At this year’s Detroit auto show, Aston Martin stunned the gathered crowd with a breathtakingly beautiful four-door styling exercise called the Rapide. Named for the legendary late-1930s Lagonda flagship engineered by W. O. Bentley, the Rapide is the second four-door Aston project initiated under Ford ownership. The first, the 1993 Lagonda Vignale show car, was designed by Ghia and later mothballed. The Rapide, however, is all set for production in 2008, just ahead of its direct rival, the Porsche Panamera. We drove the concept car in Gaydon, England. Continue reading 2008 Aston Martin Rapide
Categories:Aston Martin
The new BMW 7-Series Sedan will debut in late 2008 and “will finally draw the line under the flame surfacing era”. The new car will have a sleeker, more refined design. Power comes from an updated range of petrol and diesel engines, and there’ll also be a hybrid version. The new 7-series will be a ground-breaking model, for its design, chassis and powertrain. As you can see the roofline is faster, the glasshouse more coupe-like and the overall look more compact and dynamic. 
Considering Honda has not made any significant internal changes to the new Honda CR-V… could a hybrid be in future consideration? This would put Honda above Toyota, ’cause not everyone wants a V6 in a compact SUV. This could act as an entry level to the compact hybrid SUV market. Honda could use parts from the current Civic hybrid.This would not only add to increased fuel economy, but it would give Honda more publicity. 
The French are known for their fine food, fine wine and as we’ve just seen this past week, their fine automobiles. But nary a vehicle we passed at the 2006 Paris Motor Show stood on that turntable alone; each was accompanied by an equally fine female accent. We would never dream of objectifyng those born without a Y chromosome,
The name sounds like a song. But in fact, the Saab Sonett sports car was originally named after the Swedish expression “sÃ¥ nättâ€, meaning “so neatâ€.Now, half a century after the launch of the first generation, the Sonett is known the world over as Saab’s quintessential two-seat sport car. On Sunday, October 15, Saab fans will be gathering on the Swedish Car Day at the Larz Anderson Museum in Brookline, Massachusetts to celebrate the brand and 50 years of Saab Sonett in particular. 
Most carmakers have to choose either a supercharger or turbocharger to boost an engine. Volkswagen will use both in a bid to reduce fuel consumption of small petrol engines. That might sound crazy, but by using both forms of boosting technology, Volkswagen is able to reduce the size of an engine and maintain healthy performance. 
At a private function at the Paris Motor Show yesterday evening, Ian Robertson, Chairman and Chief Executive of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, confirmed that work has begun on a new model series. It will be launched within the next four years. The new car will be smaller than the Phantom (pictured) and cost between 200,000 Euros and 300,000 Euros before tax. Planning permission has been granted to expand business operations at Goodwood. Further details will be announced in the near future. 
The Murcielago LP640 is touted as the fastest production Lamborghini to date, and as if the 631 horses powering this beast weren’t enough to get your juices going, the Italian carmaker is releasing a special edition dubbed the Versace. Just as the Nera wrapped the Gallardo completely in black, the LP640 Versace is draping the Murcielago in white, inside and out. 
Renault has chosen the 2006 Paris Motor Show to unveil Twingo Concept. Firmly grounded in a youth culture of sport, music and fashion, Twingo Concept is powered by the new turbocharged 1.2 16V TCE 100 engine. Twingo Concept boasts a host of multimedia features and a high level of equipment. 
Beyond its unique livery, the GT3 RS is distinguished from the GT3 on which it’s based by broader rear flanks and reduced weight, further distilling the driving experience to that of a racing car, but one which meets all the requirements for street-legal sports cars. This purist’s variant of the 911 GT3—a model particularly well-suited for track outings—will arrive in time for spring 2007. 
Porsche also debuted its 2007 911 Targa 4 and 4S at the Paris Motor Show, in addition to the superlative 2007 911 GT3 RS. The Targa concept has been around since 1966, and the new Targa 4 and 4S give buyers the option of having the open sky experience of a convertible without loosing the rigidity of a solid roof. 
Actually, Hummer needs more Hummers. That’s the news coming out of GM today as Bob Lutz told reporters at the opening of a Hummer dealership in Paris (we hope the dealership is well fortified, and Lutz is prepared to take a pie in the face). As for any particulars on what new Hummer models we may see, good ole’ Bob as the usual non-committal statements,