has just released a teaser image of what it says is an all-new, designed-in-America sedan that will debut at the next week. It isn’t immediately clear if the vehicle will be a concept or production car, but Toyota has issued no showcar qualifiers, suggesting it’s something that will be in dealers soon. Described as having “an elegant yet athletic look,” the teased rear end most likely belongs to the next-generation full-size sedan.
While we can’t be sure until the wraps are removed in New York, the Avalon is our best guess based on who were shown it last year in June. The dealers drew comparisons between the redesigned Avalon and upscale cars like the and , suggesting it will transition from a traditional sedan to a four-door coupe shape. The teaser image provided today by Toyota supports this, showing a severely sloped C-pillar and little-to-no rear deck. And while the cut lines for the trunk aren’t visible in this rendering, we wouldn’t be surprised if that’s a hatch.
Toyota’s new sedan, whatever it is, will makes its worldwide debut on April 5 at the New York Auto Show. We’ll be there covering it live, so keep your computer tuned to Autoblog for more.
Why don’t they make four-door convertibles anymore? Because the roof mechanism would just be too darn big, that’s why. But there’s at least one company out to change that. And, of course, they’re Dutch.
That outfit is Savage Rivale, the braintrust behind the Roadyacht GTS. Rather than a wafting parade car like the Phaetons of yore, the Savage Rivale Roadyacht GTS is more like a four-door . With a retracting hard top.
The vehicle is still in the development phase, with the (fixed-roof) set to debut next month at the Top Marques show in Monaco. But in the meantime, the Dutch firm has released an animated clip of the Retractable Telescopic Multi Panel (RTMP) roof mechanism it has developed for the Roadyacht with Inalfa Roof Systems.
The mechanism is based around a retractable arm that deploys with the glass panels and then forms the backbone for the structure once in place, with locking mechanisms in the C pillars. It’s about as thorough a rethink of the folding roof as the one former Pininfarina designer Leonardo Fioravanti created for the Ferrari 575 Superamerica (and later adapted for the and ), but it’s a little hard to imagine, so we’ll let the speak for itself.
There’s no lack of choices in timepieces for automotive enthusiasts, but unfortunately most of them come down to simply slapping an automaker’s name or logo (or that of a racing series or driver) on an existing timepiece and calling it a day. That, however, is not the route has gone with its new timepiece.
In fact, you’d have to turn this watch over to see the Trident logo on the casebook. Instead, Bulgari has opted to let the design and the mechanical precision it encases speak to the same themes it shares with its new automotive partner.
The Octo Maserati watch is built around the highly sophisticated Calibre GG7800 automatic chronograph movement which Bulgari crafts itself at the Manufacture de Haute Horlogerie Bulgari in Le Sentier, Switzerland. Rather than displaying its time through the ordinary combination of hands sweeping around the dial, the Octo watch places a jumping hour window at the 12 o’clock position and retrograde displays for the minutes, date and chronograph counters.
The 45-jewel movement is backed by a 38-hour power reserve and encased in a 45-millimeter brushed steel case with scratch-resistant, anti-glare sapphire crystal front and back. The blue-lacquered dial is designed to recall a Maserati’s grille, and the piece is affixed to the wrist by a blue calfskin strap with butterfly clasp. We dare not ask what a timepiece like this will sell for, but trust that it will be sufficiently Maserati-like in its sticker. So the closest we’re likely to get is the high-resolution images in the gallery and the press release .
The redesigned is already selling quite well, and it looks like the three-row crossover is about to add another variant to boost the bottom line a little more. posted on its Facebook page a 26-second video that teases a high-performance version of the Explorer.
The video show only a mesh grille, a beefy exhaust and what appears to be body-color wheels. There’s not much else we can share about the brawny family hauler, but we think it’s safe to speculate that an EcoBoost 3.5-liter V6 with 350 or so horsepower lies in waiting under the hood of this Explorer Sport.
The good news about this tease is that we won’t have to wait long to see the finished product. Ford tells us that the powerful CUV will be officially unveiled on the on March 28. to watch the video for yourself, and stay tuned for more information on this hi-po ‘ute as we get it.
Autocar reports may be mulling a production version of the company’s LF-LC Concept. After receiving a near universally positive reception following its unveiling at the Detroit Auto Show this year, Karl Schlicht, head of Lexus product planning, reportedly gave the vehicle a 50-50 shot at hitting dealers sometime in the future. Those aren’t great odds, but it is a change of tone from when the vehicle first hit the stage. Back in January, made it very clear the LF-LC was strictly a concept. As you may recall, the vehicle is a 2+2 coupe with a hybrid drivetrain and a low-slung presence.
