MOTORNETNEWS - AUGUST,  2008

FALCON FIRST TO GET FIVE STAR SAFETY RATING

Ford's new FG series cars have been awarded five stars in the latest ANCAP testing - the first and only - Australian-built car to achieve this world class rating. Amazingly, Ford's virtually non-existent Marketing Department has woken up at last and are playing this significant advantage for all its worth. 

What is hard to believe is that the FG Fords not only rate higher in safety than their immediate rivals, they ride better, are more economical, have more modern appearance and interiors and are better equipped model for model yet they are outsold each month by Commodore. It seems the only difference is that Holden has a superior marketing team, better advertising and hungrier dealers!.

The all-LPG FG Falcon is cheaper to run than a Corolla according to the RACV yet Ford's marketing people have kept this a deep dark secret. Ford also sells more locally built vehicles in Australia than either Holden or Toyota yet we don't see this in Ford's advertising. 

Perhaps Ford Australia might be better dropping its expensive foray into the boring V8 Supercar racing and spending some real money on Marketing and Advertising!  Toyota seems to do quite well without spending millions on racing!  Ford should also put more pressure on the parent company in the USA to allow Australia to produce left hand drive Falcons, Territorys and utes for sale in the Middle East. If this had been the case for the past few years we wouldn't have lost the Fairlane. www.ford.com.au

And, more good news for Ford. The FG Falcon XR6 Turbo Ute has won the annual Bang For Your Bucks high-performance vehicle shootout. In doing so it became the first Ford to win this prestigious (for car enthusiasts) award, the only utility to ever have won it and it beat dozens of other high performance cars from all over the world costing up to $80,000. The award is conducted by Motor Magazine and puts each contestant through a series of high speed and handling tests.  

RENAULT ADDS TO ITS HOT HATCH RANGE

Renault has the most comprehensive range of hot hatches on the Australian market now that it has released the Clio Sport 197 at a recommended retail price of just $39,990.  Powered by a normally aspirated, 2-litre, 4-cylinder , 16-valve engine that develops 145kW @7,250rpm and a very useful 215Nm of torque at 5,550rpm, the Clio Sport 197 should be a rocket ship on wheels.

The power gets to the front wheels via a close ratio six-speed manual gearbox. The car is claimed to be very tractable in traffic even at speeds below 5000rpm. Standard equipment includes 17" alloy wheels , leather stitched steering wheel, electric windows, drilled aluminium pedals, multi-function trip computer, cruise control, a 30Watt audio system and split folding rear seats.

Renault has also introduced the Megane Sport dCi 175 with a 127kW diesel that has stump pulling torque of 360Nm available from as low as 2000rpm. www.renault.com.au

,MERCEDES ADDS THE CLC COUPE TO THE 200 RANGE

Mercedes Benz has announced the addition of the CLC Coupe to the range of 200 series cars available in Australia.  The smart two-door comes in three versions, the CLC200 Kompressor, the Evolution and the Evolution+. All three models are fitted with  the standard 135kW, 250Nm engine. The Kompressor starts the ball rolling at $49,900 and is pretty well equipped. The Evolution goes a bit further up market at $53,900 while the Evolution+ get the works for $58,988 and adds even more luxury and equipment.

All prices include the Government's luxury tax of 33% but don't include on road costs or dealer delivery charges. www.mercedesbenz.com.au

CAR SALES STARTING TO WEAKEN

July auto sales were down 21.2% compared with June and only 2,315 vehicles above July 2007. Small and light cars continue to do well but there were few bright spots for the local manufacturers as imports continue to decimate the locals.  Ford's new FG Falcon is finding the going tough  as is Toyota's Aurion while the Commodore is just holding its own even with heavy discounting during the month.

Top seller for the month was still the Commodore with 4,906 sales followed by Corolla (4476), Falcon (3448), Mazda3 (2839, Yaris (2401), Camry (1912), Getz (1574), Astra (1488), Mazda2 (1447), Lancer (1395) and Focus (1226).

The Toyota Hilux (3553) topped the truck sales followed by Navara (1461), Prado (1404), Falcon ute (1328) and Territory (1028).

