Ever since Spyker Cars – the tiny company very little have heard of – purchased Saab from General Motors twelve months or so ago, very little has happened. The biggest change which occurred was the name which saw the Spyker/Saab pair become Swedish Automobile N.V. Since that time, Saab has continued to weigh the small company down and after consecutive offers made by Chinese company Youngman to purchase the ailing Swedish brand, Spyker finally parted ways.
As a result, Spyker Cars which was known as Swedish Automobile is once again back to its original roots as Spyker. We have no idea how much this entire venture has cost the brand, but we’d prefer not to think about it. It definitely wasn’t a smart move to purchase Saab on their part. Consequently, we would be very surprised if Spyker released any new cars in the coming months and years.
Youngman, which is actually one of China’s biggest companies, originally put a bid in to buy Saab off GM back in February when they offered $298 million, but as Saab’s debt totals more than $2 billion, this offer was unsurprisingly knocked back. Since then, the issue has remained fairly steady with Youngman announcing that it will invest no less than $1.8 billion into development of new Saab models if its latest undisclosed offers are accepted.
In our opinion, Youngman is out of its mind with these bids. Not only will the company have to spend billions to prop up Saab, consumer confidence in the Swedish brand has been completely and utterly smashed through the floor, even though they’ve developed a few nice cars. In turn, sales would be shaky and remain unsteady for years if Saab’s production line began to turn once again.
What do you think, should Saab finally bite the dust and leave us?
BMW just keeps on dangling the M135i three-door hatchback carrot right out of the reach of U.S. buyers and this time, it just may start a complete revolt in U.S. BMW dealers. Bayerische Motoren Werke AG, or BMW to all of you un-cool people, decided to whip the new M135i hatchback around the Nürburgring and some savvy little filmmaker caught it. To make things even better, this is actually a really good video with awesome sound – it seems almost like a professional deal.
The sound of this 300+ horsepower 3.0-liter TwinPower Turbo engine – “TwinPower” means one turbo with two scrolls, not two turbochargers – is music to our ears. It’s so nice that it may just take the place of all the songs on my MP3 player. Not only does this thing appear to scream when the driver puts the pedal to the proverbial “metal,” or posh carpeting in this case, but it also looks to handle like a dream.
The bad news in this whole situation is that BMW has still not decided to let U.S. buyers know if the M135i, let alone any three-door hatchback 1-series, will make its way across the pond and into showrooms at any time. There’s not even a European release date, as of yet, and we are already about to explode at the opportunity to get our grubby hands on them.
For now, all we have are the pictures from the Geneva Auto Show and the above video to keep our hopes alive. We are sure that if a large enough portion of US BMW customers start bombarding BMW with requests for this vehicle, the Bavarian car builder would eventually cave and bring this extremely hot hatch to the states.
Kick back, crank up the volume a tick, and enjoy the video of the M135i cruising the Nürburgring over and over and over again, just like we did.
When Bugatti set the bar for 0-to-60 mph times on production cars at 2.4 seconds, most enthusiasts saw this as similar to the person that can limbo under a 1-foot-high bar. So for the most part, the Veyron was assumed to maintain the crown as fastest production car from 0-to-60 mph for many decades. In addition, we all assumed when someone finally did beat it, it was bound to be one of the other supercar builders.
In both cases we were all completely incorrect. First off, the record didn’t even last a decade. The second incorrect assumption is by far the most surprising, as it wasn’t a Ferrari, Porsche, Lamborghini, or even a Maserati that smoked the Bugatti Veyron, it was a Ford Mustang…
Let’s explain this one. Back in 2010, Ford announced that it was releasing a revamped version of its existing Cobra Jet model, and that it would boast a 5.4-liter supercharged V-8 engine that would pump out 430 to 500 horsepower, depending on which supercharger it came with. This 2012 Mustang Cobra Jet shredded the Bugatti’s 0-60 mph time by almost a full second, clocking in at 1.52 seconds. It also hit 100 mph in just 3.26 seconds, again killing the Veyron.
Having said all of that, don’t think that you are just going to waltz into Joe Blow’s Ford Dealer and snag one of these Cobra Jet Mustangs for $50K and drive out a racecar driver. Nope, the term “production car” is used very loosely here, as there were only 50 2012 Mustang Cobra Jets produced and they are not street legal. To boot, these beasts have a base price of $91,990 and run about $104K fully loaded.
This all means that the Veyron still holds the record for the quickest road-legal production car, plus it does still hold the top-speed record of 267.857 mph. Eat that, Ford. Then again, we just received word on the 2013 Cobra Jet late last year, so we’ll see what Ford has in store for Bugatti this time.
