There's a lot going on at BMW these days but no project is bound to be more divisive than the firm's first front-wheel drive model, the upcoming 1-Series Grand Turismo, which was previously known by the acronym F.A.S.T., which stands for Family Activity Sports Tourer. Citing inside sources, the crew over at the BMW Blog reported that the 1-Series GT would make its world premiere at the upcoming 2012 Paris Motor Show this fall.
A bicyclist �no, we didn't make a mistake- captured footage of the all-new 2012 Mercedes-Benz A-Class hatchback while riding with his team from El Golfo to Playa Blanca on the Spanish island of Lanzarote in the Canary Islands. It seems that the German premium carmaker was at the island to shoot video and pictures of the luxury compact model for its press material. The A-Class seen here is the five-door hatchback model, which will be the first body style to be launched onto the market. Mercedes has already confirmed that the 5-door version will make its world premiere at the 2012 Geneva Auto Show in early March. A sportier looking three-door model will follow, possibly withing the next year.
We have another round of spy shots of the all-new 2013 Land Rover Range Rover. While the exterior of the British firm's luxury SUV continues to wear plenty of camouflage, our scoopsters were able to snag the first photos of the Range Rover's interior.
If you pay close attention to the pictures, you'll notice several changes including the repositioned main air-vents that are mounted on the same level as the audio and navigation screen on the current model. Right below we find a massive screen for the infotainment system that takes plenty of real estate on the center stack. The lower console is also new and seems to be positioned slightly higher than before.
Our colegas at Diariomotor got themselves a series of spy photos showing what they claim to be a heavily disguised prototype of the Peugeot 508 Station Wagon. The French carmaker teased the sedan version of the 508, which will replace both the 407 and 607 saloons, with the "5 by Peugeot" concept model at the 2010 Geneva Salon this past March.
Photoshop wizard and Bimmerpost forum member 'Alpince325ci' is at it again. This time he has taken an actual spy shot of the forthcoming 2011 BMW 6-Series Convertible and applied some photoshop magic to give us an idea of how the Bavarian company's drop-top GT will look like. Hit the jump for a high resolution version of the picture.
A gallery of scanned photos from a leaked brochure gives us our first glimpse of the M Sport Package for the 2011 BMW 5-Series, which is expected to be available for order this fall. Even though the pictures show an M Sports-dressed Touring model [F11], understandably, the same parts will be offered on the sedan version [F10] of the new 5-Series.
The color-coded aero kit includes a newly designed, chunkier front bumper with larger air ducts, side skirts and a revamped rear bumper with an integrated diffuser finished in a dark shade and chrome tail pipes.
Thanks to some leaked brochure shots, we can show you the first pictures of the Japanese domestic market (JDM) version of the subtly refreshed 2011 Lexus IS 250 / 350 sedan.
The most notable exterior changes include the new headlamps that incorporate LED daytime running lights and the redesigned lower part of the front bumper with round foglamps. Though not visible from these photos, the interior is said to benefit from some minor trim upgrades.
Truth to be said, most Aston Martins of the past decade look so alike that even professionals have a hard time telling the difference between some models, especially when they're camouflaged. The Aston Martin DBS and DB9 are the perfect example.
However in this case, we're going to disagree with some other car blogs / sites that posted similar spy photos of the same car as the facelifted DBS and vote for the updated DB9 for a few of reasons.
First of all, this camouflaged prototype has the same bootlid as the one found on the DB9 and not on the DBS which gets a more prominent spoiler incorporated into the boot lid.
A group of Chevy [Chevrolet if you work for GM] Camaro Convertibles were caught with their tops up about 2 hours north of Toronto in Canada by a member of the Camaro5 forums.
For now, there's not much to say about the Convertible other than it gets a cloth top - most likely electrically operated, and the same re-rated for the 2011MY 312HP 3.6-liter V6 and 426HP 6.2-liter V8 engine options as the coupe variant.
No really, Ford is in fact trying to convince us that it is teasing the new explorer and not a boat in this latest picture that was uploaded on the SUV's dedicated Facebook page. Whatever. The redesigned from the ground up 2011 Explorer should descend upon us in a couple of weeks time, maybe even sooner. Time wasters can check out the rest of the teaser pictures after the jump.
[Updated] Just moments ago BMW released the first teaser video of the hotly-anticipated 1 Series M Coupe (that's the official name the Bavarian company is -currently- using for the car). No details about the powertrain or performance specs have been revealed, though in the video after the jump, M boss Kay Segler leaves no doubt that the 1-Series M Coupe will be a powerful machine that will give its driver "the goose pimples" [...].
The video shots suggest that the 1 Series M model will get the usual "M treatment" with extended wheel arches and a bodykit with unique bumpers and side skirts. According to Segler, the smallest ever BMW to wear the M-badge will arrive in showrooms in the first half of 2011. More to come so stay tuned...
If these spy photos and video are anything to go by, then Maserati could very well be working either on a facelifted version or -most likely-, a new variant of the GranTurismo sports coupe. Spied in Germany, the undisguised test car features a new lower apron up front along with a discreet but clearly visible boot lid spoiler and a redesigned rear bumper with two tail pipes mounted high on the center fascia at the back.
The modifications at the rear end of Maserati's sports coupe bring to mind the GranTurismo MC racing concept that was introduced in late 2008.
Found on the trademark office, are these patent drawings of the Volkswagen Jetta Coupe, or as the German automaker named the concept version of the car at the Detroit Auto Show in January, the NCC (New Compact Coupe).
Those skimming the photos may notice a couple of changes over the concept model that was motivated by a gasoline-electric hybrid powertrain. These include the more production like grille and addition of fog lamps up front, and the visible exhaust tail pipes at the back.
We were supposed to see the next iteration of the Mercedes-Benz CLS for the first time at this fall's Paris Motor Show, however, thanks to an eagle-eyed reader of the Brazilian website Noticiasautomotivas, we now have pictures of the sporty four-door saloon without a hint of camouflage. Believe it or not, the reader caught the 2011 CLS lurking around the German firm's Stuttgart Museum. We assume the car was there for a photo shoot.
The new CLS blends the "banana shaped" body of the outgoing model with styling elements Mercedes-Benz's latest cars such as the E-Class Coupe's heavily shouldered rear wheel arches and the more dramatic front-end design, all previewed on the CLS Shooting Brake Concept.
There are no photos of the interior, but don't expect to see something entirely different the concept study.
Our spy photographers have snagged a lightly camouflaged prototype of the upcoming Mercedes-Benz C-Class coupe that is set to hit showrooms along with the facelifted versions of C-Class sedan and Estate early next year. It has been suggested that the arrival of the C-Class Coupe will mean the end of the CLC sport hatch.
Unlike the CLC which is based off the previous generation C-Class, the new coupe is built on the existing C-Class. The newcomer appears to feature a much simpler design than the larger and more expensive E-Class Coupe. Aside from losing two doors, the coupe version of the C-Class gains a more rakish roofline and a redesigned rear end. Don't expect any significant changes over the sedan model inside.
Audi�s new A6 model series will soon welcome a new member into the family, the sporty S6 that was snagged by our spy photographers in Avant trim during testing in Germany.
The prototype model was completely undisguised, however, there�s a reason for that. With the exception of some model specific details such as the telling quad tail pipes and unique alloy wheel designs, the S6 will remain unchanged from the A6 with the optional S-Line sport package. The latter adds an aero kit with restyled front and rear bumpers, among other parts.
Well now, that didn�t take long, did it? Less than three months after the presentation of the LF-Gh concept car at the 2011 New York International Auto Show and Lexus has already started testing the production model that will spawn a successor to today�s GS sedan at the N�rburgring circuit.
Naturally, the Lexus GS prototype is covered in plenty of camouflage but not to the point that it discloses its styling similarities to the LF-Gh study.
Aside from the body proportions, details like the protruding side sills, the high rising belt line, the �dotted� LEDs and large grille up front, and even the alloy wheel designs, appear remarkably faithful to the concept.
The upcoming 2012 Bentley Continental GTC Speed continues its�European tour as the British firm�s engineers have left the Alps and headed down to the Nurburgring racetrack for some high-speed tests.
The next Porsche 911 will make its world premiere in base trim at the forthcoming Frankfurt motor show this September, but this will only be the first chapter of the 991 saga as the Stuttgart-based firm plans to create an entire range of sub models.
The 911�s lineup will eventually grow to include numerous body styles such as coupe, convertible, Targa and speedster models as well as a variety of standard and limited production versions ranging from the entry level Carreras in two- and four-wheel drive layouts to the GT-spec track racers and the almighty Turbo, which our spies caught testing in Germany.
The engineering teams over at the BMW Group have their hands full these days as they rush to complete testing of a number of future vehicles.
These include but are not limited to, MINI�s Roadster and BMW�s i3 hatch, i8 hybrid sports car, M6 Coupe, the next generation 3-Series sedan and GT liftback, the 7-Series facelift, the four-door 6-Series GT which we showed you earlier today, and case in point, the convertible version of the M6.As with the 2012 M6 Coupe, BMW is slowly stripping away the disguise from the rag-top model which will feature the same M Division-tuned drivetrain found in the latest M5 sports sedan.