GM'S EN-V ELECTRIC CONCEPT SHOWS THE FUTURE?

General Motors’ EN-V concepts made their North American public debut at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas this week, following a six-month run as main attractions at the 2010 World Expo in Shanghai.

EN-V, short for Electric Networked Vehicle, is a vision of the future of urban personal mobility. Three different EN-V designs represent distinct characteristics that emphasize the enjoyable nature of future transportation: Jiao (Pride), Miao (Magic) and Xiao (Laugh).  

Using a driving course set up outside of the Las Vegas Convention Center, GM demonstrated the autonomous driving capabilities of EN-V, including a feature that would allow the vehicles to park themselves and automatically return to the user when summoned from a smartphone application. 

At less than half the length of a Smart ForTwo six EN-Vs can fit into a standard American parking space while oneself-balancing two-wheeled EN-V provides interior space for two passengers.  Using its sophisticated sensing technology, EN-V can detect obstacles in its path, including pedestrians or other vehicles, and automatically come to a stop.  

“I was a little worried about the balancing before I got in but it felt totally normal, complete natural,” said Mark Harris of the Sunday Times of London, who rode in one of the EN-Vs. 

“The field of vision is really impressive as well,” said Pike Research analyst John Gartner. “It’s a great sense of being aware of everything around you.”
Following CES, the EN-V vehicles will be on static display at North American International Auto Show in Detroit and make selected appearances around the United States. 

STORY BY GENERAL MOTORS

AMAZING NORMAL HILUX REACHES ANTARCTICA

A specially built Toyota Hilux has reinforced the bakkie’s rugged pioneering reputation by becoming the first conventional vehicle to drive the gruelling ice and snow route to South Africa’s scientific research base deep within Antarctica.

The 300km, 21-hour journey from the SANAE Summer Station (South African National Antarctica Expedition) near the edge of the ice shelf to SANAE IV was achieved with the Hilux running ahead of four monster Caterpillar Challenger vehicles that rely on tank-style tracks to achieve traction on the slippery surfaces.

The double cab Hilux 3.0 D4-D – designated the AT38 – features some special modifications undertaken by a team from Arctic Trucks of Iceland at Toyota SA Marketing’s workshops in Sandton.

It was driven by expedition guide and 4x4 instructor Geoff Dalglish who is tasked with introducing the vehicle on a trial basis to scientists, researchers and personnel from the Department of Environmental Affairs operating at the remote South African base.

“It was one of the most exciting 4x4 drives I’ve ever undertaken and the Toyota performed admirably under often challenging conditions, fulfilling all expectations,” Dalglish said.

“I ran ahead of the convoy but stopped often so that we could regroup because of the ever-present danger of a sudden change in weather and getting lost in whiteout conditions where you can’t see further than the end of the vehicle’s bonnet.”

Antarctica has a reputation for some of the worst weather on Earth and an environment that is not conducive to human survival, although this time the motorised convoy enjoyed near-ideal conditions in which the ice-covered continent revealed its haunting beauty.

“Apart from the drive, a braai under a searingly bright midnight sun with the mercury at minus 10 degrees Centigrade will be a memory I’ll always cherish,” Dalglish said. “We’d stopped at a caboose that serves as an emergency refuge and refuelling point at the halfway mark when the drivers decided it was time to celebrate our smooth progress with a traditional South African braai.”

During the epic journey the Challenger drivers were also invited to take the wheel of the Toyota for short stints and seemed well-pleased with the comfort and capabilities of the Hilux which was dwarfed by their 25-ton goliaths.

Dalglish praised the courage, stamina and resourcefulness of the team which routinely braves gruelling and dangerous conditions to perform essential support roles to the South African National Antarctic Programme (SANAP) which aims to increase our understanding of the frozen continent and its eco-systems.

Henry Valentine, Director: Antarctica and Islands division of the Department of Environmental Affairs said he was delighted that Toyota South Africa Motors had made the vehicle available for assessment. “We have a requirement for an agile and fast personnel carrier to transport research teams to and from our base in Antarctica and the specially adapted Hilux will be evaluated to determine whether this type of vehicle would fit the bill.”

Never before has there been greater environmental urgency – Antarctica is recognised as the world’s thermometer and ongoing research is a key to unlocking a greater understanding of global warming and climate change issues.

The arrival of the Hilux coincides with some important historic milestones – it is the 50th South African expedition to the Antarctic and much of their work in coming months will coincide with the centenary celebrations of the original race to the South Pole. Although it was Norwegian Roald Amundsen who reached the pole first, Englishman Captain Robert Scott found even wider fame in dying heroically during his ill-fated return journey.

