Download: 24 Nov 2011

Thursday, 24 November 2011

When Lexus revealed the 2013 GS450h hybrid, it claimed the new car would boast a fuel-efficiency improvement of more than 30 percent. The EPA figures are in and the GS450h has met those expectations, returning 29 mpg in the city and 34 on the highway. The last-gen GS450h was only good for ratings of 22/25 mpg.

The GS450h’s fuel-stinginess figures compare favorably with those of the upcoming BMW ActiveHybrid 5 and Infiniti M35h. The Infiniti is rated at 27/32 mpg, and we estimate the ActiveHybrid 5 will return numbers similar to the new four-cylinder 528i (23/34 mpg).

The nonhybrid GS350 also sees its efficiency improve slightly. The rear-driver’s efficiency is up 2 mpg on the highway (19/28 mpg) and the all-wheel-drive model sees a 1-mpg increase in both city and freeway running (19/26). The GS350 hits dealer lots in February, with the GS450h following later in the year.

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2012 Hyundai Genesis R-Spec 5.0 Sedan Tested

2012 Hyundai Genesis R-Spec 5.0 Sedan Tested:

A 428-horse V8 and chassis tweaks improve the Genesis sedan.

The Genesis sedan is the second Hyundai to get the R-Spec treatment; here it’s the top-shelf trim, powered by a 5.0-liter version of the company’s Tau V-8. (In contrast, the other R-Spec is a stripped-out Genesis coupe.) Output in the R-Spec four-door stands at 429 hp and 376 lb-ft of torque; it’s routed through an eight-speed transmission that Hyundai developed in-house. The R-Spec also features larger front brakes, recalibrated steering, and a sturdier rear anti-roll bar.

Keep Reading: 2012 Hyundai Genesis R-Spec 5.0 Sedan – Instrumented Test

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VW Passat Alltrack to be Unveiled in Tokyo – 2011 Tokyo Auto Show

VW Passat Alltrack to be Unveiled in Tokyo – 2011 Tokyo Auto Show:

VW Passat Alltrack to be Unveiled in Tokyo - 2011 Tokyo Auto Show

We only get a sedan in the US-made version of the Passat in this country. Elsewhere Volkswagen offers a station wagon, or Estate as it’s known in most English-speaking countries. Now VW has announced an Alltrack version that adds the 4Motion all-wheel-drive system and along with raised height for off-road use, making it a great alternative for those of us who don’t like SUVs. The new vehicle will be unveiled next week at the 2011 Tokyo Auto Show.

The Passat Alltrack is exactly the same length as the Passat Estate, and despite flared wheel arch protection the vehicle’s width also remains the same. The suspension is raised to increase ground clearance from 5.3 inches to 6.5 inches. This also improves the ramp breakaway angle from 9.5 to 12.8 degrees. Rugged front and rear bumpers increase the approach angle from 13.5 to 16 degrees, and the departure angle from 11.9 to 13.6 degrees.

VW Passat Alltrack to be Unveiled in Tokyo - 2011 Tokyo Auto Show

It also features an off-road mode, similar to that on the Tiguan Escape, that includes hill descent assist, which automatically brakes the vehicle when the descent angle is greater than 10 degrees. It also alters the ABS function, with higher thresholds for operation on loose surfaces, along with faster-reacting electronic differential locks (EDS) to prevent wheelspin.

In the UK, at least, the Passat Alltrack will only be offered with a 140 hp 2.0-liter TDI diesel with six-speed manual gearbox or a 170 hp 2.0-liter TDI diesel with a six-speed DSG transmission.

It seems a real shame that VW has no plans, at this time, to sell the Passat Alltrack on this side of the pond. Many of us are mourning the loss of the last generation Subaru Outback, which was a similar vehicle — the current Outback has grown in size and become a closer to being a SUV.

VW Passat Alltrack to be Unveiled in Tokyo - 2011 Tokyo Auto Show

More:

Full Coverage: 2011 Tokyo Auto Show >>

Photos: Best of Tokyo 2011 >>

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Ford SVT Party Planner

Ford SVT Party Planner:

Ford SVT Party Planner

There’s still a few weeks left in 2011, but in car terms it’s been 2012 since swimsuit season and the 2013 model year will go on-sale about six months hence. Just enough time for a good party planner to whip up an appropriate celebration for Ford’s Special Vehicle Team.

Yep, it’s already been 20 years since SVT was formed in 1991, and with the debut of the much-anticipated 2013 Mustang Shelby GT500 next summer SVT has the perfect excuse to left their engineering hair down. But just how should SVT smoke the tires on their 20th?

SVT’s mantra is Performance, Substance, Exclusivity and Value, and as part of Ford Motor Company their cars will always be close to the blue oval. Currently they can’t build enough F-150 Raptors to meet demand and the GT500 Shelby is at 550 hp headed to 650 in the heavily updated 2013 model.

We’d hate to see SVT stick a few plastic badges on the new GT500 and call it good—although if we’re reading our specification sheets correctly the 2013 GT500 will light enthusiasts on fire with its 200+ mph bow wake alone. And the Raptor, excellent as it is, might be a little too specialized, and muddy, for a 20th anniversary special.

SVT could take a cue from Ford Racing and make a very limited run of Mustangs ala the track-only Mustang Cobra Jets. Tuned for race gas and with a little more boost the upcoming 5.8 GT500 engine would easily make 1,000 hp. The aftermarket does it all the time, and with some of Ford’s best electronic traction controls to make it driveable SVT would certainly have left a mark in the automotive pavement with that one.

