2014 Mercedes SLS AMG Black Series Stuns At Los Angeles

Black Series, the AMG Performance Studio hidden somewhere deep in Affalterbach, are the hands behind Mercedes-Benz's wildest creations. Today at the Los Angeles Auto Show, Mercedes brought out the newest Black Series to come out of Germany, the 2014 SLS AMG Black Series.

Lets get straight to the numbers, hidden away from sight is same 6.2-liter V8 engine from the standard SLS with a fully revised high-speed valve train with modified camshafts, adapted cam geometry and optimized bucket tappets...None of that makes sense to me. But all that seems to have worked since  engine now develops 622 bhp (464 kW) and 468 lb-ft (634 Nm) of torque, up from 563 hp (420 kW) and down from 480 lb-ft (650 Nm). Power, in true AMG tradition, is send to the rear wheels via a seven-speed AMG SPEEDSHIFT dual-clutch transmission which propelles the 3,417 lb (1,550 kg) beast  from 0-60 mph in 3.5 seconds and on to a top speed of 196 mph (315 km/h).

Like al Black Series cars, the SLS gains a body kit that makes it look like it wants to eat every other car on the road. The SLS GT3-inspired body kit features new bumpers, revised side skirts, flared fenders and a rear diffuser. Other exterior changes include tinted headlights, a carbon fiber rear wing and 19- / 20-inch wheels cocooned by Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tires.

Performance upgrades also come in the form of an AMG Adaptive Performance Suspension, a locking rear differential and carbon ceramic brakes. Aldo new is a carbon fiber torque tube, a CFRP drive shaft and a lightweight lithium-ion battery. All of this translates to a weight loss of 154 lbs (70 kg) for the SLS AMG Black Series one the standard SLS AMG coupe.

Interested on getting your hands on one? You'll have to wait as the SLS AMG Black Series will go on sale next summer and with pricing yet to be announced.

Jaguar Unleashes 2014 XFR-S

Jaguar has officially taken the covers off the well awaited 2014 XFR-S. Will this be the car to take the crown from the BMW M5?

With a high performance Jaguar, the focus should be on the numbers and the XFR-S is no let down. Under the hood hides the same beefed up 5.0-liter supercharged V8 engine found in mad XKR-S and churns out 542 hp (405 kW) and 502 lb-ft (680 Nm) of torque. Thats 18 hp (13 kW) less than the F10 BMW M5 and the exact same torque. The lower hp means that the 2014 XFR-S does 0-100 km/h (62 mph) at 4.6 seconds, 0.2 seconds slower than the M5. Top speed is an electronically limited 186 mph (300 km/h) while the M5 has a standard 250 km/h (155 mph) top speed limit, which can be increased to 305 km/h (190 mph) with the optional M-Drivers-Package. Power in the XFR-S is send straight to the rear wheels via ZF eight-speed transmission with Quickshift.

Its not just the engine that has been beefed up, all the countless hours spend at the Nürburgring means that Jaguar's engineers have been able to tune the XFR-S to handle well on the track. The Electronic Active Differential and Dynamic Stability Control system have been tweaked and new, wider 20-inch Varuna forged alloys with wider tires have also been added to improve grip. But if you're part of Green Peace, then you probably care about none of that. The XFR-S returns an EPA-estimated 15 mpg city / 23 mpg highway / 18 mpg combined and has CO2 emissions of 270 g/km.

On the exterior, the XFR-S features a deeper front bumper with larger lower central and side air intakes, a carbon fiber front splitter and extended side sills. At the back there's a bigger bumper incorporating a carbon fiber diffuser, while the rear spoiler provides a better management of air flow.

The 2012 Jaguar XFR-S will debut today at the Los Angeles AutoShow. With a total of 200 units headed to the U.S., only 100 examples will be available for the 2014 model year each at a starting price of 99,000 USD.

Porsche Drops First Pictures Of The 2013 Cayman

Porsche have finally released the first official images of the 2013 Porsche Cayman.

The Porsche Cayman, essentially being a hardtop, coupe version, of Porsche's highly acclaimed Boxter, looks exactly like it should, a Boxter with a fixed roof.  The 2013 Cayman, as you can probably tell from the photos, is actually an attractive car and features a sleek rear hatch and a prominent spoiler that is adjustable and integrated into the tail-lights.

