Autoblog

Click above for more shots of the Genesis Coupe at the Busan Auto Show.

Two things revealed at this year's New York Auto Show had our salivary glands working overtime. The first was the Hyundai Genesis Coupe, which proved that at least one automaker (and now, two and possibly three) is getting hip to the idea that a rear-wheel-drive, two-door coupe with a turbocharged four-cylinder is needed in the marketplace. The second was over at the Kia booth, where Hyundai's sub-brand revealed its Koup concept, powered by a turbocharged 2.0-liter gasoline direct-injected (GDI) four-cylinder. According to Kia, this new mill makes 290 hp and 289 lb.-ft. of torque and could power several different models in both automaker's lineups.

Fast-forward to yesterday when we received a couple of tips about a green Genesis Coupe shown at the Busan Auto Show in South Korea. The coupe supposedly shared display space with the same THETA turbocharged GDI 2.0-liter on a separate stand, causing some members of GenFans to assume that the 290 ps (285 hp) engine was fitted to the green coupe. However, the "380GT" badge on the back reveals that the coupe is actually powered by the run-of-the-mill 3.8-liter V6.

We called up Hyundai to ask about the engine and the Coupe on display. Their response: "We're not commenting on it at this time." While we understand that certain cards have to be kept close to one's chest, it would have been easier just to tell us that the coupe on display and the engine at its booth have nothing in common. Since they're remaining disconcertingly tight-lipped, can we assume that the turbocharged 2.0-liter GDI will find its way into the Genesis Coupe in the future? We hope so. And with Hyundai's recent announcement that direct-injected engines are going to find their way into several of its models, it adds that much more fuel to the fire.


[Sources: Hyundai, GenFans]

Acura rolled out the 2009 RL at the Chicago Auto Show, so the appearance of the Honda version of the car, badged Legend, isn't the most searingly-hot news. What is frightfully obvious when you set eyes on the Legend is that the Honda version looks about a billion times better without the shield-style grille that afflicts the Acura in the most tacked-on fashion. Equally puzzling – and not a recent development – is why Honda trashed the established and respected Legend name for the anonymous and innocuous RL for Acura's top-tier sedan.

Competition in the RL's segment is brutal, and the same criticisms of the current model apply to its replacement. There's nothing fundamentally wrong with the RL, mind you, it's nicely styled, and well appointed – although when faced with the preponderance of rear-driving V8 competitors, the RL can't claim superiority by chassis layout alone. Packing the 3.5-liter V6 that yanks the Accord around with authority, there's no need for a V8, nor is RWD a necessity with Acura's chassis wizards on the job, but buyers might remain unmoved.


[Source: Car Fanatic via World Car Fans]

Click above image to view video after the jump

Truth be told, the Autoblog team is split on whether or not we like the M1 Hommage Concept that was unveiled at the Concorso d'Eleganza at Villa d'Este this past weekend. Some of us claim that it's genius baked in a car-shaped pan, while the rest would rather stare at flame surfacing, Chris Bangle's ignominious contribution to automotive design, until their eyes start bleeding. Regardless, it creates discussion, and to facilitate the talk we have BMW Design Director Adrian van Hooydonk on camera after the jump talking about the car and its inspiration, the original M1.

Though the video after the jump is over eight minutes long, you'll want to watch it all the way through to catch footage of the original M1 that was used for the photo shoot being thrashed on-track.


[Source: BMW]

Click above for a high-res gallery of the Spada Codatronca concept.

We knew it was true, but we still can't believe it. The Spada Codatronca is slated for production, with 20 examples due to be built in the near future and priced somewhere north of £200,000. As reported previously, the Dark Knight's weekend driver is packing a supercharged LS7 V8, producing 600 hp in "entry-level" TS guise and can be upgraded to a track-ready version producing 700 hp and dropping 0-60 times to a mind-boggling 2.7 seconds. Unfortunately, we've yet to see any photos of the "production" version that was unveiled at the Top Marques show this past weekend, so we'll just have to wait and see if the sinister sled makes a successful transition from concept to production.


[Source: Top Gear]

Click above to view the Touring Maserati A8 GCS in hi-res

Since the news broke that Maserati was planning a new sportscar to rival the benchmark Porsche 911, Italian styling houses have been lining up to pitch their designs for how they think the new Trident sportscar should look. Following the Chicane concept unveiled in Geneva by the students of the Instituto Europeo di Design, the resuscitated Carrozzeria Touring Superleggera threw its hat into the ring this weekend with the A8 GCS concept you see above.

