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Filed under: Sedans/Saloons , Etc. , Japan , Humor Click above for gallery with more images, if you dare Mitsuoka, that tiny Japanese manufacturer who makes the wonderfully wacky Orochi sea monster, has introduced its latest automotive mash-up, just in time to give us a Halloween fright. It is a derivative of the company's Galue III (the return of the shapeshifter) and is known as the Galue Limousine S50. This shouldn't be confused with the company's Galue 204 Toyota Corolla rebody, or the Galue Convertible , which is based on the Ford Mustang. Instead, this limo is based on the Infiniti M, but incorporates styling touches from such classic designs as the '94 Cadillac Fleetwood, the Rolls-Royce Phantom and the Apple iPhone. While that might not sound too offensive, trust us, it is. Remember the classic Beetles with the R-R grilles? Imagine that on a new Infiniti M35. And out back, that gracefully curved rear has been amended with Caddy taillight protrusions. Where once stood...
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Filed under: Hybrids/Alternative , Sedans/Saloons , Japan , Tech , Toyota Toyota's Crown Hybrid gets brownie points for good gas mileage, but it's apparently a troublemaker in the motor noise department. Instead of merely adding insulation to the bulkhead, Toyota engineered an Active Noise Control system to reduce engine noise inside the cabin. The contraption uses three microphones on the interior of the car to detect engine noise. Based on the frequencies they detect, one speaker in each of the front doors and a woofer on the rear shelf create antiphase signals to cancel out the noise. The canceling is set up to occur at passenger head level, and does not interfere with the music system or your own talking. The Crown Hybrid, released this year in Japan, uses a slightly modified version of the hybrid system from the Lexus GS. Active Noise Control reduces cabin noise from the engine by about five to eight dB, and is permanently on. It's probably not out of the question that...
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Filed under: Economy , Sedans/Saloons , Japan , Chevrolet , GM , Toyota A long, long time ago -- 1996 to be exact -- Toyota decided to brand engineer a GM vehicle for the Japanese domestic market. The vehicle they chose: the Chevrolet Cavalier. They even called it the Toyota Cavalier, and wanted to move 20,000 of them per year in Japan. They put them in dealer showrooms next to JDM cars, and, well... people didn't really buy them. By 2000, the Toyota Cavalier was mort . And while their loss is not exactly your gain, it might mean you can have some fun with rabbits and hats. GM made Toyota Cavalier parts, including Toyota badges, for the car, and has boxes of the stuff at its warehouse in Lansing, Michigan. If you can get a parts manager to fulfill your order -- overseas-only parts are normally red-flagged for U.S. domestic use due to DOT issues -- then you can get a Toyota badge wrapped in official GM packaging. Cue the Ripley's Believe It or Not theme music... [Source: Automobile...
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Filed under: Sedans/Saloons , Japan , Plants/Manufacturing , Crossovers/CUVs , Mitsubishi The so-called 'World Engine' used by Daimler Chrysler, Hyundai and Mitsubishi as part of their Global Engine Manufacturing Alliance joint venture has given the world such gems as the powerplants in the current Mitsubishi Evolution and Dodge Caliber SRT-4, and will also power the base version of the upcoming Hyundai Genesis Coupe. Although these turbocharged beasts are what make the heart swoon, the bulk of World Engines engines are much more mundane. With fuel efficiency a top priority these days, the Diamond Star brand will soon be investing some nine-billion yen (US$84.2m) into its engine plant in Japan's Shiga Prefecture, which makes the global four-bangers in 1.8, 2.0 and 2.4 liter capacities. Expect to find these engines underhood in various Lancer and Outlander models. [Source: Just-Auto - sub. req'd] Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
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Filed under: Sedans/Saloons , Wagons/Estates , Japan , Subaru Click above for a high-res gallery of the Subaru Legacy STI S402. Subaru is taunting us again with yet another limited-edition model that we'll likely never see Stateside. The Legacy STI S402 will be limited to (appropriately) 402 units in both sedan and wagon trim, featuring the STI's turbocharged, 2.5-liter flat-four. Unlike some of the other "special" Subies, the S402 Legacy means business. To begin with, the front fenders have been widened by 20mm, the steering ratio has been reduced to 13:1 and Bilstein shocks are fitted at all four corners, along with 18-inch BBS wheels wrapped in Bridgestone Potenza RE050A rubber. The brakes have been upgraded to units from Brembo, with six-piston calipers up front and two-pot calipers in the rear gripping upgraded rotors. Aside from all the required badging, Subaru has fitted new gauges to the IP, along with a MOMO steering wheel and aluminum shift knob. Sales begin...
