Saturday, November 29, 2014

Cadillac ATS coupe—ATC?


Move over upscale German compact luxury coupes, there's a new ride in town.
It's just a matter of time before Cadillac's newest star, the ATS sedan is given a coupe sibling. My version, above, is not the all-out dramatically styled geometric paragon of haute couture as is the larger CTS coupe. This ATS coupe, or ATC most likely, is a bit more "practical" in appearance, more akin to the 3 series, A5 and C Class coupes. Gently rounded lines first seen on the sedan are gently becoming the new Art & Science norm, with proportion and stance as much a part of the brand's DNA as is the overt angularity.

Update:


One of the great commenters over at CarSpyShots.com's Photoshop section, where I have been posting my car chops for years, suggested I increase the glass area of the coupe a bit. Since I had raised the beltline from the donor sedan, I lowered it back to production height to see how it looked. I'm torn. I always like my original intention, but I have no problems at all with the increased glass. I think it looks quite fetching, actually!

Mercury Hybrid Project

Back in early 2010 I was "desperately" trying to save Mercury in the only way I could: with renderings. It was my idea that Mercury could become FoMoCo's high-tech, hybrid division. Ford would be the mainstay bread-and-butter cars, the volume sellers, in a position it has held for more than 100 years. Mercury would be a step-up in price and features, but instead of just "fancy" upholostery, the drivetrains would have been exclusively hybrid and electric. The styling, inside and out, would be more contemporary and high-tech than Ford's more traditional looks. Lincoln would have been pushed further upscale, ensuring Ford's presence in the full luxury market. Alas, it wasn't meant to be. Mercury was dead not long afterwards. In all, I believe I created more than 40 Mercurys in about 2 years of trying to bring the marque back to relevancy. 

My first car was a '69 Comet sport coupe, the bottom-of-the-line pillarless coupe. It was nicely optioned though with 302 V8, power steering, power brakes, air conditioning and a power trunk opener. I'm not sure how many low-line Comets were equipped like that.

The renderings: 

Subcompact "B" market Comet sports hatch.
 Compact-sized Medalist sedan. "Medalist" was last used in the mid '50s by Mercury.
Slightly larger Marin sedan, a prototype to replace the then-current Milan, but...
 
... then I created this new Milan 4-door "coupe" which I preferred.
Sitting at the top of the Mercury heap would have been this Cyclone sedan, a full size hybrid sedan with supercar levels of power.

Moving to crossovers, this Villager would have anchored the compact segment ...
... and the Mountaineer would have elevated their top-shelf SUV to Range Rover levels of capability at Land Rover prices.

Audi Revisited



Until I can carve out a night to finish several chops I've started, how about some cool Audis from my past... Above, the first generation TT coupe reimagined with a larger glass area, smoothed contours and detailing and more ground clearance for true snow- and off-road capabilities. The better for those quick trips to Gstaad in the winter.

One of my early chops, but still one of my favorites, a mythical Bi-Turbo V12 hybrid mid-engined super saloon.


My futuristic third generation TT e/Tron, based on a recent concept car from Audi.


Audi really ought to have a large coupe to compete with the S Class coupe (CL). Above is my large 2-door A8L-c.

The Black Forest edition Avant. I will keep trying to get today's manufacturers to use micro-veneers until my Photoshop is taken away from me, lol.


Another of my very early chops, this Audi A6C was inspired by the large Italian luxury coupes of the seventies, such as the Fiat 130 and Lancia Gamma.

Mercedes 300 SL Gullwing Longroof




Looking through my earlier work, I realized I haven't yet posted this mid 1950s Mercedes Benz 300 Gullwing Tourer on this blog. I chopped this up in 2007 or so. All the cool people that collect station wagons these days refer to them as "Longroofs" and that's certainly true of my version. I don't believe this change would have added too much weight to the original coupe and with that rear hatch and additional loading space, might have made this incredible sports car just a bit more useful for Grand Touring.

The New Gullwing 


My primary reason for modifying the current SLS, the newest Gullwing, was to change the window graphic. The new one has a solid B/C pillar instead of having rear quarter windows as the original. I just don't think the car looks right without them. I'm sure the blank quarters add torsional rigidity, but I'm also certain that Mercedes/AMG engineers are brilliant enough to overcome any loss with added windows. Above, my "South Beach" edition is metallic gold with additional strakes and silver trim. You just can't be "bling" enough for South Beach! Below, additional work was done to shorten the very long hood. I wanted this Gullwing to be a hybrid, and to be as lightweight as possible to I changed the proportions accordingly. I still think it's a beautiful car and could be the Hybrid to end all Hybrids if produced.

Note:
My friend Woody Thompson's car site has a new URL now: woodyscarsite.blogspot.com. The old links won't work for it. Please adjust your bookmarks and head over there today!

Saturday, November 15, 2014

Jaguar XK-Series Car

2008 Jaguar XK-Series

2008 Jaguar XK-Series

Jaguar XK-Series
The 2008 XK-Series is a 2-door, 4-passenger luxury sports coupe, or luxury convertible, available in 4 trims,... read more ranging from the XK Coupe to the XKR Convertible.

Upon introduction, the XK Coupe is equipped with a standard 4.2-liter, V8, 300-horsepower engine that achieves 16-mpg in the city and 25-mpg on the highway. The XKR Convertible is equipped with a standard 4.2-liter, V8, 420-horsepower, supercharged engine that achieves 15-mpg in the city and 23-mpg on the highway. A 6-speed automatic transmission with overdrive is standard on both trims.

Hummer H3 Luxury Car

The Hummer H3 SUV is a vehicle for the Hummer division of General Motors in 2006 and based on the GMT355 Chevrolet Colorado GMC Canyon compact. GM currently produces in Shreveport, Louisiana, plant in Port Elizabeth in South Africa, the H3 is the smallest of the Hummer models, and the first to be built by GM. E 'is available in a traditional SUV or a pickup truck called AVerage

2009 Mercedes-Benz SL 63 AMG

2009 Mercedes-Benz SL 63 AMG

2009 Mercedes-Benz SL 63 AMG

2009 Mercedes-Benz SL 63 AMG

2009 Mercedes-Benz SL 63 AMG

2009 Mercedes-Benz SL 63 AMG

2009 Mercedes-Benz SL 63 AMG


2009 Mercedes-Benz SL 63 AMG

Chevy Malibu Car

Malibu is based on a revised version of the long-wheelbase Epsilon platform shared with the Saturn Aura, Opel Signum, and Pontiac G6. They met in Kansas City, with the Saturn Aura, and also in Lake Orion, Michigan, and the Pontiac G6. In general, is 3 inches (76 mm) and with a wheelbase is six inches (152 mm) longer. The inner chamber is of medium size like the previous Malibu, diminuéido and 101 million cubic feet (2.9 m3) to 97.7 cubic feet (2.8 m3), noNevertheless a longer wheelbase, although the front legs have grown by 41.9 in (1064 mm) 42 2 (1072 mm). the rear leg was reduced from 38.5 in (978 mm) to 37.6 in (955 mm) . The interior has been completely revised, with a selection of two-tone color combinations (and hence the brick bicolour), telescoping steering wheel, the quality of materials and design hottesa double . Drag (Cd) is 0.33


Chevy Malibu

Chevy Malibu

Chevy Malibu