Author: yoann besnard

New Tiguan TDI goes on sale
The Tiguan meets a strong demand and the new engine, the 168bhp 2.0-litre TDI will likely boost its credential in terms of brand image when the Kuga only comes with a 136bhp 2.0-litre diesel unit.
The most powerful Tiguan yet raises the challenge for the Ford Kuga as it features the 168bhp 2.0-litre TDI common rail diesel engine. The new engine is capable of returning 40.4 mpg on the combined cycle while emitting 185 g/km of CO2 claims the carmaker. The Tiguan can accelerate from rest to 62 mph in 8.9 seconds before reaching a maximum speed of 125 mph.
As with the rest of the Tiguan range, the new model is equipped with six airbags, ESP, semi-automatic air conditioning and the RCD 510 touchscreen entertainment system with six-disc CD autochanger. The new engine will be available in either SE or Sport trim levels. Prices for the new 2.0-litre TDI start at £22,670 for the SE, rising to £23,370 for the Sport model. The new Tiguan is competitively priced as the 138bhp SE version starts at £21,800. By comparison, the Ford Kuga 2.0 TDCi Zetec starts at £20,495.
April 5, 2008
Mercedes to offer four-cylinder C-Class again?
Mercedes-Benz is seriously considering launching a four-cylinder-powered C-Class on the American market.
According to company sources, the German carmaker is currently working on a new downsized four-cylinder petrol unit. With a displacement of only 1.4-litre, the new engine might deliver around 160bhp which is similar to that of the current 1.8-litre petrol unit available on the C180 Kompressor SE. The current 1.8-litre delivers a power output of 154bhp at 5,200rpm and a torque output of 170 lb ft between 2800 and 4600rpm.
There is no doubt that the new engine will be powerful enough to power the C-Class entry level. However will the carmaker’s brand image be strong enough to convince American consumers to buy a Mercedes powered by a 1.4-litre engine.
April 5, 2008
Nissan releases a teaser of the next Teana
After being surprised in the streets of Beijing, Nissan has released a teaser of the saloon the carmaker will unveil at the Beijing Motor Show.
The teaser doesn’t reveal much, but at least the headlights are now a bit less mysterious. However commenting on it will be a difficult exercise, but it confirms that Nissan will debut a new executive saloon at Beijing.
In a previous post, Petrol-Head reported the known details about the future model that Nissan will sell as a flagship on the Chinese market.
April 5, 2008
Audi cancels the hybrid-powered A4 in the US
After the Q7 hybrid, the plummeting value of the dollar makes another victim among the Audi future hybrid lineup. The carmaker has announced that the Audi A4 hybrid won’t cross the Atlantic ocean.
The Q7 was canceled due to its price expected to be too high in the US. The A4 gets the same fate, but Audi USA communications director Jeff Kuhlman also explained that cost of homologating the hybrid system on both vehicles would likely not be offset by the sales expectations.
Instead, Audi plans to sell a diesel-powered A4. The selected engine would be the 237bhp 3.0-litre V6 unit also available on the Q7. What’s interesting about this news is the trend followed by the market. It seems that there will be two schools. One one side, there will be Japanese and Americans promoting hybrid technologies. On the other side, there will be the German clique with its diesel engines. How will the American market react to both offers. Generally recalcitrant to diesel engines, will the German brand image be powerful enough to convince consumers to switch?
April 5, 2008
First Superb rolled off and will be built in India
The production line of the new Superb started rolling on Wednesday in Kvasiny, Czech Republic. The first model is a ‘Rosso Brunnelo’ 2.0 TDI.
The Czech carmaker ha started to build its new flagship. Left-hand drive vehicles will be produced first with right-hand drive production following in July. The company executives changed their mind and announced that the Superb will also be built in Ukraine and India. The Indian market is crucial to the company as it enjoys a premium brand image there and sales are growing.The carmaker has registered 27.2 per cent growth in sales with 2,050 units in March 2008 as compared to 1,612 units sold in March 2007. Since its introduction in November 2001, over 51,000 cars have been delivered.
The previous generation was not only manufactured in the Kvasiny plant, but ultimately saw production in the Ukraine, India, Bosnia and Kazakhstan. In total 133,955 examples were built.
April 5, 2008
Land Rover to build the LRX
Tata has given the green light to Land Rover to produce the LRX concept car which is expected to hit the showrooms by 2011.
Without a doubt, the LRX has been one of the best concept car around since January and this is good news for the British brand. This doesn’t come as a surprise. Indeed, the carmaker had plans to launch a small SUVs in the future and recent news confirmed the carmaker was working on this all-new vehicle. However, Tata had to confirm it would support the company’s plan.
