After months of speculation GM has pulled the plug on Saab, which has left the loss-making Swedish car company no option but to file for ‘Chapter 11’-style bankruptcy. The move means a Swedish court-appointed administrator will oversee efforts by Saab to reorganise itself once more into a fully independent entity, while offering short-term legal protection from its creditors, which will give the car firm the opportunity to try and get itself back on its feet and get protected against bankruptcy. 

However the company has reiterated it can only survive as in independent in the future with significant external funding, it has been reported that last year the company lost nearly £250 million.

‘We explored and will continue to explore all available options for funding and/or selling Saab and it was determined a formal reorganisation would be the best way to create a truly independent entity that is ready for investment,’ said Jan Ake Jonsson, Managing Director for Saab Automobile.

‘With an all new 9-5, 9-3X and 9-4X all ready for launch over the next year and a half, Saab has an excellent foundation for strong growth, assuming we can get the funding to complete engineering, tooling and manage launch costs. Reorganisation will give us the time and means that help get these products to market while minimising the liquidity impact of Saab on GM.’

The company produced a press release today putting on a brave face in regards to the situation, stating Saab’s intention to re-concentrate the marque’s design, engineering and manufacturing operations in Sweden over a three month period, assuming the administrator agrees to the plans. But in the meanwhile the GM decision which was made to cut Saab loose has put the Swedish government under increasing pressure to stump up a taxpayer bailout.

The ever-popular MX-5 gets a fresh look for 2009, detail upgrades, an auto option and slight improvements to both emissions and fuel efficiency, the MX-5 is apparently a lot of fun to drive, rear-wheel drive balance, improved 2.0-litre engine, quick and easy manual hood, fuss-free Roadster-Coupé option. 

The price range for the new Madza MX-5 is between £16,350 – £20-695, and is available from April 2009, its key rivals are Peugeot 207 CC, Audi TT Convertible, Lotus Elise and the Honda S2000. 

Why wouldn’t you want to own a MX-5? If your answer is you need more than two seats then fair enough. But if you’re about to mouth the words ‘because it’s a hairdresser’s car’ you’re wrong. End of. Because the Mazda roadster here in new facelifted form is about as joyful a car as you could wish to drive.

The Mercedes-Benz SLK-Class 55 AMG is a comfort executive car constructed by the German company Mercedes-Benz since 1997 and there has been two productions of SLK cars by the German car production giant since first introduced. 

The Mercedes-Benz SLK55 AMG built with V8 engine and the productivity is 342BHP – 367BHP at 5500 rpm with 382 ft.lbf – 391 ft.lbf of torque at 2800-5400 rpm.

The 0-62 mph figure of the AMG is estimated at 4.9 seconds but others have claimed times of less than 4.3 seconds. Which is a fantastic figure for mercedes to use to promote the car, along with this the AMG has many other features including amplified brake capability, supplementary engine oil chiller, AMG body gear with unique gills in frontage bumpers, leather finished interior and 19-inch wheels. 

A Roof regulator which permits the cars roof to be released and closed by remote. (Can be operated under 5mph) and while driving without holding down the button. 

LED light system which includes plate lights, signal indicators, etc. The Brake lights are previously LEDs, but now Indicators on the Rearview mirror are LEDs and third brake light enlighten the axis LED light in pause or rhythm.

Nissan have made a properly sorted and internationally appealing sportscar called the Nissan 350Z. It’s far from perfect, but the rawness and emotion it dishes up is almost unique in this price range.

The 350Z has a 3.5-litre V6 engine which provides 309bhp, making it good for a limited 155mph and capable of hitting 60mph in under six seconds and it feels and sounds amazing as you get yourself up to the 155mph mark. 

The 350Z is not a car to be trifled with, being compact, powerful and rear-wheel drive. It transmits its intentions slowly and clearly, but a regular one of those is power over-steer. 

