VxDesigns

Hartge has taken the wraps off its tuned BMW X6, and the 3.0-liter twin turbocharged I6 diesel bumped up to a monstrous 328HP and 498 lb-ft of torque. Unfortunately, they also did a body kit.

If we close our eyes and only read the spec sheet, the Hartge BMW X6 is a pretty epic proposition. A 3.0-liter twin turbocharged I6 diesel making an additional 93 HP and 115 lb-ft of torque over stock can make us forget about the questionable necessity of the X6 market segment. Add to that it gets better fuel economy than stock and is actually lighter, goes 0-60MPH in 6 seconds with a non-limited top speed of 159 MPH, we were ready to lay rose pedals at Hartge’s feet. Then we looked at it.

Fender flairs! Fender vents! Grill inserts! Totally unnecessary rear diffuser! Side skirts! Giant wheels! Typical German tooner rubbish. So sad, so very, very sad. Maybe if you ask nicely they’ll chop a big chunk out of the 29,353.94€ asking price and just supply the powertrain upgrades.

lotus

We told you about the 2011 Lotus Evora Convertible back in January, but now the company has confirmed production and added details. Luckily, they’re dropping the automatic roof to save weight.Like the hardtop Lotus Evora, which goes on sale in May, the convertible will initially be sold with a 3.5-liter Toyota V6 producing 276 HP. That’s enough for 0-60 in 5 seconds and a 160 MPH top speed, but since the Lotus Evora weighs a ton and a half, we’d want more power. That’s coming with the aid of a supercharger, taking power up to 400 HP and dropping the 0-60 time by at least a second.
Despite previous rumors, Auto Express is now reporting that the drop top Evora will use a fixed-panel fabric roof just like the Lotus Elise. Anyone who’s driven an Elise will know this is an awkward setup, but it should save considerable weight over an electrically folding top. No word on whether or not the rear seats will disappear with the hardtop, but given that they’re options on the coupe, we don’t expect to see them on the convertible.

After we first brought you the leaked product presentation and amateur photos from a Geneva dealership, Lamborghini finally decided the time was right to officially reveal the new Limited Edition Lamborghini Murciélago LP650-4 Roadster.

The Limited Edition Lamborghini Murciélago LP650-4 Roadster comes along just in time for you fat cats to open up your wallets again. Lamborghini is hoping that the draw of the 650 horsepower from an uprated 6.5-liter V12,486 Lb-Ft of torque, 0-62 time of 3.4 seconds and a top speed of 205 mph will help to distract you from the god-awful Grigio Telesto (grey) and Arancio (orange) mixed exterior.

Significant identifying features of the 50-unit limited edition besides the paint are the LP 650-4 logo applied to the side of the front fascia and also on the retractable air intakes, a transparent engine cover and the lack of a roof. Hop inside and you’ll find an Alcantara wrapped interior featuring matching orange bits on the paddle shifters, e-gear selector plate and stitching throughout.

We’re always impressed by the sheer machismo of the Lamborghini set, but this one just screams ‘Coke Binge: Day 2′ to us. Verde Ithaca would have been a much better hue for this very special edition. No price is given, but as the saying goes, if you have to ask…

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chevy camaro

Asked on May 18, 1999 what my favorite movie was I, like many of my contemporaries, would have had an easy answer: Star Wars. Just one day later, with the release of Phantom Menace, that answer would change forever. It didn’t make sense. Episode I, compared quantitatively to its predecessors and, according the huge amount of buzz surrounding it, must have been a much better movie. It had a bigger budget, benefited from modern technology, had really neat imaginary creatures and action-packed space battles. So what changed? Well, the environment in which the space fairy tale existed had, in 22 years, become much more sophisticated. Audiences wanted to experience something new in the same way the original film had been unprecedented for its time. Instead, George Lucas contented himself with producing a fancy new version of the same old schlock. That, and Anakin was really irritating.

With the $22,995 V6-equipped 2010 Chevy Camaro LS producing 304 HP, nearly as much as the V8-engined 2010 Ford Mustang GT, and the 426 HP 2010 Chevy Camaro SS starting at just $30,995, initial impressions of GM’s new muscle car are extremely good. It’s faster than its competitors and benefits from more svelte looks than the Dodge Challenger and less familiar styling than the 2010 Mustang. It’s even more fuel efficient, with the V6 returning an impressive 17 city, 29 highway MPG-rating, while the V8 returns 16/25 MPG when equipped with the slightly higher-geared automatic transmission. [Read more...]

Alfa Romeo is hurriedly releasing as many performance variants as it can to ride the popularity wave of the new MiTo city car. Say buongiorno to the latest 1.4-liter, turbocharged, 180-HP Alfa Romeo MiTo Veloce.Alfa’s premium city car has been doing quite well for itself and the Geneva Motor Show brought us something we’ve been salivating for since the car’s initial debut. While the 240 HP MiTo GTA is about as perfect as we could imagine, the new MiTo Veloce will do just nicely for an interim.

The MiTo Veloce is expected to trump the base car’s 1.4-liter, turbocharged, 155 horsepower by a nice shiny quarter by improving the airflow and upgrading the turbo. The same ginger motor can be found in the Fiat Grande Punto Abarth SS. Aside from the power upgrade, the MiTo Veloce will gain a lowered, sportier suspension, clampier brakes, larger alloys and a pretty agro styling kit.

