Nissan Pathfinder by Marc Ecko: Urban Warfare style

At a special event held at New York's Splashlight Studios, Nissan and Marc Ecko have jointly unveiled a pair of their new babies: the Nissan Pathfinder and Nissan Armada SUVs customized by Marc Ecko fashion brand.

The Nissan Pathfinder by Marc Ecko has received a glossy urban warfare black-and- gray camouflage paint job with highly-contrasting orange-painted alloy rims. Inside, there is also an orange-painted center console and seamless black leather upholstery and molded wood backs.

Frankly speaking, I do not really dig sport utility vehicles treated by different sorts of fashion houses and French couturiers of questionable gender self-identification. I mean, an SUV is like a tank: it is supposed to crawl from point "A" to point "B", get the job done and return its crew back home safely. A tank is not supposed to make any sort of personal statement. And so is SUV, its utilitarian nature makes all these "personalization" efforts look stupid and lame.

See also: Mitsubishi Outlander gives birth to the Citroen C-Crosser and Peugeot 4007

Technorati tags: Nissan, Pathfinder, Armada, SUV, Marc Ecko, urban, warfare, tank

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2007 Saturn Outlook is almost a steal

The latest 2007 Saturn Outlook large crossover has eventually been priced. The entry-level front-wheel-drive Outlook SE trim will come to market at a starting price just under $28,000.

The base model comes equipped with a decent 3.6-liter V6 VVT engine, capable of delivering some 270 hp and 248 lb-ft (336 Nm) of peak torque. The Saturn Outlook SE delivers 18/26 city/highway mileage measured by the EPA. The same model with an all-wheel drive is rated at 17/24 mpg.


The range-topping Saturn Outlook XR gets slightly more powerful engine, featuring 275 hp and 251 lb-ft (340 Nm) of torque. The FWD model will start at $30,290 and the AWD Saturn Outlook XR will set you back for at least $32,290, Inside Line is reporting.

All CUVs come equipped with the same Hydra-Matic 6T75 six-speed automatic gearbox.

It is not yet clear, whether the large eight-seater will be able to substitute the Saturn Relay MPV when the latter will eventually retire, since the Outlook still costs some $6,000 more than the 2007 Relay.

See also: Mitsubishi Outlander gives birth to the Citroen C-Crosser and Peugeot 4007

Technorati tags: Saturn, Outlook, CUV, crossover, Relay, EPA, 2007, VVT

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Mitsubishi Outlander gives birth to the Citroen C-Crosser and Peugeot 4007

Well, it was supposed to happen: it's so expensive to develop a new platform that car manufacturers just have to form long-term alliances, buying badge-engineered versions of successful vehicles from their competitors. This time the alliance was formed among the French duo PSA Peugeot Citroen and the Japanese Mitsubishi Motors, which has provided its Outlander SUV for cloning.



As a result, we now see the new Citroen C-Crosser and Peugeot 4007 sport utility vehicles, equipped with part-time four-wheel drive transmission with manual differential lock. Although looking almost identically, they somehow have their own personality, courtesy of employing each respectful company's familiar design cues at the front ends. Otherwise the vehicles look just the same as the Mitsubishi Outlander.



Inside Line is saying that the vehicles will be introduced with only one 2.2-liter, 156hp four-banger diesel from PSA mated to a six-speed manual gearbox. The magazine expects that later on both SUVs will receive Outlander's 2.4-liter gasoline powerplant, capable of producing a maximum of 170 horsepower.



More technical details later.





See also: BMW X5 E70 to get a Double wishbone suspension instead of MacPherson

Technorati tags: Mitsubishi, Outlander, Citroen, Peugeot, C-Crosser, SUV, 4007, diesel

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