The Magazine - Edition #25 - WestWheels

The Magazine - Edition #25
ge
Aston Martin Vira
L-Class
Mercedes-Benz G
tom
Rolls-Royce Phan
oupe
B MW 1 Series M C
DRIVe
Volvo C30
Renault Flu
ence
Lexus IS 350
ux
Toyota HiL
Cops (1) Beat Scumbag (0) in 2hr Porsche Boxster
Demolition Derby by John Cadogan
Welcome
When August faded to black just a few weeks ago,
the Australian car market crunched its numbers and
came up 30,000 vehicles shy of the corresponding
first eight months of 2010. If you factor in an
average price of $30k per vehicle, there’s been
almost a billion dollars less turnover in the new car
market so far this year. That’s a lot of economic
inertia in the automotive sector.
With consumer confidence through the S-bend
and more than halfway to the deep-ocean outfall,
with the manufacturing and retail sectors casting
around for a priest who still knows the Last Rites,
and with global uncertainty and the widely reviled
carbon tax breathing down our necks, its surprising
the fall in new car sales is just 4.4 per cent. If
you listen carefully you’ll hear qualified optimism
among pundits as the Japanese manufacturers
recover from their recent woes.
That 4.4 per cent slump is of course an overall
result, inside which there are individual highlights
and lowlights. Alfa Romeo, Dodge, Great Wall,
Jeep, Land Rover, Porsche, Renault, Skoda and
Ssangyong have all enjoyed healthy double-digit
growth – admittedly off low bases. But the Tsunami
close
has hit market leader Toyota hard, with sales down
almost 19 per cent. Commodore and, in particular,
Falcon sales continue to struggle against consumer
downsizing sentiment, with Mazda3 officially
overtaking the Commodore for the ‘most popular’
title. The oxygen masks have deployed on both
those big Aussie long-haul flights, and at least two
of the four engines are on fire. Even Honda, once
Japan’s much desired tech and quality leader,
has lost much of its ‘wow’, with sales down almost
a quarter on last year – and with an even more
profound decline over the three-year term. Jaguar
and Chrysler are both struggling against a 30 per
cent decline too.
This means it’s a great time to buy a car –
especially if you pick your mark. Check the latest
reviews on CarAdvice.com.au, try to find a dealer
with the car you want in stock now, and don’t be
shy about negotiating – you could drive home a
much better bargain than you expected.
Land Rover Defender
Renault Fluence
Ford Falcon EcoLPi
by Alborz Fallah
by Paul Maric
Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz:
Unstoppable, for now
Kia Sportage SUV Test Explores
Petrol Vs Diesel Debate
2012 Toyota HiLux
BMW 1 Series M Coupe
Volvo C30 DRIVe
Volkswagen Touareg
Mercedes-Benz GL-Class
Rolls-Royce Phantom
How New Car Customers
Survived the Rick Damelian
Downfall
Aston Martin Virage
by John Cadogan
by Alborz Fallah
by Anthony Crawford
by Karl Peskett
by John Cadogan
Two-hour Boxster goose chase
Enjoy the read
John Cadogan
Editor
Cops (1) Beat Scumbag (0) in 2hr
Porsche Boxster Demolition Derby
by John Cadogan
Stop, police
Police pursuits don’t get much
more dramatic (at least, not
in Australia) than the one
yesterday in Queensland. A
23-year-old man in a stolen
Porsche Boxster caused utter
havoc in the course of the twohour pursuit, which stretched
across some of Queensland’s
busiest roads including the M1
Motorway.
Two stolen cars – the Boxster
and a Nissan Navara stolen by
‘our hero’ after he totalled
the Boxster – were trashed.
The pursuit hit speeds up to
150km/h and included at least
one ‘wrong way down the M1
on-ramp’ incident and several
out-of-control runoffs onto the
footpath.
It was sheer luck that
neither the cops nor innocent
by Anthony Crawford
by Paul Maric
by Anthony Crawford
by Alborz Fallah
by Karl Peskett
by Paul Maric
In the boot…
bystanders were injured or
killed. The potential danger was
off the scale.
