Starting in 1996, Alexa Internet has been donating their crawl data to the Internet Archive. Flowing in every day, these data are added to the Wayback Machine after an embargo period.
The Audi metroproject quattro stars in its first promotional video. The 2-minute video shows a few of the cars niftier features, like the removable iPhone-like gadget that does iPhone-y things and also allows remote access to some of the vehicle's systems.
However, the car does appear to have a bit of stage fright. It's beautiful inside, as befits an Audi concept car. Lights flash, but neither the car nor any piece of it moves, and the video has no sound. Perhaps that's an allusion to the silence of its beautifully packaged electric motor in back... Follow the jump to see the video.
Click the image above for a gallery of pics of the Mazda Taiki concept.
Mazda's recent run of "flow" inspired designs has been taken to yet another attractive extreme in the form of the Taiki concept. Featuring enhanced aerodynamics and next-generation rotary power, the Taiki will supposedly influence the future of Mazda's sports coupe lineup.
The 16X RENESIS rotary is a significant step forward by itself, coming complete with more displacement – up from 1.3-liters to 1.6 – and featuring a two rotor design, which combined with direct injection and a longer stroke, will increase fuel efficiency and torque output across the rev-range.
We've assembled a gallery of live and press pics below, and Mazda's complete press release is available after the jump.
Click the image above for plenty of high-res pics of the Mazda Atenza.
Although Mazda's press conference was an odd combination of staid, staccato press-speak and hyperactive performance art, two of the debuts were relatively unremarkable. The redesigned Atenza (Mazda6 to those of us in the States) now comes in both a hatchback and sport wagon body styles, complete with either a 2.0-liter or a 2.5-liter four pot. Although there's some debate on whether or not these models will make it over to our shores, both will likely enjoy the same levels of popularity that the outgoing Atenza enjoyed at home.
Mazda's full press release is available after the jump and you can check out a combination of live and press images of both models in the gallery below.
When we told you that NBC was moving forward with a modern take on Knight Rider, speculation at the time was that executive producer Doug Liman would also take the reins as director. Turns out, that's not the case. The director of the pilot is Steve Shill, an industry veteran whose long list of directing credits includes episodes of The Sporanos, Law & Order, Big Love, Dexter, Deadwood and many, many more big-time shows.
AICN correspondent Merrick thinks that Shill is a good pick for Knight Rider, and he also happens to have read the script! We'll let you choose whether or not you want to read more details, but we will say that the new show takes place in the same Knight Rider universe as the original, and is actually a continuation of sorts, instead of a re-imagining in the vein of shows like Battlestar Galactica and the (horrible) new Bionic Woman. If you want to know more about the new KR storyline, you can Merrick's review of the script (warning: spoilers) here.
Click the above image for more pictures of the BMW M3 Sedan
There hasn't been a BMW M3 sedan since the E36 generation, but that doesn't mean BMW has forgotten how to build a fast saloon car. The M3 Sedan takes everything good about the M3 coupe and adds two doors to the mix, allowing you to better justify the purchase with your significant other. BMW has thrown out the standard headlights on the sedan and replaced them with the lights found on the coupe, giving it a more sporting design in the process.The basic specs are all the same as the coupe, but you should check out our previous post on the M3 Sedan to find out more.
Nissan's got the right idea when it comes to sussing out what young urban car buyers want: ask them. It's more than just a focus group, though. Nissan actually worked with 18 New York teenagers to educate them about the car design process and how to spot trends. The automaker has teamed up with Sweat Equity Enterprises to give teenagers from underprivileged backgrounds a taste of the huge cornucopia of opportunities there are in the world. Six different teams competed to design the winning concept, the prize being a model of the winner. The teens turned out such impressive and clever ideas for a $9000 car that all the concepts will be brought to digital life as animated digital mockups.
An elemental three-box in fetching metallic orange dubbed the Pure came out on top. Team member Stewie Jones explained that the idea was to make the Pure a spiritual successor to the Datsun 510, trading on the same type of goodwill that sells MINIs, and building on legend like Nissan's done with generations of Skyline. Nissan gets the inside scoop on what urban youth really wants, and that's a commendably simple and effective concept. We'll get our chance to ogle the scale model of the Pure at SEMA's expansive event next week, and we wish that someone had rewarded us for incessantly drawing cars in high school, instead of dooming all of our best work to the trashbin.
We're starting to get that overwound spring feeling in the pits of our stomachs as SEMA is roaring down upon us. Next week, the ginormous event for tuners and aftermarket manufacturers gets underway in Las Vegas, and Honda will be there with two Accord Coupes they spiced up in-house. The 2008 Accord is still wet behind the ears, and the two coupes are going to be rolling showcases for what treasures can be found in the accessories catalog. The Honda Factory Performance version of the coupe will be equipped with ownership and enjoyment-enhancing pieces that everyone can purchase and have installed at their dealer.
More exotic will be the HF-S concept (above), created by Honda's accessory development team. Our guess is that the HF-S will be more kitted-up and carrying stuff that's not yet available, but could be. The car definitely looks like it was ripped from Manga, and the great thing about factory accessories is that if you have the dealer affix them to your car, they carry a 3 year/36,000 mile warranty. That's better than the nonexistent warranty you'll find on anything you bolt on yourself from the Mugen catalog.
