Porsche 918 Spyder and GT3 R Hybrid

Porsche takes the plug-in hybrid concept and adds an F1-style steering-wheel button for a push-to-pass power boost (when that 500-plus horsepower V-8 alone isn’t quite enough) and a pair of torque-vectoring motors on the front axle to get enthusiasts onboard with going green. Porsche claims its plug-in hybrid 918 Spyder is quicker around the Nurburgring Nordschleife than its Carrera GT forebear–just under 7:30.

And for even more extreme duty, the endurance-racing-optimized GT3 R Hybrid mounts a twin-electric-motor drive unit at the front axle, with each motor capable of delivering 80 horsepower to its wheel, with more going to the outside wheel in a turn (torque vectoring). But to enable these motors to recover a lot of braking energy very quickly–way more than it would be possible to feed into a chemical battery–the recovered energy is used to spin up a flywheel. Yes, Porsche is planning to put the flywheel energy storage device on the track. You’ll recall that Chrysler tried to power a LeMans prototype racer with a flywheel and met with disastrous results, but that was a very large flywheel storing many orders of magnitude more energy storage capacity. This one is compact (it fits on the passenger side floor), low mass, and spins at 40,000 rpm. Its mass is easily contained within its ribbed aluminum housing. And if something does go awry, the flywheel stops, and all energy is dissipated–this isn’t always the case with electric batteries. The Porsche system provides 6-8 seconds of E-Boost at a time. Porsche plans to run the car at the 24-hours of Nurburgring on May 15-16. We’ll be cheering for the flywheel.

Lotus Evora 414E Hybrid

Behold the hybrid, as conceived on the altar of lightweight. This Chevy-Volt-style series hybrid shaves mass by using a dedicated three-cylinder range-extending engine with an aluminum monoblock that integrates the block, head and exhaust manifold in one casting. The engine weighs just 187 pounds and runs on gasoline, ethanol, methanol, or any combination of the three.; Acceleration to 60 mph is claimed to take less than 4 seconds. Electric-only range is quoted at 35 miles, with hybrid range at 307. One of the coolest tech tricks here is the “HALOsonic” Internal and External Electronic Sound Synthesis system which offers four driver selectable engine sounds–a V-6, a V-12, a futuristic sound (think Tron bike) and a combination of the futuristic one overlaid on the conventional engine. The system, designed in conjunction with Harmon International, grew out of a noise-cancellation effort (which will also be employed to mask the monotone of the range-extender when it kicks in). Steering wheel paddles direct HALOsonic and the power controller to simulate the sound and feel of accelerating with a seven-speed twin-clutch. Using them during acceleration will blunt acceleration a bit (it has to taper torque slightly before each shift to give you the up-shift shove in the back), but it’s quite useful for providing precise control of the regenerative braking during deceleration.

Ferrari 599 Hy-KERS

This concept is still in its infancy. The show car was just completed and will commence dyno testing upon its return to Italy. According to Franco Cimatti, Concept Engineering Manager, the net weight increase of the hybrid system is 176 pounds, which shifts the weight bias by a welcome two-percent toward the rear. Only 44 pounds of that comes from the lithium-ion battery pack, which is divided into two one-inch thick aluminum-sheathed units packaged beneath the floor in openings cut in the underbody tray. They’re as smooth and flat as the aero tray, and the air cooling saves the mass of a battery cooling circuit. The batteries store 3 kWhrs, enough for about 10 km (6 miles) of Euro city-cycle range or 10-12 seconds of auxiliary thrust with the hammer down. The 80-kW (107-horsepower) electric motor powers the dual-clutch transmission’s odd-gear shaft, but by selecting neutral on the odd gears and closing the odd-gear clutch, it also powers the car when even gears are selected. (This works because Ferrari’s exceptionally robust triple-cone synchronizers can engage and disengage way quicker than most.) A separate motor in the front runs the accessories. Many other opportunities for weight savings and driving dynamic improvements may prove possible as development continues. For example:
Use the electric motor’s regenerative capabilities to rapidly slow the engine for faster gearshiftsUse the electric motor to smooth the resonance vibration peaks that naturally occur in the transmission during hard accelerationEliminate reverse gear and drive the car backward electrically
It remains to be seen how customers would react to a silently accelerating Ferrari, and Cimatti is opposed to adding weight for external speakers generating synthetic noise, but concedes that in-vehicle speakers could serenade the driver with faux V-12 music. It’s also unknown how one might jump-start the car if the entire battery system discharged (a voltage converter supplies 12 volts for ancillaries, and only a tiny 12-volt battery is used to power the radio preset memory and energize the car for startup). We’ll be keeping a close eye on Maranello’s hybrid efforts.;

