Look out Tesla and Fisker, because there is a new EV roadster on the market, and it is being built with the precision of a Swiss timepiece. Brusa is a Swiss company with a long history dealing with electronics. However, only recently have they been toying with the idea of an electric sports car, a new competitor for the American made Tesla Roadster.
The shape of the electric roadster is inspired by the classic Porsche 550 Spyder and is powered by a a couple of 95 kW electric motors – one for each of the rear wheels. The electric engines are powered by a 16 kWh lithium polymer battery pack from Kokam. With all that potential energy stored up, the Spyder can sprint from 0 to 60 MPH in under 5 seconds, and with a range of 77 miles the Brusa is perfect for a sunday cruise or even commuting to the office.
Bad news for Volkswagen Bluesport and future Porsche 914 fans, even though it should come at no surprise, it is still a let down. Ever since Porsche announced that there will be no new entry level offering in the line-up, Volkswagen has also announced that due to the current economic situation, their open air, diesel burning BlueSport model has been put on hold.
Volkswagen did not shut the door on the concept, saying that there is still a chance for a production model, but only after the world goes back to buying cars. So, for Volkswagen fans the good news is that the German automaker will eventually offer a roadster. The only question is when?
The VW BlueSport Concept is powered by a mid-mounted 2.0 Liter TDI with common rail injection engine making an adequate 177 HP. VW says that the clean diesel convertible can go from 0 to 60 MPH in just 6.6 seconds and has a top speed of 140 MPH, all while returning 55 MPG. Now that sounds like fun, both behind the wheel and at the pump.
MG is preparing to unveil two new of its light weight mid engine sports cars. The first new MG TF will be an entry level version called the TF 135, priced at £13,511. The sporty little MG will get a 1.8 Liter 16v K-series engine that makes 135 HP, hence the TF 135.
The second is a special edition that marks MG’s 85th anniversary. This is a very special car and will be available in three distinct colors, complete with 85th anniversary graphics on the outside and stunning aubergine leather trim on the interior.
Welcome back BMW. The last Z4 looked like a merger of compromise. It brought together round designs and aggressive cuts that made the car never too cuddly and never too aggressive. It was the girlfriend you went out with not because of how she looked, but because she had a good personality.
Now that’s all changed. There is only one look to this car, and its pure evil. The body now has more better proportioned design, and with the new hard top up, the rear half has a profile that resembles the previous generation Z4 coupe. The most important part is the front. The new Z4 has an intimidating and shark-like look that wants to say, "I have a secret...and that is I could kill you."
The interior has improved slightly. The new Z4 has switched the position of the radio and climate controls from the previous generation, and everything comes closer to looking like the BMW Z8’s interior (without the confusing center-mounted dials.)
The new Z4 comes in two models for North America, both using the same 3.0-liter inline-six cylinder engine. The sDrive30i has 255 hp, and the sDrive35i uses twin-turbos (one turbo designated for three cylinders each) to upgrade to 300 hp. All variants of the new BMW Z4 come as standard with a 6-speed manual gearbox. As an option, the BMW Z4 sDrive35i is available with BMW’s newly developed double-clutch sport automatic gearbox.
The BMW Z4 sDrive35i makes the 0 to to 60 mph sprint in 5.1 seconds with the manual transmission and 5.0 seconds with the seven-speed double clutch sport automatic. The sDrive30i accelerates from a 0 to 60 mph in 5.6 seconds with a manual and 6.0 seconds with the automatic. Both models are limited to a top speed of 130 mph (150 mph with the optional Sport Package).
The new Z4 will be seen in the flesh next month at the Detroit Auto Show, and sales will begin on May 9th.
Full details in the press release after the jump
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Officials from the German automaker Audi have confirmed that for 2011 there will be a drop top version of their mid-engine supercar. The Audi R8 Spyder features a full length convertible top and will be offered in both eight and ten cylinder versions.
The open air R8 was originally rumored to be offered with three different engine configurations, but sine Audi has dropped the TDI variant, the car will be offered with either 420 HP or a very exclusive 500 naturally aspirated horses. The base V8 will be offered starting around $135,000.
So, if the R8 Spyder isn’t the mysterious Audi to be unveiled on the company’s 100th anniversary that only leaves one option, the RS5, we can only hope.
Makers of the classic American GT racing icon, AC Cars have recently revealed their sixth generation Cobra at the Top Marques car show in Monaco. The MkVI is an open-top sports car based on the design of the Le Mans winning AC Cobra built by Carroll Shelby in the 1960’s featuring many of the original car’s physical characteristics while incorporating a lot of modern technology under the skin.
