2009
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GM has announced today that its global sales tally for 2008 has come in at 8.35 million vehicles, which represents a 10.8% decline on 2007’s levels and a substantial 616,000 units short of Toyota’s tally over the same period. Toyota also experienced a sales decline over 2008, with its total dropping 4% over the course of the year to end at 8.97 million units. In 2008, GM sold 5.37 million vehicles outside the U.S., accounting for 64% of total global sales volume compared with 59% a year ago. This represents a 22.7% decline in sales for GM in the U.S., its single biggest market...
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Callaway launches supercharged Corvette for 2009Chevrolet Corvette tuning specialist Callaway Cars has released yet another package for the iconic muscle car, with the latest kit centering around a supercharger upgrade for the standard 6.2L V8 model. Designed specifically for the 2009 Chevrolet Corvette, the new kit starts at $18,900 and lifts...
James Martinez -
Audi's A4 outsells all other premium sedans in GermanyThough overall sales figures have slumped through the end of 2008 and start of 2009, there are occasional bright patches of news as carmakers grab market share from long-time competitors or reach individual sales records. Audi has done just that, beating BMW's 3-series and Mercedes-Benz's C-Class...
Nelson Ireson -
Toyota confirms 2012 U.S. launch for electric vehiclesToyota used last week’s Detroit Auto Show to unveil its new FT-EV concept, a compact urban runabout based on the iQ minicar and powered by an all-electric drivetrain. The carmaker also used the Detroit event to announce plans to launch an urban commuter ‘battery-electric vehicle’...
Alex Kaufmann -
September U.S. launch for Mark VI Volkswagen Rabbit and GTIVolkswagen will bring its sixth-generation Golf and the more performance oriented GTI to the United States by September, with production scheduled to begin for the American-spec cars during the tail end of June. The new Golf will once again be badged as the Rabbit and is expected to be slightly...
Ralph Hanson -
GM money woes kill hopes of production ConverjOne of the most exciting cars from last week’s Detroit Auto Show was the Cadillac Converj concept car, which General Motors used to showcase its plug-in hybrid technology in a luxury platform. Despite the concept featuring one of the most striking designs we’ve seen in a while, GM vice...
James Martinez -
American performance carmaker Saleen and its new SMS supercar offshoot has finally revealed its first official product, the Signature Series performance line based on the 2009 Dodge Challenger R/T. The lineup will consist of two new vehicles, the SMS 570 and SMS 570X Challengers, both fully certified and street legal and fitted with custom supercharged 5.7L Hemi V8s delivering 500hp (373kW) and 700hp (522kW) respectively. The SMS 570 Challenger will start at $60,000, while the 570X model will start at $70,000. Both models will carry a bumper-to-bumper factory warranty and are pre-production...
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South Side Performance releases 820hp GT-R upgradeAmerica’s South Side Performance, based in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, has released for the first time a new tuning kit for the R35 Nissan GT-R supercar, which the company claims is capable of delivering 820hp (612kW) at the crankshaft. The new kit is based around a custom turbocharger upgrade...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Dodge officially unveils Challenger R/T ClassicNo matter how you feel about car manufacturers recycling their icons of the past, there’s no denying that the interest shown in the Challenger has been phenomenal. While there has been a lot of information about the flagship SRT8 muscle car, at this week’s Detroit Auto Show Dodge...
James Martinez -
European trademark filing reveals Nissan 370Z Roadster sketchesEurope's Office for Harmonization of the Internal Market (OHIM) maintains a trademark database that helps to ensure a minimum of conflict and easy filing for claims. That same database also lets slip basic sketches of car designs before their official unveiling on a regular basis, and this time the...
Nelson Ireson -
Honda announces new round of job and production cutsSlumping sales and surplus supply are old hat by now, but the ongoing effects of the poor economy mean carmakers must continue to adjust their capacity and output to remain viable. Honda's readjustment, like its American counterparts, is unfinished, and today it revealed another 3,100 temporary...
Kenneth Hall -
McLaren reveals MP4-24 2009 F1 race car, Dennis to step downAfter one of the closest finishes imaginable to the 2008 FIA Formula 1 World Championship, won by Vodafone McLaren Mercedes on the final lap, by a single point, the 2009 season's challenges have the potential to truly shake things up. Mercedes, on the other hand, is working to keep things the same...
