Author: yoann besnard

Geely to unveil the GT concept car next month
Geely has released two pictures of the concept car, called Geely GT, due to be launched at the Beijing Motor Show next month.
The concept car seems to be a combination of a Maybach Exelero, a Ferrari 612 and a Nissan GT-R, but the result looks rather appealing and it’s even possible to say that the GT has a true character. Details remain scarce and no information regarding the engine has been released.
Geely started business by building fridges in 1986. The company switched to motorbikes in 1996 and became a carmaker in 1997. Last year Geely delivered 200,000 cars.
March 27, 2008
Renault to cut its Indian sales targets
Renault has cut its Indian sales targets as growth was not as fast as expected. However the carmaker still plans to launch a budget car in India.
In an interview with the Mint newspaper, Renault India managing director Sylvain Bilaine said Renault had not “grown as fast as we expected. It’s a new brand, it’s a new car, it’s a new network.We are working both on pink (optimistic) and more black (pessimistic) in case the economy would really plummet."
The sales targets have been decreased due to the market slowdown on the compact car segment. Renault stays optimistic and is currently working with Bajaj Auto on the feasibility to make the £1,500 car intended to take on the Tata Nano. "We are on track on the costing, which is the most difficult. Now our engineers are working with what our product planners had summarised. It’s (taking) a bit longer than anticipated," the paper quoted his as saying.
March 27, 2008
Dacia workers on strike
Dacia workers have been on strike since Monday to demand average pay rises of 65%.
The 13,000 company’s workers went on strike for an unlimited period on Monday, caused by what employees said was a lack of progress in negotiations over salary increases.
Workers are demanding monthly rises of £116/550 lei as well as increases for Christmas and Easter bonuses. That would leave the average monthly salary at around £342, as opposed to £224 currently.
A morning meeting between union and company officials led nowhere according to union official Ion Iordache. "The management put forward a new proposal, namely a monthly rise of 130 lei/£27 from January, followed by a second rise of 26 lei/£4.50 a month from September," he said. "We didn’t accept this ridiculous offer and will continue with the strike, “ he told the newspapers.
Along with the negotiations, Dacia Renault management challenges legality of Romania employees strike but the court has delayed its decision. Dacia chief executive Francois Fourmont has reportedly warned that the unions’ demands would threaten the factory’s future, as Renault plans to open sites in Morocco, India and Russia in the coming years.

March 27, 2008
Obituaries: Claus Luthe
Claus Luthe died last week at the age of 75 years old. The car designer led BMW’s design during the 80’s.
While today car designers are the rock stars of the motor shows, Claus Luthe belongs to the same category as forgotten designers like Uwe Bahnsen who authored the most memorable cars of the 80’s. Claus Luthe is considered the father of the 7-Series E32, 5-Series E34, the 3-Series E30 and E36, and the 8-Series coupé.
Born in 1932 in Germany, Claus Luthe studied bodywork before joining Fiat as designer where he drew the front face of the 500 in the fifties. In 1956, he came back to Germany to join NSU. There, he designed the Prinz and the famous RO80 which inspired the Audi 100 model. He became head of the design department at NSU in 1967. Under the leadership of VW, Luthe designed the Audi 100 and the first VW Polo.
In 1976, he left VW to become head of design at BMW. At BMW he went on to design some of the company’s most emblematic models such as the 7-Series E32 and the 5-Series E34. Unfortunately a family tragedy stopped his career. In 1990 he left his post at BMW after being suspected of fatally stabbing his chronically drug dependent son. Later on he worked as an external consultant for BMW.
March 26, 2008
Ford to unveil a Ford Capri revival next year
Auto Bild has released a sketch of a concept car which will celebrate the 40th anniversary of the famous Capri coupé launched in 1969.
According to company sources, Ford has planned to unveil a modern reinterpretation of the Capri model to celebrate its 40th anniversary. The concept car will preview a future coupé expected to hit the showrooms by 2012. The rumoured model would be a 2+2 weighing about 1,500kg. It would be available with a large engine range including four, five and six cylinder petrol units. Power outputs would range between 140 and 250bhp. Details remain scarce and it is unknown whether that car will feature a RWD platform or not.
Ford wants the future model to compete with the new Scirocco and the entry-level is expected to start at £15,000.
