Those headlights look like they're from something else, and the hood bulge and nose are just too much a BMW M3, which has a front engine necessitating a hood bulge, where this does not. We call shenanigans. Really impressive shenanigans, and way more staggeringly awesome than the actual M1 Homage, but shenanigans no less. What do you say?
Scrutinize a higher resolution version HERE.

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Our favorite is the pilfered Prius. By using just three wheels rolling resistance is sure to be reduced, as is weight, due to the absense of safety equipment. To top it all off, the lack of a tail pipe may mean the Chinese have beaten Toyota, offering the first all-electric, plug-in Prius on the market. [Via CarScoop]

Yes friends, that's a Maybach 62 Hearse. We have nothing else to say. [CWW Cardesign]

What's this, then? Apparently during an interview at the New York auto show, hot rod supernova Chip Foose hinted at a possible Chrysler 'Cuda to join the upcoming Dodge Challenger. Of course, without Plymouth, resurrecting the original "Hemi 'Cuda" would seem a hollow exercise. Maybe Chipper was talking about a new restomod project or similar nostalgia play. Either way, our buddy George created a mockup of what such a Chrysler product may look like, using the '72 as a baseline. We'd have liked to have seen the strobe stripe from a 1970 'Cuda AAR, but that may have been over the line. [Thanks to Michael for the tip.] – Mike Spinelli

Chrysler 'Cuda [The Detroit News]

Related:
Spy Photos: Dodge Challenger Mule!; Not Fair! Edmunds Drags Out The Dodge Challenger Super Stock Concept; Production Challenger Doomsday Clock; In the Flesh: The 1970 Foose Dodge Challenger [internal]

Those seven-day tweakers AutoWeek have set their forensic Photoshop artistes to predicting the coming Porsche Panamera, ahead of its presumed reveal at the 2009 Frankfurt auto show. We've been taken with how ungainly the Panamera has looked in recent spy shots, and the illustrations do little to quell the dread unsettling our collective stomach. AW also summarizes some newly sourced information on the coming four-door's mechanicals. Those are, a base engine based on Volkswagen's 3.6-liter V6 and a 4.8-liter, direct-injection V8 projected to produce 400 hp in free-breathing trim and 520 hp turbocharged. A V6 hybrid-drive version is expected to join the similarly powered Cayanne the company announced in 2005 was in development. As for the rumor Porsche would produce a two-door version to revive the former 928's configuration? Still unconfirmed. – Mike Spinelli

2010 Porsche Panamera [AutoWeek]

Related:
More on the Porsche Panamera [internal]

Oh, the tangled web. Let's take a step back from what has become The Great 2008 Subaru Impreza Photos Question of 2007 and see if we can get this straight. 1.) Motor Trend published photos of the redesigned Impreza, taken by its own photographers, in its May issue. 2.) An early recipient of said magazine scanned the relevant pages and put the images online for greedy eyes to scrutinize. 3.) Edmunds created what copyright lawyers might call a "derivative work," using Photoshop to change the color and the background of Motor Trend's photos. 4.) None of it really matters — other than to copyright lawyers — because the car is the 2008 Impreza. Please continue to be happy or sad as the case may be. The question remains, Who should online travelers blame/skewer for this? Motor Trend? Edmunds? Subaru's selective media relations practices? Copyright lawyers? The producers of "According to Jim"? Exactly. [Extra credit to our boy Hammer for the image.] – Mike Spinelli

Related:
Hell Is Chrome: Subaru's New Impreza Breaks Cover; Is It or Isn't It? Motor Trend's Subaru Impreza Shots [internal]

We just got this tease of a message from one of our longtime tipsters:

This is for real. Alfa Romeo will launch its entire line up, including the 147 GTA on April 1st of this year. They have secretly been bringing them in through the Port of Tacoma. My peepee is weepy just thinking about it. Time for a test drive!

Thanks for the image, D. This will be the best April Fool's Day ever.

