Jeremy Korzeniewski
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Lamborghini Reportedly Planning New LP570-4 SV, Sales to Start in May
Lamborghini Gallardo LP-560-4 – Click above for high-res image gallery
According to the Lamborghini lovers at the Teamspeed Forums, there's a new, even higher-performance version of the Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4 on the way that will be unveiled at the 2010 Geneva Motor Show. No surprise, really, as the Gallardo's successor isn't expected until 2012 or so and the Italian supercar manufacturer is always working on improving the breed.
We're told to expect a 10-horsepower bump up to 570 ponies from the car's V10 powerplant that will be delivered to all four wheels (making this the LP570-4, naturally). A major diet in the form of a stripped-down interior (ala the Superlegerra Gallardo) and an updated aerodynamics package that includes a new front spoiler and a large carbon fiber rear wing along with a reworked front suspension arrangement and carbon ceramic brakes may also be in the works.
Looking past the possible LP570-4, there may be an LP590-2 swan song for the current Gallardo range in the offing for 2011. Like the recently-released Gallardo L550-2 Valentino Balboni, that car would eschew Lamborghini's traditional all-wheel drive system by sending all 590 horsepower to the rear wheels.
If these rumors prove accurate, dealers and VIP customers (sadly, that doesn't include us) will get a sneak peek of the Gallardo LP-570-4 in January before the official debut in Geneva with sales pegged for May of 2010. Thanks for the tip, DJ!
[Source: Teamspeed.com]
Bugatti Trademarks 16C Galibier Shape, Production Decision Coming Soon?
Bugatti Galibier concept - Click above for high-res image gallery
The question of whether or not Volkswagen will decide to put the Bugatti 16C Galibier into production is still unanswered. While we've heard rumors that the German automaker was leaning towards the affirmative, a final decision has apparently not yet been made.Still, Bugatti is making sure all of its ducks are in a row... just in case. Evidence of such can be seen in a trademark filing with the World Intellectual Property Organization that seeks to keep other automakers from stealing the car's design and shape. After all, it's happened before.
With Veyron production scheduled to come to an end after the 2012 model year, Bugatti only has a little bit of time to decide if it's moving forward on that supercar's successor, and if so, whether or not the front-engine, four-door Galibier is the direction it needs to go. We should know soon enough.
[Source: Carscoop]
Climax Cars Announces Production Sports Racer, Priced at £92,000
Climax Sports Racer - Click above for high-res image gallery
Says Climax Cars of its Sports Racer, "We wanted to produce a radically different type of car that would be dramatically desirable as well as being an out-and-out enthusiast's car." Done and done. Consider us smitten with the classically British Jaguar-esque shape that looks absolutely brilliant in an appropriate shade of British Racing Green.
Packing up to 450 horsepower courtesy of a supercharged 4.6-liter Ford Racing V8, the Climax Sports Racer weighs just 1,999 pounds (907 kilograms). That's an almost unheard of power-to-weight ratio that easily bests that of nearly any other production car.
Fully-adjustable double-wishbone suspension at all four corners, ceramic brakes and a six-speed sequential Graziano GT ME1 gearbox ought to ensure suitable track-day performance cred while the expected £92,000 (about $150,000) asking price undercuts the Ariel Atom V8 by £30,000 and the Caparo T1 by over £60,000. Only 200 are planned and there's no word on if there will ever be U.S. availability.
[Source: Autocar]
Mercedes-Benz Now Testing Electric SLS Supercar
The Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG is nothing if not an exciting car to drive, and the German automaker is reportedly hard at work making sure that the upcoming electric version of the supercar generates the same kind of reaction from its occupants. In an interview with Autocar in the U.K., AMG head Volker Mornhinweg assures that the car is now testing on the road and will hit all of its targeted performance objectives.
The electric MB SLS AMG will sport four individual electric motors that spin out 525 horsepower and 649 lb-ft of torque through all four wheels. That's enough grunt to push the gullwinged-supercar from naught to 60 in 4.0 seconds. Three separate lithium ion battery packs will assure a range of 110 miles, though all those cells will push weight all the way up to a hefty 4,100 pounds – a full 500 pounds more than the gas-powered version.
If you're worried that all those extra pounds will make for a boring drive, don't be. "Effectively being four-wheel-drive does alter its character, but our torque vectoring systems give us opportunities to make it as good," affirms Mornhinweg. "It's important to get the emotional level of an EV right and we have some solutions." We'll have to wait until 2013 to find out for ourselves, at which time the SLS EV will hit the market, possibly for lease only with an unknown asking price.
[Source: Autocar]
Moto Guzzi Griso 8V SE Refines Performance Cruiser Recipe
Moto Guzzi Griso 8V SE - Click above for high-res image gallery
It's unlikely that Moto Guzzi is the first brand you think of when talk turns to Italian motorcycles, but the Mandello del Lario-based manufacturer has a long history of producing desirable V-twin-powered machines and still offers a number of interesting models to consider. Chief among them is the latest version of the Griso seen here.
The most noticeable feature that sets Guzzi's new Griso 8V SE apart from its standard siblings are the classically Italian paint colors: either Tenni green or Rosso Mandello red with a blacked-out powertrain. A nicely stitched leather seat and wire-spoked wheels round out the visual modifications.
