The Holden Commodore Ute has had more false starts in the United States than Elizabeth Taylor has had marriages, but rising gas prices might give General Motors an impetus to import the Ute as a pickup alternative at a time when high gas prices are making large trucks economically unfeasible.

Mark Reuss, GM’s head of North American operations, said that the Ute may be an important product if fuel prices compel pickup buyers to downsize from full-size trucks to more efficient but equally versatile vehicles. ’I've lived in Australia and I’ve seen where fuel prices are $5 a gallon  and lots of tradesmen will use a ute with a tray on the back to do lots of different things, and they don’t need the bandwidth of a big pick-up truck,’ he told Australia’s Drive.

Reuss also said that no decision would come until the next generation Commodore in 2014, and that the pickup truck market in the States was still strong enough to continue with current offerings. General Motors planned to offer the Ute as a Pontiac vehicle, but those plans were shuttered in the wake of the 2009 recession.

[Source: Drive.com.au]

When Nissan finally gets around to replacing the Titan pickup truck, there’s a solid chance it will come with a diesel powerplant – at least as an option.

Previous reports had indicted that there was a possibility, but in a recent interview, Nissan product boss Larry Dominique gave his strongest endorsement yet, commenting that, “diesel is certainly something we are looking at for the next generation Titan.”

The interview was actually a part of Nissan’s “win a chance to be an auto show reporter” contest, and considering all the questions and answers were likely vetted and prepared, this adds more weight to Dominique’s remarks.

Further discussing the issue of diesels Dominique says the introduction of such a powerplant would be based on “consumer demand for greater fuel economy.” Commenting that most consumers tow under 8,000 lbs and don’t require 800 lb-ft of torque, don’t look for a Heavy Duty diesel-powered Titan in the future. “Small displacement diesels or mid-size displacement diesels are certainly something we’d consider,” says Dominique.

Since a partnership with Chrysler fell through on the next-gen Titan, company execs have remained committed to the idea, but we’re not likely to see a second-generation of the Nissan pickup until at least 2014.

The term epic is overused these days for sure. This video is, however, Epic. Yea, that’s a capital E. There’s enough awesome cinematography and powerful classical music in this promo clip for the new Lamborghini Aventador that you might think Chuck Norris took Bill & Ted’s time machine back to do battle with the Gladiator. (How cool would that be?)

An exaggeration? You tell us. Hit the jump to watch Lambo’s new 700-hp carbon-chassis supercar and if its not the best three minutes of your day, let us know what you’ve been up to:

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Forbes Magazine, that bastion of automotive truth and cutting-edge opinion, has released their annual list of bottom-feeders, scam products, and they still build those? malarkey known as the annual Worst Cars On The Road list.

Forbes consulted the results of six Consumer Reports studies, including those about reliability, safety, fuel economy, cost of ownership, and overall new car scores. And among the list of terrible, hopeless products that your grandparents might buy without an ounce of research, the list includes such luminaries as the Nissan Titan, 2011 Mercedes-Benz S-Class, and Smart Fortwo.

But the rest of the list is bad news for decent American taxpayers—with the exception of those three models, the next 8 cars are all imported from Detroit.

Chrysler‘s 2011 Town & Country ranked terribly for reliability (hooray, kids, no school!) and cost of ownership. The Jeep Liberty and Wrangler made the list for the same reasons, with the Wrangler ranking among CR‘s own Worst Vehicles list. And even though the Dodge Nitro and Dakota haven’t been relevant since Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? first aired, they too earned their trophies.

For General Motors, the Chevrolet Aveo and Colorado are so long in the teeth that they’re wooly mammoths at this point; the Aveo being replaced with the Sonic this year. After being in production for 9 and 7 years, respectively, it’s like kicking a man when he’s already sprawled on the ground.

Ford escaped the list completely, which might say a thing or two about government spending. Insert your own rant here, then click the jump to view the entire list.

[Source: Forbes]

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The CR-Z that Honda fanboys have been begging for is on its way thanks to Mugen. The European division of the tuner has just released new details on its high-performance version of the sporty hybrid coupe, with the big news being a supercharger under the hood to deliver 200-hp.

Mugen Euro hasn’t released exact specs but says the supercharger mated to the 1.5-liter engine (which retains the hybrid electric system) will make “around 200PS” with 181 lb-ft of torque. That’s roughly an increase of 50 percent over the standard CR-Z.

“The idea was to use the significant advantage of the early torque provided by the Honda IMA electric motor, then increase the torque available from the petrol engine gradually, to first maintain and then increase this,” says Colin Whittamore from Mugen Euro. “A supercharger and complementary electronics allow us to very neatly map the IMA to the extra power and torque of the engine in a unique package, giving a smooth and integrated powerful driving experience.”

In addition to the added power, the Mugen CR-Z will also sport 5-way adjustable dampers, a wider track and lower weight. New 17-inch forged wheels will cut unsprung mass while bigger brakes are also a part of the package. Plus, there’s going to be a typically wild Mugen aero kit.

Alas…. there’s a gray cloud to this silver lining. Yes, the Mugen CR-Z, set to debut at the Goodwood Festival of Speed in July, is just a one off. Will they offer production versions or sell the supercharger kit solo? They damn well better!

Click here to read AutoGuide’s 2011 Honda CR-Z review

As previously announced, Mercedes-Benz will bring a production version of the A-Class Concept to market in North America in the near future, but it won’t be alone. Joining the premium hatchback will be three more models, all of which will be priced at or below the $30,000 mark. Currently the cheapest model offered in the Mercedes lineup is the C300 Sport Sedan at $33,900.

