Painted and styled much like the JCW Countryman we saw in Geneva, MINI has announced its John Cooper Works GP today.
Auto News
AutoGuide News Blog
The AutoGuide News Blog is your source for breaking stories from the auto industry. Delivering news immediately, the AutoGuide Blog is constantly updated with the latest information, photos and video from manufacturers, auto shows, the aftermarket and professional racing.
Forgoing its sometimes confusing naming structure, BMW decided to move its coupes away from the 3 Series badge, referring to future versions as a 4 Series instead.
A tiny car with big personality, Morgan CEO Charles Morgan announced that the radical Three-wheeler will be offered in the U.S. through the distribution channel of three select U.S. dealerships. Continue Reading…
Aspiring Canadian racers have something to look forward to this summer as Scion announces its plan to sponsor motorsports drivers for the second year in a row.
Iconic racing cars never retire. Having not seen competitive action for a decade, a special 1952 Jaguar C-type returns to racing for the 2012 Royal Automobile Club Woodcote trophy, and the racing Reverend Simon Butler will be behind the wheel. Continue Reading…
Honest business: 1, international crime syndicate: 0. Eric Blumberg owns Rent-In-Style, an L.A. based high end rental car company, which offers clients an opportunity to take out premium luxury and performance vehicles for a couple hours or even a week.
Brace yourselves, the Ferrari hybrid is coming. Having first revealed its mid-engine HY-KERS development at the 2012 Beijing Auto Show, Ferrari CEO Amedeo Felisa confirmed that the future halo mid-engine hybrid supercar will officially debut in 2013.
The new Acura NSX concept has been shown off around the world at Auto Shows since its original debut last January in Detroit, but all of the examples we have seen so far have shown up in one of the most boring colors: grey.
GALLERY: Red Acura NSX concept
From Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport L’Or Blanc and Grand Sport Vitesse to everything in between, there is no shortage of special edition Veyrons produced. A natural progression, Bugatti has joined the likes of the Jeep Wrangler Dragon and has unveiled a China-exclusive special edition vehicle for the 2012 Beijing Motor Show – the Veyron Grand Sport Wei Long.
The latest Land Rover Evoque “Special Edition with Victoria Beckham” seems to possess all the right ingredients to become a proper special edition vehicle. The former “Posh Spice” member of the wildly successful Brit pop girl group Spice Girls, a stand-out BFA award-winning fashion designer, and wife of international soccer star David Beckham, Victoria has worked closely with the British Automaker in developing the latest model.
In its latest Victoria Beckham special edition offering, the Evoque features what Victoria described as a “masculine” treatment. Describing her process, Victoria Beckham explained, “When I first started working with the team I did a lot of research, and created mood boards to show the team my love of timeless and classic design. I looked at yachts, luxury jets and classic cars.”
The result is an exterior painted in a stealthy matte gray color scheme accented with a glossy black roof and trim pieces. The 20-inch wheels are black as well, each wearing 245/45 rubber, exclusive to this particular edition Evoque. Lending a softer “Posh” touch, Victoria sprinkled rose-gold accents, painted onto the wheels and plated to additional trim pieces inside and out.
As for the special Evoque’s interior, Victoria Beckham chose “vintage tan” semi-aniline leathers , finishing the seats with baseball stitching a composition that gets Mrs. Beckham to remember her family’s time in California. What’s more, Victoria also chose Mohair Carpets similar to those found in her father’s Rolls-Royce. Finally, no special edition is complete without a bespoke four-piece luggage set to go with the vehicle.
Mechanically untouched, the Evoque Special Edition with Victoria Beckham offers the same turbocharged 2.0-liter inline four engine producing 240-hp. Land Rover has decided not to tack on a bespoke “Special Edition with Victoria Beckham” badge onto the Evoque either, as a long and clumsy moniker won’t do the car any favors anyway. Instead, the limited examples will be distinguished by Beckham’s signature found inside the leather folder for the Evoque owner’s manual.
Only 200 examples of “Special Edition with Victoria Beckham” will be produced, beginning sales in the Chinese market first. Prices start at £80,000 to £90,000, or $130,000 to $145,000 after currency exchange. While a 200 percent mark up over a standard Evoque may seem outrageous, no price is too high for the well-heeled.
