Car Throttle » Debuts

BMW 5-Series Touring Is Revealed

Tony — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 06:18:29 +0000

When a new 5-Series model comes around it is a big event. For BMW, that happened just last year in November. The new car aims to move away from some of the controversy surrounding the Bangle-designed “E60″ previous generation car.

Normally, manufacturers wait a bit to introduce other model variants to continue the hype going, but BMW is doing it differently, introducing the wagon model just as the sedan is going on sale in Europe. Wagon/hatchback variants in Europe are big sellers and crucial to overall sales of a model lineup.

It is an interesting choice of Touring name instead of drab wagon moniker. One thing is pretty well certain – we’ll never get this thing here. We’re getting the American version instead, and that would be the 5-Series Gran Turismo. It sits higher like a crossover and besides that, we’re not too sure what it does better.

We like the consistency and design of the rear taillights; this design direction is altogether better than the one BMW was previously taking. Hooray for the return of the good-looking BMWs.

Besides looking different, the 5-Series Touring is the exact same as the standard 5-Series sedan, so we won’t bore you with the details. Of note is that BMW’s twin-turbo 4.4-liter V8 won’t be available at launch. What say you, would you rather have the 5-Series Gran Turismo or the 5-Series Touring? Let us know in the comments section.

Bentley Continental Flying Star at Geneva

Tony — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 00:07:56 +0000

Last month, we reported on a Bentley Shooting Brake coming to the Geneva Auto Show. The vehicle would be produced not by Bentley, but by Italian coachbuilding firm Carrozia Touring Superleggera.

The full information and picture drop has taken place and boy, does it look good.

It’s a coachbuilt vehicle but you would never know it – everything looks top notch and from the factory, as expected from a coachbuilder of Carrozia Touring’s caliber.

The name is even close to an official product – Bentley Continental Flying Star. That is because it is built at the request of a customer on a Bentley Continental GTC or GTC Speed with Bentley’s full cooperation.

The car can be serviced at the Bentley dealers and Bentley Motors and Touring Superleggera have developed a special mutual warranty program, which safeguards warranty clauses for both the basic car, and the transformation by Touring.

It works to Bentley’s benefit to cooperate, because they don’t have to undertake the engineering and associated cost to produce the model. Hearing about that level of manufacturer support, we doubt Bentley will be producing an official shooting brake model for the current generation of the Continental.

We love shooting brakes – and there is something just totally cool about an actual one based off of the Bentley Continental GT (one of our favorite vehicles ever).

The main hoopla about the Flying Star has to do with its styling. Underneath it is the same car as the Continental GT, but with a new support structure between the rear shocks that acts to support the new roofline and as an integrated roll bar.

The interior is also nothing less than absolutely stunning. And, what else is there to say? We love it. Touring Superleggera says they plan to build about 20 per year with pricing starting at around $800K according to reports.

2012 Ford Police Interceptor Debuts

Tony — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 21:20:36 +0000

One market Ford has had a definite lock on for years has been the police sector. The aged Crown Victoria has been the dominant car in the field, and a larger percentage of them have been sold to police agencies then to private consumers in its waning years.

It wasn’t always this way though – in the 1990’s General Motors did very well with its body-on-frame rear-wheel drive Chevrolet Caprice. After GM discontinued that car, that cleared the way for Ford’s dominance of the market.

GM recently introduced a new Chevrolet Caprice Interceptor, based on the Holden Statesman, to try and recapture the market. Ford isn’t going down without a fight though, hence the new Police Interceptor revealed at an event today in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Hello Taurus! Ford isn’t calling it one, but that is what it is. One of the reasons the Crown Victoria was much loved by police fleets is the fact that it is body-on-frame.

They are easier to fix (swapping body panels, vehicle body straightening), work on and according to the police needs, more durable. The Taurus, like most modern cars, is a unibody however – and not to mention front-wheel drive. That brings a whole set of new challenges that Ford has to help agencies deal with before the Crown Victoria goes out of production in late 2011.

Ford says the car has been suitably upgraded, even changing things like a stability control system that has been calibrated to the specific driving needs of a police officer.

