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Can we build it? Yes we can! Before the Obama campaign pilfered the slogan, it belonged to the kid’s show “Bob the Builder.” But it could just as easily be applied to Legos. Or the perhaps even the Mercedes-Benz Unimog.

The versatile utility vehicle celebrates its 60th anniversary this year, and to help celebrate, the Danish brick-toy company has come out with an intricate working reproduction in 1:12.5 scale. The Lego Technic Unimog packs an unprecedented 2,048 parts – the most in any Lego kit to date – and packs all the working elements you’d expect to find in the real full-size thing: It’s got a winch, a pneumatic crane, a reproduction of the engine with moving pistons and the whole shebang.

The kit is based on the U400 model and goes on sale in Europe in August with a list price of 190 Euros – about $275 by today’s rates. In other words, a lot less than the 380,000 Unimog owners have paid for theirs over the course of the vehicle’s six decades of production. Follow the jump for the press release and check out the trio of high-res images in the gallery.

Also, consider this the number one item on our end-of-the-year holiday wishlists…

Continue reading Lego celebrates 60 years of the Mercedes-Benz Unimog with 2,048-piece kit

Lego celebrates 60 years of the Mercedes-Benz Unimog with 2,048-piece kit

Derrick Kuzak, Ford Group Vice President of Global Product Development, has confirmed that the Dearborn automaker will offer turbocharged EcoBoost powertrains in 90 percent of its vehicles here in the United States by 2013. This journey for (nearly) full-line forced-induction started with the 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6 found in the Taurus, Flex and F-150, as well as the Lincoln MKS and MKT. Next, we’ll be seeing a 2.0-liter EcoBoost inline-four under the hood of the Edge and Explorer, and now, Ford has confirmed development of a 1.0-liter EcoBoost three-cylinder engine.

This 1.0-liter, inline-three will be the smallest engine in Ford’s portfolio, and it will find its way under the hood of vehicles across the globe. No specific output or fuel economy numbers have been divulged just yet, but Joe Bakaj, Ford’s Vice President of Global Powertrain Engineering, says that the 1.0-liter triple will provide similar power to the automaker’s 1.6-liter naturally aspirated four, while improving fuel economy. When asked, Bakaj tells us that the fuel economy improvements will be similar in percentage to those with the 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6 compared to a naturally aspirated V8.

Ford says it plans to announce more information about the 1.0-liter engine at this year’s Frankfurt Motor Show, including exactly what vehicles will be powered by this mill. Since Ford is benchmarking its 1.6-liter engine here – the powerplant used in the Fiesta – we’d expect that this EcoBoost three almost certainly slot into Ford’s smallest offering here in the States.

The Blue Oval has also confirmed that it is working on an all-new eight-speed automatic transmission, which is being designed, engineered and built by Ford in-house. Bakaj states that the eight-speed automatic will offer “best-in-class” shift smoothness and responsiveness.

Follow the jump for Ford’s official press release.

Continue reading Ford confirms 1.0L EcoBoost three-cylinder, eight-speed transmission

Ford confirms 1.0L EcoBoost three-cylinder, eight-speed transmission

We Go Cone Dancing In GM’s New Subcompact Warrior

When the Ford Fiesta first touched down in 2010, the model seemed doomed to follow in the footsteps of the American compact cars that had gone before it. Through December of that year, sales of the smallest member of the Blue Oval family failed to crest more than 4,000 units per month. Despite a pandemic marketing campaign and healthy buzz ahead of the vehicle’s launch, production delays and tolerable gas prices did little to help usher the models off of dealer lots. But as fuel prices inch ever skyward, the littlest Blue Oval has begun gaining traction. In May alone, 7,120 Fiesta units leapt off of lots. Even more importantly, the tiny cars carried a higher average transaction price than the Ford Focus, Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla – all substantially larger vehicles.

With the little Ford poised for some big numbers this year, it’s clear that U.S. buyers are embracing domestic small cars like they haven’t done in ages. General Motors is understandably keen to prove that it, too, can build a B-segment contender. The 2012 Chevrolet Sonic is the company’s latest effort in the category. As the successor to the egregiously disappointing Aveo, the Sonic needs to prove that GM can do more than unload Korean hatches at the dock. We took to the wheel of a few pre-production models in Indianapolis, Indiana to see how the effort is coming along.

