http://www.maxauto.co.za/CntView.aspx?CatID=26&CntID=1482
A man who tried to run down a Johannesburg metro police officer issuing him a fine was arrested on Tuesday, metro police said.
Chief Superintendent Wayne Minnaar said the man sped off while being fined for double-parking, almost knocking over the metro police officer issuing the fine.
Another officer fired a shot at the green BMW, hitting its rear right tyre. The car came to a halt.
The incident occurred in Loveday street, in the Johannesburg CBD, at noon.
Minnaar said the driver was arrested. Metro police suspected that the car was stolen as its licence did not match its registration plates.
The driver would appear in the Johannesburg Magistrate's Court on Wednesday.
In another incident on the N1, near Naturena, south of Johannesburg, two men were arrested when three handguns, an AK-47 assault rifle and a sledge hammer were found in their Toyota Quantum.
One of the men was wounded in the shoulder when metro police opened fire on him after he tried to shoot one of them.
Five other men in the car fled.
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US urges new car safety standards
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Unhappy with the way Japanese automotive giant Toyota handled a series of sometimes deadly defects, US senators on Tuesday unveiled sweeping legislation to toughen automobile safety standards.
"Recent Toyota recalls showed an urgent need to update safety standards to reflect modern vehicle technology and give auto safety regulators the stronger tools and resources they need to protect the public," said Senate Commerce Committee Chairman John Rockefeller, the bill's lead author.
The measure would remove an overall cap on civil penalties for carmakers that deliberately fail to report vehicle safety defects to US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) regulators or intentionally mislead them.
Remedies and penalties
It would also mandate remedies against sudden unintended acceleration, calling for an override feature in which the brake pedal's message to a vehicle's computer always trumps the accelerator pedal's input.
And it would mandate NHTSA to craft rules for pedal placement to limit confusion between brake and accelerator or the possibility of floormats or other items jamming pedals.
It would also require carmakers to equip all new vehicles with electronic data records, like airplane "black boxes," that record key information 60 seconds before and 15 seconds after a crash.
The bill calls for boosting NHTSA's powers and toughening the penalties it can impose on automakers for failing to report safety defects or otherwise misleading the agency.
"Right now, NHTSA can fine carmakers who violate the rules only up to 16.4 million dollars, and for multi-billion dollar car companies, that's like paying a parking ticket," said Rockefeller.
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Fiat Uno Officially Revived for South America
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Fiat has revived the Uno nameplate for a new model headed for markets in South America.
The original Uno was the predecessor to the current Punto and was produced in Italy from 1983 to 1995. But the model remained in production in other markets and was especially popular in Brazil.
The new Uno is a different model altogether, as these photos show. Its stylistic theme is less urban minicar and more compact, practical people-mover with a little boxy design flair thrown in too.
The new Uno measures 3,770 mm long, 1,643 mm wide and 1,490 mm high - with a 2,370 mm wheelbase. That puts it between the Panda and Grande Punto in terms of size. The car will be produced at Fiat's Betim plant in Brazil.
Given that its main market will be Brazil, the Uno will come with two Flex Fuel ethanol/gasoline engines - a 1.0-liter with 56 kW and a 1.4-liter unit with 63 kW. Both engines will come with a 5-speed manual transmission. An SUV-styled variant called the "Way" will also be available, though not as an all-wheel drive.
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Mercedes M-Class Grand Edition Announced
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Mercedes has unveiled the 2011 M-Class Grand Edition.
Currently on sale in Germany, the special edition features a unique exterior with blue-tinted windows, darkened lighting units, an AMG grille, a powerdome hood (standard on the ML 450 CDI 4MATIC and ML 500 4MATIC), and 19-inch wheels (20-inchers are optional).
Inside, the cabin boasts poplar wood trim, ambient lighting, ARTICO synthetic leather upholstery (real leather is optional), seat piping, an AMG sports steering wheel, and stainless steel pedals.
Engine options include the 150 kW 300 CDI BlueEFFICIENCY, the 170 kW 350 CDI, the 155 kW 350 BlueTEC, and the 225 kW 450 CDI. Petrol fans can order the 200 kW ML 350 or the 285 kW ML 500.
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