There are already 11 other Toyota Hilux vehicles operating in Antarctica and the Hilux has made motoring history as the first and only conventional vehicle to have reached both of the Earth’s magnetic poles.

The Hilux also takes the lead with its much smaller carbon footprint compared to other motorised transport on Antarctica – in line with Toyota’s stated commitment to providing sustainable mobility – while SANAP’s study of the environment is regarded as invaluable in achieving a greater understanding of the planet’s fragile ecology and the challenges facing it.

STORY BY TOYOTA 

DAKAR 2011: DE VILLIERS WINS STAGE 10

South Africa’s Giniel de Villiers won the 10th stage of the 2011 Dakar Rally in his diesel-powered Volkswagen Race Touareg 3 on Wednesday.  It was the 38-year-old Stellenbosch resident’s 13th stage win in his eighth Dakar and his first since he gave the diesel-powered Touareg its first Dakar victory in 2009.

Patience and a conservative, safe approach to one of the trickiest stages of the event paid off for the South African and his German co-driver Dirk von Zitzewitz as his closest rivals and team-mates Nasser Al-Attiyah and defending champion Carlos Sainz made mistakes and lost time bogged down in the soft sand of the Fiambala.  De Villiers strengthened his third place overall with three stages remaining as he closed the gap to leader Al-Attiyah by 8 min 54 sec and took 18 min 13 sec out of second-placed Sainz.

De Villiers completed the 176-km special stage between Copiapo and Chilecito in Argentina in a time of 2 hr 53 min 15 sec, followed by the BMW X3s of Poland’s Krzysztof Holowczyc (+4 min 23 sec) and Frenchman Stephane Peterhansel (+5 min 38 sec).  Qatar’s Al-Attiyah was fourth and Spain’s Sainz fifth.  American Mark Miller and South African co-driver Ralph Pitchford finished eighth after losing over an hour stuck in the dunes.

Al-Attiyah, who has won three stages, leads overall by 12 min 37 sec from Sainz, victorious on five stages, who is 34 min 20 sec ahead of De Villiers.  Volkswagen has failed to win just one stage with Peterhansel taking the honours on stage five.  The Frenchman is fourth overall, 52 min 35 sec behind De Villiers.  Miller and Pitchford are fifth overall, 3 hr 40 min 43 sec in arrears. 

“Today’s result shows just how easily things can change on the Dakar,” said a delighted De Villiers.  “We know the Fiambala is a tricky stage so we decided not to push too hard and just maintain a good pace, like we’ve done throughout the rally.  You have to treat the Dakar with great respect.  We got all the navigation points right and made no mistakes.”

“We lost over an hour when we got stuck in the dunes and then the car wouldn’t start because it was too hot,” explained Pitchford.  “Unfortunately we lost time to Holowczyc, who has closed to within nine minutes of us, but we’re good for tomorrow and are confident we can defend our fifth position overall over the final stages.”  

With three special stages and some 1 300 km of racing remaining before the finish in Buenos Aires on Saturday, the battle is far from over and any one of the top three could mount the top step of the podium.

Thursday’s special stage is the longest of the rally at 622 km and will take the surviving competitors from Chilecito to San Juan via many little sand dunes and mountain tracks.

STORY BY VOLKSWAGEN

FUMING BMW REFUTES MERCEDES-BENZ SALES CLAIMS

BMW South Africa is crying foul over bitter rival Mercedes-Benz’s claims that it lead the premium segment in 2010. According to figures released by Merc, the company sold “over 22 500 cars” in 2010. According to BMW SA's spokesperson Edward Makwana, this claim is false as his company sold more cars, at 22 622 units for the BMW brand alone, and 24 405 including MINI. BMW SA does not have license to sell Rolls Royce in this country.

“The achievement of premium segment leadership in South Africa mirrors the success of the BMW Group globally, with similar drivers,” explains BMW South Africa Managing Director, Bodo Donauer. “As the leading provider of premium vehicles around the world, the success of our sales can be attributed to one of the youngest premium vehicle model line- ups available and robust demand for the many new vehicles we launched in 2010.

As a result BMW took 35.4% market share of the premium segment and an 8.8 overall market share (including MINI). At the forefront of this surge were the 3 Series – regular Top 5 seller -, the facelift X5 and the new X1. The 5 Series also did well to augment sales. MINI sold 1 783 cars in 2010, an average of nearly 150 units a month.

