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Fiat is due to unveil the highly-anticipated 500 revival tomorrow, but they’ve given registered “community members” a chance to preview the itty-bitty new car at Fiat500.com

The site features a quick flash animation video that shows the new car from various angles, both inside and out. You only get to see the video once, but some intrepid fellow bloggers have managed to grab some screen shots which we’re glad to share with you above and after the jump.

The car will be officially unveiled to the public tomorrow, but if you can’t wait and want to see Fiat’s flashy flash show, you can go straight to Fiat500.com and register to see the video.
[Source: Fiat500.com via MotoriOnline]

A darker, evil-er Bugatti Veyron has been born to run alongside the Pur Sang: the Sang Noir. Word is the newest variant has been created to be a tip of the hat — that would be “chapeau!” in French — to the Bugatti Atlantique 57S. It gets a slightly different front grille with matching side mirrors, black headlight surrounds, exclusive wheels, and an interior dressed in what looks like electric orange. All in all, the car appears to share nothing with the Atlantique other than the name Bugatti and choice of exterior color. But it’s not like that would keep you from buying it, would it?

[Source: 4WheelsBlog via AutoSpies]

We’ve been debating whether or not this is a real photo or an expert rendering, but if it is a photoshopped image of a BMW M1 prototype, then it is very convincing. According to FreshTarmac.com, this photo was taken in a hangar in Spain. It shows a sleek two-door, probably mid-engined coupe with attributes of the new M3 incorporated into its design, especially the front fenders and hood. With BMW introducing the M1 Hommage Concept at the Concorso d’Eleganza at Villa d’Este last week, we hope this means that is already considering a production version. Come on BMW, build it! Thanks for the tip, John!
[Source: FreshTarmac.com]

When Ford announced the GT500KR’s based price of $79,995, many of you thought that it was pretty steep for a Mustang. Even though it’s a limited edition Shelby with 540 horsepower, $80,000 can buy a lot of really nice cars. What’s even more insane is that we know people will not only buy the KR, but they will pay tens of thousands of dollars over MSRP just to have one. The only question was how much dealers would try and gouge. That question has been answered. Lone Star Ford in Houston, TX has put up a red GT500KR on eBay Motors with a “Buy It Now” price of…$154,991.00. That’s nearly double the MSRP. Who knows if anyone will actually buy it at that price, but going off what happened with the standard GT500, then it’s quite possible. While we enjoyed our first drive in the GT500KR (check out Part 1 and Part 2), we can think of quite a few cars we’d rather have for $150,000.

[Source: eBay Motors]

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Toyota has been working on an affordable small car that will be cost-competitive in emerging markets, and Autocar is reporting that India is being considered as a destination for production. India makes sense due to its low-cost labor, and with competitors like the Tata Nano going for as little as $2,500, the world’s biggest automaker will need to cut cost everywhere it can. There is no word as to exactly what vehicle would be produced in India, but one option is Toyota’s production iQ from Geneva, which is scheduled to begin production later in 2008. Toyota is looking for initial sales of the iQ to crest 100,000 units.
[Source: Autocar via Winding Road]

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While Cadillac busies itself with a 2-door version of the new CTS sedan, the folks over at Coach Builders, Ltd have been busy taking their tops off. The boulevardier CTS gets an insulated, hydraulically-powered roof fitted with a heated glass rear window and cloth headliner. The top also comes in several colors. Judging by this pic, it also looks like a fair bit of work has gone into making the car look good with the top down. No word on what happens to trunk space, however.

It’ll cost you more than a few quarters — $19,000 gets the job done in eight weeks — but that’s the price of exclusivity, right? It’s also employs a manual release, but these things happen when you’re a style pioneer. We’d like to see pics of the car with the top up, because we wonder if this could be the first cloth-topped Caddy truly fit for the younger set.

[Source: Inside Line]

The IIHS has put the 2008 smart fortwo through its frontal offset crash test, and the video is on YouTube even though the IIHS hasn’t released its results yet. For everyone who points out the benefits of the smart’s miniscule size, there are a number of others who say they wouldn’t want to go up against a normal American car in a smart. Even the NHTSA had some concerns when it tested the fortwo’s crashworthiness. Based on the video after the jump, however, it looks like the smart acquits itself quite well with no deformation of the A-pillar and not even a crack in the windshield. We’ll have to wait for the IIHS to give its final, official word, however. Sure, we wouldn’t want to be driving a smart fortwo in an accident… but that’s only because we don’t want to be in an accident. Follow the jump to watch the video for yourself.

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The current Prius is baked from a refined recipe that results in a roomy, practical and efficient vehicle lurking under an eco-statement exterior, or at least we thought so. Five years on, it’s still the most popular way to conspicuously consume under the guise of saving the planet. Toyota hasn’t been resting on the success of its green badge of targeted consumerism, so we’re going to see a new Prius at the 2009 North American International Auto Show in January, according to Toyota President Watanabe. The 3rd-generation Prius will grow in size, and engine displacement will be bumped to 1.8 liters to increase performance. Despite the increase in size and sprightliness, weight will reportedly hold steady. Further changes are in store after the launch, with plug-in and Li-Ion updates to come.

The nameplate will also move beyond a single model and become a sub-brand during the reign of Prius the III. More body styles are coming, and if you think the Prius is a roachy-looking thing, the concept hints Toyota has given us are possibly even weirder. The sub-1,000 pound 1/X might offer a glimpse at another type of Prius, though more realistically, the sad-eyed Hybrid X vannish concept suggests the way things are headed without the ridiculous pronunciation of its featherweight companion. If things go according to Toyota’s plan for world domination, the Prius will become one of the pillars upon which the marque is built, next to the Corolla and Camry institutions.
[Source: Auto Observer]

Lane departure sensors and adaptive cruise control have helped to prevent accidents and save lives, and new technology from the University of Michigan hopes to take the those ideas to the next level. U of M’s Integrated Vehicle-Based Safety System warns drivers if they’re about to hit another vehicle while changing lanes; if they’re about to leave the road; and if they’re going to rear-end another vehicle. The system improves on existing technology by integrating data from video, radio sensors and GPS to warn drivers of dangerous situations and give them the path of least possible harm.

The university secured over $32M in funding from state and local governments plus several corporations, which will pay for the testing of 16 passenger cars and 10 commercial trucks equipped with the system. IIHS predicts that tens of thousands of lives will be saved each year if lane departure and forward crash systems are improved, so here’s to hoping the Wolverines have a smash hit on their hands. No pun intended.

[Source: Detroit News]

The Chrysler employees who entered the prototype Dodge Challenger in this year’s One Lap of America may have taken the car’s Vanishing Point theme a bit too seriously. Just like in the classic film, the stark white Challenger came face to face with a solid object. The car met its demise in Round 2’s time trial event at Road America after getting loose through turn 1. It then left the track and came to a stop perched atop a tire-wall. This course of events departs slightly from the original movie plot, where the Challenger did not meet its destructive fate until the final frames. The film version also somehow managed to survive its own slew of off road adventures without much harm, proving that Hollywood doesn’t necessarily mimic real life. Fortunately the Challenger driver, Erich Heuschele, came away from his off track excursion unscathed. The crew has reported that the car will be out for the remainder of events, though it was spotted leaving the track under its own power so a return might be a slim possibility. Check out the source link below for more images of the carnage.

[Source: Car Domain Blog]