Spy Shots

Introduced in 2014, the Mercedes-AMG GT is no longer the company’s flagship sports car, but a full lineup of vehicles. In three years, AMG not only developed a Roadster but also launched a higher performance coupe and a beefed-up convertible too. Oh, and it also created two different race cars based on the GT. In all, the AMG GT includes seven members, which is darn impressive. But Mercedes-AMG won’t stop here. Although rumors of a Black Series model have yet to be confirmed, recent spy shots suggest that such a version is indeed underway. And we might just see it in the metal in early 2019.

With the GT R in showrooms, a Black Series model might not make much sense, but Mercedes has plenty of room to either slot it between the GT S and GT R or place it above everything else as a range-topping model. The latter scenario is more likely, so we could get an AMG GT with close to 600 horsepower and built in a very limited run. We should find out more later this year, so make sure you stick around for updates. Meanwhile, have a look at my speculative review below.

Update 04/10/2019: It’s been more than a year since we last saw AMG GT Black Series, but we think we’ve spotted it yet again. Check out our Spy Shots section below to see whats new!

Launched in 2005 and updated in 2013, the Bentley Flying Spur is getting a little long in the tooth. As a result, the British firm has already begun testing the next-generation model and we have already received the first spy shots of the upcoming luxury rig. Don’t let the Panamera body fool you, this is actually a Bentley mule, and the fact that Bentley is using a Porsche body is by no means surprising. As you may recall, the first Bentayga prototype hit the road with an Audi Q7 body. Also, keep in mind the Bentley, Porsche, and Audi are all under the same Volkswagen Group umbrella. If you’re still in doubt, our paparazzi have already checked the British plates with the DVLA, which revealed that the prototype is indeed registered as a Bentley.

Likely to break cover in late 2018 or early 2019, the next-generation Flying Spur will bring major improvements to the nameplate. Arguably the most imporant is the MSB-F platform, which already made its debut in the new Porsche Panamera. The redesign will also spawn a new styling language, a more luxurious interior, and give the sedan more powertrain options. Official data is virtually non-existent, but I gathered all existing rumors in a speculative review that should keep you covered until a Bentley-bodied prototype shows up in 2017. Make sure you stay tuned for details.

Updated 04/10/2019: Bentley has just unleashed its first teasers of the 2020 Bentley Flying Spur. Check them out in our teaser section below!

BMW just unveiled the new-generation X5 in June 2018 and we’re already seeing renderings of the X5 M model. The performance-oriented SUV is expected to break cover by the end of 2018 and it’s about time we have a look at what it may bring to the table.

Much like the standard X5, the upcoming X5 M will ride on the same CLAR platform as the new 5 Series sedan. Of course, the M-badged SUV will get unique chassis tuning as well as a wild V-8 with massive output. Interestingly enough, the new X5 M will arrive just in time for the redesigned Mercedes-AMG GLE63, also due to break cover in 2018. Find out all you need to know about the upcoming X5 M in the speculative review below.

Update 04/10/2019: The 2020 BMW X5 M was just caught testing on the Nurburgring and a lot has changed since we last saw it. Check out the latest images and what we know so far in the Spy Shots section below!

Spy photographers at the Nurburgring have caught Ferrari testing the FXX K Evo. As no one expects the Italians to create an even fiercer version of it, the wholly camouflaged FXX K Evo is a surprising sight at the very least. However, the whole ideology behind the Ferrari XX line of cars opens a whole world of possibilities. Created for specific customers that are a part of Ferrari’s Corse Clienti race program, the FXX K Evo cars are, more or less, a laboratory on wheels, and a testbed for Ferrari’s latest technologies. After all, a lot of the technology that Ferrari develops in its racing series (F1, GT3, or Challenge series) eventually migrate to the FXX series of cars. It has been the same jazz since 2004 when Ferrari introduced the first Enzo-based FXX.

Mini is a company that should be taken seriously when it sets about building a performance car. That’s why we stood up and listened when, late last year, we heard that the Mini Cooper JCW GP was coming back in 2020 after what will be a seven-year hiatus. Now, we’re seeing the first spy shots and, as you’d expect, it’s the Cooper JCW dialed up to 11 with some cues ported straight from the devilishly cool 2017 Cooper Works GP Concept. We want it now, together with its +300 horsepower!

Traditionally, the GP version of the Cooper Works is the ultimate performance model. In the past, John Cooper Works, which is long for JCW, built two GP models based on the previous two generations of the Mini. Of the last GP, which bowed out in 2014, only 2,000 examples exist, and just 500 were sold in the U.S., so expect the new model to also be a rare bird. Talking about birds, the GP will once again mark the swansong of the third-generation Mini Hatch with a new one coming soon.

Update 04/08/2019: We’ve managed to catch the 2020 Mini John Cooper Works GP doing some last minute spring testing prior to its debut. Check out our latest spy shots and what we know in the spy shots section below.

The Bentley Flying Spur Hybrid is an upcoming plug-in hybrid version of the company’s full-size sedan. The four-door follows in the footsteps of the Bentayga Hybrid, Bentley’s first-ever electrified model, which was unveiled in 2018. The Flying Spur Hybrid is part of the third-generation model lineup that should debut by the end of 2019.

Spotted testing with a Porsche Panamera body in 2017, the Flying Spur began making appearances in its camouflaged production shell in 2018. Come 2019, and the sedan is slowly losing camo, but Bentley is also testing new versions. Our paparazzi caught a batch of Flying Spurs testing on public roads in April 2019, including a plug-in hybrid version. Let’s find out what we already know about it in the speculative review below.

Audi is in the advanced stages of testing an all-electric version of its Q2 crossover, the smallest high riding vehicle it currently sells. The Q2 e-Tron (which is what it will most likely be called) will complete the Q2 lineup that also includes the SQ2 performance model, as well as an extended wheelbase Q2 destined for the Chinese market. The Q2 EV won’t differ much visually from other models in the range, but with a careful look, you will be able to spot that it is the battery powered model. The camouflaged prototype snagged by our spies has no exhaust pipe, for instance, and it’s bound to have additional small exterior giveaways as to what it is. It’s also been suggested that the Q2 e-Tron might use the lengthened platform of the Chinese-market model, but at the moment we really cannot make a definitive judgment on that based solely on this batch of spy shots. Furthermore, the Q2 e-Tron may only be sold in China, although there is a good chance it will reach Europe as well - this would represent the first sale of a long-wheelbase Chinese-market Audi model in Europe.

Update 4/2/2019:Our spy photographers caught the Audi Q2 doing some last minute, cold-weather testing. Check out the latest shots in our spy shots section below.

Porsche is currently gearing up for the release of the next generation 992-era 911, offered as a follow-up to the current 991-era 911. Per usual, Porsche will offer a variety of body styles and equipment levels, including high-end speed and unlimited headroom with the up-and-coming 911 Turbo Convertible.

Update 04/2/2019:We Caught the 2020 Porsche 911 Turbo Convertible Testing in the wild again - check out the latest images in our spy shots section below.

BMW is set to launch an all-new 4-Series two-door sometime in 2019 or 2020, and while the G23 coupe version will not feature any dramatic changes over the current model, the G22 droptop will. Spy shots indicate that for the first time in two generations (E93 and F33), BMW is giving up on the folding hardtop design in favor of the more traditional soft top option which it last used on the E46 model discontinued in 2006.

Heavy camouflage covers the prototype spotted, but this important change is quite evident as the canvas top is left completely bare (quite obviously on purpose). It might be an illusion caused by the camo, but it also appears this new 4-Series has a longer hood and rear decklid compared to its predecessor.

Update 03/29/2019: How spy photographers managed to catch the 2020 BMW 4 Series Convertible on video as it performed some cold weather testing. Check it out for yourself in our "Spy Shots" section below!

Audi first kicked off production of the Q3 luxury subcompact crossover in 2011 for the 2012 model year, following it up with a series of refreshes in 2014 and 2015. Also offered as a pair of tuned versions from Audi Sport GmbH under the SQ3 and RS Q3 nomenclature, it looks as though the Four Rings is gearing up to release a second generation for the go-faster Q3’s, as evidenced by this series of spy shots showing a black-and-white test mule out and about for some apex huntin’ at the Nurburgring.

Update 03/29/2019: The 2020 Audi RS Q3 was caught testing in the mountains, this time in near-production guides with less camo than ever. Check out the latest spy shots as well as some updated information in our “Spy Shots” section below.

The new Audi RS6 Avant has been spotted covered in partial camouflage while making the test rounds recently. The high-performance wagon model of the A6 sedan is the latest Audi model to be captured by spy photographers. If anything, this shows that Audi’s test drivers have had their work cut out of them. The sporty station wagon was even spotted alongside the RS Q8 SUV.

Update 03/27/2019: We’ve received some new spy shots of the 2020 Audi RS6, This time in full production form. Check out the latest in our ”Spy Shots” section below.

The Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS is an upcoming high-performance version of the company’s smallest coupe yet. An upgrade to the GT4 model from a few years back, the GT4 RS is the most radical version of the 718 Cayman yet.

Ever since the first GT4 was announced, enthusiasts have been asking themselves whether Porsche will take things up a notch and develop a GT4 RS. But despite favorable rumors and the fact that an RS version would make sense, a more powerful GT4 has yet to happen. This willd change at the 2019 Goodwood Festival of Speed when this street-legal racer is set to break cover. And even though there’s no confirmation whether it will be called the GT4 or GT4 RS, the new coupe will definitely pack a significantly beefed-up engine. So I’m tempted to go with an "RS" badge.

Updated 03/27/2019: Our spy photographers caught the production version 718 Cayman GT4 testing at Nurburgring.The car is expected to make its world debut at the 2019 Goodwood Festival of Speed.

Like a unicorn in a prairie, the mid-engined 2020 Chevrolet Corvette C8 has become the stuff of myth, randomly showing up in a random corner of the U.S at, well, random times. It’s been spotted in Detroit, Arizona, Colorado, California, and Florida. Most of the time, the Corvette C8 is seen with heavy camo wraps, but a few photos of the mid-engine supercar sitting idle in a gas station revealed something unique about it: a spacious front trunk, or “frunk,” as people in the business call it. Apparently, the Corvette C8’s frunk is big enough to fit, not one, but two full-sized golf bags, complete with actual golf clubs. It’s unclear how much space there really is that compartment, but if it’s as big as the rumors say it is, then it counts as one of many surprises that await all of us once Chevrolet finally gets around to launching it. Speaking of which, when’s that going to be, Chevy?