High-End Hybrid: Prius-based Lexus set to be brand's first dedicated hybrid model

With parent company Toyota scrambling to get its third-generation Prius ready by next year and racing against General Motors and its Volt project to be the first to market with a plug-in hybrid, its Lexus luxury arm also is reportedly hard at work on its own variant of the new Prius, which it will most likely unveil in a concept form similar to the illustration pictured here at the 2009 Detroit auto show.

CLICK TO VIEW GALLERY

Although Lexus has yet to have a dedicated hybrid in its lineup (it has hybrid versions of its RX 'ute and GS and LS sedans), the next-generation Prius, which is expected to be bigger and packed with more power, should be far more suitable for an upmarket offering.

The difference between the Lexus variant and the Prius itself -- as is generally the case for Lexus models with Toyota underpinnings -- is not expected to be much more than skin deep. The as-yet-unnamed Lexus will have its own body panels and may get a convertible variant, but both vehicles will be fitted with roof-mounted solar panels and nickel-metal hydride batteries upon launch.

While the Prius is expected next year as a 2010-model-year vehicle, it is not known yet how soon after the Lexus will follow. As for the much-talked-about lithium-ion batteries, those will arrive later with the launch of the plug-in model.

Additionally, the Lexus might not be built at the new Blue Springs, Mississippi, plant that Toyota has confirmed will build the Prius starting in 2010. The luxury brand is averse to building its vehicles outside of Japan, with the RX crossover being its only non-Japanese-made model.

Porsche Cayman, Boxster to get direct injection

CLICK TO VIEW GALLERY

Porsche is advancing in its conversion to direct gas injection. Following the Cayennes last year and 911s recently, the Boxster S and Cayman S also get the system late this autumn. The Cayman S goes from 295 horsepower to 320 horsepower, even though engine size remains 3.4 liters. Torque rises from 251 pound-feet to about 275 pound-feet.

All Boxsters and Caymans, not just the S models, also get the option of seven-speed PDK double-clutch transmission, replacing the Tiptronic S. As with the 911s, this trans will mean the two-pedal Cayman will be quicker to 60 and about as economical as the manual. In fact the PDK Cayman S will crack 5 seconds to 60 mph, we hear, and will be available for the first time with a limited-slip diff, bringing its performance even closer to the 911's. The 997-generation 911 Carrera started life four years ago with just 5 horsepower more.

CLICK TO VIEW GALLERY

The Boxster S goes the same way: 3.4 liters and direct injection for the S, but with 310 horsepower. The manual S models see a 10 percent fuel economy gain over their predecessors, while the PDK models are 15 percent better at the gas pump than the old port injection Tiptronic S cars.

Base Boxster and Cayman stick with port injection, but do have a capacity increase, from 2.7 to 2.9 liters. Power is up from 245 to 265 horsepower (Cayman) and 255 (Boxster). Again, PDK will be available. There will be a slight economy gain with the bigger engine, even with the manual transmission.

There are cosmetic tweaks to go with the tech upgrades. The front lights are more deeply scooped into the bumper, and some models get LED running lights. At the tail, there's also a new lamp cluster that cuts a little more into the bumper. Inside, expect revised screen and ergonomics for the infotainment system.

Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport - It`s official

At the public`s demand, Bugatti launches the roadster model of the Veyron hyper-car, a model also capable of gaining a speed of 407 km/h.

Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport is not just a model highly expected by collectors, but also a challenge for Bugatti.To keep the characteristics of a super-car, known for extraordinary speed and accelerations, means a very bold goal.

Firstly, if we talk about a targa model, body rigidity and aerodynamics need to be revised so that it can maintain the parameters that the 1000 wild horses need.

And it seems that Bugatti has found the correct prescription for creating channels to direct air flow over the head of occupants without significantly affect the natural flow. Also, for the Grand Sport, several innovative structural solutions were implemented, to preserve the safety and the behavior of the hyper-car. The technical data and more images have been kept secret until the first`s copy unveil ceremony.

The model was first presented on August 16 at Pebble Beach, and that first copy will be put up for auction, giving a lucky guy the possibility to drive it home. The maximum speed of the Bugatti Veyron with polycarbonate roof is 407 km/h, despite the fact that the cabrio is limited to “only” 360 km/h. Obviously, the rigid roof must be left at home if it is removed, so that if rains starts, a soft-top roof is available, but it limits the maximum speed to only 130 km/h. And this is just like standing still.

The price for “standing still” is about 1.4 million euros, and only 150 models will be sold, of which 50 are reserved for loyal customers of the mark.
When you sell only a few hundred cars, I wonder how you select the most loyal customers.

