Bristol has revealed an all-new sports car called the Bullet. The first new car from Bristol in over a decade comes five years after the brand was rescued from insolvency and will be powered by a 4.8-litre BMW V8. The roadster’s styling draws on the company’s historical roots as an aeroplane manufacturer and was inspired by a neglected speedster prototype found hidden under a dusty tarpaulin at the old factory. Only 70 examples of the Bullet will be made, with prices expected to be around the £250k mark.
Audi has confirmed its first ’S’ variant of the Q7 SUV will cost upwards of £70k OTR. With the German brand claiming it’s the most powerful diesel SUV on the market, it seemed only right to put the SQ7 TDI’s 900 Nm of torque to work.. against a fighter jet. With 435 PS, 0-62 is dispatched in 4.9 seconds thanks in no small part to Audi’s new electrically driven turbochargers. Powered by compressor technology rather than exhaust flow, the new system effectively consigns conventional ‘turbo lag’ to history. The Audi SQ7 TDI is on sale now.
Set for a UK showroom debut later this year, the new Audi R8 Spyder V10 has just gone on sale in Germany. The second generation model is powered by a 5.2-litre engine with 540bhp, accelerating the drop-top from 0 to 62 in 3.6 seconds and on to a top speed close to 200 mph. Built using a mixture of aluminium and carbon fibre, the new model is faster than its predecessor - as well as being more tightly pinned to the road thanks in part to a 50 per cent improvement in rigidity. UK pricing has yet to be confirmed, but with a base price of €179,000 in its home market - expect it to cost in the region of £150,000.
A collaboration between Aston Martin and Red Bull Racing has resulted in a new striking Hypercar - codenamed AM-RB 001. The project saw renowned F1 designer and Red Bull employee Adrian Newey realise his first ever road car - which will be built at Aston Martin’s Gaydon facility. Designed around a lightweight carbon fibre structure, the Hypercar features F1 inspired underfloor aerodynamics - promising unprecedented levels of downforce in a road car - and is powered by a mid-mounted V12 to achieve a power-to-weight ratio of 1 bhp per kilogram.
Mercedes-AMG has unleashed a new beefed-up R version of its GT supercar. Making its public debut at Goodwood, the new Merc is powered by a 4.0-litre, V8 engine with 585bhp for a 0-62 time of 3.6 seconds, and a top speed of 198mph. Finished in a Nurburgring-inspired ‘Green Hell’ paintwork, the new GT R features a wider track, modified suspension, new aerodynamics front and rear and a lightweight construction - all designed for maximum driving dynamics.
Alfa Romeo has confirmed pricing for the all-new Giulia Quadrifoglio will start at £59,000 OTR. Powered by a new 510bhp V6 petrol engine, mated to an eight-speed paddle shift automatic transmission, the Giulia Quadrifoglio has a 0-62mph time of 3.9 seconds and a top speed of over 190mph. Standard spec includes 19-inch alloy wheels, plenty of carbon fibre and an Alfa Active Aero front splitter. The Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio will be available to this summer.
In a World Exclusive, NEWCARNET has secured the first images of a brand new electric hypercar concept – the GVA Eclipse. Designed by a British-led team at China-based automotive design company, Global Vehicle Architecture, the stunning full-sized prototype is projected to be joining the 200mph club thanks in part to a ground-breaking aerodynamic concept. Lifting the side windows upwards allows the bodywork to be sculpted so airflow can be channelled down the sides of the car – similar to the solution adopted by Le Mans racers. Patents are currently pending and the designers bullishly describe the GVA Eclipse as ‘very much production orientated and not just a flight of fancy.’
Following the launch of Fiat’s 124 Spider, the Italian brands performance division, Abarth, has now confirmed pricing for its beefed up version. Starting at £29 and a half, Abarth has tuned the 1.4 litre engine up to 170 bhp, shaving nearly a second off the 0-62mph time and increasing top speed to 143mph. A limited slip differential joins the standard fit Record Monza exhaust, while the range-topping model, which costs from £31,600 adds a sequential automatic gearbox with steering wheel-mounted paddles. The new Abarth 124 spider arrives in the UK this summer.
Fiat has confirmed its new 124 Spider will cost from £19,545. Reviving the historic nameplate, Fiat’s new roadster is powered by a 1.4-litre Turbo Petrol engine sending 140bhp to the rear wheels via a six-speed manual gearbox, for a 0-62mph time of 7.5 seconds. Available in three trim levels, the Lusso starts at £22,295 and adds 17-inch alloy wheels among other details while an extra £1000 will get you into the flagship Lusso Plus which adds LED headlights as well as a nine-speaker BOSE sound system.
