Welcome to the Family!

2012 Land Rover Range Rover Evoque 5-door Dynamic

So, today I stopped by Ray Catena Land Rover where they were throwing a big welcoming party for the newest member of the Range Rover family: the Evoque. When I first heard of it, I thought, "Well this car can't be an addition to the Range Rover line. It's small and there's no 5.0-liter V8 under the bonnet." After receiving a tour of the car from one of the people who helped design the Rover Evoque who came all the way from Northern England, I've finally realized why it doesn't need a V8. It has enough power as it is. All Evoques, Coupe or 5-door, are powered by a 2.0-liter EcoBoost turbo-4 engine producing 240 horsepower, about as much as the Acura RDX. Don't think for minute that this is a terribly slow car. It will do 0 to 60 in 7.1 seconds. That's 0.1 second faster than the standard HSE Range Rover/Range Rover Sport. It's also more fuel efficient than the big Rovers with an EPA estimated 28 MPG. It's also the cheapest of the big Rovers with prices starting at a reasonable $43,000. With that, you get Satellite Navigation, Bluetooth, iPod/USB docking, comfortable leather seats, a 380 to 825 watt Meridian 11 speaker sound system with subwoofer (get ready DJs!), and a full panoramic roof. The Evoque comes in 3 flavors: Pure if you want something basic, Prestige if you're looking for a little more umph in your physical presence, and Dynamic if you're just seeking to wow the crowd. I'd go with Dynamic since it's the best looking. Another brilliant option that's been on the big Rovers for some time: surround camera system. I got my first glimpse of it while sitting in the Dynamic Evoque Coupe. Basically, there are 5 cameras all around the car: 2 on the front bumper, one on each side mirror, and the traditional reversing camera. So, in the main menu of your center console, you can pull these cameras up to see the world around you. It's like directing a film without the overly expensive equipment. Simply fantastic! So, there we are; the newest addition to the Range Rover family looks and is equipped brilliantly. The remaining question: does it drive like a Range Rover? I'll find that out later. Stay tuned!

Mini Gets Smaller?

2012 Mini Cooper Coupe

Say hello to the newest creation out of the skunkworks at BMW: the all-new Mini Cooper Coupe. Sounds strange, doesn't it? You would imagine that the current Cooper was already a Coupe, hence it's name Cooper, but now, it seems like it's not the case. It still has the face of the Cooper, the Go-Kart like handling of the Cooper, it even comes in three Cooper-like flavors: Cooper Coupe, Cooper S Coupe, and John Cooper Works Coupe, shown here. All flavors are paired with a 6-speed manual, with a 6-speed automatic option for the Cooper Coupe and Cooper S Coupe. As for power, the Cooper Coupe gets a 1.6-liter 121 horsepower inline-4 engine. This will help it do 0 to 60 in 8.3 seconds and hit a top speed of 127 MPH. According to EU standard, the entry-level Coupe will do 44 MPG, but that's the EU standard. The EPA estimates aren't in yet. Moving on up, you get the Cooper S Coupe which gets a more powerful 1.6-liter twin-scroll turbo-4 engine producing 181 horsepower. It will do 0 to 60 in 6.5 seconds and hit a top speed of 142 MPH. If that's not enough for you, then maybe Mr. John Cooper will help with his JCW Coupe. This one receives the same twin-scroll turbo-4 engine as the Cooper S Coupe, but it has been tuned from 181 to 208 horsepower. 0 to 60 is now done in 6.1 seconds up to a top speed of 149 MPH. As for the design, it looks sort of weird. You would imagine that because of the small roof, it would be a convertible, but unfortunately, it isn't. That roof doesn't go anywhere. The only thing on his car that does go somewhere is a small hidden spoiler located near the boot. That goes up when you reach speeds over 50 MPH and comes down when doing less than 37 MPH. But anyway, if you've been craving for this car to come to life, here it is. It hits the showrooms very soon.

Happy 35!