Toyota (20,521) led the monthly sales race and is so far ahead of Holden that it will be the No. 1 seller again this year. Holden (11,148)  retained second place, Ford (9464) was third followed by Mazda (6508), Nissan (5261) displacing Mitsubishi (4277).  Seventh was Hyundai (3759) dropping Honda (3566) down one spot then came Subaru  (2816) and tenth best result was Volkswagen (2634).

SHANNONS BACK GIPPSLAND MOTOR MUSEUM

Shannons Corporation is sponsoring the newly formed Gippsland Vehicle Collection established as Maffra. With an anonymous donation of $100,000 for the purchase of specialist vehicles for the museum and for running costs the operation has been going for 18 months and is attracting over 1,000 visitors a month.

Shannons will help with promotion of the site and its major themed exhibitions beginning with the American Motor Vehicles display from August 1 to November 30. Most of the display vehicles at the Collection are privately owned although there have been several donations. One of the features at the museum is a vintage service station.

MAZDA6 - LOWEST PRICES ARE JUST THE BEGINNING

With sales dropping considerably month by month, Mazda has taken steps to stem the losses on its Mazda6 large sedan. The result is a benefit for prospective buyers as prices drop from between $1750 and almost $4,000 depending on the model. Sales so far this year are 914 down on the same period in 2007 while Mazda sold 282 less Mazda6s in June than in May this year.

In order to soften the blow for those who have recently bought Mazda6 vehicles at the higher price, Mazda Australia is offering free scheduled maintenance and an extended warranty. The entry level Limited Sedan gets a $1750 price cut and now sells for $27,990 while the top of the range Luxury Sports Hatch drops from $46,910 to $42,990.

If this trend continues the slower selling Mazda CX-7 passenger truck might be the next to get a cut. Sales dropped 282 in June and year-to-date are down 1,239. www.mazda.com.au

50 MILLION PEUGEOTS

The first Peugeot rolled out on to French roads in 1891 and they are still rolling out today making Peugeot the oldest continuous motoring brand. Since then 50 million more Peugeot vehicles  have been produced. Today there are 24 worldwide production sites producing 160 different models. www.peugeot.com.au

SHANNON'S SUPER RIG

 Automotive insurance company and classic car auction specialists Shannons have launched a new project. It is the Super Rig, a 21m. semi trailer fitted out as an office with a rooftop grandstand that will be a feature at rural field days, country shows and car races/motor shows throughout Australia. 

The first outing will be at the Shannon's Alice Springs Extravaganza on July 26-27. Staff will be on hand to advise on and sell auto insurance as well as help with classic car enquires and sales. Inside there are game consoles and other entertainment features.

HANS SETS ANOTHER RECORD

Adventurer Hans Tholstrup is famous for setting records. He drove a Leland Mini Moke across Bass Straight, he has crossed Australia from north to south and east to west and he was the founder of the now famous Darwin to Adelaide Solar Challenge.

Hans' latest effort was to drive a Hyundai i30 turbo diesel mini car from Sydney to Melbourne towing a 400kg camper trailer loaded with 300kg of extra weight to simulate normal conditions. He recorded a fuel consumption of just 5.4 litre per 100 km for the 864.5km trip. 

Perhaps the Elmer Fudd government should have looked at giving Hyundai $35 million dollars rather than Toyota as no hybrid model would achieve that sort of economy. In fact, petrol electric hybrid cars record their best economy in urban conditions not on  highway or freeway (or toll way in Victoria)  trips. 

Incidentally, Hyundai has just celebrated the sale of its 700,000th vehicle in Australia since it was initially launched in 1986. www.hyundai.com.au

MARY AND HER HONDA

Mary Taylor is 90 years young and she loves her Honda Jazz and her country so much that she has driven around Australia 17 times! That's right, more than 250,000 kms. "And it hasn't missed a beat," says Mary. 

We believe this is some sort of record and should be in the Guinness Book. Mary is pictured with her trusty Jazz.  www.honda.com.au

  DYNAMIC STABILITY CONTROL FOR FORD FG UTES

Ford Australia is progressively introducing its Dynamic Stability Control (DSC) on the full range of its popular FG Falcon utility. From September all petrol-engined utes fitted with sports suspension will have DSC as standard. From  December DSC will be optional on 3/4-tionne and one tonne models. 

