Articles by CarsGuide team

The substantially revamped smart fortwo sports a markedly more dynamic appearance, featuring a larger radiator grille with integrated logo, striking front aprons in a new design, horizontally arranged LED daytime driving lights, muscular side skirts and modified rear aprons. The five lines: pure, pulse, passion, BRABUS and BRABUS Xclusive are to be retained. Similarly, the smart fortwo will continue to be available as a coupe and cabrio version and with five engine and motor variants. They range from a 40kW diesel through to the 75kW Brabus, but not all models are available in Australia. The chrome-coloured logo is now positioned directly in the black radiator grille. The air inlets under the number plate have been combined into a single unit, lending the smart fortwo a bolder appearance. The new, optionally available LED daytime driving lights are now arranged horizontally. There is also a choice of three new alloy wheels. The choice of colours comprises seven options, including matt anthracite for the first time. The smart fortwo BRABUS Xclusive is now also optionally available in white. In addition to the three soft top colours for the smart cabrio which were previously available from the smart programme (black, red, blue), the smart BRABUS tailor made program offers six other soft top colours. While the main focus of this facelift is on the exterior, there are changes inside the car, too.  These include a new, high-quality interior package in crystal grey, comprising a fresh leather/fabric combination for the seats, an imitation leather/fabric mix for the door trims and black imitation leather for the instrument panel in combination with a grey knee pad.  

A new electronic monitoring system allows subscribers to keep track of their car on a map. Developed by GM's OnStar technology division, the optional service allows subscribers to log into the the Family Link website to view a map with the vehicle's location at any time. Subscribers can also set up email or text message notifications to let them know the location of their vehicle. Sounds like a great way of keeping track of the kids when they borrow the car. OnStar's Joanne Finnorn said the service had been trialled by more than 4500 people last year. "They told us it provides them peace of mind by staying connected to their family when they're on the road," she said. To use Vehicle Locate, subscribers log onto the Family Link website and navigate to the Vehicles tab and click on Locate. Once the vehicle has been located, the vehicle's icon will be shown on the map. Additional location details can be seen by hovering over the vehicle. To set up a Location Alert, subscribers log on to the Family Link website and navigate to the Alerts tab. The subscriber can request the day of week and time to receive an alert, as well as notification preference: text, email or both. Location Alerts will include the address the vehicle is near as well as the date and time.  With more than 6 million subscribers in the U.S, Canada and China, OnStar is currently available on more than 45 MY 2012 GM models, as well as available for installation on most other vehicles already on the road with OnStar FMV. Family Link will roll out to US subscribers throughout the year. While Holden is looking at the feasibility of bringing the OnStar system to Australia, it has nothing to report yet.  

Between 20 and 30 people finished up at Holden's Elizabeth plant -- with more to follow.The company announced earlier this year that as many as 100 contract and casual employees would lose their jobs as the plant's production rate was changed to 400 vehicles a day, which equates to around 90,000 for this year.Holden spokeswoman Emily Perry said no full-time Holden employees have been exited from the business.  "A very small number of fixed contracts were completed this week, and not renewed, as we confirmed earlier this year," she said.Ms Perry also said a number of casual staff engaged by Holden in busy periods were not required. "These are casual roles and might be called on again in the future if/when required - which is the nature of casual work," she said.Full-time Holden workers will also be voting on their new workplace agreement today and are expected to start moving from afternoon to dayshift in the general assembly plant next week. 

The ROTY program incorporates a zonal system, with the top dealership in each zone qualifying to compete for the national award. The Gosford retailer joins Eblen Subaru (Glenelg), Melville Subaru (Perth), Hunter Subaru (Maitland), Subaru Glen Waverley (Melbourne) and Subaru Narellan (Sydney) as past winners of the ROTY award. Central Coast Subaru was the top dealer in the Sydney region and, as the top scorer across the country, was the national winner. Subaru National Sales Manager, Gary Johnston, said: "It is a fantastic effort by Central Coast Subaru and Dealer Principal, Terry Bond, and his team are to be congratulated on taking the number one position.''  

Bernard Tomic's orange BMW coupe continues to follow him around the world - with the Aussie tennis star coming in for more police questioning at his new Monte Carlo base. Tomic's hoon-mobile caused a Gold Coast stand-off back in January, when the 19-year-old was stopped twice on Australia Day by cops over alleged sneaky drives while on a restricted P-plate licence. Despite Tomic's unsuccessful attempts to flog his motor back in Queensland, the roar of the V8 engine has followed him to the tax-free European principality, home to dozens of his fellow ATP players. One Monte Carlo policeman even put the hard word on the teen over his car. "A policeman here, he pulled my dad over while walking. The guy asked him for his licence. Just a random check," Tomic revealed after reaching the second round of the Monte Carlo Masters with a 6-4 6-3 win over Denis Istomin of Uzbekistan. "The guy followed tennis, and he asked: 'How is it going with the car?'" While Tomic may be moving on from his notorious Beemer, temptation stares him in the face, with the motor-mad teen living not far from a Maserati dealership in Monte Carlo. So far he has resisted the urge to buy a car. But like a sleazy, insincere car salesman, it's maybe time for mX to suggest a couple of nice little runners that might better suit the tennis teen.  

