GM, Chrysler Provide Additional Hurricane Relief(9/3/2005)
General Motors and the Chrysler Group have raised the bar on relief efforts from Hurricane Katrina. GM will make available 150 vehicles for the Red Cross to deliver food, medical supplies, volunteers and water in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Those vehicles include full-size SUVs, trucks and vans. GM^s operation in Shreveport, Louisiana, is assisting in the collection of bedding for victims, while OnStar has opened its full range of services to all customers living in areas hit by the storm. The GM Foundation will provide $50,000 of its initial cash donation of $400,000 toward the establishment of shelters for hurricane refugees. GM affiliate Isuzu also has announced that it will match employee donations to the American Red Cross. GMAC is starting to work with customers who are hurricane victims, reviewing their financial matters case by case. DaimlerChrysler Services is providing similar relief to its customers. The Chrysler Group^s philanthropic fund also has committed $500,000 to the relief efforts, while DaimlerChrysler Services has made a $250,000 corporate donation to the Red Cross. Partner Mercedes-Benz has contributed an additional $250,000 to the Red Cross, while the company^s Freightliner division has given $100,000. Mercedes also is converting a training center in the region to a shelter for victims.
Audi^s first ever luxury off-roader makes its debut at the 2005 Frankfurt Motor Show this month. The new contender in a burgeoning market segment is to be called the Q7, presumably fitting in between the A6 and the A8 in the Audi range. At launch, the Q7 will have a choice of either a direct-injection 4.2-litre V8 petrol engine (with 350bhp and maximum torque of 325lb.ft) or the excellent 3-litre six-cylinder diesel engine used elsewhere in the Audi range, churning out 233bhp and a stonking 369lb.ft of torque. The only gearbox available to start with is a six-speed automatic, though it is expected that the Direct Shift Gearbox will make its way onto future even higher performance versions.
Though Mazda will display the concept version of the MX-Crossport at Frankfurt, a car that is due to go on sale next year, of as much interest to show visitors will be an all-new concept car called Sassou. The name is a Japanese term that means having a positive state of mind, of looking ahead with optimism to the future. I for one think that if the Mazda city car of the future looks this good then we have a lot to be optimistic about. The Sassou didn^t have far to travel for the German show, having been conceived and created in Mazda^s Frankfurt design centre. It is the first of three new concept cars from the Japanese company, each to be displayed at a major show near to the design office; expect another at October^s Tokyo Motor Show and the third to be at the 2006 North American International Automobile Show. We think that the Sassou is set to be one of the Frankfurt Show stars.
As previewed at the Geneva Show earlier in the year, Cadillacis entering the mainstream with a new compact saloon aimed at the BMW 3-seriesand Audi A4. The BLS will go on sale across Europe early in 2006, with the UK getting right-hand drive variants at the same time. Prices have yet to be announced. Now the bad news, at least for driving enthusiasts: though Cadillac claims that the BLS will be dynamically brilliant, its drive is through the front wheels only, so don^t expect a driver^s car in the same vein as the 3-series. It will be interesting to see how it copes with the high power output of its turbocharged engines.
Toyota^s stand at the 2005 Frankfurt Motor Show features two very important new cars for the Japanese manufacturer. Both the RAV4 compact SUV and the Yaris supermini are to be replaced by all new cars, debuting at the show next month. As expected, the Yaris has grown, making more space below it for the new Aygo city car. Indeed, glancing at the pictures you may think that you are looking at a Corolla. The styling, carried out in Toyota^s design studio in France, is inoffensive, but not very interesting and the nose now looks quite MPV-like. Toyota is pushing comfort, quality and safety with the new Yaris, so expect a good showing in the benchmark Euro NCAP safety tests. The new Yaris will be made in France, with UK sales starting early in 2006..jpg)
Alfa Romeo^s return to America in 2007 was publicly kick-started last weekend with the stateside unveiling of an all-new concept car in the form of the stunning Alfa Spider. The new Alfa Romeo concept car was presented in the glamorous setting of the Pebble Beach Concours d^Elegance in California. The engine remains the same Maserati-sourced 4.2-litre V8, fitted with a supercharger. With an impressive 400bhp reached at 7,000rpm, the 8C Spider is theoretically capable of blasting to nearly 190mph, and accelerating from 0-62mph in around 4.5 seconds. The supercharger is said to deliver a flat torque curve, enabling the driver to make good progress without actually needing to extend the engine to its red line.
Looking like an illegitimate child of the facelifted 307 and the bonkers Grinnall Scorpion, the 20Cup is the latest mad concept car from Peugeot shown at this year^s Frankfurt Motor Show. Ignore the layout though and you will see subtle hints at the Peugeot 206 replacement, probably to be called the 207. The concept car^s 20Cup name is the first clue, and under the low bonnet is another: the 20Cup houses an all-new engine developed in partnership with BMW. The new powerplant pushes out 170bhp and peak power of 177lb.ft. In the concept car it is allied to a six-speed sequential gearbox with paddle-shift under the steering wheel. We think this engine will see service in the next generation of Mini as well as the 207.
It seems like it was an age ago that Nissan showed us its new small family car, though that was only last year, at the Paris Motor Show. The car^s name has been changed from Tone, to the official production name of Nissan Note and makes its debut in this form at the Frankfurt Motor Show. There have been no major changes to the show car, with the Note loosely resembling the Renault Modus, with touches of the current Micra, especially around the nose. As expected, the Note does not replace the Micra, fitting into the Nissan range above the supermini, but below the forthcoming Almera replacement. Its wheelbase is longer than the VW Golf^s, which should ensure plenty of space for up to five occupants. The interior is modern and well thought out, with loads of oddments space.
Still very much under covers from the general public, and a car that even official Alfa Romeo dealers know very little about, the all new Alfa Romeo Spider is set for unveiling at the 2005 Frankfurt IAA Show. Based on the striking Alfa Romeo Brera, the new Spider is bound to become a runway success. Expressing their determined new advance, Alfa Romeo has shipped a stunning red example of the new Alfa Romeo Spider across the Atlantic to the Pebble Beach Concours D^Elegance, where it was on private display to a select audience last weekend.
A new Caterham Superlight goes on sale this October, with obsessive commitment to weight reduction leading to an options list that includes windscreen, heater and carpets. The extensive list also states the change in weight thanks to the choice of certain options, allowing the customer to choose his compromise between comfort and trackday lap times. At £19,995 (for partial built, or £22,450 fully built), the Caterham Superlight does not come cheap, but its performance should be nothing short of breathtaking. Powering the Superlight is a 1.8-litre version of the venerable K-series, putting out 140bhp and an equally respectable peak torque figure of 124lb.ft. In its lightest format, the Superlight has the power-to-weight ratio to rival many junior supercars, hence the claimed 0-60mph time of less than 5 seconds.