The sister car to Toyota’s GT 86 sports coupe, the Subaru BRZ and its sibling were both unveiled today at the Tokyo Motor Show. Sharing the same underpinnings and with nearly identical bodywork and interiors, both cars come powered by the same direct-injection 4-cylinder boxer engine delivering around 200-hp.
Find out more about the Subaru BRZ here or by watching the video below:
Audi has plenty to celebrate this year, having eclipsed their previous annual sales record of 101,629 (set in 2010) with a month to go in 2011. Sales through the Thanksgiving weekend stood at 102,055 vehicles, giving Audi an amazing year to go along with having record-setting months in each of the first 10 months of the year.
To go along with new car sales, Audi also set a new record with their Certified Pre-Owned (CPO) vehicles, besting their 2008 record of 32,108. CPO sales up to Thanksgiving weekend totaled in at 33,102 which was also a 32-percent increase over the previous year’s tally.
This is the second time Audi has exceeded 100,000 in sales since it established its brand in America over 41 years ago. They expect to have a record November month as well, and figures to close the year off with a 12th record setting month.
Much of Audi’s success can probably be credited to the more aggressive styling on the new A4 and A5 models as well penetrating BMW and Mercedes-Benz‘s luxury sedan market with their A6 and A8.
Years of anticipation have all lead to the debut of Toyota‘s new compact sports car at the Tokyo Motor Show today. Referred to by many different concept names, at its word premiere company CEO Akio Toyoda called it, simply, the 86.
Powered by a direct-injection 1.6-liter 4-cylinder boxer engine it makes around 200-hp and when combined with a curb weight of just 2,700 lbs should deliver solid acceleration and a dynamic driving experience.
Get more Toyota 86 news and info at fr-sforum.com
For more on the Toyota 86, watch the video below:
GM hit a huge milestone today, building its 100-millionth (that’s 100,000,000) small-block engine, 56 years after its first one rolled off its production line. And in something that almost seems planned, the 100-millionth small-block came in the same month GM celebrated its 100th anniversary.
Used in GM vehicles around the world, the small-block engine can be found in Chevrolets, GMCs, Cadillacs, Vauxhalls and Holdens. The 100-millionth small block was none other than the 638-hp supercharged LS9 powerplant, found in the Corvette ZR1, and was hand-built at GM’s Performance Build Center. Unfortunately no lucky owner will be blessed with the milestone engine, GM will be preserving it as part of its historical collection.
The small-block engine delivers guilt-free performance,” said Winegarden. “It is the quintessential V-8 engine and a living legend that is more relevant than ever.”
More importantly, GM is already looking into the future with their announcement that the fifth-generation small-block is under development and will feature a new direct-injection combustion system helping enhance efficiency over the current-generation powerplant.
GM’s rich history of the small-block started in 1955 with a 4.3L 195-hp powerplant, and its future is surely looking bright after 56 years of brilliant success.
Subaru showed off its newest and latest limited edition JDM Impreza STI model, the S206, today at the Tokyo Motor Show. The EJ20-powered S206 has been refined to 316-hp and 318 lb-ft of torque, but it’s its unique exterior styling that we’re digging.
Front and the rear, Subaru has equipped the S206 with new spoilers, while the front lower grille openings are unique to the special edition STI. We took a peek inside at the leather-wrapped steering wheel, Alcantara Recaro seats and its special seatbelts. Suspension upgrades can also be found on the S206 with special STI springs and inverted Bilstein shocks in the front and the rear. The S206 also looked fantastic with a set of 19-inch wheels.
The S206 will also be offered with a special NBR Challenge package, celebrating Subaru’s class victory at the 24 Hours of Nürburgring. Carbon fiber goodies are added on the roof panel and rear deck spoiler along with black 19-inch wheels and NBR Challenge logos.
Volkswagen unveiled the Cross Coupe Concept today at the Tokyo Motor Show, looking to change the way we view SUVs in the future. The Cross Coupe Concept is an all-wheel-drive, plug-in hybrid and looks as if a traditional four-door coupe and an SUV got melded together in the design center.
This concept is also Volkswagen’s first public vehicle sporting their new engineering design based on their new “modular transverse matrix” or MQB for short. In terms of dimensions, the concept is longer than a Golf and shorter than a Tiguan while the width and the height also lands it square in between the two VW counterparts.
Visually, the Cross Coupe Concept appears compact, but is dynamic in its appearance – thanks in part to a set of wheels that appear lifted off a Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8. While it does sport traditional Volkswagen design elements, it also features a completely new light and grille treatment. The rear has steeply sloping angles and new light clusters combined with traditional SUV hefty bumpers.
