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Keep Your Eyes Open
There are some new vehicles that have arrived or will be about to roll onto showroom floors in Australia. Some of them are particularly stunning and will end up in the limelight, I’m sure. Thought I’d let you know, especially if you’re looking to upgrade in the near future.
In another year or so, the brand new Mazda6 with SKYACTIV TECHNOLOGY and the SKYACTIV-G 2.0-liter gasoline engine will set the roads alight with its award-winning design and efficiency. Can’t wait!
How about the next-generation Subaru WRX? A new motor, a nice set of headlights, big wheel arches, big spoiler at the back, a new tail lamp design and a carbon fibre hood set the new WRX apart. If it’s performance you’re after, then this is the machine.
A new Jaguar F-Type with a supercharged 3.0-liter V-6 engine, and possibly a 2.0-litre motor as well, is nearing completion. Jaguar is making a statement with this one. Eight-speed automatics with start–stop technology, an aluminium body, and great handling promise to set the new F-type up against the Porsche Boxster and Audi TT-RS. The platform for this Roadster may also underpin an imminent XF sedan replacement.
If you can get your hands on one… mate, I reckon this has to be the hottest supercar for some time. 2013 will see the new Corvette. A grunty 5.5-liter V-8 with direct injection and higher compression provide the car’s awesome looks with performance and handling to compete with the latest Ferraris. Check out the sizzling rear lights and quad exhausts!
From supercar to supersuv, Porsche are on a mission to bring out their new Macan. Quite apart from the fact that the Macan, quite possibly, will be the best looking SUV in the medium-sized bracket, the performance will be remarkable. Porsche and Volkswagen continue to push the performance envelope here, and if the current Cayenne models are anything to go by the new Macan will be every bit as quick – as Porsches should be.
Enter the Mercedes Benz CLA. It will be well worth the wait and will be throwing its weight around as a big BMW competitor. The car should be rolling around in Australia by 2014.
Another car I’m really hanging out for is the new Peugeot 208. Very stylish lines, and Pulsion paintwork that changes its colour effects, will brighten up anyone’s day. Inside the new Peugeot 208 will be a crimson stitched leather interior, stripes and a panoramic glass roof. Powered by the efficient and responsive 1.6 HDi engine, the Peugeot 208 will be seen about next year.
Because we’re looking into the future, how about I finish with a car that runs on electricity? Holden’s new Volt is pretty much arrived, and will be an exciting car to drive. Plenty of zip and clean burning transport are what the Holden Volt is all about. Inspiring fresh looks, too.
Danger Lurks In Chinese Imports
The automotive press have got stuck into the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) for not taking decisive action against Chinese auto makers Great Wall and Chery.
Great Wall is the most successful Chinese brand in Australia, ranking in the top half of all imports, and is continuing to make significant inroads into the Australian market. So, are the press, and the motor repair trade justified in getting het up, or is it just a media beat up?
Let’s look at the facts-and it’s all about the asbestos content in the engine bays of these cars:-
• Asbestos was frequently and almost universally employed in motor vehicles for brake pads, engine gaskets and other parts for many years.
• Use of asbestos was banned for all motor vehicles sold in Australia in 2004
• Ateco imports Great Wall and Chery cars into Australia. They were given ‘written assurances’ that these vehicles complied with Australian design rules (and therefore did not use asbestos) before they signed the import licence agreements in 2007.
• But that was not the case, as it appears that these vehicle did have asbestos in them, thereby contravening various regulations.
• The ACCC was therefore brought into play to determine what action should be taken.
• Repairers called upon the ACCC to issue a full recall and replace all offending parts immediately. That would have cost many millions of dollars.
• The ACCC demurred, instead directing that warning stickers be attached to the offending parts at the next scheduled service- a much more watered down solution that some demanded. The ACCC said that the gaskets were sealed within the engine and presented no risk whatsoever to drivers.
But asbestos is deadly so is the ACCC acting irresponsibly?
The “YES” lobby says they are because the dangers are exemplified in later years when mechanics and possibly handymen owners start to mess around in the engine bay. Stickers may have come off, and owners/mechanics will have a false sense of security as they would be thinking that asbestos is banned, and therefore not a problem.
The “NO” lobby says that the ACCC has done all that’s necessary, that there is no immediate danger, and that mechanics have become well aware of the handling requirements of gaskets, and current imports of these cars now comply absolutely.
But a wider point of view asks how a car maker can be so unaware of the dangers of its own products and is casting doubts on the manufacturers themselves.
Of course the competitors to these two makers are happy to join in the fray, as there’s no doubt that Great Wall, particularly, is causing them a headache. Breaches with Customs and Border Protection have even been mentioned, and here the fines could be many, many millions of dollars.
We think the bigger picture is at play, that competitors are using every trick in the book to decry Chinese imports, which prompts us to ask how good they really are? Certainly they have a very big price advantage, but are they value for money, do they perform well and reliably?
If you have a Great Wall or a Chery, or you know of someone who has, we’d love to hear from you.
We also want to know what you think of the ACCC’s initiative, so have your say below.
Making Cars The Old Way
The Morgan Automobile Company
Until Henry Ford developed the assembly line approach to mass production, automobiles were assembled individually by hand. Each part was painstakingly machined, fitted and finished by workers who were more artisans than they were mechanics. Even the body parts were hammered out on wooden bucks and then carefully fitted in place. No two vehicles were exactly the same and parts were not interchangeable. In the early days of the automobile, blacksmiths were the mechanics. Most parts were individually forged and machined with the smith being the only craftsman skilled enough to do the job.
Along came that Ford guy with his mass production and the world of the automobile changed for nearly all the participants. Modern cars are not only produced where everything is interchangeable, but there are so many electronic “nannies” that they almost drive themselves, too. In fact, there is work being done on a totally automated vehicle that will travel on an electronic roadway while the occupants busy themselves with other tasks while on the way to and from work. For those who to whom the trip is the reason to travel, not the destination, it will be a sad day when most motorways are automated.
There is still one car manufacturer who has not changed the way they produce cars since the day they built their first car in Great Britain in 1911. Founded by Henry Frederick Stanley Morgan, the Morgan Motor Company is now run by his grandson, Charles Morgan. The company is still independent and still makes cars by hand. Their vehicles sell for between $44,000 and $300,000 USD, depending upon the model and equipment.
The beginnings of a Morgan are carefully assembled wooden frames over which are formed metal structural members. The bodies are individually crafted, fitted and assembled and just like in the early days, no parts are interchangeable with other vehicles of the same model. Every finished car is an individual work of art.
A Morgan purchaser is a special type of motorist. They are an enthusiastic driver who likes to be connected with their vehicle and be aware of the roadway under their wheels. They look forward to winding roads with great anticipation. They appreciate fine craftsmanship and are willing to pay for near perfection. Their friends are also auto enthusiasts and they share stories and the location of interesting stretches of highway on which they exercise their steeds.
Seagull magnets?
The exterior colour of a car presses many a person’s button but I wonder if the colour of a car has any other flow on effects?
Something a little funnier, though. Britain’s Daily Mail has recorded some results that some scientists have found out about car colour. Crimson coloured cars are much more likely to be splattered by bird poo! In a study, the scientists found that 18 percent of red cars were found to be poohed on, compared to just the 1 percent of green cars. Green cars were the least soiled of the car colours. I wonder if the red colour of a car spells danger for birds, which results in the bird having a bowel movement.
Silver is a very common colour for a car, and it’s amazing to see the number of times it takes out top spot for colour. One of the reasons for this is that silver does show off the car’s exterior lines very well. Choosing a grey car also helps to hide the dirt. So if you happen to live in an area with a high bird population, either buy a green car for a low hit rate or grey to hide the droppings. White and red are the worst for displaying bird droppings, though!
To the issue of safety: white cars are safest, so too are yellow cars. Green, black, blue and grey cars are not so easily seen, particularly in some lighting scenarios. The colour of your car does play a role on how easily seen you will be on the road.
Now, what about other sorts of grub and the car colours that suit them – or don’t suit them – best. Let’s take the type of car that’s most likely to get grubby: a 4×4 that actually goes bush rather than just transporting the family around town. Ideally, the best colours for these would be sort of brownish greens – khaki would be good. And you do see some green ones around. However, they tend to be darker green, which shows off all the light coloured dirt and mud. This may actually be the idea. Worst colours would have to be white and black. As many people have said, there are two sorts of dirt: the light sort attracted to dark objects and the dark sort attracted to light objects. So black and white 4×4 (meaning black ones and white ones; zebra striped Safari styles are good dirt-hiders) are mud magnets.
Trade vans also end up looking shabby. The ever-popular white van might be great for displaying logos and advertising but if the job involves anything dirty, there’s a chance you’re going to get it on the paintwork. So maybe white may not be quite so good after all. This is a good topic to mention a mate of mine who was an interior plasterer. He couldn’t find a cheap white van – not even a good old bog-standard Mazda van – but saw a dark pink one (Metallic Rose would have been the description if it had been a lipstick) that nobody wanted because pink isn’t the colour for a Real Man. He bought the pink one and is now very recognisable as The Guy With The Pink Van And The Bulldog. It’s good advertising, I guess. But white would have suited a plasterer.
The final word? Well, it really depends on how often you want to head to the car wash or spend time with a bucket of warm soapy water!
Level 2, 9 Help Street