Auto News 5

Volkswagen increased global sales at its core VW brand by 2 percent last month, boosted by a revival in European volume and strong demand for the Golf and SUV models.

News 12 Mar, 2014

Win a pair of general admission tickets for all three days of the 2014 Formula One Santander British Grand Prix at Silverstone.

Magna says its exteriors operating unit has secured unspecified new business to supply painted automotive body panels made from carbon fibre composite material for two 2016 model-year vehicles.

ZF supplies the new BMW 4 series with its optional eight-speed automatic transmission. The German supplier says the transmission can help reduce fuel consumption by up to 6 percent.

BMW has said it will begin deliveries of its new i8 electric sportscar in June, starting with its main European markets.

The year: 1985. Britain is in the middle of a foreign invasion.

During my travels around the United States in the role as Chief Justice of the

Even in death, Carroll Shelby still touches us from the heavens above, where we mortals pay tribute in celluloid.

News 12 Mar, 2014

Audi beats BMW to become biggest luxury car seller of 2014 selling 242,400 models worldwide in the first two months of the year

Citroen says the C4 Cactus will start at 13,950 euros when sales begin in June. That is well below the 18,850 euro starting price of the C4.

Citroen says the C4 Cactus will start at 13,950 euros when it begins sales in June, well below the 18,850 euro starting price of the C4.

The Nuerburgring, the German race track known as Green Hell for its challenging Formula One course, was sold to Dusseldorf-based partsmaker Capricorn Group.

Fiat paid CEO Sergio Marchionne 3.6 million euros ($5 million) in cash last year, including a bonus and incentives, down from 4.5 million euros in 2012.

Mercedes expects a 70 percent conquest rate for the GLA, the brand's smallest and cheapest SUV.

The Nuerburgring, the German race track known as Green Hell for its challenging Formula One course, was sold to Capricorn Group, an auto parts maker based in Dusseldorf.

Fiat paid CEO Sergio Marchionne $5 million (3.6 million euros) in cash last year, including a bonus and incentives, down from 4.5 million euros in 2012, the group's compensation report showed.

From GMM

The promoter of India's beleaguered formula one race breached its contract, F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone has revealed.

Last week, as Ecclestone announced the New Delhi race will not be run either in 2014 or 2015, the 83-year-old said the problems were mainly related to tax and bureaucracy.

But he has now told the IANS news agency: "The race promoters there (Jaypee) have not been able to comply with parts of the contract and they (the breaches) are mostly money related."

Bernie Ecclestone in India. (Photo: WRi2)

Ecclestone said he is hoping the problems can be resolved so that F1 can return to India.

"India is among the few new F1 venues where people understand the sport and want to understand it better," said the Briton. "That is why I have greater faith in India than China.

"I must clarify here that we still have very good relations with the (Indian) promoters and we still want to see through the remaining two years of our contract. But that can happen only if we get the financial guarantees," Ecclestone added.

Last week, Ecclestone said an Indian grand prix was unlikely to return in 2015, but he has now opened the door to that possibility.

"I am still trying for 2015 and we have got about two months time to make that happen," he said. "We really want to get back."

From GMM

One of F1's owners has admitted buying into the sport was "a mistake".

In 2012, Norway's central bank Norges bought a 21 per cent share in formula one along with two other investors, asset managers Waddell and Reed, and Blackrock.

But within Norway, the deal was heavily criticised, and that criticism is now reaching boiling point amid F1 chief executive Bernie Ecclestone's legal troubles.

"We have clearly indicated that we have a zero tolerance to corruption," the Norwegian sovereign oil fund director Yngve Slyngstad told business daily Dagens Naeringsliv this week.

"Yes, we have made a mistake," he admitted.

Bernie Ecclestone will be tried on bribery and corruption charges in a German criminal court next month, and according to F1 business journalist Christian Sylt, the latest twist is that Ecclestone's former lawyer Stephen Mullens has also been charged.

Norges' Slyngstad added: "Obviously if this affair is not handled properly we would not want to be a shareholder. In that case we would not hold on to our shares."

From GMM

Niki Lauda has dismissed suggestions formula one should boycott October's inaugural Russian grand prix.

Amid the escalating crisis in the Crimean peninsula, it has been suggested that part of the sanctions against Russia's behaviour should be to scrap the new Vladimir Putin-sponsored F1 race in Sochi.

Even after the Ukrainian situation worsened, president Putin met with Bernie Ecclestone in Sochi and said the F1 race would be "a bright, beautiful addition" hot on the heels of a successful winter olympics.

When asked if Russia's sanctions should include a boycott of its grand prix, Mercedes' F1 chairman Lauda answered: "That is completely pointless.

"All those responsible have decided that we are racing there," he told German television RTL, "so in this case we have an obligation, and that extends to Bernie Ecclestone and the FIA."

Photo: Formula Sochi

Newport Coast, CA -- Here, multimillion-dollar homes and Mercedes-Benz vehicles are as common as dandelions on your lawn. When I stopped at a golf club to take pictures of the Kia K900, one member asked if it really was a Kia because it looked like his first BMW 750iL. Another member (this one female) asked what it was, as she thought she might like one.

With unsolicited responses like that, perhaps Kia can make the jump in people's minds from economy carmaker to provider of luxury vehicles.


What is the 2015 Kia K900?
In its home market, Kia's large sedan is known as the K9, which meant North America needed a different name. Adding a couple of zeroes seemed the easiest way to make sure this large luxury sedan (which is to become Kia's flagship vehicle) would never be considered a dog.

2015 Kia K900 Price and Specs
The Kia K900 will initially be available in three distinct trim levels and colours -- Aurora Black, Snow White Pearl and Sterling -- all with black leather interiors. Basic K900 sedans will be known as K900 V6, which means a 3.8L V6 with 311 horsepower and 293 lb-ft of torque is under the hood. Premium and Elite trim levels will use a 5.0L 470-horsepower V8 that produces 376 lb-ft of torque. All trim levels use an 8-speed automatic transmission.

Pricing for the 2015 Kia K900 will start at $49,995 for the V6 base model then jump up to $60,995 for the Premium trim version. The Elite version will come in at $69,995. At present, Kia does not offer stand-alone options for the 2015 K900. However, the company has not ruled out the addition of extra colours and interiors, as well as options to the order sheet at a later date.

Canadian fuel economy numbers have not been finalized at this time.

In its home market, Kia's large sedan is known as the K9, which meant North America needed a different name. (Photo: Charles Renny)

Driving the 2015 Kia K900
I spent the better part of a day in a Kia K900 Elite doing a bit of canyon running, freeway driving, and putting down city streets in traffic for roughly 400 kilometres. At the Elite level, LED adaptive headlights are standard, as is just about every luxury item you can think of in the 2015 Kia K900.

In town, getting in and out of a parking space was easy thanks to the Active Parking system going in and the four-camera, 360-degree system that provided an excellent view of what was around the car when getting out. If I was in an angled parking space in the 2015 Kia K900 I had additional help provided by a back-up camera and a rear cross-traffic alert system to keep me out of trouble.

Extra-thick side glass and extra insulation made the Lexicon 17-speaker sound system a pleasure to listen to. Between the quality of the stereo, the road compliant suspension, and the low interior noise level, this rear-wheel drive sedan was indeed comfortable. I was constantly reminding myself that the speedometer was in miles-per-hour - and that meant setting the needle at 100 was not a good idea in the 2015 Kia K900.

Carving through canyons was just about as impressive as being on the freeway. There was a bit of tire wind up in hard cornering due to the tall sidewalls of the 19” Hankook tires, which meant the K900 pushed out a bit. Brakes were always progressive and powerful.

Between the quality of the stereo, the road compliant suspension, and the low interior noise level, this rear-wheel drive sedan was indeed comfortable. (Photo: Charles Renny)

Inside and Out of 2015 Kia K900
Striking styling that emphasizes luxury and technology are the first impressions given by the 2015 Kia K900. HID headlamps and LED headlamps are available, depending on trim levels. LED lights are even used in the side marker lights and tail lamps.

Power seats coddle you, are easily adjusted, and are heated and cooled to make life in the front seats of the 2015 Kia K900 quite comfortable. In the rear, the heated reclining individual outboard seats are as sumptuous as those in the front.

From the centre-console mounted mouse to the large and easily read instrument cluster, occupants never feel that Kia's goal is anything other than ease-of-use in the name of luxury. It seems almost like you have a ghostly chauffeur looking out for your best interests in the 2015 Kia K900.

In the rear, the heated reclining individual outboard seats are as sumptuous as those in the front. (Photo: Charles Renny)

Comparing the 2015 Kia K900
While Mercedes-Benz, BMW, and Audi are the benchmarks of this class, the best and most direct comparables to the 2015 Kia K900 are the Lincoln MKS as well as Cadillac's XTS and even Acura's RLX.