blk posted:

So what do we think about the new Jaaaaaaag? http://m.autoblog.com/2014/09/08/2016-jaguar-xe-deep-dive-photos-official/?post=1&icid=autoblog_river_article

Throatwarbler posted:

Also the vent on the fender thing has really jumped the shark now.

Throatwarbler posted:

The Mazda6 is far better looking than this snoozefest. If anything it looks like a mashup of a Ford Fusion and a Volvo S60. Not bad but pretty boring. Also the vent on the fender thing has really jumped the shark now.

I think it's substantially lighter than most of the competition which is mildly interesting, but then it probably won't be available with a manual so who cares.

n8r posted:

Mantran buyers are deffo the Jag demographic, they're really dropping the ball on this one.

autocar posted:

This is the new Mercedes-AMG GT – the second series-production model from Mercedes-Benz’s performance car division in Affalterbach, Germany, following on from the recently discontinued SLS AMG.

The rear-wheel-drive performance coupé shares elements of its body structure with its predecessor and is the first Mercedes-AMG model to use a newly developed twin-turbocharged 4.0-litre V8 engine.

The GT is scheduled to reach the UK during the first quarter of next year.

“With the new GT, we are positioning Mercedes-AMG even more aggressively than to date,” said the CEO of AMG, Tobias Moers.

Buyers will be able to choose between a standard GT and a more powerful GT S, although only the GT S is planned for delivery initially. The two are set apart visually by different bumpers, tailpipes and wheels.

Pricing is not planned to be made public until orders start in October. However, it's believed that the standard GT will be priced from around £95,000, with the GT S commanding a premium at around £110,000. Either way, that's significantly less than the £168,485 of the SLS AMG.

Both GT models are powered by AMG’s new ‘M178’ engine. Developed from scratch, the direct-injection 4.0-litre V8 is unique among production road car engines in featuring twin turbochargers mounted inside the cylinder banks.

This configuration makes for a compact design, optimum throttle response and reduced emissions, claims Mercedes-AMG, because of closely coupled catalytic converters.

The new engine receives dry-sump lubrication and is mounted behind the front axle line in what Mercedes-AMG describes as a front-mid positioning.

It provides the standard GT with 456bhp at 6000rpm and 442lb ft of torque between 1600rpm and 5000rpm. With added boost pressure and other internal tweaks for the GT S, the 90deg V8’s outputs rise to 503bhp at 6250rpm and 479lb ft from 1750-4750rpm.

Like the SLS, the new coupé is based around a lightweight aluminium body structure, which is claimed to weigh 231kg. In a bid to shed weight and reduce its centre of gravity, the new car eschews the heavy gullwing-style doors of the SLS in favour of regular front-hinged doors.

In standard GT guise, it tips the scales at 1540kg and the GT S comes in at 1570kg. This gives them respective power-to-weight ratios of 296bhp per tonne and 320bhp per tonne.

Channelling the GT’s reserves to the rear wheels is a revised version of the Getrag-engineered seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox used on the SLS. Mounted at the rear in a transaxle layout and offering both manual and automatic shifting, it helps to provide the new car with a 47 per cent front and 53 per cent rear weight distribution.

The revised gearbox offers up to five different driving modes: Controlled Efficiency, Sport, Sport Plus, Individual and – on the GT S only – Race.

Both models receive a standard locking differential. But whereas the GT receives a mechanical unit, the GT S is fitted with an electronic function that is claimed to provide greater sensitivity by varying the locking effect in acceleration and overrun.

Official performance figures give the GT a 0-62mph time of 4.0sec and a top speed of 189mph. The GT S is claimed to possess slightly sharper performance, with a 0-62mph of 3.8sec and a maximum speed of 193mph.

Combined cycle fuel consumption is put at 30.4mpg for the GT and 30.1mpg for the GT S, correlating to average CO2 emissions of 216g/km and 219g/km respectively.

Continuing developments brought to the earlier SLS AMG Black Series, the GT uses a damper unit to reduce what AMG describes as “undesirable rolling motion of the drivetrain” for added handling precision. Going one step further, the GT S also receives active driveline mounts, which continuously vary the damping effect and act independently on the engine and transaxle.

A bespoke double wishbone front and multi-link rear suspension fashioned largely from aluminium underpins the new coupé. Allied to electro-mechanical steering whose assistance alters with speed and lateral acceleration, as well as three-stage stability control, it is claimed to give the GT more neutral on-the-limit behaviour than the SLS.

The GT receives 19-inch wheels shod with 255/35 front and 295/35 rear tyres. The GT S sports a combination of 19-inch wheels with 265/35 tyres up front and 20-inch wheels with 295/30 rubber at the rear.

Alongside standard road tyres, the new car can be ordered with Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tyres as part of an AMG Dynamic Plus pack.

