Nissan sportscars – the Z included – are a popular base for tuners, so it should come as no surprise that, with the newly revised 370Z just revealed, the JDM aftermarket is already lining up with their range of extras. Next up to bat is Branew, the Japanese tuner whose GT-R we spotted at SEMA wearing giant 23-inch rims.

The Branew 370Z offers a remapped ECU, tightened suspension and upgraded brakes, as well as an aero package complete with front spoiler, side skirts, rear diffuser and wing. A variety of wheel options in various unreasonable sizes are also expected to be offered when Branew unveils the full package in January at the Tokyo Auto Salon. In the meantime, you can check out the pair of images in the gallery below.

[Source:Autoblog]

It’s no secret that Hyundai’s big push upmarket has come at a difficult time. With monthly sales plummeting and available loan capital shrinking, the Genesis sedan has seemingly picked an inopportune moment to roll onto America’s bloodied dealership forecourts. In spite of this, the Korean automaker expects for sales to surge by 4 percent in 2009. Part of that increase will be on the back of inexpensive models like the new Elantra Touring, but the Genesis sedan will also have to carry some water for the automaker.

All of which has us wondering… how are sales of the Big Hyun going so far? Well, according to a new article by MediaPost, pretty darn well. The marketing publication interviewed the company’s U.S. vice president of marketing, Joel Ewanick, and while he acknowledges the tough sales environment, he builds a pretty compelling case.

Among them: Over the past 90 days, the Genesis has sold “at or near objectives” and the company considers its performance to be “a very healthy launch.” The sedan went on sale in July, and dealers have shifted 5,127 units thus far, including 1,151 last month. Ewanick notes that fully 90 percent of all Genesis buyers are originating outside of the brand, including 40 percent that “have traded in vehicles like Lexus, BMW, Mercedes, and Porsche.” In addition, the Hyundai veep believes that the Genesis has helped contribute to brand-building, citing awareness and consideration figures that have jumped 25 percent in 2008 alone.

Judging by Ewanick’s remarks, while the Genesis sedan may not be blowing out initial sales projections, it is performing solidly. Perhaps a down economy is exactly the right sandbox for the value-conscious Genesis to play in after all.

[Source: MediaPost]

The Lotec Sirius has been around since the early 2000s after former Group C2 champion Kurt Lotterschmid vowed to create a supercar capable of taking on the best from Italy and beyond. The original car was motivated by a twin-turbocharged 6.0-liter V12 supplied by Mercedes-Benz and put out between 850 and 1,200 hp depending on the spec. After a few hard years and several production delays, Lotec plans to release an updated Sirius in 2009 and has previewed the new supercar in a series of renderings.

Power output is likely to be down from the previous model due to the V12′s lack of availability, but the tubular steel frame and carbon fiber body will remain, allowing the Sirius 2.0 to tip the scales at just over 3,000 pounds, despite being equipped with power steering and air conditioning. Performance should be on par with the outgoing model, with a claimed 0-62 mph sprint of 3.8 seconds, the run to 120 done in under eight seconds and a supposed top speed of 242 mph. Considering the difficulties Lotec has faced in the past, we doubt we’ll see the new Sirius on a stand at any international show, but we can hope for an appearance in Geneva.
[Source:Autoblog]

Kelley Blue Book has released its year-end statistics of the most-researched new vehicles on its website, and import models have dominated the rankings yet again. Honda and Toyota are the big winners here, with the Civic and Accord earning the top 2 top spots overall and Toyota grabbing an entire half of the top ten with Nissan and Mazda each sneaking in a lone model to round it out.

Interestingly, the Ford F-150, Chevrolet Silverado and Dodge Ram (in fact, there are no Chrysler products listed at all) are conspicuously absent from the top 20, despite selling in huge quantities. We know that pickup buyers tend to be extremely loyal shoppers, but the lack of trucks still strikes us as a bit odd.

There were a few bright spots for the U.S. Domestic automakers, including the Ford Escape, which has been completely gone through over the past two model years and is the most-searched American car on KBB and the Chevy Malibu, which is the most-viewed American sedan. Also performing fairly well was the Mustang, a car that’s perennially on the wish-lists of gearheads all over the country. See the entire top 20 “Most Searched” cars from KBB after the break and be sure to check out our gallery of the top ten below.

Source: KBB via LA Times]

PRESS RELEASE:

Kelley Blue Book Names Most-Researched New Vehicles of 2008

Chevrolet Malibu, Toyota Yaris, Honda Fit, Volkswagen Jetta Make Impressive Jumps into Top 20 for 2008

IRVINE, Calif., December 29, 2008: Kelley Blue Book, the leading provider of new- and used-vehicle information, today announces the most-researched new cars of 2008 on the company’s top-rated Web site, www.kbb.com. The year 2008 marks the third consecutive year that Kelley Blue Book’s kbb.com saw greater than 140 million unique visitors, with more than half of all online vehicle shoppers visiting kbb.com. Because kbb.com is one of the most trafficked automotive research sites, visitation to specific vehicles has become a leading indicator of sales patterns for manufacturers.

