Luxury Cars
-
When Lincoln revealed it would use comedian Jimmy Fallon to write the script for its upcoming Super Bowl ad, based on Twitter submissions about epic road trips from fans, we’ll admit that our first thought was “this isn’t going to end well.” Lincoln, after all, has been hyping style over substance lately, and it even got busted trying to pad performance numbers by mounting up a set of non-stock (i.e., very sticky) tires during a recent MKZ road test. Could Jimmy Fallon really “Steer The Script” in a way that would incite viewers to visit Lincoln showrooms?...
-
Audi Promises Autonomous ‘Piloted Driving’ System This Decade
Recent reports have suggested that Audi’s new autonomous driving system, dubbed “Piloted Driving” by the German luxury automaker, will debut on its A8 flagship sedan around the year 2016. Audi recently showcased its Piloted Driving autonomous system at the 2013 Consumer...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Amidst A ‘Strategic Review,’ Fisker Hires A Consultant To Manage Cash
As struggling plug-in hybrid automaker Fisker broadens its search for investors or partners, it’s hired Huron Consulting Group to manage its day to day operations and cash flow. Bloomberg says that Huron Consulting’s Hugh Sawyer has been put in place as a chief administrative officer...
Kurt Ernst -
Does Mercedes’ Super Bowl Ad Explain Justin Bieber’s Popularity? Video
We tip our hats to Mercedes-Benz, who admittedly had us beyond puzzled with the build up to its Super Bowl XLVII ad. While we certainly don’t mind reviewing footage of Kate Upton, we couldn’t see where she fit into the grand scheme of things - until now. While we can’t say...
Kurt Ernst -
2006-2012 Lexus IS Models Recalled For Faulty Windscreen Wipers
Lexus has issued a recall on its IS models because of a faulty windscreen wiper. The affected cars include those Lexus IS models from the 2006 to 2012 model years, which the automaker says number around 270,000 units in total. The reason behind the latest recall is an insufficiently tightened nut...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
First RC 350, Now Lexus Registers RC F Trademark
Last November it was revealed that Toyota had filed for the trademark “Lexus RC 350,” leading to speculation that this would be the name of a new model from the Japanese luxury automaker. In Lexus naming tradition, the “RC” part of the name suggested that the new model would...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
When lithium-ion battery manufacturer A123 systems declared bankruptcy last October, the move left Fisker Automotive without a battery supplier for its Karma plug-in hybrid luxury sedan. Fisker downplayed the drama, insisting that it had sufficient inventory for the near future, and that the sale of A123 Systems’ assets would likely be completed quickly. In December, Chinese auto parts supplier Wanxiang outbid a U.S. firm, Johnson Controls, for the pieces of A123 Systems, but that was hardly the end of the story. Although Wanxiang excluded military contracts from its bid for...
-
A Tale Of Two Aston Martin DB5s
Tie-ins to James Bond aside, the Aston Martin DB 5 is one of the most stunning luxury sport coupes of all time. That helps to explain the ongoing demand for the car, which went out of production in 1965. Original examples are getting harder to find with each passing year, which is what makes a 1964...
Kurt Ernst -
Cadillac Launches Its Own Driving School, The V-Series Academy: Video
Mercedes-Benz offers its customers the AMG Driving Academy, Porsche offers driver training at its “Experience Centers” and Jaguar staffs its own Performance Driving Academy. It stands to reason, then, that Cadillac would launch a driving school of its own, centered around the CTS-V line...
Kurt Ernst -
Arabia’s First Supercar, The W Motors Lykan Hypersport, Makes Debut
Chances are you’ve never heard of W Motors. We can now remedy that as the company’s first product, the Lykan supercar, has just made its world debut at the 2013 Qatar Motor Show and we have all the juicy details. Billed as the world’s first Arabian supercar, the Lykan is set to go...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
2013 Aston Martin DB9 Volante: First Drive and Video Road Test
Winter down south feels like a dental check-up, weeks of built-up dread punctuated just briefly by a cold finger and some mild effluvia. We chatter about it more than we chatter from it. We rail against the seldom-seen sleet. We pre-game the fleeting, fully formed flake that dares drift through the...
Martin Padgett -
Lamborghini Aventador Roadsters Take To Miami Airport Runway: Video
This year is Lamborghini’s 50th, so the Italian sports car manufacturer is celebrating the anniversary in a fashion that only it could: by storming a runway at Miami International Airport using five of its latest Aventador LP 700-4 Roadsters. After receiving special authorization from the...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
The 2014 Maserati Quattroporte, the sixth generation of the luxurious Italian sedan, recently made its world debut at the 2013 Detroit Auto Show and is now on its way to showrooms all across the country ahead of its sales launch this spring. However, one of the first cars to be sold to a customer in the U.S. has just gone under the hammer at a charity event held at the Naples Winter Wine Festival in Florida. Maserati hasn’t confirmed whether it was in fact the first Quattroporte to be offered for sale, though the automaker has revealed that the winning bid for the car was an impressive...
-
Tesla Model S Runs The Quarter Mile In 12.371 Seconds: Video
The flagship of the Tesla Model S range, the Model S Performance, comes with a power rating of 301 kilowatts (416 horsepower) as well as an 85 kWh battery pack that the EPA says is good for about 265 miles of driving range. As we’ll see in this video posted up by Drag Times, a regular Tesla...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Is Audi Planning A More Powerful RS 6 Plus?
In Audi-speak, its S models are somewhat of an equal blend of performance and luxury, while its RS models favor acceleration and handling above all else. Only the R designator (currently reserved for the Audi R8) sits above the RS models on Audi’s pyramid of performance, but a refreshed...
Kurt Ernst -
14 Different Mercedes Models Star In New Die Hard Movie: Video
These days, we find ourselves asking how much is too much when it comes to product placement spots in movies and on television. When is a movie or television show nothing more than a script steered around beauty shots designed to sell product? Based on the latest press release from Mercedes-Benz...
Kurt Ernst -
Vote For How Audi's Super Bowl Ad Will End: Video
Audi has had a pretty good run of luck with its recent Super Bowl advertising. In 2011, they asked viewers to say goodnight to stuffy, pretentious luxury and embrace the modern take on it by buying an Audi instead of a Mercedes-Benz. Based on the increase in Audi’s U.S. sales, we’d say...
Kurt Ernst -
Bentley Sales Up 22 Percent In 2012, But Still Short Of Record
Bentley sales in 2012 experienced growth in all major regions, ending the period with 8,510 units, an increase of 22 percent on the 7,003 units sold in 2011. However, the final figure was still well short of the 10,014 units Bentley sold in 2008, just prior to the start of the global financial...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Part of MINI’s success in the United States is due to the fact that the brand doesn’t market its cars to consumers as much as it markets the MINI lifestyle. In that regard, a MINI Cooper (or one of its many variants) is as much a fashion accessory as it is a mode of transportation. Buy a MINI, and you can order it with a degree of personalization not often found below the ultra-luxury, bespoke level. In addition to the 14 exterior paint colors and 15 interior hues, there are six trim options, stripe packages, contrasting roof options, wheel options and even special editions to...
-
McLaren's P1 Supercar Speeds Towards Production: Video
Love the design or hate the design, there’s no denying that McLaren’s radical P1 supercar concept polarized attendees at the 2012 Paris Auto Show. Sporting a much rounder and organic style than previous McLaren models, this much was clear: like the original McLaren F1, it would be a car...
Kurt Ernst -
Audi A8 To Adopt Autonomous Traffic Jam Assistant In 2016: Video
Audi has been a pioneer in the world of autonomous cars, having tested a self-driving TT sports car for several years and more recently becoming the first automaker to attain Nevada’s license for the use of autonomous cars on its roads. At the 2013 Consumer Electronics Show earlier this...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Bentley's SUV, Next Flying Spur, & Moving Down-Market: Interview With Christophe Georges
Despite the world's economic troubles--or perhaps, because of them, according to some economic theories--Bentley and its very wealthy clients are doing better than ever. A new Continental GT Speed Convertible was just launched in Detroit, and the brand's first SUV is nearing final approval. There's...
Nelson Ireson -
Infiniti Q50 To Receive Four-Cylinder Gas, Diesel Engines
Infiniti’s new Q50, the replacement for the G37 Sedan, goes on sale later this year with two powertrain options: a regular 3.7-liter V-6 and a hybrid system pairing a 3.5-liter V-6 with an electric motor. These two powertrain options will come standard with rear-wheel drive, although Infiniti...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
2014 Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG Hits The Track: Video
You saw the new 2014 Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG make its debut recently at the 2013 Detroit Auto Show, in both sedan and wagon bodystyles, and with standard 4Matic and a new S-Model trim. But now see it take to a race track, where it finally has a chance to stretch its legs. This video shows both sedan...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran