Anyone with a Viper alarm system and an iPhone or Blackberry has had the luxury of the Viper SmartStart app for quite some time now. People with an Android, well, they got nothing. It so what it is, but before you go and get your panties in a knot, Direct Electronics have announced that the SmartStart app will now be available for the Android market.
“The Android operating system enables millions of smartphones on all major carrier networks and across a full range of price points,” said Kevin Duffy, President of Directed Electronics. “With this app release, our Viper SmartStart solution is available to more than 75% of all smartphone users.”
The app is available on viper.com, but don’t go downloading it just yet. The app may be free, but customers will have to get the Viper SmartStart hardware installed in their vehicle along with a compatible Viper remote start or security system in order to take advantage of the free app. After all of that has been taken care of, the Viper SmartStart app will allow owners to start their engine with the push of a button, pre-warm it in the winter, and pre-cool it in the summer. Other features, depending on the Viper product choice, will allow owners to lock and unlock the doors, pop the trunk, or arm their security system and get an alert on their smartphone if their alarm is triggered. Have more than one car? The app allows for control of multiple vehicles at on one smartphone.
The environmentalism wave can affect things that really shouldn’t be messed with. Take Aston Martin for instance. Just because they make high performance vehicles does not mean that they should be forced to make a small city car. Sometimes though, those politicians who make these rules can be outdone by engineers, who find ways to load their cars full of power, but still manage decent fuel economy.
Mercedes-Benz has those very engineers. Mercedes has downgraded the normal engine in the S63, to a direct-injection 5.5-liter V8 with 571 horsepower and 663 pound-feet of torque. On second thought, this engine doesn’t seem very environmentally friendly. The big Merc can hit 60 miles per hour in just 4.5 seconds.
The 2011 S63 loses its torque converter automatic transmission for a multi-clutch box from the SL63. The S63 should be able manage 22.4 miles per gallon, up from the 16.3 mpg that the old car got. Seems like Mercedes has managed to create a super sedan that actually gets better mileage than most SUVs.
Alfa Romeo has had one heck of a year for 2010. They are right smack in the middle of celebrating their centennial anniversary and are taking advantage of that in a serious way. Part of their celebration was taking part in the Goodwood Festival of Speed in a “shine in the spotlight” kind of way. Not only did they bring their new Alfa Romeo 8C to the festival, but they also brought over 50 historic vehicles to showcase during the event and were given the honor of creating a statue to use as the ‘Central Feature’, a statue that’s prominently displayed every year in front of the Goodwood house. Another portion of their celebratory movement was bringing out their restyled and upgraded 159 sedan and station wagon models out to the market. Great things are happening at Alfa Romeo and they don’t want it to stop.
Now Alfa Romeo has decided to bring out a special edition model strictly for the Japanese market. It’s called the Alfa Romeo GT Quadrifoglio d’Oro (Golden Clover) and will feature custom gold badging. The exterior paint finish is a vibrant red that is mirrored in the red painted brake calipers. The exterior also features a chrome trim at the lower part of the front fascia.
The Nissan GT-R Spec M has been the object of desire for many since rumors started circulating that Nissan was planning for a modified "Godzilla" in the near future. Back in March, Nissan confirmed those rumors and announced that the Spec M would make its appearance sometime this winter. Fortunately, those with a taste for the fast and scrumptious will be able to feast their eyes on the Spec M as it performs some testing on the Nurburgring, courtesy of the boys over at Auto Motor Und Sport.
The future Spec M is based on the GT-R SpecV and will receive an aerodynamic package and a new interior. This interior is rumored to be highly customizable to the customer’s every need and want. The Spec M will also be getting ripple control shock absorbers, a refined suspension, and an optional spoiler package. Customers can also opt for an aluminum or wood grain trim and a choice of seat colors.
Official specs have yet to be released for the GT-R Spec M, but we should see some sort of performance upgrade to go along with the new front bumper, new lower air intakes, and the new exhaust system.
The price for the 2011 Nissan GT-R Spec M is said to be around $140,000.
The Nissan Rogue might have flown below the radar, but that hasn’t stopped Nissan from giving the SUV a refresh for 2011. On the exterior, the Nissan gets the unusual egg crate grille, similar to what we find on the Murano. The foglamps get new surroundings that help the front get a more stylistic look.
On the SL and S Krom Edition, you can choose 18-inch wheels for the first time. With those massive wheels and the chrome grille, this is one shiny machine. Not to mention it looks far better than the old models.
There are also other changes that nobody will likely notice. There are new spats in front of the wheels and a new underbody tray that will cut aerodynamic drag and give a 1-mile per gallon fuel increase. That increase helps the front-wheel drive Rogue get 22/28 mpg, while the all-wheel drive version will manage 22/26.
We will get our first glimpse of the new 2011 Rogue at the Z Car Convention in Nashville, TN which started on the 28th and will continue until August 1.
We know that the name Wally whispered in the ears of yacht enthusiasts everywhere will send goosebumps up and down their arms in response to the sheer pleasure that name conjures up. And as we can respect the Wally name in terms of yachts, we have to wrinkle up our nose in distaste for the supercar modeled after the specific yacht design.
Apparently, Mr. Matthew Hockham, a UK industrial designer, decided that transferring the Wally design concept over to a supercar would be a good idea. He was horribly, horribly wrong. Although on paper, the sharp edges, black glass surfaces, and hi-tech gray tones sound absolutely marvelous; on the supercar, they simply fall flat. Designed to include the concept of a shooting brake model and sidelines inspired from the 118 WallyPower yacht, the look was supposed to say futuristic and classy. Ummm, how about weird and unpractical? The only redeeming factor this supercar may have is that the interior is made of carbon fiber and teak, again following along the lines of the Wally brand. The only problem with that is the supercar sounded good on paper too, so we can’t be too confident that the interior won’t leave us disappointed as well.
Look, we know that some people are going to go nuts over this concept, exclaiming how cool it is. More power to them. If you like it then by all means, please enjoy. All we have to say is that we are glad this will probably not see production ever. We’d be much happier with the Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Super Sport or the coming Porsche 918 Spyder; just to name a couple of the supercars we’d rather have.
The new 2012 C Class Coupe, which is set to replace the the CLK in March of 2012 has officially been spied in Europe. The new C-Class is set to be produced in the expanding Bremen factory in Germany, making it the third of three other C class models.
The C Class will be a much more smaller version of the over sized, pricey, E-Class Coupe. The styling of the new coupe will be adopted from that of the new C-Class Sedan. Featuring a much more sculpted hood and a new pair of headlamps. Amazingly, the C-Class Coupe will keep the same trunk space as the sedan version.
The redesigned interior has frankly been morphed into the E-Class - they have basically unbolted the seats and dash on an E-Class and strapped it into the new C-Class. It will feature more gizmos than ever, including night vision (if you plan on going on a spec ops mission, presumably?), parking aid, lane-departure warning, and other driving assistance to make the driving experience about as boring as you can possibly imagine.
In terms of craftsmanship, the new C-Class supposedly lives up to Mercedes’ image of pristine build quality, by using state of the art materials, which will also be reflected in the price tag, expected to climb above that of the C-Class Sedan.
The European model range, will come in 5 versions with 4 and 6 cylinder setups in the 100 to 300 hp range and turbodiesels ranging from 170-204 hp.
In a scene straight out of Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit, a Lamborghini Gallardo and a Porsche 911 GT3 partake in a friendly race along the streets of downtown Sweden. The two-part video features the two supercars taking turns revving it up and blasting along the dark and desolate street.
But what makes this video a lot more interesting happens at the start of the second video where, in true law enforcing fashion, a police car shows up and starts chasing to the Lambo and Porsche. Unfortunately for the officers giving chase in God-knows-what vehicle, reality – or in this case, a massive dose of horsepower advantage – starts to kick in and the overwhelmed cop car gets lost in the two supercar’s collective dust.
We don’t know if the cop car thought that he could actually catch up with a Porsche or a Lamborghini, but hey, we certainly applaud the officers for the effort. It was just a losing battle from the get-go.
Get ready to spend some cash because Inden Design is ready to take it. They’ve developed a tuning package for the Mercedes SL63 AMG that will leave your wallets empty, but your Mercedes stacked. Their kit includes a new body kit and interior and technical changes.
The body kit starts off with a front spoiler bumper, fenders with ventilation openings, a complete hood with air intakes, sidesmolder-learn, a tailspoiler, and rear widening. This “base” body kit will cost the consumer € 19,900. Not a bad starting point, but it starts to get a little out of hand from there. If the consumer wants to add a hood, they’ll need to add € 3,500. A tail diffuser in carbon and a front flap of PE will add € 800 and € 999, respectively. Unfortunately, it doesn’t end there for the money the consumer will have to spend. Assembly of the package will run € 8,000 and adding a lacquer finish inclusive putty work will be € 7,500.
Hit the jump for some more calculations and the press release.
The Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Super Sport shook the auto industry off its hinges when it debuted a couple of weeks ago and, in seemingly pedestrian fashion, proceeded to set the world speed record by clocking 268 mph at Volkswagen’s Ehra-Lessein track in Germany.
Not that we’re surprised by how fast the souped-up Veyron is – it’ a Bugatti, after all – but it was how it came out out nowhere and just grabbed the world’s attention in one fell swoop.
Now that it’s become the talk of the auto world, the Veyron 16.4 Super Sport has been getting its fair share of fans, all of which have been looking for the perfect opportunity to see the 1,200 horsepower beast up close and personal. Fortunately, the boys from Diariomotor chanced upon the golden goose when it was being tested somewhere in Spain and joined by two seemingly irrelevant standard Veyrons that completely lost their appeal when in the company of the record-setting 16.4 Super Sport.
Bugatti’s new supercar, which boasts of an 8.0-liter W16 engine that comes with four enlarged turbochargers and super-size intercoolers producing 1,200 horsepower and 1,106 lb/ft of torque, will head over to the production block later this year where a limited number of models will be produced for those rich enough to afford it.
juan9994 on
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juan9994 on
Alfa Romeo GT Quadrifoglio d’Oro'I want to know why Japan is in the tags of this post??? ALFA ROMEO IS ITALIAN AND OWNED BY FIAT.... how much more do you want?'
juan9994 on
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Uncia on
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juan9994 on
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Uncia on
2010 Paris Motor Show Preview'Italdesign should get the design credit for the Alfa Romeo "Targa Coupe," not Castagna. Castagna’s design is obviously derived from Italdesign’s 1997 Alfa Romeo Scighera concept (...)'
Donner on
Porsche rolls out its 25,000th Panamera'First, congratulations to Porsche for building - and selling - such a number in less than one year...
In matter of design, I disagree with Euginewoods’ definition of "flaccid design". I think, (...)'
Uncia on
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Euginewoods on
Video: Subaru Impreza WRX STI first commercial'The U.S. market is expected to get an updated WRX model with a 265HP engine and styling queues from the STi, grill, etc.. No, the WRX will not get the WIDE-BODY look like the (...)'
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