Author: yoann besnard

Lotus Elise S 40th Anniversary Limited Edition

Lotus has unveiled a limited edition of the Elise S to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Elise model. The car is bases on the entry-level Elise S on which Lotus added some unique trimmings. it comes with a Burnt Orange paint, and matching hardtop, rear diffuser, center console, air intakes and brake callipers. The Elise S 40th Anniversary also come with black wheels. On the inside, the seats upholstery receives orange contrasting stitching while the dashboard gets some orange-coloured trimmings.

Only available in Europe, this commemorative Elise will be built at 50 units. 15 of them will go to Germany, 10 to Switzerland, 6 to Italy, 5 to France and Belgium, and the remaining 9 units elsewhere in Europe. Each country will get its flag stuck on the front fenders, but oddly the UK won’t get the Elise S 40th Anniversary model.
November 27, 2007
New Subaru Justy unveiled

In this post, I reported that Subaru planned to sell non-all-wheel drive and non-boxered engine models in the future. Actually, Subaru has a long tradition of selling front-wheel drive cars in Europe. Remember the Justy, which a re-badged Suzuki Swift. This time, Subaru is re-badging the Daihatsu Sirion as a Justy model to reinforce the European line-up.
The car will be available with a choice of two versions: the city-driving 1.0E and the sporty 1.0S. The two versions are powered by the same engine, a 1.0 litre 3 cylinder petrol engine, which has power output of 68bhp qt 6,000 rpm and a torque of 63 lb ft at 3,600 rpm. It runs the 0-60mph in 13.5 seconds and the top speed reaches 100mph. With its 118g/km CO2 emissions, the new Justy won’t be excited to drive but will allow Subaru to improve its position regarding the European regulations.
No words on pricing yet from Subaru, but with the Daihatsu Sirion basic model costing £7,460, expect the new Justy to weigh in about £7,500-8,000. The entry-level model includes ABS with EBD, driver, passenger, side and front and rear curtain airbags, alloy wheels, air-conditioning, electric mirrors and reverse sensors.
November 27, 2007
Rolls Royce Phantom Tungsten

Rolls Royce has launched a limited edition of Phantom model dubbed the ‘Tungsten’, which includes styling features form the 101 EX concept car. On the outside the car differs from the normal version by adopting the ‘Xirallic’ Darkest Tungsten paint finish, the brushed aluminium bonnet and a new seven-spoke 21”, forged aluminium wheels. Also at the rear end, the Tungsten edition features a pair of chrome-plated exhaust pipes.

Inside, the top of the dashboard and the wheel receive micro-engraved metal trimmings while the rest has been trimmed with East Indian Rosewood veneers panels. The interior upholstery mixes Smoke Grey leather for the seats contrasting with the Navy Blue on the armrests and the dashboard. More spectacular is the rear ceiling which tries to recreate a star-filled night sky thanks to 800 fibre-optic lights. Finally, the ultimate in luxury is reached with a solid silver key and a Conway Stewart fountain pen arranged in a Rosewood-veneered presentation box

The exact number of units to be produced is unknown, but six of them are heading to the Middle East.
Source: Rolls-Royce and AME Info
November 26, 2007
Spyshot: Ford Kuga

The picture you see here is the undisguised future Ford Kuga, which will be on sale next spring. The production model will not strongly differ from the concept car , Iosis X, already unveiled at the last Frankfurt Motor Show in September.
The European Ford’s first crossover will feature the ‘kinetic design’ look and feel. It will be powered only with a 134bhp 2.0 -litre oil burner for launch. Associated with a six-speed manual gearbox, Ford expect the diesel unit to be the biggest seller. Nevetherless, the carmaker might add a petrol engine if there is a demand for petrol powered crossover.
Like the S-Max, the Kuga will offer the Ford Individual programme, which enables customers to personalise the interior and exterior of the small SUV and will surely adds millions to Ford’s bottom line.
The Kuga will be based on the C1 platform, which is also used by the Land Rover Freelander. While the Freelander features an all-wheel drive system, the Kuga will be more road-biased. It will offer front-wheel drive as standard and a four-wheel drive system will be available as an option.
The Kuga will be built at Ford’s Saarlouis in Germany, which makes the Focus. Ford plans to build 65,000 cars here every year.
Source: Autoblog
November 26, 2007
Aston Martin considers producing the Rapide outside of the UK

