Los Angeles Times (Enlarge photo)

Welcome to the Up to Speed video extravaganza. Here are three car-related clips. The second and third ones probably shouldn’t be viewed while at work (as tempting as that may be). Not because of any risque content, but because they’re quite long.

Opening with a joke is always a good ploy, so here’s Bob Lutz, vice chairman of General Motors , talking to Comedy Central’s Stephen Colbert about the Volt .

Next comes the first episode of NBC’s new “ Knight Rider †series, released on the Web a week before its... // Los Angeles Times

Los Angeles Times (Enlarge photo)

The allegation is grand theft auto, but rarely are the autos grander than this. According to a post on Ferrarichat.com, four vintage Ferrari chassis were stolen from noted Ferrari enthusiast Tom Meade's house in Westwood at some point prior to Sept. 14. The list:

1969 365GT (similar model pictured at right)

Details are sketchy and attempts to contact Meade -- who according to the post was in the hospital with a broken leg at the time -- were unsuccessful.

However, according to Det. Lynet Popper of the LAPD, no such theft has been reported to police, which is very strange because the chassis are worth serious bucks. What's going on here?

The murkiness calls to mind the various intrigues in the collector Ferrari market. Note that the posting on Ferrarichat refers to "chassis." Well,... // Los Angeles Times

Los Angeles Times (Enlarge photo)

Its tangled, its complicated and its happening in Germany at a time when, frankly, Americans have more pressing matters to worry about. But the saga between Porsche and Volkswagen sounds like something from a soap opera. Pull up a bratwurst and get comfortable.

The two companies have been intertwined since before the Second World War. Ferdinand Porsche designed the original VW Beetle (or Type 1 as it was known) before setting up his own operation. Then there were the joint projects of the Porsche 914 and the VW Touareg/Porsche Cayenne SUVs. Fast-forward to this month and Porsche is doing well while other car makers are faltering (the success of the Cayenne in North America being a major factor).

The company has now amassed a controlling stake in VW. Another Ferdinand, grandson of the... // Los Angeles Times

Wheels24.co.za (Enlarge photo)

Porsche is teasing us with the first official image of its all-new Panamera Gran Turismo, which arrives in South Africa in 2010.

Following a similar route as Ferrari did with the unveiling of its California hardtop convertible, all the latest details, including videos of disguised prototypes on test drives, will be released on a dedicated "online magazine".

The first image of the four-door shows Panamera being "introduced" to the rest of the Porsche... // Wheels24.co.za

This first official teaser shot of the car shows the super saloon looking across at its Stuttgart stable-mates.

And the front end will clearly sit comfortably with the rest of the Porsche range, looking much like a 911 Turbo wearing what looks like a pair of LED daytime running lights.

It confirms the styling of the car we spied testing back in March ( here ) which revealed the Panamera to be a four door, four seat GT in the vein of the... // Evo

Porsche has released the first official picture of the Porsche Panamera.

The picture shows just the new Panamera's front end, which clearly borrows heavily from the established 911/Boxster/Cayman look. It's recognisably a Porsche.

The Panamera is Porsche's first-ever production four-door and will provide the platform for the next generation Cayenne too.

It has four-wheel drive and will be available with V6 and V8 engines from the Cayenne. A... // Autocar

MOST folk fancy a bit of social climbing and, these days, car manufacturers are ultra keen to help us do it.

With every new launch comes a pledge to leave a model?s previous generation behind and break into the class above.

And there?s no more competitive area of the market than the family car sector ? or should that read executive class?

Cars like the latest Ford Mondeo have cast off the repmobile image to challenge the prestige German marques, while the likes of the new Renault Laguna and Citroen C5 have also moved noticeably more upmarket.

So it comes at no surprise to learn that Honda used the BMW 3-Series as its benchmark for the new Accord and views high spec versions of that car along with the Audi A4 as its main competitors.

