Articles by Karla Pincott

Toyota hasn't offered a wagon body in the Camry line-up for more than a decade -- the last one sold in Australia was in 2002, as the family vehicle buyer continually moved towards SUVs and the wagon market dwindled.But master renderer Theophilus Chin thinks the lines of the current Camry and Aurion sedan models would suit a wagon, and has crafted one of his own. You can see more images at theophiluschin.com to get a look at the rear styling.The last Camry wagon here offered the choice of a 94kW/187Nm 2.2-litre four-cylinder or a 141kW/279Nm 3.0-litre V6 -- both with even-then lacklustre automatic transmissions. But the new Camry is about to hit Australian showrooms next month, with much better technology, and we're sure there are some out there who would love to see it powering a wagon body.This reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott 

Audi has previously ruled out the prospect of building a super-hot RS-line (racing sport) version of its baby A1. But we could get to see the next best thing at Geneva, with the German prestige brand tipped to be unveiling an S1.The baby hottie is likely to go on sale in Europe just a few months after the show unveiling in March, in both three and five-door versions sporting an S-Line body kit with more aggressive bumper treatment, rear spoiler and quad exhaust tips.The little hot hatch is said to be powered by a detuned version of the turbocharged 206kW/380Nm 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine from the S3, likely delivering about 170kW for the S1, with the same choices of a six-speed manual or a six-speed dual clutch driving four wheels with Audi's quattro system.In the S3, those combinations give a 0-100km/h time of 5.4 seconds manual and 5.0 for the auto, and you can expect around the same -- or better -- in the logically lighter S1.The S1 will slot in above the $39,900 Audi A1 Sport, but will want to be strategically priced against the hot hatch benchmark $41,490 VW Golf GTI in a tough field that includes everything from the Mini Cooper JCW to Ford Fiesta and Focus STs and Mercedes-Benz A45 AMG.This reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott 

Land Rover's medium-sized Evoque -- currently the smallest SUV in their family -- has been a smash hit for the brand around the world. But with tightening emissions standards in many markets, they're likely to add an even smaller vehicle to the range.We may be getting a hint of that with their trademarking the name Landy, which is a common nickname for their vehicles, but in this case is tipped to be applied to a future baby SUV, according to Autocar, who added that a previous business case to build something with styling from the DC100 concept may have been revived.The baby crossover would likely use the Evoque's front-wheel drive, on-demand 4WD and constant 4WD systems -- if it has any all-paw aspect at all -- and would be pitched to do battle with what has become a growing, and lucrative segment. That would see it face off against the coming Jeep Jeepster and Audi Q1, the BMW X1 and the Mini Countryman.The line-up would be expected to echo the Evoque's 110kW.380Nm 2.2-litre four-cylinder turbodiesel with a six-speed manual and nine-speed auto, and 177kW/340Nm 2.0litre turbocharged petrol four with the auto.The trademark will cover everything from vehicles to accessories, models, clothing and signage, which could however also suggest they are simply trying to protect what has become the popular name with fans over the years, to prevent anybody else using it for marketing.This reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott 

