We're guessing that the owner of this 'special' Toyota Camry that was snapped by the folks over at Cardomain, is a strong advocate of the saying "they don't make them like they use to". Most likely, he's also a previous owner of an old school Buick or Oldsmobile sedan who misses the bling-bling styling accessories of the 1980s - btw, we love the faux triple side-exhaust pipes. Hit the jump to check out the full image gallery of this one-of-a-kind Camry.Via: Cardomain
Off-road tuning specialist 'Cobra Technology & Lifestyle' has presented its latest line of aftermarket bling for the new Volvo XC60 SUV. The range includes the 'oh so useful for your typical, city-dwelling XC60 owner' stainless-steel front guards and rocker panels with integrated steps. Ironically, all that shiny protective armor can be complemented with a set of 18, 19 or 20-inch alloy wheels that are available in four different designs. The largest version features Action Sport or Katana wheels shod in 255/45 R20 tires (front and rear). 
And the impending buyer of General Motor's Hummer division is... China's Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery Co. LTD. Sorry, never heard of them and chances are that 99.99% of those reading this post haven't either. But if you must know, GM said that Tengzhong, which is based in the Chinese province of Sichuan, is a "privately-owned company and a leading domestic manufacturer of road, construction and energy industry equipment." In an earlier statement today, GM said that the sale is expected to close by the end of third quarter of 2009 and that it will secure more than 3,000 US jobs. 
"The HUMMER brand is synonymous with adventure, freedom and exhilaration, and we plan to continue that heritage by investing in the business, allowing HUMMER to innovate and grow in exciting new ways under the leadership and continuity of its current management team," said Yang Yi, CEO of Tengzhong. "We will be investing in the HUMMER brand and its research and development capabilities, which will allow HUMMER to better meet demand for new products such as more fuel-efficient vehicles in the U.S."
HUMMER's chief James Taylor said, "With Tengzhong's investment and strong support, we will be able to make our visions a reality. This transaction, if successful, will secure more than 3,000 U.S. jobs, and allow us to embark on a more aggressive global expansion, ensuring a successful future with our new partners."
So that you know let us ask you: If the deal is sealed, what do you think that the future holds for a Chinese-owned HUMMER and its U.S. based employees?
Sichuan Tengzhong's Products
Picture this: it's a beautiful day, the sun is shining and you decide to take your prized McLaren F1 for a spin after six months of storage. All is great until you notice smoke coming out of the engine bay that houses the 627HP 6.1-liter BMW-derived V12. You pull over to take a looks and the next thing you know, the car is up in flames. This story actually happened yesterday, June 1, 2009, to Irv Kessler, 53, of Minnesota, as he was driving on Airport Boulevard in Santa Rosa California. . As you can see in the video below, the McLaren F1, which was worth an estimated $2 million but was allegedly insured for $3 million (we know what you're thinking...), was a complete loss.
Pretty sad if you consider that from a total of 100 McLaren F1s, only 72 were road cars (including five F1 LM versions and three street-legal F1 GTs). The remaining 28 were race cars built for private customers competing in the FIA GT series and the 24 hours of Le Mans.
Via: Jalopnik , Source: Pressdemocrat
The ultimate James Bond number plate has been listed for sale at the UK's DVLA DVLA Personalised Registrations auction that gets underway on Wednesday, June 3. "A007 SPY" has a relatively low reserve of just £900 or about $1,480 US, so unless some dedicated 'Bond' fan decides to raise the stakes, don't be surprised if you see the 007 plate hanging on the front end of a more down to earth car than the Aston Martin Vanquish pictured above.
On Monday, Volvo announced that it has teamed up with Swedish energy giant Vattenfall to introduce plug-in hybrid models to the market in 2012. But before we see the final production cars arriving in showrooms, Volvo will present a trio of V70 diesel plug-in hybrid demonstrator cars this summer to test the new technology. Click through to watch the video that includes interviews with several Volvo officials as well as footage of the demo V70 plug-in hybrid in action.
This week's grapevine story concerns the possible unveiling of a near-to-production MINI Roadster study at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September. Britain's Autocar magazine joined the hype today corroborating an earlier report on the matter from French car mag, L'Automobile. The so-called MINI Roadster is said to be a sportier-looking two-seater version of the current 2+2 MINI Cabriolet featuring a steeply raked windshield and a retractable soft top. The reports also suggest that due to the lower gravity of the car, the MINI Roadster will offer improved handling over its Cabriolet counterpart. 
Not surprisingly, the Roadster is said to be offered with a similar engine lineup as the standard MINI's including the John Cooper Work model's 1.6-litre twin scroll-turbocharged engine that produces 211 horsepower and up to 280 Nm peak torque with Overboost deployed.
The production version of the Roadster is slated to hit showrooms around the world as early as 2010.
However, what the reports don't say is where MINI plans to produce the Roadster model. As you may have already read before, the firm's Oxford plant is at peak capacity and due to this reason, MINI has made plans to assemble the forthcoming Crossman SUV, which will be revealed in production form at the Frankfurt Show, at the Magna Steyr plant in Austria.
Via: L'Automobile & Autocar
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and Nissan president Carlos Ghosn took part in the opening ceremony of the Japanese automaker's first plant in Russia on Tuesday. Located at St. Petersburg, Nissan's new US$200 million assembly plant has a production capacity of 50,000 vehicles a year. The facility, which is scheduled to employ 750 workers at start of production with one shift, will build the Teana mid-size sedan and the X-TRAIL compact off-roader. 
"This is Nissan's breakthrough in Russia," said Ghosn. "The opening of our plant in Saint Petersburg in the current conditions underlines our confidence in the high potential of the Russian economy. With the start of production at our new plant Nissan become an integral part of the local community."
Even though the financial crisis has taken its toll on the Russian car market as sales plunged more than 40% in the first four months of the year compared to 2008 when Russia briefly overtook Germany as Europe's largest car market, many analyst believe that Russia will be a key growth market for automakers when a recovery starts.