Helping to rein in the GT’s colossal performance are standard 360mm front and rear ventilated and cross-drilled steel disc brakes. They are increased to 390mm at the front on the GT S. As an option, buyers can specify the new car with carbon-ceramic discs that measure 402mm at the front and 360mm at the rear, bringing further savings in unsprung weight and performance gains.

The styling of the GT retains the exaggerated proportions of the SLS, albeit with more contemporary detailing. As well as receiving front-hinged doors in preference to the SLS’s gullwing arrangement, the new Mercedes-AMG model adopts a liftback-style tailgate in place of a conventional bootlid.

This is intended to improve the car’s everyday practicality by allowing easier access to the luggage compartment, whose capacity is put at 350 litres.

As part of efforts to provide the new car with greater handling prowess than its predecessor, the GT also boasts slightly smaller dimensions than the SLS. Exact figures have yet to be revealed, although Mercedes-AMG officials have confirmed that the new car has a shorter wheelbase and more compact overhangs than its predecessor.

Among the aerodynamic developments is an active rear spoiler. It deploys from the rear of the tailgate at speed to increase the car’s downforce.

Rumours have suggested that a roadster variant of the GT could be launched in 2016, but these have been denied by Mercedes-AMG, which is keen to see the new car positioned as an uncompromised racer for the road. “The car is manufactured according to our motto ‘Handcrafted by racers’, which perfectly encapsulates our heritage and spirit,” said Moers.

The cars the Mercedes-AMG GT must beat

The new Mercedes-AMG GT is launching into a very crowded segment. A couple of years ago, Lamborghini revealed that the market for what it calls “super-sports cars” had taken a huge hammering during the global credit crunch.

Sales at the tail end of the boom in this market had bulged globally to about 35,000 vehicles annually. After the crunch, this niche shrank back to just 25,000 units, and although it will have risen somewhat over the past 24 months, this is still a very hard-fought niche.

It is, of course, a potentially highly profitable segment, as Porsche’s 911 Turbo proves, with its industry-leading cash profit per unit. Car makers are clearly aware of this and there are plenty of new products in the super-sports car market.

Lamborghini has just refreshed its range and McLaren’s upcoming P13 family will be aimed at this market when it arrives in September 2015. A batch of new Aston Martins are also planned over the next few years (ironically, sharing much of the AMG GT’s

powertrain and electrical tech). Ferrari, the strongest player after Porsche’s range-topping 911, is committed to regularly replacing its models to stay at the cutting edge. An all-new Audi R8 is expected next year, too.

But the AMG GT is not just about pure sales performance. The company has been on a mission for the past few years to reduce the average age of Mercedes buyers. The AMG GT is a big part of Merc shaking off its ‘old man’ image.

Indeed, the CLA baby saloon has led the way, with buyers around 10 years younger than the company average, and ‘conquest sales’ are said to be running as high as 80 per cent for the CLA in the US.

VikingSkull posted:

hey let's stick the turbos in the cylinder bank because that can only end well

fknlo posted:

New Mercedes AMG GT Revealed










Personally not feeling it. There's just something about the design I don't like.

CornHolio posted:

Is that working out well for BMW? I haven't heard of any problems.

VikingSkull posted:

I didn't know BMW was also doing that, the article seems to think this new powerplant is unique in that respect.

Xguard86 posted:

I'd like to reshape those lower intakes but otherwise I think it's nice looking. Not sure if yellow is the right color though.

VikingSkull posted:

That's not so dumb, but I took it as the turbos are in the block/cylinder bank itself. If that's the case, holy poo poo.

BraveUlysses posted:

The rear curve from the roofline reminds me of a 928

fknlo posted:

blk posted:

As much as I'd like to be excited by the Hellcats, I can't be. It's cool that so much horsepower is available for so little money, but I don't have any application for it. I'm not into drag racing, I'd never use it daily driving, they don't corner very well and the styling on them really, really doesn't appeal to me. They're novelties, like automotive whoopie cushions, but I imagine the joke would get old fast, at least for me. Anyone else?

Sole Survivor posted:

It's not for everyone, but the Challenger is probably the best affordable grand tourer on the market but also happens to have fantastically retro styling. It's no Lotus in the corners, but it isn't as bad as everyone assumes it is, especially for a 4000 pound GT car.

CornHolio posted:

I think it looks good. I like that an enormous two-door mean-faced car exists with that much power. It means there is something right with the world.

SPORK08 posted:

And as has previously been stated, the more of these things on the road the more motor swaps can be done as they start popping up on telephone poles around the country side.

VikingSkull posted:

If you're buying a Hellcat to carve corners with, you're missing the point. It's a drag racer/boulevard cruiser. That's it. It's not for everyone, but for the people it's targeting it's the best in the segment.

Unfortunately that segment is filled with brand fanboys so guys with GT500's and ZL-1's are gonna get murdered at stoplights because brand fanboys are dumb.

PeterWeller posted:

Eh, I think if you try to stoplight race any of those, you'll just fill the intersection with smoke.