According to Schlicht, the vehicle would have never even been considered for production if it had merely been submitted as a design proposal. With a physical concept backed by chorus of positive reviews, the company’s decision makers have evidently been prompted to give the LF-LC a second look.
Schlicht himself is set to become the head of product planning for Toyota and Lexus starting on April 1.
Svelte as it still looks, the is getting a little long in the proverbial tooth – first launched the 2+2 way back in 2004. As such, it’s high time the British purveyor of luxury GTs gear up to roll out a new model, and this is the best look we’ve had at it yet.
Spied virtually undisguised while undergoing winter testing in the snow, the new DB9 (or whatever AML opts to call it) carries all the trademark elements of a contemporary Aston Martindesign. The grille appears to be a little smaller and the rear fenders pack a more pronounced curve. Expect the new V12 GT to arrive sometime next year, but you can check it out now in the high-res gallery of spy shots above.
may be out to improve the fuel economy of its powertrains by throwing extra gears into the transmission. Automobile Magazine reports the Japanese automaker is currently working to use a new nine-speed gearbox developed by ZF in its products as soon as 2014. If you’re keeping track, this is the same transmission set to debut in a host of products, including the replacement for the .
Despite the additional gears, ZF says the transmission is surprisingly compact, thanks in part to the fact that it uses planetary gears in place of a traditional design. Called the 9HP, the German transmission can be used in either front- or all-wheel drive applications and handle up to 354 pound-feet of torque.
All told, ZF claims the 9HP can improve a vehicle’s fuel economy as much as 10 to 16 percent. Given the torque capacities and relatively small size, the transmission could show up in nearly everything Honda makes, but odds are the company will debut the gearbox in models like the and as well as the and .
Didn’t get your deposit down in time to secure a condo in ? Not to worry, because just across town – that town being Miami – Pininfarina has been contracted to design another building.
Developed by the Related Group, 1100 Millecento Residences (pictured) is being designed by Uruguayan architect Carlos Ott at 1100 South Miami Avenue. So where does Pininfarina come in? Aside from Ott citing the famed Italian automotive design house and coachbuilder as a primary influence in his work, the developers have brought Pininfarina in on the project to design the interior space of the building – the first such project it’s undertaken in America.
That includes all 382 apartments in the 42-story tower, along with the ninth-floor pool deck with club room, the rooftop infinity pool with private cabanas, the fitness center and the private theater. We’re told to expect a lot of exotic woods and Italian leather. But then we’d expect no less from any project Pininfarina might undertake, automotive or otherwise. See for the brief press release.
The massive tent at Barrett-Jackson’s Scottsdale auction is an impressive sight. Occupying 120,000 square feet and stretching a quarter mile, it sufficiently houses the hundreds of collector cars and thousands of visitors that pass through it every January. Even so, the tent needs to be rebuilt annually, and the auction company has been pushing for a permanent facility for more than a decade. Now it looks like their wish will be granted, as the Scottsdale, AZ city council has approved construction of a new building on the WestWorld grounds where the current event is held.
The new facility is estimated to cost around $40 million, but Barrett-Jackson says that it’ll save money in the long run on temporary infrastructure costs. The building will also be designed to better accommodate the constant flow of cars driving up to the auction block as, well as have dedicated areas for SPEED’s TV crews and food and vendor services. Barrett-Jackson says that it also plans to build a new headquarters and car museum on land adjacent to WestWorld.
Official details on the plans for the new building are in the press release from Barrett-Jackson after the jump.
The right occasion calls for the right footwear. figures its customers should have the right shoes to drive their GTs, so the British automaker has collaborated with the shoemakers at John Lobb on a special collection of driving shoes.
Called Winner Sport, the shoes are made of full-grain calfskin, lined with sheepskin and perforated in just the right places for a unique look. A joint design effort between Aston Martin design director Marek Reichman and his counterpart Andrés Hernández at John Lobb, they feature bonded rubber soles (in either white or red, with coordinating laces) that wrap underneath the shoe for better pedal control. Like what you see? Click the images to view in higher resolution and follow the jump for the full press release.
Martin teams with John Lobb for special driving shoes
Automotive News reports is staying the course with the company’s EXP 9 F SUV Concept. The ultra-luxury automaker plans to bring the vehicle to the Beijing Motor Show exactly as it appeared at the Geneva Motor Show earlier this month, despite the fact that the concept didn’t exactly debut to resounding acclaim. Critics described the design as awkward and unbecoming of nameplate like Bentley, but the automaker says it wants to vet the design in as many markets as possible before finalizing the exterior. Here’s hoping the crowds in China are as repulsed as those in Switzerland.
The EXP 9 F has already been green-lit for production, and while we have no qualm with the thought of a high-riding luxury brute with a twin-turbo 12-cylinder engine under the hood, we’d like to see something a little less muddled outside. Bentley says an SUV will give the company a leg up in markets like the Middle East and China, where luxury SUVs remain king. Through the first two months of this year, the company’s sales are up 66 percent in China, putting the country ahead of the United States as the largest market for Bentley products.
Consumer Reports has just wrapped up an evaluation of subcompact sedans, and the has rolled out ahead of the class. The four-door beat out its corporate clone, the and the to take the top spot. Evaluators pointed to the sharp handling and well-optioned interior in the Rio as reasons for the vehicle’s win. The newly redesigned and unloved filled out the top five sedans. And what of the baby hatchbacks? CR once again credited the as leader of the pack, followed closely by the Versa Hatchback and Rio Hatchback.
The organization found fault with the base Chevrolet Sonic’s fuel economy, and found the turbocharged LTZ model to be too expensive. Evaluators also felt the Sonic Turbo “didn’t live up to its sporty aspirations.”
We’ll politely agree to disagree on that one.
All of the vehicles in the evaluation are either too new or scored too low in CR evaluations to earn a coveted Recommended rating. for a look at the full press release and debate amongst yourselves in Comments.
Accent and Chevy Sonic top Consumer Reports subcompact shootout
When Ford unveiled the at the New Delhi Auto Expo in January, we were smitten. A pint-sized, good-looking CUV with thrifty engines could do well here in the States. Brazil’s Noticias Automotivas has caught what looks like a production EcoSport sans camo before it undergoes crash testing and, as promised, it looks little changed from the showcar.
The sparkly LED-powered headlights are gone but everything else seems to be very close to what design boss told us about in New Delhi. The final version is expected to come with two engine options: the 1.6-liter Sigma and the 2.0 liter Duratec.
Despite Ford’s plans to expand the EcoSport beyond Brazil, we’re not hopeful it’ll be sold in North America, as we’ve heard Blue Oval executives dismiss the -sized CUV as too small. Be sure to check out Noticias Automotivas for additional photos of the new EcoSport.
has not been long known for polarizing design. The company’s styling philosophy has read more closely along the lines of “cheap and cheerful.” But when it brought out the in 2008 as a 2009 model, Ford started down a road of trying to be more expressive, emotional and evocative in the design of its crossovers and SUVs, not just with the Mustang.
For Ford, the Flex has been one of those hollow victories. The people who buy it love its Mini-Cooper-on-a-high-protein-diet look, especially with the available two-tone paint jobs, and the comfortable packaging and cruising ride they get without bumping up to a frumpy minivan. The trouble is that there haven’t been enough of those happy buyers taking the plunge.
Ford sold just 27,000 Flex models last year, down 20 percent from the year before – not exactly one of CEO Alan Mulally’s homeruns. Also, its marketing has been confused since its debut. Ford initially pitched it as a cool urban crew wagon – think Funkmaster Flex. The advertising Powerpoint presentation actually said “No dog drool.” No kidding. The high-concept ads were all shot at night on city streets. It bombed. Soon after launch, we saw families and even a dog or two in ads.
Replica carmakers take notice: Daimler will not tolerate copies of its signature 300 SL. At all. And if you fail to heed this warning and build a full-size replica of a 300 SL gullwing, justice will come down like three tons of bricks upon your unlicensed creation.
German customs officials recently confiscated what looks to be a very faithful reproduction of a 300 SL from a German company, albeit rendered in fiberglass, and they apparently notified the folks at Daimler, who didn’t take too kindly to the unauthorized likeness of their icon.
In their press release (available after the jump), Daimler says the body of the 300 SL is a “work of applied art” that has been under copyright protection for decades. And to make clear their intent to protect that copyright they also remind us they have “long taken a tough approach to vehicle replicas.”
