Today's concept study comes to us from Marouane Bembli, a 23-year old industrial design student from Sweden. The futuristic-looking supercar was designed as a 'halo' vehicle for Audi that would in theory, either sit atop or replace altogether the current R8 in the automaker's model range.

"I've designed what I believe will be Audi's new supercar, the R10", Bembli told Car Magazine. "It features a mid-mounted V10 engine and a dry weight of 1200kg. I hope you like it!"

Well, minus the proportions of the passenger cabin area that looks way too small when compared to the rest of the body, we must say that we find the R10 Concept pretty impressive.

Source: CarScoop

What you’re looking at here is a modern interpretation of the Plymouth Road Runner based on the 2009 Dodge Challenger with a 6.1L HEMI turbocharged V8 engine. The concept is being put together by an independent designer Michael Leonhard, who is selling the car once he’s done building it.

The 6.1 HEMI turbocharged V8 allows for a total of 620-hp with a maximum torque of 650 lb-ft. 0-60 mph should come in 3.8 seconds.

Even before it’s built, Leonhard has put the one-off model up for grabs on eBay with a Buy it Now price tag of $950,000. Of course, you want to be careful before you go spending close to a million on this car since Leonhard says “in order to improve the finished product, changes to the design may occur during the building process.”

Source: eBay via eGMCarTech

General Motors Co. has decided to produce the Cadillac Converj, an extended-range electric car using the same technology as the Chevrolet Volt, The Detroit News has learned.

Cadillac included the Converj, a concept car that wowed industry critics and the public at the 2009 North American International Auto Show, in a presentation made to the automaker's board of directors Nov. 2, according to sources familiar with the production plan.

A production date has not been set, and it likely will be a few years before consumers can buy a Converj. A Cadillac spokesman declined comment.

Before GM emerged from bankruptcy July 10 with about $50 billion in federal aid, company executives said there were no plans to build the angular Converj.

At the auto show, Vice Chairman Bob Lutz said if the Converj was approved, the production model would resemble the concept, likening it to the Chevrolet Camaro's evolution from concept to production.

Source: Detroit News

Last year in Las Vegas, graphic designer Kevin Morgan showed off the first Trans Am rebody of the new Camaro at SEMA 2008. This year he is back with T/A version 2.0 for SEMA 2009. While the original "Phoenix" T/A 1.0 had the Bandit color combo we know and love, a few of the details were off in making it a true '77-'78 Trans Am redo.

For this year's show he's rectified that situation with a new quad-headlight front fascia and a few other changes that bring it more in line with the uber Firebirds we remember from our misspent youths. Slip into one of these black and gold Trans Ams and before you know it you'll be East Bound and Down, calling for the Snowman on your CB to help you stay one step ahead of Smokey. Built in conjunction with fabricator Todd Otto, one-off versions can be ordered to spec, and a kit version will also be made available through Trans Am Depot starting in early 2010.

Source: AutoBlog

Given Pontiac’s demise, it’s clear there won’t be any factory-baked Pontiac Trans-Am coming from General Motors. Enter the aftermarket, which has become suddenly eager to serve buyers wanting a new-school T/A. Indeed, joining the conversion kit offered by Phoenix is this Lingenfelter take on turning your brand-new Camaro SS into the modern Trans-Am of your dreams. The concept debuts in the metal at this year’s SEMA show in Las Vegas.

Of course, Chevy looks won’t do, so there’s a new front fascia, a shaker hood, revised rear quarter-panels, functional front fender vents, and an integrated decklid spoiler. New lighting front and rear as well as 20-inch honeycomb wheels complete the exterior transformation, while new blue woven-vinyl seats and a metal-turned instrument panel add retro feel to the inside. We have to admit, this thing really does resemble the 1970s original, and we like it.

Given the company’s penchant for pumping up horsepower, of course Lingenfelter would rework the engine, too. Under the striped hood—there’s no huge screaming chicken as of now—sits an aluminum 455-cubic-inch (7.5-liter) V-8 block with a lofty 11.5:1 compression ratio, ported-and-polished Lingenfelter heads from the Corvette Z06’s LS7, a forged crankshaft, and high-flow intake. The custom stainless-steel exhaust comes courtesy of Corsa. Power output is quoted at 655 hp and 610 lb-ft of torque, up significantly from the 426 hp of a stock manual Camaro SS. Also present are a new twin-disc clutch and flywheel assembly and tougher rear half-shafts to withstand the extra grunt. Handling alterations are limited to the addition of Nitto tires.

More photos at the source!