Evolution rather than revolution was the aim of... // Airdrie and Coatbridge Advertiser

Los Angeles Times (Enlarge photo)

This is the 2010 Chevrolet Camaro SS coupe, the one with a V-8 under its hood. And these are two of the first official pictures from GM. The V-6 Camaro has already been seen in the first "Transformers" movie. Considering the sequel ("Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen") is being made right now, what are the odds on the SS making an appearance in next summers blockbuster?

The Camaro SS is due in showrooms next year (the V-6 model is slated for March), and it will come... // Los Angeles Times

Mirror.co.uk (Enlarge photo)

That Insight was a wacky-looking machine with seating for two only and limited luggage space.

It looked quite cool and worked extremely well, with real-world fuel consumption up in the 70s, and even higher if you were careful.

The latest Insight is a fivedoor with room for five - a lot more practical than the old one. The styling is similar to the Honda FCX Clarity, the company's hydrogen fuel-cell car that's being leased to punters (and... // Mirror.co.uk

What you're looking at is Honda's new hybrid car that'll be on show in Paris next month.

It's no concept car - it will be in the showrooms in spring - and the big deal is that Honda says it will be priced well below any hybrid car on the market today.

That means it'll be cheaper than the £17,940 Toyota Prius and Honda's own Civic Hybrid at £17,100.

The new car is called the Insight, which will ring bells with a few of you because it's the... // Mirror.co.uk

Los Angeles Times (Enlarge photo)

Wendell Scott is frequently called the Jackie Robinson of American stock car racing . In 1952, at Virginias old Richmond Speedway, he was able to talk his way past a NASCAR race steward and compete, thus crossing the sports color line.

Except that it wasnt a line; it was a wall, guarded by racist track promoters and white Southern fans seething over the civil rights movement. Not to mention Scotts fellow drivers. In his long and unfailingly... // Los Angeles Times

Los Angeles Times (Enlarge photo)

And so it begins. Volkswagen s new minivan, the Routan , goes on sale, accompanied by a typical (for VW) tongue-in-cheek advertising campaign. Because minivans are all about families, this campaigns theme is babies.

The marketing folk at Volkswagen hired Brooke Shields -- who famously once suffered from postpartum depression -- as their spokesperson. Its not obvious if the irony behind this choice was deliberate, but she's found in their video urging people to have children for love, not just as an excuse to buy a Routan. So far, so Madison Avenue.

A more... // Los Angeles Times

Honda has sent the Accord to the cosmetic surgeons but it must have been a lunchtime job as the exterior changes are so subtle you almost need a magnifying glass to spot the difference. This, according to Honda, is because the previous Accord launched back in 2003 was so radical for its time they felt it unnecessary to make the new Accord different from the last. One might question than, why bother? Delve a little deeper and the answer jumps out.

Two variants are on offer the Tourer, in other words the estate, offering class leading luggage area or the sportier Saloon. Both are now on sale in the UK with prices slightly higher than the outgoing models starting at £19,260 for entry level ES... // FemaleFirst.co.uk

Inhabitat (Enlarge photo)

The Insight Concept uses the company’s Integrated Motor Assist Hybrid Technology, which allows Honda to produce a vehicle that significantly less expensive than traditional hybrids. The Insight will be a five passenger hatchback, with a sleek shape that evokes the much larger FCX Clarity .

The Insight Concept will be officially unveiled during the Paris International Auto Show next month, and Honda has already announced that it intends to... // Inhabitat

TORONTO - Honda will reveal a concept version of its new small hybrid vehicle, to be named Insight, at the 2008 Paris International Auto Show on October 2. The new Insight Concept shares styling cues with the Honda FCX Clarity fuel cell vehicle and provides an early look at the new five-passenger hybrid vehicle due to arrive in Canada next spring.

The all-new, purpose-built Insight will come to market at a price below current hybrids available today. From this unique position in the marketplace, the Honda Insight will advance the affordability and accessibility of hybrid technology to a new generation of buyers.

