2009 Saturn Sky Redline

Saturn is probably not the first, second or even on most people’s list of names when they think of sports cars.  But for a company that really makes little attempt to cater to the motor enthusiast (only 5000 are made), the Sky Redline is a respectable junior member of the affordable roadster club along with sister model, the Pontiac Solstice and the Mazda MX-5.

Pontiac Solstice-Mallet "Pitbull Edition"

Perhaps more frustrating than any of the financial troubles at the world’s biggest automaker are its ho-hum production of loads of unappealing vehicles  (Insert anything made by Buick here).  Which along with nagging questions of build quality is a big reason for that financial trouble.  However, one bright spot has been the Pontiac Solstice, the 2-seater convertible that has sold well since it was introduced in 2004.  Even as successful as the Solstice has been, is there still room for improvement?  The folks at Mallet Cars thinks so.  The more important question at Mallet is whether there is room for a bigger engine.

The Bond movies have always had three or four staple ingredients that James simply can not operate without, exotic locations, weird and wonderful gadgets, at least a couple of half naked girls, and the cars.

Each of the Bond’s has been linked in the mind of fans with one dream car, even if they drove several different vehicles during their reign as Bond. Here is a list of all of the movies and Mr Bond’s memorable transportation in each movie.

We’ve been hearing a whole lot about the Tesla Roadster lately. It’s the 100% electric car that can go 220 miles on a single charge of it’s super fantastic lithium ion battery pack and can accelerate from 0-60 mph in 3.9 seconds. It’s totally awesome. Sounds great, except for the fact that they cost $100k. Still, as far as supercars go, it’s fairly cheap.

That’s great and all, but where’s the mainstream 100% electric Civic and Focus and cheap commuter car?

…But a rather quiet “God of Thunder” ThoRR has become (comic book reference… could not resist).

Evisol is yet another Scandinavian company that is looking to provide EV solutions to the growing problem of global high fuel costs. Unlike like the Norwegian company TH!NK that is bringing cost effective budget rides to North America this Fall, the Netherlands based Evisol is dishing out a bit more wind-in-the-face fun with their all electric ThoRR roadster.

Inspired in design by the Lotus 7 roadster chassis the ThoRR roadster is what a primitive roadster is all about, except it derives its motive power from electric motors fueled by lithium batteries and not V8 engines fed on gasoline. The electric powered motors give the ThoRR a rather ominous, erie quiet as it propels down the road (as evidenced in the video that follows).

We use the term primitive because the ThoRR roadster does not have any of the refined attributes of cars today. The concept behind the ThoRR roadster is simplicity, but it is best described on the website itself:   “This concept stands for high performance through simplicity and light weight. Because of the absence of ABS, power assisted braking, power assisted steering, any form of sound absorption, even a roof and a windshield, only the basics of a car remain.” [ThoRR.eu]

That simplicity holds true when you look at the weight of the car and its maximum power output.

If you are in the UK walking near a race course and suddenly hear the stirring of giant bee’s do not be afraid. It just means that sales for the new Caterham Seven Superlight R500 are doing well and some UK racers are receiving a temporary facelift and a lot of thrills.

Caterham has upped the ante with their latest Seven series that builds off the earliest racing roadsters influence, but with more grunt, punch and far lighter materials. With the Superlight R500 they have added even more carbon fiber and Kevlar to shave off even more weight from the car. For the 2.0 Ford Durtec engine and its 263 horses and 177 ft lbs of torque that results in a 0-60 time of 2.88 seconds. With a horsepower to weight ratio of 520-hp to 1 (coming in at 516kg, or 1,116-lbs) the new Seven is the purpose driven open-cockpit track dragon many racers have been waiting for.
…Check out the Offical Press Release and gallery after the leap…

If you have been itching for a brand new roadster on a budget and would like to feel the wind in your hair without the fear of your hat or toupee launching into space then the 2010 Pontiac Solstice Coupe might be just the ticket. With the Solstice Coupe and its Targa top you have the enjoyment of the elements while still having a bit of coupe to catch your wind-blown possessions. The coupe also provides owners the added advantage of a foot or two of more cargo space. Weekend getaways involving luggage is not what the Solstice was built for.

