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December 27, 2011 | 
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Chrysler’s bailout-era dealer cull has ended up being something of a nightmare, with a number of dealers successfully fighting for reinstatement as federal investigators look into possible criminal wrongdoing. And whereas GM has basically rolled back much of its dealer cull, Chrysler has consistently used arbitrary calculi for closing dealers and has resisted giving dealers the opportunity to reclaim their franchises. Now, the dealers that have won reinstatement in congressionally-mandated arbitration hearings are facing a new threat: relocation. Read the rest of this entry »
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Snow is falling over Moscow in the failing winter light. Down Tverskaya Street comes a convoy of bureaucratic black sedans, like a scene from the gloomy days of Comrade Brezhnev, except now they part a sea of battered Ladas and brand-new Audis. Looking right, the convoy can glimpse the golden spires of the Kremlin and the walls of Red Square before heading for the plain, stone-slabbed Duma, the Russian parliament.
Some of the cars, however, continue along the street and pull up outside an imposing seven-story yellow building that looms over Lubyanka Square, home to the once-feared KGB and still used by its successor, the less onerous Federal Security Bureau. It’s also a place associated with one car above all others—the black Volga sedan once used by the upper echelon of the communist bureaucracy.
Today, these bureaucratic convoys contain more stylish and reliable Mercedes S-class vehicles. Once the Soviet standard, Volgas are now chopped liver.
Except one—there is still one Volga that makes pedestrian Muscovites raise their high-cheek-boned faces to the bitter wintry winds. And even smile. The one we see this day looks like an immaculately restored 1957 Volga coupe. But that can’t be right. The Gorky Automobile Works (GAZ) that produced these Volgas between 1956 and July 1970—the M-21 model—never built a
coupe version.
All the 334,812 M-21 Volgas that were produced by the GAZ factory were four-door sedans or station wagons, cars that represented the peak of the Soviet Union’s automotive technology. The Volga may have looked like a commie copy of a ’53 Ford Custom sedan, and as
Autocar magazine’s test in 1960 reported, the engine might have stalled every time the car stopped on a slope. But in a country where for most citizens the alternative was riding an old, decrepit bus, the Volga was hugely desirable. This was the car driven by cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, the first man to rocket into space. It was the car the Soviets were proud to export to the British Isles, with an advertising blurb describing its cabin as making "lengthy out-of-town voyages joyous"—although dissident Soviets of the time who found themselves bundled between a pair of austere KGB agents on the big back seat might have disagreed.
Those genuine Volgas neither looked nor drove like this coupe. So ignore the chrome "Volga" letters on this coupe’s trunk and the famous "shark’s teeth" Volga grille, because this Volga coupe is not a Volga at all. Only the head- and taillights are original.
This coupe takes a BMW 850CSi chassis (last built in ’96), transmission, and engine and grafts on the unique body. It’s not powered by a wheezing 70-hp four-cylinder lump but by a 380-hp V-12 BMW engine capable of hurtling it down Moscow’s multilane highways at a claimed 150 mph. It is said to go from 0 to 60 mph in 6.3 seconds, performance that a KGB agent—even one equipped with the later 195-hp V-8-engined KGB version of the original Volga—would have, well, killed for.
Inside the car, above the leather-trimmed interior, a tiny plaque has been stamped into the car’s plush roof lining, attesting to being handmade "for the owner Mr. D.Z." We never found out who the mysterious Mr. D.Z. was, but we were told he paid $500,000 for this special Volga look-alike. Hard to believe, but these are the new capitalists in Russia. The firm that produced the car is "A:Level" (meaning "No. 1, top drawer"), and it’s a company where you need more than just dollars to drive away a car boasting its exclusive plaque stamped with your initials.
To get to A:Level’s home and workshop, we drive 12 miles west of Moscow’s fume-choked city center, along tree-shaded lanes, past humble wooden huts, and pull up in front of a huge steel gate. We are about to be the first journalists allowed a glimpse of what’s inside.
The gates glide open, and we are greeted by a uniformed guard and a thick-coated dog. A low, 7100-square-foot brick warehouse lies next to a yard occupied by cars hidden under nylon sheeting and covered with snow. Peek under one gray sheet, and there’s a rare Ferrari-engined Lancia Thema sedan. Lift another, and there’s a 176-mph black Lotus Omega/ Carlton sedan—a limited-production model from the early ’90s. There’s also an armored Rolls-Royce Silver Spur.
We walk into the warm building to find four young guys in blue overalls exercising their ratchets by a hulking Lamborghini LM002 sport-ute. It is covered in matte-black rubber-texture paint with radiation warning signs on its doors—the owner wanted it to look "different." In another room is a homemade robot device, powered by six windshield-wiper motors, that is designed to carry tools. It seems the perfect setting to hear someone say,
"Nu, slushaete, 007."
("Now, pay attention, 007.")
Article source: http://www.caranddriver.com/features/04q2/volga_v-12_coupe-feature
Source: http://www.eurocarblog.com/post/2191/bmw-vision-efficient-dynamics-hybrid-concept-revealed
BMW released its gallery of the Vision EfficientDynamics , dubbed the world’s fastest hybrid. It apparently has the performance of an M3 and the fuel efficiency of a Mini, in a particularly impressive design.
Below is the full gallery and brief release detailing BMW’s new look at aerodynamics and style, lightweight body and of course, the
featured in this concept. The engine is a diesel-hybrid 1.5-litre, three-cylinder unit with 163 hp and about 290 Nm of torque.
