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At this point, we’ve seen nearly every possible angle of Lamborghini’s latest raging bull, the Estoque, with one rather large exception: the interior. As a four-door sedan, the compromises one naturally expects from the Italian motor company’s supercars are wholly unacceptable in this application, so there is naturally a sense of luxury inside the Estoque that’s missing from the Gallardo and Murcielago. We can also see large paddle shifters for the e-gear transmission that are yanked straight from the Gallardo and plenty of two-tone grey and creamy white leather covering most every surface. Plus, there’s a whole lot more space now for such pleasure-inducers as a Blu-ray player, in-cabin television and, um, legroom. Still, it’s clear that this is a concept cockpit that was likely rushed to deadline for the Paris Motor Show. The buttons in the cockpit are all hard black plastic, which is not exactly fitting for a sister brand of Audi, an automaker that arguably sets the gold standard for interiors by which others are judged.

If the BMW X3 isn’t ugly or space-inefficient enough for you, here’s the Concept X1, which is a lightly veiled version of the production soft ute you’ll see in BMW dealers shortly. Yeech. We can’t fathom how it’s going to be that much different than the X3, seeing as BMWs famliy tree among 1 and 3 series vehicles is starting to look as inbred as English Aristocracy, but we’re going to go way out on a limb and suggest that it’s a little tighter in most dimensions while sharing powertrains. Styling-wise, as long as you ignore anything forward of the A-pillar, you’ll be okay. It’s largely standard BMW fare, just scaled down. We’re not quite sure what happened up front - it’s bad. From the visage that’s evocative of the 7 series to the oddly shaped wheel arches, it just doesn’t come together, and the way the proboscis sticks out when viewing the X1’s profile borders on disturbing. The most amazing thing: people will fall all over themselves to buy it.

The trickle of images from Sant’Agata continues today as Lamborghini has shipped yet another teaser of the new car that it will show on Thursday at the Paris Motor Show. This time around we get a frontal image of the headlight area. Unlike the last two production models, the Gallardo and Murcielago, the orientation of the light cluster has been switched from vertical to horizontal. There is also a large vent visible implying that the engine is up front this time around. We only have one more day to wait for the full reveal, so it will be interesting to see what Lamborghini has wrought when it unveils the Urus or Estoque or whatever this concept turns out to be named.

While we’ve pretty much had it up to our Hans device with the speculation surrounding Lamborghini’s Paris surprise, another salient detail has emerged about the rumored front-engined, four-door sedan due to be unveiled on Thursday at the Paris Motor Show.
Previous reports about the Lamborghini concept wearing a Urus badge are thankfully bunk (who wants to drive a supercar named after a large bovine?) and World Car Fans has dropped the name Estoque (without citing any sources), which according to Encyclopedia Brittanica is a small blade that delivers the death blow to a bull at the end of a stadium fight. We’re still more than a few days away from the official reveal, but in the meantime, enjoy the gallery of teasers below, along with the image above created by LamboPower member a007api.

Hyundai is headed to the Paris Motor Show with a bevy of environmentally friendly models and concepts. In addition to bringing along production-intent vehicles like the new i20, Genesis Coupe and Genesis sedan, the automaker will showcase two new concepts that will also carry its blue theme. Remember, blue is the new green. Anyway, the i20 blue features aero tweaks and low rolling-resistance tires in order to improve its efficiency, but it’s the Santa Fe hybrid that’s a bit more interesting. That new model features an electric motor that puts out 30kW of power along with a 2.4-liter four cylinder engine. Both powerplants feed their power through a six-speed automatic transmission with revised gear ratios optimized for fuel savings. A 270V lithium-polymer battery pack sends the juice to the electric motor, and it all adds up to 38 mpg in the U.S. and carbon emissions of 148 g/km. We’ll be in Paris to see these things up close and personal, so stay tuned.

Lamborghini has already released two official teaser shots of the concept it will deb

ut early next month at the Paris Motor Show. InsideLine originally speculated that it would be a four-door sedan along the likes of the Porsche Panamera and Aston Martin Rapide, but Lambo told us the website was just guessing and that no company execs had leaked the concept’s layout. Nevertheless, Automotive News is now reporting that its own inside sources confirm the bullish concept will indeed be one of them new fangled four-door “coupes”, while a carspyshots.net forum member found some copyright evidence that Lamborghini may called it the Urus. Wikipedia tells us that the Urus was a type of large, horned cattle in Europe that went extinct in 1627.