The pursuit covered more
than 100km, crossed multiple
suburbs and was discontinued
several times after outrageously
dangerous driving behaviour,
such as red-light running,
footpath jumping, and wrongway driving, forced police
to back off. The Channel 7
helicopter helped police pick up
the trail at one point, and also
captured some superb video
footage, which you can watch
above.
The driver lost one front
wheel on the Boxster but
continued to drive (the wheel
hit an oncoming car – put
yourself in that driver’s position
and thank your lucky stars
it wasn’t airborne, bouncing
at windscreen height at the
moment of impact). The Boxster,
driving on three wheels, caught
fire and ultimately spun out of
control.
Continue online
Lexus IS 350
by Alborz Fallah
2
Contents
3
Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz: Unstoppable, for now
Renault Fluence
by Alborz Fallah
by John Cadogan
close
German
supercar
success
stories
Faux French.
Real value.
If you’re looking for a small sedan,
the Renault Fluence is easily the
most underrated car on the market
today.
Although it’s built in South
Korea, you can tell just by looking
at it that the Renault Fluence is
European designed and engineered.
It’s essentially based on a Samsung
SM3, which itself is based on the
previous generation Megane.
From the outside it exudes a
simple but elegant sense of modern
European styling with smooth
flowing lines from front to end.
Given it measures 4,618mm long,
4
1,501mm high and 1,809mm wide,
the Renault Fluence offers an
enormous amount of interior room
for a car in its class (small).
Renault is very keen to make an
impact in the Australian market,
which means it’s packaging its cars
with more features and reducing
the price. It’s also doing everything
it can to get you into a showroom.
Drive away pricing, a huge five-year
unlimited kilometre warranty, low
interest finance, what ever you can
think of. The French are not taking
no for an answer.
The Renault Fluence range starts
t-term futures
If you were concerned about the shor
don’t be. The
of Audi, BMW or Mercedes-Benz …
ts are bracing
German big three’s manufacturing plan
f like nobody’s
for record numbers this year, hiring staf
ng breaks and
business, cancelling holidays, shorteni
k and into the
cloc
the
running many factories around
and.
dem
redline, in an effort to meet global
tige car
pres
Audi plans to unseat BMW on the
BMW is also
podium by 2015 – but Munich-based
nt summer
upping its own ante by shortening the rece
the 3-Series.
break at its Munich plant, which makes
investigating
It’s also running other plants hard and
il.
Braz
in
ory
the feasibility of building a fact
shift
rday
Satu
Mercedes-Benz has added a
and
ass
C-Cl
to its Sindelfingen plant to boost
from just $22,900 for the six-speed
manual and for the money you get
a substantial amount of standard
telephone
Bluetooth
features.
automatic
ng,
ami
and audio stre
cruise
rs,
headlamps and wipe
ts,
ligh
control (auto only), fog
smart card key entry, dual zone air
conditioning with rear air vents,
electric windows front and rear,
heated electrically foldable mirrors
and 16-inch alloys are all standard
kit. All safety features (ESP, ABS
with EBD, emergency brake assist
and 6-airbags) are also included for
no extra cost.
Continue online
factory in
E-Class production and is building a new
z is confident
Hungary for small car production. Ben
of 2011 as
it will overtake BMW emerge at the end
In the USA’s
the USA’s top-selling prestige brand.
sold 138,759
s
cede
Mer
year-to-date figures for July
unseat BMW
s
doe
z
vehicles to BMW’s 135,114. If Ben
a big thank
at the year’s end it should probably send
ght Sprinter
you to all the tradies in the USA who bou
z’s “secret
vans – the vehicle USA Today calls Ben
es. This vote
weapon” in the prestige brand sales stak
ads who
nom
grey
the
ude
of thanks should also incl
home/
ile
mob
a
as
use the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter
camper.
marque’s
Mercedes-Benz Sprinter is the prestige
so-called ‘secret weapon’ in the USA
bread and
It’s not just the prestige brands’
s. At Audi’s
butter models that are kicking big goal
coveted
the
es
mak
h
Neckarsulum plant, whic
a third
osed
imp
has
Audi A8 flagship, the company
60 per
ost
alm
by
production shift, boosting capacity
cent, from 115 vehicles a day to 180.
