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An Audi A4 That Gets 51 MPG? Ja, Bitte!

November 10, 2010 By Leave a Comment
2011 Audi A4 Avant TDI

This is what a green car should look like.

This is one of those good news, bad news stories. If you live in Germany, congratulations: you’re about to get a 51 mile per gallon turbodiesel version of the Audi A4. Even better news is that it comes in either sedan or station wagon (“Avant”) flavor, which means you can haul your tuba to oompah band practice without any fuss. To put things in perspective, a gasoline engined A4 or A4 Avant gets around 25 miles per gallon with the four cylinder, gasoline powered turbo motor, so the TDI doubles your fuel economy.

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VW Unveils The Race Toureg 3

August 24, 2010 By Leave a Comment
VW Race Toureg 3

Now THAT is what I call off-roading.

Volkswagen takes winning the Dakar Rally seriously, and they’ve done so for the past two years with a specially built Toureg. To be competitive, you need to stay one step ahead of the competition which is why VW sunk major R&D dollars into building the latest generation of Toureg race truck. VW has no intention of handing the crown back to Mitsubishi and their Pajero.

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Startup Automaker Tries To Raise Funding On eBay

August 16, 2010 By Leave a Comment

You can find damn near anything on eBay, ranging from old military vehicles to haunted furniture. Add to that eclectic list your share in startup automaker Sondergard Automotive, who claims to have built a Lotus 7 clone coupe with 330 horsepower. That’s not overly remarkable, since people have shoehorned everything from Nissan Skyline mills to LS7 motors in Lotus 7 clones; what’s remarkable is Sondergard’s claims of 330 horsepower AND 80 miles per gallon. Did I mention that they’re also claiming a curb weight of just 1,600 pounds? Color me cynical, but I’d believe the horsepower, the fuel mileage or the curb weight; I sure as hell don’t believe all three.

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Sure It’s Fast, But How Does It Handle?

June 30, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Cummins v18 Diesel Mini

Are you tired of your vintage Mini being called a chick car? Sick of defending your masculinity every time you get behind the wheel? Are you looking for just a bit more grunt, especially at low end? Do you not mind giving up a little interior room, and are you willing to spend epic cash on making your Mini maxi?

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Will The Next Mitsubishi Evolution Be A Diesel Hybrid?

June 13, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Mitsubishi Evo

You’d better hope the answer to this question is “yes”, because the alternative is no new Evo at all. In fact, Mitsubishi was set to pull the plug on their legendary corner carver and STI fighter, until a last minute change of heart gave the Evo XI a second chance. Surprising even Mitsubishi insiders, their research and development folks were given a green light to pursue development of a diesel / hybrid platform.

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