New Jaguar XJ75 Concept

Jaguar has been working hard to keep their premium image recently, but is still looking to increase sales in a market that is showing a downward slope. They have been working on a range of concepts in an effort to penetrate larger segments of the car industry and it looks like they hope their new concept will help them do exactly what.

The Pebble Beach concours d’elegance is a place for manufacturers to show off their best developments of the year, which is exactly what Jaguar managed to do. They introduced the XJ Platinum Concept to the world for the first time. This vehicle will essentially mark their 75th anniversary and Jaguar has suggested it will be produced on a bespoke basis.

The first thing that is likely to catch petrol heads attention is what lies beneath the bonnet. Jaguar has selected the Supercharged 5.0 liter V8 as their weapon of choice. This unit will produce a massive 464bhp.

In addition to the impressive engine specifications, Jaguar has worked on the styling slightly. The new concept shows off lower side trim, giving it a much more aggressive look. These additions are complimented by the fact that they have incorporated huge 22 inch wheels.

The interior of the new concept is just as spectacular as the exterior. It uses the likes of pearlescent white air vents and bespoke stitching on all the seats and headlining. Like all Jaguar’s, this instantly feels like a car of class and will certainly have an appropriate price tag attached.

The Platinum Concept was the brain child of the head designer in the firm; Giles Taylor. He mentioned that Jaguar has been working towards developing something that incorporates a sporting style alongside their premium image, and it seems like the XJ75 has a happy medium of both.

The sleek exterior shows off the premium brand that Jaguar is. Alongside this, the sporty additions like the wheels and lower trim mentioned above make it stand out from the rest of their developments to date. This is not to say this is going to be the ideal track car, but it certainly will give owners a much more exciting driving experience, compared to the laid back cruisers that are usually offered by the firm.

We are under no illusion that the developments that have been fairly slow coming from the Toyota. Like many car manufacturers, they are taking a step back and trying to understand what they can do to gain a bigger market share, or at least increase their profitability.

For manufacturers in these tough economic times, the decisions they make can be crucial, as one wrong move could take them off the car manufacturing map for ever. We believe that it is the right time for Toyota to make a bold move forward and diversify their range; and that is exactly what they are planning to do.

According to recent reports, the car manufacturing giant has taken the decision to produce a vehicle that is far from the norm for them. They will be developing a new small vehicle which is likely to be sporty, yet extremely competitive on the track, and will come in the form of a rear wheel drive coupe.

As soon as the words rear wheel drive are mentioned, the youthful drivers of today are immediately paying attention – and so they should be! According to Toyota, the latest development will be a tribute to their test driver who was killed during a recent run in the LFA concept vehicle, Hiromu Naruse.

So here is the thing; the new Toyota is going to be modeled around the GRMN Hot Hatch Concept. This concept vehicle was originally launched at the Tokyo Auto Salon earlier this year and a lot of interest surrounded its presence.

Toyota do not seem entirely sure on how the development of their new vehicle will go. All they have suggested so far is that it will be taking some inspiration from the likes of the FT-86. With that in mind, Toyota has also suggested that they will be focusing on younger people who enjoy driving cars exactly how they should, which is why they are incorporating the rear wheel drive setup.

A lot of the features will take inspiration for Hiromu Naruse, who had a lot of input in their range, including the likes of the Supra. For this reason, Toyota will be looking to re-design the Supra and give it some more life in the form of this new small, fun sports car.

It is likely to go on sale in the region of $14,000-16,000.

2004 Ford Mustang GT R Concept

The Ford Mustang GT-R Concept that first debuted at the 2004 New York International Auto Show has been sold at auction, the lucky buyer had to cough up $110,000 for the privilege of owning this one off, and by all accounts he picked it up for peanuts as the estimated auction valuation was between $250k and $350k!

The car itself was a put together as a tribute to the 40 years the Mustang had been around, and became a popular dream car to many Mustang fans. This Mustang Concept boasts a 440hp 5.0L power-plant, a six-speed transmission and a race prepared chassis including huge Brembo stoppers, though we somehow doubt that the new owner will ever take this Mustang on to a race track, despite the fact that is one of the few places he will be able to drive it as its not street legal.

We don’t know what the new owner plans for the car, but we would like to think he will cherish it as we would ourselves, its a very special one off, and as an investment, a fantastic buy, we can see this selling in 10 years time for a million bucks… we’ve already started our collection jar.

The Pilkington Vehicle Design Awards are a prestigious set of awards where budding entrepreneurs alongside creative inventors can get together to share their ideas. Over the last few years, we feel like a lot of the products and ideas developed here are likely to have a positive impact on future vehicles.

