Hyundai Veloster: Turbo hatch arrives just in time

Hyundai Veloster: Turbo hatch arrives just in timeVeloster gains a turbo boost to help it compete against Toyota's GT 86

Less than a month before Toyota introduces its GT 86 sports coupe, Hyundai New Zealand is releasing a rival - a turbo version of the Veloster.

Hyundai's hatch-coupe will be priced from $49,990 for the six-speed manual. A six-speed auto version will also be available.

The 1.6-litre engine will benefit from turbo and the Veloster's power output leaps nearly 50 per cent to 150kW. Torque increases 60 per cent to 262Nm.

To cope with the extra performance, the SR Turbo gets ventilated front disc brakes that are 20mm bigger than those on the non-turbo models, recalibrated suspension, a quicker steering rack (2.78 turns lock to lock) and revised calibration for the motor-driven power steering.

It is distinguished from less-powerful Velosters by a more aggressive grille, round front fog lamps, 18-inch alloy wheels with chrome inserts, side skirts, a rear diffuser, rear spoiler and twin circular exhaust outlets.Standard equipment includes a panoramic glass sunroof and sports seats upholstered in a mix of leather and leatherette.

The Veloster has been the top-selling sportscar in Australia since it went on sale in February - although its lead will certainly be chopped back with the arrival of the GT 86.

Volvo's heroic warhorse

Neil Lyndon applauds the Volvo XC90, a good-value, luxury 4x4 that is also an excellent tow car.Before the internet, filling in a tax return was a riot of fun compared with the browbeating effort of finding the right match between a car and caravan.

But now, dozens of websites can do that job in a trice. You enter the details of your car and the websites list the caravans that it would be capable of towing. Or you enter the name of your caravan and up pops a selection of the cars that would be right for that model.

When, therefore, I had the offer of a family-size Hymer 485 Sporting caravan for a holiday in Central Europe, I tapped its name into these matchmaker sites and they all agreed that the Volvo XC90 would be “perfect” to tow it.

Volvo has announced some changes to the XC90 and, not having driven one since it was introduced nearly 10 years ago, I was eager to try it again.

So it was that I embarked in a new XC90 that took me from Scotland, where I live, on a 2,300-mile round trip across Holland, Germany and the Czech Republic, then home to Britain. In both directions, I nestled gratefully and comfortably in the billowy bosom of DFDS Seaways across the North Sea. I picked up and returned the caravan to Hymer’s factory in Bad Waldsee, but my family took the easy approach and flew both ways.The twin purposes of this trip were to visit distant Czech members of my family and to introduce our two young daughters to Germany, in the fond hope that they will eventually come to understand that country’s history, grasp its importance and speak its language.

To that high-minded end, we spent time in the ancient university town of Freiburg and in Munich, which may be the most civilised city in Europe. To leaven the dry dust of Dad’s lecture tour, we also took the children to Europa-Park (Germany’s biggest theme park) and for a short stay at the new Legoland, near Günzburg.

A good car and caravan were perfect for this roundabout trek. Hymer caravans are among the more expensive, but a minimalist and resolutely functional approach to interior design makes them look and feel more like an Ikea home than a show house on a Wimpey estate, which is the invariable approach of British caravan makers.

No chintzy curtains or moquette upholstery here, although the eyeball-searing white of the 485’s exterior proved, yet again, that my campaign to see caravans painted in more earth-loving colours has so far succeeded by zero per cent.

Volvo’s XC90 remains a heroic warhorse. Along with Toyota’s Land Cruiser, it is the big, luxury 4x4 for customers who don’t fancy themselves as the Duke of Edinburgh and don’t fancy paying a duke’s ransom for a Range Rover. The £44,500-plus price of the D5 SE Lux version I borrowed might be tens of thousands less than an equivalent Range Rover or Discovery.

Long in the tooth now – with an entirely new model expected soon – the XC90 recently got a cosmetic makeover to gussy-up its frumpy body. Body-coloured bumpers, LED daytime-running lights, metallic mouldings for the wing mirrors, dabs of faux metal around the cabin and white lighting for the instrument display are all standard tools in designers’ boxes when they are tasked with wringing a few more sales out of a model that is coming to the end of the line.

That turbocharged, all-aluminium, five-cylinder diesel engine of Volvo’s deserves to continue for many more years though. While dragging the Hymer around Europe, it was averaging more than 20mpg. When that burden had been cast off, it was often propelling the XC90 at a relaxing 120mph or more on unrestricted stretches of Germany’s autobahns.

Nobody who valued the stability of their stomach would want to throw this big lump of a 4x4 into a corner, but for covering 300 miles in a single morning, few cars are better.

Review: Mercedes-Benz A250 AMG Sport

Review: Mercedes-Benz A250 AMG Sport

In just one generation, the new Mercedes-Benz A-Class has gone from dull to delightful. It has a sporty and radical design based on an all-new front-wheel-drive architecture, one which the five-door hatchback will eventually share with other body styles such as a coupe and a crossover. The new A-Class has a lower centre of gravity, thanks to Merc's decision to ditch the previous sandwich floor construction. The car is also bigger at 4,355 mm in overall length with a wheelbase of 2,699 mm but with a height of just 1,433 mm.

