The MINI Countryman currently seats four, plus a whole lot of cupholders. But due to consumer demand, a rear bench option will be coming to America as early as July. The four-seater will be standard, but the bench seat will be an additional option. Current Countryman owners looking to squeeze their fellow countryman into the middle...
Continue Reading...
Days after Renault fired three men and pressed criminal charges on them for allegedly attempting to sell electric car secrets overseas, CEO Carlos Ghosn is facing a disturbing lack of evidence, embarrassing Renault into reconsidering its accusations. The entire dramatic episode is becoming a farce—like BP during the Gulf oil spill, Renault may be faced...
Continue Reading...
And they don’t know much more about hybrids, either. A study by London-based market research firm Synovate found that new vehicle buyers hardly knew that hybrids contained batteries, used gasoline, or couldn’t be plugged in. Only two-thirds of people surveyed knew that hybrids used both battery and gasoline power (hence the “hybrid” name), and only...
Continue Reading...
Saab has created a Facebook page that allows fans of the Swedish meatball to create their own Saab-related page banners, and some may be chosen by Saab to run on AOL, MSN, the New York Times, and Wired, among other influential websites. Created by McCann Worldgroup Detroit, “The Story of Saab” is an interactive program on...
Continue Reading...
Audi will make the final decision to build the beautiful Quattro concept in six months. But in the meanwhile, they’re pushing ahead with further developing it…you know, just in case. The company first mentioned that they would decide whether or not to produce the Quattro in two or three months. But now, the decision has...
Continue Reading...
If you’ve seen Le Mans, you’ll remember the opening sequence with a lovely slate-grey Porsche 911 that Steve McQueen drives through the countryside. Now, here’s the chance to own that same car. McQueen liked the 1970 Porsche 911S so much that he bought it after the movie was completed and shipped it to California, where...
Continue Reading...
Remember the retro-tastic Bulli from Geneva? If not, then this link should refresh your memory. Well, Volkswagen research and development boss Ulrich Hackenberg says it wasn’t just a snazzy show concept—the company plans to put it into production, under the MDS (modular design system) platform. The platform, previously known as the MQB, will enter production...
Continue Reading...
Apparently spiders don’t just prefer Mazdas. Honda has warned its dealers to keep an eye out for the same spiders that nested in 65,000 recalled Mazda6 sedans, as they may infest the Accord. Hyundai is also reportedly warning dealers of a similar issue with its models. It’s not a full-blown recall, but if you see...
Continue Reading...
Chrysler’s official Twitter handle, @ChryslerAutos, issued a swear-laden message regarding the state and sanity of the Motor City’s motorists. The tweet was deleted, but not before it was picked up by thousands. The tweet read, “I find it ironic that Detroit is known as the #motorcity and yet no one here knows how to f—ing...
Continue Reading...
The 2012 Acura TL goes on sale in a couple of weeks, and it gets a new six-speed automatic transmission, some new gadgets, and a facelift to help consumers get over that massive buck tooth. Honda’s new Sequential SportShift 6-speed automatic transmission blips the throttle to match gear and engine speeds while downshifting, aping the...
Continue Reading...
For the fourth year in a row, the overall Fiat brand has produced the lowest CO2 emissions in Europe, a continent that actually pays attention to CO2 emissions figures. The brand’s average, 123.1 grams per kilometer, dropped 4.7g from last year. And from the past four years the company’s CO2 emissions have dropped 10 percent, from...
Continue Reading...
Infiniti has only been in Europe since 2008, but the brand has big ambitions: it aims to double its sales by the end of this fiscal year. In 2010 up until March 31st, Infiniti sold 4,500 cars. This isn’t even a drop in the bucket compared to the likes of Mercedes, Lexus, and Audi, the...
Continue Reading...
The 2010-2011 Jeep Wrangler has been recalled over improperly torqued front and rear axle fasteners, which could degrade steering abilities and cause an accident. NHTSA says the 19 improperly adjusted fasteners could result in “noise, or ultimately, degradation in steering and handling characteristics.” Anytime there are loose bolts in the drivetrain is a problem, so...
Continue Reading...
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has named the Mini Countryman its “2011 Top Safety Pick,” the first Mini to do so. The sort-of-SUV received “Good” ratings in front, side, rollover, and rear impact protection, ensuring that owners won’t get beat up if they ever take theirs rally racing. The Countryman comes with electronic stability...
Continue Reading...
A few weeks ago, Bentley announced that it had set a world speed record on ice in their Continental Supersports. The modified convertible hit 205.48 mph on a Finnish lakebed, which is no trifling speed. Now, obscure tire manufacturer Nokian has announced that they have bested that record by one mph, with their own special...
Continue Reading...
Like a scorned prom date, Jaguar has turned down the B99 concept that Bertone showed at Geneva this month, rejecting the Italian design studio’s vision of a possible X-Type replacement. “We appreciate the fact that Jaguar is interesting enough for people to do a concept around,” said Adrian Hallmark, Jaguar’s global brand director. “It is...
Continue Reading...
The sexy, shiny Jaguar E-Type revival concept that has made the rounds in the past few weeks is entering ultra-limited production. Swedish firm Vizualtech plans to build the first car in the summer of 2012, taking about six months to build each example by hand. The cars will be based on the Jaguar XKR chassis,...
Continue Reading...
The Ferrari–Ford rivalry is back on! Just in case it was possible to confuse America’s best-selling pickup truck with Ferrari’s newest F1 car, the Prancing Horse has chosen to spell it out painfully and slowly for the rest of us. The two companies have come to an agreement over the name F150, which Ferrari sought...
Continue Reading...
Some of that Fiat influence is sneaking into Jeep, and more of it than expected. The brand is planning to launch a supermini SUV to compete against the MINI Cooper and Audi A1 (and, by extension, the Fiat 500) that will be even smaller than the Wrangler, while aping its macho styling cues. “There’s definitely...
Continue Reading...
If you’ve ever wondered as to the mental capacity of your fellow commuters, here’s a statistic that will confirm your deepest suspicions: 19 percent of drivers admit to browsing the Internet from their cell phones, while on the road. That’s one in five drivers, according to a survey conducted in November by insurance company State...
Continue Reading...
The legendary De Tomaso Pantera will be set to return in November of this year, a much-anticipated product after the disappointing Deauville (formerly SLC) introduced at the Geneva Auto Show last week. The Pantera is the second part of the De Tomaso revival, and there isn’t much known about it yet—other than the fact that...
Continue Reading...
The success of the Ford Fiesta brings with it another trend—the revival of the hatchback, long-derided in America as being cheap without the cheerfulness. The Fiesta has dominated the small car segment below the Focus. Consumers are trading in their larger vehicles, even including the Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla, in response to increased gas...
Continue Reading...
The federal government, under the jurisdiction of Homeland Security, started investigating the importation of grey-market Nissan Skylines, tracking down their owners and even seizing the cars. According to import laws, only a select few R33 Skylines from 1996 to 1998 can be legally brought to U.S. shores. The rest came by an importer that failed...
Continue Reading...
Chrysler announced a recall of 248,000 Dodge Journey, Grand Caravan, and Chrysler Town & Country models for a chance that the key could slip out while driving, shutting down the engine without warning. At least two rear-end collisions have occurred from this fault, says Chrysler and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. From driver contact...
Continue Reading...
sidebar...
