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The solipsism of American media has a way of quietly filtering out much of the rest of the world, but the car industry is in a pinch just about everywhere. Nowhere is that picture clearer than in Sweden where ailing carmakers Saab and Volvo have been seeking government aid for months. Today word that the Swedish government is willing to back €445 million ($572 million) in loan guarantees for Volvo emerged, though rival and compatriot Saab is still without aid. Why would the Swedes treat their two brands so differently? Parentage. Ford has pledged its willingness to take full...
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Europe’s carmakers show off four-cylinder engines with V8 performanceIn Europe, where fuel prices are often more than double or triple what they are here in the U.S., customers typically favor compact, fuel efficient engines. While many Americans may scoff at the idea of driving a reasonably sized car with an engine not much bigger than that found on a motorbike, it...
Jeremy Weber -
GM scraps plans for Volt engine plant in Flint, MichiganEarlier this month General Motors announced that it was putting plans for the construction of a new engine plant in Flint, Michigan, on hold. The plant was to build a new range of 1.4L four-cylinder powertrains for cars like the Chevrolet Volt and Cruze, but a company spokesperson has now revealed...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
a.d. Tramontana R-Edition Officially RevealedAny number of road-legal track day cars are available for sale, especially in Europe, and many have adopted somewhat formula-car-like packaging. But few, if any, come as close to the reality of a formula car as the a.d. Tramontana, and now the company released full photographic details on its even...
Kenneth Hall -
Nissan prices Cube lineup, starts at $13,990, Krom from $19,360Nissan has announced base pricing for the all-new Cube minicar earlier this month, starting at $13,990. Now it has revealed pricing for the full line, including the special-edition Krom, which starts at $19,360. Four variants of the Cube will be sold, dubbed the Cube 1.8, Cube 1.8 S, Cube 1.8 SL...
Ralph Hanson -
Fiat updates the Grande Punto Abarth SS for 2009Europe's love affair with - and America's envy of - hot hatches knows almost no bounds, with makers from all quadrants throwing out spiced-up versions of just about everything imaginable, from Skodas to Peugeots to Fiats. One of the latest to join the club is an updated version of the Fiat Grande...
Kenneth Hall -
Nissan confirmed last month that it was installing a new software update for the gearbox in the GT-R that is designed to minimize stress levels placed on the dual-clutch unit during hard launches. But it turns out that it's still a quick sprinter, even with VDC engaged, as the latest tests have laid down a 3.3s 0-60mph (96km/h) run. That shaves 0.2 seconds off the official 3.5 second time of the current car. The software update affects the way the vehicle launches from a standstill in two main ways. It increases the allowable rpm level beyond the current 2,000rpm limit when the VDC traction...
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Volvo adds four more cars to efficient DRIVe lineup in GenevaSlashing the cost of ownership is a good strategy in today's car market, especially in Europe where emissions taxes are a large part of the yearly expense. Volvo's DRIVe line of cars, expanded with four more models today, is therefore not just smart in an environmental sense, but a business sense...
Nelson Ireson -
Subaru’s sporty WRX STI now available with automatic gearboxSubaru’s WRX STI has always been about extreme performance. The car itself was developed by the Subaru Tecnica International (STI) division, the same group responsible for development of Subaru’s World Rally Championship cars, and thus next-to-little compromises to performance were...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Nissan to showcase production NV200 at Geneva Motor ShowDesigned at Nissan’s European design studio in London, the NV200 was a striking van concept that made its debut at the 2007 Tokyo Motor Show. Nissan now plans to show off the production version of the NV200 at next month’s Geneva Motor Show. The new Nissan van is described as a light...
James Martinez -
Chrysler assets could be sold to Chinese carmakerThere is mounting speculation that ailing Detroit carmaker Chrysler may not be able to survive as a standalone firm. Negotiators in Detroit are working furiously to secure a deal with Italy’s Fiat Group but if the proposed alliance falls through Chrysler has a number of options as backup. One...
Kenneth Hall -
Grab your tinfoil hats, BMW is developing a navigation system that tracks your habitsImagine a future where you don't have to drive yourself to work, the market or even home from a night on the town. Convenient, but to some a nightmare of lost control. Even worse: imagine a future where your car chooses your destination for you. That's what BMW is working toward with its new...
