Would Steve McQueen still drive a Porsche today?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Blenheim, Ontario’s RM Auctions has a Porsche you might be interested. It’s the 1970 911S actor/car guy Steve McQueen’s character, race driver Michael Delaney, drove in the opening sequences of his iconic flick LeMans.

If you’re reading this, you probably already know about LeMans. Or you should. If not, very briefly, it’s McQueen’s hommage to the annual 24-hour race held in the eponymous small French town every June. McQueen, dubbed “The King of Cool”, spliced together footage from the actual 1970 race, then set up shop right afterwards and restaged scenes with himself behind the wheel of the #20 Gulf-Porsche 917K driven by the real racers, Jo Siffert and Brian Redman, in the preceding race.

Now, both of McQueen’s Porsches, the 911S road car, above, and the 917K racer, didn’t get into the flick because of some sort of product placement deal his Solar Productions (the makers of the movie) had whipped up with the German automaker.

In fact, quite the contrary. He personally chose the Porsches because they were the epitome of contemporary “cool”. The 911S was McQueen’s own car he drove around while filming LeMans, and eventually brought it back to the U.S. after shooting in France was wrapped.

Now, who knows how much McQueen’s ’70 911S will fetch when it goes on the auction block this August. Safe to say, what with today's high prices of any well-looked after 911 of that vintage, and the provenance of the car's association with The King of Cool and the movie, RM Auction should get more than what McQueen paid for it originally over 40 years ago.

But if McQueen were alive today (he passed away in 1980 at the young age of 50 years) and in good enough shape to actively be behind the wheel of a car, would he still pick a car from Stuttgart?

You have to remember, back in 1970, Porsche was a low-volume sports car maker, solely building versions of the 911. That's it.

Detours for the brand like the less-than-well-received 914, 924 and 928 of the later 1970s were still off in the fuzzy future. And such ideas like a Porsche SUV (i.e. the Cayenne, and its forthcoming smaller Cajun) or a four-door GT car (Panamera) would be unthinkable in 1970. Plus Porsche’s street credibility at the time was being further enhanced by not only racing, but quite successfully with the now-legendary 917K and other sports racers, with the type of dominance Audi ahs recently had at the demanding French race.

So, back to the headline: Do you think any new Porsche would be “cool” enough for McQueen today?

And if not Porsche, then what car brand do you think would be worthy for the man if he were to attempt a remake of LeMans?

[Source: RM Auctions]

 

 

2010 New York: Kia keeps the new products coming

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

NEW YORK – Hey, another month, another bunch of new Kias. Here in NYC, on an admittedly quiet second of two media days, the Korean automaker debuted a relativley expansive mid-cycle refresh of its subcompact 2012 Kia Soul wagon (new engines, six-speed transmissions, and exterior and interior styling) and an all-new subcompact 2012 Kia Rio four-door sedan.

Both the new Soul and Rio receive a new direct-injected 1.6-litre four-cylinder. The longer, wider and lower Rio introduces a new segment exclusive stop/start technology that turns the engine off when the vehicle is at a stop light or stopped in traffic.

I don’t know about you, but to my eyes, the new Rio sedan—which joins the Rio5 four-door hatchback that we first saw at this year’s Geneva show when both go on sale in Canada later this year—is arguably the best looking of the new subcompact four-doors that showed up here in New York. Another winner from Kia head pen Peter Schreyer.

2010 New York: Sexy FR-S sports coupe attempts to reinvigorate moribund Scion

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

NEW YORK – Since it arrived as the Toyota FT-86 Concept at the 2009 Tokyo Motor Show, there’s been speculation which brand it would be sold as first in North America. Wonder no more. Here in New York, Toyota’s so-called youth brand, Scion, busted out a thinly-disguised concept of the FT-86, now called the Scion FR-S.

