For some reason, BMW released the new 2012 BMW 6-Series Convertible first, complete with a media launch event in South Africa to which we were not invited, and is already on sale in the UAE, Saudi Arabia and other GCC countries. Now BMW has revealed details about the Coupe version.
As news still trickles in about the earthquake in Tokyo that measured a massive 8.9 on the Richter scale, Japan’s largest earthquake ever has also created a tsunami that flooded cities, washed away cars and caused surrounding countries as far as New Zealand, Hawaii and the Philipines to issue alerts.
It would be surprising if anyone remembers Lancia in the UAE. The semi-premium division of Fiat, nestled between Fiat And Alfa Romeo, Lancia is still alive in Europe, even though the brand stopped selling cars here once Fiat temporarily left the GCC market in the earlier part of this decade. There was a time when Lancias were uniquely-designed cars whose quirkiness was a trademark. But now that Fiat has bought out a part of Chrysler, the new Lancia range is looking all too familiar.
The launch edition of the Middle East Motor Tuning Show, held alongside the 2010 Sharjah Auto Show in October last year was considered a big success. We are media partners for the event, so it is our duty to tell you that the exhibition will be returning for 2011, to be held from May 12th to the 14th at the Sharjah Expo Centre.
Recalls are boring news. They’re in fact so boring that we only cover them once in a while now. The number of recalls per month has actually reduced since the last time we did a rundown, by about 35%. Of course, the general media still chooses to sensationalise some recalls more than others, especially anything to do with Toyota. In the past two months, there have been recalls by Lexus, Land Rover, General Motors, Ford, Honda, Suzuki, Chrysler, Saab and even Mazda, the last of which is a hilarious one.
احتلّت علامة MG، إحدى أكثر علامات السيارات الشهيرة، مكانة رائدة في صناعة السيارات البريطانية، منذ العام 1924. وقد اشتهرت بسياراتها الرياضية المكشوفة ذات مقعدين، وسيارات الصالون و”الكوبيه”، وكذلك بتصميمها الهندسي الرفيع المستوى وإطلالتها الرياضية الجذابة. ولقد حازت علامة MG على مر السنين، على الكثير من الجوائز التقديريةومن بينها جائزة “السيارة الرياضية الأكثر مبيعاً حول العالم”، وجائزة ”
The MG brand has officially been launched in the UAE, at an event in Dubai. MG, or Morris Garages, was originally a sporty British brand under Rover before changing hands to become a part of SAIC, China’s largest carmaker. Chinese-built models at launch include the MG 550 and the MG 750, with the MG3, MG 350 and MG6 models set to join later.
For a taste of what we don’t get here, for one reason or another, here is the 2011 Kia Sportage SX Turbo that just debuted in the United States.
For those not in the know, a hybrid is a car with a petrol engine that also has an electric motor attached that provides additional power when needed and recharges its battery as the car moves, all while saving petrol, saving the environment and saving the whales. The theory goes that petrol is cheap in the GCC, so no one cares about hybrid cars. While that is definitely true, we live in the UAE, which boasts the highest petrol prices in the region and is proudly increasing prices further to match international market rates eventually. Suddenly, a hybrid doesn’t seem like a bad idea after all.
Toyota has already confirmed that the FT-86 sports car, the spiritual successor to the 1980s “AE86” Corolla, is set for production. This is the third concept to show off the car, a bit different than before and closer to the actual version that will hit showrooms in late 2012 as a 2013 model.