Showing posts with label Reports. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Reports. Show all posts

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Euro NCAP Releases New Crash Test Results, Announces Changes for 2012



As nine out of 10 cars tested this month earned the highest result of 5 starts in Euro NCAP’s crash tests, the safety organization is gearing up for making the 2012 requirements even more demanding.

In alphabetical order, the five-star winners are: the Audi A6, the BMW X3, the Chevrolet Aveo, the Chevrolet Orlando, the Citroen DS5, the Hyundai i40, the Opel Ampera, the VW Golf Cabriolet and the VW Jetta.

Read more »

Rumors: Chrysler to Kill Dodge Caliber in Late November



It’s been a bumpy road for the Chrysler Group's Dodge Caliber compact crossover that was introduced in 2006 as a replacement to the Neon, under the supervision of Mercedes-Benz's parent company Daimler, which then controlled the U.S. automaker.

But the end appears to be near as the usually well informed on Chrysler Group matters Allpar site is reporting that production of the Caliber will end on November 23, 2011, according to "documentation recently sent to dealers".

Read more »

Hyundai Tweets that Veloster will Start at $17,300, Undercuts CR-Z by More than $2,000



It’s been a while since we last heard about the new Hyundai Veloster, but today, the South Korean automaker posted a tweet on its official Twitter page announcing the base price and stating that it will release full U.S. pricing by the end of this week.

"Stay tuned for full Veloster pricing info later this week. But here's the best part: The well-equipped Veloster starts at just $17,300," Hyundai wrote on Twitter.

Read more »

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

New Pure-Electric iRACER to Star in California Sports EV Racing Series



Visitors at next month's EcoVelocity low-carbon motor festival at London’s Battersea Power Station will be treated to the first public appearance of the iRACER, which is the creation of the team behind the EVCUP racing series.

The iRACER is a track focused, pure electric vehicle designed and engineered from the ground up as a thoroughbred racecar and it will compete in the ‘Sports EV’ classification of the EVCUP series that gets underway in California.

Read more »

Volvo Combines Start/Stop System with Automatic Transmission



Volvo is one of a growing list of companies that offer the fuel-saving and CO2-reducing, especially in city traffic, automatic start/stop system in most of their models. Now, the Swedish company has become one of the few that offer the system in cars equipped with an automatic gearbox as well. Read more »

Subaru Names its RWD Coupe the BRZ, will Show New Concept in Frankfurt



The wait for the unveiling of Subaru's version of the Toyota FT-86 (and let's not forget, the Scion FR-S) continues but the Japanese company has at least given us a name for the car and more importantly, a launch date.

Subaru’s new rear-wheel drive sports coupe, which is still currently under joint development with Toyota, will be named BRZ. According to the automaker, the name stands for “Boxer engine”, “Rear-wheel drive” and “Zenith”.

Read more »

Mia Electric to Showcase New Cars in the UK Ahead of 2012 Sales Launch



Following the presentation of the Mia Electric brand at last year’s Geneva Motor Show, the newly formed company announced plans to showcase its zero-emission vehicles for the first time in the United Kingdom at this year’s EcoVelocity motor show that runs from September 8 to 11.

The Electric Microbus, which will reach UK showrooms in the first quarter of 2012, was designed by the former head of design at Volkswagen, Murat Günak, and will be available in three configurations including the standard, three-seat short wheelbase model and two extended versions, the four-seat Mia L and the Mia box van with a cargo capacity of 1,500 liters.

Read more »

Saab Says there's a New Risk of Delayed Payments to Workers



More bad news for cash-strapped Saab. After Sweden's regulators started the collection process against Saab Automobile for failing to meet a deadline last week to pay two suppliers, the automaker's parent company Swedish Automobile N.V. (Swan) announced today that the payment of August wages to employees could be delayed because some of the funds that were committed by investors may not be paid in time. Read more »

Monday, August 22, 2011

GM Refuses to Repair 400,000 Chevrolet Impalas, Says it's “Old GM's" Responsibility



On June 29, a woman named Donna Trusky filled a class-action lawsuit against General Motors in Detroit. The subject was a defect in the suspension rods of the 2007-2008MY Chevrolet Impala, which caused the tires to wear prematurely – in Trusky’s case, after only 6,000 miles. As it turns out, GM had warned police departments about the issue and fixed the defective rods, but it did not do the same on the civilian cars.

General Motors seeks to dismiss the lawsuit, which could cost it millions of dollars as it potentially affects more than 400,000 cars. The company's argument is that the warranty claim was honored by its predecessor, General Motors Corp, which is now called Motors Liquidation Co – or “Old GM”, after its 2009 bankruptcy and the subsequent bailout by the US government.

Read more »

Ferrari 458 Italia Xbox 360 Steering Wheel Brings Some Maranello Magic to your Playroom



Chances are most of us will never have the opportunity to drive, let alone own, a Ferrari 458 Italia. But a racing game for a gaming console like Microsoft’s Xbox 360, is certainly within the reach of most.