According to our friends at Autoblog.it, the Alfa Romeo MiTo Veloce will make its debut at the AutoRAI 2009 that is held at the Amsterdam Exhibition Center from April 1st through the 11th. Will we ever see the MiTo in any form here in the States? That’s a question I’m sure a lot of us our wondering so let’s cross our fingers that we get an Italian play thing to challenge those pesky Mini drivers.

toyota prius

You already know the 2010 Toyota Prius gets 50 MPG combined fuel economy, making it the most fuel-efficient car for sale in the U.S. But, did you know it returns 26.6 MPG at 102 MPH?You might think it odd we bothered to find that out since the first two Prius generations were hardly vehicles meriting anything approaching spirited driving. But this third generation vehicle, fitted with a larger 1.8-liter engine producing a net 134 HP is actually pretty fun to drive, at least when equipped with the optional 17-inch wheels.

Those wheels bring with them a quicker steering rack, firmer dampers and less efficiency-oriented tires. The result is a car that drives less like a rolling tub of Jello and more like you think a mid-size hatchback that hits 60 MPH in 9.8 seconds equipped with a Continuously Variable Transmission should. In fact, it’s good enough we spent the majority of a day driving it on twisty Northern California roads, overtaking many, supposedly faster vehicles, and generally enjoyed harming the environment. In a Prius.

mercedes CL AMG

Not only did the 2009 Mercedes S-Class receive the sporty once over, the big-boy 2009 Mercedes CL got the AMG Sport Package too. Again, we hope you didn’t actually want all the AMG performance advantages.

As with the 2009 S-Class AMG Sport Package, the 2009 Mercedes CL AMG Sport Package receives a new sporty body kit akin to a nicely tailored, bespoke pin-striped suit. Larger air intakes cut into the newly sculpted front fascia, large exhaust tips poke out of a blackout section in the new rear fascia and a re-sculpted side skirt brings the package together. Like the S-Class AMG Sport, the CL receives two attractive wheel options, 19- and 20-inch versions with silver painted calipers sitting directly behind.

If you’re the type of guy who’s all show and no go, then this is the ride for you. Pick it up in June along with the S-class. They’re both sure to impress the ladies.

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Porsche Panamera

When the four-door Porsche Panamera hits the U.S. in October, it’ll be equipped with both an automatic engine start/stop feature mated with an automatically-shifting double-clutch transmission. Ooh! Technology! But wait, there’s more.We’ve now got more details on the Panamera Turbo’s auto-deploying wing. We’re told “The visible highlight of the overall aerodynamic package is the active four-way rear spoiler on the Panamera Turbo. Through its efficient management of control angles and surface geometry geared to driving conditions, the rear spoiler optimizes both the car’s aerodynamics and performance.” Yeah, that’s pretty much all it says. Check out the rest of the press release below describing in not-a-lot-of-detail what else to expect technologically from the four-door Porsche.

volvo el camino

Our fetish for all things El Camino and Volvo is not secretive (like the Area 51 site deep in the Nevada desert). So how do we feel about this Volvo V70 El Camino? WIN!

Unfortunately, as you can most definitely tell, the images above represent a digital euphoria of a Volvo El Camino mashups accurately depicting what we see in our dreams every single night. Bo Zoland of VizualTech has given us something to wake up for every day. With V8 power, Pontiac G8 ST good looks, and a Volvo face we can’t not love, this ranks high among El Caminoized rides we’ve seen, easily outclassing the XC70chero. Now if we could only get someone to build it. Any takers?

For too long the American market has lacked an affordable, accessible, fast, responsive, fun, communicative, good-looking rear-wheel-drive sports coupe. The Hyundai Genesis Coupe is that car. Finally.

Full Disclosure: Hyundai wanted me to drive the new Genesis Coupe so badly they flew me out and put me up in a Casino to make sure I wrote about it. Also, they fed me sliders. I’m more of a vegetables kind of guy.

Late last summer I drove a Hyundai Sonata and couldn’t have been more horrified with the experience. It didn’t so much accelerate as whine about being asked to do so, corners were best avoided and the thing was straight nasty inside in the way we’ve come to expect cars from Korea to be.

The Genesis Coupe couldn’t be any more different.Down into second and the rear wheels squeal as they lose traction, the rear end getting loose as I turn into the 180-degree right-hander. Floor the throttle before the apex, lift a bit to slow the rotation, counter steer to the left and the Coupe is drifting across the track, making full use of the width added by the pit exit. Straighten things up, into third gear and then floor the throttle. Straight over a crest as the wheels temporarily lose purchase, then keep that throttle pinned through an off-camber sweeper. This isn’t a Sonata. A glance at the spec sheet and you know this is going to be an impressive car. There’s two engines: a 3.8-liter V6 with 306 HP and 266 Lb-Ft of torque or a 2.0 turbo with 210 HP and 223 Lb-Ft. The 3.8 will run 0-to-60 MPH in 5.5 seconds and top out at 149 MPH. The 2.0T takes 6.8 seconds to reach 60 and tops out at 137 MPH. It’s lighter than an E46 BMW M3 (3,294 Lbs for the 2.0T, 3,389 for the 3.8; the M3 is 3,415 Lbs), yet its chassis is 24% stiffer. Suspension is MacPherson front, five-link rear. Roll bars are 24mm front, 19mm rear. At 2.7 turns lock-to-lock the rack-and-pinion is quick and accurate.