Also, the car’s unibody is designed to withstand double the durability requirements of the Crown Victoria. It meets a 75 mph rear crash requirement as well, the only car to do so other than the current Crown Victoria.

Brakes have been increased in size and performance and there is a new cooling package featuring a heavy-duty alternator and larger radiator, along with a honeycomb grille designed to offer more air flow throughout the vehicle. In addition,sits 18-inch steel wheels are vented, designed to work with the larger brakes.

The interior of the car is 90% redesigned, with new seats offering better comfort, easing egress with smaller lateral bolsters. In addition they have anti-stab plates to protect officers from the criminals behind them.

The console Taurus has a large center console that wouldn’t work in a police vehicle, so Ford has moved the transmission shifter from the console to the steering column to make room for police gear.

The car even has the same width between the front seats, to allow equipment from Crown Victoria Interceptors to be used in these new vehicles.

The Police Interceptor’s back seat has been redesigned with a roomier new bench to make it easier to get law-breaking passengers in and out quickly. The Rear door panels have also been slimmed for easier entry and exit, and they now swing out 71 degrees, 10 degrees more than a standard Taurus.

The engine lineup includes the 3.5-liter V-6 engine found in the base model Taurus, making 263 horsepower and offering E85 compatibility. In addition, the 3.5-liter EcoBoost V-6 twin-turbocharged, direct-injection engine from the SHO will make 365 horsepower and 350 ft.-lb. of torque. We’re big fans of the EcoBoost engine at CarThrottle, and we bet the police will be as well. Don’t want to get chased by that car!

The new cars will be available with either front-wheel drive or all-wheel drive. Ford says the new Police Interceptor goes into production in late 2011, just in time for the Crown Victoria’s discontinuation. We’ll see how police agencies take to the new car. Given their loyalty to Ford for years it is likely that the car will do well, but the Caprice Interceptor represents a strong challenge.

Westfield iRACER Debuts At Geneva

TonyBorroz — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 20:48:24 +0000

To quote Mr. Spock: “Fascinating!” Westfield, makers of a very good Lotus 7 variant (one of the all time great sportscars, no two ways about it) rolled out a very, very interesting version of some sort of 7 they call the Westfield iRACER. And this, if you ask me, is a clear way forward. Because the Westfield iRACER is an electric race car. And if we’re going to make electric cars passable, the best way to do so is to race them.

The most apparent thing about the Westfield iRACER is it’s “body work”. It doesn’t really have any. It’s wrapped in, essentially, something akin to spandex. And on the one hand, you have to think that wherever Colin Chapman is at the moment, he’s probably smiling at saying to himself, “Cleaver. Why didn’t I think of that? Probably saves a lot of weight.”

Stretched across its angular aluminum frame of the Westfield iRACER is a polyurethane-polyurea copolymer, well, it’s sort of a sheath. In place of normal bodywork, even what would count as extremely lightweight bodywork today, like sheets of carbon fiber only 2 or 3 plies think, Westfield simply covered the frame in what amounts to heavy, stretchable fabric. The polyurethane-polyurea copolymer serves as a robust yet lightweight casing for the spare body of the purpose-built iRACER.

It’s not that everything on the iRACER is as unconventional as the fabric “body”. Westfield did the old Salt Lake trick of going with full wheel covers (spats, as the old timers call them), which makes things even more aerodynamically slicker, plus they have those neat looking vents cut in as well. And they also have the now normal downforce producing wings front and rear.

But overall? “The look is bold, and is 99 percent representative of the final production vehicle,” said Westfield’s managing director Julian Turner. You got that right Julian.

The Westfield iRACER was produced in a coalition with project partners Potenza Technology, Delta Motorsport, RDM Automotive and Coventry University. Westfield’s iRACER has a two 40 kilowatt YASA motor directly connected to each rear wheel. Together the motors are good for 200 horsepower at peak output and provide 737 pound feet of torque (1000 Newton meters). Over seven-HUNDRED pound feet. Ponder that for a moment. The range under racing conditions (i.e. flat out) is thought to be 50 to 60 miles.

