|
Browse by Tags
All Tags » roadster ( RSS)
-
|
Filed under: Concept Cars , LA Auto Show , Convertibles , Coupes , Volkswagen CAR and Autoweek have tapped their sources within Volkswagen to get the scoop on a rumored mid-engine Elise-fighter that may debut at next month's LA Auto Show . But when working with unnamed insiders, information tends to get jumbled in the process and differing reports emerge that suggest it's all more speculation than hard facts. Both reports confirm what we've heard before: Volkswagen will limit the cylinder count to four, but that's where the similarities end. Autoweek 's sources say that engine choices will be limited to either a 170-hp 1.4-liter Twincharger TSI gasoline engine or a new 125-hp 1.6-liter TDI sending power to the rear wheels through a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox. CAR pegs displacement of the gasoline engines at between 1.2- and 1.4-liters, with output ranging from 105 to 160 hp. A 1.2-liter TDI producing 75 hp is also being bandied around. According to Autoweek , the...
|
-
|
Filed under: Convertibles , Euro , FIAT Click above for a high-res version from WorldCarFans. We've always been fond of the Smart roadster, which never officially made it to U.S. shores and proved to be a flop across the pond. But this rendering, courtesy of WorldCarFans, has us thinking that a second attempt might be worthwhile. If the Abarth roadster ever comes to fruition, it would be an exercise in balancing a lightweight structure with a small price tag. Cost prohibitive carbon fiber couldn't be used, so some other form of composite would have to be employed for the chassis and body panels. Abarth could source the 135 hp, 1.4-liter mill from its own version of the Fiat 500 for power, mount it amidships and call it done. WCF dons its speculative cap and figures that if Abarth gives the roadster the green light, Europe could see the minimalist two-door by 2013 sporting a £12,000 sticker. [Source: WorldCarFans ] Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
|
-
|
Filed under: Convertibles , Honda , Rendered Speculation The Honda S2000 has been on the US market since 1999, and although it's long in the tooth, the rev-happy two-seater still brings joy to drivers with its well-balanced RWD goodness. We're looking forward to an all-new S2000, and according to a few Japanese magazines, we can expect to see the S2K's replacement in 2010. One mag commissioned the above rendering, which incorporates clean, angular lines, similar to those found on recent concepts from Honda and Acura . The topless rendering also exhibits an improved rendition of the aesthetically questionable Honda grille, along with some US-centric chrome rims. The next generation S2000 is rumored to be powered by a choice of four- or six-cylinder engines, with the four still packing 2.4 liters, but producing around 250 hp, and the a larger 3.5-liter unit putting out around 350 ponies. While a modestly enhanced 2.4 makes sense as the base engine, we're unsure if a larger...
|
-
|
Filed under: Hybrids/Alternative , Green , Plants/Manufacturing Click above for a high-res gallery of the Tesla Roadster. Tesla's president and CEO, Ze'ev Drori, made the announcement today on his corporate blog that production of the Roadster has officially begun. Tesla originally set a date of March 17th for "regular" production of the Roadster, and the folks in Hethel have met that obligation today. From here, Tesla intends to get started on its retail efforts, with both a Los Angeles location and a Menlo Park facility for sales and service for the 600 roadsters expected to be built over the course of 2008. Tesla is hoping that they'll be able to produce around 100 Roadsters each month, up from its current level of one to five cars per week. All the models being produced this year have already been spoken for, so any orders that come in will be sold as 2009 models. Gallery: First Drive: Tesla Roadster [Source: Tesla ] Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
|
-
|
Filed under: Convertibles , Coupes , Hybrids/Alternative , Green Last Friday, Tesla chairman Elon Musk took delivery of the first production Roadster , which carries the name P1 (Production vehicle 1). The black coupe was flown in from Hethel, England, where all Teslas are being built alongside the Roadster's cousin, the Lotus Elise. When the Roadster arrived at the start-up's R&D facility in San Carlos, California, it was pushed into the garage and had its Thailand-produced battery pack installed. After the battery was fitted and charged, Musk led a pack of four other Roadsters on a quick drive and AutoblogGreen was able to procure a video of the run. For those of you who wanted to hear how the Tesla Roadster sounds while accelerating, we've embedded the video after the jump. [Source: Earth2Tech.com, Image: Stephanie Lawrence] Gallery: First Drive: Tesla Roadster Continue reading Elon Musk takes delivery of first production Tesla Roadster Read | Permalink | Email this ...
