Autoblog

BMW's MINI brand has been responsible for some unique ad campaigns in recent years, so when we first read that their latest ad had been banned in Frankfurt, our imaginations went wild. What'd they do this time? Nudity? Vulgarity? Drugs? Rock and roll? Boy were we disappointed to find out the only thing offensive about MINI's Frankfurt ad was its not-so-mini size.

To emphasize the Clubman's bigger dimensions, the ad was a bit larger than normal. A 10-story-tall video proclaiming the introduction of the new MINI Clubman was projected onto the side of a downtown Frankfurt building for three days as part of the auto show. A MySpace page dedicated to the banned ad claims the ad was pulled after other automakers complained, but there's no official word on the decision. If that's true, then behold the power of controversy on the Internet. Watch the video after the jump to see the ad you can no longer view in Frankfurt.

[Source: Motoring File]

There was an official release of the all-aluminum Bugatti Pur Sang somewhere in Frankfurt this week, but it wasn't at the official Frankfurt Auto Show. In fact, once it was shown -- presumably, once -- it wasn't seen again. Not much of a loss, really, because you won't be likely to see one either: Bugatti's only making five of them. That's even more exclusive than the edtion-of-twenty Lamborghini Reventon.

The Pur Sang is a standard-issue Bugatti stripped of all of its paint. That means raw aluminum and carbon fiber face the 200+ MPH elements in their naked states. We don't know how it looks in person, but in pics we'd have to say it's the prettiest Bugatti we've seen. Without the two-tone paint job, the car doesn't remind us of a giant Stacy Adams shoe. It's also a couple hundred pounds lighter, not that you were looking to shave weight or tenths off the car.

And heaven only knows how Bugatti will decide who gets the five examples. But of course, if you really wanted one you can always stop by Earl Scheib and have your Bugatti stripped. Since it only costs $99 to put paint on a car, it's probably not much more to take it off. Just an idea. In the mean time, be sure to check out the hi-res gallery of pics.

[Source: World Car Fans]

Click the image above for more hi-res pics

Neither Daniel Craig nor his latest avatar made an appearance at the Frankfurt Auto Show, but that's all right. If we had a choice of meeting Bond or his car in person, we'd have to go with the car. And there it was, the DBS, "the ultimate luxury sports car," lurking in Aston's area. Beneath the sculpted, vented snout are twelve cylinders that snarl out 510 HP and 420 lb-ft. Power gets from motor to road via two pairs of 20-inch wheels, and you'll get from 0-60 in 4.3 seconds, all the way to a leisurely 191 mph. Which is just fast enough to enjoy a Vesper Lynd before you've really got to start concentrating on the road. The question with the DBS isn't "Are you man enough?", but rather "Are you gentleman enough?" All yours for $265,000. Plus tax, of course.

For full specs on the DBS go here. And be sure to check out the gallery of hi-res pics.

Click on the above photo for more hi-res pics of the Blown Tire Reventón

As many commenters have noted, the Spanish name of the million-euro Lambo, Reventón, is a bit of a surprise. The accent over the 'o' changes the stress, but it apparently doesn't change the meaning of the word in Spanish: blown tire. As one reader wrote, not exactly the right name for a car you plan on driving at 300 KPH. Yes, Reventón was the name of a bull that killed a toreador, like Murcielago was the name of a 19th century bull. But "murcielago" also means "bat" in Spanish, and "espada," also Spanish, means "sword."

In fact, Spanish seems to be the language that comes up most frequently in these delicately-named situations. Nissan made a car called the Moco, which means "snot." Chevrolet made the Nova, which, of course, means "no go." Mitsubishi still sells an SUV called -- not in Spain -- the Pajero, which means "wanker" in the, uh, more literal sense. Then there was the Mazda Laputa, which we can't get into on a family web site. Same goes for the Lexus LF-A, which caused one wide-eyed Spaniard we know to say "They need to change that name."

As other commenters have noted, none of this is really going to matter with a million-euro car that only 20 people will get to buy. But the debate is still fun: if there were a car called "blown tire" in your language -- even if it was named after a championship-winning something-or-other -- would you want it?

Thanks to everyone who brought this to our attention in the comments!

click above image to view high-res gallery of the Fiat Grande Punto Abarth SS

Fiat has big plans for the resurrected Abarth brand, wasting no time with a 180 HP splash in the body of the Grande Punto Abarth SS. Fiat plans to use Abarth as an in-house tuning and racing concern, and this car demonstrates the kind of tuning they have in mind.

There are two Grande Punto Abarths: the base model comes to the party with "just" 150 HP, but the SS takes it up to 180 HP. The Abarth SS models also get a nice body kit that looks like it came from a Transformers spare parts bin. The interior is clean and basic, but not spartan, and well-laid out. Good luck to anyone who doesn't plan on racing everyone and everything at every stop light. For a small hatch, it's one of the hottest cars out there -- check out the special edition Frankfurt Auto Show wheels -- and the hottest presenters didn't hurt either.

