Daily News Briefs: May 15, 2012
Hybrid supercars are becoming reality. Bloomberg News reports Porsche’s next 918 Spyder (shown in prototype camouflage), which boasts more than 770 horsepower from its engine and two electric motors, may be joined by a hybrid supercar from Ferrari. Early reports call it the Ferrari F70; a source told Bloomberg that Ferrari will likely price it beyond the $850,000 limited-edition Enzo that appeared from 2002 to 2004. The F70 — or whatever Ferrari ends up calling it — will combine a 12-cylinder engine with two electric motors for more horsepower than any previous Ferrari, Bloomberg says. Ferrari only built 400 Enzos worldwide. (Five are listed on Cars.com, none of them priced.) The Enzo’s successor will likely go on sale sometime in 2013, while Porsche’s 918 Spyder arrives in the U.S. in late 2013.
In other news:
- Automotive News reports the Detroit Three are raising incentives for military buyers through Memorial Day weekend. Incentives include $1,000 off at all Chrysler and regional Ford dealers, including all subsidiary brands. That’s more than double the usual discounts.
- Despite rising sales, North American operating profits for Nissan sank 30% in the first three months of 2012. It’s due to lower-margin fleet sales and higher development costs of redesigned cars like the Altima, Automotive News reports.
- Fisker denied reports that poor engine packaging caused a fire in a customer’s Karma plug-in two weeks ago near Houston. The automaker will issue a final report of the fire’s cause, according to LeftLane News.
- Reuters reports higher sales for Jaguar and Land Rover have offset falling commercial demand for owner Tata Motors, leaving Tata Motors’ global sales flat in April.
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