New Mercedes-Benz F700

Frankfurt Auto Show is a very important car event of the year. It draws millions of visitors and can be named a performance of the year. Each manufacturer is thoroughly preparing to the following show and chooses which car to expose. Mercedes cars are one of the best cars. They are a perfect combination of quality, reliability, ideal look and price. They are not as expensive and authoritative as Ferraris are, but, nevertheless, they are still worth paying our attention to.

This year Mercedes will be presented with a new model Mercedes-Benz F 700. Only 2 words can be used to describe it: dazzling and dizzying. It is a prototype of a future S-class Sedan. As to main characteristics and peculiarities of this car:

• it embodies low consumption and friendliness to the surroundings;
• 4-cylinder car; gets a V-6 power experimental engine, that unites turbo charging and diesel compression. This engine is much spoken about, because it is a hybrid of Diesotto (combination of two words diesel and surname of the inventor Otto) and standard Mercedes engine. The emissions from such engine will be minimal;
• has a gas engine;
• 1.8 l engine;
• can speed up to 60 mph only in 7.5 seconds;
• top speed is nearly 120 mph;
• consumes 5.3 L pf fuel per 100 km;
• presents a new engine producing technology Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition (HCCI);

As to the price, it is currently unknown, but we perfectly know, that cars with a diesel engine are more expensive, that those with standard engines. But Mercedes F 700 and its brand-new engine can be a perfect alternative to the existing ones.

No doubts, the car looks very glamorous, stylish and fashionable. It will be an adornment of the roads!

Hey Have a Facebook Comment :) :)

Preview: 2010 Fisker Karma

We celebrate Danish design as technically innovative and deceptively simple. For decades it illustrated the best in mid-century-virtually timeless-modern furniture. There were a number of stars, but perhaps the best known in America are Jacob Jensen for his Bang & Olufsen sound systems, Poul Kjaerholm for seating sculptures like his PK24 chaise and Poul Henningsen's light manipulating PH lamp series. There are many more that make us wonder at the talent that has developed in the clear bright atmosphere that reflects off the North Sea and illuminates the tiny land masses of Denmark.

Henrik Fisker is a new star from the timeless grace of that universe; born on August 10, 1963, and trained in automotive design in the brief brilliance of the Swiss lakeside villa known as Art Center College of Design's European campus. He graduated in 1989, was recruited by the prestigious BMW Technik GmbH and quickly earned recognition with his Z07 show car and retro-moderne Z8 roadster. By January 2000 Fisker was in charge of DesignworksUSA, BMW's industrial design subsidiary with offices in Newbury Park, California and Munich, Germany.

Within a year he was offered the design director role in Ford's resurgent Aston Martin. After celebrating the successful introductions of his new-century interpretation of authentic Aston presence with the DB9 and Vantage V8, Ford moved him to the creative director chair of ingeni, the company's London creativity center. In August 2003, 13 years out of Art Center he became the Director of Ford's Global Advanced Design Studio in Irvine, California. Only a year after returning to the inspirational automotive atmosphere of southern California he made the profoundly courageous move to found Fisker Coachbuild, LLC, with his design colleague and business partner Bernhard Koehler. Within only one astonishing year the young firm had premium, coachbuilt sports cars in production - California dreamin' in real time.

Through this climb to design stardom Fisker shared the parallel trajectory and matching taste, talent and work ethic of Bernhard Koehler. While under the celebrity radar, Koehler has been a career-path confidant and accomplished design team member since the two met at BMW. Along with matching energy, Koehler brings training and experience in engineering, design and business to their headlong run through the automotive landscape leaving mark after memorable mark.

Germany born (1964), Koehler pursued his interests in design with a broader vision than his creative partner. He joined BMW directly out of business school in 1980 and by 1984 had finished his training as an automotive sculptor and moved to BMW Technik. He led several concept projects and concurrently established a training program for young design sculptors. A friendship with Fisker developed while they worked together on the Z8. He became Director of 3D Services at DesignworksUSA in 1997 as it became part of BMW, with responsibility for implementing BMW quality standards and establishing a manufacturer and supplier network. By 1999, Koehler became Director of Operations at Designworks to oversee all project and capacity planning. Can we see Fisker Coachbuild's shadow on the wall?

Hey Have a Facebook Comment :) :)

Best of 2008: Green versus mean

It was supposed to be the year of the green revolution. And, indeed, high gas prices and concerns about global warming have been pushing consumers away from gas-guzzling pickups and gargantuan SUVs into smaller, more economical alternatives. Environmentalists around the globe cheered.

But the automotive consumer is a fickle beast and, in the midst of all this conservation, there's been a stubborn streak of classic motorhead machismo, the car companies introducing - and the motoring public welcoming - some very hedonistic wheels. So, just as Mini introduced its E all-electric version of the iconic little car, parent company BMW was peddling the all-new X6 with twin turbochargers.

Similarly, while General Motors' Chevrolet Volt is still the darling of the alternative fuel set (Chris Paine, he of Who Killed the Electric Car? fame, is a fan and spokesman), GM took the wraps off its monster-motored Cadillac CTS-V, not to mention the even more outrageous Corvette ZR1.

