After a three year hiatus, Porsche is returning to the Detroit Auto Show for 2011. With porsche sales up nearly 25% and a host of new vehicle launches slated for the upcoming calender year, including a rumored redesign of the 911, Porsche is likely seeking a high profile platform for their new vehicles.

“We’re very excited about it,” said Bill Perkins, co-chairman of the 2011 North American International Auto Show. “The demand for space is very strong. People see the market coming back.”

Perkins also alluded to the return of manufacturers like Nissan, Suzuki and Mitsubishi, but declined to comment on specific car makers.

[Source: Detroit Free Press]

Ford is looking to cut another 300 dealers as part of an effort to increase profitability. The move comes as part of a move to wind down its Mercury brand, and consolidate its sales network amid decreased demand for cars.

“The dealers are full partners in every decision the company makes,” said Jim Farley, Ford’s group vice president for global marketing, sales and service. “When you are trying to consolidate your network from 6,000 down to 3,000, the dealers are on your side, and they will help you participate in the consolidation.”

The elimination of Mercury will also put pressure on Lincoln dealers, as the two are often paired with one another. It’s unlikely that standalone Lincoln stores would be profitable enough to survive, leading many to expect their demise.

[Source: egmCarTech]

BMW‘s plan to become the number one automaker in China will include new models for the world’s most populous country, as well as a leasing program to make the luxury cars more affordable to a growing middle class.

“We have a clear target: We want to become the strongest premium brand in China,” said CFO Friedrich Eichiner at a conference in Beijing.

To do this, BMW will introduce China-specific models, like the 5 Series LWD (long wheel base), that stretches the luxury sedan an additional 5.5-inches for limo-like back-seat room. Recently BMW also announced a limited edition Tiger Edition version of its M3. No details of new China-specific models were provided.

BMW will work at expanding its small car base in China, however, with plans to begin building the 3 Series there in 2012, while the MegaCity electric car will go on sale here in 2014 – a year after launch.

And with an influx of 3 Series models in the Chinese market, BMW is thinking ahead, announcing that it will begin a leasing program after setting up a new financing arm tied to Chinese partner BMW Brilliance Automotive Holdings Ltd. (Because no one actually owns a 3 Series).

BMW sees huge growth potential in the Chinese marketplace and plans to increase its dealership network from 165 to 200 as forecasts show luxury cars in China could grow by 20 percent to hit 530,0000 units in this year and then double to 1.1 million by 2015.

[Source: Bloomberg]

The mysterious Audi spotted earlier this week in Austria is not the upcoming R4, but rather a concept car based on the RS5. According to a report by AutoBild, the car is designed to celebrate the original Sport Quattro model and is being built under the aptly named “Anniversario” title.

With design cues taken from the E-Tron concept cars, this concept will be a stripped-down model with plenty of light-weight components in order to hit a target weight of around 3,000 lbs. to get there it will also do away with the massive 4.2-liter V8 in favor of Audi’s turbocharged 2.5-liter 5-cylinder used in the TT-RS.

The car is expected to debut at the Paris Motor Show, with a limited production run possible.

[Source: AutoBild]

Scion is lowering its expectations for the new 2011 tC, announcing sales targets below what the youth-oriented brand was targeting earlier this year. According to brand VP Jack Hollis, Scion is now hoping to sell between 35,000 to 45,000 of the cars – down from a 40,000 to 50,000 estimate in March.

Still , Hollis says the tC will reinvigorate the brand, doubling sales for the most popular Scion model. Last year Scion sold just 18,000 tCs, down 56 percent from 2008. It’s not clear if the downgrade is due to reaction to the car now that it has officially launched, revised economic expectations, or both. Hollis did point out the sales drop last year was due to the unique way in which the recession affected younger buyers – leaving a higher percentage of Scion’s target demographic unemployed.

While a solid improvement over the first generation tC, the new model isn’t as revolutionary as many had hoped. Hollis does believe in the product however, and commented that its success also relies on a lack of competition in the segment, with the Kia Forte Koup the car’s latest competitors – with the Honda Civic Coupe due for a remodel soon.

To reach the targets sales goal, Scion will be planning a marketing blitz

Read AutoGuide’s 2011 Scion tC Review by Clicking Here

GALLERY: 2011 Scion tC

[Source: Automotive News]

Hyundai has just announced that the tuner-friendly Genesis Coupe 3.8 R-Spec model will be priced at just $26,750. That’s a $4,000 discount over the 3.8 Track model and is the same price as the Premium-trim 2.0T model.

Sporting all the goodies from the Track package but without the more luxurious options, the 3.8 R-Spec is ideal for boy races and tuners. Included in the R-Spec model are high-performance Brembo brakes, a limited slip differential, stiffer springs and shocks, 19-inch wheels and an adjustable camber setup. It’s also 68 lbs lighter than the current base model V6 thanks to the “decontenting” of features like auto headlights, cruise control, a sunroof and certain interior and exterior accents.

