Fisker took the wraps off its new Karma plug-in hybrid sports sedan at the Detroit auto show in January, and this week pre-production prototypes hit the road for extensive testing. At this stage, we were expecting to see come cobbled-together mules, but instead Fisker is already testing prototypes that look identical to the finished model — albeit covered by some camouflage.

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For the last few days, we've been sitting on spy photos of an camouflaged Lexus IS, seen undergoing testing at the Nurburgring track. We've been unable to figure out what it might be a prototype for, so we're simply going to share all the possibilities, and leave it up to you, the reader, to decide!

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The upcoming Ferrari 2+2 hardtop convertible has garnered a lot of speculation over the past few months, but all questions should be answered in the coming weeks. On Friday, Ferrari launched a website featuring the new car's exhaust sound, as well as a fewer teaser images.
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Cadillac today reported its CTS-V sedan achieved a record 7 minutes 59.32 seconds lap time at Germany's famed Nurburgring test track. The sub-8-minute lap is the fastest ever documented for a production sedan. The new model — which goes on sale late this summer — was first unveiled earlier this year, and is now undergoing final testing.

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With an updated version of the Cadillac XLR reportedly scheduled for a July launch, it appears as though General Motors' luxury division is hard at work readying the new model. Previous spy photos showed the updated XLR cloaked in light camouflage, but the latest round of shots shows the 2009 model completely uncovered.
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Presidential hopefuls Sens. John McCain and Hillary Clinton may be focusing on a 'gas-tax holiday', but another presidential candidate — Ralph Nader — is eying a reform of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Nader feels the NHTSA has gotten too close with the automakers and calls it nothing more than a "consulting firm" for car makers.
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Spy photographers have spotted what appears to be a prototype for an upcoming Porsche "baby" Cayenne near Germany's famed Nurburgring. It has long been rumored that Porsche is developing a smaller SUV based on the Audi Q5 platform, and this could be the first hard evidence that such a program is underway. As previously reported, the tentative name for this new model is Roxster.

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In the face of $4 a gallon gasoline and stricter CAFE regulations, General Motors is seriously considering divorcing its full-size SUVs from its full-size trucks. GM has been building its big SUVs on truck platforms since 1965, but changing market conditions could see the automaker's next-generation of full-size SUVs riding on a car-like unibody platform.
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Details about McLaren's upcoming P11 have been trickling in over the past few months, and we have a couple of new tidbits to add to the file. The P11 program is progressing on schedule and is slated to be unveiled in the fall of 2009 with an on sale date of March 2010.
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Hyundai is already planning to launch a luxury brand in China by 2010, and it looks as though the U.S. might not be far behind, a new report finds. The Korean automaker will decide within the next three to four years whether it will launch a luxury division in the U.S. in the same vein that Toyota launched its Lexus brand.
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Although Fiat was originally eying a U.S. location for an Alfa Romeo production facility, the Italian automaker has now turned its attention to south of the border. Alfa will make its return to the U.S. market in late 2009 and therefore needs a plant in North America to avoid losses due to an unfavorable exchange rate. However, strong demand from South America has Fiat reconsidering the plant's U.S. location.
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The all-new Mercedes E Class is still over a year away, but our spies are gathering lots of details –- as well as pictures — of AMG’s E63 model with very little camouflage! Codenamed W212, the official introduction of the new E-Class is expected at the 2009 Frankfurt Motor Show.
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The BMW X6 is undoubtedly a controversial vehicle. Many critics have labeled it an answer to a question no one asked. But, according to BMW CEO Norbert Reithofer, it's already a blockbuster success. At the company's annual general meeting, Reithofer said the first production of the X6 is already sold out.

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Kia announced on Thursday that it has canceled its plans to produce a mid-size pickup for the U.S. market. Kia gave the Honda Ridgeline-esque pickup truck the green light earlier this year, but decided to cancel the project due to rising fuel prices and a sagging pickup truck market.
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General Motors' Saab division purportedly used human bodies donated to science in crash tests, according to a Swedish newspaper. "For certain things, it’s important to use cadavers," Claes Tingvall of the Swedish Road Administration told Expressen.

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When legislation was introduced into the U.S. House of Representatives earlier this year to mandate a minimum sound level for hybrid and electric vehicles, we have to admit we thought it was a little on the silly side. But after the events of last weekend, it doesn't sound so far fetched. On Sunday, and eight-year old boy was hit while riding his bike by a Toyota Prius because he couldn't hear the vehicle approaching.
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The UAW's strike at American Axle has slowed or idled at least 30 General Motors plants — including the automaker's most profitable truck and SUV plants — and it looks as though the U.S.' largest automaker has had enough. GM announced on Thursday that it has agreed to pay American Axle $200 million to cover its UAW buyouts.
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Mazda has yet to release all the details on its upcoming Mazda6, but a consumer survey has given us our first solid information about the new sedan. The car, due to go on sale this summer, grows in every key dimension and features larger engines as well. Mazda says the bump in displacement, as well as handling traits and interior comfort, were "optimized" for North American roads.

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The Pontiac G8 sport truck has yet to receive its official nameplate, but it looks as though 'El Camino' will almost certainly not adorn the truck's tailgate, a new report finds. General Motors opened a web site earlier this year to let the general public suggest what the G8 sport truck should be named.
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There is definitely no shortage of incentives to buy Chrysler-built minivans these days. If you buy one of Chrysler's two minivans — the Chrysler Town & Country or Dodge Grand Caravan — you get a credit card that locks in gas prices for three years. If you buy a Volkswagen-badged Chrysler minivan — the VW Routan – you get $1,500 towards a college savings plan, per the German automaker's newest incentive program.
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