2012 Audi Q3

Audi Brings Upscale Luxury to Downsized Crossover

Already known for building vehicles of seemingly every dimension, from the subcompact A1 to the three-row Q7 crossover SUV, Audi has found yet another vehicular niche. The 2012 Audi Q3 fits into the newish, compact luxury crossover segment populated thus far by BMW's recently launched X1, which will serve as the Q3's chief foil. The Q3 was previewed by Audi's Cross Coupe Quattro concept at the 2007 Shanghai auto show, and now the production version returns to Shanghai for its official bow.

At 172.8 inches long and 72 inches wide, the Q3 is roughly the same size as Volkswagen's Tiguan, but the Audi is sportier and more coupe-like, with a gently sloping roofline and a steeply raked hatch. The handsome design is essentially a shrunken version of Audi's Q5 and Q7 crossovers. Employing aluminum for the hood and rear hatch helps keep the Q3's curb weight to about 3300 pounds.

A large, black mesh grille adorned with Audi's four-ringed badge defines the nose, which is surrounded by a thin line of chrome trim. The headlights are reminiscent of those on the A4 and A5, and the optional xenon headlamps add a C-shaped collection of LED running lights. Audi calls the body creases just below the car's beltline the "tornado line," which helps define the Q3's flared front fenders.

The Q3 sports a similar tailgate design to the larger Q5 and Q7, with a subtle roof spoiler and wedge-shaped taillight assemblies that include optional LED treatments. The high stance affords 6.7-inches of ground clearance -- not enough for serious off-roading, but plenty for a suburb-bound crossover.

The interior follows typical Audi standards, with a smart assortment of dark plastics, accent pieces, and switchgear arranged throughout the cabin along the lines of the new A1 subcompact. The Q3 offers an impressive array of optional toys for its size, including LED ambient lighting, adaptive headlights, adaptive cruise control, a panoramic glass roof, heated seats, keyless entry and ignition, and a variety of sound systems, topping out at the MMI navigation system with Bluetooth. All Q3s can be specified with Audi Drive Select, which lets drivers choose from multiple settings for the steering, engine, and transmission response. It also includes a new efficiency mode, which tweaks air-conditioner and cruise-control operation to maximize fuel savings.

In Europe, three engines will be available at launch, all of them displacing 2.0 liters and combining turbocharging with direct injection. Two gasoline variants offer 170 or 211 horsepower, while the turbodiesel unit produces 177 horsepower; a 140-horsepower diesel will debut later. Audi says the 140-horse engine can return up to 45 mpg on U.S. testing in front-wheel-drive Q3s; the 211-horsepower model can reach 62 mph in a claimed 6.9 seconds. All of the engines have stop-start functionality to help reduce fuel consumption.

The gasoline engines and the more powerful diesel come with Audi's signature quattro all-wheel drive, while only the weaker diesel gets front drive. The 140-horsepower diesel and 170-horsepower gasoline engines are available with a six-speed manual, while the beefier engines get Audi's seven-speed S tronic dual-clutch transmission standard.

Safety gadgets abound. Side Assist alerts drivers to vehicles in their blind spot, and Active Lane Assist can steer the vehicle if it wanders out of its lane. There's also a hill-holder feature. An available system reads speed-limit signs and displays them in the instrument cluster. For the truly lazy, the optional Park Assist will steer the Q3 into a parking space without scraping nearby objects.

The 2012 Audi Q3 will arrive in European dealerships this June. There are no confirmed plans to bring the luxury crossover to North America, but Audi has been loudly hinting that the Q3 will eventually make it to the U.S. Audi will no doubt be keeping a close eye on how the BMW X1 fares before it decides what to do.

