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Volkswagen Golf GTI Pirelli (2008): first official pictures

By Ben Pulman First Official Pictures 14 April 2008 09:00 The Volkswagen Golf GTI Pirelli is back, 25 years after the original. And the good news is this GTI gets the same power tweak as the Edition 30 Golf we raved about when we drove it last year. The 2.0-litre turbo engines gets 227bhp in Pirelli trim, up from 197bhp.

Caterham Superlight R500 (2008): first official pictures

By Ben Pulman First Official Pictures 14 April 2008 09:17 Talk about giant slaying... Caterham's latest rocket, the Superlight R500, will reach 60mph from rest in just 2.88 seconds - and all for £37k. That’s thanks to 263bhp and a kerbweight of just 506kg.

Kahn Cosworth Range Rover Sport (2008): first official pictures

By Dan Trent First Official Pictures 14 April 2008 12:34 The first road car since the 1990s to wear the Cosworth badge will be announced later this week, CAR Online can reveal. The new Kahn Cosworth Range Rover Sport has been born of an unlikely alliance between Bradford-based premium styling outfit Kahn Design and old-school race engine builder Cosworth. Full information on the new Cossie won't be released until later this week, but CAR Online has obtained this exclusive teaser image.

Honda Interface Exhibition

Ginza, Tokyo - Honda recently had a small exhibition to show their progression of IP and binnacle design. Situated in the design gallery of Matsuya, one of Tokyo's premier department stores, it included a chronology of Honda dashboards from the first Civic to tomorrow's FCX. Opposite this was a grid of recesses, which each contained dials taken from the current range of Honda road cars.

Mercedes' new four-cylinder diesels

By Stephen Dobie Motor Industry 11 April 2008 09:00 Mercedes has announced a new diesel engine, and it’s a win win situation – power is up, emissions are down. The environment can breathe a (small) sigh of relief while you have a bigger smile on your face. More importantly, it will form the base of Stuttgart's first diesel hybrid.

Lancia postpones UK launch

By James Foxall Motor Industry 11 April 2008 16:02 Lancia has postponed its return to the UK by nearly a year. The company had planned a glitzy British launch at the end of summer 2008, spearheaded by the all-new Audi A3 rivalling Delta (pictured) that was unveiled at March’s Geneva motor show.The comeback has now been rescheduled for summer 2009. Sources cited two major reasons for the delay.

John Herlitz, former Chrysler Senior Design Vice President, dies

John E. Herlitz, former Chrysler Senior Design Vice President, died on March 24th, he was 65. His 35 year career with Chrysler began in 1965, when he joined the company as a stylist, after graduating from Pratt Institute of Design in Brooklyn.

Vauxhall's new badge

By Tim Pollard First Official Pictures 09 April 2008 00:00 Vauxhall has redesigned its griffin badge - and the new Insignia is the first car that will bear the new mascot. It's a typically modern rebranding: the graphic designers have zoomed in on the upper torso of the griffin, giving it a sharper, modern look and the word Vauxhall is now incorporated in the badge.The company's grille-wide V front end will be abandoned, the new grille preferring an Opel-style roundel, enlarged and sitting slap bang in the middle of the grille. It's not all change, however.

Hamilton heads Goodwood line-up

By Ben Oliver Motor Shows 09 April 2008 10:47 Lewis Hamilton, at least seven Formula One teams and a long list of dramatic new road cars will headline the 2008 Goodwood Festival of Speed.The theme for this year’s event is ‘Hawthorne to Hamilton – Britain’s Love Affair with World Motor Sport’ and celebrates the fiftieth anniversary of Mike Hawthorn becoming Britain’s first F1 champion.Touring cars, rally cars, you name it...Other major anniversaries being marked include 50 years of British Touring cars. Organiser Lord March promises the most complete collection of BTCC cars yet assembled, from the Minis and vast Ford Galaxies of the sixties, through the Capris of the Seventies and Cosworths of the Eighties to the saloons of the formula’s Nineties heyday.The Ford and Subaru world rally teams are confirmed, and modern sports car racing will be represented by the Le Mans-winning Audi R10 diesel and GT1 class-winning Aston Martin DBR9 in Gulf colours.