Continue online
Contents
5
Volvo C30 DRIVe
2012 Toyota HiLux
by Anthony Crawford
by Alborz Fallah
close
Facelift for
t
e
l
g
n
i
s
e
u
l
b
champ
HiLux is
The updated 2012 Toyota
er the
yet another reason to consid
over
lia
tra
Aus
in
most popular ute
rs.
ito
pet
its growing list of com
the
It was back in 1968 when
nce
ste
exi
Toyota HiLux came into
n got a
and not until 1979 that it eve
ough the
4WD system. So it’s been thr
ent that
past 43 years of improvem
utation
the HiLux has earned its rep
orse
rkh
wo
le
as a proper, unbreakab
.
or practical family vehicle
dlamps and
ota (new bonnet, grille, hea
As of today over 14 million Toy
rear gets
the
n sold front bumper) and
r pick(fo
HiLux vehicles have bee
ps
lam
ggering new combination
worldwide, of which a sta
Australia up models).
the
700,000 have come to
The real story however is
that
n,
the
r
nde
wo
no
It’s
s
.
(1/20)
reduction to
nt added value and price
ina
dom
the
s
ain
rem
ux
the HiL
ge, with all 21
of the the new model ran
player in its category and one
iants gaining
var
tralia in Toyota HiLux 4×4
best-selling vehicles in Aus
40 better
$83
between $1960 and
efit with
general.
ben
o
nging value. 4×2 buyers als
Nonetheless, times are cha
tures and modest
utable a host of new fea
isp
ind
its
e
pit
des
and
ich Toyota says
ition or no price gains, wh
pet
com
g
win
gro
ls,
tia
creden
up to $1640.
a has enhanced value by
s,
ute
se
ine
Ch
ap
ota
from che
To launch the new 2012 Toy
agen’s
the
t
ugh
relentless effort by Volksw
bro
T
Ford HiLux, the Big
the
,
ille
Amarok and the upcoming new
nsv
Tow
meant motoring media to
ty
igh
alm
Ranger and Mazda BT-50 has
spiritual home of the
d.
pon
res
to
had
has
ir
ota
the
Toy
t
e
tha
rs lov
itive HiLux. Queenslande
pet
com
re
mo
a
it
e
ing
giv
min
To
a booming
seventh- utes and with
advantage, the updated
force, the HiLux
l
ful
industry in
got
has
ux
HiL
ota
Toy
n
generatio
s the bestFrom consistently remain
its share of new features.
the state.
m the selling vehicle in
the outside everything fro
updated
A-pillar forward has been
Continue online
6
e
d
e
w
S
l
e
s
Die ats Prius
dead-he
se were bona fide
ally positive though. The
tot
a
(in
act
imp
the
mance machines
It might be one of
with good high perfor
se
tho
on
se)
sen
,
net
in high regard
‘greenest’ cars on the pla
a pale that were held
see
to
ht
sig
eye
ugh
eno
can’t
all over the
but that doesn’t mean you
them. by car enthusiasts
t
pas
w
fle
it
as
r
blu
low
t drive
of the yel
n world. Certainly my tes
have fun behind the wheel
nio
opi
my
d
nge
cha
it
inly
Certa
R wagon several years
Volvo C30 DRIVe.
viously considered of a V70
pre
I
at
wh
of
n
bee
I’ve
was considerably more
It’s no secret that
g more than a later,
hin
not
be
This
to
rs.
yea
fun that I ever anticipated.
a Volvo connoisseur for
ety device.
saf
lt
bui
shedi
ily
Sw
fam
go
ent
a
sly pot
Ever since I had a bit of
ular opinion was a seriou
pop
to
ry
tra
Con
e
-lik
car
k
bac
d race
in the factory tuned 850R
ays had wagon that offere
alw
e
hav
vos
Vol
,
ugh
h
tho
wit
vers
e, but
in the days when Volvo dri
note performance and rid
ine
eng
rty
spo
her
rat
nfully a
ce tag of just on $100,000,
were supposed to be pai
mance overall has a pri
for
per
and
r
ato
ilit
fac
s only ever enjoyed by
slow and a major
than the general it wa
ter
bet
n
bee
e
rag
d
management types
of the modern-day roa
y’ve also always cashed-up
The
n.
