World Imports USA

Lotus Cars Malaysia today announced the official opening of the first Lotus Flagship Showroom and Centre in Malaysia, strategically located in Sungai Penchala. In conjunction of the opening, Lotus also unveiled two of its latest stars, the Exige S and Elise S for the Malaysian market. The opening of the showroom and launch of the Exige S and Elise S was officiated by Proton Advisor YABhg Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, who was accompanied by Datoâ?? Sri Haji Mohd Khamil Jamil, the Executive Chairman of Proton. Lotus is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Proton Holdings Berhad. Part of DRB-Hicomâ??s plans to revive Lotus, the Flagship Showroom and Centre is built on 10,520m² of land, and offers a complete Lotus experience with a Showroom, a Customer Interactive Block, and a Service Centre, where owners will be able to service, and obtain the spare parts for their Lotus cars.

Michael Schumacher. Sebastian Vettel. Tom Kristensen. What do these three Formula One drivers have in common? Each suffered defeat in the 2012 Race of Champions by Lotus F1 Racing, and driver Romain Grosjean.

At World Imports USA, we must say it's a pretty big accomplishment. Why? Well, for one, the three aforementioned drivers are some of the most successful in F1 history. Secondly, it definitely solidifies Lotus on the racing scene, and is a…

Filed under: Recalls, Safety, Toyota

Following news that Toyota has proposed a massive settlement to address the owners of vehicles effected by the unintended acceleration recall, shares for the automaker are up 2.6 percent. Over the course of this year, Toyota's stock has jumped 51.7 percent.

"My initiate reaction would be 'that's it'... $1 billion charge that covers recalls and everything else and you are looking at a $250 million compensation fund, that's nothing," said a senior trader at a foreign brokerage to Automotive News. This settlement has been set aside to cover class-action lawsuits from 16 million owners of Toyota, Lexus and Scion vehicles and is separate from other impending lawsuits - including one consumer protection suit in California and another unfair-business-practices case brought on by 28 attorneys general.

In other positive news for investors, the Japanese yen has weakened compared to the US dollar. That likely means improved financial performance from the big Japanese automakers, the largest of which is Toyota.

Toyota shares rise on smaller-than-expected settlement news originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 27 Dec 2012 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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With Volkswagen now producing twelve different configurations of their venerable Volkswagen Golf, there is a good chance there is a trim level that will appeal to you.  We here at World Imports USA may not have the trim level available but if you fill out our CarFinder we will definitely find it for you.  We know that a used Volkswagen Golf is a popular choice in the Jacksonville area and is one of the reasons?

Filed under: Detroit Auto Show, Spy Photos, Coupe, Performance, Chevrolet, Luxury

Hope Santa's got some coal left, because someone else has earned it for yet another holiday season leak. Alongside leaked shots for the 2013 Bentley Continental GT Speed Convertible and Mercedes-Benz CLA, a Corvette Forum member recently uploaded a number of drawings of the C7 Corvette that he says someone has been sending him. The post has since been removed from the forum, the original poster, "Blue Ox," writing "the information I posted is less 'public' than was originally thought and... someone's job could be in danger."

There are no take-backs on the Internet, though. The drawings look to be from an owner's manual or a service guide and show the coupe's exterior, rear end and inside the rear hatch, then cover details of the cockpit, seats and engine bay. There's a new steering wheel inside, and a large central screen with a new array of HVAC buttons underneath. Pilots will get to sit in new sports seats that finally appear to have the proper amount of bolstering for a Corvette.

The dash cluster that was teased in a video not long ago looks like it could be a central LCD screen flanked by analogue gauges for the speedo, water temp and fuel tank, not an all-LCD display. There will be a Track Overlay feature that tracks the car on a track and monitors speed, brake and throttle application, gear selection, G force and direction, lap time and steering angle, and it displays a graph for the Performance Traction Management. This will likely work with the (or is a display for) the Performance Data Recorder that is said to be able to save vehicle data, as well as video and audio, to an SD card.

Not shown in the photos but thrown into the discussion is Active Rev Match for cars equipped with manual transmissions, said to match engine speed to the next gear for both upshifts and downshifts. Last but not least, an Engine Sound Management system will alter the 'robustness' of the engine note via seven settings: Auto, Stealth, City, Tour, Sport, Track and Off.

