We're a mere five or so hours from the unveil of the long-awaited, full-production 2010 Lexus LFA supercar at the Tokyo Auto Show. But thanks to the present some-dude-with-a-camera in Miami the Lexus that's been almost a decade in the making has been ordered bare.

The pictures appear on the North American GT-R Owners Club (NAGTROC.org) Web site. We'll have more when Lexus pulls the silk off the car at the Makuhari Messe. And also look for a full First Drive story soon.

NAGTROC via Autoblog

Autosport entrepot is reporting that Ken Block is close to signing a deal to drive in the World Rally Championship (WRC) next year. The deal would be a three-year agreement with Ford and Monster Energy. Block would run a limited season in a 2009-spec Focus next year and then expand to a full season the following year. 

Full Test: 2008 Subaru Impreza WRX STI by Ken Block

Autosport via Autoblog
 

A heavily produced film from Ferrari of a pair of 458 Italia on the track. There's a real sense of speed in this video (not to mention a very nice soundtrack), though the speedometer (if it's to be believed) never shows anything quicker than 245 km/h… just over 150 mph. Given enough space, the 458 Italia is said to top out over 200 mph.

Photo room from the Frankfurt show floor

Ferrariworld, Autoblog

You don't usually expect to get teased when a car is getting no more than a mid-cycle refresh, but that's the paraphernalia Nissan is taking with its lightly updated 2010 Nissan Altima. The company released this shot (left side) of the 2010 sedan today but was mum on details.

To help reveal some of the differences, we've cropped a photo of a 2009 Altima sedan the same way. So that's the 2010 model on the left and the 2009 car on the right. Differences in the headlight design, grille and the contours of the hood are apparent.

Additional information has leaked out on the Web. Apparently, the four-cylinder, 2.5 S Altima coupe will upgrade from 16- to 17-inch wheels this year (though the 215/55R17 rubber is still all-season) and pick up stability control as standard. Also, look for a revised Tech package that includes Infiniti line's hard-drive-based navigation system and on-board music storage. A USB input is on the list, though Nissan is reportedly adding streaming Bluetooth as well. Also, there's a trim level called 3.5 SR, which we presume will supersede the existing 3.5 SE.

Autoblog

Updated with additional photos, 9/16/09, 11 AM PST

Hyundai apparently formally unveiled the 2010 Sonata in Korea early today. The company has launched a microsite for Korean consumers, and that's where we turned up most of the photos here. The redesigned Sonata is on understanding there now, and we know it will arrive in the U.S. sometime in 2010 as a 2011 model. We also know that Hyundai is planning a Sonata hybrid for this generation.

In addition, there's a press release floating around, so it appears the Korean-spec model will have a 163-hp version of Hyundai' 2.0-liter Theta inline-4 engine. And evidently, the new sedan is 190.0 inches long (+ 1.1 inch over the 2009 model) with a 110.0-inch wheelbase (+ 3.6 inches). It's also 72.2 inches wide and 57.9 inches tall — nearly same to the '09 Sonata's measurements.

More photos after the jump.

Hyundai Sonata microsite, Autoblog

The MX-5 Miata has gotten bigger, heavier and more complicated over the years, so for the 2009 Frankfurt Auto Show, Mazda gave the designers at its R&D center in Oberursel, Germany, a current-gen MX-5, and told them to take some of that out. They created the Mazda MX-5 Superlight Concept. It debuts in Frankfurt next week, but images of the car and what's apparently a press release leaked out onto the web today.

The starting point was European-spec MX-5 with a retractable hardtop. The top was the first thing designers removed, along with the windshield, air-conditioner and anything that might constitute sound insulation. The Euro-spec 1.8-liter engine (124 hp, 123 lb-ft) and five-speed manual gearbox remain, though a cold-air intake has been added.

Biggie-size four-piston calipers are a must on the auto show floor, so the track is 2 inches wider than stock front and rear to make room. Bilstein B16 coil-overs drop the ride height 1.2 inches, and Eibach antiroll bars would presumably reduce body roll. Unusually for a concept car, the 17-inch wheels and tires are stock.

You can get a good look at the MX-5 Superlight Concept's bodywork in the photos after the jump. And indeed, those leather-upholstered racing seats are carbon-fiber at the core.

The total package weighs 2,194 pounds – curiously close to the curb weight of the 1990 MX-5 (2,116 lbs) we had around our offices recently. The apparent press release says the weight loss is enough to shave a full second of the car's 0-60 time. Well, that is, assuming the MX-5 Superlight is drivable. The action shots suggest it is, but with show cars, there's always more than meets the eye.

