Proton builds itself a Mitsubishi Evolution

The Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution is such a good car, it seems that Malaysian automaker Proton decided it ought to offer a version of its own. Sort of. While the company’s Jebat Concept, which was just shown off at the Kuala Lumpur Motor Show, is styled to look like the Evolution, it’s actually powered by the 237-horsepower, 2.0-liter turbocharged mill used in the slightly less potent Ralliart model.

Nobody seems to know at the moment if the Jebat Concept has any shot at production, but its existence isn’t all that surprising considering that Proton just recently launched the Inspira, itself an almost exact copy of the standard Mitsubishi Lancer. In any case, it’s clearly differentiated from its siblings by virtue of its matte black front and rear fascias and side sills, along with a Proton-specific grille. See for yourself in the image gallery below.

2011 Dodge Challenger SRT8 dyno’d – is the 392 underrated?

Hemi. The mere mention of the word is enough to strike fear into the hearts of lesser powerplants… or at least images of a pair of scrubby-looking bottom-feeders that really love themselves some Ram Trucks. In any case, we’re keenly interested in the latest Hemi engine from the Dodge Boys, in this case displacing a heady 392 (or so) cubic inches and placed gently inside the engine bay of the 2011 Challenger SRT8.

Not only is this new Hemi larger than the already oversized version it replaces, it’s also considerably more potent. The Pentastar says that its new 392 kicks out 470 horsepower and 470 pound-feet of torque – substantial improvements over the outgoing SRT8′s 425 hp/420 lb-ft. But those are factory ratings, and we all know those don’t necessarily match what’s actually under the hood of production models.

Thankfully, the crew over at Inside Line managed to score enough time with a 2011 Challenger SRT8 to strap it down to a proper dyno. And the results? How about 452 horses at 6200 RPM and 443 lb-ft at 4400? Yep, that’ll do nicely, and it means that Dodge may actually be underrating its potent performer just a tad. Oh, and for what it’s worth, IL managed to record 370 horses and 343 lb-ft from its 2010 Chevrolet Camaro SS on the same exact dyno. Chevy’s answer ought to be coming in the form of a Z28 with over 500 supercharged ponies… Stay tuned, the horsepower wars are clearly still in full swing.

Tata Nano sales plunge to just 589 units

The Tata Nano was such a hot commodity when it entered the Indian market that Tata Motors felt compelled to hold a lottery to determine the first 100,000 customers. A reported 70,000 copies of the $2,500+ econobox have been sold to date, but November apparently didn’t budge that number much.

Bloomberg reports that only 589 Nano models were sold in November; a minuscule total for a mass-market car. Tata CEO Carl-Peter Forster reportedly blames a lack of financing options as the reason customers aren’t buying. Forster claims that the Nano is popular with customers who currently use a bike or motorcycle for transportation, and the feeling is that banks fear that extending a loan to a lower income buyer could bring increased risk of default.

But while bank loans are one problem, another issue could stem from the fact that the Nano has been in the news for catching fire. That’s definitely not a desirable feature, and we’re thinking that customers who plunk down their life savings for their first vehicle don’t want their low-cost car to turn into a pricey car-b-que. The ‘no loans’ theory sounds even less likely after hearing that overall Tata sales in November were 54,622, up one percent year-over-year. And the icing on the cake? Tata has also raised the price of the Nano twice over the past few months; $198 in October and four percent back in July. That’s about $300 more than the car sold for at launch.

Are you the 2012 Mercedes-Benz C-Class Coupe?

We’ve been told to expect to get our first glimpse of the next-generation Mercedes-Benz C-Class Coupe at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show in March, but a few photos of the German two-door may have leaked out ahead of time. The images you see above were sourced up by the team at GMotors. From what we can tell, the vehicle in the stylized photos lines up pretty well with the spy photos we’ve seen of the 2012 C-Class Coupe so far, which leads us to believe that this may actually be the real deal. If so, the new coupe will wear the new beak of its updated four-door compatriots.

That includes the new slightly restyled front fascia. Interestingly enough, this particular set of photos ditches the quad fog lights we saw in the spy photos in favor of LED units. we’d say that seems like a fairly reasonable change given the popularity of the diodes in automotive design at the moment. Word is that this particular machine will get the same rash of engines as the sedan, meaning that buyers can expect to get their hands on either a 3.0-liter V6 with 228 horsepower or a 3.5-liter six-pot with 268 ponies. The question is, will we get an entry-level four-cylinder model like the 2012 C-Class sedan? Something tells us we’ll know a little more as we get closer to Geneva.

Find of the Day: 1999 Sbarro GT1 show car

GT1 road cars are hard to come by. Manufacturers are required by some motorsport sanctioning bodies to homologate their racecars with production versions, but these often fetch millions of dollars and are only made in extremely limited quantities. All the more so for Sbarro’s GT1 show car.

