Concept Car: Ford Verve

What you are currently looking at could be the next Ford Fiesta. Ford has dropped the strongest hints about the shape and size of next year’s Fiesta in an ultra-sporty three-door concept called Verve, one of the stars of next week’s Frankfurt Show.

The car is the first of three Fiesta concepts — all with near-production shapes — to be unveiled in the next four months. The others are believed to be a four-door saloon for Beijing in November and a US-spec five-door hatch earmarked for Detroit next January.

Verve, which uses the all-new chassis and component set just launched in the Mazda 2, is clear evidence of Ford’s intention to dramatically lift the emotional design content of its small cars. Martin Smith says his team has been greatly encouraged by the results of several years’ research among “design progressives” — notably young female supermini owners across Europe.

This group has already okayed radical features like the Verve’s aggressive egg-crate grille, the radically raked windscreen, the coupe-like roofline and the fascia design, which draws heavily on mobile phone technology. Ford won’t confirm it, but it seems the only major Verve feature that won’t make production is its lack of a centre pillar and use of frameless doors.

The car, which shares the present Fiesta’s overall length and wheelbase, also shows Ford’s intention to call a halt to “dimension creep” in B-cars. The Mazda 2 has already won copious praise for being slightly smaller and lighter than its predecessor. The present Fiesta is smaller than rivals like the Fiat Punto, Opel Corsa and Peugeot 207, and Ford has established that its research group wants it kept that way.

The new Fiesta, to be launched in various versions between mid-2008 and 2010, will be powered by a comprehensive range of Ford-PSA diesels and Ford-Mazda petrol engines.

Subaru Impreza pricing announced (UK)

Subaru's finally released prices for most of the all-new Impreza range, and they don't necessarily make the unusual styling any more palatable. What should make things more attractive, however, are details of the now-confirmed new WRX.

The new WRX will be available from November for an expected cost price of around £21,500, followed by a range-topping WRX STi in Spring 2008.

The WRX comes with an updated version of the last car's 2.5-litre turbocharged flat four powerplant. It will pack the same 227bhp as its predecessor, but at 5200rpm instead of 5600rpm, and the same 236lb ft, but at 2800rpm instead of 3600rpm. It'll perform the benchmark 0-60mph sprint in 5.4sec (down from 5.9sec), but fuel economy is down from 27.4 to 27.2mpg, which also means CO2 emissions are up from 244 to 246g/km.

Power is put to the wheels via a five speed manual gearbox, and a centre diff (as on all new Imprezas), but the old WRX's rear viscous limited-slip diff has been swapped for a lighter mechanical one.

Interior space should be much-improved over the old car, thanks to a longer wheelbase. Refinement should also be better; Subaru says it's targeting mainstream rivals such as the Honda Civic, Mazda 3 and VW Golf

The 100bhp Impreza:

At the other end of the range from the WRX is the 1.5 litre 106bhp 1.5R, which starts at £12,495. As with all new Imprezas, it's got all-wheel drive, including a low-range transfer 'box, plus standard equipment that includes alloy wheels, climate control, a CD player, height and reach adjustable steering wheel, foglamps, and driver, passenger, side and curtain airbags. Gearboxes are five-speed manuals or four-speed autos.

It's not quick, at 13.7sec to 60mph and 109mph flat out, but we're expecting it to have the same excellent dynamics as its predecessor. It manages a reasonable 37.7mpg combined. There's also an automatic version for £13,495, which is even slower, at 14.8sec and 104mph, but manages the same economy.

Splash out £14,995 for the 2.0R (£15,995 for the auto) and you get 148bhp and 145lb ft, which lowers the 0-60mph time to 9.2sec (11.3 auto) and the economy to 33.6mpg (34.4). You also get 16-inch alloys (up from 15), xenon lights and heated mirrors.

More upmarket is the 2.0 RX, which comes with front and rear spoilers, side skirts, a chrome exhaust end-cap, a rear bumper diffuser and 17-inch alloys. Inside there's sat-nav, cruise-control and a 10-speaker CD system for £17,495 (£18,495 for the auto).