Its interior is equally funky. The groundbreaking design has a trio of centre air vents punched into the smooth one-piece dashboard fascia. The centre console is shaped as a module below them, while the free-standing colour screen for the Comand audio and navigation system is above.

The brand with the three-pointed star says that all trim elements have been electroplated for genuine metal surfaces that are cool to the touch.

Under the bonnet, the petrol engines driving the front wheels through a new seven-speed 7G-DCT dual clutch transmission are available with three output levels - the A180 with a 122 hp 1.6-litre turbocharged engine; the A200 which is also a 1.6 but producing 156 hp; and the A250 with a 2.0-litre turbo and 211 hp.

This new generation of four-cylinder engines already meets the stricter Euro 6 emission standard before it comes into force.

One of its innovations is Camtronic, featuring early intake closure and variable intake valve lift - the first for a direct-injection engine with forced induction.

So when the engine is under partial load, the amount of fresh air is limited to reduce fuel consumption by up to 10 per cent.

The A-Class can be ordered in a variety of trim levels, with the highest being AMG Sport. AMG is the tuning division of Mercedes-Benz and the A250 AMG Sport comes with several high-performance modifications.

The most obvious are the diamond grille, aggressive aerodynamic kit and 18-inch alloy wheels. In the cabin, there are red accents and white dials for the meters. But beyond the cosmetic differences, the AMG Sport variant gets a 15 mm lowered sports suspension and Direct-Steer variable steering system.

AMG input has also resulted in a dedicated front axle. The wheel carriers and linkage points have been modified to increase understeering behaviour for lower lateral acceleration situations, thus boosting straight-ahead confidence at high speeds. As for the rear axle, it gets shorter links for higher lateral acceleration.

Mercedes-Benz A250 AMG Sport

Engine: 1,991cc turbocharged Transmission: 7-speed 7G-DCT dual clutch Max Power: 350 Nm @ 1,200-4,000 rpm Max Torque: 680 Nm @ 1,500-5,750 rpm 0-100kmh: 6.6 secs Top speed: 240 kmh CO2 emissions: 143 g/km Distributor: Cycle & Carriage 6866-1888

What this does is reduce stability to encourage sportier behaviour at medium speeds of 100 to 120 kmh. On the race track, the Mercedes-Benz A250 AMG Sport's power allows it to enter a fast curve enthusiastically. In keeping with the Mercedes philosophy, the suspension setting is still relatively comfortable.

As a result, there is noticeable body roll but the A250 still manages to inspire confidence with its reassuringly precise steering. Manual gear changes are quick and crisp, with the software for the 7G-DCT gearbox coming from the SLS AMG sports car.

With the A250 AMG Sport, Mercedes-Benz has managed to overhaul its image in one fell swoop. And as if that's not enough, look out for the A45 AMG with a 2.0-litre turbocharged engine driving all four wheels in the first quarter of 2013.

Mercedes Benz launches new car in Kochi

KOCHI, AUG. 5: 

Rajasree Motors Pvt Ltd, the exclusive dealer of Mercedes-Benz in Kerala, has launched the new Mercedes Benz B-Class 180 in Kochi. The new car was jointly unveiled for the Kerala market by cine actors Rima Kallingal and Remya Nambisan.

Elaborating the features, Sivakumar, Managing Director, Rajasree Motors said with a very strong customer base in Kerala, the company thought it’s only appropriate to move closer to our customers by launching young and trendier models. It is a booming market and we intend to serve our customers better in every way, he added.

Besides the outlets in Kochi and Kozhikode, he said the company is coming up with a 3S facility at Kozhikode on the Kannur road. The showroom and service centre in Thiruvananthapuram will be further expanded.

MERCEDES S class offroad(by UPTV)

BENTLEY CONTINENTAL V8

Audi A6 3.0 BiTDI Tuned by MTM 

The brand new 3-liter, twin-turbo diesel V6 from Audi is an engine that deserves to be taken very seriously. This unit is making headlines under the bonnets of various models. And why wouldn’t, when we’re talking about a 313 ponies, something which only petrol engines were capable of achieving.

Now, the A6 Avant powered by this mighty diesel has been targeted by German tuner MTM, who have boosted it in stages. The first stage costs €1,700 and brings the output to 365 PS and 560 lb-ft (760 Nm) of torque. But pay the full €1,800 and you can have your V6 BiTDI making 381 PS and 575 lb-ft (780 Nm).

Other available upgrades include a brake upgrade kit as well as MTM’s custom wheels sized from 18 to 20 inches.

"One MTM achievement principle is that the cars should be strong in accession and beautiful in appearance and this explains why there is such a variety of offers on bimoto rims in every size," MTM says. For nearly €1730, you can have 18-inch wheels, and for €5230 you can have 20-inch ones that suit the A6 3.0 BiTDI well