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2012 Detroit Motor Show photo gallery

2012 Detroit Motor Show

Here we have a selection of images from the floor of the Detroit Motor Show, or more correctly, the North American International Auto Show.

Unlike Tokyo late last year there’s a noticeable lack of weird and wonderful concept creations, but we certainly applaud the appearance of the Honda NSX Concept. It’s easily the clear star of the show in our eyes.

Not so fortunate is the Chevrolet Code 130R concept; a BMW 1 Series Coupé that somehow turned out all wrong. So, too, the Chrysler 700C. Seriously, does anyone actually look at these things before they are put on the stand. And if they do, then we’ll have some of whatever it is they’re smoking please.

Equally, we can’t quite understand the fascination the North American audience has had with the Ford Fusion. Its poor mans Aston Martin-like grille is an embarrassment.

Anyway, there’s 50-odd pictures for you after the break. Why don’t you be the judge and tell us what you like and don’t like.

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New vehicle sales report – December 2011

FCAI banner

Australia registered over one million new vehicle sales in 2011 the latest FCAI press release reveals. The final tally of 1,008,437 represents the fourth time the country has passed one million sales in a calendar year.

Despite dropping more than 27,000 sales (-2.6%) on 2010 numbers, FCAI chief executive Ian Chalmers reminds us this is still something the motor industry should be proud of.

“2011 full year sales are an exceptional result given the effects of natural disasters both at home and abroad throughout the year,” Mr Chalmers said.

“The uptake of new vehicles was impacted early in the year by economic uncertainty, closely followed by natural disasters in the key markets of Western Australia, Victoria and Queensland.

“Sales were further subdued by Japan’s devastating earthquake and tsunami, with a resulting shortage of export vehicles from that country a secondary outcome of the extreme loss of life experienced by the Japanese people.”

The top three highest selling brands in 2011 were Toyota (181624 sales), Holden (126,095) and Ford (91,243).

Illustrating the continuing demand for smaller cars in the local market the Mazda3 was the highest selling model in Australia last year with 41,429 sales. Traditional volume seller Holden Commodore (40 617) was close behind and the Toyota Hilux (36,124) maintained its recent grip at the top of the sales charts.

More detail and 2012 forecasts from FCAI after the break.

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2011 Tokyo Motor Show photo gallery

2011 Tokyo Motor Show

Like us you couldn’t make it to the 2011 Tokyo Motor Show either? Fear not as we’ve assembled a variety of images from the show featuring the usual suspects, such as the Toyota 86 and it’s close relative the Subaru BRZ. There’s also the weird and wonderful, too, in the form of the Daihatsu FC Case, the Nissan TOWNPOD, the Suzuki Q-Concept (pictured) and more.

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VIDEO: 107 seconds with the Nissan GT-R

Chris Harris drives the 2012 GT-R

Chris Harris was at the launch of the 2012 Nissan GT-R held at Silverstone recently. A known lover of Porsches and part-time factory racer, what will he make of the latest iteration of Godzilla? Click through to the break and find out.

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Nissan GT-R – MY12 specs released

MY12 Nissan GT-R

It looks just like the old one, but Nissan is adamant they have made changes to their flagship GT-R model. First, the big news, a reversing camera is now standard!

Of more merit is a 20PS power increase, taking the peak figure up to 550PS (404kW). Twenty seems to be the magic number, too, as torque has also been given a 20Nm boost, now topping out at 632Nm. Coupled with revisions to intake efficiency, exhaust valve cooling and a few other tweaks Nissan reckon low-mid range engine response has been significantly improved.

The transmission is smoother thanks to some minor mechanical tweaks and the use of a specially developed competition-based oil. Of particular note to Australian buyers is word that RHD models will have a tailored suspension setup. As well as the driver the propeller shaft for the front wheels is on the right side of the car. Nissan compensates for this by having different spring rates for the left and right side as well as changing the installation method for the rear suspension arms.

So, do these changes make a jot of difference? According to Car magazine, they do: “The engine’s response is cleaner, there’s a new appetite to the way it revs to the limiter, the chassis is more fluid and the four-wheel drive system works with more subtlety and there’s less pitch under braking.” Job well done, it seems.

As with previous model year updates Nissan Australia is planning for a March release. Manufacturer’s list pricing has been confirmed at $170,800 retail price. Although, the MY12 GT-R will go on sale in Japan later this month. More detail from Nissan is available after the break.

UPDATE: Short promo video added below.

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Motions eleven

Motor Trend drag race

US publication Motor Trend has assembled a group of 11 incredibly desirable cars, sent them to an empty airstrip and planted the go pedal. Check the list below, form your opinion on which car you think will be quickest. Also consider which cars you reckon will make the top three. Which one will be the slowest? Then take the jump and watch ex-pat Aussie and former Wheels editor Angus MacKenzie guide you through the results.

[Thanks to Tim for the tip]

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AIMS 2011 gallery: Everything else

Suzuki at AIMS 2011

Here’s all the left over bits from the Australian International Motor Show. The cars that didn’t quite have enough material for their own sub-gallery or, in some case, cars that usually don’t fit the AUSmotive niche.