Related:
Finalmente! More on Alfa Romeo's US Return [internal]

According to the UK's AutoExpress, the next Impreza will have a drastically redesigned fascia that won't likely remind certain writers of certain, er, body parts. The new model's getting a complete refiguring, likely to be consistent with the company's B5 concept. Gone will be former design boss Andreas Zapatinas's polarizing grill, and — judging from two spec images from AW's artists — it'll be replaced with a more conventional face and more highly sculpted haunches. A new boxer diesel engine will debut at the same time. Still no word on the WRX, yay or nay. – Mike Spinelli

Unveiled: Impreza's shock new look [AutoExpress]

Related:
New Impreza Coming to New York Show; Bye, Bye WRX? [internal]

That funky extra from Hollywood found this spec image of the next Mazda RX-8, reportedly set to debut in 2009 as a 2010 model. The artiste who rendered such — likely for an unnamed Japanese magazine — pulled some cues from the Mazda Kabura concept. Yeah, that makes sense, though we've heard other stories of a return to the RX-7 model based on the MX-5 Miata's underpinnings. Yeah, no one has a clue. – Mike Spinelli

new Mazda RX7? [The Hollywood Extra]

Related:
More on Mazda's Kabura Concept [internal]

That Audi's building a replacement for the ungainly European A2 (or A1, depending on which rumor you prefer) is the subject of wide speculation. What that car will look like, however, is where opinion diverges. One thing generally agreed upon, however, is that the car will share parts with VW's Euro B-segment rides (think: Polo). Gone will be the Bauhaus Hunchback styling that made the last A2 a market laggard against the Mercedes A-Class. Artist Andrea Rosati of Infomotori rendered his own prediction of the next, Mini-fighting A2. It definitely looks like an Audi. As for its accuracy, we're not betting the laptop quite yet. – Mike Spinelli

New Audi A1 / A2 Rendering {Carscoop]

Related:
Mini's Bane: Spec'ing the Audi A1; Exec: Audi Won't Build Shooting Brake [internal]

Hey kids, can you follow the bouncing imagery? Maybe none of this would matter if there wasn't so much pent-up demand to see BMW's new, V8-powered M3. Nonetheless, AutoWeek's built a cover story around the photo illustrations created by Barry Hayden of Motor Forecast, which ran in the February issue of the UK's Car. AW seconds the claim that a concept version of the newest in M-Power will appear at the Geneva show before the production model drops in Frankfurt. Maybe information really does want to be free, after all. [Thanks Dave] – Mike Spinelli

No Compromise [AutoWeek]

Related:
Car Magazine Editor on BMW M3 Spec Images; Car Magazine on the New BMW M3 [internal]

If any of you guys happen to be passing by the UK today, can you pick us up a copy of the latest Car? The glossy mag is featuring BMW's next-gen M3 — that's the new one with the V8 — on its cover. It's the teaser for a piece titled "10 Cars that Matter for 2007." Well, ok. Don't get too excited, because it turns out the shots aren't the real deal, but the digital handiwork of Motor Forecast's Barry Hayden. Looks like we'll just have to wait some more. Props, nonetheless, to Sir Barry for his high-res predictions. – Mike Spinelli

2008 BMW M3 - Update on Car's February 2007 cover story [Carscoop]

Related:
More on the BMW M3 [internal]

Considering the growing interest in old-school station wagons among lurkers of the collector-car market lately, it may be a matter of time before Detroit reintroduces the wagon to minivan-weary car buyers en masse. Designers of shoulda-coulda cars, CWW Design, is already on scene, with a range prospective Magnum-beaters from Lexus, Mercedes, Rolls, Plymouth (er, in a parallel universe) and others. Yes kids, buy stock in the fake-wood paneling market now, before you miss the runnup. – Mike Spinelli

CWW Car Design's Wagons [Google]

[via Carscoop]

Related:
Spy Photos: 2008 Dodge Magnum SRT8 [internal]

