Luxury Cars
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Chinese electric car startup Hybrid Kinetic says the Pininfarina-designed H600 concept unveiled at this month’s 2017 Geneva auto show will spawn a production model by 2020. The information was revealed to Automotive News (subscription required) by Hybrid Kinetic board member Carter Yeung. He said the cars will be built in China and initially sold locally as well as in the United States. He also said the concept is 85-90 percent representative of the production model. Like the concept, the production model is to be a luxury sedan powered by an extended-range electric powertrain complete...
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TRD trots out upgrades for Lexus LCThe Lexus LC is more luxury cruiser than sports car, but that hasn’t stopped TRD from developing performance upgrades for the car. TRD is one of a handful of official motorsport departments at Toyota. The others are Gazoo Racing and TMG. For the LC, TRD has rolled out several exterior mods...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
BMW, Mercedes to prune lineupsWhile most major automakers struggle to justify a convertible—if in doubt just ask Toyota about an 86 convertible—Mercedes-Benz has no less than six in its lineup. Seven if you count models from Smart. Sales of luxury vehicles have boomed since last decade's global financial crisis...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
2018 Rolls-Royce Phantom spy shotsProduction of the seventh-generation Rolls-Royce Phantom launched in 2003 has come to an end. The successor is still in the works and has been spotted once again testing in the wild. Rolls-Royce has developed an all-new aluminum spaceframe architecture that will underpin its entire lineup, starting...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Jaguar reveals prototype for I-Pace electric SUVJaguar will introduce an electric SUV called the I-Pace in 2018. The vehicle was previewed in concept form at the 2016 Los Angeles auto show and early test mules using makeshift F-Pace bodies have been running around for the past six months. Jaguar has now revealed the first prototype for the...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Lexus: What's new for 2017The 2017 model year is a light one for Lexus with no new or completely redesigned models. None of the cars, SUVs, or crossovers even get a significant midcycle update. Of course, Lexus isn't sitting on its hands. Toyota's luxury brand is prepping the all-new LC sports coupe and a completely...
Kirk Bell -
Engineers from BMW are out testing an updated version of the i3. The electric hatch didn’t generate the impact BMW had hoped when the vehicle was launched in 2014. It was cramped, compromised and didn’t deliver the typical BMW driving experience, and its 81-mile range was also down compared to some rivals. BMW in 2017 boosted the range to 114 miles with a new battery. However, this is considerably outmatched by the similar sized Chevrolet Bolt EV whose range is 238 mi. Tesla’s Model 3, which promises more than 200 mi, is also due this year, although new customers will have a...
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Kahn Design builds 'The End' edition Defender to celebrate iconic SUV's runLand Rover finally ceased production of its iconic Defender at the Solihull plant in the United Kingdom early last year. The vehicle was in continuous production since 1983 and traces its roots to the original Land Rover Series introduced in 1948. While a new Defender is due in the next year or...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Volvo: What’s new for 2017Volvo has quite successfully transformed itself from a mainstream brand to a genuine alternative to established luxury brands such as Audi and BMW. It has done so via a combination of technologically-advanced vehicles, a focus on comfort, and good Swedish design. The transformation really started...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Bugatti Chiron-inspired yacht has Jacuzzi, champagne bar and even a fire pitEvery good piece of ultra-exotic automotive machinery needs a matching boat. This is how you manage to separate the wealthy pretenders from the actually mega-rich spenders. Lots of folks can plunk down the change for the latest hypercar. Far fewer can also drop the massive amounts of money required...
Jeff Glucker -
Production Porsche Mission E confirmed as oft-rumored 'Pajun' sedanTalk of Porsche adding a second sedan to its lineup has been making the rounds since 2011. We’re talking about the oft-rumored Pajun, whose nickname, a portmanteau of “Panamera” and “junior,” was chosen due to the car’s expected smaller size than the Panamera...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Tesla Model S-rivaling Lucid Air to start at just $60,000There’s nothing like a bit of competition to help you get more for your dollar. Case in point is the battle that could be about to erupt between electric car firms Tesla and Lucid. Lucid fired a shot at Tesla on Wednesday by announcing that its first product, the Air electric sedan, will be...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
During a press conference on Wednesday to discuss financial results, Audi confirmed a number of upcoming models. The identity of most of the models was already known but among them was a new model to be called the Q4. This will be a compact crossover SUV slotting between the Q3 and Q5 in Audi’s high-riding lineup in 2019. Audi previewed the vehicle in 2015 with its TT Offroad concept. At the time, Audi was unable to call the concept a Q4 because the rights to the name were owned by Fiat Chrysler Automobiles. Audi has since received permission to use the Q4 name for the production model...
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Cadillac compact crossover to be an XT4, launch in EuropeCadillac has confirmed it’s working on a crossover SUV smaller than the XT5, and that the vehicle will be called an XT4. We've already spied prototypes for the vehicle and initially thought it would be called an XT3. The XT4 will be launched on the market in 2018 and will eventually be sold...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
BMW: What's new for 2017BMW has a car, crossover, or combination of the two for every niche and several niches you never thought the automotive world might need. The brand's portfolio has expanded to so many models and variants that it's hard to keep track of them...and to research the 2017 changes for each. But fear not...
Kirk Bell -
Veteran Nissan designer Shiro Nakamura retires, replaced by Alfonso Albaisa, Karim HabibVeteran Nissan designer Shiro Nakamura has retired. He will be replaced by Alfonso Albaisa, who currently heads design at Infiniti. Albaisa in turn will be replaced at Infiniti by former BMW brand design boss Karim Habib. Nakamura was brought in by Carlos Ghosn in 1999 to oversee design at Nissan...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Audi to follow e-tron SUV with compact electric carThe Volkswagen Group is committed to launching as many as 30 electric cars by the end of 2025, many of which will come from Audi. Last summer, Audi CEO Rupert Stadler revealed that the brand’s first three electric cars will be launched by 2020. The first is to be an electric SUV sized between...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Volvo's electric car to have 250+ miles of range, cost $35-40KVolvo has announced that it plans to offer an all electric vehicle by 2019, and at the Geneva auto show the CEO of Volvo Cars USA let slip some more details of its EV plans. According to a report from Automotive News, CEO Lex Kerssemakers told U.S. auto journalists that the Volvo EV will have at...
Kirk Bell -
Can’t wait for BMW to launch its new M5? Well, semi-official BMW tuner Alpina has just dropped its own sledgehammer based on the latest 5-Series. Yes, the latest 5-Series has spawned its Alpina B5 variant which once again sports a twin-turbocharged 4.4-liter V-8, 8-speed automatic transmission and all-wheel drive. It’s also being offered once again in either sedan or wagon body styles. Peak output matches the 600 horsepower and 590 pound-feet of torque of the previous B5’s Edition 50 model, though the lighter weight of the latest 5-Series’ CLAR platform should improve...
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Cadillac announces V2V communications, just as CIA hacking allegations emergeVehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communications, along with vehicle vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communications, is seen as a key stepping stone towards the safe deployment of fully self-driving cars. But while regulators slowly climb onboard with the establishment of rules and common standards for car...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Pininfarina teams up with Hybrid Kinetic to debut H600 extended-range electric sedanIn 2010, a Chinese startup by the name of Hybrid Kinetic made headlines over plans for production of hybrid vehicles in Montgomery, Alabama. The company even had a wild concept, the Quaranta, which was actually an original Italdesign-Giugiaro creation built in 2008 to mark the Italian firm’s...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Bentley Hallmark Series by Mulliner looks to precious metals for inspirationThe Mulsanne is the luxurious sedan that sits in the flagship position of Bentley's lineup. It's expensive, rare, powerful, and wonderfully outfitted. It's a Bentley, though, so there's always room to make a special car even more outstanding. This is where the new Hallmark Series by Mulliner...
Jeff Glucker -
Audi Q8 Sport concept drops plug-in function, slashes 0-60 timeAudi has unveiled a second iteration of its Q8 concept, one that hints at a more performance-oriented version of the upcoming coupe-like SUV. Like the original Detroit auto show concept unveiled in January, the new Q8 Sport concept, which debuted on Tuesday at the 2017 Geneva auto show, also pairs...
Brandon Turkus -
Porsche Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid revealed with 680 horsepowerPorsche revealed the 2018 Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid a couple weeks before the Geneva auto show and now it has made its public debut in Switzerland. A plug-in hybrid luxury sedan, this monstrously powerful beast combines a twin-turbocharged V-8 with an electric drive system—a powertrain...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran