You know how Lamborghini has mastered turning existing cars into super-limited, super-expensive special editions—think the Murcielago-based Reventón and the Aventador-based Veneno? Now it's Ferrari's turn do dip its paw in the honey pot.
In his last official act as CEO, Luca Di Montezemolo will unveil a U.S.-only special edition Ferrari built to celebrate the automaker's 60 years of doing business here in the states. Per Automotive News, the car is presumably based on the flagship F12berlinetta, but will wear unique bodywork and interior detailing. 10 will be produced at a price of $3.2 million apiece, all wearing a blue livery with white stripes—a nod to the colors featured on Luigi Chinetti's N.A.R.T. racers of the '60s, '70s and '80s.
The car makes its debut on October 12 in Los Angeles
Torture testing doesn't look like torture in an Aston Martin Lagonda
A lot of the time when we see verification prototypes in the desert for hot-weather testing, the images we get show half-disguised cars whose camo has been hastily removed in the hopes of eluding the omnipresent spy photographers.
Aston Martin? They just send a fully finished car along with a professional shooter. Call me crazy, but I prefer the latter.
This black Lagonda is the same one that was shown at an Oman Air photo op, and now the rest of the story has fallen into place. The car is in Oman undergoing final verification testing. In case you missed it, the new Lagonda, spectacular as it may be, is only being marketed in the Middle East. As such, it needs to be able to handle that climate.
This black prototype pretty much represents a worst-case scenario for the battery of hot-environment tests it's undergoing over a four-week, 14,000-mile period. Aston tells us that the car is presently around 5,000 miles into the process. The team of engineers with the Lagonda is collecting information from 85 temperature sensors and data loggers installed on the ca, which provide a comprehensive heat map of the interior. A black example like this, left in Oman's hot sun for several daylight hours, can have a surface temperature of almost 180 degrees Fahrenheit. The team will also collect information on the A/C performance, hot starts, and component/materials durability and performance in the unhuman conditions. Unofficially, the engineers are also probably testing the limits of the SPF 7,000,000 sunscreen they're wearing. At least, in a Lagonda, they'll be comfortable.
Ford denies nothing about 2016 Focus RS, says it's "doable"
Yesterday we blew the lid off Ford's upcoming 2016 Focus RS, the 350-hp, AWD ultrahatch. In case you were on a mountaintop sans internet, here's what we know: The next Focus RS is likely going to come stateside in very limited numbers. It's 2.3-liter Ecoboost four should pump out a minimum of 325 hp, but more likely 350 hp. The AWD system is entirely new, with performance-oriented torque vectoring front and rear, and will eventually migrate to other models.
“None of what is being reported is confirmed, including the part about the RS coming to America. That said, everything in the [report] references existing stuff and is certainly doable. If you look at what we can do with the Escape, which is a C-platform vehicle, you can see these things are not beyond the realm of possibility.”
Because of the way car-company PR works—with a strict timeline of what information can be released or confirmed, and when—this is as much as anyone at Ford can say on the record. Or, partially on the record, as the statement was anonymous. Being spot-on with information doesn't make it shake it loose any earlier.
As non-denials go, though, it's quite telling. We knew our two independent inside sources were giving us good information, but hearing Ford say, essentially, that everything we've reported is completely "doable" (rather than dismissing it as baseless speculation) leaves them with an out when the wraps come off the production Focus RS.
Let's be completely clear about one thing: despite two independent sources saying that the next Focus RS will likely go on sale in the United States, that decision will remain up in the air within Ford's leadership until more specifics of the car are finalized. While it doesn't seem like fuel economy or emissions will be concerns (the former because of very limited volume, the latter because the 2.3 is already federalized in the Lincoln MKC and the Mustang Ecoboost), it might turn out that the final vehicle is prohibitively expensive. Or maybe the retail climate changes. There are numerous factors that might affect Ford's decision later on. But the fact that North America is on the table at all in this early stage, and that our sources indicate that Ford is gung-ho about American sales, mean that we can't discount the possibility.
Prediction is a dangerous game, but based on what we're hearing, an American debut of the most extreme Ford hatchback ever is much more likely than not.
Video proof that the Jaguar F-Type is getting a manual gearbox
For months, the rumormill has suggested that the Jaguar F-Type will get a manual transmission and AWD—plausible and wonderful hearsay that now looks to be at least half right. A spy managed to catch a V6-powered F-Type cog-swapping on the Ring, and the consensus of the entire office is that it couldn't be anything but a proper manual gearbox.
Don't believe us? Listen for yourself.
It would be nigh impossible to confirm whether the Jag in this video sent power to all four wheels, as the rest of the rumor alleges, but the important half of the rumor appears to be confirmed. As you might remember from last year's Performance Car of the Year evaluations, the F-Type is an "absolute hooligan" that "[m]akes the Vette seem tame," at least in the eyes of Senior Editor Josh Condon. While the (manual-equipped) Corvette Stingray went on to trounce all comers in that evaluation, I don't think anyone with a pulse can resist the Jag's barking, popping, guttural V8 exhaust note.
2016 Ford Focus RS: AWD monster likely to land stateside
We’ve been hearing rumors that the U.S. will get a Ford Focus RS super-hatch for months. Now we have some exclusive info on what's coming. A Ford source has confirmed to Road & Track that the next-generation Focus RS is likely to come to North America in extremely limited numbers. Unlike its predecessor, it'll be AWD.
The old car (shown above) featured a turbocharged inline 5 pushing 305 hp to the front wheels through what Ford called the RevoKnuckle, to reduce what would otherwise be shoulder-dislocating torque steer. The new car wipes the board clean and starts over. In addition to AWD, the RS will be the only Focus to pack Ford's new 2.3-liter Ecoboost four-cylinder, available now in the Lincoln MKC and very soon in the 2015 Mustang.
Ford
In the Mustang, this engine makes 310 hp, 320 lb-ft of torque. In the just-released Lincoln MKC crossover, the same engine makes 285 hp. In both applications, a twin-scroll turbo is employed.
Our source says that at this stage, the Focus RS horsepower numbers aren't finalized, and we don't know if it’ll pack the same Honeywell twin-scroll turbo as its stablemates. If we had to place a wager, we’d bet on near-Mustang power levels for the Focus RS, putting it well above the Focus ST in the pecking order.
What we hear squares with other rumors about the Focus RS coming stateside, while fleshing out some more specifics. A number of hurdles still remain, however: marketing studies, government certifications, and corporate willpower—but it ultimately looks like the VW Golf R will get some serious competition next year. We can't wait.
UPDATE: We have additional details about the upcoming 2016 Focus RS from another trusted source, including power output, so let's start with that. With the Mustang GT's V8 holding down a 435 hp spot at the top of the Ford performance pecking order (for now, until the 2016 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350 emerges), the Focus RS is free to turn up the horsepower wick. Since the 2.3-liter Ecoboost is easily capable of more than its 310 hp output in the Mustang, which was dictated more by fuel economy concerns than anything else, the RS is free to pump out between 325 and 350 hp. The higher figure is more likely. This is because as a low-volume, niche product that doesn't compete with the Mustang GT, there's no reason to hold the Focus RS back.
To put the power down, Ford will employ an entirely new AWD system intended for high-output applications. It's not the same system employed on the Fusion, Escape, and MKZ. The new system will employ torque vectoring front and rear to aid handling, and after debuting in the Focus RS it will trickle down to other applications.
That means the Focus RS might have some high-performance AWD company in Ford's lineup soon.
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