Autoblog writer and videographer extraordinaire, the ShunkMaster, is currently en-route to Pennsylvania with his wife and kids for the long holiday weekend, but that doesn't mean he's turned off his obsession for all things automotive. As he passed through the outskirts of Motown, the not uncommon sight of a camo-covered car appeared on the horizon. Chris's iPhone-wielding wife, Sara, snapped off a few pics of the cloaked mule, and being in the Dearborn area, the first obvious thought was a prototype Fiesta sedan. However, closer inspection revealed that it's the Kia Forte that was officially announced yesterday. The Spectra replacement proved to be a handsome little sedan that wears the Kia Koup clothes well. We're looking to catch in person -- uncovered -- soon.
Click above for more pics of the Mclaren SLR Speedster.
Following yesterday's revelation that Mercedes and McLaren were preparing to launch a special lightweight version of their SLR supercar, a batch of spy shots plus a spy video have surfaced, giving us a sneak peek at the limited-edition roadster prior to its anticipated unveiling by McLaren-Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton towards the end of the month.
The images – which appear to have been released by the manufacturer itself – confirm our previous report that the roofless supercar will have little in the way of protection from the elements, with an F1-sized wind deflector screen as the only thing between the driver and the wind rushing by at breakneck speeds. Inspired by the original '50's-era 300 SLR, the new speedster will be faster than any previous SLR and be built in a small serial of 75 examples.
Click on the thumbnail images below to view more, and follow the jump for the spy video.
Noble is hard at work testing its first car since company founder Lee Noble retired, and considering the high esteem past models have enjoyed, the new boss, Peter Boutwood, has some big shoes to fill. So how does Boutwood and Noble plan to deliver the fun? More power, naturally.
While past Nobles made do with a 3.0-liter Ford Duratec V6 engine, albeit turbocharged within an inch of its life, Noble's upcoming M600 visits another member of the Ford parts bin: Volvo. In fact, Volvo's V8 engine, which powers up market versions of the XC90 SUV and the S80 sedan, was originally used in the last Ford Taurus SHO, though it's been revised and enlarged for its latest duty.
The Yamaha-designed mill is again turbocharged by Noble and produces a stunning 650 horsepower in its new guise. Spy photographers have caught the new sportscar out testing its prodigious limits of an expected 200 mph top speed and genuine supercar acceleration of naught to sixty in around three seconds.
If you're a Harley-Davidson fan you might be interested in driving...well, riding an actual Harley. But for those who can't (or won't), Ford has been working on a new Harley-Davidson edition of its F-Series Super Duty pickup. While previous versions were based on the smaller, lighter-duty F-150 pickup, these spy shots and accompanying reports indicate that the new version we're looking at is the full-fat, heavy-duty F-450, complete with dually rear axle and quad-cab four-door set-up.
Like the previous set of spy shots that surfaced back in May, these photos of the undisguised test mule show a variety of exterior add-ons, including blue flames extending down the flank of the truck, although the flames are only visible on one side of the spied vehicle, with the Harley badge evident on the other, suggesting these could have been applied to throw us off. (We won't be surprised to see the final version unveiled in either way.) Unique wheels and special lettering along the side of the bed walls also form part of the visual package, while special badging and leather are anticipated to round out the interior. No changes are expected of the 6.4-liter twin-turbo diesel, already capable as it is of towing a couple of hogs on a trailer behind it, but we're expecting a price tag of over $60k for the special-edition truck.
Click above for more spy shots of the Mitsubishi Lancer Ralliart Sportback.
We're eagerly anticipating the debut of the Mitsubishi Lancer Sportback and its Ralliart variant in Paris this September, and these recent shots of the five-door making the rounds in Barcelona are just enough to keep us interested. Judging by the German numberplates and a couple of shots that surfaced on Autoweek.nl, we'd guess that the Ralliart Sportback is in the hands of motoring journalists abroad or was on its way to a photoshoot ahead of its launch.
As we've seen previously, the Ralliart hatch takes the Evo-styled front end from its four-door counterpart, along with new side sills, darkened wheels and a subtle rear spoiler. In Europe, the Lancer Sportback will come equipped with either a 1.5- or 1.8-liter four, or a 2.0-liter turbodiesel, while those of us in the U.S. get to enjoy an Evolution experience on the cheap, with a de-tuned version of the 4B11T/C 2.0-liter four, producing 237 hp and 253 lb.-ft. of torque. We like it in red, white or slate grey would be our chosen hue when the Sportback goes on sale in the States early next year.
Look quickly, and you'll miss the changes, but GM's got some subtle exterior tweaks in store for its Heavy Duty trucks in 2010. Development doesn't stop even though the practice of using a pickup truck as a commuter car is no longer popular, so GM is plugging away at a new Silverado to avoid being passed up by its competitors.
