Carscoops: October 2008

NISMO Prepped Nissan 370Z Photo Hits the Web

Nissan might have been successful in keeping the all-new 2009 370Z under cover until the release of the first official photos earlier this week, but its in-house performance division NISMO (abbreviated from Nissan Motorsport) didn't manage to do the same. From our experience, this leaked photo of a NISMO accessorized 370Z (called Fairlady Z in Japan) looks like it's the real deal. The sports coupe pictured here features a full bodykit that includes a rear wing, side sills, a rear diffuser housing a new set of tailpipes and larger alloy wheels. Understandably, we're not aware of the mechanical upgrades that will be offered by NISMO but expect to see several goodies for the V6 engine, suspension, brakes and the interior.

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Source: 370Z Tech , Via: Autoblog.com

2009 Nissan Versa Sedan 1.6 Becomes Cheapest New Car in the USA

Priced from $9,990 (excluding a destination and handling fee of $695) the new Versa Sedan 1.6 is the cheapest vehicle on four wheels in the U.S. - or so Nissan claims. The newest addition in the Nissan Versa's range is powered by a smaller displacement 107HP 1.6-liter engine as opposed to the 122HP 1.8-liter unit found in the standard Versa Sedan and Hatchback models (pictured above) that are both priced from $12,990. The 1.6-liter engine is mated to a standard 5-speed manual gearbox and optionally, to a 4-speed automatic transmission. -Continued

According to the Japanese manufacturer, the Versa Sedan 1.6's fuel economy is rated at 26 mpg city/34 mpg highway with the 5-speed manual and 26 mpg city/33 mpg highway with the 4-speed automatic. Although Nissan has not given out any other details, the automaker stated that the Versa Sedan 1.6 will be offered with less basic features than the standard models. The Versa Sedan 1.6 goes on sale at Nissan dealers nationwide beginning November 18, 2008.

Audi Announces 2009 TTS Coupe and Roadster U.S. Pricing

The manufacturer's suggested retail price for the range topping TTS models have been set at $45,500 for the TTS Coupe and $47,500 for the TTS Roadster. To refresh your memory, the TTS features a 265HP 2.0-liter turbocharged engine that allows the Coupe variant to sprint from 0 to 60mph (96km/h) in 4.9 seconds and the open-top Roadster in 5.1 seconds with both versions achieving 29 mpg in highway driving and 21 mpg in city driving based on government fuel-economy ratings. The U.S. market TTS models come equipped with the S-Tronic dual clutch gearbox as standard.

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GM Pulls the Plug Early on Used-Car Incentive Program

A GM spokesman confirmed earlier rumors today that the company will indeed scrap a financing incentive used-car program earlier than planned because of "a lack of credit funding" - that means no money in plain English. The General had informed its dealers through GMAC Financial Services that it would offer an incentive program on certified-used 2004-2009 models of Chevrolet Impala, Chevy Silverado, GMC Sierra and Pontiac G6 with 3.9 percent consumer loans for terms up to 60 months. -Continued

The program was supposed to run from October 1 through January 5 but according to GM spokesman John McDonald, it will now be terminated on November 3. It just seems to be getting "better" and "better" each time...

Video: Restored BMW 6-Series Cabrio from Back to the Future Film

Answering to some of the questions that were posted on the comment area of our post on the restored BMW 633 CSI Cabriolet from the Back to the Future 2 film (see details here), the owner of the vehicle Jeff Chabotte enlightened us with a video link describing the way that the futuristic wheel covers on work the car. Watch the video after the jump.

Thanks for the link Jeff!

SEMA: Subaru Forester XTI Concept with 315HP STI Turbo Engine

Just as we we're starting to worry about the lack of any official Subaru proposals for the SEMA show the Japanese automaker revealed the Forester XTI Concept. Designed and built by the folks at Subaru of America, the concept features the engine and entire drivetrain from the Impreza WRX STI. Thanks to the addition of a custom stainless steel cat-back exhaust system, the 2.5-liter intercooled turbo engine develops an output of 315HP (+10HP) and 300 lb.-ft. of torque (from 290 lb.-ft. stock). With this engine, Subaru claims that the Forester XTI Concept can hit the 0 to 60mph (96km/h) mark in under 5,0 seconds - not bad at all for a crossover. -Continued

As with the Impreza WRX STI, power is channeled through a close-ratio 6-speed manual transmission and the Driver Controlled Center Differential (DCCD) version of Subaru Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive which offers three selectable automatic performance modes in addition to six manual center differential-locking settings.

Subaru technicians borrowed the WRX STI's Brembo brakes with 4-piston front calipers and 2-piston rear calipers and while they were at it, they also added an adjustable coil-over suspension by STI.

The Forester XTI Concept's styling has been enhanced with a two-shade custom paint scheme, a JDM body kit that includes side skirts, a rear skirt and a gate spoiler and of course, a set of 18-inch STI alloy wheels wrapped in Yokohama Advan Neova 255/40R18 performance tires. We dont; have any photos of the interior but Subaru said that the Forester XTI features leather and Alcantara sport seats, a special instrument cluster, front dash and center console and leather-wrapped steering wheel.

Bentley to Lay Off up to 300 Workers as Sales Fall

In contrast to rival luxury automaker Rolls-Royce that is seeking to increase its staff to keep up with demand (read here), Bentley is axing the night shift on the Continental production line at its Crewe plant in response to falling sales for its high-end cars. The British manufacturer is looking to cut between 200 and 300 jobs from its 3,800 staff and is offering voluntary severance. In addition, Bentley is also further cutting back its overall output by sending workers on an extra-long Christmas break this year as the company will shut down its production lines on December 10 re-opening them on January 12.

