If you are planning to drop by the 2009 Shanghai Auto Show or perhaps are keen on finding out what is going on over there, Auto Week has made it easier for you which may even virtually place you there.

On the heels of success at the Detroit and Chicago auto shows, the editors at AutoWeek released today their fifth virtual tour, this time visiting the 2009 Shanghai Auto Show. Visitors to autoweek.com can check out the free tour by clicking on the audio player and checking out the online show photo galleries that accompany the tour.

The tour provides AutoWeek editors’ insight into many of the brands at the show. The 13th international Auto Shanghai show runs through Tuesday, April 28 at the Shanghai New International Expo Center.

(Source) Press

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The car in the picture above sure looks dazzling. It’s a Bertone Mantide although you might have suspected it was a Corvette. You weren’t far off either since the car is part ZR1 and part Italian. The car was designed by Jason Castriota and you’re probably never going to afford it. It was shown at the Shanghai Auto Show and inside you’re going to get a 638-horsepower supercharged LS9 2009 Corvette ZR1. The body is made out of carbon fiber which makes it 220 lbs lighter than the ZR1. The car goes to 62mph in just 3.2 seconds and it can reach a top speed of 217mph. Impressed yet?

via jalopnik

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People get fascinated with the show of brute strength hence when it comes to pitting human muscles to vehicle muscles, you just have to be impressed at how it is all going to turn out. Of course, it will show just how some people are as far as bodily strength is concerned and apparently that is what America’s strongest men aim to prove.

Four of America’s strongest men are meeting at the opening of America’s largest auto show to compete in a variety of contests that test pure strength and stamina. American Strongman competitors Gerard “the White Rhino” Benderoth, Ben Lambousis, Skeet Dunn, and Brett Somerville will demonstrate mind blowing strength exhibitions including a foot race while pulling a line of 10 cars!

Two rows of ten (10) brand new cars will be linked together and strapped to the athletes’ backs. When the whistle blows, the athletes will race to pull the vehicles to the finish line using only their own body strength and sheer determination.

Also on tap is the “American Strongman Challenge(r)” which pits the athletes against each other to see who can deadlift a 2009 Dodge Challenger SRT-8 the most times in one minute.

(Source) Press

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Mitsubisihi recently released word that they will be showcasing their all new Outlander Prototype next week at the New York auto show.

There’s no specifics but Kicking Tires speculates that the care will share the Ralliart sedan’s 237HP turbocharged 4 cylinder engine. Mitsubishi, on the other hand, assures us that it will be far more fuel efficient than the 3.0 litter 6 cylinder engine in the current Outlander model.

I guess we’re just going to have to wait until next week when this thing is official unveiled.

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Interested in that 2010 Mecedes-Benz E-Class sedan? Well then stick around as we have more E-Class news for you. The E-Class Coupe is set to arrive at the Geneva Motor Show while the wagon and convertible versions are en route to the Frankfurt Auto Show which will take place in September. Soon after the Auto Show, the wagon version will be available for purchase while the convertible will be available in November. Maybe not the happiest season to drive a convertible.

We don’t have all the features of these E-Class versions just yet but we have plenty of times to get them before you head over to Frankfurt.

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You may not be able to buy your sweetie that new Porsche for Valentine’s Day this year, by you could buy him (or her) tickets to a great auto show where they can drool over one. The New York Auto Show, which runs from April 10th through April 19th, is offering a $2 discount on all tickets purchased online before Valentine’s Day.

“As well as being the best time to research your next car, spring is also the season of love. So to celebrate two of our favorite things — cars and romance — we thought it would be a great idea to offer our tickets early and at a discounted price. Who wouldn’t love that?” said show director Candida Romanelli. “A trip to the New York Auto Show is the perfect gift for the car-lover in your life. We have found over the years that people are so passionate about cars that many have even become engaged during their visit to the Show.” For more information on the New York Auto Show or to purchase tickets with the online discounts, visit the website www.autoshowNY.com.

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It’s time for a new Taurus and Ford has just the thing for us. The 2010 Ford Taurus will be unveiled in front of your eyes at the Detroit Auto Show. Earlier versions of the Taurus became the best-selling passenger car in the USA during the 90s but then the Taurus lost its appeal.

What better way to revive it than with a fresh model for the near future. The 2010 Taurus has been completely redesigned, but will it be as successful as its predecessors? With these difficult economy times people won’t probably rush out of their houses to get a new car soon. Or will they do exactly that for a new Taurus?

Besides the exterior new look we’re going to be surprised once we enter the vehicle too. It has safety and technology written all over it. Intelligent Acces, Push-Button Start, MyKey, the latest Sync version (which we have already told you about), Sirius Travel Link, the Blind Spot Information System or BLIS and the Cross Traffic Allert system are all present.

Need I say more? Oh yes I do! The 3.5L Duratec V6 engine will power these babies. It can get you 263 hp and 249 lb-ft of torque. A twin-turbo, direct-injected EcoBoost 3.5L V6 is also in the works. The basic models will sport a six-speed automatic gearbox while the SEL and Limited models will get the extra SelectShift paddles to the steering wheel.

All of that and much more is available at the Detroit Auto Show for you to explore. And all of that will be available for the same price the 2009 Taurus sells: $25,995 and up.

via Press

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Is that a Mercedes in the picture there? It’s surely a Mercedes! I can tell you that! The company decided to announces its new Concept BlueZero ahead of the Detroit Auto Show. The BlueZero will get you an idea of what the future line of Mercedes B-Class cars will look like.

