BMW 123d hanging out in Michigan

Imagine, if you will, a compact rear-wheel-drive hatchback that runs from 0-62mph in a very respectable 6.9 seconds. Not to shabby. Now imagine that this same car could average 45 mpg (US)! Not possible, you say? Au contraire! In other parts of the world where they don't just use gasoline to power cars, this is not an unheard-of possibility. One shining example is the BMW 123d, which was launched in Europe last year. Powered by a twin-turbocharged 2.0L four-cylinder diesel cranking out 204hp and 295lb-ft of torque, the 123d scores 45mpg (US) on the EU combined test cycle. For now at least, BMW isn't offering American consumers any of its four cylinder engines, but fuel system supplier Bosch has a fleet of European diesel vehicles that they use for promotional purposes. AutoblogGreen has previously tested the Smart ForTwo, Chrysler 300, and BMW 535d from this fleet and will soon be getting its paws on the three newest additions to the fleet. One of those cars is the 123d that you see above. Reader Typhoon5000 spotted this one in Flint MI the other day and shared some photos with us. Stay tuned for full reviews of this 123d and two other really cool diesels that you (unfortunately) can't buy. Thanks to Typhoon5000 for the tip and photos.

Holden Commodore may get a hybrid drive

Nick Reilly, GM President Asia-Pacific, has officially confirmed that his company is planning to introduce a gas-electric hybrid vehicle to the Australian market. Looks, like the best candidate to get a hybrid powerplant in the nearest future is current Holden Commodore sedan, which is also available in the U.S. market as the Pontiac G8 and is sharing its platform with the upcoming 2008 Chevrolet Camaro.

According to the Sydney Morning Herald, GM and Holden will try to talk the federal government "to offer incentives for people to shift to more environmentally-friendly vehicles."

The hybrid-powered Holden Commodore will have to compete against the Toyota Camry Hybrid, which is being manufactured in Melbourne.

Mercedes-Benz CLK Grand Edition: perhaps, the last one?

Mercedes-Benz is due to start selling the next iteration of its popular CLK coupe-convertible later this year or in the beginning of 2009. So it's absolutely normal that sales are starting to stall and the company just have to offer some special edition version of the car to draw some public attention. Here comes the Mercedes-Benz CLK Grand Edition.

The CLK Grand Edition is just another special trim with no noticeable technical differences comparing to other CLK versions. It comes equipped with a set of 18-inch alloy wheels fitted with 225/40 tires in the front and 255/35 tires in the back. There is also an AMG-style body kit with new front and rear bumpers and side skirts and Grand Edition badges on the body.

Inside the car, there is aluminum trim on the dashboard, branded floor mats and either tobacco-brown or black leather upholstery.

The Grand Edition trim may be ordered as an option for all CLK models except for the CLK 63 AMG. Surprisingly enough, the option will cost you only €994.

ACS1 Cabrio tuning program by AC Schnitzer

AC Schnitzer gives its 2008 BMW 1-Series tuning program yet another go. This time, the German tuner offers an upgrade package for the 2008 BMW 135i, 123d and 120d convertibles increasing their maximum available power to 360 hp, 240 hp and 200 hp respectively.

Needless to say, that the engine upgrade kit comes together with a height-adjustable race suspension and an exhaust silencer with chromed tail-pipes.

The visual part is covered with new body kit consisting of a front skirt with diagonal grille insert, new rear skirt lip and diffuser. The ACS1 Cabrio kit may be supplied with 17, 18 or 19 inch alloy wheels.

Inside the car, there is a set of silver-carbon details and aluminum accessories, new gear knob, pedals and velour floor mats.

2009 Porsche Cayenne gets Hofele GT 500 / 600 body kit

The German Hofele tuning studio, which is specializing on making appearance kits for vehicles like Audi Q7, and different flavors of VWs, introduced its new GT 500 body kit for the facelifted Porsche Cayenne SUV.

The kit consists of new front bumper with mesh inserts and two additional fog lights, as well as LED daytime driving lights; and a removable diffuser on the rear bumper with twin tailpipes.

The unexpectedly nice-looking widebody Hofele GT 600 styling kit also adds a pair of front fenders with air vent openings and wheel arch extensions.

Turbo 1.4 petrol for the Punto

The Fiat Punto is slated to get a turbo 1.4 mill producing 155 bhp under its bonnet. The name Punto Turbo is also a clear sign the car is aimed for production. Fiat has always had a tradition of preparing turbo variants of its cars. There also may come an Abarth version in South America, fitted probably with the 1.9-litre engine. Well, we'd love that engine too, to be turbo charged, but that's something that may not actually materialise.

Pagani Zonda Cinque - The next Pagani Supercar

The Italian supercar maker, Pagani, is planning to build a race version of the Zonda F called the Zonda R.The Race version of the car will be called the Pagani Zonda Cinque.
The Pagani Zonda Cinque, which translates as Zonda Five because there will be only 5 built ever, takes an already breath-takingly fast car to yet another level. Nothing has been officially revealed yet, but we expect the engine to remain similar to the one in the Zonda F. But how much more power can be extracted of the 6.0 liter, 12 cylinder, 750 bhp engine is something that remains to be seen. Expect a price tag of 1 million Euro!