Check out the Evoque “Special Edition with Victoria Beckham” promo video below: Continue Reading…
Mercedes-Benz revealed images and a video of its latest Concept Style Coupe design study earlier this week, but the concept’s rollout accelerated as the Mercedes CSC exhibit headlined yesterday’s Transmission LA:AV Club at the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) in Los Angeles.
A 17-day art event featuring concerts, DJ nights, performances and installations, the Transmission LA:AV Club is curated by Mike D of the iconic Beastie Boys rap group. While the Mercedes-Benz CSC concept only officially bows at next week’s Beijing Motor Show, this LA sneak preview provided a welcome closer look at the car.
Although BMW M division president Friedrich Nitschke emphasized earlier that the BMW M135i will not arrive to U.S. shores, later reports confirm that we will get the sporty small BMW after all.
Hinged on a technicality, the M135i concept shown at the Geneva Motor Show is based on a 1-Series hatchback layout exclusive to the European market. However, a recent interview between BMWblog and Nitschke revealed that an M135i tailored for the North American market will be available. Rather than a hatchback format, the American M135i will likely adopt a coupe or convertible layout.
No word on the official release date for the hot little Bimmer, but its arrival should come well after the standard second-generation 1 Series in 2013. BMW is refraining from revealing official performance numbers as well, but we expect the solid twin-turbo 3.0-liter straight-six to produce roughly 340 hp.
GALLERY: BMW M135i Concept
[Source: BMWblog.com]
Relaunching the Alfa Romeo brand in North America has been a priority for Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne since he assumed the chief executive position for Fiat and Chrysler three years ago.
Through years of setbacks, Marchionne admitted that transitioning Alfa Romeo’s return into the United States would be among his most difficult tasks.
Ever vigilant, our sleuthing photographers caught spy photos of the new BMW 4 Series convertible tucking its top away.
Thanks to the latest pictures, we know that the German automaker will be sticking with it’s convertible hard top instead of cloth. The new 4 Series is expected to source engines from the proven 328i and 335i which use a 240-hp 2.0-liter turbocharged four cylinder and turbo 302-hp 3.0-liter inline six cylinder respectively.
A model without the camo is expected to surface sometime toward the end of this year, meaning we should see some official pictures soon. If nothing else, we’ve got the car’s scheduled debut at September’s Paris Auto Show to stick with.
For now have a look through our gallery below showing the full conversion sequence.
GALLERY: BMW 4 Series spy photos
When sports car company Lotus had announced the end of its title sponsorship of the Lotus F1 team, a red flag was raised as concerns over Group Lotus’ financial problems surfaced. Now, new reports reveal that the troubles facing the automaker are more than meets the eye.
Earlier warning signs were brought to attention this year when Lotus’ Malaysian parent company Proton sold a controlling stake to another Malaysian conglomerate, DRB-Hicom. As per Malaysian law, Lotus had to halt all business operations and freeze its financial accounts during the 60-day transition period.
The 60-day period ended in March and now, new owner DRB-Hicom is currently conducting the due diligence of Group Lotus, investigating worrisome figures including Lotus’ $320 million in accumulated debt.
Due to the mounting concerns, rumors have spread that Lotus may be put into administration to free itself from debt and that even CEO Dany Bahar has been let go from the company. What’s more, in line with our reports earlier this year, Chinese automaker Zhejian Youngman Lotus Automobile (Youngman) is a potential buyer of the brand, placing a bid on its remaining assets, including naming rights. The official importer of Proton and Lotus cars in China, Youngman is perhaps better known for its past failed attempt to purchase the now defunct Saab.
So far, a Lotus spokesperson has denied these rumors and insisted that DRB-Hicom and Lotus executives are working to keep the business running as usual, ”There have been and continue to be positive discussions between Group Lotus senior management and senior management at DRB-Hicom both here in Hethel and in Malaysia. Despite various rumours in the media to the contrary, at no point has DRB-Hicom indicated to Group Lotus that they intend to put the company into administration and we welcome the opportunity to put that rumour along with incorrect speculation that production has stopped, that Dany Bahar is no longer CEO and that we are no longer involved in F1 to bed.”
