http://www.maxauto.co.za/CntView.aspx?CatID=26&CntID=1131
Renault SA has joined Hyundai in offering a standard 150 000 / 5-year km warranty over its product range which includes seven new models: Twingo, Clio, Logan, Mégane, Scénic, Koleos as well as the locally manufactured Sandero.
“The extended duration of our product warranty underscores the confidence that we have in our new range across-the-board,” says Régis Fricotte, Vice President of Marketing at Renault.
Renault’s 150 000km / 5-year warranty is only offered by one other manufacturer in South Africa so this offering positions the brand well ahead of certain well-known household name brands in the motor industry he adds.
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China top car market in 2009
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China's auto sales surged past the United States to reach record levels last year on government incentives, and automakers are poised for solid but slower growth in the world's fastest growing major auto market in 2010.
After a landmark year in which China zoomed past the United States and Chinese automakers made some major acquisitions abroad, Beijing's renewed policy incentives to bolster demand will likely keep it as a bright spot for car manufacturers battered by the financial crisis.
Vehicle sales in the country jumped to a record 13.6 million units in 2009, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers said on Monday, well above the country's previous target of 10 million units.
That compared with annual sales of 10.4 million cars and light trucks sold in the United States, the lowest level in 27 years.
The Chinese tally, which also includes heavy vehicles, is still higher than that of the United States after deducting roughly 650 000 units of heavy trucks, Orient Securities said.
"Sales have been extremely hot in most parts of last year with little seasonal changes. Many people have to wait for weeks or even months to get their cars," said Qin Xuwen, an analyst with Orient Securities.
Passenger cars up 53%
China's passenger car sales jumped 52.9% to 10.3 million units in 2009, rebounding sharply from single-digit growth a year earlier, official data showed.
Car sales in December surged 88.7% to 1.1 million units, topping 1 million units for monthly sales for the third time this year.
Analysts attributed the boom largely to Beijing's policy initiatives, which had effectively lifted market sentiment and attracted buyers back to showrooms.
A low comparative base in 2008, when car sales slowed to a single-digit growth rate for the first time in at least 10 years, also helped inflate the 2009 growth rate.
The market, they said, would return to a slower but more rational growth rate of roughly 10% in 2010 on continued policy support from the government even though the renewed tax incentives for small cars were not as aggressive as expected.
Industry executives themselves, including Chen Hong, president of SAIC Motor Corp, China's biggest automaker and a GM partner, remain sanguine about the outlook for next year, due largely to pent-up demand in smaller cities where cars are no longer a luxury item as wealth grows.
BYD, 10% owned by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway, raised its 2010 sales target last week after achieving its 2009 sales goal ahead of time.
It now aims to sell 800 000 vehicles next year, up from a previous target of 700 000 units, Paul Lin, manager of the company's marketing department, told Reuters.
Too important to ignore
China is now a safe haven for industry heavyweights battered by a sharper-than-expected industry downturn, which had forced two of Detroit's big three automakers into bankruptcy in 2009.
General Motors, still majority-owned by the US federal government, agreed late last year to cede control of its flagship car venture to partner SAIC Motor Corp.
Volkswagen AG also pledged to invest 4 billion euros ($5.8 billion) in China through 2011 to expand its production capacity and shore up its R&D.
Ford Motor, a relative latecomer to China and a cautious player, broke ground in September for its long-contemplated $490 million third China plant.
"China used to be the one that was eager to attract big, outside investment, but it's the other way around now," said Zhang Xin, an analyst with Guotai Junan Securities.
"It's a market too important to ignore."
Uphill battle
The past year has seen Chinese automakers venturing on to the global stage for the first time in a major way, ready to snap up big-name brands, such as Volvo and Hummer, which they previously admired from afar.
Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, parent of Geely Automobile, is on the verge of acquiring Ford's Volvo car unit, following Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Co's purchase of some Saab platforms in December. Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial, an obscure machinery maker, has also agreed to take over GM's Hummer brand.
But Chinese automakers are still facing an uphill battle to become truly global players, industry observers said.
"It's no surprise China's auto industry wants to go international," said Klaus Paur, director of global industry consultant TNS's North Asia Automotive division.
"But I have the impression they are getting too ambitious. There are a lot of question marks here as they don't even have a solid brand in their home market."
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Detroit show revs up carmakershttp://www.maxauto.co.za/CntView.aspx?CatID=26&CntID=1133
A revved up sense of optimism has filled the Detroit auto show as the industry looked forward to a recovery from one of its worst years on record.
Automakers are still reeling from a collapse in sales to levels not seen since 1983, bankrupting General Motors and Chrysler and dethroning the Detroit Three as the biggest sellers in the US market.
China also surpassed the United States for the first time as the world's biggest vehicle market, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers announced in Beijing Monday.
But the overall mood is significantly more upbeat than a year earlier when GM and Chrysler's very existence was in doubt as Congress sparred over providing billions of dollars in emergency loans.
"Today is a new beginning for the automotive industry," Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood told reporters.
"When people have an opportunity to see the kind of products that are now being manufactured and will be on display, they will realize the auto industry is manufacturing products people want to drive."
Focus on efficiency
Ford, GM, Toyota and Honda kicked off the show by highlighting their focus on fuel-efficient vehicles.
Ford - which managed to both stay afloat without a government bailout and increase its piece of the shrunken US market in 2009 - introduced a much-anticipated update to its compact Ford Focus sedan.
"Companies have to pay attention to the three Es: economy, efficient and the environment," chairman Bill Ford said as he touted the automaker's new global vehicle platforms, which will radically reduce costs.
Toyota unveiled a prototype of a compact dedicated hybrid vehicle - the FT-CH - while Honda revealed a hybrid sports coupe - the CR-Z - that will hit US showrooms later this year.
GM introduced a boxy, low-lying new compact sport utility vehicle, the GMC Granite, a "concept" aimed at young, urban drivers if it ends up being tapped for mass market production.
The automaker also introduced several smaller cars to be sold under its Chevrolet brand, including the Spark mini car and a sporty Aveo prototype.
Notably absent from the schedule was Chrysler, which had little to present after the turmoil of a painful divorce from Daimler, a brief takeover by private equity group Cerberus and a quick spin through bankruptcy that left the number three US automaker under the management of Italy's Fiat.
Yet new chief Sergio Marchionne was on hand to speak with the media and give lawmakers a tour of the scaled-back Chrysler display, filled with aggressive trucks, muscle cars, shiny new sports cars and - thanks to the alliance with Fiat - Maserati, Ferrari and the Fiat 500 minicar.
Something for everyone
A congressional delegation led by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi saw a strong emphasis on small cars and fuel efficiency at the show, with a 3 440-square-meter exhibit of 20
different electric vehicles replete with a tree-lined test track.
There were also plenty of luxury vehicles on display despite the poor economy and a host of trucks and sport utility vehicles to tempt consumers who are less environmentally conscious.
"What we saw here today was vibrant, optimistic leadership to leapfrog over the competition and to keep America number one," Pelosi said.
"Our hopes are riding on the auto industry succeeding in our country and we thank all those who are making the progress possible."
Yet in a sign that competition is going to be fierce in 2010, optimism was also being voiced by international manufacturers bent on snagging greater market share here.
Nissan hopes to take advantage of a weakened Detroit to grow its share of US sales with eight products hitting the market in the next 12 months, including a high-profile electric car, the Japanese automaker's top US executive told AFP.
"2010 is going to be for us a very strong year in terms of product," Carlos Tavares, executive vice president in charge of the Americas, said in an interview Monday.
Most analysts forecast a moderate rebound in US auto sales to between 11 and 12.5 million vehicles this year after dropping 21% to 10.4 million in 2009.
That will still be drastically below the 15 to 17 million range posted in each of the previous 15 years and sales could be sharply hit should the economy take another bad turn.
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Swift justice for taxi driver
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A Limpopo taxi driver has been arrested, tried and sentenced within just two working days.
