Archive for Cars

Infiniti will have its own all-electric, zero emissions vehicle. That is what CEO of Nissan Carlos Ghosn announced at the Tokyo Motor Show. According to the short statement, the brand which is under Nissan is developing a “stylish, compact, high performance, four-seat luxury Infiniti with zero emissions” concept. Unfortunately no other information was released but there is a possibility that Ghosn is talking about the Nissan LEAF electric vehicle that may be given a more luxurious treatment and sold with the Infiniti badge. Same old formula that Lexus used with turning the Auris into the LF-Ch.

Nissan has refreshed the GT-R yet again. It was first unveiled back in 2007 and was revised at the end 2008. This new version is offered with a new HDD CARWINGS navigation system with enhanced entertainment features and USB port with iPod connectivity. The auto maker also did some work underneath the car with changes made to suspension.

The car’s front shock absorbers and springs have been tuned with increased accuracy while the rear suspension has been stiffened up as well. Furthermore the GT-R now comes with a rear diffuser fitted with cooling ducts. This system was previously offered only with the SpecV variant. The 485 PS GT-R also comes with new hexagonal meshed catalyst cells that can reduce ventilation or airflow resistance resulting in improved engine response at low and mid-range.

Speaking about the SpecV, the range topping version now features revised rear shock absorber settings and Dunlop-sourced tires that replace Bridgestone ones. However buyers can still opt for the Bridgestone rubber. Continue reading to view more images.

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We all know that this year’s Tokyo Motor Show will mostly feature Japanese models apart from cars by just three European manufacturers. Nevertheless, the show that kicks off this week will have at least two major highlights including the Toyota FT-86 Concept and an all new supercar by Lexus. Yes as the title suggests we are talking about the V10 LFA.

The 2-seater LFA is motivated by a mid-front mounted 1LR-GSE 4.8 liter DOHC V10 that cranks out 552hp at 8,700 rpm and 480Nm of torque that is achieved at 6,800 rpm (90% of which is available from 3,700 rpm).

The engine that screams at a red line of 9,000 revs features Dual VVT-i technology, equal length exhaust manifolds and high-volume, a total of 40 valves, 12-hole fuel injectors, 12:1 compression ratio and is Euro 5 compliant. The powerplant was co-developed with Yamaha and features a total of ten individual throttle bodies – one for each cylinder! Titanium valves, ultra–light weight rocker arms with a diamond–like coating and a fully integrated lower crankcase reduces pumping losses at high RPMs.

Mated to a rear-mounted 6-speed Automated Sequential Gearbox (operated by steering-mounted paddle shifters) that drives the rear wheels via a limited slip differential, the engine enables the supercar to hit 100 km/h in just 3.7 seconds and reach a top speed of 325 km/h. The drivetrain has four driving modes that is made up by Auto, Sport, Normal and Wet modes. Each mode has a specific gearshift program as well as engine and brake control logic systems to let the driver tailor the car’s performance to suit different driving conditions.

Stopping power is provided by carbon ceramic 390 mm front discs and 306 mm rear discs. The front setup has 6-piston aluminium calipers while the rear features 4 pistons. The LFA has a track-tuned suspension that according to Lexus, gives “the best possible balance between control and comfort”. It has a bespoke front wishbone and rear multilink design configuration that is mostly made of aluminium alloy. It also has aluminium monotube dampers that were also featured in the LFA race car that took part in the Nurburgring 24-hour event. The rack and pinion setup in the LFA features an Electric Power Steering System.

The 1,480kg car sits on 20-inch aluminium BBS wheels that are shod with Bridgestone-sourced 265/35ZR20 tires for the front and 305/20ZR20 tires for the rear. Along with a drag coefficient of 0.31, it has a carbon fibre rear diffuser and flat underbody that help generate significant downforce. There is also an active rear wing.

The hand-built interior is treated to seats upholstered in fine leather and Alcantara. The trim details are finished in brushed metal while the floor-hinged brake and throttle pedals are made of forged aluminium. The hooded instrument panel combines an LCD display panel with a colour Thin Film Transistor (TFT) and a motor-drive movable ring. It features a single circular dial with a central tachometer with an LCD needle.