Nelson Ireson -
Just before Christmas Zele International confirmed that it would unveil a customized version of the new 2009 Nissan 370Z, or Fairlady as it is known in Japan, at this year’s Tokyo Auto Salon. Now the car has been fully revealed, complete with a parts list of what went into the upgrade. Heavy with carbon fiber and titanium, the list is - as the car's name suggests - a complete replacement of the main aerodynamic and performance elements of the car. Starting with the body kit, Zele has upgraded the 370Z Complete Edition to include: a new front aero bumper; carbon fiber front lip spoiler;...
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Corvette ZR1 rolling chassis pulled from GM Heritage Collection auctionThe rolling Corvette ZR1 chassis that was originally scheduled to be sold at this year's Barrett-Jackson Collector Car Auction has reportedly been pulled from the auction without any reason given. One possibility is that the chassis may have already been sold or donated by General Motors. The...
Ralph Hanson -
Mine’s shows off latest GT-R package at Tokyo Auto SalonFamous Japanese tuner Mine’s first showed off its modified Nissan GT-R as far back as December 2007, and since that time the performance workshop has had plenty of time to develop new parts and accessories to make the car perform even better than before. Mine’s previous R35 GT-R proved...
Ralph Hanson -
More details on Power Enterprise’s quad-charged Nissan GT-RThe Nissan GT-R has been called a supercar-killer for its astonishing performance in spite of what have classically been seen as huge barriers: its heavy weight, low cost and non-exotic origins. However, regardless of how one comes out on the 'supercar/non supercar' debate, the sheer impressiveness...
Kenneth Hall -
200C EV concept previews Chrysler’s new design DNAFollowing on from the Dodge Circuit EV sports car shown earlier today, Chrysler has revealed the 200C EV concept, which is designed to showcase the carmaker’s future designs as well as its electric powertrain technology in a premium sedan. It doesn’t end there as the concept also...
James Martinez -
Hyundai Genesis Wins 2009 North American Car Of The Year AwardCoinciding with this week’s 2009 Detroit Auto Show is the 2009 North American Car and Truck of the Year (NACTOY) awards, and for this year’s event the 2009 Hyundai Genesis took out the car award, while the 2009 Ford F-150 was picked as the top truck. Runners up for the car award were...
James Martinez -
Toyota has announced that it will display its new FT-EV concept at the 2009 Detroit Auto Show, while also confirming that it will launch an urban commuter ‘battery-electric vehicle’ (BEV) by 2012. The world's largest carmaker also revealed that it will start consumer trials of a fleet of 150 plug-in hybrids towards the end of this year and launch as many as ten new petrol-electric hybrid vehicles next year. This announcement, coupled with its compressed natural gas powered Camry Hybrid concept display at the 2008 Los Angeles Auto Show, signal Toyota's intention to broaden the...
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Blitz unveils rear-wheel-drive GT-R with manual gearboxThe highlight of this weekend’s Tokyo Auto Salon will undoubtedly be Nissan’s brand new SpecV GT-R, but as expected Japan’s big name tuners have not stood idly by and let Nissan take all the spotlight. We’ve already seen custom GT-Rs from the likes of Zele International and...
Jeremy Weber -
Zele releases full specs for R35 GT-R ‘Complete Edition’The final details on Zele International's carbon-fiber bodykit and power enhancement for the Nissan GT-R have been released, with the tuning firm announcing that it plans to start taking orders for the completed car globally at the end of March. On display at this weekend’s 2009 Tokyo...
Jeremy Weber -
Nissan showcasing sport, utility at Tokyo Auto SalonThe Tokyo Auto Show gets underway this Friday, but already the exhibits of the major carmakers are hitting the web. Nissan released its set of show cars today, including a range of custom packages for the 370Z, GT-R and Cube. Nissan's GT-R super-coupe is shown off by NISMO in Club Sports form...
Nelson Ireson -
Scion xB Release Series 6.0 priced, coming to 2009 NAIASAs the Detroit Auto Show approaches, more vehicles that will be on display are coming to light. Today Scion announced the xB Release Series 6.0, the latest in its limited-edition Release Series (RS) line of vehicles. Starting at just $1,743 over the base xB's pricing of $16,420, the RS 6.0 will get...
Ralph Hanson -
Mazda6 'Circuit Trial' images surface before 2009 Tokyo Auto ShowThe Tokyo Auto Salon will feature a number of firsts from Mazda and many other carmakers, including a new range of 'Circuit Trial' track-ready concepts. The Tokyo show will be running in opposition to the similarly-timed Detroit Auto Show, starting January 9, explaining Mazda's absence from the...
Nelson Ireson