Specific details aren’t yet available, but the three additional models are believed to be the CLC sedan, the GLC crossover and a small van or MPV that will be offered with an electric powertrain.

Mercedes-Benz USA had originally decided not to bring the A-Class to America but when product planners saw the new concept they did an about-face. Their decision was confirmed last week at the New York Auto Show by the reaction of media and show-goers to the A-Class concept.

In an interview with Automotive News, MBUSA boss Ernst Lieb emphasized how important it is for Mercedes to dominate in the premium small car segment, even commenting that he believes luxury buyers will switch to small cars in the future.

GALLERY: Mercedes A-Class Concept

See after the jump for video of the A-Class Concept from the New york Auto Show:

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Ford has waged a public relations campaign to help promote its new EcoBoost F-150 pickup truck. The twin-turbocharged and direct-injection V6 engine might make excellent torque (and at diesel-like revs), but the Blue Oval knew it would face an uphill battle in convincing truck owners to down-size their engine – especially for something that’s relatively untested and fraught with the potential to be a disaster due to its complexity.

Holding driving clinics across North America to expose consumers to the new engine, Ford’s efforts appear to be paying off with the EcoBoost V6 model accounting for 35 percent of sales so far, Ford says. That number is on the rise too, with the most recent sales figures quoting a 40 percent take-rate for the six.

Similar in design to the EcoBoost V6 introduced in the Ford Taurus SHO, engineers will tell you its been entirely reworked. Peak power is rated at 365-hp and 420 lb-ft of torque with 90 percent of that power available from just 1700 rpm. By comparison, the new 5.0L V8 makes 380 lb-ft oat 4250 rpm, and the EcoBoost can tow up to 1,300 lbs more. It does, however, come at a $1,055 premium over the 5.0L.

Click here to Read AutoGuide’s 2011 Ford F-150 EcoBoost Review

After official but grainy images leaked yesterday, Porsche has now released high resolution images and complete details on the GT3 RS 4.0, making this car as official as Obama’s birth certificate.

Rumors about the ultimate GT3 proved to be true, with this race-inspired machine making 500-hp from a larger displacement 4.0-liter flat-six engine. At 50-hp more than the GT3 RS model, that’s a full 125-hp per liter. Combined with a curb weight of just 2,998 lbs (with a full tank of gas), Porsche claims a 7:27 lap time around the Nurburgring – faster than the Carrera GT, but well off the 7:18 claim of the GT2 RS.

The official engine specs list 500-hp at a lofty 8250 rpm, while 339 lb-ft of torque is available at 5750 rpm. Porsche claims a 0-60 mph time of 3.8 seconds and a top speed of 193 mph.

Hitting that ultra-low curb weight is the result of extensive use of carbon fiber components, in particular for the seats, front fenders and luggage compartment lid. The interior is typically sparse and the suspension component have even been swapped out for similar parts to the ones used on Porsche racing cars. Being a track-derived machine that’s intended to be used on the circuit, Porsche has worked to create 426 lbs of downforce through extensive aerodynamics.

Just 600 versions of the GT3 RS 4.0 will be offered, priced from $185,000. Oh, and as expected, it’s available exclusively with a 6-speed manual transmission.

The GT3 RS 4.0 is the final and most raw version of the current 911 platform before Porsche introduces its next-gen model.

GALLERY: Porsche GT3 RS 4.0

See video of the GT3 RS 4.0 after the jump:

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So the new Ford Taurus was only introduced last year. Why, then, did Ford refresh it for 2013 at the New York Auto Show—why go through all that effort now? Because, according to Ford head design honcho J Mays, the new front end is supposed to showcase Ford’s new global look, and the Mondeo and Falcon are gonna nab a piece of it.

Yes, for once the Ford global look sets its standards from America, not Europe or Australia. The new corporate look, said Mays, will still allow these three diverse sedans to retain their own character. The design elements can be altered to create subtle or aggressive looks across a model range. And the trapezoid grille was influenced by those from Audi—where J Mays used to hang his hat.

[Source: GoAuto]

The world’s two largest luxury car makers, BMW and Mercedes-Benz, are currently watching sales go through the roof in China.

Although the luxury vehicle market in that country is still growing (projections forecast about 20 percent over last year for 2011), both the Munich and Stuttgart based concerns together, sold a total of 102,497 vehicles during the  first quarter of this year, an increase of some 76 percent from the year before.

China’s economy grew 10.3 percent in the last year, the fastest rate increase since 2007 and despite Government calls to curb ‘Hedonistic Spending’ and unclog the roads, it looks like sales of luxury cars will likely continue to rise, putting China ahead of the U.S. for the first time in terms of premium car volume.

According to Klaus Maier, who runs Daimler’s Chinese operations, demand currently outstrips supply for Mercedes-Benz models and with the factories in Germany running at full capacity, the company is looking to expand local production in China.

However, despite the apparent increase in wealthy and upper middle-class Chinese, there are also signs that the gap between rich and poor is widening – the Gini coefficient, which is used to measure income distribution, has climbed from 0.3 in the mid-1980s to 0.5 today.

Whether China can sustain such rapid economic growth remains to be seen, nevertheless luxury car makers are constantly looking at new ways to entice buyers. Lexus has hired Kobe Bryant as the spokesman for its smaller models in China, while both BMW and Mercedes are doing their best to peddle cars aimed at a younger demographic, the introduction of the 1-Series and A and B-Class models being prime examples.

So far it appears that the strategy is working; in the case of Mercedes, A, B and C-Class models accounted for more than a third of total M-B sales in China last year, according to a statement issued by Daimler AG.

[Source: Automotive News]