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Honda is massaging the 2013 Accord line with more modern gearboxes and trims to match its more modern design (the non-conceptual version of which still has yet to be seen). In addition to the six-speed manual replacing the five-cogger currently offered on four-cylinder models, the folks at the Temple of VTEC forum have found an order sheet indicating a CVT will be available on mid-range LX, EX and EX-L models. For the enthusiasts hoping for the manual to return to the V6 sedan, no dice – the 6AT is what you’ll get.

The sheet also omits the sedan’s current SE trim slotted between the LX and EX, and in its stead is a Sport trim. It can be had with either the manual or the CVT, but it’s not listed with the “navi” option. The coupe’s trims remain the same. When we can put these specs together with the actual 2013 car, then we’ll start to guess how it will far against its archfoe, the Toyotal Camry.

Leaked order sheet reveals Sport trim, CVT for 2013 Accord

After Lawrence Drake gave up his pickup truck for a Chevrolet HHR, he wanted a camping shelter more hardy than a tent. The trick? Finding a solution that was in line with the HHR’s 1,000-pound tow capacity. He found it when he designed the Teal Camper, a modular enclosure that fits on a four-by-eight trailer and weighs just 630 pounds empty, including the trailer.

Basically, the camper is a set of weather-sealed panels that are bound with Phillips-head bolts and a strap. They come in a few configurations, such as corner pieces and those with windows and door openings, and you can assemble them in rectangular shapes as small or large as you like. The standard kit comes with a bed that sleeps two and a table, but Drake has designed lightweight optional fixtures like canvas cabinets. There’s also a pop-top that can extend headroom to six feet, and the entire assembly can be bolted to a plywood floor with straps or angle brackets.

Drake’s gone as far as he can on his own resources and is looking for investors for manufacturing. As such, there’s no price tag yet but he projects around $3,000 for an empty shell. It’s a neat concept that we think deserves a shot. Check it out in the gallery of photos.

Teal Camper brings modularity to the outdoors

After Lawrence Drake gave up his pickup truck for a Chevrolet HHR, he wanted a camping shelter more hardy than a tent. The trick? Finding a solution that was in line with the HHR’s 1,000-pound tow capacity. He found it when he designed the Teal Camper, a modular enclosure that fits on a four-by-eight trailer and weighs just 630 pounds empty, including the trailer.

Basically, the camper is a set of weather-sealed panels that are bound with Phillips-head bolts and a strap. They come in a few configurations, such as corner pieces and those with windows and door openings, and you can assemble them in rectangular shapes as small or large as you like. The standard kit comes with a bed that sleeps two and a table, but Drake has designed lightweight optional fixtures like canvas cabinets. There’s also a pop-top that can extend headroom to six feet, and the entire assembly can be bolted to a plywood floor with straps or angle brackets.

Drake’s gone as far as he can on his own resources and is looking for investors for manufacturing. As such, there’s no price tag yet but he projects around $3,000 for an empty shell. It’s a neat concept that we think deserves a shot. Check it out in the gallery of photos.

Teal Camper brings modularity to the oudoors

Audi is rapidly expanding its crossover range, with the Q3 recently joining the Q5 and Q7, not to mention the BMW X6-rivaling Q6 that’s in the pipeline. But now, according to Auto Express, Audi is working on an entry-level Q2 crossover that would take on the likes of the Nissan Juke and Mini Countryman.

Auto Express has come up with a rendering of the Q2 (pictured right, click to see the full deal), which we’ll reportedly see in concept form sometime in the next 12 months, and – surprise, surprise – it looks like a sportier Q3 or, more to the point, a high-riding A1. Because of its small size, powertrains will likely be plucked out of the A1 range, meaning a 1.4-liter turbocharged inline-four and a 1.6-liter diesel four will be offered.

Audi will also reportedly take a cue from Mini with the Q2 launch, encouraging owners to personalize their small CUVs in a number of ways. According to the report, buyers will be able to opt for contrasting roof and mirror colors, as well as different-colored major interior trim bits, including the seats and steering wheel.

The Q2 will ride on the same MQB architecture that is set to underpin the full range of Volkswagen Group small cars. That said, Auto Express reports that the Q2 will launch before the rest of the small cars are facelifted in 2014.

Audi Q2 to take on Nissan Juke?