Much as BMW has done by offering their Z4 in both Coupe and Roadster form (that’s right! Who is the gutsy man to compare a BMW to a Pontiac? Mu-ha-ha-ha!), Pontiac looks to expand the marketability of their roadster by bringing it out in Coupe form. However, the Pontiac completes the package with the potential for wind shear from time to time and that might just make all the difference. …Or at least enough to sell a few more Solstice’s.

Mechanically the Coupe and Roadster forms of the 2010 Pontiac Solstice are identical and are unlikely to see any further changes. Pontiac will likely ride these little Roadsters out for a while before something new and maybe exciting is designed to replace it. Since being allocated from the GM adult table over to the kiddy table it seems unlikely that Pontiac will be bringing much more “excitement” to the family banquet than they already have.    …Follow the link for the Solstice Coupe Gallery…

After much consternation, legal wrangling, corporate in-fighting and upheavel, and transmission troubles the Tesla Roadster has reached its self-imposed benchmark of going into full production on March 17th. That does not mean they have reached full-capactiy on their production line, but at least it is a start. For those who have plunked down their $10,000 or better down payment on the all new EV Roadster this is the news they have been waiting and watching for.

The news of Tesla production implementation comes straight from the corporate blog of Ze’ev Drori himself, Tesla’s President and CEO. According to his own report the very next step for Tesla will be expanding its own Sales and Service capacity. Currently they have two sales & service locations in the works: Los Angeles and Menlo Park. So if you are on the East Coast it might be best if you just do not have any problems with your Tesla automobile.

If the news of the Tesla Roadster reaching production excites you enough now to want to purchase one for yourself then you will have to get in line. This years full production quotient has already been spoken for. But if a 2009 model sounds appealing to you then by all means give them a call.

The production goal for Tesla will be 100 cars a month, but at the moment they are squeaking out around 5 a week. According to prior reports it is still a learning process, the whole car assembly line, for them and for the Tesla Roadster and it is in everyone’s best interest if they get it right the first time. At this small a production schedule recalls really are not an option and could be devastating to the new, small car company.

Source[Tesla]

After being introduced in 2006 the Morgan AeroMax is all prepped and ready for production. Based off the Morgan Aero8 chassis and sharing many physical attributes with the classic based roadster, the AeroMax bring a non-classified coupe design into the Morgan line-up. And do not let those classic lines fool you as this roadworthy rocket is built to move.

Spinning the rear wheels of the Morgan AeroMax is a BMW 4.6 liter V8 that pounds out 367-hp. That is enough power to propel the lightweight body of ash wood and aluminum from zero-to-62 in 4.2 seconds and up to a top speed of 170 mph. However, with an eye toward the environment, possibly from their work on the hybrid based LifeCar Concept, Morgan has been able to restrict the toxic emissions of the AeroMax to 267 g/km. While those are not PZEV numbers they outshine most any other sportscar with the same performance numbers.

Morgan has scheduled a production run of 100 of the split rear-window coupes and to show their is a loyal Morgan following all AeroMax vehicles have been spoken for. They are however building a secondary list of potential buyers in case anyone of the 100 buyers with money down backs out of their purchase. If you hurry, maybe you can join them on the “could’a had one” list.    …Photo Gallery to follow after link…

As American auto manufacturers revive their muscle car days with heavy V8 engines and late 60’s styling there are a few groups across the pond in Europe that are dipping a bit further back into their heritage. Classically styled roadsters like the Wiesmann GT and the Morgan Aero 8 are an expression of a time when the 2-seater ruled. However, a couple of these roadsters are not just reworking their classic lines but also the power that moves them. The Imperia GP Hybrid is doing just that.

The Imperia GP is the revival of a Belgian brand roadster that has been updated and married to a gasoline hybrid engine. The blend starts with a 2.0 liter V4 engine that produces 176-hp. The gasoline engine is then mounted to the hybrid engine that does have the ability to run on all EV mode, thus allowing the gasoline engine to recharge the batteries. The Imperia GP is also a plug-in hybrid that can be fully recharged in 4 hours.

The Imperia GP at heart is still a sportscar and in all EV mode it has the capacity to reach 0-to-100 km (62 mph) in 4.8 seconds. While in regular driving mode with the gasoline engine the Imperia GP reaches that same speed in 7.1 seconds. Ofcourse, speed is not everything (*wink wink). The V4 gasoline engine of the Imperia GP produces a mere 87g/km of CO2, while obviously producing zero emissions during all EV mode.
…Video and Photo Gallery to follow…