Before sales of Nissan’s new electric car go full-tilt in the U.S., the Japanese automaker will start with 5,000 units in five different markets. The targeted areas include the Phoenix-Tucson region of Arizona, Oregon, San Diego, Seattle and Tennessee.

Nissan’s product planning boss Mark Perry says that this is just the first step in a larger plan.“This is not a test to determine whether or not it’s going to work. This is the beginning of mass marketing,” he said.

Full retail sales are planned for 2012, but Perry says they will begin sooner if a market has the infrastructure ready to support the vehicles. Nissan also plans to offer the LEAF for fleet sales in 2010.

An infrastructure network of 12,500 recharging stations will be built throughout the five markets by Phoenix-based Electric Transportation Engineering Corp., which has received a $99.8 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy. An additional $199.6 million necessary to built the infrastructure will come from the individual cities and states.

Owners of the first 5,000 cars will be able to purchase the at Nissan dealers but will have to sign on to allow Nissan to monitor the car’s performance over the first two years. Nissan says it wants to see how electric vehicle recharging habits play out in the real world. Owners will also be “chosen” by Nissan as the automaker wants to make sure the information it obtains is relevant. “We don’t want these first cars going to somebody who commutes 150 miles a day or who lives a great distance from a recharging station,” he said.

As for the price, Nissan hasn’t release specifics but did say that it would be comparable to a fully-loaded compact car.

[Source: Automotive News]

To help celebrate the MX-5 Miata’s 20th anniversary, Mazda will show the MX-5 Superlight concept at the Frankfurt auto Show this September. And to wet our appetites, the Japanese automaker has released a few renderings of just what this speedster will look like.

An homage to early race cars, the Superlight has no windscreen or door handles and will be significantly lighter than the standard MX5. Mazda wants to illustrate how through the reduction of weight it can improve performance, handling and fuel-economy. There is no word on an engine but it’s likely to use either Mazda’s 1.8-liter or 2.0-liter four-cylinder.

It’s unlikely the MX-5 Superlight will ever see production, at least not as a road car. There is, however, the possibility that Mazda could build a limited number of the cars for track use, much like how Lotus built 2-Eleven for the same purpose.

GALLERY: Mazda MX-5 Superlight

[Source: Car Magazine]

Of course, this isn’t any old milestone; the MX-5 has been around for 20 years exactly – worming its way into our hearts since its debut in 1989. To some it is single handedly responsible for reviving the small sports car market that many thought had died with the British motor industry.

The chances of the MX-5 Superlight being put into production are, we think, remote. But then you never can tell with companies like Mazda.

Auto parts maker and engineering firm ZF Friedrichshafen AG says that its new lineup of driveline modifications and transmissions, when combined, can deliver up to 18 percent better fuel-consumption on traditional gasoline powered cars. The results are even more impressive for hybrids, with total fuel-economy rising 30 percent.

Harald Naunheimer, VP of research at ZF delivered the news at the Center for Automotive Research’s Management Briefing Seminars in Traverse City, Michigan, earlier this week. Naunheimer said all of his company’s new initiatives will make their way into production cars starting next year.

Included in the list of fuel-saving technologies are lighter transmissions with more gears, as well as electric, rather than mechanical, features. Electrical power steering can account for a savings of 2 to 3 percent, while electric active roll stabilizers add another 1 to 2 percent.

A start-stop function, which shuts off the engine at stop lights or when stuck in traffic, can save up to 5 percent while a new, lighter transfer case for all-wheel drive cars can add an additional 1 to 1.5 percent.

The single largest way to boost fuel-economy, however, is with a transmission with more gears. ZF says its new 8-speed box can deliver a 6 percent boost in fuel economy over a six-speed unit. Lexus already uses an 8-speed transmission and BMW recently launched a new 8-speed box in the flagship 760Li (pictured above). This, however, raises the issue of cost.

With an 8-speed in a six-figure BMW, we’re unlikely to see the same technology make it into a Toyota Corolla any time soon. Still, the race is on for improved fuel-consumption as the Obama Administration’s new CAFE regulations will see fleet averages for passenger cars rise to 35.5 mpg for 2016, up significantly from 27.3 mpg for 2011.

[Source: Automotive News]

The 2010 Prius has been a popular car for Toyota since it first went on sale several months ago, but the pace of sales will slow considerably over the next few months. The reason for the lull is that the Prius’s battery supplier, Panasonic EV, can’t keep up with the demand.