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BMW M3 - the bakkie

Following the BMW M3 Coupé, BMW M3 Convertible and BMW M3 Sedan, a fourth body variant of this globally successful high-performance sports car is about to cause a stir. Under the strictest secrecy, the world’s first high-performance pickup has been created at the BMW M GmbH development centre. The sportiest example by far in this vehicle category, the BMW M3 Pickup will fire the imaginations of all motorists with a deep appreciation of top performance matched by a keen practical bent. 309kW under the bonnet and a rear-axle load capacity of up to 450 kilos take the hallmark BMW M relationship between race-oriented driving pleasure and everyday utility to an entirely new level. This unique vehicle has already completed extensive test and set-up drives on the Nürburgring’s Nordschleife in advance of its global unveiling on 1 April 2011.


With a high-revving V8 engine at the front, a generously sized load area behind and a removable Targa roof above, driver and passengers in the BMW M3 Pickup will relish an unprecedented take on the familiar M feeling. Yet this spectacular new development is unmistakably recognisable as a member of the BMW M3 model family. Corroborating this kinship are not just the inimitable power of the engine, but also fine-tuned aerodynamics and a tailored suspension set-up. Measurements in the wind tunnel showed a Cd factor on a par with that of the BMW M3 Coupé. Like every BMW M model, the BMW M3 Pickup has also demonstrated its dynamic potential on the North Loop of the Nürburgring. Official lap times have not yet been released, but the needle in the dial vouched for a top speed of 300km/h.
The kerb weight of the world’s fastest pickup undercuts that of the BMW M3 Convertible by around 50 kilograms. Removing the Targa roof shaves off a further 20 kg while at the same time lowering the car’s centre of gravity. This most unusual experience of top-down driving pleasure in a BMW M3 thus goes hand in hand with further optimised dynamic handling.
The practical features of the BMW M3 Pickup are no less impressive. Maximum load capacity has been raised to 450 kilograms. What’s more, the BMW M3 Pickup is the first BMW M3 variant in the 25-year-plus history of this model range to come with a trailer tow hitch.
Notwithstanding these unquestionable stand-out qualities, the BMW M3 Pickup will not be heading for the golf course or series development, but will retain its status as an exclusive one-off. It is earmarked for use as a workshop transport vehicle for BMW M. With this in mind, the current BMW M3 Pickup – unlike a similar predecessor built back in the 1980s – has gone through the requisite procedures to earn its road certification. Which makes it officially a truck – but one that puts a whole new spin on the meaning of the word.

2012 Mercedes-Benz C-Class Coupe

Mercedes-Benz has already rolled out sedan, wagon, and high-performance, and variants of the new 2012 C-Class, but the automaker just unwrapped the 2012 C-Class Coupe ahead of its official debut at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show.

The new model isn't Benz's first attempt at crafting a C-Coupe, but it is a remarkably different approach. Unlike the C-Class Sportcoupe hatchback, sold here from 2002 to 2007, the new two-door C-Class isn't a basic, entry-level luxury compact. Instead of competing against Audi A3s, this C is gunning directly at BMW's 3-Series Coupe.

Exterior styling is certainly handsome, if not predictable. The new C-Class Coupe is almost the splitting image of the C-Class sedan, and even uses the same front fascia and fenders as its four-door siblings. Coupe models do receive a sweeping panoramic glass roof that's nearly an inch and a half lower than the sedan, and incorporates a very BMW-like kick in the quarter window design.

Despite shedding a pair of doors, the coupe still rides on the same 108.7-inch wheelbase as the sedan, and is only a half-inch shorter and 100 pounds lighter. Mercedes continues to use a strut-type suspension in front and a five-link independent setup for the rear axle. Sport-tuned dampers are standard, although electrically adjustable units are available as a special-order option.

An AMG-tuned model is already under development, but for the time being, North American customers can chose from two engine options. C250 Coupe models are equipped with a direct-injection, turbocharged 1.8-liter I-4, which produces 201 horsepower at 5500 rpm and 229 pound-feet of torque from 2200-4300 rpm. C350 Coupes receive a direct-injection 3.5-liter V-6, which is rated at 302 horsepower at 6500 rpm, and 273 pound-feet of torque from 3500-5250 rpm. Both engine choices are paired with a seven-speed automatic transmission.

Standard equipment on both models includes 14-way power front seats, dual-zone automatic climate controls, Bluetooth phone connectivity and audio streaming, a 5.8-inch information display screen, HD radio, nine airbags, and Mercedes' driver awareness detection system. C350 models also receive heated front seats, a 12-speaker Harman/Kardon surround sound system, an iPod interface, and walnut interior trim at no extra charge. Navigation, xenon headlamps, keyless ignition, and larger 18-inch rims are optional on both models.

Mercedes has yet to announce pricing for either model, although it's widely expected the C-Class Coupe will slot in between base prices for comparable C-Class Sedans and the E-Class Coupe. Further details will likely emerge in September, when C250 and C350 Coupes are slated to roll into showrooms nationwide.

Porsche Panamera Turbo S

According to a recent report, Porsche will unveil the Panamera Turbo S sometime next month.
While nothing is official, the timeline matches up with the New York and Shanghai Auto Show. Furthermore, the original Turbo debuted at Auto Shanghai 2009 so it seems possible that the S could be introduced in China. Under the bonnet, power will reportedly be provided by a twin-turbo 4.8-litre V8 engine that develops 405 kW and over 800 Nm of torque. This should enable the hatchback to accelerate from 0 – 100 km/h in less than 3.8 seconds and hit a top speed in excess of 303 km/h. If the reports are correct, the Panamera Turbo S will start arriving at dealerships in the second to third quarter.

VRROOM WITH A VIEW: It’s diesel, but you can drive it (smiling)- Latest News

Unlike certain political parties, BMW wins from having its history repeat itself

IT’S AN appalling cliché but I really do wish more people would read up on their history. But so much of history’s relevance is in the teaching of it.

I was exceptionally lucky to have a history teacher who had passion for his subject, a real burning sense that the privileged snotbags in front of him needed to understand the course of cause and consequence in the story of civilisation.

Then, as fortune would have it, I spent a highly formative year under the tutelage of the great South African storyteller and historian David Rattray, a man who could paint the most vivid of pictures onto the dry grass of the plain next to Is andlwana, on the slopes of Spionkop, and under a fiery setting sun at Rorke’s Drift.

Julius Malema’s alleged remarks to representatives of AfriForum — that he would do to them what "we did to the Inkatha Freedom Party in 1994", a reference to the Shell House massacre — would suggest that Malema has at least a limited grasp of recent history, but perhaps not of an altogether greater picture. I offer a brief run-through, therefore, of a small slice of English history. It’s a period known to this day as "The Anarchy".

It was really a succession crisis, with early Norman England split among those who would support Stephen, and those who supported his cousin, the Empress Matilda, the only surviving child of the previous king, Henry I. When Henry died in 1135, Stephen, who had also been one of Henry’s barons, hurriedly made for London and was pronounced king, but almost immediately proceeded to make appalling decisions.

He conducted a civil war against Matilda and her supporters, a campaign marked by treachery, back-stabbing and alliances that shifted as the wind blew. He bitterly disappointed those who had supported him, meaning much of the administrative talent, especially Chief Justice Roger of Salisbury and even his own brother, Henry, abandoned him. These people were not replaced, and the king was too focused on the feuding to actually rule.

So factious was his reign, indeed, that King Stephen lost control of his own barons, who proceeded to become the most appalling tyrants to the people they ruled . They unilaterally forced taxes and arbitrary "penalties" on to the people unfortunate enough to be living on their land, and the ever weak Stephen was unable to do anything about it because his position as king was founded on the flimsiest complex of alliances and agreements. His weakness allowed for the flourishing of a voraciously greedy elite known as the "robber barons".

