In what would amount to a significant setback for the product-starved automaker, Alfa Romeo’s eagerly-anticipated, Mazda-based roadster may go to another brand within Fiat Group.

Instead of giving the next-gen MX-5 Miata-derived sports car to Alfa, Fiat is likely to market the upcoming model under its namesake brand or Abarth performance subbrand, sources familiar with the situation have revealed to Automotive News.

While the reasons for the switch aren’t fully understood, the move seems to be partially attributable to Fiat-Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne’s pledge – first made last September – that no Alfas will be built outside of Italy while he remains in charge.

Fiat’s supply contract with Mazda calls for the roadster to built alongside the next MX-5 Miata at Mazda’s factory Hiroshima, Japan. The contract was formally agreed upon in January 2013.

Unwilling to incur the costs that would result from abandoning the deal, Fiat is looking to salvage the situation by switching the model to another brand. Abarth, with its enthusiast-oriented image, could be a natural fit, and Fiat itself is also said to be a candidate.

Mazda and Fiat product planners will reportedly meet in the near future to discuss the change in plans. Mazda had been altering the MX-5′s design to meet Alfa’s needs.

Marchionne has declined to comment on the situation, saying only that more information on upcoming Fiat Group products will be announced in early May.

Seat appears to be ready to announce that its 2014 Leon Cupra hatchback has set a new Nürburgring track record for front-wheel-drive production cars.

The company promises to make a “record announcement” at the Geneva Motor Show. Official teaser videos show a Leon Cupra at the ‘Ring, and a leaked YouTube video–featuring a Leon Cupra with the same camouflage pattern–points to a record-breaking FWD lap time of 7:58.44.

If true, the company has beat Renault’s 8:07.97 lap time set in 2011 with the Mgeane Renaultsport 265 Trophy driven by Laurent Hurgon. Renault held the previous record with a RS R26.R, which beat a lap time set by a Chevrolet Cobalt SS.

A sub-eight-minute lap time does not appear to be unreasonable for the 2014 Leon Cupra variant equipped with a 2.0-liter Volkswagen four-cylinder mill tuned for 280 horsepower. The hatchback promises to reach 62 mph in just 5.7 seconds, with a top speed of 155 mph.

Seat is expected to confirm its achievement at a press conference scheduled tomorrow at 10:15 CET.

It seems to answer a question nobody asked, but southern California’s Newport Convertible Engineering has created an open-top Nissan GT-R.

Turns out, at least a few of NCE’s clients did indeed ask, and company head Al Zadeh delivered. According to Autoblog, the idea was conceived when some of Zadeh’s customers from Abu Dhabi inquired about a topless Godzilla.

Zadeh developed three versions, all of them employing a folding fabric-top. The cheapest option costs $29,500 and hides the open top under a rigid, body-colored tonneau cover, as seen on the white example in the gallery above. The next selection offers twin roll-hoops in body color behind the driver and passenger seats, as seen on the silver example. Lastly, there’s a dual nacelle version reminiscent of speedsters and monoposto race cars, as seen on the black example.

The latter two conversions cost $49,000 each, and you must supply your own GT-R. The metamorphoses effectively turn the GT-R into two-seaters and take about eight weeks to finish. While some of them look passable with the roof open, in the raised position the fabric canopies appear awkward and anachronistic for such a high-tech machine. No word on how it holds up during Nurburgring runs.

NCE specializes in open top conversions, and has given haircuts to such cars as Aston Martin Rapide, Mercedes G55, Jaguar XJ, Lexus LX 570, Porsche Panamera, and many more.

Fiat will travel to next week’s Geneva Motor Show to unveil updated versions of the 500 and 500C city cars.

The most noteworthy upgrade for 2014 is a seven-inch thin-film transistor (TFT) screen that replaces the analog instrument cluster on all but the lowest trim levels. In addition to providing vital information about the car, the screen can be configured to display navigation information, real-time gas mileage and miscellaneous warning messages.

The visual updates are fabulously minor and largely limited to new trim on the front fascia, revised headlights, three new exterior colors as well as additional 15- and 16-inch alloy wheel designs.

2014 also marks the arrival of a new range-topping trim level called Cult. Only offered in Europe for the time being, the Cult trim adds a panoramic glass roof, model-specific 16-inch alloy wheels and gloss black trim all around. The interior comes standard with either black, red or tobacco leather upholstery, a body-colored dashboard and the aforementioned TFT screen.

The 2014 Fiat 500 and 500C will go on sale across Europe in the second quarter of this year, and the performance-focused Abarth-tuned models are expected to get the new TFT instrument cluster before next fall. Fiat has not announced when the updated 500 will land in the United States.

BMW has confirmed the production variant of the X4 Concept will greet the public for the first time at next week’s Geneva Motor Show.

