Rolls Royce 200EX

With the push for more gas efficiency, we're seeing these two factors alot: Less Weight, More Horsepower.

How do they do this? Well its really all in engine engineering and if you are good at it, you will make the combination work. This is what sets our energy crisis apart from the 1974 Crisis where muscle cars sort of just had liposuction and stopped bodybuilding.

Anyways, The Rolls Royce 200EX shows that even the big boys are hurting, and this design is somewhat hurting me. The interior is great, typical Rolls Royce angular interior, I love that styling as you should know by now.

The rear has a very subtle design, with someone undesirable taillights. Hopefully we can see something like the S550 where the taillights will have some radical styling to offset the 200EX's mini stance. That fierce front does not agree with its wimpy and cheap styled rear.

LINK: EDMUNDS

2010 Mazda MX-5 Miata

Some 855,000 examples of the MX-5 Miata have streamed out of Mazda's factory in Japan since the first 1990 model hit the ground in late 1989. In fact, this convertible roadster has a place in the Guinness Book of World Records as the most popular sports car ever built.

The MX-5 lifted the idea of the lightweight roadster out of obscurity and placed it back on the wish list of car enthusiasts around the world. It single-handedly proved that lightweight sports cars were cool once again, and from this epiphany has come a long list of cars that partake in the Miata's spirit if not its form, like the Audi TT, BMW Z3/Z4, Fiat Barchetta, Mercedes-Benz SLK, Pontiac Solstice, Porsche Boxster and Rover MGF.

The Magic Comes From Lightness
The secret of the Miata's success lies in its conception. Mazda modeled its small sports car pretty frankly on the rear-wheel-drive 1962 Lotus Elan, which offered a revolutionary combination of lightness and performance even then. And no matter how much Americans and Europeans alike have longed for more passenger room and more power ever since, Mazda hasn't strayed from its original mission. The MX-5 Miata is still a lightweight, balanced and responsive roadster that delivers the very best in wind-in-the-hair driving at an affordable price.

The headlights are slanted upward more than before, rocker sill skirts have been integrated into the shape, the taillights protrude (it's all the rage in Japan) and a small spoiler is integrated into the trunk lid. The designers have also made the front and rear bumpers wider to redirect the flow of air away from the turbulent area around the spinning tires. As a result, the Cd has dropped 0.01 to 0.34 for the soft top and 0.32 for the hardtop.

Straight-line stability has also been enhanced, although the stiffer suspension settings generate a slight pitching motion at speed and a harsher ride overall. But on winding roads and racetracks, this new suspension setting is superb and cannot be faulted, especially when combined with these grippy 205/45R17 Bridgestone Potenza RE050A run-flat tires.

More Revs!
Next Kijima turned to the MX-5's MZR engine. The 2.0-liter power plant's 170 horsepower arrives at 7,000 rpm, not 6,700 rpm, while the redline has climbed 500 rpm to 7,500 rpm. This enables you to squeeze that little bit extra out of the 2.0-liter inline-4's top end to get the full 170 hp. You really appreciate this upgrade when you exit a corner and want every herb on tap to get a quick escape. And as someone who races an MX-5 in Japan, we'll tell you that the top-end power will be more than welcome when we come out of the hairpin bends at Tsukuba Circuit looking for a quick exit.

To enable such high-rpm punishment, Mazda fitted pistons with full-floating wristpins and a forged crankshaft, technology borrowed from the 2.5-liter MZR engine featured in the new Mazda 6. The corporate specifications sheet says power remains unchanged at 170 hp, and so does the torque rating of 140 pound-feet at 5,000 rpm. But Kijima lets on that these revisions have in fact upped power by around 3-4 hp. As a result, this new engine calibration for Japan (which has 100-octane gasoline) delivers a sprint to 60 mph in 7.4 seconds, marginally quicker than the current model.

Coat a Cone With Carbon
Helping to generate such a time is a modified six-speed manual transmission. The Miata's transmission has produced nothing but accolades from driving enthusiasts, but Kijima still saw room for improvement. Now the outer cones of the triple synchros for 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th gear wear a coating of carbon for slicker shift action, so you can drain every last rpm out of this screaming 2.0-liter.

The chief engineer also revised the MX-5's six-speed automatic, adding Active Adaptive Shift (AAS), which now allows drivers to instantly engage the manual mode while in Drive just by flicking one of the shift paddles on the steering wheel.

To complete his mission to make the MX-5 Miata's driving experience the best it can be, Kijima fitted an induction sound enhancer to the intake manifold. It picks up sound and vibration when accelerating hard and feeds a raspier sound to the cabin, making the whole experience a lot more engaging.

Overall, Kijima's tweaks take the MX-5 to the next level. The car feels more supple and in touch with the road, and when you want a bit more power, just give the sound enhancer a good old stir.

Opinion: A classic update to improve upon the most legendary roadster ever built. More power, better handling, better tires, less weight, more gas mileage, all add up to make a worthy successor to the current MX-5... Not to mention its more "masculine" styling, but it still can go a little more.

