Blog on 2040Parts

Bennett Coachworks ZX-1 Corvette

Imagine that you're a Corvette fanatic that simply has to have the latest and greatest incarnation of America's sports car in your driveway. You're head over heels for the sexy 2014 Corvette Stingray, and you've marched right to the dealership and ordered one up for yourself. Life should be good.

U.S. auto sales climb 14 percent in January

UPDATED: U.S. auto sales, led Toyota Motor Corp. and the Detroit 3, rose 14 percent in January, giving the industry a bigger lift to begin 2013 than analysts expected.

Hyundai enlists Flaming Lips for Super Bowl ad

We previewed a couple of Hyundai's Super Bowl spots -- focused largely on speed and power -- earlier in the week. The Sonata ad was a trifle of pedestrian whimsy, while the Genesis sedan R-Spec spot grated, grated and grated some more. Now, with the kickoff looming, the Korean automaker's loosed its marquee ad, promoting the 2013 Santa Fe, upon the YouTubifying unwashed.

New 2014 Corvette shows off in non-Super Bowl ad

In all of the commotion about Super Bowl commercials, Chevy slipped a new 30-second 2014 Corvette spot by on its YouTube channel and no one even noticed. In the ad we see a black Corvette Stingray, first in the paint booth and then on the track. It's one of the first examples we've seen in the color, which makes the new body shape look even angrier.

Coachbuilt classics to highlight RM Amelia Island auction

RM, the official auction house of the annual in advance or $70 at the door. About the Amelia Island Concours Held in Amelia Island, Fla. from March 7 to March 10, the 2013 Amelia Island Concours and its attendant RM and Gooding auctions are among the first major classic-car events of the season.

Toyota GT86 Convertible teased by FT-86 Open Concept for Geneva

A roadster version of the Toyota GT86 now seems certain as Toyota tease an open-topped roadster for Geneva with the FT-86 Concept. It took Toyota a long time to deliver the promise of an ‘affordable’ sports car, but the Toyota GT86 has delivered a proper driver’s car at a sensible price (and you can even have it as a Subaru BRZ if you choose). So a success with a single sports car model can mean only one thing – more versions of the same car.

Mercedes C 63 AMG Edition 507 at Geneva 2013 with more power & bigger spec

Mercedes has revealed a final version of the C63 AMG – the C 63 AMG Edition 507 – with more power and bigger specification  Debuts at Geneva 2013. Mercedes will have plenty to show visitors to Switzerland next month – including the new CLA – and they’ll also have this morning’s Mercedes news – the Mercedes C 63 AMG Edition 507. The C63 AMG Edition 507 - available as saloon, coupe or estate –  looks like a final hurrah for the current C Class AMG (the new C Class will arrive in 2014), and Mercedes has made a decent effort to make the Edition 507 more than just a jump in power.

New Mercedes A-Class is “The Most Beautiful Car of the Year 2012″

The new Mercedes A-Class – perhaps set to become Mercedes’ most successful model ever – has been voted the most beautiful car of 2012. Not only that, but the new A-Class looks to be a real challenge to cars like the BMW 1 Series (except for keen drivers) and the new Volvo V40, something the old A-Class wouldn’t have had a prayer of doing, despite being the favourite car for ‘er indoors whose hubby had a big Merc. Now, to add to the accolades the new A-Class has already received from buyers, reviewers and award givers, the 2013 Mercedes A-Class has been voted “The Most Beautiful Car of the Year 2012″ by more than 100,000 car fans across 52 countries.

Alfa MiTo Quadrifoglio Verde SBK Limited Edition arrives

There’s a new limited edition Alfa Romeo MiTo on offer – the MiTo Quadrifoglio Verde SBK – with just 28 cars on sale in the UK at a price of £21,595. Which explains why, when Alfa were scratching their heads to come up with a new Limited Edition MiTo, they settled on the the Superbike link with the Alfa MiTo Quadrifoglio Verde SBK Limited Edition. The MiTo Quadrifoglio Verde SBK has now arrived on UK shores – although there will only be 28 of them – complete with Superbike titivation and a few publicity photos featuring the MiTo Quadrifoglio Verde SBK on two wheels alongside a Superbike.

New Lexus IS 300h, LF-LC and Lexus F-Sport all at 2013 Geneva Motor Show

We’ll get to see the new Lexus IS 300h at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show together with an Opal Blue LF-CC and extended F Sport range. Probably of most interest – because we’ve not seen it in Europe yet, is the new Lexus IS 300h, the hybrid version of the 2013 Lexus IS – revealed at Detroit last month – which Lexus hope will pick up sales from the diesel competition. Lexus will be adding the F Sport trim to the IS 300h too to show that their cars can look as dynamic as those from Audi’s S Line, Mercedes’ AMG or BMW’s M Sport which, with an expected output of around 220bhp from the electric motor and 2.5 litre engine, isn’t all that incongruous.

Toyota to show FT86 Convertible at 2013 Geneva show

Toyota is bringing a drop-top GT86 to next month's Geneva motor show. Based on its sublime lightweight GT86 coupe, the FT-86 Open (the show car has ditched the 'GT' name reverted to the 'FT' tag because it's currently only a concept) will be revealed in March 2013. 'FT' stands for 'Future Toyota', and Toyota has already started the media tease by releasing this sketch. Is the Toyota GT86 convertible confirmed for production?

Mercedes C63 AMG 'Edition 507' (2013) first official pictures

Mercedes has squeezed another 50bhp out of the C63 AMG, creating the 500bhp 'Edition 507' range. The power bump comes courtesy of forged pistons new connecting rods and a lightweight crankshaft inherited from the £160,000 SLS AMG supercar. Why is this special C63 AMG called the 'Edition 507'?

Who's Where: Brett Patterson and Rohan Saparamadu join Geely’s Shanghai studio

Brett Patterson and Rohan Saparamadu have joined Geely as chief designers, based in Shanghai. They will both report to the company's design director Ken Ma. Patterson most recently worked as a contract designer at GM Europe's Design Center, Rüsslesheim, and has worked for GM for total of 14 years on a wide range of vehicle development programmes in Australia, Germany, Sweden and USA.

Kia teases Chicago-bound Cross GT concept

Kia has revealed a sneek peek of its Cross GT Concept ahead of its unveiling at the Chicago auto show. The carmaker has said that the Cross GT Concept "hints at the future of Kia's design language in the form of a premium Crossover Utility Vehicle (CUV) that is larger than the new 2014 Sorento." Although the render provides only a limited view, the front end features slim, swept back lamps that flank Kia's signature grille. A jutting chin and coupe-esque roofline add the requisite crossover mashup elements.

2014 Audi A8L TDI priced at $83,395

Audi will set the price of the 2014 A8L TDI luxury sedan at $83,395, including an $895 destination charge, the automaker said on Thursday. The addition of this vehicle gives the four-ringed marque a total of five A8 variants. The diesel A8L uses a turbocharged 3.0-liter engine that makes only 240 hp, but kicks out a very diesel-like 406 lb-ft of torque.

Are these the specs for the new Ferrari F150 / F70 / New Enzo?

We’ve been sent what purport to be more detailed specifications of the new Ferrari Enzo (or F150 or F70) by a 599XX owner. The new Ferrari F150 (the new Enzo) should arrive officially at the Geneva Motor Show in March, all ready to take on the new McLaren P1. So far, Ferrari has given us minimal detail on their new supercar, but they have revealed a teaser photo of the F150 and trickled bits of detail ahead of the debut.

New 2014 Range Rover Sport testing in Mojave Desert (video)

We have video of the new 2014 Range Rover Sport out testing in the Mojave Desert ahead of a likely reveal at Frankfurt 2013. It’s been six months since we last had spy video of the 2014 Range Rover Sport out testing, and now it’s been caught again in the U.S. as Land Rover continue to work on making the new Range Rover Sport the car it should always have been.

New Ssangyong Rodius teased ahead of Geneva 2013 debut

Ssangyong are teasing a new version of the Rodius people carrier ahead of a debut at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show. If you want to see a car that’s been hit by an ugly stick, you can’t do much better than take a look at the current Ssangyong Rodius. But you’d better be quick, because Ssangyong are planning to introduce a much slicker looking Rodius (pictured above) at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show.

What happened to the Bentley GT Speed Top Gear took rallying?

We asked Bentley what happened to the Continental GT Speed Top Gear took rallying in the first episode of Series 19. All that Top Gear did to the GT Speed to prepare it for the rally stage was to chuck out the comfortable, quilted Mulliner front seats and replace them with proper racing seats. Other than that, it was all down to the Bentley’s suspension and enormous torque to take on the worst roads Wales could throw at it.

Lambo man flies in to revamp Bentley design

Bentley is embarking on a new design era, steered by the man behind Lamborghini's stunning 21st century portfolio. Luc Donckerwolke, the Belgian who has held official positions at Audi, Bentley, Skoda, VW and Lamborghini, and worked in the background shaping the rest of VW Group's brands, is now getting down to business at Crewe. 'They told me: "You have to go to Bentley, move the brand forward and create a new design studio",' Donckerwolke told CAR in his first conversation since starting there five months ago.

Jenson Button in McLaren P1 (2013) supercar fly-by

McLaren’s P1 supercar trundled out for its first official drive-by today, when F1 driver Jenson Button drove it into McLaren’s Woking citadel before unveiling his 2013 race car. The stunt confirmed that the P1 can manoeuvre on electric power alone, unlike Button’s MP4-28: the race car’s hybrid KERS system is used to deliver a short power boost to supplement the V8. McLaren predicts the P1’s electric-only mode is a capability its forthcoming Ferrari rival (codenamed F150) won’t be able to match.

Teen-created PSAs combat distracted driving

Two widely held assumptions about 21st-century American teenagers is that they're too busy with their smartphones to have any interest in cars and that any who manage to find their way behind the wheel are too distracted to drive safely anyway. These generalizations are broad, unfair and perhaps even counterproductive -- yet they're reinforced every time distracted driving leads to a preventable tragedy. That's why we were glad to see young drivers take action by creating a series of anti-distracted-driving public safety announcements for the Teens Drive Smart Video Contest.

SRT Viper gets refresh in 2015, product plan shows

Chrysler Group will bolster the Fiat brand but has dropped plans to add Fiat-derived small cars for Chrysler and Dodge this year, according to a new long-range product plan revealed Wednesday. The new plan updates Chrysler's five-year North American product outlook that it presented in November 2009. The update extends the outlook into 2016.

Vette plant to build high-performance engines

General Motors is moving its Performance Build Center, which let enthusiasts pay $5,000-plus to build the high-performance engine for their Chevrolet Corvette, from Michigan to the Corvette assembly plant in Bowling Green, Ky. The move is expected to be completed by spring 2014. It will let a Corvette buyer build his own engine, with help from a GM technician, and then see it installed in his car as it goes down the Bowling Green assembly line.

The new Mercedes-Benz CLA Super Bowl spot

It takes a certain kind of chutzpah for a German company that supplied the Nazi war machine to use a track that features the line, “I rode a tank / Held a general's rank / When the Blitzkrieg raged / And the bodies stank.” Apparently, Mercedes-Benz has exactly that sort of chutzpah. The premise, of course, is that you don't have to sell your soul to afford the company's stylish new CLA. That for under 30 grand, you too can dance with Usher, be pulled into red-carpet photographs with Kate Upton, and compete in Formula 1 races.

Toyota recalls Corolla, Lexus IS models

On Wednesday, Toyota said it is recalling 752,000 Corolla and Corolla Matrix vehicles from the 2003 and 2004 model years, and about 270,000 Lexus IS vehicles built between 2006 and 2012. The Corolla and Corolla Matrix may be susceptible to an electrical short that could cause the frontal airbag and front seatbelt pre-tensioners to inadvertently deploy, according to Toyota. The Lexus IS faces a problem with windshield wipers that are not sufficiently secured and may not operate properly when weighted down by heavy snow.

Brabus 800 Widestar

The Brabus tuning company takes cars that are already stupid fast and makes them even faster. The German shop tends to focus on Mercedes cars, but its parts can also be found on hopped-up Teslas and the Benz-owned Smart Car. The Brabus 800 Widestar kit for the Mercedes G65 AMG starts with the stock 6.0-liter V12 and massages it --with a sledgehammer -- to put 800 horses to the pavement through all four wheels.

Vauxhall Zafira Tourer gets BiTurbo Beef

The Zafira Tourer gets a new range-topper with the launch of the Vauxhall Zafira Tourer BiTurbo with 192bhp. Price from £27,685. The launch of a range-topping Vauxhall Zafira Tourer BiTurbo, with the very decent BiTurbo diesel from the Insignia and Astra (and for that matter, the new Vauxhall Cascada) means you don’t have to poodle round like a good family man when you transport your brood.

Lamborghini Aventador Roadster launches – at Miami Airport

Lamborghini has launched the new Aventador LP700-4 Roadster in the U.S. with an event at Miami International Airport. The new Lamborghini Aventador LP 7004 Roadster was revealed back in December at the Los Angeles Auto Show as the perfect posing car for deep-pocketed residents of warmer climes.

Audi A3 Cabriolet signs off with A3 Cabriolet Sport and S line Final Edition Models

Audi signals the end of the current A3 Cabriolet with two run-out models – the A3 Cabriolet Sport and S line Final Edition. Price from 23,775. The end of the current Audi A3 Cabriolet is fast approaching, but not before Audi wring out extra sales this spring (yes, spring really isn’t that far off) with the launch of a pair of final edition A3 Cabriolets.