New Aston Martin Vantage GT4.

While a select group of the world�s rich and famous are looking forward to delivery of their custom Aston Martin One-77, race teams can now look forward to purchasing the new Aston Martin Vantage GT4 racecar, based on the new 4.7 liter V8 Vantage. This model succeeds the previous 4.3L Vantage N24 car.

The new Aston Martin Vantage GT4 is built to FIA GT4 specs and can compete in the following races: the FIA GT4 European Cup; British GT4 Championship; Britcar Endurance Series; German GT4 Championship; Dutch Supercar Challenge; Dutch GT4 Championship; VLN Endurance Championship at the Nurburgring; Australian Endurance Championship; the American SCCA Championship; and the Aston Martin Owners Club Race Series.

Other than the obviously larger engine, the car also gets larger front brake discs with revised cooling design and modified front uprights to give increased camber. The larger 4.7 liter V8 engine has had its ECU tuned for race use, and gets a free-flow exhaust system to let the V8 breathe and exhale without restriction. As the standard engine already has a dry-sump lubrication system to prevent oil surge during sideways motions, that is retained. Either a 6-speed manual or a Sportshift transmission can be specified.

At 1,330kg, the GT4 car is about 300 kilos lighter than the standard car, thanks to a range of weight reduction procedures which include stripping the interior bare of trim except for the fascia mounting which is rewrapped with Alcantara. The door and console casings have been replaced with new lightweight mouldings. Further race preparation include a high-strength steel rollcage, a Sabelt 6-point safety harness with a push-button release, a Lifeline Zero 360 gas fire extinguisher, and Recaro competition seats.

Also, all active safety systems are carried over from the road car - dynamic stability control, traction control, ABS and electronic brakeforce distribution, so that should help to keep the car out of trouble though like the road car, you can switch some of them off.

More images of the car available after the jump.

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Fisker Karma 260hp 2.0L turbo from GM.

The Fisker Karma is a plug-in hybrid luxury sports sedan, and was also the subject of controversy because Tesla accused Fisker Coachbuild of not doing a good job with the work it was contracted to do with the upcoming (and postponed) Tesla Model S sports sedan. Tesla has since dropped the lawsuit.

The Karma is an extended-range plug-in electric vehicle, which means its sole method of drive is its electric motor, which can take it up to 0 to 100km/h in a rapid-enough 5.8 seconds. But it also has a combustion engine, which was just recently announced this week to be GM�s inline-4 turbocharged direct injection Ecotec engine from the Pontiac Solstice GXP that can produce 260hp.

This engine�s sole purpose is to generate electricity to recharge the Karma�s batteries to extend the car�s 80km battery range. I�m not sure why such a high-powered engine is necessary for this, instead of a small displacement engine like GM�s own extended range plug-in, the Chevrolet Volt. Perhaps its because the li-ion batteries need to be recharged more rapidly because of the high power requirements of the electric motor.

�GM is proud that Fisker has selected one of the world�s best powertrains for installation into the new Karma. The advanced design of this engine offers a superior performance-to-weight ratio that makes it the right choice for the Fisker Karma,� said Tom Stephens, Executive VP of GM Powertrain & Global Quality.

Look after the jump for a gallery of the Fisker Karma.

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2010 Ford Mustang.

The world has much to thank Ford about when it comes to the new Ford Mustang. It�s the car that started the whole �retro-futurism� muscle car trend that gave us beauties like the new Transformers Chevy Camaro and the new Dodge Challenger.

This is the revised fifth generation Mustang, facelifted for the 2010 model year, which will go on sale in early 2009. You can have it in either 4.0 liter V6 or 4.6 liter V8 engines, with the former being from the Cologne engine family featuring an iron block with an aluminium SOHC head, 2 valves per cylinder, and a redline of 6,100rpm. Peak output is 210 horsepower at 5,300rpm and peak torque is 325Nm at 3,500rpm.

The V8 from the Ford Modular family is where it gets just a little more �exciting�: variable valve timing, all-aluminium and 3 valves per cylinder good for 300 horses at 5,750rpm and 434Nm of torque at 4,500rpm up to a redline of 6,250rpm. Both engines can be mated to either a 5-speed manual or a 5-speed automatic transmission.

The special limited edition Mustang Bullit will be continued with this facelift, with an additional 3,000 units planned to be added to the initial 7,700 unit number. This version features a slightly tuned up engine producing 315 horses and 440Nm of torque, and Ford also promises crisper throttle response and a higher redline of 6,500rpm.

The Mustang also gets a new glass-roof option priced at US$1,995 allowing you to enjoy the night sky without actually having to opt for the Convertible model.

Pay a visit to the photo gallery after the jump for high-res Mustang goodness.

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2010 Mazda 3 Hatchback.

A whole new batch of photos and a video with driving footage were released when the 2010 Mazda 3 hatchback was unveiled to the public at the 2008 Bologna Motor Show, so check them out after the jump.

A Bologna show means European specs, which is quite different from the American range which includes large engines such as the new 2.5 liter. The European engine range tops out at 2.0 liters with 150hp and 187Nm for petrol, but the most powerful engine is the 2.2 liter turbodiesel producing 185 horses and a strong 400Nm of torque at 1,800rpm. The baseline diesel is a 1.6 liter with 109 horsepower and 240Nm of torque, while the baseline petrol is also a 1.6 liter but makes less power - only 105 hp and 145Nm of torque.

The new batch of photos also reveal more about the interior. Check out how tiny that colour LCD display for the sat-nav map display is! Our version will probably get a regular monochrome LCD display though, as we always have most of the time.

Ssangyong C200 Concept.

The pretty decent-looking Ssangyong C200 Concept may not see the light of day if things go the way they are

The first manufacturer to hit the dust in this depressing economy could be Chinese-owned South Korean manufacturer Ssangyong. There is a whole list of problems right now happening with the company, which makes trucks and SUVs based on Mercedes-Benz technology, such as the Ssangyong Actyon SUT.

First of all, a huge amount of debt is goin to mature early this year, and Ssangyong needs a cash injection from its Chinese parent SAIC to be able to settle these debts. Things aren�t going that well for Ssangyong financially, as it recently posted its 4th consecutive quarterly loss of US$21 million.

But before SAIC injects any cash into Ssangyong, it wants to make sure the cash will be well-spelt. Ssangyong must restructe its worker union and lower labour costs, which as usual is rejecting any changes, just like their overpaid counterparts in Detroit. Understandable of course, who would want to be paid less in this already tough times, but it�s better to have a job that pays less than no job at all?

The workers union are also asking for the Chinese executives in Ssangyong to resign, obviously oblivious to the fact that a Chinese company owns them. SAIC is obviously not very happy about all of this at all, and there is talk that it may just pull out of Ssangyong and let it sink. Ssangyong has also tried to get aid from the South Korean government, but all it got was a response from the Ministery of Knowledge Economy that the government �is not planning direct financial support� for Ssangyong.

Rather than go into bankruptcy for debt restructuring, an unnamed official from the Korea Development Bank says that it would liquidate the company instead, but no firm decision has been made on this matter.