Ok, I rest my case with these damn, so called, sneak peeks… Anyway, since we can’t say much about the car we’ll stick to the only useful info provided in the press release which is that the 2008 Cadillac CTS, which will make its debut at the Detroit Show, is scheduled to begin production in late-summer of 2007, with worldwide sales to follow in the fall. The end.

Technorati: Cadillac+CTS, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, Carscoop, blogs, 2007, pictures, images, Detroit+Motor+Show, NAIAS

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If a lot of you out there, or for that matter, even Ford itself, thought that a 4door-coupe version of the Mustang was out of the question, I wonder what you’d think about these dudes who decided to destroy a few classic first gen Mustangs by turning them into obnoxious limos…

At first we found the 27-feet long, white colored Mustang limo on e-bay which was built by ABC Mustangs of Hayward, Ca in 1998. A quick search on the net also revealed another two ill fated Mustangs, a black colored one built by Mustang Restorations for its President, Mustang restorations in East Dundee Il and a light blue “Stang”, owned and operated by Preferred Limousine in Georgetown Ontario. And to think that we said that the Dodge Charger R/T limo was a pitiless waste…

Technorati: Ford+Mustang, limousines, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, autos, Carscoop, images, pictures

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According to an article posted on Italian magazine Quattroruote, Fiat confirmed that its 2008 Junior (based on the Fiat Grande Punto platform and mechanics), will go in production in the first months of 2008 at the Group’s factory in Mirafiori. As interesting as it sound's, that wasn't what drew our attention here -we already knew that.

What intrigued us is couple of photoshoped images with which, Quattroruote "dressed" the article. The pics show a car combing elements from the official sketch that leaked from an investor meeting a few weeks ago and the super-sexy 8C Competizione. While one can’t say for sure how close Quattrouote’s designers have come to the real thing, I’m more than certain that Alfa will find a way to make our "tail wag".

The only thing that makes me skeptical is that the Junior will use Grande Punto’s mediocre -in terms of driving dynamics, platform. If the Italians want to compete head-straight with the MINI, they’ll definitely have to spend plenty of time fine-tuning it… Via: Autoblog.it & Quattroruote

Technorati: Alfa+Romeo+Junior, Fiat, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, autos, Carscoop, images, pictures, scoop

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Wow, that was fast! Heck, the first generation NSX first went into production only about… 17 years ago. And it’s not over yet till we see the actual production version of Honda’s stunning NSX successor. See, the car in the picture is, according to Honda own word’s, “a concept that provides a glimpse at the next generation Acura exotic sports car”. Unfortunately that’s the only thing we know about the unexotically named, Acura “Advanced Sports Car Concept”. We’ll have more on the NSX concept closer to the opening date of the Detroit Show in January.

If you’re a bit confused about the name, we remind you that while the rest of the world knows the NSX as a Honda, in the US, it came under the name of Acura.

Technorati: Acura+NSX, Honda+NSX, Acura+Advanced+Sports+Car+Concept, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, Carscoop, blogs, 2007, pictures, images, Detroit+Motor+Show, NAIAS

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While searching the net for more info concerning the validity or not of a pic we found this morning featuring the 2008 Mercedes GLK –or-MLK, we stumble upon a very interesting article on Automobilwoche, which is a sister publication of Autonews. According to the German news-zine, the next generation Mercedes C-Class will be presented for the first time on January the 18th in Stuttgart, with its public premiere following in March at the Geneva Motor Show (sales start in Europe on April).

Apart from the fact that Automobilwoche is a highly reliable source (especially when it comes to German car-manufactures), Mercedes has already announced that it’s a matter of weeks before the official unveiling of the 2008 C-Class. Only now, thanks to Automobilwoche that is, we know when and where. Via: Automobilwoche

Technorati: Mercedes+C-Class, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, Carscoop, blogs, 2007, Geneva+Motor+Show

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Now you see it, now you don’t! Thanks to Jalopnik, we just made it in time to take a visit over at the official NAIAS site and download the first official pic of the 2008 Chevy Malibu before the guys over there realized their “blooper” and remove the second image!

