2009 TechArt Porsche 911 Carrera 4S Cabriolet

Unmistakeable design characterises the latest TECHART program for the 911 Porsche models from mod. 09, presented as a world premiere at the Geneva Auto-Salon 2009. Based on the Porsche 911 Carrera 4S Cabriolet 2009 model, the design highlights the aesthetics, sportiness and dynamics of the vehicle.

The elegant exterior design comprises components which create a sense of fully formed sportiness and balanced aerodynamic driving.

The elegant front spoiler blends in seamlessly with the form of the bumper and exudes pure sportiness. Power optimising sill panels emphasise the elongated side lines and add a touch of the dynamic to the flanks of the vehicle. The deep sitting rear diffuser as well as the wing profile of the rear spoiler define this sovereign look.

Delicate decorative detailing, headlight and mirror trims, a roof spoiler in carbon or PU-RIM material and air outlet grills integrated into the front apron complete this spirited appearance.

A wide range of different leather furnishings, matching colour 3-spoke airbag sports wheel, aluminium pedals and decorative borders are just some of the furnishing options available. There are virtually no limits to individual design, as far as the TECHART manufacturers are concerned. The silver-coloured accenting appears on the dashboard, decorative door trims, infotainment system panel, central console, seat back covers and clothes hooks.

Porsche unveils 2009 911 Carrera 4 and 4S

Well, you knew this was coming. Porsche has followed up the debut of its freshened 997 rear-wheel-drive range with the introductions of the all-wheel-drive 2009 911 Carrera 4 and Carrera 4S. Visually, the C4 and C4S are immediately distinguishable from their 2WD counterparts via the red reflector strip spanning the width between the taillamps. That's a nice touch that brings back some fond memories of the 911s of our youth. The C4's rear bodywork is also wider than that of the 2WD cars. Up front, you'll find the same schnoz introduced a couple of weeks ago.

As with the Carrera and Carrera S, the C4 range also gets the new, direct-injected engines and the optional seven-speed Porsche Doppelkupplung (PDK) twin-clutch gearbox. Power is up, and so is efficiency, while emissions output goes down. The Carrera 4's 3.6L flat six makes a stout 345 horses, and the step-up Carrera 4S pumps out 385 ponies from its 3.8. It's not just the engine and tranny that are new -- the previous car's all-wheel-drive system has now been replaced by Porsche Traction Management, which trickles down to the C4 from the mighty 911 Turbo. Want to scoff at lousy weather and still drive a 911? Come October (in Europe) your new ride will be waiting.

4s trends 2011

2014 corvette engine

Corvette Stingray Concept Speedster spotted in Beverly Hills

The Corvette Stingray Concept was featured in Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen and then unveiled at the 2009 Chicago Auto Show. However that was a coupe model which is like the vehicle spotted in Beverly Hills recently. Of course, Beverly Hills had the chance to see a Speedster version of the 50th Anniversary Corvette Stingray Concept parked in the area. And since GM has said absolutely nothing about a Speedster version we can only assume that this is the work of a tuning firm.

Compared to the standard Stingray concept, the Speedster version features - besides missing the top - a different hood with dual openings in the front, no LED vertical headlights – a more conventional lighting system appears tucked into the front recesses, different wheels, and a different front grille.

However, there might be another explanation for this strange sight. We have to consider the fact that since Transformers 3 is in the works, it might be possible the Speedster version was specially developed for the movie. Or could this be the 2014 Corvette? Don’t worry, we’re kidding!

Corvette C7 coming in 2012

If you like Corvettes, this is going to make you smile. Fresh out of bankruptcy court, General Motors announced its two-year product plans for Chevy, Caddy, Buick and GMC. Included are go codes for the new C7 Corvette. The plan is to introduce the C7 in April of 2012 as a 2013 model — a big improvement over the old plan to not reinvent the Corvette until 2014. Let’s just state this up front — almost nothing at all is known about the new Corvette. It appears as if plans for a mid-engine Corvette have been put aside. Like all Corvettes before it, the C7 will feature an engine up front driving the wheels out back. Other than that…

The rumors are that the C7 will be smaller and lighter than the current welterweight C6. There’s talk of using more advanced materials like carbon fiber, aluminum and magnesium as well as smaller engines. Calm down, calm down — as the ZR1 showed us, less displacement doesn’t always mean less power. Especially when a positive-displacement Roots-type supercharger’s in the mix. There’s chatter that the C7′s design might be based on the Stingray Concept from the 2009 Chicago Auto Show, but we’re hoping it’s not. More details as they become available.

