Time’s up for this old lad to get a new ride but while it would have been great to be able to buy a brand new set of wheels, this month’s (and the previous…) bank statement has set a limit on the budget: under $10,000. In most parts of the world, that wouldn’t buy you much of car but luckily here in the States, there are plenty of sub-$10k sportscars to choose from.

A couple of days ago we started our sportscar-hunt in the greater Boston area searching simultaneously on eBay, Craigslist and Autotrader. Up until now, we’ve found a few presentable BMW E36 M3s, one or two 1990’s Corvettes and, the one we liked the most, a mid 1990s Nissan 300ZX –albeit overpriced at $11k especially for a non-turbo model.

We’re going to keep you updated as we continue our search, but we’d like to hear what sub-$10,000 sports car -or GT for that matter- would you propose we’d search for. Give us your answers in the comment section.

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This previous generation Smart Fortwo (it’s not the one coming to the U.S.) was involved in a “double whammy” accident somewhere in the States when a large delivery truck decided to play a little snooker with the German mini hitting it from behind and serving it onto a bypassing GMC van.

The pictures, courtesy of Jalopnik and their reader “Polar” whose friend was behind the Smart’s wheel, show that the Fortwo received quite a battering. However, the driver managed to walk away from the accident with minor abrasions from the airbags. Having said that, the first-gen Fortwo did its job by protecting its passengers. We’re not aware of the extent of damages, but bear in mind that the Fortwo’s exterior body panels are made from (interchangeable) plastic. -More images after the jump

Via: Jalopnik

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Have you tried to find a new Prius at a Toyota dealership lately? Well we did this past Sunday when we went car-scouting for a friend. We paid a visit to Toyota Westborough in Massachusetts and listen to this; not only is there a one month waiting period to get the compact hybrid (once you pay the $1,000 deposit) but the dealer didn’t even have a single Prius in the lot for us to see, let alone drive!

The same goes for most Toyota dealers across the U.S. as Prius inventories are limited by production capacity in Japan, which must be shared with Asia and Europe. Talking about the problem, John Hanson, a Toyota spokesman in Torrance, California, told Bloomberg, “This is a special vehicle, and as fuel prices keep rising, it gets more special. Rght now, U.S. customers can get a Prius. Next month or the month after that, it's tough to say”.

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A little after its Australian debut, Toyota has released a new series of accessories for its top-of-the-line TRD HiLux that’s equipped with a supercharged 4.0-liter V6 engine that generates 300Hp accelerating the pickup truck from 0 to 100km/h (62mph) in just 7.2 sec. Toyota’s accessories include an alloy nudge bar, a colour-matched hard tonneau cover, complete with TRD logo and sporty body stripe, bonnet protectors, ute liners and towbars.

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Swedish carmaker Volvo is expanding its flexfuel line-up with the introduction of S80 and V70 2.5FT, both of which are equipped with a 5-cylinder, 2.5-litre turbocharged Flexifuel engine delivering 200 hp and 300 Nm of torque. The Flexifuel cars can run on E85 bioethanol or 95-octane unleaded petrol - or any mix of these two fuels.

Volvo says that from a technological viewpoint, it would have been possible to reach a higher output, but that would have translated in higher fuel consumption. The EU combined figure for both the S80 and V70 2.5T is 9.2 l/100 km or 25.6 MPG with the manual gearbox and 10.2 l/100 km or 23.0 MPG (V70) and 10.1 l/100 km or 23.3 MPG (S80) with the automatic gearbox. No thanks to its lower energy content, fuel consumption when running on E85 is approx 30-40% higher than when running on petrol.

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Unless this “watermelon” version of the Daewoo Lanos is some kind of promotional vehicle (doubt it though as there are no decals of the sort), the guy or gal that owns it has some very, very serious issues to solve. Don’t believe us? Then take a look at the car’s interior after the jump – the only things missing are the seeds! -Continued

Via: Offbeat Earth

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Despite the fact that Arden’s official images of the new Jaguar XF AJ21 appear to be the product of photoshop (…), the German tuning firm’s sporty outfit for the XF looks mighty nice. Arden has enhanced the Jag’s appearance with a new bodykit that includes a new front bumper with integrated LED-day lights, side sills with functional air inlets that cool the rear brakes, a rear lid spoiler and a rear diffuser that incorporates the new exhaust tailpipes.

