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Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Despite having killed the NSX project late last year due to tanking industry sales, Honda says it could still revive the NSX in the future.
Dick Colliver, executive vice president of American Honda, said in an interview that the NSX could still be revived because "the development is mostly done." Honda is working to reassure dealers who were concerned when it cancelled plans to make the next-generation sports car.
Acura is sticking to its plan of becoming a Tier 1 luxury automaker without sacrificing its value image. "Being a premium luxury brand is not just about product. It's the way dealers handle customers. You've got to earn your way into the segment. You don't necessarily need a $90,000 sedan to get there."
Along with the NSX, Honda cancelled development of its rear-wheel drive V-8 platform for Acura. The Japanese automaker's luxury brand has also taken flack for the styling direction it introduced last year with the introductions of the new TSX, TL and RL. Acura's sales dropped 15 percent last year compared with 2007.
© Source: automobilemag
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Jock Freemantle has revealed the consumer-ready version of his toy for the first time at the A1GP racing event in Taupo, NZ.
Eventhough the Hulme looks more like an Ariel Atom or Ford’s 1996 Indigo concept, Freemantle says his bare-bones racer competes with the best from Ferrari and Lamborghini. That may be a good thing considering the Hulme has a price tag of $360,000 (about 700,000 NZ dollars). Then again, the car may be able to back up those claims. The Hulme CanAm (named after motor racing legend Denny Hulme) is powered by a 7.0-liter Chevrolet V8 engine with 600 hp and a claimed top speed of 198 mph.
The car has positive energy on its side. "I’ve been called stupid and a bloody idiot and I haven’t got a hope in hell of doing it," Freemantle says about the success of the Hulme. "I don’t answer people like that. You just have to ignore people who are negative." In the world of fast cars, we can’t argue with that.
© Source: topspeed
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Ford released a new promotional video of the Ford Focus RS to help give the Europeans a little more detail on the car, but it also taunts us in the U.S. with a hot hatch we can’t have. Because the Focus RS is powered by a 2.5-liter 20-valve DOHC engine that delivers 300 hp at 6500 and a peak torque of 440 NM (325 lb-ft.), we were hoping that Ford was at least going to show us a little front wheel burnout.
© Source: topspeed
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The Touareg hybrid should be available come next year, according to announcements from Volkswagen. The company will further expand its BlueMotion ecological range with this sports utility, which will add to the ever-widening range of hybrid vehicles available on the market.
The Volkswagen sports utility will be the first hybrid engine vehicle from the company, equipped with a V6 TSI and a 52hp electric motor, for a combined performance of 333hp. A new eight-speed automatic transmission will also feature, resulting in consumption of about nine litres per 100km.
Use of only the electric engine allows for speeds below 50 km/hr, while on full power (or boost mode) performance results in 374 hp and 550 Nm. More additions to the Volkswagen hybrid offering will take place in 2010, with the expansion of the Passat range, including an EcoFuel option of petrol-natural gas combination capable of 150hp and running 100 km with only 4.5 litres of petrol.
A BlueTDI engine will also emerge with 140 hp and consuming only 5.2 litres per 100km. The last engine option in development is the BlueMotion with start&stop technology, saving energy when stopping. All this should see a comprehensive ecological offering from Volkswagen within a year.
© Source: eurocarblog
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Tuesday, February 3, 2009
The small luxury crossover segment promises to be one of the hottest this year. BMW pioneered the trend six long years ago with the X3. And now, the Mercedes-Benz GLK is touching down at dealers. The Audi Q5 will be in stores within a month or two as well. So in just five years, this group has swelled to six. What makes the XC60 stand apart from the crowd? Well, since it is a Volvo—inventor of the three-point seatbelt—safety, of course. Volvo says the XC60 is the safest car the company has ever produced. And considering Volvo's reputation, that's some statement.
In addition to Volvo's extensive repertoire of protection and prevention equipment—including a full complement of airbags, traction and stability controls, plus an optional blind-spot information system—the XC60 has something completely new: City Safety. It's a system that could help prevent low-speed accidents, and it comes standard. To find out how it all works we spent a few days with the XC60 on the roads around San Francisco. —Colin Ryan
Beneath the XC60's attractive sheetmetal is the 281-hp, 3.0-liter turbocharged straight Six, sending 295 lb-ft of torque to a slick six-speed automatic transmission. The power is proportioned to each wheel by a new Haldex permanent all-wheel drive system. Volvo says the XC60 can hit 60 mph in a tick over 7 seconds and return around 22 mpg on the highway.
The interior follows in Volvo's tradition of using cool Scandinavian design, mixed with clever ergonomics. The handsome "floating" center stack has a brushed aluminum face as standard, light Nordic oak as an option. Leather trim is standard and there are optional children's booster seats. Rear head- and legroom is more than adequate, while the second-row seating also folds flat into the floor for practical load space. Up above is a panoramic moonroof made of shatterproof laminated glassю
Volvo has culled through research and determined that 75 percent of all accidents occur at speeds under 19 mph—those little bumper-to-bumper nudges in traffic. These accidents may not be life threatening, but they are sometimes expensive, not to mention distressing and time-consuming. Volvo's City Safety system uses laser sensors that can detect an object up to 18 ft in front of the car and will activate the brakes automatically to avoid a collision or at least make contact less catastrophic. Potential buyers will be able to test the City Safety feature at Volvo dealers. And yes, it can be de-activated.