The LRX will be built at the Halewood factory which will double its production capacity to 210,000 vehicles by 2012 after investment from Tata. The small SUV concept car was powered by a 2.0-litre hybrid-diesel engine, but is unknown at this stage whether Land Rover will put the engine in production or not.
April 5, 2008
New 7 Series Spy Shots
New spyshots of the next 7-Series have emerged on the Internet. This time, the future flagship is barely camouflaged.
The current generation has been roundly bashed by the professional press and brand’s fans for its design, the first of a series designed by the controversial Chris Bangle. Since then, almost all carmakers have copied the “flame surface” design and Bangle has mellowed. The next-generation is expected to feature a more classical design which borrows styling cues from the CS concept car.
The boot of the current 7-Series has been heavily criticized at its launch. Revamped in 2006, it was integrated a bit more into the general overshape. With the next-generation, the boot will be almost integrated. However, the camouflaged tail lights are cause for concern as they seem to feature a round shape while the general design features straight lines.
The next 7-Series is expected to be unveiled at the next Paris Motor Show.

Click here to see the pictures
Source: Auto Express
April 5, 2008
Seat unveils the new Ibiza
Seat has taken the wraps off the next-generation Ibiza by unveiling official pictures of the small car expected to be officially launched at the Madrid Motor Show in May.
The first variant to be unveiled is the five-door hatchback set to compete with the market segment’s best seller such as the Fiat Grande Punto or the Peugeot 207. As predicted the new Ibiza is very close to the Bocanegra concept-car seen at Geneva although the final design looks a bit different from the concept car. Penned by former Lamborghini stylist Luc Donckerwolke, the new Ibiza features a sporty line with a front fascia that takes its styling cues form the Tribu concept car seen in Frankfurt last year.
The new Ibiza shares its inner structure with the Skoda Fabia and Roomster models although it gets chassis tuning to spice up the handling. At 4050 mm long, the car is 80 mm longer than the current model, so the new Ibiza should be a little roomier. With 292 litres, the boot is also bigger than that of the current Ibiza.
Under the bonnet, the next-gen Ibiza will initailly offer three petrol engines: a 69bhp 1.2-litre unit, followed by a 84bhp 1.4-litre engine and topped by a 101bhp 1.6-litre unit. Those engines can either be hooked up to a five-speed manual transmission or VW’s seven-speed DSG gearbox.
For Seat, the new Ibiza marks the start of a major product offensive which will, over the coming months, also see the debut of further Ibiza variants, as well as the new saloon and estate contenders in the upper medium segment.
April 3, 2008
Chevrolet Volt migth cost $48,000
The closer we get to the launch date, the more expensive might be the future Chevrolet Volt. After a target price of £15,000/$30,000, then raised to £20,000/$40,000, the Volt will cost £24,000/$48,000.
In an interview with Business Week, Bob Lutz said that GM has to raise the price once again if the carmaker wants to make a profit. Thus, the future Chevrolet Volt might cost £24,000/$48,000. For this price, what are the alternatives on the American market? BMW sells the 535i saloon for $49,400 or a M3 saloon for $53,900. You can get an Infiniti M45 for $49,700 or a G37 for $34,500 and keep the rest in the bank. Suddenly the Volt appears less appealing than initially thought.
Along with the rising price, GM has also reduced its production output from 60,000 to 10,000 for the first year.
April 3, 2008
Mercedes SLR production to end in 2009
Mercedes-Benz will stop producing the SLR supercar next year five years after its launch.
The German carmaker will roll off the last SLR at the end of next year. The SLR is only built in its roadster variant as the coupé version production ceased last year. The SLR was initially unveiled as a concept at the end of the last decade and reached the showrooms in 2004. Last year, 275 SLR have been built, 14 more than in 2006. However, the production output is far from the company’s expectation as Mercedes initially planned to build between 400 and 500 vechicles per year.
The supercar has often been criticized for being overweight and is considered as the origin of the split between Mercedes-Benz and McLaren which developed the car. Both carmakers will develop their own successor.
McLaren is currently working on a new V8-powered supercar internally known as P11 set to compete with the Ferrari 430 and the Porsche 911 GT2. The P11 will be powered by the AMG 6.3-litre V8 petrol engine.
Mercedes is actively developing the SLC which will be built by HWA, a company founded by AMG founder after he left Mercedes. Details remain scarce, although it is rumoured that the supercar will feature a retractable hard top.
April 3, 2008