When engine speed exceeds 9,000 rpm, the display area turns red to prime the driver for an up-shift. It can also be programmed to turn yellow or green when the revs reach a user-selected range. The dial also houses a digital speedometer and gear indicator, transmission mode, vehicle control data and trip information displays.

At 4,505mm by 1,895mm by 1,220mm with a 2,605mm wheelbase, the car is slightly smaller than a Ferrari 458 Italia. Production will be limited to 500 units and pricing in the US starts from approximately US$375,000. Lexus revealed that the LFA will be hand-assembled at the Motomachi plant in Toyota City and each V10 engine will be assembled by a single engineer. Continue reading to view an image gallery.

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UK-based Caterham Cars will be present at the Tokyo Motor Show in Japan with three of its latest models. The Superlight R300 EU4 will make its Japanese premier while the CSR 175 EU4 will make its world premier. The sports car maker will also showcase the Roadsport EU4.

Caterham which has been selling its cars in the Land of the Rising Sun since the 1970’s recently confirmed Premium Cars Import (PCI) as the company’s exclusive importer in the country in January. Managing director Ansar Ali who used to hold a position in Lotus as general manager said, “Japan has always been one of our biggest export markets. During the early 1990s, Caterham was selling over 100 cars a year in Japan and now, with our new importer doing great work to highlight the company from their Tokyo base, we are looking forward to pushing sales up again.”

“I have no doubt we will achieve this objective as we now have a retail network of over 15 dealers in Japan who are committed to making Caterham another British success in this exciting and dynamic market,” he added. Caterham will be one of just three European manufacturers exhibiting at the motor show.

Volkswagen has announced that it will take a 49.9% stake in sports car maker Porsche in a first step towards merging with the company. Volkswagen’s initial plan was to acquire 42% of Porsche and with the increase in stake, Volkswagen’s position in the equation will be stronger sooner than expected. The German auto giant also assured that the merger between both companies is still scheduled to take place in 2011.

Currently both companies are working together in certain areas such as manufacturing the Porsche Cayenne and the Volkswagen Touareg in the same plant as well as the utilization of Volkswagen’s 3.6 liter V6 by Porsche. The above mentioned 49.9% stake will cost $5.8 billion and the company also assured that it is committed in “preserving the independence and the interests of Porsche” – which is a good move.

Porsche will join other brands like Bugatti, Audi, Lamborghini as well as Bentley to become the company’s 10th brand. Volkswagen also announced that it plans to increase its preferred share capital by the first half of 2010 in order to refinance the participation and maintain Volkswagen’s good credit rating.

Recession? What recession? The special 50 unit limited run Neiman Marcus edition Jaguar XJL Supercharged listed in their Christmas book for US$10,000 more than its regular price of US$90,500 were all sold out in just 4 hours and 4 minutes once phone lines opened for booking. Beyond the 50 bookings, Jaguar continued taking bookings and putting them on a waiting list in case a phone booking did not translate into a sale.

The Neiman Marcus XJL comes in an exclusive Celestial Black metallic paint exterior and a custom butter-soft navy and ivory leather interior. It is also equipped with 20-inch double-10 spoke polished alloy wheels, illuminated tread plates and trunk finisher as well as the nameplate inside that reads: “Neiman Marcus 1 of 50.”

Rumors are circulating that German auto giant Volkswagen will replace the Passat with the company’s New Mid-Sized Sedan (NMS) in the US. The new sedan is expected to hit the market in 2011 and will be manufactured at the auto maker’s Tennessee plant.

It will most probably be longer than the Passat and should be priced with a cheaper price tag (by about $8,000). According to the source, the new sedan will be built in the US so that the automaker can take advantage of the weaker US dollar when compared to the Euro. Thanks to exchange rates, German-built cars will carry a significantly higher price tag when sold in the US hence it would cost lower if the cars were built in the US. It is unclear if the new mid-sized sedan will be offered in other markets.

Generally Americans and Europeans have different expectations of their D-segment sedans. Euro D-segment cars tend to be smaller and sleeker like the Accord Euro while American market cars are just plain large – the bigger the better, refinement is not as important. An unnamed Volkswagen executive has said in the past that the NMS project was born because the company felt American customers don’t really appreciate the refinement of the Passat, hence dismal sales in comparison to competitors like the Camry and the Accord. The Passat is also more expensive because of the extra costs that go into its refinement.

