BMW 6-series Gran Coupe (2012)

Click Thumbnails to Enlarge

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

BMW 6-series Gran Coupe (2012) first official pictures

By Tim Pollard

First Official Pictures

10 December 2011 23:00

If you want proof that the Mercedes-Benz CLS was an influential car, look no further than the new BMW 6-series Gran Coupe, unveiled at the weekend.

It's a four-door 6-series, based very closely on the Gran Coupe concept car shown in 2010.

The executive car market has changed a lot in recent years, and BMW is now chasing the same buyers as the Merc CLS, Audi A7 et al. Ironic, since the CLS was originally conceived as Daimler's 'Jag fighter'.

So the BMW 6-series Gran Coupe is a four-door version of the two-door version of the four-door 5-series?

Pretty much. But BMW is confident the figures stack up to make the business case work. Buyers now want to express themselves - so tying ourselves up in knots looking at the car's provenance isn't that helpful.

This is BMW's first four-door coupe, and joins the existing 6-series Coupe and Convertible. The wheelbase is stretched by 113mm over the Six Coupe to make more legroom for rear-seat passengers.

BMW actually describes the Gran Coupe as a 4+1 and talks up the practicality of this four-door. Its boot stacks up at 460 litres - quite respectable for a saloon - and swells to 1265 litres with the backrest flopped forwards.

Which engines does the new BMW 6-series Gran Coupe come with?

The usual spread of 6-series powerplants will be offered, although the diesel is likely to be even more popular in this four-door bodystyle:

• 640i 316bhp straight six petrol
• 650i 444bhp V8 petrol turbo
• 640d 309bhp straight six diesel

There's all the usual 5/6-series derived tech highlights: eight-speed transmissions, stop-start, dynamic adjustable dampers and so forth.

UK sales of the BMW 6-series Gran Coupe kick off in June 2012.

Bentley Continental V8 (2012) first official

Click Thumbnails to Enlarge

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

Bentley Continental V8 (2012) first official pictures

By Tim Pollard

First Official Pictures

12 December 2011 00:01

This is the new 'downsized' Bentley Continental - the new 2012 V8. Downsizing is relative, of course, but it's a significant move from Bentley as it expands the Conti range down from the lofty heights of today's 6.0 W12.

The new Continental V8 coupe and GTC V8 convertible premiere the VW group's new 4.0-litre V8, codeveloped with Audi.

Bentley Continental V8: the new engine

This 4.0-litre V8 is twin-turbocharged and has an array of new tech such as direct fuel injection and cylinder deactivation to lower mpg and CO2 while boosting the important stuff like refinement, power and torque. The engine will act as a V4 at part-load, with special engine mounts and acoustic gizmos to keep the aural experience acceptable.

The new, cheaper Conti sticks with four-wheel drive to keep traction in check and there's a new eight-speed automatic transmission too.

The new Continental V8 twins will be unveiled formally at the 2012 Detroit auto show in January 2012.

So tell us more about this eco Bentley…

The new V8 is hardly a down-specced green special. The new lump, which you'll also find in Audi's new S8, pumps out 500bhp in this guise, with a chunky 487lb ft peaking at one of the most plateau-like torque curves you'll find anywhere - it's flat from 1700-5000rpm.

Key figures are 180mph at the top end, 'sub 5.0sec 0-60mph' and a fuel range of more than 500 miles.

However, Bentley is keeping schtum on the exact fuel economy and CO2 figures until spring 2012. Tellingly, this is the engine which fulfils Bentley's promise to lower CO2 emissions by 40% within five years; all speculation about hybrids and such like was premature.

Bentley has previously dallied with flex-fuel on the W12, and will continue to offer this. But new chief exec Wolfgang Durheimer told CAR that all future development work would focus on hybrids and core group technologies, rather than E85 biofuels.

How can I spot the new Bentley Continental V8?

To tell the V8 apart from a full-fat W12, look for the black gloss grille with a chrome frame and central bar, a red enamel Bentley 'B' badge. At the back you'll find new chromed figure-of-eight exhaust tailpipes, a dark lower valance and a similar red Bentley boot badge.

Twenty inch wheels are standard, but in line with the new Conti W12 you can spec up to 21in rims should your tastes verge towards the bling.

Bentley has sold more than 50,000 Continentals worldwide since launch in 2003, making it comfortably the best-selling model in its history. The new, more affordable V8 is only likely to swell that figure further.

Click Thumbnails to Enlarge

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

Mercedes SL (2012) first official pictures

By Tim Kendall

First Official Pictures

15 December 2011 08:00

All-new SLs seem to come around as often as Halley’s Comet, but here are the first Stuttgart-sanctioned shots of Mercedes’ sixth generation premium roadster – the 2012 Mercedes SL. If it looks familiar, that’s because it’s already had more lenses pointed at its disguised bodywork than Pippa Middleton’s derrière – and CAR’s own renderings earlier this year weren’t far wide of the mark.

So what’s the big news with the new 2012 Mercedes SL then?

It’s all new. The current version of Mercedes’ flagship coupe-cabriolet – the R230 – was launched in 2002 and has undergone a couple of facelifts, each of which notched up the aggression a touch. Stylistically, the new SL moves further in that direction – but big changes under the skin help it shed significant bulk. As a result, Mercedes claims the new model (codenamed R231) is true to its ‘sport lightweight’ SL moniker, being up to 140kg lighter than its portly predecessor, which weighed up to 1970kg depending on spec. Weight-loss has been achieved through the extensive use of aluminium in the body-shell – steel only being used for rollover protection in the A-pillars.