Click above image for more live pics of the Subaru WRX STI
We've gone from being disappointed by the new Impreza, to pleasantly surprised by the WRX, to smitten by the STI. It looked OK in silver as the dust sheet came off, but stunning in metallic black on the Subaru stand's floor. The new STI's exterior details that set it apart from lesser siblings do not appear to be afterthoughts tacked on to a standard family car, but rather the way the family car was supposed to look in the first place.
The interior, too, is better put together and uses better materials than previous offerings from Subaru Tecnica International, but the dash will look pleasingly familiar to fans of the brand. Click below for a gallery taken at the live launch and view Subaru's official press release with all the specs after the jump.
Click the above image for more live shots of the Nissan GT-R
A press event has never been so well attended, or dangerously overcrowded. But we got to the front in time to watch in car footage of a GT-R lapping the Nurburgring in 7:38.5, then out came Carlos to claim that his new baby is the best that Nissan has ever produced – and we're inclined to agree. Unsurprisingly the show car is silver, and, well looks pretty much like it did in the spy shots, but the shock was that Mr. Ghosn committed to Nissan fielding GT-Rs in next year's Super GT Championship.Could this be the start of another R32-like Godzilla race track domination?
Deliveries start in next month, and to the rest of the world by the end of 2008. Check out the gallery, we'll have tech specs up soon.
Click the image above for more live and press shots of the Honda PUYO.
Honda hyped up its PUYO concept here in Tokyo, showing video of the misshapen blob inhabiting the streets of a futurist metropolis, pleasing bystanders and children along the way. Unfortunately, they never showed what would happen if the PUYO had a close encounter with the pedestrian kind, but it's glowing extra-terrestial haze was eye candy enough. Oh, and Asimo says, "Wazzup?"
You can get the skinny on the PUYO in our original post and check out the gallery below for more live pics.
Hey look, more video. But what's this about a Alfa Spider diesel that gets 52.3 mpg? Sweetness. Two not-so-sweet bits of news for Chinese drivers, yesterday, though: Toyota says ixnay to electric cars in that country and then we heard of a possible 100% fuel price hike there. Ouch.
Click the image above for live and press shots of the Honda CR-Z concept.
Honda's CR-Z concept has plenty of enthusiast potential. Small, lightweight, and packing a hybrid powertrain, it's all about striking a balance between performance and sustainability. While the first round of press shots sent warm tingles down our neck, seeing it in person did little to excite the senses. It's attractive, and the combination of a powerful stance and sloped profile is the business, but the CR-Z struck us as a bit anonymous.
There's plenty of pics in the gallery below and head on over to our original post for the full press release.
Click above image to view live pics of the BMW tii concept
BMW's 1-Series tii concept was just revealed and we can now bring you live shots of this stunning coupe from the floor of the 2007 Tokyo Motor Show. The tii is based on the recently launched 1-Series coupe, but is a leaner, meaner, more hardcore version of the entry level Beemer. The enhanced bodykit and carbon fiber parts give it a purposeful stance that just exudes motorsport, as well as lowering the car's weight and making it aerodynamically sliippier. On the inside, we especially dig the white steering wheel and Alcantara trimmed interior. Click here for the original post on the tii, or check out the gallery below for pics of the car shot live.
click above image to view 10 new high-res pics of the Nissan GT-R
Nissan was nice enough to publish the official press release for the GT-R a little ahead of the car's actual unveiling, and they released some new official pics to boot. While we all wait for Damon & Co's live pics and impressions (once they battle their way through the hordes of journos screaming like Beatles fans at Nissan's press conference), here's a quick recap of the key facts:
On sale 12/6 in Japan
3.8L Twin Turbo "VR38" V6
480 PS (473 HP) / 588 Nm (433 lb-ft)
Dual-clutch transmission
Bilstein DampTronic suspension system
Brembo 6-piston brakes in front, 4-piston in rear
Basically, it has everything you want it to have
Read the new press release after the jump, and come back for the live shots from the show floor soon.
Click the Dakota MX Warrior for a high res gallery
Dodge teamed up motocross racer Scott Waraniak to create the Dakota MX Warrior for this year's SEMA show. Scott races KTM bikes and is studying at Detroit's College for Creative Studies. In addition to providing his bike for the back of the Dakota, Scott also did the graphic design adorning its bodywork. Dodge lead designer Mark Surel explained that the recent redesign of the Dakota was intended to separate it from the Ram. Dodge considers the Ram to be more of a work truck, while the Dakota is seen as a personal leisure vehicle.
Honda hyped up its PUYO concept here in Tokyo, showing video of the misshapen blob inhabiting the streets of a futurist metropolis, pleasing bystanders and children along the way. Unfortunately, they never showed what would happen if the PUYO had a close encounter with the pedestrian kind, but it's glowing extra-terrestial haze was eye candy enough. Oh, and Asimo says, "Wazzup?"
Tokyo Motor Show: New pics of Nissan GT-R ahead of live reveal
Tokyo Motor Show: Audi metroproject quattro conceptlo_thumbnail.jpg)
Tokyo Motor Show: BMW Concept 1 Series tii unveiled
Lotus powers up Elise, Exige for 2008
UAW strikes at International Truck and Engine Corporation
In the Autoblog Garage: 2008 Scion xB
In the Autoblog Garage: 2007 Porsche Boxster
Autoblog Podcast #80
Autoline on Autoblog with John McElroy
In the Autoblog Garage: 2007 MINI Cooper S
