General Motors has filed a request to the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration to prevent the public from tracking the journeys its private planes make, which is apparently one of the options available to private plane leasers and is not a special request.

This comes after GM’s CEO Rick Wagoner was criticised by lawmakers and the public for spending approximately US$20,000 on a private flight to ask for a US$25 billion bailout together with the other Detroit Three heads, when a first class plane ticket costs much less.

There could have been many reasons why a private plane was used at a much much higher cost instead of a commercial airline such as logistics problems or timing problems, but it still looks really bad to observers and I believe right now GM has alot more problems to deal with other than trying to stop people from tracking ihow it uses its private planes.

This action probably makes people feel like they’re trying to cover something up, and a little more transparency could do wonders for its bail-out cause right now. If you want to track US air traffic yourself, just head on to this site. A quick check shows that GM’s Gulfstream G350 with a N5116 tail code has already been blocked from being tracked on FlightAware, but is still available here. GM planes have the tail code N5113 to N5117.

But still, I believe that the Congress wants to save their Big 3 somehow, they just don’t know how to do it and I suppose are disappointed that the heads of the companies themselves gives them the impression that don’t seem to know either.

Look after the jump to view some videos of the hearing between the U.S. lawmakers and the Detroit 3 CEOs.

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We’ve already seen a live video of the BMW Konfigurator while it was still a prototype in action in the past, but it seems that the technology that uses Microsoft Surface has matured into a production-ish version called the BMW Product Navigator. Look after the jump to see it in action, along with a republishing of the previous video I recorded of the Konfigurator installed with a F01 7-Series virtual showroom. My video provides a clearer view of how it looks like and how it works from an actual user’s perspective rather than BMW Web TV’s take on the solution.

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Rear-wheel drive versions of BMW’s SUVs like the BMW X1 will most likely carry the sDrive name instead of the current xDrive suffix. BMW has registered the trademark sDrive along with displacement indicators such as sDrive35, sDrive30, sDrive20 and sDrive18. Even the upcoming new generation BMW Z4 could carry this suffix since BMW seems to be using it for all its non-3 digit name models. Click the terms in this story to have a look at the trademark registrations at the US trademark office. The trademarks have been registered in the UK as well but at time of publishing the trademark search server seems to be down.

Look after the jump for shots of the BMW Concept X1.

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Ah, here we have yet another white Volkswagen Scirocco, this time by Rieger. White is a really nice colour for this car but visitors to the Essen show this month might find themselves in the middle of a sea of white Sciroccos that all look somewhat alike. This Rieger version sets itself apart with scissor doors amongst other enhancements.

There’s actually no one set of bodykit for the Rieger Scirocco, individual parts can be customised such as the grille inserts on the left and right of the R8-ish front bumper design shown above- there are up to 3 designs for this. On top of that there are other bumper designs as well.

Look after the jump for a hi-res photo gallery, or take some time to browse some other tuned-up Sciroccos listed in the links below.

Other tuned/kitted-up Volkswagen Sciroccos:
Volkswagen Scirocco Collector’s Edition
MCCHIP Volkswagen Scirocco: 246hp for 849 Euros
Oettinger Volkswagen Scirocco 1.4 and 2.0 TSI
MTM Volkswagen Scirocco R with 272 PS
Volkswagen Scirocco tuned by Abt Sportsline

Source

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The Dodge Challenger was the vehicle picked by suspension specialist Eibach to display at the tuner-centric 2008 Essen Motor Show. The engine has been left as it is, a 6.1 liter HEMI V8 producing 425 horsepower and 569Nm of torque, but the suspension has been tweaked, expected as the tuner is Eibach after all.

The Eibach Challenger show car gets the Multi-Pro-R2 coil-over suspension system which has integrated independently adjustable rebound and compression damping with remote reservoir. Wheels are large 3-piece 22-inch OZ Botticelli III alloys wrapped with Toyo Proxes T1R rubber in 265/30R22 size.

Just to spice things up, Eibach also upgraded the car’s audio system with Alpine goodies featuring the IVA-W505R 2-DIN head unit which combined a DVD head-unit with an LCD screen. This puts out audio through a PDX-5 amp which powers 6 inch R-series speakers and a 10 inch subwoofer.

The Challenger is built on the Chrysler LC platform, which is a shortened version of the Chrysler LX platform. The LX platform underpins vehicles like the Chrysler 300 and was developed when Chrysler was part of DaimlerChrysler, hence it uses Mercedes-Benz parts such as the W220 S-Class control arm front suspension at the front and the W210 E-Class multi-link rear suspension. LX platform cars also usually use the Mercedes-Benz W5A580 5G-Tronic transmission and rear differential.

Look after the jump for a hi-res gallery of the Eibach Essen 2008 car.

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This is the Marangoni M430 Alfa Romeo Mi.To. First the bad, this car is just pure risotto, which is a completely random term that I’m going to use for an Italian ricer car. Overdone bodykit, glaring two-tone paint, random decals, scissor doors, huge 18 inch wheels with red tyres for red burn-out smoke - you name it, it’s got it! And what’s M430 supposed to mean anyway, a homage to the Ferrari F430?