LINK: EDMUNDS

2010 Mazdaspeed 3

Mazda will introduce the high-performance version of the Mazda 3 five-door on the morning of March 3 in Geneva.

The Mazdaspeed 3 is loaded with aggressive styling and a direct-injection 2.3-liter turbocharged engine, but still has the functionality and cabin space of a five-door hatch. It joins the Mazda 3 four- and five-door models to round out the 2010 Mazda 3 lineup.

Opinion: One of the greatest looking modern hatches gets a fresh update. A less bloated front end, and a rear cleaner than a baby's gives it much more appeal to consumers concerned about balancing fuel economy, with cargo capacity. Not to mention, the 2.3 Litre turbocharged engine that growls Zoom Zoom.

LINK: EDMUNDS

Audi: No decision on porting the A1 series to the United States

"No announcements or timelines have been finalized regarding exports to any specific markets," said Audi of America spokesman Christian Bokich in response to a query by Inside Line on Wednesday.

Automotive News on Tuesday reported that Audi is "seriously looking" at bringing the A1 to the U.S. in the car's next generation six to eight years from now. Audi of America President Johan de Nysschen told Automotive News that Audi's U.S. dealers asked for the A1 but balked at the small car's steep price.

The Audi A1 would likely start at $25,000 in the U.S. and compete against the BMW 1 Series and Mini Cooper.

The final production version of the A1 has not yet been shown publicly. An A1 three-door concept was shown at the 2007 Tokyo Auto Show, and a five-door A1 concept was shown at the 2008 Paris Auto Show.

Opinion: The A1 can be a very successful car. What it needs is a good amount of power, while retaining small car fuel efficiency. Also it needs to be realised that Audi is STILL a luxury brand from Volkswagen, don't have hundreds of options that raise the price of this car to the $30K region or else someone will have to be an idiot to pay that much for an underpowered car. $25K is a tad steep but if it pushes the $30K region, It will not survive for long.
LINK: EDMUNDS

Porsche Panamera

Don't be fooled by the illustrations and camouflaged spy shots of the Panamera. Porsche has released pictures that are the real deal. the new Panamera in its "final look" form, according to Porsche. The company describes it as a "unique interpretation of the classic saloon body."

The Panamera is lower and wider than a traditional four-door at 76.0 inches wide and 55.8 inches high. In front, there are contoured air intakes in place of a traditional grille. The 911 resemblance is strongest in the wheel arches and long hood line, Porsche notes.

The Panamera will be available with engine choices ranging from 300 to 500 horsepower, including a hybrid version. Engines will be mated to a manual six-speed or Porsche's new PDK seven-speed, automated dual-clutch transmission. The top model will have all-wheel drive as standard; it's an option on other Panameras. Full powertrain information won't be out till spring, Porsche says.

The 2010 Porsche Panamera is set for official unveiling in the spring, with an on-sale date by the end of summer 2009.

While I find the front and side shots very attractive, the rear of the car somewhat turns me off. I think I will still be a Targa 4S fan. Perhaps it just takes some getting used to?

Link: Wikipedia

2010 Kia Soul

The little car for the economic soul

First look at this car and you might think its a concept vehicle. Well not entirely, during these tough automaker industry times, we're seeing a massive shift from designs as many had witnessed the death of the American Muscle Car after the 1974 Energy Crisis. We are now shifting back towards smaller cars, but smaller doesn't necessarily mean less formidable. Kia is a company that has made small cars in America and Korea for years and have been relatively good considering their gas mileage, but nothing is desirable from a Kia beyond this; however Korea is changing its image as we've seen in the Hyundai Genesis Coupe, and now the aforementioned Kia Soul.

Power
The base Soul comes with a 1.6-liter inline-4 that makes 122 horsepower and 115 pound-feet of torque. A five-speed manual is the only transmission available on this entry-level model, which almost certainly means the upper trim levels will make up the bulk of Soul sales. They get a 2.0-liter four-banger good for 142 hp and 137 lb-ft of torque. A five-speed manual is standard, while a four-speed automatic is optional. Kia admits a four-speed automatic is a little behind the times (even if the xB features the same), but it's working toward a six-speed automatic to be employed in all its cars in the near future.
Yet even with the four-cog slushbox, the 2.0-liter Soul is estimated to achieve 31 mpg in the EPA highway cycle (the marketer's favorite), while the Scion xB gets only 28 mpg. Kia's Myungsic was quick to point out that "the Soul may be less powerful than the Scion, but which one is better for younger drivers in this economic climate?"

COMPETITION
Is the soul the first sporty car from Kia? Yes. Is it comparable to a Volkswagen Golf, or Honda Fit? Not really. Will it be enough for its trendy target audience? Most Likely. Especially at a price expected to be in the teens, much like the Honda Fit however its more chiseled design should gain favoritism amongst male buyers while females would admire the curved styling of the newly redesigned Honda Fit. As of now, we'll have to wait for the car to make a strong American debut to see it around our gray streets, however its already been out for four months in Korea and has been faring rather well.

Hell, even I'm admiring it much more than Scion's offerings
Link: EDMUNDS