2011
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LCD instrument panels are nothing new. The 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid used a partial LCD display, as does the current Ford Explorer. Jaguar’s latest XJ has replaced the analog instruments with a high-resolution LCD display (shown above), and fellow Tata Motors subsidiary Land Rover is using LCD instrumentation in the latest Range Rover. If you’re a purist, chances are you find the video-game-like display an affront to decency; after all, Jaguars are traditional automobiles, and replacing the conventional dial-type gauges with an LCD screen is akin to replacing the wool floor mats...
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7 High Tech Options, The Cheapest Cars You'll Find Them InOne of the benefits of the rapid pace of technological advancement is that economies of scale are achieved relatively easily. Sounds boring, but this means that the high-technologies of a few years ago have already found themselves in much more affordable cars. Once this meant heated rear screens...
Antony Ingram -
Aston Martin V12 Zagato Race Car Spy ShotsThe coachbuilt Aston Martin V12 Zagato is set to make its motorsport debut this weekend in race car form at the Nurburgring during one of the famous track’s VLN events, but our stealthy spies have spotted the car being loaded into Aston Martin’s test facility at the ‘Ring. Seen...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
2011 Lexus CT 200h Named A Top Safety PickThe high-mileage Lexus CT 200h hybrid has been named an Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) Top Safety Pick. The CT 200h was among a group of 13 small cars the agency recently tested; of those, six (including the Toyota Prius, Chevrolet Volt, and Nissan Leaf) received the accolade. Top...
Bengt Halvorson -
Ford Takes Its Talking Vehicles On The RoadWhile EVs and plug-in hybrids may be drawing most of the headlines these days, there's another tech development on the horizon that could bring bigger changes for drivers -- and the planet. Vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) technology is a promising, affordable solution to many of today's transportation...
Richard Read -
BMW To Add Customizable LCD Instrument Panel To Facelifted 5 And 7-SeriesEveryone else is doing it, so why not Bimmer? Simply because the technology isn't quite ready yet. We're talking about using a customizable digital instrument panel in place of more standard hardware. Mercedes-Benz has one in the S-Class and Jaguar Land Rover has added them in a few vehicles. It's...
Chris Weiss -
File this one in the "highly speculative" category for now, but also in the "highly tempting" sub-folder. For those familiar with the absolutely stunning performance of the BMW X5 M and X6 M, the idea of a smaller, lighter, triple-turbocharged X3 M is breathtakingly cool. Yes, that was three turbos mentioned. As crazy as it may sound, that's the rumor flowing out of the U.K. via CAR today. The three turbos will be piped into a massaged version of BMW's familiar straight-six--likely meaning a 3.2-liter displacement--and will generate a claimed 449 horsepower. So how would the three-turbo setup...
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Female High School Student Wins 2011 Chevrolet Camaro For Good GradesA high school freshman from Texas, Kenzie Deaton, is the proud owner of a brand new 2011 Chevrolet Camaro, which she won as part of a competition being run by her school in an effort to get students to improve their grades. The only problem is that Deaton is just 14 years of age so can’t even...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Porsche Reaffirms Performance Electric Car PromisePorsche may not be the first name you think of when you think electric cars--Tesla, Nissan, Chevrolet, even Smart are more likely--but that may change, especially if you're into speed and handling. Porsche recently reaffirmed its promise of a year ago to build electric performance cars. A year ago...
Nelson Ireson -
Saab Design Chief Castriota Named Among Most Creative In BusinessSaab might be skating on thin ice, but it has a solid choreographer. Design director Jason Castriota has been named one of Fast Company magazine's 100 Most Creative People in Business and appears in the third-annual ranking in its June 2011 issue. Castriota attended Boston's Emerson College, then...
Bengt Halvorson -
Chevy To Invite Customers To Camaro Homecoming In Canada: VideoThis year will mark the 45th anniversary of the Camaro and the centennial anniversary for Chevrolet. To celebrate the event, Chevrolet and the Ontario Camaro Club are inviting customers to Oshawa, Ontario, Canada from June 10-12. Planned events include a plant tour, a product announcement regarding...
Tim Healey -
2011 BMW 1-Series M Coupe First DriveYou may have already read reviews of the 2011 BMW 1-Series M Coupe (aka 1M), but if you have, you've likely suffered through strained historical analogies, detailed comparisons to previous M cars, and sheets of performance data. You'll find a minimum of that here. Instead, I offer you a fellow...
