Cars Tips: May 2012

Thursday, May 31, 2012

BMW M Club Drivers Crash Into Each Other on Moscow Streets

A pleasurable drive on the city streets of Moscow, Russia, turned into a nightmare for several members of a local BMW M Club this past Saturday, after a number of cars crashed into each other.

Video footage from one of the cars involved in the accident as well as from another, unrelated vehicle discovered online (3rd clip, skip to 1:06), shows that the pileup occurred when the driver of a blue E34 M5 sedan turned on his blinker and veered towards the right lane at the same time that a mustard-colored E46 M3 Coupe was coming from behind.

As a result, the driver of the M3 lost control and smashed into the BMW with the camera (reportedly the blue E90 M3 sedan), which was then rear-ended by a 1-Series M Coupe.

When is it worth paying extra money for a more fuel-efficient version of the same model? The answer to that question depends on the price of gas, how much more fuel-efficient is said car and how long it will take to recoup the added cost.

Consumer Reports (CR) set out to see if buyers would benefit in the long run by choosing the fuel-economy variants of the Ford Focus, Chevrolet Cruze and Honda Civic. While each of these models returns better mileage than their standard counterparts, they also cost between $500 and $800 more.

The following calculations were based on driving 12,000 miles (~19,300 kilometers) annually with an average gas price of $4 per gallon (€0.85/lt).

Starting with the Ford Focus, CR found that the $495 SFE (Super Fuel Economy) package, which adds flush hubcaps, a rear spoiler, and low rolling resistance tires, provides a 3-mpg improvement in overall and city fuel economy, to 31 and 21mpg, respectively.

Having already afforded us a peak at the hatchback version of the upcoming 2013 Ford Fiesta through these shots, our spies have now caught up with a prototype of the sedan model while engineers were testing it on the roads around the Nürburgring.

There's too much cladding on both ends of the Fiesta sedan to be absolutely sure, but it appears that Ford will apply the same Aston Martin grille treatment on the facelifted model as it did on the new Fusion.

Naming a car a "Lemon" may not be such a bad thing in Russia, but in English-speaking countries, the term is commonly used to describe a new vehicle that is found to be defective…

Nevertheless, that's the name Russian tuning firm TopCar chose for its latest project based on the new Porsche Cayenne SUV.

Only nine months after the North American Passat went on sale in the U.S., Volkswagen is celebrating its first important milestone with the production of the 100,000th car at its new $1 billion Chattanooga factory. Read more »

Amazingly, Everyone Made it Out Alive in this Accident

For obvious reasons, standing on the side on the road for chitchat is never a good idea. There are plenty of other places to park your car in safety if for whatever reason you need to stop.

Luckily, these men who were all dressed up for a wedding, came out unscathed when a speeding car from the opposite side of the road crashed into one of the parked vehicles. Watch the video after the break.

With its sights set on those who aren't satisfied with Ford's retro-modern take of the original pony car yet still want all the advantages that come with a new car, Missouri-based Retrobuilt is expanding its range of 1969 Shelby Mustangs with the addition of a convertible model.

As with Retrobuilt's existing 1969 Shelby GT 500CS Fastback and Mustang GT Fastback models, the 1969 Shelby GT500CS Convertible can be based on any open-top, fifth-generation Ford Mustang (S-197) built from 2005 and onwards.

The conversion package replaces all body panels sans the doors with fiberglass parts, and adds new headlamps and taillights, chrome trim, vinyl striping and a Shelby wheel and tire combo to mimic the looks of the original 1969 model.

What’s the point of owning a 1,001PS (987hp) supercar like the Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport if you can't actually have some fun in it?

Of course, having fun and crashing a $1.7 million exotic are two very different things, but fortunately for this overenthusiastic Veyron Grand Sport driver, a mishap at last weekend's Prescott hill climb did not end in tears.

Video follows right below the break.

German tuning firm SpeedART wasted no time in prepping a new line of accessories for the third generation of the Porsche Boxster only about a month after it arrived in European dealerships and a couple of months before it goes on sale in North America and other parts of the world.

Due to launch this summer, SpeedART's SP81-R package for the new Boxster bundles an assortment of styling accessories with various performance parts.

Quite a day for future Porsche models as Carscoop reader Toldi sent in three videos showing two lightly camouflaged prototypes of the facelifted Panamera sports sedan and the all-new Cayman coupe.