Read AutoGuide’s Hyundai Genesis Coupe 2.0T R-Spec Review Here

Get all the details after the jump:

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Dominating the headlines following Chrysler‘s first dealer meeting in three years yesterday was news of a new Viper planned for 2012. But apart from headline-grabbing sports cars, Chrysler execs made plenty of comments regarding the company’s commitment to the truck and SUV segment.

For the new RAM brand, CEO Fred Diaz commented that his team is studying bringing a “Baby Ram” to market, with an estimated 30-mpg and room for four. This could replace the Dodge Dakota as RAM’s entry-level work truck, with a next-generation Dakota confirmed to take more of a lifestyle direction.

The RAM brand also has plans to target lifestyle truck buyers with a luxurious “Longhorn” model that will debut at the Texas State Fair in two weeks. RAM execs didn’t comment on if it would bear any resemblance to the Mopar Dodge Ram Bianco model shown at last year’s SEMA Show. The truck will, however, feature a Longhorn logo that can be removed from the floor mat and used as a belt buckle.

As for features, the “Ram Box” storage area currently found on the 1500 model trucks, will be made available on the 2500 and 3500 heavy duty work trucks.

And finally, Jeep execs hinted at expanding their lineup to include a pickup truck, rolling out what is believed to be the Jeep Gladiator Concept from several years back. Jeep execs would not comment on if this model was slated for production.

[Source: WSJ]

Rumors of a C-Class Coupe have been circulating for quite some time now and according to a new report by AutoCar, we won’t have to wait much longer for Mercedes‘s newest two-door. The destined-to-be-popular coupe version of the C-Class is slated to debut at the Detroit Auto Show in January .

Sources at the company have also confirmed that a high-powered AMG version of the C-Class Coupe will arrive shortly afterward. Mercedes could still use the 6.2-liter V8 that powers the current C63 sedan, although its more likely that AMG will opt to use one of the company’s new turbocharged units. AMG has just launched a new twin-turbo 5.5-liter V8 with 536-hp, although that certainly seems excessive for the C-Class. Instead, it could get the brand’s new twin-turbo 4.7-liter V8, which still makes an impressive 429-hp and 516 ft-lbs of torque. That larger AMG motor would, however, be perfect for a C63 AMG Black Series.

According to AutoCar‘s sources, however, we won’t get a cabriolet version of the C-Class coupe. The sedan has already been on the market for quite some time and so the coupe will get a shortened product life (just four years) while a new version is created, based off the upcoming next-gen C-Class.

[Source: AutoCar]

A week after Hyundai announced its first electric car, sister company Kia Motors will continue the Korean automaker’s EV plans with a battery-powered crossover set to debut next year.

“We plan to produce 2,000 electric vehicles based on Kia’s upcoming cross utility vehicles (CUVs), and 500 BlueOns by 2012,” said Hong John-hee, the head of Hyundai’s electric vehicles division. Surprisingly, the electric car won’t be based on one of Kia’s existing CUVs, but rather on a new model. Kia’s plan is to launch a gasoline version of the crossover in September (likely at the 2011 Frankfurt Auto Show), followed by the electric version in December.

Initial plans for Hyundai and Kia’s electric vehicles are to sell them to government agencies in 2012, with sales to the general public beginning in 2013.

The electric Kia will be able to travel up to 80 miles on a single charge.

Last week, Hyundai unveiled the BlueOn electric car based on the company’s i10 hatchback, with a total range of 87 miles.

[Source: Reuters]

Looks like HKS isn’t the only kid on the block looking for big horsepower gains with Honda‘s newest cool hybrid, the CR-Z. And perhaps this really solidifies a changing of the times considering Top Secret is well known for their wicked drift cars and high horsepower 350Zs and Supras. They’re also well known for their blistering high-speed test runs, so to see Smoky Nagata of Top Secret working away on Honda’s ZF1 hybrid powerplant shows that hybrids and tuning are going to go hand-in-hand for decades to come.

Aftermarket manufacturers are going crazy out in Japan over hybrids and seeing what Top Secret is developing for the CR-Z is slightly astonishing. We can’t quite decipher what’s going on from the magazine snippet – and would love if someone could offer us a translation – but Top Secret is definitely underway in producing a single turbo upgrade and even has a titanium induction kit, oil catch tank and tow hook out to the public now. The stuff comes at a price though, with $995.00 as the MSRP for the Ti Induction kit straight from Japan.

We’re sure many enthusiasts are still rolling their eyes about the idea of a hybrid being turbocharged or supercharged. But let’s face it: every automotive manufacturer will be working on developing hybrids for the future to fill out their lineup with mpg-friendly cars. It’s only natural that the aftermarket will find ways to make these eco cars more fun.

GALLERY: Top Secret Honda CR-Z Parts

[Source: CRZ Forum]