Car Design News Contest

As one judge, Geert Jan Schellekens, Principal Automotive and Industrial Designer at SABIC Innovative Plastics, said; "From several hundred entries to 20 finalists in a day's time - what could have turned out to be a cumbersome process, if not a bureaucratic nightmare, actually became an intensive yet fun session with many intriguing and interesting interpretations of the contest brief - fuelling some lively discussions!" Another strong impression from judges was also of the variety of design entry and the effort that had been put into them, as Dale Harrow said: "I'm very impressed with the standard, and particularly with the diversity of entries to the contest". Derek Buckmaster,Global Market Director, Body Panels & Glazing for SABIC Innovative Plastics, said: "I was surprised by the depth of thought which the entrants had put into their designs to meet the diverse needs of the three 'milenniumites' described in the design brief. The designs displayed numerous approaches to meeting the environmentally-friendly and light-weight goals." All designs were considered relative to the Assessment Criteria a critically important part of the contest, created to ensure as much fairness in the process as possible and detailed in the Contest part of Car Design News.

Nissan Qashqai+2 (2008): first official pictures

By Tim Pollard First Official Pictures 07 April 2008 08:54 We’ve heard of 2+2s before, but Nissan is taking this numbers game to a whole new level with the Qashqai+2. As its name suggests, this is a slightly bigger version of the crossover with seven seats, up from the regular car’s five.CAR Online scooped the super-sized Qashqai last year, so it comes as no surprise. Nissan has stretched the wheelbase by 135mm to free up the extra space for a third row of seats, which fold flat when not needed.

Caterham Superlight R500 (2008): teaser photo

By Ben Pulman First Official Pictures 07 April 2008 15:33 This is the first picture of Caterham’s new Superlight R500. The teaser image appeared on the company’s website over the weekend, and is expected to be the Surrey-based manufacturer’s fastest-ever road car. Which makes it pretty darn quick.

Who's Where: Christopher Reitz appointed Director of Design at Alfa Romeo

Christopher Reitz has been appointed to the top job at Alfa Romeo, replacing Frank Stephenson as Director of Design. A relative of Wolfgang Porsche, Christopher Reitz graduated from Art Center Europe in Switzerland and began his career at Volkswagen in Wolfsburg in 1993. Reitz joined Audi in Ingolstadt from 1996 to 1998, where he was in charge of Advance Design.

Geely FC-1 concept

The third concept Geely is poised to reveal in Beijing will be the the FC-1, a station wagon-based CUV. With only a single side view image to judge from, the overall styling of the FC-1 displays a much faster and sleeker look than the other two, comparing to the GT concept's retro-organic and HL MPV's modern and simple design. By targeting the CUV segment - the trendiest vehicle segment in the world today - the FC-1 concept depicts the least 'shock value' of the three concept vehicles, and it might just have the brightest and most realistic future of them all.

Whos Where: Pierre Castinel is Head of Design at Tata

Indian automaker Tata has been front page news often in recent times, first because of the impressive one-lakh Nano, which changes the automotive industry playing field, and most recently because of its acquisition of Jaguar and Land Rover from Ford's Premiere Automotive Group for the tidy sum of $2.3 billion - less than half what Ford paid for both companies in 1989.  At the helm of Tata's design efforts is Pierre Castinel, Head of Design. Though only officially announced in March this year, Castinel has been active at Tata since he left Renault in summer 2007, a company he worked at for 20 years. Castinel started as a modeler for Peugeot and worked there for three years.