We just attended a thorough workshop covering the tech inside the next Audi A3, the new compact from Ingolstadt that the U.S. gets in October 2013 as a five-door Sportback model, as well as a new four-door small sedan. A concept version of the four-door was shown at the Geneva Motor Show last year, while deliveries of this European hatchback start this July.

Our first drive of the three-door premium hatchback model that will be available at launch happens later this month, though it’s sort of a shame we won’t be getting this three-door here in the States. The five-door Sportback model that will be sold in the U.S. will be shown this October at the Paris Motor Show and will be available in Western European in January of next year. The premium hatch segment is fillling up fast now with this Audi, then the Volvo V40, to be followed then by the all-new Mercedes-Benz A-Class.

Continue reading New details on the next Audi A3

New details on the next Audi A3

Motor Trend reports Toyota may have plans to resurrect the Supra name, or at least a new sports coupe to fill the role of the long-dead two door. Hot on the heels of sports cars like the Lexus LFA and Scion FR-S, designers are reportedly working on dusting off the 2007 FT-HS Concept for another go at life. Paired with the company’s GRMN MRS prototype chassis, the vehicle will likely deliver up to 400 horsepower from a 3.5-liter V6 engine and an electric motor.

If the notion of a hybrid Supra is enough to ruffle your feathers, you may want to stop reading right now. Unlike the previous sports coupe, the new model will make use of an all-wheel-drive system. Still reading? MT reports the machine will put power to all four wheels via a CVT pulled from the Lexus RX.

That noise? It’s the sound of a lonely sad trombone echoing down the halls of the internet.

Of course, all of this seems to be little more than a few educated guesses stuck together. Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda has voiced his support for a Supra successor in the past, and if green-lit, the model could see production by 2015. Early guesses say the car would bow with a $60,000 price tag, which would make for a perfect argument against sticking a new NSX in your garage.

Toyota Supra successor back in the cards?

With BMW readying a refreshed X1 crossover for the U.S. this fall, Mercedes-Benz is looking to play Burger King to the Bavarian automaker’s McDonald’s, launching its own kiddie-sized crossover next year. According to Car, the new model, formerly known as BLK, is now called GLA, thanks to the marque’s new nomenclature.

The GLA will share a platform with the new A-Class and B-Class, riding on what Mercedes refers to as its MFA architecture. Car says the GLA will be about the same size as the B-Class pictured above, at 174.8 inches long, 70.9 inches wide, and 59 inches tall, with a 106.2-inch wheelbase – just slightly smaller than the X1. The magazine doesn’t have any specific information about what might be powering the new crossover, but says it will share powertrains with its platform-mates. This means we can probably expect the turbocharged, 208-horsepwoer, 2.0-liter four-cylinder with direct injection that we saw in the Concept Style Coupe at Beijing to be fitted underhood once the GLA arrives Stateside.

New entry-level Mercedes crossover to be dubbed GLA

Mini will launch its seventh model – a two-door version of the Countryman crossover – at the Paris Motor Show later this year, and our trusty spy photographers recently spotted this prototype out testing. Many sources have stated that the car will be dubbed Countryman Coupe when it hits the market, but we’ve also heard rumors that the vehicle will wear the Paceman name that was given to the original concept that debuted at the 2011 Detroit Auto Show.

Whatever it ends up being called, the two-door Countryman formula is pretty simple. The rear doors have been removed, allowing for a more swept-back roofline that integrates into an updated rear fascia. The rear end design – as previewed in these spy shots, anyway – is immediately reminiscent of the Land Rover Evoque, the Countryman’s main competitor.

Mum’s the word on powertrain choices, though we’d expect the four-door Countryman’s range of naturally aspirated and turbocharged engines to carry over largely unchanged, mated to both front- and all-wheel drive. Stay tuned for the car’s official unveiling in Paris later this year.

Mini Paceman Countryman Coupe spotted testing

The supermini market is a vital one for European automakers, and though its current Clio remains a popular choice, Renault is not about to rest on its proverbial laurels as its most popular model gets older and less relevant. So with that in mind, the French carmaker is apparently preparing to unveil an all-new Clio hatchback at the next major auto salon.

That show won’t be taking place until September when Renault’s home-market Paris Auto Salon opens its doors at the Port de Versailles, but a pair of teaser shots have already surfaced giving us a tiny glimpse at what to expect. The images – reportedly leaked from internal documents – show the grille and a sliver of the rear 3/4. The front looks to take cues from the smaller Twingo, while the rear betrays an upward kink in the shoulder, more aggressive taillights and an altogether more sculpted shape.

Styling penned by Laurens van der Acker is expected overall to take its lead from the DeZir Concept. We’ll have to wait until after the summer to see it in full, though.

Renault to unveil new Clio at Paris show in September

We can’t tell you how many times we’ve asked an automotive executive about future product plans only to be given the default, “We’re investigating new options,” or, “Anything is possible,” write-offs. So, to that end, here’s another bit of grease for the ever-spinning rumormill.

Auto Express reports that Land Rover could possibly launch a sportier version of its entry-level Evoque, dubbed – wait for it – Evoque Sport. The news comes after the British magazine sat down with Gerry McGovern, Land Rover’s design director, at the recent Beijing Motor Show. When pressed about plans to expand the Evoque range, McGovern stated, “For the moment, we’re looking at the cabriolet and special editions – we could do a more overtly sporty one, for example.”

A suggestion, Land Rover: Move the Evoque Sport above the cabriolet on your to-do list.

McGovern didn’t spill any more beans about what a Land Rover Range Rover Evoque Sport (what a mouthful) would be powered by, but Auto Express suggests it would likely be a boosted version of the 2.0-liter turbocharged four found in the current model. Of course, more visual aggression would be added in the way of larger wheels, a body kit and a lowered suspension. Beefier chassis and brake components would likely be added to enhance the drive experience, as well.

Assuming the Evoque Sport does come to fruition, we likely wouldn’t see it until the end of next year since the current vehicle is still a newborn in the market. So, for now, rumormill, keep on spinning.

Sportier Range Rover Evoque planned?

From show floor to evacuation route, one concept vehicle got the chance to test it’s meddle in the real world.

The Ford F-550 Super Duty Rescue Truck was created to demonstrate extreme rescue capabilities not actually use them. It first went on display in February at the Chicago Auto Show.

But on April 3, with just two miles on its odometer, this concept vehicle found itself in the thick of a real-life rescue mission. A series of devastating tornadoes had ripped through Arlington, Texas, overwhelming every fire-rescue department in the region. Destruction was everywhere.

Worse yet, many of the neighborhood streets were filled with debris ranging from roofs to cars and the big fire trucks couldn’t maneuver through them.

That’s when Brad Snyder, vice president of marketing at NewScope Marketing in Grandbury, Texas, got a call the Arlington emergency services director for help. The director knew the local volunteer fire department had advised Snyder on building an extreme rescue vehicle for Ford Motor Co. and now the city needed its help.

“When we proposed the truck to Ford, one of the things Ford required was that everything on the truck actually work,” Snyder said Tuesday. That’s not always the case with concept vehicles, which often could not even qualify to ride on a U.S. highway.

“We never intended to put it into service,” Snyder said. But put it to work they did. Keep on reading to find out how.

Continue reading Ford rescue concept truck pressed into service to help tornado victims

Ford rescue concept truck pressed into service to help tornado victims

Mini has made it clear that it is hard at work on a successor to the automaker’s bread-and-butter Cooper. Word has it we’ll get our first glimpse at the next-generation Mini toward the end of next year, and when it debuts, Sonny Lim believes the machine will be smaller, more mainstream and far less gimmicky than the current creation.

Having served as the senior designer with BMW DesignWorksUSA, Lim knows a thing or two about BMW styling. His sketches show a modern three-door hatch that’s still easily-identifiable as a Mini thanks to bulging fender arches pushed far to the vehicle’s corners, pie-plate headlights and a traditional Mini grille.

Lim says the next-generation Cooper will be more true to the concept of the original Cooper. Measuring in at just 140.6 inches from stem to stern, the Mini Zero Concept is shorter than the current hatchback and just slightly longer than the the now deceased Mini Rocketman Concept. The clipped size means the Zero weighs in at 1,851 pounds, which should help it yield better fuel economy and performance with minimal changes to the drivetrain. Head over to Behance.net for a deeper dive.

Sonny Lim sketches the next-generation Mini

Honda is looking toward the future. A new Japanese ad for the company has made its way to YouTube featuring some of the most important models in the automaker’s past. From lowly bicycles and small-displacement motorcycles to the ever-sexy 1965 RA272 F1 car and perfectly proportioned S800, the ghosts of yesterday are all lined up behind the new Acura NSX Concept. The spot spends plenty of time talking about the power of dreams and determination before finally ending on the rally cry of “Let’s surpass yesterday’s Honda!” The simple spot is titled “We won’t be beaten.”

