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Turns out Europe's Photoshopping prognosticators didn't need to create a mockup of the upcoming Maserati SUV concept — the brand's first ever — from scratch. They could have simply dusted off an old Giugiaro design. Because that's what Maserati did — even giving it the same name of that 2003 SUV concept — the Kubang. More »
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Now installed on everything from European superminis to SEMA tuners, the Lambo-style scissor doors were first featured on Marcello Gandini’s gorgeous 1968 Bertone Carabo concept. More »
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Citroënet is one of the few marque-specific car websites that can measure up to the standard set by Allpar, and it doesn't take much digging there to unearth some jaw-dropping stuff. More »
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Acura just released one teaser shot if this X6-esque coupe-like crossover vehicle, bound for the New York Auto Show. Thankfully, someone noticed the other photos they left hidden in their source code. More »
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We don't know why Giugiaro named this after a long-defunct builder of idiosyncratic British sports cars, but the Frazer Nash concept is looking to become the world's fastest hybrid with a 186 MPH top speed. More »
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Dr. Gary Kaberle, a Michigan Dentist, is the first-ever private individual to display a vehicle on the main floor of the Detroit Auto Show with his BAT 11dk. More »
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Shao Yung Yeh, a 22-year-old Taiwanese design student at Cheng Kung University created the aptly named single-seat Insecta Concept (yes, you heard that right — an InsectaCon cept — nice Transformers reference, eh?) after being inspired by a grasshopper. With leg-like suspension arms that can raise and lower depending upon traffic and road conditions, the Insecta is Shao's interpretation of a personal-mobility city car. The concept is theoretically powered by a motor at each wheel while the battery pack sits in the car's abdomen and is able to adjust the car's center of gravity, ostensibly by moving fore and aft. We hope it also controls the car's air conditioning, as the Insecta reminds us of nothing more than a greenhouse on four wheels. More »
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Here are the first details and photos of the new Chevy Orlando concept MPV ahead of the official reveal at the Paris Motor Show next month. The Orlando, a seven-seat family vehicle based on the Cruze platform, drops it squarely into territory currently occupied here in the states by the Mazda5 and...not much else. The three rows of seating are arranged theater-style for better occupant visibility, and of course, they all fold flat for minivan-like cargo capacity. The photos show a sportier exterior than what we're used to seeing from the MPV market, as well as Malibu cues on the dash and front passenger compartment — all good things, and something we hope to see at our local Chevy dealer toward the beginning of the next decade. Press release after the jump. More »
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Though it isn't set to be revealed to the motoring press until tomorrow, we have this exclusive video of a new concept car from Bayerische Motoren Werke AG. It's called the GINA Light Visionary Model, and it's being transported to the BMW Museum in Munich. You can just see the edges of the new concept in the footage, as well as a Knight Rider-esque lightbar in the tail. We're gathering details on what it actually is, other than a two-seater roadster (or maybe even a one-seater, who can tell with all that camouflage?) we're told is both visionary and light. Also, it'll be fully revealed on June 10th. We'll be watching, if only to see BMW's GINA first-hand and up close and to see if it's as tight as other BMW concepts we've come to know and love. More »
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Raymond Loewy is one of those industrial design legends who has no problem maintaining a spot in the pantheon of automotive history. The design lead for Studebaker during the post war years, Loewy and Virgil Exner, another luminary, were responsible for some of the most forward thinking and trend setting designs of the time. Loewy didn't just do work for a broad range of customers, including NASA, he also did stuff for himself. This self-commissioned 1959 Cadillac Eldorado was designed with nobody but himself in mind, and it's now on the world's largest auction block. More »
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We're already tired of all the "green" concepts from makers from Audi to Zap — mostly because we'd like some real alternatives rather than just pie-in-the-sky concepts — but with the one-two combo of gas prices and "the green marketing movement" it's not likely to end any time soon. Then there's Fiat — an automaker breaking the mold of creating new concepts and just recycling concepts first rolled out in 2002, almost down to the system. Back then it was called the GM Autonomy. This time it's named the Fiat Phylla, and it boasts a "split-frame" design (not a skateboard), roof mounted photovoltaics, motors at each wheel and a flexible design capable of supporting power sources like batteries, super capacitors, fuel cells and the like. More »
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It's called the ReCharge, a concept car from Volvo to be unveiled officially next week at the Frankfurt Auto Show, it's a plug-in hybrid with a battery-only range of 100 km before you need to have the car's four-cylinder 1.6-liter Flexfuel engine kick in to power the car and recharge the battery. The ReCharge is built off a specially designed Volvo C30, meaning it's got a platform that doesn't need to be built from scratch — boosting the possibility we could see something like it really hit the streets. The best news would be for the environment which would see "about 66% lower emissions of carbon dioxide compared with the best hybrid cars available on the market today." We can already hear the birds singing. Full press release after the jump. UPDATE: First video of the Volvo ReCharge just posted here.
