Here are a few papparazzi photos of new Renault Megane
Sunday, 27 July 2008
Friday, 18 July 2008
FIAT to leverage production at Zastava
Fiat is currently working on a new low-cost range of cars for developing markets. Company officials stress the new vehicle is not to be compared with the Tato Nano, which has been billed as the world’s cheapest automobile.
Sources claim the vehicle will be produced at the Zastava plant in Serbia. Lorenzo Sistino, managing director of Fiat Automobiles, would not confirm the above facts, but pointed out the newcomer could not be compared with the Tata Nano. “This will be a true family car and not to be compared with the Nano,” Sistino said.
For the time being, no decision has been made whether the new range will go on sale as a Fiat product or under a different brand.
Additionally, in 2010 the Zastava site will launch series production of a new runabout, currently called the Topolino. The car will share its platform with that of the Fiat 500 and the Panda. It will also be the first Fiat to feature the company’s new two-cylinder petrol engine, currently under development. “The engine will be able to generate over 100 PS, with CO2 emissions below 100 g/km,” Sistino said.
In late April, Fiat struck a deal with the Serbian government to buy 70 % of Zastava, planning some EUR 700m worth of investment there. Fiat urgently needs more capacity also in the light of the fact that its Tychy, Poland, plant is running flat out to supply enough units of the Fiat 500 and Panda, with the all-new Ford Ka, due to go into production in September. This will bring Tychy’s annual capacity to 500,000 units. “Therefore, we need another production site located in a low-cost country,” Sistino said.
Demand is particularly high for the 500 supermini, whose deliveries are expected to hit 190,000 this year. European-wide sales figures show that over 50 pct of the people opting for a Fiat 500 have migrated from other brands. In Germany, the figure is as high as 70 pct. Lorenzo Sistino said that over the last two years Fiat has been the fastest-growing car brand in Europe.
source: italiaspeed
Sources claim the vehicle will be produced at the Zastava plant in Serbia. Lorenzo Sistino, managing director of Fiat Automobiles, would not confirm the above facts, but pointed out the newcomer could not be compared with the Tata Nano. “This will be a true family car and not to be compared with the Nano,” Sistino said.
For the time being, no decision has been made whether the new range will go on sale as a Fiat product or under a different brand.
Additionally, in 2010 the Zastava site will launch series production of a new runabout, currently called the Topolino. The car will share its platform with that of the Fiat 500 and the Panda. It will also be the first Fiat to feature the company’s new two-cylinder petrol engine, currently under development. “The engine will be able to generate over 100 PS, with CO2 emissions below 100 g/km,” Sistino said.
In late April, Fiat struck a deal with the Serbian government to buy 70 % of Zastava, planning some EUR 700m worth of investment there. Fiat urgently needs more capacity also in the light of the fact that its Tychy, Poland, plant is running flat out to supply enough units of the Fiat 500 and Panda, with the all-new Ford Ka, due to go into production in September. This will bring Tychy’s annual capacity to 500,000 units. “Therefore, we need another production site located in a low-cost country,” Sistino said.
Demand is particularly high for the 500 supermini, whose deliveries are expected to hit 190,000 this year. European-wide sales figures show that over 50 pct of the people opting for a Fiat 500 have migrated from other brands. In Germany, the figure is as high as 70 pct. Lorenzo Sistino said that over the last two years Fiat has been the fastest-growing car brand in Europe.
source: italiaspeed
Tuesday, 15 July 2008
New Fiat Topolino
Fiat has started testing a new mini-car to challenge the Smart ForTwo and upcoming city cars like the Volkswagen Up! and Toyota iQ. The Fiat will share a platform with the Panda and 500 but be shorter still. At 3.20 metres the new Fiat, likely to be named the Topolino, would undercut the 3.55-metres-long 500 but still offer seating for four. The Toyota and Volkswagen are expected to be 3.15 metres and 3.4 metres long respectively. The structure of the new car will be made of tubular cells, and designed to offer high levels of protection to the occupants in case of crashes.
First Image of Ze-O All-Electric MPV from NICE
The world's largest automakers are spending billions of dollars developing their all electric vehicles, but it appears the smaller companies are the ones winning the race to the market. On the upper end of the scale we have already seen electric sportscars such as the Fisker Karma and Tesla Roadster and they will soon be joined by the British made 700bhp Lightning GT. But now consumers are demanding an all electric powered vehicle for the average joe and with this first image of the Ze-O all electric MPV, NICE Car Company are looking to fill that huge hole in the market.
The Ze-O is no concept! When unveiled at the British Motor Show later this month, we will be seeing the model in full production form. Plans are to start sales this Autumn in the UK with Europe set to receive the model in 2009.
“All-electric sports car prototypes are eye-catching and interesting,” said Julian Wilford, co-founder NICE Car Company. “However, we all know customers want practical electric cars and they want them sooner rather than later. The Ze-O is a genuinely spacious and affordable car. We expect to be very busy at the motor show.”
The Ze-O does however fall short on some performance figures many consumers will crave, the top speed lies at a rather disappointing 55mph and the range of the battery on a single charge is just 65 miles. This does of course restrict the usefulness of the electric vehicle.
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