The Suzuki Swift S-Concept you see above caught our eye. It looks quite sharp, don’t you think. Speaking of which, the Joss prototype is worthy of a second look. Can Australia really produce a world-class supercar?

You’ll see new metal from Bentley and Maserati. As well as the ‘all-new’ Ford Focus and those teeny weeny Mad Max concepts. Pretty mad looking they are, too.

The best France could offer was Peugeot this year, no Renault to be seen. The new 508 sort of looks alright, but the person responsible for the rear light detail on the 207 SW needs to be guillotined!

Japan popped in with the still menacing Nissan GT-R and Toyota FT-86II Concept. Incidentally, that seemed to be the only car on the Toyota stand that wasn’t prefixed by the word Prius.

And, finally, the Mitsubishi Concept PX MiEV probably the only concept car ever to feature massive Brembo brakes hidden behind chunky alloy wheels. Oh yeah, remember the first time you made a model car and there were bits of glue all over the place? Yeah, check out the front grille on the PX thingy if you can. Bit of a rush job, do you think?

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Targa Tasmania 2011: Day 4 & 5 update

Targa Tasmania 2011

Tony Quinn and Naomi Tillett today held on to win their second Targa Tasmania rally in three years. In their Nissan GT-R the 2009 champs carried a comfortable lead into the final day and drove well to secure victory by 3 minutes and 39 seconds.

Wet weather on the last two days certainly provided tough conditions for all competitors and many found their limits. Yesterday, especially, claimed many competitors with the heavy rain in the afternoon.

Second in the modern outright placings was Dean Herridge (Subaru WRX STi), almost two minutes ahead of Matthew Sims (Nissan GT-R).

Winner in the classic outright category was Rex Broadbent (Porsche 911 Carrera 911 RS), from David Cooper (Holden Torana A9X) and Nick Ellis (Porsche 911 Carrera). This makes it five wins on the trot for Broadbent in the classic competition.

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Nissan GT-R lights my fire

First filed 20 February.

We’re sad to report on the loss of a Nissan GT-R due to fire. The incident happened near Bukit Tinggi in Malaysia. From the evidence in this YouTube clip appears to be the result of a collision between the GT-R and a Mk6 Golf GTI.

It’s currently unknown if either of the drivers were injured, or if there were any passengers in either car. Fingers crossed those involved escaped unharmed.

As you can see by the parked cars alongside the road it looks like a favoured route for weekend driving with a number of drivers piloting tasty looking machines witnessing the incident.

[Thanks to Jamil for the tip]

UPDATE 21 February: Pics have been added below. [Source: Zerotohundred.com]

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MY11 Nissan GT-R does 0-100 in 3.0 seconds

Nissan GT-R

The arse end of a Nissan GT-R is all you’re likely to see if the driver chooses to plant their foot. When details of the updated 2011 GT-R were released performance data was not published. But when you have a trump card like this up your sleeve, why not make a song and dance about it.

Nissan completed their testing in Japan during mid-November and recorded two 0–100km/h runs of 3.0 seconds on consecutive days. The weather was fine and sunny, with temps in the mid-teens.

Three seconds flat! Surely, the Nissan GT-R has to rank as one of the best bang for buck cars you can drive off a showroom floor.

[via autoblog]

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Nissan GT-R – MY11 specs released

Nissan GT-R

Nissan has just confirmed details of the MY11 changes made to its all-conquering GT-R. No car can show its face these days without LED daytime running lights, you see.

Of course, Nissan’s engineers went further than that, also trimming 10kg from the GT-R’s portly weight. Fuel consumption has been improved, along with a reduction in CO2 emissions. Minor tweaks have also been made to Godzilla’s suspension and brakes. These are complemented by new forged alloys from Rays.

Inside gets a once over, as well. Usual stuff like a revised instrument panel and nav display have been thrown in. But there are big changes, too. The steering wheel emblem now has “a new velour-like coating, expressing a glossy texture”. Amazing!

Outside has seen some cosmetic tweaks, notably the front spoiler can now feed in more air. These revisions also increase downforce by about 10%. Two new exterior paint colours—Jet Black and GTBlue—have been added to the colour palette.

However, the big news is more power. Quite a bit more actually. At its initial launch the GT-R had 353kW/588Nm. Well, now the little (big) Nissan that can boasts 390kW/600Nm. That’s quite a significant increase.

Australian deliveries for the MY11 model are expected from March next year.

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AIMS 2010: Photo gallery

AIMS 2010

Here is the AUSmotive photo gallery from the Australian International Motor Show industry day. There are 128 photos in all and you can simply click on each thumbnail to access a 2000px super image.

Highlights include a couple of track specials in the form of the awesome Porsche 911 GT3 Cup and the rear-engined V6 Renault Megane Trophy. Others to look out for are the Toyota FT-86G concept, the Ford Focus RS, a trio of Lamborghini Gallardos and the highly desirable Audi R8 V10 Spyder, which looks great in all white.

Dedicated articles on the following cars can be access by clicking on the links below:

A big thank you to Daniel McKenna who joined the AUSmotive crew at AIMS and brought you many of the pictures you see here.

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