Unofficial Picture: 2011 Volkswagen Vento

Here are some more pictures of the Volkswagen Polo saloon, the Vento, that has recently landed in our inbox. The saloon is slated to hit the Indian roads by September this year. The Vento is essentially the saloon version of the recently launched Polo and it shares a common platform with the hatchback.

The vehicle looks ready for production and the images clearly show the shape of the boot and the taillight; which is strikingly similar to the image that was featured in Autocar India’s May 2010 issue. Specifically designed for India, the Vento will be tailored to the requirements of the Indian consumer and carry the Volkswagen DNA of German Engineering. The sedan will be manufactured in Volkswagen’s state of the art plant at Chakan, Pune.

Both the saloon (Vento) and the hatch (Polo) are similar upto the B-pillar, except for the blacked out headlamps which will differentiate it from its hatchback sibling. The Vento’s rear section or third box is well integrated with the body. The wheelbase has also been extended by an estimated 50mm for better legroom. Headroom too will be better as the roof doesn’t taper down as sharply as in the hatch.

With its authentic and elegant design coupled with innovative features and driving dynamics, VW is hoping the Vento to set new benchmarks in its class and to act as a key brand pillar for the company to stimulate its growth in the country.

This all-new saloon with a brand new set of engines promises to blend performance, luxury and economy like no other mid-size car. Expect the Vento to be priced in the range of Rs 7-9lakh, which will be on par with its competition.

Thanks to: Autocar India

Hot News: Mitusbishi Recalls Triton

Mitsubishi Australia is recalling all ML Triton models manufactured between October 2006 and January 2009 to correct a potentially serious problem with the front suspension.

The problem in the Thailand-built Triton is capable, in a worst-case scenario, of rendering the vehicle inoperable.

In an advice notice issued on May 31, Mitsubishi Motors Australia Ltd advised that the bolts attaching the ball joints to the upper arms of the front suspension may not have been tightened sufficiently during manufacture, which could result in "excessive suspension noise (knocking) and in the worst case the ball joint may become detached from the suspension arm resulting in the vehicle being unable to be driven."

The latter scenario is a potential safety issue and Mitsubishi says it will be contacting "All owners via mail on 11 June 2010 at their last known address. Owners will be requested to contact their authorised Mitsubishi dealer for inspection and re-tensioning of the ball joint retaining bolts."

Owners wishing to confirm the manufacturing date of earlier Triton models will find it on the data plate in the engine bay on the driver's side of the firewall. On later models it can be found on an adhesive label on the passenger's side B pillar.

The national recall applies to 42,525 Triton vehicles sold during the identified period.

Mitsubishi Australia's head of corporate communications Lenore Fletcher said no incidences of failure had occurred in Australia and that just two vehicles had presented with "possible" problems, which were rectified.

She said Mitsubishi is not expecting to find more than a small number of Tritons affected by the manufacturing fault.

"We believe incidences will be extremely rare," she said. "Any problem would become obvious long before failure was likely to occur."

Thanks to: Car Point

Hot News: Volkswagen to Buy Proton?

Proton could become the latest firm to join forces with the Volkswagen Group, according to the Malaysian firm’s chairman.

Malaysian media has quoted Mohd Nazmi Mohd Salleh as saying outcome of talks between the two firms would be made public within the next fortnight.

“The outcome of talks with VW will be made public in two weeks time,” he said. “I don’t want to jump the gun.”

Proton has long been tipped as a likely candidate for VW to team up with as Proton could use some of its spare production capacity to build VW cars.

Proton could also rebadge some of VW’s older models for its domestic market.

Responding to the Proton chairman’s comments, VW told Reuters said there was no concrete plans for Malaysia and there were no developments or agreements in place at this stage.

Thanks to: Autocar

Spied: 2012 MG 3

These are the clearest spy images yet of the MG 3, a new supermini that will go on sale in China next year and could make it to the UK in 2012.

The small five-door hatch has neat, inoffensive styling - although it falls some way short of the racy Zero concept that was shown at the Beijing show.

The MG 3 will offer a choice of four-cylinder petrol engines: a 1.3 producing 67bhp, and a 107bhp 1.5. The standard gearbox is a five-speed manual, although the 1.5 will be offered — in China, at least — with an automatic option.

There will also be a diesel; MG owner SAIC is in discussions with a number of potential suppliers. The firm also has a turbocharged version of the 1.5 petrol; with 156bhp on tap, it could form the basis of a performance variant.

The interior looks rugged but spacious. The test car’s fascia keeps branding to a minimum, although an MG 3 logo is visible at the bottom of the steering wheel.

This car is a top-spec model; the giveaway is the CD player slot, because more lowly trim levels will get a solid-state memory-based MP3 player only. The car is aimed at buyers between 18 and 28 years of age; the iPod-like controls on the steering wheel reflect this.

Later next year SAIC will launch an MG 3 ‘cross’ - a version with extra body cladding. It will be a successor to the MG 3SW (Streetwise), a Rover 25-based model that is a big seller in China.

Thanks to: Autocar

New Car: 2011 Citroen C4

Citroen's new C4 will take on the Ford Focus and Volkswagen Golf with a hi-tech cabin and much-improved fuel economy and CO2 emissions when it hits UK dealers early next year.

The model is described as “brand new” by Citroën but although all of its body panels have changed, it still sits on a modified version of the chassis that underpins the current C4. The new model is 50mm longer, 20mm wider and 30mm taller. It’s also likely to be lighter, thanks to new construction techniques and the use of laser welding in manufacturing.

The new C4’s styling is a neat evolution of the current car’s. It retains the pronounced curve in the roofline but adopts more C5-like front-end styling, particularly the headlights. In contrast to the outgoing car, which featured a ‘coupé’ version, the new C4 will be available as a five-door only.

It’s clear from this model that Citroën is keen to create a clear distinction between bread-and-butter models and their premium DS-badged stablemates. A performance variant of the C4 is said to be unlikely, and the gap between this car and the DS4 is expected to be wider than the difference between the C3 and the recently launched DS3.

The engine line-up is likely to remain similar to the current C4’s, although this will be the first production Citroën to get the e-HDi system previewed at the Geneva show earlier this year.

It mates a small electric motor to an as-yet-unspecified diesel engine that’s almost certain to be a 1.6-litre unit. Citroën says the powerplant, along with low-resistance tyres and stop-start, will deliver CO2 emissions of 109g/km at launch and 99g/km on future models.

Citroën is placing increased emphasis on the C4’s interior, which features a 408-litre boot (more than 20 litres larger than a Focus’s) and a number of personalisation options.

Dashboard controls will enable users to change the colour of the backlighting behind the instrument panel, and set polyphonic sound alerts as easily as changing mobile phone ringtones.

The line-up of technical features includes lane departure and blind-spot warning systems, adaptive headlights, a speed limiter with road memory settings and eTouch, an electronic system that monitors driving patterns and offers advice on how to improve fuel economy.

The new C4 will make its public debut at the Paris motor show in September. UK sales will start early next year.

Thanks to: Autocar

Spied Up Date: 2011 Opel/Vauxhall Astra 3-Door

Here are the best pictures yet of the car that Vauxhall hopes will have the Scirocco running scared. Our spies managed to bag these shots of the new Astra Sport Coupe prototype in the firm’s top secret scrap yard, before it was sent to the crusher. And the shots reveal a car that is substantially different to its five-door sibling.

Penned by British styling chief Mark Adams, the three-door Astra Sport Coupe features a different front bumper with larger air intakes and Led daytime running lights. This particular car also features Vauxhall’s panoramic front windscreen which extends back into the roof.

But it’s in side profile that the changes are most obvious. The tick-shaped crease which runs front to back along the lower doors on the five-door car now runs the opposite way, just like on the larger Insignia, while there’s a much more prominent boomerang-shaped feature shoulderline which runs back from the door handle.

The roofline is much more aggressively shaped, with steeply sloping rear glass and a rear spoiler that’s integrated into the sheet metal. At the rear, there’s a new bumper design and narrower, pointier LED taillights than those on the more conservative five-door model.

The Sport Coupe is set to become the third member of the new Astra family when it is unveiled at the Paris Motor Show in October. The Sport Tourer estate model will be unveiled later this month. For more details click here.
Thanks to: Auto Express

Spied Up Date: 2011 Opel/Vauxhall Zafira

The next Zafira is set to get a serious dose of style to match its practicality. As you can see from our exclusive spy shots, the Astra-based MPV remains faithful to the dramatic sketch of the car that was leaked last year.

You can just make out the Ampera Concept style air intakes in the front bumper, which blend with the intricate LED headlights. The light units feature multiple bulbs, just like the larger Insignia, and help give the newcomer a much more interesting nose.

A prominent feature line runs back from the light units, along the bottom of the side glass and up to a BMW-inspired Hofmeister kink at the rear. The sheet metal at the side also features the tick-shaped crease which is the same as the five-door Astra.

Unlike the smaller Meriva, the new Zafira won’t feature rear-hinged suicide doors. Instead, it’ll use large conventional doors which are almost rectangular in shape to make access easy.

The newcomer also features a gently sloping panoramic roof which gives the allusion of sportiness but doesn’t compromise rear headroom.

The interior will feature similar design themes to the Insignia, Astra and Meriva, which the next generation of Flex seating is likely to be best in class for accommodating seven occupants.

Under the bonnet, the newcomer is likely to feature the same engine range as the Astra, so the 1.4-litre turbo and 1.6-litre naturally aspirated and turbo petrols will be joined by a 2.0-litre diesel and 1.7-litre ecoFLEX oil burner. The Zafira is also being developed to accommodate the Ampera’s range extending petrol-electric powertrain. For more details click here.
Thanks to: Auto Express