Even though car manufacturers try to conceal names of future models, possible options always manage to leak onto the net, with the latest name trademarked by Lamborghini already finding its way into our hands.
Car and Driver recently broke the news and it seems pretty genuine to us. "Deimos" was trademarked by Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A. on March 5, 2012, and the name has left us scratching our heads just a tad. First and foremost, almost all Lamborghini’s ever produced (with the exception of the LM002) have been named after famous fighting bulls both Italian and Spanish, but ‘Demois’ doesn’t refer to any bull we’re aware of.
In fact, according to Greek mythology, ‘Deimos’ is a son of Aphrodite and represents terror and dread which seems a little bit strange to name a car after. The terror part does make some sense as this is a Lamborghini and their cars are famous for promoting fear and terror in their competitors, but the term dread seems less appealing.
After all, who would want to buy a car which name literally means ‘dread’?
Nevertheless, this trademark by Lamborghini may not actually relate to a future model or concept car as it could instead refer to a new line of merchandise or even a new system which could be fitted to future Lamborghini’s. However, with the new Lamborghini SUV (rendered above) expected to be released at the 2012 Beijing Auto Show in just a few weeks, rumors suggest that the successor to the LM002 may be dubbed the Lamborghini Deimos.
Another possibility could be the Gallardo replacement which is currently under development, and with the highly circulated ‘Cabrera’ name being nothing more than the work of an unnamed source, perhaps this future model could be the Deimos.
Whether you like it or not, most high end automotive manufacturers are driven by the promise of higher profits. In fact, if you have enough money to splash, you could pretty much enter any exotic car headquarters and ask for a completely custom car to be built specifically to your liking.
This has been seen numerous times with the Pagani Zonda, and back in 2008, Rolls Royce even got on board the one-off bandwagon when British collector Roland Hall commissioned a custom Rolls Royce Phantom Drophead Coupe dubbed the Hyperion.
Rolls Royce went all out on this extraordinary piece of art, even getting legendary designer Jason Castriota to head the design team. When it was all said and done, a Rolls Royce constructed solely out of carbon fiber (with the exception of the wooden doors) was created but for some unknown reason, the car was put up for sale just one year later for roughly $6 million.
Since that time, the Hyperion disappeared into the unknown until it recently reappeared for sale at an Abu Dhabi dealership. The asking price is currently being kept secret, but if the car has been treated well over the last few years, then the Hyperion will likely set any prospecting buyers back at least $7 million.
Although we adore the styling of the car, we really cannot see why anyone would pay that much for this relatively simple car. Sure the exterior styling is completely different to stock, but when you’re driving the car, it’ll feel just like any other Phantom Drophead costing less than one-seventh the price.
Nevertheless, we wish the dealership well in finding a new home for this piece of contemporary automotive art.
With the American-only Scion FR-S being priced recently, the only question left unanswered was how much its bigger brother the Subaru BRZ would cost. Thankfully however, Subaru has just released pricing for its latest rear wheel-drive sports car, and we have to say, it seems to be a bargain as all variants will sell for less than $30,000.
Putting the possible BRZ, WRX, and WRX STi aside, the car will come in two main trim levels being Premium and Limited with both of these different version cars being offered with manual and automatic transmissions.
Unsurprisingly, the manuals are a bit cheaper than the comparable automatics, with a base Premium manual to cost $26,245 while the auto will cost $27,345. Just like the aforementioned Limited version, the Premium comes with a host of features not offered on the cheaper FR-S, with satellite radio being one of the biggest additions for the Subaru.
The Limited edition comes fitted with even more equipment which helps to warrant its $28,245 base price when fitted with the manual. In fact, the BRZ Limited will come standard with heated seats and dual-zone climatic control as well as a whole host of upgrades including alcantara and leather upholstery.
Just as a quick reminder, the BRZ features the same 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine as its FRS brethren, producing an equal 200 horsepower from this small engine. And of course, this package wouldn’t be complete without RWD and with a Torsen limited-slip differential finishing the package off, the BRZ promises to be a true driver’s car.
Hit the jump for a full list of standard and optional features.
When the Porsche 911 debuted in the 1965 model year, it revolutionized the sports car, turning it from a crude performance machine to a performance machine with some class and sophistication. The man behind the design of this now legendary machine, Ferdinand Porsche, has passed away at the age of 76 and the cause of death has not been released.
The 911 is one of the few cars that, with the exception of some basic restyling and technological advances, still looks strikingly similar to its original model. The 911 also remains one of the top luxury sports cars in the world. This is a great tribute to the designing genius of F.A. Porsche, as those inside of the company knew him.
Porsche was born on December 11, 1935 and quickly got into the family business as just a young boy, though not actually on the payroll. It was not until he competed his schooling in 1958 that he joined the company as an employee. Just four years later, he took over the design studio at Porsche.
