http://www.thecarconnection.com/tips Sun, 29 Nov 2009 03:05:46 -0500 Tips and Advice -- find out how to maintain, service, insure, wash and wax, and change the oil in your car with tips from TheCarConnection.com. Lifestyle/Fashion http://static.thecarconnection.com/website/tcc-feed.jpg http://www.thecarconnection.com/tips http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1038483_video-audis-entries-for-the-youthmobile-2030-competition http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1038483_video-audis-entries-for-the-youthmobile-2030-competition Tue, 17 Nov 2009 13:33:00 -0500 A couple of weeks ago, we mentioned the "YouthMobile 2030" design challenge associated with the 2009 Los Angeles Auto Show. At the time, we highlighted GM's "Car Hero" entry, but Audi's designs deserve mention, too. The company has submitted two vehicles, the eOra and the eSpira, both of which were created with tomorrow's social media-savvy ..]]> http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1037919_wtf-renault-loreal-create-first-ever-spa-concept-car http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1037919_wtf-renault-loreal-create-first-ever-spa-concept-car Fri, 06 Nov 2009 11:24:00 -0500 The ZOE Z.E. concept car stems from a curious collaboration between French automaker Renault and luxury skincare company Biotherm (a division of L'Oreal). The ZOE Z.E. offers the usual complement of EV conceptual goodness -- it's battery-powered, boasts zero-emissions, is quickly rechargeable, and makes use of solar power -- but it also has a ..]]> http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1037920_l-a-auto-show-finalists-in-the-youthmobile-2030-contest http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1037920_l-a-auto-show-finalists-in-the-youthmobile-2030-contest Fri, 06 Nov 2009 10:21:00 -0500 The Los Angeles Auto Show is just a few weeks away, so now seems as good a time as any to skim through the submissions for its 6th Annual Design Challenge. This year's theme is YouthMobile  2030 -- the goal being to envision vehicles two decades down the road. Participating studios include Audi, Honda, Mazda, Nissan, Toyota, and GM, whose ..]]> http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1037917_upcoming-concept-vehicle-will-define-the-new-saab http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1037917_upcoming-concept-vehicle-will-define-the-new-saab Fri, 06 Nov 2009 09:47:00 -0500 The good news for Saab keeps on rolling: last month, we mentioned that the company's sale to Koenigsegg was looking like a done deal (thanks to a €400 million loan from the European Investment Bank), and now comes word that Saab is developing a new, small concept vehicle to presage the company's future lineup. The concept vehicle is set to ..]]> http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1037075_subaru-will-launch-a-hybrid-vehicle-by-2012 http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1037075_subaru-will-launch-a-hybrid-vehicle-by-2012 Fri, 23 Oct 2009 10:34:00 -0400 There hasn't been much groundbreaking news to emerge from the 2009 Tokyo Motor Show, but the event has generated some intriguing statements from the handful of automakers in attendance. For example, Ikuo Mori, the president of Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd, the manufacturer of Subaru vehicles, noted that Subaru is working with Toyota to develop a ..]]> http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1036955_2009-toyko-motor-show-hondas-ev-n-minicar-concept-video http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1036955_2009-toyko-motor-show-hondas-ev-n-minicar-concept-video Wed, 21 Oct 2009 11:30:00 -0400 The 2009 Tokyo Motor Show kicks off today, and even though the event will be much smaller than it's been in recent years, there's already some fun stuff on view. Take, for example, the Honda EV-N concept, a retro minicar with some very distinct styling features, as shown in the weirdly silent video clip below. (Our favorite feature? The Space ..]]> http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1035941_preview-2011-honda-cr-z http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1035941_preview-2011-honda-cr-z Wed, 21 Oct 2009 03:43:00 -0400 Honda plans to launch two new hybrid vehicles next year: a sporty coupe based on 2007's CR-Z concept car and a hybrid version of the compact Fit. Both cars are due in the second half of next year and in the lead up to their arrival, Honda has previewed the sportier model with its latest ‘CR-Z Concept 2009' show car that makes ..]]