The last time we drove a Peugeot 407, it was 2005, and it was our second ever official test car. It was a 2.0-litre version, and while we didn’t do performance tests back then, it didn’t take a rocket-scientist to figure out that it was a slow car. Fast-forward to 2009, and the 407 has received a tiny facelift, and this time we got a 2.2-litre version. It really is a better car.
The world is flooded with tiny companies building numerous forgettable exotic cars. But a European outfit called Tramontana is one company that has come up with something truly original. Their creation is called, simply, the Tramontana R Edition.
Set to debut at the 2009 Geneva Auto Show, the Bentley Continental Supersports is being touted as the fastest and most powerful Bentley ever created. Based on the Continental GT, this extreme Bentley gets more power, loses some weight and seats only two. Set to go on sale by late 2009, the Supersports can also run on the E85 petrol-ethanol fuel available in America, thereby touting some dubious green credentials.
The 2009 Ford Fiesta has just hit the GCC market, and to celebrate, Ford dealers in Dubai are offering 24 special-edition models, with each one sporting a unique paint-job.
Mercedes-Benz tuning specialist Brabus has gone ahead and created, according to them, the most powerful offroader ever. The Brabus G V12 S Biturbo, based on the G-Wagen, is exclusively available in 5-door form, and is powered by a BRABUS SV12 S engine, as found in the German tuner’s super-sedans.
Rolls-Royce has released brief details and photos of its smaller new ‘RR4’ model. Dubbed the 200EX for now, the baby Rolls-Royce seen here is still in concept form, but the final production version should be almost the same as this one, with a traditional name. And it is still a very large full-size car.
After the less-than-satisfying reveal of the 2010 Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan, debuting at the 2009 Geneva Auto Show will be the 2010 E-Class Coupe, replacing and effectively killing off the CLK model line.
Who would’ve known that Egyptian-built vehicles would one day roll around Dubai’s streets. Al Habtoor Motors recently launched the Temsa Safari SD luxury bus in Dubai. TEMSA is a Turkish company, while the Safari is from their Egyptian factory.
The Porsche World Roadshow is a 10-day event that is held in various cities around the world, usually reserved for Porsche customers, and usually for a fee. The Dubai stopover was from February 4th to the 14th this year. Attending the event itself involves a single day of various activities held from 9 am to 4 pm, using the latest Porsche machinery at the Dubai Autodrome. One of these days was reserved for the media, and I was invited for the first time.
BMW seems to be hell-bent on creating cars that no one asked for. After the X6 and the X1, the latest example is the 2010 BMW 5-Series Gran Touring, to be shown at the 2009 Geneva Auto Show in near-production concept form. As with many previous BMW concepts, the confused car-crossover is a done deal for production.