With everyone predictably swarming over the Toyobaru Twins here at the Tokyo Motor Show, one bit of performance geekery has been largely overlooked.

Toyota brought out the second iteration of its MR-S/MR2-based GRMN Sports Hybrid Concept, with an all-new look, more carbon fiber and a reworked hybrid powertrain. The standard 2ZZ four-cylinder (or lesser 1ZZ in the States) has been swapped out for a 3.5-liter V6 mounted amidships and outputting 247 horsepower. While that’s not much juice from a big V6, the addition of an electric motor powering the front wheels brings overall output up to just under 300 hp, allowing the 3,300-pound roadster to run to 60 mph in the mid-five-second range.

If you’re wondering about the name, it’s an acronym for “Gazoo Racing tuned by Meister of the Nürburgring,” referring to Toyota’s ace test driver, the late Hiromu Naruse. Along with the Lexus LFA Nürburgring Edition, this was the final vehicle Naruse-san worked on before his untimely demise, and it’s one of maybe three vehicles at the show that we’d drive home tomorrow given the chance.

MR2 lives on with Toyota GRMN Sports Hybrid Concept II originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 01 Dec 2011 13:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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What’s a COPO, you ask? Back in the heyday of American muscle cars, COPO was an acronym for Central Office Production Order, which was, for all intents and purposes, a way for Chevrolet and its enterprising dealer network to sneak high-performance option packages and oversize engines past the bigwigs at General Motors and into the waiting hands of automotive enthusiasts.

With ancient history out of the way, what’s COPO mean in 2011? Well, it still means performance, but there’s certainly no way Chevy is going to bypass the powers-that-be at GM HQ, especially not with a Camaro proof-of-concept that’s destined to live out its life at the drag strip in NHRA Stock Eliminator drag racing competition.

According to Jim Campbell, GM U.S. vice president of Performance Vehicles and Motorsports, the COPO Camaro that is debuting this week at SEMA “is a clear indication that Chevrolet intends to homologate the Camaro for sportsman drag racing.” Seems pretty clear to us, too – in lieu of the standard independent rear suspension setup is a straight axle that’s perfectly suited to straight-line racing. Plus, there’s a full roll cage for safety.

Buyers of the COPO Camaro, if and when it becomes available, will be able to fit one of two suggested engine packages: one 427-cubic-inch naturally aspirated V8 (7.9 liters for A Stock racing) and one 327-cubic-inch supercharged V8 (5.3 liters for for AA Stock racing). The car you see in our live images is powered by a prototype version of the supercharged 327.

Check out all the details in the press release after the break.

Continue reading Chevrolet COPO Camaro Concept lives life a quarter-mile at a time

Chevrolet COPO Camaro Concept lives life a quarter-mile at a time originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 31 Oct 2011 20:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Cobalt lives. Well, not here in the United States, where the Chevrolet Cruze has thankfully banished all memories of GM’s last uncompetitive compact, but at least in Argentina. Alongside the Colorado Rally Concept, Chevrolet is displaying the Cobalt Concept you see here at the Buenos Aires International Motor Show.

We’re pretty sure this new Cobalt is a Cobalt in name only, as it doesn’t appear to share anything with the previous model that is no longer in production and, though no dimensional details are provided, seems smaller than the Delta platform used by its erstwhile namesake. Perhaps it uses the Gamma architecture used by the new Sonic and global Aveo?

In any case, this Cobalt, though officially a concept, seems destined for production in South America and possibly other emerging markets around the world. The automaker says it will offer a range of engines from 1.3 to 1.8 liters that will run on either ethanol, gasoline or diesel.

As far as the styling goes, we can see the current Chevrolet design language front and center, with a two-tier grille up front flanked by sweeping headlamps. The flanks are highlighted by downward-pointing swage lines front and rear. Out back, LED lights punctuate some questionably large, chrome-surrounded lamps.

Inside, this Cobalt Concept is impressively finished with leather seating surfaces and door panels. A unique woodgrain accent highlights the steering wheel. LED lighting in a soft blue is a welcome touch, as is the in-dash navigation system and twin seven-inch LCD screens in the headrests, which we doubt would make it into production.

Check out our high-res image gallery for all the pics.

Chevrolet Cobalt lives… in South America originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 17 Jun 2011 16:46:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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