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Peugeot launches the 4008

Fri, 18 May 2012 15:50:13 +0200

At the Auto Mobil International show (AMI) in the city of Leipzig there will be the German debut of the Peugeot 4008. This mix of estate and SUV will be offered in this country only with the ‘Allure’ equipment package and configured as an all-wheel-drive model.

The Volkswagen bicycle collection

Fri, 18 May 2012 15:50:13 +0200

VW on two wheels instead of four. The concern has launched a new collection of bicycles. There are mountain bikes, trekking bikes and city bikes but also for the first time an electrically assisted ‘Pedelec’.

Manthey dominates the first timed practice

Fri, 18 May 2012 15:50:13 +0200

They were already tipped as the big favourites for the 24 hours race at the Nürburgring and the Manthey Porsche have confirmed this with the fastest run in the first timed practice session. The main rivals seem to be holding back, resulting in a few surprises at the front of the field.

BMW F11 by Kelleners Sport

Thu, 17 May 2012 16:51:21 +0200

The tuners at Kelleners Sport have taken charge of the current BMW 5-Series Touring.

First prototype track testing

Thu, 17 May 2012 16:51:21 +0200

Note the date… 2013. That’s when Porsche will launch its new super sports car model, the 918. But the car maker has already released photos of the prototypes being tested on the race track.

Infiniti FX30d S

Thu, 17 May 2012 16:51:21 +0200

Few marques are so dependent on extravagant design as Infiniti. Over a third of buyers of luxury SUV models make their purchase decision based on the look of the vehicle. After the minor facelift it is still a car which shouts “Move over, let me through!”

Cobras in mourning

Wed, 16 May 2012 16:34:57 +0200

Mighty V8 engines were what he stood for above all, Caroll Shelby. The Texan, a successful race driver and former fighter pilot was the creator of the famed Cobra. He has died at the age of 89 in Dallas.

Mini Mania

Wed, 16 May 2012 16:34:57 +0200

Every two years there is a meet-up organized for the world’s Mini fanatics. This year the event took place at the Paul Ricard circuit, a fitting setting to show off the new top Mini, the John Cooper Works GP II.

Mercedes G63 AMG

Wed, 16 May 2012 16:34:57 +0200

It is a model which has been in production for 33 years, and now the anniversary of the Mercedes G-Class is to be marked by its ennoblement in the form of a 63 AMG version.

Process engineering: From the Trabant to the BMW i3

Tue, 15 May 2012 16:01:08 +0200

They were not cars which inspired affection… the Trabant models from the 500 to the 601, the autos which were so much part of the picture on the roads of East Germany before re-unification. But their carosseries fabricated in Duroplast were in many ways very modern. Today’s carbon composite materials may be more advanced but the process engineering involved is surprisingly similar. Fibrous material dinked in plastic resin and pressed into shape… been there… done that!

JCW GP: ‘Green Hell’ tested

Tue, 15 May 2012 16:01:08 +0200

Will there never be enough? Since BMW took the destiny of the marque in their hands the market has been flooded by all kinds of variants of the ‘new school’ Mini. Now comes the one they’re calling “the quickest Mini ever built” in a limited edition.

Facelifted Rolls-Royce Phantom Drophead Coupé

Tue, 15 May 2012 16:01:08 +0200

No cabriolet is more luxurious or more comfortable than the Phantom Drophead Coupé built by Rolls-Royce. Now the British manufacturer has executed a facelift for Series II of the model. Our first impressions of a voyage in the ultimate motor yacht on wheels…

Perfectly balanced

Mon, 14 May 2012 16:08:01 +0200

It has taken a couple of years but now there is a sports car model worthy of the name and wearing the Toyota badge. The GT86 was jointly developed with Subaru.

State of the estate

Mon, 14 May 2012 16:08:01 +0200

It was always good looking, but now the new 3-Series Touring from BMW scores with added everyday utility and a bigger loading area.

New from top to toe: BMW 1-Series three-door

Mon, 14 May 2012 16:08:01 +0200

The BMW family is growing at the lower end of the model spectrum. In September the 1-Series which had such a successful start will include a three-door version. There will also be all-wheel-drive options, a new entry level motorization and the 320 horsepower top version.

Four Ford birthdays

Fri, 11 May 2012 16:20:23 +0200

Four chapters of German automotive history are reviewed by Ford Germany this year… the Ford Sierra turns thirty, the Granada is forty, the 12M P4 celebrates its fiftieth birthday and the Ford Taunus 12/15M… the one with the globe at the front… is sixty years old.

Bavaria light

Fri, 11 May 2012 16:20:23 +0200

Sounds as if it could be a beer? Intoxicating, yes, but in another way and remembered above all for a unique detail. The BMW Z1 had funny doors… it sounded very cool indeed when they sank into the car’s body and left the occupants enjoying a very special open-air feeling.

An Italian pair from Wheelsandmore

Fri, 11 May 2012 16:20:23 +0200

Wheelsandmore have additions to their program… the ‘Rabbioso’ and the ‘Perfetto’. If this makes you think of a pizza menu or of Dolce Vita you would not be far wrong… these are pimped variants of the Lamborghini Aventador und Ferrari 458 Spider.

Mercedes A-Class: sporty and efficient

Thu, 10 May 2012 16:19:58 +0200

The new A-Class not only looks very different from its predecessor it is an entirely new automobile and the motorizations represent the manufacturer’s determination to be innovative. For example, now the ‘BlueDirect’ technology of the V6 and V8 premium segment models finds its way into the compact class in the four-cylinder power plants of the A-Class.

Shift it: Manual ZF for the 911

Thu, 10 May 2012 16:19:58 +0200

For the new Porsche 911 Carrera there will now be the alternative of a seven-speed manual gear box developed by ZF as well as the seven-stage dual clutching transmission.