We remind you that a few hours ago, Chevrolet published a second teaser pic featuring the front end of the all-new Malibu. As supposed to, the guys over at NAIAS published both the press release and the teaser pic on the “News Flash” area. As they weren’t supposed to, they also added the second, “full-blown” pic of the Malibu. Ouch… Via: Jalopnik &... NAIAS

Technorati: Chevrolet+Malibu, GM, 2008, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles Carscoop, blogs, 2007, Detroit+Motor+Show, NAIAS, pictures, images

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Yes, yes, yes; we have another teaser! To be honest though, I’ll have to give a few points to Chrysler Group for not attempting to tease us in the usual sketch followed by a “cryptic, front or rear end pic” way. Instead they decided to skip the last part and go the “Youtube” way, releasing a video through their journalist blog, which will surely draw much more attention.

Our friends over at Jalopnik took the liberty of downloading the 31 sec video thus, sparing us a few precious minutes of our time to capture some pics. Accompanied by the rhythms of tribal drums, we not only get the chance to see several teaser pics of the Chrysler Nassau & Jeep Trailhawk concepts but we also get a teaser taste of African dancers. Unfortunately, as Mike Spinelli from Jalopnik adds, you’ll have to dig out your National Geographic DVDs if you want to see some boobie action... Via: Jalopnik

Technorati: Chrysler+Nassau, Jeep+Trailhawk, Youtube, Video, 2008, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, Carscoop, blogs, 2007, Detroit+Motor+Show, NAIAS, pictures, images

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Oh boy here we go again… Chevy, like most car companies seems to be on some kind of “climactic pill” when it comes to presenting a new model or concept. Following a teaser pic of the interior a few weeks ago, Chevrolet released yet another teaser image, this time of the exterior of the all-new 2008 Malibu, which will be unveiled at the Detroit Show in January arriving at Chevrolet dealerships later in 2007.

We can’t say much about the design besides the fact that the new Malibu, which is heavily based on the Saturn Aura, features what is described by GM as the "new face of Chevrolet". To make it simple, the Malibu wears the same style split grille mask that first appeared on Chevy's 2007 trucks like the Avalanche and the Tahoe.

“The 2008 Malibu design is expressive and brings new proportions and a fresh perspective to the mid-size market,” said Ed Peper, Chevrolet General Manager. “The new Malibu boasts a poised, wheels-at-the-corners stance with a longer hood and shorter deck appearance that conveys motion, agility and attitude.”

Technorati: Chevrolet+Malibu, GM, 2008, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, Carscoop, blogs, 2007, Detroit+Motor+Show, NAIAS, pictures, images

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Our morning net-surfing led us to Worldscoop where we found this image featuring the upcoming Mercedes GLK (or MLK). Unfortunately I can’t say with certainty whether it’s an official picture or not -we did check all the Mercedes press sites, but found nothing.

On one hand, a comparison with several spy shots of the Mercedes GLK (or MLK) reveals that the car shown here has all the right elements (ex. door handles, bumper, lights etc). On the other hand, I noticed a small smudge in the rear end of the car which puts a few doubts in my head, making think of “chop”. Even if it finally turns out to be a photoshopped image, we’ve got to hand it to the artist for doing such an excellent job. We'll keep an eye on this one and return with more info later on the day. Via: Worldscoop

Read more about Mercedes BMW X3 contender here: 2008 Mercedes GLK - MLK

UPDATE - IT'S A "CHOP"
Thanks to a tip from Vlad, who pointed out the following pic, we can put an end to all speculations concerning the specific image. Still, as I noted before, you have to admit that overall, the "artist" did quite a good job, changing the mask, the hood, the front lights etc.

Technorati: Mercedes+GLK, Mercedes+MLK, , autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, autos, Carscoop, images, pictures, scoop

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“As is customary for Abt, the “R” in AS7-R stands for “Racing”. And of course the vehicle based on the Q7 is a true racer. The AS7-R is not only an extreme sports car, it is lordly, too. The front spoiler lip and fender extensions are painted in striking matt chrome; the other body parts are matt black. The extravagant as well as discreet look is continued in the car interior”

I hate to be the one to tell you guys, but a 2,5 ton, 5 metre long, brick shaped SUV comes nothing close to a racer. Even if you did add a supercharger to the 4.2 V8 FSI engine boosting output to 500 Hp thus reducing zero to 100 km/h (62 mph) time to just 5.9 seconds (top speed 260 km/h) it still isn’t a racer. As for “the extravagant as well as discreet looks” of the AS7-R, well, better leave that uncommented…

Technorati: AUDI+Q7, ABT+AS7-R, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, Carscoop, blogs, 2007, tuning+news, bodykit, car+accessories, performance

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We still haven’t found a Hartge H50 V10 Coupe video but we did find the next best thing: one featuring its 4door counterpart and let me say that, although we still think that its price (about 208.000 USD or 157.000 EUR) is ridiculous, it’s as hot as aspicy "Schinkenwurst"! I have no idea who the driver is but as you’ll see for yourself, this guy surely cooks his sausages with a 0W-30 motor oil... We remind you that both Hartge H50 V10 models are equipped with a tuned 5.0 V10 M5 engine producing 550 Hp.

