The name John DeLorean is synonymous with the automotive industry. From his days at General Motors, where he turned Pontiac into the automaker's de facto performance division with the creation of the GTO, and, therefore, the muscle car genre in general, to his days running his eponymous car company that gave us the classic stainless steel gullwing wedge that became an iconic time machine through the magic of the movies, DeLorean was at the forefront of the industry for three decades.

Sadly, John DeLorean died in March 2005. We'll never know what exactly he may have had in store to bring DeLorean Motor Company back to the market, though a telephone call two weeks before his death gives us a few clues. Apparently, DeLorean was planning to relaunch DMC with a new take on the classic DMC-12, complete with an engine from Renault with an optional hydraulic hybrid drivetrain and carbon fiber panels to keep it all lightweight and efficient.

The above information comes courtesy of our sister site AOL Autos' Maintenance Editor Tom Torbjornsen, who had planned an interview with John DeLorean that was to take place one week after his death. Torbjornsen pieced together information from a conversation he had with DeLorean and his "best guess at what [he] thought John might have said based on [their] conversation." It's an interesting read, and you can check the whole thing out by clicking here.

[Source: AOL Autos]

The artist engine formerly known as Prince Phoenix has officially hit the assembly lines at the Chrysler Group's plant in Trenton, MI. The first version of the mill, which now bears the Pentastar moniker, displaces 3.6 liters and will see its first production application in the engine bay of the brand new 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee.

Expect this all-aluminum, 60-degree, dual-overhead cam (with variable valve timing) powerplant to see lots of use in the near-term future – Chrysler boasts that the Pentastar V6 will replace seven current V6 engines. In the new Grand Cherokee, the Pentastar will put out 280 horsepower (a 22 percent increase) at 6,400 rpm and 260 pound-feet of torque (an 11 percent improvement) at 4,800 rpm.

Just as importantly, Chrysler tells us that the new engine will be 11 percent more fuel efficient than the unit it replaces and that it will run on either regular 87-octane gasoline or E85. This family of engines represent a $730 million investment, and the 822,000-square-foot Trenton facility will be able to produce more than 400,000 engines per year. See the complete press release after the break.



[Source: Chrysler]

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Cleaner emissions? Well, that depends on what exactly you are measuring and what you are comparing it to. In the case of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) bus seen here, the answer would probably surprise the 5,385 voters on Fail Blog that gave it a resounding thumbs down.

Sure, it looks dirty with all that ugly black smoke bellowing from the rear exhaust stack, but the hybrid people mover boasts the following statistics: 14% improved fuel consumption, a 56% decrease in nitrogen oxide, an ozone precursor, and a 96% decrease in particulate matter compared to a standard bus. All good things, no?

Still, we did indeed chuckle when we first glanced at the pic, especially with the arrow that points directly to the source of the smoke screen. Thanks for the tip, Wes!

[Source: Fail Blog]

In reality, the California Highway Patrol isn't taking sides with anyone regarding the recent speeding Prius of Jim Sikes. But the CHP doesn't see any reason to doubt Sikes' version of events that led to his hybrid reaching speeds of around 90 miles per hour, apparently unable to bring the barreling vehicle to a stop. Also of note is the fact that a Border Patrol agent had also responded and was leading the Prius with its emergency lights on when the CHP officer arrived.

The officer that responded to the scene states that he "could see the driver sat up off his seat indicating that he was possibly applying the brake pedal with his body weight... His back was arched and both hands were pulling at the steering wheel." A short time later, the officer positioned his patrol car in front of Sikes' Prius when he "noticed that the Prius' speed had dropped dramatically" before coming to a complete stop on the highway. According to Sikes, this happened after he applied both the standard and parking brakes.

Paramedics arrived on the scene and found that "Sikes' blood pressure and pulse rate were very high." Another interesting tidbit is the the officer encouraged Sikes to speak with the media, despite the fact that the driver indicated he preferred not to. Later at the station, the officer took a statement from Sikes, who described his Prius as 'feeling funny' under braking, saying that the "whole car was shaking and vibrating" when the brakes were applied.

Sikes also claims to have manually pulled up on the gas pedal three separate times with no effect, and he was afraid that shutting the car off would cause the steering to lock up. The officer reports seeing the car's brake lights on and off intermittently, smelling the scent of worn brakes and seeing that the pads were worn completely down after the event.

CHP spokesman Brian Pennings has said that it is the CHP's position that no evidence has emerged to doubt Sikes' version of events. See the CHP officer's complete report in our image gallery below. For a slightly different view, click here and here to see what Toyota and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration found after inspecting Sikes' Prius.



[Source: California Highway Patrol, USA Today]

If there's one thing that's certain in this crazy world we live in, it's that Ultimate Driving Machines are driven by their rear wheels. Sure, there's an occasional all-wheel drive model thrown in for good measure, but even those revert to the tried-and-true RWD when extra traction from the front two contact patches isn't deemed necessary or desirable. Well, alert the media (oh, wait...): BMW has confirmed the rumors that it will build front-wheel drive automobiles.

At the Annual Accounts Press Conference for 2010, Dr. Norbert Reithofer, Chairman of the Board of Management of BMW, had this to say:

[The small car] segment is expected to grow further. And we will take advantage of this opportunity. We are exploring the possibility of developing a joint architecture for the front and four-wheel drive systems of these cars. In other words: There will be front-wheel drive BMWs in the smaller vehicle classes in the future.

Heresy, BMW fans? We wouldn't worry too much – there seems little chance that BMW will make a wholesale switch from powering the rear wheels to the fronts, especially for its mainstream models like the 3 Series, 5 Series and 7 Series – but the addition of a FWD chassis will make it easier for the automaker to share platforms with other companies and to "reduce [its] fleet's carbon-emissions worldwide by at least another 25 percent between 2008 and 2020."

