As seen on:

SMH Logo News Logo

Call 1300 303 181

Australia’s Best New Car News, Reviews and Buying Advice

Archive for June, 2017

Auto Industry News – Q2 2017

We review all the major news events in the automotive industry from the second quarter of 2017.

Sales and Manufacturing

As local auto makers prepare to bow out, both the Victorian government and Federal government have belatedly given the local manufacturing scene a boost in the arm. This comes courtesy of $90m funding and a separate $100mfund respectively. The news would have been immaterial according to the likes of Holden, who claim that despite a second consecutive year of profits, manufacturing cars locally would have been unsustainable. Toyota felt the pain of its local restructure though, as its profits slumped. Ford on the other hand have turned their attention towards the future, including autonomous vehicles and ride sharing services.

On the sales front, compact light hatchbacks continue to lose momentum against SUVs, while sales for diesel passenger vehicles are now approximately half of what they were in 2008. Elsewhere, Mazda was named the most reputable car company in Australia, followed by Toyota and Hyundai.

Ending the quarter, Japan’s auto parts business Takata, who were embroiled in a longstanding controversy surrounding faulty airbags, filed for bankruptcy. With enormous liabilities exceeding 1.7 trillion yen, Key Safety Systems looks set to pounce and acquire the company.

 

Safety and Environment

Data was released showing Aussie motorists are producing up to 50% more emissions than drivers in European cities, while the quality of our fuel ranks 66th in the world. The UK has responded by making a push to reduce diesel vehicle sales and lower pollution, although Australia looks set to defy this trend as SUV diesel car sales soar. Manufacturers’ actions could define the battle though, with the likes of Volvo signalling they don’t intend to continue producing diesel vehicles in the future.

In other news, for the second time this year an enormous haul of counterfeit car parts were intercepted in the UAE. The batch included fake brake pads and head gasket kits, with some of the parts believed to have been on route to Australia.

 

Technology

In the fuel technology sector, things continue to advance. Locally, a report by the National Transport Commission identified fuel efficiency improvements in light vehicles during 2016 were the slowest in 10 years. Furthermore, findings also suggested that Australian motorists continue to move towards larger cars, as green vehicles took a backwards step in terms of the proportion of new cars sold.

The sector could be shaken up however, following a discovery at the UNSW which identified “a cheap way of generating hydrogen from water”. The discovery is leading some to predict the viability of the fuel technology and its local prospects have increased. Whether hydrogen or electricity become the new incumbent(s) remains to be seen, but UBS is tipping electric vehicle prices to approach those of petrol powered vehicles as early as next year, now that worldwide sales have tipped 2m vehicles.

Meanwhile, Roads Australia weighed in about the future of autonomous vehicles, predicting “every new vehicle sold in Australia within 10 years will be driverless”. Further abroad, but still in the self-driving segment, Apple received a testing permit for its driverless technology. Additionally, Google clocked up 1 million kilometres of autonomous vehicle driving including real world tests via an early rider program. Google’s milestone is expected to place it well ahead of any other manufacturers in this area, while also experiencing substantially lower failure rates.

With that said, one US study is suggesting we might move away from owning vehicles as driverless technology is introduced. Even more of interest, some have already started to turn their attention towards the next big potential technology, flying vehicles – something that Uber appear to be keen to get in on.

As for other technical developments, Mazda Australia was spruiking its autonomous emergency braking system as a “safety standard revolution” following its introduction across a wide variety of the auto maker’s vehicle range. Toyota is working on technology that would identify drivers experiencing a heart attack, and safely pull their car over. Last but not least, Apple announced that it will release a system update later this year featuring a “do not disturb” function that comes into effect when it detects someone is driving.

 

Legal and Regulatory Issues

Vehicle emissions continued to be a sticking point for various stakeholders during the quarter. After moves from Paris and London to address emissions testing, the AAA began to press the Australian Government to do more on the issue – as well as further road safety funding. BMW Australia also contributed to the broader topic, taking a swipe at our politicians for failing to promote low emission vehicles such as electric cars. On a related point, the Electric Vehicle Council was launched in Canberra and provided a $400k grant.

Even though Volkswagen set out at the beginning of the year to address its affected vehicles in the local market, the manufacturer drew the ire of many Australian motorists for its software upgrades.

As has been customary for some time now, the diesel emissions scandal engulfed other parties. This time, authorities took action against Fiat and Mercedes Benz over concerns they have been caught up in their own emissions scandals.

Finally, as the focus on autonomous driving gathers steam, ANCAP put forward the suggestion that road laws should be nationalised to facilitate the integration of the technology. Moves to do so would follow the likes of Germany, where laws have been passed to approve self driving vehicles.

  http://credit-n.ru/credit-card-single-tinkoff-platinum.html

Small Is Beautiful Says Kia and Hyundai

Stonic. Kona. Not exactly names that fall easily to speak of but they’re the names to watch from Korea. Aimed squarely at yet another SUV segment, the B-SUV, it’s a segment forecast to see annual sales of two million in Europe by 2020, up from just over 1.1 million now.

Michael Cole, Chief Operating Officer of Kia Motors Europe, comments: “By volume, the B-SUV market is expected to overtake the C-SUV segment by 2020, when more than 1 in 10 new cars sold in Europe will be from the Stonic’s segment. The B-SUV segment attracts buyers from across the spectrum, with 21% of all customers upsizing from a supermini, and another 15% downsizing from their family hatchbacks. Cars like the Stonic also appeal to those looking to replace their compact MPVs. The Kia Stonic will be one of the most compelling new cars in this rapidly-expanding class, backed by Kia’s unique warranty, and the brand’s reputation for reliability, quality and contemporary design. As the segment expands, the Stonic looks set to become one of our best-selling cars.”

Euisun Chung, Vice Chairman of Hyundai Motor Company, says: “With the Kona, we have created a stylish and highly functional compact SUV, perfectly suited to the needs of customers who pursue challenging, action-filled lifestyles. We aim to set new standards for the compact SUV segment, with appealing design, cutting-edge connectivity and class leading safety features.”

Kia will offer a range of lightweight, downsized, turbocharged petrol and diesel engines are available, each paired with a manual transmission, maximising driver engagement and efficiency. Buyers have the choice of Kia’s lightweight 1.0-litre T-GDI (turbocharged gasoline direct injection) engine, producing 120 ps (88kW), as well as 1.25- or 1.4-litre naturally-aspirated MPI (multi-point injection) gasoline engines. An efficient 1.6-litre diesel engine completes the range, offering the lowest emissions in the line up.

Hyundai will present A 2.0-litre MPI Atkinson unit produces 110kW, with a 0-100km/h time of 10 seconds and a top speed of 194km/h. Paired with a six-speed automatic transmission, the engine delivers maximum torque of 179 Nm at 4500rpm.

The Gamma 1.6T-GDI engine boasts 130kW, a 0-100km/h time of 7.7 seconds and a top speed of 210km/h. The engine delivers maximum torque of 265Nm from 1,500 to 4,500rpm and is mated to Hyundai’s efficient and responsive seven-speed dual-clutch transmission (7DCT).

In addition to the 1.6T-GDI engine, customers in Europe can also opt for Hyundai’s downsized 1.0 T-GDI turbocharged three-cylinder engine with six-speed manual transmission. This turbocharged powerplant is optimized for efficiency and produces 88kW, a 0-100km/h time of 12 seconds, top speed of 181km/h and maximum torque of 172Nm from 1,500 to 4000 rpm. Also available will be a 1.6 diesel engine for select markets, including Europe.

Kia has gone European for the Stonic’s cabin places technology and ergonomics at its heart, offering buyers as much potential for customisation as the exterior with a range of vivid colour packs for buyers to choose from. One of the smartest cars in its class, it provides owners with a range of new chassis and infotainment technologies designed to enhance safety, comfort and convenience. The car gets Apple CarPlay and Android Auto as standard, bringing seamless smartphone functionality to the touchscreen infotainment system. Like other Kia models, it is available with a broad range of technologies to enhance comfort and convenience, including heated front seats, automatic cruise control and keyless entry.

Hyundai has upped the ante. The Kona boasts a suite of sophisticated technologies, paired with user-friendly functionality to ensure driver and passengers can stay informed and entertained. The premium infotainment system offers various advanced connectivity features, including Android Auto and Apple CarPlay where specified with a 5-, 7- or 8-inch display (offered as standard or option dependent on market). Further options include DAB digital radio (Europe), HD Radio (North America), rear view camera display, and 4G telematics (North America) to ensure absolute connectivity.

A new Head-Up Display (HUD) is fitted to the Kona, projecting a virtual image onto the clear glass panel mounted behind the instrument panel to enable the driver to keep his or her eyes on the road. With a projected image size of eight-inches at a two meter distance and class-leading luminance of more than 10,000 candela per square meter, the Kona’s combiner HUD ensures both excellent day- and night-time visibility. Information projected to enhance safety and usability include speed, navigation instructions, Lane Departure Warning messages, and audio information. Deployed vertically by a simple touch of a button beside the steering wheel, the combiner disappears into the dashboard when not in use.