According to Edmund King’s history of the era, this letter from an abbot to a bishop regarding the behaviour of a Norman baron, William de Beauchamp, is typical: "Forty- four measures of threshed corn, which were being carried to meet the needs of our brothers, were seized by him, and our hopes for their recovery have been put off. Besides this we have for a long time been forced to give 3 shillings each month for the needs of his servants, and at each season of the year we have been compelled to plough, sow, and then reap 60 acres of his land. And on top of this, our men have been burdened with daily services and innumerable works, and he has not ceased to pursue and afflict them to the depths of misery."

And, ineffective and useless as he was, Stephen wanted to be king. He apparently saw no purpose in being king other than being king. There was no apparent agenda.

And England suffered terribly as a result of it. "Crist and alle his sayntes slept," said the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle of The Anarchy. "We tholeden xix wintre for ure sinnes" (We suffered 19 winters for our sins).

The 19 Winters, as the period is also known, only came to an end when Stephen died in 1154. As a patch-up, Matilda’s son Henry, a powerful military man, was crowned Henry II, creating the Plantagenet dynasty and ending The Anarchy.

And all of that because one "softe" (to quote the Chronicle), flawed man had a taste for power. In his pursuit of it he was willing to barter the property and prosperity of his own people, to offer it up as a sacrifice to the robber barons that kept his throne secure.

History, you see, is all around us. And when you get into a car, it too is a product of its history, it’s just that when it’s a BMW, as opposed to politics, it’s often not a bad thing to have history repeating itself.

The 5-Series can trace its history all the way back to 1962’s 1500, an elegant thing that brought a spacious four- door car to the BMW driver.

The current version of the Five is, I think, a rather good- looking thing, and I have reviewed it before in these pages, but I have just driven a rather special variant — the 520d. Yes — a 2l diesel 5-Series. There is but one model below it on the hierarchy, the 523i, but honestly, if it were my money, this is the one I’d get.

Because while a 2l diesel might sound as fun as being stuck in a lift with Sicelo de Beauchamp, it’s really fast enough for real life, and being a Five it still comes with that innate BMWishness, that superb steering, that lovely feel transmitted through that overly fat steering wheel. That eight- speed automatic is an absolute gem, too.

It delivers this with simply brilliant fuel economy. With its 70l tank brimmed, and driven sedately, it will drive from Johannesburg to Cape Town on a single tank of diesel. Because it has an official extra-urban consumption figure of just 4,5l /100km. And it’s a 5-Series. It’s simply unbelievably good. In town it’s also excellent.

So, yes, there will be an M5, a supercar in 5-Series clothing. There’s the 530d, which comes with a thumping 3l V6 and more torque than you’d ever need, there’s the 550i and the 535i, all excellent cars. But for me, in my life, I’d have this one. Because it’s a hell of a lot of car, these days, for less than R500000. Honestly, the 520d is a bit of a bargain because it delivers so much while being ever so careful of the resources it burns up. BMW, perhaps, have read their history.

Twin-Turbo Audi R8 V10- Latest Car News

It’s hard to argue with the potency of the Audi R8 5.2 FSI. With it’s 386 kW, mid-mounted, V10, the Lamborghini-derived engine is more than enough motivation for mere mortals. However, some folks out there felt slighted by the fact that Audi detuned the Lamborghini-sourced unit for its use in the R8.

Enter the folks at Heffner Performance, who decided to rectify the situation by sticking two massive Garrett GT35R turbochargers into the R8′s rear-end. The result? A 540 kW, twin-turbocharged, teutonic terror, that accelerates from 0 – 100 km/h faster than you can snap your fingers – and oh yes, those 540 kW are measured at the rear-wheels! Hefner are still busy with this project, but we’re sure they’ll be boasting about the performance figures as soon as possible.

LAUNCH NEWS: New Swift migrates south

Motor News headed swiftly to Natal to experience the latest Suzuki

 
DID you know a Swift can fly at 170km/h? I learnt this little fact last week while in the rather humid environs of Ballito during the launch of the new Suzuki Swift, which has exactly the same top speed. Watching a bird in flight is always a source of inspiration, but could the same be said of the latest generation of this popular small hatchback?



