Cars - Blogs.ca

A box on wheels is probably about the most accurate description that one could have for Honda’s Step Bus concept that they showed at the LA Auto Show. This concept, which probably would have been more at home in Tokyo, seats five and has big sliding doors to make getting in and out of it easier. Despite having a racy mid-engined and rear wheel drive layout, it has zero sporting potential due to its narrow and tall body. Honda says that the design theme of the car was “man maximum, machine minimum”. There’s extra emphasis on the latter part of that sentence.

It’s good to know that automakers are still making true blue concept vehicles, and the Mazda Nagare is defiantly one of them. It’s Mazda’s big debut for LA, and it’s all different kinds of interesting. We’ve been hearing “zoom-zoom” since Mazda’s revolution way back when, but expect to be hearing the phrase “flow” from now on, as that’s what the brand’s new design language is called. The concept has a pair of butterfly wing-style doors that stretch clear across the body and hinge forward and upwards for full access to the four-seater cabin, which has a centrally-positioned driver.

No info on the powertrain, but if it did have one, we’d expect something like a rotary. The exterior deserves it.

In terms of rare and valuable metals, platinum is king. It’s also really heavy, and really expensive. Perfect then, for Cadillac, which has chosen to name its latest special edition cars after the metal. Caddy’s debut at the LA Show are the XLR, STS and DTS Platinum, which more or less means more leather and more chrome all put together by hand. Colour also appears to be the big addition, with the XLR coming in a nifty shade of purple (pictured). The STS’ special colour is black, while the DTS’ is gold.

Saab is celebrating its big 6-0 at the LA Motor Show, unveiling an upgrade package for all of its cars - the 9-3s and the 9-5s - not the 9-7x. On the outside, cars gain Ice Blue metallic paint (not as cool as the electric blue on that 9-3 limited edition cab last year), plus 17-inch alloy wheels. Inside, you get black leather with dark walnut trim, and matching floormats. The smaller Saabs get a stereo upgrade, power seats, and foglights, while the big 9-5 has park assist and xenon headlights.

The Ford Mustang is just about as American as apple pie. It’s got a big V8 engine, rear wheel drive and styling that’s full of details that’ll make any one familiar with older versions of the classic pony car smile. So, what does Ford do? Send one to ItalDesign to get a make over.

The exterior certainly has an Italian flair; it’s been given a proper set of hips as the front and back end have been widened. The front and back have also been softened, and the rear overhang has been whittled away, shifting the visual balance towards the rear. Add that to some funky rims and scissor doors… and, well, it’s a wrap.

Power comes from the same 4.6-litre GT engine as before, but it’s got a supercharger, intercooler and exhaust strapped on so it makes 500 horsepower. The suspension’s been given the full Ford Racing treatment, so it’ll corner too. I’m not exactly the biggest fan of the interior. The seats are made from horsehair and look like autumn-like camo. Yeesh. Check it out at the LA Show if you’re in the area. It’s more interesting than that Ford Explorer fuel cell we posted earlier.

The LA Auto Show, which, is going to be happening very shortly, will play host to a whole bunch of environmentally-friendly debuts, a couple of which are going to be from the Blue Oval. Automotive News reports that Ford will have something along the lines of a hydrogen-powered Explorer, that’s both zero-emissions and four-wheel drive. The latter part is achieved by having two electric motors (not internal-combustion); one in front, one in back. Target range is said to be 350 miles per tank.

Another addition will be the redesigned Escape, which will be shown in Hybrid form. Expect changes to be mild (the adoption of the Ford Edge’s nose), and various upgrades to the interior similar to that of the ‘08 Mercury Mariner, which debuted a few weeks back.

Chrysler’s released two sketches of concept cars that it will be showing off at next month’s LA Auto Show. The first is the Jeep Trailhawk, a rather angry looking SUV that’s based off the Wrangler Unlimited, but has the refinement and luxury characteristics of the Grand Cherokee. Could this be the next Liberty? It looks to have similar proportions, and the look would more than shed the current truck’s girly image.

The other car that’ll be sitting alongside the Trailhawk is the Nassau, Chrysler’s stab at the four-door luxury coupe market. With news that BMW, Audi and Volkswagen are all drafting up their own Benz CLS competitors, it only makes sense that Chrysler ought to come up with one too.

Turkey might not have much in association with automobiles, but its biggest autoshow is currently going on in Istanbul, and there are two international debuts taking place there.

The first sedan is from GM’s Opel brand. It is essentially an Astra sedan with four doors and a proper trunk. The car will be built primarily for Eastern-European buyers, and will be powered by a choice of gasoline and diesel engines, ranging from 88 horsepower to just under 140 hp. It’s not frighteningly interesting stuff, but it should provide good family transportation for those who can’t fathom driving a hatchback. Personally, I think Chevrolet should scrap the whole Cobalt thing and start offering this, even if it does mean importing it from Poland.

The second sedan is from Fiat. It has a little bit more relevance to the Turkish people, as the car not only made its debut there, but it also built in that very country.

Comparatively, the Linea is much nicer looking vehicle than the Opel, and despite having a massive 500-liter trunk, it’s back end looks nowhere near as frumpy and boxy as the Opel’s. Though it’s the size of a C-Segment vehicle, its underpinnings are based off the Grande Punto, which is a B-Segment vehicle, which means engineering this car was done on the cheap, allowing it to be more affordable to the masses.

Since the separation and re-organization of the Fiat group’s brands and products, the fate of the Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione Concept has been hanging in balance. Originally debuted as a sports coupe at the 2003 Frankfurt Motor Show, the concept evolved into a roadster before quietly bowing out, with rumours bantered about that the project had been cancelled. However, Alfa Romeo is on the rise again with a new range of products, and has officially green-lighted the 8C as a production car. It will debut in Paris at the end of the month as Alfa Romeo’s new flagship car.

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Nissan is getting ready to shake up the C-Segment vehicle class in Europe and Asia with the introduction of its new Qashqai (say cash-kai although they may pronounce it cash-cow after it hits the market) at this year’s Paris Motor Show. Described as a “catalyst for change”, the Qashqai may be just the vehicle that Nissan needs; although sales of C-Segment vehicles have been consistent over the past few years, the scene itself is starting to change. The market has shifted away from simple hatchbacks, with buyers wanting more practicality, versatility and different styling. Automakers responded by shrinking conventional vehicles such as SUVs and minivans to work on compact platforms, such as the Honda CR-V and Mazda5.

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Here’s an interesting one. Suzuki has just released the first sketch of its new concept, the Splash. It’s based off the excellent European-market Swift, which means it’ll have tidy handling, a comfortable ride, and will be about as agile is a sewing needle through city traffic.

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Although French carmaker Peugeot doesn’t build the most interesting production cars, it does have a knack for cranking out some jaw-dropping concepts. Over the years, it’s done everything from building electrically-powered off-road buggies and fire engines out of city cars, to V12-powered grand tourers and a diesel-powered Elise sports car. After the rather bulbous, new-for-2007 207 subcompact, Peugeot will be serving this racy four-door sedan for the Paris Motorshow.

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This show could seriously help put Toronto on the map. I’m not talking about a North American road atlas, mind you, but as a destination to see the hottest rides and a meeting place for all things fast, tuned or dropped. I could hardly say that it has arrived without getting flamed from here to the deepest oblivion the web could reach, but it has the kind of potential to eclipse even the Canadian International Auto Show and its own Sport Compact Revolution, or whatever SCR stands for. There was a whiff of fledgling garage tuners to be found, but many major manufacturers mixed with the roots of the tuner world, the tuners and the objects of their love and re-creation: their own cars.

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