Volkswagen has had great success with its diesel-powered Race Touareg 2, earning wins in both the 2009 and 2010 Dakar Rally. For the 2011 event, however, a brand new race truck will be entered, mimicking the changes made to the road-going Volkswagen Touareg for the 2011 model year.

Cosmetically, the Race Touareg 3 gets new LED running lamps up front, as well as a new grille, rear clamshell, window line and a different set of 16-inch wheels wrapped in 235/85 BF Goodrich tires. It still looks mean as ever, and new improvements to the roof-mounted cooling systems won't affect airflow at higher speeds out on the dunes.

Power will still come from a twin-turbocharged 2.5-liter TDI engine, producing 296 horsepower and 442 pound-feet of torque. Volkswagen says that the diesel powerplant has been tweaked to give slightly better fuel economy without sacrificing power, and the Race Touareg 3 will be capable of reaching 62 miles per hour (100 kilometers per hour) in just 6.1 seconds on its way to a top speed of 117 mph.

Will the Race Touareg 3 be able to secure another win for Volkswagen in the 2011 Dakar Rally? We'll have to wait until next year to find out. Hit the jump to read Volkswagen's official press release and scroll through the gallery below for high-res shots of the new race truck.



[Source: Volkswagen]

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There's no question that Wolfgang Bernhard is well liked by the boys at Daimler. In fact, rumor has it that he's currently being groomed (for the second time, actually) to take the reins at Daimler's Mercedes-Benz automotive unit. If you believe the rumors, the only real question is when Bernhard will take over from current head Dieter Zetsche.

Reports filtering out of Germany had suggested that the changeover would take place sooner rather than later. Daimler, though, is denying those rumors, calling them "fictional and without foundation." In February of 2010, Bernhard was promoted to lead production and purchasing at Mercedes. At the same time, Zetsche's contract was extended to 2013.

It would seem that, if the 49-year-old Bernhard is going to take the helm at Mercedes-Benz at all, it's not going to happen until 2013 at the earliest. Is it too early to start hoping for an AMB-branded Tomahawk motorcycle?

[Source: Automotive News – Sub. Req'd]

Outgoing CEO Ed Whitacre was never supposed to be the long-term chief executive at General Motors. In fact, he never even purchased a home in the Detroit area, instead opting to commute between San Antonio, Texas and a (we're guessing really nice) Detroit apartment. That won't be the case for Dan Akerson, who takes over for Whitacre on September 1st. The Detroit Free Press reports that Akerson is looking into purchasing a primary residence in the Detroit area, placing the current Virginia resident close to the company's Motown headquarters.

But while Akerson is planning on staying at GM for a bit longer than Whitacre, the new boss will reportedly only reside over the company for two to four years. After The General's IPO is complete and the company is solidly profitable, GM is likely to pick a replacement candidate from within the organization. In the meantime, someone needs to tell Akerson that the roads in Detroit are horrible, because otherwise he may think there is something wrong with the suspension on his Cadillac.

[Source: Detroit Free Press]

We will never complain about our commute again. Ever. According to MSNBC, gridlock traffic has now grown to cover a total of 60 miles between Beijing and Zhangjiakou. It's been that way since August 14th, and officials say that the situation doesn't look to improve until workers wrap up road repairs on September 13. If that wasn't bad enough, a slew of broken-down vehicles and fender benders have cropped up as a result of the slow-going commute.

Traffic has gotten so bad that drivers have taken to striking up card and chess games while waiting for things to get moving again. Street vendors have also set up shop along the afflicted highway, offering food and drinks at an inflated price. Local government has unleashed a total of 400 police officers to keep crowds calm during the long slog home.

Remember, drivers. It could always be worse. Unless you live near Beijing, that is. Thanks for the tip, Brendan!

[Source: MSNBC]

Peugeot's first production hybrid is finally coming to market next spring, but we already know most of the technical details. The 3008 Hybrid4 is the first light-duty diesel hybrid to come to market and also the first through-the-road hybrid. The midsize crossover uses a system that consists of a fairly conventional 163-horsepower 2.0-liter inline-four diesel engine driving the front wheels and a 37-horsepower electric motor at the rear axle that operates completely independently of the internal combustion drivetrain.

The diesel drives through an electronically controlled and mechanized six-speed manual gearbox that can either be shifted manually or left in full automatic mode. A more powerful eight-kilowatt high-voltage integrated starter-generator on the engine provides automatic start-stop capability as well as the ability to charge the nickel metal hydride battery from the engine.

