Wednesday, May 31, 2006

The new mid engined sports car from Lotus will be manufactured at the Group Lotus headquarters at Hethel in Norfolk U.K. This car, which is expected to enter production in Spring 2008 will be positioned at the higher end of the Lotus range and will occupy the sector vacated by the Lotus Esprit that finished production in 2004.

Over the next few months, Lotus will be undergoing a small re-organisation process within the manufacturing facility to further improve the efficiencies and flexibility at Hethel. This will lead to further improvements and gains leading up to the start of production. The Hethel manufacturing facility is regarded as one of the finest facilities of its kind in the world, an accolade reinforced by the award of “World Class Manufacturer of the Year 2005” by The Manufacturer Magazine.

Monday, May 29, 2006

The new Porsche Cayman is powered by a 2.7-liter six-cylinder Boxer engine producing 245 horsepower. Thanks to the Porsche VarioCam Plus system, the Cayman provides a broad spread of usable power, with a plateau of torque peaking at 201 foot-pounds between 4,600 and 6,000 revs. With a manual transmission, the responsive engine is capable of propelling the new Cayman from a standstill to 60 mph in only 5.8 seconds (0-100 km/h, 6.1 sec.). The performance carries through to a top test-track speed of 160 mph (258 km/h). Proof that outstanding performance statistics do not necessarily mean high fuel consumption, the Cayman is rated at an impressive 23/32 mpg city/highway.

Wednesday, May 24, 2006

The Eos is available with an even more impressive lineup of options, including a double clutch 6-speed automatic transmission with Tiptronic, steering wheel, shift knob and brake handle each wrapped in leather, automatic headlights, dual-zone Climatronic™ climate control, 12-way power driver seat, heated front seats and washer nozzles, windblocker, center armrest and trip computer, for $31,065. A further upgrade to the 3.2 liter, 250 horsepower V6 engine with added wood trim, all-season tires, multi-function steering wheel, HomeLink®, rain sensing wipers and satellite radio is available at $36,850. Additional options include a Dynaudio premium sound system with ten-channel amplifier, ten loudspeakers and 600-watt output power, bi-Xenon headlights with dynamic and static cornering lights, DVD navigation system, park distance control and 18-inch alloy wheels.

Wednesday, May 17, 2006

The manufacture of the most successful supercar in history has come to an end. Production of the Carrera GT at Porsche’s facility in Leipzig, Germany, concluded on Saturday, May 6, 2006, bringing to a close the latest series in a line of ultra-exclusive and ultra-performing automobiles from Porsche.
The Carrera GT is a storied member in a line of limited edition supercars, a lineage born from Porsche’s experience at the highest levels of world-class endurance racing. The Carrera GT owes its product modeling as an exclusive, racing-derived, ultra-high-performance roadcar to Porsche’s first supercar, the 959. Storming the world automotive stage at the Frankfurt Auto Show in 1985, the 959 was intended for “Group B” racing competition, and served as Porsche’s technology flagship—a rolling paradigm of automotive performance from which future models could draw even loftier benchmarks

Thursday, May 11, 2006

The most powerful factory-built Mustang ever just got even more potent. Final certification testing of the Shelby GT500’s 5.4-liter supercharged V-8 shows it will produce 500 horsepower and 480 lb.-ft. of torque – 25 more horsepower than preliminary estimates.
The Ford Shelby GT500's supercharged 5.4-liter, 32-valve V-8 is a result of Ford's experience in developing the modular V-8 and V-10 engine series. The engine is force-fed air via a "Roots-type" supercharger providing 9 pounds per square inch of boost. It borrows the four-valve cylinder heads, piston rings and bearings, from the Ford GT engine.

Tuesday, May 02, 2006

The Range Rover Sport, the most dynamic Land Rover ever, now gets an even more exciting look of the new flagship, Supercharged 'HST' specification.
The new HST will be based on the Supercharged specification with the additional equipment including: electric sunroof, an electronic active locking rear differential and privacy glass. The interior is distinguished by a unique hand polished lined oak trim.
The exterior design is the work of the same Land Rover team that created the original Range Stormer. It includes new flush-fitting front and rear bumpers and a new larger open-mouth grille. The front lower air intake is deeper and new front fog lamps are mounted in the spoiler.

Monday, May 01, 2006

Pontiac G6 GXP
Inside, red accents give the GXP a sportier flavor than a standard G6. The red chrome trim on the instrument cluster, center stack and door controls augments the red leather seat and door panel inserts. Under the hood, the G6 GXP uses a modified 3.9-liter V-6 engine mated to a six-speed manual transmission. Linking a ram air induction system with K&N air filter to a cat-back free flowing exhaust helps boost engine output to 270 horsepower (202 kw) and 259 lb.-ft. of torque (358 Nm).
“Although the GXP performance series has been very successful in the past, we’ve never attempted to introduce a GXP on our largest volume vehicle and we want to be sure we do it right,” said Dennis Maraone, Pontiac product director. “We believe the package of exterior, interior and performance enhancements we’ve put together on the G6 GXP show car should appeal to 2+2 coupe enthusiasts.”
Forty years ago, Carroll Shelby and The Hertz Corporation came up with an ingenious plan to help get a batch of high-performance, special-edition Shelby Mustangs into the hands of rental customers who also happened to be car enthusiasts. Ford supplied the new Mustangs with V-8 engines and mostly automatic transmissions, Shelby added extra performance and style, and Hertz gave the public access to the kind of unique driving experience that one would normally only find on a racetrack. Today, the story of the Shelby/Hertz "Rent-A-Racer" is legendary and surviving Shelby GT350H Mustangs are among the most sought-after collector cars in the world.