Ford's DSC system is standard on all Territory, the BF Mk III wagon and petrol-engined FG sedans. Ford was the first Australian manufacturer to fit a DSC system in 2004 with the release of the Territory. www.ford.com.au

HYUNDAI GET THE RESULTS WITH ESP CAMPAIGN

By offering Electronic Stability Control on the popular i30, Tucson and iLoad commercial van, Hyundai recorded a record sales result in June with 5,447 vehicles sold compared with the previous best June sales in 2005 of 5,221 units.

During May and June the fitment rate of ESP almost doubled as more buyers opted for the optional system on Getz and other Hyundai models. Amongst private/business buyers the take-up rate increased from 19% to 35%. The rate for Elantra buyers jumped from 15% previously to a staggering 76%. www.hyundai.com.au

HONDA CR-V LOWEST COST SUV TO RUN

In the latest RACV survey the Honda CR-V was named as the lowest cost to operate AWD wagon. It beat the Nissan X-Trail, Subaru Forester and Toyota RAV4. The weekly operating cost, which takes in depreciation, tyre wear and all associated running costs over an estimated five-year period, was $214.08 per week. 

The CR-V has been a great success story for Honda with almost 14,000 sold from June 2007 to July 2008. www.honda.com.au

AUSSIE MUSCLE CARS AND CLASSICS ON SHOW

Sunday July 20 is the date for the Shannon's Classic Australian Car Show at the Flemington Racecourse. More than 400 special cars are expected to be displayed ranging from high performance V8 muscle cars from the 60s and 70s to classic sports cars including Elfins, Bolwells, Purvis Eurekas, Notas and Ascots. 

Amongst the Valiant Chargers, Holden Monaros and Ford GT Falcons will be a selection of lesser known classic like Falcon 2-door coupes, Squire wagons and customised utes. Spectator gates open at 10.00am and admission for adults is $12.00 - children free. 

NEW HONDA ACCORD EURO IS HERE

Honda Australia has launched the new Accord Euro featuring an all-new platform, sporty styling, all-new interior and a new 148kW/234Nm engine, revised suspension and a special new power steering for greater security in wet conditions.

The new Accord Euro will be priced from as low as $32,990 for the manual transmission entry level model to $44,990 for the Euro Luxury Navi flagship of the range. The standard Euro is a very well equipped car with climate control air-conditioning, electric power steering, curtain airbags, front seat active head restraints, 17" alloy wheels, auto windows, exterior mirrors that tilt down when reverse is selected, heated right hand side exterior mirror and a 10-speaker audio system.

The mid-range Euro Luxury adds  8-way power seats for driver and front passenger with memory on the driver's seat, 18" alloy wheels, auto headlights and front and rear parking sensors. The top line Luxury Navi get all this plus satellite navigation and a reversing camera.

HYUNDAI ADDS A DIESEL TO THE SONATA RANGE

Hyundai's upper-medium sized Sonata is now available with a 2-litre, 110kW, 305Nm diesel engine - and buyers get a pack of latex-free vinyl gloves to make filling at the diesel pump a pleasurable experience! The diesel delivers the 305Nm of torque from as low as 1800rpm while maximum power comes in at 3800rpm. This should deliver smooth driving with plenty of acceleration for passing and getting away from the lights.

The quite luxurious and very well equipped Sonata SLX is available from $27,990 with the 2.4-litre petrol engine and  manual transmission. The SLX diesel is priced from $30,490. The very luxurious auto-only Elite model starts at $34,490  with the diesel selling for $36,990. The Sonata has quite a large interior, is very well built and is one of the most under-rated cars on the market. The diesel option may entice more buyers to look at this model in future. All Sonata models now have Electronic Stability Control plus new interior trim. www.hyundai.com.au

AUDI A4 GETS TOP STAR RATING

The new Audi A4, recently released in Australia has received a five-star rating in the latest European crash tests. The A4 was rated for adult, child and pedestrian safety in both frontal and side collisions making it one of the safest cars ever tested. The new A4 is pictured at right. www.audi.com.au