auto body cars

M3:All eyes are on the 414-hp V-8-powered M3 coupe from the '07 series arhitecture.The engine based on the 5.0-liter V-10 in the M5 and M6,features an 8400-rpm redline and an accessible 295pound-feet of torque at 3900 rpm.Our initial test produced a 0-to-60 time of 4.4 seconds and a quarter-mile time of 12.9 seconds at 11mph.A six-speed manual is the only transmission available when the M3 goes on sale next spring.A twin clutch transmission is expected to debut in a year.The bad news is the M3 has put on about 300 punds over its '06 predecessor ,and the base price will likely be about $7000 more.
1-series: A coupe version of the smallest BMW is the U.S-bound in 2008.Two engines will power the 1-series: a 3.0 liter inline-six with 230 horsepower will be under the hood of the 128 i and 300 -hp twin-turbo inline-six will power the 135i.A sport suspension and body kit will be standard on 135 i and optional on the 128i.Both engines will come with a standard six speed manual and optional automatic. Price is expected to start below $30,000 and top off near $40,000 for a well optioned 135i.
5-series: Exterior styling is tweaked slightly front and rear,although the big news is in the six-cylinder models.Last year's 215-hp 525i becomes the 528i,thanks to a 230-hp,3.0-liter inline-six the 255-hp 530i morphs into the twin-turbo 300-hp 535i.
All wheel drive is available in both six-cylinder models.
The V-8 powered 550i gets the styling tweaks but is mechanically unchanged.
6-series:New front and rear fascias seek to keep design fresh,and the 6-series coupe and convertible soldier on with np major mechanical changes.
Unchanged: M5,M6,X5,Z4,Z4M,3-series,7-series
Dead:525i,530i

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F430:
Ferrari will introduce a lighter,faster version called the Scuderia that will go on sale early in 2008 .It will have 503 horsepower -an increase of 20- and will be about 220 pounds lighter ,with an expected curb weight of about 3100 pounds.
Oh,and it will cost more than $200,000.

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THE GRAYING ROADSTER ATTACKS THE TRACK

"Warning!Auto racing is spectacular and exciting,but can be dangerous!" The Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course posts this caution next to the driver's bathrooms,so it's probably worth repeating in this introduction to the Honda S2000 CR.For the CR-the initials stand for "Club-Racer"-is about rubber-chunking,brake-burning,wall-fanning track work.You wouldn't really want the shale-stiff CR for anything else,which is perhaps why Honda plans to sell only 1400 copies of the circa-$38,000 CR in 2008.
The CR,for which the air conditioning and stereo are optionals deletes, "brings the pure open-sports-car concept of tje S2000 to full maturation",says Shigeru Uehara,chief engineer on both the S2000 and Acura NSX,and honda's preeminent sports-car sensei.After 36 years polishing the big H,Uehara calls the CR his "final gift" before retirement this fall.
There's no bump to the base S2000's 2,2-liter four or its 237 horsepower and 162 pound-feet of torque.The CR's credentials are mainly in suspension and aero improvments,some labels and cockpit detailing,and body stiffening.
The CR's front bumper is bearded with a thick spoiler that lowers underbody pressure and reduces lift.The wind tunnel shaped the rear wing to the bite into clean air to the left and right of the cockpit but preserve rear visibility.Twin fairings behind the seats channel air more cleanly for reduced lift when the aluminium hardtop is removed.The electric-folding roof is left of the CR,along with sound insulation and spare tire,adding up to a net 99-pound weight saving with the hardtop off and 51 pounds with it on,says Honda.An additional brace bridgets the vacant roof well for a claimed 11-percent increase in rear lateral stiffness.
Spring rates and shock-damping settings are hiked considerably,although they remain nonadjustable,and the antiroll bars are thicker.The steering ratio is hastened from 14.9:1 to 13.8:1,and stiffeners are added to the rack mount to increase rigidity.The CR's blocky Bridgestone Potenza RE070 tires,tread-widened in back from 245 to 255,proved stickier while lapping Mid-Ohio back-to-back with base 2008 S2000s.
Compared with the base S2000,the CR is simply harder and sharper,with less body roll and tire scrubbing and more corner composure and stability under bracking.With no more horsepower,the CR pruned about three seconds off lap times turned in the base car.That's a gift any racer will surely find spectacular and exciting.

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AMERICA'S ODD OFF-ROADER GOES FROM AN ECCENTRIC FIVE TO AN EVEN EIGHT.