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Filed under: Convertibles , Coupes , Sedans/Saloons , Japan , Mazda , Rendered Speculation Mazda's 6 is having a tough time finding love in its home market where it goes by the Atenza moniker. 7Tune is reporting that Mazda's going to flip the script and introduce three new variants of the Atenza; a coupe, a convertible, and a high performance version called the Mazdaspeed Atenza for JDM consumption. Mazda looked to the holy-grail BMW 3 series for inspiration, though that car is rear-wheel-drive, and hopes to achieve the same build quality with its Atenza line. The vehicles in 7Tunes renderings are more conservatively styled than the current 3-Series, though that's hardly a bad thing. We think the renderings are easy on the eyes, with clear RX-8 influences, though all suffer from a basket-handle spoiler tacked on to the trunklid. It's tough to imagine the Mazdaspeed Atenza amounting to anything other than a tasty snack for the monstrous M3, though we're sure the Mazda...
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Filed under: Sedans/Saloons , China , Japan , Nissan , Misc. Auto Shows Click above for a gallery of the Nissan Teana brochure. The Scoopers of Cars have gotten their hands on a scanned brochure of the production version of the Nissan Intima concept , and it seems that in addition to getting a mass-market makeover, it will also be sporting a Teana badge when it goes on sale in Japan. The transition from concept to production has been uncharacteristically kind to the Teana, with the tightly drawn headlamps, plummeting C-pillar and elongated tail lamps surviving, but the suicide doors and 22nd century interior must have been scrapped due to feasibility issues. We'll get our first official taste of the Teana when it's finally revealed on April 20th at the Beijing Motor Show . Gallery: Nissan Teana Brochure Scans Gallery: Nissan Intima concept [Source: Carscoop ] Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
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Filed under: Sedans/Saloons , Japan , Acura , Honda When we had the current-generation Acura RL in the Autoblog Garage , we thought that its understated design was attractive enough, but opined that it looked rather anonymous in the face of competitors such as the BMW 5-series , Infiniti M35 and especially the new Cadillac CTS . What may be a bigger problem to consumers is the lack of a V8 engine option, especially considering that even Hyundai has seen fit to offer its top-level sedan with V8 power. Additionally, the current RL is based on a front-wheel-drive chassis architecture, and although we found that the Super Handling-All Wheel Drive system worked rather well, the new RL might get an AWD system based on a rear-wheel-drive chassis. If rumors from Japan's Best Car agazine hold true, expect to see a new 4.5 liter V8 in Acura's recently redesigned flagship sporting over 400 horsepower. The rendering shown above appears to be a current-generation Accord, which is already quite...
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Filed under: Spy Photos , Economy , Sedans/Saloons , Japan , Paris Motor Show , Hatchbacks , Mazda With the Mazda2 and Mazda6 selling successfully abroad, the Zoom-Zoom crowd is turning its attention to the Mazda3, with this rendering surfacing in good company of the wealth of RX-9 sketches that were popping up everywhere last month. The rendering borrows cues from its little and big brothers to forecast what the upcoming 3 could look like, while ostensibly reasonable predictions place four-cylinder engines underhood ranging from 1.5 to 2.5 liters, as well as the availability of four- and five-door variants like the current and previous models. The current Mazda3, although facelifted just a couple of years ago, has been on the market for five years now, making it a prime candidate for a total redesign. Reports suggest that the new 3 could bow in Paris this September ahead of a spring 2009 market launch, so we'll keep an eye out for it when we land in the City of Lights. [Source: Winding...
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Filed under: Sedans/Saloons , Wagons/Estates , Geneva Motor Show , Euro , Japan , Subaru click above for high-res gallery of the Subaru Legacy Diesels Next month in Geneva, Subaru will officially pull the wraps off the Legacy 2.0D and Outback 2.0D, which, of course, are the first vehicles to be powered by Subaru's new 2.0L Boxer Diesel. Visually, the cars look just like their gasoline-engined counterparts, with the only giveaway being the D-shaped "Boxer Diesel" badge affixed to their rear ends. As for the new 2.0 CRD boxer, it's just as wide as a 2.0L gasoline version, but is shorter overall, making for a neat, compact package that produces 147 horsepower (110 kw, 150 PS) at 3,600 rpm and 258 lb-ft (350 Nm) at 1,800 rpm. It's also Euro 4 compliant, emitting 148 g/km of CO² in the Legacy sedan. That's great and all, but we're most curious to hear what the oil-burning boxer sounds like. We'll have plenty more next month when we see the cars in person...
