Car Arz Aralee: CARS

Showing posts with label CARS. Show all posts

Monday, January 17, 2011

2012 Dodge Magnum

2012 Dodge Magnum is a crossover vehicle designed to offer safety coupled with a thrilling driving experience. It features the architecture and proportions that convey a bold, aggressive, powerful image. The vehicle has the distinction of being the first rear-wheel drive car from the Dodge lineup in almost two decades.

2012 Magnum comes in four model types the base SE, SXT, R/T and SRT8. While the SE version is powered by a 2.7 Liter Hemi V-8 engine, the SXT version is powered by a 3.5 liter V-6, the R/T version is powered by a 5.7 liter V8 engine. The top of the line SRT8 version is powered by a 6.8 Liter HEMI V-8 Engine.

New Magnum model features a remodeled bumper, new headlights, a broader hood, and nicer sidesills. It also looks to have body colored mirrors with indicators built in, and completely redesigned side windows with a blended in b-pillar and a thicker c-pillar. The new rear side window features a teardrop shape, giving the vehicle a more stylish look than the current version.

Price range of MRSP: $22,495-$30,000.

2013 Jaguar XE

Leftlane reported in late 2009 that Ratan Tata, head of Jaguar parent company Tata Motors, had confirmed Jaguar was readying an all-new roadster – believed to be called the XE – later confirming that this model is in fact coming in 2012.

The all-new XE model will likely come in both Roadster and Coupe form, and was confirmed to by CEO Carl-Peter Forster to be set to arrive in 2012. Forster has not commented about body styles, but Leftlane’s previous reports confirmed a roadster model, with a two-door coupe being a strong possibility in order to better compete with segment rivals from Porsche and Lotus, such as the Boxster, Caymen and Evora models.

The XE will feature an all-new aluminum platform, which will eventually underpin the XK, XF and XJ – as opposed to their current steel platforms. Although a mid-engine setup had been rumored, the XE will use a more conventional front-engine, rear-drive configuration.

Power for the base model XE is expected to come from a supercharged V6, which could produce up to 350 horsepower – but given Tata’s use of Ford-sourced motors, we wouldn’t rule out the possibility of an EcoBoosted 3.5-liter V6 with power in the same realm.

A mid-level model will check in with at least a 385 horsepower version of Jaguar’s 5.0-liter V8, while a 510 horsepower supercharged V8 will be reserved for the range’s top billing. A hybrid model is also rumored to be in the works.

Previous reports suggested the XE could be in Jaguar showrooms as early as 2011, but it looks like the XE won’t hit the market until 2012 as a 2013 model year. Expect the Jaguar XE to make its world debut at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show, which coincidentally marks the 50th anniversary of the E-Type’s introduction.

2012 Kia K9

Kia is working on an all-new, larger, more luxurious sedan, and our spy photographers have sent us the first images of the new car in prototype form. Illustrated images of the K9 — believed to be sourced from a Kia meeting — surfaced on the Web late last year.

Internally code-named “CH,” this all new sedan will be riding on the same chassis that underpins the Hyundai Genesis sedan. While powertrains should be fairly similar to what is found in the Genesis sedan, there may also be a new, 4.0-liter V8 rated near 400hp. Hyundai’s new 8-speed transmission will also see duty in the K9.

Essentially, the K9 will take the spot of the aging Amanti in Kia’s lineup as the brand’s flagship model, while making a sizable move upscale in the process. However, it remains to be seen what nameplate the car will carry in production form.

Details on the K9 are incredibly scarce – with so few confirmed details that some are even suggesting the car shown in the illustrations and photos is a front-wheel drive vehicle, as opposed to the rear-wheel drive that is suspected based on the shared platform with the Hyundai Genesis. However, Hyundai has suggested that it will be bringing a new rear-wheel drive sedan to the U.S. as a 2012 model year – making the K9 the only known vehicle to fill that role.

2012 Acura RL

Acura is a brand well known for innovation in motor vehicle technology, and 2012 promises to offer groundbreaking new features for the RL model. While Acura has been reticent about new models of the RL, the 2012 RL will most likely be released in autumn of 2011, in keeping with the RL’s tradition of being a midyear sedan that vastly improves upon other sedans unleashed in the same year.

The well-known car manufacturer has not yet released how the next generation of the RL model will differ from previous years, but predictions can be made based on how Acura has revamped other vehicles recently. One possible option is for the RL to be revamped as a rear-wheel drive car with a V8 engine, making it a more powerful version of the V6 2010 RL. While V8 engines are not yet standard in any sedans, the 2012 RL promises to subvert this paradigm.

In the past, the RL has been known for mid-year updates that combine the features of the Acura high-performance cars with the comfort of a sedan. The 2006 RL showcased the Super Handling All-Wheel Drive that could invest all of the vehicle’s power into one turn of the wheel, and was one of the initial Acura sedans to include a 300 horsepower V6 engine as a standard inclusion. These capabilities allowed the Acura RL to successfully compete with rival BMW vehicles with similar features at a much lower price tag.

The 2012 RL will integrate a number of features previously included in earlier models, all of which will be standard. The braking systems will include the vehicle stability assist and tire pressuring monitoring system aspects, as well as a variety of general security aspects including active front head restraints, child safety locks, and body modifications that protect both sides of the car from collisions.

Historically, the Acura RL has been compared to luxury class sedans such as the BMW 5 Series and the Lexus GS 350. The Acura RL generally costs less than both of these models, even when equipped with extra features, and the 2012 edition will likely have extra incentives in the form of competitive fuel economy and superior residual value

2012 Chevrolet Corvette

If you were a car-crazed kid in America any time between Eisenhower and LBJ, chances are you learned about one sports car before any other: Corvette. It might've been a two-tone C1 roadster, a split-window coupe parked among svelte Corvairs and boxy Impalas on your neighborhood dealership's showroom floor, or Tod and Buzz's dull gray convertible on television; but the long hood, the short deck, the two buckets, and the brawny, yet sophisticated American swagger caught your eye. It was the stuff dreams were made of.

Now one of America's longest-lasting nameplates, the Corvette has had its toe-curling Elvis-in-Vegas years (the awful, asthmatic C3s of 1975-1977 were the absolute nadir). But the opening decade of the 21st century finds America's own sports car in the best shape it's ever been. The 2008 C6 is the sharpest, fastest, and best-finished Corvette yet, while the 197-mph Z06 is, quite simply, the best-value supercar you can buy anywhere in the world.

That's a good question, because right now GM execs are planning the next-generation Corvette, the C7. What they decide over the next few months will be hugely important. For the first time in history, GM wants to take Corvette-one of the few American GM brands that doesn't play in the discount department of the mass market-global, accompanying Cadillacs in showrooms in Europe, Asia, and Australia. Complicating the picture are proposals to take the U.S. Corporate Average Fuel Economy mandate to 35 mpg by 2020. Depending on the fine print, the doomsayers hint there's a real chance that could mean there's no C7 at all.

Here's what we know: GM is considering at least three scenarios for the C7, and GM Design is still some time away from boiling down competing proposals (at least five were in the mix at one point) for the car. That means the car, originally planned for the 2011 model year (to coincide with the 100th anniversary of Chevrolet), will likely launch as a 2012 model and may even slip further, depending on how the new CAFE regulations pan out.

2012 BMW 3-Series

BMW is planning to dramatically expand the number of offerings within its various model ranges, especially the strong-selling 3-series that is the backbone of the brand. All eyes are on the next 3, due for 2012.

Aside from the usual body styles—sedan, station wagon, coupe, and retractable-roof convertible—BMW will also build a five-door hatchback version featuring an aggressive design that will combine station-wagon practicality with coupelike style. In other words, the 3-series range will get its own version of the 5-series GT concept, BMW’s attempt to cross-pollinate an SUV and a station wagon. Like the 5-series GT, the 3-series GT will offer two adjustable seats with a center console in the rear and straddle the fine line between BMW SUV and BMW wagon in regard to overall height.

Optional equipment such as a lane-departure warning system, night vision, a system to prevent the driver from nodding off, and radar-based adaptive cruise control with collision-mitigating automatic braking will bring tech features of the 5- and 7-series into the realm of the 3.

Like the current 3-series, powertrain and suspension tuning will remain sporty. But for those who want greater control, BMW will offer a three-stage driving-dynamics button similar to that of Audi’s drive select. It will sharpen or soften damping as well as steering, gearbox, and throttle responses.