New Cars of the World

A new monthly guide, called New Cars of the World, has just been launched by Worldcarinfo.com (The World of Cars) and this new monthly format presents the latest new cars introduced from around the world.

The first edition covers September-October 2011 and features the new BMW 3-Series, Isuzu D-Max, Hyundai, i30, Mia Electric, Honda Civic, Peugeot 308 Sedan, Volkswagen up! and many more new car models.

It covers all the key motoring markets of Europe, USA, China, South America, India and Russia and is easy to use with clear and concise descriptions, with many pictures and illustrations. The guide collates its data from the hundreds of auto websites from around the world and the PDF format can be e-mailed to your e-mail inbox on the 5th of every month (subscription fee applies).

The November 2011 Edition will be out on the 5th of December and will feature all the new cars launched at the Los Angeles, Guangzhou and Tokyo Motor Shows and if you want to get the first copy FREE then visit their website @

www.worldcarinfo.com

Small Sports EV Concept

Honda is planning to unveil three new car concepts, three motorcyle concepts and one power product concept at the 42nd Tokyo Motor Show, which takes place at Tokyo Big Sight between the 3rd and the 11th December 2011.

The three car concepts are as follows;

1. Small Sports EV Concept -  next-generation EV sports model.
2. AC-X - next-generation plug-in hybrid offering comfortable urban and long distance motoring.
3. Micro Commuter Concept - A micro-sized electric city car, featuring a HONDA MOTOR COMPO (two-wheel EV) slotted inside the vehicle.

In addition Honda will also show off the “N Concept”, a new mini type of vehicle plus the latest production models of the Accord, Insight, Jazz and CR-Z.

BMW 3 Series

The UK’s largest vehicle reliability survey has been conducted by Fleet News with the top FN50 vehicle leasing companies (by fleet size), who run in excess of 1.2 million cars and vans. This annual analysis asks the leasing companies to rank the best vehicles and manufacturers for reliability, with tables then created for a top 10 for cars and a top 5 for vans (see below).

German brands have dominated the results this year for both the car and van category, with the BMW 3 Series the most reliable car (and top car brand), the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter knocking the Ford Transit off the top spot for most reliable van, with Volkswagen leaping ahead of Ford overall, in the van reliability league table.

Fleet News Editor, Stephen Briers, said, “BMW has built on its position as most reliable car manufacturer supplying the UK’s largest contract hire companies, adding another attribute to low CO2 emissions, modest overall running costs and rewarding driver behaviour and making its cars more desirable to fleet operators”.

Volkswagen vans

On vans, Stephen said,”Van reliability is arguably more important than car reliability as vital supply chains can be disrupted through unnecessary vehicle downtime. Volkswagen has demonstrated with its leading position as a van manufacturer, and high placing for its models, that fleet operators can choose its vehicles in confidence”

Most reliable cars according to top FN50 leasing companies

1. BMW 3 Series
2. Honda Accord
3. Volkswagen Golf
4. Audi A3
5. Toyota Avensis
6. Nissan Qashqai
7. Volkswagen Passat
8. Audi A4
9. Mazda6
10. BMW 5 Series

Most reliable car manufacturers

1. BMW
2. Audi
3. Honda
4. Volkswagen
5. Toyota
6. Nissan
7. Mercedes-Benz
8. Ford
9. Lexus
10. Skoda

Most reliable vans

1. Mercedes-Benz Sprinter
2. Ford Transit
3. Volkswagen Caddy
4. Ford Transit Connect
5. Volkswagen Transporter

Most reliable van manufacturers

1. Volkswagen
2. Ford
3. Mercedes-Benz
4. Fiat
5. Renault 

Warranty Direct’s unique reliability index takes into account how often vehicles break down, their average repair cost and time spent in the garage, to calculate the overall reliability of any vehicle. The lower the Reliability Index number, the more reliable and cheaper it will be to repair your car.

If you are thinking of buying or leasing a new 4×4 or SUV, the top-10 models are dominated by Japanese and Korean cars. The Warranty Direct study looked at over 16,000 three-to eight-year old 4x4s and SUVs. It is important to choose the right manufacturer and model as Warranty Direct revealed that this vehicle category is also the most expensive type of vehicle to run.

While some of the models below have been replaced by newer vehicles, it does give you an idea of which manufacturer offers you the best reliability and running costs, especially if you lease and opt for a non-maintained contract. Honda scores particularly well in the study with a Reliability Index score of 6.

Further details of the Reliability Index can be found at www.reliabilityindex.co.uk

Top Ten rated 4×4/SUVs 

Lightning GT

The British designed and built Lightning GT supercar has been entered into the 2011 RAC Future Car Challenge which is on the 5th November. The 60-mile route is from Madeira Drive in Brighton to London’ Regent Street with the challenge for each entrant to use as little energy as possible.

The Lightning GT has two electric motors providing 300kW (about 400hp) to the rear wheels and has a 0-60mph time of just 5 seconds, with a top speed of 125mph. The range of the car is over 150 miles and with the addition of the range extender pack this increases to 225 miles. Charging takes as little as 10 minutes with an”ultrafast” off-board charger, 2.5 hours with the on-board charger and 15 hours from a domestic charger (using an adaptor).

There are around 80 low-energy pioneering cars competing in the RAC event from hybrid, hydrogen and low emission combustion engine cars and commercial vehicles, with manufacturers such as Honda, Mercedes-Benz, Toyota , Nissan, Vauxhall, Skoda and Volkswagen all participating.

If you are interested in leasing a low emission, fuel efficient car, then try the Vehicle Type Leasing Shopper where you can select the bodystyle, CO2 emissions target and combined mpg you require.

Mini E

BMW and Mini will both participate in the forthcoming 2011 RAC Future Car Challenge which will take place on Saturday the 5th November, the day before the RAC’s famous London to Brighton Veteran Car Run. The RAC Future Car Challenge starts at Madeira Drive in Brighton and the challenge is to drive to London using the least energy possible, within the 2hrs 45 minimum and 3hrs 30min maximum time permitted.

A BMW 320d Efficient Dynamics saloon car will be joined by two all-electric, emission free concept vehicles, the BMW ActiveE and Mini E. The BMW 320d Efficient Dynamics is the greenest production car that BMW has ever built and is capable of CO2 emissions of 110g/km and a remarkable 68.9 combined mpg. This car is no slouch however and still manages a 0-62mph time of eight seconds and on to a top speed of 142mph. 

The Mini E has already been proving its capabilities with a six months trial with 40 volunteers and this all-electric car has a 150kW (200bhp) electric motor powering the front wheels and offers a range of around 156 miles. The Mini E is just one phase in the BMW Project i scheme, that will see the launch of a mass-produced electric vehicle, the BMW i3 in 2013.

The BMW ActiveE will also undertake a series of six-month trials with over 1,000 volunteers worldwide and is another evolution in BMW’s Project i scheme. The ActiveE has a 168hp electric synchronous motor which propels the car from 0-60mph in in nine seconds and on to a limited top speed of 90mph. Recharging can be performed via a 13A or 32A power supply and takes around eight or five hours respectively. The car also has regenerative braking which helps extend the range to 100 miles between charges.

In addition to these BMW and Mini models, other car manufacturers will be bringing a range of their hybrid, hydrogen and low-emission internal combustion cars and light-commercial vans to the event. Last year car manufacturers such as Honda, Mercedes-Benz, Toyota, Nissan, Vauxhall, Skoda and Volkswagen attended. This year the total number of entries has been increased to 90, with a range of awards in up to 22 different categories, as well as by their power source.

New Honda Civic in disguise

Honda has confirmed that the new Civic and the next generation CR-V will be built at their UK manufacturing plant in Swindon, which is great news for the local economy and the UK as a whole.  The new Civic will be the ninth-generation of this popular hatchback since it went on sale back in 1972.

Mark Trowbridge,Director of Quality and New Model at HUM, said,”The next six months will be busy, as we ramp up to full production following the training and trial builds of the new car. The fact that we will be the only Honda plant in the world producing this hatchback version of the new Civic, makes us extremely proud of the highly skilled and dedicated team we have working here in Swindon”. Honda contract hire prices are on the site now with some special “quarter three 2011″ offers loaded by Honda as well.