Well, where the bird is a thing of grace, the new Swift, like its predecessor, continues to try to have a slightly sporty appeal in its design. That said, you would be hard pressed to spot any changes at the front, but at the rear it has a new backside with new lights that give it more of a Toyota Yaris or old Renault Megane look.

In all honesty I think I preferred the previous design ; it was just a little more fashionable. I could understand if the rear provided more boot space, but it is still cramped and I barely squeezed in a couple of laptop backpacks, although of course you can expand the space for larger items.



The most welcome change, though, is in the interior , where the Swift has suddenly grown up, as though it is one of those very bright kids that was pulled out of high school and put into university at the age of 16. The instrument cluster has gone upmarket with a trip computer and sporty gauges and the centre console is like being in the Radisson rather than the Road Lodge of the old model.

The GLS versions we drove on the launch had a very well laid out audio system, (bizarrely optional on the GL) with the requisite remote buttons on the steering wheel and even a full climate control system, not to mention inputs for the trusty MP3 player or USB, although it failed to recognise the latest generation iPod Nano .



The dashboard itself has received a makeover, with accents of aluminium and sweeping lines that give it a much more trendy and pseudo-executive look. Here the designers have done an excellent job and it will be up to the likes of Toyota and Daihatsu to try to catch up, although I might stop short of saying it is better than a Volkswagen Polo.



The new model has a great deal to live up to, with the previous generation, which debuted in 2004, taking 5% of global market share. Suzuki is clearly optimistic though, with Andre Venter, the company’s divisional manager for sales and marketing, predicting that the share will rise to 7%.



It is not just new in the styling department though, with 40mm being added to the interior for more space, while the front track has widened by 20mm and the rear by as much as 15mm. This is supposed to translate into more dynamic handling but as we cruised through the hills of Natal, it was clear that while the level of traction remains good, the Swift has gone a little softer in the interests of improved ride comfort. This will suit the majority of buyers, so it is no bad thing and for those who want something a little sportier, a Sport model is in the pipeline although Suzuki SA could not confirm when it will arrive.



More changes also took place under the curvy bonnet, where the engineers have tossed the old 1.5l engine in the bin and replaced it with a 1.4l lump instead. This has resulted in a 5% drop in power to 70kW and a 2% decline in torque to 130Nm, but there is good news in that the company now claims a 13% improvement in fuel economy to an average of 5.5l /100km and a drop in emissions to 132g/km.

To all but the more enthusiastic owner that will seem like a fair trade-off, especially as fuel prices continue to soar higher than a Swift.



Travelling over hill and down dale, the car proved to be a great little cruiser, but we quickly learned that overtaking while going uphill might require something of a run-up, which in Natal was quite easy . If you have the five- speed manual then you can play around with the gearbox a little to make more use of the power available, but the four-speed auto had a tendency to change up while in the middle of an overtaking manoeuvre, leaving you feeling a little like Wile E Coyote who realises the ground has disappeared as he chases Roadrunner off a cliff.



This brings me swiftly onto the subject of safety and fortunately the new generation has ventilated front disc brakes, ABS, electronic brake-force distribution (EBD) and brake assist. You also have front driver and passenger airbags on the entry level GL while the GLS gets additional side and curtain airbags too.



The Swift already has a loyal following in SA, but the new version arrives in a more hotly contested market with the likes of the Ford Fiesta, VW Polo, Hyundai i20 and even the little Fiat 500 vying for your attention.

With pricing starting at R152900 for the GL and rising to R183900 for the GLS, it is still one of the picks of the bunch in terms of value and specification. It has massive appeal for private and fleet buyers and with its 4-year/ 60000km service plan it is also budget friendly as we face the probability of interest hikes later this year and other rising costs. It may not be as swift as it used to be, but the new Swift is still something of an inspiration.