We saw a video teaser yesterday and today the first official photos of the BMW Concept X1 have hit the internet two days before the 2008 Paris Motor Show opens to the press. Of course while it is called a ”concept,” BMW is known for carrying most, if not all, of the design over to production.

The BMW X1 will enter production next year at BMW’s Leipzig plant in Germany. BMW is predicting on selling 100,000 units annually. The German automaker is hoping to capitalize on the very compact SUV segment since its main competitor, the Audi Q3, is still two years away.

Expect a range of four and six-cylinder turbo-charged direct injection diesel and petrol engines. The U.S. will most likely only get six-cylinders. We’ll have more details as we get them.

Check out more photos after the jump and let us know what you think of the design in the comments section below.

BMW Concept X1:

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Based on the Renault Kangoo Compact Concept shown at the 2007 Frankfurt Motor Show, Renault today revealed the Renault Kangoo be bop (we’re tempted to keep going with that name but we’ll stop). The two-tone color compact car offers room for four with a unique motor-powered open-top at the rear with a sliding roof and rear tailgate window.

Powertrain choices include two diesels and one petrol. The diesel lineup consists of a 85-hp dCi and a 100-hp dCi while the petrol choice includes a 105-hp 1.6L 16V unit.

For the first time in the Kangoo range, the Kangoo be bop adds the option of Carminat Bluetooth CD navigation system with a 7-inch full-color display.

Check out the high-res pics after the jump along with the press release.

Renault Kangoo be bop:

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A compact entry level Infiniti is still 3-years away. In the meantime, Nissan says that it will try to position its upcoming 2010 370Z, which will be unveiled at the 2008 LA Auto Show, as a competitor to the Porsche Cayman and Audi TT.

The successor to the 350Z will have a bigger 3.7L V6 that will make 330-hp. It is rumored that the car will get a 7-speed dual-clutch transmission from big-brother GT-R. The goal for the 2010 370Z is to market and position it as a pure sports car, says Nissan’s head of marketing Tetsuo Shimada.

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Motor Trend has kicked off judging for the 2009 Motor Trend Car of the Year. The major automotive magazine is hanging out in Mojave, California at the Hyundai/Kia testing facility with 17 contenders that are undergoing performance and other evaluations.

Motor Trend points out that the Car of the Year is not a comparison test. The publication does not look at vehicles that have been on sale for the past 5 years and looks at three main things when evaluating a car: Superiority (engineering), Significance (usability) and Value (how it compares to rivals). Head over to Motor Trend to learn more about the evaluation process.

While Motor Trend finishes up their testing, we’re wondering what car you think deserves the title for the 2009 Car of the Year. Vote in the poll below and head over to the comments section after the jump if you have something more to say.

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Congress has approved the $25 billion loan package for the auto industry which analysts say the Big 3 need very quickly as sales continue to slump. GM, Ford and Chrysler are expected to get the bulk of the $25 billion since they are losing billions and already face debts.

All three are also moving from their predominantly trucks and SUVs lineup to more compact and fuel-efficient vehicles and thus need more money to retool plants and develop technologies that will help them get close to the 35 mpg by 2020 requirement.

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In attempt to compete in the hot hatchback segment, Volvo has confirmed that it will produce an all-wheel-drive version of its C30 that will boast 300 horsepower. Since this will be the hottest Swedish model that Volvo has built for year, production will be limited to 4,500 units over a four year span.

1,800 units of those will be offered to the UK market alone where high-performance hatchbacks, like the Ford Focus RS, are in high demand. Speaking of the Focus RS, the C30 will share the same 2.5L turbocharged 5-cylinder engine from the high-performing Focus. The C30, however, will get Volvo’s Haldex four-wheel-drive system.

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A Lamborghini Reventon, one of the most exclusive cars ever made, ended up on eBay and ended with ‘Buy it Now.’ Of the 20 units made worldwide, only 10 ended up in the U.S. selling for $1.45 million. Well owner of Reventon number 3 decided to sell his exclusiveness with only 73 miles on the odometer for his own personal reasons. Now whether those personal reasons include gas-prices or that he couldn’t afford to maintain the car is unclear.

