AWC new’s

The raging torrent of pre-Geneva Motor Show leaks is officially in full effect today as a series of images showing off Bertone’s new Alfa Romeo Pandion Concept have hit the Interwebs (thanks Unica-Strada!) First of all, what the heck is a Pandion? Simple: a type genus of the Pandionidae. Mmm hmm. That’d be an osprey, sometimes known as a fish hawk. Moving on, then.

To our eyes, the Pandion isn’t really what we’ve come to expect from Alfa Romeo, at least not styling-wise. The Italian marque’s classically flowing curves are present and accounted for, but they are bisected by swaths of what appears to be clear plastic. The rear-view is especially busy – kinda like it’s fashioned from hundreds of containers worth of Tinker Toys. Oh, and fans of Battlestar Galactica are sure to appreciate the Pandion’s head-on view.

Stile Bertone – which until recently was led by Jason Castriota, the man responsible for such far-out designs as the Alfa 8C-based B.A.T. 11 and the Corvette ZR1-based Mantide – penned the Pandion, and we do see some influence from the styling house’s past designs. We don’t yet know what’s underhood of the uniquely styled concept, or really anything else about it not revealed by these images. That said, see for yourself below and, as always, let us know what you think in the Comments.

The year is 2038 and the mode of transport is the VW Breathe. Its functions are clearly defined: Quick light delivery service, Public transportation & Personal commuter.

Area of commute is of course a metropolis city, and what’s intriguing is that this fully GPS driven vehicle has two modes: human transporting and goods delivering.

For the benefit of space efficiency on the road in a big city, the Breathe will be used both as a private commuter and delivery device, so that the number of the transportation devices will be decreased. The Breathe reduces the unnecessary usage of private vehicles, public transportation, and even delivery vehicles by transforming into three different modes. Designed with advanced materials, the Breathe can transform its body shape and proportion.

Designer: Chansong Park

The first animation explains about the functions of the Breathe concept, and how it works in detail.

Exotics used to be confined strictly to sportscars, but not anymore. Porsche and Maserati have got four-door sedans on the market, and Aston Martin’s is on the way. But in lucrative markets like the Middle East and Russia, demand is high for exotic SUVs, and automakers are stepping up to fill the gap left by the Lamborghini LM002 and currently occupied, with few other exceptions, by the Porsche Cayenne. Spyker wants itself a piece of that pie, and after years of preparation, its Peking-to-Paris “Super Sport Utility Vehicle” looks to be nearing production.

Apparently spied undisguised at Spyker’s factory in the Netherlands, sources suggest that the SSUV is being prepared for its production debut at the upcoming Frankfurt Motor Show. The design has reportedly been updated to follow the lead of the new C8 Aileron, but the big question is what will sit underneath the hood. Expected to ditch the concept car’s V12 in favor of a V8 – with an accompanying model designation change from D12 to D8 – the Spyker sport-ute was tipped to adopt American power (in the possible form of the Cadillac CTS-V’s supercharged mill), though transplanting the company’s existing Audi-sourced engine is always a possibility.

This beautiful 35m tall steel sculpture, showing two cars racing into the sky, was commissioned by Audi for their 100th anniversary.

The sculpture was designed by the award-winning Gerry Judah and can be seen at the Goodwood Festival of Speed in England.

“Carmageddon” was a name of the video game, which was racing in general, but the task for the participating drivers was to destroy the cars of the competitors and with that gain a victory.

Now in Russian city Novosibirsk they have races with around the same rules. The only task is to destroy. And while there would your competitor’s car still running then you have not won.

Demolition derby is a motorsport usually presented at county fairs and festivals. They originated in the United States and quickly spread to other western nations. In Europe, this type of event is called banger racing, albeit in a demolition derby racers do not race against each other, instead aiming specifically to destroy the other cars.

While rules vary from event to event, the typical demolition derby event consists of five or more drivers competing by deliberately ramming their vehicles into one another. The last driver whose vehicle is still operational is awarded the victory.

Kyocera Corporation announced today that it is supplying solar modules for the new Toyota Prius solar ventilation system, an optional feature for the hybrid car model introduced in Japan by Toyota Motor Corporation (hereafter “Toyota“) on May 18. The system ventilates the air inside of the car by using the electricity generated by the solar module on the rooftop to drive the fans while the car is parked during the daytime. This feature automatically moderates temperature rise inside of the vehicle even during hot seasons.

For this product, Kyocera has implemented strict quality control evaluations, done through rigorous testing to confirm heat resistance, vibration resistance, shock resistance and other aspects, in order to ensure that the quality meets the standards required for onboard components used on the new Prius. For the production of this module, Kyocera has set up a dedicated production line with specialized manufacturing engineers to ensure thorough manufacturing control.

By supplying solar modules for the Prius, a leading eco-car that has won praise all over the world, Kyocera is proud to offer a new function for the use of solar modules to the owners of the vehicles.

Like Bumblebee on his interstellar voyage from Cybertron, the 2010 Chevrolet Camaro has taken years to arrive. If we take the Transformers analogy further (bear with us), the Camaro has landed after a few Decepticons – the Dodge Challenger, Ford Mustang and Nissan 370Z – have already begun staking out territories. More than the others, the Camaro has to justify its place in the battle, while at the same time backing up three years of unrelenting hype.

Follow the jump to find out if Chevrolet has brought the required weaponry to fight to the death for muscle car supremacy.

Like every other gearhead on planet Earth, we’ve been champing at the bit for the Camaro to arrive in production guise since its debut as a concept in 2006. Furthermore, when we made our way to San Diego for some long-awaited wheel time, we hoped beyond hope that its achingly attractive exterior would be backed by a chassis and drivetrain primed for global domination. We didn’t need the Camaro to turn into a Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robot, but gut-rocking thrills were the minimum standard.

Walk up to the Camaro, and it’s a spitting image of the coupe we’ve seen in a variety of forms for the past 1,100 days. It’s big, it hunkers and it’s angry – or at least perturbed. Built on a modified Zeta platform that underpins the Pontiac G8, the changes to the Camaro versus its sedan sibling include tweaks to accept larger wheels, a shorter wheelbase thanks to the rear wheels moving farther forward by about three inches, the base of the A-pillar was pushed back and lowered, and the front strut tower height was dropped to allow for a lower hood line.

Regarding its stance, the car has been designed to maintain the same tire-to-fender gap regardless of tire size: three fingers in front, four fingers in back. And while the massive face of the car appears to present various expanses of uninterrupted surface, take a closer look and you’ll notice that a substantial amount of detail work has gone into its fascia.

The “trap hood”, which means it’s fully enclosed by body panels, features a negative angle along its sides where it meets the fenders. The windshield washer nozzles are hidden under the rear edge of the hood for an uninterrupted line. The reverse mohawk in the roof is meant to tie the car to the twin-cockpit silhouette of the Corvette. The side mirrors conform to legal standards, yet remain true to those on the concept. There are subtle crisp lines that tie the roof and C-pillar into the rear, and the deck features a diagonal cut line that gives the trunk a unique profile when raised.

Get in the car, and the Camaro’s size asserts itself: it’s dark inside. The high beltline, low roof and black interior don’t let bundles of excess light to play within the cabin. It isn’t dire, but it is somber. An optional sunroof can brighten things up, of course, but if you get the sunroof you lose the sculpted roof.

The interior is utterly straightforward. Fabric inserts in the doors and on the dash save you from being overwhelmed by black plastic. The controls and the contrasting materials, in a palette of slight variations, are clustered in such a way that even as a passenger they pull your eyes from the black expanse on the non-drive side.

While Ford’s Mustang can be had with an astounding touch-screen, sterling navigation operation, dual-zone climate control, six-disc CD changer and a reversing camera, the Camaro gets no such fripperies. Climate control is an entirely manual affair, handled with two large knobs and four small buttons housed within. The best you can get from the factory is a single CD player, although Bluetooth connectivity, a USB port and iPod controls come with the Connectivity Package. There’s also talk of an audible parking sensor system available further down the road.

Creature comforts aside, the cabin is striking. The deeply dished steering wheel is an attention-getter – and not only because it’s huge. The seats, even in cloth, are compellingly sculpted. The optional analog gauges on the center tunnel break up the space, are a retro treat and are supplemented by an electronic display in the center of the dash when you want the kind of precision expected post-millennium…

I read about the sporty new Corolla, the increased power, and the additional luxury features and thought it was going to take a hit in mpg and emissions. How did I know? The 2008 Toyota Corolla base model gets 28 mpg in the city and 37 mpg on bigger roads. The 2009 Corolla will see that decrease to 27/35 mpg. That’s not too bad, but it’s not a move forward. t’s beefed-up model poses the real problem. In the XRS, fitted with a 2.4-liter, 158 hp engine, fuel consumption slumps to 22/30 mpg. Boo Hiss Boo.

Now, you know the Matrix is billed as a subcompact sedan/SUV. It’s also available in an XRS model with even worse mileage – 21/29. The smaller engine delivers 26/32 manual and 25/31 for the automatic version. Both cars are considerably more sporty, with more available features. I just hope new buyers will ask themselves whether they really need the extra power.

On a motor show in Frankfurt Subaru will show some new models and prototypes among which it is possible to allocate concept WRC, executed on the basis of the newest Impreza. Will personally represent this miracle of engineering idea Masatsugu Nagato, chief Subaru in the Europe, and the racer rally commands Subaru Petter Solberg. In shape concept WRC, on a plan of developers, the image new Impreza STI will be read, and in a following season of the world championship on rally command Subaru will practically act on the car identical to thus prototype. Recently promulgated third generation Impreza will arrive to the Europe for the first time – on a motor show will present versions with 1,5 and 2,0-liter motors. Still Subaru will bring updated crossover Tribeca which European sales will begin in the end of current year. To public it will be presented also minicar Justy, developed in close cooperation with colleagues from Daihatsu.

Carol Shelby – the person and the car. The name of the patriarch of the American motor racing for a long time became the trade mark under which in America modified cars Ford Mustang are on sale. Last novelty – opened Ford Shelby GT Convertible.

As well as compartment Shelby GT which has appeared in the end of the last year, a cabriolet represents Ford Mustang GT with firm, anew adjusted and underestimated suspension bracket “truncated” by the main transfer and forced up to 319 h.p. by engine V8 in volume 4,6 l (on a usual Mustang it develops 300 h.p.). And the open version differs from standard cabriolet Mustang also an additional arch of safety above back seats. Standard transmission for Shelby GT – five-step “mechanics”, but  Firm Kerola of Shelby lodges in Las Vegas and first of all is known for release of “original” roadsters Shelby Cobra in three versions. Ford’s models too three – except for compartment Shelby GT it is its analogue Shelby GT-H intended for rolling firm Hertz, and also 500-strong Shelby GT500KR.

Cars Shelby are considered exclusive: compartment Shelby GT, for example, in the past to year have let out all in quantity of 6000 pieces. And in present it is planned even less – 2300 cars together with cabriolets which will appear on sale in August. It is a pity, that in Europe Mustang – neither usual, nor works Carol Shelby – is not on sale.