Latest News

Apr 28, 2006

TVR to close Blackpool factory !

Earthquake at TVR: owing to a sales slump, which sees annual sales drop from 600 cars in 2004 to around 300 cars now, TVR's new Russian boss Nikolai Smolensky decided to close its Blackpool factory and dismissed 260 staffs. As Blackpool is the headquarter and the sole factory of TVR, the closure hints that the company is likely to subcontract the production to overseas suppliers, like what Noble is doing.

At the moment, there is no official announcement about where the company will move to or how the production will be arranged. The management just told the worker union the decision to leave Blackpool and the resultant job loss.

In its hey days during the latter half of 1990s, TVR's production peaked 2,000 cars a year. Sadly, since then the sales started declining. The discontinuation of Rover V8 engine forced TVR to develop its own V8 and straight-6, driving up the prices of its sports cars. Long-time owner Peter Wheeler sold the company to Smolensky in 2004, signaling the negative forecast. Can TVR survive from the sales winter ? we hope so.

Apr 28, 2006

Mitsubishi returns to black

After 3 successive years of loss, Mitsubishi finally returned to profit in the past fiscal year ended on Mar 31. During this period, it earned an operating profit of $59 million, compare to the loss of $1.12 billion a year before. The recovery is driven by the well reception of the Outlander SUV and i (K-car) at its home market, as well as the reduction of costs and warranty spending. Well done and keep it up !

Apr 28, 2006

Hyundai gets more difficult

In the past few years, Hyundai group has been the fastest rising star in the motor industry. While it aims to be the world's 5th largest car maker by 2010, recently I saw some negative factors which may give it some hard time:

Firstly, as widely reported in mass media, Hyundai's chairman Chung Mong Koo is being investigated for illegal fund transfer to help his son getting controlling stakes in Kia, as well as illegal political funding to help smoothing his business. Mr. Chung has apologized publicly to Korean, but it seems that prosecutors will arrest him very soon. The incident is causing a management vacuum in Hyundai. Its plan to build factories in Europe and America have been halted.

Another negative factor is rising value of Korean won against the USD. This has put pressure to the profit margin of its export. Currently, 80% of the company's revenue comes from export. No wonder Hyundai is pushing its cars upmarket. Today, its marketing focus is no longer the entry-level econo Elantra or Accent, but the mid-sized Sonata and the very upmarket executive car Azera. If you look back the development of Japanese motor industry, you will also see the rising yen during 1990s drove a wave of upmarket shift, which resulted in many tragedies like Mazda's Eunos / Xedos brand, Nissan's Infiniti and the burst of high-performance coupe market.

Azera: is going upmarket a good sign?

To face the difficult time, Hyundai recently froze the salary of its management staffs. However, labor union is not that easy. It is requesting a 9.1% pay rise this year. For your information, last year the workers of Hyundai and Kia got 6.9% wage increase. This explain why their cars are no longer as bargain as before. The fast-rising labor costs is the third negative factor I see.

Apr 28, 2006

SAIC to build its own cars

You may remember when MG Rover bankrupted last year, Chinese car maker Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp (SAIC) bought the intellectual properties of Rover 25 and 75, plus the Rover K-series and KV6 engine. Now SAIC has formally announced to build its own version of the Rover 75 and export to Europe. Prototypes of the car is being testing in its R&D center in England, which hired ex-Rover engineers to oversee the project.

For your information, SAIC is the largest car maker in China. Last year, it produced 1.05 million cars and trucks, 750,000 units of which were passenger cars. However, the success is due to its partnership with Volkswagen and GM to produce their cars locally. In fact, nearly all of the passenger cars it produced were Volkswagen Passat, Santana, Gol and Polo, GM's Buick Regal, Buick LaCrosse, Buick Excelle (=Daewoo Nubira) Cadillac CTS, Chevrolet Aveo, Chevrolet Epica etc. So far SAIC does not has its own brand and development capability to put it on the map of worldwide car makers. That's why AutoZine has yet to list it in the manufacturer's page.