Continue reading 2012 Chevrolet Sonic

2012 Chevrolet Sonic

According to Automotive News, Scion is in the midst of rethinking its company strategy to help pull the Toyota offshoot out of its current sales slump. Originally, the automaker’s executives envisioned a brand with quick product cycles that promised to keep its hardware fresh and interesting.

Unfortunately, that whole recession thing happened. Scion has since stretched its refresh cycle to save on cash, but it sounds like the brand also has plans to attempt to appeal to an audience outside of its current demographic. Apparently, Scion may even probe into the death metal scene to rummage up buyers.

The Japanese brand originally marketed heavily to the alternative and hip hop music base, but other brands have since caught on to the strategy. That helped to turn those genres more mainstream, so Scion is headed back out to the fringe.

In addition, buyers can expect to see two new models in Scion showrooms soon, including the $20,000-plus model based on the FR-S Coupe Concept and the iQ minicar. Somehow, we have a hard time picturing death metal junkies driving around in customized iQs, but what do we know?

Scion getting heavy into death metal scene?

The annual Volkswagen hot-hatch gathering at Lake Wörthersee has been packed so far with enticing show cars. Audi came with a 500hp A1 concept, and Skoda rolled in with a radical rally roadster. But you didn’t think the VW brand itself would let its sister companies have all the fun, now did you?

Of course not. So feast your eyes on the Golf R Cabriolet concept. The recipe is as simple as can be: take one Golf Cabrio, and one Golf R. Put ‘em in a blender to extract the best parts of both, and voilà! The fastest droptop VW ever.

Along with fitting the Golf R’s 265-horsepower, 2.0-liter turbo four, the show car’s suspension has been dropped by an inch and fitted with 19-inch alloys shrouding massive 17-inch brakes. The interior has likewise been upgraded to Golf R specifications, all decked out in blue and gray with piano black and carbon-fiber trim.

Like the production Golf R tin-top, VW says the Golf R Cabriolet concept can reach 62 mph in under six seconds and power on to a top speed of 155 mph.

While the car you see here is strictly for show for the time being, if public reaction among its most dedicated fans and customers at the Austrian lakeside expo proves sufficient, there’s no telling what might ensue. In the meantime, you can check out the trio of images in our high-resolution gallery below and the official press release after the jump.

Continue reading Volkswagen drops Golf R Cabriolet concept at Wörthersee

Volkswagen drops Golf R Cabriolet concept at Wörthersee

Ford hit a milestone with its F-150 pickup last month. According to PickupTrucks.com, the Blue Oval sold more trucks with V6 engines than V8 mills. Forty-one percent of F-150 sales left the lot with the company’s 3.5-liter Ecoboost six-pot under the hood. That number is up four percentage points compared to last month.

Additionally, the base, naturally-aspirated 3.7-liter V6 engine took home a 14 percent slice of the total mix, bringing the grand V6 total to 55 percent of all F-150 sales. The news comes as little surprise to anyone who’s spent time in the full-size truck.

The twin-turbocharged, direct-injected 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6 engine provides more power and better fuel economy than the 5.0-liter V8 alternative. While it carries a $750 premium over the larger displacement engine, buyers are keenly aware of just how much a few extra mpgs can save at the pump. As PickupTrucks.com points out, fuel prices are currently a dollar higher right now than they were at the same point last year.

Ford F-150 V6s outselling V8 models

The Volkswagen Group’s annual GTI-Treffen festival on the shores of Lake Wörthersee in Austria may be named for VW’s iconic tuned Golf, but by now – in its 30th rendition – it’s turned into a multi-marque celebration of the hot hatch. Case in point: the A1 Clubsport Quattro concept unveiled there this year by Audi. And now Skoda has joined in on the action with a hatch-based custom of its own.

To create the dramatic Fabia RS 2000 concept you see here, Skoda has taken its existing Fabia RS hot hatch, lopped off the roof and fitted a widebody kit housing 18-inch powder-coated alloys for a stance similar to its S2000 rally counterpart. The brightwork has also been blacked out, the open-air cabin fitted with four individual buckets with racing harnesses and carbon-fiber trim, and the hood louvered to vent the 200+hp 2.0-liter twin-turbo four.