The third-generation of Toyota’s revolutionary hybrid has been even more popular than the Japanese automaker expected, especially in its home market where the Prius out-sold all other cars in the county in the month of May. Toyota currently has the capacity to build 500,000 Prius models a year, but Panasonic can’t keep up with that pace. No doubt the electronics company never thought it would have to as sales of the new Prius have exceeded forecasts. 

“The new Prius model has been excessively popular, inconveniencing some of our customers, and the factories are working overtime at full capacity,” said Takahiko Ijichi, Toyota senior managing director to told Automotive News. “Unfortunately, the batteries are not catching up with demand. Production of the batteries needs to be increased in order for our production to go up.”

Panasonic’s supply issues come at an unfortunate time for Toyota as the automaker continues to suffer through the recession. The Prius is one of the few good news stories at Toyota with better than expected sales helping to prop up Toyota’s diminished sales with other models.

Demand outstripping supply might be viewed as good problem to have, but in the mean time Toyota has been forced to slow down production until additional battery supply becomes available, something which will no doubt mean long waiting lists for those looking to buy a Prius. The shortage could also hurt Toyota in the long run as some customers will look to oher hybrids (like the Honda Insight) which have no such supply issues.

With hybrid popularity seemingly on the rise, Toyota is currently re-thinking its production of the car and hopes to double it’s output capacity to one million units next year.

[Source: Automotive News via LeftLaneNews]

GM’s new communications boss has confirmed that the automaker is looking at equipping the upcoming Orlando MPV with a plug-in hybrid system similar to the one used in the Chevy Volt.

Jon Lauckner, VP of global program management at GM hinted at this earlier this year and now Lutz is being more specific telling GM-Volt.com that, “We are actually studying the adaptation of Volt technology to the upcoming Orlando.”

But considering Lutz’s “yes we will, no we won’t” about-face on the Pontiac G8, we’ll take pretty much anything he says with a grain of salt from now on.

What makes the Orlando such a strong candidate, however, is that it’s based on the Volt’s platform. That being said, many of the same parts could likely be carried over from the Volt to make the Orlando a Plug-In Hybird Electric Vehicle (PHEV).

[Source: GM-Volt.com via LeftLaneNews]

If you’re familiar with German Porsche-tuner Gemballa’s modified Carrera GT, the Mirage GT, stop reading.

No really; just shuffle through the gallery of photos below and be done with it. We’re the first to admit that there isn’t much new with Gemballa’s Gold Edition of the car, but it sure is worth a look.

In standard trim the Mirage GT gets plenty of carbon fiber bodywork and a slight power boost, bringing the 5.7-liter V10 engine to 670hp. This is good for an improved 0-60 mph time of 3.7 seconds, versus a 3.9 for the stock car. The top speed also gets a bump from 205 to 208 mph.

What makes this particular model the Gold Edition is, well, all the gold. The Mirage GT sports gold center-locking wheels, gold painted side skirts, a gold air intake, gold trunk lid, gold brak ecalipers, gold brake vents and gold mirrors. Even the engine bay gets the gold treatment. And don’t forget the interior. There you’ll find gold painted air vents adn even the HVAC and shifter surround.

Not being overly stuck on tradition, Gemballa also tossed the birch/ash shift knob (used on the Carrera GT in homage to the Porsche 917) in favor of a carbon fiber unit.

Gemballa says it will build just five of these Gold Edition model to retain their exclusivity, but we bet they only build one. Still, we have to hand it to Gemballa for pumping out this many versions of the Mirage GT, especially considering Porsche only ever built 1,270 Carrera GTs.

No pricing has been released but knowing Gemballa we’re sure this special edition Mirage GT costs about the same as its weight in gold.

GALLERY: Gemballa Mirage GT Gold Edition

Corvette Racing today unveiled its new GT2-spec C6.R racer and invited folks to listen in on a conference call with those responsible for running the team as well as one of the drivers of the No. 3 car, Johnny O’Connell.

For years Corvette Racing has ran a team of cars in the top-level GT1 category in the American Le Mans Series (ALMS) and at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, but decided to move to the lower GT1 class for several reasons, namely the competition and the marketing potential. For starters, the GT2-spec C6.R is closely based on the new ZR1, whereas the old GT1 cars had little in common with their road-going counterparts. Being so closely related to a street car is ideal for marketing.

