All-New 2012 Toyota Camry to be Officially Revealed on August 23

After many leaks and much anticipation, Toyota is finally ready to officially show to the world what some readers have already seen thanks to a prematurely released Canadian annual auto guide, the brand-new 2012 Toyota Camry sedan.

The Japanese automaker revealed today through a flyer that the official presentation of its most popular model in North America will take place on Tuesday, August 23.

While Toyota is still keeping mum about the technical details, we expect that the 2012 Camrywill continue to be offered in North America with four-cylinder and V6 gasoline units, as well as a hybrid model featuring a four-cylinder Atkinson cycle engine matted to an electric motor.

More to come so stay tuned on Carscoop.

U.S. Premiere for MINI's $52,000 Goodwood Edition and Coupe Model at Pebble Beach

This week's Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in California is gearing up to be an important event for car enthusiasts as a respectable number of automakers are planning to use the show to unveil their latest products.While the BMW Group's MINI division won't have anything we haven’t seen before, nevertheless, it will use the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance to hold the U.S. debut of the "Mini Inspired by Goodwood" and the all-new Coupe.

The special edition "Mini Inspired by Goodwood", which is in fact inspired by Rolls-Royce, will carry a base price of $52,000 (including $700 D&H), when advanced orders begin later this month.

The company said it will be produced in a limited edition of 1,000 units, 140 of which will be available to US customers with first deliveries expected in the second quarter of 2012.

Among other features, the special edition Mini sports an exclusive Rolls-Royce Diamond Black metallic finish, which can be replaced by a Reef Blue metallic, and 17-inch light alloy wheels.

Inside, you'll find materials and trims used on Rolls-Royce models such as the Lounge leather seats, Lambswool floor mats, cashmere headliner, fascia and front door grab handles in burr walnut veneer and the sports steering wheel with Walknappa leather and Piano Black controls.

The MINI Inspired by Goodwood is offered exclusively with a 1.6-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine generating 181HP hooked up to either six-speed manual or automatic transmissions.

The second MINI model to make its U.S. premiere is the new Coupe that can be ordered with a choice of three 1.6-liter engines delivering 208HP in the John Cooper Work model, 181HP in the Cooper S and 121HP in the Cooper.

The most potent version, the JCW, is the fastest-accelerating production MINI ever with a 0-60 mph time of 6.1 sec and has the highest top speed at 149 mph.

The strictly two-seater model is available for order in the States now with starting prices ranging from $22,000 to $31,900, based on engine option.

We're Almost There: 2013 Infiniti JX Crossover Teaser No7

Infiniti dropped the seventh and final teaser shot before the official unveiling of its brand-new 2013 JX luxury crossover at this week's Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance in California.The best photo of the seven-passenger model to date provides us with a clear view of the vehicle's profile with its concave surface lines.

Following the presentation of the showcar model in California, Infiniti will lift the covers off the final production JX at the Los Angeles Auto Show in November.

The new JX will go on sale across the USA in spring of 2012 as a 2013 model year.

Honda Updates Fit for 2012MY with Styling Tweaks and New Equipment Features

Honda has laid bare the highlights to its 2012 model year Fit hatchback, and the most important news concern the updated styling of the Fit Sport, some interior tweaks on all models and the addition of new standard and optional features across the range.Beginning with the 2012 Fit Sport, the exterior updates include a revised front grille and bumper, black headlight bezels and a dark "machined surface" finish for the alloy wheels.

Inside, the Sport benefits from a dark metallic dashboard trim that replaces the previous gray and black themes, the addition of chrome accents around the instrument displays, plus standard steering wheel-mounted audio controls and upgraded seat fabrics.

Furthermore, when equipped with a navigation system with Voice Recognition, the Fit Sport now includes Bluetooth HandsFreeLink.

The base Fit model gains body-color exterior mirrors and updated wheel covers, while all models get newly designed console-mounted center beverage holders along with console ambient lighting, and added sound insulation measures in the floor, front fenders and A-pillars, plus thicker front corner-window glass.

All Fit models are powered by a 1.5-liter four-cylinder engine generating 117HP at 6,600 rpm and 106 lb-ft. of torque at 4,800 rpm.

When equipped with the available automatic transmission, the Fit returns a city/highway/combined fuel economy rating of 28/35/31 miles per gallon respectively. Manual transmission models have an EPA city/highway/combined fuel economy rating of 27/33/29 mpg.

2013 Lexus GS Officially Unveiled at the Pebble Beach Festival

Time is up for Lexus to pull the wraps off thethird-generation GS luxury sedan that made its first outing today at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in California.Based on the LF-Gh concept we saw in New York, the new GS features much bolder lines that its predecessor. Key highlights include a prominent trapezoidal grille that the company says will be a trademark of all future models, deep-set headlamps with L-shaped LED daytime running lights and an aerodynamic body that brings to mind the smaller IS.

Lexus' Audi A6 and Mercedes-Benz E-Class challenger is underpinned by a revised platform that is more rigid thanks to the increased number of spot welds as well as laser welds in specific locations.

The engineers also redesigned the suspension, which features aluminum upper, and lower control arms for reduced unsprung weight and an updated rear subframe that supports a new multilink suspension.

The mid-size sedan also features wider tracks (+40 mm up front and +50 mm at the rear) and different shock absorbers with lighter-viscosity oil, allowing for faster response to small driver inputs. Braking is taken care of ventilated discs all around with four-piston calipers up front.

In Europe, Lexus will offer the entry level GS 250 (we presume equipped with the IS's 2.5-liter V6 as the company did not reveal any specific details) and a GS 450h full-hybrid version, whereas in the US the line-up will include the GS 350 and the GS 450h.

The North American market GS 350 is motivated by a 3.5-liter V6 generating 306-horsepower and 277-pound-feet of torque, enough to propel the premium sedan from 0 to 60mph (96km/h) in 5.7 seconds and on to a top speed of 142mph (228 km/h). Acceleration from 30 to 50 mph takes 3.0 seconds. The V6 engine is linked to a six-speed sequential shift automatic transmission with paddle shifters and sport driving functions as standard equipment.

Lexus will offer the GS 350 in both rear-wheel and all-wheel drive versions. According to the Japanese automaker, the optional electronically controlled all-wheel-drive system can vary front-to-rear torque balance from 50/50 to as much as 30/70, depending on driving conditions.

Although its dimensions are almost identical to the outgoing model, the new Lexus GS offers improved space in the cabin, while boot capacity has been increased by 25%. Entry and exit are made easier thanks to wider door openings and the redesigned seat frame and steering column give the driver better visibility as well as increased comfort.

The dashboard’s design bears no relation to that of the outgoing GS, with the styling clearly inspired from the LF-A sportscar.

It features cleaner lines while highlights include the extra-large touchscreen (up to 12.3 inches) and the relocated controls for the audio (a 17-speaker Mark Levinson, if you tick the options box) and climate system. The latter uses a new, energy saving technology called S-Flow with an occupant-detection system to direct airflow only to the front area where passengers are actually seated.

In this class, a multimedia all-in-one control system is practically compulsory and the new GS has its own “next generation Remote Touch with one-push confirmation” as standard for “intuitive operation of climate, audio and phone controls as well as the navigation system” (Lexus’ words, not ours…).

In terms of safety, the new GS features a huge array of both passive and active safety features. There are 10 airbags in total, including knee ones for both driver and front passenger and side airbags for rear passengers.

The new GS can be equipped with a pre-collision system that uses the radar cruise control system to detect a probable accident and an infrared camera that monitors the driver’s eyes. If it detects that he is not looking forward when road circumstances suggest that an accident is probable, it sounds an alarm. If the driver doesn’t respond the system will automatically activate the brakes, reducing the severity of the impact.

Lexus said that it will also offer an F-Sport Package with styling and chassis upgrades.

According to the Japanese company, GS production will start in December with the first cars arriving in showrooms in February.

Tesla Model S and Roadster Silently Race Each Other on Desert Road

It’s not the first time we've shown you the Model S, Tesla’s 5-passenger-plus-2-children electric 5-Series rival on video, even though deliveries aren’t expected to begin before 2012. And theRoadster has gotten its fair share of coverage too.But seeing the two Tesla models silently drive side by side down an empty desert road is a good enough excuse to show the two EV sports cars again – especially the gorgeous Model S.

You can watch the video after the jump, but please don’t complain about the music: in this case it’s entirely appropriate since you wouldn’t hear anything anyway.

Bentley Defies Crisis with a 20% Increase in Global Sales

Crisis? What crisis? For you and me, perhaps, but not for Bentley buyers. The VW-owned British luxury carmaker announced today a 20% increase in global sales for the first half of 2011 with 2,978 cars delivered to customers, the best start for the company since 2008.The luxury marque attributes this surge in sales to the high demand for the new Continental GTas well as the increasing popularity in (least we forget, communist…) China, where Bentley sales have risen by 57% compared to the same period last year, to 680 cars. Thus, it has become the manufacturer’s second best market, behind only the US (George Orwell's "Animal Farm", anyone?).

Not to be outdone by China, the capitalist West has contributed its fair, albeit smaller, share to Bentley’s rise. In Europe, sales have increased by 25% (494 cars) and in the USA by 23% (907 cars). Only in Japan, due to the recent catastrophic natural disasters, and the Middle East, where political unrest rules, have sales declined.

So, well done Bentley - and well done to all the fat cats out there, be they…capitalists or…communists, who are rapidly increasing in numbers each day.