Lamborghini DiabloIn June 1985 Automobili Lamborghini decided it was time to start thinking about a replacement for their legendary Countach, it would take the Lamborghini development team another five years to complete the new super car, the Diablo.
The Diablo was presented to the public on January 21st 1990, at the Hotel de Paris in Monte Carlo during the second Lamborghini Day (the first one was held when the Anniversario was presented in 1988), after five years of development and about 6,000,000,000 Lire went into the project.
The name 'Diablo' was in fact taken from a ferocious bull raised by the Duke of Veragua in the 19th century, it fought an epic battle with 'El Chicorro' in Madrid on July 11th 1869, this animal became legendary and it's well-known history and it' name were aggressive enough to be used for a Lamborghini.
The main directive for the Diablo was simple, its top speed had to be at least 315 Km/h., so work began on the successor of the Countach. For the design of the bodywork Lamborghini contacted Marcello Gandini, he also designed the Miura and Countach, so he was the obvious person to design the new Lamborghini, but his initial design was altered, first under his own directions, later by the Chrysler Styling Center in Detroit. Chrysler owned Automobili Lamborghini from 1987 on, and arrived right in the middle of the development of project 132.
The Lamborghini Reventón (Spanish pronunciation: [reβenˈton]) is a mid-engine sports car that debuted at the 2007 Frankfurt Motor Show. It is the most expensive Lamborghini road car to date, costing one million euros (~US$1.5 million, or ~£840,000). Its top recorded speed was recorded in Dubai, UAE at 356 kilometres per hour (221.2 mph). The official press release stated that only 20 vehicles would be sold to the public, with one additional car (marked as 0/20) produced for the Lamborghini Museum. Although early rumors indicated the total number would actually be 100, each Reventón is clearly stamped with its number in the sequence of 20 between the driver's and passenger's seats.
Despite the exterior being new, almost all the mechanical elements (including the engine) are sourced directly from the Murciélago LP640. According to the official press release, the Reventón exterior styling was inspired by "the fastest airplanes". To emphasize this, Lamborghini staged a race between a Reventón and a Panavia Tornado fighter plane on a 3 km long runway. The Reventón was in the lead for most of the race, but the Tornado caught up "in the last few feet" of the race.
The destinies of this unique model will be the European market, in addition to the countries within the Asia-Pacific region, while in America enjoy a simpler version, the rear-drive LP 550-2. The main identifying characteristic of the roof is Bicolore Gallardo-black in color specifically Nero Noctis, and the rest of the body painted in bright colors to choose from yellow, orange, gray, white or blue (Giallo Midas, Arancio Borealis, Grigio Telesto Caelum monocerus and Blu Bianco).
The technical characteristics of this model are the same as the standard Gallardo: Power 560cv, 325 km / h top speed and 3.7 seconds to complete the 0 to 100. Rounding out the set of cosmetic changes wheels 15 spoke forged titanium gray, the front spoiler and rear diffuser also painted black.
Inside the Lamborghini Gallardo Bicolore find both the dashboard and doors and seats upholstered in black leather Persian, with stitches in contrast with thread drawn from the same body color. Finally, include the e-gear changes, height-adjustable suspension to avoid hitting curbs in the city and the transparent engine cover that reveals the beauty of the 5.2 V10 engine.
The destinies of this unique model will be the European market, in addition to the countries within the Asia-Pacific region, while in America enjoy a simpler version, the rear-drive LP 550-2. The main identifying characteristic of the roof is Bicolore Gallardo-black in color specifically Nero Noctis, and the rest of the body painted in bright colors to choose from yellow, orange, gray, white or blue (Giallo Midas, Arancio Borealis, Grigio Telesto Caelum monocerus and Blu Bianco).
The technical characteristics of this model are the same as the standard Gallardo: Power 560cv, 325 km / h top speed and 3.7 seconds to complete the 0 to 100. Rounding out the set of cosmetic changes wheels 15 spoke forged titanium gray, the front spoiler and rear diffuser also painted black.
Inside the Lamborghini Gallardo Bicolore find both the dashboard and doors and seats upholstered in black leather Persian, with stitches in contrast with thread drawn from the same body color. Finally, include the e-gear changes, height-adjustable suspension to avoid hitting curbs in the city and the transparent engine cover that reveals the beauty of the 5.2 V10 engine.
In the seven years since our first Lamborghini Gallardo test, the factory has produced some 10,000 copies. Compared with, say, a Honda Accord—about 6000 sold last week—that number is paltry enough to qualify each Gallardo as special.
But in the world of handmade Italian baubles, 10,000 is a large number. So, to keep away ennui, the factory periodically releases even special-er editions. We’ve already tested a Gallardo Spyder, a Gallardo Superleggera, and a rear-drive Gallardo Balboni. Surely a Hurst Edition and an Indy pace-car replica are on the boards.
While we await those, check out two more catalog thickeners that will be around for model year 2011 only. The Gallardo LP550-2 Bicolore (say “bee-co-lor-ay”) is—you guessed it—a two-tone Lambo, base price of $196,995. It’s available in white, yellow, blue, gray, and orange, with a contrasting black roof and tail. That’s not the good part.
The good part is that the Bee-co-lor-ay is basically a continuation of the 250-copy rear-drive Balboni without the body stripe or Signor Balboni’s autograph on the interior. The Bicolore is also $28,800 cheaper, though only the paddle-shifted e-gear transmission gets fitted (Balbonis could be had with sticks). Also included are a transparent engine cover, a push-button nose jack to avoid those nasty driveway and speed-bump scrapes, and a leather-upgrade pack. If you missed out on the experience of jockeying 542 horsepower through a Gallardo’s rear wheels, the Bicolore awaits. And if a two-tone Lambo exceeds your flamboyance limit, a slightly subtler, one-color LP550-2 is also available in 2011 with a stick (for slightly less money than the Bicolore) or e-gear (for slightly more).
The Volkswagen GTI is one of our favorite cars, and not just among compacts. In terms of driving enjoyment and overall refinement, it’s a difficult car for anything on the market to top, especially when you take price into consideration. Sure, there is the far more powerful 270-hp Golf R, but that car carries a 282-pound weight penalty over the GTI, not least because of its all-wheel-drive system. Now, though, VW is trying to slot a car right between the GTI and Golf R: the GTI Edition 35, conceived to celebrate the GTI’s 35th anniversary in Europe; U.S. sales didn’t start until a few years later. (As a companion to this story, we've put together a photographic history of the GTI. You can check it out here.)
At first, the Edition 35 wasn’t going to come to the U.S., then it was, and now it’s off again. U.S.-market fate aside, VW did more than add a few badges to create this special edition—although it did add badges, too. Most important, the Edition 35 receives a more powerful engine. The U.S.-market GTI makes 200 hp, the European car delivers 210, and the GTI Edition 35 produces 235. It is fitted with the old EA113 engine, which is also used in the Golf R and can handle the extra power and torque better than the newer EA888 in its current state of evolution. Compared with the U.S. engine’s 207 lb-ft of torque—produced from 1800 to 5000 rpm—the 35 makes 221 lb-ft from 2200 to 5500 rpm.
A one-off custom-built Maybach was unveiled in May 2005 at the Tempodrom in Berlin. Commissioned by tyre company Fulda, the Exelero is a chopped-down two-seater coupe, though it's more than just a show car - in tests at the Nardo high-speed oval, the prototype reached a speed of 218.38mph, despite weighing over 2.66 tonnes. It is capable of acceleration from 0-60mph in 4.4 seconds.
The car's design was the result of a competition amongst students at the Pforzheim Polytechnic Department of Transport Design, which has worked on show vehicles for Fulda in the past. The design of 24-year-old Fredrik Burchhardt was chosen, and his work was co-ordinated with that of the Maybach design centre in Sindelfingen. The project, based on the Maybach 57 limousine, required a certain amount of re-engineering; the A-pillar and doors had to be shifted rearwards, and the steering column, pedals and gearshift all re-located. The standard 550bhp V12 engine was bored out to 5.9 litres, and tuned for 700bhp and over 738lb ft of torque. With final dimensions of 5890mm long, 2140mm wide and just 1390mm high, the car was kitted out with a full-spec interior, including leather, neoprene, aluminium and carbonfibre finishes.
Maybach Exelero
Maybach Exelero
Maybach Exelero
Maybach Exelero
Maybach says the car, built by Stola in Turin, is "a one-off vehicle created to showcase the new ultra-high performance Exelero tyre range from leading tyre manufacturer Fulda"; it's not the first time the two companies have teamed up, as back in 1938 Fulda demonstrated its tyres on a Maybach SW 38 limousine. There are, however, "no plans to produce the model in series", though it has been certified for on-road use.
Mini recently confirmed that it intended to maximize the Mini Cooper with a crossover variant, seemingly with the name Crossman. Such a vehicle has long been rumored but had been referred to as the Colorado.
Based on our recently snapped spy shots of a running prototype, we can surmise that the Crossman is basically going to be a jacked-up version of the new Cooper-based Mini Clubman. Sort of like a Volvo XC70 in a snack-size package.
2011 Mini Crossman
2011 Mini Crossman
Although the styling is certain to change from the Clubman, the Crossman will undoubtedly share platform and powertrain characteristics with the spunky wagonette. A bit more ground clearance and big wheels pushed way out compared with those of land-bound Minis will also afford it a bit more cross-cred.
The view from beneath the rear bumper gives away various interesting tidbits. This car has all-wheel drive, and in spite of the big hood scoop and the “S” badges on the sides, the single exhaust system shows that this particular car is not a turbocharged S-model. But we fully expect a Cooper S Crossman when the vehicle finally comes to market, likely in 2010 as a 2011 model, as that is when there will be available assembly capacity at the Magna Steyr plant in Graz, Austria. The extra capacity will come when BMW moves X3 production from the contract assembler to its own plant in Spartanburg, South Carolina.
2011 Mini Crossman
2011 Mini Crossman
We expect the Crossman to be available with at least the best two of the Mini Cooper’s miserly four-cylinder engines—the only ones we get in the States, anyway. The direct-injection 1.6-liter inline-fours produce 118 horsepower and 114 pound-feet of torque in the Clubman and 172 horsepower and 192 pound-feet of torque when turbocharged for the Cooper S version.
Europeans likely will also have a turbo-diesel D Crossman with automatic start/stop and regenerative braking—fuel-saving technology not available on Minis in the U.S.
Meanwhile, we will have to wait to find out how much the added weight of the drivetrain and rolling stock will affect the Mini Crossman’s spunky personality.
