Small SUV's Flavour Of The Year
Figures released today by the Federal Chamber Of Automotive Industries (FCAI) reveal that small suv’s are outpacing their bigger counterparts , showing a sixty one per cent increase in sales over last year against thirty two per cent for the whole segment.
Elk Test Strikes Again!
Recently, the Moose Test, administered in Sweden by local publication Teknikens Varld, found another new SUV 4×4 to be wanting. I wonder what the equivalent Australian test might be? Maybe it would be the ‘Roo test’ or the ‘Camel test’ or the “Great Big Bullock test”. Maybe, the ANCAP crash lab might look at the new “Roo Test” as an interesting addition to their testing methods. Hey, it is a valid everyday test that provides a very clear yes-or-no, pass-or-fail result in an emergency situation that could jeopardise a family’s safety.
Unfortunately for Jeep, they were on the receiving end of a failed-to-pass mark. The new Jeep Cherokee was put through a sudden left to right turn at a speed of just under 64 km/h to simulate what a driver might have to do to avoid hitting an elk that might wander onto a country road in the Nordic countries. The Moose Test (or Elk Test) is standard practice in Scandinavia, and recreates a potential danger common in these Nordic countries. The Swedes found that the new Jeep Grand Cherokee failed the test. The new 4×4 nearly tipped over. Jeep’s parent company Chrysler contested the results, insisting that Teknikens Varld had tampered with the results by overloading the vehicle and switching the electronic stability program off.
Highway Manners And Commonsense Rules Of The Road
Driving is a privilege, not a right. That privilege is granted by the people who constitute the governing body; State, District, Region, Country or whatever. It is granted after the driver applicant has passed written and driving tests showing that they have learned the basic rules-of-the-road, both written and implied, as well as possessing the manual skills to operate a vehicle safely. In some areas of the world, these tests and the driving requirements require a high level of skill and much study. In other areas there is less emphasis on these important lessons, resulting in a high percentage of highway deaths and injuries to young people. Many of these teenagers and young adults make fatal errors before they develop the skills to drive responsibly.
The Real Picture
Ford has made great play over its pricing policy when announcing the price of its performance Focus ST. The rival to the VW GTI, Subaru WRX and others is ‘competively priced’ at $39,290 plus on road costs when it goes on sale in October. Sure, it does have a price advantage over its main competition, but that’s not the whole picture.
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