The China government is encouraging car makers to globalize and stand on its own feet, SAIC has decided to launch its own brand and cars. The first one will be the Chinese version of Rover 75, although it is hardly a demonstration of its own ability. The car will be launched in early 2007. Over the next 4 years, there will be 4 more product lines added, including a hybrid vehicle (remark: sounds like an April Fool joke to me).

Currently, SAIC has a production capacity of 120,000 cars and 170,000 engines. By 2010, it plans to build 200,000 to 300,000 cars of its own brands, including 50,000 for export. But it will be a very difficult uphill battle, because until now the Chinese car maker has no experience of design and develop its own cars. From my understanding of China's big industrial enterprises (I am regularly working with those in the electronics field), I would say it could take a couple of decades at least to meet the world standard, just like what Japanese and Korean experienced.

Apr 23, 2006

BMW 3-Series Coupe

BMW has unveiled the new generation 3-Series Coupe. Compare with the 4-door sedan, the Coupe has slimmer headlamps, different bumper intakes and a V-shape bonnet. The side belt line is more pronounced. The shape of side windows and C-pillars follow the generation coupe. At the rear, the styling is cleaner than the sedan, with slimmer taillights. Overall speaking, the new Coupe is until now the most easily acceptable design from Chris Bangle.

Although BMW has not revealed the full specifications, it is expected the car share the same wheelbase and suspensions with the sedan. Disappointingly, despite of the loss of rear doors, the coupe is only 10 kg lighter than the sedan, and this is contributed mainly by the use of plastic front fenders instead of steel ones.

However, the coupe finds higher performance from new engines. Topping the range is the new 335i, powered by the twin-turbo 3.0-litre inline-6 previously reported on Feb 21. It produces 306 horsepower and a very wide torque band (295 lbft from 1300-5000 rpm). It can top 155 mph and do 0-60 mph in 5.2 seconds !

Next one is the 330i, whose magnesium-aluminum engine has been upgraded from the sedan's 258hp (or 130i's 265hp) to 272 hp (max torque is 232 lbft, same as 130i), a new height for efficiency ! this actually equals to Mercedes' 3.5-litre V6. The 330i tops 155 mph and accelerate from 0-60 mph in 5.8 seconds.

Then there is 325i. The 2.5-litre version of the Mg-Al straight-6 produces 218 horsepower and 184 lbft, same as the sedan. 0-60 mph is done in 6.6 seconds. Top speed is 153 mph.

For some European markets, a tuned version of the 2.5 engine with 177 hp will be offered, and the car is called 323i.

For the USA market, 330i is replaced by a detuned version with aluminum block. The car is called 328i. It produces only 230 hp and 200 lbft.

In the diesel side, the 330d gets the latest generation of the 3.0 common-rail turbo straight-6, good for 231 hp and 369 lbft.

Finally, there will be 320i and 320d as entry level models, but they won't be available from the beginning. The new 3-Series Coupe will go on sale in this September.

Apr 17, 2006

WCOTY: BMW 3-Series

The 2006 World Car of the Year award has been announced: BMW 3-Series. It beats Mazda MX-5 and Porsche Cayman S in the final. Below is the ranking of the top 10 finalists:

#	Car	Overall Rating
1.	BMW 3-Series E90	7.69
2.	Mazda MX-5	7.55
3.	Porsche Cayman S	7.40
4.	Honda Civic / Civic Hybrid	7.35
5.	Suzuki Swift	7.09
6.	Mercedes S-class	7.00
7.	Lexus IS	6.69
8.	Volkswagen Passat	6.57
9.	Mercedes M-class	6.16
10.	Range Rover Sport	5.60

To car enthusiasts like us, this result is more agreeable than those of the American COTY, European COTY and Japanese COTY. Although the 3-Series has been the most successful premium car in the world for years, and was highly praised by journalists as well as car enthusiasts all over the world, it has never received the top recognition from the aforementioned awards. The WCOTY award is elected by 46 automotive journalists from the American, Europe and Asia, thus the result is less biased.

