Honda Accord spied

Your title says Honda Accord, but this looks like an accident between a car and a tent! Yes, but under that heavy disguise this has been confirmed as the next Honda Accord. Prototypes have started lapping the Nurburgring ahead of the Accord’s production debut in March 2008 at the Geneva Motor Show. It will then go on sale in summer 2008.

It’s a completely different car to the American Accord and Accord coupe, though.
But will there be a European Accord coupe this time round? Very doubtful. Although Peugeot and Renault are making coupe versions of their latest D-segment saloons (and Ford and Vauxhall have shown concepts), an Accord coupe would be a flop over here, Honda officials fear. They still remember the slow-selling, but technically interesting, Prelude and other coupe efforts, then.

Honda will instead focus upon growing sales of the Accord Tourer (nee estate). The concept car shown at Frankfurt was a thinly veiled version of the new estate, and the Japanese company sees quasi-premium estates as their prime opportunity for growth. The Accord Tourer will have some tough opposition though, with the likes of Mercedes’ C-class estate and Audi’s forthcoming A4 .So how does Honda expect to take on the Germans? By being more sporty। Even Lexus, which has ploughed its own route as a luxury and comfort brand, has felt the need to launch a performance model, the IS-F, but Honda arguably has a stronger sporting history with its Type-R brand and F1 racing pedigree.

And despite hints of Ford Mondeo estate in the side profile, and hints of Hyundai Genesis at the front end, the Accord concept looked very smart at Frankfurt.

Our spy pictures show these proportions should be carried over to production with only major changes - such as the addition of more realistic door handles, door mirrors and wipers.What else should I know about the Honda Accord? To start with the Accord will offer two petrol engines and a new version of its acclaimed 2।2-litre diesel। The oil burner gets Honda’s new NOx reduction technology for even cleaner running. The system uses ammonia in the catalytic converter which causes the NOx to change into harmless nitrogen, subtly different to Mercedes' Bluetec system.

In the meantime, the Tokyo Motor Show next month will see the launch of the new Jazz, though that’ll be the Japanese spec Fit model. We won't see the new Jazz in the UK for at least 12 months.

Also on the way is a new hybrid model - showcasing Honda's latest hybrid technology in a new package, rather than adapting an existing platform like today's Civic IMA.

Words: Ben Pulman
(www.carmagazine.co.uk)

Nissan GT-R leak

Nissan GT-R: the lowdown
First, a bit of industry navel-gazing. The car world in the 21st century is a molly-coddled world. Hawkish PRs usually enforce embargos on first pictures of new cars - designed to maximise the publicity when a manufacturer unveils its latest wares. But in an age of instant communication, it's difficult to stop photos pinging around the world, and that's exactly what's happened with the new Nissan GT-R.

The spinmeisters wanted to keep the new sports coupe under wraps until its debut at the Tokyo Motor Show on 24 October 2007 - but an American car magazine published its next issue cover online yesterday, and the power of the web has done the rest.

That's what's happened behind the scenes. Why should you care? Because you can enjoy the full official photos of the 473bhp Porsche-baiting Nissan a full week early. That's the democracy of the web for you.A classic case of industrial espionage! Tell me more about the new Nissan GT-R
A lot of the official information is still under wraps until next week, but CAR Online has harvested what concrete facts we can find online and sifted the wheat from the chaff। Prepare to be surprised - the new GT-R will experience quite a lot of change in its latest iteration।

Not least of which is the name. Gone is the Skyline moniker, replaced simply by the GT-R badge. Some will lament the passing of this historic name, but it will once and for all end the confusion over the domestic-market Skyline saloon, a rather more mundane workaday four-door compared with the tearaway sports coupe Skyline GT-R.

It's all change under the engine bay, too. Out goes the old straight six replaced by a new V6, believed to be a development of the unit in the 350Z.So the GT-R gets a new V6। Is it still a sledgehammer sportscar? Oh yes। Bolting a pair of turbochargers to the V6 guarantees pretty stratospheric outputs। We're talking about 473bhp and 433lb ft, which is enough to guarantee Porsche 911 Turbo-shading performance। Like the benchmark 60mph in just 3।5sec and a top speed of 192mph।

The cockpit is a business-like place to be, judging by this first glimpse inside. A huge tacho dominates the dial stack, letting drivers judge exactly the point at which you flick up and down the new dual-clutch six-speeder. Expect rifle-bolt gearchanges, like on the existing systems from VW and Mitsubishi.

I guess the new Nissan GT-R will still be a real techfest?

Oh yes. It has a computer-controlled four-wheel drive system to apportion torque to the wheels with the most grip. Nissan hasn't yet lifted the lid on the system's exact details, but you can safely expect it to be full of clever clogs electronics to give the GT-R its usual athletic responses.

Previous Skyline GT-R models have felt more like rear-drivers than big, heavy four-wheel drive cars, and we hear that the new one will develop those dynamics further. And to ram that point home, the company is planning a publicity stunt to prove the GT-R is faster than a 911 Turbo around the Nurburgring.

Enough titillation! When can I get hold of a GT-R?

Afraid you'll have to wait a bit longer for the real McCoy. CAR Online will have the full story on Nissan's new supercoupe next week. Come back on 24 October 2007 to read the full lowdown.

And if you want to buy a GT-R, you'll have to wait even longer. The car isn't destined to arrive in the UK until autumn 2008. But we've a sneaky suspicion it will be worth the wait...

Words: Tim Pollard
(www.carmagazine.co.uk)