U.S. Air Force builds two crazy custom pony cars for recruiting

Mustang X-1 and Challenger Vapor We're all about the men and women of the U.S. Armed Forces, but they need some help in the form of new recruits, and that's where good old fashioned recruiting comes in. But it's not like the old days where a couple of uniformed officers attend a job fair in your high school gymnasium. These days, the U.S. Air Force is using a pair of radically customized pony cars to get your attention. Mission accomplished.
Built in conjunction with Galpin Auto Sports (who else?), the Mustang X-1 and Challenger Vapor land like a bomb when they hit your retinas. The X1 features a full jet cockpit with a single ejector seat placed centrally. The body has been widened at all four corners - the rear by six inches on both sides - to accommodate the largest tires you can buy today. There's a custom onboard A/C unit behind the single seat that's fed by twin NACA ducts where the rear side windows would go, and shifting the 500-hp, nitro-fed V8 comes courtesy of, what else, an actual flight stick.
The Challenger Vapor, meanwhile, is so stealth it could sneak up on KITT and make him pee his oil pan. It features an infrared thermal imaging camera combined with a true heads-up display that spans the entire windshield, solid carbon fiber disc wheels, the ability to operate with two mufflers for extra stealth and a command center cockpit with three large LCD screens.

Holden working on Cruze hatch... but will it come to North America?

According to Australia's Drive, Holden boss Mark Reuss has confirmed that General Motors' Australian outpost will produce a hatchback version of the Cruze sedan that it shares with Chevrolet.
The liftback will apparently be very much an Aussie product, with research and development being carried out Down Under, and there are plans to assemble the model at Holden's South Australian plant beginning in the fall of 2010. Critically, it's being built with foreign markets in mind, so that could mean that the model might find its way to North American shores, although const constraints would likely make such things difficult on such a low-cost model.
As it has here in the States, GM has halted importation of the European-built Astra into Australia due to cost concerns, and it also stopped selling the Korean-built Viva (a rebadged Daewoo Lacetti) earlier in 2009.
Interestingly, Drive suggests that the Cruze hatch model could be an upmarket stablemate to the sedan model, with different steering and suspension tunings, along with unique styling. While that sounds enticing, a higher-cost hatchback model might not go well with America's historically hatchback-averse marketplace, leading us to doubt that the car will eventually be offered Stateside.
As of yet, there are no official plans to build a version of the hatchback domestically in Chevrolet's Lordstown, Ohio plant where the Cruze sedan will be assembled.
[Source: Drive.com.au]

Miles EV launches Coda Automotive for full speed electric sedan w/Video

Coda Automotive EV sedan

Today, Miles EV announced that the full speed electric car that it has been developing for the last several years will bear the new Coda Automotive brand name. The Coda sedan will be assembled in China by Hafei under the direction of staff from Coda. The new car is based on an existing Hafei chassis that has been heavily re-engineered by Porsche Engineering. The car is powered by a UQM electric motor driving the front wheels with energy storage via a lithium iron phosphate battery pack.
The 34 kWh pack will use cells provided by Chinese battery maker Lishen. The two companies are apparently forming a joint venture for battery manufacturing and hope to eventually produce batteries in the United States. Coda and an unnamed partner have also applied for a DOE loan under the ATVM program to build battery packs in the U.S.
Coda expects real world range to be about 90-120 miles, depending on driving conditions. According to the company, the EV sedan will go on sale in 2010 with factory direct sales at a price of $45,000 before incentives. Following a 200-fleet test in the summer of that year, Coda will be offered to the public starting in the Fall. You can read more about the car itself here.

GM reportedly whittles down to a pair of Saab suitors

When General Motors first put Swedish automaker Saab on the auction block, it was reported that there were nearly 20 interested parties. From there, rumors quickly began circulating that Saab and parent-company General Motors had narrowed down the potential list of bidders first to a half-dozen, and more recently, to just three final suitors. One of those interested parties was reportedly Italian automaker Fiat, but that rumor has since been denied by both Fiat and Saab.
If local Swedish newspapers are to be believed, final negotiations with the remaining two parties are at hand. The two rival bidders are thought to be fellow Swedish automaker Koenigsegg and Renco Group, an investment group based here in the United States. Speaking in an interview with Swedish daily Dagens Industri, Saab chief executive Jan-Ake Jonsson said:

"Now we are negotiating with just two parties. This can go fast now and should absolutely be wrapped up in a maximum of two weeks."

Here's hoping that a suitable buyer emerges from the final two potential suitors in short order - the last thing GM needs at the moment is a protracted sale of its Swedish former subsidiary.
[Source: Reuters]

Hyundai gives KDM facelifted Accent - is the U.S. next?

2010 Hyundai Verna Transform/Accent

Hyundai's released a handful of images of the redesigned Verna Transform, or, as it's known in markets outside of Korea, the Accent. This 2010 model receives a thoroughly redesigned front fascia that's strikingly similar to the recently released Subaru Legacy, with a deep air dam, oversized front grille, foglights, and sculpted bumper that accentuates the pointed and drawn headlamps. The sides appear largely unchanged, and although there's only one image of the redesigned rump, expect the taillights to continue the bulbous theme out back.
Inside, the center stack has been modified with new faux aluminum trim and upgraded materials, while the green illumination of the instrumentation has been ditched in favor of a new blue hue. Motivation comes courtesy of a 1.6-liter, four-cylinder engine and Hyundai Korea will continue to offer an "Eco" indicator on the dash that encourages a light foot. The redesigned Verna is rumored to hit Korean dealers this month, and it's assumed that the 2010 Accent will show up Stateside later this year.