The practicality of the 350Z doesn’t stretch too far though, there are a fair few clever storage solutions around the cosy cockpit, but the boot is massively hampered by a huge rear strut brace. A real afterthought by Nissan, that one, but at least it handles as a result…

Another all-round fun car for real driving enthusiasts, especially with all this icy weather and rear wheel drive, can be a be dangerous but if you know how to handle the car correctly then the fun you will have will be endless!

The Honda S2000 and the Lotus Elise – two roadsters, both originally produced in the 1990s, both using high-revving four-cylinder engines and both symbolising long-held traditions of their builders.

Even so, the similarities of the two roadsters end there, one using a classic front-engined layout, the other combining cutting-edge construction and a mid-engined configuration. Of course, Honda and Lotus have formidable motorsport experience, and both channel this into their road cars and use it as a basis for their trademark engineering approaches.

Honda’s high-revving, naturally aspirated engines are justly famed. And Lotus is equally hailed for its lightweight, minimalist approach and application of innovative chassis technology.

The Honda S2000′s handsome, classical roadster proportions were matched with a simply incredible 2.0-litre engine capable of revving to 9,000rpm. A true drivers car, the S2000 gained a reputation for somewhat snappy handling that Honda has addressed with a number of tweaks and upgrades, most recently at the beginning of 2007 models – including Honda introducing traction control, which was a must for this lairy ‘rear end happy’ car!

But can an updated version of a nine-year-old car really take on Lotus’s latest and greatest?  The British corner being fought by the supercharged Elise SC. Weighing just over 900kg and powered by a supercharged 1.8-litre Toyota engine revving to over 8,000rpm, this latest Elise is a formidable package.

I think if these two roadsters were put together on a track, i think we can safely say it would be very entertaining and we would be standing back and watching the sparks fly…!

Lotus Elise Statistics 

Engine – 1.8 litre supercharged

Power (BHP) – 218 @ 8,000

Torque (lb/ft) – 156 @ 5,000

0 – 62 MPH (secs) – 4.6

Top Speed (MPH) – 148

Combined MPG – 33.2

List Price – £33,500 

Honda S2000′s Statistics

Engine – 2.0 Litre four-cylinder

Power (BHP) – 240 @ 8,300

Torque (lb/ft) – 153 @ 7,500

0 – 62 MPH (secs) – 6.2

Top Speed (MPH) – 150

Combined MPG – 28.2

List Price – £29,500

Land Rover was first introduced to the USA in March 1987. But the take up on the Land Rover in the US was slow, and when first introduced it took almost ten and a half years to sell the first 100,000 vehicles but they then became popular and it took only five years to sell the next 150,000.

And now with an expanded lineup and the Range Rover still stalking the countryside as the king of the luxury SUV pride, Land Rover North America has taken just two-and-a-half years to sell another 100,000 vehicles.

When a Range Rover Sport left the lot in Cerritos, California this month that totaled 500,000 Land Rovers bought and paid for. So on Land Rovers 60^th birthday they have officially sold 500,000 in the US – I think that deserves a huge congratulations!

The news at the annual Retailer Breakfast Meeting at the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) convention in New Orleans, that the company reached a historic milestone recently when a Range Rover Sport Supercharged became the company’s 500,000th vehicle sold in the United States.

“Reaching this milestone demonstrates the strength of the Land Rover brand and is a result of a dedicated and passionate retailer network,” said Chris Marchand, Executive Vice President, Marketing and Sales, Land Rover North America.

“The Land Rover model line-up has undergone a complete revitalization and reaching this achievement shows the growth we have experienced over the past four years. It took us ten years to sell the first 100,000 vehicles and we have sold the last 100,000 since July of 2006.”

Land Rover takes its responsibility to the environment seriously. Emissions have been cut with all new models and, together with Jaguar, it is investing £700m on technology specifically aimed at reducing carbon dioxide emissions.  

Today it has been confirmed by Honda that the long-lived Honda S2000 will be no more from next year, the car was introduced in 1999 and although not to everyone’s tastes it has won over the hearts of many road testers, then S2000 is a true drivers car and ALOT of fun, trust me – i own one myself! (pictured)

Very sadly a replacement for the high-revving two-seater, bike technology sports car is in doubt as carmakers are scaling back on their niche products.

