Car Throttle

German tuning firm Hamann has had a go at Fiat's 500. They've decided that what the diminutive little Italian city car needed was more power. A lot more power. They bumped up the output to 265 HP as a matter of fact. So, is that insane, or insanely fun? There's a lot to love about the latest iteration of the venerable Fiat 500. Look at it as an Italian version of the Mini, only with more panache, and you can see where I'm coming from. And the petite 500 has been a hit with the aftermarket tuners as well. The latest got have a go at it is Hamann. The German firm just rolled out their version, dubbed the Hamann Largo at this years Frankfurt show. The

Excuse me for being excited, but it's been a while. And by a while, I mean 12 years.  And by "it" I mean the introduction of a new 9-5.  We've heard a lot about the car that is to save Saab (if anything will) here on CarThrottle, but Saab has finally put out it's official set of press releases for the new 9-5 and now we've got all the little details to share with you.  On paper at least it looks extremely promising in a lot of regards, but the proof's in the pudding...  or at least behind the wheel.  Still, get 'em while they're hot: new Saab 9-5 specifications! As you probably know, the new 9-5 sits on the Epsilon II chassis shared with the Opel

The slow dripping of information on the Bentley Mulsanne is officially over. Bentley has been teasing the new Mulsanne (don't call it a replacement for the Arnage, according to Bentley) for quite some time, with it finally making a reveal at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance show last month. That show brought us a few exterior images of the car, but no interior shots or specifications. That's what the Frankfurt Auto Show is for! Look at all that wood. Bentley calls it the "ring of wood waistrail." The Mulsanne's interior was definitely worth the wait. If you were expecting a groundbreaking and revolutionary change on the Mulsanne over the Arnage, this isn't it (revolutionary and Bentley usually don't go into the same sentence). It didn't need to

Fast wagons are cool. I don't want to hear any whining, it's the truth and you know it.  With that out of the way, the pool of truly fast wagons has just grown by one, and I have to say I'm pretty smitten. The E63 wagon isn't a new concept - in fact, they've been selling E63 AMG's in the US the last few years - but this is AMG version of the new E-class wagon.  So while the engine doesn't change (much), the body of the blitzen Benz is all new, and man is it good looking.  With a nod to Autoblog for these images, wouldn't you say this is one of the meanest looking wagons ever made? The engine is still AMG's bespoke 6.2L 32v

Wiesmann has been making headlines leading up to the Frankfurt Auto Show with the announcement of an unique "building" of an MF5 Roadster introduction at the show. The company has introduced a lot of models recently, including the MF4 Roadster and MF5 GT, and now the MF5 Roadster. Let's take a look! As expected (other than the convertible roof, of course) visually the MF5 Roadster remains the same as the standard coupe MF5. So does all the equipment and options packages. Performance? You got it, it still is as quick as ever! The MF5 roadster makes it to 0-60 in the same 3.9 seconds as the standard car, with its BMW-sourced 5.0-liter V-10 engine making 507 horsepower. For those looking for something different, the MF5 Roadster definitely

Here's a rumor that might be considered ugly by those of you that are into huge, opulent sedans built in limited numbers: Maybach might be folding up its tent and quitting. Deiter Zetsche, head dude at Mercedes, parent company of Maybach, recently said that the German uber- luxury brand " ... may not be seeing too many sunrises in the foreseeable future." Zetsche, who was speaking to reporters at this years Frankfurt Motor Show recently, pointed out that Maybach may soon be phased out because of a " ... shift in consumer preference in luxury cars resulting from the global financial crisis." Or to put it another, and more obvious, way 'There ain't as many rich folk, or people who can afford to drop this kind of

"If it ain't broke, don't fix it." It's worked for a lot of cars in the past, hasn't it?  How about the Jeep Cherokee?  The Fox-platform Mustangs?  One could definetely say that Mini has a tried-and-true formula, and thus "ain't broke."  But apparently Mini's strategy of selling cute, sharp handling sports cars disguised as hatchbacks (to the rate of 30,000 units YTD in the US, which by the way is about 23,000 more than BMW's own attempt at small premium cars, the 1-series Coupe) isn't enough, and they're adding more models. Now, I think this is ridiculous, but I suppose diversity isn't a bad thing.  We've already covered the interesting looking Mini Coupe here, but the interesting news is that it and a drop-top sibling are

We're pretty big fans of the Ford EcoBoost V6 here at CarThrottle. In fact, the twin-turbocharged direct injection V6 found under the hoods of the Ford Taurus SHO and Flex, as well as the Lincoln MKS and MKT, haunts my dreams with the promise of huge torque output at low rpms, clean emissions, tons of power in the mid-range where it's needed, and what seems like the potential for unlimited aftermarket support.  If you've been reading this site, you probably have noticed my strong desire for one of the new SHO's, and it's mainly because of how awesome this motor is. The really good news?  EcoBoost isn't a one-time thing for Ford, but rather a design philosophy.  They announced a 2.0L four-cylinder EcoBoost motor back in July

There's a metric ton of exciting new metal coming out at Frankfurt this year. The list is pretty long:  R8 drop-top, Ferrari 458, a bunch of cool concept cars, a new Bugatti, supercars galore, little diesel-hybrid things, and god knows what else.  What am I most excited about the debut of, though?  ...A Volkswagen Golf.  Well, this Volkswagen Golf, to be particular. This is the new Golf R20, the high-performance variant of the new MKVI Golf/Jetta chassis.  You may notice a name change, and you're not to be blamed for thinking it isn't for the better.  The R20 replaces the Golf R32 as the top dog in VW's staid, sensible family hatchback range.  Where as the previous Golf R32 had a howling 24v 3.2L VR6 motor (a

After what seemed like endless waiting....and waiting and waiting, the Aston Martin Rapide's launch is finally upon us. Aston Martin was content to let little bits of information out about the car leak out, in a similar fashion to way the launch of the One-77 was handled. And, come to think of it - the Jaguar XJ as well. it's a smart tactic. The good news is that the Aston Martin Rapide is as beautiful as ever. It's a genuine Aston Martin, but with 4-doors. The same can't be said for some certain sedans in this class. Aston calls is it "the most elegant four-door sports car in the world" and I'm inclined to agree. Like the Panamera, the Rapide has a four-seat layout. You wouldn't