AGAIN, EXPENSIVE AUDI A1 NOT FOR THE US

The US is not getting the Audi A1. That is according to Mr Peter Schwarzenbauer who runs Audi’s global sales and marketing division. Previously we reported the same thing about the small premium car but said it would be delayed by a generation. Perhaps we were a little optimistic.

Schwarzenbauer told Autonews that Americans don’t seem to be interested in paying top dollar for a small car, no matter how premium it is. He said the brand is still too new to be taken down market in a place where they are still building their reputation against market leader BMW and Mercedes-Benz.

Audi South Africa has not said anything on the A1 yet but sales of the MINI should encourage them to at least have a serious look. The Audi brand in SA is doing very well as a desired motor brand in a traditional BMW/Mercdes-Benz market. Also, Audi’s plans of becoming the biggest maker of luxury cars by the year 2015 will best be served by cars like the A1.

HONDA ACCORD VOTED SA CAR OF THE YEAR

HONDA SAYS: Honda’s sleek, stylish and technologically advanced Accord 2.4 i-VTEC Executive sedan has won the coveted South African Car of the Year title for 2009. The innovative four-door received the accolade – one of the most coveted in the local motor industry – after an exhaustive nomination and evaluation process involving members of the South African Guild of Motoring Journalists.

The Accord was one two finalists from the Honda stable (the trend-setting Jazz hatchback was the other), and one of nine finalists. The award was announced by the SA Guild of Motoring Journalists at a glittering banquet attended by the who’s who of the motor industry, and followed an exhaustive nomination and evaluation process.

“The Accord’s victory in the SA Car of the Year contest is particularly sweet, given the highly competitive market conditions, and the widely held expectation that the title would be bestowed on a compact contender,” says Honda SA managing director, Yoshiaki Nakamura. “While buying trends are favouring smaller, more economical models, the Accord is a perfect example of how space, performance and luxury can be combined with frugality, efficiency and value to deliver a highly desirable and relevant motoring package.”

The Honda Accord’s victory is Honda’s second in the SA Car of the Year contest. The current Civic four-door sedan was honoured with the award in 2007. The brand has also been represented as a COTY finalist several times. The go-anywhere CR-V sports utility vehicle was a 2008 finalist, while previous versions of both the Accord and the Jazz also achieved finalist status.

The Accord sedan range currently offers a choice of 2.0-litre and 2.4-litre petrol engines, as well as a recently announced i-DTEC turbodiesel option, while transmission choices include a six-speed manual, as well as five-speed and six-speed automatic gearboxes.

Pricing starts at R270 900, which includes a three-year/100 000 km warranty, and a five-year/90 000 km service plan.

ON VIDEO: BMW X5 M AND X6 M TESTING IN SNOW

Check out this awesome video clip produced for Grip showing BMW’s upcoming “terrible twins”, the X5 M and X6 M during winter testing in Scandinavia. Last Monday we reported on findings that the two cars are to use a V8 petrol engine with two turbos in order to make about 405kW and 700Nm. I expect the cars to do 0 – 100km/h in about 5 seconds or less. Of course these figures are not officially verified by BMW and will only be so confirmed on the 4^th April 2009.

You can see the two cars slipping and sliding on snow and ice during what is undoubtedly some seriously extensive performance testing. Data is then captured and analysed on sight and information sent back to Headquarters in Munich for further analysis.

Although first reveal is online on 4^th April, a few motor shows will benefit from the cars’ presence, places like the Shanghai Auto Show and the New York International Auto Show.

When launched the X5 M and X6 M will represent the two most powerful mass-production SUVs the planet has ever seen. They will surpass the Porsche Cayenne Turbo S and Mercedes-Benz ML 63 AMG.

Click on the pictures to see the video.

MITO GTA CONCEPT PROVES ALFA'S DYNAMITE AMBITIONS

Alfa Romeo unveiled a new concept car at the recent 2009 Geneva Motor Show. Calling it the MiTo GTA Concept, Alfa effectively confirmed earlier rumours that the company was going after the MINI Cooper S JCW. The MiTo GTA Concept is based on the MiTo small premium hatch but it wears Alfa’s performance badge GTA. We last saw the GTA moniker on previous generation Alfa 156 and 147 models.

Although shown as a concept I seriously doubt Alfa will deviate too much when it comes to producing this little atomic device on rubber. Using a new 1.8-litre turbocharged engine the car produces a hectic 179kW (240bhp) which eclipses the MINI JCW by over 20kW and probably matches the next-generation MINI GP (if they make one – previous GP made 165kW).

The MiTo small hatch is on its way to South Africa. However there is doubt over whether the GTA version will make it to our shores given the current state of the local motor industry which is down about 35% on its 2008 sales.

LAMBORGHINI MURCIELAGO LP 650-4 ROADSTER: PICTURES AND INFO

New pictures and engine details of the Lamborghini Murciélago LP 650-4 Roadster have been released by the Audi-owned Italian brand. The car has plenty of orange that contrasts with the dark grey spot of exterior paintwork in many different areas.

You can see orange in places like floor carpet borders, peddle shifts at the back of the steering wheel anrd in the centre where the gear buttons are. This car runs on e-gear like the Superleggera so drivers don’t have to stress about changing gears using heavy clutches and gear levers.

Seats are finished in Alcantara and leather material. Alcantara is planted on lots of other interior areas as well to accentuate the snobbery of the Lambo owner.

Installed under the Lamborghini Murciélago LP 650-4 Roadster’s bonnet is a 6.5-litre V12 powerplant that ensures a good dose of 478kW (650hp) and 660Nm passes through the four wheels. Lambo says it will power the supercar from 0 – 100km/h in just 3.4 seconds up to a top speed of 330km/h (205mph). That makes the topless LP 650-4 Roadster one of the fastest Lamborghinis ever made.

Exclusivity is the name of the game at this point and to that end only 50 of these are to be built. I’ll only be able to confirm later today how many of these will be seen on Mzansi roads and perhaps even at what price.

**UPDATE: Lamborghini Johannesburg say there are no orders for the car as yet but it will retail at around R7.5 million a pop if and when orders are placed.

2010 TO BRING NEW AUDI A8

Next year should be another big year for Audi. The Ingolstadt company is working on the final touches of its brand new A8 luxury sedan which will first see the official light of day in 2010.

The 2010 A8 will be bigger and slightly longer than the current 5 metre car. It’s expected to be lighter as well, with more use of aluminium composites for the body. The new generation MMI with 3D capabilities and SD-card facilities, lane departure warning systems, blind-spot warning systems, quattro AWD and others are sure to feature in the new car while one or two unknowns will be unveiled closer to its launch.

Audi is extending the use of turbo technology in petrol engines to include the A8 and so we expect the ultra executive sedan to boast a twin turbo 3.0-litre engine at the bottom of the petrol range, while diesel fans get pretty much the same treatment. The 3.0-litre twin turbo petrol V6 should be good for at least 250kW and offer more than 440Nm of torque. At the top end we might see the V12 turbo diesel worth 375kW and 1000Nm appearing to bat for the A8. No hybrid plans are being announced at this point because Audi has its research and development budgets firmly in support of diesel technology at this point in time.

The A8 has been applauded generally as a worthy competitor to the BMW 7 Series and Mercedes-Benz S-Class but sales have generally not been anything close to its fellow Germans in the South African market. Audi will surely be applying new marketing strategies to lure buyers out of these two Teutons and even out of the upcoming 2009 Jaguar XJ into the A8 come 2010.

* picture depicts a sketch of a possible A8 shape