Volvo XC90 By ERST: Swedish SUV Gets Japanese Treatment

Ever heard about ERST before? Don’t be shy to admit it, we hadn’t. Turns out that, just like Heico Sportiv, Evolve and IPD, ERST is tuning house that specializes on Volvo. What makes ERST special though is the fact that it’s based in Japan. ERST’s latest offering concentrates on soccer mom’s best pal, the facelifted XC90.

The Japanese tuning house’s package consists of a bodykit that includes under panel attachments on both bumpers, front fog light fins, chromed exhaust pipe and most importantly, wider fender flares. Along with a set of sexy, bi-color alloy rims and a lowered suspension, the Volvo XC90 looks aggressive without going overboard or bling-bling. -More images after the jump

Via: Autoblog.nl , Source: ERST

Subaru Impreza WRX GB270: Final Edition Version

Last call for any of you grown up boys who want to get one the best toys around, as Subaru UK announced today its releasing the final-edition versions of its iconic Impreza 2.5 WRX saloon and Sports Wagon. Called GB270 after Subaru’s most successful WRC stage, the Rally GB, the final versions feature around £7,600 (€11.250 or $15.300 ) in extra equipment for the saloon and £7,000 (€10.300 or $14.080) for the Sports Wagon including a Prodrive Performance Pack. -Continued after the jump

In particular, both models benefit from the 270 Hp Prodrive Performance Pack which increases power by 40 PS and torque by 74 lb ft to 310 lb ft. The result is a 0-60 mph (96 km/h) time reduced from 5.9 to 5.3 sec and a 0-100 mph (160 km/h) time of 13.9 instead of 14.4 sec. According to Subaru, mid-range response is also considerably improved. Other features include a lowered spring kit, ‘quickshift’ gearchange, special carpet mats, MOMO ‘Air-Race’ gear knob, larger-diameter 18x7.5ins GT1 alloy wheels and GB270 exterior badging and individually numbered interior plaque.

Specific to the Impreza GB270 saloon are a WRC-style rear spoiler, stainless-steel mesh front grille, STI front lip spoiler and silver-finished alloy wheels. As for the GB270 Sports Wagon, it’s equipped with a rear waist spoiler, front and rear aero splash guards, rear privacy glass, black stainless-steel mesh front grille and gloss-black alloy wheels.

The GB270 models can be ordered from July 10 with first deliveries planned for September 1st but you better hurry up because numbers will be strictly limited to 300 units for the Impreza GB270 saloon and 100 units for the Sports Wagon. Both models cost £22,995 (€34.030 or $46,250) which is £2,898 and £1,898 more than the standard Impreza WRX saloon and Sports Wagon respectively.

Chinese Transformer’s: Knock-Off’s in Disguise

Chinese automaker, Great Wall, is at it again. This time, they’re knocking off our beloved “robots in disguise”, The Transformers, in order to promote their own knock off vehicles. With the opening of the new Transformers movie, what better way to show off the Chinese copy-cat skills than to make some knock off robots and match them with profiles, silly names and their own “original vehicles”. Take for example “Florida” which transforms into a 3.91 meter tall robot from a knock of Toyota. But after we learned that this particular robot “identifies most with Paris Hilton”, we completely lost all respect. Other fake-o characters include Perry, i7 and Coolbear. Beware for those knock-off Chinese Transformers because ultimately, they are “less than meets the eye.”

PS: Don’t forget to tell us what you thought about the Transformers Movie here

Posted by Dani

Via: Autoblog.com

Insider: BMW 1-Series Cabrio To Debut At The 2008 Geneva Show

We’re probably about 99% sure on the accuracy on the inside info on this BMW 1-Series Cabrio. If it were anything less we wouldn’t even have bothered sharing… follow the jump to see what we mean. As you can see from the spy photos that we took a few months ago, the 1-Series Coupe’s roofless alter ego will be fitted with a conventional canvas top just like the 6-Series Cabriolet and in contrast to the 3-Series Cabriolet, which is equipped with an electric folding hard-top. Although there’s no official information, we suspect that BMW preferred the soft-top to a hardtop not only because it’s quite cheaper but also because the canvas roof takes up less space from the boot.

Power is likely to come from the same range of engines as known from the 1-Series Coupe, which means, a 230Hp 3.0-litre petrol unit for the 128i, a 306Hp twin turbo 3.0-litre petrol engine for the 130i and in Europe, a 177Hp 2.0-litre turbodiesel for the 120d and a 204Hp 2.0-litre twin-turbo diesel for the 123d. We expect the 1-Series Cabriolet to go on sale shortly after its premiere at the 2008 Geneva Show in March. -Continued: Click “Read More…” below

We know that this part is off-topic, but we think some of you will find it interesting.

Patiently waiting to see the light of day, the 1-Series Cabriolet and Coupe scoop images weren’t the only things lying around on our desktop the past few months. We had also written an article to accompany the pics, but due to the numerous rumors about the upcoming 2 door 1-Series we hesitated since we weren’t sure what to believe. So, we decided to disclose both. Confused? Read the article below that we wrote several months ago and you’ll understand.

Question of the Day: BMW 1-Series Coupe & Cabrio or just plain Coupe-Cabrio?

We have to admit that we’re kind of confused with this one. During a one-on-one chitchat with a high-rank BMW official we were led to believe that there will only be one version of the 2door 1-Series when the car goes on sale in 2008: a Coupe-Cabrio with an electric folding hardtop. With the curious minds that we have, we also asked a PR who categorically confirmed the fact.

Theoretically, two ultra-reliable sources should be enough to break a story, but since we have a true love affair with “buts” (and butts, but that’s another story…) we contacted an inside source of ours that hasn’t proved us wrong up to now when it comes to BMW’s. Guess what; he claimed that to his knowledge, BMW will present two versions: a 1-Series Coupe and a 1-Series Cabriolet with a soft-top!

Beijing peels off 1million cars of the road to test population effects

You know how they say if everyone in China jumped at the same time it would cause an earthquake? Well, with a population of 1.3 billion people, anything that everyone does in China will have some sort of affect on the rest of the world. The process has begun in Beijing where authorities are planning to conduct a trial period that consists of keeping one million cars off the road to test the effect on population.

One million of Beijing’s cars represent about 1/3 of the vehicles on the road in that city. The trial is going to last for two weeks, from August 7th-20th. This test is being conducted in plans for the upcoming 2008 Olympics in Beijing to see whether it’s worth limiting the amount of traffic on the road for the Olympic period. We’d agree this is a step into the right direction for China since, according to analysts, China could overtake the US this year as the worlds largest emitter of greenhouse gases.

Posted by Dani

Via: bbc

Carscoop Poll: What Did You Think About The Transformers Movie?

Yesterday, Michael Bay’s 2007 blockbuster film, the Transformers, debuted in theatres all over the USA with other countries expected to follow on the Autobot and Decepticon craze over the next couple of weeks. Like us, we’re sure that there are many of you out there who haven’t seen the film yet, but would definitely like to know what people who saw the movie have to say about it. Just leave us a comment below, we’d really appreciate it!

Weird Accident: Honda Civic vs Toyota Corolla

We’ve heard that the Toyota Corolla Altis is topping the Honda Civic in sales in Thailand, but this is totally ridiculous… But seriously now; if the Toyota Corolla didn’t fall from the sky, how the heck did it end up “humping” this poor Honda Civic? If you’ve got any information please share it with us, we’re really curious about this one. The accident was shot in Thailand's frenetic capital, Bangkok.

Images via: Flick

Confiscated Booze Used To Created Bio-Fuel In Sweden!

Ever wonder what the cops and customs agents do with all the confiscated drugs and alcohol? I always had a sneaking suspicion that they just using it for their own personal fun, but in Sweden, alcohol that is seized by customs officials are being turned in bio-gas. Customs spokesperson Ingrid Jerlebrink said that ”We used to just pour it down the drain, but because of the increased volumes we had to look around for new solutions.”

The transition process helps to fuel the country’s public transportation system. Last year 184 gallons or 700.000 litres (!) of confiscated booze was transferred into fuel for over 1,000 buses, Lorries and one bio-gas train. The process includes heating the alcohol and turning it into bio-gas. Its good to know the authorities aren’t having crazy booze fests back at the station and they’re using the loot for better causes.

Posted by Dani

Via: Sveriges Radio

New Fiat 500: 100 High-Res Images

We’re inaugurating our newly bought image space here on Carscoop -can’t have everything for free!, by presenting about 100 high-res pictures of Fiat’s highly anticipated Nuovo 500; a car that Fiat’s CEO Sergio Marchionne believes will become the Italian carmaker’s iPod. "I want Fiat to become the Apple of automobiles. And the 500 will be our iPod," Marchionne said in an interview published Wednesday on the Italian newspaper Turin daily La Stampa. With all the commotion surrounding the 500 in Europe, don’t be surprised if he actually manages to succeed in doing so. Later on we’ll add the full English press release, but for now, follow the jump to check out our humongous Fiat Nuovo 500 image gallery. -Click “read More…” below

Via: Autoblog.it , Source: Fiat