Ralph Hanson, Author
Articles
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Fiat’s baby Panda will produce 100hp in its Sport iteration, which is significant considering that the Panda is one of the smallest cars in Fiat’s line-up. It'll accelerate from... -
HAMANN 535d packs 350HP and 660NmGerman tuner HAMANN has worked its magic over the BMW 535d, which in its enhanced state develops 350hp (257kW) and a whopping 660Nm of torque. The 535d is considered one of the Bavarian carmaker’s best, and in its standard form offers a superb combination of performance and frugality, not to...
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Planned updates for SubaruSubaru is currently on track to produce a total of 600,000 vehicles for 2006, but is still considered small by global car manufacturer standards. The company’s mid to long-term goal is to lift this figure to 800,000 models, and to do this Subaru plans to release updated versions of its...
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Passat R36 edges closerWe finally have images of the production version of the upcoming Passat R36 from Volkswagen. From the images, it's clear that the new car shares the same front end styling with the smaller R32 Golf and will come in both sedan and estate versions. Sources state that the R36 will run an enhanced...
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Next generation MustangFord will go with a less retro look for its next generation Mustang, but will stick with the iconic car’s classic features so that it'll remain instantly recognizable as a pony car. Planned for release after 2010, the new ‘Stang will arrive a couple of years after the new Camaro. To...
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RWD Impala due in 2009The next generation of Chevrolet’s Impala sedan due in 2009 will be rear-wheel-drive and will share its underpinnings with the upcoming Camaro on GM’s global Zeta platform developed by Holden. The new model is expected to grow in both length and width over the current version, which...
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Toyota is well on its way to becoming the world's number one car manufacturer, and the latest news is that the Japanese giant is planning to add new factories in India, China and the US be as early... -
'Fast And The Furious: Tokyo Drift' Cars For SaleThe original Fast and the Furious was a pretty decent movie. Sure, it had the odd cheesy line (“I live life a quarter mile at a time”), but overall we enjoyed it. Then 2 Fast 2 Furious came out and it was on the same level as a Steven Segal movie. With a change in country and the...
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Toyota Prius again ranks as the most satisfying carHow much do you like the car you drive? Would you buy the same car again? These were the two simple questions that were presented to new car buyers by the Consumer Reports National Research Center in a recent survey. For the third straight time in a row Toyota’s Prius came out on top, with...
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Mitsubishi Readies New Lancer Sports Sedan For Detroit Auto ShowMitsubishi will debut its second car based on its new global platform at the 2007 Detroit Auto Show, in the form of the all-new, four-door Lancer small sedan. The first car built on the global platform was the second-generation Outlander crossover, but the Lancer is much more significant as...
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GM working on ”plug-in hybrid” for Detroit Auto ShowGeneral Motors has caught the electric bug and is now rumored to be unveiling a prototype plug-in hybrid at next year’s Detroit Auto Show as part of the company’s rekindled interest in the electric car. The Detroit News is reporting that GM CEO Rick Wagoner is set to deliver a speech at...
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Detroit’s redesigns make inroads in reliabilityLeading from the previous story where 6 of the top 10 worst cars on sale were from Detroit, the influential Consumer Reports magazine has found that the domestics are lagging the Japanese in numerous comparison tests, as reported by The Detroit News. The domestics fail mainly on the reliability...
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After the shock resignation on Tuesday of Volkswagen’s CEO Bernd Pischetsrieder, partial owner Porsche is now in the prime position to increase its stake in the company to around 30%. The move... -
Malaysia considers Volkswagen stake in ProtonAccording to one of its founders, former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, Proton will collapse unless it finds an international partner. Proton has lost significant market share to main rival Toyota, and was previously holding talks with Volkswagen. However, negotiations were said to have...
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BMW’s US diesel strategy unveiledA BMW insider has foretold the German carmaker’s plans for the introduction of its diesel range in North America for the first time. BMW will make its official announcement pertaining to its US diesel strategy at this month’s L.A. Motor Show, with the oil-burners expected to hit...
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Drowsy drivers to receive a shockThe usual methods of winding down the window or turning up the volume to stay awake on long journeys are mediocre at best, but a new system designed by Japanese company Denso Corporation may be the answer. It monitors drivers for drowsiness and responds by vibrating the driver’s seat and then...
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BMW adds 6sp manual for 2007 M5For its 2007 model, BMW has updated the potent M5 sedan with a conventional six-speed manual transmission. The optional transmission comes at no extra cost and is exclusive to the North American market. The previous seven-speed SMG III electro-hydraulic manual unit had been largely criticized by...
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Legendary BMW designer passes awayOne of BMW’s most prominent designers, Albrecht Graf Goertz, has passed away aged 92. The legendary designer was most recognized for his work with the German brand, but Goertz had also worked with Porsche, Nissan and Toyota. Some of his most popular works include the famed BMW 503 and 507 of...
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Indian carmaker Mahindra is planning to enter the competitive SUV and pickup market within two years and has already started signing up dealers through its US distributor. They’re planning to... -
Chrysler may produce Imperial conceptChrysler is on the verge of deciding whether the Imperial concept shown at this year’s Auto Show in Detroit will be built. Automotive News is reporting that Frank Klegon, product development chief at Chrysler, has delivered all necessary documents to senior management about the car and its...
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And the SEMA goes to…The winners of the 2006 SEMA Vehicle Design Awards have been announced and topping the list this year were three new vehicles and one hybrid. The award is given to the most accessory-friendly vehicles in four separate categories including Car, Truck, SUV and this year’s new entry, Hybrid...
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Lotus Exige S British GT Special EditionTo commemorate Lotus’s achievements in this year’s British GT3 Championship, the company has launched the Exige S British GT Special Edition. Lotus and its racing partner Cadena were crowned Team Champions for the season and have so far competed in thirteen events with one more to go...
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Spy Shots: 2008 Ford EscapeCaught completely undisguised by spy photographers was this 2008 model-year Ford Escape in full production trim. Numerous prototypes have been caught over the past 12 months, and we now have the final production version that’s likely to be officially unveiled at the L.A. Motor Show later this...
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Could this be the new Toyota Supra?Rumors of an all new Supra have been circulating ever since the last model went out of production almost a decade ago. Now, UK’s Auto Express has released a possible rendering of the new Supra, which is expected to follow the lines of Lexus' upcoming LF-A coupe. However, the similarities end...
Ralph Hanson