At least that’s according to the subtitles. The announcer could be reading us his grocery list for all we know. If the translation is accurate, though, it sounds like Honda is tacitly acknowledging that it needs to pull itself up by its bootstraps and get back into fighting shape. Let’s hope they figure it out. Scroll down to watch the video for yourself.

Continue reading Honda shows off greatest hits in new Japanese ad

Honda shows off greatest hits in new Japanese ad

Sponsoring most events is pretty straightforward for any company: fork over the right sum of cash and you’re the new official automaker/timekeeper/jelly donut of whatever the event is. But for BMW, its status as Official Automotive Partner of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games is a bit more complicated.

Even pledging to fork over a massive fleet with 4,000 vehicles to the organizing committee wasn’t enough for the German automaker to secure its status. BMW also had to meet the committee’s stringent emissions requirements: while the average emissions of vehicles in the UK comes in at 138 grams of CO2 per kilometer, the automaker supplying these Olympic games had to come in below 120 g/km – which BMW did at 116 g/km.

To get there, a portion of the cars BMW is supplying are electric vehicles: 160 units of the 1 Series ActiveE and 40 of the Mini E, with another 40 of the 5 Series Active Hybrid. The rest of the fleet is comprised of the 320d EfficientDynamics (1,550 vehicles), 520d Efficient Dynamics (700), X3 xDrive 20d (17), X5 xDrive 30d (10) and Mini Countryman Cooper D (200 vehicles), plus another 25 R1200 RT motorcycles and 400 BMW Streetcruiser bicycles.

Wondering what they’ll be doing with all those cars? They’ll be used for everything from shuttling around the athletes, officials, medics and journalists to hauling boats out of the water. Scroll down below for the full details.

Continue reading BMW unveils armada of vehicles for London Olympics

BMW unveils armada of vehicles for London Olympics

Automotive News reports Mitsubishi plans to bring its recently unveiled Mirage to the Canadian market, and that the five-door hatch has a 50-percent chance of making it to U.S. buyers as well. Mitsubishi pulled the Mirage nameplate from the U.S. in 2002, but unveiled a new version of the car in Thailand just last month. At a smidge over 146 inches long, the tiny hatch would be a suitable competitor for the likes of the Chevrolet Spark and give dealers a much-needed product infusion. The company killed off the Eclipse, Eclipse Spyder and the Endeavor just recently and Mitsubishi showrooms are starting to look decidedly emaciated.

But Mitsubishi says it may not be as simple as dropping the new Mirage on U.S. soil and hoping for the best. The automaker has a reworked Outlander coming down the pike, and launching two models in close succession may make already scarce marketing dollars even harder to come by.

Then there’s the fact that the new Mirage is a no-nonsense, bare-bones creation designed to appeal to the budget-minded buyers of South Asia. Mitsubishi has some reservations about unleashing the model on content-hungry Americans. Even so, Mitsubishi says the company has yet to reach an official decision about a U.S. launch.

Mitsubishi Mirage headed to Canada, U.S. sales chances “50-50″

It takes a lot to stand apart at an exposition as jam-packed with glitzy treasure as the Frankfurt Motor Show and impress the hordes of automotive journalists there assembled, but we were suitably impressed when we laid eyes upon the Rimac Concept_One at the Messe this past September. The Croatian upstart put together a supercar of (figurative, if not literal) Bugatti proportions, but instead of building it around a fossil-guzzling conventional powerplant, Rimac designed its hypercar with the equivalent of 1,088-horsepower worth of electric motors.

With a 92kW battery powering the electric motors at each wheel, the Rimac is said to be capable of rocketing to 62 from a standstill in just 2.8 seconds while traveling as far as 372 miles on a single charge. The team of former Pininfarina designers penned an attractive shape to go with it, the Bulgarian leathercrafters extraordinaires at Vilner were brought in to craft the interior, HRE developed a unique set of monoblock alloys and Vredestein debuted its new Ultrac Vorti tires designed by Giugiaro all for the Concept_One.

Impressive specs, all, but what’s most impressive is that the Concept_One is no mere concept – you can actually buy it, assuming you’ve got the scratch. Upon showcasing the electric supercar at Top Marques in Monaco, Rimac announced a limited run of 88 examples will be built, each fetching $980,000 – a price as princely as the regent who was on hand to check it out in Monte Carlo. Which only goes to prove that you can, indeed, have your cake and eat it too, but it’ll cost you dearly.

Take a closer look at the fresh crop of high-resolution images added to the gallery above and check out the bonus video of the car moving under its own power by scrolling below.

Continue reading Rimac Concept_One shows up in Monaco with $980k sticker price [w/video]

Rimac Concept_One shows up in Monaco with $980k sticker price [w/video]

If you want a top-of-the-line SUV with serious performance capabilities, look no further than the Volkswagen Group. Its Porsche unit has had tremendous success with the Cayenne, a vehicle that has doubled its sales all on its own – and that’s not even accounting for the Volkswagen Touareg or Audi Q7 that share some of its underpinnings. Keen to capitalize on that success, the German auto giant is overseeing the application of the same formula to two of its other divisions: Lamborghini, which just unveiled its new Urus concept, and Bentley, which is working on an SUV of its own.

The British marque has been showcasing the EXP 9 F concept to preview what it has in store. It only hinted at powertrain possibilities upon its unveiling at the Geneva Motor Show, but at the Beijing Motor Show, it got ever so slightly more specific. Like the Continental range, the production version of the Bentley sport-ute would pack a 600-horsepower, 6.0-liter twin-turbo W12, but offer the (relatively) more sensible 500hp, 4.0L twin-turbo V8 as well. The bigger news, however, is the V6 plug-in hybrid option which Bentley is planning for its SUV, enabling it to travel up to 30 kilometers (18.6 miles) on electric-only mode, while rocketing to 100 km/h (62 mph) in less than five seconds.

Bentley projects the variety of powertrain options will help it sell 3,000 units of the vehicle once it enters production in 2015 – the same figures sister-company Lamborghini is projecting for the Urus. To put that into context, consider that Bentley sold just over 7,000 vehicles (from its current Continental and Mulsanne lines) around the world last year. That’s still a far cry from the number of Cayennes that Porsche churns out – it delivered nearly 13,000 of them in the United States alone last year – but then the EXP 9 F is expected to carry a price tag north of $200,000 (double the price of even the most expensive Cayenne Turbo) while sharing common components to make its first entrance into SUV market a lucrative one for the Flying B brand.

Scope out the fresh high-resolution images we’ve added to the gallery above for another look at the EXP 9 F (which is still expected to look different by the time it comes to production), and scroll down for the press release containing powertrain information.

Continue reading Bentley aims to sell 3K SUVs annually… including plug-in hybrid version

Bentley aims to sell 3K SUVs annually… including plug-in hybrid version

The Nuccio concept, showed off by Bertone as a rolling model at the Geneva Motor Show and then as a road-ready car at the Beijing Motor Show is in talks to be sold. An update on the Lancia Stratos Zero concept from the seventies and powered by a 4.3-liter Ferrari V8 with 480 horsepower, the Nuccio was a 15,000-hour exercise in what the company’s historical language could look like today.

A Chinese collector was so taken with it that, according to a report in Automtive News, he is in discussions with Bertone to drop €2 million ($2.7 million) to take it home. If the deal is closed, he won’t get to take it home until after Pebble Beach weekend, where Bertone plans to again display the Nuccio.

Bertone may sell Nuccio Concept to collector for $2.65M

Lamborghini was in the off-road business before the cult classic LM002, cooperating with MTI on a military vehicle concept dubbed Cheetah in the mid-seventies that it hoped to sell to the U.S. armed forces. The 4,500-pound, fiberglass-bodied troop carrier used a 5.9-liter, 180-horsepower Chrysler engine mounted in back. Hardly Cheetah-like, the vehicle delivered lackluster performance and didn’t handle well.

Even worse, it was a badly translated copy of a vehicle already made by another firm, which landed MTI and Lamborghini in court when the Cheetah was revealed at the 1977 Geneva Motor Show. The U.S. military tested the sole prototype and totaled it.

Perhaps this is the worst part: the Cheetah was such an expensive failure for Lamborghini that it was one of the reasons the company was unable to follow through on its commitment to BMW for the M1 project.

And with that history lesson digested, you’ll get even more wry satisfaction from the narrator’s dialogue in the Cheetah promo video, which you’ll find just below.

Continue reading Watch a vintage Lamborghini Cheetah SUV promo

Watch a vintage Lamborghini Cheetah SUV promo

Lamborghini 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 Urus and Deimos, 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.

Lamborghini trademarks Huracán