When the battery has sufficient charge, the electric motor alone can propel the 3008 at lower speeds or provide on-demand all-wheel drive. The rear-mounted motor also provides regenerative braking to charge the battery. The combined output of the two powerplants comes in at 200 hp and 369 pound-feet of torque. The mechanically simpler (compared to most parallel hybrids) system allows Peugeot to produce a less expensive diesel hybrid than would be possible with a power-split system like the one used by Toyota, all while taking advantage of the highway cruising efficiency of compression ignition. The 3008 Hybrid4 is rated at 61.9 miles per gallon (U.S.) on the EU combined driving cycle with CO2 emissions of just 99 grams per kilometer. Eventually, Peugeot will also add a plug-in version of Hybrid4 with a lithium-ion battery. Click past the jump for the full skinny after looking over our high-res gallery below.



[Source: Peugeot]30

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Muscle Cars	Classic Cars	License Plates
Close-up Details	Import Cars	Weird and Wonderful Cars

	Chrysler represents! First thing we did after arriving at the 2010 Woodward Dream Cruise was head out to the various automaker displays on Woodward Avenue. And, as you can see, that includes Chrysler.
	Ford display takes over 9 Mile and Woodward Ford always comes strong at the Woodward Dream Cruise, and this year the corner of 9 Mile and Woodward is a packed as ever with a slew of Mustangs in tow.
	2012 Ford Mustang Boss 302 makes its Motor City debut After first appearing in Monterey, Ford quickly hot-footed the 2012 Ford Mustang Boss 302 back home to Detroit for a showing at this year's Woodward Dream Cruise.
	Smoke on the Woodward What does a PT Cruiser need to do to attract our attention at the Woodward Dream Cruise? It could overheat and die, needing to be pushed to the side of the road. Kinda like this one here.

According to popular American folklore, you should always buy the biggest engine available. Such thinking likely became prevalent in the 1950s, when the American automotive industry was busy building new V8 engines, experimenting with multiple carburetors and high compression, and generally discovering the art of hot-rodding. Gas prices? Fuel economy? Pfft. It was a great time to be an American.

These days, life isn't quite so simple. There are countless reasons to consider a downsized powerplant. First off, we all care about fuel mileage and many of us care about emissions. Then there's the cost consideration, and, finally, the biggest engine isn't always the best performer. Proof of such can be seen in the new 2011 Ford Edge, that we just drove ourselves and that was recently put through the full testing regime by the boys at Motor Trend.

There are currently two V6 engines available in the Edge (a 2.0-liter EcoBoost is on the way in a few months), a 3.5-liter and a 3.7, which comes straight from the Mustang. Power for the smaller engine comes in at 280 horses and 253 pound-feet of torque. The larger 3.7 puts out 305 horses and 280 lb-ft and is available only in the Edge Sport. So, the Sport is the fastest, right?

Not so fast... literally. MT clocked a 7.1-second run to 60 in the base Edge, but only managed a disappointing 7.6 seconds in the 3.7-powered Edge Sport. Apparently, the problem is weight. The base Edge tipped MT's scales at 4075 pounds while the Sport came in at an obese 4405, part of which can be explained by the addition of all-wheel drive. In any case, the Edge Sport, with its massive 22-inch wheels and wide tires, can't keep up with the base Edge in a straight line.

On the flip side, the AWD Edge Sport (with those aforementioned oversize wheels and tires) handily out-handled its base model sibling. In other words, this is a case where you need to pick your poison, either handling or straight-line acceleration. And of course the upcoming EcoBoost will add another interesting option to consider in a few short months.



[Source: Motor Trend]

In 1992, Mercedes-Benz and Porsche briefly entered into a love affair that would produce one very special offspring: the Mercedes-Benz 500E. The car was to become the godfather of all super sedans, packing a 5.0-liter V8 with a staggering (for the time) 322 horsepower and 354 pound-feet of torque. Bolted to a four-speed automatic gearbox, the engine could scoot the big four-door to 60 mph in a mere 6.1 seconds. Something tells us that those power numbers were a little conservative. But where does Porsche come in to this dance?

Germany's sportscar manufacturer was responsible for working the sheetmetal of the 500E into the shape you see above. Those healthy fender arches were all massaged into place by the gurus at Porsche before the body was shipped off to Mercedes-Benz for paint and final assembly. Once done, the whole kit and caboodle was shipped back to Porsche for final inspection. Needless to say, this was an incredibly limited production vehicle, with the two companies only creating around 500 examples per year.

This particular car has a grand total of 587 miles on the clock, having spent the fair majority of its years tucked away in a museum. Bidding is at $35,200 with the reserve not met and less than 8 hours to go as of writing. Follow the jump for jazz-tastic video walk around and check out pics in the gallery below.



[Source: eBay Motors]

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