Few cars carry as much prominence as the Bugatti Veyron, famous for its ultra-high price tag, striking looks and other-worldly speeds, but there will always be demanding customers wanting more. For them, Bugatti is offering an even more exclusive ‘roofless’ version labeled the Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport and it has just entered production at the company’s high-tech assembly facility in Molsheim, France.

To mark the production start of the new model, which will be limited to 150 units, Bugatti has hosted a special day for enlisted buyers to test drive some pre-production versions at Cannes, in northern France.

Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport

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In late 2007 BMW CEO Norbert Reithofer revealed plans for several all-new models including a design study called the Progressive Activity Sedan (PAS). Then, at March’s Geneva Motor Show, BMW gave us the first tangible evidence of the new PAS in the form of the 5-series Gran Turismo (GT) concept vehicle. Today the wraps have come off the production version of the car, which is set to go on sale in Europe this October and in the U.S. early next year.

Clear differences between the production version and the concept are the smaller wheels, regular beige leather interior, rounded exhaust tips and new side mirrors.

2009 BMW 5-series GT concept

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All our American readers look away because pictured here is a new high-performance variant of the Volkswagen Scirocco coupe, a car that has officially been ruled out for U.S. sale. VW first hinted at a new high-performance version of the Scirocco when it revealed the GT24 race concept back at the Austrian Wörthersee Tour tuning show in May of 2008, and then followed it up with the Scirocco Study R concept at the Bologna Motor Show that same year.

The new performance variant is called the Scirocco R and it has just been unveiled at the Nurburgring 24-hour endurance race, which kicks off today and continues over the weekend at the famous German circuit.

2010 Volkswagen Scirocco R

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Carmakers are already fretting at the thought of achieving the new 35mpg CAFE standards imposed by the U.S. government by the current 2020 deadline, but an announcement by President Barack Obama today revealed the plan to get the standard up to 35.5mpg by 2016. The plan requires a gain of over 5% per year, matching a standard imposed by California and several other states and thus ending chances of a patchwork of different standards for the U.S.

The deal fulfills a campaign promise by Obama to allow California’s tougher emissions standard to be enacted.

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For a few days in May the town of Reifnitz, Austria is overrun with a plethora of Audi and Volkswagen models as fans of both marques attend the world’s largest Volkswagen Group gathering. Known as the Worthersee Tour, the event has been running for almost 30 years and this year Audi decided to offer up some of its most die-hard fans a special treat in the form of an extensively customized Q5 SUV.

Audi is featuring a number of vehicles at the show, including the TT RS, the V10-engined R8 and the previously revealed A1 Sportback concept car.

2009 Worthersee Tour Audi Q5 concept

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Vorsteiner is an American tuning firm that until now has specialized in modifying German performance cars from the likes of BMW, Mercedes Benz, and Porsche. The company has now established a subdivision called Ventross that will be focused on Japanese models, and its second order of business after last year’s Lexus IS-F is a new styling kit for the all-conquering Nissan GT-R.

The Ventross GT-R is modified with a sporty dry carbon fiber front chin spoiler. The spoiler features a center air channel that allows air to cool down the front brake system, while also increasing downforce.

Ventross Nissan GT-R

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Jaguar is only months away from revealing its next-generation XJ saloon, which is scheduled to debut on July 9th at a special presentation in London before going on sale by the end of the year. Speaking at the Shanghai Motor Show last month, Jaguar Mike O’Driscoll released some new details about the upcoming flagship, including an official teaser, and now we have new spy shots of the upcoming saloon.

Interestingly, Jaguar has attempted to disguise the prototype as a BMW, even adopting the same psychedelic camouflage material as its German rival.

Spy shots: 2011 Jaguar XJ

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The supercar that almost wasn’t, and still might not be, the Lexus LF-A, recently underwent a special kind of exhibition in Milan during Fashion Week, and now it has been spotted once again in prototype form ahead of a rumored debut at October’s Tokyo Motor Show.

The LF-A has been spotted testing on a number of occasions, so it’s well past the ‘pure concept’ stage, but its production future still remains murky at best. The Japanese company’s investment in the LF-A at the recent Milan Fashion Week, however, lends credence to the idea that it is in fact going to be built, and this latest prototype features some new elements have never been seen before.

First and foremost are the new tail-lamps, which are likely to be the actual production units.

Lexus LF-A

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The successor to the Mercedes Benz SL Gullwing (and replacement for the SLR) has been spotted in prototype form in and around Germany’s Nurburgring test circuit for several months now, but what only a select few knew is that the car is being developed completely in-house by Mercedes’ official tuner, AMG. Thus, the brand new model will be called the SLS AMG when it hits showrooms in the first half of next year.

In the lead up to its final unveiling, planned for later this year, Mercedes has released a ton of info on the car, including several images of actual prototypes and technical drawings.

2010 Mercedes SLC Gullwing rendering

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As predicted as the budget cap row escalates, Ferrari’s Board of Directors, chaired by Luca di Montezemolo, has confirmed that the Italian company won’t be competing in Formula 1 next year. The announcement comes following the FIA’s decision to introduce two different sets of regulations based on arbitrary technical rules and economic parameters.

Ferrari considers that if this ‘two-tier’ system for Formula 1 remains, then the company’s uninterrupted participation in the sport over the last 60 years – the only constructor to have taken part ever since its inception in 1950 – would come to a close.

Ferrari has also expressed its disappointment about the methods adopted by the FIA in taking decisions of such a serious nature and its refusal to effectively reach an understanding with constructors and teams.

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