Infiniti is going to add a new hybrid version to the QX60 premium crossover lineup. This model will make its world debut at the 2013 New York Auto Show. The new QX60 Hybrid will be priced $3,000 above the non-hybrid models, meaning the price will start at about $63,000.
The QX60 Hybrid will combine a 2.5-liter supercharged engine with a 15 kW (20 horsepower) electric motor connected to an advanced CVT (Continuously Variable Transmission) and it will produce an estimated 250 horsepower. The electric motor will take its energy from a compact Lithium-ion battery, but the model will also feature an Intelligent Regenerative Braking system that partially recharges the battery during braking.
The model will be offered with advanced technologies like Backup Collision Intervention (BCI) and Around View Monitor to help keep you safe.
Full details on the 2014 Infiniti QX60 Hybrid will be unveiled during the car’s debut at the 2013 New York Auto Show.
The press days at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show end today, so it’s time to focus on the second auto show of the month: the 2013 New York Auto Show. General Motors announced a lineup of five world premieres, plus one North American debut.
While the North American debut will obviously be the new 2014 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Convertible, as for the five world premieres things aren’t very clear. We do know that Chevrolet has prepared a revision for the 2014 Chevrolet Camaro that, according to the first details "advances the design and performance attributes." This may be one of the five world premieres.
We expect three of them to consist of two Buick models and one Cadillac. The two Buick models will most like be redesigned 2014 Regal and LaCrosse sedans, while the Cadillac model is believed to be the new generation CTS luxury saloon. So, that leaves just one model lingering and your guess is as good as ours on that one. There are reports that this will be the Chevy SS, but that was already displayed to the public in February.
Full details will revealed during the car’s official debuts in New York.
We know that everyone’s attention is now focused on the 2013 Geneva Motor Show, but right after that the New York Auto Show will open its doors. This is where Chrysler will unveil the successor to the current Liberty. We say the successor because the company still has to decide if the "Liberty" name will be kept or a new name will be adopted.
The new model will be smaller and lighter than the new Grand Cherokee, but it will deliver the same off-road capacities of its big brothers in the Jeep lineup. One of the major updates will include a new independent rear suspension system - as revealed by the prototypes that were caught testing.
Along with the new-generation Liberty, Chrysler will also unveil 47 all-new or significantly refreshed models over the next four years, six of which will come from Alfa Romeo. It is rumored that Jeep will contribute with a new-generation Wagoneer, plus an entry level model set to be produced in Italy.
We know that Jeep has been working on a new smaller SUV for quite some time now, but everyone expected this new model to be the new-generation Liberty built on an Alfa Romeo platform. Instead, rumors point toward Jeep deciding to bring back the ”Cherokee” name, and as you can see from this leaked image, it looks like no other Jeep.
The first thing you will notice is the odd headlight design that combines narrow lights on the top with larger bulbs next to the grille. When viewed from the side, it looks a little bit like the Isuzu Axiom - a car that enjoyed relative success, despite its odd looks. In general, the new Cherokee features a more futuristic look and no doubt is more daring than any other Jeep we have ever seen.
The new Cherokee will be based on the Alfa Giulietta, but with all the modifications needed to transform it into a real off-road model. The model is expected to receive a 3.2-liter V-6 engine, while a 2.0-liter four-cylinder diesel engine will be offered for exported models.
The new Cherokee will be unveiled next month at the New York Auto Show.
Believe it or not, Subaru doesn’t have a single hybrid model in its lineup, but according to Kenichi Yamamoto, director of product management and coordination at Subaru of America, things are going to change. This change is set to start in March at the 2013 New York Auto Show, as Suby will unveil its first hybrid model. He made the confirmation in an interview with The Detroit Bureau, when he confirmed that parent company, Fuji Heavy Industries, is indeed working on a hybrid model.
This move shouldn’t be any surprise to anyone, considering other Japanese companies, like Toyota, Honda and Nissan, already offer plenty of hybrid vehicles.
While Yamamoto offered no other details on the hybrid drivetrain, it will most likely be inspired by the drivetrain in the Subaru Advanced Tourer Concept, which was unveiled at the 2011 Tokyo Motor Show. This was a hybrid vehicle that combined a 2.0-liter turbocharged inline-four engine with an electric motor.
We uncertain which model will be the first to feature this hybrid drivetrain, but it has been rumored that the honor will go to the Forester SUV. By 2015, however, we expect to see the same treatment applied to most of the models in the Suby lineup, because Subaru has promised to boost its fleet fuel economy by 30 percent.
We’ll keep an eye on this topic and see if anything of interest comes of it. Maybe a performance hybrid model will be spawned by this new development.
The anticipated reveal of the replacement for the Acura RL has finally made its debut at the 2012 New York International Auto Show. The all-new Acura RLX will make its production debut in early-2013, as a 2014 model year, giving Honda’s luxury lineup a head start for 2014.
We were all starting to wonder exactly what was in store for the RLX, since Acura announced its debut. Some of the questions that arose were around its power plant and whether or not this would simply be a restyled RL with an “X” on the end of its nameplate.
Acura answered all of those pertinent questions and then some at the auto show, as it pulled the sheet off of the new RLX and surprised everyone with a vehicle that bears little to no resemblance to its predecessor, something Honda Motor Company does not typically do. For the most part, Hondas tend to evolve rather slowly, with the exception of the latest Civic model, and rarely do we see big-time changes.
This all-new sedan is set to do battle with two newly redesigned imports, both of which debuted at the same auto show. On one side, you have the completely refreshed Toyota Avalon and on the other side, you have the redesigned Lexus ES 300h.
Can the RLX possibly fend off these two sister vehicles?
UPDATE 02/20/2013: Acura announced today pricing list for the 2014 RLX set to go on sale at a starting price of $48,450. Still, the car can get pretty expensive when adding an Advance Package; in this case price will start from $60,450.
Next to the road-going version of the SRT Viper at the 2012 New York Auto Show was the SRT Viper GTS-R - a model that marks SRT Viper Racing team’s return to the American Le Mans Series (ALMS) in 2012. There will be two GTS-R models entering the competition with four drivers currently being signed to drive including Dominik Farnbacher, from Ansbach, Germany; Marc Goossens from Geel, Belgium; Ryan Hunter-Reay from Dallas; and Kuno Wittmer from Montreal.
The GTS-R racing version will be based on the standard Viper, but the model will be updated for track use. The GTS-R version was built in cooperation with Riley Technologies, based in Mooresville, N.C. Both models will race on Michelin GT tires.
"Racing has been a significant part of the illustrious history of Viper not only with wins on the track, but also in the continued development of the street cars – and our new 2013 SRT Viper models are proof of those lessons learned," said Ralph Gilles, President and CEO – Street and Racing Technology Brand and Motorsports, Chrysler Group LLC. "Now with our new team and the launch of the GTS-R, we’re excited and proud to begin writing more chapters in the racing history of the Viper later this summer."
UPDATE 07/06/2012: The new SRT Viper GTS-R has been taken to the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course for a new testing session. Check out the sports car in action by clicking on the image above!
UPDATE 07/13/2012: Chrysler announced today that the company will return to the American Le Mans Series with the 2013 SRT Viper GTS-R. The return has been made after 12 years of absence and Chrysler has big hopes for their first racing appearance on Aug. 4 at the Mid-Ohio (Lexington, Ohio). "We’re thrilled to return to the world-class competition in the American Le Mans Series with our flagship American supercar," said Ralph Gilles, President and CEO – SRT Brand and Motorsports, Chrysler Group LLC. ’The new SRT Viper GTS-R represents a rebirth for us on the race track. It epitomizes the best of what our new SRT performance brand represents and showcases the Viper’s natural affinity for road courses. Now the time has finally come to go head-to-head with the best sports car teams from around the world."
UPDATE 08/08/2012: The new SRT Viper GTS-R made its official racing debut at the American Le Mans Series racing at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. According to the company, it was a pretty impressive racing debut, with the car finishing in the top ten. The video we’ve added includes brief scenes of the Vipers on the track, and the reactions from SRT Brand President and CEO Ralph Gilles and driver Kuno Wittmer.
South Korean company, Hyundai, brought out the Santa Fe SUV in 2001 and after twelve years on the market, it’s more than ready for its third generation. In the past few weeks, there have been plenty of spy shots of the new Santa Fe, but it’s time now to see it in real life. The new Santa Fe has made its debut at the 2012 New York Auto Show.