Apart from WCOTY award, the jurors also named Citroen C4 as Design of the Year (note: same choice as last year's AutoZine Design of the Year award), Porsche Cayman S as Performance COTY and Honda Civic Hybrid as Green COTY.

Apr 17, 2006

Saturn Aura

Last year in Detroit motor show we saw Saturn Aura in concept version. Now it appears in production form with almost no change. The Aura replaces the defunct (and disappointing) Saturn L-series. Unlike its predecessor, it is largely engineered by Opel based on the new Epsilon II platform (i.e. next generation Opel Vectra). This not only saves unnecessary re-engineering costs but hopefully will improve the dynamic and quality of the car.

The Aura measures 2852 mm like Pontiac G6, which is derived from Epsilon I platform. It rides on struts up front and 4-link suspensions at the rear. The front suspensions employ aluminum control arm to save unsprung weight.

Unlike its Opel cousin, the Saturn offers two American-made V6s - the entry level is an iron-block 3.5-litre push-rod V6, with variable valve phasing at its sole camshaft to deliver 224 horsepower, compare to the 200 hp, non-VVT version used in Pontiac G6 (remark: G6 also offers a 3.9-litre version of the VVT engine with 240hp). If you think the pushrod engine not powerful enough to match its sporty look, you can opt for the aluminum block 3.6-litre dohc 24-valve V6 with CVVT. It has been widely used by Cadillac, Buick and Holden. In this form, it pumps out 252 horsepower. Moreover, it mates with GM's new 6-speed automatic transmission with paddle shift manual mode. That is more favourable than the cheaper engine's 4-speed automatic.

Apart from the V6s, we expect Saturn will also introduce the 2.4-litre Ecotec 4-cylinder engine as entry model. However, more interesting will be an electric hybrid version of the 2.4 engine. It will arrive in 2007 in the label "Green Line".

Model	Saturn Aura XE	Saturn Aura XR
Size (L / W / H / WB) mm	4851 / 1786 / 1464 / 2852	4851 / 1786 / 1464 / 2852
Engine	V6, ohv, 2v/cyl, VVT	V6, dohc, 4v/cyl, VVT
Capacity	3490 cc	3564 cc
Power	224 hp	252 hp
Torque	220 lbft	251 lbft
Transmission	4A	6A with manual mode
Suspensions (F/R)	strut / 4-link	strut / 4-link
Tyres (F/R)	All: 225/50R17	All: 225/50R18
Kerb weight	1600 kg	1654 kg

Apr 17, 2006

Nissan new Altima

This is the new Nissan Altima. It looks like a facelift of the current car, but Nissan said it is built on the group's new D platform. The new platform continues to employ MacPherson strut and multi-link suspension front and rear respectively, but the front suspension gets revised geometry and aluminum parts to save weight. The new body employs a lot of ultra-high strength steel to increase rigidity while limit weight increase to only 25 kg. Compare with the old car, the new Altima is slightly shorter in overall length (by 44mm) and wheelbase (by 25mm) but it gets slightly wider (by 7mm). Obviously, the aim is to improve its handling.

The new Altima continues to offer the familiar QR25DE and VQ35DE engine. The former is now rated at 165hp / 170 lbft, a slight reduction due to emission compliance. In contrast, the 3.5-litre V6 gets stronger output - 265 hp and 255 lbft - thanks to a new twin-ram intake, improved knock sensing and water cooling. Both engine now mates with Murano's Xtronic CVT.

To solve the torque steer problem experienced in the old Altima, the new car has its half shafts located at equal angle and more parallel to the ground. The engine is also mounted 30 mm lower to improve center of gravity. As a result, the new Altima should handle better than its predecessor.

