DeltaWing has detailed its latest plans for two different street-legal cars and a GT racer concept.
The company has made a bold claim that its unique wedge-shape car could fetch nearly 74 mpg on the highway, with a combined rating of more than 57 mpg. The estimates are said to be based on computer models, presuming the car will be powered by a 138-horsepower four-cylinder engine.

“If it was available today, those figures would not only make it America’s most fuel efficient internal combustion engine vehicle, it would meet the 2025 CAFE standard today,” the company said in a statement.

DeltaWing Technology Group chief executive Don Panoz suggests the company will now move forward with prototype testing of two- and four-seat road cars, each featuring a narrow front track and a rear-mounted engine.

The GT race car is expected to arrive first, potentially before the end of the year, building upon DeltaWing’s existing experience on the track.

“It will be designed to demonstrate that with far less horsepower than many of today’s best sports cars, a two-seat performance car based on the DeltaWing architecture would deliver the same performance, yet with previously unimagined fuel economy and efficiency,” the company adds.

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles still hasn’t set a date for when it will decided whether to build its next-generation Jeep Wrangler at its Toledo plant or another facility altogether, the company’s chief executive said on Friday.
Toledo, Ohio, has been the home of the Wrangler since 1991, but FCA is weighing other production locations for the next-generation of the rugged SUV, due out in 2017. Despite that fast-approaching launch date, Jeep CEO Mike Manley says the company has no timetable for a decision.

“There’s no set date for a decision, but obviously there’s a lot of pressure and interest to make a decision as soon as possible,” Manley told The Detroit News. “There’s a lot of vested interest in it, and I think everybody wants to understand where we’re going.”

The city of Toledo and the state of Ohio have reportedly been lobbying FCA to keep Wrangler production at its current location, but details of the negotiations have remained sealed. Officials have, however, purchased 100 acres of land adjacent Toledo Assembly Complex.

Although the future production spot of the Wrangler remains up in the air, it sounds as if Jeep is leaning toward building a pickup truck version of the SUV.

“It is certainly a place the brand can go,” Manley said when asked about a future Jeep pickup. “If you were going to do it, you would probably do it on a new-generation Wrangler.”

Nissan has taken its glow-in-the-dark Leaf to Holland’s glowing “Smart Highway.”
A promotional video shows the luminous Leaf as it drives along the matching highway, which features photo-luminescent surface markings. The lines absorb sunlight during the day and continue to glow for up to ten hours after sunset.

The unique stretch of highway, located near Oss, serves as an experiment to reduce energy usage that would otherwise be required for traditional street lighting.

The Leaf also features a phosphorescent finish, utilizing a strontium aluminate pigment that absorbs ultraviolet rays and glows a blue hue through the night. The finish does not serve any practical purpose, unlike the self-cleaning paint that coats a different promotional Leaf.

The company is using the glowing-road video shoot to highlight the Leaf’s popularity in the Netherlands this year, with sales up by 313 percent. The EV also surpassed 75,000 sales in the US market this week.

Toyota is reportedly planning a high-performance Yaris variant inspired by the WRC-spec rally car.
The new range topper will borrow the 2.0-liter turbocharged engine from the Lexus NX, providing at least 235 horsepower and 258 lb-ft of torque via a six-speed manual transmission, unnamed sources have told Motoring.

The standard model is available exclusively with a 1.5-liter inline four that is good for 106 ponies and 103 lb-ft of twist. In contrast, the actual WRC car is powered by a turbocharged 1.6-liter mill that jumps to over 300 horsepower.

The WRC lookalike is expected to feature wider fender flares and a rear wing, among other aesthetic tweaks to differentiate the package from the standard mass-market hatchback. Suspension upgrades and a sportier interior are likely to complement the exterior enhancements.

The range topper is viewed as a celebration of Toyota’s return to WRC after a 15-year absence. The company previously used a heavily modified Euro-spec Corolla hatchback to tackle rally stages.

The company has not yet officially commented on the rumors. It is unclear if the WRC-inspired Yaris will make its way to markets outside of Europe.

General Motors has detailed the all-new V6 engines that will debut in the upcoming Cadillac CT6.
The flagship sedan will be available with a 3.0-liter twin-turbocharged V6, delivering 400 horsepower and 400 lb-ft of torque. GM claims it is one of the most power-dense V6 engines ever produced, with 133 horsepower per liter — 27 percent greater than BMW’s 3.0-liter twin-turbo V6 used in the 740Li, and 29 percent above the supercharged V6 found in the Audi A7.

The turbo system is said to be similar to the design used in the ATS-V, integrating titanium-aluminide turbine wheels and a low-volume air-charge cooler. Peak torque is sustained between 2,500 rpm through 5,000 rpm.

“Torque is the pulling power of an engine and the new 3.0L Twin Turbo delivers it with confidence-inspiring smoothness and progression,” said assistant chief engineer Rich Bartlett. “In fact, the potency of the torque across the rpm band is matched only by the satisfaction of the horsepower created as those revs climb quickly to 6,500 rpm.”

The CT6 will also be available with a naturally-aspirated 3.6-liter V6 built upon the same engine architecture, with SAE-rated output of 335 ponies and 284 lb-ft of twist.