For the 2013 model year, the Santa Fe will be offered in three versions: Santa Fe, Santa Fe Sport, and Santa Fe LWB. Customers will also get to choose between three different engines: a 190 HP direct-injection 2.4-liter four-cylinder, a 264 HP turbo 2.0-liter four-cylinder, and a 290 HP 3.3-liter direct-injection V6. The three engines can be combined with a six-speed automatic transmission and an optional all-wheel drive system.
UPDATE 08/07/2012: Hyundai has announced prices for the 2013 Santa Fe. The model will go on sale at a starting price of $24,450 for the standard Santa Fe Sport and will go up to $27,700 for the turbocharged version. Each version will also be available with an all-wheel-drive system which adds another $1,750 to the FWD models. Full pricing details are available after the jump!
UPDATE 10/03/12: An onslaught of new commercials for the Hyundai Santa Fe have been released. Check them all out by clicking on the photo above!
Hit the jump to read more about the 2013 Hyundai Santa Fe.
For the past several decades, Ford has pranced the Lincoln brand around guised as a “luxury car,” but when compared to its competition – BMW, Mercedes, Lexus, and Infiniti – Lincolns just never held up. The lowest of lows came in the early-2000s with the release of the failed and wholly unpopular LS.
With the launching of the MK series of cars and SUVs, Lincoln began pressing the competition, but still fell slightly short of its goal in overtaking them. To help get Lincoln over this hump, Lincoln announced that the MKZ, the automaker’s entry-level sedan, will be completely overhauled for 2013 in hopes to better compete with the aforementioned competition.
We have all been anxiously awaiting the release of Lincoln’s plans to keep its lineup fresh, as it has been on the downward slide in recent years. We saw the concept MKZ and found out that the official design will, in fact, be a near replica of the concept – thank you Lincoln – but we had yet to hear anything about the official production specifications or the 2013 MKZ, at least until now. Ford Motor Company finally released these specs, just over 24 hours before its unveiling at the 2012 New York Auto Show.
Will this update be enough to launch the Lincoln lineup back to its days of dominating the Luxury car front, or will Lincoln have the same fate as GM’s Saturn and Oldsmobile brands, which also received a last minute redesign campaigns to try to save them? Take a look at the full review below to find out.
UPDATE 07/24/2012: Lincoln has released a new configurator, which you can find here, that allows you to select two trim levels from the five available – these include: Premier, Select, Reserve, Preferred with Single Panel Roof and Preferred with Retractable Panoramic Roof – and compare the two. Of course, shortly after releasing the online configurator, Lincoln also released the official pricing information for the MKZ. Hit the jump for full pricing and package details for the 2013 Lincoln MKZ.
Chevrolet Camaro is about to receive some major updates for the 2014 model year, but until then, the 2013 model will be getting a series of improvements to prep it for the following year. The major addition will be a new race-spec 1LE package, which will be joined by an updated interior with a new 7 inch color screen.
The new 1LE package was previewed last year at the 2011 SEMA Auto Show with the Camaro 1LE Concept. It will be distinguished by a new front splitter and rear spoiler painted in smoke gray combined with a unique matte-black hood. The car will sit on a new set of 20" wheels in a 10-spoke design featuring low-gloss black finish and red Brembo brake calipers.
The interior will add a ZL1 flat-bottom steering wheel, trimmed in suede-microfiber and designed for easier heel-and-toe driving on the racetrack. Chevrolet has also installed a quick-acting, short-throw shifter from the ZL1, also trimmed in suede-microfiber.
The new 1LE package will only be available for 1SS and 2SS coupe models and will be powered by a 6.2 liter LS3 V-8 engine that delivers a total of 426 HP and 420 lb-ft of torque. The 1LE is only available with a six-speed manual transmission featuring a standard air-to-liquid cooling system for track use.
The Chevrolet Camaro 1LE will go on sale in Fall 2012.
UPDATE 07/30/2012: The new Camaro 1LE has scored an impressive result by lapping famous Virginia International Raceway (VIR) “Grand Course” in 2:58.34 – a time previously accomplished only by the upper echelon of performance cars. Check out the video of the lap by clicking on the image above!
Hit the jump for a full review of the Chevrolet Camaro 1LE.
