By Martin Ward on Wednesday, July 28, 2010

This week's manufacturer news

 

AUDI – The new A7 sportback model will open for ordering in the UK on 16th August, with first deliveries expected on 1st November. There will be four engines available at launch: a 2.8 litre FSI 204ps petrol, a 3.0 litre T 300ps petrol, a 3.0 TDI 204ps diesel and a 3.0 TDI 245ps diesel. All engines will feature the Quattro four wheel drive system and S-Tronic transmission as standard, except the 204ps diesel, which will have a Multitronic gearbox and 2WD drive train. The range will offer two trim levels: SE and S Line, and pricing will start at £42,925 on the road (rising to £43,745 in January with the forthcoming 20% VAT rate).

 

PORSCHE – Has developed three Boxster models with all-electric drive to be used specifically for research...

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By Martin Ward on Wednesday, July 21, 2010

BMW – Has announced the introduction of the new X3. It will initially be launched with one derivative – an xDrive 20d 184ps SE diesel which is priced at £30,490 on the road. Step auto transmission will also be available with a premium of £1,495 over the manual. Other engines are due to follow at a later date, but it is expected that the xDrive 20d will account for 80% of all sales in the UK when the other engines are introduced. The new X3 is due on sale on 20th November 2010.

 

CITROEN – Has announced the appointment of Charles Peugeot as Sale Director for Citroen UK. He will take up his new role at Citroen UK’s headquarters in Slough on 1st August 2010.

 

HYUNDAI – Photographs of the new Hyundai i45 have been released in the Asia Pacific region. It is thought a car looking very similar to this will come to Europe next year. This D sector will be available in hatchback and estate body styles and may have some minor styling changes to be made more suitable for Europe. It...

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By Martin Ward on Wednesday, July 14, 2010

This week’s manufacturer news

 

KIA – The new Soul Echo model is now on sale priced at £13,995 on the road. Available with a 1.6 litre 124bhp petrol or 1.6 litre CRDI 126bhp diesel engine, it comes with the following standard features: air conditioning, leather upholstery, 18” alloy wheels, rear parking sensors, Bluetooth connectivity and privacy glass.

 

MAZDA – The Takuya special edition models in the Mazda2, 3 and 6 ranges are now on sale. Prices start at £11,915 on the road for the Mazda2 Takuya, £15,780 for the Mazda3 and £19,845 for the Mazda6.

 

NISSAN – Has announced that the 370Z coupe and roadster is to be offered with a 2 year interest free finance deal. A minimum of 25% deposit is required and customers will have the option to pay off the remainder of the car’s value after 24 months. Interest free monthly repayments start at £299 for the coupe and £349 for the roadster.

 

PEUGEOT – Has released some details on the new 508. It will...

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By Martin Ward on Wednesday, July 07, 2010

This week’s manufacturer news

 

ABARTH – Prices for the Abarth 500C and Abarth Punto Evo have been announced. The 500C will be priced at £17,500 on the road and will have a 1.4 litre 16V turbo T-Jet 140bhp petrol engine. The Punto Evo will be priced at £16,500 on the road and will have a 1.4 litre 16V Multiair 165bhp engine. Both models made their UK public debuts at Goodwood Festival of Speed last weekend and are expected to go on sale from 17th July.

 

FORD – Is to reduce the recommended retail prices of their small and medium sized cars by an average of 11% during August.

 

KIA – Has announced details of the new Sportage First Edition. It will be the first model to be released as part of the newest shape Sportage, with other models in the range due to be launched in November. The First Edition will feature...

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By Martin Ward on Wednesday, June 30, 2010

This week’s manufacturer news

 

FORD – Will debut the new Mondeo on 25th August at the Moscow Motor Show. The range will feature two new engines: a new 2.0 EcoBoost 240ps petrol and a 2.2 TDCI 200ps diesel. Further details and pricing are yet to be announced and it is expected to go on sale in the UK in October this year.

 

 

 

 

JAGUAR – Has announced the XKR 75 limited edition is to make its debut at the Goodwood Festival of Speed on 2nd July. The model is being introduced to celebrate Jaguar’s 75th anniversary and will be available with an enhanced 5.0 litre supercharged V8 530ps petrol engine (510ps on original XKR). Features exclusive to the XKR 75 will include an aerodynamic body pack, an improved sports exhaust, red brake calipers and 20” Vortex alloy wheels. Production will be limited to 75 units and it will be available to order from July 2010 priced at £85,500 on the road.

