Hasta La Gadget!

Of all the sports cars in the world, the Porsche 911 is one of the most iconic. The car has had the same basic shape for 50 years and sports car fans know at a glance that the 911 is coming their way even if they don’t know what year model the car is. There are some significant differences between 911 models, but the car is definitely one of the most iconic sports cars the world.

One of the interesting things about Porsche and its 911 is that the car has evolved over time getting arguably better with each iteration. Porsche is now celebrating its 50th anniversary of the iconic 911. Porsche says that over 820,000 911s have been built making it one of the most successful sports cars in the world. There have been seven generations of the rear-engine four-seat sports car.

The 911 also has a long and storied race history with approximately 2/3 of all 30,000 Porsche racing victories coming behind the wheel of the 911. Racing is very important to Porsche and the 911 specifically since many of its features for the road were developed on the racetrack. To celebrate the 50th anniversary Porsche is going to be sending a 1967 911 on a world tour.

Over the course of 2013, the car will travel to five different continents where it will be put on display at high-profile automotive events such as Pebble Beach in California and Goodwood in the UK. The Porsche 911 launched in 1963, in 1973, Porsche introduced the G-Series 911, and the 964 version launched in 1988. In 1993, Porsche launched the last of its air-cooled 911 models internally known as the 993. Water-cool 911′s debuted in 1997 with the 996. 2004 saw the Porsche 997 debut and the latest generation of the Porsche 911 is known internally as the 991.

[via Porsche]

Porsche celebrates 50 years of the 911 is written by Shane McGlaun & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Nissan pulled out all the stops at the 2013 Chicago Auto Show taking place this week. The company unveiled two new NISMO vehicles and new commercial vehicle, one of which is a new 2014 370Z, the other a 2014 Juke crossover vehicle, and lastly a NV200 cargo van. Nissan’s NISMO cars are the company’s definition of “cutting-edge performance, technology, and aerodynamics.”

The 2014 370Z NISMO comes with a handful of new exterior and interior enhancements that offer an improvement over the 2013 model. However, they’re mostly cosmetic changes that include a new front spoiler, rocker panel extensions, rear bumper, side mirrors, and rear wing, with red pinstriping to finish off the details. The car will have the same 350-horsepower 3.7-liter DOHC V6 engine when it goes on sale this summer.

The Juke has to be one of Nissan’s strangest-looking vehicles to date, but the company gave the crossover vehicle NISMO status at the Chicago Auto Show. The new vehicle features a modest performance upgrade, going from 188 horsepower at 5600 rpm to 197 horsepower at 6000 rpm, but it’s still sticking with the 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine block. The Juke NISMO does features some nice-looking exterior changes, though, including red pinstriping and black wheels to give it a meaner look. No pricing or availability details were announced.

Finally, there’s the NV200, which most of us may not be interested in, unless you need haul some cargo. The NV200 is Nissan’s latest commercial cargo van. The new vehicle touts tall rear doors, a low load floor, and a 1,500-pound payload capacity. It’s front wheel drive and it has a 131-horsepower 2-liter four-cylinder engine, which is rated to get around 24 mpg in the city and 25 mpg on the highway, which isn’t too shabby for cargo van. The NV200 will start at just under $20,000 and will be available starting in April.

Nissan unveils new performance lineup at 2013 Chicago Auto Show is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Earlier today at the Chicago Auto Show, Chevrolet unveiled the first diesel car to grace the roads in the United States since 1986. The 2.0 Turbo Diesel Cruze is slated to compete with Volkswagen’s Jetta, and has a starting price of $25,695. The Cruze’s diesel engine runs clean, and the car is currently estimated to get around 42mpg.

The Chevrolet Cruze diesel features a 148 horsepower diesel engine, a 15 gallon fuel tank, and is said to accelerate from 0-to-60mph in 8.6 seconds. Although the current fuel estimate places the car at 42mpg, General Motors says that the car is still being tested for its final mileage rating. The Cruze has up to a 10 second turbo boost.

General Motor’s small cars chief engineer Gary Altman said about the upcoming compact car: “Cruze turbo diesel is the cleanest operating diesel engine ever produced by General Motors. We leveraged our global engineering expertise to take a great diesel engine from Europe and improve it to meet the stringent U.S. standards.”

Earlier today, we reported that Chevrolet’s low-cost Spark vehicle is the most popular Chevrolet vehicle among female buyers and those under the age of 35. One of the biggest selling points is it excellent fuel efficiency, one of the diesel Cruze’s main selling points. The difference with the Cruze is that diesel costs more than gas, so only time will tell if drivers take to it.

[via USA Today]

Chevrolet announces diesel Cruze, first US-bound diesel vehicle in 27 years is written by Brittany Hillen & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Chevrolet has taken a bit of time out of his busy schedule pimping the new Corvette to talk a bit about its cheap car called the Spark. Chevy says that early buyer data for the car shows that 29% of people who buy are under 35. Chevy also says that half of those people are coming from non-GM brands.

Chevrolet is pointing to this data as an indication that the Spark minicar is bringing some of Chevrolet’s youngest buyers to the brand. Chevrolet data also shows that the Spark appeals mostly to female buyers with 51% of all Spark vehicles sold being purchased by women. That is a higher percentage of women buyers than any other vehicle in the Chevrolet fleet.

That’s actually an interesting metric considering that every other woman in my area is driving a Tahoe or Suburban. The most popular color for the tiny Spark is Salsa Red with 23% of buyers opting for that hue. Chevrolet’s data also shows that other bright colors are appealing to Spark shoppers with jalapeno green and denim blue being the second and third most popular colors.

Chevrolet notes that the biggest reason that buyers note for purchasing the Spark have to do with fuel economy and price. While the tiny Spark originally launched and only 18 markets, Chevrolet says the vehicle will be available in all 50 states in 2013. The tiny Spark is a four-passenger, five-door hatchback promising an EPA estimated fuel economy of 38 mpg on highway.

[via GM]

Chevrolet says Spark is attracting young buyers thanks to price and colors is written by Shane McGlaun & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Tesla has released a beta version of its Tesla Model S app for Android in the Google Play Store. With this app, Model S owners can communicate with their vehicles via their mobile unit no matter where they are located, doing such things as checking out its charge status or warming it up on a cold night. Owners can download it now.

The Model S app for Android gives users quite a bit of hands-off control of their car. Aside from the aforementioned ability to remotely warm it up or cool it down by turning on the heat or AC, users can also initiate a charge process (assuming it is plugged in), or stop it if desired. As the app’s description notes, this can even be done when it’s parked in the garage, thanks to the lack of dangerous fumes.

The app allows owners to keep track of the car’s location and its movements via an on-display map, particularly useful if you’re letting someone else borrow it and want to keep an eye on where they’re going. There are also some features that are good for security, such as the ability to honk the horn from your smartphone or tablet when the car is parked.

Drivers can also use the Model S app to flash the lights, which is useful for locating the car in a large parking lot or scaring away someone who might be trying to get into the vehicle unnoticed. The car’s panoramic roof can be set to vent or to close via the app’s controls, and, of course, the locks can be controlled. For those who download the app, keep in mind that is a beta version, and Tesla notes that there are some glitches with the user interface.

[via Google Play]

Tesla releases beta Tesla Model S app in the Play Store is written by Brittany Hillen & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.