Mercedes-Benz has officially released details regarding the new B-Class and the brands plans to release a dedicated ‘eco’ version as well as offer four-wheel drive and a range of alternatively powered models after the initial launch. The vehicle has been lowered by 30mm to improve sportier handling and beneath the passenger cell, an ‘energy...
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Mazda North American Operations (MNAO) is launching an all new pre-paid scheduled maintenance program, adding value to customers of new, used and certified pre-owned Mazda vehicle. The Mazda Total Advantage Program for new, used and certified Pre-Owned Vehicle Owners program benefits customers and adds value to their purchase by lowering scheduled maintenance costs. The MTA...
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Volkswagen shifted their sales strategy last fall when they lowered the price of their 2011 Jetta by $1,600. New buyers became more attracted to the vehicle and sales vastly improved. June’s combined U.S sales jumped 88 percent for the wagon and the sedan even with a price hike of $500 set last April. June was...
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Former Pininfarina employees, Alessio Minchella and Alessandro Camorali have decided to team up and form a new company, Camal, in order to offer stylish new products for vehicles at prices affordable to the general population. There was no better way to launch the brand than to target the new Fiat 500 owners, giving the car...
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The all-new 2012 Nissan Versa will boast a 30-mpg city and 38-mpg highway rating thanks to a new dual-injector system. Rather than switch to direct-injection system like many other automakers, Nissan’s solution to increasing demand for improved fuel economy uses two fuel injectors per cylinder (one for each intake valve on the 1.6-liter 4-cylinder), and...
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Everything’s big in Texas, so the saying goes. Unless Fiat has something to say about it: out of 70 existing Fiat dealers, 10 of them are opening up in Texas—the second-highest amount of dealerships, behind California, and tied with New York and Florida. Texas may seem like a strange state to sell small cars, considering...
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Mazda has officially announced that the assembly plants in Japan are back to normal operational levels. The Japanese automaker predicts that it will be able to achieve a domestic production volume of 900,000 units during the current fiscal year (April 2011- March 2012). The company is also predicting sales revenue of 2.19 trillion yen based...
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Who says driving around a van has to be boring? The all new third-generation Nissan Quest, known as Elgrand in Japan, just got a whole lot wilder thanks to the tuners over at Impul. Though these styling packages are made for the Japanese Elgrand front-end, those ambitious enough to outfit it to their USDM Quest...
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Toyota has officially announced a recall of certain 2006 and 2007 model year Highlander hybrid and Lexus RX 400h vehicles. The recall will affect 45,500 Highlander hybrids and 36,700 RX 400h’s. The issue stems from the Intelligent Power Module (IPM) located inside the hybrid system inverter that contains a control board with transistors. Certain transistors on the...
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Last Sunday, the Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca hosted Refuel 2011, the third annual track day for electric cars and motorcycles. The event was open to anyone with an electric car, ranging from the Tesla Roadster to DIY conversion cars. This year’s event was the first time that fully electric production vehicles from mainstream car makers...
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The world’s greenest race car has been banned from racing—for being too fast. God forbid. Like the great race cars of history, kneecapped for being too dominant, the Oaktec Honda Insight joins the Porsche 917 and Brabham BT46 as one of the quick yet misunderstood motorsport legends. Developed for Formula 1000 rallying, the hybrid Insight...
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Another year and another release for Scion’s now infamous xB urban utility vehicle. Much of what we’ve come to know about the second generation xB has been left untouched for their 2012 version, except for the addition of standard Bluetooth hands-free and HD radio technology. An option for a premium audio system with 5.8-inch touchscreen...
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With their latest victory at Road America in the GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge, Kia moves to the top of the team and driver’s standings in the Street Tuner class. Not bad for a team that’s only two years old. Drivers Michael Galati and Nic Jonsson won in the number 10 Kia Forte Koup...
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Stop/Start technology will more than triple in five years as automakers worldwide seek better fuel efficiency. This function allows a car’s engine to shut off when the vehicle is at rest, for example, at a stop light, and the engine restarts when the gas pedal is pressed. With the engine turned off for short amounts...
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AC Propulsion, a global leader in electric drive design, development and manufacturing, announced today that the Yokohama-sponsored electric race car using AC Propulsion’s proprietary electric drive system broke it’s own record set last year at the 88th annual Pikes Peak International Hill Climb. The electronic race car won the hill climb’s Exhibition Class and set...
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Fiat North America is ready to launch its first national ad campaign. The new campaign will kick off with a special event on July 4, the 54th anniversary of the original Fiat 500, said Laura Soave, head of Fiat North America. “We’re confident we can do a national launch and have the network in place...
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“B-Spec Rally Fit” and “Desert Pilot” sound like the names of Steven Seagal characters, but they’re actually Honda’s attempt to tackle the 89th annual Pikes Peak International Hillclimb. The Rally Fit is a modified version of the Fit that aims to keep things as stock as possible, while the Desert Pilot makes no pretentions about...
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y Sales for the Fiat 500 are picking up after a slow start in the US market. The Mexican built US version was off to a slow start after only selling 3,141 units through the end of May, but the cute Italian car is gaining momentum. Chrysler has just 70 Fiat dealerships nationwide however there...
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As part of the celebrations for the World Environment Day, Chevrolet showcased an electric version of their Beat sub-compact car in India. The Beat BEV (Battery Electric Vehicle) is powered by 300 lithium-ion battery cells, which will take eight-hours to charge from a standard 240V house outlet. On a full charge, the Beat BEV can...
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The long-anticipated replacement for the Aveo, the Chevrolet Sonic, is set to drop in August. But a strike at the Sonic’s plant could delay this—thanks to a pay discrepancy among assembly workers. The Sonic is being built by workers at the Orion assembly plant in Michigan, under the supervision of supplier LINC Logistics Co. Workers here...
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Just 14 of these limited editions will be built, each sporting special Lightning silver paint; accented by unique blue colette trim, on the hood and exterior mirrors, along with diamond finished alloy wheels and special Cygnet & colette exterior emblems.
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Toyota and Honda plan to hire as many as 5,000 temporary workers in Japan for the first time in more than a year as the automotive industry recovers from the March 11 earthquake. Toyota will be hiring between 3,000 and 4,000 temporary workers from mid-July as the company plans to increase production in October. This...
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Even with high gas prices, Americans are choosing fuel effiecient compacts with conventional gas engines over pricier gas-electric hybrids. Sales have steadily increased with the Hyundai Elantra, Ford Focus and Chevrolet Cruze while hybrids are showing little activity. Hybrid sales in the U.S peaked in July,2009 peaking at 3.6% and last month sales were down...
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r Tanner Foust was able to add another win to his list after beating out Finnish rally driver Marcus Gronholm in the head-to-head SuperRally competition on Friday night at the Global RallyCross Pikes Peak finale. The Ford Fiesta driver opted to take a retirement from Formula Drift to conquer the Rally circuit and leading the...
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