Corvette C7 delayed until 2014

First rumors said the new Corvette C7 would be revealed sometime in 2011, but now it seems there will be a longer wait for the next generation of the gas-hungry American icon. General Motors has delayed the next generation Covette C7 until the 2014 model year.

This delay comes with some good news for Corvette purists. The idea to go mid-engined looks like its been scrapped due to budget concerns of creating a totally new car. Other possible good news is that by the time the new Corvette hits the streets we may have sorted out the gas crisis, and the rumors of a V6 base version (a sin in Corvette circles) may have time to die out.

Both pieces of news are nothing new to Corvette. The C6 was introduced in 2005, and by the time its replaced, the nine-year life cycle is almost average for the sports car (the C3 lasted for fourteen years and the C4 was around for twelve). As far as a V6 under the hood, the Corvette’s first engine was a V6, the V8 wasn’t available until two years later.

Next-Generation C7 Corvette on Hold – Indefinitely

It was just two weeks ago that Motor Trend reported the next generation Corvette would be pushed back to 2014. With turbulent economic crises threatening the very existence of the Big 3 automakers, word comes from AutoWeek that GM has put plans for the C7 Corvette on indefinite hold with no official word or set timetable.

Luckily, none of the sources are suggesting that the Corvette will go away. Corvette Vehicle-Line Executive Tom Wallace told AutoWeek “No one is saying we’re not doing Corvettes. We’re still bullish on Corvettes.” When asked directly if there was any chance the Corvette would die, Wallace stated emphatically “No way.”

Talk is now about the how the C6 Corvette’s run can be extended. One version of the story is that the C6 could be upgraded significantly in 2012 as a ’13 model. Wallace says we’ll see changes sooner than that. “There are changes, some neat stuff, coming for 2010 that I can’t talk about yet.”

Sneak Peek: 2014 Chevrolet C7 Corvette

It is clear that, in his appearance before the Corvette faithful in Bowling Green on May 1st, Corvette Chief Engineer Tadge Juechter regretted speaking as freely as he did to our reporter, industry veteran and Corvette owner Don Sherman. Mr. Juechter can spin his comments all he wishes, but a careful reading of our story, which is reprinted here, reveals that 75% of the story consists of verbatim quotes from Mr. Juechter himself. At the end of our piece, Don Sherman prognosticates about the future Corvette; it is crystal clear to the reader that at this point in the story, it’s Don Sherman making educated guesses, not Tadge Juechter speaking. At no point did Don quote Mr. Juechter as definitively stating that a V-6 is in the works for C7, but he did indeed predict that a V-6 is a POSSIBILITY, based partly on Mr. Juechter’s comments that most certainly implied that this is the case. Don also makes it clear that, in his opinion, a V-8 is a certainty for the next Vette, but speculates that it might not be standard equipment.

It is a bit rich that, at this juncture, Mr. Juechter stands in front of a Corvette crowd and says about Automobile Magazine, and about print automotive enthusiast magazines in general: “Don’t believe any of what you read. Most of it will be wrong. They may guess on some things luckily, but most of the time it will be wrong. It can [even] be attributed to me and be totally wrong.” Well, when 75% of the article is verbatim quote from you, Mr. Juechter, is the article 75% wrong?

Mr. Juechter wishes to dismiss the entire category of automotive enthusiast print magazines out of hand. This is a strange approach, given that Automobile Magazine and its competitors play a major role in promoting Corvette enthusiasm, even now when, as Mr. Juechter readily admits, the next-generation Corvette is still years away.
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Last summer, a funny thing happened on the way to GM's bankruptcy. Government practitioners sent to administer CPR discovered a jewel in the rough -- the perennially profitable Corvette. Without hesitation, they shifted the next-generation Vette from indefinite hold to fully funded program.

For engineers like Tadge Juechter, who has developed Corvettes for seventeen years, it doesn't get any better than a green light from the U.S. Department of the Treasury. "We began working on C7 last fall," the fifty-three-year-old chief engineer explained. "We haven't announced production timing, but past Corvettes required three to four years of engineering and development. So there will be several more years with the current body style before a new model arrives."

Asked what new technologies we should expect to see in the next Corvette, a cautious Juechter answered, "Fuel economy is an obvious priority. Today's Corvettes provide excellent mileage, but we intend to pursue any strategy that has the potential of improving both fuel economy and performance."

