General Motors has announced several enhancements, including a new transmission and range-topping trim package, that will arrive later this year for the 2015 Cadillac Escalade.

The luxury SUV will be the latest GM offering to benefit from an eight-speed transmission, following similar additions for the latest Corvettes, full-size pickups and the Cadillac CTS.

The new automatic gearbox is expected to help improve performance and fuel economy over the current six-speed transmission, though specific numbers for the Escalade remain unclear.

The lineup also brings a new Platinum Collection model for buyers who are looking for an even higher level of luxury. First- and second-row seats are upholstered in Nappa semi-aniline leather, with hand-stitched and hand-wrapped leather also found on the upper door panels, center console and dashboard. Sueded microfiber headliner trim and exotic wood accents complete the environment.

The package includes heated and cooled 18-way power front seats, seven-inch LCD screens in the front head rests — complementing the nine-inch overhead display — and a cooled center console to store chilled beverages.

The exterior is distinguished by 22-inch wheels and extra chrome accents, along with a unique grille design and ‘Platinum’ badging.

Buyers of lower trim levels will all benefit from standard 4G LTE connectivity and a Surround View camera system, both available as standard features across the entire range.

The nine-speed automatic transmission and new trim options will be available sometime in the fourth quarter of the year, with the Platinum packages starting at $90,270 (including $995 freight).

BMW has fully detailed its one-off i8 Concours d’Elegance Edition, set for its debut at Pebble Beach.

New pictures reveal the customized interior, pairing Dalbergia Brown leather with ‘i’ Blue stitching on the seats and steering wheel. The Pure Impulse Tera World interior also features bright blue seat belts and “i8″ embossed in the front headrests.

Door sills have been laser etched with “Councours d’Elegance Edition,” while a plaque on the rear shelf carries signatures from BMW executives who played key roles in the i8 development plan.

The exterior is distinguished by BMW Individual Frozen Grey Metallic paint with a matte finish, along with blue accents on the kidney grille and side skirts.

The special-edition will be among the first i8 examples to arrive in the US market, auctioned by Gooding & Company on August 16. Proceeds will support the Pebble Beach Company Foundation and the Concours d’Elegance.

The Toyota Tundra TRD Pro will just have hit the market when the automaker enters it into its first motorsports competition. Toyota intends to prove the pickup’s off-road bona fides by entering one into the Baja 1000.

The race truck will compete in the Full Size Stock category of the grueling slog across Mexico’s Baja Peninsula. As the name implies, the race covers 1,000 miles of unpaved terrain, much of it covered in boulders and sand dunes, and takes over 20 hours to complete.

The class allows minor changes to the suspension, including a conversion to leaf springs in the rear. However, aside from safety equipment, massive lighting for nighttime driving, and larger capacity fluid and fuel tanks for long distances, the truck remains faithful to the production version. Key components such as the powertrain, control arms, tie rods, wheel bearings and hubs are all Toyota factory equipment.

Toyota is no stranger to racing on unpaved roads. In the late Eighties, it teamed up with Ivan “Ironman” Stewart and campaigned a series of stadium trucks that spawned a popular arcade game, Super Off Road. In 1991, Toyota and Stewart took their first Baja 500 victory, and went on to capture several more Baja 500 and 1000 wins over the next two decades. Stewart will be coaching team Tundra, comprised of four drivers and a navigator, two of whom are to engineers at Toyota Trucks and TRD.

The Tecate SCORE Baja 1000 begins November 12.

Leaked images have prematurely revealed the production version of the Citroën C-XR concept that was presented last April at the Beijing Motor Show.

Called C3-XR, Citroën’s next crossover is nearly identical to the C-XR concept but it features more realistic headlights and a decidedly less premium appearance. The car stretches 163 inches long and 68 inches wide, dimensions that place it at the smaller end of the crossover segment.

Interior pictures were not leaked but Citroën has previously hinted the C3-XR will pack a well-appointed cockpit with room for up to five passengers and their gear. Tech-minded buyers will be able to order the crossover with a touch screen-based infotainment system, Bluetooth connectivity and a rear-view camera.

Base models will reportedly be powered by a 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine, while more expensive variants will gain a 163-horsepower 1.6-liter turbo four. Power will be sent to the front wheels exclusively, meaning the C3-XR will not be a true off-roader in spite of its raised ground clearance.

Set to be assembled in China, the Citroën C3-XR will greet the public for the first time at the Guangzhou Motor Show that will open its doors to the public next November. The C3-XR will go on sale across China before the end of the year, but Citroën is not currently planning on adding the crossover to its lineup in other markets.

