Subaru’s search for a consistent design language is the stuff of automotive legend, as the brand has flitted from one theme to the next, seemingly coming up with a new direction with each new vehicle. Now, starting with the Hybrid Tourer Concept from the last Geneva Show, Subaru seems to have settled into something of a groove. It’s a sleek, stripped-down, mature look that might stray towards the bland side for some Subaru fans… but at least it’s a direction. With this peek at a future look for the Impreza, we’re getting a little closer to the day when Subaru actually offers a line of consistently-styled vehicles.

As Bertel reported this morning, the debut of Toyota’s first potential mass-market pure EV has not been an occasion for the Japanese automaker to trumpet battery-electric technology as a world-beater. In fact, given the kind of rhetoric that usually accompanies concepts like this Tesla-developed electric RAV4, Toyota is still treating electric vehicles as a limited, and relatively short-term trend that poses little threat to the gas-based core of its business. And there’s strong evidence that this is the right approach. Hybrids are the mass-market face of green motoring in the here-and-now, and a wave of hydrogen vehicles scheduled for 2015 could take considerable wind out of the EV bandwagon’s sales long-term. No wonder Toyota shoved development of the RAV4 EV to its idealistic “investment,” Tesla. This car is not the future… it’s an insurance policy.

According to a recent projection, GM will be selling over 2m vehicles on its Gamma (Aveo) platform by 2016… and thanks to Cadillac’s Urban Luxury Concept, we know what the most profitable iteration of that platform could look like. Yes, it’s the new-wave Cimarron of the future, inspired by such pedigreed city-car competitors as the Aston-Martin Cygnet and the Bugatti Petit Sport Sang de Navet. And with Lambo doors and a grille that would put a crunk rapper to shame, the littlest Caddy certainly does everything it can to distract from its humble (presumably budget Korean hatchback) roots.  Because, as lead designer Frank Saucedo puts it

There is no minimum size for a Cadillac driving experience.

But there is a minimum volume per platform target… and the importance of this metric almost guarantees that, in some way or another, the Cimarron will ride again.

With strong new C-segment competition coming in the form of the Chevy Cruze, Hyundai Elantra and Ford Focus, upcoming refreshes of the Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla seem to be taking a low-key approach to the extroverted upstarts. Are the kings of the compact class resting on their laurels? Can they afford to coast on reputation alone? History tells us that complacence leads to trouble in this industry…

That’s right kids, automotive design does matter… even in the search for New York City’s Taxi Of Tomorrow. Which weird-looking van do you prefer? Vote here.

If you’ve ever been to a topless beach, you know the basic problem: you expect a bunch of topless Jags and Maseratis, but what you actually get is this, the Nissan Murano CrossCabriolet. Four thousand pounds of roly-poly crossover blessed with the totally misguided belief that people want to see it with its top off. And it would be one thing if this were just a one-off concept, but it sounds like Nissan is considering actually making this thing. We’ll keep a corner of our eye on this as the LA Auto Show kicks off… but we’ll be sure to avoid eye contact.

Now that Chrysler has released full side-on images of its new “200” sedan, its Sebring heritage is plain to see. But will a new name, a new V6, improved handling and a new interior be enough to get D-segment shoppers to forget the Sebring’s ignominy and head back to Chrysler showrooms?

Given Toyota’s dominance of the hybrid market, and its early skepticism about pure-electric vehicles, it’s safe to say that we didn’t expect this badge to show up anytime soon. But sure enough, Toyota’s new corporate EV badge will grace the firm’s RAV-4 EV concept, which debuts at this fall’s LA Auto Show. And it won’t be the most jarring image on that vehicle either…

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Hyundai’s Sonata overhaul has been well-received by critics and customers, and the next-gen Elantra looks set to move the magic to the C-segment. But what of the Accent? If there’s a vehicle left in Hyundai’s lineup that recalls the bad old days of Hyundai’s bargain-basement past, it’s the current sub-$10k base price Accent. Of course, that’s all about to change, as a new Accent is hitting the roads in Korea… and like most of Hyundai’s new product, it looks like a huge step up from its predecessor. TTAC’s man in Korea, Walter Foreman, was kind enough to send in this mega-dump of over 80 images of the new Accent, noting

