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Hyundai To Reveal The All-New Santa Fe Next Month

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Hyundai has announced that it’s bringing an all-new Santa Fe to the Geneva Motor Show this March. But we won’t have to wait quite that long to see what it’s about. The Korean automaker will reveal the new crossover in February. And with this teaser image, it’s giving us a glimpse of what’s to come. The Santa Fe first launched in 2001 to catapult Hyundai onto the sport-ute market. The second-generation model arrived in 2007, followed by the current third-gen model in 2013. Now nearly six years since its debut at the 2012 New York Auto Show – and with the smaller Tucson and Kona having since arrived on the scene – the time looks about right for the Santa Fe to get some love. The automaker isn’t telling us much about the new model at this early stage, except to say that it’ll encompass all the latest safety features it can muster – including a rear cross-traffic collision warning system with automated braking and a rear occupant monitor to let the driver know if there’s anyone on...

Skoda Is Bringing An Updated Fabia To Geneva

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The new Volkswagen Polo just debuted a few months ago. The Seat Ibiza last spring. The Skoda Fabia however has been trucking along virtually unchanged since 2014. But that’s about to change. VW’s Czech division is preparing to unveil a new Fabia at the Geneva Motor Show come this March, and it’s previewing the model with the teaser image you see here. Billed as an “update” rather than an all-new model, the refreshed hatchback will offer LED lighting at both ends and… well that’s about all Skoda is saying for now. But the creases in the sheetmetal look like they’ll be even sharper than before. The automaker points out that it has sold over four million Fabias since the introduction of the first-generation model in 1999, of which the current third-generation model has accounted for over half a million. With the revised Fabia introduced, next in line for the VW Group will be the Audi A1, set for a generational shift. Carscoops

McLaren Rules Out A Crossover, Won't Follow Ferrari And Lamborghini

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It was once inconceivable that brands such as Porsche, Lamborghini, and Ferrari would ever introduce a crossover but all of them either has a model in showrooms or one on the way. Even Lotus, the brand of "simplify then add lightness," is plotting a crossover of its own. The logic behind them is sound, as they basically print money, but McLaren isn't planning to follow suit. Of the 12 models on the horizon, none of them will battle the Lamborghini Urus. Speaking to Top Gear, McLaren chief designer Dan Parry-Williams said “I’m not the first person to point out an SUV is neither particularly sporty or utilitarian." He went on to say crossovers don't fit the company's philosophy of "everything for a reason" unless "the reason is to clutter up the streets." Thankfully McLaren isn't faced with the pressure to build a crossover as the company posted record sales last year. 3,340 McLaren models were sold in 2017 and a bulk of them we...

Great Wall Starts A New EV Brand In China Called Ora

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Chinese automaker Great Wall Motors is making a leap into the world of New Energy Vehicles (NEVs) in its home country, lifting the veil on an all-new brand that will produce electrified vehicles. Dubbed Ora, the brand will celebrate its worldwide premiere at April’s Beijing Auto Show and bring this creation with it; the iQ5. As these images published on Chinese media, including Autohome, reveal, the Ora iQ5 is a five-door SUV with a liftback-style trunk. The design isn’t the most appealing currently on the market and on this example, features a curious mix of white paint with black accents, including the side skirts and the lower portion of the front bumper. Sadly, we don’t have any pictures of the interior but it is unlikely to be mind-blowing. Local media reports that the Ora iQ5 measures 4445 mm long, 1735 mm wide, and 1567 mm high complete with a 2615 mm wheelbase. Impressively, curb weight is allegedly just 1395 kg. Power is sourced from a single electric motor del...

IndyCar Reveals Its Sleek New Racer In Detroit

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The IndyCar Series is embarking on a new era, leaving behind the manufacturer-supplied aero kits and introducing a new common shape for the season ahead – and it unveiled the updated car at the Detroit Auto Show this week. The revised chassis adopts a more striking “coke-bottle” shape, moving the sidepods forward (to offer better driver protection), lowering the floor, reducing the front wing, and removing some 35 pounds of weight from the tail. The result is expected to put more onus on the drivers, with less downforce and weight to rely on. “IndyCar is really looking to deliver on big promises,” said reigning series champion Josef Newgarden. “As you can see, it's bolder, it's more daring and, really, we believe it has improved aerodynamics that are going to help the racing product tremendously, so I'm looking forward to that probably the most.” “There's quite a bit of engineering that's gone into the car. To me, it looks more like an Indy car should,...

