OPEL WILL MAKE A BILLION EUROS ONE DAY

Opel has been in the doldrums for some years now, profitably and also as far as product is concerned. Competitors have eaten into its traditional audience base with products that are exciting and relevant, and Opel has had a hard time keeping up. No more, says CEO Karl-Friedrich Stracke.

AUDI TOP DOG CONFIRMS X6 RIVAL

Volkswagen Group Design Director Walter de Silva is leaving no beans unspilled as he reveals more and more interesting stuff to Automotive News Europe. The latest is confirmation of a previous rumour, that Audi will get into the BMW X6 segment with something media have called the Q6. That’s a unique segment, meaning the X6 practically has no rivals as a Coupe SUV.

RENAULT LAGUNA COUPE UPDATED FOR EUROPE

A new Renault Laguna Coupe is on its way in 2012. Well, not exactly new, more like a very minor facelift to keep the car looking fresh. There isn’t much in the way of exterior changes, apart from new 17-inch alloy wheels, LED daytime running lights and a new colour palette.

SMALLER VOLKSWAGEN SUV COMING

Volkswagen is planning an even smaller SUV to the Tiguan, according to Automotive News Europe. The publication spoke to Design Director Walter de Silva who confirmed the news. Currently the smallest SUV badged as a VW is the Tiguan. The biggest in the brand is the Touareg.

YES, IT IS SO. BMW AND TOYOTA ARE COLLABORATING

It’s no longer a rumour. BMW Group and Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) announced that they have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) concerning a mid-to-long-term collaboration on next-generation environment-friendly technologies. 

DODGE RESURRECTS DART

Dodge was building the first Darts from back in the hippie 1960s through to the hazy 1970s. Now, that many years later, the Dart name is making a return. In a Fiat body nogal! That’s right, Fiat, which now owns Chrysler, has repackaged its new AlfaRomeo Giulietta as a Dodge Dart for the American public. Whether it will also take it internationally is still an unknown.

GEELY EC7 GATHERS FIVE EURO-NCAP STARS

The Geely EC7 has made history by becoming the first Chinese car to receive a four-star rating in the European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro-NCAP).

NOVEMBER 2011 CAR SALES: TOYOTA AND VW RULE

The South African car industry looks poised to hit close to the 600 000 mark by the end of the year, if indications from November sales are anything to test the air by. A total of 526 223 cars have been sold this year so far, while last month 49 499 units went off the sales floors.

JAGUAR XF SPORTBRAKE "SPY" PICS "LEAKED"

In a move precedented only by BMW, Jaguar has leaked these “spy” pictures from its own sources. The car is a wagon version of the XF, which is called the Sportbrake. Mmhh, why is this very similar to Audi’s Sportback models? Anyway, South Africa is unlikely to import these wagons as our people are simply not interested in buying station wagons, whatever premium manufacturers opt to label them.

2014 VOLVO XC 90 SKETCHES SHOWN

Volvo launched the XC 90 SUV way back in 2003. It actually represented a new design language for the normally-conservative Swedish brand (now owned by Chinese company Geely). But 8 years later it looks so long in the tooth that even sabre-toothed tigers would be envious. Unfortunately there’s still at least 2 more years to stroll through.