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Crazy Rumor of the Day: Lamborghini Estoque to be built in China

Filed under: Concept Cars, Sedan, Performance, China, Lamborghini, Rumormill, Luxury

Lamborghini Estoque – Click above for high-res image gallery

Hold on to your lugnuts, kids, because here’s a rumor that’s so far out it practically qualifies as science fiction. Taken straight from Gasgoo.com, which has provided plenty of worthy news in the past, is this nugget: Lamborghini “will import its super luxury four-door sedan, Lamborghini Estoque to China for local production in 2012 with a price tag of around 4 million yuan ($589,000).”

To be fair, it appears as though Gasgoo is just reporting on what’s being reported in other Chinese media. However, in case you haven’t been keeping up with the Estoque’s flirtations with production reality, first Lamborghini planned to make it after it was introduced two years ago, then the economic implosion supposedly killed it in early 2009, but Lamborghini quickly said that wasn’t true, then this month company CEO Stephan Winkelmann hinted about how a third model would help the brand.

To us, none of that means the 2008 Paris Motor Show traffic-stopper is going to be built at all. Somehow, though, the Chinese media have heard that not only is it going to be built, but it will be built in China as soon as 2012. On top of that, even though it hasn’t been developed, it’s already been priced, and at that price you could buy almost three Aston Martin Rapide sedans. Or, more accurately, three Rapides and an infinite number of leprechauns, gorgons, drop bears and the latest creature of fable, a Chinese-built Estoque.

Gallery: Paris 2008: Lamborghini Estoque LIVE

Gallery: Paris 2008: Lamborghini Estoque Concept

[Source: Gasgoo]

Crazy Rumor of the Day: Lamborghini Estoque to be built in China originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 20 Aug 2010 19:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Engineers embark on driverless van odyssey from Italy to China

Filed under: Aftermarket, Minivan/Van, China, Europe, Technology, Russia, Electric

A team of intrepid software engineers are out drive a full 8,000 miles from Italy to China in an autonomous electric van, all while going no faster than 37 mph. Talk about a road trip.

The stunt is being headed up by tech company VisLab as a real-world test of the its artificial vision and intelligence systems. So, how does one go about parading a driverless van half way around the globe? Carefully. Two engineers will be positioned in the “driverless” van, with one person behind the wheel just in case something goes fruity. Meanwhile, another two workers will pilot a lead vehicle. The autonomous van will take cues from the people-driven version, but will still rely on a camera array to detect potential obstacles and issues.

The company’s route will take the team through Moscow traffic, the frigid temperatures of the Gobi desert and the roadless realms of Siberia. If that’s not challenging enough, the vans are both all-electric, and with the advanced technology onboard, the vehicles’ batteries must be recharged for eight hours for every two to three hours of driving. The team expects to work in about four hours of driving per day. Needless to say, it’s going to take a while – the whole shindig is expected to run a full three months.

[Source: VisLab via Associated Press]

Engineers embark on driverless van odyssey from Italy to China originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 23 Jul 2010 18:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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GM launches new low-cost brand in China and it’s a ‘treasured horse’

Filed under: Budget, China, GM

While the German automakers – and Buick – mop up outrageous demand for their wares in China’s major metropolitan and coastal cities, General Motors wants to be the nameplate of choice in the secondary cities and the interior. And now in conjunction with its joint-venture partners SAIC and Wuling, it has launched another nameplate: Baojun. Meaning “treasured horse,” Baojun is the low-cost brand that will sell passenger cars built in China for priced in the area of $7,000.

The Baojun’s sales network will be built after the car is launched, but GM hasn’t let slip when that will be. The aims are lofty for the small runabout tasked with opening up another market segment, with the general manager of SAIC-GM-Wuling declaring, “We aim to surpass customer expectations by creating a brand that combines world-class quality with low ownership costs.” Follow the jump for the press release on the venture.

[Source: General Motors]

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GM launches new low-cost brand in China and it’s a ‘treasured horse’ originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 19 Jul 2010 14:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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2011 Infiniti G25 hits dealers… in China

Filed under: Sedan, China, Infiniti

2011 Infiniti G25 in China – Click above for high-res image gallery

Finally caught where the eyes of the general population can see it, the Infiniti G25 posed for a few photos at a Chinese dealership, and from the outside it’s hard to distinguish the entry-level Infiniti from the 3.7-liter V6-powered G37 sedan.

As you might guess from the name, the entry-level G25 has a 2.5-liter version of the VQ-Series V6 that produces 232 horsepower and 190 pound-feet of torque. Interestingly enough, it’s also possible to get this same powerplant in the Chinese-market EX crossover as… you guessed it, the EX25. For its part, the G25 is also starting to become available in select additional markets including Russia.

At the moment, there is no word about any plans for either model to be launched in North America.

Gallery: 2011 Infiniti G25

[Source: Autohome]

2011 Infiniti G25 hits dealers… in China originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 15 Jul 2010 09:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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