According to Auto Motor und Sport, the next-generation Porsche 911 (991) will have its wheelbase extended by ten centimeters compared to the current model, a concession to US emissions standards which are categorized by footprint. The new elfer will also lose about 88 pounds and gain stop-start technology, in yet another nod to tightening global emissions standards. Oh yes, and the handbrake will become an electrically-controlled switch similar to the unit in the Panamera. Otherwise… has anything changed? These Erlkönig spy shots reveal the biggest non-story in all of automotive-dom: the 911’s styling really won’t change all that much for its newest iteration. Yes, the most consistently-styled car of the modern era will get slightly steeper front headlights, a more tapered rear end, and fewer vestigal cooling vents that survived the switch from air-cooled to water-cooled engines, thanks to the Porsche’s legendarily stubborn styling department. Otherwise, the updates are incredibly subtle (those side vents are taped-on camo, according to AM und S).

Can the Carrera continue like this forever? Will faithfulness to its classical form ever wear thin? A quick comparison of 911 sales to Boxster/Cayman sales (4,751 to 3,036 in the US, year-to-date) suggests that’s not going to be a problem anytime soon…

About a month ago we saw the first renderings of the 2012 Nissan Versa, and were more than a little taken aback at the model’s apparent move from geeky hatch to sleek sedan. Now the first images of the Chinese-market Nissan Sunny have hit autohome.com.cn [via Burlappcars.com], and they show a rounded little sedan that’s equal parts Altima and IS250. The Sunny nameplate is known as the Sentra in the US, but there’s some speculation that these images actually portray the next-gen Versa (based on their similarity to the earlier-leaked rendering). Alternatively, Nissan could be going for a similar look for both its compact and subcompact offerings. In any case, these pictures hint that Nissan is not taking improved offerings like Chevy’s Cruze and the forthcoming Ford Focus and Hyundai Accent sitting down. The compact and subcompact segments are heating up as designs improve, and Nissan is not about to be left behind.

Yes, we’ve been waiting for this moment for some time. Ever since Chrysler pimped cgi renderings of the new 300 in its bailout-requesting “viability plan,” promising that it would be “the most-awarded new car in automotive history,” we’ve been curious about the follow up to the car that arguably saved the Chrysler brand’s image. But now that we’re seeing the first pictures, we can’t help but feel that some of the 300’s brash swagger may have been lost in the humiliation of bankruptcy. Sure, the mirrors are completely chromed, which is a pure class move, but the whole thing (the front end in particular) has certainly lost more than a little of its “I’m not actually super-wealthy, but you’d never know it by the way I treat people” attitude. Jalopnik may be worried about the Rolls-Royce-alike bodykit business, but we’re more concerned that America’s most pimping automobile (in the value-neutral sense) has turned into the Cadillac STS.

You know it’s an all-new 2011 model because of the fancy computer-generated press shots, but otherwise would you have any idea that this is the 2011 model-year Morgan three-wheeler? Yes, the wackiest of British cottage sportscar shops has dusted off its old three-wheeler designs and is bringing the model back after a 58-year hiatus. InsideLine says the new version will offer 100 HP from a Harley “Screaming Eagle” engine and will weigh a mere 1,100-lbs, giving it an estimated 4.5 second 0-60 time. Of course, it will have to be homologated as a motorcycle thanks to the missing wheel, and there’s no word on price or American availability. Still, it seems to have retained the most important quality of its predecessor, namely that it is, as Sir Stirling Moss once put it,

a great babe magnet

It’s time four our annual non-SEMA non-coverage post. You know where to go and find it, but this tastefully customized Prius refuses to be ignored. Shall we guess what those front end scoops do to the Prius’ carefully refined aerodynamics. Ah, but that carbon fiber hood will offset enough weight to mitigate any loss of efficiency from the body work. Admittedly, the Prius C&A Custom Concept had a strong challenger for TTAC’s annual SEMA non-coverage winner: Read More >