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Spy Shots: Revamped Audi Q7 snapped in Atlanta
Cellphone cameras and the internet give pretty much anyone with a sharp eye the potential to be an automotive spy photographer.
Fourtitude/Car Lounge member AutoUnion32 has snagged what looks to be Audi's refreshed Q7 wearing S-Line trim while cruising along in Atlanta traffic. The subtly-updated Q is expected in showrooms as a 2011 model. The look of the more aggressive front and rear fascias, as well as the quarry's large alloy wheels, are what lead us down the S-Line speculation path. There's talk of the 3.0-liter TFSI mill taking over base engine duties, but that'll likely occur after this refresh drops. Thanks to tipster Teg!
Gallery:Audi Q7 facelift
[Source: Fourtitude]
Ratan Tata: Jaguar/Land Rover needs 500 million from the UK government to prevent layoffs
Ratan Tata bought Jaguar and Land Rover (JLR) expecting to pick them up and help them fly. Instead, as with nearly every other car manufacturer, he's having to dig them out of a deepening hole. From last December through next month, 1,800 employees have either been laid off, released or asked to leave. According to Tata, if the UK government doesn't give JLR ?500 million ($715 million USD) in loan guarantees, more people will have to go.
The government appears to be passing on the request, having already given Land Rover a ?27 million ($38 million USD) loan to help it create the LRX. Even as the government is continuing to help JLR secure bank financing, the line on JLR's new request for loan guarantees is that “the primary responsibility for short-term financing or longer-term restructuring rests with the parent company.” Hat tip to Leonard
Gallery:Land Rover
Retro Comparo: Fourtitude puts S5 against Ur-Quattro
Fourtitude has conjured up an original, red 1985 Audi Quattro and yoked it next to a 2009 S5 to see how the two pull their loads. Of course, with 160 hp, a curb weight of 3,115 pounds (U.S. spec) and 58/42 weight distribution, the original Quattro and its Road & Track-timed run of 8.3 seconds from 0-60 can't compare straight-up with the S5. But historically, the Quattro was the beast that has made the S5 – and perhaps even the RS4 and R8 – a natural progression over Audi's last 27 years.
The handmade Quattro cost $5,000 more than a Porsche when it was new, and the few who own them would tell you it was worth it. Yet while the $56,840 S5 has the Quattro beat on numbers,… Read the rest of this entry
Bob Lutz: Auto exec, fighter pilot, Marine… master thespian?!
Admittedly, we've always known that Bob Lutz has a flair for the dramatic. The from-the-gut talkin', hard-drivin', fast-flyin,' General Motors vice chairman has always been good for a juicy quote, and although he is retiring soon, that doesn't mean Lutz is stepping out of the limelight completely.
As the story goes, the whiskey-tinged vocals of Lutz will soon grace the stage of Detroit's Jazz Caf? at Music Hall for a star turn in A.R. Gurney's family comedy “Ancestral Voices.” The play is centered around a three-generation Buffalo family, and is set between 1935 and 1942. Lutz is reportedly taking the stage for the first time since high school, and he'll be a full-fledged member of the cast, right alongside Tony and Emmy award winners Edward Hermann and Elaine Stritch.
While it doesn't look like The Golden Gut is pursuing a new career, who knows, if things go… Read the rest of this entry
VIDEO: Honda builds giant LED display out of Insights for commercial
The new Honda Insight, while not technically a full parallel hybrid like the Prius (it can cruise on electric power alone but not accelerate), will nevertheless be cross shopped heavily with the heavy weight from Toyota. The Insight's main selling point is its price, which starts under $20,000, but you wouldn't know that from Honda's first Insight ad.
The commercial, called 'Let it Shine', was created by the Wieden+Kennedy Amsterdam and uses a bank of Insights parked in a grid near the mountains as pixels in a giant LED-like display. When the sun goes down, the headlights begin flickering on and off to create a cutesy animation to the tune of “This Little Light of Mine”.