Together with Touring's other Maserati concept, the Quattroporte-based Bellagio Fastback, the A8 GCS design study was unveiled at the Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este, the annual Mecca of class and performance on the shores of trendy Lake Como in Italy. Inspired by Pininfarina's iconic Maserati A6 GCS Berlinetta of 1954, the Touring concept presents a compelling mix of modern design and retro touches. While it's hard to make the case that, with even the most well-established outfits struggling to get by, the industry really needs another Italian design house or coachbuilder, if these are the results then we can hardly complain. Check out the images in the gallery below to see what we mean.

[Source: OmniAuto.it]

Click above for a high-res gallery of the BMW M1 Hommage

BMW's supercar icon, the M1, blew out the candles at the Concorso d'Eleganza at Villa d'Este this weekend. In honor of the car's thirtieth birthday, BMW rolled out the new BMW M1 Hommage, a concept/design study that pays tribute to the original M1 and shows what could be possible if BMW were to produce a new mid-engined sports car. Follow the jump for the breakdown.


[Source: BMW]

We're proud as peacocks of our blogging brothers at Autoblog Chinese who, in blogging parlance, tore the 2008 Beijing Motor Show a new one. We showed you just a sampling of the dozens of cars they covered at the show, as the team from China truly left no rotating turntable unturned. If you want even more Auto China 2008 coverage, just click on one of four wrap-up pages below and don't stop until you've seen every clone, concept and production car that was unveiled in Beijing last week. You may not be able to understand the language they're speaking, but the pictures more than get the point across.

AB Chinese: Wrap-up 1
AB Chinese: Wrap-up 2
AB Chinese: Wrap-up 3
AB Chinese: Wrap-up 4

Our favorites of the show were the Buick Invicta Concept, Geely Tiger GT Concept, Beijing 700R Concept and Honda's Li Nian Concept.

The folks at Chrysler have proven that they know how to make a BIG splash when debuting a new production vehicle or concept car. They've driven a Jeep through a plate glass window... twice; showered the automotive press with so much confetti that we were pooping paper for a week; employed clowns, bands and B-list celebrities up the wazoo; and at the most recent Detroit Auto Show in January, drove a herd of cattle up the street for the debut of the new 2009 Dodge Ram. All of these big debuts are meant to attract media attention, and that they do very well. But the word from Chrysler LLC CEO Robert Nardelli is that the party's over. Going forward, Chrysler will tone down its debuts to focus on the products and save a bit of coin by nixing the big-budget theatrics. Sources inside Chrysler note that Nardelli and his right-hand man Jim Press aren't into the pyrotechnics, confetti and glass-breaking debuts that have made Chrysler press conferences famous in the past. We can't help but thinking that the recent departure of Jason Vines from the Vice President of Communications position has something to do with this. Vines was a funny man and knew how to become the center of attention in a crowded room, which is exactly what these sort of press conferences accomplished. Hopefully Chrysler decides not to nix Happy Hour at the Firehouse after the Detroit Auto Show press days, as well. We can live without fireworks, but not free beer.


[Source: Chrysler Weblog]

Click on the image to view three classic Arlen Ness customs

Arlen Ness, a legend to the custom bike community, started out by painting customer bikes on the weekends as he worked to deliver furniture during the week to pay the bills. Gradually, his skills and reputation transformed his small company into the parts-selling juggernaut that it is today. Along the way, Ness has created quite a few one-off creations, many of which are now considered to be classics. Some of them, like the '57 Chevy knock-off "Ness-talgia", twin-engined and twin-supercharged "Ferrari-bike" (above) and Bugatti-inspired "Smooth-Ness" recall iconic automotive designs of years past. According to Ness, those three bikes represent some of his personal favorites, and each of them, along with many others, will be on display at an upcoming exhibit at the Motorcycle Hall of Fame in Pickerington, Ohio called Awesome-Ness. Interested in attending? The event will run from July 24 through the end of June 2009.


[Source: Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum]

Click above for high-res gallery of the Peugeot 308 RC Z Coupe Concept

Originally expected to be announced a while back at the Geneva Motor Show, Peugeot has finally officially announced today at the Lisbon Motor Show that the attractive RC Z concept will go into production. Using styling cues from the Audi TT and the classic Karmann Ghia, we think that Peugeot could have a winner on its hands with its new sporty coupe. While Peugeot has not yet announced details on what will be offered underhood of the production machine, the concept used a version of the Mini's 1.6 liter turbo four. We'll be getting all of the details within time, as the official production version will be unveiled in 2009 at the Frankfurt Motor Show. European buyers will have first crack at the RC Z when it goes on sale in the sprint of 2010.


[Source: Peugeot]