Car Sales
Kia Stinger To Come Down Under & Kia Picanto Gets A Facelift.
A talking point of the North American International Auto Show in Detroit event before the doors have been thrown open, the new Kia Stinger has been confirmed for Australia.
The sleek, powerful rear-wheel drive GT fastback sports sedan is expected to make it into Australian showrooms by the end of the third quarter this year.
“This is a car you cannot help but be excited by,” Kia Motors Australia Chief Operating Officer Damien Meredith said. “It has all the attributes to appeal to the Australian enthusiast: exciting design, a high-tech performance engine and gearbox combination and rear-wheel drive.
“The Stinger is the right car to take Kia, and the brand’s perception, to the next level in Australia. It is the type of car to add desire and excitement to Kia’s core values of style, reliability and value.”
The Stinger will arrive in Australia with the 3.3-litre V6 twin turbo driving the rear wheels through an eight-speed transmission.
While final specifications are still to be settled the Stinger is expected to produce 272kW of power at 6000rpm and an impressive 510Nm of torque from 1300rpm through to 4500rpm. There is an expected 0-100km/h sprint of 5.1 seconds.
“Those are the sort of performance figures which will give the Stinger credibility in any company and add an emotional element to the already compelling practical reasons: 7-year warranty, 7-year capped price service and 7-year roadside assist, for considering a Kia,” Mr Meredith said.
Designed in Kia’s European studio in Frankfurt under the hand of Kia’s head of design Peter Schreyer and developed over extensive testing on the grueling Nurburgring under the watchful eye of KMC’s performance and engineering guru Albert Biermann, the Stinger is an uncompromising rendition of the true gran turismo ethos: nimble and fast, luxurious and quiet, with the perfect balance of ride and handling.
“I think for the Kia brand, the Stinger is like a special event,” Biermann said. “Because nobody expects such a car, not just the way it looks, but also the way it drives. It’s a whole different animal.”To further define the car for Australia, the KMAu ride and handling team will refine the suspension and tuning to ensure Australian buyers are presented with a local tuning package which best suits Australia’s testing roads. 
This news comes on the back of the release of information for the revamped Picanto, Kia’s entrant into the almost micro car class.
Created by Kia’s design centres in Namyang, Korea and Frankfurt, Germany, the new Picanto brings youthful and energetic character to the A-segment. The new model – revealed in Kia’s sports-inspired ‘GT-Line’ specification – conveys a more assertive stance through bolder body lines and subtly sculpted surfaces. A 15 mm-longer wheelbase (2,385 mm to 2,400 mm) also pushes the wheels further out into each corner for a more confident appearance. The Picanto’s colour palette is more vibrant than ever, with a choice of 11 bright paint options designed to make the car stand out.
Inside, Picanto’s suite of high-tech comfort, convenience and safety features is underscored by a modern and refined new cabin design. At the heart of the cabin is a new ‘floating’ touchscreen infotainment system, making the latest in-car technology available to occupants. The Picanto offers greater potential for customer personalisation, with buyers able to choose from a range of colours for trim and upholstery.
Buyers of the all-new Picanto will enjoy smarter packaging efficiency than ever before, with more cabin and cargo space than rivals in the segment. In spite of its extended wheelbase, the Picanto retains its characteristically compact dimensions. With a shorter front overhang and longer rear overhang, the all-new model is the same length (3,595 mm) as the car it replaces.
Kia will reveal the all-new Picanto in public for the first time at the 2017 Geneva International Motor Show in March, and will go on sale in Australia in the second quarter.
(With acknowledgement to Kia Australia for information.)
Are Convertibles Running Out of Gas?
Once viewed as the future for automotive development and progression, convertibles have seen various iterations – in fact, by definition, some of the first vehicles seen by the motoring world were classed as convertibles. But with sales numbers on the slide, and manufacturers now turning their attention towards other motoring initiatives, is the humble convertible running out of gas?
In theory, there are meant to be several benefits to the convertible: additional sunshine and wind-flow through the car; greater visibility; access to carry tall objects; not to mention the serene feeling that accompanies driving without a hood and having the wind blow through your hair on a sunny day.