It's the same kind of creative marketing we've come to expect from Honda, which scored its biggest commercial hit with a Honda Accord commercial that showed a Rube Goldberg-like machine created… Read the rest of this entry
BREAKING: Volvo design chief Steve Mattin leaves company
Details are scarce at the moment, but we have learned that Volvo's award-winning design director, Steve Mattin, has left the company. While no further details are immediately available (why he left, where he is headed, possible successors, etc.), Dan Johnston, Volvo's East Coast PR manager confirmed the news to us after placing a call to his counterparts in Sweden this afternoon.
U.K.-born Mattin has been Volvo's design director since May of 2005 and was instrumental in creating designs like the C30, XC60, and most recently, the S60 Concept from Detroit. Mattin joined the Swedish automaker after coming over from (then) DaimlerChrysler, where he was employed for 17 years. Mattin left DCX as the company's senior design manager after having a hand in vehicles as wide-ranging as the SL, SLK, SLR, R-Class, M-Class, and the Maybach line.
We will probably have to wait until Monday for further details, but sit… Read the rest of this entry
Mercedes-Benz SL63 AMG returns as F1 safety car for 2009
AMG has been involved in Formula 1 for well over a decade now, starting with a Mercedes-Benz C36 AMG serving as the safety car back in 1996. Most recently, the SL63 AMG earned the spot last year, and it is returning for 2009 to set the pace at each F1 race this year. To ensure that it's capable of performing its duties in any situation, the car has been fitted with quite a few upgrades, including an upgraded coilover suspension system, a three-stage traction control system, massive composite brakes – 15.4 inches up front and 14.2 inch in the rear – and additional coolers for the oil, transmission, coolant, and power steering. The overall weight of the car has also been reduced by 485 pounds thanks to carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic body components and the removal of the convertible top mechanism. Follow the jump for more details in the press… Read the rest of this entry
n2a Motors previews its retro styled Stinger Corvette
n2a Motors have made quite a name for themselves over the past few years, designing and building unique coachbuilt cars like the 789 and more recently the Anteros. They were kind enough to send us some renderings and clay model photos of their next upcoming project dubbed the “Stinger”, which takes styling cues from the '63-'67 Corvettes. Like the aforementioned 789 and Anteros, the Stinger will be based on the C6 Corvette and utilizes its chassis and powertrain. That's where the similarities end, though, as the car receives all new carbon composite body panels, custom interior, wheels and exhaust system. The standard Corvette with its 430-hp V8 is used for the base model, but customers can use a Z06 or a ZR1 as a donor vehicle, as well. n2a is currently taking deposits to reserve a serial number, with production planned to start in October of this year.… Read the rest of this entry
Ferrari Web Site Gets a Redesign
(Photo courtesy of Ferrari of North America)
MARANELLO, Italy — Ferrari will go live this Sunday with its redesigned Web site, Ferrari.com just in time for the start of the 2009 Formula 1 season, which kicks off in Melbourne with the Australian Grand Prix.
Ferrari has completely revised the graphic design and loaded the site with new content, including more than 500 articles, nearly 2,200 images, 600 video clips and 250 spec sheets. With the usual hyperbole, the company describes the site as “a thrilling virtual gateway to the world of the Prancing Horse.”
The space is divided among production cars and technology and Ferrari's motorsports activities, with the focus on the Scuderia in F1. A private section of the site is reserved exclusively for access between the company and its clients.
In addition, visitors can take a virtual tour of the Ferrari complex via the… Read the rest of this entry
2009 Mercedes-Benz SL63 AMG Official F1 Safety Car Makes Debut This Weekend
Photos
Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Estate Official F1 Medical Car. (Photo courtesy of Mercedes-Benz)
MELBOURNE, Australia — Look for two special AMG vehicles to make their appearance at this weekend's Australian Grand Prix. The 2009 Mercedes-Benz SL63 AMG Official F1 Safety Car and the 2009 Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Estate Official F1 Medical Car were unveiled on Friday by Daimler.
These aren't AMG vehicles that the general public can order. In fact, only a combined total of four have been built — one each, and two replacement vehicles. They are designed to provide aid “whenever the safety of a race is threatened by accidents, adverse weather conditions or other hazardous situations,” the automaker said in a statement.
The two are impressive performers on the racetrack. The 2009 Safety Car is equipped with a 525-horsepower AMG 6.3-liter V8 that rockets it from zero to 60 mph in less than 4.4… Read the rest of this entry
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