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HOLY SCHNIKES!

Here are millions of dollars of development and thousands of hours of work laid bare for us to ogle. This Corvette caught by Fast-Autos.net forum member, Chikara83, definitely has some trick bits on it and apparently it’s the real deal. There’s a liquid/liquid intercooler perched atop the V8, and where the alternator used to be sits a supercharger. We can’t tell what type of huffer it is, though — positive displacement Roots-type or centrifugal.

The hood and front quarters are wearing camouflage to cover changes in those panels. The low-pressure area behind the front wheels makes the perfect location for extractors, which are likely fed by the high pressure area at the base of the windshield. Together they provide a good path through the engine bay for extra cooling air. That’s a… Read the rest of this entry

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Click above for 8 high-res images

For those wanting a little ray of sunshine in this seemingly endless winter, Volkswagen has a treat for you. The Fahrenheit GTI should be available right now at your local VW dealership. Limited to only 1,200 copies, this sunny flier might be exactly what you’re looking for. If the driving experience doesn’t lighten your mood, the bright orange paint certainly will. Besides the “Fahrenheit” badging and individual vehicle number on the three-spoke steering wheel, this special edition gets the European sport-tuned suspension, 18-inch alloy wheels, mostly leather heated seats and sunroof, as well as all of those spiffy Fahrenheit orange interior accents and matching stitching on the floor mats, DSG boot, brake handle and steering wheel. DSG only on this one, at a starting price of just $27,665. We saw one of these in Chicago and can honestly say that the color pops,… Read the rest of this entry

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click above image to view all the new Hakaze photos

Mazda has had a successful auto show season so far thanks to the warm reception of its first two concepts, the Nagare and . Unveiled at the L.A. and Detroit auto shows respectively, those two concepts were admittedly as far from production ready as you can get. Mazda’s third and final concept for this show season, the Hakaze, is said to be the only one of the three that could be made production ready in a relatively short amount of time. Well, we brought you a large gallery of images showing the development and design team behind the Hakaze concept already, but there were only two exterior shots of the vehicle and no interior shots in that batch of snaps. KickingTires.com has come across almost a dozen additinal shots that show the Hakaze in real world… Read the rest of this entry

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Yes, we know, it wasn’t that long ago we reported Chrysler Group President Tom LaSorda saying Chery would not build the Hornet show car, but rather supply one of its own models for sales as a Dodge-branded small car in the Chrysler Group’s product portfolio. Now Autoweek is reporting that Chrysler is none too happy with Chery’s weak efforts to improve the production quality of its own cars. So instead of having Chery supply one of its own models, Chrysler may go ahead on its own with development of the Hornet Concept. The Hornet would still be built by Chery in China, but Chrysler would help the Chinese automaker select suppliers for the production Hornet that meet a satisfactory quality standard.

A Chery spokesman would not confirm the Hornet’s production, and a Chrysler spokesman said the deal is still in the early stages and… Read the rest of this entry

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We (and many of you) were blown away by Acura’s Advanced Sports Car Concept when it was unveiled at NAIAS in January. Though we were a bit disappointed the concept was only a non-running turntable tease, Honda assured everyone that an improved, closer-to-production show car was in the works for the October Tokyo show.

Winding Road says its sources have heard the contrary, that Honda is going back to the high-performance drawing board to come up with a more super supercar. Word is the ASC just isn’t impressing as many people as it needs to be. Perhaps Honda management saw the ASC wasn’t its company’s best effort, and instead of dumping the project entirely (like Chrysler did with the ME Four-Twelve or Ford with the GR-1), it’s committing the resources needed to create something truly special in the $100,000+ sport… Read the rest of this entry

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Click the photo for high-res gallery of the Chrysler test ride

The Jeep off-road test ride at the just-closed Chicago Auto Show turned out to be very popular with attendees, who showed their approval by voting it the best exhibit of the show. The test ride allows people to climb in a Trail-Rated Jeep with a driver and experience traverse boulders, logs, huge potholes, and steep hills all within the confines (is that an appropriate term for the cavernous McCormick Place?) of the show hall. Chrysler also had test rides set up for their passenger cars and trucks. Check out this previous post with videos of some of the other test rides, and check out the gallery to see Jeep ride.

[Source: Chrysler]

Gallery:

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Ouch. A 21-year-old woman who was allegedly driving too fast apparently lost control of her Mercury SUV and skidded through a yard before going airborne and landing in the garage of another home next door. When the Mountaineer came to rest, it had inadvertently unpimped the rides of one Frank Taylor. Taylor’s beloved 1980 Corvette and his brand new BMW were parked inside the garage at the time. The cars were given a custom body makeover courtesy of the Merc’s undercarriage. Police suspect that drugs and/or alcohol may have played a part in the incident. Although the driver wasn’t injured, the passenger was, and the young lady behind the wheel will most likely be hurting in a different way when charges are filed.

Thanks for the tip, Jeremy!

[Source: KMOV TV]

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Very sad story here. French authorities are beginning an investigation into working conditions at Renault’s technical design center, following three suicides among the workforce there. All three have occured since October, when one worker jumped to his death from the fifth floor of the complex’s main building. Another worker drowned himself in January, and most recently, an employee was found dead in his home who left a suicide note blaming difficulties at work for his demise.

The CFDT workers union has issued a statement outlining how Renault’s recent restructuring has led to increased pressure among the workers, enough apparently to push some over the edge. The union urged the company to evaluate the working conditions of its employees, which must be incredibly stressful. As Renault has recently seen a drop in profits due to an aging lineup and rising costs for raw materials, we can only imagine that the… Read the rest of this entry

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click above image to view high-res gallery of n2a’s entire lineup

We’ve seen the works of n2a (no two alike) around, most recently at the 2006 SEMA Show in Las Vegas. This bespoke coach builder will take a Chevy Corvette or Kappa car and completely reskin it to create a head-turning fusion of retro design cues and modern day engineering. The 789 is perhaps n2a’s most well known product. It’s named after the three Chevy model years from which it draws inspiration: 1957, 1958 and 1959. A turnkey version of the 789 costs about $135,000, which is decidedly very unretro.

Check out n2a’s other two models after the jump and feel free to study the design cues of each car in our high-resolution gallery.

[Source: n2a via GMInsideNews]

Gallery:

The Wildcat is another model from n2a, though a running model… Read the rest of this entry

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This isn’t officially official, but hearsay confirmation has the Jetta Wagon (Golf Variant) bowing at the Geneva show. The Jetta Wagon is expected to land in the US later this year, and we hope it’ll drive a surge in wagon interest. We’ve seen a preview of the basic shape in the form of the Skoda Octavia Scout. We think the Jetta/Golf has a smoother, more attractive face, and without the heavy plastic cladding, the car looks much lighter on its feet. We wouldn’t mind the addition of a GLI Wagon to the model range, either. That would make the MkV platform attractive to folks who want a little spice in their ride, but need even more cargo versatility.

Speaking of versatility, a Jetta Wagon is the perfect size for buyers currently opting for soft-roaders like the CR-V or RAV-4, though both of those have grown considerably… Read the rest of this entry