2008

For more than a year now, Mercedes' parent company Daimler has pursued a copyright infringement case against Chinese carmaker Shuanghuan for its Bubble, a blatant knock-off of the Smart ForTwo minicar. A recent holding in a Milanese court has put the German company on the back foot, however, and...

German tuner and custom coachbuilder Hamann is perhaps best known for its work with BMW's machines, but now it has unveiled its plans for an upgrade program for the Bentley Continental GT and GT Speed. Full details of the upgrade kit are yet to be revealed, but so far Hamann has released these four...

A one-of-a-kind Dodge Viper tuned by McLaren has been put up for sale, with an asking price that comes close to $295,000. Known as the ASC Diamondback Viper, the car was first unveiled by American Specialty Cars (ASC) back at the 2006 Detroit Auto Show featuring a bevy of performance modifications...

German racing and engineering firm Reiter Engineering has unveiled a road-going variant of its Lamborghini Gallardo racing car called the GT3 Strada. Reiter Engineering is the factory-backed entry for the Lamborghini team in the FIA GT Championships, and is well known for its development of...

Late last year we saw Maserati introduce a new performance ‘S’ variant of its already sporty Quattroporte GT, and now the Italian carmaker has released the first details of a similar model based on the recently revealed 2009 Quattroporte facelift. The new car is the Maserati...

As their name suggests, the tuners at Imola Racing specialize in Ferrari modification, and their latest creation demonstrates their art in a particularly dramatic manner. Building on the base of the already excellent Ferrari 612 Scaglietti, Imola adds a widebody kit and a range of performance...

German racing and engineering firm Reiter Engineering has unveiled a road-going variant of its Lamborghini Murcielago R-GT racing car. Reiter Engineering is the factory-backed entry for the Lamborghini team in the FIA GT Championships, and is well known for its development of lightweight racing...

Daimler's Maybach brand of super-luxury executive vehicles doesn't have the sales strength of rivals Bentley or Rolls Royce, but it's no less an opulent and sizable piece of machinery. Despite the Maybach 62's 242.7in (6.17m) length, some intrepid modifiers decided it wasn't quite large enough, and...

Daimler commenced trials of a new mobility concept called the ‘car2go project’ in Ulm, Germany, on October 24 in an attempt to provide a solution for increasing traffic volume in urban areas. The company is now expanding the program to 200 cars from an initial 50, and opening the fleet...

Ford’s North American lineup will be experiencing a major overhaul over the next couple of years, with the entire lineup expected to be completely upgraded by 2010 and six new European models set to join the ranks. The biggest impact is the considerable shift towards smaller vehicles and more...

The convertible version of Audi’s R8 supercar has been spotted testing in Germany without a hint of camouflage material. These images of a prototype, plus a new computer generated preview, reveal that the convertible will gain a conventional fabric roof but misses out on the R8’s...

American auto accessory firm Elite Carbon has just released a full carbon-fiber bodykit for the Maserati GranTurismo, giving the car a much more aggressive look and increased aerodynamic performance. On top of this, some power modifications will also be available to make stunning GT more capable on...

Volkswagen has updated the engine lineup for its Touareg SUV to reduce its fuel consumption by up to 9%, as well as offering a new special edition based on the North Sails concept. The SUV concept was a design study built in partnership with leading sail manufacturer North Sails, and featured a...

Since Tata purchased Jaguar and Land Rover from Ford earlier this year, things have been looking decidedly up for both brands. Jaguar even posted its first sales increase in two years in May, largely as a result of the successful XF debut. Now, however, the realities of the global economy are...

Though BMW's latest 3-series treatment is something of a love-it-or-hate-it design, the gang at Zwickenpflug are decidedly in the 'love it' camp, leaving their customized car's exterior almost completely untouched. Inside, there's a score of changes, and the engine even gets some tweaks to boost...

BMW has released a video on its website promoting its new 'BMW Performance' range of accessories, which is designed to allow customers to purchase factory-backed performance and aesthetic upgrades for their cars. We first saw details about the new BMW Performance range in September of last year...

Japanese tuning firm LB Performance is offering a stunning array of visual modifications for the Lamborghini Murcielago, designed to make the standard model take on the appearance of one of its more aggressive siblings, such as the LP640 or the new Reventon. While the paint schemes of these show...

So far 2008 has been about the renewal and reinvigoration of Porsche's 911 lineup, with the highest-performance variants still to receive their dual-clutch PDK gearboxes and direct-injection upgrades. Next year will be an even bigger year for Porsche, however, as there are more updated 911 models...

French design house Hermes is known in the fashion world for its premium leather goods, and now the luxury label has used its unique sense of style and material for the Smart ForTwo minicar, with the release of a new special edition model. The new model takes advantage of Hermes' specialization in...

Afzal Khan, owner of the eponymous 'Project Khan' outfit, has unveiled his latest creation in what has come to be a long line of customized luxury supercars. This time around the Project Khan team has taken Audi's popular R8 super-sports car and tinkered with its appearance and handling slightly...