Autoblog

Chris Doane has done it again. The latest Accord to be caught by this ace spy photographer is apparently the 2008 Honda Accord V6. Note the dual rear exhausts when you click through to see the full-size pics at Straightline. Another lightly-disguised sedan undergoing final testing, this V6 differs little from the previous base sedan we showed you a couple of weeks ago. Slightly different 7-spoke wheels and a sunroof are the only apparent changes besides the dual pipes out back. Oh, and one interior shot shows a fairly large binnacle for the nav system in the top center of the dash.

Not meant to set the design world atwitter, the new Accord is inoffensive if not handsome. The sedan styling echoes that of the Accord coupe that was unveiled as a concept last January in Detroit and has also been captured by Brenda Priddy & Company. Lacking the honeycomb grille of the coupe, the sedan offers a slightly more mainstream look that should continue to win hundreds of thousands of buyers annually in the midsize sedan segment.

Rumors suggest those buyers will find a bit more personality under the hood, via a new 3.5L V6 with at least 270 horsepower on tap. Lower emissions and and better mileage are expected too, thanks to Honda's new cylinder deactivation feature. Looks like we'll be getting a new acronym in the process (VTEC, ftw!). Production of the new Accord should start in September or October with deliveries to dealerships arriving not long after.

[Source: Straightline]

Ace spy photographer Chris Doane happened upon a very lightly disguised 2008 Honda Accord sedan development vehicle doing some hot weather testing, and fortunately for us had his camera on him (we think he sleeps with a Canon under his pillow). The Accord is certainly one of Honda's most important products, and we can see from these shots that the sedan will look similar but not identical to the Accord coupe that was unveiled as a concept last January in Detroit and has already been spotted out in the wild. Brenda Priddy & Co. notes the sedan is lacking the honeycomb grille from the coupe and certain lines of the body are different. In our estimation, it's a fairly vanilla design, which is in keeping with this car's purpose of appealing to the largest demographic possible in the midsize sedan segment.

While this mule was likely a four-cylinder model, we expect a new 3.5L V6 from Honda for the Accord with at least 270 horsepower when the car debuts later this year. Expect lower emissions, however, and tricks like cylinder deactivation to increase the car's fuel economy at the same time. The four-cylinder, meanwhile, will likely have around 180 horsepower. Production of the new Accord should start in September or October with deliveries to dealerships arriving not long after.

Check out higher resolution spy shots of the 2008 Honda Accord sedan from various angles by viewing the gallery. For reference, also check out the high-res gallery of the Accord Coupe Concept by clicking here.

No doubt by now you've heard about VetteGate, our name for the prank pulled by online buff book Winding Road in its January 2007 issue. To recap, WR took a Corvette Z06 and masked it up with tape, fake fender flares and a hood scoop made from cardboard. The result was a car that looked convincingly like a prototype for the "Blue Devil" super Vette currently being developed by General Motors. The fake "Blue Devil" was then driven around Metro Detroit, which led to the public taking pics of the car and unknowingly submitting them to other media outlets as genuine shots of the "Blue Devil". The shots were then published online by The Car Connection, AutoWeek, MotorTrend and other sites like this one.

We were curious how professional spy photographers reacted to finding out that someone had driven around a faux prototype, perhaps one they themselves could've shot and sold for money to their clients. We asked both Brenda Priddy and Chris Doane, two names you should know if you follow spy shots that we've covered on Autoblog, to give us their take on the prank Winding Road pulled.

You can read a statement prepared by Chris Doane and a short interview with Brenda Priddy after the jump.

Ace spy photog Chris Doane has scored shots of the 2008 Mazda6, and they show that the next mid-size from Mazda will grow in both length and width over the current model. Check out the extended rear fender flares and raised gas gap, both both clear indicators that the 6's sheetmetal will be expanding. While it's difficult to make out a face through the front camouflage, the front end is also clearly larger. That's a good thing, as Mazda needs to make room underhood for Ford's new 250-hp, 3.5-liter V6 that will be available on the Mazda6. The platform on which the car will ride is reported to be a variant of the one underpinning the Ford Escape and Mercury Mariner. This lends credence to the rumor that all Mazda6 models will be available with all-wheel drive, not just the MazdaSpeed6. Expect Mazda's family sedan to still be offered in sedan, wagon and hatchback form, and a hybrid will join the group at a later date, likely after the Fusion goes semi-electric sometime in 2008.

[Source: Winding Road]

Ace spy photog Chris Doane stalked and shot the upcoming Tiguan, the Rabbit-based small CUV from Volkswagen that should arrive as a 2008 model. The styling appears to be exactly what you'd expect a small VW soft-roader to look like, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. Engine choices are obvious, with the 2.0-liter TFSI used in the GTI getting the nod as the sole motor at launch. The R32's 3.2-liter V6 may be an option down the line, as well. We have to wonder, though, if a Rabbit and a Tiguan got in a fight, who would win? Yeah, probably the Tiguan.

[Source: Straightline Blog]

To hear Chris Doane tell it, the day was like any other. He stumbled upon a 2008 Ford Super Duty F-250 Powerstroke in a parking lot and started snapping away. The driver eventually returned and this is where Doane's day took a sharp turn towards the bizarre and frightening. The driver in question, who our sources tell us is indeed a Ford employee, snapped a synapse and chased Doane on public roads for a half an hour, including following him in and out of parking lots, tailgating him while running through highway traffic, and nearly swallowing his car in the gaping maw of the F-250's grille at stoplights.

To hear it in Doane's own words is a treat, and you can do so here. As for the Ford employee who lost control of his 'roid rage, it's just a 2008 Super Duty, man. Chill. We've got three posts up linking to spy shots of the next F-350 here, here and here. It's not like you were driving a C1 Focus or next-gen Mustang.

Thanks SobeSVT for the tip!

[Source: Cheers and Gears]