2012 Hyundai Veloster

n2a Motors 789 - A Corvette with Impala touches

What can you expect from an automaker that calls itself n2a, or No Two Alike? A very exclusive vehicle, no doubt about it. And what could be more exclusive than an automobile built over the Corvette C6 platform, but inspired by the 1957 Chevrolet Bel-Air and the 1958 and 1959 Chevrolet Impala? At this point, no answer would be easy, but we can provide the right one to you: look at the pictures on this article and consider yourself introduced to the n2a Motors 789.

The name of the car, 789, refers to the model years of the Chevrolet vehicles that inspired the creation of n2a. And you can spot the influences pretty easily. Check out the “hooded eyes” and the grille of the 1957 Bel-Air, the middle section and the tri-toned interior, typical of the 1958 Impala, and the rear end, a 1959 Impala key feature, with its”bird in flight” tailfins.

n2a promises its clients no car will be similar to any other, what will be easy to achieve, considering there are 10,000 different combinations for the interior, the paint schemes can be fully customized and that the company intends to produce only a limited series of 100 units. Although it appeals in a special way to classic car lovers, the 789 presents all the comfort and safety features modern vehicles offer. One of the most interesting ones is doubtlessly the V8 engine producing more than 400 hp. Since owners may choose whatever they want for the car, the LS9 engine from the ZR1 is also a possibility. What may not be accessible for most will be the price: US$ 135,000 for the “entry-level” turnkey 789.

Buick LaCrosse Eco-Hybrid

Shanghai GM, the Chinese arm of the (still) biggest automaker in the world, has announced its “Drive to Green” strategy in order to have a cleaner way of producing cars, as well as cars that pollute even less than the current ones. To prove wrong the ones that may think this is just a statement and nothing else, the company has also presented the first product from the strategy, the Buick LaCrosse Eco-Hybrid.

Capable of running 12 km/l of petrol, instead of the 10.2 km/l the regular version is able to achieve, the LaCrosse Eco-Hybrid is, according to Shanghai GM, the “first mainstream hybrid model in China’s upper-medium vehicle segment with volume production”. It offers almost an increase of 20% in fuel economy, but still nothing to be impressed with, especially considering the additional cost a hybrid vehicle offers. The real deal, the two-mode hybrid system, will be reserved to another vehicle, yet to be defined. Anyway, the fuel economy intended for this new product will be significantly better: 50%.

Besides the new cars, Shanghai GM has also announced three new engines for 2008. Although one of them is a total mistery (no information about it), the other two are the 1.2-liter S-TEC and the HFV6 3.6-liter SIDI dual mode direct injection engine, possibly the same one used on the Saturn Vue Green Line. The S-TEC generates 85.2 bhp and spend one liter of fuel every 16.7 km. As for the V6, its direct injection system enhances power and torque respectively in 15% and 8%. Fuel consumption is improved by 3%.

Bertone Reveals First Rescue Plans

Bertone Group’s fate has been given a direction last January 23, 2008, when Lilli Bertone and Domenico Reviglio, owner of the Gruppo Prototipo and turnaround specialist, finally signed a contract that will put Stile Bertone S.p.A., Bertone S.p.A. and Carrozzeria Bertone S.p.A under Reviglio’s control. According to the statement Bertone has released yesterday, 35% of the shares will remain in Ms. Bertone’s hands, while the other 65% will be assigned to Reviglio.

“I am fully satisfied with this agreement,” said Lilli Bertone: “It represents a fundamental starting point on the basis of which our work to kick start all our activities, from styling to production, can begin. I have fought long and hard for this result, and I have had to steer my way round a veritable obstacle course in the form of people pursuing interests that have nothing to do with the company’s industrial mission, completely ignoring the interests of the workforce, stirring up controversy for instrumental purposes, and exploiting the incomprehensible willingness of certain newspapers to publish falsehoods”, said Bertone’s matriarch.

“Fought” is not a mere way she found to express herself. Barbara Bertone, Lilli’s daughter, was the general director of the company and has been suspended from her functions little before the companies were sold. According to Automotive News, Barbara and her sister, Marie Jeanne, claim their mother did not own all the shares she sold to Reviglio. They also intend to take legal action against the sale.

Among the recovery measures Reviglio intends to take is the production of electric vehicles, just like Pininfarina has announced. He expects the Bertone Group to generate € 39.1 million in revenue in 2008 and € 62.2 million in 2009, according to Automotive News.

Press Release

This morning Lilli Bertone and Domenico Reviglio put their signatures to a contract to purchase shares in Stile Bertone S.p.A., Bertone S.p.A. and Carrozzeria Bertone S.p.A with the aim of injecting new industrial life into the Bertone Group. The agreement executes the terms of the purchase option presented by Dott. Reviglio and confirms that a new company will be set up in which 35% of the shares are assigned to Ms Lilli Bertone and 65% to Dott Domenico Reviglio.