Saturday, April 13, 2013

First Alfa Romeo 4C Promo Touts Brand's Return to the U.S., Configurator Launches in June

There's a lot to like about the production Alfa Romeo 4C, from its ultra-lightweight construction that uses carbon fiber components to keep the dry weight at a surprisingly low 895kg or 1,973 pounds, to its nicely crafted body, and one thing to hate: those spider eye-style headlamps that look like a bad afterthought.

Alfa Romeo 4C

Of course, it could be just us and a bunch of other gearheads we talked to and who said the same thing, so if you disagree, don't be shy to share your feelings in the comments.

Now, the reason why we're coming back to the 236HP (240PS) Alfa 4C that was unwrapped earlier today at the Geneva Auto Show isn't to talk about its lights, but to tell you that the Italian brand has released the first promotion videos of the mid-engine sports car, and launched a primitive online configurator.

Alfa tells us in one of the videos that the full-spec configurator will be available in June. The one that's online now, only gives the chance to choose from two colors for the body and interior trim.

At Alfa Romeo's Geneva motor show press conference, the Italian company's CEO Harald Wester confirmed the 4C's North American premiere at the Los Angeles Auto Show in November, with first deliveries before the end of the year.

While Alfa won't reveal pricing for the United States until the LA show, Wester did say that the 4C Launch Edition shown in Geneva will be priced at €60,000 (US$78,000) in Europe where it goes on sale in September.

Articles Source : Carscoop

 Video Source : Youtube

2014 Jaguar XJR


Jaguar has revealed a teaser pic of the 2014 Jaguar XJR for debut at the 2013 New York Motor Show further augmenting its “R” series of performance sedans.

2014 Jaguar Logo
2014 Jaguar Logo

2014 Jaguar XJR
2014 Jaguar XJR

2014 Jaguar XJR
2014 Jaguar XJR

2014 Jaguar XJR
2014 Jaguar XJR

Andy Goss, President, Jaguar Land Rover North America said “Jaguar is growing its product lineup to meet a far wider spectrum of customer demands ranging from sedans with 2.0 liter and 3.0 liter engines and All Wheel Drive to the exciting new F-TYPE sports car. It is clear that performance will continue to lie at the heart and soul of the brand. To that end, the growing R performance lineup offers our customers the truly elevated dynamics and design, but in a Jaguar luxury package. The Jaguar XJR is a British performance machine that delivers emotionally and dynamically on the road and on the track.”

The first visual differentiation on the new aggressive looking Jag is the dark grille with an ‘R’ badge which generally is chromed in the Jaguar lineup. A revised bumper, spoiler, vented hood, new set of wheels and racy red calipers. The steering, suspension and braking dynamics have been tested at the manufacturer’s Nürburgring test facility.

The 550 bhp supercharged V8 has been retained from the Jaguar XFR-S that was showcased last year at the Los Angeles Motor Show. Shifting duties will be taken care of by an 8 speed paddle shifted ZF auto transmission. Though official performance figures haven’t been announced yet, but expect the big leaping cat to clock 0-100 kph just over 4 seconds with top speed to be likely in the region of 300 kph.