In the 1970s, Porsche left the company in the control of other family members and focused on designing eyeglasses, watches, and pens in his own studio, dubbed Porsche Design Studio. From 1990 to 1993, he rejoined Porsche AG, as a chairman, and helped guide the company back to greatness after a steep decline in sales through the 1980s.
Despite the fact that F.A. Porsche is really only well known for designing one model of vehicle, that model will keep him a legend forever. Fortunately for all of us, the spirit and ingenuity of Professor Ferdinand Alexander Porsche will live on for many years to come in the form of his creation, the Porsche 911.
The rate at which manual transmissions are slowly being offered in fewer and fewer cars simply blows our minds here at TopSpeed. There are few driving pleasures which can match up to performing a picture-perfect upshift, or even better, performing a perfect downshift with some heel and toe action thrown in. Unfortunately, the vast majority of people are not petrol heads, and only use cars to get from point A to point B.
However, there is a silver lining in this seemingly never ending cloud of darkness. Sources very close to Porsche have leaked to Teamspeed that the upcoming 2013 Porsche 911 GT3 will come standard with a manual transmission, with the technologically-advanced, yet less satisfying, PDK transmission set to be available as an optional extra.
Automotive and Porsche enthusiasts all over the world, you may now take a deep sigh of relief. With some of Porsche’s main competitors including Ferrari and Lamborghini phasing out manuals, we only assumed Porsche would follow suit, but thankfully, we were mistaken.
Don’t get overly excited however, as manual Porsches will eventually be a thing of the past, and if this report holds water, the 2013 Porsche 911 GT3 may be the very last Porsche to come with three pedals. If demand is high enough for the manual, Porsche will likely also offer it in the 911 GT3 RS which would likely make a debut 12 to 18 months after the GT3.
So, the moral of the story. Well, if you’re looking for a new Porsche, don’t go with the boring old Carrera or Carrera S, wait for the 911 GT3 to come out and order it in a manual, as we cannot foresee a world without real drivers cars!
Subaru has always made good use of this market and has a nice following of customers. Lately, though, it seems like Subaru is really attempting to gain an edge in new markets. First, it releases the BRZ, the Japanese automaker’s first true sports car since the SVX thankfully vanished in 1997, and now it is prepared to unveil the 2013 XV Crosstek, a compact crossover SUV, at the 2012 New York Auto Show starting April 4th.
Subaru is not shy in releasing some details about this long overdue SUV, as it has released images and basic specifications prior to its debut. The 2013 XV Crosstrek, which also falls in the crossover market, will bear styling similar to the 2013 Ford Escape, 2012 Honda CR-V, and the 2012 Hyundai Tucson – all of which will be direct competitors with the XV Crosstrek.
Hit the jump for more details on the Subaru XV Crosstrek.
In the modern era of automobiles, most customers want to have their cake and eat it too, meaning they not only want great fuel economy and a low price, but they also want a well-performing vehicle. Enter the 2012 Chevrolet Sonic with a 1.8-liter four cylinder engine that gets a respectable 25 to 26 mpg in the city and 35 mpg on the highway. This is all well and good, but what about those looking for more miles per gallon.
Greater miles per gallon is the exact purpose for Chevy offering an optional 1.4-liter engine. Instinctively, you may assume that this more fuel efficient 1.4-liter engine may require a sacrifice of power, but GM bolted a turbocharger onto this Ecotec engine, boosting it to the same 138 horsepower as the 1.8-liter. It also produces 23 more pound-feet of torque than the larger 1.8-liter engine. In addition to its added torque, this boosted 1.4-liter gets 33 mpg in the city and 40 mpg on the highway, and zips the Sonic from 0 to 60 mph in just 7.8 seconds – we’re not talking a Ferrari, but that’s still impressive.
Unfortunately, for those that desired an automatic transmission, the turbo 1.4-liter engine was not an option, as it was only available with a six-speed manual transmission. Well, GM decided to answer the demand for an auto-equipped Sonic turbo, as the auto giant announced that it will now offer an optional six-speed automatic transmission on the 2012 Sonic Turbo. This new turbocharged, automatic-equipped 2012 Sonic will accelerate to 60 mph in eight seconds, per GM, which is significantly faster than its closest competitors, which include the Ford Fiesta, Honda Fit, and Hyundai Accent.
On top of the impressive acceleration time, the auto equipped Sonic turbo will get you 27 mpg in the city and 37 mpg on the highway. All of these features combined, plus the 2012 Sonic’s modern and stylish exterior, make us wonder why you are still reading this and not picking one up now… Or are we talking to ourselves here?
Click below to read the official press release from GM.