In practice however, while convertibles have come a long way, they generally suffer from an array of hindrances. This includes: less noise protection (unless a ‘hard top’); less privacy at traffic lights; a lack of immediate protection against the weather or from objects above; safety issues in the event of a rollover; design shortcomings as a result of the roof’s storage; some loss in performance and fuel economy due to additional strengthening of the chassis to minimise ‘scuttle shake’; security concerns with a ‘soft top’; and functionality aspects like having to remain stationary to fold up the ‘top’.
With the sale of 4WD and luxury vehicles having increased considerably over recent years, convertibles have taken a back seat. Whereas manufacturers once offered many popular models in a convertible format, that trend has subsided for some time. Since the early 2000’s, worldwide sales for convertibles have dropped over 40% – in 2013 they were at a level of only 465,800.
In the biggest markets of the US and Europe, motorists have opted for cars that are more facilitating of their daily commute and the desire for other features, while in the Middle East and Asia, motorists have adopted to vehicles that shelter out their external environment – something BMW has noted. Locally, Australia’s attitude has also reflected an adjustment towards embracing cars more suited for outback driving, while the increasing affordability of compact cars, popular sedans and particular luxury cars remain tough competition.
The above would seem to suggest doom and gloom is abound. However, there are many notable exceptions to the rule. Most recently, the Mazda MX-5 took out awards for the Australian, and World Car of the Year, and has long been a favourite amongst motoring enthusiasts. Abroad, the likes of the Lotus Elise, Porsche 911 & Boxster, MGB Roadster, Aston Martin Vantage, and Mercedes Benz SL are popular, while in the early 2000’s the Honda S2000 had a cult following. And with the latest Ford Mustang now in hot demand, manufacturers haven’t entirely abandoned the convertible concept.
Although the image of a sports convertible looks a little more out of place today than in eras gone by, and the vehicles are perhaps not as practical as others, they’re not meant to be – they’re a fun driving experience, and best enjoyed by those who appreciate the rush of adrenaline from driving.
Where In the World?
When I look out over the busy city streets, I often am left asking the question: where on earth do all these new cars keep coming from? Did you know that around the world there are over 70 million new passenger cars produced every year? If you break that down further, you could say that around the world 191,000 new cars are made every day. Literally, where on earth are the cars being made up? And, which country produces the most cars?
You may already be in the know, but China is the greatest producer of cars. Over a quarter of the world’s new cars, that are produced in a year, are made in China. This number over doubles that of the second biggest new car manufacturer: Japan.
Why such the big numbers from China? China continues to grow its economy; and where there is more money for spending, the Chinese people want to own their own cars. Most of the Chinese made cars are being sold locally in China; however, around 1 million cars are exported from China around the globe. You may be familiar with Chery and Great Wall vehicles that are sold here in Australia. Export sales for China are still much lower compared with other countries, but China’s exported car numbers are continuing to grow rapidly. In Australia, new car sales would suggest that we all love our Japanese made cars, but let’s just get to grips with the fact that China is making cars at a rate that outstrips all other countries around our globe. So, it would be reasonable to suggest that in another decade or so Chinese made cars may be the top sellers in our country.
As far as the quality of product goes, Chinese made cars are rapidly becoming as well-made as cars made elsewhere around the world. Some predict that by 2018, Chinese made cars will be as good as any other equivalent model made elsewhere in the world. Chinese indigenous automobile brands include: Beijing Automotive Group, Brilliance Automotive, BYD, Dongfeng Motor, FAW Group, SAIC Motor, Chang’an (Chana), Geely, Chery, Jianghuai (JAC), Great Wall, and the Guangzhou Automobile Group.
