Auto, Car Notes

The unending contest between Suzuki and Kawasaki to see who can build the world’s fastest streetbike continues, with Suzuki introducing an all-new Hayabusa for 2008. The bike’s engine grows from 1299cc to 1340cc for ‘08, and a commensurate power jump is expected to let the new ‘Busa equal or surpass the numbers put up by Kawasaki’s hyper-performance machine, the Ninja ZX-14. Bikeland.org has hi-res pics and full features and specs on the ‘08 ‘Busa, which will be joined in showrooms by a naked edition dubbed the “B-King.” The price for the the ‘08 Hayabusa’s time-and-space-bending performance: $11,999. Suzuki’s official site has the skinny on all the new ’08s here.

Follow the jump for a video of the 2008 Hayabusa’s reveal.
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With Audi and Mercedes rampantly trying to fill every conceivable segment, BMW has been stepping up development of its own niche vehicles, including the X6 CUV and now, a contender in the it’s-not-a-minivan crowd, the V-Series.

The 3-Series wagon-bodied prototype supposedly foretells what BMW plans to pit against the Mercedes R-Class, sporting third-row seating and a somewhat higher ride height.

Little is known about the V-Series yet, but if KGP’s spies are to be trusted, we should expect to see BMW’s newest people-mover hitting the market sometime in 2010.

[Source: Inside Line]

Click on the AirStream for a gallery of images at the track

Ford brought out its 2007 concept cars at the company’s Dearborn Development Center this week to give the invited media, including your humble narrator, a chance to sample the new designs in the harsh light of day. And it was definitely a harsh day, with maximum humidity and temperatures in the low nineties.

Harsh certainly describes the treatment Ford got from the media at the Detroit Auto Show for the AirStream concept. The Lincoln MKR and Ford Interceptor both got an unintentional preview weeks before the show thanks to our colleagues at the print publications, but the Airstream came out of nowhere. As Peter Horbury acknowledged in our discussion, Ford may have been better off had it emphasized the mechanicals of the Airstream over the design.
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A little Google surfing spat forth this little nugget. If you’re into entering sweepstakes, you can register to win a new Dodge Charger R/T from Goody’s Headache Powders. The ride will be finished to replicate a 1971 Richard Petty STP Charger, complete with the #43 on the doors and the Petty/Goody’s anniversary logo on it, well, somewhere. Anyway, this might be even cooler to have than one of the modern takes on a “General Lee” Charger. Sadly, it’s not an SRT8, but hey, it’s free and it’s got a HEMI. You can enter here. Be prepared to get all kinds of crap in the mail from GlaxoSmithKline, though.

[Source: Goody’s via SceneDaily]

The 2008 Mustang that appears in August will be full o’ beans. Soybeans. Ford has teamed with automotive supplier Lear Corporation on the creation of soy-based seat foam. Car seats currently contain roughly petroleum-based foam, and the new soy-based variety will substitute nearly a quarter of that mass with renewable content, as well as lower the amount of C0� emitted during the creation of the foam. Ford’s been playing around with soy ever since with Model T, which contained 60 pounds of beans in its paint and molded plastic parts. This is the kind of environmental tech we can get behind — and sit on — without reservation. We do wonder, however, what it will do to that new car smell. This isn’t the only “green” material Ford’s using with regard to seating accommodations in ‘08 models, either. The new Escape’s seat upholstery is made of eco-friendly recycled materials. For Ford’s full press release on the new soy foam seats, click the image above or the “Read” link below to see it at AutoblogGreen.
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How come none of the Cadillacs we’ve bought for $850 have appreciated to bring millions at auction? First off, this 1903 Cadillac Model A runabout is going to be offered at Bonhams’ Quail Lodge auction, part of Monterey Week in August. Our Caddys would’ve only been appropriate at a scrap metal auction. The 13th ever Cadillac, this car was on the stand at the New York Auto show in 1903, and was the first of the brand to be sold west of the Mississippi.

These brass era Cadillacs are what earned the brand its early tagline of “The Standard Of The World.” The “Little Hercules” single-cylinder powerplant sits under the front seat and drives the rear wheels, and the cars were filled with solid engineering. Cadillac made mass-production possible by pioneering interchangeable parts. Nobody thought it was possible to ship a fully-disassembled car to Europe and bolt together a fully-operable automobile from parts that came off the shelf. Cadillac’s uniform parts made that stunt possible, and burnished the reputation of the brand in those early days. This car predates that innovation, but if this is indeed the car that was at the New York show, it helped spur 2,000 orders with its precise build quality.
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In Ten Cars You Can’t Buy in the US, Forbes offers a sampling of tasty metal that US buyers just aren’t good enough to put money down on. However, the real title should be Ten Cars You Can’t Buy in the US Yet, or Any More, or That You Wouldn’t Buy Even if You Could. The article focuses mainly on the Italians and the French, and reaffirms the French makers’ intent not to return to the US any time soon. The slide show, though, includes the the Mitsubishi Evo (Forbes shows the Evo X, which we are getting), Smart (again, we’re getting the new one), Vanquish S, and Skyline (available here as the G35). The article then goes on to suggest the Infiniti G35 as an alternative to the Skyline, its JDM twin. G35 coupes fully rebadged to replicate their JDM Skyline twins are nothing new, so Forbes isn’t exactly offering revolutionary advice here.
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For 2008, the new Mercedes-Benz USA C Class will start at a higher base price but offer more standard features.

The C300 Sport Sedan, redesign of the C230 , will start at a base price of $31,975, a $1,500 increase from the 2007 model. The Luxury trim, a replacement for the C280 Luxury model, will begin at $33,675, an increase of just $500. Both sedans offer considerably more features and an increase in horsepower with a 3.0-liter V-6 engine.

The Mercedes C350 Sport has gone down in price. The 2008 model has a standard base price of $37,275 which is $1,500 less than the 2007 model. The C350 Luxury sedan has been dropped from the Mercedes-Benz line-up for 2008.

The new Mercedes C-Class will be available for purchase on August 7th. Deals may be available now on the discontinued 2007 Mercedes C-Class models.

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Approximately six months ago, we got news that Kia’s Soul crossover concept would be entering production, and now we have the first spy shots taken in Korea. Designed in California and unveiled at the 2006 Detroit Auto Show, the Soul will be a strong competitor to the flood of new crossovers coming to market.

The design of the production model is very close to the concept. Basically, it loses the suicide doors, has smaller wheels and the roof isn’t as chopped. The Soul will fit five occupants and be powered by a 2.0L four-cylinder engine mated to a five-speed auto. No AWD version is expected – to save costs Kia has stuck with FWD and will price the vehicle to reflect this. The Soul is also expected to go to Europe where it will most likely come with a diesel engine as an option.

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Click image to enlarge

As Japan celebrates 50 years of the Nissan Skyline, Tomica, known for its Matchbox-style die-cast cars has released six new commemorative toy cars. Arriving in their signature cardboard boxes (just like matchboxes used to), these cars’ packaging will feature the Skyline 50th logo and each will come with a collectible decal as well. generations two (S54B) through six (R30) of the Japanese icon are represented, including a blue “Ken and Mary” coupe. The cars will sell for � 525 apiece in Japan starting at the end of this month, and while Tomicas are a little harder to come by here in the States, they’re all over eBay, so if you want the Skylines, you should start seeing them on the auction site in due time.
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