Future Cars

The front-wheel drive BMW 1-Series is coming, even though 80 percent of current 1-Series owners think their car is already front-wheel-drive. A new report today puts a timeline on a new sedan version, aka the "New Entry-level Sedan" (NES): it should arrive in 2017. The news comes by way of...

Easily one of the most classically beautiful cars on display at this year's Frankfurt auto show, the Volvo Concept Coupe may see a limited production run, according to a new report. Taking its core cues from the classic, beloved P1800, the Volvo Concept Coupe is also a thoroughly modern bit of...

After the Kappa-based Pontiac Solstice and Saturn Sky died with their respective brands during GM's dark days of bankruptcy, the company was left without a compact sports car--the first step into rear-drive sports car territory is now the Corvette. While the 2014 Corvette Stingray starts at a...

Talk of Bentley working on a four-door coupe to slot between its Continental and Flying Spur vehicles has circulated for several years now. Today, the rumors are once again flying, this time with a 2016 target date. While Bentley has confirmed it doesn't have any plans to go down-market, a...

The car you see above is the Jason Castriota-penned Saab 9-3--or at least what it would have looked like, had it been built. This is the car that--ostensibly--would have saved the marque, had it survived to see it built. Instead, Saab went bankrupt in December 2011, and the company we once knew and...

Despite the world's economic troubles--or perhaps, because of them, according to some economic theories--Bentley and its very wealthy clients are doing better than ever. A new Continental GT Speed Convertible was just launched in Detroit, and the brand's first SUV is nearing final approval. There's...

Infiniti's somewhat oddball (at least at first blush) naming scheme, announced this week, will change everything in its range to either Q- or QX-prefixed models. But whatever the new models are called, you can get behind this idea: A 550-horsepower, forced-induction V-6 in a flagship sedan. That...

Since its debut at the Paris Auto Show two years ago, we've heard steady but thready rumors that the Audi Quattro Concept would go to production, if in a somewhat revised yet still very enticing form. Now, a report from the U.K.'s CAR magazine indicates it's dead in the water. Why? Because sporty...

The Porsche Panamera Sport Turismo Concept was one of our favorite cars at the Paris auto show last week, looking even better in the flesh than it does in photos. As yet, the Sport Turismo is still just a concept, but Michael Mauer, director of Porsche design, has some secrets to share about the...

An example of biting off more than a brand can chew, the last Volkswagen Phaeton was a troubled car in many ways. Nonetheless, Volkswagen appears to be bringing the next-generation version of the Phaeton back to the U.S. Speaking with Inside Line, Volkswagen's R&D chief Dr. Ulrich Hackenberg...

Like us, you've probably been tracing the projected path of Mazda's next-generation MX-5 for years. Whether you thought the third-gen NC MX-5 was a step in the right direction or not, the fourth-gen car is shaping up to be very interesting indeed. We already know that the next MX-5 will be shared...

Manual transmissions have been under fire for years now--something like 95 percent of average buyers don't want them, and that's making it harder and harder for the automakers to justify building cars with them at all, even for enthusiast-oriented models. But they're not dead yet at Jaguar. In...

Spies have captured the 2013 MINI Paceman, MINI's new compact Countryman-style coupe, testing at the Nordschleife. Ford is moving forward with its car-to-car communications systems, with a new test regimen underway in Germany. Audi's R8 e-tron set a Nürburgring lap record not long ago, and now...

Spies have captured the 2014 Cadillac CTS on video, showing what looks to be a sleeker, lighter car than the current model, with likely turbo power under the hood. Porsche's 918 Spyder is back again, this time wearing Martini racing livery as it tests. According to the company, it's targeting a...

Daimler, Mercedes-Benz's parent company, is one of the oldest names in the automotive world. Mercedes-Benz itself bears a long history. But the AMG performance brand is quite a bit younger--just 45 this year. In celebration of the anniversary, the company has loosed its lips, a bit, about its...

Once the preserve of control panels on the Starship Enterprise, touch technology is now central to some of the most popular gadgets, including smartphones and satellite-navigation systems. It'll soon take over much of our car interiors too, says electronics firm Magna. The company has been working...

Buick's Riviera concept from the 2007 Shanghai Auto Show was designed in China, but set Buick-loving hearts all over the world to beating a little faster. But don't think that today's revelation of a recent trademark filing on the Riviera name means it's coming to production. In fact, it may not...

It’s been a busy year for speculation on future Porsche models, and we’re not even at the halfway point yet. In January, Porsche CEO Matthais Mueller seemed to say “nein” to the idea of an entry-level Porsche roadster by commenting, “Possibly we need to wait until the...

For many, electric cars seem rather simple: just stick a battery and an electric motor in place of the regular oily bits. While it's far more complex than that, there are other concerns beyond the powertrain itself. Things like sound--or a lack of it--both for occupants and bystanders. To deal with...

Wrapping up our series of articles generated from a roundtable discussion with Porsche chief Matthias Mueller, management board member for sales and marketing Bernhard Maier, and Porsche Cars North America chief Detlev von Platen at the Geneva Motor Show, we take a look at the near future of...