London Motor Show sneak preview

British International Motor Show 2008 map By Tim Pollard Motor Shows 02 April 2008 09:45 The organisers of the British Motor Show are drumming up interest early for July's event and have issued a map revealing the layout of the show. Gone are the days of reliance upon new metal to draw in the crowds - the London event looks set to challenge theme parks as much as dealerships.The British International Motor Show will be held at the Excel arena in London's Docklands from 23 July to 3 August 2008 and is set to attract key launches including the new Vauxhall Insignia, Lotus Eagle and, possibly, the Seat Ibiza three-door.But there will be a barrage of non-metal attractions, including:• Drift school where punters can learn how to oversteer• Heritage enclosure with classic cars• Watersports events with formation water-skiing• Off-roading area sponsored by Land Rover• Children's area including an under-age driving school sponsored by PeugeotA full interactive version of the map is available at www.britishmotorshow.co.ukAdult tickets for the show start at £10, children’s tickets from £6.CAR Online will report live from this summer's bi-annual British show. Come back for all the latest news and announcements as they happen  

Seat Ibiza (2008): first official pictures

By Tim Pollard First Official Pictures 02 April 2008 13:06 Seat's new Ibiza - unveiled today - spearheads a new model offensive from the Spanish company. The Barcelonan bosses hope that more and improved models will transform the brand from a bit-part player within the VW empire to a major manufacturer producing nearly a million cars a year.The new Ibiza certainly looks the part. These first pictures confirm that it will become one of the sleekest superminis around, as hinted at in the Bocanegra concept at last month's Geneva motor show.

BMW tii models are go

By Georg Kacher Motor Industry 02 April 2008 17:06 BMW chief Norbert Reithofer has confirmed to CAR Online that a range of tii performance options will be launched soon on the company's smaller models. He has finally ruled out a rumoured M1 version of the 1-series and said the tii spec would be the most performance-oriented model, claiming the the twin-turbo 135i was quite fast enough (it does 0-62mph in 5.3sec, after all).The tii concept shown at the 2007 Tokyo Motor Show points accurately to the approach BMW is developing: performance kits for the 1-series coupe and hatchback, an aero package, carbonfibre details, fatter wheels and tyres, sports seats and instruments. There's even talk of a new M-style steering wheel with integrated LED rev counter.A tii for the massesBMW is the past master at offering huge choice in spec and trim; subtle nuance of alloy wheel size here, and Sport spec there is the stuff of workplace car park folklore.

Seat Ibiza (2008) unveiled

By Ben Pulman First Official Pictures 02 April 2008 22:13 Seat's new Ibiza – unveiled today in Barcelona – offers sleek looks from an ex-Lamborghini stylist and gadgets never before seen in the supermini class. The Ibiza is also the start of a new model offensive that Seat president Erich Schmitt hopes will double sales to 800,000 by 2018. Ex-Lamborghini designer Luc Donckerwolke penned the Ibiza’s striking shape.

Michelin Challenge Design - Deadline for entries April 16

You Can Design America's Next Iconic Vehicle Michelin Challenge Design - the global transportation design competition in its ninth year - is looking for America's next iconic vehicle.  Submissions for the 2009 program will be accepted through April 16, 2008. The winning designs will be evaluated for their uniqueness, emotional appeal, design courage and technical execution by a jury of automotive design professionals and receive prominent display in the MCD exhibit at the 2009 North American International Auto Show. See the video (left) for more information, including interviews with the previous winners and jurors.

‘Lamborghini’ Ferruccio (2008) first official pictures

By Mike Elwin First Official Pictures 01 April 2008 10:57 This is the Lamborghini that never was: the stillborn Ferruccio project that has just been put on ice owing to a lack of orders. Designed by Italian coachbuilder Magvisio, the Ferruccio was a rebodied Murcielago LP640 and would have been faster than any current car wearing the Lamborghini badge, with a claimed top speed of 230mph. Although not an official Lamborghini project, Sant'Agata was monitoring the scheme ‘with interest’, according to its creators.Magvisio specialises in customisation jobs for private clients, and the Ferruccio was to be its first stab at designing a car from the ground up.