Geneva 2010 Tech Highlights

 It seems as though every auto show for the past six or eight years has attempted to out-green the last one, but the 80th annual Geneva show featured more electric, hybrid, and fuel cell cars than I can ever remember seeing on one show floor. Not counting the boutique company stands, it was a struggle to find anybody in Geneva that wasn’t touting some manner of electric drive. The good news for us enthusiasts is that this technology is now being used for evil as well as good–if you consider using that electrification to boost performance as the evil side of green. Below are highlights of these and a few other technologies I encountered on the show floor.

2013 Subaru BRZ Limited: Believe (most of) the hype

Take a moment and mentally process all of the hype surrounding the launch of the 2013 Subaru BRZ. Go on, I'll wait. Now take that hype and dial it back to 80 percent. That's how good the Subaru BRZ is. It's not the second coming or the messiah for performance driving -- it's not perfect -- but it is quite good.

The B in BRZ should stand for "balanced" because that's exactly what Subaru's new rear drive coupe is. This car is all about balance with a near 50-50 weight distribution between its front and rear axles and a low center of gravity that is helped in part by its engine configuration, but is mostly due to the BRZ's purpose-built sports coupe design. This is no repurposed and hotted up econobox; it's a bona fide sports car.

It's also rather lightweight. Tipping the scales at 2,882 pounds in its heaviest BRZ Limited with six-speed automatic configuration (the heaviest setup the BRZ comes in), the BRZ is only 263 pounds heavier than a similarly equipped Mazda MX-5 Miata PRHT. Ditching the automatic gearbox in favor of one you shift yourself further closes that gap, but we'll come back to that in a moment. Even thought it is heavier, the BRZ has a slightly better power-to-weight ratio than the Mazda, only toting around 14.41 pounds per pony versus the Miata PRHT's 15.3 to 16.6 depending on configuration.

Speaking of power, the BRZ's comes from a 2.0-liter naturally aspirated four-cylinder engine that can be tucked low and far back in the engine bay, thanks to its horizontally opposed "boxer" configuration -- which is what the B in "Boxer Rear-drive Zenith" actually stands for. We've already gone into detail about how this Subaru engine makes use of a Toyota head that supposedly combines the best bits of port and direct injection tech. And many of you have gone into detail about your thoughts that its output of "only 200 horsepower" seems a bit low. We'll come back to that bit momentarily.

The Virtually New Infiniti M sedan

Infiniti wanted to reveal;its lower, wider, sleeker, more powerful, upcoming;2011 M Sedan during Pebble Beach weekend.; Just one problem: they didn’t have one yet.; Or at least, didn’t have a real one that they could show.; They have one or two well-detailed clay models.; And they’ve got some M test mules running around, but those still wear the old M bodywork.; The fix;that the Infiniti team;came up with is a clever one.

Pebble Beach 2009: The Cars of the Concours

So many cars, so little time: Here, in no particular order, are some of the cars — and motor cycles — that caught my eye on the lawn at Pebble Beach as they gathered for the Concours early Sunday morning. (Note: Captions at right correspond to the photos from the top)

2010 Beijing: Secret Machines

There were fewer copy cars at this year’s Beijing Show, though the badly out-of-focus Lexus RX 350 ripoff on the BYD stand lent credence to one cynic’s suggestion that the company’s name actually means “Borrow Your Designs.” The RX 350 was a popular choice among the knock-off merchants: The cheerful English-speaking chap on the Huanghai Auto stand assured me the crudely finished Landscape V3 prototype occupying center stage (pictured above) was “all ours” and “brand new,” even though from 50-feet away it looked like it had been made by Toyota. Never heard of Huanghai Auto? Neither had I. Apparently it’s in Liaoning Province, “just across the river from North Korea.” So now you know.