No matter what Lamborghini execs say about the company's plans, or lack thereof, to build a new SUV, the Photoshop artistes will inevitably keep on with their pasty selves. If it does exist some day, the successor to the LM002 "Rambo" Lambo likely won't be quite as batshit insane as the original V12-powered, Shiek-baiting supertruck. In fact, most think it'll be based on the Porsche Cayenne/Audi Q7/VW Touareg platform, though powered by a V10 and designed to look much more like the Gallardo. Something, perhaps, like this rendering of a prospective Lagartijo LM005 by Italian artist Andrea Rosati, featured in InfoMotori. Lagartijo, for the Spanish-challenged, means both "lizard" and, in Mexico, a "sharp dresser," a construction that's pitch perfect for a Lambo SUV. Then again, maybe we're better off not knowing. – Mike Spinelli

Lamborghini LM005 Lagartijo [Info Motori via Autoblog]

Related:
Report: Lamborghini's SUV, 2 + 2 Projects Cancelled [internal]

Any stateside Alfa Romeo fan worth their blood-soaked rags and empty bank account will be heartened to see this new spec image of the upcoming Alfa Junior. Though, lest they get too heartened, it's not likely to hit these shores. If you've not been playing along, Alfa Romeo is working up a new Mini fighter, resurrecting the Junior moniker to give the model historical context. According to Italian car magazine Quattrofettuccine (or something), Fiat Group will introduce the new Junior, which will be based on the Fiat Punto Grande, in 2008. Between this and an new Abarth-tuned Fiat 500 (fingers crossed), we may try out an intercontinental commute. – Mike Spinelli

[via Carscoop]

Related:
Spec'ing The New, Entry-Level Alfa Romeo [internal]

Our mates at Carscoop bring to our attention this concept for a Smartamino, created for Auto Motor und Sport by California designer Mark Stehrenberger. The German mag asked the MSD artist to sketch a few examples of how the Smart brand — soon to debut in the states — could expand for the US market. Considering the Smart is generally too small for fatso Americans, Stehrenberger says an increase in length by one meter (that's like a yard) is in order, as is 4x4 crossover and pickup models. Damn, we're as predictable as a can of Vienna sausages when it comes to cars. Still, he can't be much of a designer — where's the hood scoop? – Mike Spinelli

Smart Fortwo - Proposals for future US versions [internal]

Related:
The Grass Is Always Greener: Smart Diesel Hybrid [internal]

The commenter currently known as Goldmemberer pulled out his Photoshop detective kit and did a bit of forensics on the Lexus LS-F teaser shot the company released yesterday. Here's the result, in the same glorious blue-jay metallic (or whatever) as the original. Seems realistic enough to us, though we're sure some Holmesian type out there will find a nit over which to pick. – Mike Spinelli

Sliik's IS-F Rear [Sliik]

Related:
Exclusive Detroit Auto Show Preview: The Exhaust Pipe Of The 2008 Lexus IS-F [internal]

The Chinese are either the best or worst reverse-engineers in the world. Check out this from Shandong Huoyun, a division of the Qilu Petrochemical Corporation; it's a nearly indistinguishable knockoff of the Smart Fortwo. Under the skin, however, it's an entirely different beast. As its name reveals, the HuoYun Electromobile is an EV with a range of 75 miles and a top speed of 31 mph. Considering it's also lacking the Smart passenger-safety cell, 31 mph is probably more than fast enough. We also hear some enterprising New Yorkers have already started selling these from a blanket laid out on Fifth Avenue. Caveat emptor, German tourists. – Mike Spinelli

HuoYun Electromobile : Yes, it's a Chinese Smart Fortwo clone! [Carscoop]

Related:
Fake Ferrari From China: The Chen-Zo? [internal]

In its continuing series of animated spec drawings of future cars (something our first-grade teacher, Miss O'Dea, used to call "arts-and-crafts time"), Edmunds Inside Line takes on the next Nissan 350Z, due for a 2008 launch. Colored pencils reveal a reportedly wider track and some mild visual updates, including a narrowing of certain features to give it a slimmer look. But that copious rear end, say spies, stays put. [Thanks to Robert for the tip.] – Mike Spinelli

Nissan goes a little soft with the 2009 350Z [Edmunds]

Related:
Specc'ing the Coming Toyota Aygo [internal]

Edmunds Inside Line worked up one of its animated spec designs for the Toyota minicar expected to come to the US in 2007 as a 2008 model. The prospective Smart beater will be none other than the Toyota Aygo microcar, but a redesign will precede its entry into the US market. Power will likely be from some manner of engine larger and more powerful than the current 1,000cc three-cylinder mill, considering we 'mericans like our vee-hicles with horsepower at least in three digits.

Exclusive Video Animation: 2008 Toyota Aygo [Edmunds]

Related:
Spy Photos: Is Toyota Building the Endo Concept?; Toyota's Frisky Aygo-go [internal]

As Americans, we're always tempted when we see double-digit horsepower figures, such as that of Lancia's luxury-subcompact Ypsilon (78, with a chainsaw-like 84 ft.-lbs of torque). Nonetheless, style is a major consideration in a land where gas costs as much as entry-level caviar. And this rendering of what may be a droptop version of the Ypsilon gives us pause. Built on the Giugiaro-designed Fiat Grande Punto platform, the prospective coupe-cabrio would come from the Bertone fattoria and compete with similar CC offerings from Peugeot and Opel (to name just two). Who says tiny, roofless cars have to be uglier than a pug?

Lancia Coup -Cabrio - Ypsilon CC ? [Autoblog.it]

Related:
Lancia Reveals Delta HPE Concept at Venice Film Festival; Bologna has a Second Name, it's Ypsilon [internal]

A few months back, a tipster gave us an account of his experience in a focus group regarding a new BMW crossover, which some publications have referred to as the X6 or LSC (luxury sport crossover). According to said tipster, the September issue of Popular Mechanics features a shot of the exact car that appeared before the focus group. While PM hasn't posted shots of the model online, a spec image published by AutoBild, the tipster says, is an accurate representation of the car. To wit:

There, in its funk-tastic glory, is the BMW Luxury Sport Crossover. [Popular Mechanics] says it's probably two years away from hitting the showroom floor. It's not quite a station-wagon, and it's not quite a hatchback, but it's one hell of
a crossover...

The new car, allegedly based on the increasingly ubiquitous 5-Series platform (x5, 6-Series) is expected to debut in early 2008, along with the V5 — a rumored Mercedes R-Class fighter. Diggity.

Related:
Second Story Man: Tipster Says He's Seen the BMW "X6"; More on BMW's 2008 X6 Crossover; Spy Photos: 2008 BMW X6 or New Volkswagen Thing?; BMW's 7-Year Product Plan Exposed? [internal]

Germany's AutoBild reports on Audi's new crop of cabrios on its way from Ingolstadt. Talk has been circulating about the company's R8 supercar being offered in a Gallardo-like spider version, and the Bild talks about that car as if it's a done deal, though they've yet to put imagery-meister Huckfeld on the case. They're also schreiben about the Audi A3 cabrio, which is expected to hit in 2007, possibly at the same time as the TT roadster. It's all a matter of "fresh wind" breaking from the Audi drawing boards, Bild says — though it's possible Google Translate may be overstating the case.

Audi schneidet auf [AutoBild]

Related:
More on the Audi A3 Convertible [internal]

The folks at The Car Connection published another one of the gossipy renderings of the rumored Mercedes S-Class sedan convertible concept that's expected to appear at the Detroit show in early 2007. Don't get crazy, it's not really a spy shot, as TCC indicates in the headline — think of it as wishful Photoshopping. But we're still wondering if DaimlerChrysler will go for an inter-corporate full-court press and do a sedan droptop of the 300C as well. Has Dr. Z been watching "Entourage" again?

Spy Shots: '07 Mercedes S-Class Convertible [The Car Connection]

Related:
A Mercedes S-Class Cabrio Concept Coming to Detroit Show in '07? [internal]

The UK's AutoExpress speculates on a future Saab 9-5 based on the designs introduced in its Aero X concept at the Geneva Show earlier this year. Be careful, says Trollhattan Saab — AE doesn't have the best track record for speculative accuracy. Still, they say, the spec images (pictured) appear similar to those that showed up in Germany's more reliable Auto Motor und Sport last month, and in a backdrop illustration at a speech by GM Europe's design boss Brian Nesbitt. We do hear that the next 9-5 will be heavily informed by the design direction introduced with the Aero X, so expect a pretty considerable dollop of Aeroness. Stay tuned.

The future's orange for new Saab 9-5 [AutoExpress]

About those 9-5 pics.... [Trollhattan Saab]

Related:
Predicting the Saab 9-4x: Replacing the 9-7x?; Saab Unveils Aero-X Concept at Swank Geneva Hotel [internal]

There's not much more on what's secretly percolating in Volkswagen's Alsace bureau, but World Car Fans is throwing its tilted fedora into the ring anyhow. For a few months we've been hearing about Bugatti's upcoming Veyron-based sedan — you know, the one with a detuned, front-mounted 8.0-liter W16, producing 950-hp — which would capitalize on the company's success in the batshit-extreme coupe market. The spy syndicate of Hans Lehmann and associates offer a spec image of what such a coupe-like four-door would look like. We'll believe such a car when we see it, or, more likely, when we read a thousand column-inches of hyperbole about it from A-list British and American magazine editors. Lucky sods.

Bugatti Veyron-based Sedan? [World Car Fans]

Related:
New Bugatti On the Way

Edmunds again taps its favorite German expressionist cartoonist, Edvard Munchausen by Proxy, to spec out a future car model. This time, following a healthy dab of 4711 cologne, Herr by Proxy turned his selection of colored pencils and straight edges on the 2010 Porsche Cayenne, which will reportedly get a sleeker shape that, compared with the current model, less resembles sea mammals or British footwear. The SUV will likely share an overall design vocabulary with the 2009-2010 Porsche Panamera four-door "coupe," which, by Proxy says will resemble "a fertilized egg wearing a Jil Sander dinner jacket."

2010 Porsche Cayenne looks less like an SUV and more like a Porsche [Edmunds via The German Car Blog

Related:
Edmunds Speculates on the Next-Gen Acura NSX [internal]

Lots of V-dub watchers were shocked when the company hinted it would be moving on to the Golf VI as soon as 2008. It seems like a quick cycle to those of us in the US who just started seeing the new Rabbits on the street last month. But the V will have been in Europe for five years by 2008, and that means it's time for a change. AutoBild predicts the re-aranged Golf will take styling cues from the current Jetta, bringing the two models back into parity. Expect a US version in time for the Great Arctic Meltdown of 2011.

Preview compact class [AutoBild]

Related:
Next-Gen Volkswagen Golf Coming in 2008? [internal]

The German Car Blog-ers translate a report in Auto Motor und Sport indicating the upcoming Audi A1 will be the Mini fighter premium hatch as expected, and will take the name "Shooting Brake," a reference to the Tokyo concept of last year (and the wacky, gentleman's sports wagons of old Blighty). According to the report, the likely Euro-only A1 — spec'ed above by the magazine's artistes — will built on the Golf V platform and priced in the $20,000-$25,000 range. Word is, it'll premiere at the 2009 Frankfurt show, with a convertible coming after the first of the decade.

Audi A1 - More Details [internal]

Related:
Audi A1 Minicar Concept: Family Tree?; Yikes! It's the Supposedly Non-Hoaxy Audi A1 [internal]

Car spies Brenda Priddy & Co worked up a p-chop of what the prospective 2009 Chevrolet Camaro droptop might look like — that is, were GM to announce any intention to build either that or the coupe concept that started the fire. Winding Road says GM's Holden division in Australia — the incubator for the company's upcoming rear-drive performance cars — is working on the production model, and considering time zone, will have it completed 14 hours earlier than in New York, sometime in 2008.

Camaro convertible for 2009? [Winding Road]

Related:
Lutz on New Camaro: 100,000 or Bust [internal]

Germany's AutoBild offers a homegrown vision of the upcoming small SUV from Mercedes — now expected to be dubbed GLK. The BMW X3-fighter, which AB says is coming in 2008, will likely be a soft roader fitted with more luxury mojo than stump-pulling prowess, with power coming from Merc's six-cylinder stable. New underpinnings, which engineers are calling the "direct control chassis," promise less body roll, a tighter turning radius and more responsive steering. No word on a US release of the GL-Class's smaller brother (originally thought to be tagged an M-Class), but we'd imagine 2009 is as good a guess as any.

Vorschau Mercedes GLK (translated) [AutoBild]

Related:
Mercedes to Focus on Small SUV for 2008; Spy Photos: Mercedes MLK [internal]

The wooden-shoe bloggejrs at Autoblog.nl posted a spec image of what the upcoming Alfa Romeo 169 could look like, if the auto design gods happen to send a lightning bolt through the window of Giugiaro's studio. Whatever the finished product will look like, the 169's important because it'll likely be one of the first of a new breed of Alfa expected to ride to the US on the back of its Maserati cousin. Word is, the 169 will compete in the wacky world of four-door coupes, like the Mercedes CLS, an upcoming BMW and the 2009 Porsche Panamera, and share underpinnings with the next Maserati Quattroporte. Expect it to launch in late 2009 as a 2010 model.

Fotosjoptijd: Alpha Romeo 169 [Autoblog.nl]

Related:
Alfa Romeo Works up New, Upscale Coupe for the US [internal]

Word on whether Mercedes will continue the C-Class coupe into the next-generation model has yet to come down from on high (read: Dieter Zetsche's Fortress of Solitude). It's already been discontinued in the US, due to poor sales, and most feel a 2008 W204 model is as likely as Dieter launching Handlebar Mustache Aficionado magazine as a side gig. Still AutoBild seems to know something we don't, and has thusly set about predicting what the next C-Class coupe would look like. It's a vast improvement over the awkward current model, but will this dachshund hunt?

Auto picture preview: Mercedes Sportcoup (translated) [AutoBild]

Related:
More in the Mercedes C-Class [internal]

Ok, it's admittedly a photoshopped image, but the boys at World Car Fans offer a decent enough prediction of what the rumored Honda Civic Si cabrio will look like when it's launched — as early as 2008, according to loose talk in Popular Mechanics. We'd imagine it's a natural extension of the little Honda, which just keeps on moving on upmarket like a compact, Japanese George Jefferson.

New Honda Civic Convertible Spy Photos [World Car Fans]

Related:
Spy Photos: 2008 Honda Civic Type R [internal]

It looks awfully similar to a spec illustration of a reportedly new Audi A1 that ran recently in, among other outlets, the UK's Car magazine, but a spec image of how the next Volkswagen Scirocco could look appeared this week in Germany's Auto Motor und Sport. That image (above) differs from another spec proposed by AutoBild, which foresees the new model as having more in common with the Volkswagen EOS or the company's Concept R The boys at Eurocar Blog translate the reported specs, which include a base engine of VW's 1.4 TSI twin-charger mill.

VW Scirocco 2008 [Eurocar Blog]

Related:
More on VW's New Scirocco for 2008 [internal]

Edmunds Inside Line continues its series of sketch animations, this time addressing what a projected Lamborghini Espada 2+2 might look like. If you've been following the Espada saga, you'll know that it's a persistently rumored, on-again-off-again project inside Lamborghini that would produce a V12-powered update on the Espada 2+2 of the 1968. Such a car would expand Lambo's line back into cars with rear seats (albeit for the toddler-sized). Though the original Espada was the ugly-assed yang to the Lamborghini Miura's sexy yin, Edmunds' sketch is much more forgiving.

Exclusive Video Animation: 2009 Lamborghini Espada [Edmunds]

Related:
Edmunds Speculates on the Next-Gen Acura NSX; More on the Lamborghini's Projected Espada 2+2 [internal]