The British and the Germans swept the 2011 Concept Car of the Year awards in Dearborn, with top marks going towards Lotus, Jaguar, and Volkswagen.

The insane, beautiful Jaguar C-X75 took not only the Best Concept award but also the Most Significant—no doubt for its turbine engine, which sadly won’t make it to Jaguar’s production version (and kind of defeats the purpose, but that’s a different story). The best production preview, the car most likely to be built as close to its concept as possible, went to Lotus and its four-door Eterne sedan. And lastly, VW’s retro-tastic Bulli concept took Best Truck.

The two dozen jurors in the selection committee came from across North America, so there’s less accusations of Eurocentrism there. Cars displayed at last year’s major shows are all eligible for judging.

[Source: Detroit Free Press]

We can expect some powerful figures for the next round of Audi’s S and RS models, thanks to the miracle of turbocharging in motion.

The Audi S8 will feature a twin-turbocharged V8 developed with the help of Bentley, churning out in excess of 500 horsepower. This is 50 horses more than the outgoing V10, but at 20% less fuel consumption. And as befitting Audi’s S-flagship, quattro four-wheel drive and an 8-speed transmission are standard.

The S6 and S7 are set to debut at the Los Angeles Auto Show later this year, and each will be packing no less than 440 and 470 horsepower (respectively). The S1 will join the fray next year to fight the Mini Cooper JCW, but no figures have been revealed for that yet.

Lastly, the almighty RS6 will drop in Avant form, making all of 580 twin-turbocharged horsepower—or 20 more than the new BMW M5. After all, like Simba, the Circle of Horsepower is just like the Circle of Life: unavoidable, and never-ending.

[Source: Autobild]

While several privateer MINI teams are scheduled to compete at this weekend’s Nurburgring 24 Hour endurance race, excitement is building around the company’s factory effort.

Several weeks ago MINI announced it would, for the first time ever, field an official MINI Motorsport team at the Green Hell, but remained tight-lipped on any details. Now a single teaser photo has been released, showing what could very well be a race-prepped version of the all-new 2012 MINI Coupe. That hasn’t been confirmed, but MINI has said the cars will wear the John Cooper Works branding.

MINI will field two race cars under its factory efforts, with the cars wearing Nos. 146 and 147.

For those of you who still haven’t stopped complaining about Top Gear America, there’s a new homegrown TV show to add to your TG USA and Motorweek rotation. “The Car Show,” hosted by Adam Carolla, will debut on Wednesday, July 13th, on the SPEED Channel.

The show will feature Carolla, Dan Neil, John Salley, and Matt Farah of The Smoking Tire, who is taking time off from writing for Autoguide. It will offer “a perfect mix of comedy, shop talk and eye candy,” which will presumably refer to the cars and not the hosts (though like all of Autoguide’s writers, Farah is a sexy, sexy devil).

You can catch it in its 10pm Eastern timeslot on Wednesdays, or if you’re like most fans of British Top Gear, you’ll probably download it illegally anyways. We imagine that Speed will offer a way to stream it online.

[Source: Jalopnik]

It’s been quite a while since Mugen and Honda had this much buzz surrounding a car. And while some are still rolling their eyes at the thought of a modified hybrid, Mugen is definitely poised to prove that you can have your cake and eat it too, finally announcing full specs of its supercharged CR-Z.

At the core of it all, Mugen has taken the CR-Z’s standard 1.5L and rebuilt it with upgraded internal components. The iCF system, which stands for Integrated Centrifugal Forced-induction (aka, supercharged), works flawlessly on the electric motor-engine combination. The result is an impressive increase in horsepower and torque, with 197-hp and 158 lb-ft, up from the factory’s 122-hp and 128 ft-lbs.

Even more impressive is Mugen’s comparison of the CR-Z to the infamous Honda Civic Type-R, stating that its 0-62 mph time is very close at 6.6 seconds. Mugen is looking to shave off even more weight from the CR-Z, hoping to make it quicker than the Civic Type-R was.

For those wondering what the impact is on fuel consumption, it’s fairly impressive to hear that the CR-Z in “eco” mode still retains 42-mpg while in “Mugen” mode it consumes 29.4-mpg. Overall, still not too shabby given the performance numbers it’s boasting.

And of course the Mugen CR-Z wouldn’t be a complete package if it solely focused on what’s underneath the hood. Mugen also outfits the CR-Z with a complete aero package, 17-inch Mugen GP wheels, carbon fiber hood and doors. For suspension, five-way adjustable dampers were added while braking was enhanced through larger rotors and 4-piston calipers. The Mugen CR-Z is also equipped with a different limited slip differential to help get all the extra power to the ground.

