autos sport

Over at Europe’s SEMA equivalent, the Essen Motor Show in Germany, COBRA N+ premiered a series of accessories for the Nissan Qashqai, even though the latter hasn’t gone on sale yet.

The exterior bodykit includes chromed bumper add-ons, side chrome styling and what a “chromy” coincidence, a …chromed COBRA N+ stainless steel bumper grille and two -what did you expect... chromed tailpipes. The COBRA N+ program also includes custom-tailored tire/wheel combinations in 17- and 18-inch diameter. The largest possible version is the COBRA N+ CN12 wheel in size 8Jx18. In the interior the COBRA N+ product lineup adds individual highlights with aluminum foot pedals, various versions of shift knobs and stainless-steel sill plates with illuminated COBRA N+ logo. Via: Jalopnik

Related Links: Nissan Qashqai, Nissan Note MPV COBRA N+

Technorat: Nissan+Qashqai, Cobra+N+, Essen+Motor+Show, tuning+news, car+accessories, tuning+accessories, bodykit, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, images, pictures, Carscoop

The Essen Motor Show is'nt only about weird prototypes and souped-up “beefenwagons’’ as BMW prooves. The Bavarian car-maker made the global premiere of it’s 2007 Dakar Rally vehicle. The car designated as X Raid BMW X3 CC wears a 2.9-litre 6-cylinder diesel engine pumping out 286 hp. Jutta Kleinschmidt (the winner in 2001), who will drive the X3 at the Dakar Rally 2007 (starting in Lisbon on January 6), stated: "I would like to get on the podium". Wow, that’s original…

Technorati: BMW+X3, Dakar+Rally+2007, Racing+news, ESSEN+Motor+Show, 2006, tuning+news, , images, pictures, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, autos, Carscoop

S-Line in Ingolstadt, R-Line in Wolfsburg… geez, those folks over at VW Group are full of surprises’ aren’t they! So what’s the R-Line? Nothing more, nothing less than sporty exterior and interior equipment packages available for the Golf, Touran, Passat and Touareg models. Officialy presented at the Essen Show, the R-Line pack will first be coming out in Germany in 2007.

So far the letter “R” has exclusively stood for high-performance cars such as the Golf R32 (250 hp), or the new Passat R36 (300 hp). The idea behind it: all R line products take up on the characteristic design elements that also distinguish the Golf R32 or the Passat R36. Via: VW & Autoblog.nl

Technorati: Volkswagen+R-Line, VW+Golf, Touran, Touareg, tuning+news, , images, pictures, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, autos, Carscoop

Time to take a break from all that auto-buzz in the Los Angeles Auto Show and see what’s going around in other parts of the world. Our “kit-kat” breaks takes us to Sweden and in particular to the Swedish edition of Auto Motor & Sport which posted an excellent chop of Mercedes’s upcoming compact SUV which will be called MLK or GLK. The “chop” was based on pics from the camouflaged prototype which seems to lean more to the GL-Class than to the ML-Class in terms of design.

From what we’ve gathered, the production version of the GLK – MLK (call it what you want) will make its public debut in the September Frankfurt Motor Show but don’t be surprised if we see a near-to-production concept at the upcoming Detroit Show. Although details are scarce, the GLK – MLK will probably be available with a vast range of petrol an diesel engines that’ll include the upgraded 4cylinder 1.8 K with 184 Hp (as well the 143 Hp version), the 204Hp 2.5 V6, the 231 Hp 3.0 V6, the 272 Hp 3.5 V6, the 150 / 170 Hp 2.2 CDI, 190 / 224 Hp 3/0 CDI. Sales are expected to start in Europe late 2007 and in the US early 2008. Via: Automotorsport.se

Technorati: Mercedes+GLK, Mercedes+MLK, scoop, images, pictures, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, autos, Carscoop

Ts, ts naughty, naughty! We’ve got to hand it to Acura for their creativity and originality in the design of the Advanced Sedan Concept which looks nothing like the Cadillac Sixteen Concept!

But then again, that’s just our opinion cause according to John Mendel, senior vice president, auto operations Acura, “the Advanced Sedan Concept illustrates Acura's commitment to modern design and cutting-edge style. With our advanced design team taking a significant role in shaping future vehicle design, we can expect upcoming products to reflect this progressive, forward-thinking styling." We’ll just leave you to decide.

Technorati: Acura+Advanced+Sedan+Concept, Honda, Los+Angeles, LA+Auto+Show, 2006, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, images, pictures, Carscoop

At first we just thought this was just another concept. But always check out the fine print because you might find a tiny detail that’s not in the press release. So here we have three little letters “CRX” written on the rear end of the right-hand sketch seen above!

Although these three magic letters are absent from the actual concept someone’s pencil slipped. Or perhaps it didn’t. At any rate, the Remix Concept previewed at L.A.. is according to Honda, “a two-seat sports car focused on agile and fun-to-drive performance that can also provide exceptional practicality as a daily driver.” Hey, now isn’t that what the CRX was claimed to be? Coincidence? I think not!

Here’s a little blurb from the Press Release: The REMIX Small Sport Concept is a product of the Honda R&D Americas, Inc., Advanced Design Studio in Southern California. Purely a design concept, the vehicle is fashioned around a front-wheel drive small car platform with a 4cylinder engine and a 6-speed manual transmission. A sport suspension, along with aggressive tires and brakes, further supplement its performance side.

Technorati: Honda+Remix+Concept, Honda+CRX, Los+Angeles, LA+Auto+Show, 2006, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, images, pictures, Carscoop

Here we have the Opel Antara, oops. No. What I meant was the brand new never seen before, never existed, totally just born Saturn Vue. But like the naughty children that we are, let us remind you that the Opel Antara, like its Chevrolet (Europe) cousin Captiva, was conceived, engineered, designed and also made, in Korea by GM’s subsidiary Daewoo (Winstorm)! So much for Saturn’s attempt to create a European inspired image for the Vue... Still, you have to admit its pretty good looking.

The Euro / American / Korean -call it what you want, inspired Saturn Vue will be available in the second quarter of 2007 as a 2008 model. These are the available versions: the XE FWD and Vue Green Line models are equipped with a 165 Hp 4cylinder 2.4L engine which is mated to the a 4speed auto box. A 5speed manual will be available on 4cylinder Vue XE models in early 2008.

All-wheel-drive Vue XE models come equipped with a 3.5L V6 engine, delivering 215 horsepower at 5,900 rpm and 220 lb.-ft. (304 Nm) of torque at 2,800 rpm. Vue XR and Vue Red Line, are powered by GM’s 3.6L V6 VVT that delivers 250 horsepower (186 kW) at 6,500 rpm and 243 lb.-ft. (329 Nm) of torque at 4,400 rpm. All Vue models equipped with V6 engines receive the new Hydra-Matic 6speed automatic transmissions.

Saturn also confirmed that it will continue to offer the Green Line hybrid version of the Vue, beginning later in the 2008 model year.

Technorati: Saturn+Vue, SUV, Opel+Antara, Chevrolet+Captiva, Daewoo, 2008, Hybrids, Los+Angeles, LA+Auto+Show, 2006, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, images, pictures, Carscoop