All in all, a rather dramatic take on a bread-and-butter hatchback that blends the best of a road-going rally car with a four-door convertible. But while its occupants may enjoy the wind in their hair, the Wörthersee show stand is about probably as much daylight as this concept will ever see. Have a closer look in the high-res image gallery and the press release after the jump.

Continue reading Skoda unveils dramatic Fabia RS 2000 roadster concept at Wörthersee

Skoda unveils dramatic Fabia RS 2000 roadster concept at Wörthersee

Want a Mini but not impressed by the plasticky interior? If you’ve got the cash, you could always upgrade to the Goodwood edition to have an interior outfitted by the same people who trim the cabin of a Rolls-Royce. But if that’s not your cup of Earl Gray, Bulgarian customizer Vilner has got a package that could be more up your alley.

Demonstrated on a Mini Cooper dubbed “The Italian Job,” Vilner has decked out the interior in diamond-quilted Nappa leather and two-tone Alcantara. The result looks fit for a Pagani, and is complemented on the outside by a silver paint job with matte black roof and trim and a rather Gumball-style decal package.

The look is pretty sweet, particularly inside, but we dare not ask if it’s any more affordable than Mini’s own Goodwood special. Check out the press release after the jump and the images in the high-res gallery for more.

Continue reading Vilner out-Goodwoods the Mini Goodwood with custom Cooper

Vilner out-Goodwoods the Mini Goodwood with custom Cooper

To celebrate its tenth anniversary in the ever-hungry, ever-growing Chinese market, Porsche is unleashing a special edition version of its 911 Turbo S. The car comes with the Turbo S’ 530-horsepower, twin-turbo flat-six, mated to Porsche’s PDK sequential gearbox.

Rather than go crazy with mechanical mods, Porsche is sticking with an appearance package for the commemorative 911. Outside, there’s special Gold Bronze Metallic paint set off with flat black and carbon fiber accents. The car rides on sexy black 19-inch Fuchs-style alloys borrowed from the 911 Sport Classic.

Inside, customers get a gold commemorative plaque, and all the Alcantara you could ever want. Porsche sets off the acres of black fabric with contrasting gold stitching.

If you want one, you’re pretty much out of luck. Porsche is only going to build 10 examples, and they’re all going to China.

Porsche celebrates 10 years in China with special edition 911 Turbo S

The 2011 Bentley Mulsanne is officially ready for use by warlords and dictators the world over. Thanks to the work of ArmorTech Motors, the world’s tyrants can safely roll over crowds of protesters and the odd land mine swaddled in the comfort of Connolly leather and a high-def entertainment system.

ArmorTech will stretch your Mulsanne a minimum of 20 inches, and refinish the interior with all the bespoke touches your heart desires, including a top-shelf entertainment system and passenger compartment divider wall. If a 20-inch stretch won’t cut it, ArmorTech will be happy to stretch the big Bentley a mind-boggling 45 inches.

Armor plating is an optional extra, so if you don’t expect to encounter a hail of bullets any time soon, you can opt not to have the extra poundage tacked on. In any case, with the appropriate application of funds, you can distance yourself even further from the Great Unwashed – and those who opted for the plebeian standard Mulsanne.

Bentley Mulsanne stretches out thanks to ArmorTech Motors

Ready for your garage to rock and roll all night and party every day? Break out your checkbook. Mini has teamed up with legendary rock group KISS to create a quartet of customized Countryman crossovers for charity. Paul Stanley, Gene Simmons, Tommy Thayer and Eric Singer have applied their trademark style to the exterior of four examples of the 2011 Mini Countryman.

The vehicles, which debuted at the New York Auto Show, each have their own auction listing on eBay Motors, and the proceeds from these auctions will be donated to UNICEF. The organization is working hard to raise money for children affected by the recent disasters in Japan.

These customized Countrymen Countrymans cars aren’t wearing decals. Each vehicle was hand painted by a group of BMW employees who provided the artwork while off the clock. The four vehicles have been named after the members of KISS they mimic; Starchild, The Demon, Spaceman and Catman.

The full press release is located after the jump, and you can check out all four Mini Countryman custom cars in the gallery below.

Continue reading KISS-themed Mini Countryman one-offs rock on to eBay Motors for charity

KISS-themed Mini Countryman one-offs rock on to eBay Motors for charity

Ever since Steven Spielberg brought the fiercest of dinosaurs to the silver screen in Jurassic Park, the name Raptor has come to symbolize the most ferocious of creations, from fighter jets and birds of prey to steroid-pumped pickup trucks, and even an NBA basketball team. That last example might not exactly live up to the name, but the next supercar from Mosler looks like it very much will.