BMW is keeping its lips sealed about its next crossover coupe but rumors indicate the X4 will be nearly identical to the X4 Concept that bowed at the Shanghai Motor Show last April. Just as the X6 is a more stylish (and less practical) version of the midsize X5, the X4 will be the compact X3′s slinkier sibling.

Based on what we’ve been told, it’s safe to assume the entry-level X4 will be powered by a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine that will generate about 240 horsepower. More expensive models will utilize a 300-horsepower 3.0-liter six-cylinder mill, and a gasoline-electric plug-in hybrid variant is a very real possibility later in the production run.

In Europe, the X4 will get a range of gas and diesel engines of the four- and six-cylinder varieties, while gearbox choices will include a traditional six-speed manual, a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic and a conventional eight-speed automatic. Because they aren’t offered in the U.S.-market X3, it’s unlikely (though still possible) that the X4 will be offered stateside with a manual transmission or diesel engine. Do, however, expect a range-topping X4 M with a turbocharged inline-six similar to that of the upcoming M3.

The production version of the X4 will be built alongside the X5, X6 and X3 in BMW’s plant in Spartanburg, South Carolina. Look for the crossover to greet the public for the first time at next April’s New York Motor Show and land in showrooms shortly after as a 2015 model.

The X4 will carry a price premium over its more utilitarian X3 sibling; whereas the X3 starts at $39,395, an Autoweek report suggests that the X4 will carry a base price of $42,000.

Even as Lexus get ready to unveil the its new RC F GT3 race cars at the Geneva Motor Show, similarly bodied race cars bound for Japan’s Super GT series are already undergoing testing.

For the 2014 Super GT season, Lexus will campaign no less than six teams in the GT500 class, all of them using the RC F body. Unlike Europe’s GT3 racers, however, these will be powered by a 2.0-liter turbocharged direct-injection four-cylinder to meet new regulations for the 2014 season. The new mills are still expected to develop power in excess of 500 hp, a similar output to that of the 3.4-liter V8s that dominated the league since 2010.

Like the engine, the car itself has rather little in common with the road-going version of the RC F. The body is a tubular-frame chassis and most of the body panels are carbon-fiber. Base weight of the 2013 cars came in at approximately 2,424 pounds, but running mass depends on the weight penalties applied to the cars a la NASCAR.

Photos of the ZENT RC F to be driven by Yuji Tachikawa and Kohei Hirate testing at Okayama International Circuit have been circulated by Lexus UK. Images of the ENEOS RC F to be piloted by Kazuya Oshima and Yuji Kunimoto were shared by Oshima himself on Facebook.

Until now, Lexus has participated in Super GT with cars bodied in the shape of the long-defunct SC 430. The RC F GT500 finally allows Toyota to go head-to-head with a modern silhouette against Nissan’s GT-R and Honda’s NSX. The 2014 season kicks off at Okayama International Circuit on April 5.

Swedish supercar maker Koenigsegg has released official photos and specs of their game-changing machine ahead of its unveiling at the Geneva Motor Show next week.

Set to take a swipe at the Bugatti Veyron Super Sport for its “world’s fastest” crown, the Koenigsegg Agera One:1′s twin-turbo 5.0-liter V8 will generate 1,341 horsepower and 1,011 pound-feet of torque. It’s mated to a 7-speed dual-clutch paddle-shift transmission funneling power through an electronic diff. Though it’s the first road car to generate one megawatt of power, the real achievement comes in the form of weight savings.

Carbon fiber is used throughout, and not just the obvious stuff like the monocoque body, which is interwoven with Kevlar. Everything from its seats to its wheels are composite, to keep the mass down to a feathery 1,360 kg, or 2,998 pounds, with all fluids and 50% of its fuel. In fact, that’s where the One:1 gets its namesake, one horsepower to each kilogram of mass. 3D-printed titanium bits are used throughout as well, forming the exhaust tip and some of the innards of its twin turbochargers.

The result is a mind-bending 0-400 kph (248 mph) time of 20 seconds. At those speeds, in order to maintain contact with planet Earth a complex system of vents funnel air through the body and active aero is used. Specifically, a hinge-less “dynamic venturi flap” actually flexes beneath the One:1′s carbon nose at speeds above 250 kph to draw more air under the body, sucking it to the ground. A Le Mans-style top-mounted spoiler is electronically controlled and hydraulically actuated into one of three positions: low drag, braking, and high-downforce.

A top speed of 44o kph (273 mph) has been reached on computer simulations, but has yet to be proven in field. If so, that would make it the world’s fastest production car, besting the recently crowned Hennessey Venom GT. Unfortunately, only six will be built, thus making the numbers too small for memorialization in the Guinness record books.