Grey model is the entry level 1.5R followed by 2.0R in red and Impreza RX is in silver

New Dodge Ram spy photos

We previously reported on the upcoming Dodge Ram pick-up truck and what we showed you were pictures of a cooling mule but eariler this week, spies captured the pre-production Dodge Ram undergoing hot-weather testing in Death Valley andmanaged to snap shots of a couple different versions of Dodge's half-ton truck. At a recent industry conference in Traverse City, Michigan, Frank Klegon, Chrysler's executive vice president of product development, reiterated earlier statements that Chrysler is focused on producing advanced engines for all of its vehicles, including the Ram. "A significantly upgraded version of the renowned 5.7-liter Hemi V8 with gains in fuel efficiency, refinement, horsepower and torque will debut in the 2009 model year," said Klegon. We don't expect the Hemi to receive an increase in displacement; instead it will rely on technology for most of its newfound power. Chrysler will also offer a new, more fuel-efficient version of the E85 flex-fuel 4.7-liter base V8 engine, shared with the Dodge Dakota midsize pickup and featuring a 30 percent increase in horsepower and a 10 percent increase in torque over the old 4.7-liter V8.

BMW Z4 production moves to Germany

Although nothing has yet been confirmed, Spartanburg Herald-Journal and BMW's suppliers in the Spartanburg area are assured that BMW will move the production of the next generation Z4 to Regensburg, Germany to allow the Spartanburg plant to focus solely on BMW's X-range Sports Activity Vehicles.

BMW's Spartanburg plant, set up in 1995 to produce the Z3 roadster, is reportedly expanding production capacity from 140,000 vehicles per annum to 200,000 units a year. The plant currently produces the X5 and the Z4 and is set to take on the production of the X3 that is currently manufactured at BMW's Magna Steyr plant in Austria next year. 2008 will also see the launch of the X6 Crossover and it is unlikely that the production of the X6 will take place anywhere else than in Spartanburg.

A closer look at BMW's U.S. sales figures reveals as to why BMW is so keen on shifting Z4 production to Europe. In 2007 through July, BMW sold 19,469 units of the new-generation X5 SUV (up 22% over last year) whereas sales of the Z4 have been sluggish (down 17% to 5,420 units). To industry analyst Jim Hall, Vice President, AutoPacific, BMW's shift comes as no surprise, since "the U.S. is a larger market for SUVs than Europe, and they're selling more Z4s in Europe." Bobby Hitt, BMW Manufacturing Corp. spokesman declined to comment the move.

Maserati Quattroporte recall (UK, Australia and USA)

If you were one of the first Brits to take delivery of a Maserati Quattroporte Automatic, it might be wise to schedule a trip to the dealership in the next couple of weeks. That’s because the marque is about to recall the first 90 examples of the car sold in the UK in order to rectify a fault that could disable its electronic stability control system.

The Italian brand’s problem is with the ECU software that controls the ‘Maserati Stability Program (MSP)’. When the car’s battery is low, a bug in the software prevents any signals sent by the car’s electronic sensors from being received by the ECU. The car’s onboard computer then assumes that the sensors are faulty, and disengages the car’s traction and stability control systems; its antilock brakes, however, will continue to work.

“If you use your Quattroporte every day, you’ll probably never encounter the fault,” a company spokesperson told us, “and if you do, it’ll go away once you charge the battery and restart the car.”

“We’ll be informing the affected owners by post in the next few weeks, and they’ll be asked to bring their cars back to their nearest service outlet, where a new ECU will be fitted free of charge. The fix should only take a couple of hours.”

Maserati was quick to assure us that it had updated its factory stock of ECUs to fix the problem on new-built cars some months ago, so if you buy a Quattroporte Automatic today, you’ve got nothing to be concerned about. However, it’ll be a pretty costly episode for the Trident overall, with 90 cars affected here, 30 affected in Australia, and in excess of 700 in the USA.

Exposing your Soul

Its a triple whammy today. This is our 3rd Kia posting in one day.

Kia unveiled its Soul concept car at the 2006 Detroit Auto Show. Then at this year’s Detroit show they confirmed that the Soul was definitely headed to production with an expected arrival date of late 2008 as a 2009 model.

With boxy styling, somewhat similar to the Scion xB, the Soul is built to appeal to younger buyers with a muscular look on the outside and a high-end audio system on the inside. Engine will be a 2.0 litre four-cylinder gasoline engine mated to a 5-speed automatic transmission with manual shift capability.

These spy photos shows a Soul prototype of the production model hot weather testing in the Southwest of the U.S.

New Car: 2008 Kia Sportage

Kia Sportage SUV now manufactured in Europe

Full 18-model Kia Sportage line-up produced in Slovakia

Choice of gasoline or diesel engines, with manual or automatic transmission

Improved build-quality, comfort, refinement and towing ability

Kia Motors will officially celebrate the start of full production of its popular Sportage compact SUV at the company’s ultra-modern Slovakia facility by holding the premiere of the 2008 model at the Frankfurt International Motor Show on 11 September.