2011 BMW 1 Series gets closer to production

The BMW 1 Series is due for a thorough overhaul, and judging by these recent spy shots, the entry-level Bimmer is on track to be released late next year. This second generation prototype was caught running between BMW's test centers in Germany wearing the roundel's patented psychedelic camo, and appears to blend some of the new X1's slab sides with the upright grille and fascia that debuted on the redesigned 2009 BMW 7 Series. The 2011 model is expected to be offered in an assortment of body styles, ranging from the coupe and convertible we get here in the States, to a traditional five-door hatch, sedan and possibly a three-door shooting brake.
As for powerplants, it's already been confirmed that BMW is working on a range of four-cylinder engines that may make it to the U.S., and recent rumors suggest a three-cylinder mill packing 1.35-liters of displacement and putting out between 163 and 241 hp is in development for the European market. Naturally, expect both the three- and four-cylinders to have a turbo dangling from the exhaust manifold, and the upcoming SuperSports model - a send-off to the current 1 series due out next year - could be a good indication of what to expect. Informed speculation says the SuperSports will be equipped with a twin-turbocharged 2.0- to 2.2-liter four-cylinder with an output of 300 hp and 331 lb-ft of torque. We half-expect the SuperSport to debut at this year's Frankfurt Motor Show, with the fully redesigned 1 series bowing at the Geneva Motor Show in March.

Jaguar C-Type draws its claws

Jaguar's owner Ratan Tata has made it clear that he wants to expand Jag's sportscar offerings beyond the scope of the current XK, and this is what the British rumormill has cooked. Dubbed the C-Type, the renderings depict a compact two-door roadster to rival the likes of Porsche's Boxster, BMW's Z4, Mercedes' SLK and Nissan's 370Z. With a lightweight aluminum chassis and powertrain options to potentially include a 235hp V6, 380hp V8 and 3.0-liter turbodiesel, the C-Type could offer exciting performance in a compact package, like Aston's Vantage, but at a fraction of the price. Although in the present climate Jaguar would do well to take things one step at a time, the report speculates that the diminutive C-Type could come in addition to a 911-rivaling E-Type successor and an R8-battling supercar. Likely? Not quite. Exciting? Most definitely. Hat tip to Mo for the news!
[Source: Auto Express]

2009 Honda Pilot Touring 4WD - Long-Term Road Test Update

Current Mileage/Months in Fleet: 13,000 mi/5 monthsAverage Fuel Economy/Range: 17 mpg/357 milesService: $144Normal Wear: $0Repair: $0

A Honda Pilot won a six-SUV comparo last November, in part because it possesses the torsional rigidity of an Arctic icebreaker. No surprise that this long-termer was hugely popular during last winter’s numerous blizzards, ably assisted by the locking function of its VTM-4 all-wheel drive, which can send max torque to the rear wheels at speeds up to 18 mph. Speaking of cool, the Pilot’s 50-button center stack allows the cabin temp to be set as low as 58 degrees. Which means the parka you were wearing when you first climbed in doesn’t have to come off 20 minutes into your commute.

So far, nothing has broken, nor have any rattles made themselves known. The needlessly complex center stack has drawn attention, and this SUV’s perceived bigness—not so much a perception, in fact, given its 4538 pounds—translates into a kind of awkwardness in urban environments, a trait we little noticed in previous one- or two-week-long Pilot samples. Sixty mph arrives in 8.1 seconds. Patience is a virtue.

Specifications

VEHICLE TYPE: front-engine, 4-wheel-drive, 8-passenger, 5-door wagon

PRICE AS TESTED: $39,165 (base price: $39,165)

ENGINE TYPE: SOHC 24-valve V-6, aluminum block and heads, port fuel injection

Displacement: 212 cu in, 3471cc
Power (SAE net): 250 bhp @ 5700 rpm
Torque (SAE net): 253 lb-ft @ 4800 rpm

TRANSMISSION: 5-speed manual

DIMENSIONS:
Wheelbase: 109.2 in Length: 190.9 in Width: 78.5 in Height: 72.7 in
Curb weight: 4688 lb

PERFORMANCE: NEW
Zero to 60 mph: 7.9 sec
Zero to 100 mph: 23.4 sec
Zero to 110 mph: 35.8 sec
Street start, 5–60 mph: 8.2 sec
Standing ¼-mile: 16.3 sec @ 85 mph
Braking, 70–0 mph: 184 ft
Top speed (governor limited): 112 mph
EPA fuel economy, city/highway driving: 16/22 mpg
C/D observed fuel economy: 17 mpg
Unscheduled oil additions: 0 qt

WARRANTY:
3 years/36,000 miles bumper to bumper;
5 years/60,000 miles powertrain;
5 years/unlimited miles corrosion protection

Keep Reading: 2009 Honda Pilot Touring 4WD - Long-Term Road Test Update