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Continue reading Americans like White, the world likes Silver in new Color Popularity Report

Americans like White, the world likes Silver in new Color Popularity Report originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 01 Dec 2009 14:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Gallery: SEMA 2008: Chevrolet Camaro Black

SEMA Preview: Chevrolet Camaro "Black" originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 24 Oct 2008 14:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The company studies trends in fashion, interior design, and consumer products to predict the tastes of fickle consumers. PPG isn't the only company predicting more blue sheetmetal on our roads and highways. An April report by chemicals giant DuPont also predicted a resurgence in the color, adding it was influenced by ecological concepts such as the sky and water. Consumers in 2008 apparently haven't caught on to the new "blue" trend yet. So far, 20 percent of the cars sold this year have been silver ("A neutral color that works on just about any car," says Harrington). White is second (18 percent), followed by black (17 percent) and red (13 percent). Although blue may be the new green, most consumers will still stick with black, white, and silver -- core colors that are always offered on nearly every vehicle.

[Source: AP via Google News, photo by Magic Super Toys]

REPORT: Silver still king of car colors, the future looks blue originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 16 Oct 2008 17:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Click above for a high-res gallery of the SL65 AMG Black Series.

After months of spy shots and speculation, the Mercedes-Benz SL65 AMG Black Series is finally out in the open. And with a $320,000 price tag, a twin-turbocharged 6.0-liter V12 and only 200 units on their way to the U.S., it's a serious stopgap between the deceased SLR and Mercedes' 2011 SLC gullwing supercar.

Mercedes' in-house tuners applied their tried and true philosophy to the SL65 AMG Black Series, beginning with a carbon fiber hood, fenders and trunk, along with nixing the retractable hard top in favor of a fixed carbon fiber roof with an integrated roll cage. As such, the Black is 550 pounds lighter than the stock SL65, coming in at 4,122 pounds.

Seven vents - three in the bumper, two on the hood and two in the fenders - feed copious quantities of air to the 6.0-liter V12, fitted with a duo of upgraded turbochargers. Power is up to 661 hp available at 5,400 rpm, while torque remains the same at 738 lb.-ft. With a five-speed automatic gearbox equipped with AMG's speedshift software, the Black can hit 60 mph in 3.9 seconds on its way to a gearing-limited top speed of 199 mph.

Expect the SL65 AMG Black Series to debut in Paris, with sales beginning in the U.S. early next year.

Gallery: 2009 Mercedes-Benz SL65 AMG Black Series

Continue reading Schnell! Mercedes-Benz SL65 AMG Black Series

Schnell! Mercedes-Benz SL65 AMG Black Series originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 10 Jul 2008 19:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Gallery: Chevrolet Corvette S-Limited (JP)

GM unveils Corvette S-Limited for Japan originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 02 Jul 2008 09:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Somebody buying a Bentley Brooklands isn't so concerned with how it performs, how it stacks up to the competition or how much it costs. They're far more taken by the Bentley-ness of the whole thing, that je ne sais quoi, a certain indescribable quality that you just can't put your finger on, lest the car's owner release the hounds...so you'd better get your own.

Put yourself in that mindset before you watch the following video. Imagine you've got all the money and taste in the world and ignore the notion that the Continental GT is the better performer, because the "baby Bentley" is just so nouveau riche. Now pour yourself a brandy, light up a cigar and enjoy what amounts to little more than some black and white footage of a land yacht accompanied by some acid jazz...jaaaazzzz!

[Source: The Hollywood Extra]

Continue reading VIDEO: The Bentley's just so crazy about that jazz

VIDEO: The Bentley's just so crazy about that jazz originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 08 Jul 2007 18:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

If just about any part breaks on your 1971 Volkswagen Beetle, you could probably get a replacement from a hundred different outlets. If the black box goes out on your 1996 Lincoln Mark VIII, your car becomes little more than a giant paperweight. With the profusion of different cars and the electrical components that go in them, automakers would face an inventory nightmare if they tried to stockpile all of the necessary replacement parts. So in order to avoid that scenario, once the warranty runs out, they simply stop making the parts.

Ted Field, Sr. found out the hard way when the black box went out on his Mark VIII. Ford doesn't make the part any more -- and doesn't have to, since the warranty is finished and "the part is obsolete" -- and no aftermarket company has reverse-engineered it. That means that an 11-year-old car with 66,000 miles on it ... is also obsolete. As a customer, Field has no idea how popular -- or not -- the Mark VIII would be, and couldn't have had any idea when he bought the state-of-the-art car that he'd be scrounging for parts just a few years later (relatively speaking). We often consider the price of technology on the front end -- say, how much more will a car equipped with ABS cost? But as cars become more and more computerized, and the obsolescence of computer technology occurs in faster cycles, it will be interesting to see what kind of price we have to pay on the back end as well.