Imagine grabbing the Westfield iRACER by the scruff of the neck and wringing it out over, oh, the Nurburgring or the Col De Turini or your favorite strip of road close to home. Go ahead. Take a few. I got time.

OK, got that picture in your mind’s eye?

Then help me answer this: When’s the street version coming out Westfield?

Source: AutoBlogGreen

Mercedes-Benz BlueTEC Diesel G-Wagen G350

TonyBorroz — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 20:42:30 +0000

For all the excess of yesterday’s post, why not counter that with a little bit more understated and, a-hem, responsible SUV. In this case, it’s the latest version of Mercedes-Benz G-Wagen, the G350 which now features a BlueTEC Diesel plant under it’s large, square hood.

No, the Mercedes Geländewagen isn’t the freshest face on the block, it’s been around, more or less unchanged since 1979, but it seems to be one of those evergreen designs that keeps selling, and Merc keeps updating where applicable. In this instance, the German automaker installed a new, state-of-the-art BlueTEC diesel into their wheeled box.

The G350 has a new V6 diesel mill that puts out a respectable 210 horsepower and a very respectable 398 lb-ft. of torque. It also gets a nearly 20 mpg combined fuel economy figure, which is also impressive, since the G has the aerodynamics of Mies van der Rohe building and weighs just slightly less. And in case your wondering, the gasoline fueled G550 averages about 13 mpg combined. The power from that (fairly) economical gets delivered to all four wheels via a seven-speed automatic transmission.

As in other Mercedes-Benz BlueTEC products, the G350 uses the same AdBlue additive to considerably lessen harmful nitrogen oxide emissions. AdBlue is an aqueous urea fluid that is pumped into the exhaust-gas system. It also uses a downstream catalytic converter to convert the nitrogen oxide emissions into innocuous nitrogen and water emissions. All of that cuts emissions to 305 g/km of CO2.

Although no official word has emerged from the German automaker, North American sales seem possible. European markets, however, will get the G350 BluTEC in all three variants, the five-door wagon, three-door wagon and two-door convertible, when it goes on sale later in 2010.

Source: Left Lane News

Maserati Quattroporte Awards Edition Special Edition

TonyBorroz — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 18:33:57 +0000

I’m not that much of a sedan kind of guy. Sure, it’s nice to have all that room and being able to drive three friends to the movies and what not, but if I’m going to lust after cars, they are usually of the two seat, two door variety. One exception to this rule (not that it’s really a rule) is the Maserati Quattroporte.

There’s a lot to like about the Quattroporte. First of all, since it exists, it takes a lot of market pressure off of Ferrari to do something stupid like Porsche did with the Panamera. Secondly, there just happens to be that Ferrari sourced V8 under the front bonnet. OK, yeah, it’s just the block (and heads?), but that’s a pretty nice plant. Next, if you combine those two, the Maserati Quattroporte is sort of like the Ferrari sedan that Ferrari will never build. And last, if you ignore the Ferrari content, this is a pretty impressive Maserati.

And speaking of pretty impressive Maseratis, the company has seen fit to roll out a new version of the Quattroporte at this year’s Geneva Motor Show called the Maserati Quattroporte Awards Edition Special Edition.

The Awards Edition Special Edition is a limited production version of the Quattroporte sedan that Maser made to celebrate the 56 awards from automotive and “lifestyle” publications (what the hell is a “lifestyle” publication?) that the sedan has garnered during its six short years of existence.

The “Awards Edition” is based on the range-topping Quattroporte Sport GT S and features an upgraded 433HP V8 engine, plus the “you know they’d do this” exterior and interior upgrades.

On the outside the Maserati Quattroporte Awards Edition Special Edition features a uniqueQuarzo fuso exterior color. Essentially it’s “pearlescent metallic Grey with a golden hue.” The Special also shows off 20-inch Multi Trident dark grey rims in a satin finish, has polished Brembo brake calipers and the chrome parts, side air vents and radiator surround have all been burnished.