Source: Car and Driver

Volkswagen of America released a sketch of its forthcoming new mid-size sedan, which will be produced at the company’s new plant in Chattanooga, TN. The sedan will be introduced to the market in late 2011. Volkswagen has yet to release the official name of the sedan, which will replace the Passat in the United States.

CEO of Volkswagen Group of America, Stefan Jacoby, said that Volkswagen expects to sell about 100,000 units of the sedan annually. Volkswagen also has plans to export the new U.S. built sedan.

Source: eGMCarTech

I think most of us remember the ill-attempt at bringing Kevin Morgan's 77' Trans Am concept to life back at the end of August. General consensus was that it needed more work to further separate it from it's Camaro base.

Enter Lingenfelter with their attempt, this time going with an early 2nd gen look. What do you think? Personally, I think it rocks! And we don't even have interior shots yet!

More in the jump!

Source: Camaro5.com



"Check the December issue of Hot Rod Magazine for pictures and information on this new concept vehicle from Lingenfelter. The Lingenfelter 2010 Camaro LTA will be at the SEMA show in Las Vegas November 3 – 6. This custom car has the classic 71 Trans Am interior / exterior theme.

The Camaro LTA is powered by a LS based 655 horsepower Lingenfelter 455 CID engine, Corsa exhaust, custom honeycomb wheels & Nitto tires.

Possible plans are to offer these for sale in the future as a production vehicle if Lingenfelter gets enough positive response."

Toyota's new rear-wheel-drive sports coupe could be called the Celica, autocar.co.uk has learned. The concept version of the car, which is being co-developed by Toyota and Subaru and is due to go on sale in 2012, was unveiled at this week's Tokyo motor show.

The concept, badged FT-86 in homage to the Toyota Corolla AE-86 GT, is being developed to increase the company's credibility among young Japanese buyers. As a result, the Celica name is reported to be being evaluated by Toyota as its history resonates with its target audience. However, no final decisions on the name have bene made.

Toyota has charge of the car's concept and design, while Subaru is supplying hardware including the engine, six-speed gearbox and possibly suspension. The car will also be built at Subaru factories, as it has spare capacity at present. However, the car, which engineers describe as front mid-engined because the engine is so short and can be cited so far back, sits on a new rear-drive platform, which can be adapted to four-wheel drive, an option Subaru is said to be evaluating.

Source: Autocar

While the regular Subaru 086A is expected to be exactly the same as the Toyota version albeit with subtle exterior/interior styling differences, it’s the high performance STi version that’s getting the most attention now that the FT-86 Concept has broken cover ahead of this month’s Tokyo Motor Show. The standard 086A of course utilizes Subaru’s EJ20 flat-four boxer engine with D4-S direct injection, an Aisin 6-speed gearbox and a rear differential as used on the Lexus IS250/350. The rumored output of 200PS has been quoted once again as to be “almost certain” but a conflicting rumor from another source sets the output as being as low as 160PS. Nevertheless, the STi Version should answer people’s prayers for more power.

Holiday Auto (HA) reports that the STi Version will use the EJ25 2.5L engine that’s expected to produce between 240 – 250PS which is enough, HA say, to turn the 086A into a true performance car. An EJ25 turbo also hasn’t been ruled out, it seems that the Toyota/Subaru partnership have gone to great lengths to listen to what customers want and if the voices are loud enough, may come through with a boosted 086A STi. In keeping with the Impreza WRX STi, the 086A STi Version will apparently get wider front and rear guards to accommodate a wider track with wider wheels and tires. The know-how gathered from tuning the suspension for the WRX STi will be used to improve the 086A’s handling characteristics, although HA stop short of saying the parts will be directly carried over. We should also expect some additional STi only aero parts such as a unique front bumper and rear trunk spoiler to give the STi Version a more motorsports inspired look.

Although it’s not confirmed yet, there’s a strong possibility the Subaru 086A STi Version will be shown at the 2011 Tokyo Motor Show or not long after at the 2012 Tokyo Auto Salon and will hit showrooms shortly thereafter.

Source: 7tune

Mark your calendars! Toyota has announced that the Toyota FT-86 Concept will be unveiled at the Toyota Metapolis site on October 23, 2009, a day before the general public viewing dates start at the Tokyo Motor Show!

For those of you not familiar, Toyota Metapolis is a virtual city created by Toyota for visitors to learn about Toyota’s newest products, concepts, and events. The virtual city even has residential areas, museums showcasing Toyota prototypes, a shopping center, and an event hall (perhaps where the FT-86 unveiling will take place) that can host up to 1000 avatars.

At the FT-86 unveiling on Oct. 23, visitors will be able to tune into a virtual unveiling, followed by an opinion exchange session. Toyota will be logging the opinions by visitors so be sure to make your opinions heard as they may be taken into account with respect to the car’s final production design. Games and quizzes will also take place and visitors may complete a survey in return for a gift.