In a first for the segment, the Kona features smartphone wireless charging. Available as an option with all Kona models, customers simply place a compatible smartphone on the wireless charging interface, located in the center console storage, to easily recharge without the need for cables. The system also indicates when the phone has fully charged, reminds occupants to remove their phone when exiting the vehicle, and detects when a foreign object is in the recharging area that could interfere with charging.

The Stonic’s design of the car is one of the brand’s most striking to date, yet it is immediately recognisable as a Kia thanks to key signature design elements, such as the ‘tiger-nose’ grille. Designed in Europe, in collaboration with Kia’s Korean design studio, the body blends sharp horizontal feature lines with softer sculpted surfaces. Customisability is important to many customers in the B-SUV segment, and the Stonic’s ‘Targa’-style roof enables buyers to choose a two-tone paint finish, inspired by the design of the 2013 Kia Provo concept. It will be available in up to 20 two-tone colour combinations, with a choice of five distinctive colours for the roof

The Hyundai Kona is currently due to go on sale in September or October, whilst the Stonic goes on sale in Europe at around the same time. http://credit-n.ru/offers-credit-card/ren-drive-365-credit-card.html

2018 BMW X3 Due To Land In Oz

Mid sized SUVs are plentiful nowadays however they barely existed in the early noughties. Enter BMW and their X3. The challenge was thrown out and continues to bring to the masses plenty of choice. But never one to sit on their backsides and think that’s all they had to do, BMW has updated the X3 for 2017 to add to the 1.5 million or so already sold since 2003. Here’s how it shakes down.You’ll be able to choose from three levels, being xLine, MSport, and Luxury Line. The third is a new addition offering more choice from a starting point. There’ll be two diesel and three petrol engines to choose from.
The 265 kW/360 hp BMW X3 M40i is front and centre with combined fuel consumption being rated at 8.4 – 8.2 l/100 km and with emissions rated as combined CO2 emissions 193 – 188 g/km gives the X3 range its first M Performance Automobile. It’s joined by a second petrol model in the shape of the BMW X3 xDrive30i producing 185 kW/252 hp combined fuel consumption: 7.4 l/100 km and combined CO2 emissions: 168 g/km.The two diesel models are the BMW X3 xDrive20d with 140 kW/190 hp (combined fuel consumption: 5.4 – 5.0 l/100 km); combined CO2 emissions: 142 – 132 g/km, and the BMW X3 xDrive30d developing 195 kW/265 hp (combined fuel consumption: 6.0 – 5.7 l/100 km with combined CO2 emissions: 158 – 149 g/km)
The BMW X3 20i with 135 kW/184 hp (combined fuel consumption: 7.4 – 7.2 l/100 km has combined CO2 emissions: 169 – 165 g/km and a choice of all-wheel drive or rear-wheel drive will follow shortly after the launch of the new X3. All the engine variants will team up as standard with an optimised version of the eight-speed Steptronic transmission.Rolling stock moves up an inch in standard size to 18 inches, and allows a new buyer to dip into the options list for wheel diameters of up to 21 inches. Along with that, there’s a raft of extra improvements for the X3. Consider acoustic glass for the windscreen and optionable for the front side windows, LED headlights and foglamps, and auto tailgate. To ensure great handling, there’s a 50:50 weight distribution. Inside you can option a full colour head up display, take advantage of larger sized storage areas such as a revamped centre console, a 10.2 inch touchscreen as standard and optionable instrument panels.Cargo wise, there’s a pretty handy 550L of space as standard. Drop the 40:20:40 rear seats at the press of a button and that jumps to a huge 1600 litres, plus there’s extra storage under the rear floor. To help with locking down the week’s shopping, BMW have fitted rails for what they call an Adaptive Fastening System. The room inside is courtesy of a 4708 mm length and 2864 mm wheelbase. Across the front seats theres 1522 mm of room, whilst rear seat passengers have 1477 mm.Weight has been reduced by up to fifty five kilos and aero has been improved to a class leading drag coefficient of 0.29. This adds to the standard features inside and out for the new range. The three will be distinguished by exterior highlights, with the xLine’s grille and window frames receiving a matt aluminuim look, the Luxury Line gains chrome, whilst the M Sport gets bespoke brakes, suspension, exterior trim highlights, and black leather seats with blue piping.