tio
cep
per
l
stil
s
phenomena. The 850R wa
at a and dentists.
represented Euro luxury
but
,
vos
Vol
xy’
‘bo
se
still
one of tho
bargain price, and that’s
ng.
ve
by gees, did it hammer alo
oti
om
aut
l
r- the case in severa
It seems our rather ove
oss categories.
re
enthusiastic test drive acr
The Volvo ‘R’ cars we
in
the
the Sydney Harbour Bridge
vo altoge r
-long another breed of Vol
life
a
e
hav
uld
wo
R
850
the
Continue online
Contents
7
How New Car Customers Survived the Rick Damelian Downfall
Mercedes-Benz GL-Class
by Karl Peskett
by John Cadogan
Stars’ dealer sucked into
close
$80M black hole
Big Benz travels
GoLiath Class
Making assumptions can be a
habit that’s hard to get out of.
It can also prevent you from
experiencing something good,
because you assume it’s not
going to be nearly as pleasant as
it actually is. In the week that
I showed several people the
Mercedes-Benz GL-Class, almost
all of them came to the same
conclusion on looks alone – “Oh,
it’s a soccer mum’s car.”
Bzzzt. Wrong.
Yes, if it’s a people mover you
want, it’ll do that role just fine,
with its seven-seat layout. Yes, if
8
you do want to take the kids to
their matches and still have the
three-pointed star on the front,
it’ll do that too. But point it at
a rocky trail somewhere and
prepare to be shocked.
Consider what it has in its
off-road arsenal: Three settings
of height-adjustable suspension,
centre and rear differential
lock, low range at the touch of a
button, hill descent control and
traction and stability control.
As far as four-wheel-drive
credentials go, there’s not much
better.
Off road you can use the
manual shift by pressing a button
on the centre stack and you can
then use the paddle shifts on the
wheel to select the correct gear
for the incline you’re about to
attack.
Its side steps can get in the
way of complete ramp over
clearance but its approach and
departure angles are quite good,
especially in the highest of the
three suspension settings, but
just watch the tail when leaving
a slope – the rear overhang is
reasonably long.
Continue online
e there.
breath for a happy outcom
.
ard
rew
ial
ent
pot
the
very
rth
Rick wo
This exit, above, is one
s to
ler
Multimillionaire car dealer
dea
car
for
e
rar
y
ver
It’s
– partly
hroned.
few new car dealers take
ck
bla
al
Damelian has been det
nci
fina
a
o
int
eening by
‘King disappear
in thanks to rigorous scr
Or
nd.
Nobody’s calling him the
bra
the
for
bad
ramatta hole – it’s
panies before franchise
of Taverners Hill’ (on Par
. Mr Damelian’s car com
nds
bra
e,
cas
s
thi
His
executed
Road in Sydney) today.
en new car contracts are
sev
ds
hol
y
pan
orted
com
mpets
Importantly, it’s being rep
dealership’s website still tru
, Renault,
uki
Suz
,
nda
Ho
–
s
ise
ned
sig
nch
fra
with
“Just 1
customers
Skoda that
“Immediate Delivery” and
and
eo
Rom
a
Alf
t,
Fia
n,
d
roe
osits pai on
security Cit
that contracts and dep
n
Day Left!” but right now
isio
div
e
stig
pre
a
as
ll
e delivery of
away – as we
aler new cars will tak
‘de
guards are turning people
n
tio
uta
rep
the
him
tres of earned
s. That’s a very palatable
from his 10,000 square me
a significant used- those car
and
,
rs’
sta
the
with the
to
rth
wo
alternative to negotiating
prime car retail real estate
.
ion
rat
ope
creditor
car
red
The
ecu
.
