10-05-2012 06:00
+++ AUDI outsold market leader BMW for the first time in more than a year in April as continued high demand from China, the United States and Russia boosted vehicle sales. Deliveries of Audi cars and sport-utility vehicles increased 14.4 percent in April to 125,200, the company said on Wednesday. Sales of BMW brand models rose 7.4 percent, about half of Audi's pace, to 121,476 cars. Audi has narrowed the gap with BMW on year-to-date deliveries, which rose 11.7 percent to 471,300. That compares with a 10.1 percent gain to 478,030 vehicles at its Munich-based rival. A spokeswoman for Audi said monthly sales at the VW unit last surpassed BMW in January 2011. Audi is vying with Daimler's Mercedes-Benz division, which it surpassed on sales last year, to grab the sales lead in luxury autos by the end of the decade. The VW unit has a goal of doubling deliveries to about 2 million by 2020. "Audi will remain the No. 1 challenger to BMW over the next 4 to 5 years", said Frank Schwope, an analyst with NordLB in Hannover. "They're firmly rooted in lucrative markets and benefit greatly from VW resources". +++ Hiring a lawyer is like hiring a hitman. Except it's not against the law. A lawyer's job is to exert your will on your legal opponent, and on the legal system itself. So it should come as no surprise to see this evolution of DISTRACTED DRIVER case law: The victims of a traffic accident have filed a lawsuit against both the motorist and the woman he was texting with when he caused the crash, according to the Huffington Post. Let's just state for the record that we have no horse in this race, which is not unlike any other personal injury suit in which the plaintiff's attorney rounds up anyone and everyone that might be named as a defendant. The difference here, however, is that this is the first time we're aware of someone being accused of being an accomplice to the breaking of distracted driving laws and causing a crash without even being in the car. The driver, Kyle Best, a 19-year-old at the time of the accident, has already pled guilty to 3 violations of New Jersey law, including using a mobile phone while driving, careless driving, and leaving his lane, according to the report. Best hit a couple on a motorcycle with his pickup truck, resulting in both the man and woman losing their left legs. At the time, Best was exchanging text messages with Shannon Colonna, according to phone records. The couple's lawyer is arguing that Colonna knew she was texting Best while he was driving, and that her behavior is no different than if she had been having a conversation with him in the car, according to the report. Her attorney, however, maintains that she can't be liable for the driver's decision to read the text when it was not safe to do so and that she did not realize the dangers of texting while driving. The judge in the case is expected to decide whether Colonna can be included in the suit on May 25, according to the report. Certainly this case is a complicated one, and could have broad ramifications on distracted driving lawsuits as well as further legislation on the issue. If the plaintiffs' attorney is successful in bringing the texting woman into the suit, we can certainly expect that lawyers in other states which have texting bans will follow their lead. +++ FERRARI is recalling a small batch of 458s and Californias worldwide. The problem, which affects 206 cars in total of 13,000 built, is caused by an incorrect finish to the crankshafts in question. The problem causes unwanted vibrations which can damage the engine if it is not changed. “We are writing to all clients affected now, asking them to return the car to a dealer for the work to be done”, said a Ferrari spokesman. +++ OPEL ’s new style-led city car will be called Adam. The new car, which had been known as Junior up until now, is tipped to be unveiled at the Paris motor show in September. It will go on sale early next year as Opel’s answer to the Mini and Fiat 500. The ‘Junior’ name was considered for the production model. However, General Motors decided that it was “not mature enough” for the car, which aims to give an image boost to the Opel brand as it looks to escape the middle ground and head upmarket. The ‘Adam’ name was therefore settled upon, with Opel saying that it has the added bonus of getting people talking about the car and polarising opinion. “Adam has a mature character; it’s universal without being neutral”, according to a spokesman. “It’s something you’ll definitely have an opinion on”. Opel has confirmed that the Adam will be just 3,7 meter long, the same as the current Mini. Spypics reveal a three-door, four-seat hatchback with a wide, squat and sporty stance. Design features include a convex rear window reminiscent of the original Ford Ka’s, and an arched roofline in the style of an Audi A1. Officially, Opel describes its looks as “muscular and sporty”. The brief for the Adam has been to create a car that’s “chic and witty”, and one that doesn’t necessarily place an emphasis on functionality. It will be highly customisable inside and out, like the Mini and 500, and despite its compact dimensions it will “not be cheap or low budget, just small”. Opel said: “It’s something a bit different for us and the market”. It is likely to command a