Thanks for the tip, Jason!

Source: FT86Club

Since last year, we’ve been hearing about a new sports car from Toyota and Subaru that will be priced around $20,000 and would give the two brands something to be proud about. However, both automakers were very good at keeping their upcoming sports coupe out of way of spy photographer lenses and never really talked much to the media about it in terms of when it will be available or what it would be called. In fact, the car’s nickname eventually became “Toyobaru,” which to say the least, we hated.

However, today we get our first look at what Toyota and Subaru have been working on with the new Toyota FT-86 Concept, which will make its world debut at the 2009 Tokyo Motor Show. Inspired by the sporty 1980s Corolla AE86, the production version of the FT-86 will carry a 2.0L boxer Subaru engine sending power to the rear-wheels.

Developed jointly with Fuji Heavy Industries, which owns Subaru and which Toyota owns 16.7 percent of, most of the mechanical work on the production FT-86 will be completed by Subaru while the overall design will be created by Toyota’s ED2 styling studio in France (who also worked on the FT-86).

Toyota and Fuji Heavy plan to have the FT-86 on the roads by 2011. Subaru will get its own version of the car. Prices are expected to start around 3 million yen ($33,700 USD) in Japan and around $20,000 in the United States.

Source: eGMCarTech

When you see a concept like that Audi e-tron, the first thing you think is – “They’ll never build something like that.” Well, according to AutoWeek, Audi of America President Johan de Nysschen says an electric-vehicle based on the e-tron concept will debut in the United States in two to three years

“I expect we will see running examples in the next 24 months,” de Nysschen says.

The Audi e-tron concept is powered by four electric motors – two each at the front and rear axles – producing 313-hp and a maximum torque of 3,319 lb-ft of torque. 0 to 62 mph comes in 4.8 seconds with a top speed of 124 mph. Driving range equals 154 miles on a full charge.

The Ingolstadt automakers is also working on hybrid vehicles. The first hybrid to make it over to the U.S. market will be the based on the Q5 crossovers in 2011.

Source: eGMCarTech

With all the automakers pulling out of Tokyo this year, it doesn’t seem like much is going to happen at one of the largest auto shows when it opens its doors next month. Nonetheless, domestic automaker Honda is ready with an onslaught of new concepts… or shall we say, an onslaught of “environmentally responsible” concepts. In fact, Honda says that its special display zone will be named “HELLO!” – which stands for Honda Electric mobility Loop.

First up in the HELLO display is the Honda CR-Z Concept. It’s not the same Honda CR-Z Concept we saw before at the 2007 Tokyo Motor Show, but a CR-Z Concept that is almost production ready.

Honda hasn’t released any technical details but we do know that power will come from a 1.5L 4-cylinder engine mated to Honda’s Integrated Motor Assist hybrid technology. It will be mated to a 6-speed manual gearbox and an optional CVT automatic.

The “Honda CR-Z sporty hybrid” will go on sale in Japan in February 2010.

Source: eGMCarTech

The guys at Teamspeed.com have spotted the Lamborghini Estoque Concept in the city of Cologne, Germany. The car was displayed on the streets without any license plates and used during a photo shoot. The fact that the car is shown in the open gives us some hope of a release next year.

We have reported before that the development of the Estoque concept, introduced last autumn’s Paris Motor Show, was put on hold. Immediately after the report, Lamborghini stated in a press release that no decision was made about the future release of the four-door super car. They also said that that a four-door would fit well with their current product line-up.

The four-door concept is hot these days. Super sports sedans such as the Aston Martin Rapide, Porsche Panamera and Bugatti 16 C Galibier have arrived or are on their way. Lamborghini cannot stick behind and it looks like the Estoque is heading to an official release. Geneva 2010 perhaps?

Source: GT Spirit

Jaguar is believed to be looking at a five-door version of the coupe project, leaving the three-door idea out all together.

With the X-Type coming to its end this year, Jaguar will have no real contender in the compact premium sedan segment and is understandably eager to develop a vehicle for this market.

Based on the RD6 coupe concept revealed back in 2003, the new coupe - reportedly codenamed RD7 - is expected to be built on a shortened version of the steel body architecture that underpins the XF.

The RD6, powered by a 2.7 litre diesel V6, featured ’suicide’ rear doors and a side-hinged tailgate inspired by the XK-E coupe.

A source at Jaguar has reportedly said that the XE - Jaguar’s oft-rumoured upcoming small convertible - is on track for a 2012 market launch, with the five-door RD7 coupe likely to land a couple of years later.

Source: Motor Report