Technorati: Hartge+H50+V10, Youtube, Video, BMW+3+Series, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, Carscoop, blogs, 2007, ESSEN+Motor+Show, tuning+news, bodykit, car+accessories, performance

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If my information is correct, this wonderful sculpture with the two opposite facing & coloured VW Bugs is found in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Got to hand it to the artist (does anybody have any idea who it is) for using an automotive icon like the VW Beetle to portray the “Yin & Yang” philosophy, which describes two primal opposing, but complementary forces found in all things in the universe. Belissimo ! Via: Diariomotor

Technorati: Volkswagen+Betle, VW+Bug, art, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, Carscoop, blogs, pictures, images, 2007, Detroit+Motor+Show,NAIAS

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We’ll it seems that Autoweek and Autocar where pulling our leg if we take Ford’s word on it as FoMoCo officially denied any plans of creating a 4door-coupe version of the Mustang. To tell you the truth, we where among those few –as it seems, fans of a 4door-coupe of the next gen Mustang. Still though, we are going to see a, Mustang based, sport sedan concept at the Detroit Show, called Interceptor. Don’t believe us? Well, here’s the official announcement:

“At the 2007 North American International Auto Show, Ford will unveil a four-door, rear-wheel-drive concept car. The concept, known as ‘The Interceptor,’ is based on the Mustang’s rear-wheel-drive architecture but it is not a Mustang and no production plans have been announced. Additional information on the Ford rear-drive concept will be available Dec. 31, 2006”
Via: Autoweek.com

Technorati: Ford+Mustang, Ford+Interceptor, concept, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, Carscoop, blogs, pictures, images, 2007, Detroit+Motor+Show, NAIAS

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Damn those blue collar Mitsu execs… Even Sharon Stone didn’t wait that long before she finally uncrossed her legs revealing her small tropical island. At least this concept of the one and only Lancer that we’re dying to drive is about 99% production ready. And you guest it, apart from the two sketches, we’ll have to wait till the curtains drop at the 2007 Detroit Show before we get any more official info. As for the final-final-final production version? We’ll have to keep “tiny” in our pants until the 2007 Tokyo Motor Show in October. Teasers… Via: Jalopnik

Technorati: Mitsubishi+Lancer+EVO+X, Mitsubishi+Prototype+X, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, Carscoop, blogs, pictures, images, 2007, Detroit+Motor+Show, NAIAS

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I have to admit that I’m extremely disappointed. One would expect that after all that experience in faking Smarts, Fiats, Scions & Cadillac's that there’d be at least one Chinese company named like “Jiangaloo-wei Koutsi-Koutsi-yaya” who’d think of a making an extravagant model like LEW-Design’s Bing-Bang. What a superbly conceived car.


You love Bugatti’s but you feel more like home in a Bentley Continental GT? No problem! EWW ehhh, sorry, I mean LEW-Design has the ultimate solution for all you rock-pop-hip-hop, sugar-daddy suckers: the one and only, Essen Motor Show party crasher, the sensually named Big-Bang!

And don’t think that LEW Design just stopped at the Bugatti inspired (or is that Audi Q7?) bodykit no sir. They also took the liberty to add an extra 100 Hp to Continental GT’s twin-turbo W12 engine raising output to 650 Hp! 0 to 100 km/h (62 mph) come’s in just 4,6 sec while its top speed is 330 km/h (205 mph). If you’ve got the 270.000 EUROS that EWW's asking for its chitty-chitty Big Bang Bang, don’t hesitate to call them, we certainly wouldn’t want to stop you… Via: Autobild.de

Technorati: Bentley+Continental+GT, LEW-DESIGN, Youtube, videos, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, Carscoop, blogs, pictures, images, 2007, ESSEN+Motor+Show

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I wonder what our fellow “Camino” lovers at Jalopnik think about this one. We for once, like the idea but we really doubt that a Smart Pick-Up would have any success in the American market. But let’s start from the beginning. Automotorundsport had a nice chitty-chat with American designer, Mark Stehrenberger of MSD, a design research and development group based in Santa Barbara, California that specializes in automotive / transportation and product design.