Asked whether V-8s will remain a core attribute, Juechter offered a surprising response, "Corvette will always be a high-performance sports car, so that means it must continue to offer high-performance powertrains. Acknowledging the fact that the world is full of high-output V-6s, including a few at GM, I'd say that nothing is off the table at this point. We're in the due-diligence phase of determining which engines will yield the best C7. Considering V-8 alternatives is analogous to our move away from pop-up headlamps, a Corvette tradition for four generations. But the bottom line is always whatever strategy delivers the best car."

When chided for the lack of transmission and driveline innovation during the C6 era, Juechter became defensive. "The popular perception that more transmission speeds means higher efficiency is not supported by our analytical results," he said. "Corvette engines have broad torque and power bands that don't need extra gears to hold them at their efficiency peaks.

"The wider ratio spreads offered by seven- and eight-speed transmissions are useful to a point. But with extra gears come extra moving parts and spin losses. While dual-clutch transmissions tend to be more efficient than torque-converter automatics, they still exhibit slippage during launch.

"All-wheel drive makes a lot of sense in some applications, such as expensive sports cars and for sedan buyers seeking maximum security in bad weather. We like the additional launch traction provided by all-wheel drive, but the extra mass diminishes performance and mileage. And since the Corvette has traditionally been a three-season sports car, we don't have customers clamoring for improved winter mobility.

No future for the mid-engine Corvette

With GM facing well-publicized challenges -- along with just about everyone else who needs a little thing called money -- certain high-profile and expensive programs are crowding up on the back burner. Even America's sports car, the Corvette, is not exempt, with CAFE regulations clouding the view inside the 'Vette Nation's crystal ball.

Motor Trend, commenting on the C7 Corvette's delayed arrival, has said that the new coupe won't appear until the 2014 model year at the earliest. The mid-engined route has also been scrapped, since it would simply cost too much to re-engineer the entire car for the purpose of easier integration of fuel saving tech like cylinder deactivation.

That means a six-cylinder is still being talked about -- by GM outsiders only, at this point -- as an option for the C7. If we take the Camaro as an example, that 2014 introduction date could mean late 2012, but that still only gives you four years to mentally prepare for a budget- and economy-minded V6 Corvette. Get cracking.

2014 Corvette Spied!

Now that the 2012 Porsche 911 Carrera has been revealed in the flesh, all enthusiast eyes are turning toward General Motors, where the 2014 Chevrolet Corvette has assumed the mantle of the most anticipated future product in the car world.

Yes, America does still build rocket ships, as Chevy likes to say, and the C7 promises to live up to that hype. Spy shots of the car offer several clues as to how the next-gen Corvette will differ from its direct predecessors yet perhaps draw on the car's singular heritage.

Looking at these photos, it's evident the wheelbase of the Corvette will change. The wheels, particularly in front, are clearly off-centered in this C6 body shell being used as a test mule. This indicates a longer wheelbase which could return a more comfortable drive character. The photos also suggest a narrower layout.

In back, there's a quad exhaust configuration, though intriguingly, the outer two pipes are capped off. That could have a variety of implications.

Corvette also sells the C6 with two frames, one made of steel for the base versions and an aluminum frame for the Z06 and the ZR1. It's expected that the C7 will go strictly with steel.

GM said in May that it will spend $131 million and will add 250 jobs to improve the Bowling Green, Ky., factory that builds the Corvette. That's a dramatic increase from the $39 million spent in 2005 when the site changed over to produce the C6. The facility has built Corvettes for 30 years.

Production of the C7 will begin in 2013, and the car launches as a 2014 model.

That dramatic increase in spending has led to speculation that the Corvette could be in for a major facelift. Reports have suggested a seven-speed manual transmission could be offered. It's also possible that the 6.2-liter V8 could be downsized, perhaps to about 5.5 liters. The current V8 in the Corvette ZR1 employs supercharging, but twin-turbocharging has also been rumored as a future technology. A V6--perhaps reinforced with some kind of forced-induction and making a high output--has also been generating considerable chatter among Corvette fans.

Also look for some carbon fiber, but not as extreme as the tactics employed by some supercar makers such as Lamborghini.

GM design chief Ed Welburn has told Autoweek that the Stingray concept from the 2009 Detroit auto show will not be the C7. But many reports have suggested that the next Vette could get a split-window option.

Chevy has sold 9,123 Corvettes through the first eight months of 2011 in the United States, a 5 percent uptick compared with the same period in 2010.