The niche automaking Floridian known for its racing cars detuned for road use is reportedly working on a new model that will pack a 7.0-liter twin-turbo V8 with 650 horsepower, but less than 2,000 lbs to schlepp around. That stratospheric power-to-weight ratio promises blistering performance, particularly when you consider that its previous creations, like the MT900 GTR XX pictured above or the 550-hp Photon just tested by Automobile Magazine – are already faster than most everything else on the road. Couple that with fresh styling to upgrade on the existing model’s dated curves and Mosler (and its clients) could have a real winner on their hands.

Mosler promises 650-hp Raptor weighing about 1,900 pounds

Toyota may not invest in a next-generation version of the company’s Matrix when the 2013 Corolla arrives. According to Ward’s Auto, the hatchback’s sales have fallen off of a cliff, with just 14,592 deliveries last year. That’s down from a height of 66,836 units in 2002. But that’s just here in the typically hatch-averse United States. In Canada, the Matrix is still kicking in teeth, though the Corolla still outsells its long-roof twin by more than twice the volume.

While there’s been some speculation that the upcoming compact Prius variant will supplant the Matrix in the Toyota family tree, Bob Carter, Toyota’s Group Vice President and General Manager, says that the two vehicles are expected to appeal to vastly different audiences.

Still, we have to think that Toyota would be wise to invest a little coin in the aging Matrix when the Corolla gets a revamp in a few years. American buyers seem to be slowly warming to the idea of hatches and wagons, and competitors from Hyundai to Ford are all offering five-door variants. As Ward’s Auto points out, 43 percent of 2012 Focus sales have been hatchbacks to date.

Despite being big in Canada, Toyota Matrix future unsure

An automaker can’t make it in the fringe anymore. Everything’s going either upmarket or mainstream, and Jaguar has opted primarily for the latter. The company that not so long ago offered essentially one sedan and one two-door is rapidly expanding to a full lineup. So what’s the next step? According to the rumormeisters over at Autocar, it’s ditching its current model naming strategy.

According to the UK publication, Jaguar is preparing to jettison nameplates like XJ and XF in favor of a more conventional alphanumeric system like those employed by its German and Japanese rivals. The thinking is that while the faithful know Coventry’s naming system, it’s not immediately evident to newcomers and outsiders where one model sits in the line-up vis-a-vis the next. Besides, it won’t be the first time Jag has slapped alphanumeric badges like XJ8 on the flanks of its cars.

One model could possibly hold out, though, as the C-X75 heads down the road to production. Filling the shoes of the iconic XJ220, the company is reportedly toying with the idea of naming the new supercar XJ330. The original was named for the 220 mph top speed it was aimed to reach (but never did), and the new model is targeted to hit a more realistic 205 mph – or 330 km/h on the metric scale.

Jaguar to ditch current nameplates for alphanumeric badges?

The product development cycle at Toyota can be frustrating. More specifically, the process can be frustrating for North American executives who don’t have total control over vehicles specifically marketed to their country. Engineers, developers and executives all have a say, but the final decisions have been made in Japan. Until now.

According to a report from Automotive News, Toyota has changed its product development process for North American vehicles. An example of such a vehicle is the Toyota Tundra. That pickup caters to the desires and needs of the U.S. car-buying public, and now Toyota USA will be given the leeway needed to make sure it meets those desires and needs.

The Japanese automaker says it has always listened to its U.S. counterparts. However, the process was stifled due to the requirement that decisions be finalized in Japan. Now, this process can flow more freely. Expect to see the effects of this change beginning with the next generation of the Tundra.

Toyota USA gains increased design control

Automotive News has dug up a few details on the Subaru sports coupe co-developed with Toyota. The production version of the two-door is set for an official unveil at the Tokyo Motor Show this December, and when it bows, AN expects it to show up without the company’s trademark all-wheel drive system or a turbocharger. That sound? It’s the lonesome wail of a sad trombone.

