trend-setting fiberglass-bodied .
Sadly, Studebaker officially ceased producing automobiles in 1966, though a small portion of its legacy lives today in the form of the ex-Kaiser . But if a Colorado-based business has its way, the Studebaker name will once again appear on vehicles sold in America. Somehow, we’re far from convinced any of its conceptual designs will ever see the light of day.
Looking over the proposed revival, we see a range of so-called Studebaker cars, trucks, motorcycles and scooters. Half the motorcycles are actually Hyosung models from Korea with Studebaker scripting on the fuel tanks, and the other half are nothing but poor renderings. As for the cars, well… there isn’t a single shred of Studebaker DNA in any of them. In any case, the company is reportedly looking for “qualified investor/partners”. We wish them the best of luck… they’re gonna need it.
Our sister site follows up on its with a new episode this week. This one is a smorgasbord of automotive tech, including a spin on the Solowheel, a mobility device that’s sort of like half a Segway.
The Translogic crew also talks to the chief technology officer at Panasonic, who draws some interesting comparisons between electric cars and refrigerators. shows off a new gesture-based, heads-up display. announces a new version of its and shows it off in some concepts.
Reports this week out of London indicate that CEO Dany Bahar seeks a partner, or even a purchaser, for the Hethel firm. Malaysian automaker Proton currently owns Lotus, but Proton was taken over in January when Malaysian auto the government’s controlling interest. The trend with new ownership is to put every project on the table for review, and with Lotus in the midst of – Esprit, Elan, Eterne, new and – it makes sense that Bahar isn’t wasting time arranging options.
Although it’s not exactly as if Bahar just started looking for a buyer. In summer 2011, Proton’s position was shaky enough that , with often mentioned as a hypothetical mate.
It is said that Bahar wants £500 million ($792 million U.S.), roughly Proton (via bank loans) was said in 2010 to be committing to the brand’s revival. As one would expect, Chinese interests are suspected as potential buyers, but only one possible suitor has been named so far, that being Genii Capital, which owns the Lotus Formula 1 team.
The on-again, off-again Volkswagen BlueSport roadster is, well, on again according to EVO Magazine. The publication reportedly spoke with Uli Hackenberg, head of engineering with , who said the company’s dealers are mistaken when they say there won’t be a market for a vehicle like the BlueSport. Hakenberg said that the rise of hardware like the Toyota GT 86 and , alongside the upcoming next-generation suggests buyers are once again willing to put down cash on an entry-level sports car. Throw in the fact that the dollar is regaining strength and European vehicles start to look even more competitive in the Land of the Free. Despite this, recent reports have indicated that the BlueSport’s planned sibling at , and its other planned sibling, the Audi R4, is understood to have been .
As a result, Volkswagen is reportedly going to ask its dealers to once again gauge demand for a mid-engine convertible. The roadster will need to see sales estimates of at least 50,000 units worldwide in order to get the go-ahead from corporate. Even if that happens, it will likely be a good three years before we see the production model touch down. Maestro, cue up the sad trombone if you would be so kind.
Things are shaping up nicely for next week’s , key among them this new concept called Track’ster. Riffing on the Korean automaker’s hit compact, the Track’ster keeps much of the small car’s boxy style, but turns the wick up considerably by scrubbing the rear doors, fitting a gaping front end, substituting massive showcar wheels and dramatically lowering the right height.
This isn’t the first time has toyed with the idea of a Soul spinoff – at the 2009 , it , a rough-and-tumble concept vehicle with a small pickup bed. Thanks to a strong response from the public, the Soul’ster was understood to be under consideration for production, but its hopes reportedly .
Despite being on the market since 2008, the Soul continues to pick up momentum in chunks. Thanks in part to a refresh for 2012 that addresses hopes for more powerful drivetrains, the Soul has emerged as one of Kia’s best sellers – last month, it was only slightly outdistanced by the midsize sedan, and it’s outpacing , which was Kia’s best-seller last year.