HYUNDAI VELOSTER IS MINI'S LATEST PROBLEM

Hyundai really is going premium. That’s worrying, not only for the competition, but for the buying public who are currently purchasing their Hyundais based on a value proposition. Perhaps premium is a little ambitious for now. Perhaps upmarket would be a more appropriate word to use. Take this new Veloster hatchback which was presented in Detroit. Hyundai says its sole aim in life is to remove the MINI from its top position, while fending off fellow challengers like the Alfa Romeo Mito, Citroen DS3 and the new Audi A1.

It’s a tough ask for anyone, but Hyundai believes its recent successes that have made it and sister company Kia the world’s fourth largest manufacturer of cars, will rub off and accelerate the Veloster’s future success.

A unique feature of the Veloster is the third door which is located near the passenger side. Yes, that means there are three doors (making it a four-door, including the boot door).

Possibly the car’s stumbling block will be its 1.6-litre naturally aspirated, four-cylinder engine. At 103kW it takes the middle ground against its turbocharged rivals, but brings nothing really special to the table. Perhaps the optional double clutch gearbox is something special, or maybe the fact that it weighs in at 1 172kg. But in high altitude places like Gauteng it will shed a tear upon confrontation with steeps and hills. Hyundai doesn’t really care about that though, since most of these cars are expected to sell in the US, Korea, China and Europe.

Among the goodies listed are a sound system that’s able to store music equivalent to 10 CDs on board, play back videos and iPod content. The target market demands such gadgets these days.

Should the market look positive this year we will get the Veloster in South Africa later in 2011, or in early 2012.

OPEL small suv

Quick sketch of what could be and OPEL suv

2011 New Chrysler Nassau Concept Cars will be launched later this year - 8e462c65b09f4f9c86b6d7431dda804d

According to U.S. sources the 2011 Chrysler Nassau will replace the Sebring as the next generation model (Chrysler Nassau concept cars pictured). The 2011 Chrysler Nassau will be the company's new mid-size sedan and will come on the market later this year. However, the 2011 Chrysler Nassau was not officially confirmed, nor denied for that matter. Although this name was used by the company for a 2007 concept cars , we should not expect the new 2011 Chrysler Nassau to look much like that concept.

2011 New Chrysler Nassau Concept Cars

The Chrysler designers have been working on completely new interior for the 2011 Chrysler Nassau and Dodge Avenger. The exterior will look substantially different. The 2011 Chrysler Nassau will offer the choice of two engines - 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine or a V6 Pentastar unit produced at Chrysler Trenton South engine plant.

Chrysler’s Sebring was never really anywhere near its competitors as far as its performance were concerned, which is why Chrysler has decided to make a fresh start with the car. And they have begun by giving the car a new name – Nassau – which is slated to hit the market in the last quarter of 2010 when it will replace the current Sebring.

The Nassau name plate was first seen on a concept car Chrysler had revealed in 2007. Chrysler also has a range of motorhomes available that are undergoing some modifications since earlier editions. Unlike the Sebring, motorhomes made by Chrysler are much larger and can accommodate more people in comfort. This type of vehicle is probably more suited to long distance travel and touring trips where motorhome hire is also an option for the vehicle.

The Chrysler’s Sebring is not being seen in good light of late, something that can be attributed to the sedan relying heavily on fleet and rental fleet sales with the majority of the grouse coming from the car’s interior quality which many claim is way behind what its competitors have on offer. Chrysler is of the opinion that the name ‘Sebring’ does not carry enough brand equity nor has any positive history associated with it that would make retaining the name for their all-new sedan really worthwhile.

“Chrysler bought the Nassau name when they came out with the concept, so it makes sense they would use it,” said Jim Hall, a consultant at a firm that is into advising automakers on future vehicles.

Another Chrysler Group model scheduled for replacement in the next 12 months is the Dodge Avenger. While little has been revealed on the new model (or whether it too will get a new name), previous reports suggested it would debut on a rear-wheel-drive platform as a sportier alternative to the Sebring.

That’s not all for there will also be an all-new Dodge Avenger to join the Nassau and is slated for a 2011 release with both the cars donning new interiors that Chrysler claims will match up to the best. The exteriors of the vehicles too will be a lot different so as to make them stand out as fresh new vehicles.

The 2011 Chrysler Nassau will be launched later this year. And The 2011 Chrysler Nassau price will be announced at a later date.