Kia’s first-ever plant in Europe continues to be a burgeoning success as the Zilina operation has seamlessly added two new models – the cee’d Sporty Wagon and Sportage SUV– to its inventory, just a few months after making its very first cee’d hatchback cars last December. At the end of this year, the facility will add a fourth model to its repertoire, the Pro-Cee’d three-door hatchback. With a staff of 2,400 working two shifts, Zilina is already living up to its promise of becoming the most productive car manufacturing plant in Europe, aiming to build 100 cars per employee per year – when fully operational.

The handsome Kia Sportage SUV is little changed on the outside, but 2008 models will feature exterior enhancements that include a re-styled front grille, black bezel headlamps, enlarged door mirrors, new-style alloy wheels, a broader range of paint finishes and body-colour bumpers for all models.

“Made in Europe, the new 2008 Kia Sportage retains all the popular attributes of the original model and now offers customers an even better drive in greater comfort and refinement,” enthused Mr Jean-Charles Lievens, Senior Vice President Kia Motors Europe. “Since its launch in Europe during 2004, the Sportage has attracted more than 100,000 buyers and has played a key role, together with the larger Sorento SUV and smaller Picanto city car, in raising public awareness of the Kia brand across the broadest spread of European consumers.”

Technical improvements introduced simultaneously with manufacturing the 2008 Sportage in Europe begin with the power steering, which is re-tuned to be a little more direct. Sixteen inch diameter wheels with 215/65 R16 tyres are standard, the suspension dampers are stiffer for improved on-road handling and body roll has been reduced. Larger, 300 mm diameter front brakes now stop the Sportage in just 41.6 metres (from 100 kph), and place the Kia among the best-in-class.

Inside, the 2008 Sportage has improved front seats with longer (by 40 mm) and wider (by 20 mm) cushions for greater support and comfort. The rear seat cushion shape and firmness have been enhanced and the seat lowered by 5 mm to increase headroom.

Wind noise has been reduced by redesigning the door mirror housings and improving the seals around the electric sunroof. The 2008 Sportage has 12.5% more towing capacity than the previous model – now up to a maximum of 1800 kg.

Thanks to the unique Rotation Dipping Painting process at the Zilina plant, which rotates each bodyshell through a forward somersault while immersed in the electro-plating tank, and the built-in quality of Kia vehicles manufactured in Slovakia, all versions of the 2008 Kia Sportage are covered by a new 10-Year anti-corrosion warranty – an extension of four years.

Customers buying a 2008 Kia Sportage can choose from a range of 10 exterior colours and two interior colours – Flesh Beige and Saturn Black. Eight of the exterior colours are new to Sportage, with two solids and six metallics in common with the cee’d models produced at Zilina. Two of the most popular metallic colours (Greyish Silver and Smart Blue), are carried over from the 2007 model year.

New Car: 2008 Kia Pro-Cee'd

We previously reported about the Kia Pro-Cee'd. We were given teaser official images and now we have the official photos of the new sports car.

The Pro_cee’d will be offered with the same five engines as the Cee’d: 1.4 and 1.6 petrols, two different 1.6 diesels and a 2.0 diesel. There’s also the option of a ‘Sports Pack’ that comes with 17-inch alloys, stiffer dampers and stainless steel trim in the cabin.

Despite having two fewer doors than its sibling, the Pro_cee’d is 15mm longer, at 4250mm. It is also lower, giving a sleeker profile. Kia also claims that the Pro_cee’d has sportier handling.

More information can be found here.

New Car: 2008 Honda Accord Sedan & Coupé

Here are the first official images of the new 2008 Accord. Unlike the previous model, there will be no hybrid but the petrol and diesel engines will stay and on the new Accord they will consist of;
268-hp 3.5-litre V6 capable of running on 6, 4 or 3 cylinders, 190-hp 2.4-litre inline four and 177-hp 2.4-litre inline four on the sedan and on the coupé; 273-hp 3.5-liter V6 and a 200-hp 2.4-litre inline-4 mated with a six-speed manual transmission.

