MINI Beware: Kia Thinks Big with Track'ster Concept that Could Spawn a 3-Door Soul

Without doubt, the spotlights at this year's edition of the Chicago Auto Show are on the Koreans. Following the presentation of Hyundai's new Elantra GT and Coupe models, its sister company Kia has unveiled an impressive concept model for a sporty, three-door version of the Soul called the Track'ster

Of course, if you throw in a pair of round headlights and vertical tail lamps, the Track'ster could very well be a conceptual proposal for high-performance Mini model…

That's not to say the Track'ster hasn't got character but many details like the alloy wheel designs, the blacked out front pillars, the two-tone paint job and the prominent LED driving lights on the lower part of the front bumper do have a certain British flavor.

"The idea was to make the Track'ster tough looking, like a bulldog," said Tom Kearns, chief designer for Kia's Californian design studio, which was responsible for the creation of the Track'ster.

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New Nissan Invitation Concept Previews Upcoming B-Segment Tall Hatch

Ahead of its world premiere at next month's 2012 Geneva Motor Show, Nissan has released the first official photos of an all-new concept model named Invitation.

If the tall five-door hatchback looks almost production ready, that's because the Invitation essentially previews the Japanese automaker's next mainstream B-segment contender, which will go on sale in Europe early next year alongside the Micra supermini and the Juke crossover.

Given that Nissan's European offerings in the B-segment currently includes the 8-year old Note small MPV as well, it is only logical to assume that the Invitation will most likely act as its replacement.

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Kia Publishes Another Photo of its Track’ster Concept Car

Even though the 2012 Chicago Auto Show will open its doors to the members of the press in less than 48 hours from now, Kia continues to play the teasing game with its new Track’ster concept car releasing a second picture of its Soul-based model.

The study is supposed to give us an idea of what a sportier three-door version of the Soul would look like with Kia saying that it's only a design concept for now. We assume that the company’s future plans will largely depend on the reactions of the public.

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Kia Says Soul'ster Concept is Under Final Assessment for Production

It's been three years since Kia pulled the wraps off its conceptual Soul'ster convertible truck at the 2009 Detroit Motor Show. Kia fueled some rumors at the time that it was considering a production version of the car but never followed up on it. Until today, that is.

Unexpectedly, in the press statement on the Track'ster Concept that's scheduled to debut at the Chicago Auto Show next week, Kia dropped the ball saying that the Soul’ster convertible is "currently under final assessment for production".

The Korean maker did not elaborate further but we assume that if it receives the green light, the Soul'ster should be on its way to the market very soon.

The original concept is a two-door mixture of convertible and pickup models with seating for four passengers. It features a shortened windshield for a more hunkered down appearance and is equipped with a two-piece removable top residing on a roll bar that provides additional protections for the occupants.

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Infiniti Names its Geneva Motor Show Sports Car Concept "Emerg-E"

Infiniti has been trickling out information on the new sports car concept it plans to reveal at the 2012 Geneva Salon bit by bit these past couple of months. Today we learn that the electric sports car model will be called the "Emerge E".

"The INFINITI EMERG-E will be the first car from the brand to have not only a range-extender drivetrain offering vivid performance with zero emissions capability but also one mounted in a mid-ship package for optimal handling," the company said in a short statement.

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Lamborghini to "Surprise" us at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show as well

On Wednesday, an official source from within the VW Group more or less confirmed the debut of a luxury SUV concept from Lamborghini at the Beijing Auto Show in China in April.

Today we learn that the Sant'Agata sports car maker has yet another "surprise" in store for us, this time at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show in March.

The news comes from an email statement from a Lamborghini spokesperson after the crew over at GT Spirit asked the company about the rumors circulating around the web. Here's what the press representative answered:

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New Kia Track'ster Concept based on the Soul Heads to Chicago Auto Show

This is the first official teaser rendering of Kia's latest concept based on the Soul crossover. It's called the Track'ster and it will make its first public appearance at the 2012 Chicago Auto Show next week.

