Author: autoevolution

General Motors recently announced that its heavy-duty diesel pickups will feature B20 biodiesel capability, a mix of 20 percent biodiesel and 80 percent conventional diesel. The engine will be installed on the 2011 Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra heavy-duty pickups, as well as on the Chevrolet Express and GMC Savana full-size vans.

The first to see daylight is the 2011 Silverado, a model that will be officially unveiled by the parent manufacturer at the Chicago Auto Show on February 10.

… (read more)

The North American division of Volkswagen yesterday aired the 30-second "Punch Dub" Super Bowl ad, which is based on the classic Punch Buggy game. The "Punch Dub" campaign, which also includes an online version of the game available on Facebook, and is part of a new approach to Das Auto tagline.

The ad debuted in the third quarter of the game and showed various people in different driving situations gently slugging others in the arm every time they spot a Routan, Tiguan, C… (read more)

When you think about Renault’s Dacia brand (based in Romania) these days the first thing that comes to mind is the marque’s upcoming compact SUV, the Duster, which will be introduced next month, at the Geneva Auto Show.

However, one of Dacia’s current models have managed to draw our attention, one month before Geneva: the Dacia Logan Pickup has been converted to an electric vehicle and brought to the U.S. market by a third-party company, Envision Motor Co., as Des Moines Register writes.

G… (read more)

The Chinese automotive market registered a massive growth in January 2010, with sales rising 84 percent compared to January 2009, as China Passenger Car Association via Xinhua reports.

1,218,722 cars, sport-utility vehicles, multi-purpose vehicles and minivans were sold last moth in China. The figure is 5.1 percent greater that the one registered in December 2009.

The impressive sales increase was mostly sustained by a boost in the minivan segment, which grew 84.2 percent year-on-year and … (read more)

The North American division of Japanese carmaker Suzuki recently revealed what it has prepared for the 2010 Chicago Auto Show visitors, with the 2010 Suzuki Kizashi leading the charge. The sport sedan in the US dealer showrooms last December, retailing for in between $18,999 and $26,749, plus $735 for destination and handling.

All four trim levels of the 2010 Kizashi will be on display at the Suzuki exhibit, from the entry-level Kizashi S, priced between $18,999 for FWD and $21,749 for AWD, t… (read more)

Italian manufacturer Ducati announced 15,000 mile major service intervals on the 2010 Multistrada 1200 machine, with which Ducati developed revolutionary new features such as the Multistrada’s "4 bikes in 1" adjustability. The manufacturer therefore doubled the period between major services.

Doubling the mileage between valve clearance inspections has been made possible due to the introduction of a new valve seat material. This material enables the new "Testastretta 11°" … (read more)

BMW Motorrad Motorsport recently made an official presentation of its FIM Superbike World Championship team, with riders Troy Corser and Ruben Xaus ready to compete in the first WSBK round, set to take place at Phillip Island on February 28. Both riders gave a special demonstration on two BMW S 1000 RR machines in front of Superbike World Championship Director Paolo Ciabatti, Infront Motor Sports CEO Paolo Flammini and a selection of other guests.

The team is now in its second season in the… (read more)

After the first qualifying session of the new Sprint Cup season, we can easily say that Hendrick Motorsports did not make fouls out of themselves when offering Mark Martin an extension to his former deal with the team. And that’s because the former Sprint Cup champion seems to get better with age.

Martin yesterday became the oldest driver in the history of the Daytona 500 to clinch pole position in a point-scoring Sprint Cup event. The 51-year old beat none other than his very teammate Dale E… (read more)

Danica Patrick made a successful debut in stock racing on Saturday, as the IndyCar racer scored am impressive 6th place in her very first ARCA RE/MAX Series outing, at Daytona.

Patrick was rather cautious in the first part of the race, as her main goal was to stay on track and avoid multi-car incidents. That all changed as the race unfolded, with Patrick emerging on the track in 6th place due to a quick and effective pit stop, shortly after the mid-race.

Once strategies came into play, sh… (read more)

German carmaker Daimler announced over the weekend it has started a new endeavor, one which carmakers are not usually accustomed to: farming. In an attempt to secure a base for the future of its biodiesel powered engines, Daimler announced the first 100 hectares (250 acres) of land in India have been seeded with Jatropha plants. The plants will be used as a basic raw material for biodiesel production.