AMS asked MSD’s opinion on how Smart should evolve its car range in the USA. Stehrenberger believes that despite the fact that the new Fortwo is 200 mm longer than its predecessor, it still remains small for your average American consumer, mainly cause people are “bigger” (..??) and there’s more parking space than in Europe.

So what does Stehrenberger propose? Well for starters, the Fortwo should grow in size and reach 3,7 m in length (from 2,7 m). He also believes that Smart should add 4x4 Crossover and Pick-Up versions of the larger Fortwo. Via: Automotorundsport & MSD

Technorati: Smart+fortwo, pick-up, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, autos, Carscoop, images, pictures, scoop

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Jeez, we got all red and excited when we first saw the press release, but I believe you’ll forgive us as it’s not as if one can easily distinguish the MINI I & II from each other. Anyway, the Sidewalk is a new addition to the MINI Convertible range which will make its premiere at the 2007 North American International Auto Show (NAIAS).

The Sidewalk model offers a host of exclusive and additional options, and is available on the One, Cooper and Cooper S. It includes a choice of four paintwork colours, Malt Brown English Leather upholstery, 17” Night Spoke light alloy wheels, bi-colour leather steering wheel and gear knob and special ‘Sidewalk’ interior trim, floor mats, badges and door inserts.

Additional MINI options that are standard on Sidewalk models are Automatic Stability Control and Traction (ASC+T), multifunction leather steering wheel, mirror caps in body colour, chrome line interior, passenger seat height adjustment, sports seats, storage compartment pack, front fog lamps, manual air conditioning, on board computer, interior light pack and white indicators.

According to MINI, should a customer wish to specify these options on any other MINI Convertible, the cost of the extra kit would be approximately 25 per cent higher than if purchased as part of a standard package on the Sidewalk edition. Sales start in April 2007.

On the road prices (UK) are as follows:

• MINI One Sidewalk - £16,910
• MINI Cooper Sidewalk - £17,960
• MINI Cooper S Sidewalk -£20,235

Technorati: MINI+Cabriolet, Sidewalk, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, autos, Carscoop, images, pictures, NAIAS, North+American+International+Auto+Show, Detroit

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Since it’s already known that, the new C-Class will go on sale in Europe next autumn and having in mind that there’s a Frankfurt Show in October, I assumed that Mercedes would prefer a homeland-debut for it. Well, maybe not as, according to a press release from Mercedes-Benz referring to the last 203 series C-Class built, it’s a matter of a weeks before the all-new 2008 model is revealed. Here’s the extract from the press release:

“With only a few weeks left to go until the world premiere of the new Mercedes-Benz C-Class, the last 203 series sedan is rolling off the assembly line today at the Sindelfingen plant”

Technorati: Mercedes-Benz, Mercedes+C-Class, 2008, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, Carscoop, blogs, pictures, images, 2007, Detroit+Motor+Show, NAIAS

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Our pals over at Autoblog.com have posted this teaser-pic of a Jaguar concept that as they report, will make its public debut at the Detroit Auto Show in January. Although there’s no official info on the concept, since Jaguar announced a few days ago that it’ll debut its S-TYPE successor (to be named XF) next autumn, its only logical that we assume it to be a close-to-production prototype of the XF. We'll get back on this one as soon as we get our hands on the press release.Via: Autoblog.com

Technorati: Jaguar+S-Type, Jaguar+XF, concept, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, Carscoop, blogs, pictures, images, scoop, 2007, Detroit+Motor+Show, NAIAS

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Looks like this yellow-mellow Charger R/T Daytona took one Viagra more than it should have and unfortunately, the results are permanent. So what the heck happened? Well, here are the exact words of its seller at e-bay where we found the limo carrying a sticker of 59.900 USD: “This Magnificent Top Banana Yellow Dodge Daytona Edition Charger R/T, which was #745 of 4000, has been magnificently fashioned into an 11 Passenger 30Ft. Limousine! by Razz Limousines of Vassar, Michigan”. Magnificently fashioned??? Aren’t you just dying of curiosity to see what these people wear at a typical Saturday night out at the bar? We certainly are! Via: Motorpasion & ebay

Technorati: Dodge+Daytona+R/T+Daytona, Limousine, SUV, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, autos, Carscoop, images, pictures, tuning+news, car+accessories, bodykit

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Toyota RAV4’s “mini-me” alter-ego, the Daihatsu Terios SUV has found its way to the Indonesian market. The interesting fact here is that Toyota’s subsidiary made a few changes to the Terios as the Indonesian version has grown by 140 mm in length (4.195 mm overall) and has received an extra third row of seats thus increasing passenger capacity to 7 people. No that’s something I’d like to see: 7 people in a Terios!

Technorati: Daihatsu+Terios, SUV, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, autos, Carscoop, images, pictures

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The boyz over at Autoweek seem to be passing through some sort of steroid phase today. As if the Mustang 4door-coupe wasn’t enough “muscle” for a day, now they’re telling us that Chevy is planning to unveil a cabrio version of this year’s Camaro Concept. Now, if you’re kinky enough to ask why, well think of it as a striptease game: before we get to the final unveiling –aka the production version in 2009, first they “throw out” the coupe concept in 2006 then a Cabrio version of it in 2007 and who knows what in 2008. Sounds logical if you ask me. Via: Autoweek.com

PS: As with our previous post on the 4d Coupe Mustang, Autoweek requested us to remove the image

Technorati: Chevrolet+Camaro+Cabrio, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, Carscoop, blogs, pictures, images, scoop, 2007, Detroit+Motor+Show, NAIAS

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Following our post on Monday which included a couple of pics that practically previewed the production version of the Dodge Avenger today, thanks to our mates over at Jalopnik, we have the first “naked” spy shots of the sporty R/T version. Despite the “shaky” pics its clear that the R/T stays close to the concept version seen at the Paris Show. While nothings official yet, the R/T will most probably receive a 3.5 V6 engine. Via: Jalopnik

Technorati: Dodge+Avenger+R/T, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, Carscoop, blogs, pictures, images, scoop, 2007

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Volvo is giving us a “sneak preview” of it’s BMW X3 contender in the luxury compact SUV sector in the form of the XC60 Concept. It will debut at the Detroit Show in January and like the Mondeo SW concept that premiered in Paris, the XC60 Concept practically previews the production version, especially in terms of exterior design. With the exception of the weird looking rear end that looks like it received a kick in the butt, the XC60 Concept’s appearance looks quite promising.

As for the interior, well whatever we say is meaningless. Don’t get me wrong, I dig it but, despite what Volvo designers may tell us, the production version’s interior will probably look nothing like that. If you ask me, take a look at the S40 /V50 C30 interior if you want to have an idea of what to expect. Despite the fact that we don’t have the actual press release in our hands, from what we learn, the XC60 will be based on the Land Rover Freelander’s II platform. As for when we’ll see the production version, AMS says 2009, but other sources state that sales may start as early as 2008. Via: AMS

Technorati: Volvo+XC60, Concept, SUV, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, autos, Carscoop, images, pictures, NAIAS, North+American+International+Auto+Show, Detroit

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Now this could be one hell of a smart move for Ford: a 4door-coupe Mustang, or in other words, a “poor-mans” Mercedes CLS. That’s if Autoweek’s & Autocar’s (it’s on both sites) photochop is really based on inside information and they’re not pulling our leg. The chop itself looks mighty sexy combining all your typical “Mustang” elements in a dynamic 4door sedan.

As both magazines say, Ford has plans to add the 4door-coupe version shown here along with an estate, to the 6th generation Mustang line-up which goes on sale in 2011. The thought behind this move is that Ford desperately needs a model to shake up its sales and boost the its brand name, just like the first gen M3 did to BMW. Sources state that Ford will base all version of the next Mustang on a new rear wheel drive platform with a multilink rear suspension that’s being developed for the Australian arm of Ford.

Mmmm, doesn’t that sound familiar? Of course it does, as that’s what’s going around with GM and the forthcoming Camaro which will be based on the new Holden Commodore platform. The latter is said to come in the US wearing Pontiac badges. Via: Autoweek & Autocar

PS: Sorry for taking down the rendering but Autoweek kindly requested us to remove it

Update: Ford officially denies any plans for a 4door-Coupe version of the Mustang

Technorati: Ford+Mustang, autos, auto+news, car+news, automobile, cars, automotive, vehicles, autos, Carscoop, images, pictures, scoop

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