Ralph Hanson -
The resurgence in domestic car quality (it's real) hasn't quite caught up with the members President Obama's newly-formed Task Force on the Auto Industry, or at least so it would seem from their personal car choices: 18 of 20 members and senior aides drive imports. It's not a surprise the majority of the group drives imports - the majority of new cars sold in the U.S. are imports. But the 90% import share is considerably higher than the national average, raising questions as to why or how that might be - and what impact it might have on their handling of the domestic car industry. You might...
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Lancia adds ‘Executive’ flagship and sporty ‘Hardblack’ to Delta rangeThis year’s Geneva Motor Show will see the launch of two new Lancia Delta variants: a new range-topping version and a sports model with a powerful turbocharged engine. For those unfamiliar with Lancia, the brand is a division of Fiat Group that offers a range of distinctive hatches and...
Alex Kaufmann -
A1GP Chairman: F1 is copying all my ideasKeeping motorsport relevant, affordable and interesting is a tricky balancing act. In the U.S. NASCAR has done an admirable job of luring and keeping millions of rabid fans, but times are tougher for the road-racing leagues found elsewhere in the world. Formula 1 in particular is searching for new...
Nelson Ireson -
Scorpion Motorsports releases new three-wheel terrorThere’s no shortage of lightweight sports cars hitting the market, but the new Prodigy P6 from Scorpion Motorsports is a very different animal. Instead of two rear wheels it’s got just the one fat center hub, which in this trike configuration allows the Prodigy to manoeuvre much more...
Jeremy Weber -
Toyota focuses on hybrids for U.S., puts sports cars on back burnerFrom the Mark I inline six-cylinder with just 110hp (82kW) to to the twin-turbo Mark IV with 320hp (239kW), Toyota's Supra remains a legend in the world of high-performance sports cars. But since 2002, the brand has made a strong move away from the image of the Supra and towards the Prius's green...
Kenneth Hall -
Audi’s handsome A5 and S5 cabrios bare all in new imagesThe new A5 and S5 Cabriolet range was quietly revealed late last year during the holiday period between the Los Angeles and Detroit Auto Shows, but with production of the handsome duo kicking off in Germany this month Audi has released a flood of new images and details. The most exciting variant...
Nelson Ireson -
During the early 1990s American tuner and muscle car specialist Street Legal Performance (SLP) released custom packs for the Pontiac Firebird known as the ‘Firehawk’. The kits came in various performance stages and could be ordered directly from Pontiac showroom floors, with brand new production models being converted by SLP to Firehawk specification before being delivered to customers. Some of the original modifications include uprated engines, custom wheel and tire packages, and performance exhaust systems. The company released several other upgrades for the Firebird up until...
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Speculation rife on Mercedes Benz A-Class roadsterAn updated A-Class was revealed late last year, and though it received numerous revisions the compact model is due for a complete redesign sometime in 2011. The next-generation A-Class range is expected to feature a number of body styles, but the latest word indicates a roadster could be joining...
Alex Kaufmann -
New focus on R&D expected at Honda with announcement of new CEOHonda, like most major carmakers, is experiencing one of its worst performance slumps in decades. Shrinking demand worldwide for new vehicles and a strengthening yen have had disastrous effects on the company’s bottom line, with the most recent profit warning predicting a $3.7 billion...
Jeremy Weber -
Evolution Performance aiming for first 7-second quarter mile S197 Ford MustangA seven-second quarter mile is damn fast by anyone’s standard, but a seven-second quarter mile in a vehicle based on a production Ford Mustang is something all the more special. Such a car does not exist but the guys at Pennsylvanian tuner Evolution Performance are hoping to build just that...
James Martinez -
GM and Chrysler seek $8 billion in aid from CanadaGeneral Motors and Chrysler have told authorities in Canada that they need as much as $8 billion in aid to stay afloat, more than double the original amount requested just three months ago. The latest request is in addition to the $26 billion the two Detroit carmakers are seeking from the U.S...
Ralph Hanson -
Mercedes Benz finishing the touches on its 2010 GL faceliftThe Mercedes-Benz GL-Class was first introduced in 2006 and didn’t appear in most markets until a year after this, but despite its relatively young age engineers are already hard at work testing prototypes for an updated version of the SUV. Like the facelifted ML-Class introduced last year...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran