Auto Unleashed |
| Bentley Continental GT Black Bisson by Wald International Posted: 11 Jul 2008 08:04 AM CDT 
 | ||||
| The Mercedes Benz SL65 AMG Black Series Posted: 11 Jul 2008 07:49 AM CDT  The “bad news” is that, even though the first rumors said that the 6 liter V12 engine which powers the car and was able develop 720 hp would be limited to 680 hp, the final power output is 661 hp. However, considering that Mercedes stripped out 550 pounds (250 kg) from the “regular” SL65 AMG, the car’s performance figures are still very impressive: fitted with five-speed automatic gearbox equipped with AMG’s speedshift software the car goes from 0 to 60 mph (96 km/h) in 3.9 seconds and reached 198 mph (320 km/h) top speed. The Mercedes Benz SL65 AMG Black Series will debut at the Paris Motor Show in October and US sales are scheduled to start next year at a starting price of $320,000. More photos after the jump.
 | ||||
| Official: the new Peugeot 308 CC Posted: 11 Jul 2008 06:23 AM CDT  With the new generation Peugeot 308 being on the market for some time now, it was time for Peugeot to upgrade the CC version also. And now we have the official announcement of the new Peugeot 308 CC. Considering that Peugeot were the ones that pioneered the modern concept of the affordable coupe cabriolet, they didn’t let us down because the 308 CC actually looks pretty good. The car has a low sporty profile, pretty similar to the superb Peugeot RC-Z Concept and features like the LED rear lights make the car wonderful to look at. On the interior, we have deeply sculpted and supportive front seats, with integral head restraints and inbuilt “Airwave” air vent system which diffuses warm air around the occupant's neck. Not to mention that the interior is entirely trimmed in leather. Under the bonnet, besides the engines already available, Peugeot will offer a new 140 hp 2.0 litre HDi FAP Euro 5 diesel engine and there are also some hints that the Peugeot 308 CC will also be availble with a hybrid propulsion. To try and make it as good as possible for day-to-day use, Peugeot has fitted the CC with a number of dedicated storage spaces, while the trunk has a capacity of 465 litres or 266 litres with the roof folded. Of course, the CC will have a lot of “goodies”, such as an MP3 CD audio system, USB Box ( with iPod / MP3 connectivity), hands-free phone kit, user-friendly satellite navigation system offering a MP3 CD audio system, Bluetooth functionality and satellite navigation with a retractable 7? 16/9 colour display. The Peugeot 308 CC will be unveiled at the Paris Motor Show and we can’t wait to get there and have a look at this beautiful car. Complete photo gallery after the jump.
 | ||||
| Posted: 11 Jul 2008 06:18 AM CDT  The BMW 3 Series is selling pretty good but, facing strong competition from the Mercedes Benz C Class and the new Audi A4 (both being launched after the 3 Series), BMW felt it was time for the car to get a makeover. The 2009 3 Series received fresh front and rear styling and will debut at the Paris Motor Show in October. The redesign features a new bumper, newly contoured hood and revised headlamps, plus a new grille the chrome "eyebrows". The 3 Series also has redesigned side mirror casings, new talilights and newly shaped trunk lid and bumper. The interior was pretty much left untouched, except for the revised armrest, new trim combos, a new high-resolution 8.8 inch display along with an updated version of BMW's iDrive controller and a new optional 80-gigabyte harddisk. Under the bonnet there are no changes, BMW offering the 3 Series with the same engines as before. The only change in the engine lineup is that the 3.0-liter twin-turbo engine, that develops 265 hp, will now be available in the United States too. Overall, a pretty cool mid-life upgrade which will keep the BMW 3 Series up and going until the new generation arrives, don’t you think? A complete photo gallery after the jump.
 | ||||
| Posted: 10 Jul 2008 04:33 PM CDT  Bugatti, currently a part of the VAG group, has to recover some more of it’s huge investment developing the Veyron because right now the Veyron is being sold at a loss. Just look at all the “special edition” Veyrons out there. But special editions can only get you so far. So Bugatii is planning to launch a Targa version and apparently it’s being unveiled at the 2008 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. The Targa will get a glass removable hardtop, as well as a retractable soft fabric roof. The hardtop can’t be stored inside the car either, because of space issues. Losing it’s top it also lost some of it’s rigidity so some changes were made to stiffen it up. But that adds weight so the doors and hood will be carbon-fiber. Even with the changes a convertible can’t take the 407 km/h top speed so that’s limited to 350 km/h (217 mph) still making it the fastest open top car in the world.  | ||||
| Toyota Prius to be built in the US Posted: 10 Jul 2008 04:30 PM CDT  Toyota confirmed that the Prius hybrid will be built in USA and that production will begin in 2010. The production of the Tundra will be moved to the San Antonio plant in Spring 2009. A new Prius can run to around 48 miles (77 kilometers) per gallon of fuel in city traffic compared to a large SUV which may run to 13 miles (21 kilometers) a gallon depending on how each vehicle is driven. The car retails for around 21,000 dollars and Toyota reported 11,765 Prius sales in June, marking a 25 percent drop from a year earlier. “The truck market continues to worsen, so unfortunately we must temporarily suspend production. But this good news about production mix demonstrates our long-term commitment to our North American operations and to our team members, supplier partners, and communities where our plants are located,” said Jim Wiseman, vice president/external affairs for Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America (TEMA). “By using this downturn as an opportunity to develop team members and improve our operations, we hope to emerge even stronger.”  | ||||