an uns
an estimated $65 million
nchise have receivers as
fra
da
Sko
the
but
NAB
All
the
ng
to begin
consideri
receivers have moved in
. It’s believed – especially
hip
ers
eiv
rec
d
, as
ere
out
ent
d
its han
back the
ration would be holding
their joyless work clawing
ope
da
Sko
’s
lian
in
me
Da
you
of
ing $80 Mr
p well as being far ahead
cho
debt – estimated at a whopp
the
ed
epp
est
sid
y
efl
nd
owing to has bri
queue. Palpable relief all rou
million. It’s believed to be
different financier is the
a
e
aus
bec
ich
wh
k,
tomers in that position.
the National Australia Ban
Don’t hold your for cus
re.
the
ed
olv
inv
be
to
recently declared the risk not
Continue online
Contents
9
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Contents
Land Rover Defender
Lexus IS 350
by Anthony Crawford
by Alborz Fallah
close
Oz’s
tsix
s
e
b
atmo
t doubt
The Lexus IS 350 is withou
kages
one of the most complete pac
for a car in its class.
us IS
The current-generation Lex
5,
200
ce
sin
range has been around
to
had
ers
however Australian buy
t
las
e
lat
do without the IS 350 until
year.
ween
The Lexus IS 350 sits bet
topping
the IS 250 and the rangebest
The
.
IS-F
ted
performance-orien
that
is
ld
chi
thing about this middle
to
nce
ma
it’s much closer in perfor
the IS-F than the IS 250.
iliar
Lexus has taken the fam
across
3.5-litre V6 engine found
ed to
nag
ma
the Toyota range and
res
figu
nce
fine-tune its performa
of
Nm
378
to 233kW of power and
ck
qui
y
torque. That results in a ver
of 5.6
e
tim
ion
rat
ele
acc
0-100km/h
seconds.
Lexus
Best of all, prices for the
and if
0
,80
$64
IS 350 start from just
rman
Ge
to
t
you were to compare tha
nce,
ma
offerings with similar perfor
another
you’d be adding at least
what’s
$10,000 to the price tag. So
one
The
ch.
mu
the catch? Well, not
F
350
IS
us
you’d go for is the Lex
list
a
has
Sport (tested here), which
n that is
price of $71,800, but eve
than the
still significantly cheaper
rcedesBMW 335i ($108,200) and Me
. Unlike
Benz C 350 diesel ($94,400)
much
tty
pre
its German rivals, it’s
with
es
com
option-less, as in, it
oof.
onr
everything standard bar a mo
Continue online
k
c
u
r
t
h
g
u
To ure test
tor t
s the spare is on
d across every These day
sol
lion
mil
o
tw
st
k
loo
the Defender’s tailgate, mo
Physically, it might
be.
glo
the
of
ner
cor
It’s
rs
s.
likely for safety reason
identical to how it did 63 yea
It’s also one of the most
a
ide
s
ks’
any forward
Wil
ce
uri
Ma
ago when
world not that it blocks
the
in
s
icle
veh
ile
sat
ver
first
though, at least not with
of a ‘go anywhere’ 4×4 was
rally hundreds of view
lite
h
wit
m
rda
ste
Am
d Rover’s unique ‘Command
launched at the
ns from a simple Lan
tio
lica
app
er,
Rov
d
Lan
which allows the
Motor Show as the
age to highly Position’,
end
app
g
min
far
the
e:
sit deep into the
but make no mistak
ry roles. The driver to
ita
mil
d
lise
cia
spe
l
stil
at the same
latest Defender 110 can
is indeed vehicle while
der
fen
De
er
Rov
d
Lan
p
offering the driver and
go head-to-head with a Jee
e bit of off-road kit time
abl
mid
for
a
mbered
Wrangler Rubicon.
h passengers an unencu
bot
by
ted
pec
res
hly
hig
and
view of the road
Apart from a can of coke,
military personnel forward
and
ns
ilia
civ
for
und
aro
ahead.
which has been
e alike.