Space isn't too short in the sedan either with 120 cubic feet of interior space. Pricing hasn't been officially revealed but Honda says some models will see no price increase while others will cost only between $200 and $500 more than the equivalent '07s. So figure that an LX will start around $21,000 and an EX V6 will begin at just a smidge over $30,000 for the sedan and coupé should start from $22,000 for the LX grade and an EX-L V6 with the six-speed and navigation system will start around $30,500. The 2008 Accord goes on sale September 12.

The VCM system can run the optional new 3.5-litre V6 on six, four or three cylinders, depending on driving conditions. Six is for uphill climbs and accelerating. Four-cylinder operation is for expressway driving. And the Accord becomes a three-banger for relaxed city cruising/coasting. To quell the inevitable vibrations while the engine was running on three or four cylinders, Honda uses active engine mounts and active noise control system. It's a similar system the company used for the ill-fated Accord Hybrid, a model for which there will be no replacement going forward. That we never heard or felt any additional raucousness when the engine was running on fewer than six cylinders is as high praise as we can offer. It also brings a 4 mpg increase in highway fuel economy. Tested by the EPA's new, stricter standard, the V6 with the five-speed automatic (the only transmission available in V6-powered sedans) should get 19 mpg city and 29 mpg highway. The new V6 is a half-litre larger than the motor it replaces to fortify it in the midsize-sedan horsepower war. At 268 hp at 6,200 rpm and 248 lb-ft of torque at 5,000 rpm, the new Honda V6 is essentially the equal of the V6s of its two main rivals, the Toyota Camry (268 hp) and Nissan Altima (270 hp) and it's smoother than either. Still, the updated 190 bhp 2.4-litre four in the EX trimline is more than enough engine to get the job done, particularly when bolted to the five-speed manual transmission. It delivers better fuel economy than the V6 (22/31) and, allied with the new Accord's bigger 18.5-gallon fuel tank, could provide more than 500 miles of driving between fill-ups which is more than the Toyota Camry Hybrid. The LX model Accord comes with a 177-hp version of the same four-cylinder but without the EX power train's high-flow muffler and more aggressive power train control module tuning.

Honda is eager to mention that the 2008 Accord is now one of the few midsize sedans that's actually a large car and by "large" Honda is referring to the EPA's classification, which is judged by adding the cubic volume of the interior and the cubic volume of the trunk. If the resulting number is 120 cubic feet or more, then the car in question is a "large" car. Assuming you don't order the moonroof, which Honda says steals 5 cubic feet from the interior, the Accord squeaks in with exactly 120 cubes. Does this really matter? Well, yes. If the fascination with big SUVs and full-size pickups proved anything, it is that bigger is still better in the minds of many consumers and surely the folks who get stuck in the backseat will appreciate the extra legroom the enlarged Accord brings. The 2008 Accord's 2.3-inch longer wheelbase (to 110.2 inches) and 1-inch-taller body yield noticeable, if not dramatic improvements in all measures of interior roominess. Overall the car is 3.2 inches longer. It's still no Chrysler 300, but neither will your head be brushing the headliner and Honda notes that it added more space between the driver and passenger and widened the center console to give a more expansive feeling to the interior.

Volkswagen Passat Coupé Spied

The first unofficial photos of the 2009 Volkswagen Passat are now available, compliments of well-positioned spy photographers in Death Valley. Although the VW prototype clearly has four doors, the shapely new Passat is expected to be marketed as a "coupe" the same way Mercedes-Benz calls its four-door CLS a coupe.

Volkswagen intends to position this low-slung version as an upgrade from the traditional Passat, so expect a more luxurious interior and an MSRP that climbs above $40K.The Passat coupe is expected to go on sale in late 2008.

Audi A3 blows its top!

Audi recently started testing on the new A3 Cabrio. Our latest spy photo shows a pre-production car undergoing high-speed testing in Germany on a autobahn.

Back in September 2005 Audi boss Martin Winterkorn confirmed that the Audi A3 Cabriolet was coming, but was also quick to mention that it wouldn't be available untill at least 2008. The new A3 cabrio is set to rival up against the upcoming BMW 1 Series Cabrio.

If we can believe the rumors, the A3 Cabrio will be built in Audi's Brussels, Belgium factory which Audi has just recently taken control over from Volkswagen. The factory is capable of producing some 30.000 A3's annually and is also scheduled to build the new A1 which is expected at the Tokyo Motor Show later this year.

The look of the A3 Cabrio is not very surprising, with the front looking like the current A3 generation but the rear end seems to have been styled after the new A5. We're expecting to see the car in the flesh at Frankfurt.