Nelson Ireson -
Our 2008 prediction for China to overtake the U.S. in overall sales for Bentley by 2012 is shaping up to prove true with news coming out this past week that the British marque has achieved record sales in China, with the country now second on the list for Bentley’s biggest markets behind the U.S. but ahead of the UK for the first time. Bentley announced last week that it had sold a record 396 cars in China in the first four months of 2011, which shatters the previous record--only set last year--by a staggering 66 percent and means that roughly one out of every four Bentleys so far sold...
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One-Off MINI Red Mudder By DSQUARED² Auctioned At 2011 Life BallCanadian twins, Dean and Dan Caten, better known as the designer duo DSQUARED², have finally presented the MINI Countryman crossover they designed exclusively for the 2011 Life Ball, a charity event held annually in Vienna in support of HIV and AIDS research that took place this past weekend...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
You Don't Own, You Don't Even Drive: The Future Of Cars?It's enough to make the car enthusiast's skin crawl. Visions of autonomous cars making their way along the highway while the occupants go about their daily business. If you love driving and cars, handing over control of your car to a machine is like handing over a child. Bill Reinert, a mechanical...
Antony Ingram -
Chevrolet Marks 100 Years At The Indy 500Chevrolet has been a part of the Indianapolis 500 for 100 years, which is as long as the race has been around. As we've already reported, the 2011 Chevrolet Camaro SS Convertible will pace the race, making it the 22nd Chevrolet to do so. In addition, Chevy engines will be used in IndyCar in 2012...
Tim Healey -
Lincoln Voted Top Luxury Brand In 2011 Vehicle Satisfaction AwardsLet us be the first to say that the results of the latest 2011 Vehicle Satisfaction Awards, conducted by influential auto industry resource AutoPacific, came as a bit of a surprise. Lincoln, arguably the most overlooked of luxury brands, was voted the ‘Top Premium Brand’ in the awards...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Fiat Twin-Cylinder Voted Engine Of The Year, Ferrari 458 Italia V-8 Gets Performance TitleThere are numerous publications, organizations and companies that hand out awards to the automotive industry for its various technical and design achievements, but few are so lauded as the winner of the International Engine of the Year competition. Judged by a panel of 76 of the world's top...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Mazda has taken the wraps off a new ‘downsized’ engine displacing just 1.3-liters but developing upwards of 83 horsepower and 83 pound-feet of torque thanks to a couple of neat features. The tiny four-cylinder gasoline engine falls under the umbrella of Mazda’s SKYACTIV range of green technologies and is destined to power the Mazda2 hatchback in Japan later this year. In the U.S. the Mazda2 comes equipped with a 1.5-liter mill with 100 horsepower so there’s a very strong chance that we’ll see the 1.3-liter unit make its way to local shores eventually. We already...
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Mugen Euro Reveals High-Performance Honda CR-Z HybridExactly two months ago Honda’s tuning arm, Mugen (more specifically Mugen Euro), announced plans for the development of a high-performance Honda CR-Z hybrid hatch and released a couple of teaser sketches. Today, Mugen Euro has revealed its latest creation, the CR-Z Mugen, which will be making...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
BMW Making Roads Safer With Left Turn AssistThe day I got my driver's license. It was one of the most memorable days of my life. But not entirely for the obvious reason. You see, when I wrapped my sweaty palms around the wheel and put my quivering foot to the gas, I was quickly met with a horrifying image. Within about 15 seconds, the...
Chris Weiss -
BMW Left Turn Assistant: Increasing Safety At IntersectionsHear "left turn assistant" and you might think stereotypical images of helping drivers of a certain German marque to use their blinkers for once when turning, but you'd be quite wide of the mark... BMW's Left Turn Assistant is actually a safety system designed to help drivers turning left across...
Antony Ingram -
Lamborghini Murcielago Crashed By 22-Year Old Showing OffThis gruesome and saddening image is the result of a 22-year old allegedly trying to show off to passersby in a black Lamborghini Murcielago. The accident took place early on Sunday morning at an intersection on a major roadway in Sydney, Australia. It is believed that the vehicle was driving along...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Audi R8 GT Spyder Spy ShotsWe’ve seen the teasers, now here’s the first round of spy shots for the upcoming Audi R8 GT Spyder. The convertible supercar is scheduled to be revealed for the first time at the Le Mans 24 hours endurance race this June ahead of an official world debut at the 2011 Frankfurt Auto Show...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran