Wagon lovers rejoice! Audi's new 2009 A4 Avant has made its official North American debut at the New York Auto Show. The press release, after the break, introduces us to the newest 2.0 liter TFSI four cylinder engine, variants of which have won "Engine of the Year" trophies three times. Coming in at 211 horsepower along with 258 lb.-ft. of torque, the A4's base engine is reportedly capable of propelling the car to sixty in 6.5 seconds.
The impressive output of Audi's new four-banger almost makes up for their decision not to offer the sedan's 3.2 liter FSI V6 in the Avant. That engine features the newest version of the patented Audi Valvelift Technology (AVS) and offers up 265 horsepower. Six-speed transmissions will be offered in both the A4 sedan and Avant -- no mention of Quattro systems or the new 7-speed DSG. It seems like Audi's been holding back the new A4 for so long that we can hardly believe that we'll see it in dealerships this October, but we'll continue to sate your appetites with pictures until then.
We dug the hot new Genesis Coupe at the New York Auto Show, but not everybody can head out to Gotham to see Hyundai's future tuner de force. Hyundai knows it has a good thing on its hands, and has now shared it with the world in web form. The Genesis Coupe's official site includes everything from technical specifications and available equipment to photo galleries and videos. That ought to help you kill the year-or-so wait for the Genesis Coupe's arrival in dealer showrooms.
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I'm the resident kei car obsessive here at Autoblog. That means I'm the guy who actually thinks, "That is awesome," when he reads the (Google translated) announcement of yet another Suzuki Wagon R variant. Hell, I did two posts on the one-off Hello Kitty Mitsubishi i. Keis are cool. So, you can imagine how happy I was to see that Mitsubishi brought along a small fleet of its i minicars to the New York Auto Show this year.
Mitsubishi's focus at the show was squarely on the the all-electric i MiEV, which goes on sale in Japan next year and will be tested in North America this fall. The gasoline-powered version was on hand, too, though. I drove the i MiEV for AutoblogGreen, and was a passenger in a black i Turbo. Head over to AutoblogGreen for driving impressions of the i MiEV, and note that many of the observations there apply to both the electric and gasoline-powered cars.
The i Turbo you see here is powered by a 660cc 3-cylinder that delivers around 64 horsepower. It's got around half the torque of the electric i MiEV and it's buzzier-sounding (obviously), but it felt just as well-suited to city driving in New York as its battery-powered counterpart. It can comfortably transport four adults and a bit of cargo, too. Try doing that in a smart.
Mitsubishi is monitoring public reaction to the cars this week, so if you go to the show and like what you see, make sure to let them know. Me? I'll happily take one in black -- with a DAMD kit for optimum not-exactly-badassedness.
We were extremely busy while trying to cover the snot out of the New York Auto Show this past week at the Jacob Javits Center. Even when we were running across the show floor to make a press conference and get a good seat, we still had our fingers on the trigger of our many DSLR cameras. At times we caught some interesting and downright funny things that just didn't fit into any other gallery except one devote to the odd and slightly hilarious.
This past Wedneday evening, the Audi Forum in New York City hosted a gala party attended by celebrities and the weary automotive press in town to cover the New York Auto Show. The beautiful people on hand included Tom Brady (celebrity status: A), Tyson Beckford (celebrity status: B), Will Arnett (celebrity status: A-), Denise Rich (celebrity status: ?) and members of the Gossip Girl cast (according to my fiance, celebrity status: better than Tom Brady). Though Autoblog was not in attendance (thus reducing the list of A list celebrities), Audi was kind enough to send us pics of the special A5 it revealed that night (and Tom Brady sitting in the R8 TDI Le Mans concept from the Geneva Motor Show). Custom-painted by New York artist Hunt Slomen, the coupe features a swath of art that flows from the car's hood and down across the driver-side door. The artwork is abstract, but we can make out white birds, which our single semester of Art History 101 tells us represents doves, which in turn represents peace. Or it could represent the jobless rate of carrier pigeons in this age of digital e-mail. The custom-painted A5 will be donated to Denise Rich's G&P Foundation for Cancer Research and auctioned after it tours the country for a bit.
Mitsubishi's revised strategy for the U.S. market was outlined last month in its "Step Up 2010" business plan that seeks to renew the automaker's focus on competing with the major players in North America. The one bit of information that caught out eye in Mitsu's press release was a plan to offer a hatchback Lancer into its range. While the Prototype-S whet our appetite, there was no definitive confirmation that the Ralliart drivetrain in the concept would be fitted to the five-door when it makes its production debut, likely sometime next year. According to a Mitsubishi spokesperson we talked to here in New York, the wagon is coming, and when asked if it would be equipped with the 235-hp turbocharged four and all-wheel-drive system, his response was, "Probably Ralliart. But you can only speculate on that." Good enough for us, but from what we've heard ourselves, a U.S.-market Sportback is past the speculation stage already..
We just reported on the Gurney Signature Edition Saleen Mustang, but now we've seen it in person and wanted to share some pics. Presented by company President Paul Wilbur and the man himself, the special 'Stang was rolled out in a deep blue that mimics Gurney's 1970 Trans-Am ride. Dan pointed out how his is faster and better handling, at a similar price to the Parnelli Jones Edition. Wilbur noted that they better get on with things so as not to reignite the flames of that old rivalry any further. Wilbur also noted that Saleen will sell just 300 of these special rides: 100 in red, 100 in white, and 100 in the roll-out blue. As we pointed out yesterday, this latest Mustang is powered by a Saleen-supercharged 4.6-liter V8 producing 465 horsepower, and handles curves better thanks to Saleen's Racecraft suspension and Pirelli Corsa tires. The interior features custom two-tone seats and Gurney's signature on the dash. No word on pricing yet, but whatever they ask they'll probably get. It just oozes retro muscle attitude when you are standing near it. Maybe we were just so pleased to be in Dan's presence. The legend even took the time to sign a stack of commemorative posters for anyone who wanted them. That ended up being everyone around.
Our colleagues at AutoblogGreen happened upon the MDI Air Car uncovered in the lobby of the Jacob Javits Center just now, and were surprised at what they saw. Powered by compressed air stored under pressure in carbon fiber tanks, the Air Car on the floor in New York looks absolutely nothing like prototypes and sketches we've seen in the past. This previous rendering promised a fully-enclosed, Yaris-like cocoon, and even the original prototype at least had a solid roof over your head. Not this one. The body appears to be comprised entirely of injected-molded plastic that was color-keyed to my grandmother's bed spread, and crash protection looks to be on par with the Cozy Coupe. Our crew at ABG will be interviewing the team from MDI later today, so we'll find out more about the MDI Air Car and its many personalities soon.
Suzuki has been teasing us over the last few months with its duo of highly stylized concepts, the Kizashi and Kizashi 2. While it was obvious that cues found on both those concepts are going to inspire the styling of future models, it wasn't clear how Suzuki would implement some of the more extreme features of this design language. Today in New York, Suzuki showed what elements were making the cut with the unveiling of the Kizashi 3 concept.
Sporting a toned-down version of the gaping maw found on the first two concepts, deeply drawn headlights and recessed fog lamps, the fascia has made the successful transition from design exercise to down-to-earth concept. While the profile and rear end is a little less dramatic than the view up front, the 21-inch wheels add a healthy amount of visual weight down below. Underneath the hood is a 300-hp, 3.6-liter V6 that drives all four wheels through Suzuki's intelligent AWD system.
Suzuki made it very clear that the Kizashi 3 is a close representation of the production model that will arrive in the U.S. by 2010. It's a serious step to shore up market share in a segment rife with competition, but if the Kizashi is executed as well as the concept, there could be another serious contender coming out of Japan.
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