The Ford  Focus RS is with its 224 kW / 305 PS already considered the strongest Series car front-wheel drive in the world. Now, Ford is at the AMI in Leipzig (until 18/4/2010) 15 percent power on it and presenting a world premiere of the Focus RS 500 before. The 2.5-liter five-cylinder turbo engine delivers in the special edition of 257 kW / 350 hp at 6000 rpm. The increased torque of 440 Nm to 460 Nm, the min over a wide speed range of 2500 rpm and 4500 rpm are available. The number in the model designation stands for the limited edition of only 500 vehicles, which will each receive a plaque Edition with individual production number. Most characteristic feature of the Ford Focus RS 500 is the foliation in matte-black in color, including then matched 19-inch alloy wheels. The Focus RS 500 accelerates in 5.6 seconds from zero to 100 km/h and 265 km/h maximum speed achieved. It costs 46 050 euros. ...

Apr 11, 2010

A handful of world premieres and a few dozen  debuts at the auto show in Germany – Auto Mobil International (AMI) started in Leipzig. But after Denm first press is clear: premieres are not everything. Obviously, especially the German manufacturers are trying to bring the AMI air under their  wings. They are well represented, better than last year’s fair. The apocalyptic visions of the past year, driven by the auto and economic crisis, but also by the many cancellations among the exhibitors, in the air a slight optimism is rising. At the end of the day we will know whether the optimism was justified. And yet, Leipzig is important for the auto-market. Bernhard Mattes, Ford‘s boss in Germany, has a clear opinion on the role of AMI. He holds the catchment area of the fair in eastern Germany bordering regions of interest, welcomes the opportunity to show what’s new this spring and sees the appointment as another starting point for the annual recurrent revival of...

Another new model is about to make its world debut today at the 2010 Leipzig Auto Show: the new BMW 530d Touring. The 3.0 liter engine on the 2011 BMW 530d Touring takes out 245 horsepower and remains the top model in the diesel range. Also, thanks to BMW BluePerformance technology it fulfills the EU6 emission standard. All versions of the new BMW 5 Series Touring also fully comply with the EU5 requirement. The new BMW 5 Series Touring comes with pneumatic suspension on the rear axle, including automatic self-leveling. The options Adaptive Drive and Integral Active Steering are also available. When it comes to the interior the luggage capacity of the new 5 Series Touring is 560 liters, on par with the Audi A6 Avant. If desired, an increase in capacity to a maximum of 1,670 liters is guaranteed by 40:20:40 split folding the rear seats, feature that is unique in this segment. The backrest angle is variable by up to 11 degrees. The backrest can be folded down using two control levers...

Apr 9, 2010

Volkswagen has released the first information about the new generation of Touran model, a smaller copy of  Sharan that comes with a new range of TSI and TDI engines. Volkswagen has released the first official information and images of the new generation Touran, anticipated earlier by a set of informal photos. The new family will be presented tomorrow at the Leipzig Motor Show, where it will be admired by the German public.  Seen as a smaller copy of Sharan, the new Touran has conventional opening doors. Except this, the general look is inspired by the new Volkswagen design trend both in the front, and in the rear. The new van comes with a series of TDI and TSI engines, already popular among the fans of the German manufacturer. Touran will benefit among other things, from the services of 1.2 liter TSI version with 105 horsepower, engine that can also been seen at the BlueMotion version of the model, which also has the stop-start technology for the recovery of braking ...

Auction house RM Auctions will host the sale of 80 muscle cars belonging to a U.S. collector. Among these are 18 units Corvette models, but also a Chevelle LS6 convertible belonging to a limited series of only18 units. The U.S. RM Auctions has announced it will hold an auction in San Diego where an American collector will put on sale 80 U.S. sports models. Besides these extremely rare cars, mainly for collectors,  RM Auctions sale will also have many BMW and Mercedes models, some of them in versions M, like the AMG. The most interesting thing is that all the 80 models belong to a single collector from Southern California and all models are offered without a reserve price. The rare example of this auction is a 1969 Chevrolet Corvette L88. The model is equipped with a 430 hp V8 engine, which has a capacity displacement of 7.49 liters. This copy has a small number of km made and is accompanied by full documentation, which is rare when it comes to a very old model. This is...

Apr 8, 2010

The globalization started by Ford with the Fiesta model and the new generation of Focus will be followed by one of the sacred monsters: the famous american muscle car Ford Mustang. Ford plans to build a future Mustang that has the same shape everywhere, the difference will be the engine. The Mustang for Europe’s will have a diesel engine, strategy chosen to attract European customers for the U.S. model. According to preliminary data, the main contender should be wide Mustang 3.0 liter V6 diesel engine which we find on Jaguar XF and XJ at this moment. This engine develops 270 hp and 600 Nm, and gives a bigger performance while consuming less than a V6 or V8 on petrol. Mustang‘s arrival in Europe would not be a surprise, Chevrolet announced two months ago that will launch the new Camaro on the old continent in the year 2011. It remains to be seen if a diesel Mustang will not be able to eclipse sales of the Camaro that will be available exclusively on...