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Alfa Romeo to go all-RWD

And Alfa Romeo's saga of restructuring, postponing and rejiggering continues, swathed in announcements, reports, rumor and innuendo. A few months ago, the product plan at the Italian automaker centered around the existing MiTo and Giulietta (cousins of the 500 and Dart, respectively), the almost-at-hand 4C, the upcoming Giulia sedan and the Duetto, a roadster based on the next Miata. Forget that.

Jaguar XFR – the Cat’s out of the bag

The XFR is Jaguar’s answer to the barn-storming saloons from Mercedes, BMW and Audi, and if looks and spec (and the experience of driving the non-blown XF) are anything to go by, the new big Cat should get the cream. The XFR gets the new version of Jaguar’s AJV8 engine, which is a 5.0 litre supercharged lump, producing a whopping 510bhp, with the usual limited top speed of 155mph, and a 0-60 of around 4.5 seconds. The New Jaguar XFR surfaces ahead of Detroit Visually, the XFR gets the ‘Aggressive’ look, with big, chrome-trimmed air inlets at the sides (a Jaguar theme?

Bentley & Lamborghini SUV on hold?

Reports today say that VW is planning to put the Bentley SUV and Lamborghini Urus SUV on hold as VW fights to cut costs. Despite still strong sales, VW is now forecasting lowered sales going forward than previously expected and looking at ways to keep costs in check until the economy starts moving in the right direction again. And one of those cuts seems to be the launch of luxury SUVs by Bentley and Lamborghini.