Honda CR-Z Concept Unveiled

I’ve been waiting for this one for a while now. There’s been a severe market shortage of small, fuel-efficient, genuinely fun-t0-drive two-seat coupes, pretty much since Honda dropped the CR-X and replaced it with the useless del Sol. It’s of no surprise, then, that it would be Honda to pick up the mantle of the tiny two-seat pocket rocket with a modern interpretation of the beloved CR-X.

And you can’t say the time isn’t right for such a car. These days, everyone’s concerned with efficiency, but that doesn’t mean people don’t still care about fun. This strategy is the whole reason that Honda sold every CR-X they could import in the ’80’s, even with the ridiculous Honda dealer price gouging that was routine back when there was an import quota on foreign-assembled automobiles. This could be just the ticket for Honda, who’s been uncharacteristically weak in the US lately.

As for the car itself, well, it’s not that interesting mechanically. What it really is, is a two-door version of the dedicated-hybrid Insight econo-car. But remember, the original CRX was just a slightly shorter Civic, and it was still revolutionary. The CR-Z gets power from the combination of a 1.5L clean-burning gas four cylinder as well as Honda’s IMA (Integrated Motor Assist) system. In addition to the Insight’s dreadful rubber-band CVT, the CR-Z will be offered with a short-throw six speed manual transmission, for people that actually enjoy driving.

So it won’t exactly be overwhelmed with horsepower, but with a lighter curb weight than the Insight as well as a lower center of gravity, it should be an entertaining car to fling around the bends. Furthermore, expect fuel mileage and emissions numbers to be pretty stellar, just to add icing to the cake.

The styling is hard to criticize – I’d go so far as to say it’s sort of attractive. Then again, I see a lot of CR-X in the design, and I (clearly) have a soft spot in my heart for the CRX. Still, the proportions are excellent, and it looks compact yet solid and full of energy. The greenhouse is 100% modern CRX to me, but the front end is something else – huge gaping front grilles aren’t something I expect from Honda. But you know how it works – if Audi’s doing, everyone’s doing it!

About the only questionable thing I see, at least stylistically, are those bangle-esque taillights. I think perhaps the intersection of curves and hard lines just looks odd in pictures, but the back is lacking the harmony and cleanliness of the original. Still, at least it’s got that vertical glass pane in the back for reversing! If it worked in 1985, it’ll work today…

The interior looks like a mixture of Acura RSX and Honda Insight, but for a compact economy two-seater, it looks extremely nice. I especially like the large, high-definition LCD screen in the center dash, as well as the “pods” orbiting the main gauge cluster. You can see what I’m talking about better from a straight-on angle.

Although this isn’t the “full production” version of the CR-Z, expect it to appear nearly the same as this “pre-production concept.” Perhaps the huge blingey wheels will hit the garbage bin (where they belong), but otherwise what you see is what you’ll get. There should be more pictures and details on the CR-Z forthcoming next week at the Tokyo Auto Show, so stay tuned!

All Aluminum Audi A5 Prototype is 220-Pounds Lighter

Aluminum is a great material. Light, easy to work, strong if you can design with it right and relatively plentiful (if you’ve got access to lots of electricity to refine it). Audi recently gave a textbook demonstration about just what aluminum can offer by making an A5 prototype that makes extensive use of the alloy.

The A5 in question has allowed Audi to shave nearly 220-pounds from its handsome Coupe. The engineers from Audi swapped out the normal steel bits for advanced aluminum as well as carbon fiber here and there in the interest of fuel economy, emissions reduction and handling agility.

Audi did this as a way to go against the tide of rising car weights. Airbags, door beams and the like have all contributed to cars getting fatter and fatter. Audi took an existing steel-bodied A5 and clearly demonstrated the benefits of the aluminum Audi Space Frame (ASF) concept. The use of ASF reduces the weight of a car body by at least 40% compared with conventional steel construction. That means dropping the overall weight from 3,130 pounds down to 2,888 pounds.

Dropping the weight meant that Audi could do away with the standard V6 and use a four cylinder engine, and still have the same performance. Not only is the performance the same, but naturally, there are gains in economy and emissions and also to other ancillaries such as the brakes and transmission, which can also be reduced in size and weight. The handling is also markedly improved.

So why hasn’t aluminum seen widespread use in the auto industry? There’s a few reasons. First, in comparison to steel, aluminum is a little harder (and therefore expensive) to refine. Aluminum is also more costly to mine in some respects and the tooling needed to work it is also more expensive than the tooling used for steel forming.

There is also the mitigating factor that since gas prices and environmental concerns have only recently come onto the radar of car manufacturers, there has not been the motivation to really make cars all that light. They’ve been used to working with, buying and sourcing steel for the bodies of their cars, so why not go with what you know.

Well, times change, and Audi has pointed out what Colin Chapman and any sportscar guy will be able to tell you: “To go fast, add lightness”.

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Infiniti FX50 S Dressed Up in Styling Package by Brabus' CRD Division

Infiniti FX50 S Dressed Up in Styling Package by Brabus' CRD Division

Here's a proposal from this year's Frankfurt Show that somehow managed to escape our radar. Supposedly a concept study, the Infiniti FX50 S Limited Edition was created by Car Research and Development or CRD for short, a subsidiary of the Brabus Group that works directly with automakers and their national importers. Among other cars, CRD was responsible (...) for the creation of the Dodge Avenger-based Startech Starster that appeared at the 2007 Frankfurt Show.

The Infiniti FX50 S Limited Edition show car gets a set of bespoke 21-inch turbine-design light-alloy wheels in a grey finish, while the front grille, side air inlets in the front fenders and the roof bars are also painted grey.

The luxury SUV's cabin is upholstered in high-quality leather with contrasting light brown stitching while the carbon-fiber trim in a dark brown finish and the alcantara trim on the headliner and pillars round off the interior upgrades.

And yes, we too are wondering why Brabus / CRD even bothered to call this creation a concept study...

Lamborghini Reventon Roadster: Details and High-Res Gallery of €1.1 Million Special

Lamborghini Reventon Roadster: Details and High-Res Gallery of €1.1 Million Special

Two years after the Reventon coupe was presented at the 2007 Frankfurt show, the Italian automaker is making a comeback at this year's IAA with the unveiling of a roadster model. As with the coupe, less than 20 examples of the jet-fighter inspired supercar will be built for sale, each priced at a whopping 1.1 million euros or 1.6 million USD at today's exchange rates, and mind you, that's not including taxes. Deliveries of the V12-powered Italian special will begin as early as October 2009.

"The Reventón is the most extreme car in the history of the brand," said Stephan Winkelmann, President and CEO of Lamborghini. "The new Roadster adds an extra emotional component to our combined technological expertise – it unites superior performance with the sensual fascination of open-top driving."

Like the coupe, the Reventon Roadster measures 4700 mm (185 in.) in length, has a wheelbase of 2665 mm (105 in.) and is 2058 mm (81 in.) wide and 1132 mm (45 in.) high.

Besides the targa roof, the only other styling differences between the two bodystyles concern the addition of two hidden pop-up bars that deploy upwards in just a few hundredths of a second in the event of a rollover, the new engine bonnet that is virtually horizontal and comes with four glass windows providing a full view of the V12 and finally, a new shade of matt grey.

Lamborghini says that the Reventon's base bodyshell, which is made almost exclusively from carbon fiber elements, with sheet steel used only for the outer door skins, was already so stiff that the Roadster model required only minimal reinforcement. This translates to an extra 25kg (55 lbs) bringing the Roadster model's total dry weight to 1690 Kg (3,725 lbs.).

Inside, the jet-fighter theme is continued with the "two transreflective and one transmissive" liquid-crystal displays replacing the classic analogue instrumentation while the two bucket seats are separated by a large central tunnel covered in carbon fiber and Alcantara.

Heavily based on the Murcielago, the Reventon Roadster is powered by a 6.5-liter naturally-aspirated V12 engine that cranks out 670 ponies at 8,000 rpm and a maximum torque of 660 Nm (487 lb-ft) at 6,000 rpm. That's 20HP more than the coupe's V12 while the peak torque figure is the same. The engine is coupled to a six speed automated-manual transmission that sends power to all four wheels.

According to Lamborghini, the Reventon Roadster can accelerate from 0 to 100 Km/h (62 mph) in 3.4 seconds and reach to a top speed of 330 Km/h (205 mph).