It looks as if work is officially underway on the next . Our spy photo friends managed to click the first few images of a pre-production prototype stretching its legs on public streets. The four-door is covered in enough cladding to successfully obscure any hint of new body work, but from what we’re told, there’s a whole new chassis under there. The rear-wheel-drive architecture is built to accommodate all-wheel drive as well. Where, perchance, would secure the engineering to put power to all four corners? If the whispers we hear are true, the tech could be lifted from none other than the .
Speaking of , the next-generation Quattroporte will likely continue to get its thrust from the same beefy Italian V8 found in the current generation, though adjustments for either power or fuel consumption would be a smart guess. We’ve even heard hints of a hybrid drivetrain in development. Stay tuned. With prototypes on the road, it’s only a matter of time before we spot one with a little more metal showing.
Like pretty much any driver, we’ve had our share of car trouble over the years, both with vehicles loaned to us for review by automakers and our own private rides. What we haven’t experienced is being the first media outlet to plunk down over $100,000 for a luxury plug-inhybrid, only to have it konk out before we even put 200 miles on it.
That “honor” goes to Consumer Reports and their brand new , which broke down during calibration tests, just a few days into CR’s ownership period. After the dashboard flashed a warning, the driver stopped to see what was wrong, and then couldn’t get the PHEV into gear again. Self-repairs (i.e., let’s leave it alone for an hour and see what happens) didn’t work and the manual was no help, so the nearby dealer sent out a flatbed truck to haul the Karma away. As CR writes:
We buy about 80 cars a year and this is the first time in memory that we have had a car that is undriveable before it has finished our check-in process.
The Karma’s problems are widespread. It has been plagued by a variety of problems, including two recalls, one for a and one for , following a long delay getting the car to market. Owners commenting on the FiskerBuzz forum are also . Not exactly behavior that leads to a “Recommended” rating.
When we say we’re obsessive, we mean it. The list below of 90 vehicles that Autoblog covered at the 2 is proof positive that we stand behind our tagline.
The Geneva Motor Show is always the biggest international auto show of the year in terms of vehicle debuts, whether they’re production cars, forward-thinking concepts or outrageous tuner vehicles. This year we got super-sized helpings of all three.
Special thanks go to our crew of five who were on the ground in Geneva, as well as the large support staff here at home who backed them up. We love covering auto shows, and after so many years doing it, we think we’ve gotten pretty darn good. Look below and you’ll see why.
has unveiled the at the Geneva Motor Show – the first B-segment hybrid in Europe. While the vehicle makes use of a 74-horsepower 1.5-liter gasoline engine, engineers mated the internal combustion mill with a more compact 80-hp electric motor along with a smaller inverter and battery pack. Combined, the two can crank out up to 100 combined horsepower. Toyota says the Atkinson-cycle engine and it’s associated techno wizardry is 20 percent lighter than the standard 1.8-liter hybrid drivetrain found in most of the company’s hybrid offerings.
Speaking of batteries, the Yaris Hybrid stores its power via a nickel-metal hydride pack. With fewer cells than those found in the , the batteries are around 20 percent lighter. The drivetrain will net buyers a fuel consumption rating of just 3.5 liters per 100 kilometers, or around 67 mpg on the European scale. for the full press release.
If what tells us about the FT-Bh is true, it’s not some futuristic fantasy, but a design study that points to what a next generation hybrid might look like. With an unbelievably low, sub-1,800-pound curb weight and a 0.235 coefficient of drag, the FT-Bh uses minimalist design rather than sci-fi technology to achieve 112 miles per gallon.
The FT-Bh packs a two-cylinder, one-liter gas engine that runs on the Atkinson cycle, and uses lithium-ion batteries for it’s hybrid drive system. Toyota says a compressed natural gas hybrid and a plug-in hybrid version would also be possible.
But what’s really impressive about the FT-Bh is its massive weight reduction. Toyota says it managed to reduce the mass of the car by 25 percent when compared to the current Yaris. Much of that came in the interior parts and trim, which weigh half that of the production car. Toyota says that this drastic diet also makes possible a low center of gravity – just over 21 inches – that helps improve the FT-Bh’s handling.
While the FT-Bh may look a little weird – we’re reminded of how odd the looked before we’d gotten used to the shape – this may well be what the next generation of hybrids will look like. While Toyota has thrown out some branding buzzwords to describe the FT-Bh’s “Ecomotion” theme (or is that “Under Priority” design language? or “Keen Look” styling?) the bottom line is that it’s all about aerodynamics. This is why the FT-Bh uses cameras rather than side-view mirrors and doesn’t have door handles. It’s also why the front end has those “air curtain” intakes and there’s an underfloor spoiler in the rear.
While we certainly wouldn’t expect to see something so radical roll off a production line next year, as the company shows more concepts like this and the , it seems that Toyota wants its next hybrid designs to be as revolutionary as its first.