Built to celebrate Mercedes’ victory at Le Mans in 1999, the GT1 is a one-of-a-kind (well, two of a kind if you could the twelve-cylinder GT12 that followed the next year) concept built using many Mercedes components. The biggest is the 7.4-liter V8 engine producing 450 horsepower – which may not seem like much for such a big engine, but a huge amount of power by any other measure… especially over a decade ago.

The engine sits as a stressed member of the competition-style chassis, with a composite monocoque acting as its centerpiece, propelling the GT1 to sixty in 4.9 seconds and on to a 200+ mph top end. The cabin features two seats moulded directly into the body and covered in Alcantara (the pedals adjust to compensate) and are accessed through gullwing doors – another Mercedes tribute. And of course the styling is pure Sbarro. But the best part is that this one-off is up for sale. A million euros is the asking price, and if you’re interested you can check out the listing here.

Popular Mechanics doles out its Top 10 Cars of 2011

As 2010 draws to a close, it’s time for different publications to start dishing out the numerous “car of the year” awards that highlight the best and brightest offerings for each new model year. The folks at Popular Mechanics have just released their Top 10 Cars for 2011, with American manufacturers (Ford, specifically) taking away the vast majority of top honors. Add General Motors and Chrysler to the mix, and the Big Three account for six of the ten vehicles on Popular Mechanics‘ list.

Ford’s Mustang, Fiesta and F-250 Super Duty were all recognized as class-leaders for the 2011 model year. Across town, the new Cadillac CTS Coupe and Chevrolet Volt were given a hat tip from the editors, as was the Jeep Grand Cherokee, one of parent company Chrysler’s big comebacks for the year 2011. The remaining awards were given to the Hyundai Sonata, Toyota Sienna, Lotus Evora and Infiniti M, all of which are fantastic cars in their own rights.

To see which cars were honored for each category, you can scroll through our image gallery of the winners, or hit the jump to read the official press release. Look for the full story in Popular Mechanics’December issue, which hits newsstands on November 12.

GAZ Siber to switch from Chrysler Sebring to MB E-Class?!

Russian automotive manufacturer GAZ is being courted by a number of handsome suitors, according to Inside Line. While the company currently produces the Volga Siber at its Gorky Automobile plant, there’s some indication that Daimler may want the facility to switch to building the Mercedes-Benz E-Class. The move would kinda sorta be an all-in-the-family affair as the Siber is currently built off of the old Chrysler Sebring platform. With Chrysler out of Daimler’s portfolio and Mercedes-Benz looking to take the Russian assault to its rival BMW, the move would make plenty of sense. It would also seem to be a rather large step up from its current configuration.

The thing is, GAZ has also been spending late nights on the phone with the likes of Tata to produce that company’s Indicar. At the same time, General Motors has been wooing Tata to manufacture any number of its vehicles. At this point, it’s anyone’s guess as to which company will win the GAZ plant’s heart, but Inside Line seems to think that GM has the best bet out of the field of potentials. The reason? Bo Anderson, the new chairman of GAZ, used to be the head of worldwide purchasing for The General. How’s that for a love trapezoid?

Cobra Suzuki SX4

Cobra came out with a couple of “off-road looking” accessories for Suzuki’s compact crossover that include a stainless-steel front guard and sill guards. The German based tuner also offers three different set of alloys for the SX4. Sorry to say this but even with these accessories the SX4 still looks utterly dull. Pity, cause design and limited boot-space apart, it’s a real honest and enjoyable proposition in the compact car segment. 

Press Release: To make the front of the Japanese Cross-Over from compact car and SUV even more striking Cobra Technology & Lifestyle offers a high-gloss stainless-steel front guard with a tube diameter of 60 millimeters. This accessory part successfully passed the crash test which is necessary to meet all current EG guidelines for pedestrian protection. The part, which has flexible mounts and is designed to absorb energy, comes with an EG operation certificate, eliminating the need for a technical inspection and for amending the vehicle papers.

Additionally the Suzuki can be refined with a bumper grate made from high-gloss stainless steel. The exactly fitting and easy-to-mount accessory can be alternatively mounted with or without the Cobra Technology & Lifestyle front guard. The Cobra Technology & Lifestyle 60 millimeter stainless-steel tubular sill guards with integrated step are attractive and practical since they also facilitate entering and exiting the vehicle. They also round out the Off Road look.

The tire/wheel combinations from Cobra Technology & Lifestyle are custom-tailored for all versions of the Suzuki SX4: Altogether there are three different wheel designs in sizes ranging from 7.5Jx16 to 8Jx17. The most exclusive wheel is the multi-piece Cobra Grenada five-spoke wheel in size 8Jx17 with 225/45 R 17 tires.