New VW Golf "R" 270HP Receives a 310-362HP Power Boost from B&B

German tuning specialist, B&B, is turning the up wick on the most potent series-production Golf ever made, the new 270HP all-wheel drive Golf R, with the launch of a performance package that includes powertain and chassis upgrades.

The engine mods come in three different stages, with the first bumping output from 270 horsepower to 310HP, the second to 324HP and the third to a hefty 362HP.

The most powerful kit features a larger turbocharger, a sports exhaust system with a different downpipe and a racing catalyst, reprogrammed ECU, a revised air intake system and a new intercooler.

B&B claims that the 362HP Golf R sprints from standstill to 100km/h (62mph) in just 4.8 seconds and maxes out at 280km/h or 174 mph.

The tuning firm also offers a special 8-caliper high-performance braking system, an adjustable coilover suspension with new springs that lower the vehicle's ride height and a set of black-colored alloy wheels in sizes 19'' and 20''.

VIDEO: 2012 Mercedes ML Prototype and AMG S-Class Pull Out CL-Class AMG Test Car from Snow Ditch

Now here's an incident that you don't get to see very often - let alone capture on film. But these spy photographers got lucky when, while they were tailing a camouflaged 2012 Mercedes-Benz ML SUV prototype on a snow covered road, the driver of the SUV led them straight to a CL-Class AMG facelift test car that was trapped in a ditch!

At first, the Mercedes-Benz team tried to pull out the CL-Class AMG coupe only with the all-wheel drive ML.

When that didn't work, they then employed the help of an S-Class AMG sedan equipped with snow chains. The combined pulling power of the two Mercs did the job. Enjoy the video after the break.

Via: Youtube / AMS

Ford Stops Production of Transit in China Over Accelerator Pedal Issue

While Toyota is the main car manufacturer to be affected by the faulty accelerator pedals (not to be confused with the floor-mat related sticky accelerator issues) made by Indiana-based supplier CTS Corp., it isn't the only one.

The Associated Press as well as the USA Today reported today that Ford has halted production of its Transit Classic van in China because it has a similar type of pedal assembly made by CTS as the ones blamed for Toyota's recall in the States.

"When anybody has an issue in the industry, we check everything about the Ford system and production process," said Ford CEO Alan Mulally. "It's our assessment right now that this is very isolated."

It is also reported that Toyota has issued a new recall of 75,000 vehicles in China for the same matter.

Earlier today, Toyota said that it is investigating the issue on its European models also.

Thanks for the tip 3Deuce27! , Via: USA Today

Volvo Launches New 203HP 2.0-Liter Turbo Gasoline Engine for S80, V70 and XC60

FoMoCo's soon-to-be-sold to China's Geely Motors Volvo brand is expanding its range of gasoline engines with the presentation of the all-new 2.0-liter GTDi (Gasoline Turbocharged Direct Injection) that will initially find its way under the hood of the S80 sedan, V70 estate and XC60 compact SUV models.

Even though Volvo did not mention anything about Ford, we suspect that the new four-cylinder unit that combines turbocharging technology and direct injection with twin variable camshafts, is either the same engine or heavily based on FoMoCo's new 2.0-liter EcoBoost engine that will be used on several cars including the European Mondeo and the Australian Falcon.

Volvo said that the new 2.0 GTDi petrol engine produces an output of 203 horsepower and 300 Nm or 221.3 lb-ft of peak torque that is sustained from 1750 rpm all the way up to 4,000 rpm.

The engine will be offered in combination with Volvo's automatic six-speed Powershift transmission or a six-speed manual gearbox

"We've succeeded in making a four-cylinder engine that is as powerful as a 2.5-litre five-cylinder unit, and it's also much more energy-efficient," said Magnus Jonsson, head of Product Development at Volvo Cars.

"One of the most important reasons behind the results is our new, patented turbo system that has been tailor-made for smaller energy-efficient engines," Jonsson added.

With this new engine and the six-speed manual gearbox, the S80 sedan accelerates from zero to 100km/h (62mph) in 7.9 seconds while returning a combined fuel consumption of 7.9 lt /100km which is equal to 29.8mpg US and 35.8mpg UK.

Volvo said that the new 2.0 GTDi engine is being initially launched on markets that offer tax incentives for engines below two liters in displacement including South-East Asia, the Netherlands, China and Japan, adding that more countries/regions will follow later in the year.

European Suzuki Kizashi Sedan to Bow at Geneva Motor Show

At this year's International Motor Show in Geneva in the beginning of March, Suzuki will unveil the European market version of its new Kizashi saloon that's already on sale in North America and Japan. In Europe, Suzuki's mid-size sedan will play in the D-segment rivaling cars such as the Ford Mondeo, Citroen C5, Toyota Avensis, VW Passat and Opel Insignia.

The company said that it will offer the Kizashi with all-wheel drive as standard while power will be provided by the same 2.4-liter gasoline engine used on the N.A.-spec model.

The four-cylinder unit churns out 185 HP when linked to a six-speed manual gearbox and 178HP when mated to a CVT.

The Japanese maker is also planning to expand the Kizashi's range in the very near future with a more powerful V6 petrol engine as well as a hybrid version, though it is not clear if these variants will make it to Europe.

We don't know yet if it's technically feasible (and economically viable), but Suzuki's recent tie up with Volkswagen could see the Kizashi sedan being offered with a much-needed in Europe, diesel engine sourced from the German Group.

Together with the Kizashi, Suzuki will also display in Geneva the Swift Plug-in Hybrid that was first introduced at last fall's Tokyo Motor Show as well as new variants of the three-and five-door Grand Vitara with a redesigned rear hatch that does away with the spare tire box.

VIDEO: Truck Literally Drops Off Ferrari F430 Spider at Boston Dealership...

We're pretty sure that when this truck driver's boss told him to drop off the red Ferrari 430 Spider at Ernie Boch's luxury car dealership in Norwood, which is located just outside of Boston, this wasn't what he had in mind...

The expensive drop off was caught on camera by the helicopter news crew of Skyfox. Watch the video and weep for the Prancing Horse model after the jump.

Thanks for the nod Maria! Via: Skyfox and Jalopnik

Global Nightmare? Toyota Accelerator Pedal Recall Spreads to Europe, 1.1 Million More Cars Added to U.S. Recall

Toyota's sticky accelerator woes are turning into a global nightmare as the world's largest automaker said today that the large-scale recall would spread to Europe while the company revealed that an additional 1.1 million vehicles in the States are being added to last November's recall of 4.3 million vehicles.

The move comes only a few days after the Japanese automaker issued a different recall of 2.3 million Toyota cars and trucks in the United States for the same matter and in a supposedly separate case, but again for sticky accelerators only this time, even without the presence of floor mats, the maker temporarily suspended sales of eight cars in the States.

In what concerns Europe, Toyota said that the models and exact number of potentially affected vehicles is still under investigation.

However, the automaker noted that there is no "need or intention to halt sales production in Europe as a running change in production using different parts has already been implemented model-by-model in the European production."

According to Toyota, there is a possibility that certain accelerator pedal mechanisms in European models may, in rare instances, mechanically stick in a partially depressed position or return slowly to the idle position.

"The details of corrective action and implementation will be communicated directly to customers with vehicles potentially affected," the company said in statement.

As for the expansion of last fall's recall of 4.3 million vehicles in the States by an additional 1.1 million units, the affected vehicles are: 2008-2010 Highlander and 2009-2010 Corollas, Venzas, Matrixes and the Pontiac Vibe, which was jointly developed by Toyota and GM.