Articles by Karla Pincott

BMW Auto Umhlanga in Durban, South Africa, retrieved the loan car from a customer whose new BMW 320d had been returned to the dealership with claims it was defective. “I noted certain defects, including that the doors were not aligned properly and that the air conditioner was not working. I returned the vehicle to the dealership,” the customer, Ravindra Jainarain, is cited as explaining in a news report on South Africa’s IOL. “However, the vehicle was not fixed to my satisfaction and (BMW) did not give me any explanation as to how such defects could be present (in) a new car. I requested that they take the vehicle back and give me another new vehicle.” While the dealership was deciding what they would do about Jainarain’s car, they lent him a BMW 325 in March. However two weeks ago, after the dealership had declined to replace Jainarain’s car – and he had in turn declined to return the loaner – an armed Netstar car tracking team with Airwolf helicopter back-up was sent to retrieve it. The IOL report cites Jainarain as saying the “aggressive and arrogant” Netstar team barged into his office with guns and forced him to hand over the car. “I am paying monthly instalments for a car I am no longer in possession of or am using. If the loan car is given back to the dealership I will be forced to hire a vehicle at my own cost,” he said. A court has ordered that the loan car be returned to him, but the dealer has filed a counter claim to get it back. The dealership’s principal, Brenton Cole, has denied in an affidavit that Jainarain was unlawfully dispossessed of the BMW 325 and that he was given the loan vehicle for the term of the dispute. “The applicant (Jainarain) requested the new BMW to be replaced because of the repair work to the air conditioner. I explained to him that BMW South Africa would have to make the decision on whether to replace the vehicle and it would have to be inspected. “He left the vehicle at the dealership and I provided a loan vehicle to use while we waited for BMW South Africa’s decision. “The applicant has three years to institute action. It may take years to be resolved, therefore it is absurd that we would give him a loan vehicle for so long.” Both cases will be heard within weeks. In the meantime, the car stays with Jainarain.  

China's Troubled Bridge Over Water --  with apologies to Simon & Garfunkel -- has only just come to court after a year of investigation.In July 2011, a 34 year old truck drive known only as Mr. Zhang was carting a load of sand near Beijing. But as he started crossing the bridge, it gave way.His 110-tonne truck is blamed for causing the bridge to collapse. After a year long police investigation the courts have come to the decision that the blame is solely on Mr. Zhang’s shoulders because they say the truck was overloaded.Mr Zhang says he was just doing what he was told by his truck company. The bad news for Mr Zhang is that the court wants him to pay for the damage - a huge 156 million RMB ($23.5 million).Reports from China indicate the bailiffs will have a hard time collecting given he probably doesn't make $100 a month. Let's see, that's 19,583 years of repayments by which time - given Mr Zhang will be 19,617 years old - it's unlikely he'd still be driving a truck. 

While it’s not meant to fill in for a future Fiesta ST, the Fiesta Metal gets a higher-tuned 1.6-litre Duratec Ti-VCT petrol four-cylinder.

Now if Volkswagen could just decipher the lyrics of Blinded By The Light -- and explain the reason for Nickelback's existence -- we'll be happy. 

The addition -- coming as part of the Exiga’s mid-life revision – puts another possie in the middle of the second row, taking the original six-seater up a notch.The passenger in the new spot gets a proper three-point lap-sash seatbelt – the absence of which was the reason Subaru did not offer the seven-seat option when the Exiga first arrived three years ago.There are now also three sets of child-seat anchor points in the middle row. Other changes to the Liberty Exiga include a new door mirror design on all models and new 17-in alloy wheels for the Premium spec versions.The price remains at current levels, starting from $37,990 for the 123kW/229NM 2.5-litre Liberty Exiga 2.5i and from $42,490 for the Premium spec that adds features such as leather, foglights and window tinting.“Liberty Exiga will now appeal to even more families that need the option of a seventh seat, in addition to the significant cargo volume it offers for load carrying, with the seats down in a variety of combinations,” Subaru Australia managing director Nick Senior says. 

Ford sued Nissan over this ad, which showed engineer 'gangstas' rapping with a silver Ford Focus in the background. Laden with gold jewelry, slugging champagne, counting money -- and surrounded by women dancing in bikinis -- the engineers rap about raking it in by overpricing the Focus. The Portuguese lyrics translate as “All this luxury, I got with your money. Don’t cry because you’re paying extra — your money was well spent, look at the fun I have with it.” The video closes with a brief look at Nissan’s Tiida, comparing its lower price with the Focus. Ford forced Nissan to withdraw the ad on the basis of  ‘improper brand uses’ and ‘unfair competition’. And the ad itself it tasteless, which begs the question of why Nissan in Brazil would run it. Until you remember Nissan bombed in Australia with a smutty innuendo TVC for the Tiida starring 'Sex and the City' cougar Kim Cattrall. In fairness, this ad is even cheesier...

Car tech and audio brand Harman has unveiled a Kinect-like system that responds to hand movements

The new Corolla – called the Auris in Japan – has appeared ahead of its mid-August launch there, showing a longer and sleeker profile, sportier styling and some aero kit options. The Corolla will offer a range of engines overseas, possibly including 1.5-litre, 1.8-litre and 2.0-litre petrol four-cylinders, and a small BMW-sourced diesel – the oilburner arriving as a result of an agreement between the two carmakers last year. However there’s no indication yet on which of those engines will reach Australia, although Carsguide has previously suggested that the likely options will be the 110kW/179Nm 1.8-litre with and the 116kW/195Nm 2.0-litre – marking the exit of the current 102kW/189Nm 2.0-litre. Australia is also tipped to be waving farewell to the four-speed automatic transmission, which will be replaced by a new CVT (continuously-variable transmission) with Sports Mode. Toyota says the transmission has a G-sensor that monitors deceleration and turning force, then automatically downshifts when entering a corner and holds the gear through the corner rather than upshifting in the middle of the job. We’ll get our first solid look at the Corolla in local spec when it stars on Toyota’s stand at the Australian International Motor Show in October, prior to an early 2013 launch.  

Following hot on the heels of artwork for the new Cerato sedan, the sketches for the second generation of the Rondo – known as the Carens overseas – show Kia’s march towards sleeker styling.It gets design chief Peter Schreyer’s signature ‘tiger face’, set off with swept-back headlights streaming to sharply angled A-pillars and a low roofline.Kia classifies the Rondo as a compact MPV (multi-purpose vehicle) but its main purpose is moving people – more or less as a smaller sibling to the large Carnival.Kia is promising a focus on more room for the seven-seater, with a longer wheelbase and more functional space. It ditches the 15-in wheels of the current model for 18-in ones, and is likely to have a few more dressed-up accents as well.There’s no information yet on drivetrains, but it’s likely the vehicle will be offered overseas with a 1.6-litre diesel engine and a 2.0-litre turbo petrol, which would see the exit of the 106kW/189Nm 2.0-litre petrol in the current model here.The Rondo will debut at the Paris motor show in September. 

We've been drip-fed tidbits of the new Mazda 6, but a leaked image early today gave a clearer view, which was followed by Mazda releasing three official images.