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Reader Spy: 2010 Nissan Cube is properly asymmetric!

Many thanks to Autoblog reader Aaron, who appears to have been in the presence of printed materials pertaining to the 2010 Nissan Cube, which is set to be unveiled next month at the LA Auto Show. Aaron captured the moment with his camera phone, and thus, we have what may be the first unofficial official look at the U.S.-market Cube's design. Or it could be something else entirely, but it sure doesn't look that way. Up front, the new headlamps and grille form a thin line above the front bumper, giving the boxy little dude a face we expect to see start talking at any given moment.
posted : 10/3/2008 @8:34:26 PM
Forum find: 2010 Audi A8?

The Audi A8 is understated and elegant...but its design is a little long in the tooth. It stays as is for model year 2009, but a significant revision is due for 2010, and we should expect to see that car unveiled sometime during the upcoming show season. Thanks the Gulf4Cars forum, we might have our first look at what to expect. Our Arabic's a little rusty, so we don't know where these scans (at least they appear to be scans) came from, but they look fairly solid, so let's comment on what we can see.
posted : 10/3/2008 @7:49:42 PM
Leaked Ferrari document reveals details of project FX150

An internal document has apparently gotten lost somewhere along the information super-highway leading from Maranello to Beijing. The letter, bearing the signature of Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo, contains vital information on a new supercar coming from Ferrari. The successor to the Enzo and beneficiary of the FXX program is labeled as prototype "FX150". According to the document, the supercar will be powered by a mid/longitudinally-mounted twin-turbo V8 producing 794 horsepower and 772 Nm of torque (approximately 570 lb-ft) hooked up to a version of the seven-speed dual-clutch transmission already launched on the California codenamed SF3 (presumably for the third-generation SuperFast gearbox) with shift times down to 50 milliseconds. The carbon fiber construction is said to keep weight down to 1300 kg (~2866 lbs), which, when coupled with the nearly 800hp on tap, is anticipated to propel the FX150 to 100 km/h (62 mph) in a blisteringly fast 2.7 seconds en route to a top speed of 390 km/h (242 mph). Testing is stated to begin next month with an eye towards releasing the car sometime next year with a price tag between 1.2 and 1.3 million euros, which is even more than the Bugatti Veyron. It's not that hard to fake an official document, however, so click above to check it for yourself.
posted : 9/26/2008 @7:17:05 AM
GM: "human error" behind leak of 2011 Chevy Volt

The hubbub from yesterday afternoon's "leak" of images showing the production 2011 Chevy Volt has died down, and The Detroit News asked General Motors what we were all wondering: what the hell happened? Chevy PR dude Terry Rhadigan claims "human error" was behind the accidental release of production Volt images on GM's own media website and one external media site. According to GM, the images were only published briefly before being removed from both sites. All it took were moments, however, for Marty Padgett to publish the pics on his website, thecarconnection.com. That's where Autoblog first found them, though we were still able to download higher res versions from GM's own media site by doing a simple search for 'volt'. Padgett seems to think the accidental release of the pics was really an intentional move by GM to generate buzz for the car before its official debut early next week during the automaker's centennial celebrations. Their release may have been intentional, or not. No one can know for sure and, quite honestly, we don't really care.
posted : 9/22/2008 @11:26:37 PM
Spy Shots: 2010 Mazda3New spy shots of the refreshed Mazda3 have surfaced, lending credence to the future-Mazda images we've seen oozing out of places like an EU harmonization office, and a Japanese toymaker. It looks like the doors remain largely unchanged, with the nose and tail receiving the bulk of the work. The front end will pick up new headlamps that mimic what big-brother 6 now wears. The black-tape ruse is not effective at disguising a C-Pillar that remains kinked forward, but the taillights are successfully obscured with adhesive applique. It won't be long before we see all the tape pulled off the refreshed 3 as the car show season heats up.
posted : 9/2/2008 @1:37:01 PM

French auto-journo hauled off for espionage

If you're in France, the phrase caveat emptor can probably be joined by caveat reporter after police raided the French magazine Auto Plus. The po-po were called last August to begin an investigation because the magazine published detailed photos of the coming Renault Megane, which Renault said wasn't supposed to hit showrooms for another three years. The raid was the next step in the Sherlock Holmes treatment.

Renault, of course, says that it is not after the press, it's simply trying to protect its intellectual property. The shots are so clear, and there are so many of them -- including the interior -- that it's obviously an inside job. The press, of course, feels that this is an attack on its freedom. The French press and the French government are engaged in a complicate dance, and this doesn't help things.

The police removed one reporter and a passel of computers. They don't want the reporter, though, they want the source. Auto Plus will have to wait to find out how much of that ever gets returned. But since the photos are out, we might as well take the time to say it's a nifty looking little car.

posted : 8/5/2008 @7:20:03 AM
2008 Dodge Challenger SRT8 interior pics leaked

Some official photos of the Dodge Challenger's interior have been posted on Allpar's forums, and our spirits have been buoyed. It's always hard to get a read on the real-world look and feel of the interior plastics, but from what we can make out amidst the dither, all is not lost when it comes to the Challenger's front office. In these pictures, the interior looks very presentable, though it seems to be pretty standard LX fare. The SRT8 models get nicely trimmed seats, with contrasting french stitching on the deep bolsters, suede inserts to grip your backside, and a nice splash of orange to set off the SRT logo. Lesser Challengers will obviously not get quite the full boat luxe treatment that the SRT gets, with its MyGig, bespoke gauges, and leather adornments, but just what will get pulled out remains to be seen. The Mustang and Camaro might have more exciting designs, but the ergonomics and controls in the revived Dodge ponycar look well thought out. We've breathed a half-sigh of relief after our last round of interior spy shots, which left some of us certain that the Challenger's interior was going to be bested by what came in the unlamented K-Cars.
posted : 2/6/2008 @4:15:54 PM
Lecken Sie wie der Wind - Der Neue Scirocco brochure surfacesIt's not for us, but Volkswagen's moving ahead steadily with readying their new coupe. Heading a car for the showroom means that all the ancillary materials need to be created, too. They're likely shooting pictures of some preproduction model in an exotic locale as we write this, and the mundane things like owner's manuals need to get done so they can be lovingly tucked into gloveboxes. Some quick thinking with a digital camera has netted the interweb some closeups of a Scirocco's instruction booklet, which coincidentally carries closeups of an uncamoflaged Scirocco. The shots are small, out of focus, and not terribly informative, so we studied them for hours, naturally. You can see the final shape of the headlamp and down the flank, some fuzzy images of the interior and details like the rims, HVAC controls, and switchgear. We wish there was a shot or two of the rear, but at least we now know that the headlights are going to have an underbite that reminds us of the early '70s 412.
posted : 1/30/2008 @6:04:25 PM
tags : 2009 , 2010 , chevy , gm , impala , leak , new , newspaper

Dealer ad shows 2008 09 Chevy Impala

It seems that the Impala's replacement has found its way onto the auto pages of a newspaper in much the same way that the Cadillac CTS Coupe did a while back. You could argue that there's no way this is anything but a calculated effort on GMs part. There's really no way to be sure, but with our local dealers still still using images of the DN101 Taurus when advertising the '08, the suspicion might be warranted. Think about it for a second and you realize that dealers don't just get this stuff by mistake. That's our conspiracy theory, and we're sticking with it.
more ...

posted : 1/19/2008 @2:37:00 PM
Pics and Details Aplenty: 2009 BMW M3 Convertible

BMW wasn't planning on releasing the M3 convertible just yet. It had its hands full with the production X6 crossover and those new-fangled turbodiesels the company unveiled at the Detroit show. The M3 drop-top wasn't supposed to debut until March at the Geneva show. But the Bavarian automaker evidently took a decidedly un-German "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em" attitude when initial images and details leaked out. Rather than trying to hold the dam together, BMW has decided to join us for a swim and let the floodgates open on its new V8 hard-top convertible.
more ...
posted : 1/16/2008 @9:22:32 PM
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