We'll begin with the updated Panamera that receives a mid-life makeover for the 2013 model year. As evidenced by the cleverly placed disguise, both ends of Porsche's second best-seller after the Cayenne SUV will be redesigned to offer the Panamera a fresher look that's more in line with the new 911.

After the positive reaction it received at last year's Frankfurt International Auto Show, Volkswagen decided to build a production version of the Beetle Fender Edition Concept , which will make its world premiere at the Auto Mobil International show in Leipzig, Germany, on June 2.

The 2013 VW Beetle Fender Edition will go on sale in certain markets around the world including Europe and the U.S. from this fall, with pricing to be announced at a later date.

We are still waiting for Lexus to price the new ES sedan, but today, the Japanese automaker released EPA estimated fuel-economy ratings and performance figures for both the 2013 ES 350 and ES 300h.

The new ES 350 is powered by a 3.5-liter V6 engine rated at 268 horsepower at 6,200 rpm and 248 lb.-ft. of peak torque at 4,700, linked to a six-speed automatic transmission driving the front wheels.

According to Lexus, the mid-size saloon completes the 0-60mph (96km/h) sprint in 7.1 seconds and the quarter mile in 15.1 seconds, and tops out at 130mph (209km/h – electronically limited). It returns an EPA estimated 21 mpg city, 31 mpg highway and 24 mpg combined.

By comparison, the outgoing 2012 ES 350 does 0-60mph in 7.0 seconds, the quarter mile in 15.2 seconds and achieves 19mpg city, 27mpg highway and 22 mpg combined, meaning that the new model is equally fast but more fuel efficient.

Last summer, Mercedes-Benz launched a Black Series Edition of its C63 AMG Coupe featuring a more hardcore chassis setup and an uprated 6.2-liter V8 producing 510hp (517PS) to target those that were not impressed by the 451hp (457PS) "standard" model.

As it seems, VÄTH was not impressed with Mercedes-Benz's proposal either as the aftermarket tuner has developed a new performance package for the C63 AMG Coupe Black Series Edition called V63 Supercharged.

It's completely understandable that people want to save their belongings during a natural disaster, but sometimes, it's just better to let go when your life is in danger.

A woman, reportedly in the port city of Barranquilla in northern Colombia, was filmed trying to save her Mazda 626 during a severe flood. Instead of getting out of harm's way, she refused to abandon her car.

Following a teaser video that previewed the M Performance Editions of the M3 Coupe and M5 Sedan posted earlier this month, BMW has now released detailed information and pricing for its limited run models that were created exclusively for the UK market.

Only thirty examples of each model will be available with on-the-road pricing set at £74,080 (US$115,500) for the M3 M Performance Edition and £95,140 (US$148,400) for the M5 M Performance Edition. Both cars are on sale now.

Here's a sneak preview of Acura's new TV spots for the 2013 ILX compact sedan before they air on TV and cinemas across the country on June 4.

The Japanese automaker's marketing campaign is named "Equal Parts" and it targets the so-called Gen Y Audience, also known as the Millennial Generation or Millennials, which includes those in their 20s and 30s.

Ferrari is expressing its solidarity with families of the victims of the earthquakes that hit northern Italy this month by organizing an international on-line auction through its www.ferraristore.com website.

The Maranello-based sports carmaker will offer several rare items with all proceeds going to the people that were most affected by the catastrophe.

True to its mantra of leaving no segment of the car market unattended, Volkswagen is now pursuing the presentation of mid-size SUV for North America. Such a model would be about the same size as the Audi Q5, BMW X3 and Mercedes GLK.

"There's a great opportunity for us for a mid-size SUV in the U.S. that would be positioned between the smaller Tiguan and larger Touareg SUVs," said Volkswagen of America CEO Jonathan Browning, during an Automotive Press Association event in Detroit.

Mercedes-Benz is expanding the range of its newly introduced GL-Class 7-seater crossover with the addition of a new, high-performance AMG model.

The 2013 GL63 AMG is scheduled to go on sale in mainland Europe this November and in the UK, the U.S. and other markets around the world in the first quarter of 2013, with pricing details for each country to be released closer to the SUV's on-sale date.

The zippy people carrier sports the same 5.5-litre V8 biturbo gasoline engine found in other AMG models such as the ML63 AMG SUV and SL63 AMG roadster. The direct-injection unit is rated at 550hp (557PS) at 5,250-5,750 rpm and 760Nm (560 lb-ft) at 2,000-5,000 rpm.

Power is transferred to all four permanently driven wheels by an AMG SPEEDSHIFT PLUS 7G-TRONIC seven-speed automatic transmission.