Model	Nissan Altima 2.5	Nissan Altima 3.5
Size (L / W / H / WB) mm	4820 / 1795 / 1470 / 2775	4820 / 1795 / 1470 / 2775
Engine	Inline-4, dohc, 4v/cyl, VVT, bal. shaft.	V6, dohc, 4v/cyl, VVT, var inake.
Capacity	2488 cc	3498 cc
Power	165 hp	265 hp
Torque	170 lbft	255 lbft
Transmission	CVT	CVT
Suspensions (F/R)	strut / multi-link	strut / multi-link

Apr 17, 2006

Infiniti G35 facelifted

4 years after its debut, Nissan Skyline / Infiniti G35 is getting a major facelift. Outside, the body evolved to be more flowing and stylish. Inside, its dashboard got a much-needed thorough redesign, and the quality is finally upgraded.

To improve handling, the chassis got wider tracks (18mm front, 23mm rear) and higher rigidity due to new structural parts and more spot welds.

The VQ35DE engine has been upgraded to 4th generation. It got stronger block to reduce NVH and 15mm lower center of gravity. Improved knock control and water cooling allows the use of higher compression ratio (10.6:1, up from 10.3:1). The addition of exhaust VVT (continuous type) also enables the rev limit to increase from 6600 rpm to 7500 rpm. As a result, Nissan claims the new engine pumps out 300-plus horsepower (final figure is not ready), compare to the previous 280hp.

Apr 17, 2006

Hyundai Elantra renewed

Hyundai has announced the new Elantra. It stressed that the new car is more spacious than key rivals Toyota Corolla, Honda Civic and Nissan Sentra, also offers more trunk space. Moreover, the chassis rigidity is up by 49% compare with the old Elantra, or 5% higher than the Corolla (note: it didn't mention the new Civic and Sentra here).

The new Elantra rides on strut and multi-link suspensions. In the North American its power comes from a 2.0 dohc CVVT engine. It's not exactly the "World Engine" jointly developed with DaimlerChrysler and Mitsubishi, because it still employs cast iron block. Its output - 138hp and 136lbft - is also smaller than the 2.0-litre World Engine (158hp / 141lbft).

Whether it is good enough to steal sales from its Japanese rivals is yet to be seen, but for sure, the new Elantra is as ugly as before. It's unlikely to win the hearts of AutoZine readers.

Model	Hyundai Elantra 2.0
Size (L / W / H / WB) mm	4505 / 1775 / 1480 / 2650
Engine	Inline-6, dohc, 4v/cyl, CVVT
Capacity	2000 cc
Power	138 hp
Torque	136 lbft
Transmission	5M / 4A
Suspensions (F/R)	strut / multi-link
Tyres (F/R)	All: 205/55HR16
Kerb weight	1234 kg / 1246 kg

Apr 17, 2006

Bentley Continental GTC

No matter from the look or from the name, you can see Continental GTC is the convertible version of Continenal GT coupe. Its 4WD system, air suspensions and 560hp twin-turbo 6.0 W12 came intact from the coupe, while a 3-layer fabric roof should provide remarkable sound insulation. With a top speed of 195 mph when the roof is up or 190 mph with the roof opened, Continental GTC becomes the world's fastest convertible.

Apr 17, 2006

Zagato 575GTZ

Zagato has created a special edition of Ferrari 575M for Japanese car collector Yoshiyuki Hayashi. Based on the 575M chassis, it rebodied the car with a retro-style aluminum body. The car is called 575GTZ. Seems better looking than the original car.

Apr 17, 2006

Lexus LS600h L

The hybrid version of new LS is also the highest performance version. With the standard 4.6 V8 enlarged to 5.0 ltire, mated with electric motors and CVT transmission, the car produces 430 hp (up from 380hp of LS460). Toyota said it provides V12 performance and a fuel economy topping the V8 class.

Apr 17, 2006

Mercedes E63 AMG

Following CLK and CLS, the top E-class also switches to AMG's new 6.3-litre dohc 32v V8. In E63, it produces 514 horsepower, some 38 hp more than the outgoing E55's 5.5-litre sohc 24v supercharged V8. However, max torque of the naturally aspirated engine is reduced from 516 lbft to 465 lbft. Anyway, it gets a 7-speed automatic for compensation.

