The Viper ACR-X is powered by a 8.4 liter V10 engine that delivers a total of 640 HP - a 40 HP increase over the standard model. The model is also 160 lbs lighter than the standard. It comes equipped with a roll cage, a lone racing bucket, Momo Corse steering wheel, and self sealing fuel cell.

Enjoy the video and stay tuned for the official unveiling of the new generation Viper.

Robert Palm, CEO of Classic Factory, said: "We want to make the ’Made In England’ label into a truthful concept, not just a statement. Every part of the Lyonheart K is developed, engineered and hand-built in England. The design clues of the Lyonheart K reflect Britishness at its best: cool, elegant, refined, understated yet powerful and dynamic."

Lyonheart’s design philosophy for the Lyonheart K was to only use genuine materials, like carbon fiber, leather, veneer, polished stainless steel, brushed aluminum, and chromed metal. In addition to these materials, Lyonhearts Cars is also offering a bespoke program that allows its customers to design the cars according to their wishes. Customers can opt for any desired material on the interior, pick their own, unique dials, or put their initials in the veneer or in the body color.

The Lyonheart K - or copycat Jaguar E-Type - is powered by a supercharged V8 engine with 550 HP. The car will sprint from 0 to 60 mph in just 3.7 seconds and is electronically limited to 186 mph.

Originally, there was only one unit of the Lyonheart K produced to serve as a modern interpretation of the Jaguar E-Type, but it was such a worldwide success that Classic Factory decided it would offer the vehicle in a limited run of 50 units. The ordering book is now open, marking each unit with a $650,000 price tag.

Hit the jump to read more about the Lyonheart K.

Whether the manufacturers like it or not, all car brands have certain reputations attached to them. We’ve all heard that European cars are unreliable and costly to fix, whereas certain Japanese makes are all but bullet-proof in the minds of some brand-loyal car shoppers. But is there any truth to these notions? Forum user Superman15857 wants to know exactly that in today’s Thread of the Day, asking, “Is any car brand truly reliable?” Conversely, are there any allegedly unreliable brands out there that actually deserve their reputation?

Do you think that all modern cars are equally reliable? Or are there some brands you feel you can count on more than others? Do unreliable cars come from a particular country? Or does reliability all depend on the company that builds them? How about the cars of today versus the cars of 20 or 30 years ago? Are new cars generally more reliable today? Or do you subscribe to the belief that “they don’t build them like they used to?” Give us your take in the comments section below.

Photo Source: FaceMePls via Flickr

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These official photos don’t show all that much of the new Toyota FT-Bh concept, but they do provide a little more information of the concept — which will debut at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show in March — than previous teaser sketches did.

A B-segment hybrid Toyota isn’t a new idea (in fact, Toyota recently announced a Yaris Hybrid for Europe), but the automaker claims the FT-Bh (Future Toyota B-segment hybrid) does push the envelope in a few areas. Toyota says the concept still offers the space of a five-door subcompact, yet its curb weight should ring in at less than 1760 pounds – allegedly without the use of “exotic materials or expensive techniques.” The same goes for the powertrain, which Toyota claims is merely a downsized version of its standard gas/electric hybrid system.

It appears as if the FT-Bh will look a bit exotic, at least in comparison to other subcompact designs. Toyota’s teaser shots show a narrow LED headlamp perched atop a razor-thin surface that extends from the front fascia and fender. In back, the FT-Bh’s vertical rear window – apparently cribbed from the defunct Renault Avantime – is flanked by thin taillamps, which are shaped like steps.

Expect more details – and complete photography – on the Toyota FT-Bh concept to emerge on March 6th, when the supersmall hybrid design makes its public debut in Geneva.

Source: Toyota

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When we first saw the GTA Spano this time last year, the limited-run Spanish-built supercar was being introduced at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show. At that time, the Spano was being touted as a Spain’s answer to an increasing number of niche super cars being built all over the world.

A year later and we’re all here, waiting in earnest for the production of the GTA Spano, but GTA Motors has confirmed that the "definitive" version of the Spano has been penciled in to make its debut at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show. We’re guessing that "definitive" is just a term that they are using to say that they have finished tweaking their supercar and are finally ready to start production.

The Spano will be limited to only 99 units, which means that it’s going to be tough to get a piece of this supercar. For what it’s worth, though, the GTA Spano is powered by an 8.3-liter V10 engine that produces a mouth-watering 780 horsepower and 920 Nm of torque, performance capabilities that allow the Spanish supercar to hit 0-60 mph in just under three seconds while hitting a top speed of 217 mph.

gallery: 2011 GTA Spano

We’ve already had a pretty good look at the all-new Volvo V40 thanks to numerous leaks and teaser photos. Now, Polish magazine Motodziennik has let loose a pair of pictures showing the whole V40 prior to its scheduled debut at the Geneva Motor Show next month.

We already had a pretty good look at the V40′s form thanks to a leaked spread from a Swedish magazine last week. Even Volvo’s own Facebook teaser photo gave quite a bit away, especially once the shadows had been removed. Now that we can see the full car, we see the V40 uses Volvo’s familial DNA, including a hexagonal grille, swept back headlamps, flowing hips, a rising belt line, and full-height hockey-stick taillights. Out back, the V40 makes a nod to the petite C30 with a hatch that’s crafted mostly from glass.

