Spyker previews B6 Venator ahead of Geneva debut

Dutch boutique automaker Spyker will return to the Geneva Motor Show after a two-year hiatus to unveil a concept called B6 Venator.  The word venator translates to "hunter" in Latin, and it was the nickname given by the Dutch to fighter jets during World War I.

The lone image published by Spyker confirms that the Venator takes the form of an aerodynamic two-seater coupe that borrows design cues such as its wide grille and its sleek headlights from the C8 Aileron, the company's only model at the time of writing.  The car tips the scale at about 3,080 pounds thanks to a carbon fiber body and an aluminum chassis.

The B6 Venator is roughly the same size as a Porsche Boxter, but CEO Victor Muller has made it clear that he is not interested in taking on the popular German roadster.

"Anybody who says they're going to build a Porsche killer is crazy," said Muller in an interview with the Wall Street Journal.

The B6 is powered by a mid-mounted gasoline-burning V6 that makes 375 horsepower.  The engine's provenance was not disclosed but rumors indicate that it was pulled out of the Lotus Evora parts bin.

When it goes on sale, the B6 Venator will cost anywhere between €125,000 (about $162,000) and €150,000 (roughly $195,000).  Spyker hopes to build several hundred examples of the car.

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Track-inspired Kia concept leaked ahead of Geneva debut

A batch of leaked images have prematurely revealed the Kia Provo concept ahead of its scheduled debut at the Geneva Motor Show next week.

Curiously named after a medium-sized city in Utah, the concept takes the form of a three-door hatchback that is without a doubt one of the most aggressive looking Kias ever built.  It features aerodynamic bumpers and LED lighting on both ends, a highly-stylized body and an eye-catching two-tone paint job.  A rear air diffuser and large center lock wheels complete the race-inspired look.

Passengers are treated to an aircraft-like cockpit that features several touch screens, a tasteful amount of chrome trim and a three-spoke flat-bottomed steering wheel that appears to be upholstered in Alcantra.

Details are still scarce, but rumors circulating around the European media indicate that the Provo might preview a production-bound Juke-fighting crossover.  If that is the case, the vehicle's ground clearance will be noticeably augmented in its transition from a concept to a production car.

Another plausible possibility is that the Provo will spawn a Europe-only premium sub-compact that will fight in the same arena as the Citroën DS3.

Kia is not hiding the fact that it is trying to lure a younger audience into showrooms and performance will be the order of the day on the firm's stand in Geneva next week.  In addition to the Provo concept, the automaker will also unveil a duo of hot hatches called pro_cee'd GT and cee'd GT.  Designed by Peter Schreyer, the GT-badged cars will take on the iconic Volkswagen Golf GTI with a 201-horsepower four-cylinder engine borrowed from the Hyundai Veloster Turbo.

Official details about the Kia Provo concept will be revealed in the coming days.

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BMW to debut 3-Series diesel at New York show

BMW is taking a different direction for its second U.S.-market diesel-powered 3-Series, the automaker will reveal at the New York International Auto Show in late March.

Instead of the high-performance six-cylinder seen under the outgoing 335d's hood, the new 3-Series diesel will use a four-cylinder unit tuned more for fuel economy. The short-lived 335d, which cranked out 265 horsepower and a solid 425 lb-ft. of torque, but it wasn't a strong seller despite offering the best fuel economy in BMW's 3-Series range at the time. The 335d was offered from 2009 to 2011.

BMW hasn't revealed specifications for the next 3-Series diesel, but the automaker has confirmed that the new engine will be offered in both sedan and wagon forms when it hits the market as a 2014 model next fall.

That will give BMW its broadest 3-Series lineup ever in this market: Three gasoline engines (two versions of a 2.0-liter four-cylinder turbo and a 3.0-liter inline six turbo), one diesel and one hybrid plus five bodystyles (coupe, sedan, convertible, wagon and Grand Touring five-door).

The 3-Series diesel sedan and wagon models are the first of six diesel BMWs set to arrive here in the next 18 months. Yet to come are a 5-Series diesel during late 2013, a diesel version of the next-generation X5 by the end of the year, a 7-Series diesel in the first half of 2014 and an X3 diesel shortly thereafter.

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