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Saturday, April 28, 2012
New Detroit 2010 flagship A8 at the Audi
Edition Specials Mercedes-Benz Launches SL Night Edition and SLK Grand
Friday, April 27, 2012
Subaru Impreza WRX STI RB320 Special Edition
New 2010 Volkswagen New Compact Coupe live at Detroit
Detroit Motorshow was absolutely added absorbing than the aboriginal day, as alot of the apple premieres that were captivated on the aboriginal day are now in the hall. Cars like this Volkswagen New Compact Auto abstraction were alone appear in clandestine halls on Day 1, so they could alone move it to the capital anteroom area anybody is on the additional day.
So actuality we are, alive photos of the new “Jetta Coupe” which best apparently additionally previews what the 4-door new Jetta will attending like. The auto is gorgeous, admitting in absolute activity I feel it would apparently attending nicer if the roofline were a little lower.
The Hybrid badging on the advanced grille refers to its aggregate of a 1.4-litre TSI agent with 148 bhp and 220 Nm and a 27 bhp electric motor VW calls E-motor. The motor is sandwiched amid the TSI agent and a 7-speed bifold clamp transmission, and aggregate goes to the advanced wheels. Interestingly, the car has a “coast mode” area alone the motor admiral the car during situations like low RPM artery cruising.
Enjoy the alive photos afterwards the jump.Thursday, April 26, 2012
Hummer H2 Latte Macciatto 2009
The GeigerCars Hummer H2 Latte Macciatto is also fitted with a 30-inch chrome rims, a brown and crème-beige color combination, Alcantara and leather and a DVD player with a roof-mounted monitor.
The GeigerCars Hummer H2 Kompressor Latte Macciatto also comes with Brembo brakes, a stainless steel sports exhaust system, additional stabilizers, rear axle struts and adjustable sports shock absorbers and a lowered ride height.
Live Detroit Auto Show MINI Beachcomber Concept
Mitsubishi's been having a rough time of it lately here in the United States
Mitsubishi's been having a rough time of it lately here in the United States. Last year, sales fell 44.8 percent. Ouch. Even worse, Mitsu's lone U.S. manufacturing plant in Normal, Illinois is way under capacity. How far under? Well, the Normal plant's website lists its capacity at 135,000 vehicles per year. Only thing is, back when that plant was a joint Chrysler/Mitsubishi venture it could pop out 240,000 cars per year. Last year, Normal made just 18,501 vehicles.
As you might imagine, Mitsubishi's uncertain as to whether the Normal plant will remain open. One solution might be to introduce and build their Triton pickup truck in the U.S.. America's been sorely lacking in the small pickup market for the last 15 years or so, and the Triton would be a welcome player to the segment.
Only thing is, because of the notorious chicken tax, Mitsubishi would need to build about 50,000 to 60,000 Tritons a year at the Normal plant to make the endeavor worthwhile. Last year's 44.8 percent drop in business meant that Mitsubishi only sold 53,986 cars and trucks last year. Anyone else sense a problem? Even if Mitsubishi's sales rebound over the 100,000 unit mark, it's doubtful that 50 to 60 percent of that total would be a small pickup truck, especially as Mitsubishi's mid-size truck, the Raider, was quietly discontinued last year.
Monday, April 23, 2012
Audi S4 Full Test 2010
Rest assured, the 3.0-liter V6 in the 2010 Audi S4 cranks out 333 supercharged horsepower and 325 supercharged pound-feet of torque, which hit the ground via a six-speed manual transmission and standard all-wheel drive. Audi's seven-speed, dual-clutch automated manual S tronic transmission is optional.
You see, the sassy Germans running Audi's marketing department decided that "T" should be the moniker used to indicate both turbo- and supercharged engines on the fenders of all S models using forced induction. For this, Audi lacks a good explanation — offering only that the "T" is, in fact, misleading.
We agree.
Accordingly, we've come up with an equally sensible name for the new sedan. For the remainder of this review, this Imola Yellow S4 will be known as the Red Baron.