The GL63 AMG completes the 0 to 100km/h (62mph) sprint in 4.9 seconds and has an electronically limited top speed of 250km/h (155 mph).

General Motors has signed up its Chevrolet brand as Manchester United's Official Automotive Partner. This is Chevrolet's first global football sponsorship in the automaker's 101-year history.

For the next five years, Chevy will attach itself to Manchester United's fan base of an estimated 659 million people around the world with a growing presence in Asia and especially in China.

SPY SHOTS: 2014 Mercedes-Benz S-Class Sheds More Camo, Reveals Interior

In less than a year's time, Mercedes-Benz will launch the sixth or ninth generation if you include the 1954 S W180 "Proton", the 1959 S W111 "Fintail" and the 1965 S W108, of its lauded S-Class model series.

Codenamed the W222, the 2014 model year S-Class is a hugely important vehicle for the German premium automaker, as after the demise of the poorly received and money losing Maybach brand, it will regain its place as the group's flagship limousine.

For this reason, Mercedes-Benz has made plans to expand the S-Class' range from three model to six models. These will likely include the normal and long wheelbase sedans, a coupe that will replace the current CL-Class, a super-luxurious and extra-long "Pullman" variant and possibly, two convertible versions with two and four-doors respectively.

Our spies nabbed a prototype of the regular S-Class sedan with less camouflage providing us a better look at the exterior, while also securing some new shots of the interior.

As you can see, there's no need to peel away all the disguise to see that the W222 will retain the current S-Class' familiar silhouette.

While not a household name yet, Ugur Sahin, a Turkish car designer based in the Netherlands, will ring a bell for many of our regular readers who will remember him from past projects such as the 2007 Ferrari Dino, 2010 Aston Martin Gauntlet and more recently, the 2011 Soleil Anadi.

The latter is of particular interest as it's the production version of Sahin's 2007 Chevrolet Corvette Z03 design study.

The coach built Corvette was presented in the flesh at last year's 2011 Top Marques car show in Monaco, with Soleil planning to produce a total of 300 cars priced at US$299,995 a piece.

Now, Sahin has provided Carscoop with details about his newest project for a two-door, front-engined Alfa Romeo sports car named the C12 GTS Concept.

Here's another failed attempt at towing a car, but not in the way you may be thinking.

You see, the driver of the Land Rover Discovery 3 (marketed as the LR3 in North America) actually pulled it off – literally – in his/her second effort to get a Hyundai Getz out of a ditch.

Who would have thought that the Ford Cougar, known as the last generation Mercury Cougar in North America, would prove so popular with the replica crowd?

After a couple of Bugatti Veyron 16.4s and an Audi R8, we have now unearthed a Ferrari F430 Scuderia clone based on a low-mileage Cougar coupe V6.

Even if you are not an engineer, it's always interesting to learn about what goes on behind the locked doors of automotive test facilities.

Ford is affording us a sneak peak at how it tested the new Transit Custom Van's doors to ensure that they can withstand heavy day-to-day usage without breaking down.

Earlier today, we told you about Toyota's plans to debut a pre-production concept of the next generation Auris hatchback (also known as the Corolla hatchback in some markets) at the 2012 Paris Motor Show this September.

As it seems, we won't have to wait until the fall to get a glimpse of what the 2013 Auris will look like as images of an alleged brochure for the Japanese domestic-market model have surfaced online.

An advertisement doesn't necessarily have to be "in your face" to be effective. For example, take a look at the promotional concept that Brazilian ad agency AlmapBBDO prepared for Volkswagen's genuine auto parts.

The agency came up with the idea of placing special banners on popular video spoofs on YouTube. The ad reads, "Don’t accept imitations. Prefer original parts. Click here."

The recent unveiling of Peugeot's 301 budget compact sedan in advance of its world premiere at the 2012 Paris Motor Show in September had Khalil Bouguerra from Virtuel-Car pondering what a crossover variant would look like.

The result is the 301 RXH modeled after Peugeot's larger 508 RXH.

While even stray dogs nowadays seem to comprehend the concept of looking both ways before walking across the road, some pedestrians insist on their "right" to walk in front of vehicles where there is no crosswalk.

Amazingly, even though this pedestrian was only inches away from meeting her (?) maker, she didn't even blink an eye. Head past the break for the short clip.

Mazda has introduced a new model year version of its Demio supermini (known overseas as the Mazda2) in Japan.