Zackeus Tshepiso Mafane, 20, of Bothashoek outside Burgersfort, was stopped on the road to Praktiseer on Friday after a traffic officer noticed that his taxi was overloaded.
“We stopped him and discovered that he also didn't have a professional permit that allows him to drive a taxi with passengers,” said Tubatse police spokesperson, Constable Jerial Movundlela.
Mafane then tried to bribe the officer with R100 to avoid a fine, and was arrested immediately.
He appeared in the Praktiseer Magistrate's Court on Monday, where he pleaded guilty to charges of bribery, receiving a sentence of three months' imprisonment suspended for three years.
Commenting on the swift justice meted out to Mafane, Movundlela said: "Here, we don't play around."
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Gemballa MIG-U1 Details Released
http://www.maxauto.co.za/CntView.aspx?CatID=26&CntID=1135
Best-known for their work on Porsche cars, GEMBALLA wants to prove that it is not married to the German sports brand. We now have details and plenty of pictures of this MIG-U1 based on the Ferrari Enzo. Its V12 powerplant now makes 515kW.
The new front skirt features a spoiler lip that generates up to 35kg of additional downforce and there are door extensions to the diffuser and rear spoiler. All wheel-houses take advantage of the extensive cooling system to keep the brakes within optimum temperatures. There is a rear flap that lowers itself at speeds of over 120km/h. Fresh air goes into the engine bay through air inlets located behind the doors and on the roof. Overall the car is now 80 millimetres wider up front and 100mm wider at the back.
Because this thing needs to be as close to the ground as possible in order to achieve impressive speeds, it almost kisses the ground. But to facilitate easy runs over normal obstacles like speed humps, an optional electro-hydraulic height-adjustment system that can lift it up by 45mm is available.
Wheels are 10x19 inch forged rims at the front and 13x20 inch types at the back. They are wrapped in 265/35 and 335/30 tyres.
Customers will be treated to an interior featuring niceties like satellite navigation, a DVD changer, an iPod connection, a 7-inch touch screen and a 950-Watt amplifier for the sound.
GEMBALLA promises that no two of the 25 planned MIG-U1 production models will be exactly the same.
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2010 Mercedes-Benz E-Class Cabriolet World Debut
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Based on the award winning E-Class Coupe, the Carbio combines sexy styling with a retractable canvas roof. Speaking of the latter, the roof was specially designed to provide "one of the quietest interiors in the segment for four-seater premium cabriolets with a fabric roof." It's so quiet, Mercedes promises that owners will be able to a have "perfectly normal" phone conversation at speeds exceeding 125 mph.
Should you choose to lower the roof, you'll be happy to find the E-Class Cabrio has been outfitted with AIRSCARF (a neck-level heating system) and the new AIRCAP system. Essentially a windshield-mounted air deflector (which can extend 2.4 inches), the AIRCAP system redirects the air flow above the interior. This results in a nearly draft free environment, which allows for reduced interior noise levels.
European engine options will include the 125 kW E 220 CDI BlueEFFICIENCY, the 150 kW E 250 CDI BlueEFFICIENCY, the 170 kW E 350 CDI BlueEFFICIENCY, the 135 kW E 200 CGI BlueEFFICIENCY, the 150 kW E 250 CGI BlueEFFICIENCY, the 215 kW E 350 CGI BlueEFFICIENCY, and the 285 kW E 500.
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2011 BMW 135i Coupe Goes Single Turbo
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After months of speculation, BMW has officially confirmed the 2011 135i will be given a variety of performance upgrades.
Like the redesigned 535i, the 135i will drop the current 3.0-liter twin-turbo inline-six for the new twin-scroll turbocharged 3.0-liter inline-six (dubbed the N55). While it doesn't sound like a huge change (both engines produce 221kW and 407 Nm of torque), BMW says the new engine will offer "better throttle response and even more fuel efficiency."
More importantly, the 135i will be offered with an optional 7-speed Double-Clutch Transmission (DCT). It features dedicated paddles for upshifting (right paddle) and downshifting (left paddle) as well as a console-mounted e-shifter.
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