The two-door vehicle looks a bit like the old Izusu Vehicross, although there are also some similarities to the HED-6 (above) shown at the Geneva Auto Show. The gullwing doors are clearly for show, but we hear Hyundai does plan to produce a production version of the New York concept vehicle sometime next year.
Fast and Furious doesn't officially open until Friday, but if you want to get a sneak peek there are a few scenes floating around YouTube already. We've linked to several of them here, including this segment with Spanish voiceovers.
For a full summary of all the vehicles used in the movie, check out:
It used to be that Mercedes-Benz' AMG department could be counted on to produce the most American-style muscle cars of all the hot Euro sedans.
They were regularly out-handled by their direct competitors, but they usually upped the ante in the engine bay. AMG was a super power in the horsepower wars.
For the 2010 E-Class AMG, which will be unveiled at New York's auto show in April, the company has focused more on handling prowess than ever before and -- gasp! -- the car comes into the hotrod sedan market at a power deficit compared to the supercharged 556-hp Cadillac CTS-V. The new 2010 model uses the SL63's 6.2-liter 518 horsepower V8 along with its Speeshift seven-speed shiftable automatic.
In yesterday's press conference on the state of the domestic auto industry, President Obama gave Chrysler 30 days to finalize a deal with Fiat. With that in mind, Sergio Marchionne, Fiat's CEO, wasted no time and immediately flew to Detroit.
Chrysler released a statement late yesterday saying that it had "a framework agreement" in place with Fiat, so clearly there are still plenty of details left to iron out. With bankruptcy looming, we don't see how Chrysler will come out of the talks without a deal in place.
Matt Dillon plead guilty to a monster ticket he rang up back in December to avoid a charge of negligent operation. Authorities in Vermont clocked him going 106mph in a 65mph zone, enough to get him arrested and booked in the local jail.
Even more embarrassing than getting caught is the fact that he was driving a Chevrolet Impala rental car at the time.
In a move to reassure potential car buyers (and also to copy a successful program from Hyundai), Ford Motor Company and General Motors Corporation both announced today buyer protection plans. Let's have a look at how the three programs compare after the jump.
After numerous rumors and Photoshop renderings, the first official pics of the 2010 Subaru Legacy are now public. It's only mildly redesigned, but considerably bigger than before. It gets more powerful engines, increased refinement and possibly even a lower price.
After its recent freshening, the Porsche Boxster is headed toward a full redesign. Of course, in the Boxster's case that doesn't mean much as there's only so much you can do with its basic mid-engine, two-passenger layout.
This prototype was caught just outside the Nurburgring with a few extra body panels bolted on, but it's hard to tell what what's permanent and what's merely disguise. Expect to see this car in production form in roughly two years time.
There's an interesting story behind the 19-inch sport package wheels
on the 2009 Nissan 370Z
. Randy Rodriguez, the Nissan designer who penned the original sketches for the 370Z (and who showed up to our Z-car party
 in his 240Z), owns an MV Agusta F4-750
, you see. He stores it behind his desk at Nissan Design America in San Diego.
"A digital modeler showed me the eBay auction for a stripped MV's frame, engine and suspension," says Rodriguez. "This was in the morning that I first saw the ad, and then I blasted to Sacramento in a truck and by late evening it was parked beside my desk at work.
"Within 3 months I had it mostly complete and running. I got parts for it from all over the world.
"In doing that, I got really familiar with the various parts of the bike, and the 19-inch wheels for the 370Z were inspired by the triple clamp on the MV (and the one on the Ducati 999). I morphed it into the spoke, which became part of the wheel."
The MV isn't just an office sculpture, either. "I totally ride it hard -- when it's safe to do so of course," Rodriguez says.
The 2009 Ford Escape Hybrid Limited FWD is the automotive equivalent of eating reduced-fat ice cream. You get the pleasure of enjoying something that may be a little better for your health and diet -- or in the case of the Escape Hybrid, driving an SUV that may be better for the health of the planet and your gas budget -- but isn't quite like the real thing.