Will Kia finally pull the trigger on a Soul variant? We should know more after the Track’ster makes the show circuit rounds.
You’ve seen the S-Max. You’ve seen the C-Max. Now get ready for the B-Max.
The latest European-focused mini minivan from was at last year’s , but has now been confirmed for production release at the 2012 edition of the same expo this March. Based on the (the C-Max is based on the ), the new B-Max will arrive into a highly competitive segment overseas, so it will need to offer some alluring features to make its mark.
The edgy design should help, but the party piece for this diminutive people carrier is that it has no B-pillars. And we don’t mean that the windows have no frame: we mean the entire pillars are incorporated into the doors themselves, so that when you open the doors there’s no encumbrance to loading and unloading of passengers and cargo alike.
Motivation is provided by a 1.0-liter EcoBoost engine, with Duratorq diesels also on offer. After its unveiling in Geneva, the new B-Max will go on sale at dealers across Europe later this year. for the full press release and click the thumbnails below to view the pair of images released thus far in high resolution.
What binds car enthusiasts to one another? A love for cars, certainly, but we’d argue there’s a deeper psychological connection. Namely that we’ve never quite grown up, and don’t really care to. We’re all still the little boys we once were, hanging posters of our favorite supercars on the walls of our childhood bedrooms. The only way to convince us of the reality of our own age is to show us how old the then-new supercars we pined for as kids have now become. So it’s with a big lump in our collective throat that we bring you the news that the XJ220 is now 20 years old – and along with it, that we’re all 20 years older than we were when it came out.
The first time we got a glimpse of the mid-engined XJ220 was actually back in 1988 when it debuted at the British Motor Show. But that was in concept form. It wasn’t until 1992 that the first customer took delivery. And while it was a fair bit different from the concept version (okay, so the drivetrain was very different, with half the cylinders and half the driven wheels of the V12 concept), what we got was still earth-shattering in its capabilities – particularly for its time, but still by any objective measure. The production XJ220 packed 550 horsepower, hit 60 in less than four seconds and hit a top speed of 213 mph… a new record in the early 90s.
By the time production ceased two years later, Jaguar and TWR had built just 275 examples. The one pictured above is one of ten pre-production prototypes, specifically the example that Andy Wallace piloted to that landmark top speed at Ford Stockton, Texas, in 1991. The yellow example (also pictured in our high-resolution image gallery) was one of the very rare XJ220 S homologation specials with carbon fiber bodywork and 700 horsepower on tap. Click the thumbnails to scope it out and follow the jump for the full press release to take a trip back to your childhood.
How good will the upcoming return of the Acura NSX be? So good, apparently, that despite still being three years out, the supercar has converted well-known fan Jerry Seinfeld to worship at the altar of the NSX Concept.
Though we wouldn’t think the creator and namesake of the hit TV show Seinfeld would need any more money (syndication ftw!), here he is shilling for , obsessed with being first in line for a product that the Japanese automaker isn’t expected to begin selling until 2015. Turns out, however, he’s not the only comedian with more money than sense who wants an NSX.
, and help us posit why Acura would spend millions of dollars producing a Super Bowl commercial that doesn’t promote any of its currently available products. Couple this commercial with parent company , and we think Honda and company have earned this year’s award for spending the most on celebrity talent.
See that above? It’s the Monroney for Tony Stark’s in The Avengers. We , when most of what we had to say about it centered on its potential hints to the as-yet-unseen Acura NSX concept. Someone got a closer look at the roadster on display, and its details are nothing short of cartoonish but in the best way.
The $9,229,000 supercar uses a palladium-powered 80,000 TOHC 32-valve engine boosted by, get this, nitrous. As well as its nine-speed hyper-shift transmission, lithium dioxide-injecting shocks and reflex-response steering column with target guidance feedback, it is fitted with a device to create an enviro-clone projected hologram of its surroundings. You know, for defense. And because actual palladium use might vary among agents, the 234 city/302 highway mpg is for Tony Stark only.
Head over to for more closeup images of Stark’s low-density-plasma-emitting Acura roadster and a closer read of that window sticker.