Both engines share a stiffer aluminum block and polymer-coated pistons that help reduce friction. The four-cam phasing system further improves efficiency by enabling late inlet valve closing in certain conditions, while the new ‘targeted’ cooling system focuses on the engine’s hottest areas and results in faster warm-up. A stop/start system and two-cylinder deactivation are also credited with reducing fuel consumption by approximately nine percent compared to GM’s current engines.

The technology is claimed to be quieter than competing engines, measured as 5 dB below the Audi 3.0-liter TFSI engine and 4 dB under the Infiniti 3.7-liter V6.

The Cadillac CT6 is due to make its global debut in less than two weeks.

Volkswagen is seriously considering launching a pickup truck model in the United States, a top company executive has revealed. The pickup would be part of VW’s efforts to expand its product lineup in the U.S.
A VW pickup for the truck-hungry U.S. market has been rumored for years, but it looks as though the pieces could finally be falling into place. VW is currently weighing whether to sell its smaller van models in the U.S., and a pickup truck could factor into that decision.

“Pickup trucks are a dominating segment,” while there’s also a trend in the U.S. toward compact European vans, Eckhard Scholz, head of the light commercial vehicle unit, told Bloomberg. “We’re looking at both options intensively.”

VW’s Amarok pickup, which is sold in several global markets, could be under consideration for U.S. sales. Although smaller than the market-leading Ford F-Series, the Amarok would lineup closely with the Chevrolet Colorado and Toyota Tacoma. VW has previously stated that the Amarok is too small for the U.S. market, but the recent success of Chevy’s all-new Colorado could be changing the automaker’s mind.

VW’s U.S. sales dipped 10 percent to 366,970 units last year, with the automaker looking for ways to reverse that sales trend. VW will soon add a new SUV to its lineup, but a pickup truck could go a long way in shoring up its sales. However, no official decision has been made at this time.

Tesla Motors’ forthcoming software update for the Model S marks another step forward in the company’s march toward fully autonomous driving.
The company focused on range-management tools in a recent media event for the revised software, but many existing owners may be more excited about the new safety technology.

The Model S will finally get automatic emergency braking, engaging in the event of an ‘unavoidable’ collision to reduce the risk of impact or minimize damage. The update also enables blind-spot warnings and side-collision alerts, complementing the front-collision notifications that were already enabled in previous updates.

The company took a unique approach with its hardware/software package, shipping cars outfitted with an array of radar and sonar equipment before the accompanying software was ready to enable the promised ‘autopilot’ driver-assistance features.

CEO Elon Musk has claimed the Model S is essentially capable of fully autonomous driving. Certain capabilities are still considered too dangerous for certain scenarios, such as suburban driving, and the company is waiting for the laws to catch up while engineers continue to refine the technology.

Owners can expect to receive the software update within a few weeks.

BMW Group has dodged a fine and criminal charges in its settlement with the Federal Trade Commission over warranty practices within its Mini division.
The agency had accused the company of violating the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act by telling customers that their warranty would be void if they did not use official Mini parts and go directly to franchised dealers for maintenance. Such demands can only be made if the parts and services are provided by the company without charge.

The FTC cited documents telling customers that the warranty would not cover repairs that merely include “non-genuine” Mini parts. The program was compliant for the first three years of free warranty coverage, but ran afoul when entering the ‘limited’ warranty for the fourth year of ownership.

“It’s against the law for a dealer to refuse to honor a warranty just because someone else did maintenance or repairs on the car,” said Jessica Rich, director of the FTC’s consumer-protection bureau. “As a result of this order, BMW will change its practices and give MINI owners information about their rights.”

The company has agreed to inform customers of their right to use third-party parts and service without voiding warranty coverage, unless such parts and services are provided for free. The company is also barred from telling customers that they should use official parts and service to ensure a vehicle’s safe operation or maintain its value.

Despite the warranty issues, Mini held the second position among mass-market brands in the latest JD Power customer-service index (CSI) study.

Lotus is celebrating the 20th anniversary of its Elise roadster with a Special Edition of the sports car.
First unveiled at the 1995 Frankfurt Motor Show, the Elise is getting a 20th birthday present in the form of a Special Edition model. Based on the Elise S Club Racer, the Special Edition benefits from lightweight wheels, a lighter center console and sport seats finished in either leather or Alcantara. Those weight-saving measures trim about 22 pounds from the car’s curb weight. Other enhancements over the standard Elise include a sport mode that sharpens throttle response and a revised traction control system.

The Elise Special Edition will be available for order in four colors — Blue, Green, Yellow and Silver. All color schemes include a rear diffuser, wing mirrors, roll hoop cover and rear transom painted matte black.

Power for the 20th anniversary Elise is provided by a supercharged 1.8L four-cylinder engine that can catapult the roadster from 0-60 in 4.6 seconds. Top speed is limited to 145mph.

“It is sometimes hard to believe that the Elise has been around for 20 years,” said Lotus CEO Jean-Marc Gales. “It was ground breaking when it was launched and continues to be the benchmark for handling and performance in its class. Over the years we have improved and refined the Elise but we have also ensured that we have retained the purity of the driving experience and for the Elise to remain as the sports car to which other marques aspire.”

Lotus hasn’t announced U.S. pricing for the Elise 20th Anniversary Special Edition, but the package will add £2,700 to the base price of the Elise S in the UK.