The fast-learning domestic Chinese automakers are beginning to understand they need to build cars that look like their own designs, even if they’re starting with somebody else’s cast-off tooling. So here’s this year’s Beijing Show party game: Spot the donor cars.

2011 Concours d’LeMons — The Antidote to the Overly Fabulous

California’s Monterey Peninsula is undoubtedly THE place for the seriously auto-addicted to gather on the third weekend of August, but after a few days, even the one-millionaires among us can start to feel mighty inadequate, watching the mega-millionaires coming and going in their Gulfstream jets and plying the highways in their Phantoms and Flying Spurs. Fortunately there is now a refuge available where even Thousandaires rolling rented Sebrings can walk smugly among the car-world’s hoi polloi feeling all superior ‘n stuff. The show field featured five Pintos (four wagons), three Pacers (two wagons), three Corvairs, an Edsel, a deLorean, and myriad other barely ambulatory automotive flotsam and jetsam. We’ve got highlights of the 2nd annual Concours d’LeMons.

Inside the Cadillac Ciel. A Vision We Hope Cadillac Executes. Do You?

“Every time Mercedes sells a $100,000 S-Class it’s a knife in Cadillac’s eye!” I slurred at Don Butler, Cadillac’s head of marketing. It was late night, after the launch of the Caddy CTS Coupe and we were — how to put this professionally — deep into our cups. Co-host of The Car Show Dan Neil and yours truly were (loudly) explaining to the boys from Cadillac that the new CTS Coupe is nice, but not enough. “I promise you!” Don pleaded with us. “I’m telling you guys. We’ve got something coming. Something special. I can’t say what it is, but it’s above the XTS. A flagship. I promise you.” Well, speaking for Dan and me, we had our doubts.

Well-founded doubts, of course. This is the same GM, after all, that has just emerged from federally-mandated bankruptcy. But more than that, this was Cadillac, and Cadillac can’t compete with the Germans. Not with Mercedes-Benz, not with the S-Class. Remember the movie Donnie Brasco? If you don’t, or if you’ve never seen it, the film starts with Lefty (Al Pacino) telling Nicky (Bruno Kirby) why Cadillacs are better than Lincolns. “Ain’t no comparison. Cadillac got more acceleration, more power, more better handling, better looking, more legroom for your legs, more power,” and on and on. After a bit, future boss Sonny Black (Michael Madsen) butts in and says, “What the @&%$ are you two talking about? Mercedes got it all over them.” And that scene’s set in 1978! Sonny’s view has held sway in the luxury car realm ever since.
Meet the new Cadillac Ciel concept and well Mr. Butler, you kept your promise. Knockout. Stunning. Homerun. Beauty. Triumph. Gorgeous. Those are just some of the words I heard used to describe the Ciel (pronounced see-elle, or CL) mere moments after Butler finished introducing Cadillac’s full-size, four-door convertible concept on top of the breathtaking Tehama golf course (owned by none other than Clint Eastwood, of course) in beautiful Carmel Valley, California. But what is the Ciel? Using as much background information as we (more correctly Todd Lassa) could gather, here’s what (we think) we know.

Ferrari GTO Familial Reunion: Chasing down Chassis No. 4219

I’ve done it. I’m in. My legs barely work and I can feel the column of sweat running down the length of my back because I’ve spent the past 30 minutes or so squatting behind a tire wall waiting for just the right moment. It arrives when the festivities begin and the guards in the tower behind the Shell station avert their eyes. I take my chance and walk with my arms crossed to cover my wrists and my chest so no one sees I lack all of the necessary credentials to be at the track.