Though what we’re calling the Urus will debut as a concept in Paris, AN reports the model will be near production ready when it takes the stage next month. While lots of speculation is still swirling, most agree it will feature a front-mounted engine located behind the front axle and that the Urus’ motor will be smaller than the Gallardo’s V10. The most likely choice is an engine sourced from Audi, probably turbocharged, though concepts often feature exotic engines not destined for production.

The first official images of the production Fiat 500 Abarth esseesse (SS) have made their way onto the Web and as suspected, it’s as racy as a hot hatch can get.

The esseesse is fitted with a full body kit consisting of a new front fascia, lower side skirts and a redesigned rear bumper housing a diffuser and pair of chrome exhaust tips, while 17-inch (?) wheels and a small spoiler round out the appearance package.

Inside, a set of bolstered buckets keep drivers planted in the bends and expect a revised IP, red trim and Abarth logos emblazoned into the dash. No engine specs have been released yet, but expect the turbocharged 1.4-liter to put around 160 hp through a six-speed manual before it reaches the front wheels through a Q2 Torsen C limited slip differential.

All the details will be revealed next week when we make the trek across the Atlantic to cover the Paris Motor Show. Stay tuned.

Speaking as someone who has driven more than his fair share of Bentleys, I can say that although the brand’s Continental series is the way of the future, the more expensive and stately Arnage is still a benchmark to be respected. Bentley has announced that it will debut the Arnage Final Series at next month’s Paris Motor Show, thereby confirming for the first time that the current model’s ten-year run is about to end. Only 150 of these special Arnage models will be built, and all are powered by Bentley’s legendary twin-turbo 6.75-liter V8 producing 500 bhp and 738 lb-ft of torque, which also happens to be celebrating its 50-year anniversary in 2008. Bentley says the Final Series combines the performance of the Arnage T with the refinement of the R, and a few odd features are thrown in like a rear cocktail cabinet with a Final Series stainless steel flask and two shot glasses and four Bentley umbrellas mounted in the trunk. Like any special edition, there are also Final Series badges on the exterior and interior, as well.

So if the Final Series marks the end of the Arnage, what’s next? We asked Bentley outright, and they of course couldn’t comment on future product, but say that work is well underway on the brand’s next flagship model and hinted that it may move even further upmarket. We take that to mean the Rolls-Royce Phantom should consider itself put on notice. We also asked if Bentley’s iconic V8 would be retired in these times of strict emissions regulations and maybe replaced with something from the VAG parts bin. Again, while they could neither confirm nor deny anything, we got the impression that there’s life left in this 50-year motor.

Live images of the Chevy Orlando, possibly shot during GM’s own photo session, have surfaced online, showing the seven-seat crossover in all its conceptual glory ahead of its unveiling at the Paris Motor Show next week.

The Orlando shares the same Delta II platform as the Chevy Cruze, with power provide by a 2.0-liter turbodiesel, and blends some traditional Chevy styling cues with a blocky, upright silhouette and show-friendly lighting tricks. Unlike other pie-in-the-sky concepts, the Orlando’s interior looks downright drivable, with two-tone leather seats, a traditional steering wheel and a center stack that wouldn’t shouldn’t look out of place on anything rolling off the General’s assembly line.

All the details and plenty of live images from the show floor are coming in just over a week.

A third teaser shot of Lamborghini’s mysterious concept car has surfaced on the web just weeks before its debut at the 2008 Paris Motor Show. All signs point to a front-engine, four-door coupe concept similar in form to the Porsche Panamera and Aston Martin Rapide. The first teaser merely showed the car’s rear diffuser, but the second showed its front wheel with a fender vent clearly visible that indicates a front-mounted engine. This third teaser shows the rear taillight and what we can clearly see as the cut line for a trunk lid. The taillight itself features LEDs and seems to be inspired by new taillight designs on the Reventon and LP560-4. Though we don’t have a name for the concept yet, Lamborghini recently registered the name “Urus” with the Italian copyright office. All will be revealed soon enough, though expect a few more teasers between now and Paris.