Russia auto news

Vilner takes on the BMW F800R [w/video]

Vilner has taken the time to give the BMW F800R a once over to create the Predator. Built for a wealthy Russian businessman, the machine received a complete aesthetic redesign with plenty of components hewn from carbon fiber.

What isn't stitched from composite is coated in chrome, and the company's engineers set about shortening the bike by almost 10 inches. Vilner also ditched the dual saddle for a single seat variant and remade the headlight array. Red LEDs have replaced the standard bulbs, and a set of repurposed BMW Z4 turning indicators are now part of the action.

The Predator remains largely unchanged mechanically, though Vilner threw in a new, hand-built exhaust system. That means this machine still yields around 87 horsepower from its 800cc engine. Scroll down to check out the quick press release as well as a video of the bike.

Continue reading Vilner takes on the BMW F800R [w/video]

Report: Valmet working to meet demand for sold-out Marussia B2

By all accounts, Marussia is just another exotic automaker hoping to sell a few supercars but just as likely to disappear into obscurity. Except that it hasn't, and may not for some time.

Having potentially overextended itself by buying the majority of a Formula One racing team from Virgin, the Russian upstart needed its newest product - dubbed the B2 - to be the runaway success that the (relatively) less dramatically-styled B1 wasn't. And so it appears it will be as reports indicate that Marussia has sold out its entire production run of 500 vehicles.

In order to keep up with demand, production is reportedly shifting from Marussia's own facility in Moscow to Valmet in Finland, the same place where the Fisker Karma is built now and the Porsche Boxster and Cayman were before it. Cosworth will then be shipping the 3.5-liter V6 that provides between 300 and 420 horsepower (depending on customer specification) to drive the 2,425-pound lightweight supercar to 60 in as little as 3.2 seconds.

Check out the pair in the fresh image gallery above for a closer look.

Report: Renault-Nissan moves to take control of Russia's largest automaker

Renault-Nissan aims to increase its stake in Avtovaz, giving the alliance majority control over Russia's largest automaker. The deal will likely see Renault and Nissan vehicles manufactured beside Lada models in the near future. Avtovaz recently finished a new production facility in Togliatti where the three brands plan to produce up to 1.6 million units per year. That move would make the Togliatti plant one of the largest automotive manufacturing facilities in the world. The companies expect the agreement to become final by 2014.

Technically, the deal is structured under a joint venture between Renault-Nissan and Russian Technologies, a state-owned corporation. Under a recently-signed memorandum of understanding, Renault-Nissan will own 67.13 percent of the venture, which will own 74.5 percent of Avtovaz. The alliance already holds a 25 percent stake in Avtovaz.

Under the MOU, Renault will invest around $300 million in the joint venture, while Nissan will put in $450 million.

Official: Land Rover completes 8,000-mile Journey of Discovery from Birmingham to Beijing

Not long ago, Land Rover embarked on an epic trans-continental road trip that sought to retrace the route taken by a similar expedition in 1956 and raise £1m for the Red Cross. And after 8,000 miles traveled through thirteen countries - starting in Birmigham, England and ending in Beijing, China - they finally made it.

The departure was celebrated with the production of the millionth Discovery, the arrival timed to coincide with the Beijing Motor Show. Along the way the rugged motorcade swung through Switzerland for the Geneva Motor Show, hit some of Europe's oldest cities, traversed a wide variety of terrains and climates, rolled through Chernobyl as the first private vehicles to tour the disaster site since the nuclear meltdown there 25 years ago, visited an array of museums and toured a former Soviet submarine base.

But before it could complete the final 72-hour leg into China, the crew had to detonate a controlled avalanche to clear an alpine pass. In other words, it was not your average road trip. Read more about it in the press release below and scope out the high-resolution images in the gallery for a closer look at what the convoy encountered along the way.

Continue reading Land Rover completes 8,000-mile Journey of Discovery from Birmingham to Beijing

Video: Watch a manhole cover send a Land Rover airborne in Russia

We love action movies as much as the next guy, but sometimes the car stunts just look too ridiculous. Like when a cop car goes airborne during a chase scene after rear-ending a parked car. Or how about when a vehicle flips end over end upon impact. That never happens, right?

Well it apparently does in Russia, where, thanks to seemingly everyone in the country having a dash cam, you can watch video of a Land Rover Freelander 2 driving over a manhole cover and going Bourne Ultimatum.

What caused the cover to blow the way it did is not evident, though it's interesting to note that in the aftermath (in the second video especially), you see that it's not a plain, flat manhole cover that comes to rest near the car. It's a cylindrical object with a square grate across the top. Lending credence to the whole thing not being a fake is that a second static security camera (or similar setup) pointed at the street also caught the whole episode.

