Lamborghini Huracan GT3 2015

The 2015 Lamborghini Huracan has been assigned the near-impossible mission of replacing the mighty Gallardoas the company’s entry-level supercar. 

Before the 610-horsepower machines even began rolling off the Italian assembly lines, Lamborghini was already developing new, faster versions. 

First on its list was the 2015 LP620-2 Super Trofeo, the race car that comes with a one-make series of its own to displace the Gallardo’s. 

With the 2015 racing season just around the corner, the Italians revealed yet another iteration of the Huracan: the GT3. As the moniker suggests, we’re still in racing territory, but this time in a more disputed department — the Blancpain Series — in which Lamborghini faces competition from a handful of manufacturers, Audi andMcLaren included.

The brand-new race car comes to replace the Gallardo FL2 , the company’s sole offering for privateers in both the Blancpain Endurance and Sprint Series. 

Gentlemen racers, it’s time to grab your helmets, there’s a new kid in town!

Based on the road-going Huracan that arrived in 2014, the GT3 comes with all the goodies specific to an endurance race car, including an aggressive body kit, a stripped interior and a curb weight of only 2,731 pounds.

Updated: 01/21/2015 Lamborghini released the official details on the new Huracan GT3, which was unveiled at the company’s headquarters in Sant’Agata Bolognese. Click past the jump for the new details.

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Audi Wants RS Hybrids In The Next Generation

Last week in our coverage of the new 2016 Audi R8, you may have read a cryptic remark from Audi’s board member for technical development Ulrich Hackenberg, expressing his desire to see some level of electrification in every new Audi. 

It seemed a bit outlandish, at least for the company’s short-term product lineup, but now some new information has surfaced to back it up.

It looks like Audi’s high-performance RS range could embrace electrification soonish. Speaking with Top Gear at the launch of the new RS3, Quattro GmbH Technical Director Stephan Reil discussed the work his division has been doing with hybridization as a means to enhance performance, but his remarks suggest it could be a while longer before we see an RS e-tron.

“We know that it could give us more in terms of straight line performance," Reil told Top Gear. "But it is not just about straight-line performance. 

It is about performance in the bends, how it feels as well. At the moment there are more negatives than positives."

For Reil, another big hurdle is battery weight, but the more it’s reduced, the more likely an RS hybrid becomes. "The next generation will be very interesting," Reil said when discussing current battery tech. "They are getting smaller and lighter. We don’t rule it out."

The highly complex and expensive electronic wizardry needed to make these systems work makes sense for the current crop of hypercars — Ferrari LaFerrari, McLaren P1 andPorsche 918 — but we’re still a few years away from seeing it in mainstream performance cars. 

Current rumors suggest you’ll be able buy a next-generation R8 with internal combustion or electric power, but not both.

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Chevrolet Malibu 2016

The beginnings of the Malibu name are tied to that of theChevrolet Chevelle , as the former was a range-topping trim level of the latter from 1964 to 1977. 

Featuring added luxury and the same powerful V-8s as the Chevelle, the Malibu went on to become the best-selling badge in the lineup by 1978, when it received its own model line. 

Although dropped in 1983, the moniker returned in 1997 and soldiered on through 2012, when the eighth-generation model was launched on GM’s Epsilon II platform, shared with the Buick LaCrosse andRegal . 

The new Malibu became a global vehicle, receiving a host of four-cylinder and V-6 engines, as well as three different transmissions. 

Although criticized for offering less legroom than its competitors, the eighth-gen Malibu was praised for its upscale interior design and smooth and quiet ride. 

Nearly three years old as of 2015, the current Malibu is set to receive a comprehensive redesign for the 2016 model year, one which promises to bring significant improvements inside and out.

You are going to be blown away styling-wise," Mark Reuss, GM’s executive vice president of global product development, told Edmunds at the 2015 Detroit Auto Show 

without going into specifics. "I think it is more true to what Chevrolet should be. 

Think about Impala . It’s not luxury , but it is more than what you thought you would get for that price. That is what Chevrolet should be and you will see that in the (redesigned) Malibu," he added.

GM’s decision to overhaul the Malibu just a little more than three years since the current model debuted is not at all surprising. With competitors like the Toyota Camry , Honda Accord or the Ford Fusion around, the eighth-gen Malibu has been struggling sales-wise ever since it arrived into dealerships in 2012. 

Details are still being kept under wraps as of January 2015, but GM vice president of global design Ed Welburn disclosed a few details about the upcoming Malibu. Keep reading to find out more about that.