Apr 13, 2006

AutoZine enters mobile age

This article and the Jaguar XK report are written in a hotel room in Beijing !!! as I mentioned before, recently I need to make a lot of business trip to other cities in China thus the update of AutoZine will be affected. Now a solution is found: I got a laptop computer thus AutoZine can follow me to anywhere. I can write articles at night and upload to the server if there is internet connection. It's very tired though - now it is 1:30 am here in Beijing, and I need to wake up at 7:30 am. :(

Apr 9, 2006

New Audi TT

Audi has released the second generation TT. The original TT was born in 1998 and won world acclaims especially for its trend-setting styling. It is amazing that even after 8 years its design still look fresh and attractive. That makes the second generation hard to follow. The new car gets more edgy, but it retains the trademark profile of the original TT - an arc roof curves smoothly towards the tail and then swoop down the road. Like its predecessor, this profile generates a lot of aerodynamic lift at the rear end, so the new TT adopts a rear spoiler which recesses smoothly into the tail normally and raises automatically at over 75 mph. Another disadvantage of this profile is limited rear space. The new TT will continue to be a 2+2, with rear seats only suitable to small children or dogs.

Unsurprisingly, the chassis and systems of the new car is derived from Volkswagen Golf. In other words, it has an engine and gearbox mounted transversely between the front wheels, front-drive normally, while a Quattro 4WD system using Haldex electromagnetic multi-plate clutch is optional for most models and compulsory for the flagship V6 model. Gearbox can be either a 6-speed manual or 6-speed dual-clutch DSG gearbox, but now Audi calls it "S tronic" instead.

At launch, the engine range consists of 200 hp 2.0 TFSI direct injection turbo (same as Golf GTI) and 250 hp 3.2 VR6 (comes from Golf R32). Top speed are 149 mph and 155 mph respectively. With the dual-clutch gearbox, 0-60 mph takes 6.1 sec for the 2.0 TFSI and 5.5 sec for the V6. That's a considerable improvement from the outgoing TT 1.8T and 3.2 V6. With conventional manual gearbox, they take a couple of tenths more.

The new TT is 137mm longer and a massive 78 mm wider than its predecessor. At 1842mm wide, it is the widest car in its class (for instance, 60 mm wider than BMW Z4). This should be a key to its handling improvement. To compensate the additional metal, it makes the bonnet, front fenders, roof and doors in aluminum, while the panels of the rear body remain in steel to help balancing the car. Overall, 69 percent of the skin is aluminum. Nevertheless, the chassis is purely steel monocoque, so Audi's claim of "the body is constructed in the ASF Space Frame design" is misleading.

The suspensions are MacPherson struts up front and multi-link at the rear like all Golf V cars. However, it gets magnetorheological adaptive dampers (like the recent Ferrari 599GTB) to offer smoother ride in comfort mode and stiffer setting in hard cornering.

Model	TT 2.0TFSI S tronic	TT 3.2 V6 S tronic
Size (L / W / H / WB) mm	4178 / 1842 / 1352 / 2468	4178 / 1842 / 1352 / 2468
Engine	Inline-4, dohc, 4v/cyl, VVT, DI, var intake, turbo	V6, dohc, 4v/cyl, VVT, var intake.
apacity	1984 cc	3189 cc
Power	200 hp	250 hp
Torque	207 lbft	236 lbft
Transmission	6M DSG	6M DSG
Suspensions (F/R)	strut / multi-link	strut / multi-link
Tyres (F/R)	All: 225/55 R16	All: 245/45ZR17
Kerb weight	1280 kg	1430 kg
Top speed	149 mph (c)	155 mph (limited)
-60 mph	6.4 sec (c)	5.5 sec (c)

Apr 4, 2006

Noble M15

Almost 2 years ago in Birmingham motor show, Noble unveiled a new car called M14. Priced at £75,000, it intended to sit above the M12 and launch an attack to Porsche 911 Turbo and Ferrari V8 model. Now Noble had scrapped the plan for M14 and shows us another car instead.

The new car is called M15. According to Lee Noble, it is more beautiful, more powerful and faster than M14, but still priced at £75,000 and target at the same rivals. Compare to the existing M12, it is more comfortable, refined and practical to use.