The Land Rover Defender
more than 150 years in som
t
only thing tha
the
out
Ab
nic
ico
Wagon is an
form or another, the
from model 110 Station
nge
cha
to
d
me
see
it
vehicle and
Land Rover Defender (as
d Rover enormously large
Lan
the
on
del
mo
to
is
0)
n can be a
has been known since 199
s the driving it around tow
wa
rs
yea
the
h
oug
thr
for
ly
rather daunting experience
easily one of the most global
wheel; it either went on
re
spa
the
in
ts
duc
recognised pro
r tailgate. uninitiated.
over the bonnet or the rea
world today, with well
Continue online
12
Contents
13
Ford Falcon EcoLPi
Kia Sportage SUV Test Explores
Petrol
Vs Diesel
On Track:
Toyota
HybridDebate
Camry
by JohnCrawford
Cadogan
by Anthony
by Paul Maric
close
h
c
n
u
a
l
d
i
u
q
i
L
n
o
c
l
a
F
t
e
g
for bud
, your
If you’re anything like me
vehicles
memories of LPG-powered
home in
are limited to trips back
12am
of
rs
hou
taxis between the
se
The
.
ngs
rni
and 5am on Sunday mo
by
ted
dilu
memories are further
rate and
clunky taxis that would vib
ses on
make all sorts of strange noi
take-off.
such
While you may not share
rk,
ma
m
12a
the
memories beyond
The
e.
sam
the
the sentiment is still
wered
general image of an LPG-po
of a
one
vehicle is one of a taxi and
t
tha
all
vehicle that generally isn’t
exciting to be in or drive.
14
LPi
Prior to the launch of the Eco
venturiFalcon, Ford used an archaic
d-mixer
-an
ter
ver
con
vapour
ient,
ffic
ine
s
LPG system that wa
old
The
0s.
troublesome and so 194
o
int
LPG
system would convert raw
h
wit
ed
a vapour that would be mix
le
bustib
intake air to become a com
mixture.
ion
The new liquid phase inject
ilar
sim
on
(LPi) system works
i-vapour
principles to the ventur
ference
system, with the main dif
ts the
being that the fuel exi
ssure to
converter at a high pre
and is
be mixed with intake air
ed into
then electronically inject
greater
the chamber, allowing for
control.
is a
The end result of this system
ich
wh
re,
reduced intake temperatu
le
ilab
means more power is ava
l
fue
of
with comparable levels
was so
use. The increase in power
e that
cas
’s
con
Fal
effective in the
to
had
ers
ine
Ford Australia’s eng
n’t
uld
wo
it
de-tune the system so
current
go too far beyond the
Falcon
development stage of the
petrol six-cylinder engine.
Fuel sells:
Should you buy
petrol or diesel?
e motoring
Petrol versus diesel is the kind of issu
at how
look
s
Let’
ly.
enthusiasts argue about endless
ers.
own
SUV
it plays out in practise for Kia Sportage
to
le
licab
app
However, the comparison is broadly
other SUV (and car) buyers as well.
a clear-cut
Kia Sportage petrol Vs diesel – not
choice based on dollars alone
nes with
When many people compare petrol engi
back’ or
‘pay
the
of
diesels, they often think in terms
resolve
to
mpt
‘break even’ period. That is, the atte
ance
dist
the
the choice is made solely in terms of
gs
thin
other
one needs to drive the vehicle (all
lting from the
being equal) until the cost saving resu
tes the price
nega
y
ienc
diesel’s greater fuel effic
powertrain.
el
dies
premium originally paid for the
is a fiscally
this
For most new vehicle buyers
ever, just
how
flawed way of looking at the issue –
it panned out
for kicks, I just did it to see how
Continue online
Contents
you compare
on a Kia Sportage Platinum. When
with the 2.0
ol
the Kia Sportage Platinum 2.4 petr
out to be an
CRDi diesel, the payback period works
s of average
incredible 177,000km, or about 12 year
-a-quarter-ish
Australian driving. That’s four-and
ing a suitable
laps of planet earth, subject to find
for 12 years
ing
noth
g
circumferential road and doin
an obvious
begs
It
other than driving laps of it.
ugh to buy
eno
b
question: why would anyone be dum
the ‘payback
the diesel? (That’s the sole question
nwhile, back
period’ modellers pose, anyway.) Mea
that.
on earth, the issue is more complex than
se days
The
ge.
ima
ated
outd
Diesel has hung up its
range
el
mod
a
in
on
opti
it’s often the ‘performance’
Continue online
15
BMW 1 Series M Coupe
Volkswagen Touareg
by Anthony Crawford
by Alborz Fallah
close
100K
for 1M thrills
Next-geetn
s
targ e
Cayenn
You’ve got to remember
BMW are launching the new 1
gh, the 1 Series M tips the
Series M Coupe to the Australian thou
t,
and scales at a modest, if not ligh
today
press
motoring
ld
shou
t
5 kilograms. Tha
CarAdvice will be well and truly 149
extra fun on track given its
strapped in behind the wheel to be
relatively short wheelbase of 2660
cover the event.
tres and redline sitting at
This is no ordinary BMW 1 millime
0 rpm.