The XC60 will start at $37,200 when it goes on sale next month. And there is a full array of electronics: Bluetooth, iPod connectivity, satellite radio, plus the option of a swankier stereo—a 650-watt, 12-speaker version with Dolby Pro-Logic II Surround. Anyone yearning for a diesel or hybrid version will have to wait until next year—for now, this is the only XC60.
© Source: popularmechanics
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(from Carlsson Press Release) Carlsson re-defines open-air pleasure Mercedes-Benz SL CK63 RS sprints from zero to a hundred in 4.1 seconds
- Eight-cylinder renders 600 hp after alteration
- Maximum torque rises to 705 Newton metres
- Leather and carbon ennoble the basis Mercedes SL 63 AMG
- Special varnish five times less glossy than conventional matt colours
With its CK63 RS refinement, Carlsson brings significantly more pressure on the streets than the Mercedes Benz SL 63 AMG which provides the basis for the new vehicle. More performance, a complete aerodynamics kit, finest leather in the interior and an exclusive varnish are the hallmarks of the new roadster from the Merzig-based company.
Carlsson, the automobile manufacturer specialised on Mercedes Benz models, invigorates the eight-cylinder with significantly more performance. Although the cubic capacity with 6,208 cc has not been changed, the refined power engine renders up to 600 hp (441 kW) instead of the serial 525 hp (386 kW) with the AMG.
Also the maximum torque rises from 630 Newton metres at 5,200 rpm to 705 at 5,100 rpm. With the Carlsson refinement, the sprint from zero to a hundred only takes 4.1 seconds and is therefore half a second faster than the AMG-model. The acceleration is electronically limited at respectable 325 km/h instead of 250 km/h.
In order to convey the power of the engine to the road, an extensive aerodynamic kit presses the CK63 RS onto the tar and provides an optimal grip. The air which is aspirated at the car front flows out through specially formed outlets at the car wings. Front apron and rear diffuser are made of polyurethane (PU) and are refined with carbon fibre elements which direct the air-flows for the best possible road grip.
For more information about the Carlsson CK63 RS on the basis of the SL 63 AMG and all refining possibilities for the entire Mercedes Benz range from A- to S-class and Smart, please visit the website www.carlsson.de
© Source: seriouswheels
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2009 Ducati Monster 1100 follows hard on the heels of the new, second-generation Ducati Monster 696 we rode recently—a machine that put everyone on notice about what Ducati can do when it has enough money and motivation.
The first-generation Monster was developed (way back in 1993) in order to provide the company with an entry-level model that would increase overall sales as much as it might lend impetus to the European naked-bike fad. The Monster quickly became the factory's bread-and-butter product, easily outselling everything else in Ducati's model range. That first Monster was a bit of a parts-bin special, using available frames and engines to cut the cost of the gamble. In contrast, the new Monster was unique from the outset, and that allowed the designers to make important improvements.
This 1100 version of the new Monster benefits from a 1078 cc engine that has cylinders shared with the Multistrada and Hypermotard models, but with crankcases cast in a new vacuum process that loses about 6.5 pounds of mass. There's a new Siemens fuel-injection system on the Monster 1100 that uses what Ducati calls combined Alpha-n and speed-density air-measurement technology to improve part-throttle operation. Alpha-n is a dyno-generated airflow model (in the computer) that takes over in circumstances where airflow meters (MAF) tend to err.
Rated at 95 hp at 7500 rpm and 79.5 lb-ft of torque at 6000 rpm, the 1100 is noticeably more muscular than its 696 sibling, capable of second-gear wheelies with just a twist of the grip. The trellis-type frame is borrowed directly from the 696, but there is an all-new aluminum single-side swing arm locating the rear wheel. A fully adjustable inverted Showa fork is used up front, with a Sachs shock at the rear. That's on normal 1100 models—1100 S-models will wear high-end Öhlins suspension components. Tire sizes are up slightly from the 696, and the Bridgestone BT-016 hoops fitted to the 1100 are 120/70-17 on the front and 180/55-17 on the rear.
A tight-fitting cowl on the rear part of the seat makes the bike look like a monoposto model, but it's easily removed to accommodate a pillion passenger seat. The same instrument panel we know from the 696 reveals engine speed by way of a liquid-crystal analog arc, and road speed with a typical seven-segment digital readout. It provides trip-computer functions like travel time, air temperature and scheduled maintenance reminders. Because the new-generation Monster now has a steering-angle range improved to 64 degrees lock-to-lock, it's much easier to maneuver at low speeds, making it better suited to heavy traffic and confined spaces.
© Source: popularmechanics
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