From Eight to Six
Indeed, this 2010 Audi S4 is a giant leap for Audi, if not in the expected direction. After all, its last S4, which disappeared in 2008, had under its hood the genuine article as far as Americans are concerned — a V8 power plant. That all-aluminum mill revved to a righteous 7,000 rpm, cranked out 340 hp at full tilt and made all the right sounds. It was also strapped to a car which (according to our measurements) was lighter than this new-generation S4 that replaces it.
To these facts the Red Baron flips a big, supercharged middle finger and disappears into the distance. This is because in addition to being bigger (a good thing for rear-seat passengers) and heavier (a bad thing for everyone), it manages to punch through the 60-mph barrier in only 4.9 seconds (4.6 seconds with 1 foot of rollout like on a drag strip). It goes on to complete the quarter-mile in 13.2 seconds at 106.1 mph.
Both of these numbers are considerably more impressive than those of the previous S4, which might have sounded good, but simply wasn't as quick. At least part of the gap can be explained by the fact that the blown V6 makes more torque than the old V8. Its 325 lb-ft of torque is delivered as low as 2,900 rpm, while the V8's torque peak of 302 lb-ft didn't arrive until 3,500 rpm.
Lightness and Its Measurement
Run these figures past anyone at Audi and they're quick to point out that the new 2010 S4's chassis is actually 10 percent lighter than the outgoing S4. Our scales show that this does not translate into a lighter car, but when you consider the fact that the new car's wheelbase and overall length is more than 6 inches longer than the previous generation, it's quite a feat to have kept this package as light as it is.
Better weight distribution almost always means better manners, and we were impressed with the 2010 Audi S4's handling. At 68.8 mph it charged through the slalom at a rate approaching the last BMW 335i sedan we tested, which managed the feat at 69.9 mph.
Lateral acceleration around the skid pad was also striking. A two-way average of 0.90g with the stability control off is good, but the 0.92g average with the system turned on speaks volumes for Audi's attention to the calibration details.
The S4's 109-foot stop from 60 mph is also better than most of its competition, as is its pedal feel.
Driving Reality
Following are the words you'll need to understand what's missing from the above acceleration numbers.
Topping BMW's twin-turbocharged 3.0-liter six in a contest of throttle response is a task we figured impossible. But tickle the Red Baron's go pedal and its V6's instant snap makes the Bimmer engine feel positively apathetic.
To that snap this S4 adds Audi's Drive Select — a $3,950 option that includes adjustable suspension damping and steering assist as well as Audi's active rear differential, which can bias torque individually to each rear wheel. Of course, this is coupled with all-wheel drive, 60 percent of which the 2010 S4 now biases to the rear under normal conditions.
Maximum Attack
When you're driving hard, you'll likely not notice these bits of management, but you will get a sense that you're driving one of the most capable sport sedans available today. The S4's balance rivals its German competitors even if feedback — especially through the steering wheel — is less natural. Drive Select can add or remove steering assist, but the S4 lacks the high-resolution steering communication we'd like it to have.
We worked up to a quick rhythm in the 2010 Audi S4 until we channeled our inner Walter Rohrl and dared to touch the brake pedal with our left foot. That mistake shut down the fun faster than you can say "unintended acceleration," as the electronics cut back the throttle in response. Audi says the electronics' lack of tolerance for an overlap between throttle and brake action is a safety feature. We say it diminishes the S4's abilities when going flat out and takes away a useful driving tool for skilled drivers.
It's What's Inside That Counts
There is no shortage of S4-specific niceties on this car. Embossed into the silky napa-style leather upholstery of the optional seats is the S4 logo. The front brake calipers share this logo as do the rocker sills, steering wheel and grille.
The rest of the interior is typical Audi, with lavish materials solidly assembled in a sensible and appealing fashion. Everything the driver needs to touch feels solid, durable and responsive. Quirks include the iPod cable in the glovebox that needs to be about an inch longer, because it binds when the door is fully open. And there's the engine start/stop button, which seems to kill the engine only about half the time. (Certainly this is because of something we are doing or not doing, but, really, should this ever be a problem?)
