Oh dear. This will get the Eco-mentalists in a frenzy! Bio-fuels are the way of the future, they claim. Far less polluting than fossil fuels, they shout from the roof-tops. Apparently not. Nobel-Prize winning scientist Paul Crutzen and his team have shed a much needed light on the real cost of bio-fuels. Apart from the […]
EU cuts Co2 Targets to help Euro car makers
In an astonishing outbreak of common sense, EU negotiators last night agreed a deal to ease the draconian Co2 targets for EU car manufacturers. Originally, EU car makers had to meet the new regulations by 2012, but have now won a concession to hit 65% of target by 2012, 75% by 2013, 80% by 2014 […]
Mitsubishi confirms mad FQ-400
You’ve got to admire the Japanese. Here we are, deep in the doom and gloom of car sales in free-fall, and Mitsubishi pops its head above the parapet to announce the 2009 version of the mad-as-a-hatter Mitsubishi Evo X FQ-400! Anyone who saw, or drove, the Evo 9 FQ-400 will know what an absolutely mental […]
Ford puts Volvo up for sale
Having spent most of the last twenty years carefully building up a portfolio of Prestige European car makers, including Jaguar, Land Rover, Aston Martin and Volvo, the last of these, Volvo, has now been put up for sale by Ford. This hardly comes as a surprise when you see the precarious state of Ford. It’s […]
Stop-Start Freelander on the way
Land Rover has announced that it will be introducing stop-start technology on its Freelander range from May 2009, thus saving around 8% on the Co2 emissions, and taking the Freelander down a group on VED, which should help move a few more Freelanders off forecourts next year. The technology for the stop-start was developed in-house, […]
Aston Martin Slash 1/3rd of jobs
It’s getting silly out there. Aston Martin has this afternoon announced that it is to cut around a third of jobs at its Gaydon facility. That’s 300 full time and 300 part time. Aston Martin is the most iconic of British Car Brands. To be in this much trouble is really rather worrying. But there […]
Ford announces new Kuga models
Ford has announced today that it is expanding the current range of its mini 4×4, with the introduction of models at the top and bottom of the range. Slotting in as the base model is a 2wd 2.0 TDCi which has a Co2 output of just 159g/km. This is a crucial point for businesses when […]
Lotus Evora’s high profile waiting list
Lotus has certainly had its ups & downs over the years. Started and run by the legendary Colin Chapman, Lotus has always done its own thing – not always successfully, it has to be said. But the last few years has been something of a renaissance for Lotus, with the extremely able and agile Elise […]
Rolls Royce bucks the downturn
All we seem to have written about recently is the doom and gloom in the car industry. Bail-outs begged for, production shut-downs, low sales and lay-offs. But one manufacturer seems to be defying the odds, and has just posted record sales figures for the year. Rolls Royce sales, in the year to the end of […]
Euro NCAP gets tough on whiplash
As we reported a few days ago, the Renault Megane succeeded in achieving the joint highest ever score in the Euro NCAP tests. But as we noted then, this was the last bunch of NCAP tests under the existing regulations, and all changes from the New Year. As an introduction to the new tests, NCAP […]