General Motors have announced that Pontiac is to reveal the highly-anticipated Pontiac G8 GXP at the forthcoming New York International Auto Show. The new flagship of Pontiac’s GXP performance series features 19-inch aluminum wheels with P245/40R19 tires, a four-wheel independent suspension that is fully adjustable, and small-block V8 engine that produces in excess of 400 horsepower!
Powering the Pontiac G8 GXP is the newest member of General Motor’s small-block V8 family, the 6.2-liter LS3 V8 engine, that is currently rated at 402 horsepower and 402 lb-ft of torque. The LS3 engine features a revised, larger-bore aluminum cylinder block with cast-in-place iron cylinder liners, high-flow cylinder heads; larger-diameter pistons; unique camshaft and camshaft timing; revised valvetrain with offset intake rocker arms; high-flow intake manifold; and high-flow fuel injectors. Pontiac claims a 0 to 60 mph performance time of about 4.7 seconds, and a quarter-mile time of 13.0 seconds at 108 mph!
Continue reading ‘The 2009 Pontiac G8 GXP’
In January this year, Audi revealed its stunning mid-engined Audi R8 V12 TDI concept car at the Detroit Auto Show; two months later, Audi are now set to reveal another spectacular Audi R8 concept car - this time it’s the Audi R8 TDI Le Mans at the Geneva International Motor Show! Technically, the Audi R8 TDI Le Mans is the same car as the Audi R8 V12 TDI revealed in Detroit, right down to the diesel powered V12 engine; but finished in Brilliant Red, the Audi R8 TDI Le Mans does have a lot more appeal!
A year ago Fiat revived the legendary Abarth brand when they unveiled the Grande Punto Abarth at the 2007 Geneva Motor Show. The return of the Abarth brand was welcomed by fans of Fiat as Abarth has always been synonymous with Fiat performance and motorsport. This year Fiat fans have more reason to excited as Fiat will unveil the Fiat 500 Abarth at the 2008 Geneva International Motor Show in March, and have announced that the Abarth & C. Spa company has set up new premises in Turin, Italy.
Audi have released the details of the 2009 Audi A4 Avant prior to its debut at the Geneva Motor Show next month. As the estate version of the A4, the Avant is based on the same layout as the sedan, but its five-link front axle has been shifted farther forward to improve axle load distribution. Compared to the current model, the 2009 A4 Avant boasts a sportier design with shortened front overhang. Audi claims that the angled D-posts lend a coupe-like appearance to the A4 Avant, but they’re just seeing things!
A week after Nissan unveiled the GT-R supercar at the Tokyo Motor Show last year, the company announced that a more powerful Nissan GT-R, the GT-R V-Spec was on the cards. Apparently the folks at AutoExpress have uncovered more information on the Nissan GT-R V-Spec. It seems the V-Spec will be a massive 300 pounds lighter than the stock GT-R, while it’s VR38DETT twin-turbo engine will be tuned and refined to produce a maximum of 550 hp! That’s a massive 77 more hp with an equally substantial 300 pound decrease in weight, making the V-Spec is a serious supercar with a 0-62 mph acceleration time substantially lower than blistering 3.5 seconds of the stock Nissan GT-R, which already annihilates the Porsche 911 GT3 time of 4.1 seconds! That alone should make the GT-R V-Spec the supercar! No doubt, the Nissan engineers are designing the V-Spec to break the Nürburgring circuit record for production cars and will be aiming at a lap time of less than 7 minutes and 25 seconds!
After almost 20 years, Nissan is taking its Infiniti range of luxury performance cars to the tough Western European market where it will compete against BMW, Mercedes Benz and Audi. To mark this occasion, Infiniti will debut the second generation of the Infiniti FX performance crossover on the eve of the 78th International Geneva Motor Show at a private ceremony to be attended by Mr. Carlos Ghosn, President and CEO Nissan Motor Co. Ltd. The V8 powered Infiniti FX crossover will make its official debut at the Geneva Motor Show on 5 March 2008, making it the first Infiniti to have its world premier outside of the USA! Infiniti will also unveil its line-up of performance cars to be introduced in the European market together with the second generation FX, from the last quarter of 2008.
BMW have given the motorsport orientated BMW 1-Series tii concept car its North American debut at the Chicago Auto Show earlier this week. The BMW 1-Series tii coupe pays homage to the 2002 tii coupe that was produced from 1968 to 1976; the performance model in the 2002 range that is credited for creating the compact sport sedan category. It is the first BMW vehicle to be given the “tii” badge since the 2002tii ceased production in 1974.
Mitsubishi Motors are set to reveal the revised 2009 Mitsubishi Eclipse at the Chicago Auto Show later this week. Introduced in 1989, the Eclipse has become a favorite of the ‘import cars’ and 
The latest rumor doing the rounds in the automotive world suggests that Nissan is working on an updated Z-car with a new engine and a possibly a new facelift. The rumors have it that the updated Z-car will feature the same engine that currently powers the Infiniti G37 Coupe and will be revealed at the Paris Motor Show in October.
Mitsubishi Motors has revealed the Concept-RA turbo diesel coupe at the 2008 Detroit Motor Show. The concept car is a sporty two-seat coupe with a transversely mounted diesel engine. Mitsubishi Motors describes the Concept-RA as a “technology showcase” as it features a number of systems already found on the Lancer Evolution X, including the Active Center Differential, Active Yaw Control, Active Stability Control, Mitsubishi Innovative Valve lift and timing with Electronic Control (MIVEC4), all-wheel drive, sports ABS and Mitsubishi’s Twin Clutch SST electronically-controlled manual transmission.