Automotive News & Reviews, Cars & Prices, Test Drives, Crashes » Hyundai

Next Audi R8 To Keep Normally-Aspirated V-8 And V-10 Engines

admin — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 15:00:00 +0000

Despite being unveiled as far back as 2006, the Audi R8 is still a highly sought after performance machine and one of the best super-sports cars on the planet. Understandably, Audi won’t want to muck around too much with the award-winning formula so for the next-generation of the car Audi’s design team are reported to be taking an…

Volkswagen GTI Convertible Set For Geneva Motor Show: Report

admin — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 14:00:00 +0000

Volkswagen currently sells a convertible version of its Golf hatchback overseas and soon the compact drop-top may come in GTI performance flavor too. According to a new report, Volkswagen is set to unveil a new GTI Convertible (Cabriolet to our European readers) at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show in March. Britain’s AutoExpress reports that the…

Bugatti Veyron Doing 220-Plus MPH Runs On Public Road: Video

admin — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 12:30:00 +0000

It’s a sad fact that a vast majority of supercar owners will never take their million-dollar machinery to the extremes they were designed for. In fact, it’s quite common for many of these beauties to be locked away in garages, only to be driven a few hundred miles each year. While we don’t condone speeding on public roads, we at…

Flying Lizard Motorsports Sets Sebring Driver Lineup

admin — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 11:01:00 +0000

Flying Lizard Motorsports have confirmed their driver lineup for the 2012 Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring, the 60th running of the springtime classic. The Sonoma, CA-based team fields two Porsche 911 GT3 RSR race cars in the GT class for the entire American Le Mans Series (ALMS) season. Both Porsche factory drivers Joerg Bergmeister and Patrick Long…

Cadillac’s ATS Coupe On Hold, Or Is It?

admin — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 04:00:00 +0000

Cadillac has been blunt about which competitor is in the crosshairs of its upcoming ATS sedan. Not content to take on the Audi A4 or the Infiniti G37, Cadillac has repeatedly named the BMW 3-Series as the primary rival of the ATS. Part of the appeal of BMW’s 3-Series is the number of the number of variants it comes in, ranging from sedan, to…

Pagenaud Joins Muscle Milk Pickett Racing For Sebring

admin — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 03:30:00 +0000

If you can’t beat him, just hire him? That must have been Muscle Milk Pickett Racing’s mantra when they decided to complete their American Le Mans Series (ALMS) driver lineup for the season opening race. The team signed former ALMS LM P1 champion Simon Pagenaud, formerly one of their biggest rivals, to join regular drivers Klaus Graf and Lucas…

Adrian Newey On The Record: F1 Design, 2012 Season

admin — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 02:45:00 +0000

Everywhere he’s gone in the world of high tech motorsports, Adrian Newey has been the architect of winning cars. Currently technical director for Red Bull Racing, the reigning two-time World Championship team in Formula One, Newey is charged with keeping the team atop the world motorsports pyramid in 2012. It’s not an easy task, made even more…

Race Fans: Viper Cup Returning For 2012

admin — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 02:30:00 +0000

Last year’s Dodge Viper Cup Series has gotten a name change, and it’s back for 2012 as the SRT Viper Cup Series, still presented by Pennzoil Ultra. The name isn’t all that’s changed, since new rules are designed to make racing even more competitive than before. As in previous years, the season will consist of ten races over…

MINI And Prodrive Parting Company In WRC: Report

admin — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 00:15:00 +0000

The relationship between Prodrive, the company that builds and campaigns the MINI John Cooper Works WRC cars, MINI and MINI’s parent, BMW, has been described as “complex, and not in a good way.” Late last year, Prodrive missed a deadline, nearly excluding the highly competitive MINI WRC cars from the 2012 WRC season. Ultimately…

Review: 2012 Volkswagen Passat SEL 2.5

admin — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 00:00:20 +0000

Volkswagen’s “premium” image in the minds of car enthusiasts is not entirely accurate. From the Beetle to the Rabbit, VW has a long history of making budget cars for the masses. While the automotive press lauded the high-rent interiors and Audi-sourced parts, the Touraeg and Phaeton were mere detours on the road to brand identity. Shoppers wanted a “people’s” VW again, and the result of this outcry is the 2012 VW Passat SEL.

While other VWs may get an expressive fascia, the new Passat is pure conservative VW. From the geometric grille to the character line that’s as flat as Kansas, the Passat never strikes a pose that would offend a conservative mid-size shopper. If you want a VW with more excitement or Euro flair, the CC brings more aggressive bumpers, more chrome and sexier tail lights to the party. While some in the press have called the Passat boring, I would posit the sedate lines will help the Passat age more gracefully than some of the competition, most notably the new Sonata.

Those of us that seriously considered the previous generation Passat when purchasing a near-luxury vehicle like an Acura or Volvo (myself included) will be disappointed with the interior. The new Passat is now $8,000 cheaper than the previous car, and it’s re-positioning as a mid-size, rather than near-luxury car meant that something had to give. Mid-size shoppers demand expansive rather than expensive