The interior sports Poltrona Frau leather seats that have perforated Alcantara inserts in a new pattern and the headliner is also in Alcantara. There are special brushed aluminum door sills and Piano Black satin-finish wood moldings and the trunk is finished in black trim and features chrome details and a leather side pocket.

No word yet as to how many will be produced in the limited run, or how much the final tab will ring up, but Maserati did say that the Quattroporte Awards Edition Special Edition will be go on sale in the latter half of 2010.

Source: CarScoop

Geneva 2010: Lexus CT 200h

Tony — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 07:04:28 +0000

The new small Lexus has been a long time coming. At last year’s Frankfurt Auto Show, the LF-CH Concept was introduced, previewing the production version to come. A teaser was released a little bit ago of the car as well.

The introduction in Geneva is fitting given that Lexus intends for the car to spearhead the company’s efforts in the European region. There has been various reports as to whether or not the car is coming to the United States.

We awaited the car’s introduction anxiously at CarThrottle, hoping it would signal a new direction for the brand. To survive, Lexus has to attract younger customers – and to do so, it needs to make cool products.

Is the CT 200h that product? In short, from the looks of it – no. For all of Toyota Motor Company’s woes lately, we must objectively evaluate each new product.

Stylistically the CT 200h breaks no new ground, following in a similar vein to recent introductions the HS 250 H (a Corolla-based, U.S-market only vehicle) and the RX Crossover.

The look actually works good on the RX Crossover, but it doesn’t translate over as well to a compact car. It looks too econocar, and just isn’t attractive to our eyes. Who knows though, it could be a big success? We’ve been wrong before!

Hmm, where have we seen this before? We are seeing a bit of BMW in there – this definitely isn’t a traditional Lexus interior.

And that’s a very good thing - unlike the exterior, the interior looks very good. The dash has a nice, well-thought out design.

It is a bit dark (remedied by a different interior color) and a bit busy maybe, but the overall look is sporty and upscale. Way to go, Lexus.

The h designation in 200h indicates the car has a standard hybrid drivetrain. The gas engine is a 1.8-liter VVT-i gas unit combined with an electric motor.

No specifications have been announced, like horsepower or fuel economy. The car does have four modes. ECO and NORMAL place emphasis on efficiency and comfort, says Lexus, while SPORT “focuses on dynamic performance.”

It should be pretty quick given the performance of past Lexus hybrids that emphasize sport. That’s three modes – the fourth is EV, the much-discussed mode that allows for electric-only propulsion for about 1.2 miles at speeds up to 28 miles per hour.

Lexus says the CT 200h is on a new platform. We’ll see if the car makes it to the U.S, but we wouldn’t expect it to be a smash hit.

Geneva 2010: Abarth 500C Drops The Top

James — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 17:39:51 +0000

Fiat’s tiny retro-supermini, the 500, has been taking Europe by storm. Styled to resemble the old Cinquecento, and designed to take the fight directly to Mini, the 500 has been capturing hearts and minds on the continent since it’s debut. Like any good supermini, there are heaps of variants for every sort of taste. There was the pinked-out Barbie edition (gag), the hot-rod turbocharged Abarth models, a Ferrari-inspired special, and even a roll-top 500C convertible. The Geneva show will see the debut of the latest in the line, which combines the sporty trimmings and mechanics of the Abarth with the aforementioned soft-top 500C convertible.

The 500C, unlike most convertibles, doesn’t actually have a folding roof- rather, a fabric section running down the center of the roof rolls back to let some air in, while maintaining more structural rigidity than a full folding-roof design. On top of the basically cute 500C body, Abarth bolts on all sorts of angry-looking bumpers and side skirts as well as twin exhaust pipes, to put a little more testosterone into the whole affair. Yes, it’s goofy, but who cares? It looks like fun.