So what about the rest of the world? New cars are made in Japan, Germany and South Korea at a high rate compared with other global manufacturers, but they still, individually, trail well behind China in production rates. The next tier of high automotive production includes India, USA, Brazil, France, Spain, Russia and Mexico. Iran, UK, Czech Republic and Canada produce around 1 million cars each year. Poland, Slovakia, Turkey, Argentina, Indonesia, Belgium and Thailand produce over half a million cars each year. Malaysia, Italy, South Africa, Romania and Taiwan produce between 250–to–500 thousand cars each year. Hungary, Australia, Sweden, Slovenia, Uzbekistan, Portugal and Austria produce between 125–to–150 thousand cars, while the Ukraine and Egypt produce between 50–to–100 thousand cars each year. The Netherlands and Serbia produce between 25–to–50 thousand cars each year. Finland produces around 2,500 cars, while numerous other countries put together all add up to around 350,000 cars each year.
Toyota Motor Corp. has retained its position as the world’s best-selling automobile maker, saying that it had sold over 10 million vehicles worldwide in 2015. Toyota, Volkswagen and GM account for roughly a third of the vehicles sold world-wide. The top five car manufacturers who sold the most cars worldwide in 2015 were: Toyota 10.8 million, Volkswagen 9.5 million, General Motors 8.9 million, Ford 8.6 million and Hyundai 7.3 million.
Oh Volkswagen, How Could You???
Dear Martin Winterkorn and the rest of the VW team,
Why did you do it? Why, oh, why did you fit your common-rail TDI diesel engines with cunning devices that cheated during emissions testing? Did you mothers never tell you that “cheaters never prosper” and that honesty is the best policy? Didn’t you realise that it was just a matter of time before you were busted?
Make no mistake about it, Martin. We like your cars. We all know how iconic Beetles and Combis are. The Beetle is the quintessential car that gives everybody a smile and has real personality. Even if practicality dictates that a Beetle can’t be part of our driving life, we love them anyway. We love the tough Amarok and Touareg, the snazzy Golf and Passat. We like the practicality of the Caddy and the Transporter. The fact that the recall affects five million cars worldwide just goes to show how much we like your vehicles.
We also like diesel engines. We like the way that a diesel engine tends to be more forgiving in the hands of a learner driver who’s learning not to stall. We like the way that diesels have better torque for towing and off-roading. We also like the way that diesel can be produced from environmentally friendly and sustainable sources like algae and waste oil to make biodiesel.
Surely, if you’ve got designers with the intelligence and skills to come up with an engine that’s smart enough to recognise when it’s being put through lab testing and adjust its emissions readouts, you have the team needed to develop an engine that has lower emissions all the time. Let’s face it: developing that took a lot of skill and sophistication. The same skill and sophistication could easily have been applied elsewhere to make your already good cars even better. So what was the point of cheating?
Now you’ve got the bother and expense of recalling all the affected VWs (and Audis and Skodas) with the engines in question. And several have been banned for sale here in Australia, which is really bad news for all of us in the automotive industry. All those lovely Golf hatchbacks, Tiguan SUVs, Passat sedans and wagons, Audi A4 sedans and wagons, Audi A5 coupes, Audi Q5 2.0 TDI SUVs, Skoda Yeti SUVs and Skoda Superb sedans and wagons suspended from sale here Down Under, languishing in car yards instead of being on the roads where they belong. Anything with a fitted with 1.6 or 2.0-litre EA189 diesel engine, in fact.
The news informs us that a few of your engineers and suppliers spoke up as early as 2011 (or even 2007) warning you not to misuse the technology. I hope you’ve been nice to them. You should have listened.
Now you’re stuck with damage control. You will be able to bounce back from this. Lots of vehicles have bounced back from scandals, from the Ford Pinto fiasco to the Mercedes that rolled over in the Moose Test. Your cars are certainly good enough. We will buy them again… once you’ve made honest vehicles out of them.
Possibly, you have done the automotive world a service. You have highlighted the fact that driving in a lab test isn’t the same as driving in the real world. Maybe after this, cars will be put through real world tests in real-world conditions so their fuel economy (and emissions) stats will reflect the real thing. Lab testing is like sucking your tummy in when you get out the tape measure: it might make you feel nice inside at first but will leave you feeling horribly squeezed later. So thanks for highlighting this issue.
Yours sincerely,
Megan
PS: VW Owners: More information is available at the VW website as it becomes available.
Level 2, 9 Help Street