In case relative and superlative adjectives aren’t enough to describe the exquisite Corvette ZR1, Tadge Juechter, project manager, has an interview with Edmunds in which he summarises all its values and characteristics, and adds a some news.

First the new American coupé will be produced (starting this summer) in 2,000 units a year: a figure which, together with the price of about 100,000 USD, indicates an assumed commercial success. But not only, the ability to “conquer the track record of any world circuit” reveals itself and we wonder if the ZR 1 could be defined as the perfect car.

Continue reading: Corvette ZR1: will 2000 units a year be enough?

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Looking to reduce consumption and emissions without compromising sportiness - actually looking to increase it - is the new strategy for AMG to limit the environmental impact of its vehicles. The strategy will include the use of turbo and hybrid engines, technical solutions that can’t be left aside in reaching a balanced compromise between performance and savings.

The current V8 6.3 is counting its days: it will be replaced by another V8, 5.8 litre, turbo-compressed and able, in the quieter version, to perform at 570 hp (for 904 Nm of torque), or at 700 hp (1,200 Nm) in the version destined to replace the V12 6.0 twin-turbo.

In addition, the German workshop is reported to have collaborated with Mercedes in the design of a family of V8’s, all turbo, destined to flesh out the top end of the range: with 4.0, 4.6 and 5.5 litres, they’ll have power between 355 and 544 hp.

Speculation on the hybrid is not lacking either, with 2012 indicated as the debut year for the engines proposed by Amg. In the meantime, to kill time, the possibility of adopting an X-Trac Flybrid engine at 100hp is being evaluated.

Via | Autoblog.com

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Mini is resuming production of the John Cooper Works-tuned Mini, both in the hatch and Clubman version.

The engine of the new John Cooper Works Mini will be the 1.6-litre turbo-charged 4 cylinder unit, tuned to produce 211 ps and a torque of 260 Nm (temporarily boostable to 280 Nm). The sprint from 0-100 km/h (0-62 mph) will take only 6.5 seconds. The modifications are extensive (details in the press release below) and include a bigger turbocharger with a higher charge pressure. As an added bonus, the JCW Mini will be the first to comply with the Euro5 emission regulations.

Sales of the Mini John Cooper Works and Mini John Cooper Works Clubman will start in July 2008. Prices are yet to be announced.

Continue reading: Mini John Cooper Works

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Spring is drawing near, and Novitec are preparing for the arrival of a new sister for the F430 Coupé: enter the Novitec F430 Spider powered by the same twin supercharged V8 as the Novitec Bi-Compressor Evoluzione. Thanks to the two superchargers which work at 0.38 Bar, the power output will increase the original 490 hp to a whopping 656 hp, achieved at 8200 rpm, however it is not simply the mechanics that have undergone changes. Following tests in the wind tunnels of the Research Institute for Motor Vehicles in Stuttgart, Novitec has developed new aerodynamic additions to the body comprising front and rear wings, skirts for the side panels and a rear extractor. Other changes include grey tinted lights and a body that sits on 20” rims adopted for this version, both of which are relatively small modifications to a creature from the Maranello dream factory, already magnificent in its original state.

Continue reading: Novitec F430 Spider

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Mini will be showing the John Cooper Works version of the R56 next week in Geneva. galleria di immagini.

The new JCW kit will add 17 ps to power output of the Cooper S engine, for a total of 192 ps- Torque will go up 10 Nm, to 250 Nm, available from 1,750 to 5,000 rpm. The overboost function will make 270 Nm available for a short period, on demand, in the range from 1,750 to 4,500 rpm.

Performance date have not yet been announced, but we know that the price of the kit, which can be installed on any R56 Cooper S, will be 1,689 € in Germany. Obviously, there’ll be a whole range of optional accessories, from the sport chassis to sport seats, to alloy rims, aero-kit and perforated brake discs. Full details below the fold, where you can find the official press release and other images.

Continue reading: Mini John Cooper Works R56

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The Abarth scorpion finally returns, with a standalone brand. The in-house Fiat tuner will be showing in Geneva the Abarth Grande Punto, a sporty version of the small hatchback from Turin, equipped with a 1.4-liter T-JET turbocharged engine outputting 155 ps, while a further tuning kit will take it up to 180 ps.

Abarth has also announced the return of the Abarth Kits, a series of conversion kits for Fiat cars, some of which will be available in the classical Abarth wooden boxes with aluminium trim.

Continue reading: The Abarth Grande Punto

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The Shelby Cobra 427 might be the queen of replicas. But what happens if a german firm decides it wants to build the “ultimate version ?”

What happens is the Weineck Cobra 780CUI Limited Edition.

780 cui (cubic inches) mean 12,9 liters of capacity, for this monstruos V8 engine. Torque is 1.760 Nm at 5,600 rpm. Power output is 1,100 hp at 7,000 rpm. The power to weight ratio is 0,9 Kg / hp.

Weinbeck doesn’t even bother declaring acceleration data from 0-100 km/h. From 0-200 km/h the Ultimate takes only 4.9 seconds, from 0-300 km/h it takes only 10 s !!!

Interested ? Better hurry: “Limited Edition” means only 15 will be produced.

Continue reading: Weineck Cobra 780CUI Limited Edition

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The new Mercedes Benz S-Class is fresh out, and tuners have already unleashed their (sick ?) fantasies on the car. As usual, the “over the top” prize is won by Brabus: their S600 is pretty sober on the exterior, but under the hood things change. The 6.0 liters V12’s capacity is increased and bigger turbos are applied, to extract 730 hp (original: 517 hp), while torque is an asphalt curdling 1.100 Nm (electronically limited). As for performance: 0-62 mph in 4,0 seconds while top speed is 211 mph (limited too). All details on eMercedesBenz.

In relation to the Brabus tuning, the 435 hp of the CK50 by Carlsson is pretty niggardly, while Lorinser (in the photo) and Asma limit themselves to estetics/aerodynamics.

[Via Autoblog.nl]

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