Speaking of fun, the mechanical changes over the 500C are a little more significant than the aesthetics. The Abarth 500C gets the 1.4L turbocharged “T-Jet” motor, which puts out 140bhp and 206nM(152 lb-ft) of torque through a six-speed automated manual with paddle shifters. Which doesn’t sound like a lot, but Abarth says it will scoot the little 500C to 100km/h in 8.1 seconds, which is not too bad. Fuel economy is pegged at 6.5L/100km or 36.2 US MPG, which is impressive for a turbocharged funbucket. The good news is there’s a hotter “EsseEsse” version with more power in the works – probably the same 170bhp upgraded unit in the normal Abarth 500 SS. The suspension is lower and stiffer for better response, and Abarth claims the bodywork gives the 500C better high-speed stability. The Abarth 500C also receives the larger brakes from the regular Abarth 500 to keep things in check.

The 500C will be available in three different two-tone color schemes – black and white, or two variations on grey. The electric rollback top can be ordered in black or titanium silver, as well. There’s a choice of three different styles of 17″ alloy wheels, too – more choices than you can shake a stick at! Inside, highly bolstered sport seats keep you in place, while a thick-rimmed sport steering wheel and unique instrument panel keep things interesting. The Abarth 500C should be hitting European dealerships by year’s end, and better yet, US Chrysler dealerships some time in early 2012. Maybe this whole Fiatsler thing isn’t so bad after all…

Geneva 2010: Audi RS5 Packs 450hp V8

James — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 18:09:46 +0000

We’ve been expecting it for a while, and now it’s here. Enthusiasts have been guessing that Audi would bring out an ultra-high performance variant of the svelte A5 Coupe since it debuted, but the specifics were a bit cloudy. With the Geneva show approaching quickly, pictures and technical details of the RS5 Coupe have hit the ‘web, and it sounds like it’s going to be an absolute stormer.

On the outside, the RS5 gets the typical subtle RS-style makeover we’ve come to know and love. It’s a fantastic look, to be sure – but then again, when you start with a car as strikingly beautiful as the A5, it’s sort of hard to screw it up. The new coupe takes a lot of styling cues from the burbling, popping TT-RS mini supercar, like the big, jowly front bumper and the neatly integrated exhaust tips. It’s aggressive without being annoyingly brash. The fenders are flared out so subtlety you might not notice if you aren’t looking. It’s a great look, and it’s worlds ahead of the horrendous M6 and the dull/contrived E-Class Coupe.

Anyway, we expect Audis to be pretty, and we also expect RS-spec Audis to be blindingly fast. And while the RS5 doesn’t have class-leading power numbers, it’s still going to haul a whole boatload of tail. Power comes from a revised version of the 4.2L FSI V8 that powered the last RS4, an all-aluminum direct-injected 32v unit that spits out 450 snarling horsepower at a dizzying 8,250 rpms. Fuel cut comes at 8300rpm, and torque output sits at 317lb-ft between 4-6,000 rpm, so this thing will have some top end breathing power as well as a punchy mid-range – just what the doctor ordered. It’s interesting to note two things about this engine: it makes 110 more horsepower than the V8-powered S5 from the same displacement, and it makes the same power as the Mercedes C63’s hand-built AMG V8… but with 2 liters less displacement. All good, then.

The drivetrain is interesting, as well. Audis have used the Torsen (Torque-Sensing) center differential to apportion power between the front and rear axles of their longitudinal-engined cars since the early 90’s, and the RS5 is the first departure from that standard practice. It uses what Audi calls a crown-gear differential in the middle, with a compact set of wet clutches regulated by a computer to apportion torque – so instead of a reactive center differential (Torsen) the RS5 has an active torque split front to rear – or “torque vectoring” as it’s called these days. The center diff has a 40:60 front to rear static split for a rear traction bias, but can divert up to 70% of torque to the front and 85% to the rear depending on conditions. In addition to this efficient, smart center diff the RS5 can also be ordered with the Audi Sport rear differential, as seen on the new supercharged S4, which actively apportions torque left to right on the rear axle. This is the latest and greatest in all-wheel drive technology, sending the power exactly where it needs to be when it needs to be there – seriously cool stuff!

The only transmission available on the RS5 will be a heavy-duty 7-speed DSG twin-clutch automated gearbox; this is the first time a DSG has been attached to the high-output 4.2 V8, which could potentially mean the R8 will drop the disappointing Lamborghini-sourced eGear sequential unit in the future. Like other new S cars, the RS5 will be available with Drive Select – a switch that basically alters the car’s personality to fit your mood. Steering response, damping rates, throttle response, and even the amount of noise that comes out of the exhaust pipes can all be changed at the flip of a switch – kinda neat!

On the inside, it’s the usual utterly gorgeous Audi RS fare. Huge, black-and-red trimmed heavily bolstered Recaros hold your keister in place, and everything is slathered with leather and carbon fibre and RS logos. I’ve run out of superlatives for Audi interiors at this point, but you get where this is going.

The RS5 will be bowing at the Geneva show in the next few weeks, and is expected to go on sale in Europe this spring with an estimated price of €77,700 – not cheap, but most likely worth it.

Geneva 2010: Bentley Continental GTC SuperSports

James — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 23:36:33 +0000

The Continental SuperSports sits at the top of Bentley’s range, as the halo performance variant of the Phaeton-based Continental range. It’s a bit out of place in my mind, to be honest: carbon fibre this and that, parcel shelf instead of a back seat, E85 flex-fuel capability, a horse-ton of horsepower, Darth Vader-on-meth styling, and a top speed that clears 200mph by a comfortable margin are not things one associates with an “old money” traditional British luxury brand. Still, it’s awesome in an “I don’t quite understand this” sort of way – there’s no obvious reason for it’s existence, but aren’t you glad it exists in the first place?

Well if you’re a fan of the Continental SuperSports, by the transitive property you should be even more of a fan of Bentley’s newest derivative of the Continental: the GTC SuperSports. It’s exactly what you’d expect: the fire-breathing SuperSports hardware stuck into the suave drop-top GTC body. Now, normally, I’d scoff at a convertible derivative of the highest-performance version of a sports car. It’s a pretty stupid concept. Convertible mean more weight, less torsional rigidity, more slop, and that undefinable “poseur” aspect that comes with intentionally choosing the “look at me!” version of a car. But with the GTC SuperSports, I think it actually makes a bit of sense.

First of all, the SuperSports doesn’t make any sense in the first place. So a flashier drop-top version of the same is more like glorious excess rather than a shallow marketing ploy (even if it is a shallow marketing ploy.) And it’s not like the SuperSports was a light vehicle to begin with – even with all the weight that Bentley hacked out of the Continental, the biofuel-munching SuperSports coupe still tips the scales at 4938 pounds, which isn’t going to go around a corner very quickly no matter how you look at it. And while that’s better than the 5181lbs of a regular Continental GT, it’s still about two and a half tons.

And frankly, this car wasn’t meant to be a corner-carver. What Bentley claims it is, however, is the fastest four-seat convertible in the world. The top speed drops 2mph over the hardtop version, but that’s still 202mph. Obviously, it take a lot of grunt to move 2.5 tons of British beef up past the double century mark, and the GTC SuperSports doesn’t lack in the that department. It shares the same tweaked 6.0L twin-turbo W12 motor as the coupe, which makes 621bhp and 590lb-ft of torque, regardless of whether it’s sucking down dead dinos or bioethanol. The drop-top will rip to 60 in 3.9 seconds and 100 in 9.6, which should be fast enough to ruin your $300 haircut lickety-split.

Actually, make that your haircut and your three closest friends. Unlike the SuperSports coupe, the GTC keeps its rear seats – why have pointless, glorious excess if you can only share it with one person? And while the SuperSports is 198lbs lighter than the GTC Speed, it’s still got all the trappings you’d expect in a Bentley – hand-turned aluminum trim with a smattering of Alcantara and soft-touch leather, which contrast with the carbon-fibre bucket seats.

Some say that conspicuous consumption is dead. Bentley begs to differ. And considering the SuperSports coupe won’t net you much change from $300,000, the drop-top will likely be an “if you have to ask, you can’t afford it” sort of proposition. Which may not make sense for everyone, but it certainly makes sense for Bentley.