First a supercar, then a hybrid. Korean automaker Hyundai has announced that it will begin to mass produce hybrid cars next year to cater to the environmentally conscious market, and to get itself into the list of top five automakers.
The Hyundai ‘Avante’ will arrive by the middle of next year and will be followed by a midsize hybrid model in 2010 and eventually a fuel-cell model in 2012.
Daily Telegraph reports that Hyundai is predicting a large increases in demand for the green vehicles as consumers turn to fuel-efficient cars.
The hybrid market is dominated by Toyota’s Prius and by mass-producing hybrids, the scales of economies might give Hyundai an edge over the others. But all this will depend on the pricing of the Avante, which is unknown at the moment.
With other car manufacturers showing interest in alternate fuel vehicles, Hyundai’s entry was expected for a long time. A low-cost fuel cell car might just do the trick for them, but for now all eyes are on the Avante which is all set to give Toyota and Honda, a run for their money.
Earlier this week we were presenting you a fuel economy test between Bmw 520d and Toyota Prius, where the Bmw won. Today another vehicle of the Bavarian automaker, the Bmw 118d Advanced Diesel, showed its green capabilities and received the title as the 2008 World Green Car of the Year.
Among Bmw 118d competitors were Smart ForTwo CDI and Volkswagen Passat 1.9 TDI but with its Efficient Dynamics features like the battery recharge when braking, good aerodynamics, low rolling resistance and carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic the four-door hatchback powered by a 1.8-liter diesel engine simply smashed the other two cars.
> More
General Motors declared that they have no intentions in competing against Tata’s $2500 Nano. General Motors Asia Pacific president David N Reilly stated that they cannot compromise with the Chevrolet brand by making a competitor but are looking at making another small-car below the Chevrolet Spark’s price point.
The Chevrolet Spark is at present, the entry-level model of GM priced at US $7564 (ex-showroom price, Delhi). But nothing about the cost aspect was revealed for this new car which is planned to enter the Indian market sometime in the next two years. GM will develop this car with other similar International markets in mind and will use it to attain its target of 10 per cent market share in India by 2010.
At present, three-fourths of the cars sold in India are small cars which has evolved into a major small-car hub. Toyota, Renault, Ford, Hyundai and Fiat are all developing their own Nano versions cheaper than anything else in their product range.
Rising crude oil prices is the reason why people not only in India, but all over the world prefer small, economical cars which are easy on the environment too. But crude oil prices are not ascending alone. The cost of raw materials which includes steel and aluminium, which are used to make vital components in a car, are also increasing.
The big question remains to be safety. At such rock-bottom prices, will the safety factor be given adequate importance by car makers?
South African Guild of Motoring Journalists elected the Mazda2 1,5 as 2008’s Car of the Year. The large gathering at the glitzy event consisted of CEOs of all major motor companies, motor industry representatives and journalists.
The shocking and amazing part is that it came ahead of the Mercedes-Benz C220 CDI, Lexus LS 460 and even the Land Rover Freelander 2.2 TD4 HSE!!
The annual competition is happening for the 23rd time. The 2 is a popular car in SA and only recently, won in the best light car category in CAR Magazine’s annual Top 12 Best Buys.
The Mazda2 is credited with impressing even the harsh Jeremy Clarkson. It is by far one of the safest cars to travel in as it attained maximum 5 Euro NCAP stars. It looks cute, it is light in weight hence easy to handle, and the frugal gasoline engine is easy on your pocket. The 1.3 is offered along side the 1.5 variant in South Africa and this award adds to the mighty brand image of Mazda in that country.
> More
You may wonder if this is a joke...well it isn’t! It is true! The 2.0 liter diesel engine of the Bmw showed better fuel economy than the well-known eco-friendly Toyota Prius. Some of you may see this camparison between the two cars ridiculous but if we look at the CO2 emissions of the two vehicles we see that there are almost equal: the Bmw delivers 41.9 mpg while the Prius, with almost 250 kg lighter, delivers 40.1 mpg.
