Report: Renault may build new Alpine A110 coupe on Alfa 4C chassis, and why you should be excited w/ video
Rumors have suggested that Renault has been working on reviving their classic Alpine brand along with a successor and modern interpretation of the classic Alpine A110 “Berlinette” sports coupe from the 1960s and 1970s. For those who are not familiar, Alpine was a small French automaker that specialized in motorsports and sports cars utilizing Renault engines that sat at the ass end. So in a sense, you could say that they were France’s Porsche. Renault later absorbed the brand in 1978, which then went defunct in 1995.
Fast forward to today and Renault has already confirmed that they were reviving the Alpine brand. But in order to do so and to substantiate its potential success, the French automaker has to reestablish some market awareness and footing in an already competitive worldly automobile industry. So their answer is to revive the A110.
Currently, Renault has been seeking partners to help them build their future Alpine models, even this specific A110 Berlinette revival. That said, AutoCarUK reports that Alfa Romeo’s recently introduced 4C sports car may be used to underpin this future Alpine. It may also used for a future Caterham sports car in hopes to perpetuate the growing sub-supercar niche, aimed specifically at us younger driving enthusiasts and traditionalists. In other words, this sounds like nothing short of a miracle…
Render: BMW MZ8 Concept Design by Christophe Jourd’hui
With the rise of digital technologies and the internet, prospective automotive designers have been able to create and publish their very own designs unlike just over a decade ago.
As a result of this, us automotive enthusiasts are continually flooded with concept designs about what future supercars could look like and the following BMW MZ8 concept created by Christophe Jourd’hui is without a doubt one of the best we’ve seen.
Inspired by iconic BMW cars such as the BMW Z8 and BMW 8-series, the MZ8 features a removable hardtop and some insanely impressive lines.
One of the most notable features about the BMW MZ8 are its front kidney grilles which are dramatically sharper and much more aggressive than BMW’s current grille design.
2014 Porsche Panamera Plug-In Hybrid To Join Renewed Lineup
2014 Porsche Panamera S E-Hybrid
You couldn’t accuse Porsche of being predictable. After years of making endless rear-engined sports cars, the last decade or so has seen SUVs, diesels and hybrids all join the Porsche lineup.
With the 918 Spyder supercar, plug-in hybrid will also appear. But plug-in technology will reach further than that–it’ll be seen on the Panamera sedan too.
An updated version of Porsche’s sport sedan will debut at this month’s 2013 Shanghai Auto Show in China. And alongside the more overt performance versions, a new 2014 Porsche Panamera S E-Hybrid joins the range, complete with plug.
According to our sister site Motor Authority, the new car uses the Volkswagen Group’s new plug-in hybrid technology, set to appear across all Volkswagen-owned brands.
Remarkable Cars: Porsche 961
The Porsche 959 is one of the most iconic cars of the eighties. It was the fastest production car and the most technologically advanced car of its time. But did you know that the 959 was originally intended for rally racing?
It all began in 1981 when some of Porsche’s high ranking people were thinking of a possible replacement for the Porsche 911. A new sports car was needed, one that would take Porsche into the future. The next generation car from Zuffenhausen would also serve a testbed for an all-wheel drive system. The engineers received an assignment to see what they could to with the rear-powered Porsche 911.
A 911 Turbo was reworked to adhere to than Group B rally racing rules, the popular racing series were regarded as the perfect arena to test and develop new models. The rally car was also developed as a production vehicle in order to comply with the FIA regulations, which stated that at least 200 road going units has to be produced before the manufacturer was allowed to compete in Group B rallying.
At the Frankfurt Motor Show in 1983 Porsche unveiled a concept named Gruppe B. One year later, three 911′s modified to 959 specifications were entered in the Paris-Dakar Rally. The true rally version of the 959 was ready in 1985, but all three cars failed to finish the race through the desert.Success came the following year, as the 959 driven by René Metge finished first in the Senegalese capital Dakar.
Live From NYIAS From D2FORGED Wheels
Our dear friends and supporters D2FORGED Wheels are doing it big with an epic showcase of custom made forged wheels and exquisite cars at 2013 edition of New York International Auto Show. With a lineup of super hot supercars, sports cars and luxury sedans, this sick booth will be visited in numbers!
We bring you a bit of action from the past few days with a lineup consisting of BMW F10 M5 on CV3-LP lightweight wheels, Maserati GranTurismo on CV11 Deep Concave Wheels, Porsche 997TT on CV12 Deep Concave Wheels, Maserati Quattroporte on lightweight CV3-LP Wheels, Aston Martin Vantage on CV2 Wheels and Ferrari 430 on featherweight CV3-LP wheels. Sick package no doubt about it! Plus they have another booth at another level with a Porsche 997TT with their MB1 wheels as well.
Report: Next-gen Nissan GT-R to possibly go hybrid, to be ready by 2017
MotorTrend reports that Nissan is adamant about changing things up for its all-new next-generation GT-R halo sports car. So far, rumors have been that the new GT-R will go all green and utilize a high-performance hybrid system.
This rumor was apparently reinforced when Nissan of North America’s senior vice president of sales and marketing, Jose Munos, said: “Stay tuned later this year for news that will electrify our legions of GT-R fans worldwide.”
More rumors say that the new GT-R is due sometime by 2017 and will take from the Infiniti Essence Concept from 2009. Other reports suggest a hybrid system developed from the current Infiniti M35h.
Ultra-Sexy Lexus LF-LC Coupe Concept Reportedly Confirmed for Production
With the departure of the massively expensive, hugely capable LFA supercar from its lineup, Lexus is currently without a halo vehicle. So what might next sit atop Mount Lexus? According to a report from WardsAuto, Lexus’s vice president of marketing has apparently confirmed that last year’s sexy LF-LC concept is going into production.
The LF-LC was well-received when it first debuted at the 2012 Detroit auto show, and Lexus even brought a second iteration to last year’s Sydney and Los Angeles auto shows—painted blue instead of red, garnering even more positive vibes from the public. According to Brian Smith, the aforementioned Lexus exec, the enthusiasm was strong enough to convince Lexus’s honchos in Japan to give the coupe a green light for production. Despite Smith’s statement to WardsAuto, Lexus refused to confirm to C/D that any final decision on the LF-LC has been made, with a company representative telling us only that the car is still under review.
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