The good news is that Subaru is reportedly planning on a longer-than-average lifecycle for the coupe, with multiple packages popping up down the line to keep the car fresh. Those include an STI model, and while those three letters typically signify forced induction, Automotive News suggests that’s not the case for this vehicle. According to their sources at Subaru, the Subiyota was always intended to be all naturally aspirated, all the time. Curiously, Autoblog’s own well-placed sources assure us that isn’t the case, suggesting that turbo power is still very much in the car’s future.

Even with a 2.0-liter, naturally-aspirated four-cylinder behind the headlights, the Subaru coupe should be a blast to fling. The company’s engineers have positioned the engine five inches lower in the chassis compared to the Impreza, which should translate into a better center of gravity and improved handling dynamics. Here’s hoping that all-wheel drive shows up before long.

STI version of Subaru coupe unlikely to go turbocharged? Not so fast…

Even amidst the disastrous situation on their island nation, the Japanese are showing no signs of slowing down. At least, not when it comes to its supercars. Honda was recently reported to be forging ahead with on-again, off-again plans to resurrect its NSX supercar, Nissan is hard at work on the new GT-R and now Toyota is said to be working on a new version of the Lexus LFA.

While the handle being used in the interim might suggest a completely new successor, rumor has it that an LFA II is being developed as a variant of the existing model. Following in the footsteps of the above-pictured Nürburgring package, Japan’s Best Car says that the so-called LFA II is expected to push the performance envelope even further. Just what that will entail – or for that matter, if it will come to fruition at all – remains to be seen, but if there’s any truth to the reports, we certainly applaud the company’s spirit.

Lexus working on even hotter LFA II?

Entry-Level Benz Finally Drops A Set Of Doors

For those that remember it, the secretary-special two-door CLC hatchback, built on last-generation C-class bits and pieces, was rather embarrassing for Mercedes-Benz. It was a dumpy thing, but at least Daimler was smart enough to not even attempt selling it in the States.

Thankfully, the decidedly easier-on-the-eyes C204 C-Class Coupe has just arrived, and we’re getting this hot toddy. So what took Stuttgart so long to bring us this no-brainer variant of the C-Class? Were they worried about coupe clutter between the CLC- and E-Class? Too many two-doors, too soon? Funnily, we asked, and all we heard back were sheepish “We were waiting for the mothership to come around and give us the go-ahead for this car” comments.

Continue reading 2012 Mercedes-Benz C-Class Coupe

2012 Mercedes-Benz C-Class Coupe

Fiat dealerships aren’t popping up quite as quickly as the original plans showed they would, but the retail outlets could get a push now that the automaker is looking outside of the Chrysler family. Automotive News reports that Fiat is now offering franchises to non-Chrysler dealers for the first time. There are currently 59 Fiat dealers nationwide, and the automaker plans to open 130 stores by the end of 2011

At one point, there were reportedly 130 Chrysler dealers that had been approved for a Fiat store, but many deals fell through for various reasons. A Chrysler spokesperson tells AN that letters of intent have already been sent out to seven non-Chrysler dealers.

While opening up the franchising process will likely speed up the pace of adding Fiat stores to the U.S., there are still many hurdles for the Italian make. For starters, the 500 is currently the only Fiat available in the U.S., and it could sit alone on the show floor for at least another year. And so far, Fiat has insisted that new franchises will only be awarded to those with plans to build a standalone store.

Though it doesn’t sound like a great situation to us, we’re guessing there are at least 71 more entrepreneurs willing to sign on the dotted line to gain another foothold in the car business.

Fiat expanding beyond Chrysler-paired dealerships

Automakers try to keep upcoming models secret, meting out limited details on their own terms until the vehicle in question makes its debut. But the best laid plans of mice and men, wrote Steinbeck, often go awry. And in many cases, it’s government agencies that can be held responsible, whether it’s the vice-president leaking information or a patent offices releasing regulatory sketches.

In this case, it appears to be the Environmental Protection Agency and its fueleconomy.gov website, which has apparently let slip the arrival of the 2012 Lamborghini Aventador Roadster. The information in the EPA data sheet is roughly the same as the existing Aventador coupe’s, but it’s not these sorts of details that count here. After all, how many Lamborghini drivers are really that concerned with fuel economy or carbon emissions?

Now, this should come as no surprise, as we’ve been expecting the open-air Lambo to arrive at some point, particularly since its predecessors – the Murcielago and Diablo before it – offered convertible models. But this appears to be our first real confirmation.

Lamborghini Aventador Roadster leaked by EPA?