...

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By Martin Ward on Wednesday, June 23, 2010

This week’s manufacturer news

 

LOTUS – Has announced the introduction of the new RGB special edition in both the Elise and Exige ranges. The special editions are being launched in recognition of Roger Becker, who was former Director of Vehicle Engineering at Lotus for 44 years before he retired in January 2010. The Elise SC RGB will have a 1.8 litre 218bhp petrol engine and will be priced at £38,550. The Exige S RGB will have a 1.8 litre 257bhp petrol engine and will be priced at £41,950. Both models will come with Sports and Touring packs as standard. The RGB special editions are due on sale in September 2010.

 

VAUXHALL – Has revealed first official photographs of the new Astra sport tourer. It will have the same 2685mm wheelbase as the Astra hatchback, but with an extra 28mm added to its maximum load length. It...

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By Martin Ward on Wednesday, June 16, 2010

This week’s manufacturer news

 

FORD – Is to offer 19” WRC-style white alloy wheels as an option of £500 to mark the end of production of the Focus RS hatch.

 

 

 

 

 

MCLAREN AUTOMOTIVE - The sports car company, McLaren Automotive, has announced its partners in the UK retail network as: Rybrook Holdings Ltd in Birmingham, Jardine Motors Group in London and Sytner Group in Manchester. These three automotive retailers will begin selling the up-and-coming MP4-12C model in spring 2011 under the names McLaren Birmingham, McLaren London and McLaren Manchester. The global debut for the new MP4-12C will take place at the Goodwood Festival of Speed next month.

VAUXHALL...

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By Martin Ward on Wednesday, June 09, 2010

This week’s manufacturer news

 

AUDI – The A6 Le Mans special edition has been re-badged to S Line special edition. Standard features and technical specifications remain the same.  

 

RENAULT – Has announced the introduction of the new Clio Gordini 200 special edition. Available with a 2.0 litre 200bhp engine and limited to just 500 units, the Gordini’s key features include: Malta blue paint with white Gordini stripes, white F1-style front blade, Gordini leather seats, body colour GT rear spoiler and 17” Gordini alloy wheels. It is expected to go on sale at the end of July.

 

VOLKSWAGEN – Has introduced a new 7 speed DSG gearbox to the Tiguan range, replacing the 6 speed auto. The new gearbox reduces CO2 emissions from 186g/km to 170g/km.

 

Test car – Aston Martin V12 Vantage

 

Aston Martin...

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By Martin Ward on Wednesday, June 02, 2010

This week’s manufacturer news

 

CITROEN – Has released first details and photographs of the new C4. It will be available with a new micro-hybrid e-HDI powertrain that will deliver CO2 emissions as low as 109g/km at launch and 99g/km on future models. Standard features will include lane departure warning system, xenon headlamps, blind spot monitoring system, cruise control and an eTouch system which allows the driver to monitor driving patterns and fuel consumption. The new C4 will be officially unveiled at the Paris Motor Show in September.

 

LAND ROVER – The Range Rover will celebrate its 40th birthday on 17th June. Work first began on a Range Rover prototype in 1966 and the first model, now known as ‘the classic’ was introduced in 1970, continuing in production with numerous upgrades and variants for just over 25 years. The latest...

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By Martin Ward on Wednesday, May 26, 2010

This week’s manufacturer news

 

TESLA/TOYOTA – Tesla Motors Inc and Toyota Motor Corporation has announced that they intend to cooperate in areas such as parts, production system and engineering support on the development of electric vehicles.

 

VAUXHALL – Has announced the introduction of the Corsa Limited Edition. The new Black & White Limited Edition will feature glacier white bodywork with black detailing, black 17” alloy wheels and a black sapphire roof. It will also feature a VXR body styling kit, sports suspension and piano black centre console. It will be available with a 1.2 litre 16V 85ps petrol or a 1.3 litre CDTi 16V 75ps diesel, in three or five door variants. Prices will start at £13,995 and it will be available in showrooms from next month until the end of the year.

 

VOLKSWAGEN – Are to introduce a new trim to the Golf range. The Golf Match will directly replace the outgoing SE trim and will be available in three and five door variants with the following...

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