"The original Honda Insight pioneered hybrid technology in North America and remains a symbol of Honda's commitment to innovative technology and fuel efficiency," said Takeo... // Exchange Morning Post

Greenbang (Enlarge photo)

Honda has given a sneak preview of a concept version of its family hybrid car, which will be on display at the Paris Motor Show next month, and is aiming to crank up a hybrid price war with other car manufacturers.

The full production version, called the Honda Insight, is due to go on sale in spring 2009.

Price has yet to be announced but Honda claims it is the first production hybrid to be sold in Europe and that it will be priced significantly lower than any other hybrid car on the market, making it accessible to more people. In fact, Honda is aiming to shift 200,000 of the Insight cars a year worldwide.

Other hybrids planned by... // Greenbang

The Honda Motor Company has introduced a pure hybrid called the Insight.  Honda is hoping the new hybrid will compete with the popular Toyota Prius.

The Insight will go on sale in the U.S. next spring.  Honda said the Insight will be a five seat hatchback and will be priced significantly below other hybrids on the market.  It appears this is not a modified Civic, but a hybrid built from the ground up like Toyota did with Prius.

Hybrids like the Insight and Prius uses electric motors and batteries to assist a gasoline engine in powering the car.  This is considered a serial hybrid, because the gasoline engine does not run all the time only when needed.  For instance, while stopped at a light the gas engine most likely will not be running saving fuel.

In 2007 Toyota sold over... // Beyond Fossil Fuel

findingDulcinea (Enlarge photo)

After unveiling its hydrogen-powered FCX Clarity earlier this year, Honda is now planning to showcase its new ‘Insight,’ a hybrid car, at the Paris Auto Show in October.

This isn’t Honda’s first Insight. An older version of the vehicle was introduced as the first mass-produced hybrid in 1999. However, the company phased out the vehicle in 2006 because of weak sales.

Chuck Squatriglia of Wired says the new Insight bears “more than a passing resemblance to the Toyota Prius.” According to Squatriglia, the first Insight and the Civic Hybrid “were all but ignored as people flocked to the Prius, which has outsold Honda’s gas-electric models 4 to 1.” Research and development chief Masaaki Kato admitted... // findingDulcinea

MediaPost Publications (Enlarge photo)

The new Insight, the near-production version of which will be unveiled at the Paris International Auto Show next month, looks nothing like the original. And it resembles no other mass-market Honda car. The original Insight, which debuted in 1999, was a two-seater notable for fairings that covered the rear wheels and for its mileage, which approached 70 mpg. The new one, a five-door with fold-flat rear seats, looks like the Honda FCX Clarity fuel cell concept.

Toyota's launch effort for the second-generation Prius back in fall of 2003 promulgated the notion that the new car offered the benefits of a hybrid with none of the sacrifices--a jab at the two-person, first-generation Insight and perhaps, Toyota's own first-gen Prius. A spokesperson for the Torrance, Calif. automaker says Honda is... // MediaPost Publications

TechWhack (Enlarge photo)

Honda reveals some details on Insight hybrid

Japanese automaker Honda is all set to showcase their new hybrid sedan Insight.

They would be displaying this new model at the upcoming Paris International Auto Show.

The company has now released some photos along with some details on Insight.

This car would take on Toyota Prius when it launches in the market.

They aim to price it around $18,000 which would make it slightly cheaper than the... // TechWhack

Scientific American (Enlarge photo)

In advance of the Paris International Auto Show in early October, Honda has released photos of its new entry-level hybrid car , which the press has (naturally) labeled the “Prius-fighter.” Reports indicate that the Insight, a five-door family hatchback that is scheduled to hit dealership floors worldwide next year, is to be priced around $18,000, some $3,000 less than Toyota’s vaunted Prius gasoline-electric hybrid.

The new Insight will be powered by the latest iteration of Honda’s Integrated Motor Assist (IMA) hybrid technology, which will be significantly cheaper than its current systems, according to press reports. The IMA is a parallel hybrid system with an electric motor mounted between the engine and transmission to act as a starter motor, engine balancer and... // Scientific American