Crosstour

These are the first official photos of the new Honda Accord Crosstour. The car is based on the award-winning Honda Accord.

The car features a bold front grille, a longer, wider stance and a versatile, spacious cargo area.



The Crosstour will be going on sale later this fall.

The new Bentley Mulsanne unveiled

On their 90th anniversary, Bentley Motors unveiled their new flagship grand tourer - the Mulsanne on the 16th of August at the 2009 Pebble Beach Concours D’Elegance in Monterey, California.

Not much info apart from that it will be powered by a 6.75 litre V8 engine.

According to Dr. Franz-Josef Paefgen, Chairman and Chief Executive of Bentley Motors:

"The challenge we set our engineers was to create a new grand Bentley that would stand as the pinnacle of British luxury motoring, offering the world’s most exclusive driving experience. They have responded to this challenge with real passion and the result is a luxury grand tourer that sets new standards in terms of comfort, effortless performance and hand-crafted refinement – the very qualities for which Bentley is renowned."

Chassis number one was sold at auction by Gooding and Company for US$500,000 at the event.

The Bentley Mulsanne will go on sale from mid 2010 and will also be displayed at the forthcoming IAA Frankfurt Motor Show (15-27th September, 2009).

McLaren MP4-12C unveiled

Formula One team McLaren has unveiled a road car - the McLaren MP4-12C. This car will be built near their group's headquarters in Woking in Surrey. According to McLaren, the factories should employ some 800 people and produce 4,000 cars per year.



The cars will cost approximately £125,000 and £175,000. I don't really agree with McLaren chairman Ron Dennis, when he says that it is an "affordable sports car". I guess it is cheaper than the Ferrari and Porsches. According to news reports, the MP4-12C powered by a 3.8 litre V8 twin turbo engine can accelerate to 60mph from rest in just 3.4 seconds.

The sexy looking car features gull-wing doors.

2010 Fiat Grande Punto and the Chrysler dilemma...

The Grande Punto has just been revised in Europe. Mostly a new front and and nicer interior.
This would make a nice offering in the US. But how much would it be?
It could just be priced too high, like the Astra was for Saturn.

And this is what Fiat is facing now that they are running Chrysler.
Apparently, they just found out (!) what everybody else knew. There isn't much in the pipeline . Chrysler and Dodge have almost no new models coming up. Except a new 300/Charger.
How are they going to keep these brand alive with nothing new?
The easiest thing would be to just rebadge some Fiats, but even that would take over a full year.

And this week, they just announced they want to turn Chrysler into a Cadillac competitor. Really?!?!
That's been what Chrysler has been trying to do for decades. And they always failed.

I just don't know how Fiat will ever revive Chrysler and Dodge.
I personally don't know anyone who would actually buy one (Except the Challenger).

2010/11 Hyundai Sonata

More pictures of the real thing.
So far, this is the Korean version.
We might see small trim differences once it gets over here next year.

Mazda2 coming to the US!

Late next year.

I guess the pressure from the new Fiesta was just too much...

Smaller than "1" BMW coming up?

BMW is apparently working on a car smaller than the 1 series.
Not sure why.
It seems that they want to cover every segment possible lately. Again, not sure why...

Don't they have Mini to come up with smaller cars?
This is just getting weird.

2009 Frankfurt Auto Show

More pictures from the Frankfurt Auto Show

2010 Euro Toyota Land Cruiser/US Lexus GX

This really looks like the 80's are back.
There is nothing wrong with a true off road luxury truck. If you really need one. (99% of people don't)
But it is still 2009. Not 1989.

There should be a way for a brand new truck to look at least current. Especially one that will start at around $60 000 in the US.
Being a truck is not an excuse for such a backward design.
This makes the new GMC Terrain look futuristic.

2010 Nissan Altima Coupe

Looks like the grille might be similar to the new sedan design.
Not sure why they would want to make the coupe more conservative than it is now...

Doesn't look like a worthwhile update. At least from this far away blurry shot.
We'll see the whole thing real soon, stay tuned.

Nissan Altima Coupe test drive

-HOW IT LOOKS.

I have to say, I usually like coupe better than sedans. It has nothing to do about how they drive, but a two door car usually looks better to me...

Plus, they don't make as many. The Altima sedan is a very popular car, and they are everywhere. Not so the coupe.

The car I had for a week had the larger 18 inch wheels. And I think it helps a lot. It just doesn't look as good with the smaller 17 inch.
Maybe the 2010 model will bring new and more attractive wheel designs. It needs it.