The test between the two cars was made on the London-to-Geneva route. The Bmw equipped with a series of energy-saving features like the battery recharge when braking, good aerodynamics, low rolling resistance in a word the so-called EfficientDynamics showed no problems on the road and by the end of it also remained with a third of its tank in reserve.
> More
Technology- thats the one word answer you can expect from an engineer in Mercedes Benz if asked about the cars his company makes. And the same answer is what keeps them ahead of the rest. They make these epic cars and when nobody is complaining, they make better ones. They were the first ones to develop, test and implement stability control, traction control, brake assist, seat belt tensioners, airbags, ABS etc. Every time a new car is unveiled in one of those auto shows, it sports a handful of fascinating and unseen technology. Jeremy Clarkson commented after driving the Mercedes-Benz S Class’s that "It’s more than just a car, its a glimpse into the future, its a showcase of everything that can be done and everything that everyone else will be doing very soon". A brief examination of the popular models reveal how different and colorful they are.
> More
Swedish nationals Saab and Volvo have joined forces with Vattenfall, battery technology consortium ETC and a government environment agency to bring out a new range of plug-in hybrid vehicles.
The eco-friendly notion will span the next two years and a hybrid powertrain as well as an electrical charging infrastructure will subsequently be developed. As many as 10 cars will begin their testing schedule within this period, claims Auto Motor and Sport magazine.
Every automaker thrives to do their bit to save the environment by making use of technology and this move by the Swedish duo is no different. Saab presented its 9-X BioHybrid concept car only last week, showcasing its capabilities in this field. Volvo’s ReCharge Concept stands up to put forth the company’s interest and ability in the same area. As hybrid sales begin to open up, manufacturers are hard at work producing hybrid avatars of their star cars. Volvo and Saab see opportunities in this market and a lot remains to be seen on how much advantage they take and prosper in this high-potential field.
Cars.com, has released its pick of hybrid cars that are presently available in the market. The Toyota Prius was their best pick followed by Saturn Vue Green Line and Honda Civic. Efficiency and price were the two main criteria the rankings were based on.
The hybrids were compared to the lowest-priced, most-efficient gas-only sibling. Both versions of the car were then compared on mileage and price difference, in percent, and the results were derived.
“We know that not all buyers are willing to pay the premium for the sake of driving a hybrid. There needs to be a payoff, so our ranking highlights those hybrids that give buyers the greatest return for their investment,” stated Cars.com senior editor Joe Wiesenfelder.
> More
OK. That’s not exactly the way the VW CEO, Martin Winterkorn, put it. Speaking at the Geneva Auto Show, what he actually said is that the company will introduce a one-liter auto no later than 2010, featuring a one cylinder engine displacing 300 ccs.
That actually means it has less displacement than my garden tractor, a two-cylinder number sold by my friendly Sears store with an engine built by those folks from Milwaukee, Briggs and Stratton.
And, between that mower and a VW with the displacement of a soda bottle, I somehow think I’d rather have the garden tractor.
One liter is about 60 cubic inches.
(more after the jump)
> More
That’d be the Wall Street Journal, in a review by their columnist Jeff Sabatini, and the 2008 Saturn Astra XR, which is the domesticated version of the German Opel Astra. It’s the model that replaces the Saturn Ion.
Answer: though the Astra was the best-selling car in Europe in 2006, it’s underpowered, though agile, with a “drab” interior a user unfriendly instrument panel. Indeed, the Journal quotes General Motors’ vice-chairman Bob Lutz as saying that one of the great joys in life is driving a small, underpowered car with a manual transmission and getting all the performance possible out of it. In the Journal’s view, that’s an apt description of the Astra.
The good: it’s cheap, with a base price just under $15,000 and loaded at just under $21,000. Also, it’s “nimble,” even in the standard version, but especially with the optional sport suspension, which includes 17” wheels and tires.
(more after the jump)
> More
Pages: 
1 comment
Picture Gallery
RSS -
Webmaster free news |