Car critic Jeremy Clarkson famously quoted his admiration for the Honda S2000 by saying, “If Dr Jekyll had owned one of these, he wouldn’t have needed a potion to turn him into a right nutter!”

“It is a sports car that papers over some less than ideal dynamic characteristics with a superbly high-revving VTEC engine and the sort of gearbox you can enjoy for hours without even turning a wheel, purpose built as a soft-top, the S2000 is definitely cooler than retrospective hatchet jobs like the heavy and ugly Nissan 350Z Roadster.”

The Honda S2000 is a sports car that papers over some less than ideal dynamic characteristics with a superbly high-revving VTEC engine and the sort of gearbox you can enjoy for hours without even turning a wheel

‘The S2000 is a sports car designed by enthusiasts for enthusiasts,’ said John Mendel, executive vice president of American Honda Motor Co., Inc. ‘It raised the bar for all future roadsters, and it’s already considered a classic by many Honda fans.’

The S2000 was only supposed to be a limited edition to mark Honda’s birthday but survived for ten years and production is due to end in June 2009. 

JE Design made a lot of improvements for this ride. They created a wide body kit, installed LSD Doors and 18? alloys. They modified this car’s engine to deliver 244 BHP and now this Seat Leon could accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in just 6.4 seconds.

Hardly six months since the release of the first complete conversion kit, JE DESIGN well-known as a Seat tuning specialist, is now presenting the highlight of its Leon suite – a wide body with wing doors. JE DESIGN also gives the new turbo-charged petrol engine an extra boost.

The Seat Leon makes a mighty impression after JE DESIGN has fitted it out with its wide body conversion kit. JE DESIGN starts off comparatively tamely at the front with a new front grille without a badge. However, on reaching the side-mounted body styling elements, it becomes clear that we are not dealing with just an ordinary tuning job here.

This is because JE DESIGN fits the Leon with a 10-piece wheel arch extension kit which enables the Leon to fill out any rear-view mirror that little bit more than usual. The knowledge of this effect magically compels the driver to sport a broad grin across his face when overtaking. 

JE DESIGN’s front spoiler and the boot-lid rear spoiler produce a lift-reducing effect. The rear view is rounded off by the JE-DESIGN rear apron attachment, which can be used both with the standard-fitted rear silencer as well as the awesome-sounding 4-pipe rear silencer specially produced in stainless steel by JE DESIGN. 

JE DESIGN has also been fit with a with a coil-over suspension, which allows the suspension to be lowered between 35mm and 65 mm to suit the driver’s individual taste.

The SLK 55 AMG is now even more dynamic: a new front apron and dark-tinted headlamps give this unique eight-cylinder roadster an even more athletic look even at a standstill. The handling dynamics of the SLK 55 AMG have also been sharpened.

For the first time the car features the new direct steering with variable servo assistance, which makes the 265 kW/360 hp two-seater even more agile and responsive. The SLK 55 AMG is also the only car in its class to feature a V8 engine, and a speed-shift transmission now offers even faster gearchanges.

The redesigned front apron with a more pronounced arrow-shape, the modified Mercedes star, enlarged air dams and a black-painted transverse fin on the lower section ensure a distinctly masculine aura. Large, round foglamps with chrome surrounds are now positioned further outwards, enhancing the impression of width. The specific AMG bodystyling also includes AMG side skirts, the muscular AMG rear apron with a black insert and the AMG spoiler lip.

New features also include dark-tinted projection-beam headlamps, LED indicator repeaters in an arrow design ensure more safety. New 18-inch AMG light-alloy wheels in a multi-spoke design, painted in titanium grey and with a high-sheen star, these provide interesting contrasts when viewed from the side. Outstanding deceleration values are ensured by the AMG high-performance braking system with internally ventilated brake discs all-round.