VW: Europe Will Get New Pickup Truck in 2010, The U.S. Wont

During the Sao Paulo International Auto Show in Brazil, Volkswagen officials confirmed that the firm's forthcoming pickup truck that was revealed in concept form at the IAA commercial vehicle show in Hannover in September will go on sale in Europe in 2010. In an interview with Autonews at the Sao Paulo motorshow, "VW do Brasil" CEO Thomas Schmall said the pickup's main markets will be Brazil, Argentina, South Africa and Australia. The German company also said it has no plans to export the pickup truck to the U.S. market. -Continued

The 5,180mm long, 1,900mm wide pickup is based on a new platform and power is expected to be provided from a variety of TDI turbo diesel engines. The vehicle will be built at Volkswagen's Pacheco site in Argentina starting from fall 2009. In Europe the yet to be named pickup truck will compete against the Nissan Navara, Mitsubishi L200 and Toyota HiLux.

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Toyota to Export U.S. Made Sequoia SUV and Tundra Pickup

With sales of large SUVs and pickup trucks in the States on the constant decline Toyota decided to partially deal with the oversupply problem by exporting the Sequoia SUV that's made in Indiana to the Middle East and South America, and the Tundra pickup truck made at its plant in Texas to South America. Annually, Toyota plans to ship approximately 15,000 units of the Sequoia to the Middle East, and around 150 units of the Sequoia and 1,000 units of the Tundra to South America. In both cases, exports are scheduled to start in December 2008.

2009 Dodge Challenger SRT8 Roadster to Make a Splash at SEMA

We told you that this year's SEMA motorshow will be packed with Challengers -and apparently with Camaros also, but that's another story. Joining the two SEMA show 2009 Dodge Challenger Convertibles from Coach Builders Limited and Newport Convertible Engineering is a third topless version, from Group Five Limited. But unlike the two other proposals, Group Five's Challenger concept is a roadster or better yet, a speedster. And as such, it features a chopped windscreen and seats only for two with the rear passenger area being hidden by a tonneau cover. -Continued

The artists renderings reveal that the customized Dodge benefits from a front spoiler, a hood shaker, a redesigned rear bumper that houses new exhaust pipes as well as what appears to be, a set of restyled rear LED lights. For the time being, we're not aware if the Challenger SRT8 Roadster is simply a design study or if Group Five intends to produce it in a limited number of units, but we'll have all the details along with real-life pictures of the car from the SEMA show floor in less than a week's time.

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Porsche Launches Panamera Sports Sedan Teaser Video

Porsche has launched a new teaser video of its upcoming Panamera that gives us an insight into the development of the German brand's first ever sports sedan. The one-and-a-half minute long film shows the Panamera undergoing tests in various parts of the world with the narrator describing the vehicle in the customary press-release sort-of way. Porsche's highly anticipated sports sedan is scheduled to go on sale in 2009 where it will be initially available with naturally aspirated and turbocharged V8 engines followed by a smaller V6 gasoline unit and in late 2010, a hybrid version. Skip the jump to watch the video. -Continued

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SEMA Preview: 2009 Kia Borrego SUV by Turbonetics

Even the new Kia Borrego SUV will make its way to next week's 2008 SEMA Show in Las Vegas. The Korean firm's body-on-frame SUV has been taken into the loving care of Turbonetics which has prepared a variety of mechanical and styling modifications. The customized Borrego will feature among other things, a Gibson cat-back exhaust and K&N filter, a subtle bodykit complemented by 22-inch alloy wheels in Pirelli Scorpion Zero 265/40R22 tires and a Katzkin Leather interior with suede headliner and pillar wraps.

Pontiac Solstice Based Lamborghini Murcielago Replicon

If someone could please tell us what exactly is so cool or special about this travesty of a Lamborghini Murcielago Roadster that could possibly justify the "Buy it Now" price of $70,000 on eBay, we'd deeply appreciate it because as hard as we tried, we couldn't find anything attractive about this car. The only reason we would could think of that someone would buy this ex Pontiac Solstice is to play a nasty joke on a Lamborghini Murcielago Roadster owner by switching cars in the parking lot. -Continued

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Via: Autoblog.com , Link: eBay

CDC's SEMA Show Widebody 2009 Dodge Challenger

Since this is the first SEMA Show after the introduction of the new Challenger in Chicago this past February, we're expecting to see Dodge's muscle car -and we're not kidding- in the dozens. We'll be informing you about as many custom Challengers as possible prior to the show's grand opening next Tuesday. One of the latest modded Challengers that we found comes from Classic Design Concepts (CDC). The Michigan-based tuner has readied a widebody version of the muscle car that gets composite front fenders and "billboard" rear flares with a larger that life HEMI logo. -Continued

Other styling mods performed by CDC include a stainless wire front grille, an alluminum hood that boasts a cold air "shaker" system and sequential tail lights as well as new alloy wheels.

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Nissan Releases New KIX Mini SUV in Japan

Product sharing is a fairly common practice in Japan when it comes to vehicles that belong in the mini and the so-called "Kei car" segments. The new Nissan KIX that went on sale today in Japan is a rebadged Mitsubishi Pajero Mini with a few minor styling changes. The mini SUV is offered with Mitsubishi's miniscule 0,6-liter turbocharged 4-cylinder engine that delivers an output of 64HP and is mated to either a 5-speed manual or 4-speed automatic transmission. The KIX features a standard 4WD system that allows changes between 2WD and 4WD operating modes by a transfer case shift lever. -Continued

According to Nissan, the 4-seater KIX boasts ample road clearance with an approach angle of 38°, departure angle of 46°, and minimum ground clearance of 195 mm. The Japanese automaker has set a domestic sales target of 300 units per month. Prices for the KIX begin from 1,402,800 yen which comes to about $14,500 at current exchange rates.