The track is Fiorano and it’s June 24th, 2007, approximately 60 years after a man named Enzo founded one of the most recognized car companies in the world. I wander up the side of the track and mix with the “regular” crowd. This was no simple birthday bash as people in 599s and F40s were being turned away from the gates. They needed a pass. Not me. I situate myself just in time to see synchronized jets flying overhead right before Piero Ferrari rolls onto the famed Italian circuit in a one-off, factory built replica of the first car to bear his father’s name. Michael Schumacher passes by in an FXX and Kimi Raikkonen does donuts in his F1 car.
When the show dies down I wander off to find what else I wasn’t supposed to see. I stop to take a picture of an F50 parked neatly along the track and duck out of the way of a couple 430s. There’s a F40 here, a 275 GTB there, and finally I approach the 250s. They represent an era of Ferraris so special they command millions of dollars at auctions and adorn countless bedroom walls. There’s a pair of 250 GT SWBs so beautiful they made my heart hurt. But just past those two sits the best of all — a Ferrari 250 GTO.

Cadillac stretches out the DTS

Cadillac has announced that it will begin selling an extended version of its full-size DTS sedan, dubbed the DTS-L, early in 2007. The model will be making its debut at the upcoming Los Angeles auto show.
The DTS-L is 8-inches longer, overall and in wheelbase, than the regular DTS. Cadillac also equips the DTS-L with what it calls;”VIP privacy” rear seating, which results in the rear seat passengers being concealed behind the c-pillar. Like the regular DTS, it will be powered by the 275 hp 4.6-liter Northstar V8.
The photo here is of the regular DTS, but we’ll have photos of the DTS-L straight from the showroom floor during the show press days, Nov. 29-30.

Mustang goes Italian with special concept for LA show

concept making its world premiere this week at the Los Angeles auto show. Called the Mustang by Giugiaro, the vehicle is a styling exercise penned by famed design house and coachbuilder Italdesign – Giugiaro S.P.A. and tuned by Ford Racing technologies. Click to see more of the Mustang by Giugiaro in our Los Angeles Auto Show Coverage

Automotive icons such as the Mustang have long captured the attention of Fabrizio Giugiaro, Italdesign’s styling director. So in early 2005, when Giugiaro pitched his idea to work his magic on a Mustang with the help of his legendary father Giorgetto Giugairo, Ford group vice president, Design and chief creative officer J Mays was only too happy to oblige.

Mazda looks to Facebook users to help design 2018 Mazda3

Mazda has announced that;it will;tap Facebook users for help in designing the 2018 Mazda3.;Called the “Mazda Design Challenge,” aspiring designers from across the U.S.;are free to submit designs along with a 150-word description of why their future Mazda3 deserves to be brought to life.;The 2007 Mazda 3 is pictured at left.

Taking Peugeot’s Design Competition a step further, Mazda’s design team will sift through every electronic entry, searching for 10 semi-finalists. Over the course of a week, Mazda will put itself at the mercy of the Facebook community, letting users vote for the five finalists, each of whom will be paired with a Mazda designer to polish their designs.

Hyundai sports car concept among LA show world debuts

Among the 40+ vehicles, concept and production alike, that will be making their world or North American debuts next month at the Los Angeles Auto Show will be a new sports car concept from Hyundai, likely based on the Korean automaker’s new rear-drive architecture first seen in the upcoming Genesis sedan and likely the replacement for the Tiburon (pictured). Additionally, Nissan will;debut;the next-generation of;the Murano midsize crossover, and;Volkswagen will unveil;a new;variant of;its Up! minicar concept.

Last year’s;green;theme;will continue, with a repeat appearance of the Green Car of the Year Award and anticipated debuts of new hybrids and other environmentally-friendly vehicles.

The Los Angeles Auto Show has grown in importance since moving in 2006 from its previous January slot to November, thus becoming the first North American auto show of the season. As a result, it is becoming the site of more premieres, with Porsche going as far as not attending the Detroit Auto Show.

2009 Pontiac Vibe to make debut at LA auto show

GM has released the first official image of its 2009 Pontiac Vibe, which will make its world debut at the upcoming Los Angeles auto show in mid-November, a few weeks after its Toyota Matrix sibling will hit the stage at SEMA in Las Vegas.

Little is known at this point;about the all-new vehicle other than an all-wheel-drive model will return and the lineup will also;feature a performance-themed GT variant pictured here. The Vibe is expected to hit Pontiac dealer showrooms in early 2008. We’ll have more on the Vibe as it becomes available and will have the full story during our live coverage of the L.A. show.

What’s your initial take on the new Vibe’s look? With Pontiac moving toward rear-drive, does this vehicle even make sense for the brand moving forward? Let us know your thoughts.

Ford Mustang Bullitt to make official return at LA show

Ford has announced that its Mustang Bullitt;– made famous by the classic Steve McQueen movie;— will be returning;to the;automaker’s Pony Car;lineup in;2008 after making its public debut on November 13, presumably at a pre-Los Angeles Auto Show press event.

All that this promotional sketch reveals is that the car, which goes on sale early next year,;will be bathed in the famous Highland Green paint scheme;– as it should be. Stay tuned to Motortrend.com for more on the Mustang Bullitt and much more during the L.A. Auto Show press days, Nov. 14-15.

Subaru WILL debut US spec WRX STI at LA Auto Show

While the Japanese-market 2008 Subaru WRX STI has already made its world debut in Tokyo, we’re still waiting to see the U.S.-spec version – the one we’ll get stateside. But at least now we know when we’ll get our first glimpse.While we were in Las Vegas last week for SEMA, we spoke with a Subaru representative who confirmed that the 2008 WRX STI will in fact greet the world at this year’s LA Auto Show. As we reported earlier, the biggest change between the Japanese version and ours is in the engine bay. We’ll be getting a 2.5-liter horizontally-opposed four, while Japan’s STI makes do with a 2.0-liter unit of the same configuration. Expect a few trim changes too — we already know that the Japan-issue Recaro seats won’t be coming here – and of course, the steering wheel will be on the other side of the car.

2009 Pontiac Vibe breaks cover

GM spilled the beans on the 2009 Pontiac Vibe just days before its scheduled debut at the Los Angeles Auto Show. The restyled hatchback, err “small crossover,” will go on sale in the early months of 2008 in one of three trims — base, AWD, and GT (pictured).

Power for the base model will come in the form of a 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine that makes 132 horsepower and 128 lb-ft of torque. AWD and GT models will come with a 158 horsepower 162 lb-ft of torque 2.4-liter four which will be optional on Base models. AWD models will come only with a four-speed automatic, whereas Base and GT models will be available with a five-speed manual and a five-speed automatic with manual shift mode.

First undisguised shots of Hyundai Genesis Coupe!

From a “friend” of newtiburon.com member Anthony718 comes undisguised pics of the highly anticipated Hyundai Genesis Coupe. Posing next to a silver Ford Mustang GT, the Hyundai Coupe makes it difficult for us to understand how this is the same company responsible for the designs of the Sonata and Elantra sedans. Anthony718 says the pics were taken at a market research event in June.Anthony718 claims the base model will come with a 2.0-liter turbo churning out 215 horsepower and starting at $19,900 while a 3.8-liter V-6 with 300 horsepower will begin at $25,900, before dealer markups. No mention was made of the possible V-8 option, which may be introduced at a later date.
Features on the higher-end models will reportedly include iPod integration in the center console, Bluetooth, a sunroof, and a limited slip with Brembo brake upgrades possibly in the pipeline.
Despite a slightly confused set of character lines, the Hyundai Coupe, set to debut at next week’s Los Angeles Auto Show, looks like a solid entry in the RWD sports coupe segment, and we eagerly await a chance to look it over and test it out.
Keep checking Motortrend.com for all the updates on upcoming L.A. Auto Show debuts.

2018 Mazda3 design competition winner featured at LA show

Mallory McMorrow has been chosen as the winner of Mazda’s 2018 Mazda3 concept design competition, where contest entrants submitted a 150-word description and optional sketch of their view of the future vehicle.

