Blog on 2040Parts

SCARCITY OF ECO CARS KEEPS VALUES HIGH

ACCORDING to the latest AA Fuel Price Index, petrol prices rose in January by the biggest amount in recent times. Although there is considerable Government lobbying to slow down fuel price rises, there appears to be no immediate respite for private motorists. With this continued pressure on family finances, leading vehicle auction company, British Car Auctions (BCA) is seeing a significant increase in buyers seeking the most fuel efficient vehicles which, in turn, is pushing up prices at auction.

Mercedes proves E-Class hybrid tech with unusual test

IN AN impressive display of performance and economy, Mercedes-Benz has completed a lengthy test of its new E300 Bluetech Hybrid saloon by driving it almost the length of the country on a single tank of fuel with a flat-out speed test at either end. With ex-rally driver Mick Linford at the wheel the standard production E300 Bluetech Hybrid began with a full tank of fuel at Newquay Cornwall Airport, the most southerly airport in mainland Britain. Down the main runway it completed an acceleration test to past 62mph from rest in a little over seven seconds and reached 136mph before braking for the end of the runway.

Luxury cars still in demand

DEMAND remains strong for upper executive, sports and luxury cars says British Car Auctions (BCA), as buyers continue to support the company’s programme of Top Car and Executive sales. In the first half of the year, BCA sold 8,356 cars valued in excess of £20,000, worth a combined £231.4 million. Across the board BCA has averaged 102.57% of CAP Clean for cars sold for £20,000 or more in 2012.

CHARITIES BENEFIT FROM BCA SALE

THE SALE of a special edition 'Limited Pink Passion' Smart FourTwo has raised hundreds of pounds for charity, BCA has reported. The used vehicle auction specialist held a special sale its Blackbushe centre with organisational help for car dealer Fred Andy. The event raised £500, with an additional £250 donation from BCA and £750 generated through further fund-raising by Mr Andy.

SMALL CARS DOMINATE USED CAR SALES

SMALL, FUEL-EFFICIENT cars continue to be the most appealing to used car buyers, research shows. The figures from Experian, the global information service, demonstrated that 285,962 used Ford Fiestas were sold last year making it Britain’s best selling used car in 2010. Even though overall sales for the Fiesta were lower than in 2009 there was more of a pronounced drop in sales of Vauxhall's Corsa, which came in second place to the Fiesta.

45,000 complain about used car buys

USED CARS bought from independent dealers drew the highest number of complaints from disgruntled consumers in the last year, according to new figures. Citizens Advice has called on retailers to display consumer rights information at checkouts after more than half a million people complained about shoddy products worth £3.5 billion in the last year. Figures show 45,000 used car buyers lodged a complaint in the year to February, followed by 12,000 regarding mobile phone contracts and 11,500 about repairs by an independent garage.

BUMPER CHOICE FOR USED CAR BUYERS

USED CAR BUYERS looking for a bargain might be pleased to hear that leading vehicle auction specialist British Car Auctions will be holding a super sale this Saturday April 9. The sale at BCA Belle Vue Manchester will have over 400 vehicles from Lex Autoloease and Black Horse Motor Finance including over 200 convertibles. “There’s no question that motorists are feeling the pinch at the moment so finding the best deal on their next used vehicle is vital,” said Tony Gannon BCA Communications Director.

BMW 4 Series Convertible leaks – looking very like a 4 Series Coupe without a roof

The BMW 4 Series Convertible leaks ahead of an L.A. Debut The headline isn’t meant to suggest the roof of the new BMW 4 Series Cabriolet leaks; we’re sure it doesn’t. But, ahead of its expected debut at the Los Angles Auto Show next month, BMW’s hopes of keeping their convertible 4 Series under warps have been dashed after the BMW Blog published what are almost certainly the first official photos of BMW’s latest convertible.

Honda Fit arrives in US showrooms next summer

Honda Motor Co. president Takanobu Ito says the redesigned Fit, due in U.S. showrooms next summer, is the company's “most important” car.

Ford testing self-parking cars – with or without a driver (video)

Ford testing self-parking cars – with or without a driver It seems we’re heading to the point where cars can do more and more for the driver, and fully autonomous cars seem to be less than a decade away. On the way to the fully autonomous car, car makers will be offering stages on the way as the ability of cars to be self-controlling moves along, and Ford are heading in that direction with their new systems for parking and obstacle avoidance. Ford are running prototypes with Fully Assisted Parking, a system that manages to sense a space, control the steering, gearbox and brakes to park the car at the touch of a button, even if the driver isn’t actually in the car.