But what’s hot is what’s under the hood. The standard 150hp output of the 1.4 liter turbocharged T-JET engine under the Alfa Romeo Mi.To’s engine hood has been boosted to a Golf GTI-beating 220 horsepower! This is a tiny 1.4 liter engine that actually makes more power than the 4.0 liter V6 in the new Ford Mustang.

We can actually buy a car that has this engine in Malaysia, the Fiat Bravo GT. This should really tickle the interest of Bravo GT owners, a potential 220hp plus a manual transmission would be really fun.

Look after the jump for a high-res gallery of the M430.

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The other Volkswagen displayed at the 2008 Essen Motor Show is this Volkswagen Scirocco Collector’s Edition which joins the Mk6 Golf Collector’s Edition unveiled earlier this year. It also white like the Eos White Night concept, but the difference is this one’s actually going to be sold, in a 100 unit limited edition run.

The inside is alot less subtle, with the mostly dark interior heavily contrasted with the two-tone leather seats which feature black and Berry White leather. This particular Scirocco is based off the 2.0 TFSI model with 200 horsepower under the hood.

Look after the jump for a shot of the interior.

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This is one of two cars that Volkswagen will be displaying at the 2008 Essen Motor Show, a tuners haven and Europe’s equivalent to the Tokyo Auto Salon in Japan or the SEMA show in the USA.

This special Eos concept is called the Volkswagen Eos White Night and features a black and white colour scheme extending everywhere from the exterior to the interior, which features black nappa leather with white stitching. For those who are curious, the exterior white is a colour called Candy White. Cool, an Eos that looks like a pearly Menthos?

Under the hood is Volkswagen’s 3.2 liter V6 engine that produces 250 horsepower, which would probably make the car more balanced with the top down (big engine at the front balancing the heavy top stored at the rear).

Look after the jump for a shots of the interior.

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Different versions of the press kits name it differently, in some markets its called the MINI Convertible and in some markets the MINI Cabrio, but it is essentially the same thing - a drop top MINI for the MINI enthusiast to enjoy open air motoring.

The first gen Convertible is finally replaced with this new model powered by the new BMW-PSA Prince engine. The Cooper Convertible gets the 1.6 liter normally aspirated Valvetronic engine with 120hp at 6,000rpm (118hp in the US) and 160Nm of torque at 4,250rpm (155Nm in the US) while the Cooper S Convertible gets a turbocharged direct injected version (no Valvetronic) producing 175hp (172hp in the US) at 5,500rpm and 240Nm of torque from 1,600rpm to 5,000rpm, with an optional overboost to 260Nm.

Compared to the previous generation, boot space is now 125 liters which is larger by 5 liters with the roof open, 170 liters (an increase of 5 liters) with the roof closed and 660 liters (up by 55 liters) with the rear backrest folded down. You access the boot via opening a deck lid that is hinged at the bottom and swings down to also create a loading platform which you can also sit on.

The soft top can open and close in just 15 seconds at driving speeds of up to 30km/h, and can also be activated from the remote control. The driver can also open the top only half way by about 16 inches if he wants, allowing semi-open top motoring. This works at speed of up to 120km/h. If you opt for the automatic climate control option, the car’s climate control will feature a new mode that activates automatically when the roof is down, which takes into account the influence of wind when the roof is opened.

A new rollover bar automatically activates in the event of a rollover. This safety bar is designed to allow for optimum visibility to the rear and sides of the vehicle.

MINI actually encourages you to drive with the top down, otherwise it would be quite pointless of you to buy a convertible wouldn’t it? They do this via the “Openometer” (or Always-Open Timer in other markets), an extra gauge located next to the rev counter which shows how much time you drive with the top down.

This gauge is activated once the driver starts the engine of the MINI Convertible and the soft top is fully open. An analog indicator moves on a scale from 0 to 60 and counts the time spent driving in the open air in minutes. After one hour, the indicator moves back to 0 and the first LED light on a six-light scale will come on. This means a maximum of 6 hours and 59 minutes when it comes to counting. It’s just a gimmick really but a way to make the open top experience a little more interesting.

The car’s standard wheels are 16 inchers wrapped with 195/55R16 run-flat tyres but optional are larger 17 inch versions with a design called Black Star Bullet, which is exclusive to the MINI Convertible.

Look after the jump for a high-res gallery and a video of the new MINI Convertible/MINI Cabrio.

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The BMW M3 is a fantastic car to drive but I personally feel the interior is a little too bland for the fantastic machine that it is. I mean, it’s pretty much the same as the regular 3-Series except for a little more freedom with the choice of colours.

German turner Zwickenpflug clearly shares my sentiments and decided to deck the M3 out with a whole load of leather. There’s leather and Alcantara everywhere, on the dash, on the roof, the seats, the door panels, and there’s the special M blue and red stitching on a lot more places instead of it being confined to the steering wheel.

On top of that, the stock engine’s 420 horsepower has been upped slightly to 445 through some minor tweaking of the engine and the computer unit. There’s also some BBS wheels (frankly I prefer the standard ones) and aluminium pedals.

Soak yourself in the glorious leather in the photo gallery after the jump.

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