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Sebastian Vettel takes Infiniti for a spin at the Shanghai International Circuit [w/video]

Filed under: Motorsports, Sedan, China, Marketing/Advertising, Videos, Crossover, Infiniti, Celebrities, Luxury

Sebastian Vettel in the Infiniti G37

Sebastian Vettel drives the Infiniti G37 – Click above for high-res image gallery, click here to watch video

What’s the point in an automaker pouring millions into an F1 team if it can’t leverage a little star power? In Infiniti’s case, it’s not even running its own F1 team or even supplying engines. Instead, it’s sponsoring the Red Bull Racing outfit that’s out there defending both its titles. (That said, we wouldn’t be surprised if Infiniti’s involvement turned into an engine rebranding initiative for next season.)

As any marketing whiz could tell you, sponsorship is only worth as much as you promote it. So while Red Bull’s world champion Sebastian Vettel was in Shanghai for the Chinese Grand Prix, he took a couple of Infiniti’s finest for a spin.

Vettel being Vettel, he didn’t just drive around the block: he took to the Shanghai International Circuit. (Or, at least an Autocross setup on the circuit’s back lot.) And while he wasn’t about to set any lap records behind the wheel of the G37 sedan or FX50 crossover, he seemed to enjoy the experience, hanging the G37’s tail out making some smoke for the crowd. Follow the jump to watch the video footage and check out the still shots in the gallery below.

Gallery: Sebastian Vettel and Infiniti at the 2011 Chinese Grand Prix

[Source: Infiniti]

Continue reading Sebastian Vettel takes Infiniti for a spin at the Shanghai International Circuit [w/video]

Sebastian Vettel takes Infiniti for a spin at the Shanghai International Circuit [w/video] originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 24 Apr 2011 12:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Quick Spin: 2011 BMW X1 xDrive28i

Filed under: Europe, Crossover, BMW, Quick Spin

A Compact Crossover For The Wagon-Averse

2011 BMW X1 xDrive28i

2011 BMW X1 xDrive28i – Click above for high-res image gallery

My wife hates wagons. Loathes them with the kind of passion and fervor normally reserved for sexual predators and real estate agents. But despite this, she drives the prototypical wagon-on-stilts, a Honda CR-V.

That unbridled disgust for any low-riding hatchback is something I’ve been trying to figure out for the last seven years, but it’s a problem nearly every European automaker peddling its wares in the States has been dealing with for decades. The solution, it seems, is to downsize the standard CUV into a more compact package, while still providing the elevated ride-height and commanding view that consumers in a post-SUV world crave.

For BMW, the answer is the X1, the Euro-only-for-now crossover that slots in where the X3 used to reside before it blew up to near-X5 proportions. And fitted with BMW’s new turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder, which U.S. customers will sample for the first time in the Z4 sDrive28i roadster, it makes a compelling case for itself. So much so that BMW’s Leipzig, Germany plant is tapped out, meaning importation into the U.S. isn’t going to happen anytime soon.

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Gallery: 2011 BMW X1 xDrive28i: Quick Spin

2011 BMW X1 xDrive28i 2011 BMW X1 xDrive28i profile

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Quick Spin: 2011 BMW X1 xDrive28i originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 22 Apr 2011 11:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Quick Spin: Toyota RAV4 EV

Filed under: Crossover, Toyota, Electric, Quick Spin

A Solid Electric CUV, For A Prototype

Toyota RAV4 EV

Toyota RAV4 EV – Click above for high-res image gallery

Ahh, the joys of driving a prototype vehicle. During the annual Toyota Sustainable Mobility Seminar in San Diego, California this week, Toyota brought in a handful of all-electric RAV4 EVs for us to tool around in, but there were some caveats: The route was decidedly highway-free; when it rained one afternoon, we were told it would be better to wait to drive the cars; and one journalist had a problem with his vehicle that made it sluggish. The biggest asterisk in the whole program, though, was that the RAV4 EVs we were testing are only a pale shadow of what the real RAV4 EVs will be like when Toyota releases them in the first quarter of 2012.

Why’s that? Because the current fleet of new RAV4 EVs was an intentional rush job by Toyota’s partner Tesla Motors to get vehicles into auto shows and on the road. A completely separate batch is being built to really get this model ready for production, and it will operate differently than the ones we got to drive this week. Still, we learned a lot about what’s coming by checking out what’s here today.

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Gallery: Toyota RAV4 EV: Quick Spin

Toyota RAV4 EV Toyota RAV4 EV rear 3/4 view

Quick Spin: Toyota RAV4 EV originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 11 Apr 2011 14:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Quick Spin: 2012 Buick LaCrosse eAssist

Filed under: Hybrid, Sedan, Technology, Buick, GM, Quick Spin

The TriShield’s Big Sedan Does The Electric Slide

2012 Buick LaCrosse eAssist

2012 Buick LaCrosse eAssist – Click above for high-res image gallery

It’s hard to talk about all of the good things General Motors is doing these days without referencing the Chevrolet Volt – it is perhaps the most talked-about car on the scene, green or otherwise. In showing the world that highly efficient, practical cars aren’t so far out of our reach, GM is preparing to launch a slew of fuel-sipping vehicles in the near term.

We’ve already spent time with the honest-to-goodness 42-mile-per-gallon Chevrolet Cruze Eco, but the next chapter of GM’s efficiency story lies in Buick’s eAssist mild hybrid system, coming to both its LaCrosse and Regal sedans later this year.

We recently had the chance to drive the 2012 Buick LaCrosse eAssist on the roads near GM’s proving grounds in Milford, Michigan, and while some hybrid systems vastly change a car’s overall driving experience, we walked away from our time in the Buick feeling as good as we ever have in a LaCrosse. The beauty of eAssist is that it functions in an almost entirely transparent manner, and that’s a very, very good thing.

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Gallery: 2012 Buick LaCrosse eAssist: Quick Spin

2012 Buick LaCrosse eAssist

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Quick Spin: 2012 Buick LaCrosse eAssist originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 01 Apr 2011 11:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Second Spin: 2014 Volkswagen Golf Blue-e-motion

Filed under: Europe, Technology, Hatchback, Volkswagen, First Drive, Electric

Wolfsburg Questions Its Own Wisdom With EV Golf

Volkswagen Golf Blue-e-motion

2014 Volkswagen Golf Blue-e-motion – Click above for high-res image gallery

Yes, we know. “2014” sounds so impressively future-y, doesn’t it? When we’re testing a car and the R&D people involved look at us and say it won’t be on the market until 2014, our eyes dilate, too. “Wow,” we say to ourselves while keeping a straight face in front of the mega-powerful board member, “That’s like space travel and everything!”

So yeah, we get emotional.

It’s understandable, too, because we’re in the mothership for what seems like half of the world’s significant automotive brands. It’s the Volkswagen Group’s Wolfsburg HQ on the vast verdant lowlands of northern Germany in the region of Lower Saxony. There is no Upper Saxony, by the way. We looked.

We’re here to get a personalized infotainment-filled test of the already much commented-on Volkswagen Golf Blue-e-motion. It’s coming to the United States in… 2014.

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Gallery: 2014 Volkswagen Golf Blue-e-motion: Second Spin

2014 Volkswagen Golf Blue-e-motion

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Second Spin: 2014 Volkswagen Golf Blue-e-motion originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 21 Mar 2011 11:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: Translogic takes the all-electric Z-Kart for a spin

Filed under: Etc., Videos, Electric

Translogic drives the Z-Kart

Translogic tours the neighborhood on the all-electric Z-Kart – Click above to watch video

What’s the best way to get your motoring kicks for less while consuming zero fuel and emitting only adrenaline? Riding a Zero motorcycle sounds like a lot of fun, until you get to that part about it only having two wheels. A golf cart is only amusing when it’s gas-powered and you’ve stuck a tee in the governor. The answer lies somewhere in between, and George Fortin from San Clemente, California, has put together his own version of the solution.

Our friends at Translogic paid Fortin a visit because he’s the proud owner and creator of the Z-Kart. It’s an all-electric go-kart that rides on a quartet of motorcycle tires and is powered by a DC motor and four lead-acid batteries. The frame is built from recycled polyethylene, and Fortin built it himself from scratch. Total charge time for the Z-Kart is just three hours from a 110v outlet.

According to Fortin, the Z-Kart is capable of exceeding 50 miles per hour. However, he changed the gearing to bring it back down to a more-reasonable 40 mph. The differential in the Z-Kart was taken from a small off-road buggy, and the engine feeds juice to the wheels via a chain drive and jack shaft.

Translogic’s Bradley Hasemeyer chats with George about his creation before taking the Z-Kart out for a spin. Check out the electric action in the video after the jump.

Gallery: George Fortin’s all-electric Z-Kart Build Process

[Source: Translogic]

Continue reading Video: Translogic takes the all-electric Z-Kart for a spin

Video: Translogic takes the all-electric Z-Kart for a spin originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 04 Mar 2011 14:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Quick Spin: 2011 Chevrolet Cruze Eco

Filed under: Budget, Sedan, Technology, Chevrolet, Quick Spin

42 MPG, Batteries Not Included

2011 Chevrolet Cruze Eco – Click above for high-res image gallery

There’s always a little skepticism attached to Environmental Protection Agency fuel economy estimates. Even though the agency adjusted its testing procedures in 2008 to help generate more realistic figures, buyers and experts seem to approach the mystical city/highway numbers with the general impression that figures have little bearing on what owners actually experience in day-to-day use. So it should be no surprise that when General Motors and the EPA announced that the 2011 Chevrolet Cruze Eco would hit 42 miles per gallon on the highway, a stink of disbelief filled our newsroom.

That kind of lofty highway fuel economy is typically relegated to hybrids, clean diesels and subcompacts that require an uncanny mastership of human origami to ferry four friends along – not roomy four-door compact sedans. Fortunately, GM was kind enough to turn us loose on a long stretch of Southern California interstate to put the fuel economy of the Cruze Eco to the test.

Gallery: 2011 Chevrolet Cruze Eco: Quick Spin

2011 Chevrolet Cruze Eco

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Quick Spin: 2011 Chevrolet Cruze Eco originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 04 Feb 2011 11:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Quick Spin: 2011 Volvo XC60 R-Design

Filed under: Crossover, Volvo, Luxury, Quick Spin

Tall-Riding Swede Blends Sexy and Safe

2011 Volvo XC60 R-Design

2011 Volvo XC60 R-Design – Click above for high-res image gallery

Despite the company’s storied rally history, Volvo seems to have eschewed building its line of R-Design vehicles into street-legal racers in favor of simply creating design packages that give the company’s sedans, crossovers and hatches some much-needed attitude. In the case of the 2011 XC60 R-Design, that means the vehicle evolves from a mild-mannered high-rider into a machine begging to be seen delivering a load of equally well-dressed ladies to an exclusive night spot. It may not be able to reduce its tires to a cloud of carcinogens or successfully execute a Scandinavian flick, but this CUV is a much more attractive offering than its straight-laced siblings.

Gallery: 2011 Volvo XC60 R-Design: Quick Spin

2011 Volvo XC60 R-Design

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Quick Spin: 2011 Volvo XC60 R-Design originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 04 Jan 2011 11:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Quick Spin: 2010 BMW 760Li

Filed under: Sedan, BMW, Luxury, Quick Spin

If You Have The Means, Then By All Means…

2010 BMW 760Li

2010 BMW 760Li – Click above for high-res image gallery

$66,350 is a significant sum. In the automotive world, it can buy you a variety of delicious drivables, including the BMW M3, Cadillac CTS-V or Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG. It can buy you exactly 4.67 Mazda2 hatchbacks, if that’s more your style, but no matter how you look at it, $66K isn’t chump change.

So when you consider that the 2010 BMW 760Li commands a wallet-gouging $66,350 over an entry-level 7 Series, which itself starts at at a lofty $70,650, you’d be right to expect the standard BMW flagship treatment with a heaping helping of sport sedan prowess thrown in for good measure. And that, folks, is exactly what you get.

Gallery: 2010 BMW 760Li: Quick Spin

2010 BMW 760Li

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Quick Spin: 2010 BMW 760Li originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 27 Dec 2010 11:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Quick Spin: 2011 Subaru Forester

Filed under: Crossover, Subaru, Quick Spin

New Engine Helps Smooth Out Most Rough Edges

2011 Subaru Forester

2011 Subaru Forester – Click above for high-res image gallery

In the years since Subaru last gave its workhorse flat four-cylinder engine a significant revision, an entire generation of customers has gone from pulling up their Huggies to donning college graduation gowns. More than two full decades have passed since the company’s engineers seriously sat down to re-examine the engine’s architecture, and in that time, there’s been an explosion of automotive technology geared toward squeezing every last bit of energy out of a drop of gasoline. With fuel economy and emissions standards growing tighter by the day, the minds at Fuji Heavy Industries, Subaru’s parent company, unveiled the third-generation of their boxer engine recently.

But at first blush, the new heir to the Pleiades throne looks to be little more than a carbon copy of its predecessor. Horsepower, torque and fuel economy figures are all within a shave of the old engine’s numbers, and while the company’s competitors are investing heavily in direct-injection systems, Subaru passed on this tech all together. Where was the improvement? Judging by the specs alone, we had to wonder why Subaru went through the trouble of building an entirely new facility just to produce what looked to be the same old beating heart we’d known and loved for years. We jumped behind the wheel of the 2011 Forester to find out just what had changed beneath the hood of its all-wheel-drive family hauler.

Gallery: 2011 Subaru Forester: Quick Spin

2011 Subaru Forester

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Quick Spin: 2011 Subaru Forester originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 10 Dec 2010 11:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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