Check out our galleries of live and official photos, and for the full press release.
What’s Italian for thrilling? The Brivido. (Well, it’s Italian for ‘thrill’ anyway.) And we see what they’re on about. The underpinnings come from parent company , including the supercharged 3.0-liter 360-horsepower V6 engine and eight-speed automatic gearbox. Coupled with an electric motor, this hybrid GT can scoot to 60 in 5.8 seconds while exhausting just 154 grams per kilometer of carbon dioxide. Slippery aerodynamics allow for a top speed of 171 miles per hour and also provide a sleek shape that can seat four passengers in comfort.
Though Giugiaro is quick to point out that this is a fully functional prototype, it’s got concept written all over it. Take, for instance, the giant gullwing doors that serve as portals for the front and rear seats, the two-sided instrument cluster full of LCD screens (including an iPad for the passenger) and joystick-style steering apparatus.
And if one Brivido Concept is good, two Brivido Concepts must be even better. Giugiaro brought along a second machine in race trim (above), sporting distinctive Martini Racing livery. We don’t have any details on what’s underneath the fetching bodywork, so we suggest you see it for yourself in our high-res image galleries above and below. Feel free to read all about the road-going Brivido , where you’ll also find an official video.
It doesn’t get much more hard-core than the Gumpert Apollo. The German supercar is about as close as it gets to a race car for the road. But an outfit like Gumpert isn’t about to sit around and let its product speak for itself. You can count on it taking the extreme to an even further extreme, and that’s exactly what it’s done here at the with not one, but two new versions of the Apollo.
What you’re looking at above is called the Apollo Enraged, which Gumpert calls the most powerful street-legal car ever to leave its factory. Limited to just three examples, the Apollo Enraged ups the output from its -sourced supercharged 4.2-liter V8 to 780 horsepower and trims weight down to 1,175 kg. Further details are scarce, but the vehicle looks positively scary.
Joining it on the Gumpert show stand is the Apollo R (above right), a customer racing version that, while not street-legal, packs a whopping 860 horsepower. Burdened by just 1,100 kg of dry weight, the Apollo R promises to be just as devastating on whatever track it’s driven as the hybrid prototype that Heinz-Harald Frentzen 24-hour race in 2008.
Both models pack more wings than a Boeing factory and “Pure German Speed” decals that would still raise a few eyebrows in parts of Eastern Europe, but are, in typical Gumpert style, positively menacing. for the full press release, and scope out the live and official images in our collection of galleries for a closer look.
If you’re a sucker for high-riding shooting brakes, the Hyundai i-oniq concept has what you’re after, albeit with a certain anonymity we haven’t seen from of late.
Complete with elongated gullwing doors and an expansive greenhouse featuring curved glass both behind the A-pillar and on the hatch, the i-oniq is the latest interpretation of Hyundai’s “fluidic sculpture” design language. It’s a beautiful profile and a classy shape, but the front fascia has shades of Citroën while the rear is more amorphous bulge than svelte hatch. It’s pretty, but it’s just not striking.
Inside, the i-oniq embodies concept car chic, with layers upon layers of materials, textures and tiers spanning the dash, seats and door panels.
Hyundai claims a 1.0-liter, three-cylinder gasoline engine is fitted under the hood, but its 60 horsepower doesn’t reach the wheels. The engine is strictly a generator, juicing up a lithium-ion battery pack that sends power to a single-speed transmission and on to a 100-hp electric motor.
As with most high-style concepts, the i-oniq isn’t headed to production, but some kind of series hybrid drivetrain is certainly in the cards for future Hyundai models. for the details.
While technically still a concept, has rolled out another version of its that first debuted at the last November. The handsome compact crossover rides on VW’s new transverse matrix architecture and it’s smaller than you think, which means it should be rather entertaining to drive with this iteration’s TDI diesel plug-in hybrid powertrain boasting a combined 302 horsepower.
Reaching 62 miles per hour in 6.5 seconds and pushing on to a top speed of 137 mph, the Cross Coupé seems to offer a solid amount of entertainment along with impressive thrift. On the European cycle, VW says this vehicle should be good for an impressive 130 miles per gallon equivalent, thanks in part to a pure electric range of 28 miles.
We weren’t able to get inside the Cross Coupé concept this time, but if the Tokyo show star was any indication, this vehicle looks production ready – though perhaps without this showcar’s exotic powertrain. Check it out in our full gallery and look in on the official press release .
has been hinting at the possibility of a full-size ultra-luxury SUV for a few years and here in the rumors finally became reality in all their awkwardly majestic glory.
Just as awkward is the ‘ute concept’s name:, which is about as imaginative and puzzling as its styling. If you were to task a sophomore Photoshop wizard to digitally create a Bentley SUV, this would be the result. And that’s probably the most disappointing aspect of the EXP 9 F – its utter predictability.
