It’s generally thought that wild concept cars never make it to production. The truth is, most of the time the process just takes so long and there are so many changes involved that consumers don’t even recognize what a street car has in common with its concept from five years earlier.

That may, or may not, be the case when Mercedes sends its ultra-futuristic Biome concept into series production.

Set for some time around 2015, the car was originally crafted for the LA Auto Show’s annual Design Challenge, but Mercedes fulled the car at the last minute, choosing instead to enter just its Smart and Maybach branded concepts. According to a report by AutoCar, the vehicle’s designers were careful not to take it to the extreme, ensuring it could be, “do-able” without major changes.

If in fact the car does see production, it won’t sport the drivetrain from the concept, but is likely to be a flagship for performance and fuel economy, incorporating the company’s latest green technologies.

One interesting feature it may also keep is the central driving position, with a passenger seat at each side – much like the famed McLaren F1.

[Source: AutoCar]

Striving to keep its cars competitive, Aston Martin Racing has announced a list of updates for its V8 Vantage GT4 race car. Retaining the same 4.7-liter V8 engine, the track machine gets a remapped ECU for improved horsepower and torque.

In addition, numerous aerodynamic changes have been made, which are actually adaptations from the V12 Vantage street car. Included in the updates are a new splitter that increases downforce on the front axle, while helping to feed more air to the brake cooling ducts. A larger integrated rear lip on the trunk, as well as a new carbon fiber diffuser and rear undercarriage tray increase downforce and reduce lift at the back of the car while channeling more air to the transmission cooler.

In addition, Aston Martin has partnered with Bosch for 2011 on a new ABS and traction control system designed to give better grip in both dry and wet weather.

Over the past two years Aston Martin Racing has built 80 GT4 cars for teams around the world, which have been incredibly successful, winning the 2010 GT4 Cup and the GT4 Class at the Dubai 24 Hours, the Nürburgring 24 Hours and the Spa 24 hours.

GALLERY: Aston Martin V8 Vantage GT4

Official release after the jump:

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Move over Ferrari, Fiat has just launched its own online store here in the U.S., where you can buy everything from Fiat-branded hats and sweaters to Espresso makers.

It’s sure to be a hit with the Jersey Shore crowd and ‘Guidos’ everywhere, we have to admit that these are some pretty stylish items.

Just in time for the launch of the new 500 on U.S. soil – not to mention in time for the Holiday shopping season – check out the full selection of products available at the Fiat USA Online Store here.

Each year J.D. Power ranks numerous categories in the automotive sector, the latest being customer satisfaction with their purchase experience. In other words, the results of the Sales Satisfaction Index Study show how consumers rank their dealerships.

Tops on the list of “Mass Market Brands” for 2010 is MINI, followed by Mercury in 2nd place and GMC in 3rd. Falling below the average are big names like Honda and Toyota with Nissan ranking the lowest with just 707 points out of a possible 1,000.

In the Luxury Brand category, Jaguar took the top spot (for the 3rd year in a row), followed by Cadillac and then Mercedes-Benz, while Volvo ranked lowest, just below Audi.

Of note, Honda luxury brand Acura fell below the average in the luxury class, as did Nissan’s Infiniti brand.

The annual survey conducted by J.D. Power ranks the new-vehicle purchase experience based on customer satisfaction, which is calculated based on four factors: working out a deal (33 percent), the salesperson (25 percent), the delivery process (21 percent), and the dealership facility (20 percent).

Dealer satisfaction is more important that you might expect, with the J.D. Power survey showing that 52 percent of people cited how they re treated by their dealeras a reason to purchase a vehicle there, while just 38 percent said vehicle price was the reason for the dealer.

[Source: Edmunds]

See after the jump for the complete lists of dealers by automaker and how they ranked:

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With the acclaim Anderson Germany got with the release of its tuning package for Bentley’s Continental Supersports, it’s no surprise the German team went straight to the drawing board for Bentley‘s Continental GT Speed. For those not wanting to upgrade to the newer Continental model, Anderson Germany is releasing a very limited quantity styling package (at 150 units) to the general public.