In fact, take it from Reithofer himself:

BMW will continue to be a sport-inspired brand. We at the BMW Group continue to deliver maximum performance, tackle new challenges and sharpen our competitive edge.

The BMW head is also high on composites. "We consider carbon fiber a cutting-edge material for the auto industry. Our efforts will make sustainable mobility possible in urban environments." Could the day finally have come that carbon fiber composites are ready for prime time? Click past the break for the complete text of Reithofer's speech.

[Source: BMW]

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Austrian motorcycle manufacturer KTM has announced plans to show off two new electric motorcycles at the Tokyo Motorcycle Show later this month. KTM had originally planned to have its first electric dirtbike on the market sometime this year, but the global economic downturn forced the company to put its plans on hold for a year.

Two versions of a single platform are planned from KTM, one a traditional enduro-style dirtbike and the other employing 17-inch wheels and tires to make an electric supermoto motorcycle. KTM's initial electric concept featured lithium ion batteries and a motor that put out just under 30 pound-feet of torque, but we can't be certain what the production versions will use.

At the moment, KTM is calling these two bikes "Near-series prototypes," which we take to mean thinly veiled examples of what we should expect to hit the market in just about one year. Check back March 26th for more as KTM makes these two prototypes official.



[Source: KTM via Hell For Leather]

Aston Martin is an automaker with a history that's indelibly linked with racing... not to mention beautiful designs, attractive colors and, um, James Bond. But the British automaker has more recently signaled its intent to be known for offering a lavishly equipped fuel efficient city car that focuses solely on transportation duties and not 0-60 times or top speeds.

Mostly. A quick run through the automaker's website shows that it's not willing to let the Cygnet degrade its performance and racing image entirely. To wit, the little urban commuter is pictured in a number of scenarios that don't exactly scream "efficient transportation." For instance, there's an orange-helmeted Stig lookalike posing with the Aston in one scene.

Note, too, that the Cygnet can be customized with three different racing paint schemes, two of which focus on the classic British Racing Green of Aston Martin's current racers and a third that shows the Cygnet painted up in iconic Gulf livery. Feel free to check it out for yourself at AstonMartin.com.

[Source: Aston Martin]

It may not be the most interesting news you read all week, but we now have a date at which all Bentley Continentals will be able to gulp down whiskey with the best of 'em: June. Well, not exactly whiskey, but ethanol's pretty close. Bentley had made the announcement (sans date) at the Geneva Motor Show when it showed off the Continental Supersports Convertible.

Bentley sees this move as a big first step in reaching its stated goal of offering an entirely biofuel-capable lineup by 2012. In its latest form, Bentley's twin-turbocharged 6.0-liter W12 offers up 621 horsepower and 590 pound-feet of torque. That's sufficient to push the big Conti' to 60 miles per hour in 3.9 seconds and on up to a top speed of 202 mph.

As the Continental is Bentley's most popular model line by far, this means that over half of all cars the luxury brand sells this year will be flex-fuel models. For those keeping track, the Brooklands coupe (which will soon be discontinued), Azure sedan and the soon-to-be-released Mulsanne sedan (the replacement for the long-running Arnage) are still not yet biofuel capable. According to Automotive News, the Mulsanne will be E85-capable shortly after its launch later this year.



[Source: Automotive News – Sub. Req'd]

During last summer's bankruptcy proceedings, New Chrysler chose not to pick up the contract it had previously entered with Cummins to procure light-duty diesel engines for its line of Ram pickup trucks. At a rumored 5.0 liters, this powerplant would be somewhat less powerful but likely less expensive and more fuel efficient than Dodge's larger 6.7-liter inline six diesel, also supplied by Cummins.

Now, though, our friends from PickupTrucks.com are reporting that Dodge may be back in the light-duty diesel game. Joe Veltri, Chrysler vice president of product planning, reportedly said at the NTEA Work Truck Show, "We're in discussions with Cummins. There's no contract [with Cummins] but [a light-duty diesel] is in our plan."

As an aside, it seems as if the so-called light duty engine could find its way into the engine bays of the Heavy Duty 2500 and 3500 Ram trucks in addition to the expected 1500. "Does every guy need a 6.7-liter diesel? It could certainly package in a heavy duty," Veltri said.

[Source: PickupTrucks.com]

Say it with us: 397 horsepower and 765 pound-feet of torque. That's what General Motors has been able to extract from its new B20-capable 6.6-liter Duramax V8 diesel engine in the GMC Sierra HD and Chevrolet Silverado HD, which is mated up to a stout Allison 1000 six-speed automatic transmission. For those who like to keep track of these things, which is to say every single person who's actually interested in purchasing one of these earth-moving behemoths, GM's latest Duramax beats out the 2011 Ford Super Duty in the all-important horsepower and torque wars.

That massively powerful powerplant is also more fuel efficient (by 11 percent, though GM isn't quoting actual numbers just yet) and cleaner than the unit it replaces. Each of these benchmarks has something to do with the exhaust aftertreatment systems employed on the Heavy Duty. GM tells us that the new 2011 truck cycles through its DPF filter cleaning process significantly less often than the unit it replaces, which saves a good amount of fuel.

Interestingly, GM representatives also tell us that they had a bit of a back-and-forth with the Feds regarding how best to handle the required refilling of the diesel exhaust fluid tank, which won't run dry until about 5,000 miles. It seems that when the truck gets dangerously low on the exhaust treatment, its speed will be capped at 55 miles per hour. If you run out, the computer nannies will keep you to just a four mph crawl so that you'll never be stranded completely. Want more? Check out our gallery of high-res images below and click here for the rest of the details.