Just as importantly, though, the Griso 8V SE manages to boost torque output by five lb-ft to 85, though horsepower remains steady at 110. That extra power comes courtesy of revised cam profiles and fuel injectors along with a larger airbox that help Moto Guzzi's eight-valve Quattrovalvole breathe a bit better. Check out our high-res gallery below and make the jump for the official press release.
[Source: Moto Guzzi via Hell For Leather]
Triumph Shows Off Red and White 2010 Thruxton SE
2010 Triumph Thruxton SE - Click above for high-res image gallery
As far as we're concerned, there will always be a market for sporty vintage-styled machinery like the Triumph Thruxton. After all, not everyone needs 150 horsepower and 200 mile-per-hour top speeds to have a good time on two wheels, and few motorcycles possess the kind of style that Hinckley bakes into its line of modern classics.
This is especially true of the new 2010 Thruxton SE, which gets a Crystal White paint job on the tins with a single red stripe and a matching red powdercoated frame. Completing the package is a small flyscreen, black engine cases and a smattering of appropriate decals.
There aren't any changes to the sportiest Bonnie's 865cc parallel-twin powerplant, which puts out a claimed 68 horsepower and 51 lb-ft of torque. While we'd gladly take at least a little power boost, if we were in the market for such a bike the Thruxton SE would certainly be on our short list.
[Source: Triumph via Hell for Leather]
Eyes On The Road: Recon Instruments Show Off Heads-Up Goggles
Keeping your eyes on the road is of the utmost importance no matter what kind of vehicle you are piloting. To that end, automakers all over the world have experimented with heads-up displays that show such vital information as your speed and navigation directions right on the windshield in front of the driver.
Now, a company called Recon Instruments is extending similar technology to the two-wheeled world with a new technology that flashes the same kind of information right on a pair of goggles. The goggles were originally designed for ski, snowboard and snowmobile applications, but Recon envisions its technology being used in all kinds of sports, from mountain biking and motorcycle touring to kite surfing and scuba diving.
Recon expects to begin shipping its goggles in the Fall of 2010 for between $350 and $450 and is now accepting preorders.
[Source: Recon Instruments via Motorbiker.org]
Acer Introduces 3.31-pound Ferrari One Notebook
Lying somewhere in the thin-and-light category between the well-defined netbook and the traditional full-featured notebook is the new Acer Ferrari One. The latest installation of the successful partnership between the famous Italian supercar manufacturer and Acer America, there isn't really anything exceptional about the computer other than the bright red color and matching Prancing Horse badge on the lid.Still, it's a well-equipped 3.31-pound laptop with (take a deep breathe) an AMD Athlon 64 X2 dual-core processor, ATI Radeon HD 3200 graphics, 4GB of DDR2 667MHz system memory, a 250 GB hard disk, an 11.6-inch HD widescreen display and Windows 7 Home Premium.
If the lure of the latest Ferrari-badged Acer is too much for you to handle, the Ferrari One notebook is available now with a starting price one cent shy of $600. Feel free to peruse the official press release after the break.
[Source: Acer via Engadget]
Fleet-Footed Greenery: Audi to Cap e-tron Sales At 1,000 Units?
Audi e-tron concept - Click above for high-res image gallery
Audi may not be positioning itself as a "green brand," but it's still putting a rather big toe into the environmentally-friendly waters of electric sportscars with its R8-based e-tron, which is reportedly headed for production in 2012.
As a refresher – as if you needed one – the e-tron debuted as a concept at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September with some truly impressive statistics: four separate electric motors with 230 kW (313 horsepower) and 4,500 Nm (3,319.03 pound-feet) of torque (sort of), which is enough to push it to 62 mph in a mere 4.8 seconds.
So, um... want one? The line forms at the rear, and you'd better not dawdle as Audi says its only planning to build 1,000 of them. Naturally, pricing has yet to be set, but it's reportedly expected to be "above R8 levels." Regardless, with all those lithium ion batteries and their associated electronic gadgetry, we don't imagine that Audi plans to make much of a profit when it finally goes on sale in two years.
[Source: Autocar]
Garia Claims to be the World's Most Exclusive Golf Cart
Garia, the "World's Most Exclusive Golf Cart" - Click above for high-res image gallery
Normally, we might associate the so-called World's Most Exclusive Golf Cart with Tiger Woods, but he's surely got more important things on his mind at the moment. Plus, it's Cadillac that's supposed to be The Standard of the World, not Buick, the GM-owned automaker that Woods shills for. So then, just who is the Garia meant for?
Honestly, we have no idea. Perhaps well-to-do golfers looking to one-up their frenemies at the local country club. In any case, the Garia is supposedly "built to the highest standards of the automotive industry." Included in its kit, says the manufacturer, are double-wishbone front suspension, a drivetrain built by the company that produces Ducati gearboxes and aluminum stampings sourced from the same company that supplies Aston Martin, Jaguar and Volvo.
Inside the comfy confines of the golf cart is a built-in refrigerator to keep your beverages nice and chilled along with a couple of strategically-located cupholders. Valmet Automotive, which assembles the Porsche Boxster and Cayman along with the upcoming Fisker Karma, manufacturers the Garia. Starting in 2010, the manufacturer promises that the Garia will be street-legal in the States as a Low Speed Vehicle after being formally introduced at the Geneva Motor Show in March. Price? $17,499 or 13,999 Euros, plus tax and delivery.
[Source: Garia]