The US Insurance Institute for Highway Safety -- an independent body that annually crash tests and rates cars for safety, has slammed the light mini-car class after the results of its first small overlap front crash tests on a group of 11 cars in the segment. The IIHS says mini-cars are the worst performing group of any they've crashed since the new test was introduced in 2012, with 10 of the 11 models getting 'Marginal' or 'Poor' ratings. Six of the cars earned IIHS’ lowest rating of Poor: Fiat 500, Honda Fit (Jazz in Australia), Hyundai Accent,  Mitsubishi Mirage, the Nissan Versa (Tiida and Pulsar in Australia), and Toyota’s Prius c. The Ford Fiesta, Kia Rio, Mazda2, and Toyota Yaris were scored as Marginal. Chevrolet’s Spark (Holden Barina Spark in Australia) was scored as 'Acceptable'. Not one car earned a rating of 'Good'. In Australian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP) tests, the Poor and Marginal cars have fared much better. Five crash stars have been earned by the Fiat 500, Honda Jazz, Hyundai Accent, Mitsubishi Mirage, Nissan Pulsar, Ford Fiesta, Kia Rio, Mazda2, Toyota Yaris, while four stars went to the Nissan Tiida and the Prius c has not yet been crash-tested by ANCAP. However the Holden Barina Spark -- the IIHS top scorer -- earned only four stars in its latest Australian test. The IIHS small overlap test is intended to replicate the front corner of a car colliding with another vehicle or an object at 65km/h -- which is higher than the speed limit in Australian streets but less than that on major roads and highways. In the test, 25 percent of a vehicle's front end on the driver's side rams into a barrier at that speed. IIHS says the test is more difficult than head-on crash tests, as the angle of crash bypasses most of the car's front crumple zone, making it difficult for the vehicle to safely absorb the crash energy before it can reach and crush the occupant compartment. "Nevertheless, in many size categories, manufacturers have found ways to improve vehicle structures to meet this challenge," the IIHS says. Because the Spark also earned good ratings in the institute's other four crashworthiness evaluations, it has been given their Top Safety Pick for its class. ANCAP chief executive officer Nicholas Clarke says the Australian organisation has already been looking at the small frontal offset test method, but is not sure if that kind of crash happens on Australian roads. "We've been looking at it for some time, as it's among many that have been developed that might fit into a mix of future tests," Clarke says. "But we're unsure it it's appropriate for Australia. There are a lot of different crash scenarios and they differ from country to country, because there are different roads and urban concentrations. "The tests we have done over time have been very representative of the crashes in this country. We do the 40 per cent frontal offset now, so with something like a 25 per cent (small) offset we'd need to explore to see if relevant in the Australian context -- we don't know if that kind of crash happens in Australia." He says that ANCAP is confident its current battery of tests are the appropriate ones for  Australian conditions, and is also mindful of the growing availability of collision-avoidance technology. "For a long time our research has shown that our tests cover the majority of Australian crash scenarios. And as a not for profit organisation, we have to do the tests that are appropriate within the budget we have. We also need to balance the modern car's ability to avoid collisions -- if a car can't crash front on, do we need a frontal offset crash test? Clarke says also that the cars tested by IIHS might be different from the ones here. "The cars that were tested by IIHS are 2014 cars, and are not yet available in Australia. They might be completely different," he says. Watch the new crash test fails 10 of 11 light cars video here.  This reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott  

What car did you learn to drive in -- and how? Most people get to gingerly edge their family's least loved vehicle around for months of careful accelerating and braking, encouraged to do gentle gear changes and keep an eye on those mirrors.Not this girl. Dad takes her out in his Chevrolet Corvette C6, and teaches her how to do donuts in an empty warehouse yard. Not just teaches her, but urges her, spurs her on... "okay, go for it. Go! Just punch it, keep it turned ... don't be too scared. Let it off all of a sudden and go with it -- now go!"After a few tries, the teen gets the hang of it, and dad gets out to video her newly-learned skills from outside the car. She does a creditable job in her first hoon role, managing to raise a smoke screen as the car spins around. No doubt there was a scene off-camera where he warned her not to do this on a public road. Watch the desktop version of the Corvette donut video here. This reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott 

Kia has reinforced their sponsorship of the Australian Open tennis tournament by serving up a world first interactive game that has had close to 125,000 Aussies diving in for a volley.The Game On app, developed by Kia in collaboration with their marketing partners, has people using their smartphones to return a series of six different high-speed serves from ads screening on their televisions and on large interactive screens in shopping centres along the Eastern seaboard.And the flying balls they're facing are dished out by the world's faster server, Australian Sam Groth, who has been clocked at 263km/h. And as an extra advantage, players have the chance to win a Kia Cerato Koup Turbo at the end of the tournament. Kia's general manager marketing, Steve Watt says the response has been well beyond what the brand expected, with four days to go until the championship ends. "At the moment we're at a 123,000 which is amazing," Watt says. "We had a target of 45,000 and a stretch target of 100,000 -- which we passed halfway through the tournament."The strengh of this campaign is that it's being supported through the telecast, and spots in telecast, and being being driven by a lot of social media as well. And it's a very broad demographic -- the majority of downloads are Australian but the second market is Japan, despite the fact that they can't play within telecast because of it being a different signal, so are playing it online."Watt says the app has been significant in generating engagement with Kia branding, to the extent that people are keen to see the ads -- rather than dodging them. "The nice thing about this is that there are 123,000 people walking around with a smartphone waiting for our ads to appear on TV."He says the success of the app means we could see it applied to other sports Kia supports. "When we came up with the idea it was all about engagement and providing another layer to our sponsorship," Watt says. "This app has an ability to be redeployed with our other sponsorships, say for a soccer game with the World Cup, or AFL game with Essendon."However he stresses those applications would not see people kicking their smartphones around their loungerooms like a ball. "It's more a goalie application - you join your hands and try to block the ball," he says.The Kia "Game On" App can be downloaded from the Google and Apple app strores, and ends with the Australian Open Men’s Final on January 26.This reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott

When you have a car problem in the outback, it can be a life-or-death problem. However a family has survived being stranded for four days on a road in the remote Kimberly region of north Western Australia, after a man walked 50km and the father swam a flooded river to get help. A search plane was dispatched and after spotting the bogged car, a helicopter rescued them, ferrying the two men and five children -- aged from three to 11 -- to Halls Creek. WA police said the group's car had become stranded on unsealed road while travelling from Darwin to Halls Creek, and were cut off by floodwater about 80km from the nearest community. The group carried enough food and water for three days, but one child needed urgent medication on arrival at Halls Creek, while two other children required asthma medication. While the father was trying to battle the rising floodwaters in the area to get help -- eventually reaching a station where he was able to get petrol, before then becoming bogged -- the other man's 50km walk met success when he was able to hail a passing vehicle that took him to the nearby community, where the alarm was raised. WA police have said the group was lucky to have survived, and warned people travelling in the area to be prepared for potential flooding, and to ensure they carried ample food, water, maps, fuel and spare parts. Police said they were delighted to be able to relate a happy ending to the adventure, but also warned the outcome could have been disastrous if not for good planning and a lot of luck. This reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott

German car fans were rocked by the news this week that the country's leading automotive association had faked its annual voting for the favourite car.The Yellow Angel scandal -- with the 18-million member ADAC motoring organisation admitting it faked the numbers that gave the VW Golf the coveted trophy, has rocked the public and media there.ADAC insists that the Golf would still have won, despite the reported numbers being inflated ten-fold. However Volkswagen has now distanced itself from the award, removing all refences to it from advertising for the Golf and reportedly offering to hand back the trophy.The German government has demanded the true figures be revealed by ADAC, which is loved in Germany for its 'yellow angel' roadside assistance patrols and rescue helicopters. The organisation has also been a strong lobby group for road and car safety, and operates a number of commercial arms providing insurance, car rentals and holidays.ADAC management said it was not aware of the deception, and the ADAC's magazine editor, Michael Ramstetter, shouldered responsibility for the faked results and has resigned.This reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott 

Volkswagen have created some brilliant ads for the Super Bowl in recent years, with their Darth Vader a standout that was voted top ad for event in 2011, and a saw a strong follow-up in 2012 with dogs -- still teased with a Star Wars theme.So what makes the perfect ad? VW reckons they can put their engineers on the job to create a precise and intricate algorithm that will produce the ultimate commercial and a "surefire recipe for advertising success. Or not.""The precision of German engineering is what makes Volkswagens great, so why not use that precision to make a great Volkswagen commercial," the boffin in the white coat suggests. "By isolating your most successful humour ads, we have developed an algorithm to make the ultimate commercial for your big American football festival."And apparently, the algorithm requires the integration of glamour model/actress Carmen Electra, puppies, babies, some twerking, a Wang Chung soundtrack and ... well, you've probably seen every highlight of every other ad.What you won't have seen so often is the German brand taking the mickey out of itself -- and so successfully. Watch the desktop version of Volkswagen's 2014 Super Bowl teaser video here. This reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott  

Holden has rolled out the 2014 five-seat Captiva 5 and seven-seat Captiva 7 SUVs with restyling touches, extra equipment and price cuts across the range. Every Captiva 7 is now $2500 cheaper -- with the entry level LS now the only seven-seater coming in  under $30,000 -- while the entry level Captiva 5 drops $2000 and its higher-level siblings are trimmed by $1800.Trim levels names for the Captiva 7 have been made uniform with the Captiva 5 and the rest of the Holden SUV family, with the former SX, CX and LX now called LS, LT and LTZ.Restyling for the Captiva 7 includes a new grille design, front and rear bumpers, LED tail-light clusters and chrome exhaust tips. The LTZ and LT get new integrated side steps, while the Captiva 5 LTZ gets chrome door handles and both the 5 and 7 LT get new 18-inch alloy wheels.Smart key technology with push-button start has been added to across the Captiva 7 line-up as standard.The Captiva has been a popular seller for Holden, with the seven-seat model up 16 per cent last year with 13,282 sales, although the five-seater was down close to 5 per cent at 6751.Holden Captiva 5 prices:Holden Captiva 5 LT petrol manual – $25,990 (-$2000)Holden Captiva 5 LT petrol auto – $28,190 (-$1800)Holden Captiva 5 LT AWD diesel auto – $32,190 (-$1800)Holden Captiva 5 LTZ petrol auto – $31,190 (-$1800)Holden Captiva 5 LTZ AWD diesel auto – $35,190 (-$1800)Holden Captiva 7 prices:Holden Captiva 5 LS 4-cyl petrol – $29,990 (-$2500)Holden Captiva 5 LS diesel – $32,990 (-$2500)Holden Captiva 5 LT AWD V6 petrol – $35,990 (-$2500)Holden Captiva 5 LT AWD diesel – $36,990 (-$2500)Holden Captiva 5 LTZ AWD V6 petrol – $39,990 (-$2500)Holden Captiva 5 LTZ AWD diesel – $40,990 (-$2500)This reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott