Infiniti Adds Limited Production 2010 G Anniversary Edition Sedans, Coupes and Convertibles, to Celebrates Two Decades of Luxury.

While every 2010 Infiniti G Sedan, Coupe or Convertible seems special to those who design, engineer, manufacture or market them – and also to their owners – Infiniti has just released four new G Anniversary Editions that stand apart from every other Infiniti G ever created.

These uniquely equipped Anniversary G37s, built in commemoration of Infiniti’s 20th anniversary, will be available in very limited numbers – 350 G Sedans and 200 each for the G Coupe and G Convertible.

They are scheduled to go on sale at Infiniti retailers nationwide in mid-April.

Read the rest of this entry »

When the 2006 Corvette Z06 was introduced, it represented the closest connection to the Corvette race cars ever. The 2009 Corvette ZR1 closed the gap between racing and production even further. This year, Corvette continues its tradition of track-to-street technology transfer with the 2011 Corvette Z06 Carbon Limited Edition.

“Designed to further incorporate technology developed through racing, the Corvette Z06 Carbon Limited Edition is a tribute to the 50th anniversary of Corvette’s first race in the 24 Hours of LeMans,” said Jim Campbell, Chevrolet General Manager. “With a limited production of 500 units, this car is a must-have for the true Corvette collector and driving enthusiast.”

Read the rest of this entry »

Nissan North America, Inc. (NNA) today announced U.S. pricing for the 2011 Nissan GT-R supercar, which is on sale now at select Nissan dealers.

For 2011, its third year of availability in the North American market, the Nissan GT-R features a number of enhancements and a simplified model lineup.

The previous GT-R base model has been eliminated, leaving the GT-R Premium as the only available 2011 model. Other changes include slightly darker wheel center caps, double clear coat on the front and rear fascias and the addition of rear cooling ducts to improve cooling performance around the rear floor area.
Read the rest of this entry »

There’s nothing terribly creative about the name of Nissan’s new commercial van—NV stands for Nissan Van—but the Japanese Sprinter-fighter is a fresh take on the commercial carryall box. Nissan will launch the van in three strengths with a choice of a V-6 or V-8 engine.

The NV is a clean-sheet design; Nissan claims it spent five years researching the commercial-vehicle market to come up with the slab-sided, space-efficient package you see here.

Read the rest of this entry »

Audi expects to finish off the first three months of the year with robust sales following a good performance in February.

“We are on course for a strong first quarter and that is mainly thanks to our leading position in China and western Europe,” Audi sales chief Peter Schwarzenbauer said in a statement today.
Read the rest of this entry »

Toyota said it would expand a November recall to fix all U.S, Tundra pickups for the 2000 to 2003 model years to address a risk that part of the truck’s frame could corrode, causing spare tires or even the gas tank to drop to the road.

Initially, Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. Inc. recalled 110,000 Tundras sold in 20 cold-weather states, saying exposure to heavy road salt could cause the corrosion. Toyota spokesman Brian Lyons was unable to say how many additional vehicles would be involved.

Toyota told its U.S. dealers in a notice on Tuesday that it would expand the recall for Tundras by launching a repair campaign to cover trucks sold in the other 30 U.S. states where there is less risk of corrosion from winter road salt.

The repair campaign comes at a time when the world’s top automaker is trying to recover from a damaging series of recalls that have tarnished its reputation and cut into its sales and financial results.

The Tundra rust problem is separate from reported problems with unintended acceleration that represent the core of Toyota’s safety crisis, but fixing affected vehicles could be far more costly per repair than in previous recalls.

Read the rest of this entry »

A California Highway Patrol officer helped slow a runaway Toyota Prius from 94 mph to a safe stop on Monday after the car’s accelerator became stuck on a San Diego County freeway, the CHP said.

Prius driver James Sikes called 911 about 1:30 p.m. after accelerating to pass another vehicle on Interstate 8 near La Posta and finding that he could not control his car, the CHP said.

“I pushed the gas pedal to pass a car and it did something kind of funny… it jumped and it just stuck there,” the 61-year-old driver said at a news conference. “As it was going, I was trying the brakes…it wasn’t stopping, it wasn’t doing anything and it just kept speeding up,” Sikes said, adding he could smell the brakes burning he was pressing the pedal so hard.

Read the rest of this entry »

After a week of massive recalls on many of its vehicles a Louisiana Toyota dealership takes a hit.

Officials say a disgruntled customer rammed his truck into the front a Toyota dealership this morning.

They say the man no longer wanted his Toyota truck because of the recall on its accelerator issue, but instead of accepting an offer to have the vehicle repaired..
he drove off.

Officials say that’s when the man smashed into the building, he claimed he lost control after his accelerator got stuck.

Authorities say no one was hurt and the man did not receive a citation.

Hyundai Motor America has announced prices for the all-new 2011 Sonata. The completely redesigned 2011 Sonata delivers best-in-class fuel economy, an EPA-designated Large Car interior, 198 horsepower and a starting price of $19,195 for the well-equipped GLS model. The 200-horsepower SE model starts at $22,595 and the top-of-the-line Limited model is available for $25,295.

“With the 2011 Sonata, our focus was a no-compromise engineering approach that would allow Sonata owners to have their cake, and eat it too.

Read the rest of this entry »

BMW is really testing our memory and powertrain-matching skills with its 2011 lineup. One of our favorite current engines is the N54 twin-turbo 3.0-liter inline-six, which produces 300 hp and 300 lb-ft of torque in nearly every model in which it’s installed.

But, as you probably know, it is being gradually replaced by an evolution of that mill, the N55 single-turbo inline-six, which still displaces 3.0 liters and produces identical horsepower and torque figures.

The new engine is showing up first in the 535i Gran Turismo, and also will appear in the 2011 135i, 335i, and 535i. Now there are plans to shuffle it into the 2011 X6 xDrive35i, too.

Read the rest of this entry »

The most spectacular Golf of all is fantastic but pricey. Will we get the chance to buy one?

Volkswagen sure knows how to please. The new, sixth-generation Golf is one of the better compact cars, a great-handling hatchback that’s comfortable, too. And we think the sportiest Golf, the 200-hp GTI, is even better—witness its inclusion on our 2010 10Best Cars list. (The previous GTI, based on the Golf V, made the 10Best roster the three years before that.) Now Wolfsburg is adding the Golf R, an all-wheel-drive variant that is the fastest, most powerful, and most expensive Golf ever.
Read the rest of this entry »

General Motors announced on Thursday a more confident forecast for U.S. industry sales this year and said it expects to end January with higher sales compared with a year ago.

GM projects the industry would sell 11.5 million to 12 million vehicles nationwide this year, up from the previous projection of 11 million to 12 million sales, according to Mike DiGiovanni, executive director of global market and industry analysis.

The Detroit automaker strengthened its forecast because of signs that the economy is strengthening, he said.

Read the rest of this entry »

The story behind the all-new 2009 Lincoln MKS was that you had this wonderfully attractive vehicle that looked the part of a luxury sedan but didn’t quite have the upgrade engine available to make it an outstanding luxury performer.

However, with the base model priced at $40,870, the MKS had a really competitive starting point.

Enter the 2010 MKS EcoBoost. This newest version of the MKS comes in front- or all-wheel drive with a new 355-horsepower twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V-6 engine. Mated to a six-speed automatic transmission, this EcoBoost engine option pushes the MKS into direct competition with some of the best sedans in the class, but at a much lower price.
Read the rest of this entry »

When Nissan revived the Z in 2002, the car was a revelation. Unmistakably a serious sports car, the 350Z had power to spare and it handled like a dream. As good as the 350Z was, the new generation of the Z – now called 370Z – is that much better.

Nissan kicked off the new generation of its affordable sports car in 2009 with a redesigned coupe. With a wheelbase almost 4 inches shorter than that of the 350Z, the new car actually handled better. And with a far superior interior, buyers of the last-generation model had to be kicking themselves for not waiting a little longer to buy a Z.
Read the rest of this entry »

Subaru today announced pricing on the 2010 Subaru Impreza WRX STI Special Edition model at $32,995 plus $695 D&D. The new model is priced $2,000 lower than the base price of the 2010 WRX STI and will be limited in production. The vehicle features an upgraded performance suspension from the Japanese domestic market WRX STI spec C and spec C wheels.

The 2010 WRX STI Special Edition is aimed at the driving enthusiast who is willing to trade a few amenities to gain an extra measure of handling performance over the already extraordinary WRX STI.

Read the rest of this entry »