In fact, the M15 is not a major change from the M12. Firstly, its styling is as ugly and as raw as the M12. Sure, there is some Koenigsegg at the front end, but the side profile is bland straight and the pronounced rear fenders reflects poor taste. The combination of small windows, long fastback, big headlights and big intakes look poorly proportioned, more like an outrageous American muscle car than a handsome European sports car.

Although the M15 looks bigger than M12, it actually shares the same short wheelbase as the latter. However, some 181 mm is added to the overhangs to improve crash protection which allow it to obtain EU type approval, a thing M12 was not designed for. Its bodyshell continues to be made of glass-fiber, while the tubular steel spaceframe chassis is derived from M12's. However, thanks to the reinforcement by bonded and riveted aluminum panels, the chassis gains 57% extra torsional rigidity. In addition to a 28 mm wider rear tracks, the M15 should handle better.

The car continues to use the Ford-derived 3.0 twin-turbo V6, but it is mounted North-South instead of transversely in the chassis. On the one hand, this shifts the engine 300 mm forward, contributing to better weight distribution (now 42:58). On the other hand, this enables better cooling to the intercoolers and turbochargers, thus Noble could dial up the boost pressure to 1.2 bar (remark: even the most powerful M400 runs at only 0.85 bar). As a result, the engine now pumps out 455 hp and 455 lbft of torque, compare with 352 hp / 350 lbft of M12 GTO and 425 hp / 390 lbft of M400.

Mating the longitudinal V6 is a new longitudinal 6-speed manual gearbox made by Italian specialist Graziano (the same supplier to Ferrari and Aston). The car has a limited slip differential but otherwise very little electronics - understandable for a small British car maker. There is no electronic damping, traction control or the like, although Noble is searching for a suitable ABS system.

The M15 weighs at 1250 kg (preliminary figure according Noble), some 170 kg heavier than the "luxury" M12 GTO-3R or 190 kg more than M400. However, the more powerful engine still enables Noble to quote 185 mph, 0-60 in 3.3 sec and 0-100 mph in 8.0 sec. That will be quicker than M400.

To justify the gain of weight and price, Noble will offer some "luxurious" equipment for this car: a satellite navigation with touch screen, a so-called "stylish" instrument panel (very ugly indeed), variable ratio hydraulic power steering, carbon-fiber bucket seats and a total of 300 litres of luggage space in the front and rear compartments.

Nevertheless, judging from the design, quality and finish shown in the pictures, I don't think it will be easy to find customers willing to pay Porsche 911 GT3 price for the car. Noble's sports cars might be very quick and good fun to drive, but it still needs to learn how to make its cars desirable.

Model	Noble M15	Noble M400
Size (L / W / H / WB) mm	4270 / 1850 / 1116 / 2438	4089 / 1828 / 1143 / 2438
Engine	V6, dohc, 4v/cyl, twin-turbo	V6, dohc, 4v/cyl, twin-turbo
Capacity	2968 cc	2968 cc
Power	455 hp / 6800 rpm	425 hp
Torque	455 lbft / 4800 rpm	390 lbft
Transmission	6M	6M
Suspensions	All: double wishbones	All: double wishbones
Tyres (F/R)	225/40ZR18 / 285/40ZR18	225/40ZR18 / 265/35ZR18
Kerb weight	1250 kg	1060 kg
Top speed	185 mph (c)	185 mph (est)
0-60 mph	3.3 sec (c)	3.7 sec (tested)
0-100 mph	8.0 sec (c)	8.8 sec (tested)

Apr 1, 2006

Queen Seeks New Car

Exclusive News:

The Queen of Great Britain is seeking a new Royal limousine to replace her 4-year-old Bentley.

