Spyshots: New Suzuki Grand Vitara Compact SUV

Suzuki is better known for its fast bikes than its cars. As a small and struggling car company, it has to pick its fights vary carefully and it has done just that by targeting the compact SUV market.

After the new SX4 S-Cross, this is their second major soft-roading project in the past few years and it's probably even more important. the C-segment 4x4 market is absolutely huge and thanks to China, it's growing by the day. Unfortunately, the current Vitara is old, boring to look at and inefficient, so it holds only a minute share of the niche.

These are the very first shots of the new Suzuki compact SUV testing in Germany. The 4-wheel-drive prototype is fully disguised and has many components that are only temporary, like the headlights or the grille.

Although it's heavily concealed by camouflage, we believe the New SUV's design will be heavily influenced by recent Suzuki concepts. For example, the iV-4 shown last year at the Frankfurt Motor Show could lend most of its features quite well into a production scheme.

The dimensions of the SUV will likely remain pretty much unchanged from the current generation. It will measure 4.5 meters from bumper to bumper and stand 1.7 meters tall. About 100 kg of weight should be cut from the mass, by using more advanced fabrication methods.

Since Suzuki has officially pulled out from the US market, there really isn't a reason for them to continue offering the 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine. Both hybrid and turbo engines are technically possible, but cannot be justified by looking at the current Suzuki model lineup. The first Kizashi sedan concept , which came out in 2007, has a 2-liter turbo engine. Another, which came a little later and was called the EcoCharge, packed a 145 hp 2-liter hybrid system.

The new Grand Vitara is at least another year away from going into production, although another preview concept could be shown this year. At about 4.2 meters long, iV-4 was no bigger than some B-segment crossovers, so it might do a do a bit of growing and stretching in Paris this autumn.

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Spyshots Porsche 911 GTS With Twin Central Exhausts… or Is It Something Else

A mysterious Porsche 911 Cabriolet prototype has emerged for testing in Germany and was spied by our photographer near the Nurburgring. It's believed by most to be the new GTS model, but we're not so sure. It looks more like a special edition or a commemorative car of some sort.

First things first, let's examine what different from the current 911 Cabriolet. It's clear that we're dealing with a facelift model. Dark decals cover the headlights, LED accent strip and the taillights. This is where Porsche will make subtle changes, to be launched under the 991.2 series banner.

But the really unique part of this prototype are the twin exhaust pipes. They sit closer to each other than a Carrera's would, but not as close as on the a GT3. This is the first thing that made us consider this isn't a GTS. You see, all the current GTS models have quad-branch exhaust systems, from the Boxster to the Cayenne and the Panamera. Even the previous generation 911 GTS, which was around only two years ago, had a quad-pipe exhaust.

What's more, we already have spy photos of the real 911 GTS dating back to late 2013. That car had the right quad exhaust, the widened rear bodywork of 4S and a wing round the back, which our later prototype doesn't. To top it all off, that GTS was a coupe, which poses the biggest question of all: Why built a floppy GTS convertible?

This twin-pipe has something of the 80s about it, an affordability that's been taken out of the Porsche range. Famed Porsche restorers and coachbuilders Singer also use a setup like this one on some classic air-cooled models.

With the 991.2 series, Porsche is looking to bring about many different changes and to the iconic sportscar family. These include a hardcore GT3 RS track car and the GTS we mentioned was spotted last year.

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Spyshots: Hyundai Veloster Turbo Getting a Facelift

Our car spies stationed in Germany have managed to take the very first images of a redesigned Veloster Turbo, a model that's coming down Hyundai's pipeline later this year.. It's heavily covered in two types of camouflage and thus obscures most of the big changes, but we can tell they will target the front and rear ends of the car.

In the past year, Hyundai has revealed a number of new premium cars, all of which are designed using a new Fluidic Sculpture 2.0 language. We think the Veloster will receive similar look, with sharper lines and an Audi-like grille. Interior changes are also planned and hopefully engineers will do something about that numb steering.

Although considered a Korean car brand, Hyundai has a strong R&D team in Europe. Their Frankfurt test center gave us award-winning models like the i30 and ix35, and now changes are being planned for the ill-fated coupe.

There are a number of different things wrong with the Veloster Turbo. First of all, the European models don't have that much power: only 186 hp, compared to over 200 hp that American models get. A lot of B-segment hot hatches use 1.6-liter turbo engines, but the Veloster doesn't have the direct steering of a Ford Fiesta ST and its fuel consumption figures are not much different to a Golf GTI's.

It's also quite expensive considering the Hyundai badge is not associated with fun cars. An automatic Turbo costs €28,630 in Germany, so understandably, most buyers look to VW, Ford or Renault for their small, fun cars. Hopefully, the facelift will make the Veloster more appealing.

Launched in 2012, the Turbo was Hyundai's first compact with a small turbo engine. Its main selling points are the shooting brake body and the asymmetrical doors, similar to the MINI Clubman. Turbo models have their own unique styling, with wider fenders, a more aggressive front grille and 17-inch wheels. Round the back, LED lighting and very large twin exhaust mounted in the middle.

Based on Hyundai's typical modus operandi, the Veloster Turbo should debut at the Los Angeles Auto Show this fall.

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