Alex Kaufmann, Author
Articles
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It's more than a half-century of progress by any measure: Ferrari's in its seventh decade, and the Corvette's well into its sixth. The Italian carmaker's uncorked a California vintage to celebrate,...
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Bugatti Galibier 16C concept makes debutThis year is an important one for Bugatti. Not only does 2009 represent the centenary of the legendary marque but it also now marks the unveiling of a super sedan that may constitute the future plans of the company. One hundred years to the month since the company was founded by Ettore Bugatti, we...
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Volvo Renews Promise Of Diesel-Electric Plug-in By 2012, May Skip U.S.The re-confirmation of Volvo's plug-in hybrid plans doesn't necessarily include U.S. sales, however.
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GM Approves Opel Majority Sale to Magna International And SberbankUnder the deal GM would sell a 55% stake in a restructured Opel to the Magna International And Sberbank partnership.
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Report: Dealer Confirms Audi RS 3 Coming To Frankfurt Auto ShowAudi's hottest hatch could be on the streets before 2010.
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BMW Releases Second Teaser Of Vision EfficientDynamics ConceptThe images captured last week and disavowed as an old aerodynamics testbed may show an advanced concept coming to this year's Frankfurt Motor Show.
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General Motors CEO Fritz Henderson has previously stated that a new buyer for Opel would be picked this year and that at least three different companies were still in the bidding. Those three...
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Report: Lexus to tackle 1-series in Europe with new hatchbackLexus is unlikely to launch a sub-$30,000 model in the U.S. but that doesn’t mean it won’t develop a new entry-level model for other markets. One possibility is Europe, where small cars like BMW’s 1-series and the Audi A3 sell in substantial numbers, and according to a new report...
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Report: BMW looking to share platforms with PSA Peugeot-CitroenPSA Peugeot-Citroen and BMW currently build small engines together that the French auto giant uses for a number of compact hatchbacks and urban runabouts and BMW for its Mini range. There are now reports that the two companies are considering strengthening this agreement with plans to share whole...
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Audi jumps on the clunkers bandwagon, offers $1,000 off qualifying modelsWith sales skyrocketing in July to almost pre-crash levels for many carmakers - and beyond for a few - it's no surprise that Audi's joining the fray today with its own $1,000 incentive on top of the federally-funded CARS program for its qualifying models. The discount applies to no fewer than 18...
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Video: BMW’s new sub-brand to revive Isetta name?For the older European readers out there, the mention of the words BMW Isetta probably conjures up nostalgic images of little, egg-shaped cars trundling around the city, with styling that looked possibly as cheerful and non-threatening as a car could ever get. Built in the 1950s and ‘60s, the...
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More details on the next-gen BMW 3-seriesThe current E90 BMW 3-series has been on the market since 2005, so it's only fitting that details about the next-gen model are beginning to circulate. Most agree that the next model will feature styling lifted, at least in part, from the Concept CS, though also expect to see a healthy dose of the...
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Since the release of its official strategy in September of 2007, media sources around the world have been speculating that BMW was looking at either launching its own new brand or acquiring one to... -
Mercedes-Benz could be next to drop out of F1The value of Mercedes' involvement in F1 is still the topic of debate within parent company Daimler, board member Helmut Lense insists. Earlier this year, Lense was quoted as suggesting that Mercedes should be pulled out of the sport in favor of more worthy projects. Now, in the wake of fellow...
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CEO hints at 2015 launch date for first Lamborghini hybridIt wasn't long ago that supercar manufacturers were scoffing at the idea of introducing hybrid variants of their models, but with Porsche and even the usually traditionalist Ferrari hard at work on their own respective hybrid drivetrains, it wasn't going to be long before other supercar...
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Video: Switzer Performance P800 package Porsche 911 hits the dynoIt's a classic recipe: take one high-performance sports car, add power to taste. How powerful you like it depends largely on your budget, but this time Switzer has made one for people not only with large bank accounts, but also with a huge appetite for speed. Starting with a stock Porsche 911 997...
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Royal Family of Abu Dhabi commissions one-off ‘AS55K’ Mercedes G55 AMGThis ostentatious SUV is the latest work of German tuning outfit A.R.T. but it differs from most of the firm’s previous outlandish creations as it was developed specially at the request of the Royal Family of Abu Dhabi. It is based on the Mercedes-Benz G55 AMG and output from the...
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BMW picks Bosch and Samsung JV as Project i battery supplier
BMW's foray into the world of hybrids is expected to begin at some point this year with the release of a hybrid variant of the 7-series flagship and eventually the X5 and X6 SUVs as well. While development for those cars is mostly complete, BMW is preparing its next-generation of hybrids and...
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In May the White House unveiled a new fuel efficiency policy calling for 35.5mpg fleet averages by 2016, and almost immediately the carmakers began talking about how much it would cost them. But now... -
BMW 7-Series and X6 hybrids destined for Frankfurt Motor ShowEarlier this year we brought you news of BMW's entry into the hybrid market, with the suspected debut of a 7-Series equipped with the automaker’s ActiveHybrid system coming at the Frankfurt Motor Show. Now, BMW has officially confirmed the news, and also revealed that the 2007 ActiveHybrid X6...
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MTM takes on the Porsche Cayenne DieselGerman tuning house MTM has given the world some lightning quick creations in the past, but this time it is focusing on something a little more sedate - the Porsche Cayenne Diesel. Usually equipped with a 240hp (176kW) 3.0L V6 diesel unit, the Porsche Cayenne Diesel is hardly the most exciting car...
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Edo Competition pumps up the Mercedes Benz C63 AMGEdo Competition, famed for taking on some of the most ambitious tuning projects on some of the world's most exclusive cars, is back at it today with the announcement of new upgrades for the Mercedes Benz C63 AMG that make the car even more insane than before. It's often said that the engineers at...
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Report: BMW to unveil sustainable sports car concept at Frankfurt Motor ShowAlong with today’s shock announcement that BMW is quitting F1 after the 2009 season, the automaker also announced a new focus on "sustainability and environmental compatibility". This doesn’t mean that BMW’s future model range will be limited to unexciting fuel misers. Nothing...
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BMW Quitting F1 After 2009 SeasonBMW announced at an urgent press conference in Munich, Germany on Wednesday morning that it will withdraw from Formula One at the end of the 2009 season. The decision was made at a board meeting 24 hours earlier. "I can understand why this decision was made from a corporate perspective," said team...
Alex Kaufmann