The recently seized copy found out just how tough when the Mercedes-Benz used parts centre (responsible for scrapping the company’s unwanted prototypes) put the replica SL in a 30-ton industrial press and transformed it from illegal to unrecognizable. It then received the official “confirmation of scrappage” designation.
Guys never seemed to warm up to the Volkswagen New Beetle, and it doesn’t take a dual master’s degree in psychology and automotive design to figure out why. The outgoing Beetle featured sheetmetal that could only be described as cutesy, and many (most?) men tend to shy away from vehicles that might result in the questioning of their manhood.
Only 29 percent of New Beetle sales went to men, but Bloomberg reports that a more masculine design has put the back on dudes’ shopping lists. Since the Beetle went on sale in September, men have accounted for a much more robust 43 percent of overall sales. In general, men also appear to be quite fond of diesel power, as dudes accounted for 70 percent of oil-burning models. This suggests Volkswagen’s of a arriving later this summer could boost the VW’s male contingency even further.
The more chiseled redesign is, of course, credited for the Beetle’s newfound male suitors, and commercials geared towards a male audience likely haven’t hurt. But while the Beetle has been more appealing to men while selling better than the old model, we’re guessing would like to see immense improvement from February’s .
The Detroit News is reporting that General Motors will replace the 120-volt power cords on the majority of models the company has sold since 2010. The new charge cords are said to be more durable than the old hardware and should provide “more consistency in charging,” according to the report. GM has sold around 10,000 Volt units since the plug-in hybrid went on sale two years ago, and while some of those vehicles have already shipped with the new charge cords, most still use the old design.
Volt owners may also contact their dealers to begin scheduling appointments to have additional crash structure added around the vehicle’s battery packs. The additional steel is designed to protect against severe side-impacts. Technicians are also expected to add a new sensor to monitor battery coolant levels. The changes are in response to a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration investigation into unlikely . GM will reportedly without the new structure and sensor, saying neither poses a safety issue.
Sure, we think of as an American automaker. One of the most American, at that. But its eponymous founder wasn’t born in these United States. He was born in Switzerland. La Chaux-de-Fonds, to be exact, and so to celebrate the brand’s 100th centenary, it has commissioned a local artist to erect a statue of Louis Chevrolet in his hometown’s Parc de l’Ouest.
The giant polished steel bust was created by budding artist Christian Gonzenbach, whose design was selected by an international jury from among four finalists. Measuring five meters (16.4 feet) tall, the oversize bust was commissioned by and will remain in the park as a permanent tribute to the man whose name has become an international fixture in the automotive industry and a veritable household name. Press release .
Earlier today, we showed you a brace of images starring that will make its debut at the next month. But upon closer inspection, the folks at CarScoop found something very interesting hiding in the back of one of the GLK photos: the revised .
It’s unclear exactly which G-Class model this is, though our best guess is that it’s the standard G550. (Those wheels look much too tame for an AMG model.) The G-Wagen’s overall design hasn’t changed (that’s fine, we like it just the way it is), but updates for the 2013 model year include LED running lamps under the headlights and redesigned mirrors.
Word on the street is that the G-Class will feature a reworked interior for 2013, including a new instrument panel, steering wheel and consoles. The big news, however, is that the G55 AMG found in the other AMG models, though it’s unclear if its nomenclature will be altered. You know, because G63 AMG absolutely makes sense.
Mum’s the word on when the official G-Class details will be released, but since the car appears to be finished and already posing for photos, we don’t expect Mercedes-Benz to hold off for too much longer.
Freightliner is stealing the spotlight at this week’s Mid-America Trucking Show in Kentucky with a new truckconcept. The Revolution Innovation is aimed squarely at reimagining the face commercial trucking. With innovations like a more aerodynamic body, cold-rolled aluminum frame that’s 200 pounds lighter than its steel equivalent, low-slung engine placement and an intelligent rear axle that can automatically switch between four and six-wheel drive as needed, the concept is more fuel efficient while retaining plenty of functionality.
Designers looked at how most drivers use their rigs, and determined that most of the time, there’s only one occupant in the cab. To that end, they scrapped the passenger door in favor of a more efficient work station and a rest area. There’s even an innovative rear door between the cab and trailer. A new gauge cluster and cell-connected center console both add extra layers of functionality as well.
Outside, clever use of LED lighting and low-drag cameras replace traditional design elements. Despite its concept looks, the Revolution Innovation is a fully operational truck. to check out the full video for yourself and peruse the gallery for more.
