Nissan will be heading to the 2014 Detroit motor show in about two weeks' time with a new conceptual study for a sports sedan previewed through a cropped photo of the vehicle's front end. While the Japanese automaker isn’t ready yet to release full details, we believe that the aptly named the "Sports Sedan Concept" is the same car previewed during Nissan's 360 event in California this past summer, and which Carscoops showcased in a rendering for the 2015 Maxima. In a short statement about the study, Nissan said it "offers an advanced look at a future production sports sedan" and " previews a new energetic design direction that amplifies Nissan's legendary approach of applying sports car principles to a sedan". The Sports Sedan Concept will be joined in Detroit by the North American debuts of the IDx Freeflow and IDx NISMO small coupe studies, first displayed at the Tokyo Motor Show in November.
You’ve probably heard that Audi is planning to launch 11 new models in the following years, and now we have an idea of what these models will be. A series of recent Audi trademark registrations and applications discovered by British magazine Autocar suggests that most of these new models will be crossovers. For instance, Audi registered the “SQ2” name, which hints at a high-performance version of an upcoming compact SUV that could be called the Q2. If you’re wondering what will the Q2 look like, Audi’s 2012 Crosslane Coupé concept (pictured) may offer an idea. Audi has also trademarked the “SQ4” moniker, which would designate a high-performance variant of the upcoming Q4, said to be a rival for the Range Rover Evoque. There’s even an application for the “Q9” nameplate, which could hint at a large luxury crossover that would sit above the Q7 in Audi’s range. Whether there will also be a Q8, remains to be seen. The “f-tron” name has also been trademarked by Audi, hinting at a possible fuel cell-powered production model. The f-tron would add to existing e-tron and g-tron models, which designate electric/hybrid vehicles and natural gas vehicles, respectively. The fact that Audi applied for these names doesn’t necessarily mean they will all be used on production models, as carmakers sometimes apply for trademarks to protect their intellectual property. Audi didn’t comment on the trademark applications and registrations.
To the delight of photo manipulators, all three major German premium carmakers, including Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz, are very predictable (to the point of tediousness sometimes) when it comes to the appearance of high-performance versions of their regular models. As such, imagining the styling of upcoming cars like the next Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG sports saloon is a pretty straightforward process – change the grille, lower the ride height, add model-specific front and rear bumpers, side skirts, bigger alloy wheels and trim details, and you're all set. Before we leave you to take a closer look at Virtuel Car's digital-made photos of the car, let us tell you that, unlike the latest BMW M3 and M4 that swapped their predecessors' naturally aspirated V8 for a force-fed inline six, Mercedes will continue to offer a V8, but instead of being naturally aspirated, the new 4.0-liter unit is reported to employ the use of twin-turbochargers for close to 500-horses.
These teasers of a menacing-looking Lamborghini Aventador coupe dressed in a racy black outfit come to us courtesy of German sports- and luxury-car tuner DMC, which has prepared a new package for the Italian supercar under the "LP988 Edizione GT" moniker. While very few details have been released about DMC's third tuning project for the Aventador after the Molto Veloce (Stage 1) and Limited Edition SV (Stage 2), there's more to the moniker than simply numbers, as the aftermarket firm's naming system usually refers to output figures. Therefore, the LP988 should correspond to 988PS or 975hp, up from the stock model's 700PS or 690hp. Besides the performance tune for the Lamborghini's V12, DMC has designed a new lightweight carbon fiber aero package, complete with a huge rear wing and a different set of wheels and tires, with the photos also suggesting the existence of interior modifications such as the Alcantara (?) sport seats.
For those of you who are not familiar with AutoTrader, it's one of the major online marketplaces for both new and used cars in the U.S. The list was determined by examining the number of car shoppers who click on a posting for a new car up for sale on the website, which receives around 16 million monthly visitors, and does not take into consideration actual sales. Unsurprisingly, the best-selling vehicle in the States, the Ford F-150 truck, took up the number one spot. While we anticipated many of the other cars and trucks listed in the Top 20, there were plenty of surprise participants, such as the Jeep Wrangler in second place, the Ford Mustang that came in fourth and the Chevrolet Corvette in ninth spot. "Corvette's place on the list is a bit deceiving, because interest declined through most of the year as shoppers waited for the 2014 model, but once listings for the all-new vehicle were posted on the site interest skyrocketed, and it was among the top three most popular vehicles on the site for the last three months of the year," explained Isabelle Helms, vice president of Research and Market Intelligence, AutoTrader. Ford was the most represented brand in the Top 20 list with six vehicles, including the year's biggest mover, the Ford Fusion that climbed 16 spots compared to 2012, while Chevrolet was next with four. Half of the entrants were pickup trucks. "The full-size truck segment is historically the most popular vehicle segment on our site, but it grew this year to garner more than 20 percent share of shopper interest," said Helms. "We believe this is due to a combination of growth in the housing and construction sectors and the number of models that were all-new for the 2013 and 2014 model years."