The spokesperson adds, “It’s no secret that we are going through a very difficult time at the moment due to the change in ownership but we’re doing everything we can to get through this period and come out the other side stronger than before.”
Optimistic words, but something definitely isn’t right in the house of Lotus. Stay tuned for more information as the situation continues to develop.
[Source: AutoCar]
While the Toyota GT86 and Scion FR-S has received a lot of attention from aftermarket outfits during the past couple months, things have been rather quiet from the Subaru BRZ end… until now.
The first aftermarket tuner BRZ has been rendered by Sydney, Australia-based performance company Tunehouse, known for its work on Holdens, Fords, and a variety of German and Japanese imports.
Teaming up with Cosworth, Tunehouse is looking to replace Subaru’s 200-hp boxer engine with a more robust Cosworth 2.6-liter crate motor, equipped with an HKS turbocharger, intercooler, billet crank and flywheel, and finally an EcuTek engine control unit. Tunehouse expects all this work to amount to an output of at least 330-hp . Other pieces of hardware reserved for the BRZ include KW Variant coil-overs, Whiteline stabilizer bars, uprated bushings, and a limited-slip differential. The BRZ will also receive 18-inch Advan wheels wearing Federal RSR tires (245/35R18 front, and 285/30R18 rear).
While the modifications planned for this particular BRZ are quite extensive, Tunehouse’s project is just the beginning of what’s in store for the future, as more and more tuners begin to get their hands on a Subaru and reveal daring projects of their own.
Discuss this story at SubaruBRZForum.com
Black and yellow prancing pony badges have been available in the Chinese car market for 20 years and Ferrari is celebrating the anniversary.
To mark its growing success in the country, the automaker announced the inauguration of a permanent brand exhibition at the Italia Center of the Shanghai World Expo Park. Covering almost two square miles, it designed five specific themes to showcase at the venue.
Between the dedicated Ferrari in China, green technology, product, design, and racing wings, visitors will not only get to see current and past ferrari models, but will also get to admire a rich selection of images and videos made for the exhibition.
To get people excited about the new, topless Roadster, MINI has opened up a live peep show on Hollywood Blvd, just a block away from the Kodak and Chinese Theatres.
A tongue-in-cheek marketing campaign for 25 days, curious passersby will get to feast their eyes on some MINI action after pressing a button on the display, triggering the window blinds to roll back to reveal a roadster showing off on a slowly rotating pedestal, complete with neon lights, a disco ball, smoke effects, and music to set the mood.
Vice President of MINI USA explained, “The new MINI Roadster is a devilishly fast, uncompromising two-seater soft-top with the soul of a sports car and the heart of a MINI. Our Peepshow reveal in this prime Los Angeles location sets the scene perfectly for our latest model which delivers more fun than one person can handle with its exhilarating ride and unlimited headroom.”
GALLERY: Mini Roadster Peep Show
The i8 plug-in hybrid is the product of BMW‘s best engineering and innovation in an effort to create the most advanced automobile to ever come from the Bavarian automaker.
Motivated by a 170-hp electric motor driving the front wheels and a 1.5-liter 3-cylinder engine producing 223-hp and 295 lb.-ft. of torque at the rear, the performance figures don’t sound exactly supercar territory. However, thanks to a lightweight carbon fiber and aluminum chassis, BMW managed to keep its i8 down to a thin 3,197 lbs., good enough to earn respectable performance numbers like a 0-to-62 mph time of 4.9 seconds. A unique all-wheel drive system, which can change into an all-front or all-rear powered car in an instant, should provide the i8 with superior all-condition handling performance as well. What’s more, on a full charge, the BMW i8 can travel 20 miles in full electric mode.
But BMW isn’t going to stop there. In an effort to make the i8 plug-in hybrid sports car even more appealing, a convertible “Spyder” version is also in the works, with a selection of photos having been released ahead of the cars debut at the New York Auto Show next week. Could this be the world’s first plug-in hybrid electric convertible to go into production?
GALLERY: BMW i8 Spyder
To the person (or persons) holding the golden ticket to the $640 million Megamillions Lottery jackpot: here’s a way for you to spend the money.
