Carscoop lived up to their name by scooping an image of the upcoming Nissan 370Z. The image was taken by someone with a camera phone at a recent Nissan event.

As you might expect the new Z will be powered by a 3.7L V6 with horsepower well north of 300. It is expected to debut at the next LA auto show next fall.

Full story here. The smaller image has been enhanced via Photoshop, and can be found here at NASIOC.

Bet you didn't see this coming! It turns out that many old gas pumps, those usually found in remote and rural areas, can't register over $3.99 per gallon. It is estimated that there may be as many as 17,000 of these mechanical dial-based pumps still in use. The cost to replace these old units with modern ones run anywhere from $10,000 to $15,000 each. Another option is an upgrade to the existing pumps, but that can be as much as $650 each.

Now before all you penny-pinchers out there in cyberland scream YES!, there is a solution: That being "half pricing," which is, as you might expect, cutting the price in half and then doubling it when you go to pay the service station attendant.

Full story here.

As might have been expected, the tiny Smart car did quite well in the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's crash testing.

"The big question from consumers is, 'How safe is it?' " said Adrian Lund, the institute's president. "Among the smallest cars, the engineers of the Smart did their homework and designed a high level of safety into a very small package."

Full story here.

Here's Inside Line's take: Smart ForTwo Scores High Marks in New Safety Testing



On the flip side, those huge 15-passenger vans fared quite a bit worse in safety studies, as the fatality rating is pretty bad when these behemoths flip in accidents when fully loaded. True, many passengers in these things don't buckle up, which is certainly a big factor here, but even so the results aren't good.

Full story here.

Nope, these are not to be expected in your local Volvo showroom any time soon, as they are one-off creations by Swedish coachmaker Dalbo Fordonsteknik. These vehicles were spotted outside the Volvo Museum in in Gothenburg, Sweden.

Still, pretty neat, I think, as I'm always interested in seeing new and/or different truck thinking.

Full story here.

More images after the jump.

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Hmmm... Both Nissan and Renault are bring electric cars here? Think they might be the same vehicles, but wearing different badges?

The Renault version will be built in Israel, and exported here and elsewhere. Renault is hoping to have it on sale in California by 2010.

Full story here.

Nissan too is saying they will have an EV here for sale by 2010. Here's Inside Line's take: Nissan To Roll Out Electric Vehicle in the U.S. by 2010

Audi will be joining BMW in using the ZF 8-speed automatic transmission on their top-of-the-line models. This is in an effort to match Lexus, which already is using an 8-speed automatic on their LS460. BMW had earlier announced that the 7-Series and X6 models would be getting this new ZF tranny, and now Audi too will use it on their A8, Q7, and the upcoming A7 four-door coupe. The 8-speed Audis are expected next year.

No word yet as to whether Mercedes will also offer an 8-speed tranny. They currently use a 7-speed automatic on many of their vehicles.

Full story here.

Images and info on the 2009 Ferrari California are now available. Here are details from the press release:
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The new Ferrari California will satisfy even the most demanding of owners in term of its superb vehicle dynamics and driving pleasure. The new model will be available exclusively as a convertible with a folding hard top. Both chassis and bodywork are aluminium, in line with the rest of the current range. The California will be powered by a new V8 engine mounted for the first time in the marque's history in the mid-front position.

In line with Ferrari tradition, the new model also features several innovations. Apart from its folding hard top, these include the original 2+ concept which guarantees exceptional versatility of use in the rear of the car. The California's 4,300 cc V8 engine features direct fuel injection and a "flat" crankshaft. It generates 460 CV at 7,500 rpm with a torque curve that enhances vehicle dynamics and provides maximum driving pleasure which is typical for Ferrari.

As per the traditional Ferrari transaxle layout, the engine, which allows the Ferrari California to sprint from 0 to 100 km/h in less than 4.0 seconds, will be coupled to a 7-speed dual clutch transmission that boosts the car's performance while enhancing the driving pleasure, improves ride comfort and reduces fuel consumption and emissions (c.310 g/km CO2). The comfort is further enhanced by a new multilink rear suspension system. The Ferrari California is also equipped with the exclusive F1-Trac traction control system which made its debut on the 599 GTB Fiorano and has been further honed to suit the typical driving conditions expected for this new GT. Brembo brakes featuring carbon-ceramic material disks as standard guarantee superbly efficient braking.

Full story here.

Here's Inside Line's take: Official Name of Ferrari GT Revealed, Evoking Sun, Sand and Surf

Cummins Westport Inc. ("CWI") announced today that Sterling Trucks has launched a new Sterling® Set-Back 113, which is their first natural gas vehicle, and it uses the Cummins Westport ISL G engine. This engine, which displaces 8.9 liter, uses stoichiometric cooled-exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) technology. It offers the lowest emissions available in the industry without sacrificing top-level performance and efficiency.

"By introducing the Set-Back 113 with natural gas, we're giving our customers a hard-working truck that reduces both costs and environmental emissions," states Richard Shearing, Manager of Product Strategy for Sterling Truck Corporation. Guan Saw, President, of CWI followed with, "This is an opportunity to expand the CWI OEM platform with Sterling, one of North America's market leading truck manufacturers. The Sterling natural gas trucks will provide a clean, low emission solution for medium-duty applications in short-haul, port operations, as well as natural gas utilities and municipal fleets."

Full story here. Info on the engine can be found here.

If the government gets it way, cars like Porsche, Ferrari and even Subaru could be in a heap of trouble down the road. You see what the govenment want to do is to classify vehicles by their "footprint," or the amount of square feet they occupy.

In doing so a Toyota Camry would be classified along with cars like the Ferrari 612 Scaglietti. That means both cars (mid-size by this new standard) would have to achieve 30 mpg, which wouldn't be that tough for the Camry, but much so difficult for the Ferrari. A Porsche 911 would be considered a minicompact, and therefore be required to get 40 mpg; same with a Subaru WRX.

So, the future for gearheads like us looks pretty grim. Enjoy the performance cars you now have, as that could change for the worse down the road if this goes through.

Full story here.

Inside Line put four V8-powered luxury sedans to the test. Jaguar XF Supercharged vs. Audi A6 4.2 vs. BMW 550i vs. Mercedes-Benz E550.

Which one would you buy?

Read the V8 Luxury Sport Sedan Comparison Test on Inside Line.

Donna DeRosa, Managing Editor