A Chevy Aveo of the Third Kind: Extra-Terrestrial Vehicle

The Extra-Terrestrial Vehicle or ETV -we're not even kidding, that's the car's official name- is a futuristic-looking custom build created by Mike Vetter and his Florida-based company, 'The Car Factory'. It's hard to believe it just by looking at the ETV, but underneath that sci-fi outfit you'll find a Chevrolet Aveo stripped out of its body but not its heart.

Mike, who also works on Carrera GT replica bodies for the Porsche Boxster, claims on his website that buyers can opt either for an Aveo or a Boxster donor car. Somehow though, we find it hard to believe that anyone would give up a Porsche, no matter how many thousands of time they've seen Captain Kirk and Spock fighting off intruders from other planets.

But even in the case that the Chevy Aveo is the donor car, the ETV will most likely alienate you with its 'out of this world' price. We discovered that the Florida-based company has listed a completed ETV on eBay with a 'Buy it Now' price of just... $86,000. Cool but not $86k cool.

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GM Gonna Bring Compact Opel Back To America

Think οf German autοmakers and you are likely tο conjure up names like Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Vοlkswagen, Porsche and Audi. Thοse are the οnes we get on this side οf the Atlantic. In their home market, they are jοined, most nοtably, by Opel.

The reasοn we do nοt get that brand in the States is because it's General Motors' European divisiοn, and GM already has plenty οf brands operating in its οwn home market.

But that has not always been the case, and may nοt be fοr much longer, if the latest repοrts prοve accurate.

The German GM subsidiary marketed in the United States between 1958 alsο 1975. Since then, variοus Opel models have been sοld Stateside as Buicks, Saturns and even Cadillacs. But with Saturn lοng gone, and the Omega-based Catera replaced by the stand-alοne CTS, the οnly Opel product making it tο these shοres these days is the Buick Regal.

Recent repοrts suggested once again that GM cοuld be looking tο sell οff Opel, but a proposal repοrtedly being fielded within the GM hierarchy cοuld see Opel returning tο American shores. The idea wοuld be tο have GM fending off its impοrt rivals with an import οf its own, bringing a small hatchback tο the U.S. market wearing an Opel badge and a nameplate such as Juniοr οr Allegra.

Whether it wοuld be an all-new prοduct specifically targeted at American consumers or οne based on a current mοdel like the Corsa pictured abοve remains tο be seen, but sources indicate that, if the prοposal is taken up in Detrοit, we could be seeing Opels οn American rοads as early as 2013.

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GM Rumored to Debut New Plug-in Hybrid at 2012 Detroit Motor Show

At a recent event called “Charged 2011 – EV Symposium Silicon Valley”, General Motors’ western region group manager for environment and energy communications, Dave Barthmuss, told Brad Berman from Plugincars that the company may surprise us at the 2012 Detroit Auto Show with a new model, hinting at a plug-in hybrid crossover.
One of GM’s brands, Chevrolet, has already shown a similar concept with the Volt MPV5, so it is quite possible that the car we will see it the production version of the study.
The Volt MPV5 Concept uses a 152 PS (150 HP) electric motor that is charged by a 16 kWh lithium-ion battery, along with a 1.4-liter gasoline unit. The combustion engine’s purpose is to act purely as a generator, extending the hybrid’s range from a stingy 51.5 km (32 miles) on battery power alone to up to 482 km (300 miles).
GM claims that consumers cannot yet be satisfied with the range of a pure EV like the Nissan’s LEAF, hence the need for a range extender in the standard Volt. However, Barthmuss did not rule out the possibility of an EV in the near future, powered either by a modified version of the Volt’s powertrain without the range extender, or an entirely new system.
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2012 Buick Regal GS Officially Rated at 270HP

The official performance and fuel economy numbers on the 2012 Buick Regal GS are out. When GM revealed the Buick’s sports sedan in production trim at the Detroit Motor Show this past January, the company estimated that the Regal GS was good for 255HP and a 0-60mph time of less than 7 seconds.
Now GM announced that the Regal GS’ 2.0-liter direct-injected turbocharged four-cylinder engine has been SAE-certified to deliver 270 horsepower (201kW) and 295 lb.-ft. of torque (400Nm) fat 2,400 rpm or an estimated 0-60 mph performance of 6.7 seconds, or 0.9 seconds slower than the car’s European sibling, the Opel Insignia OPC that features a 325HP V6 and AWD.
Power in the North American model is channeled to the front-wheels only through a six-speed manual gearbox, with GM stating that the Regal GS gets an estimated fuel economy of 28 mpg (8.4 lt/100km) on the highway
“The Regal GS 2.0L turbo delivers the highest specific output of any production engine GM has ever offered, and at 135 hp per liter is the most power dense engine ever certified by SAE,” said Mike Anderson, Ecotec global chief engineer and program manager.
“We’ve been combining direct injection and variable valve timing with boosted engines since 2006, and there’s no question the Regal GS turbo has the responsiveness and acceleration of some V-6s, while delivering the fuel economy you’d expect of a four-cylinder,” Anderson added.
The new 2012 Regal GS will go on sale in the States this fall with prices to be announced closer to launch.

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