Archive for Rumours

Autocar UK reports that performance versions of the Mk6 Volkswagen Golf will go beyond the GT, GTi and the R32-replacing higher-powered version of the Golf GTi.

According to the report, the Mk6 range will also gain a turbodiesel-powered GTD as well as possibly a top of the line high performance Golf that in conventional R nomenclature would be called the “R40″. This would be powered by a turbocharged inline-5 engine that will also be slotted into cars like the Audi TT-RS, producing 350 horsepower with decent fuel economy and emissions to boot. This seems a little hard to swallow at the moment, does Volkswagen want to take the Golf that far?

The much more realistic Golf GTD will be powered by a new twin-turbo version of the company’s 2.0 liter inline-4 TDI turbodiesel, a concept that BMW (204hp 2.0L twin turbodiesel) and Mercedes-Benz (204hp 2.2L twin turbodiesel) have also done.

The GTi will produce about 210 horsepower while the R32-replacing GTi “plus” will have a Haldex all-wheel drive and produce nearly 270 horsepower, equalling the new Audi S3 in performance and even the number of cogs, as the 7-speed S-Tronic DSG is expected to roll out in this range of Volkswagens.

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Volkswagen Golf GTi Mk6 - Initial Photos

Click for details and photo gallery of Mark 6 Golf

Now that we’ve seen what the base Mark 6 Golf will look like, I’m sure alot of people are waiting in anticipation for signs of the next generation iconic Golf GTI. According to Autocar, sources inside Volkswagen have revealed that the Mark 6 Golf GTI will get the new 211 PS Valvelift EA888 engine found in the Audi A4 and A5.

The EA888 engine with a timing chain is already found in some of the new Mark 5 GTIs, but lacks the Valvelift variable valve lift system. 211 PS may not seem a big deal of an increase as compared to the Mk5’s 200 PS, but torque has increased substantially from 280Nm to 350Nm of torque in the new Valvelift engine.

Styling wise, the new GTI will appear sportier and more low-slung thanks to the existing qualities of the model it is based on. Bumpers on the front and rear will be unique to the GTI, and its headlamps will receive some form of daytime LED running lights. Standard alloys will be 18 inch with the option for 19 inchers, an inch up from the Mark 5 GTI.

The source also reveals that the Mark 6 will lose the R32 but gain a more powerful tuned up version of the GTI with 4MOTION to replace it. The EA888 in the “R” GTI will be tuned to produce 272 PS and above, similiar to the European spec Audi TTS. This is supposedly because the VR6 engine in the R32 will no longer be feasible with upcoming EU emissions legislations.

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German car magazine AutoBild reported this month that Porsche was planning to make a new compact hot hatch based on the next generation Volkswagen Golf Mk6 platform. The magazine claims that this new Porsche Golf will make it to the production lines in 2012, with concept versions likely to be shown in a year or two before that. Shown above is Theophilus Chin’s artist impression of the new Golf-based Porsche.

I can see why Porsche is doing this though - the same reason why you’ll see more and more premium manufacturers introducing smaller yet premium models into their line-up. The answer is the USA’s Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards, which requires car manufacturers to have certain fuel economy standards according to the footprint of the vehicle, which is measured by track multiplied by wheelbase.

Porsches which have large engines but very small wheelbases are hit badly by CAFE standards, but because CAFE is calculated by considering the average fuel economy of all cars the manufacturer is producing, adding a small compact car to its line-up with great fuel economy due to the smaller engine needed is a smart way to comply.

The new Golf-based Porsche will go against the likes of the BMW 135i, the Volkswagen Golf R32, and the Audi S3. It could be powered by the same engine as the R32, or the 3.6 liter direct injection V6 from the baseline Cayenne.

You will find one more rear-view rendering after the jump.

Click here to read the rest of Porsche planning Golf-based hot hatch by 2012

Ferrari S.P.A. filed a trademark application back in late 2006 which may give us a clue to the name of the new Ferrari GT car. The registration for the name FERRARI GT CALIFORNIA was approved in the US sometime in February this year.

Some other new bits of unconfirmed info - according to a report by US magazine AutoWeek, the engine mounted at the front of the new F149 will be a 4.3 liter V8 based on the F430 engine’s block, but will feature direct injection, a new throttle body, new intake designs, new cylinder head designs, and a new valvetrain.

This should be exciting for those who love to take in technical bits of info about engines, and a contender for next year’s International Engine of The Year awards.

