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Skoda staff agency accused of exploiting Polish contract workers

The Prague Post has reported that an agency used by Skoda to supply workers discriminated against temporary workers it had hired from Poland.
The staff agency, Zetka Auto gave Polish employees lower salaries than the lowest wages given to Skoda workers. The company waited two months to give them their first pay cheques, then deducted non-existent debts from their wages. Unlike their Czech colleagues, the Polish employees were not given work clothing or protective equipment, and were encouraged to work 16-hour shifts.
Due to a shortage of local workforce, the carmaker has been obliged to use staff agencies. Agency workers account for around 4,000 of Skoda’s 27,700-strong workforce. The carmaker will remove the discrimination towards Polish workers.
February 17, 2008
Interior of the baby Alfa revealed

This umpteenth round of spy photos shows the only element of the Alfa Romeo Junior remained hidden until now: the interior.
From the picture, it is possible to guess the overall shape of the dashboard. The central console features a wide screen with buttons located below it while the climate controls are located at the bottom. There are also the corporate instruments with big dialers. The cockpit taken here still features equipments from the Fiat Grande Punto whose the Junior derives. The handbrake and the gear knob are similar to the Fiat’s.
The Alfa Romeo Junior will be unveiled at the next Paris Motor Show in October of this year.
February 17, 2008
Saab 9-1X teaser released

As previously reported, the Swedish carmaker will unveil the long-awaited 9-1X set to compete with the Audi A3 and Volvo C30. The company has released a teaser on an official website.
As expected, the concept car will be close to the production model. Like the recent 9-4X, the the 9-1X will take its styling cues from the Aero-X concept car.
The 9-1 will be based on the Vauxhall’s Astra platform. At this stage it is unknown wether 9-1 will have its chassis being tuned or not. Added to the 9-4X crossover which will be launched this year, the 9-1X will likely help the company to break the 200,000 milestone.

February 17, 2008
Cadillac considers a hybrid SUV for Europe

Cadillac will display the Escalade Hybrid SUV at the next Geneva Motor Show as the company is seriously considering importing hybrid models in Europe to expand its lineup.
Cadillac sales suffers from a few problems in Europe. The lineup is to small to cover all segment of the market a bit like Lexus. Except for the BLS, the company doesn’t offer any diesel engines and the Cadillac brand itself is still considered new in most parts of Europe.
Cadillac executives think that a taking a similar path to Lexus in the US might help the brand to increase its sales on European markets. Unfortunately for Cadillac, European customers aren’t fond of hybrid vehicles which doesn’t offer much more than the ubiquitous diesel powered vehicles on the paper. They cherish their diesel cars and launching a SUV, unfitted for European roads, won’t help increase the sales even with a hybrid system.
If the company wants to increase its sales in Europe, it has to show the CTS V6 diesel at Geneva and then European customers will notice the brand.
February 17, 2008
Rendering of the next Ford Ka

Motor Authority has published a rendering of the eagerly-awaited next-generation Ford Ka which will likely go o sale next year.
The future Ford Ka will share its underpinnings with the iconic Fiat 500 and the small car will be built in the Fiat plant located in Poland where the 500 is currently built. Few details emerge about the small Ford.
Secrecy surrounds the exac spec of the future Ka and its design hasn’t been really revealed by the few spyshots available on Internet.
On the market, Ford won’t follow Fiat to move the car upmarket. The Ka will remain an affordable car with an estimated entry price of about £6,000. The company expect to sell between 100,000 and 120,000 units per year.

Click here to see the whole picture
February 17, 2008
Videos about the new Renault Koleos

Here are two videos of the new Renault Koleos. The Koleos can be considered as the first vehicle being designed and built by the Renault-Nissan cooperation. It has been designed by Renault’s teams, but engineered by Nissan and will be buiilt by Samsung Motors owned by Renault in South Korea.

February 17, 2008
Renault to slow down the Laguna’s production

Four months after its launch, Renault has decided to decrease the saloon’s production as it doesn’t meet a huge demand.
Even if the company’s executives try to convince us the success is measured all along its lifecycle, this is not perceived as a good sign to slow down the production of the Laguna. Indeed, the French saloon has been labelled as Ghosn’s car.
The poor sales are the result of the poor sales recored by the M2 segment on which the Laguna competes. But the tame design might also explain the poor success met by the Laguna. The situation won’t get better as Citroen C5’s sales start soon and Honda has unveiled the new Accord model.
February 17, 2008
Ford unveils the new Ford Fiesta

Ford has unveiled the new Fiesta and it is certain that the new small Ford will send the outgoing model to the forgotten pages in the automotive history books.

As expected, the new Fiesta’s exterior design is taking its styling dues from the Verve Concept unveiled last year at the Frankfurt Motor Show. The new Fiesta features the trapezoidal grille, angular headlights, raked windshield and fastback profile.

The Fiesta will be available in three and five-foor forms in Western Europe and as a saloon in China. With the new Fiesta, Ford will go global as the car is intended to be sold in Europe first at the next autumn and across the rest of the world by 2010.

The Fiesta shares its inner structure, platform and powertrains, with the Mazda 2, so it means that the new car will be lighter than the outgoing model. The Fiesta will offer a wide range of petrol and diesel engines. There will be a 60bhp 1.4-litre petrol unit for the entry level, followed by a 91bhp 1.4-litre engine. Teh topping engine will be a 115bhp 1.6-litre unit.. Along the petrol engines, there will also be diesel units both with a displacement of 1.25-litre with either 60bhp or 80bhp. Engines will be hooked up to a five-speed manual gearbox or a the four-speed automatic Durashift.
February 17, 2008
World’s first RHD Ford GT

Ford never had plan to build a right-hand drive version of the GT supercar as conversion costs wouldn’t have been covered by the final price tag. But thanks to two Australian companies, Crossover Car Conversions and Mustang Motorsport, Australian GT owners will be able to drive RHD GTs.

Both companies have converted their first Ford GT and are currently applying to the Australian Design Rules so they can be registered and driven in all states. “Handing this car over is going to be a proud moment, both in terms of the quality of our work and also just for the fact that the Ford GT is such a phenomenal car,” Mustang Motorsport’s Craig Dean said recently.
Crossover Car Conversions has already begun work on the next GT’s to be converted. Another six cars are already in line. If you want to buy a RHD Ford GT from Mustang Motorsport, it will cost you over $500,000AUD/£231,000.
February 17, 2008
Hummer launches two special editions

Hummer has announced it will launch two special editions of its current models: the H2 Silver Ice Limited Edition and the H3 Championship Edition.
Like the Victory Red Edition sold last year, the new H2 limited edition is only available with a silver paint scheme. The limited also includes chrome package, which can be seen on the wheels and other exterior trim pieces. The wheels grow in size to 20” while the equipment features a rear vision camera, rear DVD entertainment system and a high-end audio system with Bose 5.1 surround sound. Only 750 units will be built whose 500 of them to be reserved for the American market.

The H3 Championship Edition is a tribute to the H3 Alpha that won the Baja 1000 race last year. This limited edition is powered by the Alpha’s V8 and adds to the normal version 33” tyres, a grille guard and fender extensions. The H3 gets a silver painting while its shocks and brake calipers are painted in red.
The H2 is sold at $65,230/£33,200 and the H3 costs $39,206/£20,000. Both SUVs hit the showrooms in April.
February 17, 2008