Jaguar X-Type

Jaguar X-Type Cars


Jaguar X-Type Specifications
Price Range: $35,060 - $39,330
Body Style: Sedan, Wagon
Performance & Efficiency: 2,967 cc 3 liters V 6 front engine with 89 mm bore, 79.5 mm stroke, 10.5 compression ratio, double overhead cam




source : http://www.motortrend.com

Ferrari Idingpower F460 GT

Another crazy Japanese tuning company to show their product at the 2009 Tokyo AutoSalon are Iding power. They may sound new to you and I but they have in fact been round for a while, tuning BMW’s and Ferrari’s, this is their first Ferrari for almost 11 years. Their F460 GT is certainly unique, for starters the spoiler looks to be attached to the structure of the car! The reason for the name ‘F460’ is because the engine has been bored out to 4.6litres instead of the standard 4.3litre unit that you get in the standard car. As a result of this it now puts out 508bhp (515PS) and 479Nm of Torque. This should mean it’s good for over 200mph (320kph) and 0-62mph (0-100kph) in 3.8 seconds.

As a complete kit you get the chassis (dampers and springs) set to optimum, the body modifications which is a 12 piece set. There’s a new exhaust system and a new set of forged alloys, new brake pads and a few Iding power badges. They also offer a range of optional extra’s for the car including further brake and suspension upgrades and the two wings’s that you see on this car. The price of 16,200,000 Japanese Yen (£100, 426 or €127,430 or $163,684) is stated on their website, however whether this is for a car built on a second hand model or the actual price for the full conversion is unsure. Thanks go to MadWhips.com for pointing this one out to us and for the pictures!









source : http://www.ferrariautosport.com

Ferrari F430 2009

Ferrari F430 Cars

Ferrari F430
Price Range: $173,079 - $267,456
Body Style: Convertible, Coupe
Performance & Efficiency: 4,308 cc 4.3 liters V 8 mid engine with 92 mm bore, 81 mm stroke, 11.3 compression ratio, double overhead cam

Exclusive Comparison Test: Ferrari F430 F1 vs. Ford GT



It's a grudge match that's been simmering for 39 years. On June 19, 1966, a trio of Ford GT40 MkII race cars crossed the finish line at the 24 hours of Le Mans in first, second, and third place, ending Scuderia Ferrari's six-year winning streak. Some say that not since that famous upset has Ford produced a road car worthy of breathing the same sacred, exotic air as a Ferrari, much less take the wind out of one. Like all grudges that require patience and more potent ammunition to reach a definitive climax, we had to wait for just the right combination of cars and firepower to put them in the same arena, and let the tire clag fly.

Billed as "the pace car for an entire company," the 550-horsepower Ford GT has already rejuvenated an automaker asleep at the wheel. But to be elevated to the next level -- to true supercar status -- it must work in the real world and the "old world" where the Ferrari was born. That's why we arranged to have Ford U.K. deliver a GT around the corner from one of the most famous gates in the world. There's St. James's gate at the Guinness factory in Dublin, Ireland; Cristo's evanescent gates in Central Park; and then there's "The Historical Gate" located at Via Abetone Inferiore N 4 in Maranello, Italy. To the tifosi, that address is sacrosanct.

To the rest of us, it's the very gate through which Enzo Ferrari himself would go to work every morning, and out of which have been issued some of the most revered automobiles the world has known. Granted, our friends at Ferrari had full knowledge of our intentions and had a fresh 2005 F430 F1warmed and awaiting our arrival. The cooperation on both sides of this comparison was unprecedented in the history of semi-clandestine magazine craft. It almost took the fun out of it when Ferrari communications invited our supporting Ford engineer out to dinner with us the night before instrumented testing was to occur. Beyond genuine Italian hospitality, this gracious act showed a measured confidence that all would go well for Ferrari.

Our first day was set aside for photography and switchback dog fights in the hills south of Maranello--the same roads on which Ferrari sometimes tests its own cars. It's no wonder then that the 483-horsepower F430 felt at home. In the Ferrari, there's so much tactile information streaming through the steering wheel to the driver's hands that a blind man could determine the surface texture beneath the car, the available grip, and the instantaneous headings of front and rear axles. The amazing part is that it's all useful information, not bothersome road noise or suspension clatter -- like in the 360 Challenge Stradale. The crispness of the 360 CS is there, the harshness isn't. Sight lines are exceptionally good in the light and airy cabin with thin pillars and there's a gorgeous view in the rear-view mirror of a screaming V-8 behind the driver's head.