Power for the Cayman will come from the same choice of engines from the Boxter. That includes a base 2.7-liter flat-six with 265 HP (195 kW) and 206 lb-ft (280 Nm) and a more powerful 3.4-liter flat-six making 315 HP (232 kW) and 266 lb-ft (360 Nm) of torque. Stay tuned for Porsche to release more official information.

Justin Bieber Causes Traffic Jam in Ferrari 458 Italia

   

Canadian singer, Justin Bieber has been spotted doing rounds in his Ferrari 458 Italia with custom paint and wheels. The video above shows him hold up traffic when approached by a man recording his brash driving. We'll let you watch the video and make up your own opinion.

2013 Hennessey Venom GT Gets More Power

Planning to buy a Hennessey Venom GT? 1200 hp not enough? If you answered yes to both those questions, do we have good news for you. For 2013, Hennessey will give the Venom GT more power and some design changes to the body to go along with it.

While power comes from the same twin-turbo aluminum 7.0 L (430 cu in) LS7 Twin Turbocharged V8 engine found in the 2012 Venom GT, it will be increased from an amazing 1200 hp (895 kW) to a jaw dropping 1500 hp (1118 kW). Enough power to get the car to 100km/h with Queen Latifa on board. Probably. Power will be send to the rear wheels via 6-speed Ricardo manual or if the customer wishes, Hennessey also offers a 7-speed paddle shift transmission.

Although official performance figures are yet to be released, more power always translates to better performance and this 300 hp increase should give the 2013 Venom GT a better power-to-weight ratio (more than 1 hp / kg). The 2012 Venom GT came with a kerb weight of 1,220 kg (2,685 lbs), does 62 mph (100 km/h) in 2.2 seconds and keeps going on to a top speed of 272 mph (440 km/h).

The Venom will retain its carbon fiber body and active rear wing that gives it the extra down force needed to put 1500 hp on to the road. New changes come in the form of cool new doors which will get a new design with dihedral hinges, a double bubble roof wich should allow for additional headroom, a new headlight design, a new exposed carbon fiber front air damn section, a new hood with the center arch removed and new side mirrors.

Cars Destroyed/Damaged by Hurricane Sandy

After the destructive Hurricane Sandy swept through city by city, the aftermath was very apparent. Major structual damage due to the flooding and high winds of the storm. Along with that, an estimated 200,000 cars were damaged reuslting in millions of dollars in loss. Which has taken a big hit on the automotive industry influencing higher sales prices on cars to make up for the loss. But one automaker took a big hit, Fisker. 15 000 brand new cars were at the New Jersey Port waiting to be distributed when the storm hit and resulted in a total loss. Amoung the 15 000, 320 of those were Fisker Karmas. At $100,000 a Karma, Fisker took a total loss of $32 million. This will hault production for Fisker and put major delay on getting them to there customers. Luckily all the 320 cars are covered by insurance. Gallery of cars damaged by Sandy after the jump.

Novitec Rosso Kits out Ferrari F12 Berlinetta

Novitec Rosso has a history of creating outrageous performance kits for Modena's finest and their new creation is the first performance package for the Ferrari F12 Berlinetta ever.

Lets get straight down to the engine. With a few tweakes here and there to the management of the F12's 6.2-liter V12, Novitec were able to churn out a total of 23 HP and 11 lb-ft of torque. Power is increased to 763 HP (561.5 kW) at 8,500 rpm, while the stock engine used to make 740 HP (545 kW). The torque has been boosted up from 509 lb-ft (690 Nm) to 518 lb-ft (703 Nm) at 6,300 rpm. On the road, these upgrades transilate to a new top speed of over 345 km/h (213 mph), 5 km/h up from the stock cars 340 km/h (211 mph) top speed.

Other upgrades for the Novitec Rosso F12 include new 21-inch front wheels cocooned by Pirelli 255/30 ZR 21 high-performance tires in the front and 22-inch alloys with 335/25 ZR 22 rubbers at the back. The whole car is also hunkered down a good 40mm thanks to sport springs while the front axle can be fitted with a lifting system that raises the front's car by up to 40mm so that you don't scrape your expensive front spliter on your driveway. New butterfly valves in the exhaust mean that the driver will be able to change the exhaust system's note to a sportier tune by using the steering wheel-mounted Manettino switch.

Novitec Rosso have also added that more engine upgrades and an aero kit are under development.