Register your interest at www.bmw.com.au http://credit-n.ru/blog-single-tg.html

The Sounds Of…

Much of the appeal of any new car – apart from factors like practicality and power – lies in the visual and tactile arenas. We admire the sleek lines or the bold aggressive chunkiness. We smile at the bug-eyed appeal of round headlights, such as those on the VW Beetle, or appreciate the clever styling achieved with pretty daytime running lights – or the classic Ring of Fire tail lights of an HSV. Chrome, interior lighting packages, exterior paint colour… it’s all visual. The interior styling also tends to cater to our senses of touch and comfort (kinaesthetics) with leather-wrapped this and that, lumbar support, heated seats and the like. Even a car with powerful acceleration and superb handling around the corners appeals to our kinaesthetic – it’s a human thing to enjoy the sensation of G-forces during acceleration and cornering.

We don’t tend to give the sense of sound much thought when picking out a new vehicle or even when driving, apart from what the sound system’s like (number of speakers, location and quality of speakers, input type…). However, we use our sense of hearing quite a lot when we’re in and around cars, although we’re less aware of it.

The role of sound in motoring was brought home to me rather acutely when I had a very close encounter with a hybrid vehicle in the supermarket carpark the other evening. It was getting a bit dark and I was waiting for a stream of cars to go past so I could get back to the old faithful Nissan with my groceries. One car goes past, then the next, so I tune out for a bit; then, as I hear the sound of an engine trailing away to one side and no sound on the other side, I start to stride forwards… only to pull up sharply as the hybrid that was last in the line of cars crawls past.  No damage was done, but this is something that we’re all going to have to look out for – literally look out for – as hybrids and electric vehicles become more common on our roads (and in the supermarket carpark).

As pedestrians and cyclists, we rely on our sense of hearing as an extra warning signal that something’s coming, especially when we can’t see down a driveway. I’m probably not the only one who had the mantra “Stop, Look and Listen” drummed in as part of road safety training and learning how to cross a road (along with Look Left, Look Right, Then Look Left Again).  I’m certainly not the only one to get a bit jumpy about the safety aspects of how silent hybrids and electrics are: last year, the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration legislated that quiet cars like these have to emit some sort of noise as a warning.

At the other end of the sound spectrum are the cars that you certainly can hear coming – like a former neighbour of mine with his 7-litre diesel Chevy. We all know the ones – the big bore exhausts, the V8 motors, the “muffler” that’s carefully tuned so the roar of the engine sounds just right. Now, these drivers are certainly aware of appealing to the sense of sound. Even if you’re not into big bore exhausts, most of us are not completely immune to the sound of a powerful engine doing its thing, even if we don’t quite go as far as former Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson (the one we all loved to hate) doing a “Listen to it!  Just listen to it!” rant. And just don’t get me started on the Dukes of Hazard sol-mi-do-do-do-re-mi-fa-sol-sol-sol-fa horns…

Somewhere in between these extremes comes the driver who is indeed highly tuned into the sounds the engine – and indeed the whole car – is making. Maybe you are that driver.  This is the sort of person who drives passengers batty with a constant “What’s that noise?  I can hear something rattling!” This gets followed by frantic groping around the interior of the car trying to find and eliminate the cause of said rattle, with the end result that the offending pair of sunglasses in the glovebox has to be wrapped up in a beanie to silence it. This is punctuated by complaints about Funny Noises made by the engine that are only apparent to the driver. To be fair, car manufacturers go out of their way to reduce the on-road noise heard in the cabin and the sound of the engine does get used by mechanics as a form of diagnosis.

On the whole, however, the sound of an engine tends to be a subconscious or subliminal feature. We may not even be aware of it until one day, we hear a particular engine note and become overwhelmed by a rush of nostalgia, suddenly reminded of the car our parents drove when we were little, or the first car we owned. We have those moments when our hearts skip a little beat as we hear one particular engine amid lots of others, like a familiar face in a crowd, and we know that someone special to us has arrived.  And oh, the disappointment when we realise that what we heard was only another car of the same make and year… The sound of a car engine is something that affects us more deeply than we probably realise.

That’s my challenge to you this week: think about how your car sounds a bit more consciously (or mindfully, to use a buzz word). Are you a noise lover, a hypersensitive or do you like it quiet? Or do you have any suggestions about the sounds that hybrids and electrics ought to emit for safety purposes? http://credit-n.ru/zaymi-nalichnymi-blog-single.html