After stepping out with their first supercar at the Tokyo Auto Show in 2007, a left hand drive version of the Mitsuoka Orochi is ready to stretch its wheels beyond the borders and across the Sea of Japan. But do not get your hopes up Americans, as so far the plans are only for a few particularly wealthy countries in the Middle East and Thailand.

The Orochi was originally built and sold just in Japan, but after being approached by a wealthy collector out of Qatar Mitsuoka decided to engineer the Orochi for sale outside of Japan. Hmmm… I wonder what kind of persuasion was used by said wealthy tycoon from Qatar? Other Middle Easter countries to receive the LHD Orochi are Jordan and the United Arab Emirates.

The grinning snakes head front end of the Orochi is certainly a unique design, if not slightly cartoonish. It does maintain a sleek performance appearance housed around a questionable Toyota 3.3 liter V6 powerplant. However, with light-weight construction there may be plenty to surprise from the mid-engined Orochi. It would fit right in with what the Wachowski Brothers are using in the latest Speed Racer Movie.

Be sure to check out the Photo Gallery and Video footage of the Orochi after the leap.

Following its official debut in Geneva the Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4 has given its next stage performance at the New York Auto Show. While using the original 5-year old, and top selling, design of the Gallardo as an influencing template Lamborghini set off to make an all new car that would result in an all improved Gallardo LP560-4. The wider rear and lowered snout combining with the minimalist lines of the shell of the Gallardo LP560-4 do nothing to reveal the new chassis, new engine and all new 4 wheel drive transmission.

The number signature of the Gallardo LP560-4 seem a bit odd for Lamborghini but they are directly derived from the specs. from the car. The “LP” comes from the “Longitudinal Posterior” of the rear engine. The “560″ comes directly from the number of horses being produced by the new 5.2 liter V10 engine. The “-4″ represents the number of wheels being turned by the four-wheel drive transmission of the car. Rather than change the name from a model that has sold 7100 vehicles from the Lamborghini factories, and since Gallardo-2 or Gallardo “The Next Generation” are a bit cheeky, the designation LP560-4 must have seemed simple enough.

However, tucked within the details provided by Lamborghini in their Official Press Release is the secret detail that will be sending this Gallardo LP560-4 flying out of the factories. With their new V10 and despite a 3.2 second zero-to-sixty-two rating, the Gallardo LP560-4 has reduced its Carbon emissions by 18% from its prior model. That gives the Gallardo LP560-4 a CO2 rating of 327 g/km with the paddle shifters or 351 g/km with the manual transmission. ….Okay, so they are not Prius numbers, but what could you expect?

For more details on the Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4 check out the full photo gallery, the marketing video and the very lengthy and extensive Official Press Release provided by Lamborghini that follows.

Far from just riding the tide of the small roadster set the Artega GT exemplifies what a speedy smaller coupe can be. With handling and performance as its primary objective and a stylish design by Henrik Fisker. At this weeks Geneva Auto Show attendees are able to bear witness to the final production version of the Artega GT as they are now ready to fill orders for the sports coupe.

Punching the clock at 300-hp the rear-engined 3.6 liter Volkswagen engine is expected to give a zero-to-sixty time under five seconds. With its thick shark-like front end, very reminiscent of the Porsche Boxter, and its slicked-back tear drop windows the lines of the Artega GT give you a direct impression of where it expects the wind to go. The Artega GT hides no secrets… nor does it hide much luggage.

The only available storage space is the area behind the seats and accessed via the cabin. From the Artega site you can see that there is space enough for one bag of golf clubs. While that is truly enough space for two weekend getaway bags, totting around the belongings of its occupants is obviously not the main objective of the roadster-esque two-seater.                   …Photo Gallery to follow…

What might be the oldest roadster builder in the world is looking to tackle the greatest hurdle existing today in the auto industry. But they are not only looking to prove it can be done.  They want to show that a car producing zero emissions can still give rise to an exciting auto that is a thrill to drive.
The Morgan LifeCar is a fuel cell hybrid sportscar that is getting ready to be presented at the Geneva Auto Show. The design of the car is based off of Morgan’s more modern roadster the Aero 8, but the whir beneath the bonnet is all new. In partnership with Morgan to make the LifeCar Concept possible are QinetiQ, OSCar and Oxford University.

The two more prevelant features of the Morgan LifeCar Concept are the ultra light weight chassis of the car and the hybridization built in. The propulsion system is based around a smaller hydrogen fuel cell that uses air that is pulled from around the car to be mixed and converted into electricity. Ultra light capacitors are designed to capture and store the excess electricity from the main unit and from the regenerative braking system, which will be used for acceleration.
The light weight chassis that houses the fuel cell hybrid system and the cars passengers is a key component in the LifeCar Concept. It allows for the use of less energy in acceleration and permits for he use of a smaller fuel cell. Combined they expect the Hybrid system and minimized weight of the car to reach a driving range of 200 miles. That is 200 miles of excited driving.  Gallery of Photos to follow