Even though you will have to do without the hand-stitched cream leather of the interior, the actual G’s squeezing your body in corners and, of course, the gorgeous bodywork, Thrustmaster wants to bring the 458 experience closer to with the Ferrari 458 Italia Racing Wheel for the Xbox 360.

Read more »

World's Oldest Production Bentley Sells for Just Under a $1 Million at Pebble Beach



The world’s oldest surviving Bentley, the 1921 "chassis number 3", found a new owner at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elecance Gooding & Co. auction for $962,500 – or $960,606 more than what the car's first owner, Noel Van Raalte, paid for it 90 years ago (£ 1,150, or $1,984 in today’s exchange rate). Read more »

Williams Wants to Extend Jaguar Partnership Beyond C-X75 Supercar



The Williams Formula 1 team, which only recently announced its deal with Renault as an engine partner from 2012 sparking rumors about special editions of the French company's cars like the acclaimed Clio Williams of the past, now says it also wants to expand its cooperation with Jaguar beyond the C-X75 hybrid supercar. Read more »

It's the End of the Road for Mazda’s RX-8



Tis the end for Mazda's rotary-powered RX-8 sports car that has fallen victim to low sales and more importantly, stricter emissions standards. According to a report from Automotive News, production of the RX-8 stopped in early July while the remaining inventory will be sold by the end of this year.

The demise of the RX-8 was something we expected since Mazda stopped offering the car in Europe last year, after failing to meet the more strict EU emission standards. Last year, the Hiroshima-based company managed to deliver just 1,134 units, a 49% decrease compared to 2009, while sales in the first half of 2011 decreased by a further 21%.

Read more »

VW to Unveil New Experimental One-Seat Electric Car in Frankfurt

[VW XL1 SEV Concept from 2011 Qatar Motor Show pictured above]



Less than 24 hours after Volkswagen lifted the wraps off the production version of
the up! city car, we have news that the German company is planning to reveal a one-seat experimental electric vehicle on September 8 in Berlin, ahead of its world premiere at the Frankfurt Motor Show.

Read more »

Ford to Collaborate with Toyota on the Development of a New hybrid system for Light Truck and SUV



Ford and Toyota have put their rivalry away momentarily to combine forces for the development of a new "advanced" hybrid system for light truck and SUV customers. The two automakers signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on the product development collaboration, in which they will be equal partners, with the formal agreement expected by next year. Read more »

Kia Prices New Rio in the UK from £10,595



The all-new 4th generation Rio will reach Kia's UK showrooms on September 1 with on-the-road prices starting from £10,595 for the entry-level 1.25 "1" and reaching £14,895 for range-topping 1.4 CRDi "3" EcoDynamics.

The Rio will be available at launch only as a five-door model but a three-door bodystyle will be added to the range early next year.

Read more »

Infiniti Announces Sportier 2013 IPL G Convertible



Nissan's luxury arm is doubling its Infiniti Performance Line [IPL for short] lineup with the addition of the new 2013 IPL G Convertible that we first saw in concept form at last year's Paris Motor Show.

IPL is Infiniti's answer to the in-house tuning divisions of its German competitors such as Audi's S brand, BMW's M department and Mercedes-Benz's AMG branch.

Scheduled to reach the market in spring of 2012, the convertible model follows the IPL G Coupe that went on sale in the States in December of 2010.

Read more »

Gemballa Ventures Into Motorsports with New McLaren MP4-12C GT3



German based tuner Gemballa is known first and foremost for the personalisation of Porsche cars, something it has been doing for 30 years with notable examples including the Avalanche, based on the Porsche 911, the Tornado, based on the Cayenne, and the Mirage GT, based on the Porsche Carrera GT.

Now, the famous tuning company is venturing into motorsports with its newly formed racing division headed by Gemballa Supervisory Board director, Marco Marquardt.

Surprisingly, Gemballa Racing won't be using a Porsche for its motorsport debut as the company announced today that the new team will enter two McLaren MP4-12C GT3 cars in the 2012 motorsport season.

Read more »

Friday, August 19, 2011

Vancouver Riots Victim will Continue to Pay for her Burned Down BMW M5!



We suspect that you remember our story about the young woman trying to save her E60 BMW M5 from the manic hooligans during the Vancouver riots that erupted in June after the Canucks lost to the Boston Bruins for the Stanley Cup.

As seen on several videos, the young woman, who was later identified as Jazmin Perez, tried in vain to save her BMW M5 from being destroyed. Perez had parked her car outside a store in downtown Vancouver, and when she returned, she found the mob burning down her V10-powered bimmer “to silver metal” as she told CBC News.

Read more »

Production VW Up! Ditches Rear-Engine, Rear-Wheel Drive for a Traditional FWD Setup



It won’t be long before we get our first glimpse of the production version of Volkswagen's all-new Up! city car that scheduled to have its official world premiere at next month's Frankfurt Motor Show.

But here's a little something we learned. While the three-door hatchback model's looks are very similar to the original Up! Concept car displayed at the 2007 Frankfurt auto show, under the sheetmetal it's a different story as Volkswagen has ditched the study's unique rear-engine, rear-wheel drive layout.

Read more »