Source

Lotus’ newly appointed CEO Dany Bahar who used to serve for Ferrari revealed that he plans to bring Lotus back into the high-octane world of motorsport. “Lotus will return to motorsport. I believe that this is the perfect platform to showcase our capabilities; racing is part of our heritage and even today the technology in our road cars is derived from racing,” he said when addressing his staff for the first time.

The new boss of the Proton-owned company announced that the group is studying options of participating in Indy car series, GT as well as Le Mans. He also mentioned that the Group Lotus has no direct equity in the Lotus F1 project. Operationally, Lotus F1 will be run separately from Group Lotus and the two parties will liaise. At the moment, Proton is finalising the brand licensing of Lotus for the Lotus F1 team

Bahar also revealed that detailed plans for a product line-up along with plans for the next seven years will be released sometime in December. “Our future lies in aligning ourselves to what the market wants, rather than what we think the market wants; we must concentrate on our customers,” he added.

Just hours after showing you a leaked brochure of the Lexus HS250h-based Toyota SAI Hybrid, we now have official information about new hybrid sedan as Toyota has just officially unveiled it. Compared its Lexus counterpart, the SAI has a slightly different front end with restyled headlights, hood, front bumper as well as a reworked grille.

At the rear, the only difference is the reworked tailights. On the side profile, the side windows on the rear doors have been reshaped. Inside, the Sai looks a little different thanks to a new instrument panel, revised air vents on the dashboard as well as a different steering wheel.

As expected, the front wheels are motivated by the same drivetrain found in the HS250h. The THS II system is primarily made up by a 2AZ-FXE 2.4 liter Atkinson-cycle VVTi 4-cylinder petrol unit that is good for 150 PS at 6,000 rpm and 187Nm of torque 4,400 rpm. The engine is coupled with an electric motor that develops 143 PS and 270Nm of torque. The drivetrain produces 190 PS of combined power. Energy is stored in a nickel-metal hydride battery pack and the system also features a continuously variable transmission (CVT).

Unfortunately the auto maker did not disclose any information pertaining to fuel consumption and performance. The Toyota SAI is available in four trim levels in Japan and is priced between 3,380,000 yen (about RM 126,000) and 4,260,000 yen (about RM 159,000). As reported earlier, Toyota has also made available TRD and Modellista packages for the SAI for those that want their car to look a little different.

For those of you wondering what’s with the name, the name SAI is based on the Japanese word sai—which means “talent” when written as “” and “coloration” when written as ““. Toyota intends for it to “combine advanced talent and multi-color sophistication”.

Continue reading to view an image gallery.

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Perodua has officially launched its very first Body and Paint Hub (B&P) in Subang Jaya earlier today and along the with launch, the auto maker announced that it will introduce an exclusive version of the Perodua Myvi on October 24th. The limited edition compact hatch will be launched in showrooms nationwide.

The auto maker also announced that the highly-anticipated MPV (codenamed Perodua D46T) will be launched at the end of next month and bookings can be made at the beginning of the month. Pricing for the D46T which is based on the Toyota Passo Sette will be set between RM56,000 to RM65,000.

The above mentioned B&P Hub and Service Centre costs RM 6 million and is located at Taman Perindustrian Subang. Perodua also revealed that four more hubs will be built by 2012. Each hub will cost between RM 4 million and RM 6 million. Two hubs will be built in the northern and southern regions while two more will be made available in the Klang valley by next year.

Services offered at the 5,159 sq. meter B&P Hub in Subang Jaya include collision repair, spray painting, vehicle servicing and the sale of spare parts. The hub has 35 bays for collision repair, body aligners, four spray booths and three ovens.

According to Perodua, the hub can service up to 2,500 units per month compared to 1,500 units at the Jalan SS13/5 service outlet. This outlet will continue to operate until July next year and thereafter the operations will be relocated to the Subang Jaya B&P Hub and Service Centre.

The auto maker expects overall service intakes to increase to 1.5 million this year from 1.37 million intakes in 2008. For the nine month up to September, Perodua service outlets have recorded a total of 1.2 million intakes. Continue reading to view an image gallery of the B&P Hub and Service Centre in Subang Jaya.

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