Then there's the $6,100 Prestige package, which adds 19-inch wheels, the ear-tingling Bang & Olufsen audio system, keyless start/stop, navigation, voice-activated controls, auto-dimming mirrors and seat memory. Really, that's a lot of goodness for $6 grand.
The Tally
All in — with its Prestige package, Drive Select, leather seats and Driver Assist package — the S4 you see here totals $59,150 including destination. That's no small investment for a car in this class, but the S4 is no small consideration, either.
The Drive Select adjustable suspension and steering alone set the Red Baron apart from most of its rivals, many of which are just as comfortable, but lack the ability of the 2010 Audi S4 to adapt to full-whack driving with the push of a button. Plus, the S4 is quicker. And in the sport sedan segment, quick counts for something.
Bentley Continental GT 6 L W12 Engine
2010 Lexus RX 450h
With a slew of sensors and CPUs, the 2010 Lexus RX450h can pretty much drive itself. Want to go somewhere? Sit down in the driver's seat, use the Remote Touch device (a.k.a. "mouse") to tell the crossover where you want to go, and follow the easy-as-store-bought-pie instructions to your destination. Whether or not this is a good thing depends on how badly you want to feel like you're in control of your commute. For those concerned about fuel economy and comfort, the almost-autonomous nature of the RX450h is nice, but certainly doesn't offer a tremendous amount of ability to control how much fuel you burn moving down the street. As it turns out, this is a feature, not a bug. Find out why after the jump.
2010 Lexus RX 450h
Sunday, April 22, 2012
New 2010 Cadillac XTS Platinum Concept
Cadillac CTS-V Coupe 2011
A pair of six-speed transmissions is offered in the CTS-V Coupe: a Tremec TR6060 six-speed manual with a dual-disc clutch and a Hydra-Matic 6L90 six-speed automatic with paddle-shift control.
CTS-V includes sophisticated braking and tire systems, in partnership with two companies renowned for high-performance technology: Brembo and Michelin. Brembo brakes are at all four corners and include powerful, six-piston calipers in the front and four-piston calipers in the rear. Michelin partnered with Cadillac engineers to develop its acclaimed Pilot Sport PS2 summer tire for CTS-V and its exclusive 19-inch alloy wheels. The tires support high levels of grip in track conditions, while also affording good performance on the road.
2010 Devon GTX
This is a depressing way to start the new year. According to a "source close to the project" speaking with Automobile, plans to produce the Devon GTX have been cancelled due to the Dodge Viper discontinuation.
As a refresher, the 650-hp, Viper-based coupe was unveiled last year in Pebble Beach and was due to go into limited production this year in Southern California. We even had the chance to go for a spin the GTX late last year after one of the prototypes set a lap record at Laguna Seca. Devon hoped to thrust America back on the main supercar stage with the bespoke coupe, but without a source for the chassis and 8.4-liter engine, those plans have apparently been dashed. We're hoping to get more details directly from Devon, so stay tuned for an update.
UPDATE: We've just heard back from company founder, Scott Devon, and the rumors are unfortunately true – the Devon GTX is dead. However, Devon Motorworks will live on, focusing instead on apparel and an upcoming motorcycle project. So what will happen to the one-time Laguna Seca lap-record-holding Devon GTX? One of the two prototypes will be put on display at the company's flagship store opening in Beverly Hills this April. The other might see track duty in the hands of development driver Justin Bell. Here's the official response from Devon:
The Viper platform being discontinued and the inability to amortize tooling costs are the key reasons. But we have two beautiful prototypes and might still race the Laguna Seca car with Justin Bell in GT2. However, our Devon brand plans have expanded to include jeans, leather jackets, watches, scents, and eyewear. Our Beverly Hills flagship store will open this April. We also have a line of motorcycles being made by legendary builder Shinya Kimura. And the black and chrome GTX will be in the store as a display piece of automotive art. I wish we could have gone into production but have no regrets and feel we achieved a significant contribution in auto design along with the Laguna Seca record.