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Sunday, April 24, 2011

NEW LAMBORGHINI AVENTADOR LP700-4 IN NEW PROMO FILM

Whether or not you’re a diehard Lamborghini fan or just get excited about exotic supercars in general, you’ll find that the new Aventador LP 700-4

Test Drive 2011 Holden VE Series II SS V8 Ute

2011 is often a quite unique year for two Australian motoring icons. For 1, it’s the 50th anniversary of Queensland’s first permanent, purpose-built raceway: Lakeside Park. It’s also marks the 60th anniversary of Holden’s FX Utility, a vehicle widely regarded as by enthusiasts to be the forefather of the house grown Aussie “ute”. In recognition of these historic occasions, we took a Holden VE Series II SS Ute for a test drive and headed north to attend the first of Lakeside’s three 50th anniversary events. Component 1 of this feature will cover my impressions of the Ute, whilst part two will take inside the event itself. So let’s get cracking.

Mercedes-Benz G-Class 2011

NY Show 2011 Highlights: Suzuki Kizashi Apex Concept

Suzuki’s Kizashi line consists of, well, just the Kizashi sedan. One engine, front- or all-wheel drive, stick or CVT. We don’t mind—a fact attested to by the praise littering the logbook in our long-term test car—but Suzuki needs more flavors of Kizashi if it wants to be a player in the mid-size sedan segment. At the 2011 New York auto show, the company is previewing two directions in which it could expand the Kizashi line: the hybrid EcoCharge concept and the rather more invigorating turbocharged Apex concept.

Behind the Kizashi Apex’s aggressive fascia and superbike-inspired graphics is a 2.4-liter four-cylinder boosted to between 275 and 300 hp by a Garrett turbocharger and an air-to-liquid intercooler. (That’s about 100 hp more than the production car’s max of 185.) The Apex is equipped with a six-speed manual transmission. Suzuki implies that if it puts this car into production—and we think it will—a manual will be the only choice. We definitely approve.

Other cool features found on the Kizashi Apex are LED fog lights, 19-inch wheels in a finish Suzuki calls “burnt asphalt,” and an interior finished in an intense combination of black leather and blue Alcantara.

Thanks to: Car and Driver

NY Show 2011 Highlights: Suzuki Kizashi EcoCharge Concept

At the other end of the spectrum is the kinder, gentler Kizashi EcoCharge hybrid concept. Combining a 2.0-liter inline-four producing 144 hp and 127 lb-ft of torque with a 20-hp electric motor and a six-speed automatic transmission, the pearl-white concept is said to achieve a 25-percent gain in highway fuel economy. That would take it from the 30 mpg of the current CVT Kizashi—with its 2.4-liter—to somewhere around 36 mpg. Since hybrids tend to offer greater benefits in the city than on the highway, its overall combined rating also could end up over 30 mpg.

As much as we dig the idea of a Kizashi with another 100 or so horsepower, variations with this sort of fringe appeal aren’t likely to get the Kizashi onto more shopping lists. Then again, they aren’t likely to knock it off anybody’s list, either. Bring 'em on.

Thanks to: Car and Driver

NY Show 2011 Highlights: 2012 Subaru Impreza

One of the more important debuts at this year’s New York auto show is the 2012 Subaru Impreza, shown in both sedan and five-door body styles. But the 2012 Impreza is more than just another transportation appliance; if you read Car and Driver with any regularity, you know that the Impreza is nothing but a WRX or an STI waiting to spread its turbocharged wings.

Subaru previewed the 2012 Impreza last fall at the Los Angeles auto show with the sinister-looking Impreza concept. Alas, the production version is predictably tamer, though it does have a more-protuberant chin, more-defined “hawk-eye” headlamps, and bulging fenders. Interesting details include a sharply raked windshield that starts nearly eight inches further forward on the hood than the glass on today’s model. Similarly, the beltline is considerably lower, and the windows are enlarged for improved visibility. Near-vertical body sides with squared-off bumper caps help reduce drag, à la Toyota Prius. Especially from the rear three-quarter angle, the 2012 Impreza is more than a little busy, but we’ll take busy over outright ugly any day.