Mazda designers and members of the Facebook online community voted on the entries, with McMorrow’s design coming out on top. The concept will first be shown as a scale model at this week’s L.A. Auto Show, with a full-size version to be unveiled on Saturday. McMorrow worked with Mazda designer Jacques Flynn to get the concept sketch ready for primetime, and will;team up;with Franz von Holzhausen, Mazda’s U.S. design chief, on the final full-scale version.

Von Holzhausen and his design team will be sculpting the model live on the show floor at Mazda’s booth while spectators watch. McMorrow, dubbed the "Car Girl" by aquaintences at the University of Notre Dame where she is an Industrial Design major, is finishing her degree with aspirations to break into the automotive design industry.

 We’ve got a feeling that this is a big step in the right direction for McMorrow. We will be bringing you photos of her work live from the L.A. Auto Show floor this week. For more background on Mazda’s 2018 Mazda3 design competition.

GM showing 2009 Chevrolet Silverado Hybrid at LA auto show

 GM has announced the Chevrolet Silverado Hybrid will make a return to the market with two-mode technology, paired with the same 6.0-liter gasoline engine as in the Chevrolet Tahoe, GMC Yukon, and Cadillac Escalade Hybrid;models, which;produces 332 horspower and 367 lb-ft of torque.

Previously offered was;mild hybrid version of the Silverado that also featured a portable generator with four electrical outlets, but the sort-of hybrid was ultimately discontinued due to limited fuel savings that generated limited interest.

GM says a 25 percent improvement in overall fuel economy can be expected over the standard non-hybrid Silverado, with gains of up to 40 percent in city driving. As with all GM two-mode hybrids, electric-only operation is possible up to 30 mph, and both Active Fuel Management and late-intake valve closing technologies are incorporated. With its 26-gallon tank and all the fuel-saving technology on board, GM claims the Silverado Hybrid has a 500-mile range.

Silverado Hybrid models will be available in the Crew Cab body style with two-or four-wheel drive. The Silverado “Pure Pickup” trim will be standard, including StabiliTrak stability control, a locking rear axle, and a trailering package. Sales for the 2009 Chevrolet Silverado Hybrid will begin in late 2008, though pricing has not yet been announced.

GM announces pricing for Chevy Tahoe, GMC Yukon hybrids

General Motors;has announced that;its 2008 Chevrolet;Tahoe Hybrid will start at $50,490 for a 2WD model and $53,295 for a 4WD model, while a 2WD GMC Yukon Hybrid starts at $50,945 and the 4WD model at $53,755. All prices include the $900 destination charge. For comparison, a non-hybrid 2WD Chevrolet Tahoe LTZ starts at $45,680 and comes fully equipped for about $52,500. Even before factoring in the federal tax credit the IRS will likely approve, the heavy hybrids seem like quite a $50,000 deal.

The 2WD hybrids get the same city fuel economy as a four-cylinder 2008 Toyota Camry, can tow 6200 pounds, and can seat eight –;although certainly not all at the same time.

US pricing for Nissan GT R to start at $69,850

The launch of Nissan’s GT-R has arguably been the biggest and most explosive automotive debut of the year. Despite its world reveal already at the 2007 Tokyo Motor Show and multiple stories, embargo breaks (we know, we know, we goofed) and other madness surrounding the vehicle, there was still a ton of interest generated at the vehicle’s U.S. coming out party today at the LA auto show.

As in Tokyo, Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn introduced the car, this time a left-hand drive version, and made a couple of announcements surrounding the impending U.S. launch of the automaker’s distinctly Japanese AWD supercar packing 480 horsepower from its twin-turbocharged 3.8-liter V-6.

Pricing for U.S.-spec models will start just under 70 grand at $69,850, which is right in the ballpark with the Chevrolet Corvette Z06. Expect to pay a few grand more for the car’s premium package.

Pre-orders for the vehicle will begin in January, with first deliveries expected in June, so we suggest you head down to your Nissan dealer if you haven’t already and start bribing them now.

The Beat goes on at GM, but not in the US yet

GM announced today at the LA Auto Show that it will, in fact, send its Beat concept into production, but not stateside — at least initially. Originally one of three sub-compact car concepts to be shown as a group at various auto shows earlier this year, the Beat was featured in an online poll in which over 1.8 million voters chose it as their favorite of the concept trio over the Groove and Trax.

Development of the Chevrolet Beat occurred mostly in GM’s South Korean styling department, leading to the decision to begin production in the same location. While specifics have not yet been given on GM’s choice of powerplant for the production Beat, we’re guessing it will be a small-displacement gasoline unit, at least to start.

No doubt, the General is nervous that such a small city-car might not catch on in North America, but the success of upcoming models such as the Smart ForTwo, should give it a basis on which to make the decision to bring the Beat to our shores. The Beat is slated for a global showroom debut in mid-2009.

Vector WX 8 shows its face at LA Auto Show

 We found the Vector display in the pathway just outside of the main Concours Hall at the 2007 LA Auto Show, separated from the likes of Ferrari, Aston Martin, Lamborghini, Lotus, and Spyker. Guess them’s the breaks when your claimed 10.0-liter, 1,850 horsepower, 275 mph supercar isn’t quite ready for primetime.

 Nonetheless, the Vector WX-8 prototype did its best to impress, wearing matte-black paint, matching wheels, and menacing bodywork. An all-aluminum V-8 was fitted with a Whipple supercharger and longitudinally-mounted in the engine bay, though few ancillary components were attached. The interior looked rather, um, unfinished and we couldn’t identify which of the switches really were sourced from the F-22 Raptor fighter jet, as there weren’t many to be seen.

With a claimed 0 to 60 run in "under three seconds," we’ll be looking forward to seeing what more develops from Vector founder Jerry Wiegart’s latest creation. Until then, it looks like this one’s got more than a little bit;of development ahead of it before it is really able to target the Bugatti Veyron, one of the supercars it has set in its sights.

Subaru prices 2008 Subaru Impreza WRX STI at $34,995

Subaru has announced pricing and final specifications for its North American version of the 2008 Impreza WRX STI — its flagship performance model. The rally-derived STI will start at $34,995 plus a $645 destination fee in the U.S. with 305 horsepower and 290 lb-ft of torque being churned out of its 2.5-liter horizontally-opposed four-banger. Subaru claims its all-wheel-drive road rocket will make the 0-to-60 mph sprint in just 4.9 seconds. A six-speed manual transmission is the only available option.

Stateside Subie fans have been eagerly awaiting the specifics on the new WRX STI following the Japan debut of the global 2.0-liter variant, which produces 10 fewer horses, but nine more lb-ft of torque than our version does. Still, it seems that the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X will have a fair fight on its hands when both cars make their upcoming retail launches for the new year. The 2008 Subaru Impreza WRX STI will hit showrooms in January.

LA Auto Show Day 1: The Sky Is Falling, but at Least Its Green

 Two recurring themes were rolling off the lips of seemingly every auto exec during Day One of the 2008 L.A. auto show: the bleak state of global auto industry, along with a steady stream of commitments to building greener cars.

Carlos Ghosn, Nissan/Renault CEO got the ball rolling with his version of the day’s bad-news/green-news approach during his breakfast address to us journalists. In it, Ghosn touched on the Nissan’s position the global economic crisis. To paraphrase, it sounded something like “yes the economy sucks right now, but people will always drive cars, so in the meantime we’ll continue to build cool ones like the new Z, Cube, and GT-R.”

As for the green news, Ghosn talked up Nissan’s alternative fuel strategy and announced a new electric vehicle partnership with the state of Oregon. The lack of detail provided suggests this might be more hand waving than sky clearing, but we’ll see.

But one thing he was pretty clear about, however, was this tidbit about the future of the automobile: “The end-game is zero emissions.”

More substantial treats were left to the Nissan press conference immediately following Ghosn’s remarks. There, Nissan’s global-design chief Shiro Nakamura introduced the funky Cube.

There were humorous bits in the presentation — comparing the Cube to a “bulldog in sunglasses” and descriptions of the Scion fighter as “witty, fun, yet totally square,” but overall I had a distinct feeling of deja vu.; It was a page right out of Scion’s playbook, which isn’t surprising given the market Nissan’s targeting.