The Vision EfficientDynamics concept will be presented at the this month, and will remain a kind of inspiration for the future direction of BMW. It is set to influence overall BMW design principles, as well as showcase some impressive hybrid technology, and even the use of a thermo-electric generator. Check out the details below.
Character: of future demands in sustained mobility. BMW Vision Effi cientDynamics
efficiency.
a modern small car in the premium class. As a result, this unique sports car
strategy.
from a revolutionary vehicle concept developed all in one from the ground up,
achieving a new level of effi ciency combined with a unique driving experience.
components in this concept car.
BMW Effi cientDynamics.
Technology: • Offering a full-hybrid concept, the BMW Vision Effi cientDynamics concept
car is powered by a three-cylinder turbodiesel and two electric motors.
Overall system output is 262 kW/356 hp, maximum torque 800 Newtonmetres/
590 lb-ft. All-wheel drive featuring an electric motor on both the front
and rear axle.
4.8 seconds, top speed 250 km/h (155 mph) (electronically limited) , fuel
consumption in the EU test cycle 3.76 litres/100 km (equal to 75.1 mph imp),
CO2 emissions 99 grams/kilometre.
As a plug-in hybrid, BMW Vision Effi • cientDynamics is able to cover the entire
fuel consumption drive cycle under electric power alone. Taking the sources
(EU electricity mix), this reduces the CO2 emission rating to just 50 grams
per kilometre.
through a particularly effi cient concept of Brake Energy Regeneration.
Energy is stored in 98 lithium polymer cells. The car is able to cover
a distance of approximately 50 km/31 miles in the electric mode alone.
• Aerodynamics developed with know-how from Formula 1. CX drag coeffi cient
optimised to just 0.22. Forward-looking energy management uses the
maximum potential available in each case to minimise fuel consumption.
Design: technology and aerodynamic quality. Design language typical of the
brand, setting clear signals in terms of sporting performance and optimum
effi ciency.
supreme effi ciency with an enhanced level of all-round function.
offer an unprecedented driving experience for up to four occupants.
side. Innovative, weight-optimised door kinematics makes entering the car at
both front and rear convenient and very easy.
very latest in modern technology. At the same time the use of natural
this concept car.
become darker as a function of incoming light.
BMW sees technical innovations reducing both emissions and fuel consumption as an elementary part of the brand’s product strategy, just like vehicle concepts enhancing the Sheer Driving Pleasure so typical of BMW as a lasting, sustained experience.
Now the BMW Vision EfficientDynamics concept car clearly demonstrates that these objectives expressed through the BMW EfficientDynamics development strategy are fully compatible with the most demanding reduction in fuel consumption and emissions complying in full with future requirements.
Conceived as a 2+2-seater with plug-in full-hybrid technology, this unique car is able to combine the performance of a BMW M Car with a standard of fuel economy and emission management exceeding even the current level achieved by the latest small cars in the market.
This outstanding result is made possible by the consistent integration of BMW ActiveHybrid components, their combination with an extremely economical combustion engine, and the outstanding aerodynamic qualities of the BMW Vision EfficientDynamics concept car.
BMW Vision EfficientDynamics is the result of an all-inclusive development process starting from a clean sheet of paper. This ensures an improvement of both effi ciency and driving pleasure far exceeding the sum total of all individual components and technologies, and is also borne out in the very emotional design of this unique concept car. BMW Vision EfficientDynamics is therefore an unprecedented sports car offering fascinating perspectives for the future of Sheer Driving Pleasure combined in full harmony with maximum effi ciency.
Presenting this unique concept car, BMW is once again demonstrating the company’s outstanding competence in the development of cutting-edge drive systems. Indeed, BMW Vision EfficientDynamics is the most comprehensive implementation of the BMW EfficientDynamics development strategy seen so far. The drive units provide a top speed limited electronically of 250 km/h or 155 mph, with acceleration to 100 km/h in 4.8 seconds. Average fuel consumption in the EU test cycle is 3.76 litres/100 kilometres, equal to 75.1 mpg imp, and the CO2 emission rating is 99 grams per kilometre.
CO2 emission management is even more outstanding when driving in the all-electric mode after charging the battery from a plug-in source: Taking all emissions in the generation of electricity into account, as prescribed by the EU mix, the car’s emission rating in this case is just 50 grams per kilometre. Through this unique balance of driving pleasure and fuel economy the BMW Vision EfficientDynamics concept car clearly demonstrates the potential of BMW ActiveHybrid technology making its world debut at the 2009 Frankfurt Motor Show in the BMW ActiveHybrid X6 and BMW ActiveHybrid 7 production models.
This truly impressive power and performance is made possible by combining a particularly fuel-efficient three-cylinder turbodiesel with one electric motor each on the front and rear axle. The intelligent combination of these three power units and the energy they develop, together with precisely controlled energy management, serves to enhance both the dynamic performance and the all-round effi ciency of the car, using the full potential of BMW ActiveHybrid to reduce both fuel consumption and CO2 emissions to the greatest possible extent. Overall system output is 262 kW/356 hp, peak torque is 800 Newtonmetres/ 590 lb-ft.
The special arrangement of the three power units allows all-wheel drive also available in the all-electric mode. The result is minimum power loss and at the same time harmonious transmission of the power available under all conditions. In its design, BMW Vision EfficientDynamics for the fi rst time conveys the dynamic look so typical of a BMW sports car to a hybrid vehicle. Developed with know-how from Formula 1, the body of this unique sports car is an expression of intelligent lightweight technology and supreme aerodynamic efficiency. And in the design of the interior, the focus was likewise on both the fascinating driving experience and, in particular, on transparent, hands-on technology and maximum reduction of weight.
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