Elite Auto Rental Blog

If you are as big a fan of the new Rolls-Royces as the folks who write here, you will absolutely want to pay a visit to John’s blog and catch a great article about Ian Cameron, Rolls-Royce’s top designer.

http://autogeekmind.blogspot.com/2007/06/sweet-chat-with-ian-cameron-of-rolls.html

What an intimidating job! As Ian says, “…the challenge and excitement of trying to produce the best car in the world is very humbling.” Check out what else the hotshot designer has to say about the future direction of Rolls-Royce! I’ve never gotten an up close look at any of the Dallas Rolls Royce rental cars that Ron has parked in his showroom, but maybe next time, I’m in the Big D….

AutoWeek has some spy shots of the Lexus prototype and reports that it is likely powered by a 5.0 liter, 500 hp V10 similar to the engine planned for the next generation Acura NSX. Perhaps both cars will end up being revealed at the Tokyo auto show. That would certainly make the inevitable comparisions easier.

AutoWeek predicts the Lexus will be on sale at 100k plus in late 08 as the 09 model.

I like the look of the prototype.

See it here: http://www.autoweek.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070620/FREE/70619009/1023/THISWEEKSISSUE

It certainly reminds me of the Muscle cars of the 60s that have been so lovingly restored by so many fans of the Camero. GM certainly has high hopes for the stylish V-8 powered throwback. Specs on the engine are a bit sketchy. 6.0 liter 400 HP V8.

The reviewers were limited to “a rolling look from the driver’s seat” as the concept car was in early development and could not be tested at speeds exceeding 25 mph.

The article predicts the car will completely turn GM around. I’ll wait for a test at speeds above 25 mph before making such a bold prediction, but I would love to see another great car sports car from GM.

Several very good photos of the Camero Concept.

http://www.autoweek.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070626/FREE/70625014/1004/THISWEEKSISSUE

There is no shortage of write-ups about Jaguar’s new XK, in all its variations, on CARandDRIVER.com. That’s probably because Jag’s latest—and in terms of performance, its greatest—GT is pretty sensational, whether or not it has a roof, a supercharger, or both. We would have no problem driving all the variations over and over and over without complaint. And so here we are again, the subject this time is the supercharged $92,500 XKR convertible, arguably the glitteriest kitty in the litter—at least from an image standpoint. It also happens to shine from a performance standpoint, proving that losing its top does not mean losing its edge.

 

Nearly every body-panel of the car has been changed to maximize the performance potential of the car, including wide fender flares, lightweight construction and a carbon fiber roof, similar to the roof of the M6.

The M3 Concept is powered by a V8 and BMW has confirmed that the 2008 production M3 will be powered by a 420-horsepower 4.0-liter V8 engine.

The front of the M3 Concept is very functional and purposeful, with large air intakes and the front apron pushed forward, elements that add to the sporty character of the car but also increase functionality. A new design feature is the raised “powerdome” in the center of the hood that seems to indicate that the next M3 will have a more powerful engine than any previous version.

The profile reveals gill-like openings in the front fenders typical of other M cars with a horizontal chrome bar, directional indicator and an M3 badge. The bulging fender flares, rocker-panel extensions and mirrors add to the aggressive look. The 19-inch light alloy wheels have with a Y-shaped spoke design also characteristic of other M models.

At the rear, the powerful stance of the M3 is further emphasized with horizontal lines to accentuate the wider track, a rear diffuser that follows design elements from the front and two sets of dual exhaust pipes located near the center of the vehicle. The M3 Concept is lightweight, due in part to the use of carbon fiber reinforced plastic for the roof of the car that is left exposed as a design element.

http://autos.msn.com/research/vip/futuremodel.aspx?familyid=703&pictureid=&usage=Image

This was reported by Jonny Lieberman at Jalopnik. I want to show them link love, but I just can’t copy a link to it. Apologies in advance.
Sweet George Washington does he have an interesting writing style.

At any rate, he reports that the Europeans are all in a tizzy about global warming and, in typical European fashion, the solution is to possibly ban any car capable of exceeding the speed limit by 25%. According to the post, EU speed limit is roughly 80 mph. So anything over 100 mph would be banned.