Scroll down to watch the bizarre incident unfold.

Continue reading Watch a manhole cover send a Land Rover airborne in Russia

Report: Lada 2107 reaches the end of its road

"It's time to say goodbye," said AvtoVAZ spokesman Igor Burenkov to Russia's RIA Novosti about the end of Lada 2107 production, which happened this week. The Lada 2107, also called the Lada Riva, has been plying Russian roads since before Ronald Reagan started redesigning walls. It's one of the cars you're most likely to see in grainy film and video clips from the days before Glastnost.

As you might suspect, the Lada 2107 has Fiat origins that go back to the early 1970s. This old comrade has been wound down to make room for the cars Lada is calling "new" classics. Newer Lada models like the Granta, Priora and Kalina are going to move into the Izhavto production facility that had been building the "Seven," and Lada is expecting demand for the newer cars to continue rising as more features and body style variations continue to be rolled out.

Video: Watch an angry customer intentionally ram his vehicle into a car dealership

Long, long ago, when we first put our grubby hands on a driver's license, someone passed on a bit of sage wisdom: in the wrong hands, a car can be more dangerous than any gun. The video after the jump is a keen reminder of this fact. Autoblog reader Vasiliy tells us the individual in the kamikaze SUV seen here allegedly brought his new purchase back to the dealership to have a faulty shock replaced. When the dealer refused to do the work, the man decided to take the issue into his own hands by ramming his Suzuki through the front glass and into multiple Nissan vehicles parked in the showroom.

While we would never condone property damage or putting innocent bystanders in danger, we suspect replacing the shock would have been significantly cheaper for all parties involved. There's no word on any injuries or damage estimates - or what happened to our intrepid show room demolisher once the local law enforcement caught up with him, but we're guessing a poor-handling Grand Vitara is now the least of his concerns. Scroll down to watch the security camera footage for yourself.

Continue reading Watch an angry customer intentionally ram his vehicle into a car dealership

Video: Watch an angry customer intentionally ram his vehicle into a car dealearship

Long, long ago, when we first put our grubby hands on a driver's license, someone passed on a bit of sage wisdom: in the wrong hands, a car can be more dangerous than any gun. The video after the jump is a keen reminder of this fact. Autoblog reader Vasiliy tells us the individual in the kamikaze SUV seen here allegedly brought his new purchase back to the dealership to have a faulty shock replaced. When the dealer refused to do the work, the man decided to take the issue into his own hands by ramming his Suzuki through the front glass and into multiple Nissan vehicles parked in the showroom.

While we would never condone property damage or putting innocent bystanders in danger, we suspect replacing the shock would have been significantly cheaper for all parties involved. There's no word on any injuries or damage estimates - or what happened to our intrepid show room demolisher once the local law enforcement caught up with him, but we're guessing a poor-handling Grand Vitara is now the least of his concerns. Scroll down to watch the security camera footage for yourself.

Continue reading Watch an angry customer intentionally ram his vehicle into a car dealearship

Report: Mitsubishi to double production at Illinois plant

According to reports citing Japan's Nikkei daily, Mitsubishi Motors North America will be cranking up production at its Normal, Illinois plant, but not because the company expects a 100-percent increase in demand here to match the 70,000 units the plant will soon be cranking out. Instead, the plant will be making Outlander Sport models intended for export from the U.S. to markets like Russia and Latin America. To make way for the increased Outlander Sport output, the slow-moving Galant family sedan will leave the building. No replacement has been announced.

Mitsubishi has plants worldwide, but those in closest proximity to strengthening markets are reportedly running at full tilt, so the move makes use of plants in markets where demand is slack. Mitsubishi has seen its fortunes in the U.S. atrophy, and even though sales improved somewhat last year, this production shift shows that turnabout is fair play, with the offshore parent using its American assets to make cars for markets that would typically be producing the goods, not consuming them.

Video: Lada emergency is no mere fire drill

We imagine that many a Russian Lada has been compared to a ticking time bomb - which is not to say that there aren't any good Ladas out in the wild, of course - but the example you'll see in the video pasted below takes the cake. It is, quite literally, an Improvised Explosive Device.

If an exploding Lada alone isn't enough reason for you to watch, perhaps the reaction of the passengers is more of a draw. Their reaction to the impending doom is so quick that it's almost as if the two occupants were just waiting for the engine of this poor machine to reach its glorious and destructive demise.

See what we're talking about in the video pasted below.

Continue reading Lada emergency is no mere fire drill