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Portugal probably isn't the first country that comes to mind when you think of exotic sports cars. Engineering concern CEIIA and designer Ernestos Frietas are trying to change that. Reminiscent of a Dino 206 GT, the Retroconcept Vinci Sport shares the Dino's diminutive proportions, mid-engine layout and overall profile. Additional references like the hood nostrils, headlights, and air intakes are clearly Dino-inspired but brought up to date with modern materials and forms. The Vinci Sport makes extensive use of carbon fiber in both the chassis and body. [Via Car Body Design] More »
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Tasked with dreaming up a new small Audi, students at Milan's Scuola Politecnica di Design have presented concepts that part with the company's current cold, technical look. By modifying design signatures like the thin glass house and 'beard' grille, the students have been able create vehicles that appear purposeful and utilitarian while remaining clear descendants of Audi's current range. Jay Wen-Chieh Win's design in particular show how Audi could adapt the look of their current front ends towards something more aggressive and dynamic. [Via Car Body Design] More »
]]> http://jalopnik.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=282386&view=rss&microfeed=true One of our favourite concepts from 2005, the impossibly futuristic Pivo has been kept under close guard by Nissan, until now. They still won't let anyone drive the car - distinguished by a cabin that rotates 180 degrees - or allow it out for photo shoots, or reveal details of how it works, but they did let an Aussie TV show film the car while an engineer drove it. Hot rotating cabin action inside. More »
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Nissan Design Europe today unveiled this sketch of their forthcoming NV200 van concept. The small van, a likely competitor for the Ford Transit Connect, will see its premiere at the Tokyo Motor Show in October. Recognizing that most van drivers use their vehicles as a mobile office, the design features a storage pod that slides out the back doors, making room for a passenger seat that rotates backwards to face a drop down desk. Inspired by the needs of underwater photographers, not only are there separate wet and dry storage areas, but the two little driving lights on the roof remind us of those on a mini-submersible or those robotic diving suits from The Abyss. More »
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Russian President Vladimir Putin is fast tightening his iron grip on the once proud nation. In a move not seen since the Cold War, nuclear missiles are being aimed at European cities while foreign governments are the targets of coercion, sabotage and open hostility. Internal dissent is cause for exile while the government consolidates its power. So perhaps it's appropriate that their design students are dreaming up dictator-appropriate modes of transport. Who knows, the next time we see the ZIL Parade might be at the front of an armored column parading through Red Square. More »
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Many claim there's little doubt the current 3-series is the ugliest car in BMW's history. Furthermore, those same folks claim it's awkward and not aging well. Realizing that, and according to the lads at Motor Authority, BMW is changing course big time. Most notable in this design preview are the cues borrowed from everyone's favorite Shanghai surprise, the CS Concept. Note the front end is lifted almost exactly from the CS, though the renderings for the 3-series have much sharper, 5-series influenced headlights. The hood is also inflated to protect the pedestrians of Europe, only it doesn't look awful. The rear is a best-case evolution of the 7-series's bustled butt. The proposed 3 looks good in profile, too. Is this preview accurate? Who knows, but boy oh boy would it be a big step in the right direction. – Jonny Lieberman More »
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Ferrari revealed a pint-sized Enzo concept insiders are calling the "1000 kilo" car, or "Millechili" in Italian. Winding Road was on hand at Ferrari's 60th Anniversary fete to enquire, though the got some winding answers from the Ferraristi on hand. Some are calling the model — whose wheelbase is nearly 10 inches less than that of the Enzo — the "FXX Millechili." That implies the little bugger could pull down as much as 660 horsepower from the Ferrari's top-end V12. At 2207 lb., that kind of power would be downright time warping. Could we be looking at the smaller Ferrari some insist is on the way? Or is it a practical joke you have to be Modenese to get. Eh! – Mike Spinelli More »
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Chrysler Group's been pushing the Dodge brand to the European market in hardcore fashion. Take as most recent evidence the new Dodge Demon roadster prototype the company's planning to roll out at the Geneva show next month. For visual guidance, picture a Mazda MX-5 birthed in the seventh ring of Hell (home to the violent types). And that's fitting, because Chrysler Group's design guru Trevor Creed has the MX-5 buyer in his crosshairs. Dodgeification's been achieved by way of the signature grille, which appears to have been crammed wholesale onto a Porsche Boxster that's strayed, ass-first, into the path of a band saw. Under the hood is Chrysler's 2.4-liter world engine, producing 172 hp and 165 lb-ft, with power going to the rear wheels. Whither the SRT version powered by the Crossfire's V6? Don't press your luck. Press release after the jump. – Ray Wert More »
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Yes, we know FoMoCo's got their steely grip on the "Bold Moves" moniker, but Dodge is making a hard press to get "Bold" as a feather in the German-American hybrid's cap. Well, they're trying to anyway...and we've now got some up-close pictures of the new Dodge Avenger "concept car" (and by the way — a message to you folks in Auburn Hills...we know you're gonna make it. Don't play so coy, k?) to compliment the corporate pics we dropped last week. Oh, and we've even got a special treat at the end — a certain non-medical Doctor looking to cure the Chrysler Group of any and all ailments. Receive the photo barrage after the jump. More »
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Trolhatten Saab has some spy shots of what could be Saab's latest Subaru re-badge. With that obvious Tribeca-styled rear, we would have said it was the 9-6x, expected to augment the new Saab SUV line as a 2007 model. Trouble is, this one's a three-door, which means either it's a concept being worked up for the Detroit show, or Saab's going way out on a limb, building a competitor to the 2003 Isuzu Rodeo Sport. TS notes it could also be a prototype Saab 9-4x, a small SUV crossover expected to be built on GM's Epsilon platform (Saab 9-3, Chevrolet Malibu). Nothing materialized at Frankfurt, so we're expecting a Detroit unveiling. Maybe Tokyo? [Thanks to Michael for the tip.] More »
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AutoWeek has unearthed photos of a four-door Porsche prototype of the early 1990s that may be the spiritual predecessor to the company's upcoming Panamera. The Porsche 989 one-off was a rear-engined (as opposed to the front-engined Panamera) prototype based on the 911, though with several styling and suspension improvements that would show up in later 911s. Although Porsche officials claim the company never released photos of the prototype — and said the car had been destroyed in 1991 after production plans were shelved — the 989 had already been photographed by a German magazine. Moreover, the car likely still exists in some Porsche facility, under deeper cover than an KGB agent sweeping up at Wal-Mart. More »
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