Dubbed the Elegance Edition, Anderson Germany adds more sport than elegance to the exterior of the Continental GT Speed – something we really dig. Lightening up the load is a carbon fiber hood with additional air intakes, and a matching rear deck lid. The front and rear bumpers are also constructed out of lightweight carbon fiber, matching the paired side skirts to the kit. LED daytime running lights are also added to the front, giving the car a more modern appearance along with its new chrome grilles.

Performance is also enhanced, giving GT Speed owners a little bit of ammo against Supersports owners. Anderson Germany ups horsepower output to 685-hp from the stock 601-hp thanks to a new air filter, exhaust system and ECU upgrade.

Inside the cabin, subtle carbon fiber accents can be seen. The leather seats also receive a reupholstered black leather finish, accented with white logo stitching.

GALLERY: Anderson Germany Bentley Continental GT Speed

Senner Tuning has released their vision of what Audi‘s TT RS Roadster should be, calling it the Power TT. The name clearly comes from the added power the TT RS puts out: an impressive 430-hp (from the factory 360-hp) thanks to a reprogrammed ECU, high flow cat, valve-controlled exhaust system and an upgraded intercooler and filter setup.

The modifications don’t stop under the hood either with Senner Tuning offering a set of Work Wheels Varianza T1S in a 20×9-inch sizing, wrapped with 255/30/20 rubber. Suspension modifications are also a must with the larger wheels.

Scattered throughout the exterior of the vehicle are carbon fiber accents including a trunk spoiler and housing. Inside, carbon fiber can also be seen on the steering wheel, tach, door handles and center console.

GALLERY: Senner Tuning Audi TT RS Roadster

Renault is already one of the auto industry’s leaders in electric vehicles, investing enormous sums in the Better Place battery swap technology and introducing one of the first mass-market electric cars with their Nissan division, in the form of the Leaf hatchback.

Although Renault is set to introduce the all-electric Z0e in 2012, the small hatchback will only have a range of 100 miles. Renault is hoping to increase that to 150 miles by 2015 thanks to new chemical compounds in the cars battery pack. Britain’s Autocar magazine suggests that by 2025, range could be up to as much as 300 miles. While Europeans generally have shorter driving distances, a 300 mile EV would go a long way to soothe the fears of North Americas, and make the idea of a battery powered car a lot more palatable.

Overfinch, a Range Rover tuning outfit favored by sports stars and other celebrities, has gone bankrupt after trying to find a buyer. Rival firm Project Khan is rumored to be a front runner for Overfinch.

The company’s expertise goes beyond just big bodykits and wheels. Overfinch is famous for creating the first automatric transmission Range Rover, and the firm even won the 1981 Paris-Dakar rally. But their engineering sucess couldn’t keep them from insolvency.

Lisa Hogg of administrator Wilson Field said: “In the past 18 months, Overfinch has incurred significant one-off non-trading costs which have hit cash flow.

[Source: AutoExpress]

Fans of 1980′s rally cars consider the Audi Sport Quattro to be the ne plus ultra of road-going rally machines, but one dissenter prominenter dissenter – the man who designed the Sport Quattro – has been vocal recently about his creation.

In an interview with Autocar, Peter Britwhistle, the man responsible for the Sport Quattro, and now Mazda Europe’s design boss, said that the car was “bloody ugly”. Claiming that the Quattro’s Audi 80 underpinings meant it would forever be a compromise, Britwhistle remarked “Although it did what it needed to do, it looks awful.”

The Sport Quattro’s wide fender flares, excessive vents, wide wheels painted a contrasting color and enormous spoilers became instantly recognizable design elements and arguably influenced a generation of performance cars.

[Source: Autocar]

With the launch of Gran Turismo 5 yesterday, Sony is rolling out commercials across the globe. We recently brought you the commercial we’ll get as well as a cheesy ad from Japan. Now it’s France’s turn.

The folks at Sony got together a list of pricey exotics and a few sports cars and then drove them up and down the Champs-Élysées in Paris with a blatant disregard for the rules of the road. Better yet, it’s obvious from the ad that this was not a “closed circuit” although Sony does claim they were professional drivers.

A total of 7,000 horsepower was present, with notable contributors including the Nissan GT-R, Lamborghini Murcielago LP670-4 SV, Mercedes SLS and Audi R8.

Check out the video after the jump:

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