The car is designed to work with any of the three powertrain options. The E-Cell will take the juice out of a 35kWh lithium-ion battery pack which will give it a 120-mile range, the BlueZero F-Cell version will get twice that mileage with a 90kW hydrogen fuel cell. The third version is the E-Cell Plus and you will have a 67-hp three-cylinder engine snatched from that Smart ForTwo mounted where the spare tire usually sleeps. Combined with the electric power this third version will get you about 400 miles of range. That’s with a single gas tank. Driving the Mercedes on that battery juice alone will get you about 60 miles of range but then you will have to start up that engine.

Production will start later this year for the fuel cell version and in 2010 Mercedes should produce the battery versions. Interested already? Go to Detroit to find out more!

via Press

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Is this the 2010 Volvo S60 or jut a concept? It looks drivable enough right? It’s a concept from Volvo but it looks exactly like a daily down-to-Earth car. The car will appear at the next Detroit Auto Show so that’s when we’ll have more juicy details.

We have LED head and tail lamps, sustainable materials, no B-pillar and there’s a gear shifter that will give you the choice between automatic or manual. The Volvo Collision Warning Auto Brake System will activate all 4 brakes if there’s a person walking in front of the S60. The Auto Cruise Control will help you drive it but I’m sure you’ll want to drive it yourself.

The S60 has a 4-cylinder engine which will get you 179hp and 47 miles to the gallon. Gas emissions? At about 120g/km.

via Yanko Design

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The Detroit Auto Show will bring you the new 2010 BMW Z4 so stick around to see more shots of it or simply take a trip to Detroit next month.

The Z4 has been officially released in Munich and its pictures and specs are available all over the web. The car is remarkable. No matter what car you’re into, you should definitely get a Z4 roadster to drive when you have a chance. You know, retract that metal roof and press that gas…

But let’s see what’s inside this beauty! Europeans will be able to choose from three engines. The sDrive23i has a 2.5L inline-6 and a six-speed manual or automatic gearbox which will be getting you 204 hp. The Z4 sDrive30i has a normally-aspirated 3.0L I6 capable of 258 hp and 228 lbs.-ft. of torque. The sDrive35i has a twin-turbo 3.0L which will put out 306 hp. A 7-speed dual-clutch gearbox comes with this last selection.

Which one would you pick? How much will it cost? So many questions but so little time…

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The Detroit Auto Show will miss some of the big names of the auto world but Mercedes-Benz is going to be there. Most importantly it won’t come empty handed. Three Concept BlueZero cars are being brought over to Detroit. These are low to no emission cars for the future.

The E-Cell is an electric five-door packing lithium-ion batteries. A two-hour charge will get you a range of 62 miles. The F-Cell is a hydrogen fuel-cell and the E-Plus will have Smart ForTwo’s turbocharged three-cylinder engine working under the hood to power up a lithium-ion battery pack that will get you about 373 miles of autonomy.

The Concept BlueZero are definitely a think to observe in the future. Check out the E-Cell in the picture above if you want to see what Mercedes’ A- and B-class will look like in three years time.

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We’ve been waiting for the new E-Class from Mercedes-Benz and I am sure we’re not the only ones. The 2010 model has been revealed but not officially yet. The images leaked to the web showed us what Mercedes will announce at the 2009 Detroit Auto Show. Now only if someone could leak some of those precious specs of the 2010 E-Class I am sure we’re going to have even more fun.

We’re waiting for high tech toys: the ability to read road signs, monitor driver fatigue and see in the dark without the lights turned on. Europe models will bring you various gas and diesel engines, with four, six or eight cylinders while American models will get V6, V8 and AMG model models. We’ll get more details once the Detroit Auto Show gets underway. Until then, enjoy the photos!

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The year is almost over and our eyes are looking for the Detroit Auto Show. There are however those car makers which aren’t as thrilled about the show as they don’t have that much too show for. Honda for example and Nissan are big names that have already canceled press conferences at the Detroit Auto Show. KIA however has big plans for Detroit. The car maker will have various new models to display in Detroit at first and then in New York and Chicago.

A brand new KIA will be launched in Detroit and the Forte sedan in the picture will be brought to Chicago. That’s the US forte version of course! With about a month to go to Detroit, we can’t but wait to see who will match KIA’s enthusiasm in Detroit.

via KIA

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We’ve seen the A5 and S5 Cabrios from Audi scheduled to arrive at the Geneva Auto Show in March. We have another Audi to take a look at. The 2010 Audi R8 Spyder V10 will arrive at the Detroit Auto Show which is just around the corner.

We are to expect a 5.2L V10 motor capable of 520 hp and 398 lb.-ft. of torque. Larger dual exhaust, new wheels and better breaks are also in the works. Well now doesn’t that sound good? We’ll tell you more when Audi will bring this baby to Detroit.

via Car and Driver

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Nissan will not be present at the next American Auto Shows. After the LA Auto Show where it has unveiled the new 370Z, the Cube and the Infiniti G37 Convertible, Nissan is left without anything worth of displaying. And I don’t mean Nissans aren’t worth displaying. The company is simply in the position of not being able to bring anything new in Detroit and Chicago. The NV2500 concept van was supposed to be launched in Detroit but it that won’t be happening now.

How will be Detroit 2009 I wonder? Besides Nissan other companies like Porsche, Suzuki, Mitsubishi, Ferrari, Land Rover and Rolls-Royce will not have any cars displayed.

via The Detroit News

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