> http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1036743_porsche-design-reimagined-by-emil-baddal http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1036743_porsche-design-reimagined-by-emil-baddal Fri, 16 Oct 2009 12:35:00 -0400 Between Porsche's financial troubles and the lukewarm reception of its Panamera sedan, the company has faced its share of problems in recent months. Unfortunately, there's no simple fix for the global economic problems that have sent Porsche's sales through the floorboard. On the design front, however, bringing new blood into the fold might ..]]> http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1036541_video-bmw-unveils-three-wheeled-simple-hybrid-concept http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1036541_video-bmw-unveils-three-wheeled-simple-hybrid-concept Tue, 13 Oct 2009 09:35:00 -0400 http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1035950_new-details-for-2009-subaru-hybrid-tourer-concept http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1035950_new-details-for-2009-subaru-hybrid-tourer-concept Sat, 10 Oct 2009 15:59:00 -0400 If you thought the 2010 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG was going to be the only new gullwing unveiled this year then you'd be wrong. Subaru is also planning to unveil a new gullwing, although the Japanese automaker's version is a new concept car that's set to star at next month's 2009 Tokyo Motor Show. Combining a symmetrical all-wheel ..]]> http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1036278_leaning-nissan-land-glider-ev-concept-headed-to-2009-tokyo-show http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1036278_leaning-nissan-land-glider-ev-concept-headed-to-2009-tokyo-show Wed, 07 Oct 2009 14:32:00 -0400 Proving that city cars don't have to be sleepy little streamlined dice, the Nissan Land Glider EV concept being prepped for the 2009 Tokyo Motor Show ties together easy maneuverability and parking with a sense of excitement behind the wheel, despite being piloted by a surprisingly sedate woman in the press photos. The Japanese are often ..]]> http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1036199_2009-tokyo-show-is-the-toyota-ft-86-concept-a-new-celica http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1036199_2009-tokyo-show-is-the-toyota-ft-86-concept-a-new-celica Tue, 06 Oct 2009 05:45:00 -0400 It's been in the works for two years, and now the mythical replacement for the Toyota Corolla sports coupe is here. In concept form, it bows at the 2009 Tokyo Motor Show as the Toyota FT-86 concept. The love child of a Subaru Impreza chassis, minus its all-wheel-drive system, and a Toyota body, the FT-86 is a 2+2 coupe with handsome ..]]> http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1035963_honda-skydeck-concept-coming-to-tokyo-motor-show http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1035963_honda-skydeck-concept-coming-to-tokyo-motor-show Wed, 30 Sep 2009 11:45:00 -0400 Hybrids are becoming increasingly common in compact and mid-size sedans, and even in some SUVs, but so far, hybrid minivans haven't caught on. Honda may be hoping to change that with a new concept called the Skydeck. Though it's still just a design study according to Honda, it does show that the company's IMA hybrid system is easily adapted ..]]> http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1035905_mazda-updates-kiyora-concept-for-dwindling-tokyo-motor-show http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1035905_mazda-updates-kiyora-concept-for-dwindling-tokyo-motor-show Tue, 29 Sep 2009 11:49:00 -0400 Hyundai is the latest carmaker to bail on the 2009 Tokyo Motor Show, but it's far from the first, raising concerns over the show's future. Mazda is undeterred, however, today revealing a range of new engines and an updated version of the 2008 Kiyora concept that it will have on display. Powered by the new SKY-G 1.3-liter gasoline engine ..]]> http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1035680_wtf-friday-peugeot-concept-gives-us-pause http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1035680_wtf-friday-peugeot-concept-gives-us-pause Fri, 25 Sep 2009 12:35:00 -0400 We were going to write something potentially clever about this new mass transit concept from Peugeot--the Globule--that's made from four electric pods covered by a flexible polymer coating. We'd planned to discuss its complete lack of practicality. We'd hoped to talk about Peugeot and how it never gets the international recognition it so ..]]>