Under the hood, Volkswagen is showing off two electric motors – one in the front, one in the rear – combined with a TSI direct-injection turbo engine. The front electric motor generates 54-hp and 133 lb-ft of torque while the rear generates 114-hp and 199 lb-ft of torque. Overall power comes in at 261-hp allowing the concept to go 0-62 mph in just seven seconds and has a top speed of 125-mph. It can travel up to 25-miles on just electric power.
Lastly, Volkswagen is showing off another innovation in the concept thanks to its all-wheel-drive system with electric drive shaft. The rear axle is driven by the rear electric motor while power is supplied to the rear electric motor by the one at the front. This means that the flow of electrical energy replaces the conventional transfer of power by a drive shaft, creating room in the central tunnel to hold the lithium-ion battery. All of that means a very low center of gravity giving the concept dynamic handling capabilities.
GALLERY: Volkswagen Cross Coupe Concept Official Photos
GALLERY: VW Cross Coupe Concept Debut
Click here to see AutoGuide’s complete 2011 Tokyo Motor Show Coverage
See video of the Cross Coupe below:
Overwhelming proof that wagons, and for that matter hybrids, can in fact be cool, is the Subaru Advanced Tourer Concept. Unveiled at the Tokyo Motor Show today, the car is powered by the next evolution of Subaru’s hybrid powertrain that is expected to arrive in a production model in 2013.
A followup to the Hybrid Tourer Concept, this uses a 1.6-liter 4-cylinder direct-injection boxer gasoline engine mated to an in-house hybrid system – not a Toyota product. It features both regenerative braking and a lithium-ion battery back, both increasingly standard-fare in the hybrid market. Of note, the ATC also features an electric all-wheel drive system (this is a Subaru after all), operating as a front-drive model under most circumstances, while electric power can be sent to the rear wheels for added grip.
Purposeful features aside, the ATC is simply stunning, with a sleek wagon body and aggressive stance. It also might be the least-tacky example of scissor doors we’ve come across, paired with rear suicide doors, allowing an incredible look into the stunning cabin complete with plenty of natural wood.
See video of the Advanced Tourer Concept below:
Unveiled as the Aqua at the Tokyo Motor Show, Toyota will soon offer this small hybrid in North America as the fourth member of the Prius family of vehicles. Billed as the Prius c for the U.S. this Yaris-based machine is powered by a 1.5-liter Hybrid Synergy Drive engine which Toyota claims will achieve as much as 82-94 mpg on the less stringent Japanese test cycle.
Don’t expect numbers that high when it arrives in North America but the car will out-shine the current Prius, which already achieves an incredible 50 mpg average rating. And as an added bonus, it’s certain to undercut the Prius in terms of price too.
Look for full details when Toyota unveils our version of the Prius c at the Detroit Auto Show in January.
Three years of rumors, concepts and leaks have come to this: the debut of the Toyota 86 sports car at the Tokyo Motor Show. Introduced by company CEO Akio Toyoda, a man dedicated to rebuilding Toyota’s enthusiast base, he launched an all new slogan, boldly proclaiming that the giant Japanese automakers is, “Fun to Drive, Again”.
As you no doubt have already hear the car is powered by a 2.0-liter 4-cylinder direct-injection boxer engine with a 12.5:1 compression ratio making 200-hp and 151 lb-ft of torque. It’s not a lot of punch, but with a curb weight right around 2,700 lbs, it should deliver plenty of fun.
See full details here and check out AutoGuide’s extensive 2011 Tokyo Motor Show coverage here.
See video of the car from it’s world premiere in Tokyo below:
Looking into the more distant future is what the Tokyo Motor Show is all about and Honda has continued a long line of wild concepts by debuting the AC-X concept today.
Powering the car is a 1.6-liter gasoline engine mated to a plug-in hybrid system, which Honda claims will deliver a 260 mpg rating on the plug-in cycle. After the 30 mile EV cruising range is depleted, it operates as a conventional hybrid with 85 mpg rating. Impressive, yes, but this isn’t the far-out future tech aspect of the AC-X (Advanced Cruiser eXperience).
As the name might suggest the concept car is actually able to drive itself (presumably), and with the push of a button the Automatic-Drive Mode is engaged, causing the steering column to retract into the dash and the front seat to recline, letting the driver relax on log highway cruises.
See AutoGuide’s complete 2011 Tokyo Motor Show Coverage here
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