What would a Viper have been if presented in 1967? Rafael Reston answers that

Some cars are classic cars because of their age and of their power, such as Chevrolet Corvette. Some others are classic cars because of what they represent. This is what happens with Viper, a sportscar that could have been discontinued due to the crisis Dodge is facing, but which will be sold to anyone willing to keep it alive. What would that car have been if it was also presented in the past? Let's say... in 1967? Check what the Brazilian designer Rafael Reston thinks about that below. And tell us if you agree with his vision.



"The 1967 Viper Concept came out when I decided to find out what Viper could have been if it was created in the 1960's. With that in mind, I made an extensive research on materials and building processes of that time. The idea was to design something very close to what could have been done in 1967. Big round headlights, 15-inch wheels and a little of Dodge's main styling cues, but in a sportier way, pushing them to a car that did not exist at the time", Reston told MotorTips.

Although it seems to be a classic car, Reston's Viper kept some of Viper's main characteristics. "This car maintains the roof line, the scoop in the hood, the long bonnet, the driver almost sitting over the rear axle and many more, such as the headlights and the taillights." Under the hood, Reston would have placed a 440-Magnum V8, the same one that was used by Challenger R/T. "It would be stronger, of course. The V10 would not be very easy to produce in 1967. It would make the car become very expensive", Reston said.

The research Reston has performed was so intense he can even determine the price the car would have. "According to my conclusions, the 1967 Viper would have cost US$ 4,110, what would make it a great contender against Chevrolet Corvette." Since Viper did not have that past, we only hope it still has a future ahead. Hopefully, a bright one.






Source: Rafael Reston

Hyundai HED-6 and Kia MPV are twin brothers. Meet the new Tucson and Sportage

Kia has released an image of its new small MPV last week. Today Hyundai has presented another picture. In fact, it is a rendering of the concept car the company will introduce to the public at Geneva Motor Show this year. If you pay closer attention to both images, you will see they have very similar styling cues. In other words, both concepts are based on the same vehicle. If you push you reasoning a little further, you will see you are in front of the first images of Hyundai Tucson and Kia Sportage replacements.




While the Kia SUV is likely to retain its current name, the future "Tucson" will adopt the new Hyundai name system and will be called ix35. The HED-6 will be powered by a 1.6-litre turbodiesel engine that produces 175 bhp. There is no word on possible petrol engines so far.

The production version of both the future ix35 and Kia Sportage will be presented at this year's Frankfurt Motor Show.

Sources: Hyundai and Kia

Mission Motor Company reveals its high perfomance electric motorcycle, the One

There are some electric motorcycles for sale in the world, but the Mission One must be the first high performance two-wheel vehicle to be produced in the world. Designed by Yves Béhar, it is able to achieve impressive numbers, such as 240 km/h of top speed and 240 km of range. All that only on electricity.



There are still some important numbers missing, such as 0 to 100 km/h time and weight, but the motorcycle is already amazing for what it proposes to deliver, or else, performance with no gas emission. Torque, which is fully available at any rev speed, is 156 Nm. Full charge of the batteries can be achieved in two hours in a 220V outlet. In a 110V outlet, this time is multiplied by four and reaches eight hours.

The first Mission One units will be part of a special series called Limited Edition. Each will bear a price tag of US$ 68,995. It may seem too much for a two-wheel vehicle, but Mission One features some of the best parts in the motorcycle market, such as Ohlins suspensions, Marchesini wheel rims and Brembo brakes. Besides, of course, the electric engine with no gearbox.







Source: Mission Motor Company via Autoblog Green

Citroën releases first images of the new DS Inside

A rumour about Citroën bringing back the DS range has been around for the past few weeks and it has been confirmed. Exactly in the day André Citroën would have completed 131 years, if he was still alive (besides breaking a world record on longevity). Citroën has seized the opportunity to present its new logo and the concept car DS Inside, a vehicle that is supposed to give birth to the future DS3.



Clearly based on the new platform for the future C3, the DS Inside resembles the original DS only in its white roof. The 1955 DS was a revolutionary vehicle, the first one to bring Citroën's hydropneumatic self-leveling suspension system in all four wheels. Its design, created by Flaminio Bertoni, was also so striking it is difficult to have another vehicle to come even close to it, but Citroën apparently is not concerned about the innovations, but about the sofistication the DS nameplate may bring along. DS will now stand for Different Spirit.

Citroën states it will built three new DS models, DS3, DS4 and DS5. DS Inside, as we have already said, anticipates the first of them, DS3. It will probably share engines with C3, possibly the same ones jointly developed by Peugeot and BMW.

There is still no official lauch date for the new vehicles, but the same rumours that informed the DS range was about to get back also brought the information that DS3 would go to Citroën dealerships in the first half of 2010 and DS4 and DS5 would be around by 2011. Since these rumours proved to be more than rumours, but real information, we have no reasons to doubt it.















Source: Citroën

Renault reveals first pictures of the new Clio III

Pictures of a facelifted Clio III have emerged in many blogs, what made us all wait for the official images in a short period of time. And here they are. The new compact hatchback will be officially unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show.



What is clear about this new car is that it has adopted the new visul identity of Renault, which has started with the new Laguna and been spreaded to Mégane III. Now, it's Clio's turn.

What is really new about the new car, besides the new appearance, is the presentation of the GT version. This is the car pictured in the images, but Renault has not released any information on the engines that power the sporty version. We will have to wait until March to know what is under the hood.

There are some secrets for the new Clio III that have not been kept from us, such as the Carminat TomTom GPS navigation system that is integrated to the centre console and features a 14.7 cm wide screen. The new system's price is estimated at less than 500 euros, what is not that low, afterall, but is better than the GPS systems you have to place on your windscreen.








Source: Renault