Archive for July, 2012
Specialised Automotive Designs
Almost as soon as men put engines on wheeled vehicles designers began to create highly specialized vehicles. Some of these designs made a lot of sense, like the Willys Jeep used by the United States military for many decades beginning before World War II, a design that is still in evidence today and is favored by off-road enthusiasts.
Other modifications evolved into ambulances, trucks, buses, delivery lorries and utes, all of which had a specific design intent, but often multiple uses. Some vehicles that were built had very limited uses beyond their basis design purposes. A number of entrepreneurs have attempted to merge aircraft with cars and came up with vehicles that could neither fly nor drive very well. The amphicar was a car chassis with a boat body. Again, this neither drove nor sailed with much agility.
Sports cars could be considered a specialized design, one that accommodates a limited number of people (two) without much comfort and few amenities. But, they were fun to drive and they developed a core of enthusiasts, people to whom the trip was the reason to travel, not the destination. Sports cars are still in evidence today, but without the leaky tops, ill-fitting side curtains and rough ride. A few hold true to the design like the Mazda Miata and the new Subaru/Scion two-seater coupe, but most have morphed into luxury two or four-seat convertibles with power everything and air conditioning.
Many specialized designs evolved over their design-life into more functional vehicles. After the Jeep developed a following amongst the Allied military, civilian versions came on the market. These grew in size, comfort and amenities and spawned several more models. Other manufacturers jumped on the band wagon. In the USA Ford produced the Bronco, Chevrolet the Blazer, International the Scout and Dodge the Ramcharger. European and Asian manufacturers followed suit and today there are many versions of the SUV, from compacts and mid-sized to huge people-movers.
The original design intent of a four passenger, four-wheel-drive utility vehicle has vanished, except in a few models that are really used in rough country and off-road.
Ford Achieves 2012 Top Engine Honours
In a packed assortment of very fine engines sat Ford’s little Ecoboost 1.0-litre engine. With just three cylinders, it was this tiny engine that was classed as being the best car engine in the world for 2012. It is the first time that Ford has won the ‘International Engine of the Year’ award; an award that has been running for 13 consecutive years.
Ford’s Ecoboost 1.0-litre engine was designed in Britain and also received awards for being the Best New Engine and the Best Engine under 1000cc. There were a number of factors that helped this engine achieve so well, however the engine’s ability to power the Ford Focus car se easily is impressive. The engine’s power, response and very good real-world fuel consumption figures were considered to be outstanding.
Joe Bakaj, vice president of Ford Global Powertrain said, “We set the bar incredibly high when we started to design this engine. We wanted to deliver eye-popping fuel economy, surprising performance, quietness and refinement – and all from a very small, three-cylinder engine.”
Christopher Congrega from ‘LAutomobile Magazine’ also stated, “With good torque at the very low end, this high-tech three-cylinder turbo gives the driving performance of a small turbo diesel, but without noise and vibrations.”
BMW had featured many times as a winner of the ‘Best New Engine’ and the ‘International Engine of the year’. This is, perhaps, not really a surprise here, as the performance of the smooth BMW M5 and 3.0-litre Twin Turbo engines are phenomenal. However, very small engines with much less horses under the bonnet have won this coveted award before. Fiat has featured twice. In fact, last year the best new engine was the Fiat 875cc Twinair. This tiny engine also took out the award for the 2011 Green Engine of the Year. Volkswagen, Toyota, Mazda and Honda have also shared the takings for ‘International Engine of the Year’.
For those one-eyed readers who only see to the redline, the Ferrari 458 boasted a 4.5-litre ,V8 engine that won the award for the 2012 ‘Best Performance Engine’.
BMW took out four of the twelve awards but, obviously, in other classes. I wonder when we’ll see an HSV or Ford Falcon’s Turbo six engine in the awards?
Small Business $5,000 Tax Write-Off on New Cars
The 2011/2012 budget announced a new tax deductions for small businesses buying new motor vehicles from 1st July 2012.
In simple terms any new vehicles purchased will get an immediate $5,000 tax write-off above and beyond the usual depreciation schedule in the first year (1st July 2012 through to 30 June 2013).
For example:
A small business purchases a new vehicle for $40,000 in the tax year 2012-2013.
Normally the business could depreciate/write-off 15% in the first year – $6,000 – however with this new legislation, the business will be able to claim an immediate $5,000 plus 15% of the remaining portionof $35,000 (being the purchase price less the up front write off). So in this case the business owner will be able to write off $5,250+$5,000=$10,250 in the first year.
This equates to an extra write off of $4,250 (normally $6,000 would be the total deduction, being 15% of $40,000) which equates to a net tax benefit of $1,275 in 2013-2014.
This incentive is estimated to cost around $350 million over two years.
For any queries or information on how it works, please contact a Private Fleet consultant on 1300 303 181
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