Chevy enters Cruze mode

Chevy wants to be a global brand and in its attempt the American comapny developed a 4 door sedan that looks like a coupe.That’s brilliant!But don’t forget that the European market is already flooded with this kind of cars.Let’s hope that the American design will appeal to more and more people that are tired with the „old brands”.

The engines are „standard” : a 1.8 litre and a 2 litre turbodiesel that developes 150 HP and 320 NM of torque.The 1.8 puts aut 140 HP(not enough if you ask me).There will also be a 1.6 , 122 HP.You can choose from a 5 speed manual transmission or a 6 speed automatic.

The Cruze will be unveiled at the Paris Auto Show this fall and you can get yours starting next year.

Audi A7 four-door hard-top cabrio

The blokes at Car say they've got the scoop on the upcoming Audi A7, including a convertible version depicted in the rendering on the right. Power is rumored to start with six cylinders across the range, with a V10-powered S7 and a twin-turbo V10-motivated RS7. Expect a variety of transmissions to be on offer as well, including manuals, automatics and dual-clutch gearboxes with six or seven speeds, along with the availability of quattro all-wheel-drive.

Sources have suggested that, while Audi will be behind the game in bringing a four-door coupe in the Mercedes CLS mold to market in the first half of 2010, it's got another segment-busting trick up it's sleeve: a full four-door convertible. And according to Car's illustrators, the A7 cabrio will feature a full retractable hard-top. Many have toyed with the idea of a four-door convertible – most recently arch-rival Mercedes with the Ocean Drive concept from Detroit '07 – but Audi may be the ones to actually revive the long-lost segment. Parade detail, here we come.

Slumping N.A. derails Toyota's 10-million-unit plan

TOKYO -- Slumping sales in North America have taken a big bite out of Toyota's 2009 sales target, quashing plans for it to be the first automaker to sell 10 million vehicles a year.

President Katsuaki Watanabe slashed his ambitious 2009 forecast to 9.7 million vehicles from an earlier goal of 10.4 million. Stagnating U.S. sales were largely to blame.

Toyota Motor Corp. sees North American sales coming in at 2.70 million units in 2008 and languishing at the same level in 2009. The figures include Hino and Daihatsu vehicles.

By contrast, the Toyota group sold 2.83 million units in North America last year.

"The economic environment, crude oil prices as well as the material cost trend was not accurately forecasted by us, and we initially thought there would be a greater number of vehicles sold," Watanabe said here today while announcing the downward revision.

The more modest ambitions highlight how even the world's biggest and most profitable automaker has been stung by the U.S. meltdown. The automaker's strong operating profits in North America nearly vanished in the April-June quarter, plunging 98.9 percent.

Watanabe initially floated the 10.4 million sales target last year, before the subprime loan problem torpedoed demand in his company's biggest market. Hitting the goal would have made Toyota the first automaker to pass 10 million units.

Toyota also said it will slow production at plants in Great Britain and Poland in response to a downturn in Europe. The move echoes a similar one in the United States, where Toyota has idled production of Tundra pickups and Sequoia SUVs at two plants for three months.

In Europe, Toyota is dropping one of the two shifts at its Burnaston, England, assembly plant for five months, starting in the second half of September. The company also will suspend one of the two shifts at an engine plant in Poland from Sept. 15 through Nov. 7.

European sales are expected to fall 3.8 percent this year to 1.25 million units.

Volkswagen overtakes Ford in car sales

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Volkswagen overtook Ford in the first half of the year as the world's third-largest carmaker by vehicle sales, VW said in a statement on Thursday, in yet another sign of Detroit's waning influence.

"We are delighted that the Volkswagen Group has made it to the global automobile industry's top three for the first time," Chief Executive Martin Winterkorn said in a statement.

"This shows that we are on the right track with our ever-stronger international presence and, above all, our product program. We will systematically push ahead with our growth course even in the present difficult market environment."

Volkswagen wholesales that include those to dealers rose 7.2 percent in the first half to 3.31 million vehicles, while Ford's wholesales were almost 3.22 million.

Ford's figure includes 125,000 units contributed by Jaguar and Land Rover until its sale to India's Tata Motors in early June.

Wholesale figures can often be more flattering, since carmakers have been known to push dealers to accept more vehicles than they can sell to customers.

Volkswagen usually bases its main monthly retail data on actual deliveries to customers, which in the first half rose by 5.8 percent to 3.27 million, suggesting dealer stocks rose on an absolute basis.

Ford does not publish deliveries figures, using only wholesales since they are the basis for their ultimate revenues that are booked under their quarterly income statement.

Although the figures underline the difficulties Ford is having in particular in the United States, the data is not entirely new, since both published results for the first half late in July.