2010 Camaro Launched, Performance Package Photos Leaked

Barely two days out of the womb after making its official debut on Saturday at the Indy Bash 2008, the 2010 Chevy Camaro is already being pushed to overachieve. Published in a thread by the Camaroholics [we mean that affectionately] over at Camaro5.com, it appears as though GM is planning to offer an endless array of performance mod packages when the 5th gen 2010 Camaro becomes available for pre-order Ocobter 13th. Dollar details for the upgrades have yet to be revealed, but after viewing leaked photos of a 2010 Camaro sporting a few of the available enhancements, we ask, at what price, beauty?

Full gallery of all available options after the jump

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Mercedes-Benz conceptFASCINATION Set To Debut In Paris, Official Photos Are Frankly Alarming

Mercedes-Benz has announced plans the 2-door wagon conceptFASCINATION at the Paris auto show next month. Fortunately, Mercedes has no intention of ever pushing the fugly wagon into production, instead wisely opting to keep it as part of their traditional “design study” program. Ordinarily I’d dismiss the conceptFAIL as merely another piece of couture engineering that missed the mark, but Mercedes-Benz’s delusional public promotion of the concept wagon has me frightened.

According to Autopia, Daimler head Dr. Dieter Zetsche said of the conceptFASCINATION, “This design study continues the long tradition of exciting coupés from Mercedes-Benz in impressive style. With its emotionally appealing lines, ConceptFASCINATION offers a completely new interpretation of the coupé. Its aesthetic, dynamic looks and painstakingly crafted details ensure that this study meets the highest design standards.”

Were this description applied to any other Mercedes model, I’d raise my glass with a hearty “hear, hear,” but the conceptFASCINATION is, no exaggeration, one of the ugliest things I have ever seen Mercedes-Benz concieve. What vexes me is that I appear to be the only person who thinks so, or at least the only person who has said so, and I’m concerned that I’m witnessing an Emperor’s-New-Clothes phenomena occur here. Mercedes-Benz has always been the forerunner in luxury and innovation, and although I do derive a small measure of comfort in the fact that the conceptFASCINATION will never see development, I worry about its possible influence over future design. If memory serves me correctly, concept vehicles usually serve as unofficial previews of future models, and in their official press release, Mercedes-Benz mentioned that the concept’s basic structure was a direct derivation of the future E-Class coupe. Seriously, is this not a horrifying prospect to anyone else?

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Third-gen Audi A8 to be "stronger, sharper, more precise"

Filed under: Sedans/Saloons, Audi

From the first lozenge-shaped A8 that hit American shores in 1997, Audi's flagship sedan has slowly been asserting itself more and more. The current A8 W12 is almost always given credit for its beautiful-yet-subtle design and a glorious interior. American buyers, however, haven't thrown money at it like they do the BMW 7 Series and Mercedes-Benz S Class. Audi is out to change that with the 2011 A8.

Among the changes, Audi is trumpeting improvements to the car's handling, the area in which it has traditionally lost ground to its European luxo-sedan brethren. The rear-biased quattro system will also be enhanced with Audi's "sport differential" torque-vectoring system, and if other markets clamors for it, Audi will offer the front-drive A8 outside of Europe. Inside, expect a raft of changes to the interior and a "more innovative" MMI system.

As before, the A8 will come in regular and long wheelbase versions, and provide a wide range of engines for world markets, from a 3.0-liter V6 turbodiesel through to the S8's V10. The transmission will be the same 8-speed ZF unit used by the 2009 BMW 7 Series.

All of it will be wrapped in sheetmetal that Audi says will be "stronger, shaper, more precise," a design that will make efforts to highlight the car's aluminum build technology. Said head designer Stefan Sielaff, the car will present "a strong three-dimensional theme," and be "the first of a new styling language at Audi." We can't wait to see it. Thanks for the tip, Other Man!

[Source: Car and Driver]

Third-gen Audi A8 to be "stronger, sharper, more precise" originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 31 Dec 2008 10:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Come Away With Me Lucille, In My Sick Nasty Oldsmobile

 

The 1986 Oldsmobile Cutlass wasn’t even cool in 1986, so what could it possibly bring to the table now ? Enter: the car customization expertise of the Dirty South. This ride (more pictures below), which is currently up for grabs on eBay Motors (motto: “A Habit Both More Addicting And More Expensive Then Unfiltered Menthols”) is a 6-cylinder, 1986 Oldsmobile Cutlass with 73,000 miles on it (mostly well-documented stuntin’ miles).

According to the seller’s description, the Olds has been professionally raised and sits on a well cared-for set of 24” rims. The paint is described as DuPont “Catalonia Splash” with “Louie Vaton [sic]” (I’m not sure if they misspelled it purposely to avoid copyright infringement, or Louis Vuitton’s French pronunciation presented an insurmountable obstacle for the phonetic speller) flip accents on the front trim. In keeping with the theme, the Cutlass’ interior has also been completely reupholstered in Louie Vaton leather.

This particular Olds is certainly an acquired taste, but I have a healthy respect for any automotive enthusiast who devotes time and effort into custom craftsmanship of any kind (especially if they execute it this well).

 

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Geneva 2008: Ford Fiesta Ready to Join the Small Car Party

Ford has announced that the Verve Concept will be a reality, but will be introduced at the 2008 Geneva Auto Show as the return of the Fiesta. The Fiesta is Ford traditional small car going back to 1970. As the small car market has begun to gain in international favor, but in particularly here in North America, Ford has determined that the Fiesta nameplate would be the best way to market their new small car platform. The Verve was an exciting small car concept that garnered great interest, so Ford has quite a task ahead of them to make sure the Fiesta maintains that interest.

The new Fiesta if Fords first release from their new Global Platform campaign. The intention is to design cars on a reduced number of platforms that can be used globally. Production is to begin this year for the European version of the Fiesta, but by 2010 Ford plans to have a localized version of the Fiesta sold in Europe, Asia, South Africa, Australia and North America. Photo Gallery and Press Release to Follow (more…)

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Auto Makers Tough Choices: Should We Stray or Should We Grow

Recession? …Here.  Weak Dollar? …Present.  Isuzu?  …Isuzu?  …Isuzu?

Just like the housing market in the US the Auto Industry is not only dealing with their reorganizations from their gluttonous years but also with the economic situation that has gripped this country. As could be expected each auto maker has its own approach to handling such shifts, and it is there strategic efforts that will determine their future. Focusing for a moment on how the foreign auto makers are handling the American economic situation some are adding new plants and assembly factories, some are re-imagining themselves and others may be doing Pres. Bush’s least favorite thing… the cut and run.

To combat a slumping US dollar and to protect themselves from a loss of profit Volkswagen is looking to expand more into North America. While American companies still out-source their jobs over seas to nations with cheaper labor, the Germans are starting to look at America the same way… sorta speak. They can save money and salvage greater profits by moving some more manufacturing and assembly plants into the US. (more…)

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Mazda’s Furai Super Car Concept gets some early exposure

Mazda has worked hard on keeping their Furai super car concept under raps while honing its shape and its drive-train. The slipped a little rear-snippet out early as they announced that they would be making a super car debut at the Detroit Auto Show in January, but now we have more than just a snippet to enjoy. Photos of the completed car running what appear to be test laps have found their way across the internet (whether planned by Mazda or not) and interest in the odd-shaped Furai is growing. Ofcourse that may not be a buying publics interest that is growing, but curiosity fed interest is interest none-the-less.

The Mazda Furai is to be powered by a 450-hp 3-rotor rotary engine. Part of its shape comes from the 2005 Courage C65 racing chassis that it is built upon. (more…)

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Dodge passes on Aerodynamics for boxy design

Looking at the Dodge car and truck line-up for 2007 and 2008 I am left with one burning question that begs for some discussion: Dodge! What have you done with the decades worth of research the world has put into aerodynamics? While some manufacturers build cars that are sweet enough they should probably be delivered to your door in a box, Dodge saw the box and said, “Let’s put some wheels on that thing and fill it with lots of horsepower!”

Now do not go thinking that I am anti-horsepower, because that would be a mistake. I love the horsepower and possess great reverence for the history of the Hemi engine. Dodge however seems to believe that with enough horsepower they can just muscle their way against the opposing forces. In a world where fuel mileage is as much a factor in buying a new car as horsepower is how does Dodge not recognize the effects all that drag has on the potential mileage of the car? Or are they just choosing to deny it?

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BMW X6 readies to expose its contours to the world at Frankfurt Auto Show

The Frankfurt Auto Show in Germany will surely be one of the largest auto gala’s of the year with a number of concept cars and unveiling’s for the 2008 model year preparing to shed their camouflage and expose their skin. BMW appears about ready to pull their new X6 SUV on the stage as the most recent spy photos indicate. But can you really turn a stout SUV into what looks to equate a stylish crossover coupe and get away with it?

BMW expects to show that you can and they are doing it first by redefining the classification from a Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV) to a Sport Activity Vehicle (SAV). When you redefine your expectations some very interesting or shocking things can happen. (more…)

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Many new super car owners attempting to tame their 500+ hp cars are getting bucked

So just as there have been posts about the rich getting richer and a number of new members to the tawdry millionaires club so too has risen the number of exotic and high performance sports cars. Those cars that exceed 500+ horsepower and lure their new and often inexperienced drivers into an added sense of invincibility. As the number of super cars on the road reach new heights it only seems logical to some that so would the percentage of super cars involved in accidents.

A Wall Street Journal article that based its information off of CNW Marketing Research said that there were 8,400 “ultraluxury” exotic sport cars sold just this last year. As they stated, that is over three times as many that were sold in 2003. Accidents in California in that same class of cars alone rose 81% over the number of reported accidents for such in 2002. Is this to say that not only are the number of rich drivers increasing but those “New Rich” are getting stupider… or as they put it nicely, more “immature.” (more…)

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The world’s oldest running car up for auction

It is hard to imagine that the first experimental vehicles were being built and tested during the late 1880’s, both Daimler and Benz were both working on their models separately, while it would be another decade at least before the great Henry Ford built his first car.

But before all that in 1884 there was the De Dion-Bouton et Trepardoux, otherwise nicknamed “La Marquise” a steam powered vehicle that was fueled by anything that would burn, paper, wood and coal, and as anyone who has struggled to get an open fire going at home would know how temperamental that can be, in fact the vehicle would probably take up to half an hour to build up enough heat to create the steam.

The world’s oldest running car has had only two owners, but I suspect that the paperwork and mileage may be slightly out of date! If there is any at all.

The car will be going on sale at the Gooding and Company Auction House, in Pebble Beach, California on August 19th the estimated final sale price is believed to reach around the $1.5 to $2 million mark, but recent auctions have been a bit of a gamble with some cars selling and some not.

Source [Money]

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