Ralph Hanson, Author
Articles
-
The 2010 BMW Z4 has officially been revealed. Click here for all the details and images.
BMW’s next-gen Z4 Roadster has been spotted at the Nurburgring, this time with much of its camo gear... -
Ford to present Fiesta concept at 2007 Frankfurt auto showPint-sized autos seems to be the theme of this year’s Frankfurt auto show, with Ford Motor Company [NYSE:F] the latest in a long line of carmakers expected to present new small car concepts at the upcoming show. The Blue Oval will be showcasing a concept version of its next-generation Fiesta...
Ralph Hanson -
Audi to display hybrid A1 at Tokyo Motor ShowAudi will not only be displaying its all-new A1 minicar at October’s Tokyo Motor Show but it will also unveil its new hybrid drive system. Targeted at premium small cars such as BMW’s Mini, the new A1 will come as a three-door hatch and be priced less than €20,000 when it goes on...
Ralph Hanson -
Did Alonso flirt with BMW switch?Team principal Mario Theissen has played down suggestions that BMW-Sauber seriously flirted with signing Fernando Alonso for the 2008 season. Some sections of the media recently linked the long delay in confirming a new BMW contract for Nick Heidfeld next year with reports that unhappy reigning...
Ralph Hanson -
New X5 beats London congestion charge - take that, Livingstone!BMW is engineering a version of its X5 SUV that emits less than 225g of CO2 per kilometer, which means the new off-roader will escape the outrageous £25 (US$50) London congestion charge. Thanks to BMW’s fuel-saving Efficient Dynamics technology, the X5 3.0d and 3.0Sd will see CO2 emissions...
Ralph Hanson -
Preview: 2008 Skoda SuperbFor those readers not familiar with the Skoda Superb, the car is an executive saloon manufactured by the Czech carmaker and shares its underpinnings with the Volkswagen Passat. The current model has been on sale since 2001 but will be coming in for an upgrade early next year with the release of an...
Ralph Hanson -
BMW bucked the trend when it introduced the E23 sedan back in 1977, offering a large and sporty sedan in a time when a fuel crisis was causing most manufacturers to downgrade their cars. The guys... -
Steve McQueen's Ferrari sells for $2.3m at auctionRacing enthusiast and avid car collector Steve McQueen’s 1963 Ferrari Berlinetta Lusso has sold at auction for $US2.31 million, smashing the estimated sales price by more than a million dollars. The car was bought by an anonymous buyer over the phone at the Monterey Jet Center auction, which...
Ralph Hanson -
Chrysler design-chief talks up production Demon RoadsterWith Cerberus Capital Management in charge of Chrysler, the immediate goal for execs is to implement a massive turnaround plan which will see thousands of jobs lost and extensive cost cutting in most departments. Last month, plans for the flagship Imperial sedan were thrown out and any new model...
Ralph Hanson -
Preview: 2008 Audi RS6 AvantDevelopment work for Audi’s "wolf in sheep’s clothing" RS6 line is nearing completion, but until it arrives this new rendering gives an accurate look as to how the new Avant version will be styled. Though late to the table, the new RS6 is expected to blow away the competition with a...
Ralph Hanson -
BMW's quattro killer - the 335xi CoupeAudi is famous for its quattro AWD systems, but arch-rival BMW is cutting in on the action with a high-performance all-paw coupe of its own. An AWD option will be added to the 335i coupe when it launches the 335xi in the first half of next year. The 300hp twin-turbo straight six will remain...
Ralph Hanson -
Luxury cars fare poorly in IIHS's latest side-impact test resultsSide impact collisions are the second most common fatal crash type after head-on crashes, with 9,200 people in passenger vehicles killed in the US alone during 2005. Strangely, the percentage of drivers in cars one to three years old killed in side-impact crashes actually increased 31% since 1980...
Ralph Hanson -
GM has unveiled a SS version of the Chevy HHR just in time for the Woodward Dream Cruise, which will be held this weekend. The HHR SS gets a new turbo engine developing 260 horsepower (194 kW),... -
Audi A5 gets Bang & Olufsen sound systemAudi’s A5 is now available with Bang & Olufsen’s (B&O) latest stereo systems, an international award winner that’ set to take on the superb Mark Levinson systems found in other luxury makes. The new B&O set-up includes no less than14 speakers, 7.1 surround sound, 10-channel...
Ralph Hanson -
Mercedes working on 300 SL successorMercedes is working on a spiritual successor to the 300 SL Gullwing, one of the most revered cars in history. Priced between €140,000 and €200,000, the mega-Merc will be built on a shortened SL platform and is codenamed W198. Unlike the Mercedes-McLaren SLR, which was deemed to be a...
Ralph Hanson -
Spyker’s new CEO resigns, F1 team could be up for saleSpyker’s interim CEO Michiel Mol has stepped down from the role and will be replaced in the meantime by vice-chairman of Spyker’s supervisory board, Hans Hugenholtz. Mol replaced former CEO and the founder of the Dutch sports car company Victor Muller back in May but his decision to...
Ralph Hanson -
End of the road for record journey in an Aston MartinThe two Brits that set out to conquer the 10,000-mile trek from Tokyo to London in an Aston Martin V8 Vantage have reached the end of the epic journey, arriving at the UK capital earlier today after traveling for 49 days. In doing so, drivers Richard Meredith and Phil Colley have entered the record...
Ralph Hanson -
U.S. car satisfaction reaches record highThe results of a new survey conducted in the US shows that the nation's new car buyers were largely satisfied with their purchases, although quality levels for some Asian brands actually dropped. The survey, run by the University of Michigan, showed that overall vehicle satisfaction rose 1.2% this...
Ralph Hanson -
Click here for all the official information and pictures for the 2009 Volkswagen Golf Mark VI
Following last month’s spotting of the next-gen Volkswagen Golf testing in California’s... -
Renault planning 7 debuts for FrankfurtRenault will unveil five new production cars and two concepts at next month’s Frankfurt Motor Show including the debut of the first-ever estate version of the Clio hatch. Picking up the Clio Sport Tourer moniker, the new wagon measures 4.2m in length and offers a total of 439L of storage...
Ralph Hanson -
Chrysler to form unholy alliance with Hyundai or Mitsubishi?The newly independent Chrysler is pulling all stops to turn around its ailing car business. One of the plans involves an alliance with Hyundai or Mitsubishi that could involve the companies building engines for each other or share platforms. Frank Klegon, Chrysler executive vice president of...
Ralph Hanson -
First look at Audi R8’s new all-LED headlightsAudi has gone one up on Lexus by offering the world’s first all-LED headlights for its new R8 sports car. Unlike the units in Lexus’ flagship LS 600h saloon, which use LED lights for the low-beam projectors, the new Audi lights use the efficient diodes for the low and high beams as well...
Ralph Hanson -
Blast from the past: Hyundai's Italian-designed, Japanese-powered, and British-engineered PonyIn 1967, brothers Ju-Yung and Se-Yung Chung established the Hyundai Motor Company. The next year they entered into a contract with Ford to produce the Cortina and Granada for the Korean market. With the knowledge gained from this venture, Hyundai's dream of creating its first independently designed...
Ralph Hanson -
Ford boss says higher U.S. fuel taxes not so badFord CEO Alan Mulally has told reporters at the Management Briefing Seminars today that higher fuel taxes would be a better alternative to raising Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) to reduce fuel usage and emissions. The CAFE proposal being voted by the US government would see carmakers forced...
Ralph Hanson