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“This Malibu takes Chevrolet’s established and award-winning nameplate to new places and introduces it to new audiences around the world,” said Rick Scheidt, vice president of Chevrolet. “Whether the Malibu is sold in North America, South America, Europe, Asia, Africa, or Australia, it has been engineered from the ground up to meet the needs of customers around the world.”
The facelift model will receive a makeover that includes a new front fascia with new lights, a redesigned front grille and reshaped bumper, which oddly enough, bring it closer to the original C-XF Concept that previewed the car. The XF will also benefit from tweaks to the interior and the overall quality, the introduction of new tech systems and an upgraded suspension for improved ride and handling.
Perhaps the biggest news for buyers across the pond is the introduction of a new 2.2-liter four-cylinder turbo diesel engine. The oil-burner is a development of the Ford unit found in the Land Rover Freelander and the European-market Ford Mondeo, however, given that the XF is rear wheel drive, it sits in a north-south configuration so Jaguar had to make several changes to the engine.
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While we can only speculate on the unnamed concept model, it is very likely that the AMG production car is the SLS AMG Roadster as it was recently teased in the German firm’s SuperBowl commercial.
As for the North American motorshow debuts, these are new 2012 Mercedes-Benz SLK350, C-Class Coupe, and C-Class (the latter was shown at a special media event on the sidelines of the Detroit Show in January).
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Next up on our motorshow calendar is the 2011 New York Auto Show in late April, where we’re expecting several world premieres, including a new concept car from Lexus. The Japanese automaker made the announcement today through its Twitter channels with a rather vague note: “LF-Gh: LF = Lexus Future. h = hybrid. G = ...”.
The company also stated in an invitation to the press that the concept “will present a glimpse into the future of Lexus design.” We’re assuming the ‘G’ stands for a prototype version of the next generation of the GS premium sedan but we’ll know more within the next couple of weeks.
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As with the sedan model, the V8 powerplant in the 2012 C63 AMG Coupe will be offered in two states of tune. The basic version churns out 457HP and peak torque of 600Nm in EU-spec, and 451HP and 443 lb-ft in US-trim, for a 0 to 100 km/h sprint in 4.5 seconds [0-60mph in 4.4 sec] and an electronically limited top speed of 250 km/h [155mph].
Customers can opt for the AMG Development Package that pushes output to 487HP in the EU model and 481HP in the U.S.-spec variant, for a 0 to 100 km/h to 4.4 seconds [0-60mph in 4.3 sec] and a limited maximum speed of 174 mph [280km/h].
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This change of focus has posed some new problems in cases when motor shows in the West coincide with China’s car salons. One particular example is the 2011 editions of the New York and Shanghai motor shows as they share a common press day on April 20. To avoid conflicts the organizers of the two car shows met at a forum for global auto shows in Geneva and agreed to work together to evade overlapping dates in the future.
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But even the companies that did take part in the show didn't really impress with their offerings. The fact that the first press day was more than enough for the participating [mainstream] brands to announce their new production and concept models at the Cobo Center, says a lot about this year's event.
The results of their activities were four people being non-fatally shot; over thirty more were arrested. Four of those busted were charged with gang-related assault. Dating back to 2003, other injuries such as cutting and stabbing have occurred.
"The TSX Sport Wagon represents a smart choice for those seeking a vehicle with utility," said John Mendel, Acura's executive vice president of sales. "It's practical, fun to drive, luxurious and technically advanced, all while achieving an outstanding estimated highway fuel economy rating of 30 miles per gallon."
Along with an increased rear cargo space over the saloon, the TSX Sport Wagon also features a removable side panel to accommodate wider items such as golf clubs and integrated under-floor bins for hidden storage.
"The look is clearly Infiniti with its signature Infiniti grille, broad shoulders and large greenhouse," says Ben Poore, vice president, Infiniti Business Unit. "It's rugged, sophisticated and completely captivating." Well, we'll let you be the judge of that.
Designed at Kia's studios in Frankfurt, Germany and Irvine, California under the guidance of Peter Schreyer, the all-new Optima is longer, wider, lower and most importantly, miles sexier than the vehicle it replaces.
Even though it looks nothing like the Sonata, the 2011 Optima actually shares the midsize platform and mechanical hardware with Hyundai's proposal in the segment.
The Sonata 2.0T, as the car is officially named, is powered by a new 2.0-liter Theta II twin-scroll turbocharged gasoline direct-injection (GDI) engine that produces 274 horsepower at 6,000 rpm and 269 lb-ft of torque from 1800-4500 rpm with regular fuel.
In addition to the new sedan model that's distinguished by a large rear wing, the 2011 Impreza WRX STI features a series of improvements including revised suspension tuning, lighter 18-inch wheels and cosmetic tweaks.
Up front, the revised Impreza WRX STI hatchback gets sharpened bumper corners and wider, blacked-out fog lamp nacelles, a newly designed front grille with black base and blacked-out wing highlights.
Hyundai is pitting the Genesis sedan's big brother against rivals such as the Lexus LS 460 and Mercedes-Benz S 550, but at a much lower price as the Equus will launch in the U.S.A. this summer with a starting price in the mid $50,000 range.
"We've applied the lessons in engineering excellence we've learned with Genesis to the Equus, while adding a new level of customer experience that will further differentiate our take on luxury from the traditional premium brands," said John Krafcik, president and CEO, Hyundai Motor America.
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The Five Axis Scion tC show car features a four-inch wide-body conversion and a unique House of Color custom formulated exterior paint appropriately named, Bloodshot.
Stylistically, the hatchback conversion of the Forte is far less adventurous than you'd expect from a company that has churned out some interesting designs lately including the Optima and Sportage.
We don't have photos of the interior yet, but Kia's release makes word of a revised center console, new paddle shifters for the automatic transmission and the addition of a push-button start.
The newest member of the Sonata family features a series of unique styling cues that set it apart from its conventional brethren. These include a new fascia with a small upper grille and a gaping-mouth (Peugeot-like) lower grille, revised headlamps and a redesigned bumper.
At the back, there's a reshaped bumper with sharp creases at the corners and revised tail lights. The so-called 'eco-spoke' alloys and beefier rocker panels round off the exterior tweaks that are said to help reduce the drag coefficient from the standard Sonata's 0.28 to 0.25.
Interior changes are limited to the unique trim and color choices, and the Hybrid Technology Display featured on a 4.2-inch LCD screen located between the odometer and tachometer.
