ie8 fix

auto

Geneva auto show plays host to exotic power and futuristic frugality

Switzerland has set itself as neutral ground in Europe, a role it plays every year between the automotive manufacturing powerhouses of Germany and France. The International Motor Show in Geneva gives equal time to not only the regional automakers, but interlopers from the United States and Asia.

Geneva's proximity to the wealthy gearheads of Monaco also assures a good mix of exotic and specialty carmakers. CNET will be covering the show's press days, sending back photos, video, and stories during the week of March 5.

Here are some of the cars we expect to see. … Read more

Blown text auto-correct locks down school

The thing about auto-correct is that it happens so quickly. Indeed, one sometimes wonders if it's a neat little ruse to get you to send another text correcting the automatic error.

Yet one student at Lanier Technical College might be staring at his or her cell phone a little more closely in future. You see, this student texted: "Gunna be at West Hall this afternoon."

Auto-correct mused a microsecond at this word "gunna" and changed it to "gunman." Before anyone knew it, authorities soon believed that the students could be gonnas.

The way the Gainesville Times portrays it, … Read more

Convertible Range Rover Evoque follows in ill-conceived footsteps

It wasn't the first convertible crossover to reach production, but I was hoping that the Nissan Murano CrossCabriolet would be the last. Unfortunately, Land Rover will also be peeling back the top of its own Range Rover Evoque crossover at the 2012 Geneva Auto Show next week.

The Range Rover Evoque Convertible will feature a power retractable cloth top with a glass rear window pane. A Roll Over Protection System (ROPS) protects passengers in the event of a rollover by instantaneously popping up roll hoops behind the rear passengers when the vehicle senses that it's about to roll. … Read more

Ferrari F12berlinetta packs 740 prancing horsepower

Remember last week, when I casually stated that there was no way that Ferrari's new V-12 halo car would be more powerful than the 720-horsepower 599XX? Well, I was wrong. The new model's 6.3-liter V-12 spins with the fury of 740 galloping equines. You may also remember that the rumors pointed to the new model being called the F620 GT. Well that was wrong too, because what Ferrari pulled the wraps off of on its Web site this morning has been dubbed the F12berlinetta.

That's right, the 2013 Ferrari F12berlinetta, with no space and a lowercase &… Read more

Most powerful Mini ever? I'll take...never mind

Ferarri won't be the only automaker unveiling a "most powerful model ever" this week. Mini's getting in on the horsepower race too--only on a much smaller scale. There's already a higher-performance John Cooper Works (JCW) version of every other vehicle configuration in Mini's lineup, so it's no surprise that we'll be seeing a hi-po version of the Mini Countryman next week at the 2012 Geneva auto show.

The JCW Countryman will also carry the distinction of being the most powerful model in Mini's lineup thanks to its 211-horsepower, four-cylinder, twin-scroll turbocharged … Read more

Mercedes-Benz integrates Siri in A-Class

Mercedes-Benz is making Apple the core of the A-Class' infotainment system by integrating iPhone applications and functionality--namely Siri--with its electronics system.

The Drive Kit Plus integrates the iPhone with the vehicle's electronics platform. It works in concert with Mercedes-Benz' Digital DriveStyle App to display iPhone applications on the infotainment system screen and let the user access the app using vehicle controls or voice commands.

What applications the users can integrate and control will be up to Mercedes-Benz. The free app will add Twitter, Facebook, and Aupeo Personal Radio (which is like Pandora for Europe) to the vehicle's infotainment … Read more

The 3D art behind America's great engineering projects

If you're a fan of America's long and storied history of great engineering, the National Park Service has got something for you.

On Monday, the park service's Historic American Engineering Record (HAER) Autodesk and kubit will announce the technological process of documenting these structures, a process that resulted in a broad collection of 3D imagery of projects like the Space Shuttle Discovery, as well as NASA launching pads, famous bridges, and more. The imagery was used to generate what are known as "point clouds" of data that, together, show a 3D version of the object. … Read more

Mini drops the ball with Clubvan concept

There was a time when Mini's designers did crazy things to its standard models, then presented them as concepts at auto shows. Witness the Rocketman concept, which started out as a standard Cooper model, then added weirdly hinged doors and a big glass bubble at the rear.

But during the Geneva auto show next month, Mini will display what it calls the Clubvan, a new concept based on its Clubman model. And no, the Clubvan does not have disco lights, pumping music, and a crew of 24-hour party people dancing through the night. … Read more

Another look at Toyota's Geneva-bound FT-Bh concept

What we could only glimpse as an overexposed silhouette yesterday begins to take solid form today. Toyota has just released two new teaser photos and a video heralding the arrival of its latest hybrid concept, the FT-Bh.

Along with the media, we also got a smattering of details about this concept. For starters, the Future Toyota B-segment Hybrid (FT-Bh) is expected to weigh less than 800 kg (or about 1,764 pounds), making it lighter than Toyota's tiny Aygo--lighter even than the first-generation Mazda Miata by about 300-400 pounds! Toyota also claims that this B-segment five-door will be … Read more

Most powerful Ferrari ever? I'll take two, please.

Ferrari just rolled out a short teaser video announcing the dawning of "a new era of extreme V-12 cars." Speculation around the 'Net indicates that the Italian automaker will be pulling the wraps off of the successor to its 599 grand tourer: the F620 GT.

Expect the new vehicle to carry its V-12 engine--possibly sourced from or based on the V-12 that powers the Ferrari FF shooting brake--up front and under an elongated hood. Like the 599 it aims to replace, the new model will probably also send its power exclusively to the rear-axle. And if this … Read more