In contrast to the rest of the Scion lineup—which focuses on small, practical, front-drive cars—the FR-S is a rear-wheel-drive sports coupe with echoes of Maserati Gran Turismo styling. And don’t forget that Subaru was involved in the development, supplying the coupe’s 2.0-litre flat-four engine and selling their version as well.

I'm not sure if I’ll get to drive the FR-S this year. But whatever the badge, I pegged the Toyota/Subaru/Scion coupe as one of my 10 Most Anticipated Test-drives of 2011.  And with Scion focusing on launching its IQ city car this year, don’t expect the FR-S to go on sale until early 2012.

For how much? Scion isn't saying yet. But in regards to pricing, Hyundai sells its 2+2 rear-wheel-drive 210 hp Genesis Coupe 2.0T for under -$25k...

2010 New York: Subaru pulls the cover off a new Impreza and boxer engine

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

NEW YORK – Joining the new 2012 Honda Civic in Canadian showrooms this fall will be Subaru’s new 2012 Impreza compact.

The 2012 Impreza four-door sedan, above, and hatchback, left, body styles return, but clothed in a fashion that mimics big brother Legacy’s cartoonish fenders and arched headlights. The bigger news is what will be found underneath the new Impreza’s hood: a new 2.0-litre flat-four—or boxer—engine, hooked up to either a five-speed manual or a CVT auto. With this new drivetrain, Subaru is claiming the "Most Fuel Efficient All-Wheel Drive Car in America". The Japanese automaker also claims with a longer wheelbase, but shorter overhangs, the new Impreza provides a roomier interior in the same external footprint as the outgoing model.

No word yet if the Impreza XV crossover concept that also debuted this week in China is headed our way or not.

2010 New York: BMW blows into NY with new turbo-four

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

NEW YORK –The straight-six is dead! Long live the turbocharged four!..Er..not exactly. But in making the world debut of its new 2012 BMW Z4 sDrive28i roadster here in New York, the German automaker is jumping on the downsized engine bandwagon. And while prevalent in Europe, BMW hasn’t offered a four-banger in North America since the 1990s 3 Series and the Z4’s Z3 predecessor.

Despite the “28” in its name, the new Z4 is powered by a 2.0-litre blown four. BMW says it delivers more torque, better performance and reduced fuel consumption compared to the existing straight-six Z4 sDrive30i.

In addition to the Z4, the new BMW turbo four has already started showing up in other vehicles replacing the base 3.0-litre six. The new BMW X1 crossover, that just went on sale in Canada, only comes with a 241 hp and 258 lb-ft iteration of the new blown four.

2010 New York: Hyundai jumps into the subcompact sedan race

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

NEW YORK – Lined up directly at the new 2012 Nissan Versa sedan that debuted thirty minutes earlier, Hyundai rolled out the new 2012 four-door trunk version of its new Accent subcompact. The Accent-with-a-trunk will go on sale later this year, along with the new Accent four-door hatchback that debuted at this year’s Montréal auto show.

Except for the more practical rear aperture, the Accent hatchback is mechanically identical to the sedan. That means a new 1.6-litre direct-injected four-cylinder and six-speed automatic gearbox. The result is a hybrid-like  4.7 L/100 km highway fuel consumption.

2010 New York: Nissan shows off its North American Versa

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

NEW YORK – Hyundai will be showing off the North American version of its subcompact 2012 Accent sedan later today in New York. And its platform mate, the new 2012 Kia Rio sedan, will also make its global debut here tomorrow morning. But Nissan beat both to the subcompact sedan race (if only by a half-hour in Hyundai’s case) with the unveiling of its 2012 Versa sedan.

With Nissan claiming the new Versa Sedan has, for example, "more rear legroom than some mid-size sedans", you have to wonder about the future—or lack thereof—of the aging Sentra sedan. No word on what will power the Mexican-made Versa, or what it will cost when it goes on sale this fall. I’m guessing a naturally aspirated version of the turbo 1.6-litre from the Juke crosover and similar rock bottom pricing as the current Versa will prevail.

