AUTHENTIC CARS

The Renault Talisman sedan has been revealed and it will go on sale internationally in 2016. The Talisman is a replacement of the Laguna sedan that is sold by the French carmaker sells in some international markets. Of the car being badged Talisman, Renault has said that it “conjures up notions of both protection and power. At the same time, Talisman is an easy word to pronounce and understand the world over.” Design cues at the front are similar to the new Renault Megane, which is also set to arrive overseas in 2016. The overall stance and silhouette of the Talisman bears semblance to that of traditional sedans. It gets a choice of two petrol and three diesel engines. These include a 108bhp 1.4-litre diesel engine paired with the six-speed manual gearbox, which Renault claims is the most efficient of the range. The carmaker also confirmed that the new car will come with 4Control – an AWD system, and active dampers, which allow the driver to switch between Comfort, Spor...

Toyota will unveil the next-gen Fortuner for the first time in Thailand on July 17, 2015. The all-new Fortuner is also likely to be showcased in India at the upcoming Auto Expo 2016 in February.  The new Fortuner had an early reveal a few months ago, thanks to the photos leaked on the internet.  The design language of the next-gen Fortuner is now more in line with the current crop of Toyota off-roaders offered globally. Its overall profile still carries the signature rugged Toyota SUV look. For the first time, the SUV’s front styling will not be like the Hilux pickup truck’s (sold internationally). However, most of the basic underpinnings are shared. The new Fortuner’s front is likely to benefit from the new V-shaped twin-slat grille and Camry-like wraparound headlamps with projector units. The front bumper gets a broad chin which merges with the grille, and at the corners sit vertical LED daytime running lamps along with round fog lamps. For some markets, the...

It’s been 12 months since we first broke the news of Nissan’s plans to introduce the GT-R in India, but it’s only now that the Japanese automaker has finally given the green light for the launch of its iconic sports car, which is expected in showrooms by the end of this year.   The delay in launching the GT-R was largely due to the challenge in setting up a service infrastructure to maintain this sophisticated, four-wheel-drive machine which, like all supercars today, needs high-octane fuel to run optimally. Built to fine tolerances and with extreme precision, there are only four engineers in the world who are allowed to hand-assemble the GT-R’s twin-turbo 3.8-litre V6 engine.   “It is easy to launch a car, but what’s the point if we cannot offer after-sales support after we sold a car that would cost about Rs 2 crore," said Guillaume Sicard, president of operations, Nissan India. For the handful of GT-Rs in India which have been directly imported by their owners (...

The new Toyota Land Cruiser has been spotted undisguised. Expected to make its global debut sometime this year, Toyota has given its premium luxury SUV a refreshed design to keep it relevant amongst competition such as the new Audi Q7 and the upcoming Mercedes GLS. It seems clear from the images that there hasn’t been a design overhaul. The SUV is still as massive, and the theme is more rugged than sharp. The face is dominated by the bulbous grille that has a lot of chrome, the twin-barrel projector headlamps, and the chrome bar over the air dam which has the Land Cruiser badging. The bonnet has a double power bulge, probably to add to the tough look. Of all these things, the most prominent is that hefty dose of chrome. At the back, the taillights are new and likely to be LED. Again, there is a thick chrome bar that connects the tail lights and has the LC badging. Although the cabin hasn’t been snapped, you can expect it to get a more refined look and added equipment. U...

Ferrari is said to be working on an exclusive version of its current F12, which will known as the F12 GTO. The GTO is likely to have borrowed design cues from the legendary 250 GTO, so it would be sensible for the hardcore F12 to reinstate that moniker. According to Autogespot.nl, the two pictures are screenshots released from a private configurator available only for Ferrari customers. A similar reveal was seen earlier with the 458 Speciale Aperta. The power output could be in the 789bhp range from the 6.3-litre naturally aspirated V12 engine that could be equipped with a HY-KERS system adapted from the LaFerrari. Apart from this hike in power, the F12 GTO will be lighter by approximately 100kg, hinting at an exceptional performance delivery. Only 650 units are planned of this car and Ferrari will start shipping them in the second quarter of next year. An official unveil of the F12 GTO is scheduled for the Frankfurt Motor Show in mid-September, but Ferrari could decide...

Lamborghini confirmed an open-top roadster version of the Aventador Superveloce at The Goodwood Festival of Speed. The roadster will sit alongside the Aventador LP750-4 SV coupé version, shown at Geneva motor show earlier this year. The Lamborghini Aventador LP750-4 SV Roadster will be limited to 500 units, 100 less than the coupé variant. Lamborghini president and chief executive officer Stephan Winkelmann said, “The Aventador LP 50-4 Superveloce is the most pure, sports-oriented and emotional incarnation of a Lamborghini, and all 600 units have been sold, with first deliveries starting now. We will also produce a roadster version, which our dealers worldwide are now taking orders for.” The firm has not disclosed any performance figures for the roadster, but it is quite safe to assume that the figures will be close to that of the coupé variant, with perhaps a slightly slower 0-100kph time and an increased kerb weight due to the structural reinforcements that roadsters usua...

The new Mitsubishi Pajero Sport is set to be unveiled in Thailand later this year. Recently, patent images of the SUV had leaked online, and the new renderings indicated that the styling of the Pajero Sport is likely to be inspired by the GR-HEV concept, first shown at the Geneva Motor Show 2013. Mitsubishi calls the new Pajero’s design ‘dynamic’, and the changes are most apparent in the new face. There’s the prominent, upright grille flanked by the sharp headlights, and the large air dam, followed by the skid plate. The overall stance of the car is pretty much unchanged; seems as butch and dominant as the current car. A lot of sheet metal elements are borrowed from Mitsubishi’s own Triton pick-up truck. The cabin too, is likely to be inspired by the Triton, and is expected to be far more spacious than the current car. Depending on trim levels, the Pajero is likely to get kit like a touchscreen infotainment system, climate control, keyless entry and go, powered front seats,...

Honda has just released sketches of what will be its compact SUV for India, expected here in 2016. What's clear from the initial sketches is that the BR-V, as it will be called, is based on the same platform as the Brio, Amaze and the Mobilio. As reported by us earlier, this new SUV will get  seven-seats  and is likely to get larger wheels and tyres..  But unlike this trio, it will get an all-new more SUV-like nose. More angular compared to that of the current cars on the platform, the BR-V features a high-mounted Honda chrome grille, a CR-V-like two part grille and a lower bumper that features plenty of slashes and cuts around the fog lights. There's a prominent scuff plate under the chin and at the rear; Honda has clearly laid emphasis on giving it SUV-like design cues. The cladding that runs around the entire car looks quite heavy set, the beltline and wheel arch flares have been designed to emphasise the larger wheels, and there are roof rails as well. The tai...

The all-new fifth-generation Audi A4 will be first shown to the public at the Frankfurt Motor Show 2015 in September. The new Audi A4 gets a restyled exterior and contemporary interior along with a heavily updated petrol and diesel engine range. It also comes with a newly developed chassis. The new Audi A4’s exterior styling makes it look more formal than its rivals; the BMW 3-series and the Mercedes C-Class sedan. The Audi A4’s look has been styled taking into consideration the feedback received from existing customers from its largest markets namely Germany, China and USA. The new Audi A4’s key styling elements include a wider single-frame grille, newly shaped headlights with restyled LED DRLs, clamshell-style bonnet along with larger wheelhouses, a flatter roof and more prominent shoulder with a deep swage line running the length of the flanks. It also gets new sharp tail-lights which are a take on Audi’s traditional LED graphics. Audi says that every single body panel on th...

Samsung has designed a new webcam-LCD screen system that will help drivers overtake in the safest manner possible.   This system, called the 'Safety Truck', will be particularly effective while driving behind a large vehicle. As part of the technology, a webcam will be mounted on the vehicle in front. An LCD display unit will be installed on the rear of the same vehicle. A set of four screens will provide a see-through view of the traffic in front, helping other drivers behind massive vehicles.   The view is transmitted wirelessly and will not be affected by weather or poor lighting conditions. A truck with the webcam system from Samsung is undergoing testing in Argentina.   A similar video system was tested by the University of Porto in Portugal in 2013. The system was implemented in a driving simulator, and then on an actual car. The biggest issue with the 2013 version of the system was a 200-millisecond delay in the video relay. The issue was solved by ...

Renault unveiled the Duster Oroch, a pick-up version of the facelifted Duster that was showcased in Brazil earlier this year. The Oroch is a double cab pick-up truck that is squarely aimed at the Latin American market. A point to be noted is that the Renault Duster offered in South America is different from the one sold in India. The Duster Oroch can be mistaken for the regular SUV, save for a ‘Duster’ name plate located under the grille. Even from the sides it looks the same, until you go beyond the rear doors. This is where the pick-up is different from its regular SUV sibling. Beyond the C-pillar lies a large load-bed. The tail-lamps are all-new units for the Oroch as is the rear bumper. Just behind the C-pillar lies a brushed aluminium roll bar while the roof sports brushed aluminium roof rails. Inside, theOroch is the same as the Duster. It gets a three-spoke multi-function steering, along with a 7-inch touch screen infotainment system. The interior follows an all-blac...

The new convertible variant of the recently revealed, sixth-gen 2016 Chevrolet Camaro has been unveiled, right after the images of the new car appeared on the internet. The new soft-top Camaro will rival the Ford Mustang in both coupé and convertible forms. Based on GM’s Alpha platform, the car loses 60kg from the previous car's weight. The Camaro convertible is 57mm shorter, 20mm narrower and 28mm lower than the outgoing fifth-generation car. Kerb weight has also been reduced by 90kg in both forms, a considerable reduction from the fifth-generation's 1,687kg. Chevrolet has said that the loss of weight comes from replacing the instrument panel frame with an aluminum unit and introducing a new five-link suspension system. The new Camaro’s engine line-up features a new 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbocharged petrol unit that produces 271bhp and 40.7kgm of torque, with maximum torque arriving between 3000 and 4500rpm. The Camaro can scramble from 0-100kph in under six s...

Aston Martin has revealed the DB9 GT which will make its public debut at the Goodwood Festival of Speed. This will be the last iteration of the DB9, before it gets replaced by an all-new model to be released in 2017. The DB9 GT is expected to go on sale globally from September. The DB9 GT is powered by a 540bhp 5.9-litre V12 engine. Power is sent to the rear wheels via a six-speed automatic transmission. Aston Martin claims the DB9 GT can reach 100kph from rest in 4.5 seconds and has a top speed of 295kph. The DB9 GT weighs 1,785kg and 1,890kg in open-top Volante form. Described by Aston's product development boss Ian Minards as “the very best of what DB9 can be”, the car gets a double wishbone suspension at the front and rear. Drivers can choose between Normal, Sport and Track driving modes via the car’s adaptive damping set-up. The GT receives new badges on its exterior, although the most striking modification is its black front splitter and rear diffuser. Carbon-...

In the latest round of crash testing conducted by Euro NCAP, the new Skoda Superb was awarded the highest rating of five stars for its levels of occupant and pedestrian protection. Another vehicle tested was the Hyundai i20 which was awarded an overall rating of four stars. In terms of adult-occupant safety, the new Superb scored 86 percent offering adequate to good protection to its occupants’ vital parts in a series of front and side-impact testing. The car also won points for offering good whiplash protection to its front occupants. The autonomous braking feature was not rated as it is not offered as standard in many European countries. Here the Hyundai i20 scored 85 percent, offering marginal to good protection to its occupants’ vital parts. The Hyundai also offered good whiplash protection to its front passengers, however, lost points due to the curtain airbags failing to deploy completely. In the child-occupant safety test, the Skoda Superb scored 86 percent with of...

Alfa Romeo has taken the covers off its new Giulia. This model is expected to sit atop the range currently being offered by Alfa Romeo, once it goes on sale internationally sometime early next year. The Italian manufacturer has used considerable amounts of carbon fibre, aluminium composites and plastic to keep the new Giulia’s weight to around 1,500kg in its top-spec Quadrifoglio Verde form. In the body panels, carbon fibre has been used to mould the bonnet, roof, prop shaft and front seat structures. Inside, the Giulia uses leather, wood, fabric and carbon fibre throughout giving the interior space a premium look. The new Alfa also features only two control surfaces — one dedicated to the company’s DNA drive model system and the other for a new infotainment system. Expected to debut in the new car is the new Race mode in the DNA system. Alfa says that the new Giulia features 50:50 weight distribution along with a customised suspension set-up based on a double wishbone...

Chevrolet has unveiled the second-generation Cruze sedan. It features redesigned exterior and interiors and now rides on GM’s new D2 FWD platform.   The new Chevrolet Cruze sedan's exterior styling is different from the one unveiled for the Chinese market last year. The styling draws inspiration from present-day Chevrolet models including the recently-unveiled Chevrolet Volt electric car. On the exterior, it gets projector headlamps and LED daytime running lamps on higher models.   Like the current car, the new Chevrolet Cruze’s interior gets a dual-cockpit design and comes with a piano-black or brushed-aluminum finish along with multiple soft-touch surfaces on the dash and other parts. A large screen sits at the centre of the dash and is surrounded by two vertical air-con vents.   The new Cruze is longer than its predecessor; it adds 15mm more to its wheelbase and 69mm to its overall length of 4666mm. It also offers more interior room than the earlie...

The Trailblazer, Chevy’s upcoming SUV was spotted testing in Mumbai by one of our staffers. The test mule was camouflaged, hiding all exterior details. But we caught on to an interesting bit of detail on this SUV — a missing 4WD selector knob, which means that this was the 2WD variant.  It will be powered by a 2.8-litre Duramax diesel engine churning out 197bhp and a massive 51kgm of torque. As of now, GM only offers this engine with a six-speed automatic gearbox in Thailand. There’s an option of buying this big Chevy with a six-speed manual too, but that is available only with the smaller 2.5-litre diesel mill, which might be brought in at a later stage. What needs to be seen is whether GM will launch it with an option of 4WD right from the beginning. We drove the top-spec LTZ1, the only variant to get 4WD and it had Chevy’s MyLink touchscreen system, GPS and a rear-view camera; the last feature should be mandatory on a vehicle this big. Well, measuring 4,878mm in leng...

Toyota has revealed technical details of its new GD-series engines. Introduced first at the Vienna engine symposium, the company said that the new engine series would benefit ‘advanced thermal insulation’, making them more efficient and powerful. The new GD series consists of two diesel engines – a 2.4-litre turbo-diesel, expected to replace the current 2.5-litre diesel unit, and a 2.8-litre that will replace the current 3.0-litre unit. The new 2.4-litre 2GD-FTV motor is rated at 148bhp and 40.78kgm of torque while the larger 2.8-litre 1GD-FTV is rated at 175bhp and 45.9kgm of torque. Toyota says that the new engine uses a Thermo Swing Wall Insulation Technology which features the use of silica-reinforced porous anodized aluminium (SiRPA) on the pistons to reduce cooling loss during combustion. The engine also features a new compact variable geometry turbo that helps the engine to develop its peak torque at low RPMs. Toyota expects to introduce the new GD-series engines...

BMW’s 1.5-litre petrol-electric hybrid engine has been voted the 2015 International Engine of the Year, thus ending the consecutive three-year victory of Ford’s 999cc three-cylinder turbo EcoBoost engine. Furthermore, the 1.5-litre petrol-electric hybrid engine, that does duty in BMW’s celebrated plug-in hybrid, the i8, also won awards in the ‘Best New Engine’ and the ‘1.4-litre to 1.8-litre’ categories. “This is a fitting victory for what is a remarkable powertrain. The i8 is a supercar of the future that’s available today. Progressive, emotive and environmentally responsible, here is a creation that proves the transport of tomorrow can be very, very exciting,” said Dean Slavnich, Co-chairman, International Engine of the Year Awards. In what was a very closely contested fight, the BMW’s petrol-hybrid motor ended Ford’s 1.0 litre EcoBoost engine dominance by a slender 7-point margin. However, Ford did have something to cheer about. Its 999cc EcoBoost engine was adjudged the...

Mercedes-Benz has officially unveiled the new GLC in Germany. As part of the company’s new nomenclature for SUVs, the GLK moniker has been dropped in favour of the GLC. This new compact SUV is based on Merc’s MRA (Modular Rear Architecture) platform that also underpins the new C-class sedan. The interesting bit is that this SUV will finally make it to India and unlike the model it replaces, this one is available in a right-hand drive configuration. The GLC adopts frontal styling as on the new C-class with a similar grille and headlight design. The rear styling is much different from the earlier flat design of the GLK and now gets a more rounded design. All these design elements lend it a grown-up look. Inside the cabin, there are a lot of similarities to the C-class — be it the flowing single-piece centre console, rotary air vents, hooded instrument binnacle, touchpad, and the latest version of the COMAND Online infotainment system. The cabin now looks luxurious and well laid-o...

JLR has revealed two new technologies that will bring autonomous driving a step closer to reality. One of the systems being developed is a remote control application which will allow drivers to control their cars from outside the vehicle, using a smartphone. Working at speeds of up to 6kph and with a range of 10 metres, the system is designed for users to traverse tricky off-road terrain or tight spaces, without being in the vehicle. The application was successfully tested on a pilot Range Rover Sport vehicle and works only if the smart key present in the car is detected. The company plans to incorporate technology that would allow drivers to issue spoken commands for the vehicle to follow; but this could happen sometime in the future. Also launched is a prototype Range Rover Sport, capable of performing a 180-degree turn autonomously. The vehicle has been tested in situations like, dead-end roads, cramped car parks, etc. and the car was successful in manoeuvring without ...

The first official sketch of Mercedes’ upcoming GLC SUV is here. To be showcased for the first time ever in September at the Frankfurt Motor Show, the new Mercedes GLC SUV replaces the not-for India Mercedes GLK SUV and like its predecessor, will be positioned below the M-class (now GLE-class SUV). Unlike the GLK SUV that it replaces, the new Mercedes GLC will be produced in both left and right-hand drive configuration, which means there is a possibility of it hitting Indian shores too. When launched, the Mercedes GLC SUV will rival the likes of the Audi Q5 and BMW X3 and the Land Rover Discovery Sport. The Mercedes GLC line-up will also have a sportier GLC Coupe that is expected to compete with the Range Rover Evoque and BMW X4 SUVs globally. The GLC-based coupe is likely to be unveiled next year. The Mercedes GLC SUV features styling cues found on most modern-day Mercedes offerings, such as the soft-nosed grille and headlight styling. The overall look is more rounded and ...

Audi and the Royal Automobile Club (RAC) have set a new world record for the most distance travelled on a single tank of fuel. The car, an Audi A6 TDI Ultra, was driven for 1865.23km on a single tank of fuel at an average speed of 78kph. With motoring journalist Andrew Frankel and race driver Rebecca Jackson at the wheel, the drive commenced in the Netherlands. The A6 Ultra was driven from Maastricht, through Belgium, Luxembourg, France, Switzerland, Lichtenstein, Austria, Germany and Italy towards the Balkans, with the tank finally running empty at Nova Sad in Hungary. The record-setting drive was originally supposed to be 1,600km long, but achieved 1,865km. The driving team was accompanied by a RAC vehicle with route planners and observers. The route was specifically selected to avoid heavy traffic and stop-start situations, which would have degraded fuel efficiency. The Audi A6 ultra was chosen because of its large 73-litre fuel tank and its 28.78kpl fuel efficiency ...