On the inside, Mugen tosses in a set of Recaro sport seats alongside a new shift knob, carbon fiber rear view mirror cover and a trio of Mugen gauges displaying water, oil temperature and pressure. This may be one of the finest offerings Mugen has yet to offer in the recent years, and we’re excited to see it up close and personal.

GALLERY: Mugen Honda CR-Z

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

If you’re a believer in tarot cards, voodoo and rumors thinly disguised as news on the internet, then you’ll love the upcoming Bugatti Royale. That is reportedly the name of the production version of the ultra fast and luxurious sedan that will be based closely on the Galibier concept.

While not a bad name in general, especially considering the brand’s French origins and the fact that few apart from royalty will be able to afford it, there is an historical significance to the title. In true Bugatti fashion, however, you’ll have to trace back in history all the way to the 1920s with the Type 41, which was “commonly” referred to as the Royale. This 21-foot long monster was also an exercise in oppulence, weighing 7,000 lbs and coming with a 12.7-liter straight-eight engine.

The Royale looks to bring this excess into the modern era with a twin-supecharged 8.0-liter W16 engine that will reportedly get hybrid technology.

[Source: Autoblog.nl]

Toyota‘s plans for a true hybrid sports car are edging closer to reality with the debut of the GRMN Sports Hybrid Concept II. Over a year ago Toyota first revealed the MR2-based hybrid sports car and this updated version of the car proves the automaker’s commitment to the project

In a press release Toyota points to its hybrid expertise, beginning with the launch of the Prius in 1997 and continuing applications and development of hybrid technology. Toyota, “has long conducted active research on applying hybrid technologies to racing and sports cars,” reads the release. “The GRMN Sports Hybrid Concept II is the next step in the evolution of these efforts.”

Powered by a gasoline-electric drivetrain with a “sports-hybrid AWD system” the gasoline engine powers the rear wheels and is mid-mounted, with an electric motor powers the front wheels.

Toyota is displaying the GRMN Sports Hybrid Concept II for the first time this weekend at the 30th running of the Nurburgring 24 Hour race and will also showcase the car at the Goodwood Festival of Speed.

GALLERY: Toyota GRMN Sports Hybrid Concept II

Amidst all the sexy and exciting sports cars Lotus unveiled at the Paris Auto Show last year, tucked away in a back corner was the Emas Concept. A small city car, it was perhaps the most likely of the concepts, combining the automaker’s talents for light weight vehicles with nimble handling, wrapped up in an affordable package that could produce real volume sales and bring Lotus to profitability.

Well, it seems that along with plans to move nearly all the other concepts into production, Lotus will push ahead with the Emas concept, naming it the Ethos and bringing it to market in 2014. Built in cooperation with parent company Proton, the vehicle itself will likely be built in Malaysia, with Euro-spec models receiving their finishing touches at the Lotus plant in Hethel.

Sales are expected to reach 1500 to 1800 a year for the Lotus model, a small number indeed, but one that would certainly give a big boost to overall Lotus sales. According to Lotus CEO Dany Bahar, the Ethos will be either an electric car or a hybrid. Either way, it will be a true Lotus in terms of its handling and fun-to-drive capability. Look for pricing around £30,000 – roughly $50,000.

In addition, Lotus is planning to build its own 4.8-liter V8 for the Esprit with as much as 570-hp. That same engine could also be halved to form the basis of the next Elise motor, displacing 2.4-liters.

GALLERY: Lotus Ehtos

[Source: CAR]

There has been a whole lot of buzz around Audi’s R8 GT since its official debut, and now we have the first photos of the lighter and faster exotic sports car hitting the track at Infineon Raceway. This is the R8 GT’s debut on the track in America and a few lucky individuals were able to get behind the wheel of the sports car this past weekend.

Jealous? It’s hard not to be with 560-hp and 398 ft-lbs of torque from the R8 GT’s 5.2L V10.

GALLERY: Audi R8 GT at Infineon Raceway

The i-MiEV electric mini car has only just gone on sale in North America but already Mitsubishi is looking to expand its offering of EVs.

Speaking at a shareholder meeting in Tokyo Mitsubishi Motors president Osamu Masuko commented that the automaker is currently studying whether to produce electric versions of cars other than mini-cars like the iMiEV. Possible candidates could include the new Global Small Car Concept as well as the Colt sub-compact.

The automaker’s immediate plans in the electric vehicle segment include two new minicars based on the i-MiEV, including a more budget-oriented version of the original, as well as the Minicab-MiEV designed for light commercial duty.

[Source: Nikkei]