Thanks for the tip, Stedwoo!

[Source: LA Times]

Are electronics making cars obsolete faster? originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 17 May 2007 10:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

In London, the black cab has instant recognition, cult appeal, a 25-foot turning circle, Euro IV emissions clearance, and drivers behind the wheel who don't earn their licenses until they've memorized the contents of a book simply called The Knowledge. Now, thanks to an unnamed buyer, the black cab also has a pink paint job.

LTI Vehicles produces London's trademark people mover, the current model being the TX4. LTI will make the cabs in any color, and this particular buyer decided to test that proposition, requesting a one-off version in candyfloss pink. The 4-man paint shop team mixed to order, and Mike McKenzie, one of the painters, called it "the most outlandish" cab they've done so far. The interior remains a muted black, so if you ever get a ride in it, only those on the outside will see how pretty you look in pink. The buyer paid a surcharge for the special color -- but the question is: would you?

[Source: LTI]

Continue reading London cab from LTI looks pretty in pink

London cab from LTI looks pretty in pink originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 13 Apr 2007 19:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Imitation, they say, is the sincerest form of flattery. So then the Japanese must really love Aston Martins, because from Japanese tuning house DAMD (the same people who brought you this custom Mitsu Outlander) comes yet another Aston Martin look-alike.

Like the 350Z roadster we brought you a while back, DAMD's Nissan Skyline 350GT/Infiniti G35 Coupe puts an Aston snout on a Datsun. Aside from the custom front end and a set of ghastly chrome rims, the rest of the coupe seems pretty much stock.

The Aston G and the Aston Z are both part of the Black X Metal line-up, in collaboration with ANCEL, and also includes an Aston-nozed MX-5 (similar to this one).

(More pics after the jump)

[Source: Nihon Car & Bike]

Continue reading DAMD again: Japanese tuner gives G35 the Aston treatment

DAMD again: Japanese tuner gives G35 the Aston treatment originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 18 Oct 2006 19:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading RR of the Day: Darth Subie

RR of the Day: Darth Subie originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 18 Oct 2006 10:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Mercedes' in-house performance division AMG is working on a new CLK on 'roids, slotting in between the CLK63 and the homologation special CLK DTM. Called the Black Series, it is expected to be the first in a new line of über-AMGs.

The CLK Black Series, wrapped in a carbon-composite body with beefed up suspension, is expected to molest 530 horses to get it up to sixty in a scant four-and-a-half seconds.

Follow the link to our Dutch compatriots at Autovisie, who've snagged these video clips of the new Black Benz as it was undergoing testing on the vaunted Nordschleife track at the Nürburgring. Blitzschnell!

Related post:

• Spy photos: Mercedes-Benz CLK DTM actually CLK 63 'Black Series'

[Source: Autovisie via Jalopnik]

Spy Video: Mercedes CLK AMG Black Series at the Nürburgring originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 09 Oct 2006 15:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Lamborghini took the black wraps off the Gallardo Nera, a special edition of their "entry level" V10 supercar.

What differentiates this Gallardo from all others is primarily its color scheme. Painted in Nero Noctis (Nero Serapis in Europe), with side mirrors housings, rear spoiler, select body panels front and rear, roof, door sills, rear apron and Calisto wheels all matte black. The interior is black and white: Nero Perseus and Bianco Polar with white piping and top-stitching to contrast.

The Gallardo Nera will be produced in a limited edition of 185. It comes packed with sat nav, rear view camera (handy for parking and laughing at the cars you've left in the dust), lifting suspension (for negotiating curbs and annoying speed bumps) and a special car cover. The Nera edition might be just the thing for those with a big chunk of cash and a taste for something a bit more stealthy than bright orange or lime green.

Related post:

• Stealth fighter: Lamborghini Gallardo Privilegio heads to Paris

More pics from the floor and from the manufacturer after the jump.

Continue reading Paris Motor Show: Lamborghini Gallardo Nera

Paris Motor Show: Lamborghini Gallardo Nera originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 29 Sep 2006 09:37:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Blackout: Chevy HHR Fall Limited Edition

Blackout: Chevy HHR Fall Limited Edition originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 19 Sep 2006 17:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.