| Posted: 10 Jul 2008 12:06 PM CDT  Two of the biggest motor sport companies in America, Nelson Supercar and Mosler, have created a new POWER-UP Tuning package for Mosler MT900S. This way the 600 hp super car was turned into an 1800HP monster. This Supercar is made o carbon fiber, a 7.0-liter V8 with 550 horsepower. “The Mosler MT900S road car was designed to be the extreme performance vehicle. In third-party testing it officially set nine performance records, including 0-60mph in 3.1 seconds,” says creator Warren Mosler. “Now that it has passed its testing phase with flying colors, delivery can begin in very limited numbers to a discriminating coterie of racers, collectors, and investors.” As standard for the US market the car is fitted with Corvette brakes for ease of servicing, while for Europe, the brakes have been upgraded to 355mm diameter grooved and drilled ventilated floating disc brakes with 6 pistons Wilwood alloy calipers front and rear to provide massive stopping power. The owner helped Nelson Racing Enginesin Chatsworth, CA to build the ultimate motor: a twin-turbo 427 ci V8 producing up o 1800 horsepower on race fuel and around 1100 horsepower using 91 octanes. To make the car more “streetable”, boost can be controlled every 100rpm in each gear. The first few gears are limited to around 6-8 psi. The dyno run was nearly 1600 horsepower before the intake collapsed from the pressure. The car should be completely finished in the next weeks. Last year the Car and Driver Magazine took for a test-drive one version of Mosler’s 600HP that reached 100km/h in just 3.1 seconds. They described a car as a “speed violent” and “reflexes of rally car”. Can you imagine a ride with Mostler MT900S 1800HP?  | ||||
| The new Mitsubishi Lancer Ralliart for less than $27k Posted: 10 Jul 2008 09:44 AM CDT  The new sports sedan from Mitsubishi will have an interesting impact when it will be launched this fall. For less than $27,000 you can get a hot ride after it hits the showrooms in September. A fully Ralliant will come with Recaro seats, Sirius Satellite Radio, upgraded headlamps and a GPS system for near $30,000. Some officials already confirmed the pricing. Before the final price will be public, Mitsubishi weighs the impact of fluctuations of the dollar and yen. The Ralliart aka WRX competitor develops from the Lancer lineup and it fits abobe the base model but is a step below the 291hp Evolution. Also the Ralliant shares considerable engine and body parts with the Evo. The car will get 237 hp and 253 lb-ft of torque out of its turbocharged 2.0-liter four, and retains some driving characteristics of the Evo-one. The Ralliart shares a twin-clutch SST transmission with the Evo. The Mitsubishi officials point the Ralliart as a potential green option for drivers looking for a good performance. Mitsubishi expects five to ten percent of all US Lancer sales for the Ralliart and around 300-350 sells per month. In the meantime Mitsubishi is working on some electric vehicle technology, a project called iMiEV, and we all espect a nice small car. "I think we're very serious about the technology," said Bryan Arnett, product strategy manager for Mitsubishi Motors North America. Also, the Concept-cX that debuted at the Frankfurt auto show last fall is also being considered for this market, possibly as early as 2010.  | ||||
| Volkswagen Robust sneak preview Posted: 10 Jul 2008 09:37 AM CDT  These days it seems that there is no need to advertise a car. Just mask it up, tip a few paparazzi and then see all the publicity unfold in car magazines. Seems that VW is going down this road, having its future truck model spied once again, this time getting even interior shots. This time they were testing brakes and cooling in the Alps. Even though the test were happening in Europe, I’m sorry for all fans but you won’t see the Robust pick-up truck in Europe at all. It will be sold only in North America, plus Argentina, Brazil & South Africa. So Europeans will have to do with the Japanese trucks for now. Volkswagen Robust will be made in Argentina and will hit the American showrooms in 2009. Source: World Car Fans  | ||||
| A car, a legend. Bob Weir’s Corvette Stingray Roadster Posted: 10 Jul 2008 09:34 AM CDT  Bob Weir is founding member of the Grateful Dead, a band that helped a lot the Hippie movement. But despite his age, he bought a 2007 Lexus GS 450h. He is anxious about new technology when it comes to transportation choices. It seems a paradox for a commonplace man, but not for him. He isn't such a person! It took a year to get used to the automatic, but he succeed. And this is the most important part. Weir gives his car an 8 of 10 rating, based on the fact that he isn't very pleased about the gas mileage it gets. However, the car Weir really loves doesn’t get out of the garage much these days. He said that the car in which he'll probably be buried in is the ‘63 Corvette Stingray Roadster. Weir asserts that he is an environmentalist and this is the reason he doesn’t drive his Corvette all that much. "You must not lose faith in humanity. Humanity is an ocean; if a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the ocean does not become dirty." - Mahatma Gandhi  |
| You are subscribed to email updates from Auto Unleashed To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email Delivery powered by FeedBurner |
Inbox too full?  Subscribe to the feed version of Auto Unleashed in a feed reader. | |
| If you prefer to unsubscribe via postal mail, write to: Auto Unleashed, c/o FeedBurner, 20 W Kinzie, 9th Floor, Chicago IL USA 60610 | |