2012 VW Golf GTI Edition 35

It was on this day, 35 years ago, that the best compact car ever created was born: the Golf GTI. Today is its 35th birthday, and VW has decided to celebrate it by giving the current GTI a 35th anniversary overhaul. What's included? How about some restyled leather seats with the number 35 on them. Included in this exclusive package is a new front bumper, a new interior trim, some exclusive rims, and, finally, a much more powerful 232 horsepower 2.0-liter turbo-4 engine. Pre-orders start this Thursday at €30,425 in Germany. So far, there's no word on this car coming to the U.S., but I hope it does. I think we could go far a much more powerful GTI. But in the mean time, happy birthday Golf GTI!

The Super Cat

2011 Jaguar C-X75

Remember when Clarkson and the gang had this car over at the Top Gear studio? He said Jaguar wasn't going to bring this car to production. Well, today it turns out, he was wrong. With the help of the AT&T Williams F1 team, Jaguar will be bringing 250 C-X75s to production, each costing £700,000 ($1.149 Million). Williams will help with aerodynamics by perfecting the car's all-composite body, while Jaguar will deal with the motors and the engine. Let's not forget that when this car comes out, it will be the most powerful electric car/hybrid on earth with 780 horsepower's worth of electric motors (195 at each wheel) and a powerful turbo-4 engine. No information has been received on when the car will be produced, but this is good news for those who want to save and gas and be fast at the same time. 

Das Rally

2012 VW Polo R WRC

It seems that we have new competition entering WRC this season as VW have pulled back the covers on their rally racer. Say hello to the VW Polo R WRC. In order to meet WRC requirements, VW fitted the rally car with 1.6-liter TSI Turbo-4 engine producing 300 horsepower, a racing all-wheel drive system, a new aerodynamic kit, and sport-tuned suspension. You'll see this car do some rally action in 2013 with Mini, Ford, and Citroën. VW's already anticipating some wins. Let's hope they do gather some.

The New Generation of 3

2012 BMW 3-Series F30 (Courtesy of BIMMERPOST)

It looks like the BMW 3-Series is gonna get a serious makeover for 2012, following the lines of its big brothers, the 5 and the 7. As you can see, it has taken a much more aggressive look, but still flaunting that entry-level, sporty BMW style. As for power, there are two engines in store for the new 3. First up, for the 328i is BMW's new 240 horsepower TwinPower Turbo-4 engine used on the new X1 xDrive28i and the new Z4 sDrive28i. Next, for the 335i, or the possible 340i, there is the standard 3.0-liter 300 - 320 horsepower TwinPower Turbocharged Inline-6 engine. As for now, the F30 is still a work in progress, but BMW has told me that they'll be announcing the car this November in London, in connection with the 2012 Summer Olympics. The car will then make its official debut next year at Geneva with sales starting up soon after that. Oh, and don't worry coupe fans! The F32 is scheduled for release in 2013 along with the all-new M3. Stay tuned for that!

Turbo-4 Greatness

2011 BMW Z4 sDrive30i

Lately, people have started to enjoy those turbocharged 4-cylinder speedsters like the Golf GTI, the Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X, and even the new Beetle Turbo. So, BMW wanted to give their turbo-4 engine another chance. What you're looking at here is the Z4 sDrive30i, but coming later this year, BMW will release the Z4 sDrive28i which will feature BMW's new 2.0-liter 240 horsepower turbo-4 engine, making the Z4 the first 4-cylinder roadster in a while. This new turbo-4 engine is quite powerful. It's actually more powerful than their standard 3.0-liter V6. What BMW is trying to achieve is an engine that's as exciting as a V6, but is as fuel efficient as a I-4. This will probably work for BMW since gas prices are rising due to trouble in the middle east and people are trying to dim down on emissions.

Beetle Mania!

2012 VW Beetle (New York)

It seems the new Bug has already made its way to the Big Apple. Today, VW officially revealed the all-new VW Beetle today in New York. A lot of Beetle fans turned up to look at the new Bug as it was presented by Klaus Bischoff, VW's head of design.

"We took the current Beetle and threw everything about it out the window and had the original Beetle in the studio when we started redesign in 2007" - Klaus Bischoff, VW's head of Design

It turns out a lot of people like the new Beetle. There were some people who said, "it doesn't look like a Beetle anymore." Yeah, that's what they said about the last one. But anyway, VW showed off two models of the Beetle, the standard model and the Turbo. It looks like the Turbo will carry VW's 2.0-liter 200 horsepower turbo-4 engine. And since it's a small car, expect it to be quite quick. VW's Global Marketing Director, Luca de Meo, says that thanks to the Beetle's new XDS electric front differential, it's more nimble and agile, it's like driving Herbie or a mosquito.

"the fact that the 200-horsepower turbocharged motor makes this a 'toy for a boy'; and the Fender audio that includes some first-time features such as the Panasonic technology in the tweeters." - Luca de Meo, VW Global Marketing Director

Basically what VW is trying to do is make the Beetle less feminine as it was back in Y2K. Of course, women may love it, but for men who love power, like I do, they hope that the new Beetle has enough to please them.

"We want to make a statement without making compromises, to get out of niche and into core demand in many markets, not just the States."- Luca de Meo, VW Global Marketing Director

So, all-in-all, the Beetle looks like it's one for the masses: a revolution of something that was ugly into something more streamlined. In my opinion, it looks like a bubbly Golf. There is some Golf-ness in this car that some people can't see. I'll take it for a test drive this fall. Top Gear so far says it's not half bad. The sporty styling they think is actually much better and the interior is top notch. I think Clarkson & Hammond have the deciding vote on this one. The all-new Beetle will come out this fall at a pretty decent price.

Black Betty

2012 VW Beetle

Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you the all-new 2012 VW Beetle. All those Oprah fans who received a key to one last year, well done. This car looks much better than the horrid trash created years ago, and even before that. What's strange is that VW say the design of this car was based on the original ugly Beetle. I do see some of that, but more of that awesome Ragster Concept a couple years back with the longer roof line and the aggressive windshield. Anyway, on to the car now. It's longer and wider than the old trash they've created. It features some Golf and Scirocco stylings so it is best believed that the car may be using a Golf chassis. There are new headlights with LED Daytime running lamps. Around the back, you'll see that this car has definitely gone through a serious makeover as it features new taillamps, a new spoiler, and an aggressive pair of exhausts, one on each side of the bumper.

Rear View

Inside, you'll find seating for four and some new amenities such as leather seats, navigation, an adaptive stereo system; they've even put in some carbon fiber on the dash for some models to make it a bit more aggressive. Not to mention, I'm delighted to say that they've removed the ugly flower that was standard on that last old trash that they had. No one needed that thing. Even men who bought one felt unmanly with that ugly flower on the steering wheel. Anyway, as far as power goes, VW has promised four engines for the Beetle, with three of them possibly coming over here. First, there's a 1.2-liter 104 horsepower inline-4 engine. Moving on up, there's the 1.4-liter 148 horsepower i-4 engine, the 1.6-liter 104 horsepower Blue Motion turbodiesel engine, and, you'll be excited to here, a 2.0-liter 200 horsepower turbo-4 engine like in the Golf GTI. All engines will be mated with either a 6-speed manual or 6-speed DSG transmission. The spoiler comes only with the TSI models (147 horsepower - 200 horsepower). Prices have not been announced yet, but soon will be as this car is set arrive here this fall. But, before it does, you'll be able to see it in person at the Shanghai Motor Show and New York International Auto Show this week, so I'll have some live pictures of this car for you this weekend.

Malibu Express

2013 Chevy Malibu

The Chevy Malibu wasn't always the best looking midsize sedan out there, but Chevy's done some tweaking and now, I think it looks great. This is just a leaked photo from GM. The real thing will be unveiled on Chevy's Facebook page tonight at 8:30 p.m., with its live debut happening at the Shanghai Motor Show this week. Chevy's only putting four-cylinder engines into this thing so expect either a 2.4-liter inline-4 or a 2.0-liter turbo-4 to come in the near future. As for now, this is Chevy, once again getting under the Toyota Camry's nose, and possibly licking it. Gross, but it's somewhat true.