Mazda will reveal a new diesel engine for the new Mazda 6 at the Paris show in September 2008. Contrary to what could be thought, the new 2.2 litre turbo diesel with 175 bhp, has no parentage with the 2.2 Ford-PSA which debuted as the Ford Mondeo Titanium S in Geneva.

It derives from the current 2-litre 140 bhp and will be paired with a manual, six-speed gear box. The recent development has meant the possible Mazda 6 MPS petrol turbo has been temporarily put on standby, though it is hoped the debut has been postponed and not cancelled.

Via | Autocar.co.uk

Continue reading: Mazda 6: a 2.2 diesel 175 horsepower on its way

Audi will be showing the new R8 TDI Le Mans in Geneva: it’s another study with the 6.0 V12 TDI engine (500 ps/1,000 Nm), but this time it seems ready for production and this seems to be the assumption underlying the press release.

The red color is a much bolder choice compared to the silvers and arctic whites seen up to now on R8 show cars, almost as bold a statement as the Le Mans name, there to underline the victories in Le Mans of the R10 TDI in 2006 and 2007.

Below you can find the full text of the press release, with all available details on the “diesel supercar” from Ingolstadt (4.2 s from 0-100 km/h, more than 300 km/h the top speed).

Continue reading: Geneva 2008 - Audi R8 TDI Le Mans

Five more images of the new Volkswagen Scirocco have leaked before the official presentation, including a couple of photos of the interior.

As you can expect, the cockpit is very similar to the Golf’s. The sporty seats are pretty nice and appear to be new (and probably optional…).

For now we only know that there will be 4 engines available, both TSI (turbocharged petrol) and TDI (turbocharged diesel), starting from the 1.4 TSI (122 ps) up to the 2.0 TSI (200 ps, in the photos).

More information will be available after the official presentation, which will happen in a pre-show event in Geneva on march 3rd.

Continue reading: Volkswagen Scirocco 2009 - 5 more images

Some images of the new Volkswagen Scirocco have surfaced today in Internet forums. The general proportions appear little changed from the Iroc concept, while the front has changed significantly: a thin radiator grille, not chromed and completely different from current VW grilles, with a wide air intake under the front bumber (see the detail in the enlarged first image of the gallery).

The new Scirocco seems a nice and sleek little coupè, but the white paint can’t help but underline the similarities with the Golf, with which it shares the mechanical underpinnings.

Via | Autoblog.com

Continue reading: Volkswagen Scirocco - first "official" images

The new Volkswagen Scirocco will debut next week in Geneva 34 years after the first generation Scirocco. The new coupè, based on the Golf platform, will be quite a bit bigger than the original, with space inside for 4 adults.

Initially the engine range will include four TDI and TSI engines ranging from 122 ps (presumably the 1.4 TSI) to 200 ps (probably the 2.0 TSI). The Scirocco will also include new technologies such as an adaptive chassis control system.

Continue reading: Volkswagen in Geneva: the new Scirocco is coming

GM has officially announced the Opel/Vauxhall Meriva Concept that will be shown in Geneva next week.

The Meriva concept is a very different beast from the current Meriva, with its FlexDoors system (rear hinged doors). According to GM, the b-pillars “have been retained for passive security reasons”, a phrase that seems to point to a production-ready car.

Continue reading: Opel Meriva Concept - the official announcement

Some photos of the Opel Meriva Concept surfaced today. The small MPV features rear-hinged rear doors that can open to a 90° degree angle. If you put together the presence of the b-pillars and the sober interiors, the Meriva Concept looks pretty much ready for production.

Via | Carscoop

Continue reading: Opel Meriva Concept - official images

A year after the unveiling of the GranTurismo, Maserati will be back at the Geneva International Motorshow with yet another world premiere, the GranTurismo S. The ultimate expression of the Trident coupé’s sportiness shifts the emphasis to performance and driving enjoyment.

Two main novelties are at the heart of the new Maserati: the 440 HP V8 4.7 engine and the electro-actuated gearbox with fast MC-Shift arranged in the Transaxle layout typical of high-performance sports cars that represents the technological DNA of all Maseratis.

The GranTurismo S makes use of the high-performance brake system developed in collaboration with Brembo and introduced for the first time in the automotive field on the Maserati Quattroporte Sport GT S. The system features front brake discs made with dual-cast technology, a dual casting of cast iron and aluminum, paired with aluminum mono-bloc 6-piston brake calipers, ensuring optimized braking performance.

Maserati GranTurismo S

Continue reading: Maserati presents the GranTurismo S

Auto Express has two images of the new Maserati Granturismo S. In one of the two photos we can finally see the sexy rear of this new Maserati, with its big exhaust tubes. A must see in Geneva. As soon as we get non-watermarked photos we’ll update the image gallery.

Via | Auto Express

Continue reading: Maserati GranTurismo S - new images

In response to everyone that criticized the Granturismo as too “turismo” and not enugh sportivity, Maserati will be showing in Geneva the Granturismo S: the engine is a 4.7 litre V8 with 440 ps (probably little changed from the same engine of the Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione), electro-actuated
Mc-Shift gearbox with a transaxle disposition, new Brembo dual-cast brakes (a mix of cast-iron and aluminium) with 6-pot calibers.

Outside and inside the changes should be discreet, just small retouches to underline the sportier character of the Granturismo S.

Via Corriere Motori, print edition

Update: thanks to Auto Express, we have two more images:

Continue reading: Geneva 2008 - Maserati Granturismo S

Volkswagen has opened an official mini-site for the new Scirocco. This should mean that the small coupè, based on the Golf platform, will be officialy presented at the Geneva auto show.

The mini-site only shows us some teasers on the new Scirocco: an alloy rim with a new design, a curved glass surface, the headlights and the 2.0 TSI logo, which means a 2.0 litre turbo-charged engine with direct gasoline injection, the probably the same unit seen on the Tiguan, which will be flanked by other TSI and TDI units. More details should come out in the next few weeks. Sales will probably start in the second half of 2008.

Continue reading: VW Scirocco 2008 mini-site

BMW will be showing in Geneva their BMW Vision EfficientDynamic, a concept car based on the BMW X5 with a novel hybrid propulsion system based on the recent 2.0 litre Variable Twin Turbo diesel engine.

The diesel engine outputs 204 ps / 400 Nm, while the electric engine contributes a maximum of 15 kW of power and a torque of 210 Nm, which makes it possibile to accelerate from 0-100 km/h (0-62 mph) in 8,9 seconds, with an average fuel consumption of just 6.5 litres/100 km on the EU test cycle.

The generator used in the brake energy regeneration system is directly integrated in the gearbox housing and feeds a lithium-ion battery housed in the luggage compartment. Most vehicle functions are powered electrically and the Auto Start/Stop function should act seamlessy to avoid needless idling. There is also a 1 square meter solar cell on the roof which generates up to one kilowatt.

Continue reading: Geneva 2008 - BMW X5 hybrid concept