Source: USPTO, Registration Cert

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Ferrari puts up Ferrari F149 GT teaser site

MV Agusta F4 Tamburini

Apparently MV Agusta could have a new owner or at least a large shareholder in the form of Tata Motors, according to Italian bike magazine euroMoto. MV Agusta used to be owned by Proton and was disposed of a few years ago for a sum fo 1 Euro. Since then, MV Agusta’s new owners have not been able to do much with the company, and its ails continue, lacking funds to channel towards new product development.

Source [ Translated ]

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Business Times reports quoting sources that there are currently four runners in the race for the Tata franchise in Malaysia, currently held by DRB-HICOM’s Scott & English (M) Sdn Bhd. The current franchise agreement will expire in May 2008, and DRB-HICOM holders themselves have expressed that letting the franchise go is one of the options being considered pending results from an internal evaluation.

The interested parties are: 1) DRB-HICOM of course, this would mean they would keep the franchise, 2) the owners of Brooklands Motors Sdn Bhd (Citroen) and Competitive Supreme Sdn Bhd (Ssangyong), 3) Sime Darby Berhad (BMW, Hyundai, Inokom, Alfa Romeo, Land Rover) and 4) Naza.

If Naza gets a hold of the Tata franchise, it will be able to sell the Tata Nano here, probably positioned lower than the Naza Forza. Sime Darby will already have a relationship with Tata through its Land Rover distributorship here as Land Rover has just recently been bought over by Tata.

Related Posts:
Tata Nano archive at this blog

Source

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Mercedes-Benz has long been rumoured to be coming up with the CLE-Class, a coupe based on the C-Class, but what we’ve got so far is only the CLC-Class, a restyled hatchback version of the previous generation C-Class chassis.

Theophilus Chin has whipped up what he thinks the CLE-Class 4-door coupe could look like, with headlamps inspired by the SL-Class. It’s essentially a smaller version of the Mercedes Benz CLS-Class, and the CLS is a 4-door coupe version of the E-Class.

No news anywhere lately about the CLE-Class, so it may not be something that could ever come into existence after all. It was rumoured that the CLE would come with suicide-doors instead of being a proper 4-door car because the car would be much smaller than the E-Class-based CLS and the 4 doors would not look good on it.

A more hardcore and lightweight version of the Mk7 Ford Fiesta (shown above) is in the works, and like its higher performance Focus sibling, it will be called the Ford Fiesta RS. According to Auto Express, the new 7th generation Ford Fiesta will have two high performance versions instead of just the ST, similiar to the line-up planned for its bigger brother, the Ford Focus. The Fiesta will have a “warm” Fiesta ST, as well as an all-out hot hatch Ford Fiesta RS.

The Mk6 Fiesta ST came with a 150 PS 2.0 liter Duratec, so the new Mk7 RS has to top the 150 PS figure. While there are no official details yet, the Mk7 ST is rumoured to come with a new 1.6 liter EcoBoost turbocharged inline-4 engine instead of a large normally aspirated Duratec engine, so it will be very easy to tune up this engine for the RS version. Expect the ST to feature 150 horses or so, and the RS to top out at nearly 200 horsepower.

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Ford Fiesta based on Verve Concept for Geneva 2008
Ford releases 2009 Ford Fiesta video

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It appears that a group of people have been working on a Super 2000 Proton Satria Neo rally car, and the above image sent in by LivinCars is proof that such a race machine is in the works. Yahoo Eurosport UK reports that the people behind this car is most likely Mellors Elliot Motorsport based at Bakewell in the Derbyshire region. Mellors Elliot Motorsport was the company that prepared the Proton PERT that Karamjit Singh raced and won in the Production Car World Championship. This is unconfirmed of course.

No specifications at the moment, but FIA regulations for Super 2000 cars include a maximum power output of 280 horsepower normally aspirated, so it’s just natural that the development team tune up the Neo to produce that amount of power to be competitive. There’s also a maximum displacement limit of 2.0 liters - so it’s not very likely that this will be powered by a Campro 1.6 engine. The engine must be mated to a 6-speed sequential gearbox with control specification made by Sadev, Xtrac or Ricardo.

Source

Ford is reportedly working on a new project called the Raptor, essentially a very powerful Ford F150 with long travel shocks from Fox Racing and a turbocharged V8 from the new “Boss” family. The Fox shock absorbers are similiar to the extra long travel suspension used in Baja 1000 desert racers, and will allow the new Raptor to quickly cross bad terrain without a sweat.

The new Boss family of large V8 engines will start from 6.2 liters, and produce at least 425 horsepower and 576Nm of torque in normally aspirated form. A twin turbo Boss with direct injection reportedly produces about 880Nm of torque. The Boss V8 competes with engines like GM’s 6.2 liter Vortec.

Shown above is a standard Ford F150. The “Raptor” is expected to be wider than the standard truck.