While the 2012 Impreza looks bigger than the 2011 model, the only dimension that actually grew was its wheelbase, which increases from 103.2 inches to 104.1. Both hatchback and sedan models retain their 68.5-inch width and their overall lengths. Still, cargo space for the five-door manages to increase by 3.4 cubic feet with the rear seats up and by 5.3 with them folded. Best of all, the Impreza actually lost about 160 pounds, weight savings we hope will also apply to the forthcoming WRX and STI.

Subaru will offer the car in base, Premium, and Limited trim levels, but all Imprezas offer the same level of safety equipment, which now includes a knee airbag for the driver and the stability control that is government-mandated on all vehicles for 2013. What the Impreza seems to lack, however, is stirring interior design. Even in cushy Limited form, the interior wow factor is about nil.

Thanks to: Car and Driver

NY Show 2011 Highlights: Scion FR-S Concept

Whether you call it the Subelica or the Celibaru, Toyota’s version of the new rear-drive 2+2 sports coupe being co-developed with Subaru and codenamed the FT-86 will land in the U.S. as a Scion.

Blazing red, with a gaping maw and atomic-insect headlights, the two-door Scion FR-S (which means Front-engine, Rear-wheel-drive, Sport—woo, clever!) may represent a sort of defibrillator to the chest of Toyota’s youth division, where sales remain lackluster since the 2007 redesign of the xB and 2008 introduction of the xD. The tC was re-skinned this year, but looks starkly similar to the outgoing car. Also coming to Scion showrooms in July is a three-door mini-car called the iQ.

Just a clay model with no interior right now, the FR-S is currently slated to arrive in Scion showrooms in mid-2011, although the recent earthquake and tsunami in Japan have thrown Toyota's product timing into chaos. As Scion is strictly a North American brand, a Toyota-badged version will launch simultaneously in Europe and Asia. Expect that car and the production Subaru version to show up at this fall's Tokyo show.

With a length of 168.2 inches and a wheelbase of 101.2 inches, the FR-S is one to two inches shorter in both measurements than the last-generation Celica. Its 2.0-liter naturally aspirated flat-four engine—sourced from Subaru—uses Toyota’s D4-S fuel-injection system, which features both port- and direct injection and switches between them to optimize efficiency.

Horsepower figures were not quoted, but with direct injection in the mix to help boost specific output, the engine should be good for at least 200 hp. Toyota says the mounting of the flat-four low and behind the front axle will keep the center of gravity down and centered for better handling. It also helps front-to-rear weight distribution.

Buyers will have a choice of a six-speed manual or six-speed automatic with steering-wheel-mounted paddle shifters. A limited-slip differential will be standard. It’s hard to say how much of the FR-S is real (the roof, doors, hood, and trunk are probably production-spec) and how much is auto-show glam. The staggered-width wheels by Five Axis—20 x 8.5-inchers in front and 20 x 10.5 in rear—are certainly show-stand parts that won’t make it to production. The exaggerated rear undertray with dual exhaust “exits”—read: one exhaust, two tailpipes—also may be extra makeup for the show.

The arrival of the FT-86 as a Scion surprised some (especially if they had been under a rock for the last week), but division vice president and general manager Jack Hollis says the car was slated to be a Scion early in its development. It definitely represents a commitment by Toyota to the floundering brand.

The production FR-S will have narrow fenders, but likely will be similar in overall styling to this concept. According to Hollis, the car has undergone a styling makeover since Toyota president Akio Toyoda declared last year that the company's styling is too staid, and that it should be more passionate. An FT-86 concept shown at the 2009 Tokyo auto show had more slab-like sides and a less-aggressive face. Also, the FR-S's rear end draws strongly from the Lexus LF-A supercar, a characteristic not on the original FT-86 show car.

Thanks to: Car and Driver