AutoDesign Prague 2013: Design from the Heart of Europe

Charismatic designers, inspirational speeches and beautiful cars in an informal and friendly atmosphere was the order of the day at the third edition of the international automotive design conference AutoDesign Prague, which once again highlighted the importance of car culture and tradition's strong roots within the Czech Republic. In recent years, speakers have included prominent figures from the world of automotive design such as the Geely Group's Peter Horbury, Dassault Systèmes' Anne Asensio, Pininfarina's Fabio Filippini and design consultant Peter Stevens. This year's conference was themed ‘Design from the Heart of Europe' and so featured many Czech and Slovakian speakers.

Mercedes-Benz, BMW both post record September sales

Not only are the German horsepower wars still going strong, but if this next bit of news isn't evidence of German sales wars, then we don't know what is. BMW sold 189,675 vehicles worldwide during the month of September, an increase of 6.7 percent over the previous year, which also made it the best September sales month for the automaker. This comes with a small asterisk -- namely, that figure includes Mini and Rolls-Royce sales, though if we're talking just BMW-badged vehicles, the September sales totaled 158,029 (still a 7.6 percent increase over September of 2012).

Ford's automotive assembly line celebrates 100th anniversary

A mere century ago, on Oct. 7, 1913, Henry Ford rigged up a rope tow to get Model T chassis across the floor of his Highland Park assembly plant -- essentially winching cars across the factory floor and adding a set schedule of parts at certain intervals. The implementation may have been a bit primitive, but Ford was on the cusp something big: applying the concepts of the moving assembly line to the complicated, costly process of automobile production.

Lord Sugar leads roadworks campaign

THE GOVERNMENT is to look at the better coordination of roadworks by utility companies after complaints by peers. Labour's Lord Sugar led the call for action at question time in the Lords with support from Tory former chancellor Lord Lamont of Lerwick. Lord Sugar, star of BBC television's The Apprentice show, urged "commonsense coordination" between the gas, electricity, water and telecoms companies.

End of the road for 'Queen's favourite' car

ONE OF the most-loved and long-lived road vehicles, and a favourite with the Queen, is to cease production. The last Land Rover Defender will be produced by Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) at Solihull in the West Midlands in December 2015. Featuring in the Angelina Jolie film Lara Croft: Tomb Raider and in the latest James Bond movie, Skyfall, the Defender name can be traced back to the early 1990s.

One Lap of the Web: Shark-jumper cars, tether cars, and Bratty cars

-- There's a Marcos for sale on eBay this week, and it's already attracted quite a few bids with nine days left to go. While you may remember what the Marcos looked like, do you recall that they were sold through the Volvo dealer network in the U.S.? Or that they used Volvo engines?

2014 Chevy Silverado and GMC Sierra recalled

General Motors is recalling nearly 22,000 units of the 2014 Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra full-size pickups because the seats may move in a rear-end crash. The recall affects 21,721 Silverados and Sierra Series 1500 vehicles; 18,972 in the United States, 2,575 in Canada, 103 in Mexico and 71 exports. These vehicles have manual front reclining seatbacks that may fail to meet a federal safety requirement for performance when struck from behind.

Mazda CX-5 gets new trim levels

Mazda CX-5 gets new trim levels When car makers come up with trim specifications for their models, they do so in a way that gives easy stepping stones in equipment levels, from hair shirt to over the top. They also expect that many buyers will pay a visit to the options list to add in a few extra goodies to the standard spec, but it looks like Mazda has been getting the same request repeatedly from buyers of the CX-5 compact SUV – give us a sunroof and leather. Until now, the only way to get sunroof and leather was to opt for the range-topping Sport trim – which costs from £27.5k – but now Mazda has added two trim levels beneath the Sport - SE-L Lux and SE-L Lux Nav – which come already equipped with the two most requested extras.

2014 Vauxhall Meriva facelift gets new diesel engine

2014 Vauxhall Meriva facelift (pictured) gets new diesel engine It’s more than three years since the Vauxhall Meriva arrived – at Geneva in 2010 – as Vauxhall’s compact people carrier, so it’s time for a bit of a titivate and a few updates. The cosmetic makeover for the 2014 MY Meriva isn’t huge, but Vauxhall has thrown in a new grill and new headlights to fulfil the ‘new nose’ requirements of a facelift, there’s new alloys and new alloy options and daytime running lights. But the biggest change comes under the skin, with the old 1.7 litre turbo diesel being supplanted by the new 1.6 litre from the Zafira which offers 134bhp and 236lb/ft of torque.

