NEW TOYOTA PRESIDENT Akio Toyoda announced this week that the world’s biggest carmaker will fast-track development of its upcoming lightweight entry-level RWD sports car.

Speaking at the 2009 Center for Automotive Research Conference, Mr Toyoda - an avid performance car enthusiast - said he personally wanted to see more driving fun injected into Toyota’s model line-up.
“My [...]

• 
• Comment
• Read More

BOUTIQUE SPORTS CAR manufacturer Caterham has announced that soaring demand for the company’s lightweight, stripped-down specials has prompted it to increase output by around 10 percent.

While most mainstream manufacturers are still fighting hard to bounce back from the economic downturn, it appears the highly-specialised market for track-day specials has experienced an early marked recovery.

But to [...]

• 
• Comment
• Read More

PORSCHE HAS made a big thing out of its four-door Panamera, and now news has come through that the German supercar manufacturer will offer V6 and hybrid versions of the currently V8-only super saloon in 2010.

Porsche is working to bring a hybrid version of the Cayenne SUV to market, using an Audi-sourced 3.0 litre V6, [...]

• 
• Comment
• Read More

We first copped a look at the Bentley Continental Supersports around this time last month, though at the time it didn’t have a name – or at least not one that Bentley was willing to divulge.

In fact, all anyone would tell us was that it would be the company’s fastest, most powerful production car ever.

The [...]

• 
• Comment
• Read More

It was only yesterday that our resident Supercar nut Beddy was wiping his drool off the Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4, and of course there’s also this morning’s news of the new Murcielago SuperVeloce edition set to appear at Geneva.

Now comes the news that its bigger sibling the Murcielago LP650-4 is set to go topless.

The world’s roads [...]

• 
• Comment
• Read More

We’ve yet to see a Tesla Roadster being wheeled by someone other than a celebrity or a journalist, but it appears that plans are afoot for a one-make race series for the Lotus-based electric supercar.

Two Middle-Eastern groups - one in Dubai and the other from Qatar - are reportedly in talks with Tesla Motors to [...]

• 
• Comment
• Read More

Mazda managed to scoop top honours at the LA Auto Show Design Challenge a few days ago with the radical KAAN Concept, and If you thought Mazda’s current Nagare design language was extreme, you ain’t seen nothin’ yet.

The KAAN - an all-electric sportscar that bears more resemblance to a recumbent bicycle than a performance vehicle [...]

• 
• Comment
• Read More

Porsche has reportedly shelled out for a brand-new Tesla Roadster, which its research and development division will drive, analyse, take apart and study in an effort to see just what makes the Lotus-based sportster tick. It’s all part of Porsche’s plan to introduce its own all-electric sportscar, of which a prototype is rumoured to already [...]

• 
• Comment
• Read More

In an unprecedented move for a boutique manufacturer, legendary sports car maker Caterham has announced that it is putting the development of its next vehicle into the capable hands of… the online public?!

Is this Web 2.0 taken to a new extreme, or is it a genuine attempt by Caterham to engage with motoring enthusiasts on [...]

• 
• Comment
• Read More

Volvo has extended the R-Design styling pack to include its XC90 and V70 ranges, a move it says will “increase their dynamic appeal for Australian customers”.

The  R-Design styling pack has been available on the C30, S40 and V50 T5 models for some time now. The latest additions to the R-Design rank include the XC90 3.2, [...]

• 
• Comment
• Read More

Mitsubishi Motors Australia has announced that the shapely 2009 Mitsubishi Lancer Sportback is now on sale throughout the country, expanding the Lancer range and giving Mitsubishi a direct competitor to the Lancer’s long time rival, the Subaru Impreza.

The Australian Sportback line-up consists of the base model ES, the mid-range VR and sporty-ish VRX. The ES [...]

• 
• Comment
• Read More

Could Toyota be working on a two-seater drop-top sports car based on its upcoming iQ minicar? The blokes at Auto Motor und Sport certainly think such a project is in the works, and have published a rendering of what they say is a brand-new retro-styled mini-roadster from the Big T.

Those familiar with classic Japanese iron [...]

• 
• Comment
• Read More