LA 2009: BMW ActiveHybrids get North American debut; 7 Series model priced from $103,12
BMW took advantage of California’s proclivity for greenwashing to give its ActiveHybrid models their North American debuts at the LA Auto Show. Just for good measure they also brought along the incredible Vision Efficient Dynamics sustainable supercar concept. While we know a great deal about BMW’s first true hybrid, the BMW X6 ActiveHybrid, from our first drive, we still had to admire its incredible combination of horsepower and technology, even if the mileage isn’t really spectacular enough to warrant a truly green halo.
The BMW 7 Series ActiveHybrid is a mild hybrid with the electric motor filling one of three roles while in motion. It alternates between being a motivator, a generator and a booster depending on load and demand. It can go 37 mph on the motor alone, it gets 20% better overall mileage than the straight gas engine, and it does the 0-60 trot in just 4.7 seconds thanks to its 455 horsepower and 515 lb-ft of torque. BMW’s Peter Miles did add one bit of information to the Active 7 equation when he announced pricing. The regular wheelbase model will start at $103,125 while the long-wheelbase “L” model will start at $107,025.
Categories: BMW, Convertibles, Hybrids/Alternative, LA Auto Show, LA Motor Show, Los Angeles Auto Show, Los Angeles Motor Show, Sedans/Saloons Tags:
2011 Audi A8 revealed amidst the stars at Design Miami 2009
Audi launched its all-new 2011 Audi A8 at the Fountainbleu Hotel in Miami Beach, where the automaker is a major sponsor of Art Basel December 3-9, the sister event of a show in Switzerland. Actress Lucy Liu emceed the gala.
The Audi A8 launches in North America about this time next year, a few months after the summer ’10 release in Europe. While Western Europe gets a 3.0-liter TDI V-6, a 3.2-liter FSI V-6, and 4.2-liter turbodiesel and gas direct-injection V-8s, we get the car only with that latter engine, upgraded to 372 horsepower and 328 pound-feet.
The direct injection allows a 12.5:1 compression ratio and Audi’s “modular efficiency system” converts kinetic energy to electric power, buffered in the battery, upon deceleration. A computer monitors actuators for the ideal distribution of the heat flows between the engine, transmission and interior. At cold start, the system uncouples the engine temporarily from the cooling circuit to shorten the warm-up phase with its high friction losses.
Categories: Audi, Sedans/Saloons Tags:
Toyota running all North American plants on overtime to meet demand
For over a decade, Toyota had been frantically building up its North American infrastructure to build more and more cars and trucks. The plan was going smoothly until the new car market collapsed, leaving barren plants in its wake. But it appears as though Toyota is getting back on its feet. Automotive News now reports that the Japanese automaker is now running all of its North American plants on overtime to meet demand and replenish depleted vehicle reserves.
Among the Toyota plants cranking at full steam is the company’s Woodstock, Ontario plant that produces the Toyota RAV4. Compact crossovers are hot in the market right now and the Japanese automaker is reportedly looking to add a second shift to crank out more copies of its popular (not so) little CUV. Adding a second shift to the facility will result in 800 new hires at the plant; news that is sure to be well received in the region. The plan is to get the workers trained and have both shifts running at an annualized rate of 150,000 vehicles by April 1. Toyota has even increased Corolla production by adding Saturday shifts at its soon-to-close New United Motor Manufacturing Inc. facility in Fremont, California. In spite of the increased demand for its efficient compact, Toyota reportedly doesn’t plan to reverse its plan to close the factory by the end of March, and the move could be a case of Toyota stockpiling production as it adjusts to life without NUMMI.
Categories: Crossovers/CUVs, Sedans/Saloons, Toyota Tags:
Review: 2010 Suzuki Kizashi GTS is up for the Challenge
The 2010 Suzuki Kizashi will change the way you look at Suzuki. To put it bluntly, the Kizashi is the strongest evidence yet that Suzuki’s automotive division is no longer operating on autopilot in the States. And what’s more, the brand is showing serious confidence. Consider the vehicles against which the automaker wants you to cross shop its Kizashi: the Acura TSX and Audi A4.
Suzuki has launched a promotion called the Kizashi Test Drive Challenge that will pay $100 to anyone who test drives a Kizashi and still decides to buy the more expensive TSX or A4. After spending some quality time with the model, we don’t envy those potential Acura and Audi customers who are unprepared for how difficult their decision is going to be.