The AC Cobra MKVI will be offered in two versions: GT and GTS. The GT will get a 6.2 Liter V8 that will produce a maximum output of 437 HP, while the GTS will deliver a ground pounding 647 HP. Weighing in at only 1,025 Kg, the lightweight GTS sports car is capable of hitting 60 MPH from a standstill in approximately 3.3 seconds.
The new Cobra was built incorporating an all new aluminum body construction featuring a light weight gull wing hardtop.
Press release after the jump.
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Mini’s parent company BMW are taking a step in the right direction. Coming up with a model to compete head to head with sports inspired roadsters like Mazda’s MX-5. Dubbed the Speedster, the future Mini promises to be the fastest model in the line-up.
The Mini Speedster promises to be a genuine sports car, with a shorter and wider stance than the standard model. Not to differentiate itself from all other Minis, the Speedster will keep the split front grill, hood scoop and center exit exhaust that have become standard issue on all of the modern Mini models. However the Speedster will ditch the cramped rear seats found in Mini Cabrio the becoming a strictly two seater.
The new open air Mini is expected to be launched in 2011 for a price of around £18,000. Expect a JCW version to follow shortly after.
Chevrolet has only made the Grand Sport option available two other times in the Corvette’s history. The original Grand Sport was a track-only special with a 550 hp V8, and the 1996 version was the only Corvette to use the LT4 engine. So our biggest concern when we heard rumors of the return of the Corvette Grand Sport was that Chevrolet was not going to be able to deliver a car that lived up to the historic name.
For the third edition Chevrolet reached into the Corvette part’s bin and pulled out sort of a “best of” package for the standard Corvette. Even though there is no new engineering on the latest Grand Sport, we are now happy to report that it is still an intriguing option.
The standard 430 hp 6.2-liter V8 is untouched (436 hp with two-mode exhaust). What is added includes the Z51 performance suspension (the GS replaces this option package), wider fenders wells, wider tiers (18-in front, 19-in rear), and larger brakes. It also borrows elements from the Z06 like the front bumper, rear spoiler and rear brake ducts.
The 2010 Grand Sport can be ordered with 1LT, 2LT, 3LT and 4LT trim packages and in four exterior colors, as well as two-tone seats with Grand Sport embroidery. It can be had as a coupe or convertible.
When it goes on sale, the Corvette Grand Sport coupe will retail for $55,720 while the drop top will set you back a couple thousand more at $59,530.
Press release after the jump.
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Irmscher, the Germany-based tuning firm has just unveiled their latest creation to fight the war against overweight ridiculously powered big budget supercars with their lightweight Irmscher 7 kit car that can be purchased for less than 20,000 Euros.
Following in the footsteps of Callin Chapman’s original Lotus 7 and the later Caterham iteration. The Irmscher 7 is set to compete head to head with other affordable sportscars like the Ariel Atom that are capable of supercar like performance.
You can have your 7 in four different flavors. The base model is powered by a 2.2 Liter naturally aspirated Opel power plant producing 150 HP. There is also a 2.0 Liter turbocharged model with 210 HP and the next up the line makes 265 HP. However the top of the line Irmscher 7 weighs only 725 kg and makes 280 HP giving it an excellent power to weight ratio which allows it perform like a vehicle 100 times more expensive.
The Irmscher 7 is a versatile machine; it comes complete with a fully adjustable suspension for the track and creature comforts like air-conditioning and a rag top for rainy days. So for those looking for speed on a budget or those just wanting to pretend to be Jim Clark, the Irmscher 7 is worth taking a look at.
Mercedes knows its sports cars are not just about how it performs on the road, but many of its customers also like the feeling of having the wind in their hair and letting the worlds see how wealthy they are. So while it may have taken three years for Mercedes to develop a droptop version of its first gullwing sports car, the 300SL, the upcoming SLS AMG may have a soft top as soon as a year after its premiere.
The new gullwing car from Mercedes will make its first appearance this September at the Frankfurt Motor Show, and the first car could be on the road as soon as next spring. Once that’s out the door, Mercedes engineers will work to ditch roof and add “butterfly” doors similar to the ones on the SLR roadster. This version of the SLS may be on the auto show circuit in time for the 2010 Paris Motor Show (Frankfurt and Paris alternate years).
The roadster is expected to get the same 571 hp 6.2-liter V8 engine that will be used in the SLS gullwing coupe.
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