There are just three weeks left until the C7 is revealed at the Detroit Auto Show. We wouldn't mind leaving something left to surprise us on the official day, but we won't be surprised if that doesn't happen.

Leaked drawings of the C7 Corvette hit the web originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 25 Dec 2012 18:54:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Coupe, Performance, Chevrolet

Just when we thought that the horsepower battle between Ford Mustang and Chevrolet Camaro had reached its zenith with the 662-horsepower Shelby GT500, it appears that Chevrolet won't go down without a fight. Based on an official-looking Vehicle Identification Number decoder (click the above image to enlarge) that Camaro5 managed to get its hands on, the 2014 Camaro might be getting ready to receive a few tweaks under the hood.

The biggest news is that an LS7 V8 engine looks to be joining the Camaro family for the 2014 model year. The 7.0-liter LS7 is currently used in the Corvette Z06 with a power rating of 505 hp and 470 pound-feet of torque, which is much less power than the supercharged 6.2-liter LSA V8 used in the Camaro ZL1 putting out 580 hp and 556 lb.-ft. Interestingly, though, there are no new trim level listed on the detailed sheet, suggesting this engine could be destined to find its way into one of the Camaro's existing model, though a few months ago, it was reported that GM filed trademark papers for the Z/28 moniker, a storied designation in Camaro history.

On the opposite end of the performance spectrum, the decoder also appears to indicate that the Camaro's base 3.6-liter V6 will become E85 capable. We'll wait until we hear official word from General Motors on either regard to get too excited, but both are promising leads for Camaro fans. Combined with this week's news that next-generation Camaro production will be shifting from Oshawa, Ontario to Lansing, MI, this has been a surprising eventful week for Chevy's ponycar.

2014 Chevrolet Camaro to be available with LS7 V8? originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 21 Dec 2012 14:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The gorgeous Torie Campbell is back with two spicy highlights from this years Auto Show in Los Angeles. Among the featured cars there were the SLS AMG Black Series and the GL 63 AMG. The design of the SLS AMG Black Series was inspired by the SLS AMG GT3 SLS Race Car. The power and the speed were also derived from the said model. From a complete halt, the car can accelerate up to 60mph in 3.5 seconds and reach up to a maximum speed... Continue Reading »

<iframe width=?724? height=?407? src=?http://www.youtube.com/embed/lpIddjyHHVs? frameborder=?0? allowfullscreen></iframe> Mercedes-Benz has always put a premium on safety for its products and the 2014 Mercedes-Benz S Class is no exception as the company has made it the first vehicle to provide a self-directed system that allows it to maneuver itself. A series of videos were posted recently that explained this self-directed system of the S Class. The vehicle features a number of integrated sensors monitors road markings and traffic up to a distance of over 650 feet. Together with... Continue Reading »

Customers who ordered a tuned up C63 AMG Black Coup with 510hp plus the optional Aerodynamics and Track kits as well as carbon enhancements are in for an early Christmas treat. Vath is offering more ways to unleash more of the cars potentials. The German-based tuning company provides an upgrade package that includes a complete power kit with enhanced software, modified exhaust and a supercharger. The add-ons will increase the output of the engine to a maximum of 746hp. This will allow the C63 AMG... Continue Reading »

THE LOTUS EVORA JUST GOT BETTER!

For serious drivers, the new Lotus Evora 'Sports Racer' -?? its impressive performance is matched only by its impressive value.

It'??s been a busy year for Lotus; the arrival of the acclaimed Exige S; featured marque at the Goodwood Festival of Speed; a new flagship retail store in Regent Street; third place in the F1 Drivers'?? Championship and fourth in the F1 Constructors' Championship; and amongst various racing exploits, another series win for a Lotus with an Evora GTC taking the MSA British Endurance Championship.

Following the excitement of this race series win, the new Evora '??Sports Racer'?? is a visually enhanced and optimised version of the mid-engined 3.5 litre V6 sports car, available in both naturally-aspirated or supercharged variants. The Evora '??Sports Racer'?? proves its value on the pocket, as well as on the road and track - it delivers phenomenal performance, exclusive style, incredible excitement and genuine affordability!

Continue at - http://www.lotuscars.com/gb/news/corporate/lotus-evora-just-got-better