Petrol prices expected to plunge

PETROL PRICES at the pumps could plunge by almost 4p over the next two weeks, the RAC predicted today. But the reduction, and a forecast 2p dip in diesel, will only happen if other retailers follow the supermarkets' lead in dropping prices, the RAC added. It said that the wholesale price of petrol had now reached its lowest price since the beginning of December 2012.

Historic Motoring Awards Car of the Year 2013 shortlist revealed

Think of this as the alternative Car of the Year competition. You won't find any diesel hatchbacks, practical MPVs or mk7 Volkswagen Golfs in the 2013 International Historic Motoring Awards. The awards celebrate the 'best of the best' in the international historic motoring industry, with the 'Birkin' Bentley picking up the award in 2012.

Drivers 'feel safe breaking laws'

MANY DRIVERS are taking risks on the roads through overconfidence and complacency, according to a survey. As many as 69% of drivers admit putting others at risk by breaking traffic laws, the poll by road safety charity Brake and insurance company Direct Line found. Yet nearly all of those questioned (99%) reckon they are comparatively safe.

Mini Moke makes its comeback

Moke International It wouldn't be entirely fair to put the Mini Moke into the 'so bad it's good' category, but the fact remains, the Moke wasn't that great. And yet, despite its tepid performance, questionable off-road ability and tendency to rust, it was a runaway success. And let's face it, the Mini Moke remains one of the coolest cars ever created.

Drivers living in their vans

BRITAIN'S van drivers have admitted to turning their vans into mobile bedrooms as they spend more time in their vans than at home. In a survey of the country’s van drivers, 11% admitted to using their van as a bedroom for convenience. A further 31% said they used their van as an office, while half of all van drivers take their tea break in their work vehicle.

Trio of Mitsubishi concepts bound for Tokyo

Mitsubishi is bringing three new concepts to next month's Tokyo motor show, the first to be developed with the automaker's ‘@earth' design philosophy. The carmaker says the three will emphasize Mitsubishi's engineering and advanced technologies that embody environmental responsibility, driving pleasure, toughness and safety. Concept GC-PHEV is a full-size SUV that uses a high output PHEV (plug-in hybrid electric vehicle) system and is billed as a ‘connected car' offering preventive safety technology, wireless connectivity and driver support.

John Pope Special: the Vauxhall with an Aston Martin engine for sale

The eBay description says it all: "Vauxhall Magnum with an Aston Martin DBS V8 twin turbo engine fitted. DBS running gear, raced between 1973 and 1981." If that doesn't get the high octane petrol running through your veins, nothing will. It's called the John Pope Special and it started life as two cars - an accident damaged Aston Martin DBS V8 and a Vauxhall Magnum donated by Vauxhall.

2015 Porsche Macan SUV drive review

Remember the turbulent launch of the Porsche Cayenne? It was 2002, and the company whose very existence was built upon a line of legendary sports cars was about to do something its boss at the time had earlier pledged would never happen. Namely, add an SUV to its line-up.

Mitsubishi teases three SUV concepts for 2013 Tokyo motor show

By Ollie Kew First Official Pictures 08 October 2013 11:00 Mitsubishi is planning a new concept car bonanza at the Tokyo motor show from 22 November 2013, with three takes on the idea of a fuel-sipping SUV. As well as revealing the future design direction for Mitsubishi’s styling, and potential new niches for its growing SUV range, the crossovers demonstrate the latest iteration of Mitsubishi’s plug-in hybrid push. There’s a full-size SUV design, plus a coupe-styled brother and a new MPV.

Mitsubishi previews three Tokyo concepts

MITSUBISHI will showcase three new concepts at the Tokyo Motor Show, all using SUV body styles. Heading the trio of experimental designs is the Concept GC-PHEV, a full-size SUV using a development of Mitsubishi’s plug-in hybrid drivetrain. It aims to offer the everyday advantages of an SUV and class-leading environmental credentials.

Ford cars become personal valets

It's alive! Well, sort of. Ford has developed a car that can not only seek out empty parking spots, but park itself, too—all sans driver.