Last month, a special Ferrari 250 GTO sold for a record $31.8 million US dollars, making it the most valuable Ferrari in the world. Now, imagine a parade full of valuable classic Ferrari GTOs traveling at speed in two lane back roads.
The following video beautifully captures the sights and sounds as a convoy of fire breathing Italian red heads travel along to the annual Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance. What’s more, feast your eyes on other rare metals present at the venue as well.
Enjoy the video below: Continue Reading…
Set to hit the track today for the first time in competition is an all-new RS5 race car. Competing in the Superstars Series in Europe, Audi officially unwrapped the car just hours ahead of the series kick-off.
Competing against everything from the Mercedes C63 and Porsche Panamera, to last year’s championship winning Maserati Quattroporte, the RS5 takes the is the successor to the RS4.
The action starts today at Monza in Italy.
GALLERY: Audi RS5 Superstars Series Race Car
[Photo credit: Stefano Ciabattoni]
An all-new Mercedes-Benz SL does not come very often. Since 1954, Mercedes-Benz has only introduced five generations of its luxury grand-touring coupe. For the 6th generation 2013 SL that will hit showrooms later this year, Mercedes-Benz spared no expense, packing it full of all the most desirable luxuries available to make it a true successor of its iconic heritage.
Starting at $106,375, the new SL features advanced driving aids including ECO Start/Stop engine technology, Active Body Control, Distronic Plus adaptive cruise control, and Active Lane Keeping Assist. What’s more, conveniences such as Keyless-GO, surround sound system with forward bass, sun-reflecting leather, Adaptive Wipers, COMAND online, a fully integrated electric draught stop, and a Panoramic Vario Roof Magic Sky Control are available as well.
In order to deliver performance that matches the SL’s level of technology and luxury, the Mercedes-Benz SL550 boasts a 4.7-liter V8 turbo producing 429-hp and 516 lb.-ft. of torque. Mated to a seven-speed automatic gearbox, this Mercedes sports car can cover a 0-to-60 mile sprint in just 4.5 seconds, a full second quicker than the outgoing SL. Even though it’s more powerful, the new SL will be efficient as well. Thanks to an all-aluminum frame construction, the new SL is up to 300 pounds lighter than its previous generation equivalent.
In order to highlight all the features the new SL has to offer, Mercedes-Benz has concisely produced a manageable and informative promo trailer that touches upon many of SL’s clever functions. However, the ending proves that nothing is more important in the SL than the powerful V8 delivering rapid acceleration.
Check out the 2013 Mercedes-Benz SL550 promo video below. Continue Reading…
It’s too bad that even though David Beckham could make enough money to purchase a fine collection of luxury and sports cars, he could never find the time to enjoy them.
Feeling a bit disappointed that his collection sits around in the UK collecting dust, Beckham’s loss can be someone’s gain as the 36 year old star soccer player (or is it football?) for the LA Galaxy has decided to sell his two Bentleys, a BMW 645i Convertible, a Land Rover Range Rover Sport, and Lamborghini Gallardo. Beckham may also sell his three Harley Davidson motorcycles.
“David’s collection is amazing and each of these vehicles is worth a fortune,” says a friend of David Beckham. “They are hardly used and are kept in prize condition — but David sees little point in them just mothballing in the UK and it’s not practical to ship them to America.”
Beckham’s pal adds, “Their value easily exceeds half a million but their real worth will be the association with Becks.”
David Beckham has sold several cars in the past including a BMW M3 that he bought in 1997 for 44,000 pounds. Beckham sold his BMW M3 in 2005 for £90,000.
GALLERY: David Beckham’s Cars
[Source: The Sun]
Office-K, a high-end aftermarket automotive store in Tokyo, Japan, organized an incredible Rolls-Royce meet along a swanky cobblestone street in the heart of Tokyo for its owners to celebrate their favorite luxury marque. A nod to Middle Eastern extravagance, Office K’s event was named “Dubai Street, Phantom Party.”
From standard Phantoms, to Extended Wheelbase models, Coupes, and Drophead Coupes, the wide ranging variety of custom tuned Rolls-Royce cars on display is surely a rare sight to behold. Check out the videos from the event below. Continue Reading…