Hummer's slamm-caliber H3 started life in 2005 as a tribute less to military hardware than to the old Daktari-style Land Rover,the one with narrow-gauge body,wee 2287cc engine,and storied off-road abilities.The current H3's reletively weeny 242-hp,3.7-liter five-cylinder,smaller body,voluminous23 galloon fuel tank,and optional wall-crawling 4:1 low range are actually ideal attibutes for slow-speed sojours in wild lands where fuel sparse and big engines just wast it.
Alas,even among H3 buyers,the serious safari types would barely fill a jury box.In the paved world,with its short on-ramps and shorter tempers,the five-cylinder is stressed hauling the H3's 4900-pound curb weight to expressway speed's.So Hummer bulks up for 2008 with the H3 Alpha,featuring a pushrod 5,3 liter V-8 with300 horsepower and,more important,320 pounds-feet of torque.
Alpha is Hummer's step-up brand,formely applied to the original civilian Humvee,the H1.The five-cilynder H3 remains in the lineup,starting at $30,695.The H3 Alpha digs in at $39,260.
The V-8 comes with a four speed automatic and is wrapped in the Alpha equipment package,which includes more deluxe interior decor,a Mansoon stereo witha six-CD changer,various power widgets,chromed wheels and trim,and a lower rear-end ratio.Towing capacity rises to a ski-boat-rated 6000 pounds.Plus,Hummer says the V-8 is better for slogging through deep sand where low-speed torque is vital.
Slogging through deep rush hour,the Alpha accelerates more effortlessly and makes V-8 rumbles,but it will never be called gazzele-like.It should slip under the nine-second mark to 60 mph(the five-cylinder does it in about 10 seconds).The ride is still bouncy,the visibility still sacrificed on the small-window altar of macho styling.
With the Alpha,the H3 becomes less an American Land Rover and more a typical Hummer.
....THE REST OF THE LINEUP
H1: Hummer's original product is now available only on special order.

H2: This behemoth gets a version of the Cadillac Escalade's 6.2-liter V-8 with 393 horsepower and nattier interior,plus frame, suspension,and eletrical-system upgrades inherited from GM's redesigned GMT900 full-size trucks.

Here are the main tehnical specification's:

VEHICLE TYPE:front-engine,4 wheel-drive,5 passenger,5 door wagon
BASE PRICE : $39,260
ENGINE TYPE:pushrod 16-valve,V-8,aluminium block and heads,port fuel injection
Displacement..........................325 cu in,5237cc
Power(SAE net).....................300bhp @ 5200 rpm
Torque(SAE net)...................329 lb-ft @ 400 rpm

TRANSMISSION: 4-speed automatic

DIMENSIONS:
Wheel base 111.9 in Lenght:186.7in
Widht: 85,5in Height 74,5 in
Curbweight:4900 lb

PERFORMANCE(C/DEST)
Zero to 60 mph.....................8,5 seconds
Standing1/4mile...................16,5 seconds
Top speed(governor limited)..99 mph

PROJECTED FUEL ECONOMY(C/DEST)
EPA city driving....................12 mpg
EPA highway driving............18mpg

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A HALF-MILLION BUCKS WILL ALSO BUY YOU 21 MIATAS.BUT THE EFFECT WOULDN'T BE QUITE THE SAME.

From the perspective of Chris Davies,this car makes no sense.Davies is the Brit who's pushing a European Parlamient initiative to limit the top speed of all cars in Europe to just over 100 mph.Since the Mercedes SLR Mclaren roadster can do about twice that,it has to be near the top of the list of "boy toys" that Davies wants to ban.
There's something to his position,but not for the socioenvoironmental reasons davies cites.traveling at speeds of more than 100 mph in any top-down automobiles gets to be uncomfortable,and that applies to the SLR more than most,thanks to the basso bark of its side pipes,relentlessly reminding occupants of every combustion event in the 5,4 liter SQHC 24-valve V-8 engine.With supercharging and intercooling,these are eye-widening events,and they produce eyeball-flattening resoults:617 horsepower at 6500 rpm,a prodigious 575 pund-feet of torquw,0 to 60 mph in a little under four seconds,the quarter-mile in a little aver 11 seconds at about 125 mph.
The roadster may hit these marks a smidge slower than a hardtop,due to its slightly greater mass.Mercedes reports that the roadster weights about 100 more pounds than the 3858-puond coupe.But that won't matter to the deep-pocketed few.The roadster is about style and exclusivity,high speeds or low.
In fact,Klaus Nesser,head of exclusive products for Mercedes,expects drotop-SLR buyers to be more inclined ti cruising than racing.An open car provides more opportunity to been seen and envied.Just drop the automatic top,which takes about 10 seconds.
Nesser says the convertible conversion was easy:"All we had to di was remove the roof."Herr Nesser was joking,but only a little.The roadster's body uses a stronger carbon-fiber weave than the coupe(triaxial weave versus biaxial),and there are hefty steel beams in the A-pillars.But beyond that,the body shell needed no reinforcement.If there's any compromise in chassis rigididy,it's subliminal.
Chassis rigidity is the corner stone of agility,and the roadster's credentials on this score are hard to fault.Grip is abundant,responsses are mongoose quick,and the carbon ceramic brakes are equal to the power,which is both vast and seductive,
Still,the SLR's dynamics are aslo hard to love at first drive.The steering is overly weighted,a little short on feel,and quick at 2.3turns lock-to- lock: a tricky blend.And the brakes-by-wire system is too eager by half.It's hard to be smoth with this car.
But whaddya want for a half-million bucks?The SLR's capabilities are slightly outrageous,and it's curbside presence even more so.Exclusivity never comes cheap.