Competition aside, there's also the issue of federal regulations to comply with, so changes were necessary no matter what. Most noticeably, the bumper changes, gaining a strip of trim that extends across the top, doing away with the overemphasized corner look of the current cow catcher. Looking more closely at the bumper, the air intake in the middle appears to have grown in size. That opening feeds the transmission cooler, so the speculation is that the Allison transmission has picked up extra ratios. Of course, it could just be bigger to gain an edge on thermal management underhood, but we're going to jump on the bandwagon of being excited for more cogs spun by the heavily revised 6.6-liter Duramax diesel with urea injection. That'd be just the thing to tow the Alero.
Aston Martin shocked the industry when it took the wraps off of the baby-blue V12 Vantage RS concept back in December. The idea was revolutionary yet stunningly simple at the same time: take the lowest car in the line-up and turn it into the highest. Would Aston build it? We all hoped so, and our hopes were vindicated with spy shots of test mules running developmental laps around the race track.
From the latest batch, it appears that all those louvers on the hood will remain – a necessity for cooling the 600-hp V12 that is sitting where a 380-hp V8 usually resides – but the rear wing seems to have been reduced, with a big carbon-fiber diffuser taking over the balance (literally) of the downforce requirements. Eyewitness accounts indicate that the test mule is also wearing the carbon-ceramic disc brakes from the current top-of-the-line DBS, while insiders expect the imminently desirable supercar to bear an equally breathtaking pricetag at double that of the base V8 version. Worth it? We're betting yes.
Click above for high-res gallery of Audi RS6 spy shots
The Audi RS6 is about to receive some sheetmetal tweaks that both bring the super sedan's exterior styling more in line with the corporate design language and give it a decidedly more devilish look than the standard A6 or sportier S6. Out back the RS6 drops the current A6 taillights for a pair that appear lifted directly off the A5. It's a good switch, as the A5's rear end is decidedly more simple and clean the current A6. We would expect to see the same udpate made across the A6 line very soon. Up front the car gets new air intakes that flank the gaping grille, which include one big intake on either side that are capped by a smaller inlet right at the leading edge of the front fenders. The headlights also sport a row of LEDs along their bottom as well as an eyelid of some sort above, which gives the RS6's face a mean glare. Of course, behind those glaring eyes lie a 5.0L twin-turbo V10 producing well above 500 horsepower that can back up the serious stare.
At this rate, by the time Honda actually releases the production version of the successor to the NSX, we may well have seen more video and photos of the prototypes running at the 'Ring than we ever saw of the original. Thankfully, for those of us into really fast cars, the Nürburgring is a public place with a variety of roadside vantage points where people can view the latest and greatest supercars in action. The crew at Germany's Auto Motor und Sport seem to have staged videographers at all the available viewing locations to capture three minutes of footage that they have posted on YouTube for the rest of us to enjoy. There's some good stuff here, including the last few seconds where the driver is clearly pushing the new Honda as the back end slips a little wide before coming back. We're all waiting anxiously to see how this one matches up against the GT-R, ZR1, and LF-A. Check out the video after the jump.
Reports indicate that the highly-anticipated Lotus Eagle will be making its debut next month at the British Motor Show. The 2+2 sports car will be the first all-new Lotus in about 13 years, and will reportedly be powered by a Toyota-sourced 3.5-liter V6 lifted out of the Camry family sedan but highly modified for the task by Lotus' own engineering gurus. Output is pegged at 268 hp and 248 lb-ft of torque in naturally-aspirated guise, with a turbocharged version also reportedly in the works.
Along with the latest reports comes this teaser image reportedly released by Lotus ahead of the vehicle's debut, which joins the image of the front suspension module released way back in February and the spy shots that have been trickling in ever since. The teaser shows an unmistakably Lotus front end draped by a sheet which we hope to see lifted on July 22 from the show in London.
Let the leakage begin: Ford Focus RS concept
British Motor Show Preview: Opel Insignia to debut in hatch and sedan forms
Rumormill: Ford reviving Mustang SVO with 300 hp Ecoboost four
Leaked: 2009 BMW 7 Series photos hit the web
Spy Shots: Mitsubishi Lancer Sportback Ralliart sneaks out ahead of Paris show
Track Test: 2008 Roush 427R Trak Pak Mustang
In the Autoblog Garage: 2008 Porsche Cayman S
First Drive: 2009 Chevrolet Traverse
In the Autoblog Garage: 2008 Mazda MX-5 Miata Retractable Hard Top
In The Autoblog Garage: BMW 128i Convertible