Additionally, the German firm has equipped the XF with an enlarged radiator grille in handmade stainless steel mesh along with a set of new 21-inch alloy wheels. Without giving any specific information or pictures, Arden says that the XF’s interior has also been revised. -Continued

In terms of the mechanical improvements and apart from the sport suspension, Arden will offer power upgrades on all four available engines in the XF. Its top-of-the-line SV8 model will feature a modified version of the XF’s 416Hp 4.2-liter supercharged V8 with a displacement increase to 4.5-liters delivering more than 500Hp.

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Mazda is introducing the three-door variant of its all-new Mazda2 supermini in the UK this month, with a starting price of £7,999. The only significant difference between the 3-door and 5-door versions of new Mazda2 is the rear seat shoulder room, which is 25mm larger in the 5-door model. At launch, the Mazda2 3dr will be offered with a 1.3-litre petrol engine in two power outputs (75 and 86ps), and a 1.4-litre 68ps diesel The 1.5-litre 103ps petrol engine will be available from the end of July. -Continued

Mazda2 3d Price List – May 2008

3dr	Power (ps)	Estimated 'On the road' Retail	CO2 Emissions (g/km)
1.3 TS	75	£7,999	129
1.3 TS2	86	£9,509	129
1.5 Sport	103	£11,399	140
Diesel
1.4D TS	68	£8,999	114
1.4D TS2	68	£10,504	114

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One of the star cars at this weekends “Ferrari Leggenda e Passione” auction in Maranello, Italy that’s organized by RM Auctions in association with Sotheby is the grand prix winning 1964 Ferrari 250 LM. Designed by Pininfarina, with coachwork by Scaglietti, this particular example was the fourth of only thirty-two 250 LMs built. The highlight of its extensive racing history occurred in 1965 when driven by Jochen Rindt, it claimed first place at the Austrian Grand Prix.

In September 1969, the car was shipped to Boston, Massachusetts in the US and later –surprise, surprise- it was converted for road use! Its owner cover the dashboard with leather, replaced the sliding windows with wind-up windows, while he also added seat belts and carpets. -Continued

The car changed numerous owners, during which it was, at one stage, a common sight on New York freeways, being used by its then owner for regular commutes into the city.

The 250 LM’s last stop occurred in 2002 when it was bought by its current owner who comprehensively restored the car. According to RM Auctions, the Ferrari 250 LM is expected to fetch around €4,200,000 - €4,800,000 which is about $6,500,000 - $7,500,000. Guess we won’t be seeing this one on the road again.

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It’s a cruel business world out there and it’s even nastier if you’re as small as Lotus and Spyker. With that in mind, it comes to no surprise that that the two niche sports carmakers are willing to intensify their bonds by signing a new cooperation agreement that will see models from the Dutch supercar maker use platforms and parts from Lotus. Moreover, under the new agreement Lotus will participate in the design and development of all future Spyker models.

Victor R. Muller, CEO of Spyker Cars comments: "Our company has had a very fruitful cooperation with Lotus, developed over the past four years, relating to engineering services in respect of certain components of our cars, as well as in respect of worldwide certification.” -Continued

“Spyker and Lotus have now come to the conclusion that they need to intensify their cooperation to the point that we intend to share parts and platforms, as well as an agreement on the supply of parts. Moreover, Lotus Engineering has become Spyker's preferred subcontractor in respect of a number of engineering projects relating to the Spyker C8 Aileron and the Spyker D8 Peking-to-Paris.”

Michael Kimberley, CEO of Lotus Cars Ltd., added: "Lotus is very pleased to be identified as Spyker's preferred Engineering supplier for these unique "high Brand Image" ground breaking cars. We look forward to working with Spyker to expand our global business opportunities, projects and interests for our mutually synergistic Products and Technologies”

“Lotus Engineering has a great heritage and solid track record in developing innovative solutions for clients and we look forward to using Lotus' advanced light weight vehicle know-how and vehicle dynamics technology to enable Spyker to establish itself as a dynamic premium automotive player.”

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