Aston Martin Vantage GT2 (2008): first official pictures

By Ben Pulman First Official Pictures 31 March 2008 11:03 Aston Martin Racing has officially unveiled the Vantage GT2. Its 4.3-litre V8 produces 500bhp and the Vantage GT2 weighs a mere 1200kg. That means it'll be quick, and it needs to be. The Vantage will have the unenviable task of taking on Porsche and Ferrari in the most competitive endurance racing class, GT2. The price?

Mitsubishi launches world's first twin-clutch SUV

By Mike Elwin First Official Pictures 31 March 2008 14:15 Mitsubishi will sell the world’s first SUV with a twin-clutch gearbox this autumn when it launches the Outlander Twin Clutch SST. Previously such systems have been the preserve of sports cars and performance-orientated hatchbacks, and definitely not off-roaders. CAR Online has tested the SST system in the new Evo X and been impressed by the speed and quality of the gearchange.

Pforzheim University Winter Degree Show 2008

Moving Time - VW type 60K10_Aerocoupe Woosung Chung  "What if Dr. Ferdinand Porsche would have had 21st century technology in the 1930s?" This question could be the starting point to think of the future of Volkswagen. Based on this assumption, VW type 60K10 Aerocoupe (also known as the Porsche 64) was recreated looking through Dr.

Jaguar-Land Rover sold today (2008)

By Tim Pollard Motor Industry 26 March 2008 10:18 Ford has finally sold its Jaguar and Land Rover subsidiaries to Indian manufacturing giant Tata Motors. The Blue Oval announced the widely anticipated sale to the US stock markets and employees this morning, confirming it was paid $2.3 billion (£1.2bn) for the two premium British marques. It has sold them wholesale, rather than keeping a stake as it did with Aston Martin - ending a decade of American ownership.Ford bought Land Rover from the BMW-Rover break-up in 2000, 11 years after it acquired Jaguar.

Britain's low-carbon future

By Guy Bird Motoring Issues 25 March 2008 12:36 Higher purchase taxes for high emitters, ‘traffic-light style’ tax discs to indicate a vehicle’s environmental friendliness and mandatory dashboard-based driving efficiency technology are just three recommendations from a new report that looks set to inform Government policy for the next decade. Published on the same day as the Budget, the snappily titled King Review Of Low Carbon Cars Part Two (Recommendations For Action) was lost amid all the hoopla of new tax bands. But now we've had time to scrutinise it, we can assess the proposals that could affect your next car choice, from upfront purchase price to tax and running costs.

New York Auto Show 2008 blog

By Liz Turner Motor Shows 21 March 2008 12:11 In the early 1970s, muscle cars hit the wall of emissions regulations and disappeared for decades. At the New York Auto Show, there was a sense of déjà vu. Dodge had its Challengers, Pontiac launched its G8 GXP and Sport Truck and Chevrolet, although still waiting for the Camaro had the Corvette ZR1.

Dodge Challenger

By Liz Turner Motor Shows 20 March 2008 20:51 Lucky US buyers can now get behind the wheel of a Dodge Challenger for less than $20,000 (about £10k). The base model is the 250bhp 2.5 V6, described as an ‘economy car’ because of its 25mpg, then there’s an RT with a 370bhp 5.7-litre Hemi, and then, of course, there’s the one everyone really wants, the 6.1-litre SRT-8. As is the tradition at Chrysler, the RT also offers an optional Track Pak.

Kia Koup concept

By Liz Turner Motor Shows 20 March 2008 20:58 Kia’s Koup. If you saw this compact coupe concept without its badges and had to guess who made it, there’s no way your first guess would be Kia. Its lines are simple and sporty, not a million miles from a Ford Puma.

Saleen S5S Raptor

By Liz Turner Motor Shows 20 March 2008 21:13 Saleen is best known for its red-hot Mustangs, but at New York it revealed an American supercar concept to rival the Europeans. Its S5S Raptor is around the same size as a Ferrari 430, and should be close to the same price, but boasts 175bhp more. It’s powered by a Saleen-built supercharged 6.0-litre V8, that will run on ethanol (like an increasing number of race cars).