Most notably, the Japanese automaker has updated the 13C-V Smart Edition with enhanced aerodynamics through the employment of a rear roof spoiler and undercover, which result in a 0.4km/L improvement in fuel economy, from 20.2km/L (47.5mpg US) to 20.6km/L (48.5mpg US) under Japan's JC08 mode test cycle.

Thirty years ago, Volkswagen launched the second generation of its Scirocco coupe - albeit based on the same platform as the original model.

To celebrate the occasion, the Wolfsburg automaker is reviving the Mk2's GTS moniker on a new edition of the current Scirocco, which will receive its public debut at this week's 2012 AMI in Leipzig, Germany.

He might look more like a distant cousin of the Duck Dynasty's Robertson family than a car collector, but Magnus Walker is a true-blue Porsche enthusiast who has owned over 40 911s throughout the years.

His current collection includes every 911 built from 1964 to 1972 and he aims to continue with the 1973 model.

It's makeover time for Skoda's entry in the popular compact crossover segment. Since the Yeti has not been around for that long as it was launched onto the European market in 2009, there are no big changes for this mid-life refresh, just a few cosmetic tweaks here and there to keep it looking fresh. Read more »

2014 Range Rover SUV Speculatively Rendered from Spy Shots

With recent prototypes of the 2014 Range Rover having dropped all of their heavy cladding and simply relying on patches of camouflage to hide the luxury SUV's styling from the prying eyes of scoop photographers, it was only a matter of time before someone attempted to photoshop the new model. Read more »

Motorcyclist Comes too Fast Around the Corner and Rams a Parked Car

Going fast on narrow city or town roads is never a good idea, even more so when you are riding a motorcycle.

Video footage from a nearby security camera shows this biker speeding around the corner and not having enough space or time to stop before he hit a parked vehicle that flung him into the air and onto a building wall.

For as long as Porsche has been producing its acclaimed 911 series, aftermarket tuners have tried to spruce up the sports car's appearance and at times improve its aerodynamic properties as well, with specially crafted parts. Read more »

Spy Video: New BMW 4-Series Convertible Filmed at the Green Hell

We have just filmed the replacement of the BMW 3-Series Convertible while the brand's engineers were driving a camouflaged prototype on the Nürburgring track.

BMW is rumored to replace the 3-Series badge with the 4-series moniker for the two-door coupe and convertible variants of its newly revealed 3-series sedan, in much the same way that it does with the larger 5-Series (sedan, Touring and GT) and 6-Series (Coupe and Convertible) models.

Toyota officials in Europe have denied rumors that the next generation of the Auris will revert to its previous name Corolla, which was dropped from the hatchback variants with the presentation of the 2007 model.

"In the future, the model will continue to be called the Auris in Europe," a Toyota spokesperson told Automobilwoche. "We are satisfied with the model awareness that we've achieved with this name."

For the 2012 model year, Renault's Master van range has received some modest equipment changes such as the availability of new audio systems and the introduction of an air-suspension, plus a revised engine lineup. Read more »

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Renault Alpine A110-50's Run at the Monaco GP, COO Says there's a 50% Chance to Revive the Brand

Aside from Mark Webber's stunning win, Renault had another reason to celebrate in Monaco this past weekend as the French firm introduced the new Alpine A110-50 Concept to mark the 50th anniversary of its legendary mid-engined sports car.

The presentation took place on the eve of the Monaco Grand Prix, with Renault's Chief Operating Officer Carlos Tavares wearing his race suit to drive the 400-horsepower, mid-engined racer around the Circuit de Monaco.

Even in the event that you were not hurt, most drivers would probably be too shaken and terrified to move after experiencing a severe crash that results in a car rolling over several times on the road before coming to a stop on its side.

But not this Russian (?) driver who came out of his car through the windscreen! Watch the video after the break.

Could the next generation of the Lexus GX luxury SUV abandon its current body-on-frame platform for a car-like unibody architecture? Mark Templin, group vice president of the Lexus division, believes it is an option.

"There is a potential that at some point, when we replace the GX, we can have a car-based SUV," Templin told Wards Auto during a recent media event.

We have snapped some fresh spy shots of the upcoming, high performance version of the latest Mercedes-Benz A-Class hatchback, which we will come to know as the A45 AMG, or according to some sources, the A25 AMG.

Despite the prototype model's heavy cladding, we hear that the A45 AMG may be revealed as early as this September at the 2012 Paris Motor Show, with sales to likely follow in the beginning of 2013.

Thursday, May 31, 2012

Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

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