One of our core tasks is the engineering of sustainable mobility that is also viable for th… (read more)

The first weekend of February brought with it exciting news from Germany, as BMW released full details and an extensive gallery of photos showing the facelifted version of the X5. According to the carmaker, the new X5 comes with an entirely revised range of engines, design modifications and tweaked driver assistance systems.

All the models of the new line come with EfficientDynamics and eight-speed automatic transmission as standard. There will be four engine choices, as listed below, with t… (read more)

Following last week’s storm of reports claiming the Prius hybrid is experiencing braking issues, the Japanese carmaker will likely announce another voluntary recall tomorrow, according to some sources talking for the Financial Times. 

One of the sources cited by the Financial Times is a Tokyo Toyota dealer who said the carmaker informed him of the recall scheduled to be announced tomorrow.

Toyota confirmed on Friday the Prius is subject to antilock brake system glitches, to which a fix h… (read more)

The Budweiser Shootout seems to become a family affair for the guys at Richard Childress Racing, after Kevin Harvick won the event for the second time in a row on Saturday. The RCR driver was leading the 75-lap race with 2 laps to go, when a multi-car accident brought the last caution of the day, giving him a well-deserved win in the Shootout.

Harvick had previously pitted for 2 new tires with a few laps remaining in the race, which is why he managed to climb up the pack and into the leading … (read more)

With the 2010 Chicago Auto Show just a week away, Nissan and Inifinti both confirmed their presence for the 21st edition of the auto event. Starting on February 12, with the prior two days opened for press, the Chicago Auto show is the largest automotive display event in North America and the third in the world, after Frankfurt and Paris respectively.

"We’re very pleased Nissan and Infiniti have made the decision to showcase their vehicles at the nation’s most influential consumer auto e… (read more)

Following GM’s European branch request for 2.7 billion euros in state aid either as loans or loan guarantees, British Business Secretary Peter Mandelson and German Economy Minister Rainer Bruederle said they could consider some support for the company if they receive a solid business plan.

Part of GM’s extensive restructuring process, Opel/Vauxhall operations will inevitably be affected by upcoming changes, with the two brands facing some thousands of jobs being dropped. Autonews reported th… (read more)

The South Korean car manufacturer’s North American arm, KIA Motors America (KMA) stepped up its marketing campaign for the all-new 2011 Sorento model by readying a special Super Bowl XLIV made commercial.

This marks KIA’s first involvement in the biggest sporting event in the world. The 60-second spot is called Joyride Dream and features a colorful cast of life-size children’s characters – including Muno (from YO GABBA GABBA!, the award-winning series and live tour, produced by W!LDBRAIN and… (read more)

The Swiss company Protoscar continues to tease us with a set of pictures and a video of its upcoming LAMPO2 electric sports car, which will be unveiled next month at the Geneva Motor Show. This feels like 2009 all over again, as the same marketing strategy was used for the introduction of the original LAMPO at last year’s Geneva Auto Show.

The LAMPO2 is underpinned by GM’s Kappa platform, which can usually be found under the Opel GT, Pontiac Solstice and Saturn Sky – the car has decided to k… (read more)

The Aston Martin Rapide has been named The most beautiful Supercar of the Year’ at The Festival Automobile International held  in Paris.

A jury lead by Alain Prost, four times Formula One Champion and architect Jean-Michael Wimotte offered the limited edition Daum Trophee created by French designer Christian Ghion to the most fascinating project of the year that balanced ingeniously both art and automobile,.

"The Aston Martin Rapide is a balance between automotive design art and engin… (read more)

The 2010 World Car of the Year award finalists have been announced. These are the automotive creations which will fight for the four prizes: Car of the year, Performance Car of the Year, Green Car of the Year, and World Design of the Year.

The top three finalists in the four categories will be announced on March 2 at the Geneva Auto Show, and the New York Auto Show will see the winners being introduced to the public, on April 1.

Here are the lists of the cars we are talking about:

The … (read more)

Japanese tuner Wald International has big plans for 2010. The tuning house will introduce five exterior packages for an elitist club of luxury sedans.

5 of the world’s top exquisite sedans are targeted here. The new baby Rolls Royce – the Ghost, Porsche’s first 4-door car – the controversial Panamera, the toff Infniti M (for the Japanese Domestic Market this comes as a Nissan Fuga), Jaguar’s fresh XJ and BMW’s flagship – the 7 series. No details about the quintumvirate have been released with… (read more)