...With three years of free scheduled servicing, for any eligible vehicle ordered in April and delivered before May 31st 2012. These vehicles already boasting the longest factory warranty of any European brand. The offer applies to retail customers as well as buyers with an ABN, Renault General Fleet Buyers and National Fleet Buyers, and includes both petrol and diesel models in the range. Over at Peugeot, all model year 3008 models now carry Peugeot's class leading Assured Service (capped price) plan already on the 508 and 308. Peugeot Assured Service offers customers the peace of mind of knowing in advance what their 3008 service costs will be over three years (or 60,000 km). The service fee is $330 per scheduled service under this plan. Meanwhile Holden has launched a new capped price servicing scheme to reduce servicing costs across a range of popular new models, including VE Series II Commodore, Captiva, Cruze and the new generation Barina. HoldenWise Capped Price Servicing offers customers significant savings and value for money for standard scheduled services across the three-year/60,000km capped price service period. HoldenWise Capped Price Servicing applies to the Series II Commodore sedan, Sportwagon and Ute range, Cruze hatch and sedan, Captiva 5 and 7, Barina Classic, new generation Barina hatch and sedan, Barina Spark and Caprice. The new generation Colorado LCV will also be eligible for capped price servicing when it's launched later this year.  

The result was part of a study commissioned by Ford to underscore the safety issue -- as the company prepares to introduce its SYNC in-car connectivity system, which can read aloud incoming messages through a text-to-speech feature and enables drivers to send a text reply by voice from a predetermined list of responses.Despite the prevalence of the practice, drivers agreed overwhelmingly that reading texts on the move was dangerous. Ninety-five per cent of drivers thought that texting affected driver ability and safety.At least half of those surveyed said they believed driver response was 50 per cent slower when checking messages from a mobile phone."Smartphones have quickly become an essential part of many people's day," said Christof Kellerwessel, chief engineer, Electronic and Electrical Systems Engineering, Ford of Europe."However, text messages can be a distraction for drivers, so the benefit of a system that can read messages aloud from compatible smartphones is obvious."Ford SYNC will debut  on the new B-MAX and will roll out to other vehicles in Ford's lineup, including Focus and Kuga. The text-to-speech feature on SYNC, powered by Microsoft, retrieves messages using a simple voice command from Bluetooth-connected compatible smartphones.SYNC also enables drivers to send a text reply from a predetermined list of responses, such as "See you in 10 minutes"  helping motorists to remain focused on driving while staying in touch with contacts. 

Following the petrol version, the latest concept is powered by a combination of turbo diesel direct-injection engine (TDI) and two electric motors, it boasts fuel economy figures of just 1.8 litres/100km. This is equivalent to CO2 emissions of just 46 g/km. At the same time  the Cross Coupe is no slouch, with 225kW of power and a top speed of 220 km/h. The Cross Coupe is based on VW's new Modular Transverse Matrix (MQB) platform which is designed to accommodate a large number of variations. It could just as easily accomodate a connventioanal petrol or diesel power train or for that matter be turned into a fully electric vehicle. The concept shown in Geneva accelerates to 100 km/h in just 6.5 seconds, with a diesel engine that develops up to 400Nm of torque from very low revs. At the press of a button, the two electric motors deliver an additional 180Nm in front and 270Nm at the rear. During boosting  which involves full use of both motors and the engine  the drive system supplies a maximum system torque of 700Nm. This performance positions the concept car in the field of todays high-performance sports cars, yet the vehicle consumes less fuel than any other small car.  

The GT Touring will be in showrooms this month (April), priced from $55,990. While GT models gain extra equipment, the highlight of the model is the inclusion of the 2.2-litre HDI engine. The 2.2-litre turbodiesel engine is only available in GT models while the 508 Allure and Active models have either the 1.6-litre e-HDi engine, 2.0-litre turbodiesel or 1.6-litre turbo petrol. With 150kW of power and 450Nm of torque the 508 GT Touring completes the 0-100km/h dash in 8.4 seconds. GT models also feature special front suspension with double wishbone suspension with drop link hub carrier instead of the Macpherson type struts of the Allure Touring models. Extra equipment over the Allure model includes: 18-inch alloy wheels, adaptive main beam headlights, colour head-up display, directional bi-Xenon headlights with auto height adjustment and headlight washers and driver's seat with memory setting. Specification and options for the all-new 508 GT Touring are in-line with the GT Sedan with the exception of the electric tailgate which is available as a $1000 option on GT Touring as well as Allure Touring.  

It's also quirky Citroen's first four-wheel drive of any description here.Although named a C4 the Aircross actually has more in common with Mitsubishi's ASX and soon to be released Peugeot 4008, with which it shares a platform.It's a tad confusing but there is a lot of this cross polination of the brands occuring these days. Due here in the third quarter of the year, the Aircross will be available in two and four wheel drive form with a choice of petrol and diesel engines.Importer Sydney's Ateco Automotive have confirmed the 2.0-litre petrol model, but the rest is still a work in progress. At 4.34 metres in length Citroen describes the car as surprisingly spacious, with a cabin worthy of the next class up.It comes with a wide array of hi-tech gear including Navidrive navigation system with a touch screen and rearview camera, hands-free access and start-up, a Rockford hi-fi system and a music server.Aircross features a panoramic glass sunroof that is illuminated by integrated LED lights at night. No word on pricing yet?The entry-level two-wheel drive model is equipped with a 1.6-litre petrol engine that develops 85kW of power and 152Nm of torque, and is paired with a five-speed manual transmission.There's also 1.6 and 1.8-litre turbo diesels, the first with 82kW/270Nm and the second, 110kW/300Nm. Both are paired with a six-speed manual and will be available in both front- and all-wheel drive.To satisfy international requirements there's also a 2.0-litre petrol engine with 113kW/198Nm of torque. It will also be available in both two and four-wheel drive form, with a five-speed manual or CVT continuously variable style auto.