VW Trims Touareg, Porsche Cayenne and Audi Q7 SUV Production as Demand Falls

The deteriorating business environment caused by the financial crisis is forcing car makers on both sides of the pond to proceed to more cuts in production of models that aren't selling as they used to. Volkswagen will reduce its output of the VW Touareg, Porsche Cayenne and Audi Q7 premium SUVs at its Slovakian plant in the city of Bratislava by at least 10 percent for the remaining of the year. -Continued

The German automaker said that about one-third of the Slovakian factory's 8,500 employees will be forced to work shorter shifts until the end of 2008 while the plant will close a week earlier than usual this Christmas.

Chrysler Extends Employee Pricing to 2009 Dodge Viper!

Once upon a time, range-topping models used to be excluded from any offers that automakers made to their employees. Of course that was when dealers weren't seeing their lots filled up to the neck with unsold cars. Nowadays, even the almighty Dodge Viper can now be bought with a discount if you happen to work for one of the firms of the Chrysler Group here in the States. -Continued

According to the American carmaker, with the exception of the "dragtastic" Viper ACR, Chrysler LLC's U.S. employees and eligible family members and friends can now obtain all Viper SRT10 Coupe and Convertible models with the special employee pricing.

Since we're not affiliated in any way with Chrysler, we're not aware of the exact discount that's offered on the Viper range but if you happen to know any details, feel free to drop us a line. Just for the record, prices for Dodge's V10-powered snake begin from $88,385.

Honda NSX Based Ferrari 360 Modena Replica up for sale on eBay!

Why would someone go into all that hassle and spend so much money to convert a perfectly fine looking supercar like the Honda NSX (sold as the Acura NSX in the States) into a Ferrari 360 Modena replica is beyond us. To be honest, we thought that these things only happened to cars like the Toyota MR2 and the Pontiac Fiero. Between you and me, what would have really blown our minds is if it were the other way around, meaning a 360 Modena turned into an NSX replica. Now that would have been something worth talking about. But anyways. -Continued

The Swiss seller of the Acurrari 360 Hondena claims that no expenses were spared during the transvestation transformation of the NSX into the Modena. But it gets even better. Here's an extract from the description of the vehicle on eBay:

"For this money you could get a real Ferrari. But everyone can buy a real Ferrari. This genuine Ferrari you can buy only once, as it is the only one in the world. The gasoline consumption is less than half of Ferrari with similar performance, maintenance costs are very much cheaper than Ferrari, and this car has the reliability of Honda ... ( Rust has no chance, in contrast to Ferrari ...)"

Yep, now we're totally convinced that we should spend more than €31,100 / $41,400 -which is the latest bid on eBay as we speak- to buy a vehicle that looks no different than every Tom's, Dick's and Harry's F(i)errari replica.

Nissan GT-R Owner's Hit the Nurburgring Race Track

Nissan's Pan-European driving programme to introduce the new GT-R to more than 1,300 pre-sold customers in the 'Old Continent' is entering its final stages as instructors from Silverstone International have began teaching drivers new tricks at the famed Nurburgring race track. The 19-date run at Germany's Nurburgring follows the debut of the experience at Silverstone, home of the British Grand Prix in August, where more than 500 owners got behind the wheel of the GT-R for the very first time. -Continued

"Half of those who attended had been on other drive experiences, but 98 per cent of them were unanimous that the Academy was their best one yet," explained Jonathan Tait, Sales & Marketing Director, Silverstone International.

Darren Cox, European Brand Promotion Manager for Nissan Europe, added: "This is not your average car and this is not your average driving experience. Nissan has set its sights high with this breakthrough customer focused launch; in partnership with Silverstone those ambitions are being delivered in spades."

Nissan said that further sessions, including the opportunity to take a full race license test, will be held during 2009. European deliveries of the GT-R will start in April 2009, but if you haven't put your name on the order book yet, you better be patient as the waiting list is currently 18 months in the UK alone.

2010 Ford Mustang Teaser Shot No12: The Powerdome

To be frank, we're running out of words to describe Ford's slow striptease tactic on the 2010 Mustang. Plus it's getting pretty boring lately as after the gearbox knob Ford released yet another petty picture, this time of the muscle-car's powerdome. We feel as if we're viewing a strip show where the women are all covered up to the head with clothing revealing only tidbits like their fingernails and ankles. Jeez... Click through to see the rest of the teaser shots. -Continued

Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren Roadster 722 S: New High-Res Image Gallery

The limited edition SLR McLaren Roadster 722 S made its first public appearance at the Paris Motor Show during the first week of October but Mercedes-Benz just decided that it's time to release a new gallery of real-life images that you can check out after the jump. The special edition model is powered by an enhanced version of the standard car's 5.5-liter supercharged V8 that puts out 650HP while it also features suspension and aerodynamic upgrades. Production of the 722 S Roadster will be limited to 150 units. -Continued

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