Otherwise, I like the design. It's not the best looking coupe out there, but it does look good.





-HOW IT IS INSIDE.

The interior is very similar to the sedan. The dashboard is exactly the same. Which is fine. It is attractive and uses nice soft plastics.
The console isn't so lucky. It is made of hard and cheap looking plastics with visible edges .
Not great.

My car had a black interior with leather. The other choice is the beige/brown dash combo. Something out of the 90's that most Japanese car makers still offer.
This car would look so much better with a cream/black interior. Like some German models...

The seats are great, the driving position is fine, and the Bose stereo sounded really good. It included an iPod plug. Which I hear will be replaced by a USB connection and streaming stereo Bluetooth for the 2010 model.

Like in most coupes, the back seats are OK. But not great.
If you really need more room back there, get the sedan.






-HOW IT DRIVES.

-Ride.
The ride is firm, but always comfortable.

I do have a problem with all the Nissan models based on the D platform, like the Murano.
These cars feel OK, but never super solid for some reason. Unlike the bank vault like feeling you get driving Infiniti models based on another platform.
The Nissan platform just feels a bit light. I guess most people wouldn't notice it, but I do every time.
Small bumps seem to have trouble being absorbed. You feel most small ripples on the road at low speed.
Sure, it could be called "sporty". But to me, it just feels a bit unrefined.
Plus it created a couple of small rattles inside the cabin.

One thing I need to mention is the horrible visibility problem from the driver's seat when looking to your left.
Trying to see if someone is in the next lane.
The interior padding of the pillar behind the door is very thick. So you just "can't see shit" when you turn your head.
You would think someone would have noticed that...

-Steering.
The steering is light, yet precise. But it is too light.
Especially for a car that is supposed to be a bit sportier than the sedan.
I wouldn't mind a bit more effort dialed into it.

Especially considering I was driving the sportiest combo available, with the 3.5 Liter V6 and 6 speed manual.

-Engine.
Once again, the Nissan V6 is a pleasure to drive. This is one of the best engines out there.
It also makes for quite a luxurious feel on the highway. The car is very quiet.

My best mileage was 32MPG on the freeway. While my weekly average turned out to be 21.5 MPG with mostly city driving.
I thought it was really good for a car with plenty of power from a "big" 3.5 Liter V6.

-Transmission.
The 6 speed manual is one of the smoothest I have ever used.
It is very easy to get into any gear, and the clutch is pretty light and forgiving.

A pleasure to drive, every time.


-SO???

I really enjoyed my week with the Altima coupe.
The engine and smooth 6 speed make this car a joy to just pick up and go.
This version starts at $27 000 (Carsdirect has them for about $24 000)
My car's premium package adds about $3000.

Sure, there are a few things like a few cheap interior bits, a couple of rattles. So it's not perfect.
But it's also a good looking coupe for $24 000 with one of the best engine in the business.
There is always a compromise somewhere.

A smile on your face every time I drive is worth a few of these compromises. At least to me...

BMW Vision EfficientDynamics to appear on the high tech horizon

Today is a lucky day for all BMW admirers as you can look at a brand-new model of BMW. Called BMW Vision Efficient Dynamics, this transparent replica appears to be a turbo diesel / plug-in hybrid. Scheduled to be showcased at the Frankfurt show in a few weeks to come, this splendiferous car is able to catapult from 0 to 62 miles per hour in staggering 4, 8 seconds so be ready for stylish high speed driving.

This mind boggling concept car runs on 1, 5 liter turbo diesel engine while producing as much as 163 horse power. Its marvelous hybrid drive system allows simple plugging into a conventional European 220 V power point with a battery making your driving possible for 2, 5 hours while the total drive system’s output equals to 356 horse power with a torque of 590 lb-ft.

The BMW Vision Efficient Dynamics concept car is touted to be able to drive around 31 miles when driven in all-electric mode while its 6, 6 gallon fuel tank boasts a range of 400 miles. The electrical power consumption is 26, 16 kWh per 100 miles. This groundbreaking super car features all-aluminum chassis as well as suspension. LED lighting allows additional power consumption.

The power train of the concept car offers a top speed of up to 155 miles per hour however the super car is able to exceed this speed limit. When the battery is recharged, the electric mode will produce the CO2 level of up to 50 grams per kilometer. The BMW Vision Efficient Dynamics concept car seems to be light weight to show high level aerodynamic performance.