“With the international regulations converging around a single GT class, Corvette Racing will continue its motorsports heritage by racing against manufacturers and marques that Corvette competes with in the marketplace, while also increasing the production content of the C6.R race car and the relevance of racing to our customers,” said Mark Kent, GM Racing manager. “This is truly a step that positions Corvette Racing for the future of production-based sports car racing worldwide, and a move that is perfectly aligned with GM’s marketing and business objectives in racing.”

As for the competition, the GT1 class has heated up over the past few years. Traditionally dominated by Porsche, Ferrari is now a major contender. Additional players include BMW, Aston Martin and Panoz. Competition on GT1 is almost non-existent now as Corvette Racing has developed into such a dominating sport over the years (beating Ferrari, Aston Martin, Saleen and Dodge).

“There was literally very little competition on a global basis to race in the existing GT1 category,” said Doug Fehan, Corvette Racing program manager.

Under the hood, Corvette Racing has modified the 7.0-liter GT1 powerplant, adding a new crankshaft to decrease the displacement to 6.o-liters (as the rules demand). A new engine is also in development for 2010 when the rules change to limit the maximum displacement to 5.5-liters. According to Fehan this new engine will be based on a production 5.5-liter V8 that is planned for future GM products. The Corvette Racing GT2-spec C6.R will make its racing debut at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course on August 6-8. Familiar faces Johnny O’Connell and Jan Magnussen will share the No. 3 Compuware Corvette C6.R, and Oliver Gavin and Olivier Beretta will drive the No. 4 Compuware Corvette C6. R.

GALLERY: GT2 Corvette C6.R

Read a transcript of the full teleconference after the jump: Continue Reading…

Nissan is looking to turbochargers as a method to deliver high-output performance with low fuel-consumption in its future lineup of vehicles. Tetsuya Takahash, a top engineer at Nissan, made the exciting comments to the folks at MotorTrend.

While Nissan currently uses turbochargers in high performance vehicles like the GT-R, this new line of turbo cars would use turbochargers as a replacement for larger displacement engines. Most likely the first turbocharger powerplants would come to replace the 2.0-liter and smaller engines found in models like the Sentra and Versa.

Currently GM and Ford are looking to bring turbocharged four-cylinder engines (some as small as 1.4-liters) to market in an effort to meet increasingly stringent CAFE regulations.

But Takahash isn’t just talking about the fuel misers, as there is a strong possibility that Nissan would look to turbochargers combined with a smaller V6 engine to replace aging (although impressive) engines like the VQ35 and VQ37, which power models like the 350Z/370Z and G35/G37. Takahash is quite familiar with high-performance turbocharged engines, having been a part of the team that developed the amazing SR20DET that powered the Nissan 240SX (Silvia) in Japan.

Will the next-generation Z be twin-turbocharged?

[Source: MotorTrend]

A full gallery of photos of the 2010 E-Class Wagon (known as the Estate in Europe) have emerged online a month ahead of the car’s official launch at the Frankfurt Auto Show in September.

Details on the car are still scarce but we expect Mercedes to bring the 3.5-liter V6 powered E350 Estate over in 4MATIC trim, with a high-performance 6.2-liter V8-powered AMG model to follow a year afterward. The new model is expected to be longer and wider, offering improved passenger space. And we can also be sure it will include Mercedes’ long list of E-Class safety features including Attention Assist, Adaptive Main Beam Assist, Blind Spot Assist, Lane Keeping Assist and Brake Assist Plus.

Sales are expected to begin in Europe in November and the rest of the world in early 2010.

GALLERY: 2010 Mercedes E-Class Estate

[Source: Carscoop]

Jaguar Land Rover’s (JLR) new Indian owner Tata Motors continues to invest in and makes plans for its newly acquired luxury division despite what has so far been a very poor return on investment.

JLR posted a $1.11 billion loss last year but that won’t stop Tata from making big changes, the first of which is an initiative to reduce the weight of all new vehicles.

“JLR is planning to have all its future cars constructed with light weight aluminum bodies resulting in considerable savings in weight and reduction in CO2 emissions,” said CEO Ratan Tata in his company’s annual report. Weight is certainly something Land Rovers could lose, as some models are currently approaching the 6,000 lb mark.

Jaguar’s new 2010 XJ (pictured above) not only makes use of aluminum body panels but an all aluminum frame and is the first of a new line of Jaguars to be launched by Tata. The lighter package requires a less powerful (and more fuel-efficient) engine, as well as smaller and less expensive brakes to stop.

Considering the massive weight of Ranger Rovers and the significant surface area that their sheet metal has to cover, an aluminum body would make a noticeable difference. [Source: Motoemag]