Series. It’s proper ‘M’ kit with all 720
Forget about paddle shifters on
the hallmarks of a car from BMW’s
the latest ‘M’ car, the only choice
in-house super tuning division.
smission is a new six-speed
That said it’s a bit of a in tran
treat
taking manual box that should be
project
Frankenstein
play with.
parts from both the current M3 to
With a price tag fractionally
and Z4 SDrive 35IS and creating
er $100,000 entry into BMW’s
something very special. The und
lusive ‘M’ club doesn’t come
in-line six-cylinder with twin exc
cheaper than a 1 Series M
turbochargers from the Z4 cranks any
pe, but if you want one, and
out a thoroughly satisfying 250 kW Cou
en’t registered with your local
and 450 Nm. There’s a wide torque hav
dealer, then you’ve more
band too, all the way from 1500 BMW
likely missed the boat, at
rpm to 4500 rpm. It’s gets better. than
t with the initial allocation of
Keep your right foot pinned to the leas
nd 200 examples.
firewall in any forward gear ratio arou
and you’ll get to play with an
extra 50 Nm, taking peak torque
up to 500 Nm.
Continue online
16
The new second-generation
Volkswagen Touareg has arrived
in Australia with prices starting
from $62,990. While keeping
all the things we loved about
the first Touareg, the new one
comes with a wide variety of
technological and fuel-saving
updates.
From the outside the new
Volkswagen Touareg has been
restyled to look more like the rest
of the Volkswagen family with a
definite and obvious similarity to
the new Golf and Polo.
Although it sits closer to
the ground than before, the
new Touareg is bigger than the
model it replaces. Measuring
4898mm long (144mm longer
generation),
previous
than
1965mm wide (+37mm) and
sitting 1732mm tall (+6mm or
+16mm for 4Xmotion variant),
Volkswagen has increased cabin
space while keeping the overall
shape relatively unchanged.
The new Touareg’s frontend is enhanced with restyled
headlights and grille which
give a more distinctive look.
The updated rear-end makes
do with more curvy tail lamps
and pronounced twin-exhausts.
Overall, the new shape is
definitely an evolution of the old
model as Volkswagen has played
its styling on the conservative
side. Even so, it does portray a
sportier look than before.
Going by official sales figures,
the Volkswagen Touareg has
strong competition in Australia.
In reality it’s not directly
competing with the Japanese,
but it’s also not on the same level
as its Luxury SUV contenders (a
category in which it’s placed).
The figures suggest it goes up
against a wide and varied field of
luxury SUVs from the Germans,
Swedes and even the Brits.
Since supply of the old model
dried up some time ago, yearto-date the Touareg has been
outsold by both its siblings: the
upmarket Audi Q7 and Porsche
Cayenne (which all share
the same platform). So in a
strange way, you will have more
exclusivity owning a Touareg
than you would a Cayenne!
Continue online
Contents
17
AstonFeature
Martin Virage
Video
Rolls-Royce Phantom
by Paul Maric
by Karl Peskett
close
True Bcrhiet
i
n
’s
n
o
t
s
A
s
g
u
l
p
r
a
l
l
o
d
n
o
i
Mill
motoring
r that made
If ever there was a ca
a person’s
a statement about
have to
status in life, it would
antom. No
be the Rolls-Royce Ph
s success.
other vehicle embodie
ris and
Yes, there are Ferra
her brands
Lamborghinis, and ot
tive eyemo
which amount to auto
Rolls-Royce
candy, but only the
lly states
Phantom emphatica
And only a
you have ‘made it’.
cognisable
Phantom is instantly re
interest in
by people who have no
ned to any
cars – it won’t be assig
-Royce.
brand other than Rolls
iption.