Nonetheless the Reventon sold very quickly on eBay with a ‘Buy it Now’ price of a heart-stopping $2.5 million. Not bad at all.

Refresher: 6.5 liter V12 engine that produces 640 horsepower. 0-62 mph in 3.4 seconds, with a top speed of over 211 mph. Priced at $1.4 million.

Click through for our high-res gallery of the Reventon.

Lamborghini Reventon Sells for $2.5 million on eBay:

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Volkswagen is trying to build as much as hype as they can around the 2009 Volkswagen Jetta TDI and what better way to do it than to launch a road trip where one lucky couple managed to set a Guinness World Record.

John and Helen Taylor took their new 2009 Volkswagen Jetta TDI and traveled across the lower 48 states in a total of 20 days. Covering a total of 9,419 miles, the Taylors averaged 58.82 mpg breaking the previous Guinness World Record of 51.58 mpg.

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Besides unveiling the new Ferrari California at the 2008 Paris Motor Show, Ferrari will announce the extension of the One-To-One Personalization Program to the Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano. Currently the program, which made its debut in March 2008, is only offered for the 612 Scaglietti

One-to-One clients will now be able to visit Atelier in Maranello to create their own 599 GTB bespoke car. There the lucky clients will be able to choose from a wide variety of special customization content and will be assisted by trained Ferrari consultants.

Ferrari will recreate the Atelier for the Paris show with a customized Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano on hand. Ferrari staff will be on hand at Paris to help clients attending the show personalize their 599 GTB.

Click through for more pictures.

Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano One-to-One:

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Toyota will be introducing the world’s first-ever rear window airbag on its new iQ minicar due out next year. We’re guessing Toyota wants to show hesitant customers that a minicar can be safe by adding extra protection for rear passenger.

The new airbag provides protection to the rear passenger’s head and is stored in the headliner above the rear window. If there is a high-impact collision the bag unfolds rapidly to create a barrier behind the rear passenger.

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As we write this Volkswagen is testing a fleet of 20 plug-in hybrid Golf’s in Berlin preparing for a market launch by late 2010 as a 2011 model year - and you thought the Chevrolet Volt was going to be the only plug-in hybrid coming to the market in 2010.

The test fleet is powered by a 2.0L turbodiesel engine producing a total of 122-hp, 82 of which comes from the electric motor. However, the production version is expected to drop to a 1.4L direct-injection 4-cylinder gasoline engine that produces a total of 100-hp.

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Following the third teaser and a very slick photoshop by some fan, Lamborghini has released the fourth, and hopefully the final, teaser image for the new Estoque four-door-coupe concept ahead of its debut at the 2008 Paris Motor Show.

We’ll learn more about the new Lamborghini later this week, but for now we know the Porsche Panamera and Aston Martin rival will be front-engine sedan running on a four-wheel-drive architecture with an Audi-sources 5.0L twin-turbo V10.

Click through to be teased some more.

Lamborghini Estoque Teaser Images:

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Last month Aston Martin released a teaser images and details about its new supercar called the One-77. Seen as an asnwer to the Lamborghini Reventon, Aston says that the One-77 will be very exclusive and will be powered by a 7.0L V12 engine that will allow it to go from 0-60 mph in 3.5 seconds with a top speed of 200 mph.

Today, Aston has supposedly released more details along with two more teasers. We now learn that the Aston Martin One-77 will be powered by a front mid-mounted 7.3 litre V12 engine with dry sump lubrication system amaking a total of 700-hp with a maximum torque of 553 lb-ft. It will be mated to a rear mid-mounted 6 speed ASM/SSM Automated Manual Transmission. Performance will be enhanced by an adaptive ride height suspension and a carbon ceramic matrix breaking system.

We also learned that the One-77 is a 2+2 coupe with a carbon fiber chassis and a handcrafted aluminium body. Approximate weight of the car comes in at 1500kg.

Aston Martin One-77:

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