Automobile Blog

GM vehicle designed in China to debut in Detroit auto show

General Motors Corp. is showing off the Riviera coupe concept vehicle the auto maker unveiled at the Shanghai auto show last year. GM was set to show the vehicle at an event Thursday in Detroit, just a few days before the North American International Auto Show kicks off in Detroit. Though a concept not necessarily slated for production as presented, these vehicles often show the direction of future design for the nameplates.

The coupe is the first show car to be designed jointly by teams in Shanghai and North America, GM’s vice president of design Ed Welburn said Thursday. Welburn unveiled the Riviera ahead of the North American International Auto Show, which starts media preview days on Sunday.

The Buick Riviera, a concept car designed to showcase Buick’s new global design direction, will make its North American debut next week at the North American International Auto Show, Ed Welburn, vice president, GM Global Design, said Thursday.

The display of the Riviera concept vehicle, first shown in Shanghai, also signals GM’s intention to have US designers in Michigan, and Chinese designers in Shanghai, collaborate and compete on all future designs for the Buick brand. (more…)

Toyota takes its first big gamble in Formula One

Toyota is taking its first big gamble in Formula One, unveiling a radical new car at its German racing headquarters yesterday. Since joining the grand prix circuit in 2002, the Japanese team has had a steady design evolution of its cars but the TF108 is a radical departure.

And it could be just in time to save the under-performing squad which has failed to live up to the same level of success Toyota has shown in the road car market. Yet at the launch of the new Toyota TF108, staged in the team’s racing headquarters on the outskirts of Cologne, Glock and Trulli were put starkly on notice by Tadashi Yamashina, the team principal, that they will be expected to work harder than ever in the quest for results.

Last season the team were well off the pace of leading manufacturers Ferrari and McLaren – who this week also unwrapped their new cars – and are still without a win in 104 Grand Prix races. The last two seasons have been hugely disappointing after promising results in 2005 when Toyota achieved three podiums and a pole position. (more…)

Hyundai i10, Bajaj Pulsar won NDTV Profit Car & Bike India Awards

Hyundai i10 and Bajaj Pulsar 220 DTS FI won the ‘Car of the Year’ and ‘Bike of the Year’ awards respectively at the annual ‘NDTV Profit Car India & Bike India Award’ which was hosted by tv and film actor Mandira Bedi.

The ‘ICICI-NDTV Profit Viewers Choice Awards’ were bagged by ‘Maruti Suzuki SX4′ and ‘Hero Honda Hunk’ in the car and the bike category respectively at the function held here last evening. BMW 5-Series was adjudged the ‘Premium Luxury Car of the Year’, while ‘SUV of the Year’ was the Maruti-Suzuki Grand Vitara.

Managing Director H S Lheem of Hyundai Motor India Ltd, said, “I feel honoured to receive this award and dedicate this award to our Chennai factory team and suppliers for their contribution in making this possible.” Rajiv Bajaj, MD, Bajaj Auto, said, “On my own part, I would like to say thank you. (more…)

All new Hyundai Tiburon 2008

The Hyundai Tiburon is a compact coupe produced by Hyundai since 1996. The name itself means shark in Spanish. Tiburon is the name given to the current North American, Australian, New Zealand, South African, and Austrian production of the vehicle, though it is called the Hyundai Coupe in world markets.

It has also been known by the moniker Turbulence and Tuscani in the South Korean market. Enthusiasts sometimes refer to it using the nickname ‘Tib’ or ‘Tibby’ in the markets in which it is called the Tiburon.

The Tiburon’s four-passenger cockpit had a trendy vibe when it appeared several years ago. Successive tweaks have had mixed results. The fog and hazard light controls now have flush finishes that would impress a Lexus driver, the dashboard has soft-touch materials and the blue and white gauges look sharp at night.

Then there are the clinkers: Last year’s standard stereo has been swapped for an aftermarket Kenwood unit that looks and sounds like it was installed at a local electronics shop, and both the GT Limited and SE trims have some garish-looking red leather upholstery. Amenities like steering-wheel audio controls and an auxiliary jack for MP3 players are conspicuously missing. (more…)

Hyundai to bring in LPG model of Santro this year

Hyundai Motors is going to increase the prices of its car models by 12 January. Mr Arvind Saxena senior vice-president, sales and marketing, Hyundai Motors India Ltd, said the company has decided to increase the price of most of its cars by Rs 5000. It includes ‘i10’ that was launched recently.

The company hopes to sell 5.3 lakh cars by 2008. The company said it would launch an LPG variant of the Santro by September to complement the CNG version.

“With rising crude prices, Santro LPG will provide a more economical option for our customers along with environment-friendly benefits,” Lheem said.

He said similar LPG variants would also be launched of other models like the Getz and Accent later this year, possibly by the third quarter. Hyundai is in talks with bus body-building firms to launch buses first. It will import the chassis and get the partner to assemble buses. He also said that “We will look to launch mid-size buses in the 25-seater category and large buses, initially:, and the “Trucks will follow later.” (more…)

Maruti Suzuki makes a splash with three concept cars

Suzuki Motor has showed three cars which will be manufactured only in India, at the Auto Expo being held in New Delhi. These include compact cars A-Star, Splash and the premium concept car ‘Kizashi’.

The company will start making the A-Star from October and aims to sell it in Europe, its Indian unit, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd., said in a statement at the Delhi auto show today. Suzuki expects to sell 60,000 units of the Splash in Europe a year and the vehicle will be first produced in Hungary and later in India.

Suzuki and other foreign carmakers, including Hyundai Motor Co., South Korea’s largest carmaker, are expanding capacity to use the country as a global production center for small cars, taking advantage of cheaper labor costs. India’s government in 2006 cut taxes on small hatchbacks to seek investments for export-oriented projects.

Maruti Suzuki has lined up its fifth global car, ‘A-Star’, to be manufactured only in India, besides ‘Splash’ and its D-segment car ‘Kizashi’. It has also displayed the SX4 WRC Rally Car, with which Suzuki Motor Corporation is entering the World Rally Championship for the first time this year. (more…)

Ford unveils fuel-sipping Explorer Concept in America

Ford Motor is hinting at a more fuel-efficient direction for its iconic Explorer sport-utility vehicle which will debut at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

The concept is built on a more car-like unibody frame, rather than the traditional truck frame, to reduce weight by 150 pounds and improve drivability. But Ford says the Explorer America is still roomy enough for six passengers and gear, and can tow 3,500 pounds.

One of the most impressive aspects of Explorer America concept is its ability to offer a 20 to 30 percent fuel saving compared with today’s V6 Ford Explorer. The new EcoBoost gas turbocharged direct-injection engine, a four-cylinder, two-liter engine, provides 205kW whereas the V6 puts out 254kW. (more…)