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Filed under: Sedans/Saloons , Japan Click image for hi-res gallery Mitsuoka, in addition to building the sea creature-like Orochi sports car, is best known for its quirky "regular" models, which are simply rebodied vehicles that are usually made to look like British classics. Today, the boutique automaker unveiled the Galue 204, which is based on the current Toyota Corolla Axio (sedan). Mechanically , all the Corolla Axio options are available -- 1.5 or 1.8L engines, optional 4WD, etc. Visually, you get an "Old Luxury" face (watch out for marauding Audi R8s ) and a rear that looks lifted right off a late-model Cadillac Fleetwood . It makes for an amusing automotive mash-up, and ultimately, a suitably eccentric novelty vehicle. This is one Corolla that certainly can't be accused of looking boring. [Source: Mitsuoka] Gallery: Mitsuoka Galue 204 Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
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Filed under: Aftermarket , Tuners , Sedans/Saloons , Japan , Honda , Tokyo Auto Salon Click the image above for a high-res gallery. One of the other concepts that graced Mugen's stand in Japan at the recent Tokyo Auto Salon was the Civic Type-RR, which in addition to the obvious replacement of the entire front clip with carbon fiber pieces, also includes a K20A engine that's been bored out to 2157 cc to create a more tractable powerband and an even higher redline. 260 horsepower and 173 lb.-ft. of torque is sent to the six-speed gearbox and down to the front wheels through a LSD. Naturally, the brakes and suspension have been upgraded to handle the extra grunt, while carbon fiber was used inside to beef up the structure. Mugen also added a system dubbed I-TCMS, or Intellligent Tire Condition Monitoring, which keeps tabs on the tire's air pressure and temperature. The dash mounted instrument cluster might be a big impediment to forward visibility, but we're sure it's...
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Filed under: Motorsports , Sedans/Saloons , Japan , Lexus , Toyota , Tokyo Auto Salon click above for high-res images of the IS F Racing Concept from TAS Lexus quietly trotted out its IS-F Racing Concept last week at the Tokyo Auto Salon, but despite the official unveiling, more questions than answers remain about the future of the DTM-inspired sedan. According to Winding Road , the racer was the brainchild of the IS-F's chief engineer, Yukihiko Yaguchi, who wanted to create a vehicle that further expanded the credentials of the IS-F. Unfortunately, when Peter Nunn questioned the Toyota folks about what plans it had for the concept, he was met with resounding silence. Rumors are swirling that this particular concept is nothing more than a design study, with no intention of campaigning a similar IS-F competitively. However, Lexus is supposedly working on an IS-F to campaign in the SuperGT GT300 series in Japan, with the SC430-based racer soldiering on in the GT500 class. More surprising...
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Filed under: Aftermarket , Tuners , Sedans/Saloons , Japan , Honda click above for more high-res images of the Mugen Inspire When it's time for Bruce Wayne to hang up the bat costume and settle down with a wife and kids, he'll need a car with more rear-seat leg room than the Tumbler . We suggest he take the Mugen Inspire for a test drive (with Morgan Freeman riding shotgun for good measure). With all the style and panache that the Dark Knight's daily driver should have, it's also got two more doors and some LATCH anchors for a baby seat. In typical Mugen fashion, the standard Honda Accord has been gussied up with a number of aero add-ons, including a new grille, front spoiler, side sills, rear apron and a rear spoiler from which a 100 or so bats could hang. Yes, the look is way over the top, but it's fun in the way it comically exaggerates the Accord's ho-hum design. The Inspire also gets a sports exhaust to free a few more horsepower through better breathing, as...
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Filed under: Hybrids/Alternative , Sedans/Saloons , Green , Japan , Tech , Honda Honda CEO Takeo Fukui has said Honda will now take the hybrid war seriously, with a claim that, "The real competition has just begun." Honda is planning to come out with a hybrid-only model in early 2009 that will provide genuine competition for the Toyota Prius. It seems everyone has been forced to play off the Prius' cues, such as when Fukui says that, "Until now, it has been an image-based competition, not a business-based competition." Which explains the Civic Hybrid being a misstep, because according to CNW research , 50-percent of folks who buy hybrids need the world to know it's a hybrid because they don't want people to think they are burning the remains of giant lizards. How does Honda plan to get the consumer's attention a year from now? Primarily, sticker shock -- but the good kind. Fukui said he wants the car to come in below the price of the current Civic Hybrid...
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