|
-
|
Filed under: Motorsports , Convertibles , Hybrids/Alternative , Green click above for more high-res shots of the Tesla Roadster One thing that's been called into question is whether or not the Tesla Roadster will make a viable track day vehicle, but until now, there was one major hurdle for Tesla's engineers to overcome: cooling. The motor currently equipped in the Roadster is air-cooled, which wouldn't hold up to the rigors of track duty. But Tesla is working on a liquid-cooled version that wouldn't cause the power electronics module (PEM) to default into limp-home mode and subsequently cut power if heat became an issue. The possibility of a track-ready version is now officially in the cards. By utilizing the new liquid-cooled motor and removing about half of the batteries found in the standard Roadster, Tesla is considering releasing a variant called the Roadster 120, with the number referring to the projected range. Nixing around 500 pounds from the curb weight is going...
|
-
|
Filed under: Garage , Hybrids/Alternative , Green , Videos click above for more high-res shots of Autoblog driving the Tesla Roadster var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/autos/AutoblogGreen_gets_the_first_drive_of_the_Tesla_Roadster'; Most people are lucky to experience one life-affirming moment while they're on this earth; I experienced mine last week. AutoblogGreen's Sam Abuelsamid called to ask if I was interested in accompanying him on his exclusive First Drive of the Tesla Roadster. Aside from the company's own employees, only a few customers and the major automotive print publications have driven the Tesla Roadster so far. But you won't have to check your mailbox or drop $4.95 at Barnes and Noble to read about what it's like to drive this truly revolutionary vehicle. Follow the jump for our full road test ( with video! ) and check out the gallery of amazing images below. Gallery: First Drive: Tesla Roadster Continue reading Exclusive First Drive: Tesla Roadster...
|
-
|
Filed under: Hybrids/Alternative , Sports/GTs The team at Tesla Motors has been hard at work attempting to prove to the world they can deliver a performance-minded electric vehicle, but along the way they've hit a few bumps in the road. On top of recent organizational changes ,one of the major hold ups on Roadster delivery has been due to transmission issues. Their initial thought is to build the first production run with temporary single speed boxes that will not live up to the proposed performance numbers, then modify the delivered cars once a solution arrives. Now it looks like the road ahead is getting smoother. It turns out that early adopters might not have too long to wait before they can get their hands on the real Roadster. Tesla is reporting that through research and development of the WhiteStar sedan they happened to run across a solution for the drop top. They are dubbing it DriveTrain 1.5 and it should be submitted to testing next week. DriveTrain 1.5 doesn't appear...
|
-
|
Filed under: Concept Cars , Convertibles , Sports/GTs , Auction Action , Supercars , Ferrari Click above to view more images Red and rare. Save for a few vegetarians among us, that's how we like our steaks, and that's how we like our Ferraris. But some are so rare, even the bloodlust-driven connoisseurs among us don't know what to do with it. Take this one-off Ferrari Conciso. It's absolute car paccio. But nobody seems to be biting. The Conciso was built by German studio Michalak Design based on the mechanicals of a 1989 Ferrari 328 GTS (s/n 80962). As the name implies, the idea was to trim the chassis down to its bare essentials. The car has no doors and little in the way of a windshield to speak of. The driver and passenger hop over the sides like an F1 driver, hunker down into the racing buckets, buckle the competition harnesses and strap on the helmets, stored in special compartments inside the cabin. The concept was shown at the 1993 Frankfurt show and in Geneva the...
|
-
|
Filed under: Convertibles , Sports/GTs , Mercedes Benz , AMG It's been a regular smorgasbord for fans of Mercedes roadsters over here, with this teaser shot of the upcoming facelifted flagship SL hitting the web just a few days after Benz revealed the updated version of the smaller SLK . But while the SLK was revealed first in "ordinary" guise, the image above shows the full-fat, fire-breathing SL 65 AMG version. We already know that the facelift will feature a heavily revised front end with new headlight treatment, but from the rear three-quarter view Mercedes is enticing us with, all can also see the revised taillights, new diffuser with quad exhausts, and a subtle lip spoiler. The new SL 65 also appears to be riding on AMG's latest 19-inch five-spoke rims, similar in style to those found on Stuttgart's other earth-pounding range-topper, the Porsche 911 Turbo. With the teaser shot also comes information on the two AMG models in the new SL range: the SL 65 AMG we...
