Drumroll, please…the three finalists for the overall 2011 World Car of the Year are the 2011 Audi A8, the BMW 5 Series and the Nissan Leaf. The three performance car finalists chosen are the Ferrari 458 Italia, the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG and the Porsche 911 Turbo. Competing for the spot of Green Car of the...
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They still build the 9-3? You betcha, bucko, and they still like the 9-3 enough to give it a few more last hurrahs. But as fans of the original 900 know, all good things must come to an end – and when the replacement for the 9-3 is launched, it will draw much of its...
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The car industry is shrinking the world. Nowhere is this more evident than at Ford, who has made an effort in recent years to bring its American lineup and styling in with the rest of the planet’s. So when the next Mustang comes out, expect to see it developed with design input from Ford’s European...
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Meet the 2011 Aston Martin AMR-One race car: the new prototype race car designed for the Le Mans LMP1-spec class, with snazzy Gulf livery, a (very British) 007 racing number, and a 2.0-liter inline-six engine. Wait, the mighty race car has an engine half the size of a DB9? Well, yes, somehow. Le Mans regulations for...
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Tata has been trying to dip its toe into the wild, wacky world of the European automobile market ever since they released their $2,500 Nano supermini. They made an attempt at appeasing discerning European customers with the Nano Europa, an “upscale” Nano with alloy wheels, power steering, and an extra cylinder (bringing the total to...
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Ford announced a recall of their trucks and crossovers – including 23,688 Ranger pickup trucks – because of a fuel line near the throttle body shield that could leak fuel and cause a fire, and an electrical system that might short out and, well, cause a fire. Ford is recalling 8,022 Edge and Lincokn MKX...
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In a victory more deserving than the Oscar for The King’s Speech, Pininfarina has been selected for the best concept of 2010 by Car Design News, for their stunning Alfa Romeo 2uettottanta concept. The 2uettottanta was chosen by both design experts as well as enthusiasts who responded to the survey by Car Design News, who...
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The Mitsubishi Evo series will not continue into its eleventh model, says Gayu Eusegi, global product director. He may as well have kidnapped Santa, in the minds of rally fans everywhere. “There is still a demand,” says Eusegi, “but we must stop.” Why? Because, he says, Mitsubishi will concentrate on smaller and more environmentally-friendly cars...
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World War II jokes aside, the French and the Germans are joining forces this time…and for powers of good. BMW and PSA Peugeot Citroën plan to invest 100 million Euros and the efforts of 400 employees into developing hybrid technology, to be shared by both brands. The program, excitingly titled “BMW Peugeot Citroën Electrification,” will...
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If Fiat ever sells Alfa Romeo, says VW chairman Ferdinand Piech, Volkswagen could take the underperforming brand and quadruple its sales within five years. Ambitious? Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne certainly doesn’t think so. “As long as I am CEO of Chrysler and Fiat,” he said, “Mr. Piech will never have Alfa Romeo.” Marchionne suggested to...
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Consider this little disappearance an “extended vacation.” After shutting down operations in Longbridge back in 2005, MG has now returned to the UK, by way of China, with the British-built MG 6. MG Rover imploded in spectacular fashion back in 2005, but since then they have been hiding out in China. Owned by Nanjing Automobile...
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Fresh from the clutches of its GM masters, Saab is celebrating its independence (to Spyker, anyway) with another special edition of the aging 9-3 convertible, shown ahead of its formal announcement at the Geneva Auto Show. With just 366 editions available, you can bet somebody will be paying top dollar for one in 20 years....
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Giorgetto Giuigiaro and design studio Italdesign have given us a glimpse of two Volkswagen concepts set to debut at the Geneva Auto Show in March. Italdesign has collaborated with Volkswagen in the past, with the original Golf and Scirocco widely considered as classics of design. They’ve gone on to pen the Volkswagen W12 concept and...
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Jaguar will debut its most powerful production car yet, the XKR-S, at the Geneva Auto Show next week. The electric blue beast packs a 550-horsepower version of the company’s supercharged V8, delivering 40 more horses than the regular XKR. The XKR-S name was previously used for the outgoing XK8 model, but that amounted to little...
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Volvo has unveiled a plug-in diesel hybrid version of its V60 wagon ahead of the Geneva Auto Show, which promises to do for fuel spending what Atkins did for bread consumption. The diesel hybrid takes Volvo’s 2.4-liter inline-five turbodiesel, pumping out 215 horsepower and 324 lb-ft of torque and adds an electric motor to the...
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Jaguar and Land Rover are in talks with Chinese carmaker Great Wall over a potential manufacturing partnership in China, according to two executives from Great Wall. While nothing is certain at this stage, what’s clear is that Jaguar and Land Rover are two internationally-recognized brands that do not have any manufacturing presence in China, one...
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Due to the ongoing protests in Bahrain, F1 officials have officially pulled the plug on the Bahrain Grand Prix, originally scheduled for March 13th. F1’s governing body, the FIA, and its president Bernie Ecclestone have decided to “postpone” the opening race of the 2011 season, instead starting in Melbourne, Australia on March 27th. A new date...
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A few months ago the Granite concept, the darling of GMC’s display at the 2010 Detroit Auto Show, was slated to enter production. But GM internal management never confirmed it, and the matter was dropped. Now, the GMC Granite has been given the go-ahead for production…again. Motor Trend reports, from a source within GM, that...
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Europe is getting the Grand Cherokee with a diesel as well as special 70th anniversary editions, as Jeep will announce at the Geneva Auto Show in a week’s time. The diesel will be a turbocharged 3.0-liter V6, sourced from the Fiat mothership and built by VM Motori. It’ll come in two forms: one with 188...
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Nissan‘s Leaf electric car has been in such high demand that the company is struggling to build them fast enough. It’s stopped taking new orders just to fulfill its current demand. Out of 27,000 total orders so far from the United States, Japan, and Europe, it has only completed 10,000. The remaining 17,000 will be...
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Earlier this month a debate raged on whether the American armed forces should sponsor NASCAR teams, one that had the potential to get ugly. But the House voted 241-148 to ditch the proposal, allowing the Army, Air Force, and National Guard to keep on racin’. Rep. Betty McCollum (D-MN) introduced the proposal, as an amendment...
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North Americans only received the small Golf-based A3 hatchback a few years ago, but Audi is planning to expand the lineup with a fastback four-door sedan at the Geneva Auto Show packing 400+ horsepower and quattro AWD. The power comes courtesy of a turbocharged 5-cylinder engine, attached with precision to a 7-speed S-tronic transmission. Stylistically,...
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The Forspeed concept is Smart‘s interpretation of a zero-emissions roadster, based on the only vehicle Smart currently builds: its Fortwo city car. It’s designed to complement the rest of Smart’s electric transportation lineup for really small vehicles, which includes a scooter and a bicycle. The squat, roofless car features huge, ringed headlights reminiscent of eyelashes,...
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GM’s MyLink, available starting with the 2012 Chevrolet Volt and Equinox, will offer smartphone charging, Pandora radio streaming, GraceNote music identification, Bluetooth, XM satellite radio, voice activation, OnStar, and USB inputs, in case listening to drive-time radio is too crushing for commuters. The MyLink comes hot on the heels of Ford’s SYNC as an inevitable...
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