For the longest time, Suzuki subsisted in the U.S. market by selling mostly rebadged versions of other automakers’ vehicles, all of them forgettable and none exceptional. Historically, the brand has been wedded to General Motors through products like the three-row XL7 that is built atop GM’s ubiquitous Theta platform, to say nothing of the Forenza and Reno, versions of models developed and built by GM’s South Korean subsidiary, GM Daewoo. More recently there’s the Suzuki Equator mid-size pickup, a refaced Nissan Frontier introduced in 2008 that doesn’t even appear on the company’s U.S. website anymore.
Categories: Auto Review, Car Review, Sedans/Saloons, Suzuki Tags:
LA 2010: Nissan Ellure concept previews future sedan design
Nissan calls its Ellure concept “the sedan re-imagined,” previewing what sort of design is possible for its forthcoming four-door range. This concept is at once elegant and aggressive, with styling elements that don’t stray too far from what the automaker is currently putting out. Those headlamps, for example, use the same fin-like design of the taillights on the 370Z and Juke, and are a more forward-thinking version of what we currently see on the Maxima.
Let’s be clear, though – there are plenty of elements on the Ellure that are purely concept car spec. The large, 21-inch wheels and rear-hinged rear doors, for example – stylish and sleek, yes, but hardly practical for future production sedans. The same thing can be said for the interior, which uses suede seats, “floating” headrests, red floors and red pedals (why don’t more cars have these?).
The Ellure is powered by a supercharged 2.5-liter inline-four and a 25-kilowatt electric motor, mated to the automaker’s Xtronic CVT and a front-wheel-drive layout. Nissan says the concept uses regenerative braking and an advanced drive-by-wire electric/hydraulic steering system to ensure that the Ellure is as involving as possible for drivers out on the road.
No, the Ellure won’t be destined for production, but we’re eager to see how this sexy new sedan influences Nissan’s future product portfolio.
[Source: Nissan]
More about Nissan Cars on WorldCarfans:
+ LA 2010: Nissan unveils fourth generation Quest; swagger-wagon wars heat up
+ 2011 Nissan Versa gets priced, includes minor updates
+ Report: Nissan offering 2010 “model version up” kit to older JDM GT-R owners
+ 2011 Nissan Juke details, specs spilled ahead of New York
+ New York 2010: 2011 Nissan Juke is actually pretty neat
Categories: Auto Show, LA Auto Show, Nissan, Sedans/Saloons Tags: LA Auto Show, Nissan
LA 2010: 2011 Kia Optima Hybrid is good-lookin green-drivin
Kia is just now beginning to roll out its sexy new 2011 Optima, with the 2.4-liter GDI version priced from only $18,995. Much like its sister car, the Hyundai Sonata, the Optima will be offered with a turbocharged 2.0-liter engine in EX and SX trims, and here at the LA Auto Show, the Kia has unveiled its third member of the Optima family – the Hybrid.
Much like the Sonata Hybrid, the gas/electric Optima uses the same 2.4-liter direct-injected inline-four, mated to an electric motor. Combined with a six-speed automatic transmission, the Optima Hybrid will yield 40 miles per gallon on the highway – besting its eco-minded competitors, the Ford Fusion Hybrid and Toyota Camry Hybrid.
Categories: Auto Show, Hybrid, Kia, LA Auto Show, Sedans/Saloons Tags: Kia, LA Auto Show
LA 2010: 2012 Buick LaCrosse eAssist brings efficiency to the full-size luxury sedan
Full-size luxury sedans are typically guilty pleasures since they can be either coddling, comfort machines or all-out speed freaks. One thing they haven’t been is fuel efficient… until now. Making its debut at the 2010 LA Auto Show is the 2012 Buick LaCrosse eAssist.
Power for the LaCrosse eAssist is provided by a 2.4-liter four-cylinder gasoline engine with direct-injection. It gains an efficiency boost through the addition of a 115V lithium-ion battery pack, which allows the fuel system to take a nap during certain conditions. These two power systems working together, along with the six-speed automatic transmission, allow the Buick LaCrosse eAssist to achieve 25 miles per gallon in the city and 37 mpg on the highway – a 25% percent improvement compared to the 2.4-liter flying solo. Consider this the reinvention of GM’s long lost mild hybrid system.
