Elfin Cars, the Australian boutique builder, will unveil a new-generation lightweight sports car in August. The car has not a name yet, but will have "electrifying performance and go-kart handling" with a power-to-weight ratio equivalent to a 630-horsepower Holden Commodore.
The new sports car will replace the Type-3 Clubman, a Lotus 7/Caterham-style Clubman that could be bought in a kit for home assembly.
Under the hood there will be Solstice’s 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine that will deliver 260 hp.
The new Elfin will be priced under $60,000.
Holden Special Vehicles today announced the next steps in the seven litre W427 program, including pricing, volume and distribution strategy. Tom Walkinshaw confirmed the price of the W427 will be $150,000 ($142.000 US dollar), plus on road costs, under the current Luxury Car Tax regime.
The build volume has also been confirmed. HSV will build up to 427 W427s, with vehicles being built to order at the Clayton production facility. HSV has finalised the allocation strategy for the initial batch of cars.
Each Australian and New Zealand HSV Dealer (64 in total) will be allocated one W427, as long as they have a firm retail order. Remaining W427s will be allocated to dealers based on 2007 sales figures.
Lastly, Tom Walkinshaw confirmed the final power output figure for the W427 will be 375kW and 640NM of torque. The Holden Special Vehicles W427 will go on sale in August.
Subaru Australia today unveiled the 2008 Liberty GT STI. The Liberty GT STI is powered by the 2.5-litre Boxer engine that develops 260 hp at 6000 rpm and 258 lbs-ft of torque at 2800 rpm.
The 2008 Subaru Liberty GT STI features an STI tuned sports suspension and an STI aerodynamics package, ENKEI lightweight multi-spoke 18" alloy wheels, dual STI twin pipe mufflers, Brembo performance brakes.
On the interior the Liberty GT STI features leather and alcantara front seats, a speedometer featuring STI logo and new STI sill plates.
The new version is available in both sedan and wagon versions. Prices start from $65,990RRP for the sedan version and $67,990RRP for the wagon model.
Ford Racing Australia today revealed the FG01 V8 supercar ahead of the car’s initial debut at Sandown in Melbourne this week-end where it will take to the track for the first time.
Based on Ford’s recently launched FG Falcon XR8 sedan road car, the new Blue Oval weapon was designed and built by major Ford V8 Supercar teams Ford Performance Racing Triple 8 and Stone Brothers Racing.
In development for over 18 months, FG01 was created to meet specific Ford design requirements in addition to fitting the Touring Car Entrants Group "Blueprint specification" and it is now set for a mid-year homologation.
The FG01 build involved a number of complex processes including the floor, cage, internal structural panels and external finish panels.
A major design consideration was to ensure that the maximum amount of BF mechanical components could carry over into the new FG chassis to assist with cost control and minimize redundant parts.
The cage and floor are assembled together in a master jig which provides dimensional points for the body to be built. This method gives structural integrity without relying on exterior panels for safety which allows for quicker and more cost effective crash repair.
FG01 features a strengthened roll cage at the driver’s door area to minimize any side-impact intrusion which combined with the shift in seat position provides an optimum level of driver safety.
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Toyota revealed today the TRD Aurion Pro-Factory Xtreme (Pro-FX), a car with an amazing output of 1743 hp. The car was designed for the biggest event in Australian drag racing: the 2008 Winter nationals.
The TRD Aurion Pro-FX makes the 0 to 60 mph sprint in only 1 second and can hit a top speed of 217 mph.
Former Australian champion Tony Wedlock will debut the car at this weekend’s Australian National Drag Racing Association (ANDRA) Winternationals - the headline event of the 2008 Australian season.
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HSV has announced a new addition to the luxury and performance garage with confirmation that a HSV ’Tourer’ will be launched later this year.
The HSV Tourer will be on sale from October, with specifications similar to the ClubSport R8.
Price and final specifications will be confirmed closer to start of sale. The Tourer will be powered by the new LS3 engine, which is now standard across the HSV V8 fleet.
GM Holden will unveil its new value-packed VE Ute 60th Anniversary Special Editionat the National 4x4 Show in Brisbane this week.
Adding to an already impressive list of standard features including ESP® and 18-inch alloy wheels, the VE Ute 60th Anniversary Special Edition boasts over $2,000# of extra value, including leather faced seats and alloy foot pedals.
Based on the popular SV6 model in Holden’s award winning VE Ute range, the VE Ute 60th Anniversary Special Edition includes the following additional features:
- Onyx leather seat trim
- Bluetooth® connectivity for compatible mobile phones
- Sports profile steering wheel
- 6 disc in dash MP3 compatible CD player
- Alloy foot pedals
- 60th Anniversary floor mats
- 60th Anniversary badge on rear tailgate
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Modern and dynamic styling, seven seats standard in every model, Electronic Stability Program (ESP) standard in every model, European-standard ride and handling, the versatility and seating positions of an SUV, flexible seating arrangements, 5-year/unlimited kilometre warranty for private buyers, great value and a low entry price - the all-new Kia Rondo 7 is a car without equal in the Australian car market.
Rondo 7 is being launched initially with a 2.0-litre version of the same smooth-revving ’Theta’ four-cylinder engine that powers the 2.4-litre Kia Magentis, mated to either a five-speed manual (in LX trim) or Kia’s optional Sport Mode ’intelligent’ four-speed Tiptronic-style automatic transmission.
The twin-cam, four-cylinder 2.0-litre ’Theta’ petrol engine, with continuously variable valve timing (CVVT), produces 142 hp @ 6,000rpm and 189 Newton metres of torque @ 4,250rpm. The Rondo 7’s 2.0-litre petrol engine is a state-of-the-art four-cylinder 16-valve unit that is powerful, quiet and economical. Weight-saving measures include a die-cast aluminium block and a plastic cylinder head cover and intake manifold.
All three models of Rondo 7 - LX, EX and EX Limited - are also available with a four-speed automatic transmission (extra-cost option in LX), fitted with Kia’s Sport Mode system which offers drivers the choice of fully-automatic gear changes or driver-controlled sequential manual selection.
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Mazda Australia today whipped the covers off its brand new Mazda3 MPS rally car ahead of its motorsport debut at next week’s Targa Tasmania.
Australia’s top-selling importer will unleash two Mazda3 MPS rally cars on the country’s pre-eminent tarmac endurance event, held from April 15-20. Professional rally drivers Rick Bates and Alister McRae will spearhead the company’s eighth Targa campaign.
Built under the watchful eye of Mazda Motorsport chief Allan Horsley, the 190kW Mazda3 MPS front-wheel-drive hot hatches will contest the event’s 2WD Showroom competition, travelling 2000km over five gruelling days of competition.
The team’s preparation for the rally commenced this week with Bates, McRae and co-drivers arriving in Tasmania to survey the course. Before the event starts next Tuesday both Bates and McRae will have driven all the daunting stages twice.
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Holden announced today that its special vehicles range also known as HSV will receive the new GM LS3 engine. The 6.2 liter V8 engine capable of developing 425 hp at 6000rpm will be available in dealerships from April. The engine is currently used on the Chevrolet Corvette but it will also fit the new Pontiac GXP.
Although the engine increased its power it also delivers a slight fuel economy improvement using 14.5ltr/100km in manual mode and 14.4ltr/100km in automatic mode. The HSV cars will also receive new 20 inch wheel option available for $2500 and new colour pallete.
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