Check out the press release after the jump, and be sure to check out the gallery of hi-res images.

click above image to view a full high-res gallery of the new Audi A4

Audi put together its usual unveil shebang, with cameras, prompters, giant screens, a famous person come to sing praises, and a giant crowd. The audience surrounding the two cars being showcased, the RS6 Avant and the A4, made the venue look more like Wembley than a Frankfurt Motor Show hall. Other than Bryan Adams emerging with a guitar and an acoustic version of "Run to You," we didn't understand any of the press conference, which was entirely in German. Based on the presenter's body language, however, Audi feels very good about what it has and where it's going.

The new A4 takes plenty of lines from the A5. It's still svelte, it simply has a few more creases for you to catch your eye on. Along with a compendium of changes inside and out -- detailed in the exhaustive press release -- there are new engines that provide better power, get better economy, and exhale less pollution. The 1.8-liter is the runt of the petrol lot, and gets 160 bhp. The 2.0-liter diesel makes do with 143 bhp, but comes good with 260 ft-lb. The largest engine available is the 3.2 FSI with 265 bhp and 0-60 in 6.2 seconds.

Click Read for an exhaustive press release, and be sure to check out the hi-res gallery of photos from the reveal.

click above image for more high-res shots of the Lamborghini Reventón

It's finally here, arrived in secrecy just like the airplane from which it takes its cues: the 2008 Lamborghini Reventón. It lurked between three women dressed in beige overalls and work boots. The beige tarp that covered it fell in a mess of sharp points and acute angles, as if someone had stuck a chunk of quartz underneath it. Before Stephan Winkelmann, CEO of Lamborghini, came out and spoke, there was a video presentation shown on the screen behind the car. It was probably the same video shown to the lucky few given advance notice of the car, a waterfall of quick cuts that gave tasty glimpses of the car at the center of the hubbub.

Thankfully, the first thing Stephan did before speaking was unveil the car. He spoke of the success of Lamborghini, how 2007 would be another record year, and that this car was a tribute to the continuing success of the raging bull. He let us know that it's a 6.5-liter V12 with 650 horsepower, that it has 4-wheel drive, that it is named after the bull that killed Felix Guzman in 1943, and that it costs one million euros before taxes. Then he introduced the team that was responsible for the car. And then he said goodbye. That was it. No mention of the dashboard. No mention of why they're only making 20 of them. No mention of... why? Sure, Lamborghini's doing well, and to celebrate you make 20 -- twenty?! -- of a car that is the most terrific piece of sculpture to breath God's oxygen in years.

When the Romanian government put a 72-percent stake in Automobile Craiova SA on the block, it got one bidder: Ford. The Blue Oval first offered fifty-five million euros in July, then upped it to fifty-seven million euros, which equals $78 million dollars.

Before the government stepped in, Craiova was owned by Daewoo Motors' Romania, which was separate from the GM-owned Daewoo. The Romanian arm went bankrupt in 2006. The state bailout came to the tune of $61 million dollars, which paid for assets and debts. The last year of its operation under Daewoo, the plant put out 24,000 cars. Ford, after a planned $675 million investment in the plant, wants to up that production to 300,000 cars. Conjecture is that Ford will make the Festiva there.

The deal is expected to close on September 12, during the Frankfurt Auto Show. Yet more evidence that in spite of troubles at home, Ford is raging bullish on its overseas operations.

[Source: Reuters]

The Fiat Punto Abarth -- the tarted up version of the Punto by Fiat's in-house tuning arm -- has been seen on the roads of Turin, and it's hot hot hot. The car looks every bit as good as the concept, perhaps even better, having swapped the white mirrors for red ones.

It will have a turbocharged 1.4-liter engine with 155 HP and a 6-speed manual. However, buyers will be able to request an Abarth tuning kit that gets 180 HP. It will also have a lower, stiffer sport-tuned suspension. Going against other minis like the RenaultSport Clio 197 and Vauxhall Corsa VXR, which outdo it by at least 39 HP in stock form, it will probably need every last horse and suspension tweak to compete with its rivals.

The car premieres at the Frankfurt Auto Show next week. It will run £15,000 in the UK. Why, why, why can't we get these cars here?

[Source: Auto Express]

Straight from the keyboards of people you don't know comes more "detailed" rumors of the Lamborghini supercar. Extracting the most compelling bits, it appears that the actual car hasn't been seen, but a 1/25-scale model has been shown to an exceedingly select few at Pebble Beach last week and at the Santa Monica airport, along with a short video presentation.

The car will have LP640 doors and mirrors, but is otherwise completely new. Rumor is that it will have just 20 more horsepower than the LP640. The interior is said to be green -- it's military-inspired, right? In spite of that, the gut-wrenching magic of the car is supposed to be the instrument panel, which is only ever described in superlatives. "Amazing" and "insane" are the most common. No one has any details they can reveal, having signed a paper promising not to disclose the goods.

All 20 cars have been spoken for, and there's a waiting list of 12. A gent from Manhattan Motorcars, purveyors of Lamborghinis, says that this car will return us to the days of Lamborghini posters plastering every suburban schoolboy's walls. Of course, another poster wrote "jet plane cockpits are cool but for $1.5m shouldn't it have ICBMs and an ejector seat?" Come on, Frankfurt.

Thanks for the tip, John!

[Source: 6SpeedOnline]