Aston Martin
is not dissimilar descr
e
ag
Vir
n
rti
Ma
n
experienced team of
to
As
an
s
ke
ta
It
Driving the new
no
is
a Virage,
Groundhog Day. There
200 hours to assemble
vie
me
mo
so
s
s
90
er
ild
rly
bu
ea
r
e
ca
th
to
bespoke
spine
s alone spent on the
nced that gives you a
ur
rie
ho
pe
70
ex
ve
nd
ha
ou
I
ar
r
ca
th
r
wi
othe
ut the
gine
ty surfaces througho
y time you turn the en
ali
er
qu
ev
d
h
an
hig
ch
d
ea
an
sh
er
ru
th
tingling
ow or lea
joins are absolutely
the car in a shop wind
e hand stitched leather
Th
.
bin
ca
t
over, spot a glance of
us
ha
ex
ample of why it’s
e nirvana when the
and are a perfect ex
le
ab
cc
pe
im
experience automotiv
.
old
t
for with an Aston
noise that will never ge
badge you are paying
e
th
st
ju
t
no
baffles open to emit a
s.
nd
ficult task on its ha
n purchase.
Aston Martin has a dif
-litre V12
of late getting Marti
y
pp
ha
en
be
s
et is Aston Martin’s 5.9
ha
nn
y
bo
an
e
th
mp
r
co
de
e
Un
th
ile
Wh
ve
ue and
d DB9, recent times ha
5kW and 570Nm of torq
an
36
e
es
ag
uc
nt
od
Va
pr
V8
It
e
e.
th
gin
th
en
by wi
e, fourd six-speed automatic
of the DBS, V12 Vantag
d to a rear mid-mounte
te
ma
is
seen the introduction
e.
ag
Vir
e
cial fuel consumption
e Sport and now th
nic 2 gearbox. The offi
ro
ht
uc
To
d
door Rapide, V8 Vantag
an
9
DB
around the norm
ce between the
L/100km, which was
15
is
e
ur
fig
The Virage takes its pla
of
ing
an
ad testing.
, considering the me
of country and city ro
x
mi
a
g
rin
du
e
the DBS, and aptly so
Th
.
ench is bend or curve
the word Virage in Fr
gant
ele
ely
em
pr
ned to be a su
sig
de
en
be
s
ha
e
ag
Vir
and I
Continue online
derstated sports car,
e
and powerful, yet un
th
s
et
me
that it accurately
can confidently say
Whether
Job done, I’d say.
its
th
wi
e
ey
e
doors,
It catches th
the rear-hinged coach
s
it’
nt
fro
el
ste
, or the huge 21stunning stainless
ose the long bonnet
th
d
an
e,
siz
r
ee
sh
tom never
grille, its
inch wheels, the Phan
lee
wh
e
th
in
os
d. But
Rolls-Royce log
blends into the crow
st
ju
ht
rig
up
in
ma
it than just its
centres which re
or there’s more to
ng
ivi
dr
re
u’
yo
if
r
no matte
bluff styling.
ip that
stationary.
It’s the craftsmansh
Ian
r
ne
sig
de
ief
Rolls-Royce ch
-Royce Phantom
the ensures the Rolls
at
th
d
oo
rst
de
un
n
Oh, sure,
Camero
remains peerless.
.
ce
en
es
pr
ve
ha
to
d
melted-plasticPhantom ha
that
there’s
a
te
ea
cr
to
s
wa
etitor,
“Our priority
king Germanic comp
loo
lls
Ro
a
ly
us
ks like a bloated
car that was obvio
Mr but that still loo
”,
gle
an
y
an
m
however,
Royce fro
S-Class. The Phantom,
t
iri
Sp
e
th
if
n
ve
“e
u see
Cameron said,
tinctive, and when yo
dis
is
e
ill
gr
us
mo
fa
which goes
of Ecstasy or the
the time and effort
.”
en
se
be
t
comes clear
could no
into creating it, it be
r built to a
that this is not a ca
to a car.
price, but a price built
Continue online
18
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19
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