First the Pope and now this. Is there anywhere safe to have fun anymore? I just can’t imagine the countries that make great performance cars actually voting for this.
http://jalopnik.com/cars/the-revolutionary-war-was-a-brilliant-idea/europe-considers-banning-high-performance-cars-272527.php

Not sure why I can’t link to it. Cut and paste and check it out!

This one courtesy of Mike Spinelli at Jalopnik. A very cool post with the picture and press release about a new exotic car from those crazy kids at Zap. Here’s the promise an electric vehicle that can go about 100 miles on a charge and has a top speed of 100 mph. Much more reasonable 30k projected price tag. It is designed based upon the lightweight platform created by our good friends at Lotus.

The first look at the new model according to Mike’s post is to occur on July 29th at the Zap stockholders meeting.

Press Release:

SANTA ROSA, California (June 22, 2007) - Electric car pioneer ZAP (OTC BB: ZAAP) is launching a new development program for a high-performance electric vehicle that is affordable for consumers.

6/22/2007 - ZAP Announces Second High-Performance Electric Vehicle in Development
Electric car pioneer ZAP is developing a new electric vehicle that is affordable for consumers. With a targeted price of $30,000, ZAP says the technology for the new vehicle is similar to that of an electric SUV concept announced earlier this year called ZAP-X, but will be available sooner.
ZAP says that the initial concept phase for the new vehicle is complete. The targeted price is $30,000, top speed in excess of 100 mph and range of 100 miles per charge. Many of the technologies already specified for the ZAP-X electric car concept will be applied to the new vehicle, but delivery is expected to be sooner than the ZAP-X. CEO Steve Schneider said more details of the new vehicle will be presented at the annual shareholder meeting, July 29 in Santa Rosa, California.

“With ZAP’s experience over the past 12 years and the groundwork we have already laid, we know that electricity is the future of the auto industry,” said Schneider. “At the same time, we believe we have a design that will serve a niche no other manufacturer in the auto industry is seeking to fill.”

http://jalopnik.com/cars/zap-me-baby-one-more-time/zap-says-new-high+performance-electric-car-on-the-way-272301.php

So much Royalty in one location and all under one tent. 5 Bugatti Royales worth $60 million were present at the 2007 Goodwood Festival of speed.

The Bugatti Royale was an interesting car. It was quite a novel idea for an automaker to build vehicles exclusively for royalty and heads of state, and though It’s been 80 years since Bugatti introduced the Type 41 Royale, the cars look as stunning as ever. Altogether, six Royales were built. Big and Powerful (they have huge 300 hp, 12,763 cc engines.) Just one is worth going to see should you receive an invitation to view.

If you don’t have a thing for collector cars and are clueless about what to do with the one gathering dust in your garage then how about turning it into a piece of automotive art like this crazy auto-enthusiast, who turned his Classic Holden into an outdoor grill! The guy turned the front section of a classic Holden Monaro GTS for grilling burgers and steaks.

I thought this to be the most unique idea. How would you like to be the first in the neighborhood with a Ferrari Enzo grill?  What about using the engine area as an ice chest?  That would be an ultimate pair for an exotic grilling experience. The idea’s are limitless.  What other idea’s can you come up with for using a car?

While checking on the lastest news involving “Green” I found this article  http://www.environmentalleader.com/2007/06/25/high-end-sports-car-buyers-not-big-into-green/

The details of the article included news of the  European Union’s threat to introduce a mandatory limit on fuel consumption. This has the exotic car manufactures like Porsche, Ferrari, Bentley, and Aston Martin concerned over the requirement of an average fleet output of 43 miles per US gallon.

Experts say the new CO2 rules would be designed to allow specialist manufacturers like Porsche to demonstrate an annual improvement in CO2 emissions, but not forced down to levels which would threaten its existence.

If any taxes/fines are accrued for exceeding CO2 requirements will finally be passed on to the customers.  Let’s not kid ourselves the people who purchase exotic cars don’t have any agenda on the “green” thing. This will not effect the willingness to buy.