While the payoff with the 30-plus mpg Ford Escape Hybrid comes at the pump and perhaps knowing that you're driving a bit greener, the trade-off compared to the conventional Escape -- or comparable gas-powered small sport-utes and crossovers -- is the premium price and in performance by carting around an extra 300 pounds.
But there are few downsides to the 2009 Escape Hybrid Limited ($33,725 as tested) when it comes to the vehicle's tech. And going for the top trim model comes with distinct advantages.
This semi-regular column is written (in his own blood) by an automotive sage and noted malcontent, known as The Mechanic. Mercilessly beaten as a child with rolled-up back issues of old car magazines, our free-spoken hero developed a unique "for your own good" take on cars and the auto industry, along with an unfortunate habit of setting himself ablaze. Later, after a distinguished career as an automotive journalist and magazine editor, he cast off the reins of his musty oppressors, carved out his superego with a plastic spork and became The Mechanic.
It happened twice this week. Somebody poked a head into my cubicle and said, "Hey, The Mechanic, have you heard? Kids don't like cars anymore. Cars to them are just transportation. The passion for the car in this world is dead."
Both times I thought to myself, "Oh no, not again." The demise of the passion for cars has been predicted for the past half century, and always by those who think the car should be nothing more than an A-to-B conveyance. It was said during the turmoil of the 1960s, the gas crisis of the early and late 1970s, the recession of the early 1980s, during the industry's switch to computer controls and EFI in the late 1980s and almost continuously since the Internet fired up more than 10 years ago.
Honda is no stranger to innovative and modestly heart-warming commercials. From its helpful sales people in blue shirts to its walk through history with the "Impossible Dream", it's had a good run of memorable clips.
This could be yet another. It's a promotion for the new 2010 Honda Insight and it looks quite unbelievable at first. It's real, sort of. Check out how they did it after the jump.
It feels like we've been waiting too long for the 2010 Audi RS5 to arrive. First spotted in prototype form last summer, the high-powered coupe was expected to debut in Geneva.
Instead, we got the RS version of the TT. Not a bad placeholder, but hardly the big-displacement coupe we were hoping to see. These new spy photos prove there's definitely an RS5 on the way, however, so it shouldn't be long before Audi unleashes the V10-powered coupe.
This latest prototype shows off some revised bodywork in back, but the wheels certainly aren't new. Expect to see something a little more exotic at each corner when the production version debuts later this summer.
Well, that's a relief. If there's one thing that could plunge GM deeper into muck it would be government control. Then again, it seems as though Obama and friends are already at the helm. They already pushed CEO Rick Wagoner aside, and today President Obama announced the appointment of Ed Montgomery as Director of Recovery for Auto Workers and Communities. Who knows what kind of power he'll have.
Others items of note in the President's speech this morning:
- Warranties by GM and Chrysler will be backed by the federal government. - Government fleet purchases of automobiles will be accelerated. - The IRS will mount a campaign to inform consumers of a possible tax break when buying a new car. - The President will consider using recovery funds to pay for a "cash for clunkers" program that offers cash to consumers who trade in an older car for a new, more efficient model.
After dropping teaser shots a couple of weeks ago, Acura has now confirmed the name for the new crossover it will unveil at the 2009 New York Auto Show: ZDX. Acura is still calling it a prototype, but given that it goes on sale this fall there won't be too many changes.
"The ZDX prototype is unlike anything you have ever seen before from Acura," said Jeff Conrad, vice president, Acura sales. "The prototype showcases a new level of luxury, style and refinement for Acura and speaks volumes towards our commitment to advancing the brand."
From the unintentionally hilarious headline department comes this (presumably) unintentionally cruel line from the March 30, 2009 edition of trade journal Automotive News.
The new GTI won't be the only hot Golf-based Volkswagen to be unveiled this year. A new, GTI-derived GTD will be on sale in Europe as early as June and a flagship 'R' model will debut at the Frankfurt auto show in September.