Live images by Ronan Glon.

Fiat’s Indian division has published the first official images of the facelifted Punto hatchback.

Called Punto Evo locally, the Indian-spec Punto stands out from the model sold in Europe thanks to more angular headlights and a new bumper that incorporates a wider radiator grille and a bigger air dam. New paint colors, LED tail lamps and numerous chrome-look accents all around finish off the updates.

Inside, the differences between the two models are minor and largely limited to market-specific trim. The two cars share the same dashboard, the same steering wheel and the same seats. The Punto Evo can be equipped with automatic A/C, cruise control, LED ambient lighting and Bluetooth connectivity, while top two trim levels come standard with front and side airbags.

The Punto’s entry-level engine is a 1.2-liter four-cylinder that generates 68 horsepower. Buyers looking for more power can order a 90-horsepower 16-valve 1.4-liter unit, and Fiat offers a 1.3-liter turbodiesel rated at either 76 or 93 horsepower. All engines send power to the front wheels via a manual transmission.

The facelifted Fiat Punto will go on sale across India next week. Pricing information hasn’t been published yet.

What’s Next?
The European-spec Punto will not undergo similar updates. An earlier report indicates the nameplate will be phased out entirely in the next couple of years and replaced by a similarly-sized hatchback with a 500-inspired design that will slot between the standard 500 and the larger 500L. Expected to ride on an evolution of the Dodge Dart‘s Compact U.S. Wide platform, the yet-unnamed Punto replacement will go head-to-head against the Ford Fiesta.

Keen to keep the momentum of the FT-1 Concept rolling, Toyota is further enticing fans with a race-prepped version of the outrageously styled show car. However, whereas the original was unveiled at the Detroit Auto Show earlier this year, the next one will be made public in Gran Turismo 6.

The Toyota FT-1 Vision Gran Turismo is just the latest in a string of fantasy race cars that have made their debut on the Sony Playstation franchise. Other automakers that have launched their dream cars in the hugely popular racing simulator have included Mitsubishi, BMW, and Aston Martin. Some, like Mercedes-Benz and Nissan, have even gone on to build real, life-size versions of the pixel-world machines.

Toyota took a different tack, using an existing concept but re-imagining it as a full-blown race car. A teaser video does just that, never showing a clear view of the car, but from what we can see the racer has a large, fixed wing rather than the retractable spoiler of the show car. Also not seen on the concept are louvered extractors atop all four fenders, a trick LMP cars use to prevent air pressure, and thus lift, from accumulating beneath the wheel wells.

Additionally, large, 15-spoke wheels replace the old 14-spokers and newly designed carbon fiber diffusers front and rear provide virtual downforce. The exhaust outlets have been relocated as well, moved inward between the taillights rather than protruding from the bodywork beneath the Lexus LFA-like rear vents.

Watch the teaser video below. Neither Toyota nor the publishers of Gran Turismo 6 have announced a release date on which the FT-1 Vision Gran Turismo can be downloaded.

Russia’s Lada has introduced a performance-focused sub-compact hatchback called Kalina Sport.

Based on the stock Kalina, the Sport model stands out with an aggressive look characterized by a deep front bumper with a mesh air dam, side skirts, a trunk-mounted spoiler and a faux air diffuser integrated into the rear bumper. Multi-spoke alloy wheels replace the stock Kalina’s steel units.

Inside, Lada has upgraded the Kalina Sport with a meaty three-spoke leather-wrapped steering wheel with red stitching, two-tone bucket seats, a leather-wrapped shift knob and a color touch screen on the center stack. Bluetooth connectivity, navigation, automatic headlights, rain-sensing wipers power windows and heated seats all come standard, helping the Kalina Sport stand out as one of the most generously-equipped cars Lada has ever built.

The Sport features a 16-valve 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine that sends 118 horsepower to the front wheels via a five-speed manual transmission. The Kalina Sport reaches 62 mph from a stop in 9.5 seconds and a top speed of 122 mph, but Lada has not revealed if it has made changes to the car’s brakes and suspension.

In a bid to build safer cars, Lada has added front and side airbags for the front passengers and ABS.

The Lada Kalina Sport will greet the public for the first time at the Moscow Motor Show that will open its doors to the public on August 27th. It will go on sale across Russia shortly after with a base price of 487,000 rubles, a sum that converts to approximately $13,600.