Penned in Kia's California design studio, the Track'ster shows how a more sporty, three-door version of the Soul could look like, though the South Korean automaker is quick to point out that currently, there are no plans for a production version.

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2012 Mopar Jeep Compass True North Custom Edition Heads to Chicago Auto Show

After the presentation of the other three Chrysler Group vehicle customized by Mopar for its 75th anniversary, we bring you the first real life photos of the brand's fourth creation, named the Jeep Compass “True North”.

Beginning with the exterior, the Compass has been customized with a matte black finish on the roof, wheel flares, lower fascia, door cladding and black grille, while it also features tinted lights, front and rear brush bars and custom rock rails.

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Lamborghini Source Allegedly Confirms Plans for an SUV Concept

There's more news coming out today from Lamborghini in concern of the Italian firm's future plans after its CEO Stephan Winkelmann rejected the use of turbocharged engines at least until the end of the decade, earlier this week.

Today, we learned that a senior source at Lamborghini's parent company, Audi, has confirmed reports on the development of a luxury SUV concept that is pegged to make its world premiere at the Beijing motor show in late April.

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Nissan's Official Footage of the Juke-R Versus Supercars Race in Dubai

Draining all the publicity it can get from the Juke-R's appearance in Dubai where it competed against the Lamborghini Gallardo, Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG and Ferrari 458 Italia supercars on a makeshift track, Nissan has now released official footage from the race.

This is the third video we've seen of Juke-R's win in the past two weeks, so we won't blame you if you've had enough of…Nissan's Groundhog Day. The rest of you can watch the new clip right after the break.

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Chrysler Group to Celebrate Mopar's 75th Birthday with Four Specially Modified Vehicles

We are eagerly anticipating the first official teaser photo of the next SRT Viper in the early morning hours of Tuesday but that's not all the Chrysler Group has in store for us this week.

In celebration of the 75th anniversary of Mopar, which is the group's automobile parts and service arm, the Detroit firm will present four specially modified vehicles that will go on display at next month's 2012 Chicago Auto Show (January 10 to 19).

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Lexus Does the Walk and Talk Around the LF-LC Sports Coupe Concept

One of the most attention-grabbing design studies at this year's 2012 Detroit Motor Show was the Lexus LF-LC, a prototype for a sports coupe powered by an unspecified hybrid powertrain.

Lexus says that its goal with the concept was to share its vision of what a premium sports coupe could look like with the public as well as to display the brand's evolved styling language and future technologies.

In this new video, the Japanese company's designers from its Calty Studio in California, which was responsible for the creation of the LF-LC, talk us through all the design details. Hop over the break to check it out.

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Jeep Debuts Stealthy Grand Cherokee Special at Houston Auto Show, Asks Consumers to Name it

All automakers have dedicated divisions that come up with names for their vehicles as well as the individual trim levels, but the Chrysler Group is taking a different course with its new production-intent Jeep Grand Cherokee Concept that was revealed today at the 2012 Houston Auto Show.

The Detroit firm is asking consumers to find a name for the new edition of the Grand Cherokee and participate in an online contest at Jeep.com/namemyride. The company will narrow down the selection to three choices and allow the public to vote online for the winning name that will be announced in May.

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New Aerial Video of the Nissan Juke-R's Race Against the Gallardo, SLS and 458 in Dubai

Nissan is making a strong statement with its product launches lately pitting its vehicles directly against more expensive offerings from established premium brands.

And we're not only talking about Infiniti's recent commercial where the M35h beat the Porsche Panamera S Hybrid in a quarter mile sprint, as the Japanese carmaker also setup a race between the prototype 485hp Nissan Juke-R and the Lamborghini Gallardo, Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG and Ferrari 458 Italia supercars.

The race took place on a tightly designed makeshift track in Dubai on the sidelines of the local 24hrs Endurance Race.

Following on from the first grainy video, Carscoop reader "Meto D" tipped us off on a higher-quality clip shot from the air that also includes footage from inside the car driven by the winner of the 2008 PlayStation GT Academy competition, Lucas Ordoñez.

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Mini said to have Pulled the Plug on the Rocketman

Remember the Mini Rocketman Concept from last year's Geneva Motor Show? Over the past few months, there had been several reports saying that the BMW Group was planning to put the city-car sized Mini into production by 2016.

Today, Car is reporting that the Germans have shelved those plans for a smaller Mini model inspired by the Rocketman.

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Poll: Which Chevrolet Concept Coupe Would You Like to be Built?

The 2012 Detroit Motor Show is more or less consigned to the dustbin of history, but that doesn't mean we'll stop talking about the vehicles that made their world premiere at the Cobo Center and especially the concept models.

Truth to be said, high-end sports cars such as the Acura NSX and Lexus LF-LC studies are the ones we'd really like to drive in the not so distant future, but for most of us, it's models like the two Chevrolet coupe concepts that correspond to mainstream reality.

While very different in philosophy, Chevrolet's Code 130R and Tru 140S Concepts share several attributes: both models were designed as four-seater coupes for the young at age (or young at heart); both are based on existing platform architectures and use production hardware, and finally, if they were to be built, their price would be in the low $20,000s.

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Students Design an All-Electric Lincoln Continental for 2025

At the 2012 Detroit Auto Show that comes to an end on Sunday, January 22, Lincoln put on display the MKZ Concept to preview both the looks of its soon to be launched mid-size sedan as well the brand's new styling direction.

But FoMoCo isn't the only one to present a design concept for a future Lincoln as the Lawrence Tech University had its own proposal in the form of a quarter-scale model for a pure-electric Continental for 2025.

The study for a luxury sedan model is the work of Lawrence Tech students Colin Bonathan and Jeeho Cha and it was endorsed by the Ford Motor Company.

It all started in the summer of 2011 when Bonathan and Cha came up with plans for a Lincoln concept as part of their undergraduate degree program in transportation design. The university said that Ford officials liked the concept so much that they commissioned the quarter-scale model for display at the Detroit event.

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Watch the Nissan Juke-R Pawn a Ferrari 458, a Lamborghini Gallardo and a Mercedes SLS AMG

There's no question that the Nissan Juke-R is wickedly fast, but is it actually fast enough to give a lesson to exotic supercars like the Ferrari 458 Italia, the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG and the Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4, for example?

Well, there's a lot to take into consideration including the place and the person driving (let's not forget that any car is as fast as its driver is), but for whatever reasons, this time the Juke-R came out as the winner.

In the video clip from Carsandspeed that follows, we see the 485HP-strong Juke-R winning a race against the three aforementioned supercars on a tightly designed makeshift track in Dubai as part of a promotional event on the sidelines of the local 24hrs Endurance Race, in which it took part as the official pace car.

We managed to find out that the man behind the wheel of the Juke-R was 26-year old Lucas Ordoñez from Spain who was the winner of the 2008 PlayStation GT Academy competition.

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Pininfarina Issues Two More Pictures of its Cambiano Concept

The tedious teasing of Pininfarina's brand new Cambiano concept car continues with two more closely cropped teaser photos of the vehicle's front fender and the roof.

Even though the Italian design house describes the car as a "sports sedan" on its official website, the images suggest that it's either a coupe or a two-door fastback model.

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Modern-Day Alfa Romeo Giulia GTA Imagined by French Designer

If the Porsche 911 is the model that even its creators couldn't kill, then Alfa Romeo is surely its brand equivalent in the automotive world. It’s not that Fiat's management didn’t try (willingly or not), but in a peculiar way, Alfa (unlike Saab, for instance) always made a comeback.

Maybe it's the Italian flair that makes you forget sins of the past or the niggles of its current portfolio (Brera seating position, anyone?), but the Alfisti remain faithful to their beloved brand.

One such Alfa Romeo enthusiasts is independent French designer Vincent Montreuil. He may not be Italian, but then again, no one ever said that Alfas were adored only in their home country.

While the Americans are still waiting for the company to stay true to its promise and eventually return to the U.S., Vincent created some pretty convincing renderings of a 21st century Alfa Romeo coupe.

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