It was only a few weeks ago that CEO Dieter Zetsche laid out his global sales vision for the brand, aiming to be the world’s Number One luxury automaker by 2020 with . One component of that plan is building another plant in North America, and a report by the TheDetroitBureau.com indicates that the plant will be built in Aguascalientes, Mexico – right next to a Nissan assembly plant that’s already there.
recently announced of its Aguascalientes facility to produce up to 175,000 units annually. According to the Bureau report, “the sprawling Aguascalientes complex has been laid out with the idea that the German maker will eventually participate.” Daimler hasn’t commented officially, but if it does happen, then that would give Daimler and Renault-Nissan two tie-up locations, the other being in Tennessee where for the Mercedes-Benz A-Class (a prototype for which is shown above).
One of the factors at the heart of the Mexico decision would be Mercedes’ MFA platform, which supports the A- and B-Class vehicles soon headed here: that platform is also expected to underpin the production . And if Renault-Nissan CEO can be believed, then a great deal more sharing between the two firms is an eventuality, and further up the food chain at that. last year, “You’d be very surprised if in five or six years that Mercedes and Renault-Nissan had only cooperated on small cars.”
Car dealers have a strange and oftentimes contentious relationship with the carmakers. Stories of automakers shoveling unsaleable models down the pipeline with unreasonable expectations are legion in the car sales world. With the number of family-owned, single-brand dealerships dwindling, dealers often field competing franchises. The concept of loyalty is as quaint as a . So it’s worth noting the automotive brands that are actually liked by the guys selling them.
The National Automobile Dealers Association conducts its Dealer Attitude Survey twice each year, and results from the summer survey are in. stayed on top for the third time in a row, followed by , , , and . The survey measures three factors: “franchise value, automaker policy decisions that affect the dealership and the automaker’s field staff who visit dealerships.”
Sixth place went to , while , , and followed. and tied for tenth. NADA received responses from over 14,700 dealerships, representing almost 54 percent of all dealers nationwide.
Usually our sister publication is out putting futuristic transportation hardware through the paces or talking to geeks who are trying to reimagine the very infrastructure of our world. But this week, the show has a decidedly more conventional subject: Interviews with Daimler CEO Dieter Zetsche and CEO Alan Mulally.
Both of these automotive bigwigs were wandering the halls of the earlier this month (, a job ), which is where Translogic caught up with them for a chat and demonstration of their CES wares. Zetsche showed off a new gesture-based in-car interface, as well as some new active safety technology for . Mulally plugged Ford’s new hybrid and plug-in hybrid , as well as showing off the . Give it a watch .
Love it or hate it, the automotive industry of today is not lacking for its exercises in reviving old nameplates. The trend ranges from to , from to . And the French are certainly not immune. Citroën revived its fabled DS moniker for a range of premium hatchbacks, and Renault – most of all – has been mulling bringing back the Alpine for years now.
Arguably just as central to Renault’s performance heritage as the recently revived Gordini line, Alpine made mid-engined sportscars with Renault mechanicals starting in the 1950s and discontinued four decades later. Its most famous model, however, was the A110 (pictured above), which is now celebrating its 50th anniversary. And if a new report from Autocar is accurate, Renault has no intention of letting the occasion slip by unnoticed.
In fact, the French automaker is reportedly planning an Alpine concept car to unveil at the next fall. But the question remains whether there’s any production potential with such a concept. The French are known for producing some rather intriguing show cars – sportscars in particular – that never seem to get very far from the show stand, from the GTbyCitroën to the Renault DeZir.
Whether Renault can make the business case – without the North American market, at that – to take on the sports car establishment remains to be seen, but having the product bin to raid certainly couldn’t hurt.
Car dealers have a strange and oftentimes contentious relationship with the carmakers. Stories of automakers shoveling unsaleable models down the pipeline with unreasonable expectations are legion in the car sales world. With the number of family-owned, single-brand dealerships dwindling, dealers often field competing franchises. The 