In December 2001, Bentley - still under the same roof as Rolls-Royce then - presented the Queen a new London taxi... excuse me.... a new limousine as a present to celebrate her majesty's golden jubilee of ruining ruling the UK. However, 4 years on and the Bentley was proved to be horribly thirsty. It consistently returned single-figure mpg and eat heavily into the ever-tightening Royal family budget. Sources close to the Royal family revealed that Tony Blair recently requested the Queen to either change the car or walk on foot. Considering her majesty's overweight body, she chose the former option.

<< Horrible fuel consumption scared the Queen

The Queen was also unhappy that she was cheated by Bentley - since she received the car the company actually became a German company, controlled by a company established by her enemy Hitler and the Nazi party. This caused her many sleepless nights. Therefore this time around her majesty wants to make sure her new car must be produced by a pure British car maker.

In the beginning, the Queen chose Jaguar, hoping its lightweight technology can solve her overweight problem. Unfortunately, when she realized Jaguar was part of the Ford group and the latter belongs to American actor Harrison Ford, she shifted her attention to BMC. But then she was shocked to hear that BMC already evolved to British Leyland, then Austin-Rover, then Rover, and then MG-Rover, and then vanished a year ago.

Eventually, the choices were reduced to two manufacturers - Morgan and Bristol.

Morgan's managing director Charles Morgan felt very excited when he heard this news. "This is the best day to our family since my Grandfather caught a big fish in 1909 ! we will definitely tried our best to serve the Queen with the best car in the world ! we even developed a 4-seater specially for her majesty.

<< 4-Seater specially developed for Queen

"For sure, I am confident that our car suit her majesty most. For example, our wooden chassis matches her wooden face perfectly. Our outdated styling matches her outdated thinking."

At the other side, Bristol's Tony Crook also wants to make the deal with the Queen. "The Queen will be our most important customer. Frankly speaking, apart from her majesty I can't think of anybody interested in our outdated look. If we make the deal, we can increase our sales performance by 100% compare with last year !

<< Bristol Blenheim 3G

"I do think we have strong advantage over our competitor because we knows the needs of the Queen. To reduce fuel costs, we shall offer her majesty our LPG-powered Blenheim 3G. We shall provide a 18-meter transparent refuelling hose, so it will be very convenient to steal gas from the kitchen of Tony Blair's house.

"Besides, the car has an easily replaceable spare tire located just under the front fender, so the Queen can do it by herself and save substantial mechanics costs.

Easy to replace spare wheel; Technician demonstrates how Queen fits here

"However, to me the proudest feature of our car is a huge boot. It can carry the Queen gracefully, with enormous legroom to stretch her legs, the longest door to enable getting in and out easily, and a big cylindrical pillow to allow her majesty to sleep comfortably. The Queen must be happy with that !"

Apr 1, 2006

AutoZine's words

Sorry for the lack of update ! since came back from Beijing I have too much work thus no time to touch AutoZine (you had been warned already). However, I promise by June you will see a big facelift to AutoZine - I am already working now.... please be patient ! - Mark Wan

Apr 1, 2006

Industry News

GM sells Suzuki's stakes

To raise money for its own restructuring, GM sold 17% of its 20% stakes in Suzuki last month. Now it holds only 3%.

On the other hand, GM is also trying to sell Isuzu now.

Bugatti Veyron sold out

VW / Bugatti's effort is finally paying off. Bugatti said it has sold out all the Veyron to be produced in 2006. That's 50 cars, worthing 50 million Euro. The company wants to raise the production rate to 70 cars annually.

GM loss widened

GM announced it made a loss of US$10.6 billion last year, some US$2 billion more than previously expected.

Smart Forfour dies

DaimlerChrysler confirmed it will kill Smart Forfour soon. Last year, it sold only 43,700 Forfours, which is undoubtedly a disappointment. Killing the Forfour means Smart will return to a one-car brand, as the company has confirmed to build the next generation Fortwo.

The Forfour is a joint-venture with Mitsubishi Colt, both built at the NedCar plant at Holland (Remark: the Mitsubishi is also built in Japan). Killing it means Mitsubishi will face higher production and purchasing costs. DaimlerChrysler has already agreed to pay compensation to Mitsubishi, estimated at around Euro 1 billion.