Also with his fingertips, the Ferrari's driver can trigger consistently miraculous matched-rev downshifts like unloading a semi-automatic weapon. Under full-ABS braking, the F430's now state-of-the-art F1-style (electronically controlled, hydro-mechanically actuated) manual transaxle becomes a tool in the dispatch of corners. Hard on the carbon-ceramic binders from triple digits, a driver can easily click down two gears with both hands still on the wheel while turning in, then roll on the gas as he unwinds the steering. It's mechanico-magic, and it does it to perfection every time. Even in "auto" mode, the newest F1 system is sensitive and intelligent enough to know the difference between a lazy traffic upshift and 0.21-second race-pace shift we'd later measure. When asked how many generations ahead the F430's shift-logic software is beyond the 2005 Maserati Quattroporte, Ferrari answered, "Two, perhaps three." It shows how good the system can be and reveals a corporate pecking order. Ferrari is still Alpha.

The 2009 Infiniti FX

Putting the sport back in SUV.
by Tyrone Rodriguez


May 22, 2008 - Infiniti surprised the automotive world when it gave us the G35 coupe. Just as sexy as the Z coupe yet more practical, it had most of the performance with a large dose of luxury thrown in -- instant success. But the Japanese luxury carmaker struck again in 2003 when it unleashed the FX series crossover.

Very progressive in design, the FX looked nothing like the mid-size SUV it replaced, the Infiniti QX4 -- nothing more than a re-badged Nissan Pathfinder. Internally designers came up with some ridiculous term called "cool fusion." Artsy La Jolla terminology aside, the FX single-handedly redefined what the crossover should be, putting more "sport" into the sport-utility vehicle.

No attempts were made to hide the fact that the FX was based on a car and had little in terms of utility: lots of power, fantastic design, room for five (okay, four) and lines that are still more than just current. Forget the marketing and pr, the performance on the FX series was indeed comparable to a four-door sedan and not a two-ton SUV. Infiniti offered two engines, both amazing -- a 3.5L V6 (fast) and a 4.5L V8 (faster).

All that performance meant that a number of passengers and drivers called the vehicle a little rough with too much in common with a sports car. Even so, in less than five years the FX has proven to be immensely more successful than the QX4.

Totally redesigned, the 2009 Infiniti FX was hinted at during the G37 driving event in Seattle and officially unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show on March 4 of this year. There the newer, more muscular FX let it all hang out for the automotive world to see.

The Facts:
Available with 3.5L V6 or 5.0L V8 powerplants
Front-engine, rear- and AWD configurations
390 hp, 369 lb-ft torque (FX50); 303 hp, 262 lb-ft torque (FX35)
Seven-speed automatic transmission (with paddle shifters)
Five-seat capacity
113.6-inch wheelbase
191.1-inch length
75.9-inch width
66.1-inch height

As if the outgoing design wasn't aggressive enough, Infiniti takes the FX further down the road of testosterone. The 2009 Infiniti FX makes other crossover SUVs look like, well, minivans. If you thought that the FX was more sport and less utility before, this one is even more formidable, with sleeker headlights, high-arching fenders that occupy part of what should be the hood and stronger pillars. Overall, it looks much wider, more animal-like. With the new EX closer to what was the FX it's not too difficult to understand why FX designers went the opposite direction and created what looks to be a killer shark on 21-inch wheels.

We recently had the opportunity to drive the 2009 Infiniti FX in sunny San Diego, California. Being that San Diego is so close to HQ, we thought it apropos to drive down a current 2008 Infiniti FX45 to compare our experience back-to-back. So what does the current FX45 have going for it? For starters, a decent amount of power, good design that is still ahead of most of its rivals and exterior styling that, propaganda aside, really does blend what we like about SUVs with what we love about four-door sports cars.

An estimated fuel economy of 17mpg on the highway isn't great, but we were able to get an even 20mpg on the way to the Hard Rock. In the weekend before the event we noticed that the interior could use some work, but that's why we're driving the newly redesigned model. Still, it's comfortable enough, has room for a few grown-ups and space left over for some bags. Minor flaws aside, the FX45 is an easy car to like and an act that is tough to beat.