|
-
|
Filed under: Convertibles , Mercedes Benz Click on the image above to view in high resolution We've been seeing spy shots of the upcoming facelifted Mercedes-Benz SLK for some time now, awaiting its unveiling to see what those zany Germans have been up to on the baby SL, and now the first factory-released images have surfaced on the internet. The most prevalent changes have been made cosmetically to the front end, where Mercedes seeks to capitalize even further on its ties with Formula One - not only does Mercedes partner in the McLaren team, but the SLK itself can often be seen pulling duty as safety car at grands prix. The F1-style nose and front bumper are accompanied by new tail-lights out back and a refreshed interior with redesigned seats and a more subdued center console. The updated SLK also benefits from a revised 3.5-liter V6 with an anticipated 10 extra horsepower over the current version. More details will be made available as we close in on the car's official unveiling...
|
-
|
Filed under: Concept Cars , Convertibles , Sports/GTs , Supercars , Ferrari click to enlarge Dutch designer Michiel van den Brink doesn't seem to be deterred by adversity. First he set out to pen a modern interpretation of one of the most iconic homologated racing GTs of all time, the 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO. Then he actually decided to build his design, basing it on the Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano, arguably the most dynamically sublime supercar ever to grace tarmac. When the Fiorano's 600-hp Enzo sourced V12 wasn't good enough, he teamed up with tuning house Edo Competition to turn it up to 11 by boring it out to 6.3 liters. The result? 750 horsepower. When Maranello declined to grant him its blessing , he started taking orders anyway from customers seemingly undeterred by the $1.3 million asking price... over the cost of the donor car. Now that conjecture has begun circulating cyberspace that Ferrari is considering building a small run of convertibles based on the Fiorano , van den...
|
-
|
Filed under: Convertibles , Sports/GTs , Supercars , Ferrari The internet, as usual, is rife with speculation. Today's source is the FerrariChat message forum, where members claim to have inside information on two new Ferrari models that are anticipated for launch within the next couple of years. The news concerns a convertible version of the current 599 GTB Fiorano, an illustration of which you see above (courtesy of AutoGespot). FChat member "supraman55" says his local dealer confirmed the upcoming model for a debut at either Detroit or Geneva in 2009. Speculation surrounding the 599 Spider is backed up by an interview with Ferrari's General Director, Amadeo Felisa, which appeared recently in the German magazine Auto Motor und Sport . When asked about a convertible 599, Felisa confirmed that Ferrari is developing such a model for possible production in a limited series like its predecessor, the 575-based SuperAmerica. We'll add our own fuel to the fire by speculating...
|
-
|
Filed under: Aftermarket , Convertibles , Supercars , Lamborghini Click on the image above to view in high-resolution How do you top a car like the Lamborghini Murcielago Roadster? It's simply one of the most desirable supercars on the market. But while the terms "practicality" and "Lamborghini" don't belong anywhere in the same sentence, the topless Raging Bull's roof is something best considered only for emergencies - just when the contraption's complicated installment procedures prove most frustrating (or so we hear). Coming to the rescue are the American coachbuilders at Genaddi, who've designed a special roof for the special supercar. If the name rings any bells, Genaddi is responsible for such intriguing open-air conversions as the Corvette LSR Roadster , Maybach 62 cabriolet and the (limited) production version of the Ford GTX1 concept . Genaddi's design for the Murcielago is far less complicated, but from the description, its simplicity...
|
-
|
Filed under: Spy Photos , Convertibles , Euro , Mercedes Benz A design update for the Mercedes-Benz SL is on its way for 2009, and Lehmann managed to snag a very lightly disguised prototype running around while testing. Images in hand, they further disrobed the Merc coupe with the use of Photoshop, so what we're left with is a very clear picture of what's coming. The revision boils down to a new nose and tail, with powertrain changes, as well. The SL's front end gets a grille treatment that's more in keeping with the rest of Mercedes line, and the extractors on the front quarter panels mimic the SLR's gills. Headlamps have taken on the "hockey stick" look, sure to confound styling critics. They hardly touched the back end (not that there was anything wrong with it), as a new lower valance looks to be the most major change we can spot there. Engine choices are likely to remain largely unchanged, but the SL55 AMG will be replaced by an SL63 AMG, banishing supercharger...
|
More Posts Next page »
|
|
|