Grabbing bits from the and range, mounting them up front, raising the ride height and then adding a liftback hatch is the easy way out. Same for the interior, which takes Bentley’s bespoke aesthetic and gives it the Big Gulp treatment. Maybe we’re too plebeian, but for this ute’s target demographic, it just doesn’t carry the gravitas you’d expect of something this large wearing the Flying B.
The same applies to the drivetrain, which utilizes the 6.0-liter W12 that’s been doing duty in the Continental for years. The only interesting propulsion proposition is the possible fitment of Bentley’s new V8, augmented with an electric motor and battery pack to make the world’s largest and least efficient plug-inhybrid.
It’s just bad on all sides, so like the concept before it, we’re hoping Bentley sees the light, heads back to the drawing board and comes up with something befitting of such a storied marque. Just after it quietly pulls it off the show stand, just like did two years ago.
Despite staying rather quiet last year product-wise, actually enjoyed a , led by its new compact crossover. That crossover’s larger cousin, the , has remained largely under the radar for most consumers, with a modest 2010 facelift eking out a bit of sales life for a model that has been making the rounds since 2006. That will change in 2013 with the introduction of this new Outlander, which moves away from the single-frame grille in favor of a more horizontally oriented look.
It isn’t immediately clear to what extent the Outlander is all-new, as the vehicle appears to have some unusually large overhang that suggests a revision of an older chassis, but we understand that this is a new architecture underneath. Offering a size that’s similar to the outgoing model, the Outlander will continue to offer both five- and seven-seat configurations, with the third row reserved for small children. In addition to a range of gas and diesel models available in various markets paired with a new six-speed automatic or manual gearbox, a plug-inhybrid variant is in the cards as early as later this year.
For more, see our gallery of live shots and the official press release .
The , but it’s one of the most lauded cars in history. Today the plug-in hybrid was named the 2012 European Car of the Year, an award it will share with its European fraternal twin, the Opel Ampera.
The Volt won North American Car of the Year in 2011, while also picking up car of the year accolades from , , and nabbing . Britain’s What Car? awarded the Vauxhall Ampera – as the Opel model is called in the U.K. – , as well.
But the Volt has been at the center of one controversy after another, . A National Highway Traffic Safety Administration investigation into a battery fire , but it led to the . Recent negative publicity among has contributed to making the Volt something of an enigma for General Motors, which just announced it was .
While Europe was never envisioned as the prime market for the Volt/Ampera, GM says it already has 7,000 orders for the Ampera and that the company expects to hit its target of 10,000 sales this year. Certainly, winning this award, presented at the for the first time this year, should help.
The Volt/Ampera finished significantly ahead of the Up! and in the European Car of the Year voting, which included a field of 35 vehicles.
There once was a time, not so long ago, that if you wanted a luxury SUV, your options basically came down to a . The of off-road vehicles, they called it. But those days are behind us, as nearly every luxury automaker is making a sport-ute of its own. And soon, so will Bentley.
Called the EXP 9 F, the vehicle you see here is a concept, er, truck, that Bentley will unveil at the this week. Although still a design study, strictly speaking, the EXP 9 F previews what could emerge as a third model line for Crewe to roll alongside the and . Power comes from the same 6.0-liter twin-turbo W12 as found in the Continental, but in a drastically different form, and V8 and hybrid propulsion are also being considered for production.
Charting new territory for the Flying B marque, the EXP 9 F aims to apply traditional Bentley styling cues to an SUV shape, from the oversized air intakes to the split rear tailgate. And based on these images… well, let’s just say we’re not convinced yet. The interior space, however, looks as pleasant a place to be as any vehicle ever to roll out of Crewe. And if that blend of questionable shape and beautiful cabin sounds familiar, look straight to the , a vehicle ushered into reality – a first for its brand as well – by the same Wolfgang Dürheimer who now heads Bentley.
We’ll reserve final judgement for when we see it tomorrow in person in Geneva, where Bentley says it will be evaluating public reaction with an eye towards potential production. In the meantime you can check out the images in the gallery above and the for a closer look.
The is back and headed to the Geneva Motor Show this week, this time with an innovative diesel hybrid drivetrain under the hood.
Details are scarce at the moment, but the company says a TDI engine works in conjunction with not one, but two electric motors to propel the vehicle. All told, the combination is good for fuel economy of 1.8 liters per 100 kilometers on the European cycle, which translates to a staggering 130 miles per gallon. It’s worth remembering, however, that European and domestic testing cycles vary greatly.
Even with the vehicle’s impressive fuel economy, the Cross Coupe has over 300 horsepower on tap and a top speed of 136 mph. We certainly like the sound of that combination. So, is a diesel hybrid from headed to production anytime soon? Hard telling. Odds are we’ll hear more when the Cross Coupe debuts later this week. for the brief press release.