Current Mercedes design language is evident at the business end, the wide-mouthed grille and angular LED headlamps lending it a super-sized SLK-look. It’s a visage that stays true to the traditional SL cocktail of bold elegance, being long-of-bonnet, with an unapologetically large three-pointed star harking back to the ‘Bobby Ewing’ R107 SL of the ‘70s and ‘80s.

Sculpted flanks and SLS-aping vents with chromed fins lend muscularity to the side view, whilst the rear is dominated by oversized CLS-alike wrap-around tail lights extending into the hind quarters. There’s function in the form too – Mercedes claims the new SL is the most aerodynamic car in its sector, helping it set new standards for refinement and noise suppression, roof up or down.

An abundance of space and comfort should satisfy the SL’s core demographic – it’s longer and wider than its predecessor by 50mm and 57mm respectively, resulting in class-leading cabin room according to Mercedes. Inside, the SL’s dashboard architecture doffs its cap to both SLK and SLS, with chromed air vents and switchgear similar to its sporting stablemates.

What’s under the bonnet of the new SL?

It’s a case of more from less with the SL500. The boot badge still lies, but in the opposite direction this time – it’s a 4.7-litre twin-turbo V8 as opposed to the current 5.5 unit. Power has been hiked to 429bhp, whilst it drinks 22% less fuel, and hits 62 mph in a claimed 4.6 seconds. That figure trumps the current SL500 by a healthy 0.8 seconds and matches the original SL55 AMG in a straight-line drag.

There’s also an SL350 to mark the entry point into SL ownership, powered by a 302bhp 3.5-litre V6 that can achieve north of 40mpg and sprint to 62mph in 5.9 seconds. Standard-fit start-stop technology and a seven-speed automatic, optimised for economy, helps the SL’s environmental halo glow.

‘Semi-active’ damping and steel springs are standard-fit on the SL350, whilst Merc’s self-levelling hydraulic dampers – dubbed Active Body Control – feature on the options list.

It’s a new Mercedes – so is it loaded with new tech?

Yes, it’s business as usual from the prolific innovator that is Mercedes, so the new SL packs enough toys to keep the silver-haired brigade busy thumbing its handbook for a while.

Headlining the gizmo-count is Magic Vision Control, a clever wash-wipe system integrated into the wipers, which ensures the driver’s vision can never be obscured by washer fluid on the windscreen. It also allows drivers to spray the windscreen roof-down without wetting the bonce.

Also new is Frontbass, which utilises the natural bass enclosure created by the aluminium cavity forward of the footwell, to produce ‘concert-hall’ sound quality and negate the requirement for hefty speaker enclosures in the doors. There’s also a hands-free boot-lid opening function – wave a nine iron under the rear bumper and it opens, ending the need for hand-to-bodywork contact at the luggage end.

Magic Sky Control – the panoramic glass roof already seen on the smaller SLK, also makes an appearance and switches from transparent to darkened glass at the touch of a button.

When can we get our hands on a new SL?

It’ll go on sale in the UK next July – with prices and specification to be confirmed nearer the time.

All-New 2012 Honda CR-V Priced from $23,105 in the States

If the brand-new 2012 Honda CR-V is on your buying list, you'll be happy to know that the Japanese carmaker has just announced pricing as the crossover model arrived in dealerships across the country today.

Prices for the 2012 CR-V range from $22,295 for the entry-level LX 2WD model to $29,795 for the range-topping EX-L AWD with a navigation package, not including a destination and handling charge of $810 per vehicle, which lifts prices to $23,105 and $30,605 respectively.

Honda says that while it has added between $400 and $1,000 worth of standard features and technologies to each trim compared to the previous model, prices have increased by an average of $181 only, while on model equipped with navigation, the price decreases by $300 over the 2011 CR-V.

All 2012 CR-V models are powered by a 2.4-liter i-VTEC 4-cylinder engine delivering 185HP and 163 lb-ft. of torque linked to a standard 5-speed automatic transmission.

The newcomer has an EPA-estimated fuel economy of 23mpg city, 31mpg highway and 26mpg combined for the front-wheel drive models, and 22mpg city, 30mpg highway and 25mpg combined for the all-wheel drive variants.

PHOTO GALLERY

2013 Mercedes-Benz SL: Feast Your Eyes on 60 High-Res Photos

 The last couple of days, the sixth-generation of the Mercedes-Benz SL roadster has been one of the hottest subjects on the web – and rightly so, as it introduces several new technologies that will eventually trickle down to the premium automaker's other models. There's a lot to mention, but one of the highlights is the aluminum bodywork, which significantly reduces weight and has a positive effect on both agility and handling as well as fuel consumption and CO2 emissions.
The SL also features updated V6 and V8 engines that offer better performance and improved economy, as well as new advanced active and passive safety systems, all of which have been discussed in our previews reports.
The world premiere of the hardtop-roadster will take place at the 2012 Detroit Motor Show next month, but in the meantime, feel free to take a look at a fresh batch of high-resolution pictures and the first official videos right after the jump.

 

PHOTO GALLERY