There were even some vehicles that managed to reflect this bi-polarity all by themselves. Cadillac updated its hip hop-oriented Escalade SUV for 2009, but with a hybrid powertrain, its "greenness" boldly proclaimed in huge letters along its flank. Ford's answer to the fuel crisis, its EcoPower set of powerplants, all boasted turbochargers but then universally reduced the size of the engines - V8s are to be replaced with V6s and sixes with four-bangers - to compensate.

Soothsayers looking for a definitive tack on the future direction of the automobile remain more confused than ever. The only sure thing I can say is that the following were the highlights of my automotive year.

Late to the party, not to the finish line: So, it may be a little out of step with the times. And, yes, it sucks back hi-test like Christian Slater slamming back premium on his first night out after rehab. But, my, oh my, if you love performance automobiles, you're going to absolutely love Cadillac's new CTS-V.

Faster in every meaningful way - acceleration, top speed and around a race track - than BMW's previously unchallenged M5, this ultimate Cadillac boasts a supercharged 6.2-litre V8, 556 horsepower and sprints to 96 kilometres an hour in just 3.9 seconds. But those are just the appetizers for the number that really has everyone's tongue wagging - seven minutes and 59 seconds.

That's how long it takes this latest mega-Caddy to circumnavigate Germany's famed Nürburgring race track. Virtually every manufacturer's preferred test track, the Nürburgring is a tortuous 20.8-km affair with hundreds of corners. But what's really important to those who follow this sort of thing is that the CTS-V's 7:59 clocking is 14 seconds quicker than BMW's mighty M5. It's one thing for a North American car to outmuscle its European competition; it's quite another for the lowly colonial to best its German competition on a twisty road as well. But the best part? The CTS-V's suggested list price of $68,500 is $40,000 less than that of the M5 it trounces. Hmm, maybe the domestics haven't forgotten how to make a world-class car after all.

for more http://autos.canada.com/news/story.html?id=6e9941fd-47f0-44b5-9e3b-21e270e53fde

Hey Have a Facebook Comment :) :)

Italian luxury cars of the year.

Italian luxury car manufacturer Automobili Lamborghini is suing a Saskatoon replica car company, claiming the local business used trademarked logos and created counterfeit imitations of one of its famous cars.

North American Exotic Replica Cars Inc. (NAERC), which manufactures and distributes replica Lamborghini Diablo kit cars out of a location near Eighth Street, creates the illusion that a modified stock car is a true Lamborghini, the Italian company alleges in its statement of claim.

NAERC's use of the logos and designs creates the impression that the converted cars are endorsed by, sponsored by, connected with or originated with the Sant'Agata Bologna-based company, the claim says.

"Replica cars are made all the time," said Lamborghini's Saskatoon lawyer, Richard Danyliuk. "(But) if you, for example, manufacture a replica of a 1953 Corvette you don't call it a Corvette, you call it something else. Here, the allegation is the defendants are simply calling it a Lamborghini and using the logos."

The luxury car company wants an interim and permanent injunction against NAERC, restraining it from continuing with business, as well as an accounting for all sales, revenue and profits and further unspecified damages. Danyliuk said it's not out of the ordinary for companies to defend intellectual property and brand rights.

"That branding comes with significant effort and expense on the part of the owner, and certainly Lamborghini would not be at all unusual in taking steps to protect its property and protect its investment," he said.

Randy Klassen, NAERC's sole employee, said several kit car operations in the United States are close to, if not already, being sued by Lamborghini and other car companies. Lawsuits, plus a falling American dollar, are leading to a decline in the industry, he said.

"We probably sell a quarter of what we used to do now, so it's slowed down a lot, and I think a lot of it had to do with when the U.S. dollar dropped right down to nothing," Klassen said.

NAERC's kits cost between $59,000 and $79,000 each, he explained. The company, which won a Good Manufacturing Practices award at the Knotts Berry Farm Kit Car Show in April 2007, according to its website, also sells individual parts for car modifications. To build a replica Lamborghini, a custom-made chassis or a Pontiac Fiero is required as a base, Klassen said.

Kits include reproductions of Lamborghini logos, Klassen confirmed. Replica vehicles are almost identical to the real deal.

"For most people, no, they can't tell the difference, there's a few people who are Lamborghini enthusiasts who can spot things out, but for the most part it's pretty close," he said, adding people make the cars as a hobby.

"It's more for people wanting to show off what they built and what people's skills are. A lot of people will say, 'Oh, it's a kit car, big deal,' but the amount of time and money that goes into building these cars -- it's more for that person themselves building it."

Klassen adds he doesn't expect a positive outcome for his company in court.

"It's pretty much a losing battle," he said. "I'm sure we'll come to agreement, whether they want us simply to shut down and we'll call it even-type thing."

NAERC's owner, Ken Esler, did not respond to calls Friday.

The kit car company has not yet filed a statement of defence. A court date has not been set.

Hey Have a Facebook Comment :) :)