Volvo has already stated that the V40 will not be coming Stateside, which makes sense given the brand’s discontinuation of the slow-selling V50 wagon. The automaker has yet to confirm any details, but it’s rumored that the V40 will be offered with 1.4- and 2.0-liter four-cylinder engines, optional all-wheel drive, and Volvo’s City and Pedestrian Safety systems.

The all-new Volvo V40 is said to ride on the brand’s new Scalable Platform Architecture that will underpin the majority of its future models. Previous reports have stated the V40′s length at 177.2 inches long; if true, that’s a foot longer than a Volkswagen Golf, almost a foot longer than the about-to-be-replaced Audi A3 (its closest competition), and just 0.8 inches shorter than the outgoing Volvo V50.

Stay with Motor Trend for the official details on the Volvo V40 once it makes its debut at the Geneva show in a few weeks, and for all the news from the show floor.

Source: Motodziennik Facebook

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It’s true, boys and girls. The Artega GT Roadster is headed to the 2012 Geneva Motor Show.

Details about the car are still slim pickings at this point, but there are a few things worth noting about it before we see the drop-top sports car in the flesh. The first involves the powertrain, which could very well end up being the same 3.6-liter V6 engine that currently powers the GT. If that ends up being accurate, you can expect the GT Roadster’s numbers to be similar to the GT - good for 300 ponies, a 0-62 mph time of 4.8 seconds, and a top speed of 168 mph - with variations due to the addition of the convertible roof.

The second is the price tag. While Artega has been mum on how much it’s going to take to buy the GT Roadster, we do expect it to be in the neighborhood of the €75,000 price tag of the Artega GT. Convert that to greenbacks and you’re looking at a price of just under $100,000.

Anything and everything about the Artega GT Roadster will be officially unveiled at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show. That in itself is something to look forward to.

gallery: 2011 Artega GT

gallery: 2011 Artega SE

Design studio Italdesign Giugaro has released teaser photos and a brief video to preview its new concept car, which will bow at the Geneva Motor Show. Unusually, the company has not revealed the name of the concept car. “What’s the name? Try and guess,” suggests Italdesign Giugaro on Twitter and YouTube.

It’s tough to tell what the teaser images are showing, but we’d posit they preview the air intakes and fender strakes of Italdesign’s new concept car. A third teaser photo is promised to emerge by the end of this week. As for the video, it shows the letters B and R — while we might be tempted to guess the concept will be called BRZ, Subaru has already co-opted that moniker for its new sports coupe.

You can check out the brief, cryptic teaser video below. Italdesign Giugaro will unveil its newest concept at the Geneva show on March 6. Make sure to stay with Motor Trend for all the coverage from the show floor.

Sources: Italdesign Giugardo, YouTube

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What’s faster than a TGV train, has more turbochargers than you can shake a stick at, and boasts a convertible top? The answer is the new Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport Vitesse, which packs even more power into an already insanely powerful supercar.

Vitesse means “speed” in Bugatti’s native French, and the Grand Sport Vitesse has it in spades, thanks to a little extra power underhood. Bugatti took its 1000-horsepower Grand Sport and tweaked it along the lines of the world record-holding Super Sport coupe. When Bugatti finished the job, it was left with a Veyron SS-inspired roadster with 1200 horsepower on tap.

Bugatti said that it accomplished this by enlarging the 8.0-liter W-16 engine’s four turbochargers and intercoolers, along with beefing up the Veyron Grand Sport’s chassis to withstand the fury of 1106 pound-feet of torque. The company also says that the car carries many of the design and driving characteristics of the Veyron Super Sport, including the SS’ sleeker front end (which reduces drag) and revised suspension tuning.

The Bugatti Veyron is nothing if not a car with a massive top speed, but the Grand Sport Vitesse’s manufacturer was surprisingly mum about the car’s top end. The standard Grand Sport was limited to 217 mph, enough to make it the world’s fastest production convertible. The extra oomph from the Grand Sport Vitesse’s engine could push that number up, but the Vitesse’s open-roof form means it likely won’t reach the Super Sport’s 268 mph level.

It could reach the Super Sport’s level in price, however: Bugatti hasn’t announced just how much this high-performance droptop will cost, but a “standard” Grand Sport starts around $2 million, while the Super Sport coupe commands roughly $3.3 million. Seeing as the Grand Sport Vitesse blends aspects of both cars together, we wouldn’t be surprised if its price tag slots somewhere between those two extremes.

Look for the Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport Vitesse to make its official public debut at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show in March.

Source: Bugatti

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After a slow drop of sales thanks to the economic crisis, the Audi Q7 is going to attempt a comeback with a brand new generation of lightweight proportions. For a while, it seemed as though it was merely a rumor, but now the largest SUV in Audi’s lineup has been spotted testing for the first time, in mule form.

From these spy images, we can see that the fenders on this Q7 mule are wider than its predecessor and it also looks like the front overhang is shorter. It has been rumored that the next Q7 will lose about 400 kgs, or about 880 lbs compared to the current model. For this, Audi will be using lots of lighter materials like aluminum and carbon fiber.

Rumors about the power source for the next generation Audi Q7 are also interesting. It seems that Audi will drop the current, larger engines in favor of some smaller sources. A hybrid version may also be offered.