The 2010 awards saw David Seesing get involved. Based in Cologne in Germany, he was able to pick up the award for Best Use of Glazing thanks to his ‘Symbiosis’ concept car. His car incorporated a unique structure which was able to combine an eye catching design with functional transport.

The idea for this award was for designers and inventors to develop ideas that were not only going to work, but were also going to be sustainable if manufacturers ever took them on board. It seems that the idea was taken on board well, with many designers reaching and going beyond what any of the judges expected they could do.

Now, these awards are not to be sniffed at, with leading designers on the panel, such as Land Rover Designer Earl Beckles. The reason that Seesing caught the eye of the panel was his innovative approach towards dealing with the issues that were at hand. Of course, designs came thick and fast, but ones that took into account the sustainability and environmental factors were few and far between.

What Seesing has managed to create is a double glazing unit, which certainly helps with air flow. This being said, the air is collected and stored as energy, energy that would have otherwise been wasted. As far as car designs go, there is literally nothing else like this on the market – which is understandable, as the development costs would be ridiculous.

The Symbiosis is certainly the next generation of car and as development costs for this type of thing reduce, it will certainly come to market in some form or another. Just take into account the pure architecture behind the vehicle.

It uses a chassis that is produced using the likes of aluminum and carbon nano-tubes. Why? This has been used because it increases the heat and electricity within the material, meaning that it needs less energy than a normal vehicle!

The great thing about Ford is that they constantly look to the future and are always developing their range to keep up with the times. This is likely to be evident when we visit The Paris Motor Show. Whilst this is the big launch for a lot of manufacturers, Ford has suggested that their big launch will be at the Swiss Expo instead.

Ford has already confirmed that they will be debuting one of their most popular developments at the Paris Show though; the Ford Focus. This new model will be in full European Spec and can be seen by consumers in full production trim. Better still; consumers will be able to feast their eyes on the all new ST model.

It seems that Ford has managed to plan big appearances at all the major shows, including the likes of Geneva. Next years Geneva Show will be a big reckoning day for the car manufacturing giant, as they release their newly designed and slightly modified Fiesta model, possibly their most popular vehicle in their whole range.

According to Ford, the changes that will be made will be kept to a bare minimum; which we feel is ideal, bearing in mind its current popularity. The design will be slightly modified to incorporate some newly styled bumpers along side the likes of LED lights will run in the day time. A quick look at the S-MAX and the Mondeo will see that the inspiration for the new design has been taken from there.

A quick lift of the bonnet will give anyone a shock. Ford will be incorporating their new direct injection system which will be helped along by the aid of a turbo charged EcoBoost engine.

Back on the Fiesta side of things, it will incorporate a fairly standard 90bhp 1.0 engine. This being said, they are considering the inclusion of a 1.6 liter performance engine, much like the current Zetec S, although this has not yet been confirmed.

Ford has had a long hard think about its Fusion range and has decided that it is time for a change. The Fusion will now be labeled as the B-MAX and will be a combination of the current Fiesta, alongside an MPV. Of course, the aim here is to attract customers will the functionality and practicality side of things.

Among the most popular and prestigious events of the year is the LA Auto Show, which takes place in November. This year is likely to be bigger and better than ever, with many car manufacturers hoping to wow the crowds with their latest eco-friendly developments and high value for money products.

One manufacturer will be looking to do exactly that is Hyundai, as they will be debuting one of their most recent concept cars. The Korean car manufacturer has already stressed how important it is for them to reach a goal of hitting 50mpg for all their vehicles and this concept is likely to be one step closer towards that mark.

Here is the thing; John Krafcik, the company CEO, is making some extremely competitive claims to the general public. A recent announcement suggested that Hyundai would average 50mpg across its whole range by 2025.

The claims may be taken with a slight pinch of salt though. Whilst the company does offer the best fleet in terms of averages, they are still far from the 50mpg mark. In fact, their current 30mpg average means that they have a huge task ahead of them.

Everything seems to be just rumors at the moment, but possibilities are endless for Hyundai. They could be developing a whole new concept, or they could be looking to release their Blue-Will Concept. This concept is likely to be one that could easily be competitive with the Toyota Prius.

According to Hyundai, this new hybrid is likely to produce some extremely impressive figures. It will incorporate a 1.6 liter engine, which will pump out 152bhp. This will be accompanied by a 100kW electric engine which incorporates a lithium-polymer battery pack. Together, they will create a mpg figure in excess of 100, whilst the standard mode will still produce an impressive 50mpg.

The problem for Hyundai is this; they have nothing like this already in production. Their current concept may well be able to keep the likes of the Prius on its toes, but without it going to dealerships and point of sale, there is no chance that Hyundai can be considered anywhere near on Toyotas’ level.