Would Aston Martin become a luxury commodity such as Prada or D&G, which can be produced anywhere in the world and scorn its heritage? The British car maker would like to think so. The Financial Times reveals that management is investigating the feasibility of manufacturing outside of the UK in the future.
The first model to be concerned by such a surprising move would be the future Rapide, a four-door Aston Martin due to be on sale in 2009. It is said that the car maker contacted a few European coachbuilders. Pinifarina, Magan and Valmet are among them.
This might be a clever move for the British car maker as Gaydon factory is already nearing capacity due to a strong demand for the V8 Vantage. The Rapide is a risk for the Aston Martin, which has not sold a single saloon for the last twenty years. Using a coachbuilder would allow Aston Martin to be flexible enough regarding the future demand for the Rapide.
November 23, 2007
Jaguar and Land Rover unions support Tata

In a previous post, we reported Tata was leading the bid over the Jaguar and Land Rover sale. One of the next stage was to meet the union and it went quite well for Tata.
According to the Wall Street Journal, the union believes Tata is the only bidder “with enough money, clout and experience”. This is quite a slap in the face for the other bidder, the partnership made between One Equity Partners and another major Indian car maker, Mahindra and Mahindra.
To tell the truth, the bid made by One Equity Partners and the M&M’s brothers look pretty scary for unions as both partner want to separate both companies. If both partners win the bid, M&M’s ~~brothers~~ family will take control of Land Rover while One Equity Partners gets Jaguar. But, we also remember the MG-Rover history in 2000. The union favoured the bidder which promised to keep jobs and five years later, the company collapsed.
November 23, 2007
Saab Aero-X designer won Elle magazine award

With an ageing line-up and no new models coming before 2009, Saab can not pretend to win the most famous awards. While some got the ‘Car of the Year’ title, Saab via its GM Europe’s Advanced Design division director, Anthony Lo, got the “Asian Designer of the Year“ prize at the 2007 ELLE Magazine Style Awards. He was honored for his work on the Saab Aero X concept car unveiled a the 2006 Geneva Motor Show.
Born in Hong Kong 43 yeaars ago, Anthony Lo studied design at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University and later graduated with a Master’s degree in Transportation Design from the Royal College of Art in London. He moved to Saab in 2000 as head of Advanced Design and worked under Michael Mauer, then head of design at Saab. In charge of the Advanced Design, he oversaw the latest GM concept cars in europe such as the 9X, 9-3X, 9-3 Sport Hatch and Aero X concept cars as well as the 2007 Opel GTC Concept and Opel Flextreme.
November 23, 2007
Honda Fit named car of the year in Japan
The second generation of Honda Fit/Jazz won the title of the car of the Year in Japan. It won over the Nissan Skyline and the Subaru Impreza.
Officially launched on the Japanese market in last October, the met a big success with 20,000 cars being sold in the first two weeks of availability thanks to its larger size and updated look which kept the original overall shape.
The car was elected by a 60-member panel composed mainly of car journalists.
Below you will find a list of the previous winners for the last 20 years:
2007–2008 : Honda Fit
2006–2007 : Lexus LS
2005–2006 : Mazda MX-5
2004–2005 : Honda Legend
2003–2004 : Subaru Legacy
2002–2003 : Honda Accord
2001–2002 : Honda Fit
2000–2001 : Honda Civic
1999–2000 : Toyota Vitz
1998–1999 : Toyota Altezza
1997–1998 : Toyota Prius
1996–1997 : Mitsubishi Galant
1995–1996 : Honda Civic
1994–1995 : Mitsubishi FTO
1993–1994 : Honda Accord
1992–1993 : Nissan March
1991–1992 : Honda Civic
1990–1991 : Mitsubishi Diamante
1989–1990 : Toyota Celsior
1988–1989 : Nissan Silvia
1987–1988 : Mitsubishi Galant
November 23, 2007
Bye, bye Ford Ranger

According to Automotive News, Ford will cease the production of the Ranger model. The American car maker will close its Twin Cities factory in 2009 and its Cleveland engine plant later at the end of that year.
Built in the Twin Cities factory, Ford did not say whether it would build the Ranger in another plant or not. According to company sources, the manufacturer wants to focus on the next F-150 due to be unveiled at the next Detroit Motor Show.
The first Ranger was on sale for the first time 26 years ago.
November 23, 2007
Byd F1 unveiled

The Chinese carmaker Byd has unveiled the F1 model. Despite such a name, the new vehicle is not a supercar, but a small hatchback , inspired by the Toyota Aygo sold in Europe.

Actually, the Byd F1 did more than takin cues from the tiny Aygo. It is a carbon copy! Byd even changed its BMWesque logo to adopt a chrome logo similar to Toyota.
While the Aygo has an entry price tag of £6,845, the Byd F1 will start at £1,500 or 23,000rmb.
Source: Autohome
November 23, 2007