The Sport Wagon Enthusiast

SWGreen: Peugeot 508 RXH Diesel-Electric Amps up the “Allroad” Segment

Let us begin by admitting a known bias: we mostly report on German, American, and Swedish sport wagons. It’s not that we don’t enjoy other makes- but their models too often lack the allure we crave…until now. French automaker Peugeot has just released information about their super-efficient 508 RXH Tourer, a high-riding wagon that offers to put the Swedes and Germans on their toes. Based on the 508 Estate, the RXH model offers increased ride height and competes with the Volvo XC70 and Audi A4 Allroad.

Utilizing a 2.0L turbo-diesel engine that powers the front wheels and an electric motor for the rear axle, the 508 RXH uses a similar diesel-electric design as the Volvo V70 plug-in diesel-hybrid. With this brillant set-up, the 508 RXH achieves an incredible 55.9 MPG combined fuel economy, despite its hefty mass and ride height. With the 2.0 liter diesel churning out 163 horses, and the electric motor providing an additional 37 hp, the 508 has a total output of 200 horses, but a much more important 332 lb-ft of torque (love those turbo-diesels!)...

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July 11th, 2011 (Source: CarScoop)

Enter the Polestar Performance Volvo C30 Prototype: the savior for Volvo performance enthusiasts. Volvo has long been one of the world’s most iconic sport wagon manufactures. Yet rarely have they produced a wagon or hot-hatch that packs enough punch for enthusiasts- the 850R wagon and V70R being the notable exceptions. Recently, with their “R-Design” packages for the V60 and V70 wagons, this sad story has been much the same: style over substance.

But there is hope for Volvo enthusiasts, and it comes in the word of one company: Polestar. The company was founded in 1996 to drive forward Volvo’s racing efforts, especially in the Swedish Touring Car Championships. Since 1996, they’ve tuned the 850, S40, S60, and C30. Above is their greatest creation: a 405-horsepower race-derived C30 hot hatch.

Starting with a C30 T5 hatchback with the 6-speed manual, Polestar set out to transform Volvo’s smallest car into its fastest. With a larger turbocharger and intercooler, custom free-flow center-mounted duel exhaust and engine software, their C30 offers an incredible 405 horsepower...

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July 8^th, 2011 (Source: Polestar)

Breaking! XFR “Sport Break” Confirmed!

Hot on the heals of yesterday’s update that Jaguar is still on track to produce an XF Sport Wagon is this ringer: 5.0 liter supercharged V8 included. Jaguar Chief designer Ian Callum admitted in an interview with the Dutch publication Autovisie that a 510 horsepower version of their “Sport Break” would be produced. Jaguar’s unique name for this forthcoming estate reveals certain design intentions: a five-door sedan-based wagon that aims to be as stylish and sleek as a typical 3-door English shooting break. Callum, formerly of Aston Martin, admitted that an “estate was not originally on the agenda,” and thus the design will be based on the sedan. Callum also noted that due to this design consideration, there won’t be a large amount of luggage space, but aesthetics will be the main concern.

Jaguar XF Estate Expected

We’ve long heard that Jaguar was planning an estate variant of its successful XF to compete with BMW, Audi, and Mercedes’ mid-size wagon offerings. Adding fuel to the fire recently was Jaguar XF Vehicle Engineer Manager Andrew Whyman, who said in an interview “I can’t say when, or how much, but it is on the cards.” Wagon fanatics know that the last estate Jaguar sold was the X-Type Sport Wagon, which sold so poorly it was rarer than the Bentley Continental GT. This time around, Jaguar is starting with a much more popular (and sexy) vehicle, and will primarily be targeting European buyers. There’s always the chance an XF Wagon could make it Stateside, but that would depend largely on its success across the pond.

With most BMW tuners already focusing on the just unveiled twin-turbo F10 M5 sedan (and forthcoming F11 Touring), it’s rare to find one tweaking the out of production E61 M5 Touring. The German tuning firm Edo Competition (known for twin-supercharging Ferraris and creating an 800 horsepower Maserati MC12 XX) have given the V10 M5 Touring a proper farewell with a naturally-aspirated tuning package and several styling upgrades.

By adding a new air intake system, a custom exhaust with free-flow catalytic converters, and a recalibrated engine management system, Edo Competition was able to squeeze an extra 50 ponies and nearly 30 lb-ft of torque from the 5.0L S85. With 555 horsepower and 413lb-ft of torque, the M5 “Dark Edition” can sprint to sixty in just 4.1 seconds and can reach an impressive terminal velocity of 190 MPH. With the low-end torque (and low redline) of the new F11 M5 Touring, the smooth and exceptionally high-revving V10 (8,250 rpms!) of the E61 will be missed, especially with Edo’s added oomph..

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July 5th, 2011 (Source: Edo Competition)

BMW’s Secret E46 M3 Touring Revealed