Jaguar has detailed the XF R-Sport that will debut at next week’s Geneva Motor Show. Aimed primarily at fleet operators, the XF R-Sport and its Sportbrake-badged station wagon counterpart are designed to provide buyers with a seamless blend of sportiness and efficiency.

The XF R-Sport stands out from the regular XF thanks to model-specific side skirts, a sportier front bumper, a bespoke rear spoiler and 17-inch alloy wheels mounted on low-profile tires. R-Sport badges all around wrap up the exterior updates.

An optional appearance package adds gloss black trim around the radiator grille, on the lower bumper inserts and on the trunk lid. Sportbrake models fitted with the appearance package gain gloss black roof rails.

All XF R-Sport models feature a charcoal interior with a choice of three different stitching colors. Buyers can choose whether they want Dark Oak, Piano Black or Carbon Fiber trim on the dashboard, the door panels and the center console.

Power comes from a 2.2-liter four-cylinder turbodiesel engine that sends 163 horsepower to the rear wheels via an automatic transmission. A standard start/stop system lowers fuel consumption to 48 mpg in a mixed European cycle.

After debuting in Geneva, the Jaguar XF R-Sport and R-Sport Sportbrake will go on sale in the United Kingdom next spring. Pricing information will be published closer to the cars’ on-sale date.

Stay tuned to Leftlane for live images of the Jaguar XF R-Sport straight from the show floor in Switzerland starting next Tuesday.

Niche automaker Morgan Motors has announced it will travel to next week’s Geneva Motor Show to unveil a more powerful version of the Plus 4 convertible and a thoroughly updated 3-Wheeler.

Plus 4
Technical details are being kept under wraps until the car’s official debut but Morgan promises the latest evolution of the Plus 4 will pack over 145 horsepower and 140 lb-ft. of torque. These numbers might not sound like much on paper, but they are plenty in a car that tips the scale at less than 2,000 pounds.

The more powerful Plus 4 will look similar to the current model when viewed from the outside. Essentially a copy of the original Plus 4 that debuted in 1950, the roadster will stand out from nearly every other convertible on the road today thanks to a genuinely retro body accented by real chrome trim, bug-eyed headlights and wire wheels.

3-Wheeler
The most notable changes carried out to the 3-Wheeler for 2014 are invisible to the naked eye. The chassis has been thoroughly re-engineered to increase torsional ridigity and improve handling, the steering has been re-calibrated to improve high-speed stability and the entire drivetrain has been made smoother and quieter to operate.

Morgan has not made any modifications to the 80-horsepower 2.0-liter V-Twin engine but it has fitted it with a new cooling pack that helps keep the temperature from rising in dense urban traffic. 80 ponies are enough to propel the 1,212-pound roadster from zero to 60 mph in a brisk 4.5 seconds.

Both the Plus 4 and the 3-Wheeler will go on sale across Europe next summer. Morgan is not planning on officially exporting cars to the United States in the near future but several third-party importers have cropped up across the country over the past few years.

Authorities have busted an alleged international car-theft ring, charging at least 29 suspects with a range of charges related to carjacking and trafficking stolen vehicles.

A statement issued by New Jersey acting Attorney General John Hoffman suggests the ten-month investigation, dubbed “Operation Jacked,” culminated in the recovery of 160 high-end vehicles worth more than $8 million.

Most of the vehicles were reportedly stolen in New Jersey and New York, before being loaded onto ships headed for West Africa where the ringleaders were allegedly able to sell the models for more than their US retail prices.

The ring is said to have targeted high-end vehicles, luxury SUVs in particular, produces by Land Rover, Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Honda, Porsche, Jaguar and Aston Martin. A majority of the 27 carjacked vehicles were taken at gunpoint. Others were stolen with one or more of their key fobs, enabling the thieves to sell the cars for top dollar.

“Carjackers are driven to steal and even to murder by the demand that exists for luxury stolen vehicles,” Hoffman said. “This ring we took down was a double threat. Its members committed carjackings that put the public in grave danger, while at the same time, through their fencing and shipping operations, they created demand that motivated others to commit carjackings.”

In some cases, thieves allegedly bumped into the back of target vehicles on the highway. When the victim stopped to exchange insurance information, the thieves would simply jump in the car and drive off or take the keys by force or threat. Others were stolen at airports, car washes, carrier trailers, valet lots and dealerships.

The ring was allegedly structured with a variety of jobs, including carjacker, car thief, wheel man, fence, shipper and buyer. The “theft crews” were reportedly paid between $4,000 and $8,000 for each stolen car, which was typically sold for a higher price to a higher-level fence.

Police appear to have used informants to infiltrate the ring, with cooperation between federal agencies and police departments in New York and New Jersey.

“The scope of those arrested and charged shows just how organized this dangerous criminal enterprise had become,” said New Jersey State Police Superintendent Colonel Rick Fuentes.