Autoblog

Through the success of the Enclave, Buick has discovered that nicely designed, well-built, high content vehicles sell. Being the first Buick in a long time to log advance orders, GM thinks it might be onto something with the Enclave formula. That recipe consists of bolder styling than past Buicks, with cues coming from the Velite and Riviera show cars. Avoiding retro, forthcoming Buicks promise to amp up the curbside drama with unabashed curves, and a lot of chrome. The Enclave has an interior that was obviously fussed over, too. If Buick can turn out a car using the same discipline that guided the successful Enclave launch, it should be exciting to watch the brand reinflate. Both the Riviera and Velite concepts have striking, tight designs that are nothing like the blobby, amorphous Buicks of the recent past. The Lucerne is a stylistic step in the right direction, and with a new LaCrosse due soon, we might start to see the return of stylish GM sedans that people clamor to buy. We'll get some indication soon, when we see what Buick brings to Detroit.

Follow the jump to see the Velite's unveiling at the 2004 New York Auto Show.

[Source: AutoObserver]

Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne has engineered a restructuring of the group's styling divisions under one roof, and has recruited a top talent to head it up. Nearly two years after retiring from his post as design chief for iconic styling house Pininfarina, Lorenzo Ramaciotti will become Fiat Group's new head of design, responsible for styling new products for six divisions: Fiat, Lancia, Alfa Romeo, Fiat Professional (light commercial trucks) and Maserati. The latter has never had its own design division, until now outsourcing its styling to independent houses like Pininfarina and Giugiaro's Italdesign.

After the initial announcement in May, the new design chief is now finally taking up the post. 59 years old, Ramaciotti was born in Modena, and, after graduating from Turin Polytechnic in '72, went to work for Pininfarina, where he advanced in the ranks until retiring in June 2005. While at Pininfarina, he oversaw the designs of over 100 projects, among his favorites the Ferrari 456 GT and Peugeot 407 Coupe, and concepts like the Ferrari Mythos and Maserati Birdcage.

[Source: Automotive News – subscription required]

At roughly $130, they're not the most expensive footwear out there, but they're certainly no ordinary sneaker, either. Likewise, the Porsche 911 isn't the most expensive car out there, but it's darn good at what it does, and you do pay a premium for that.

Adidas and Porsche Design have gotten together to create sporting shoes with a nod to racing success. While they still bear a resemblance to the classic Gazelle, the soles, materials and color schemes are in another realm. Available in Standard (lace-up) or Automatic (slip-on), the color schemes are based on racing livery, and the footwear carries the Porsche Design logo, as well. There are lesser models to the line, as well as a women's version. The racing model is the standout, though, with sliver metallic or striking white and green stripes. The "Classic" model is the one we'd pick. You'll spend a ton of time maintaining the racing model, just like a race car. The Classic's classy earth tones will still look great after breaking in, and will require far less maintenance. They'd also feel just right on the pedals of that vintage 912 we lust for. Hmm, it seems that Adidas has created the shoe equivalent of the entire Porsche range; always exclusive, with a choice of performance levels, all above the norm.

[Source: Adidas via Winding Road]

Toyota is planning on expanding the Prius range with several new body styles based on the trendy hybrid sedan. Currently, the company is considering adding a wagon and a Smart-style city-car, with the possibility of a crossover hybrid utility vehicle in the future.

The additional models will form the bulk of Toyota's campaign of selling one million hybrids worldwide. To that end, Toyota hopes to triple the number of hybrids it sells in the U.S., with the American market accounting for an anticipated half of that million-car target.

We could expect the wagon to look essentially the same as the current sedan, only with a roof extending rearward over the expanded cargo area, while the city-car will likely be an all-but-completely new model, riding on a much shorter wheelbase but with styling that immediately associates it with the rest of the Prius range.

The announcement opens anew the debate over whether customers want regular cars with hybrid engines, or instantly-identifiable, special-built hybrid models. Toyota's luxury division Lexus has reportedly expressed interest in developing a full hybrid range of its own, but until now its hybrid models have been variations on its standard lineup. The Toyota division itself has focused its hybrid production largely on the Prius, which it now hopes to expand. Meanwhile, competitor Honda found the hybrid version of the Civic to be far more popular than the quirky Insight.

We'd tend to agree with Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson's synopsis: Why buy an overpriced, ugly, poorly-made Prius when most conventional diesels will return better economy and give you more for your money? But with Toyota's ever-quickening race to the top, clearly it's on to something.

[Source: Bloomberg via Motor Authority]

click on image to enlarge

Fiat took the wraps off its new Bravo in Rome today before the company plans to offer the five-door hatch across Europe in the coming weeks. The Bravo returns to the market with a sleek and sexy Italian body that makes it appear far more expensive than the typical five-door hatches we're used to passing on U.S. roadways. The Italian automaker says the new car embodies the synthesis of Beauty and Substance. Its beauty is apparent, at least to us, and its substance can be found in a wide array of engines that includes two diesels based off of the company's 1.9-liter Multijet producing 120 and 150 bhp, a 90-bhp 1.4-liter gas engine, and two new turbocharged, 1.4-liter T-JET gas engines producing 120 and 150 bhp, respectively. Not much more information was presented on the Bravo, so we'll have to wait a little while longer to find out what substance fills the car's sexy shell, but we're more than happy to take in its style until then. The Bravo, of course, won't be sold in the U.S., which, quite frankly, is a shame.

More high resolution images and Fiat's completel press release can be found after the jump.

[Source: Fiat]

Hot Rod magazine is bemoaning the lack of interesting paint colors and schemes on today's street machines, and who can blame them? It was just last week that we had the same conversation with some local gearheads. Sure, we love the subtle silver and grey of Joe Rogan's Sick Fish 'Cuda, but it seems as if the majority of custom vehicles have pulled back just a bit too far from the garish paint schemes of the 1980s Pro Street movement, and have left us with a limited palate of monotone boredom.

The question then becomes a matter of where to go from here. The psychedelic schemes in Hot Rod's gallery come mostly from the hippie aesthetic of the 1960s, and so it would seem that any new trend would need to be equally rooted in contemporary times instead of simply borrowing from the past. With that in mind, what makes sense? Joshua Davis has produced prints for BMW that were computer-generated from a variety of character lines and the available colors for the roadster. Perhaps a similar technique could be applied towards coding a program that would design the appropriate paint scheme when given a variety of inputs. Considering how computers are taking over every other aspect of the automobile, it's only appropriate that they assume a larger role in the appearance as well.

[Sources: Hot Rod; Wired]