Audi has launched its all-new A5 and S5 Coupé at the company's headquarters in Ingolstadt. Lighter and more economical than the outgoing model, the new A5 Coupé is powered by a choice of petrol and diesel engines, with the highlight being the S5’s 3.0-litre TDI engine which pumps out 354PS enabling a 0-62 time of 4.7 seconds. Undergoing both a technological transformation and styling evolution, the A5 Coupé has been aerodynamically optimised, while interior space is more generous. Oder books open at the end of the summer with pricing yet to be announced.
Renault Sport celebrated its 40th anniversary by revealing a special Clio R.S. 16 concept car. Revealed at the Monaco Grand Prix, Renault’s F1 driver Kevin Magnussen took the Clio R.S. 16 for a spin around the famous circuit. Featuring a wider body and 19-inch wheels, the Clio concept is powered by a 275-horsepower 2.0-litre unit borrowed from the Mégane R.S. Trophy-R - along with the cooling and transmission - while the suspension was reworked to match the car’s performance characteristics.
Falken Tyres enlisted the help of a drift school to put its products through an extreme test. Among the souped-up Japanese imports, one 18-year-old car enthusiast brought along his heavily modified Morris Marina shod with Falken Sincera tyres. Underneath the fading Green paint of the 900kg car lies a Ford Mondeo Zetec engine, Sierra gearbox and uprated suspension. Drift champion and Falken team driver James Deane enjoyed a slide in the old Marina but may just stick with his 750 horsepower Nissan.
Nissan has confirmed its updated GT-R will cost from £80,000 when it goes on sale in the Autumn. And to test the performance enhancements made to the 2016 model, Nissan took it for a spin around the Spa F1 track, in Belgium. The changes include a revised chassis and more power from its twin-turbocharged 3.8-litre engine. A Track Edition NISMO GT-R will also be available for just under £92,000.
BMW has revealed a beefy ‘2002 Hommage' concept car - paying tribute to the classic 2002 model first seen 50 years ago. The one-off was conceived for this years concours event at Villa d’Este and features a low slung sporting silhouette and, like the original model, is distinguished by just two single headlight units. Aerodynamic details include large spoilers front and rear, while huge moulded wheel arches house 20-inch light-alloy wheels, as well as recalling the Trans Am race variants of the classic 2002 turbo.
The Infiniti Concept Vision GT made its first-ever appearance outside of China, at London’s Copper Box Arena. Its UK debut came at the launch of the new Sony Playstation 4 game - GT Sport - in which the car will star alongside other manufacturers supercar concepts. The design project went much further than hand sketching and digital refinement, to include thorough calculations of technical features such as aerodynamics and engine performance. GT Sport for the PS4 is released in November.
The new Sony PlayStation game ‘GT Sport’ was launched at London’s Copper Box Arena, to a wheel-spinning, tyre smoking fan-fare. Inviting a host of manufacturers to bring their specially made extreme concept cars, the floor was packed with dream machines - all of which feature in the new console game. A few privileged gamers were among the first to try out the new software, which was sanctioned by the FIA and built from the ground up to make global online competitions a reality. Speaking of reality, stunt drivers were on-hand outside to give guests a taste of real world racing.
Anticipation is building in the run up to the unveiling of TVR’s first new model in more than a decade. TVR boss Les Edgar and designer Gordon Murray were at the London Motor Show to confirm Cosworth V8 power and a sub-four second 0-60 time for the new coupe which will be available with a Carbon fibre chassis. Edgar said the new TVR will go on sale in 2017 but he wasn't giving much else away – as the show car’s cover was removed to reveal.. another cover.
The first London Motor Show in 8 years has been officially opened by His Royal Highness Prince Michael of Kent, at Battersea Park. With all the major carmakers under one roof, UK debuts included the new MG GS - the British brand’s first SUV - as well as the McLaren 570GT and the Infiniti Q60 coupe. TVR wheeled out the great Gordon Murray to disappoint the assembled press by seemingly lining up a world debut for its new sportscar, only to reveal, well - nothing. Order books opened for the sexy new Mexican-built supercar, the VUHL 05 with prices starting from £59,000 OTR while Riversimple presented its Hydrogen car concept, the RASA, capable of travelling 300 miles with only water vapour for emissions.
Volkswagen will be celebrating 40 years of the the Golf GTI with a special Clubsport S edition, set to debut at the 35th GTI Meet in Wörthersee, Austria. It will be joined by the whole generation of Golf GTI models, from a mark 1 to the new GTI Touring car. The legions of VW fans will be able to get up close to the 310 PS GTI Clubsport S, which earlier this week broke the Nürburgring record for a front-wheel drive production car, completing a lap in 7:49.21.
Audi has pulled the covers off its new TT RS in Beijing. The most powerful ever production TTis available as a Coupé or Roadster with both models powered by a 2.5-litre TFSI engine - with a 17 percent increase in performance. 0-62 takes just 3.7 seconds, and top speed is 174mph. The new TT RS is fitted with 19-inch alloys as standard, sits ten millimetres lower than the base model and has new 3D effect organic LED rear lights. Available to order this summer, prices have yet to be announced.