Kbb.com’s Most-Researched New Vehicles of 2008

1. Honda Civic
2. Honda Accord
3. Toyota Camry
4. Toyota Corolla
5. Nissan Altima
6. Honda CR-V
7. Toyota Prius
8. Toyota Highlander
9. Toyota RAV4
10. Mazda3
11. Toyota Yaris
12. Ford Escape
13. Honda Odyssey
14. Honda Pilot
15. Honda Fit
16. Ford Mustang
17. Chevrolet Malibu
18. Toyota Sienna
19. MINI Cooper
20. Volkswagen Jetta

“The site traffic on Kelley Blue Book’s kbb.com demonstrates what is on the minds of today’s new-car shoppers, especially when examining the most-researched new-vehicles of 2008,” said Jack R. Nerad, executive editorial director and executive market analyst for Kelley Blue Book and kbb.com. “Continued interest in Honda and Toyota, Chevrolet’s home-run Malibu redesign and an increase in visits to more fuel-efficient, economical vehicles is an accurate reflection of the marketplace in 2008.”

Import manufacturers Honda and Toyota frequently dominate the kbb.com most-researched lists, and while they still have a major turnout for 2008 (nabbing 13 of the top 20 spots), this year’s list demonstrates that other manufacturers and vehicles also have now made their mark in the minds of consumers in 2008.

Many vehicles made noteworthy jumps into the top 20 most-researched new vehicles for 2008 that were not on the list in 2007. Chevrolet’s all-new redesigned Malibu made the most impressive leap, jumping 55 places from last year’s rank at 72 to this year’s rank at 17. Also new to this year’s top 20 are the Honda Fit (last year ranked 35, this year 15), the Toyota Yaris (last year ranked 23, this year 11) and the Volkswagen Jetta (last year ranked 25, this year 20).

The year’s roller-coaster fuel prices reflect many shifts in the 2008 list versus last year’s list in 2007, with smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles seeing more traffic than in years past. In addition to the inclusion of subcompacts such as the Honda Fit and Toyota Yaris on this year’s list, other fuel-efficient vehicles gaining positions in the top 20 include this year’s number-one vehicle the Honda Civic, as well as the Toyota Corolla, Toyota Prius, Mazda3 and Ford Escape. Toyota’s Camry and Honda’s Civic switched places in 2008 from last year, when Camry ranked No. 1 and Civic No. 3. The Toyota Corolla also switched places with the Honda CR-V when compared to last year, when Corolla was No. 6 and CR-V was No. 4, further indicating a shift toward more fuel-efficient vehicles.

When examining the data from a regional and state-by-state standpoint, domestic vehicles such as the Ford Escape and Chevrolet Malibu are much more popular in their home-state of Michigan, ranking at No. 4 and 5, respectively.

The Honda Civic, Honda Accord and Toyota Camry (in varying orders each year) have been the top three most-researched new-vehicles on kbb.com each year since 2004.

[Source:Autoblog]

GMAC is officially opening up lending to buyers with credit scores of 621 or higher after a $5 billion investment from the federal government. A credit score of 621 is considered by some lenders to be the Mendoza line that separates good borrowers from the subprime. The financing arm of General Motors, which is majority owned by Chrysler’s sugar daddy, Cerberus Capital Management, had been crippling the automaker’s ability to sell cars and trucks after declaring in October only customers with credit scores of 700 or better would be lent to. The money that’s greasing the gears here comes from the $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program and is separate from the $13.4 billion that GM received from the government to avoid bankruptcy. The investment by the fed should allow GM to sell more vehicles than it has during a dismal fourth quarter that’s seen sales drop by 40% or more.

The government also gave GM an additional $1 billion to participate in a rights offering at GMAC connected to its reorganization as a bank holding company. And GMAC also announced that it raised enough capital in a debt swap to satisfy federal requirements. Executive compensation was also cut, as a pool of bonus funds was reduced 40% versus 2007 levels. Thanks for the tip, Jack!

[Source: Automotive News, sub. req'd, Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty]

Extending the controversy between Tesla Motors and Top Gear even further, Jeremy Clarkson has offered his own opinion regarding the issues of the Roadster’s battery capacity and brake failure while being run ’round the Top Gear test track. Remember that the BBC already admitted that neither of its test cars actually ran out of juice, suggesting that the scene was filmed to show what would happen if it actually had. Clarkson’s comments don’t quite jive with that assessment, though, as he says, “We never said once that the car had run out of power. The car had to be pushed into the warehouse because you are not allowed to drive cars into a building. We calculated that it would have run out of power after 53 miles but they can’t argue with that because that is a fact.”

One area on which we agree with Clarkson is that it doesn’t matter why the Roadster’s brakes failed. Clarkson says, “Nobody gives a flying **** how the brakes failed. Whether it was a blown fuse or not, they were still not working.” On the other hand, whether the now infamous scene of the electric car being pushed into a garage was to show what would happen in the event of a drained battery or because Clarkson wasn’t allowed to drive it into the building (seriously, when did that ever stop them?), that image is now indelibly etched into the minds of Top Gear fans, for better or for worse. Thanks for the tip, Doug!

[Source:Autoblog]

A busted car theft ring has turned up a vintage Cadillac once owned by one of the Magnificent Seven. The five-finger-discount drivers out of Colorado, headed by Jeffrey Earle Piper, would steal expensive rental cars, change their VIN numbers and “sell” them. The new “owner”, who was in on the whole thing, would then report “his” car stolen and collect on the insurance policy. One of the cars found among the loot: a $133,000 1959 Cadillac – looks like a Series 62 convertible – that once belonged to Steve McQueen. It’s other claim to fame: a guest spot on the TV show MacGuyver. The mystery we’re still trying to solve is which one of its owners put the Yeti pelt over the driver’s seat? Hat tip to Derek!

[Source: Denver Post]