Or is there something more unique in SVT’s future? A reprise of the GT40 theme, perhaps? Or a new take on speed using any one of Ford’s new generation of turbocharged and direct injection EcoBoost engines? Combining torquey muscle and top end revs in relatively light, compact packages the EcoBoost fours and sixes hold a lot of enthusiast promise. A variation of the 3.5-liter V-6 EcoBoost engine in anything from a Mustang to a pocket-exotic mid-engine chassis is a good example, and if you want to go off the deep end, why not a 2.0-liter EcoBoost I-4 in a single seater. Call it the SVT Solo.

Back in reality, any of these engineering-intense anniversary specials is undoubtedly too expensive for SVT to pull off. But they have another avenue to travel, their own owner’s club, the Special Vehicle Team Owners Association. SVT has always—thankfully—shied away from too much flash in their cars, so maybe what they need is a simple party. Gather up the SVTOA faithful, rent a track where the Cobras, Shelbys, Lightnings, Contours, Foci and Raptors could play, bring in the personalities and let everyone on hand sample the latest from SVT.

It would be fun and they might even sell a few cars.

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NASCAR Picks Holley Throttle Bodies

NASCAR Picks Holley Throttle Bodies:

NASCAR Picks Holley Throttle Bodies

In a move that surprised no one, NASCAR has named Holley the official supplier of fuel injection throttle bodies to Sprint Cup competitors.

Starting in just two and a half months at the Daytona 500, electronic fuel injection is being required on all Sprint Cup engines by NASCAR. Now Holley has been named supplier of the critical throttle body portion of the new injection systems. By using one spec throttle body NASCAR can control the ultimate airflow to Sprint Cup engines.

Holley is manufacturing the throttle bodies in the same Bowling Green, Kentucky plant where most NASCAR spec carburetors have been made. Holley has been the carburetor supplier to NASCAR since the 1960s, but that is all history now that NASCAR is requiring electronic multi-port fuel injection.

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Sergio Scaglietti Dies at 91

Sergio Scaglietti Dies at 91:

sergio scaglietti

The genius behind so many great Ferrari designs has passed away at the age of 91.

Sergio Scaglietti, a native of Modena, Italy, was just 17 when he and his brother started their body shop not far from Enzo Ferrari’s garage. After Ferrari had seen the quality of their work, he hired them on to create and build bodywork for his cars.

Eventually Scaglietti the company became part of Ferrari and today that name is on the factory in Modena that houses the state-of-the-art production line that builds aluminum bodies for models like the 458 Italia.

It certainly wasn’t like that in the beginning, when Scaglietti and his men hand hammered aluminum sheetmetal over bags of sand into such luscious shapes as the pontoon-fender Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa.

1962 Ferrari 250 GTO

Yet it wasn’t just the perfection of their finished sheetmetal that made Scaglietti so famous. It was the shapes that metal took. Another wonderful example is the Ferrari 250 GTO, the 1962 GT that is so venerated today…and worth at least $25 million each. We hear so much about the tools modern designers have to create and shape the bodies of today’s automobiles, but I once asked Scaglietti how he created the GTO body. The modest gentleman said, “By looking at cars. Just looking…with the eye. If you use your head, knowing the car has go fast, you make it small and lighter.” He created the GTO shape with no plans, no drawings and no clay models, making the framework that would be the shape with his eye and forming the aluminum around it. Scaglietti also gave full credit to the men who worked for him. He then told me, “I don’t even know what a computer is.”

And what was his favorite among the cars Scaglietti built for Ferrari? The 275 GTB.

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The Ultimate Just Got a Little More Expensive

The Ultimate Just Got a Little More Expensive:

The Ultimate Just Got a Little More Expensive

It may not be the inflation of financial doomsayers, but BMW just announced a price increase.

Starting January 1, 2012 the destination and handling fee on all North American sales is rising from $875 to $895, a rise of less than one percent notes BMW.

The chart below lists the price increases model-by-model. Even at a nominal two percent, it’s another reason to pick up a few 3-Series as stocking stuffers before they re-write the window stickers.

Model	Current MSRP	MSRP as of Jan. 1, 2012	Change
128i Coupe	$31,925	$32,095	$170
135i Coupe	$40,025	$40,195	$170
128i Convertible	$37,575	$37,795	$220
135i Convertible	$44,775	$44,995	$220
328i Sports Wagon	$38,125	$38,395	$270
328i xDrive Sports Wagon	$40,125	$40,395	$270
328i Coupe	$39,375	$39,595	$220
328i xDrive Coupe	$41,075	$41,295	$220
335i Coupe	$45,775	$45,995	$220
335i xDrive Coupe	$47,475	$47,695	$220
335is Coupe	$52,775	$52,995	$220
M3 Coupe	$60,775	$60,995	$220
328i Convertible	$48,275	$48,495	$220
335i Convertible	$54,475	$54,695	$220
335is Convertible	$61,475	$61,695	$220
M3 Convertible	$69,425	$69,645	$220
528i Sedan	$47,525	$47,795	$270
528i xDrive Sedan	$49,875	$50,095	$220
535i Sedan	$53,125	$53,395	$270
535i xDrive Sedan	$55,425	$55,695	$270
550i Sedan	$62,575	$62,895	$320
550i xDrive Sedan	$64,875	$65,195	$320
535i GT	$57,675	$57,895	$220
535i xDrive GT	$59,975	$60,195	$220
550i GT	$66,675	$66,895	$220
550i xDrive GT	$68,975	$69,195	$220
X3 xDrive28i	$37,725	$37,995	$270
X3 xDrive35i	$43,275	$43,595	$320
X5 M	$87,775	$88,145	$370
X6 xDrive35i	$60,175	$60,495	$320
X6 xDrive50i	$70,775	$71,095	$320
X6 M	$90,875	$91,195	$320

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