Converj - Cadillac Concept Car

General Motors Company has decided to put the Cadillac Converj plug-in hybrid into production. Cadillac Converj Concept is powered by a Voltec-system along with 4-cylinder engine that produces 161-hp with a maximum torque of 273 lb-ft. The Converj can travel up 40 miles on battery-power alone. Top speed is rated at 100 mph. GM says that it takes less than 3 hours to recharge the battery at 240V and about 8 hours from a 120V outlet.

Alfa Romeo Coelus

The Alfa Romeo Coelus is a concept by Slovakian designer Jan Bujnak. The car was created for a final-year thesis project at Scuola Politecnica di Design (SPD).

The 2008 brief from Alfa Romeo asked SPD students to "Imagine the new Alfa Romeo flagship model". The Coelus was Bujnak's design.

The styling of the Alfa Romeo Coelus is intended to blend many of Alfa Romeo's traditional styling cues. Expressive and muscular style lines are melded with the unmistakable Alfa grille and an uncluttered rear end.

The headlights, which are an evolution of the designs seen on previous Alfa Romeos, are narrow and angular wedges. Running backwards from the nose of the Alfa Romeo Coelus is the main feature line of the car – a shoulder line that flows beneath the cabin glassline and into the powerful haunch over the rear wheel.

Above the shoulder line sits a low and sporting cabin highlighting the coupe feel of the car. Further sporting lines are accentuated by the muscular bonnet. When seen from behind, the Coelus appears wide and powerful.

The colour palette of the Alfa Romeo Coelus is deliberately monochromatic, mixing a one-off exterior paint – metashine silver – with sections of trim in either chrome or aluminium finishes.

David buys Goliath

News came through yesterday that the specialist, high-value, low-volume Swedish car maker Koenigsegg is to buy the family-orientated, generic-platformed, ‘high’-volume Saab.

To be fair, at under 100,000 units per year, Saab on its own is not a big manufacturer. It may even produce fewer cars than Rover did before BMW offloaded them. However, it still represents a very odd business plan. Koenigsegg produced only double figures last year, and while they do make great cars, they certainly don’t have the experience of a a mass producer.

Apparently, as part of the proposed sale, GM will continue to provide Saab with ‘architecture’ and powertrain technology during a ‘defined time period’. Saab plans to produce its next generation 9-5 models in its production facility in Trollhättan, Sweden.

“The proposed agreement will enable us to maximize the brand’s potential through an exciting new product line-up with a distinctly Swedish character. Today’s announcement is great news for Saab’s current and future customers, dealers, suppliers and employees around the globe, said Jan Ake Jonsson, Managing Director of Saab Automobile AB.