price premium over the larger Corsa. Underneath the Adam is General Motors’ new small car platform that has been designed in Korea. It is also set to appear beneath the next-generation Corsa. Engineering has taken place in Germany and the Adam will be exclusively built at Opel’s Eisenach plant. The core engine range will be new economy-focused three-cylinder petrol and diesel units. However, insiders have previously confirmed that the engine bay has been designed in 2 different sizes to house larger, sportier four-cylinder engines. An all-electric version is also planned for 2015. +++ General Motors and PSA (Peugeot, Citroen) are hammering out agreements for the projects they want to tackle together as part of their new global alliance, including expanding the number of vehicles they will build on shared platforms. The alliance steering committee (made up of 5 top executives from each automaker) was scheduled to meet for the first time in Detroit wednesday. "Work teams are in place, meeting regularly and hopefully soon we will be able to share the first update on alliance progress", GM said in a statement. +++ TOYOTA forecasts profit will more than double to a 5-year high as it shakes off last year's natural disasters and introduces new models to regain market share. Net income may increase to 760 billion yen ($9.5 billion) in the 12 months ending March 2013, from 283.6 billion yen a year earlier, the automaker said in a statement today. That compares with the 817.7 billion yen average of 21 analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg. The carmaker expects sales to rise 18 percent to 22 trillion yen this year. The forecast indicates Toyota may earn more profit than General Motors as Akio Toyoda, grandson of the founder, rolls out new Prius hybrids, Corolla compacts and Lexus sedans to regain lost ground in what may be his first crisis-free year since becoming president in 2009. While production has returned to normal, Toyoda now faces a reborn GM that's No. 1 in global sales, a rising Hyundai and a growing Volkswagen Group that's dominating luxury-car sales in China. "U.S. sales are going to be the biggest cash cow for Toyota this year", said Koji Endo, an auto analyst at Advanced Research Japan in Tokyo. "The U.S. economy has been fairly good". Net income in the 3 months ended March rose to 121 billion yen, compared with analysts' estimates for 140.1 billion yen, as Toyota cranked up production 36 percent and led the recovery of Japan's automotive industry. +++ Bad news for those of us expecting to watch the original TOP GEAR on our tellies as Jeremy Clarkson has confirmed the rumors that there will be no more episodes of the show this year. "There's a rumour in internet land that there will be no more Top Gears this year. I'm afraid that apart from an Xmas special, it's true", Clarkson wrote on his Twitter account. On the bright side, Top Gear, which also features Richard Hammond and James May, will return with new episodes in January of 2013. "We will be back in January", said Clarkson, who added: "The good news is that the longer we have to make the films, the better they will be". As for the reason why Top Gear is taking a break, Clarkson pointed the finger to Simon Cowell and his high-rating show, The X-Factor. "Would love to be back in the Autumn but Sunday nights then will be full of fat people singing", he said. "Top Gear is a medium sized van. Cowell is a juggernaut. When he has finished his singing competition, our new series will start". +++ New car sales in the UNITED KINGDOM showed an encouraging rise in April, prompting the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) to revise its 2012 sales forecast upwards. Last month a total of 142,322 new cars were registered, which represents a year-on-year growth of 3.3 per cent. Encouraged by the growth in April on the back of a strong March, the SMMT has revised its full-year forecast to 1.95 million units. If that target is hit, it would represent a market growth of 0.4 per cent over 2011. Some of the growth has been bolstered by a recovery in the private market, which grew 14.8 per cent in April and is up 7.3 per cent in the year-to-date. “We are seeing a steady increase in consumer confidence with growth in private demand, boosted by the arrival of a raft of new products,” said SMMT chief executive Paul Everitt. “SMMT has increased its full year forecast to 1.95 million units, putting the market marginally ahead of 2011, indicating a period of relative stability”. Contrary to the preceding months, petrol cars increased their share of the market in April. Growth was diverse across the vehicle segments, with the small car, dual-purpose vehicle and excutive/sports car sectors all showing sales increases. It wasn’t all good news, fleet and business registrations shrunk by 3.4 per cent and 11.2 per cent respectively. The Ford Fiesta continues to be the best selling car in Britain, for both the month of April as well for the first four months of the year. The British top10 consists of the following models: Ford Fiesta (8,780 cars sold), Vauxhall Corsa (6,184), Ford Focus (5,491), Vauxhall Astra (4,684), BMW 3 Series (3,737), Volkswagen Golf (3,600), Volkswagen Polo (3,579), Nissan Qashqai (2,990), Vauxhall Insignia (2,751) and Fiat 500 (2,600). +++
