Seat aims at high performance with the new Ibiza Cupra

Seat managed to create a great looking car, the new Ibiza, which promised an outstanding performance. Now that promise will be fulfilled, with the presentation of the Cupra version of the car, a pocket rocket that has 180 bhp to drive it forward.



Besides the great 1.4-litre TSI petrol engine, the Ibiza Cupra also has the 7-speed DSG transmission with paddle shifts behind its steering wheel, something that is sure to take the most of the engine in a very fuel efficient way. This powetrain is also helped by Seat's "Agile Chassis", a system that integrates the car's safety equipment, such as ESP, ABS, TCS + EBA in order to have a very sporty character.

The new Seat Cupra also features driver and passenger airbag, head airbag, Hill Hold Control, tyre pressure loss warning light, twin chrome headlights, fog lamps with cornering function, “easy entry” system on the passenger seat, CUPRA suspension, CUPRA sports seats and aluminium pedals.





Source: Seat

Lotus Clark Type 25 Elise SC will also be sold in the Continental Europe

Speaking of great pilots, Jim Clark has recently received a tribute from Lotus, once the team that helped him win the F1 World Championship twice. The British automaker created a special series of Elise, limited to 25 units, called Lotus Clark Type 25 Elise SC. It would only be sold in the United Kingdom, but demand has been so big Lotus has now decided to sell 25 units more to the mainland.



The Clark Type 25 is painted in British Racing Green with a yellow stripe along the centre and features black leather sports seats, trimmed with red leather, and has a retro wooden gear knob, an inspiration from the Team Lotus Formula 1 cars of Clark's times.

Performance will be up to the task, considering the fact that the Elise SC is the most powerful production Elise ever produced. With its supercharged 1.8-lite engine, it can accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in 4.6 s and reaches a maximum speed of 238 km/h. Prices will start at 44.100 EUR plus local taxes and transportation costs.







Source: Lotus Cars

Phil Hill, 81, dies due to Parkinson's disease complications

Legends may last forever, but human beings have not found a way, so far, to do the same. This, unfortunately, was the case for Phil Hill, who died today at the age of 81 due to Parkinson's disease complications.



Hill was the only North American pilot to win a F1 title. May he rest in peace.

Source: AutoWeek via AutoBlog

2010 Ford Mustang shows another piece: the bonnet

We have recently shown you the next Ford Mustang logo and made a joke, stating that the car would be shown in pieces. Someone must have heard us somewhere, since here is a new part of the 2010 Mustang: the bonnet.



It matches perfectly with the looks of the new badge, more muscular and defined. The new Mustang is expected to be presented at the LA Auto Show, in November.

Source: MustangForums.com via AutoBlog

VW Voyage is caught almost undisguised in front of the Brazilian president residence

Se você quiser ver a versão em português deste artigo, visite o MotorDicas

Are you curious about the future VW Gol Sedan? Although we prefer to call it VW Voyage, as previous Gol Sedan versions were named in Brazil, one thing is for sure: what was until yesterday a mystery can now be revealed with the help of our Brazilian reader Marcus Vinicius Guandelini, who has managed to photograph the car in front of Palácio da Alvorada, the Brazilian president's residence, in Brasília:



You will be able to notice that the tail lights are covered with white tape in their upper halves, as well as the VW logo in the boot lid, which is not invaded by the tail lights (what appear to be a tail light there, in fact, is also a combination of white and red tape). It was not necessary to cover the VW logo, once there is another unit of the new sedan beside the one that has shown its back. And it wear the VW badge:



Now check the original image, the one Guandelini so kindly sent us to show all readers what to expect from the new sedan, which will be on sale in Brazil from Octobre on and, a little later, in other South American countries.



If you, dear reader, happen to stumble upon a new vehicle, please send us the pictures at ghruffo@motordicas.com.br. All of our readers will surely be pleased to see your contribution!

Source: Marcus Vinicius Guandelini

2010 Ford Mustang appears in pieces... First, the logo!

The next Ford Mustang, the 2010 model, expected to be very similar to the concept created by ItalDesign, is being presented little by little. The last piece of the car to make an appearance was its logo:



Ford declares the new logo is what we may expect from the new car: more defined and more muscular. If the badge really identifies the changes for Ford's pony car, it will surely have stronger horses under the bonnet, even considering they will have to drink less fuel than the previous ones.



Source: Ford

V Eight will give new life to Jensen Interceptor with the SX

V Eight is a British company run by Alan Garnett, former chairman of Morgan, which aims to insert new technology in classic cars, such as Jensen Interceptor. The praised car gets a 6-litre V8 GM engine, the LS2, able to pump out 414 bhp, a 5-speed automatic gearbox, independent rear suspension, racing brakes with vented disks and 17" alloy wheels with low profile tyres. Even so, the car keeps its classic appearance. The new project from V Eight is to create a modern interpretation of the car, with a new design. The one below:



According to InnovationCars.com, the new Jensen Interceptor SX will get an LS7 engine (7-litre) able to deliver 620 bhp. The design, although entirely new, will be easily recognisable as the one of an Interceptor. At £145,000, only 25 will ever be built, over existing donor cars. All good thing really come in small numbers...

Source: InnovationCars.com

Splinter, the wooden supecar, makes first appearance at IWF

Joe Harmon, a designer from North Carolina, decided last year he was going to build the first supercar of the world with a body entirely made of wood. His idea was to first present the car at the 2008 IWF (International Woodworking Fair) in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. Named Splinter, the car would have a mid-mounted 4.6-litre V8 NorthStar engine able to produce 600 bhp for the rear wheels, with the help of two Roots superchargers and would weight something below 1,200 kg. For the ones that did not believe the idea, the car was at IWF:



We still have no images of the car there, but as soon as we obtain them, they will be here. Splinter is 4.43 m long, 2.08 m wide, 1.07 m tall and has a wheelbase of 2.67 m. According to Joe Harmon, the car will be fully driveable by December. Let's hope to show you soon a video with the car moving with its beautiful wooden wheels and body!









Source: Joe Harmon Design

Renault Safrane gets back to life with the help of Samsung

Safrane is a name that has not been used very often, apart from the fans of the car that Renault had before Vel Satis (and, for some, the car Renault should have kept instead of this luxury vehicle with unusual looks). For the ones that wanted to have the car back, some good news: it has returned with the help of Samsung Motors:



The new sedan is based on the Samsung SM5 and shares its 2.3-litre V6 engine, its five-speed automatic transmission and the front wheel drive system. The bad news, for the fans of the car, is that it will not be sold all around Europe, but only in some Eastern Europe countries. This is what was going to happen with Logan, also, and now the car is being sold all over the world. Perhaps demand leads Renault to sell the new Safrane in more places.









Source: OmniAuto.it

Jon Sibal reveals how the new Aston Martin One-77 will look like

Gifted is what we call people that can make extraordinary things look easy. When you see the image below, created by the designer Jon Sibal to show us how the new Aston Martin One-77 will look like, you may reach the same word we chose to define him.



This is not the first time Jon helps car lovers all around the world to have a good idea of what a future vehicle will be like. He has already done this with the future Mercedes-Benz SLR Speedster. It is worth visiting his blog to have a more detailed idea of his creation and the hard work he had figuring out how the car lines would be from the teaser image Aston Martin has recently released.

As for the new Aston, its body will be handmade from aluminium. The chassis, for resistance and weight reasons, will be entirely build from carbon fibre, while the powerplant of the new supercar will be a 7-litre V12. Considering the 6-litre V12 used by the DB9 generates 477 bhp (350 kW) and pushes the heavier car to 306 km/h, the bigger engine should be able to get the One-77 over 350 km/h. Its price tag is estimated to reach £ 1.2 million, or about US$ 2.25 million.

Source: JonSibal.com

Fiat shows first official images of the new Linea in Brazil

After a long time waiting for the new Fiat Linea, South American customers already have a date to stop all expectations: the end of Septembre. This is when the new sedan sales will begin in Brazil. Soon after that, other countries will start receiving the car. Besides this information, the Linea Blog has brought today the first official images of the car:



The blog also confirms the presentation of two new engines developed by FPT (Fiat Powertrain). It only does not name which are these engines, but they are already widely known: a 1.9-litre petrol engine that generates 130 bhp and a turbo 1.4-litre petrol powerplant that produces 155 bhp.



Source: Blog do Linea

Students project the future for Lada. You may call it C-Cross

The 2008 edition of Moscow Motor Show has just begun and it features many world premières, but one of the most interesting had to be Russian, of course. Although this Lada does not resemble Niva, Samara or Laika, it received the company's badge and may reach production in the future, or at least inspire future models. Call it the C-Cross:



This concept crossover has been created by design students. It is a pity AutoVaz did not release any technical information on the vehicle, such as engines, size etc., but this information will surely emerge soon. As well as new perspectives for the Russian automaker, considering the C-Cross really points out the future of the company.













Source: Autovaz

New Honda City/Aria appear with no disguise at all

When we said the new Honda Aria/City was more than ready and about to be presented, it was not exaggerated. After being caught in India and China, the car now appear with no disguise at all in what appears to be the factory. The pictures, made by Rehan716, a member of PakWheels.com that lives in Lahore, Pakistan, show the car in details:



No new information on the car has been presented, only the same ones we already had: the car will have a 1.5-litre engine that generates 120 bhp. The only one we could provide has emerged because of the pictures. Instead of a CVT, like the one used by Fit/Jazz, the new sedan will probably use a regular automatic transmission. We can tell that because of the paddle shifters behind the wheel. Unless Honda has managed to lock some ratios of the CVT, the new transmission must be the same one used by Civic, with 5 speeds. Check out the other pictures of the new City/Aria.

















Source: Pakwheels via AutoBlog