What It Is: Porsche’s new supercar, the 2014 918 , which will be launched as a Spyder with a removable top and as a hybrid only. Later, a coupe body and racing versions could be added. (more…) Excerpt from: 2014 Porsche 918 Spy Photos: It’s What Captain Planet Would Drive Read the original:  2014 Porsche 918 Spy Photos: It’s What Captain Planet Would Drive

Toyota has revealed its second all-electric RAV4 SUV, and it is the result of a partnership between the Japanese automaker and Tesla Motors . The original electrified RAV4 was introduced in California in 1997 for fleets, and a small number eventually made their way to customers in 2003. When we were given a look at this iteration of Toyota’s electric SUV at the 2010 L.A. auto show, the company wasn’t sharing final technical specs or detailed information of any kind. At that time, the vehicle was only just entering its testing phase; now that the production model is here, so are the specs. (more…) View post: 2012 Toyota RAV4 EV Photos and Info: The Tesla-fied Toyota for Californians Read the rest here:  2012 Toyota RAV4 EV Photos and Info: The Tesla-fied Toyota for Californians

We’ll warn you in advance: if you’re squeamish, you probably don’t want to watch the video below, especially right after lunch. If the thought of car-on-frog violence doesn’t disturb you, the video below (found on Autoblog ) is a well-played ad for the new Australian Ford Falcon EcoBoost, which is a front-engine, rear-drive family of full-size cars that we don’t get to see on this side of the planet. And before we get spam-bombed by PETA, let us just say that no actual cane toads (much less talking cane toads) were harmed in the filming of this commercial. We don’t condone running over wildlife, even if it is considered a nuisance that poses a threat to other wildlife in your part of the world. Get past the exploding toad, and there’s a valuable lesson to be learned here: never underestimate your opponent, especially when you’re distracted by a friend licking secretions from his parotoid gland.   Read the original: Australians Have The Best Car Commercials: Video Original post:  Australians Have The Best Car Commercials: Video

It’s Monday, and that means it’s time to present this week’s shifter. You’ll have until mid-day Wednesday to identify the make and model of the vehicle from whence this shifter came. This week we’re tossing in an extra incentive as a way to celebrate the 75th NTS: On Wednesday we will randomly select one winner from among those who correctly identify the shifter in the Backfires section below, and that person will win a copy of Forza Motorsport 4 for Xbox 360!* (* Offer open to U.S. and Canadian residents only .) Read the rest here: Name That Shifter, No. 75 [Forza 4 Giveaway] Here is the original post:  Name That Shifter, No. 75 [Forza 4 Giveaway]

The geniuses behind the aluminum foil Porsche 911 have reemerged with a Ferrari FXX clone that’s actually a bicycle. It’s called the Fahrradi Farfalla FXX and it’s the coolest bike I’ve ever seen. More » The rest is here:  This Ferrari Is Actually A Bike [Video] More here:  This Ferrari Is Actually A Bike [Video]

Why It Matters: McLaren’s first F1 was the car in the ’90s that every kid had a poster of, so any car developed to succeed it is noteworthy, to say the least. The new car will give McLaren a second, more lust-worthy model; the MP4-12C is a hugely competent, yet reserved take on the exotica formula. (It recently won a three-car comparison test with the Ferrari 458 Italia and Porsche 911 GT2 RS.) This supercar could be McLaren’s next shot at poster fame, but it will face stiff competition from Ferrari’s equally anticipated Enzo replacement . Keep Reading: 2015 McLaren F1 Replacement Spy Photos – Future Cars Go here to read the rest: 2015 McLaren F1 Replacement Spy Photos: One of the Most Epic Supercars of All Time is Reborn The rest is here:  2015 McLaren F1 Replacement Spy Photos: One of the Most Epic Supercars of All Time is Reborn

What It Is: A Mini John Cooper Works Coupe that’s been given the GP treatment, caught wearing very little camouflage. It’s already been confirmed that the high-performance Mini JCW GP II hatchback model is coming to the U.S. by the end of the year—we’ve even spotted one out testing —but this is the first time we’ve caught wind of a Mini JCW Coupe GP II. The Mini is wearing a few GP hallmarks, namely a set of four-spoke wheels and an aggressive rear diffuser. Keep Reading: 2013 Mini John Cooper Works Coupe GP II Spy Photos – Future Cars Original post: 2013 Mini John Cooper Works Coupe GP II Spied: A Harder-Core for the Helmeted Mini Here is the original post: 2013 Mini John Cooper Works Coupe GP II Spied: A Harder-Core for the Helmeted Mini

We’ve known a lot about the new A-Class, especially when it was shown in Geneva. However, it seems the company wants everyone to know that this is what a luxury hatch is, and it should be this beautiful. “The new A-Class impresses thanks to its uniquely high quality standards for the compact segment, achieved through the design idiom, the selection of top-quality materials and the options for combining them. Attractive visual highlights include, for example, the air nozzles, which call to mind the form of jet engines and underscore the high quality of the interior,” the company’s Head of design, Gorden Wagener said. He added, “No other car in this segment is as progressive as the A-Class. Absolutely typical for Mercedes is the sculptural shape of the A-Class. The character lines, in particular on its sides, lend the A-Class structure and terseness. The new dynamic style is perceptible at first glance in the interior as well.” Well, I agree, the A-Class is a beauty, yet it is elegantly simple. View original post here: Photos of the New A-Class : This is How a Hatch Should Look Like

What It Is: An extensively camouflaged prototype of the next-generation Toyota RAV4 compact crossover, the current version of which debuted in 2006. The RAV4 was mildly refreshed for 2009 , but it’s ripe for a redesign. These spy photos show that the next RAV4 is going to change quite a bit from its current form and move closer to the crossover mainstream. Keep Reading: 2013 Toyota RAV4 Spy Photos – Future Cars View original post here: 2013 Toyota RAV4 Spied: New Styling for Toyota’s Little Crossover Original post:  2013 Toyota RAV4 Spied: New Styling for Toyota’s Little Crossover

Hit play for an audio recording of a mystery car’s exhaust note, and then share your guesses or get a few hints from other visitors in the comments below. Be sure to check back on Thursday for the answer! Here is the original: Name That Exhaust Note, Episode 131 Read the original here:  Name That Exhaust Note, Episode 131

A February and March packed with auto shows and new-car reveals kept us from our usual posting schedule. We’re back now, and have rolled February trends into the analysis below. The collective mainstream reporting on auto sales during the past eight weeks could have been written by the automakers themselves: All-time sales records have been broken! But this apparent explosive growth is largely voodoo accounting. For the last four years, the American car market has been crippled by a pernicious economic crisis, a shortage of credit for financing and leasing, formal bankruptcies for two overripe automakers, and multiple natural disasters in Asia. Sales collapsed as people held onto older vehicles and model introductions were delayed. With credit now available, new mainstream models hitting the market, and production capacity recovered, how could we see anything other than large sales gains today? Below, we cut a slice of Porsche’s profit cake, look at the outgoing generation of Nissan Altima, and take a deeper look at the sales reports at VW and Ford. Who Wants to be a Billionaire? Porsche sales in March 2012: 2460 Percentage of those sales accounted for by the Cayenne: 51 Percentage of those sales accounted for by the Panamera: 27 Date on which Porsche confirmed Macan compact SUV: February 16, 2012 Number of results for the Google search string “Porsche purists cried foul”: 678 Percentage of Volkswagen voting stock owned by the Porsche family: 50.73 Minimum percentage of Porsche owned by the Piëch and Porsche families: 90 What the numbers reveal: The recent death of Ferdinand A. Porsche, who designed the 911 in the 1960s, led to a trillion obituaries that underscore just how much the 911 is the Porsche brand. But the Cayenne and Panamera bring in the money. The upcoming Macan compact crossover will print even more cash. And where does that money go? Most of the profit ends up in the bank accounts of the Piëch and Porsche families, who made news this month for—inexplicably—still struggling to merge two businesses they control. Ultimate Altima Number of fourth-generation Altimas sold in March 2012: 41,050 Date on which Nissan unveiled the all-new, fifth-generation Altima: April 4, 2012 Average amount below sticker for which the Altima sold in March...

What It Is: Essentially, a Mini John Cooper Works hardtop with more muscle and less flab. This won’t be the first time the Works has hit the gym—for 2006, a run of just 415 John Cooper Works with GP kits came to the U.S., bringing a slight boost in power, a sharply tuned suspension, big four-spoke wheels, a unique gray paint scheme with lipstick-red mirror caps, and a bracket-style rear spoiler. More significant, perhaps, is what it left behind: the back seat and A/C, resulting in a 62-pound weight loss. Watch for most, if not all, of said modifications to apply to the next limited-edition model along with one or two new features. Keep Reading: 2013 Mini Cooper John Cooper Works GP II Spy Photos – Car News Here is the original post: 2013 Mini John Cooper Works GP II Spy Photos: More Power, Less Weight Go here to read the rest: 2013 Mini John Cooper Works GP II Spy Photos: More Power, Less Weight

The long-wheelbase car's stretch (top) is subtle compared to the regular car (bottom). BMW has announced a stretched version of its new F30 3-series sedan, exclusively for China. The car will make its debut at the 2012 Beijing auto show later this month. This 3er is taffy-pulled by 4.3 inches, with most if not all of the space apportioned to the rear seats, perfect for a land where BMW’s slogan might as well be the Ultimate Other People Driving Machine. (Chinese folks with the means prefer to be driven around, and this new model will join another China exclusive, a LWB 5-series , in the country’s showrooms.) The long-wheelbase 3-series will be available in 320Li, the 328Li, and 335Li configurations. The latter two should feature the same engines we see in our regular-length 328i and 335i : a 240-horse, 2.0-liter turbo four and a 300-hp, 3.0-liter turbocharged inline-six. The 320Li will use a less-powerful, 181-horse version of the turbo four. A regular-wheelbase ActiveHybrid 3 will make its official debut in Beijing, too, but will be sold globally. (Details on the hybrid can be found here .) While BMW hasn’t released the longer 3′s additional features, the photos in the gallery below show that it will gain rear vanity mirrors with reading lights, a sweet “L”-shaped piece of chrome on the C-pillar, and what look to be controls for moving the front passenger seat forward and out of the way. Read the original post: BMW Announces Long-Wheelbase F30 3-series for China [Beijing Auto Show] Read more from the original source: BMW Announces Long-Wheelbase F30 3-series for China [Beijing Auto Show]

We just saw the 2013 GL at the New York Auto Show, but it looks like Mercedes prematurely leaked three pictures of the upcoming AMG version before anyone was supposed to see it. More » Read the rest here: Did Mercedes-Benz Accidentally The 2013 GL AMG? [Spy Photos] Excerpt from:  Did Mercedes-Benz Accidentally The 2013 GL AMG? [Spy Photos]

We just saw the 2013 GL at the New York Auto Show, but it looks like Mercedes prematurely leaked three pictures of the upcoming AMG version before anyone was supposed to see it. More » Read the rest here: Did Mercedes-Benz Accidentally The 2013 GL AMG? [Spy Photos] Go here to read the rest:  Did Mercedes-Benz Accidentally The 2013 GL AMG? [Spy Photos]