EcoVelocity is holding a green motoring, low carbon festival show, that will run from the 8th-11th September at Battersea Power Station and they have just released some data about the top postcodes for green motoring. According to their research, Camden, Westminster and Islington are home to the greenest motorists.

They studied vehicle registration data from the SMMT (Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders) and found that more than one in four cars (28%) registered in the WC postcode, have CO2 emissions of less than 100g/km or less. Portsmouth is the most environmentally friendly town outside the capital. London however has the highest number EV charging points (93) for electric cars so these results are logical and Wales for example has the least number, with only 3 charging points in the entire country.

Here is the list of top postcodes:

If you want to see an interactive map of the locations of all EV charge points across the UK then EcoVelocity show organisers have complied one. The northernmost electric charge point in the country is in the Isle of Lewis, 750 miles from the most southerly one which is in Exeter.

The EcoVelocity show is a dynamic festival of hi-tech and ultra-low carbon vehicles and some of the leading car manufacturers will be in attendance, showing off their latest green models. Citroen,Fiat, Ford, Honda, Hyundai, Kia, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Peugeot, Renault, SEAT, Vauxhall,Volvo, Volkswagen and Mia Electric are just some of the names attending. You will find electric cars, hybrids, low-CO2 models as well as a test drive circuit to try them out and further information can be found at www.ecovelocity.com

Finding a low Co2 car to lease can also be a time consuming exercise so try our Vehicle Type Leasing Shopper as you can select the bodystyle you are looking for, i.e. hatchback, tick all manufacturers, then set the range of Co2, choose business contract hire and all models will appear by the least expensive rental.

The RAC Future Challenge

This year the RAC Future Challenge 2011 is taking place on Saturday the 5th November 2011 and is open to electric, hybrid, hydrogen and low-emission internal combustion engine cars and light-commercial vehicles. The challenge invites contenders to drive a 60-mile route from Brighton to London with the aim to use the least amount of energy.

This year the event organisers are using experts from Imperial College London to provide the expertise and neutral input to the event’s regulations, measurements and the results analysis. All vehicle entrants will be supplied with the necessary FCC data-loggers and sensors to ensure everyone has a fair chance to overcome any fitting problems and also to ensure all data recorded is accurate.

Last year’s car manufacturer entry list included prototypes, pre-production vehicles and current production cars from the likes of BMW, Honda, Mercedes-Benz, Nissan, Toyota, Skoda, Vauxhall and Nissan. For 2011 the total number of entries has been increased to 90 and because of the diversity of the vehicles involved, there are a range of awards in 20 different categories. The vehicle type energy categories have been revised to the following:

1. Pure Electric (EV)
2. Extended-Range/Plug-in Electric (E-REV, PHEV)
3. Hybrid (HV, HEV)
4. Hydrogen (HFEV)
5. Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) – up to 110g/km CO2 emission fuelled by any legal means

Goodwood Moving Motor Show

There will be a record number of new cars attending the Goodwood Moving Motor Show in two weeks time. The event gets underway on the 30th June, closely followed by the popular Festival of Speed (1-3 July). Goodwood expects more than 175,000 visitors over the four days of the event and if you are thinking of attending this fun packed meeting, here is a sample of some of the cars on show.

There will be public debuts for the Citroen DS4, Morgan 3-Wheeler, Abarth 695 Tributo Ferrari, Ford Focus Estate and BMW 1 Series M.

In the Supercar Run you can feast your eyes on the Ferrari FF, Lamborghini Aventador LP700-4, Pagani Huayra, Jaguar XKR-S, Marussia B1 and B2, Hulme Can Am Spyder, Hennessey Venom GT and the BAC Mono.

In The First Glance interesting performance cars section on show will be the Vauxhall Astra GTC, Honda CR-Z Mugen, Range Rover Evoque and Citroen Survolt concept. Other concepts at the show include the Alfa Romeo 4C and Jaguar CX-75 plus a number of other surprises.

Ticket details, and other information for the 2011 Festival of Speed can be found by calling the Ticket Hotline on 01243 755055 or at the Goodwood website below.

http://www.goodwood.co.uk/motorsport/motorsport.aspx