Nissan isn’t saying anything  here at the show. But I’m betting a four-door hatchback version of the Versa will show up this fall at the Los Angeles auto show, if not some time earlier. Nissan did say that with a CVT, the Versa will achieve a combined city/highway fuel economy of 6.1L/100 km.

2010 New York: Ford gives its Taurus a refresh for 2013

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

NEW YORK – Do you think the people at Ford knew that their cross-town rivals at Chrysler were also debuting a redesigned muscle sedan here in New York? Most definitely. So while we’ll have to wait until later in the day to see the new SRT version of the Chrysler 300 full-size sedan, Ford unveiled a refreshed-for-2013 Taurus sedan in both cooking and hotter SHO guises thsi morning.

Ford says the 2013 Taurus lineup will offer  better fuel economy, more technology, enhanced design, improved craftsmanship and sharpened driving dynamics.” But what you’ll notice right away is the more aggressive front end, and new availability of the 2.0-litre turbo four-banger with 237 hp that will also be sold in the Explorer crossover.

The regular 3.5-litre V6 continues in the base Taurus gets some tweaks that create 290 hp. And while the Taurus SHO, seen above, receives some new styling and a revised suspension, the 355 hp turbo V6 carries on.

 

2010 New York: Honda debuts the latest version of Canada’s most popular new car

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

NEW YORK – While the Chinese auto show has Shanghai’d (pun intended) plenty of global concept and 2012 production debuts this week, the 2011 New York auto show is delivering a few surprises. The first up is the ninth-generation 2012 Honda Civic family.

A first drive review will appear in Wheels soon enough, but briefly, the new 2012 is more evolutionary than revolutionary. It’s fundamentally the same size and proportions as the 2006 to 2011 version, still available in two-door coupe and four-door sedan form, in regular gas, sporty Si and fuel-efficient Hybrid versions.

The gas non-Si Civic Coupes and Sedans get slightly better fuel economy form a basically carryover 1.8-litre four. They go on sale today. The Si models (which get a larger and more powerful 2.4-litre four) become available next month. And the Hybrid, with new lithium batteries, is supposed to go on sale this summer, but Honda is saying its on-sale date may be pushed off because of the manufacturing crisis in Japan, a fate that is also falling on the Civic-based CR-V crossover, a concept version of which was to be shown here in the Big Apple. Despite this setback, Honda officials are still committed to the 2012 CR-V arriving sometime this fall.

Is Subaru ditching its Impreza wagon?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next week, we have a pair of international auto shows on two continents happening at the same time. One in New York and one in Shanghai. And Subaru will be at both.

Before its debut in the Big Apple, last week we got a teaser shot of the forthcoming 2012 Impreza compact sedan. But now the Japanese automaker has released a second teaser, this time of its new XV Concept, above, set for its debut in Shanghai. Subaru says the XV is "a design concept car that defines a new generation of crossover vehicle, blending exceptional SUV practicality with a fashionable form." In layman terms, the Subaru is yet another small utility vehicle in the vein of the Nissan Juke, Mini Countryman and Mitsubishi RVR. But if you put two and two together, the XV may mean the demise of the practical Impreza wagon.

First, in the Japanese market, there’s already a production XV, essentially an Outback version of the Impreza wagon. Second, when the midsize Legacy was last redesigned, Subaru ditched the wagon in favour of the SUV-wannabe Outback version only. And third, based on the proportions of the shot above, the XV Concept is too short to be the next Forester cute-ute, also due soon.

Oh, I also forgot that Subaru’s decision for 2011 to bring back a four-door sedan version of its WRX STi only adds fuel to the fire that an Impreza wagon WRX STi may be going the way of the dodo bird as well.

If all of this comes to fruition, and Subaru does decide to ditch the more practical wagon/hatch version of the Impreza for 2012, how upset will you be?

Or are you quite happy with a replacement that looks for all the world like a Subaru version of the Mitsubishi RVR?

[Source: Subaru]