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Land Rover Discovery Sport 2016

It took months of rumors, spy shots, speculation and leaks, but the newest member of the Land Rover family is finally official and we have all the details. Say hello to the Land Rover Discovery Sport. 
Much like the Range Rover Sport , the new Discovery Sport is a smaller and faster version of a car that wears a similar name. It has an all-new design that is very similar to the Discovery Vision Concept that bowed earlier this year. 

The new model is loaded to the gills with new technology, and it features some of the nicest design touches ever fitted to a Discovery.

To make the most of this new, stylish shell, the engine and modern nine-speed ZF automatic transmission from the Range Rover Evoque are combined with an advanced AWD system to create a dynamic and capable machine.

If you want to know all the exact details like horsepower, ride height and available extras just click through to read our full coverage. 

We even have a whole collection of nice high-res photos to go with it. Enjoy.

Updated: 01/22.2015 Land Rover announced full pricing details on the new Discovery Sport which is now available at U.S. dealerships. 

The model is offered in three trim levels: SE, HSE, and HSE Luxury. The base SE carries an MSRP of $38,920 including destination.

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Lexus GS450h - Driven 2014

“Sport” and “hybrid” aren’t often found in the same sentence when talking about anything this side ofMcLaren, Porsche, and BMW, but Lexus makes that claim with its second-largest luxury sedan. 

Things gets plausible when considering the GS450h comes with 338 horsepower thanks to a 3.5-liter V-6 and a pair of electric motors – all of which power the rear wheels.

Despite not coming equipped with the optional F Sport package, the G450h still comes with an adjustable suspension and various drive settings that allow for a range of driving feels, spanning from Eco to Normal and Sport to Sport+. Even the gauge cluster modifies itself to suit the mood – switching from an eco gauge to a full tachometer.

You may recall our own Christian Moe’s review of the GS450h back in the fall.

He walked away pleasantly surprised at the car’s ability to coddle occupants in luxury while getting decent mileage with horsepower in reserve. 

Surprisingly his tester and mine came equipped with exactly the same options, even down to the paint color. 

Only eight GS sedan separated our cars on the assembly line as the VINs were only separated by a factor of 10.

While Moe has the beauty of curvy back country roads snaking through the hills of East Tennessee, I make use of near sea-level lands in central Florida. 

Would the scenery and altitude change the GS450h’s behavior? How well does a child seat fit in the back? 

Two questions among many I aimed to answer during my week with one of Lexus’ premiere hybrids.

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Porsche Panamera Goes Winter Testing

With winter having taken over northern Europe for a few months now, several manufacturers have already traveled to freezing Sweden for cold weather testing. 

It turns out Porsche is one of them, as the German automaker shipped the upcoming 2018 Panamera to Scandinavia for some proper snow flogging. 

The new sports sedan comes to replace the first-gen Panamera, a four-door that’s seven years old. Porsche has been working on it for more than two years now, with the first prototypes showing up on public roads in early 2014. 

The second-gen Panamera, which is set to arrive for the 2016 model year, is in for significant changes inside and out, as well as under the hood.

Some alteration have been kept well hidden under the mule’s heavy camouflage, but this new test car tells another story as it’s being pushed to the limit through Sweden’s wintery landscape. 

Various body parts are now visible for the first time, revealing intriguing details never before seen on the Panamera. Keep reading to find out what this test car has to say about the upcoming second-generation sedan.

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Chevrolet Silverado Midnight Edition 2015

General Motors is diving deep into the trendy “murdered-out” market these days, especially in the truck segment. Well, Chevrolet has just announced its new Midnight Edition – an all-black sport version of the Silverado. 

Thankfully this special edition actually adds more than just some swanky paint, unlike the GMC Sierra Elevation Edition. 

This Silverado comes packed with all the fixin’s from the Z71 off-road package, plus some meaty Goodyear Wrangler Duratrac tires not otherwise found on GM trucks.

As the name suggests, the Midnight Edition comes with a blacked-out grille, bumpers, wheels, mirror caps, door handles, and even bowties. 

The underlying Z71 package adds some desirable mechanicals like the upgraded suspension, Hill Decent Control, locking rear differential, skid plates, tow hooks, and the trailering package.

The Silverado Midnight Edition joins the ranks of theChevy Impala Midnight Edition, along with the GMC Canyon Nightfall Edition and the aforementioned Sierra Elevation Edition.

Chevrolet is offering the Midnight Edition on Double-Cab and Crew-Cab Silverado 1500s. Only 5,000 examples are set for production for the 2015 model year. 

Chevy is charging between $1,595 and $1,995 for the Midnight Edition, depending on the truck model.

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