Original Land Rover Defender Returns With 400HP V8 Special Edition

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Back in 2016, Land Rover stated that the classic Defender wouldn’t return to production. The automaker, though, didn’t say anything about special edition models. While it’s easy to get excited and think that the Defender is back, this variant of the iconic Defender is a limited-edition model. The Land Rover Defender Works V8 is meant to mark Land Rover’s 70th anniversary and pays homage to the automaker’s early models that were equipped with V8 engines. Powered by a 5.0-liter V8 engine that 400 horsepower (405PS) and 380 pound-feet of torque, Land Rover claims that the special-edition model is the fastest and most powerful Defender ever. The engine is matched to an eight-speed ZF automatic gearbox with sport mode. With the combination of the V8 and the quick-shifting transmission, zero to 60 mph (96km/h) takes just 5.6 seconds. And the boxy SUV tops out at 106 mph or 171km/h. That’s quick, but the Defenders Works V8 is also fitted with upgraded brakes, as well as improved ...

Sergio Marchionne Confirms Wrangler Pickup For 2019, Pacifica-Based Crossover Coming Soon

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Fiat Chrysler Automobiles is set to unveil a new five-year plan later this year and outspoken CEO Sergio Marchionne has provided a few hints at what we can expect. Speaking with Motor Trend, Marchionne confirmed the company still has plans to introduce a crossover that is based on the same platform that underpins the Chrysler Pacifica minivan. The executive said the design work has already been completed and everything is ready to go so "We can probably get it up and running in 18 months.” Little is known about the model but the company's original plan called for the full-size crossover to be launched in 2017. It would have be sold as a Chrysler and offered with a plug-in hybrid powertrain. When asked about the long-awaited Wrangler pickup, Marchionne said “The product is done" but they are focused on building the regular model so the Scrambler successor will arrive in early 2019. One of the major unveiling at the North American International Auto Show was the ...

New 2018 Jeep Grand Commander 7-Seater Leaks Ahead Of China Debut

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Meet the 2018 Jeep Grand Commander, a China-only 7-seater SUV that's rumored to make its public debut at the Beijing Auto Show in April. Once its wheels touch showroom floors, it will compete against the likes of the Volkswagen Teramont and the Toyota Highlander, with prices said to start at around 250,000 yuan ($39,000). Responsible for manufacturing the Grand Commander is the Guangzhou-Fiat joint venture. These images, courtesy of CarNewsChina and Autohome, show two different specs, Longitude and Limited, together with front and all-wheel drive models. The difference between the two specs, at least as far as the exterior is concerned, is that one features chrome inserts along the window frames, front bumper and side sills, while the other does not. Powering the Grand Commander is a new 2.0-liter turbocharged petrol unit borrowed from the Jeep Wrangler - where it makes 268 HP and 295 lb-ft (400 Nm) of torque. Unlike the Yuntu Concept on which it is based, the...

Ferrari Will Make An SUV After All

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"You have to shoot me first", said FCA's CEO Sergio Marchionne a couple of years ago, when asked whether Ferrari would ever build an SUV. In the meantime, things have changed, and Marchionne told journalists at the 2018 Detroit Auto Show that Ferrari's plans now include an SUV, or FUV (Ferrari Utility Vehicle) as he referred to it, AutoExpress reports. The FCA CEO didn't go into specific details, but made it clear that "it will look like whatever a Ferrari utility vehicle needs to look like", adding that "it has to drive like a Ferrari", too. By the end of this year, Ferrari will be debt-free, and so an SUV will bring in more profit for the Italian automaker, mostly from Asian markets, including China, while also helping them sell more than 10,000 units annually. From the Porsche Cayenne to the Bentley Bentayga, the upcoming Rolls-Royce Cullinan and Lamborghini's Urus, the Ferrari SUV has enough rivals to tackle. However, the P...

Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 Coming In 2019 With 700+ HP

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Ford has confirmed one of the worst kept secrets in Detroit, a new Mustang Shelby GT500 is coming to battle the Chevrolet Camaro ZL1. Described as the "pinnacle of Mustang performance," the GT500 will be a fast-back coupe that is twice as powerful as the original 1967 model. Ford is keeping detailed specifications under wraps but the automaker confirmed the car is projected to produce more than 700 hp (522 kW). Power will be provided by a supercharged V8 engine and it will enable the Mustang to become the most powerful street-legal production model Ford has ever produced. The GT500 will even surpass the output of the Ford GT which has a 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6 that develops 647 hp (482 kW). The outrageous performance won't be limited to the engine as Ford says the Mustang has been "engineered to stand apart on roadways and race tracks." That's pretty vague but the company said we can expect "innovative track technologies, performance hardware, pl...