Pricing for the 2012 Buick LaCrosse eAssist is expected to start around $30,000. What’s more, the hybrid system will be fitted standard to all LaCrosse models equipped with the 2.4-liter Ecotec engine.
[Source: General Motors]
Categories: Auto Show, Buick, Hybrid, LA Auto Show, Sedans/Saloons Tags: Buick, LA Auto Show
LA 2010: 2012 Buick Regal GS mildy impresses, majorly disappoints
Alright, so the 2012 Buick Regal GS isn’t the Americanized version of the 325-horsepower, all-wheel-drive Opel Insignia OPC we were once promised. Still, this sports sedan has a turbocharged and direct injected 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine that produces 255 horsepower and 295 pound-feet of torque, comes standard with a six-speed manual transmission and has enough visual flare to certainly give the impression of fast. It even sports Buick’s trick HiPerStrut front suspension to reduce torque steer through the front wheels.
It might not be exactly the car we were hoping for, but it should still prove to be a welcome addition to the Buick lineup when it goes on sale next year. Pricing has yet to be announced, but considering the Regal itself is priced as an entry-level luxury sedan, we expect the GS model to cost closer to $40,000 than $30,000.
The Regal GS made its official debut today at the LA Auto Show, and we’ve got a full gallery of high-res shots live from the show floor for you.
Categories: Auto Show, Buick, LA Auto Show, Sedans/Saloons Tags: Buick, LA Auto Show
2010 Detroit Auto Show Preview: 2011 BMW 740 brings six-cylinder power back to the 7
When the latest generation of BMW‘s big 7 Series went on sale in the U.S. early this year, buyers had a choice of either the marvelous twin-turbocharged and direct-injected 400-hp 4.4-liter V8 or the supremely impressive twin-turbo, 535-hp V12. A hybrid version of the 7 also goes on sale here in a few months, still mated to the V8. Since day one, European drivers have also had a pair of six-cylinder options fueled by either gasoline or diesel. BMW still hasn’t committed to a 7 Series diesel for the U.S., but today has confirmed will be getting the sweet gas-powered I-6.
The 740i and 740LI both come to the U.S. market in spring 2010 powered by a twin-turbocharged 3.0-liter six. In 740 trim, the six cranks out 315 hp and 330 pound-feet, up a bit from the 300/300 ratings in the smaller 335i. The 740 engine does retain the direct injection and variable valve timing on both intake and exhaust. This new model also marks the U.S. debut of brake energy regeneration on a non-hybrid BMW. Interestingly, BMW has opted to retain the 7′s 6-speed automatic transmission rather than upgrading to the new 8-speed found in the hybrid and the new 5 Series.
Categories: Auto Show, BMW, Detroit Auto Show, Detroit Motor Show, Sedans/Saloons Tags:
Review: 2010 Aston Martin Rapide is a modern day Femme Fatale
Do you like noir? No, not the perfume, the literary and film genre. You know, hard-boiled crooks, wise-cracking private eyes, Los Angeles under cover of night and blondes so blonde they’ll kill you dead. Those blondes are, of course, are better known as femme fatales, and in truth, the color of their hair doesn’t really matter. Think Theda Bera, Rita Hayworth, Mary Astor, Barbara Stanwyck and Marlene Dietrich. And let’s not forget the lovely Lana Turner – she’s the one, in a case of life imitating art, with the daughter that killed Mickey Cohen’s strongman/goon Johnny Stompanato. In other words, women so pretty you’d throw your life away just so they know you’re throwing your life away.
Here’s the free, online-encyclopedia definition of femme fatale in case you’re still wondering: “An alluring and seductive woman whose charms ensnare her lovers in bonds of irresistible desire, often leading them into compromising, dangerous and deadly situations.”
Let’s state up front that the 2010 Aston Martin Rapide is not, to our knowledge, unsafe in any way, shape or form. But man, oh man, is it seductive enough to make us overlook every single bad thing about it. That, or walk into an uncovered manhole cover while staring at it. Anyhow, “irresistible desire” and “compromising situations” are this British superstar’s raison d’etre. Philip Marlowe would eat his fedora just for a ride. Thankfully, we had to perform no such theatrics: Aston Martin simply let us borrow their car.
Categories: Aston Martin, Auto Review, Sedans/Saloons Tags: Aston Martin