Here are tehnical specifications:
vehicle type:front-engine,rear-wheel-drive,2-passenger,2-door roadster

Estimated base price: $500,00

Engine type:supercharged and intercooled SQHC 24-valve0V-8 aluminium block and heads,port fuel injection
Displacement..........332 cu in,5439cc
Power(SAE net).....617 bhp @6500rpm
Torque....................575 lb-ft@3250rpm

Transmission:5-speed automatic with manumatic shifting

Dimensions:
Wheel base:106.3 Lenght:183,4 in
Widht:75,1 in Height:50,4 in
curbweight:3960 lb


Performance(MFR'S EST)
zero to 60 mph.............3,8 sec
top speed(limited)......207 mph

Projected Fuel Economy(C/DEST):
EPA city driving...........12 mpg
EPA highway driving....17mpg

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Q7 suv gets a baby brother

Audi is poised to introduce two crossover sport-utility vehicles in the next years.Late in 2008,the midsize Q5 is expected to debuton the same arhitectures as the '08 A5 coupe and next generation A4 sedan.A year after the Q5 goes on sale,Audi will follow up with the smaller and sportier Q3 previewed by the Cross Coupe Quattro concept shown at the Shanghai auto show.Built on the same platform as the '09 Volkswagen Tiguan,the Q3 will have a transversely mounted engine and all-whell drive provided by an electonically controlled center clutch pack.Additionally,an electronically controlled locking rear differential similar to that of Saab's XWD system may find its way into the Q3.To distance the Q3 from its Volkswagen brother,the Audi will offer on-road performance,won't have a speck of off-road ability,and will be firmly entrenched in the $30,000 range.
Surprisingly,the Q3 will be packed with several features that Audi generally reserves for ots sportiiest cars,the RS4 and R8.Those options will include ceramic composite brakes like those of the R8,cross-linked dampers similar to the system on the RS 4,and driver-selectable suspension settings.In addition, a so called drive-select program will give the choice of three different modes(sport,efficiency,and dynamic)that affect suspension tunning,throttle response,transmission shifts,and steering effort.As one would expect,in efficiency mode the Q3 will work toward maximizing fuel economy:The engine will shut off when idling and minimize the use of air conditioning.Audi claims efficiency mode will boost fuel economy by 20 percent.
A new 2.0-liter turbocharged diesel four-cylinder will power the Q3.This engine will be introduced in the redesigned A4.Expected to meet emissions standard in all 50 states,the new engine will produce about 200 horsepower and 295 pund-feet of torque.Coupled to Audi's S tronic dual-clutch gearbox,the powertrain is purported to be able to return 40 mpg,in addition to the diesel,the 200-hp gas-powered turbo four from the Audi A3 will be offered.
At the 172,4 inches long,the Q3 doesen't promise Chevy Suburban levels of interior room, but Audi claims that pushing the wheels toward the corners will maximize interior volume.Other differences from the Tiguan will be a more aggressive exterior design with a large Audi-style grille,large wheels,and Q7 styling cues.One problem that remains is the name.Infiniti unleashead its legat office on Audi for using the letter "Q" for the Q7.Audi settled with infiniti and the Japanese automaker agreed to let Audi have the Q7 and Q5 names,but thr future of the Q3 name remains in limbo.

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Deciding not to wait until a coachbuilder picks up a Murciélago to convert it into something different, Lamborghini decided it could do the job better and started work on project code LP640/2, aka the M.O.A., which stands for "Meanest of All." Spokesman Dominik Hoberg said the designation was decided on because the car is expected to have "at least" 650 bhp. However, we now know the final name of the car to be the 2008 Lamborghini Reventón.
We all agree that the look is stunning. All body parts are new, except for the windshield. Edgy, metallic-gray carbon panels form an extreme appearance inspired by modern aircraft design. The Reventón sports LED lighting front and rear, an all-new fuel inlet and black alloy wheels topped with carbon blades.

True to stock dimensions, the Reventón was designed in-house by Centro Stile Lamborghini and "embodies a compression of the brand's DNA," as CEO Stephan Winkelmann points out. Underneath, the Reventón is all Murciélago with a 6.5-liter V-12 drivetrain.

The interior is as special as the exterior. Instead of the stock instrumentation, you'll find functional 3D displays including a g-force meter. By pressing a button, instruments can be changed to a classic analog readout.

The 20 slated for production next spring carry a price tag of €1 million. Eleven cars are destined for the U.S.

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