Category archives for: Automobiles

Fiat 500 Abarth: Hands-on Review – Part 1

Fiat just rolled out the US version of their Fiat 500 Abarth. At first look the small hatchback gives the same look of the Fiat 500c except the side-skirt stickers that tell the very difference. Oh! There are two shiny Abarth logos at the front and rear ends of the vehicle. The inside of the […]

Fiat 500 Abarth: Hands-on Review – Part 2

Although there has been a Fiat 500 Abarth in Europe for several years, the U.S. version is significantly different. The U.S. tuners used a different turbocharger on the base engine, with subsequently different tuning. Matt Davis, Fiat’s U.S. head of Product Marketing, says the U.S. version is louder than the European version. Inside the car, […]

General Motors! Meet Peugeot: Another meet, yet another mystery to unravel in the coming years – Part 1

Corporate sector has always seen profits in front of them and that is the only God they know to bow before. In the past, the world has seen a slew of new techniques and methods to beef up the sales and revenues. The corporation might have become successful in that regard but the nature has […]

General Motors! Meet Peugeot: Another meet, yet another mystery to unravel in the coming years – Part 2

The goals were similar to those stated for the current linkup: sharing technologies, reducing fixed costs, economies of scale in purchasing, and access to a broader product portfolio. Some of it actually happened: Suzuki provided the Chevy “Tracker” small SUV and other low-end products; Isuzu shipped medium-commercial, city-delivery trucks under the Chevrolet and GMC badges; […]

China: The most thriving automotive market in the world has no place for foreign brands – Part 1

China is slowly becoming the attraction for industrial conglomerates in terms of consumption. Although the per capita consumption is still low as compared to Europe and the US but out of 1.6 Billion people, a fraction counts for millions. The latest of the news is related to the automotive industry in mainland China, where the […]

China: The most thriving automotive market in the world has no place for foreign brands – Part 2

The Chinese auto-market, as compared to other parts of the world, has more potential of growth, thanks to the European debt crisis that has affected its automotive market among other issues. The China Association of Automobile Manufacturers forecasts sales in the country to increase 9.5% in 2012, but that’s optimistic.  “The best scenario is for annual […]

China: The most thriving automotive market in the world has no place for foreign brands – Part 3

More importantly, the Ministry’s list is just another effort to undermine foreign brands.  Late last December, Beijing announced a cut back in approvals for foreign companies to build plants, and we can be sure there will be unfairly means to ensure sales growth of local manufacturers.  In more candid moments, foreign car executives say they […]

Will hybrid and electric vehicles be the answer to high oil prices? – Part 1

The oil prices are skyrocketing and it is expected that in the not-so-far future the price might touch $5 per barrel. With beefed up prices of the black gold, among countless commodities that will taste the inflation, car commute is going to receive harshest blow. Although the automotive industry has produced a number of solutions […]

Will hybrid and electric vehicles be the answer to high oil prices? – Part 2

Moreover, the economy of scale is another problem, in terms of production and sales. Due to the lack of demand of such automobiles in the market, the automakers cannot produce the equipment on larger scale. Low sales also result in higher costs of such cars, let alone SUVs and crossovers. The payback period of these […]

Will hybrid and electric vehicles be the answer to high oil prices? – Part 3

The most economic cars that have shortest payback period are Honda Insight and Ford Fusion Hybrid. The Insight registers one of the steepest declines compared with a comparably equipped gas-powered Honda Fit by dropping the payback period to just three years at $5 per gallon, down from six years at $3 per gallon. Likewise, of […]

The best cars failed to notice to date – Part 1

J.D. Power and Associates has announced results of its 2012 Vehicle Dependability Study, and once again, Lexus was the most reliable of any nameplate. No surprise there, really. Toyota and Lexus have dominated quality-related studies for a long time. What some might find surprising, however, is that the Lincoln MKZ tied the Lexus ES350 for […]

The best cars failed to notice to date – Part 2

I was intrigued by this apparent disconnect and decided to dig a little further to try to identify cars that might be getting a bum rap. I looked at the top-scoring vehicles in J.D. Power’s dependability study, and compared the results to the worst-scoring brands in the avoider study. I also asked J.D. Power to […]

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