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Weekly Recap: Lamborghini to build SUV

Finally, Lamborghini will build a sport utility vehicle. The Italian supercar maker confirmed this week that it will launch a luxury SUV in 2018. It will be built at Lamborghini's soon-to-expand factory in Sant'Agata Bolognese in Italy, and will double the company's current sales volume. Lamborghini did not announce a name for the vehicle or other details, but noted a concept version, the Urus, was displayed at the Beijing motor show in 2012. It will be sold around the world, but it's expected to be a critical offering in the United States, China, and the Middle East. The automaker projects the SUV will sell about 3,000 units per year, and it will be the third product in Lamborghini's portfolio. It currently sells the Huracan and Aventador supercars. "The introduction of a third model line endorses the stable and sustainable growth of the company and signifies for us the beginning of a new era," Lamborghini chief executive Stephan Winkelmann said in a statement. The project is also a boon for Italy, which will get 500 new jobs in the Emilia Romagna region as Lamborghini's factory will nearly double in size. Ian Fletcher, principal analyst for IHS Automotive, said the SUV will position Lamborghini for future growth. "It could well also bring new customers to the brand [who] may find the dramatic styling of Lamborghini products appealing, but find its typical sports cars restrictive," he said. "If it is a success, the SUV could be a catalyst to Lamborghini broadening its portfolio further." OTHER NEWS & NOTES GM invests in Chevy Camaro factory General Motors is investing $175 million to upgrade its factory in Lansing, MI, to build the 2016 Chevy Camaro. The investment will pay for new tooling and equipment. The improvements include three new paint systems and two new robotic framers. GM will add a second shift at the factory to build the Camaro, resulting in 500 jobs. The automaker had dropped the plant to one shift last year amid slow sales for its products, the Cadillac ATS and CTS. GM is spending $5.4 billion over the next three years to upgrade its US facilities. Last week, GM announced plans to spend $439 million to build a new paint shop for the Chevy Corvette. While the Camaro and Corvette plant improvements are intriguing to enthusiasts, GM also confirmed this week that it is investing $1.2 billion in its Fort Wayne (IN) factory that builds trucks.

The Abarth 695 Biposto Record is 190 hp tribute to speed

Abarth earned an early reputation for tuning big power from small-displacement engines. The company's Fiat Abarth 1000 Monoposto Record set class acceleration records at Monza in 1965, with Carlo Abarth himself behind the wheel. The limited edition 695 Biposto Record now celebrates the 50th anniversary of those titles with the hottest version of the Fiat 500 on the street. Abarth will limit this special 695 Biposto to just 133 examples – the company's number of historic records. They all wear Modena Yellow bodies with Tar Cold Grey trim and an enameled badge. The interior also features a numbered plaque. Beyond these aesthetic tweaks, Abarth sticks with the high-output powertrain of the standard 695 Biposto: a 1.4-liter turbocharged four-cylinder sends 190 horsepower to the front wheels through a mechanical locking differential. An Akrapovic exhaust provides great sound, too. Compared to a normal Fiat 500 Abarth, the weight of the Biposto twins drops to 2,198 pounds thanks in part to the removal of the rear seats. The combination of more power and fewer pounds lets the hatchback reach 62 miles per hour in 5.9 seconds and a top speed of 143 mph. Brembo brakes slow things down. Inside, Sabelt buckets with carbon shells hold the two occupants tight with four-point harnesses. Like the standard 695 Biposto, we don't expect the company to offer the Record in the US. They're rather expensive across the pond; The UK press release shows a price there at the current equivalent of $55,680. Related Video: ABARTH ANNOUNCES LIMITED EDITION 695 BIPOSTO RECORD A new, limited edition version of Abarth's stunning 695 biposto, the Record, has just gone on sale, priced GBP36,610 OTR. Just 133 examples of the striking 695 biposto Record will be built for worldwide distribution. An exclusive 'Modena Yellow' finish embellished with 'Tar Cold Grey' trims, enamelled '695 Record' badge on the side and aluminium bonnet are all standard features. This small run of cars – 133 is the number of records held by the Scorpion brand – also feature 18-inch OZ alloy wheels, large Brembo brakes and a throaty Akrapovic exhaust. Inside, there is special instrument panel animation, Sabelt carbon shell seats, four point seatbelts, a cargo net and a unique numbered plate. Based on the sporting, two-seat Abarth 695 biposto, the Record version is powered by the same 190hp 1.4 Turbo T-Jet 16-valve engine.

The mood at this year’s Paris Motor Show: Quiet

The Paris Motor Show, held every other year in the early fall, typically kicks off the annual cavalcade of automotive conclaves, one that traverses the globe between autumn and spring, introducing projective, conceptual and production-ready vehicle models to the international automotive press, automotive aficionados and a public hungry for news of our increasingly futuristic mobility enterprise. But this year, at the press preview days for the show, the grounds of the Porte de Versailles convention center felt a bit more sparsely populated than usual. This was not simply a subjective sensation, or one influenced by the center's atypically dispersed assemblage of seven discrete buildings, which tends to spread out the cars and the crowds. There were not only fewer new vehicles being premiered in Paris this year, there were fewer manufacturers there to display them. Major mainstream European OEM stalwarts such as Alfa Romeo, Fiat, Nissan and Volkswagen chose to sit out Paris this year, as did boutique manufacturers like Bentley, Aston Martin and Lamborghini. This is not simply based in some antipathy on the part of the German, British and Italian manufacturers toward the French market — though for a variety of historical and societal reasons that market may be more dominated by vehicles produced domestically than others. Rather, it is part of a larger trend in the industry. Last year, Mercedes-Benz announced that it would not be participating in the flagship North American International Auto Show in 2019 — and that it might not return. Other brands including Jaguar/Land Rover, Audi, Porsche, Mazda and nearly every exotic carmaker have also departed the Detroit show. Some of these brands will still appear in the city in which the show is taking place, and host an event offsite, to capitalize on the presence of a large number of reporters in attendance. And even brands that do have a presence at the show have shifted their vehicle introductions to the days before the official press opening in an attempt to stand out from the crowd. In many ways, this makes sense. With an expanding number of automakers, with diversification and niche-ification of models and with wholesale shifts that necessitate the introduction of EV or autonomous sub-brands, there is a growing sense that, with everyone shouting at the same time, no one can be heard.