Source: carspyshots.net
March 26, 2008
Chrysler to open a public advisory board
Chrysler will start recruiting members of the public to share their ideas over the future models the carmaker plans to launch.
The troubled carmaker has created the “Customer Advisory Board” an online forum called ChryslerListens where members of the public can give their opinions and ideas of what they want to see featured in the future models. People are not obliged to own a Chrysler model to participate, but must be over 18 years old and own a valid U.S. driving licence.
However the company plans to limit the number of members to 5,000 in order to control the flow of future information. The company has set the ambitious plan to transform an idea into a drawing within two weeks.
If Chrysler is the first carmaker to launch the initiative, Apple and Nike have been pioneering the concept for years. You can apply at ChryslerListens.
March 26, 2008
Hyundai to start building hybrid cars next year
Hyundai has announced it will start to produce hybrid cars from next year in order to increase its global sales at a time when environmental issues are rising.
Hyundai has plan to be among the top five carmakers by mass-producing hybrid-powered vehicles. The Hyundai Avante/Elantra compact saloon will be the first model to feature a hybrid solution by the middle of next year. A family saloon likely to be the Sonata will arrive by 2010 while the company plans to release fuel cell model by 2012.
Hyundai will join Honda in the battle of mass-produced cars as the Japanese carmaker will sell a low-cost hybrid model next year. if Honda has already given a targeted price of around £12,000 for the entry level, Hyundai didn’t confirm any price tag. The current i30 starts at £10,995.
March 26, 2008
Video: Alfa Romeo Mi.To to look from every angle
Alfa Romeo has released a video of the new Mi.To small car in which an Italian guy has been invited to the Alfa Romeo Centro Stile to get a look a the new baby Alfa.
Beyond the corporate message, what’s interesting about this video is that it shows the Mi.To with people next to it, showing the true proportions of the future car.
March 26, 2008
Future Honda hybrid to fit standard nickel-metal hydride batteries
Honda CEO Takeo Fukui has revealed more details about the future low-cost hybrid model due to be unveiled at the next Paris Motor Show.
The closer we get to the launch date, the more Honda reveals about its mass-market hybrid models which will take on the established rivals in term of volume sales. The future model will be fitted with standard nickel-metal hydride power packs. Honda President Takeo Fukui says the technology is still too unreliable to go into mass production. "Lithium-ion batteries are still not usable from our perspective," Fukui told Automotive News in an interview at Honda’s Tokyo headquarters on Wednesday, March 19. "In terms of reliability and durability, I must say there still remain some concerns," he said. "I don’t think they are necessarily best suited for mass-produced vehicles."
Fukui’s statement stands out against other carmakers as GM, Toyota, Nissan and Mitsubishi have announced plans to sell cars equipped with lithium-ion batteries. The Japanese carmaker remains wary as it wants the hybrids to make up 10 percent of sales by 2012. The future hybrid model is expected to find 200,000 buyers every year.
March 26, 2008
Audi Q7 hybrid not for the US
The Q7 hybrid was expected to go on sale from next year on the American market, but Audi has announced that the hybrid SUV won’t cross the Atlantic ocean as its selling price would be too high there.
In an interview with Automotive News, Johan de Nysschen, Audi’s brand head in the U.S, has revealed that the carmaker won’t bring the hybrid-powered Q7. However the company plans to sell it on special order. “It was a very hard car to make the numbers work. We will not do the hybrid Q7 as a conventional product offering," told Johan de Nysschen to the newspaper.
Expected to weigh in €50,000 in Europe, the Q7 would cost around $78,000 in the US while a hybrid GMC Yukon only costs $50,000. It seems that Audi doesn’t believe people are ready to pay a $28,000 extra for the quality of the Q7. The hybrid Q7 is powered by a 272bhp 3.6-litre FSI petrol engine and a 51bhp electric motor. The carmaker claims the hybrid Q7 achieves 28mpg and emits 237g CO2/km.
The company doesn’t mention the recent sales drop in the large SUVs segment as one of the reason to drop off the hybrid Q7 in the US. However, the company plans to focus on the Q5 hybrid which won’t also be sold at a competitive price due to the weak dollar. Maybe, Audi doesn’t see any future for big SUVs.
March 26, 2008