Just as nature abhors a vacuum, the Internet abhors secrets. got so close to keeping its i-oniq concept coupe away from us before the , but the web won again when someone uploaded images of ithe i-oniq’s blood red interior and McLaren MP4-12C-like doors.
We don’t have any hard information except that the car hints at future Hyundai styling elements and is a hybrid with a 1.0-liter, three-cylinder gas engine. Stay tuned for details from the Geneva floor in the coming days.
Even with the new HOV-eligible 2012 models and , has reportedly decided to shut down production of the plug-inhybrid for five weeks because of overall sluggish sales. With a 150-day supply of Volts sitting on dealer lots around the country, this shutdown will temporarily lay off 1,300 employees.
What’s perhaps even more interesting is that this production hiatus comes after a lengthy “holiday” retooling break that only ended in early February. The upcoming shutdown is scheduled to last from March 19 to April 23. As a GM spokesman told MLive, “We’re matching our production levels with demand and building to market.”
The top class of endurance racing like what we see at Le Mans tends to follow trends. Open cockpits gave way to closed ones in LMP1 racers, but while diesel engines continue to dominate, we’re now entering the age of hybrid prototypes.
Peugeot was said to be working on just such a powertrain for its 908 before suddenly its program. is still developing its own version for the TS030 Hybrid. And now Audi has announced its title defender, the new .
Unveiled yesterday, the R18 e-tron Quattro takes the same form as the conventionally powered R18 Ultra, but with one important difference: its TDI diesel engine is assisted by a regenerative braking system that gives it not only hybrid power but (through-the-road) all-wheel drive. Now we’ve got our first video clip of the hybrid prototype from its track tests and press conference unveiling, which you can see for yourself .
Coming soon to select dealers, at least , is the most efficient five-passenger car in America, the 2012 Electric, which the EPA has certified gets 105 miles per gallon equivalent, combined. This is better than what the Blue Oval was estimating publicly in December, when it said the all-electric Focus . The Focus EV is also rated for 110 MPGe in the city and 99 MPGe on the highway. As you can read in the press release , Ford is using the official numbers to go after the for the all-electric passenger car market. Ford says its new electric car:
… achieves a combined rating of 105 MPGe, topping Nissan Leaf by 6 MPGe while also offering more motor power, passenger room and standard features. Customers can make more use of this efficiency with Ford’s faster charging technology that can recharge Focus Electric in about half the time of Nissan Leaf.
To compare with some other combined MPGe ratings for plug-in vehicles on the market or coming soon: the 2012 gets 94 MPGe (one better than ), the Plug-In Hybrid gets , the gets , the is rated at , and the current champion, the 2.0, officially gets .
The EPA also says the Focus EV will have a range of 76 miles. As Ford is quick to point out, again, that’s three miles more than the Leaf. Given the variances of EV ranges based on driving style and outside influences, those three miles won’t make all that much real-world difference to most people, but it does give the engineering team one more thing to brag about.
For all the comparisons that Ford makes in today’s announcement, it does leave one thing out: the Leaf’s one big numerical advantage. The 2012 Leaf , while the Focus EV .
Electric officially rated at 105 MPGe with a 76-mile range
Speaking at ’s annual press conference earlier today, Rubert Stadler, the automaker’s chairman, commented on plans to expand the e-tron line beyond the model due next year.
The push will reportedly include plug-inhybrid versions of both the next-generation and , with the being the first model out of the gate with a plug-in option.
Another report indicates that the same race technology being pioneered by the recently unveiled will be fitted to the B9 A4, with a pair of electric motors driving the rear wheels (versus the front, on the racer) because of the A4’s FWD architecture.
Stadler went on to say that by 2020, Audi will have an e-tron version of each vehicle it offers in every segment, which in all likelihood will be either a pure electric model or some form of hybrid.
Sending an all-electric vehicle up Pikes Peak is not new – a and a custom EV from – but that shouldn’t stop anyone from trying to reach the 14,110-foot height in Colorado better, faster and in a cooler car.
Enter and a radically reworked all-electric Prototype that will participate in the 2012 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb this July. Based on sketches released today, the car is a one-seat racer the certainly looks ready for on-track duty. It also looks nothing like the bean-shaped i-MiEV we’ve grown accustomed to. We’re certainly curious how well it’ll make the peak, since the powertrain is made up of “the same EV components as the current production i-MiEV” and it’ll be piloted by well-known driver Hiroshi Masuoka, who won the Dakar Rally in 2002 and 2003 behind the wheels of a Mitsubishi Pajero and Pajero Evolution, respectively.
The idea here, of course, isn’t just to have a good time. Mitsubishi will “use the data obtained through its participation in the event to enhance the durability and reliability of pure EVs and plug-inhybrid EVs which it will be bringing to market in the near future.” Read: , the and the .