More photos after the jump.

Carscoop via Autoblog

Straightline — 20 Years of MX-5: Then and Now

Last week we brought you spy photos of a 7-passenger Ford C-Max minivan in full camouflage, along with official images of the 5-seat C-Max that will debut at the Frankfurt Auto Show. Today, official images of the 7-passenger C-Max leaked out. We now know the vehicle will be called Ford Grand C-Max. And given that one of the photos shows the Grand C-Max next to the 5-seater C-Max, there's little doubt it will be in Frankfurt.

Like the Mazda 5, the Ford Grand C-Max has sliding rear doors and three rows of seating. Check the photos after the jump, and you'll notice, the second-row can be configured as a three-across bench or as a pair of captain's chairs. Our U.S.-spec Mazda 5 has the latter configuration only (and tops out at 6 passengers), but we've taken a ride in a Euro-spec Mazda 5 that had the same 40/20/40 setup as this Grand C-Max.

Still no official confirmation on whether the Ford Grand C-Max will come to the U.S., but it seems like a sensible move.

More photos after the jump.

worldcarfans via Autoblog

We learned in May that the replacement for the current Infiniti QX56 will be a unibody SUV developed in Nihon — quite a change from the U.S.-engineered, body-on-frame truck we have today. Presumably, it will be a bit smaller as well.

It has been suggested that this new SUV might be based on the Nissan Patrol/Safari, but we're skeptical since the Patrol has always used body-on-frame design.

Regardless, a vehicle that seems to be the 2011 Infiniti QX56 debuted at a venue in the Middle East (ha, just kidding) at a dealer meeting in Las Vegas. Some enterprising attendee managed to get two shots before building/Nissan security came and got him. These not-sharp shots are now all over the web. And there's an unmistakable resemblance to a 2010 Nissan Patrol spy shot that has also been around the web.

Second image after the jump.

Burlapp Cars via the The Car Connection, Autoblog

Toyota teased in late August with a detail shot of the 2010 Toyota 4Runner ahead of the redesigned SUV's official debut Sept. 24 at the Texas State Fair.

Today, a 4Runner enthusiast forum posted this front 3/4 shot, along with a bunch of cargo bay shots. So now we know what it looks like, and not surprisingly, it has the same shape as the camouflaged 2010 Lexus GX 460 in our spy shots.

We're expecting Toyota's 4.0-liter V6 to carry over as the base engine on the 2010 4Runner, with the new 4.6-liter V8 acquirable as an option. That V8 comes with a six-speed automatic on the 2010 Tundra and Sequoia, and we wouldn't be surprised to see Toyota pair the V6 with a 6-speed as well to get those EPA ratings up.

If you look at the cargo shots after the jump, you'll see that the 2010 Toyota 4Runner will apparently be getting a slide-out cargo floor option. Our spy shots of the Lexus GX 460 showed the full-size spare tire mounted under the vehicle. Assuming the 4Runner keeps this setup, that should make for a decent amount of cargo capacity in this body-on-frame SUV.

The interior detail shot is also interesting, as it suggests the availability of a higher-wattage outlet for plugging in generators and camp stoves, plus roll stability control and Bluetooth hands-free calling.

Toyota-4Runner.org via Autoblog

Media-grade photos of the Lamborghini Reventon Roadster leaked out today ahead of its introduction at the 2009 Frankfurt Auto Show. It should surpass the Reventon coupe ($1.4 million) as the most expensive Lamborghini ever built. Not than many will be built. The Lambo Reventon coupe had a production run of 20. Any guesses how many Reventon Roadsters will be built?

In any case, look for a 6.5-liter V12 making in the neighborhood of 651 horsepower in this all-wheel-drive, mid-engine convertible based on the Murcielago. Expect a top speed of well over 200 mph for gale-in-the-hair cruising, you know.

By the way, we goal to calling this car a roadster, which, by the most correct definition refers to a very simple car without a roof or side glass (the Miata is the purest modern incarnation). And there's nothing simple about a million-dollar, carbon-fiber-bodied convertible.

So we will rechristen the Lamborghini Reventon Roadster as the Lamborghini Reventon Decappottabile. That's Italian for convertible.

More photos after the jump.

First Drive: 2008 Lamborghini Reventon

worldcarfans via Autoblog