Articles by Karla Pincott

Fiat-Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne announced overnight that the Jeep Compass and the Chrysler Town & Country – known here as the Grand Voyager -- would be dead in two years.The decision is part of a series of money-saving moves to remove product overlaps and give brand clearer identity, differentiating more between Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge, plus the new separated Ram and SRT sub-brands spun off in the US.The Jeep Compass is virtually a Jeep Patriot under its skin, while the Grand Voyager is an up-specced version of the Dodge Grand Caravan sold in overseas markets.The Grand Voyager minivan – a category Chrysler claims to have started -- will eventually be replaced by a smaller crossover-type vehicle, possibly keeping the Town & Country nameplate in the US at least.However in the interim the Dodge version will be the only minivan/peoplemover in the Chrysler line-up around the world.And that could mean a gap for Australia, where Chrysler is also considering dropping the Dodge brand – currently represented here only by the Dodge Journey SUV-styled peoplemover.Chrysler Australia spokesperson Lenore Fletcher says the death of the Compass and Grand Voyager would be a “natural” one. “In talking about the Compass, that would be part of the natural turnover cycle – the product life cycle,” she says.However Fletcher could not confirm whether Australia would be on the map for the dying models’ replacements. “Obviously that section of the market is in a very healthy state, and we’re keen to remain in it,” she says.“Naturally we’ll be looking at whatever products become available and evaluating their suitability to the Australian market. I don’t think we’re going to be without product.“We are really at the moment looking at the Chrysler and Jeep line-ups – we’re just about to launch the Chrysler 300 -- and we’re very positive about our volume expectations in the next 12 months.” 

The photos released in the UK overnight show clearly the facelift given to the little hatch, which now carries a new grille, headlights and front fascia design that more closely follows the styling of the new i30 – being launched and test-driven this week – as well as the Accent and Elantra. The bonnet and front wing panels have also been updated, while the UK car also rolls on new wheel designs. Around the back, the real light clusters have also been redesigned and recontoured, sitting prouder from the body than in the previous version to add more shape. Four drivetrains are available in Europe. The highlight is a new 55kW 1.1-litre, three-cylinder ‘U-II’ diesel engine that promises low carbon emissions of  just 84g/km of CO2  -- less than a Toyota Prius and making the i20 one the lowest emitting diesel engines on sale, Hyundai said. There is also a 66kW 1.4-litre four-cylinder ‘U-ll’ diesel engine that Hyundai says emits 96g/km CO2 , plus two petrol four-cylinder engines: a 62kW 1.2-litre and a 1.4-litre. However we will continue with only the last of those four, the 74kW/146Nm 1.4-litre mated to either a five-speed manual or a four-speed automatic transmission.  

The Club Coupe will be built in an edition of 13 – with one of those remaining with Porsche and the rest sold through an allocation to Porsche Club members decided by lottery. It’s free to Porsche Club members to enter – although there’s a ‘prize tag’ of about $175,000 if they’re lucky enough to win one (with their name engraved on the door sill).The edition number of 13 was chosen to honour the number of members in the first two clubs, Porsche said. Two years after the first Porsche was built in 1948, a club of seven drivers was started in Hohensyburg, and one with six members was started in Berlin.There are now about 181,000 members in the 640 official Porsche Clubs through 75 countries around the world. They’ll doubtless be vying for a chance at the 911 Club Coupe, which is based on the 911 Carrera S, with a Carrera S Powerkit adding an extra 22kW to boost the peak from 294kW to 316kW – and slashing the 0-100km/h tie from 4.5 seconds to 4.0 seconds in Sport Plus mode.It also gets the PASM sports suspension (Porsche Active Suspension Management) with a 20mm lower setting, 20-inch Sport Techno wheels and extra body kit including a pert ducktail spoiler. The 911 Club Coupe is finished in Brewster Green paint, with the interior upholstered in Espresso leather with beige stitching.Surprsingly, there are a few items left for the options list, including a fire extinguisher and … err, Isofix holding points for a child seat. As if you’re ever going to let your brat drip ice cream onto that interior. 

It probably goes against the main beliefs of Clarkson’s church – speeeeed! … powwwwerrrr! – but the scarecrow Plod bearing his face is slowing down drivers through the Northumberland village of West Mickley.PC Clarkson spots a paper printout of the Top Gear host’s face, a toy helmet, hi-vis vest pinned with a West Mickley Police badge – and a hairdryer standing in for a speed gun.It was created by local resident Christopher Hodgkinson for an annual scarecrow competition. Which means it’s meant to be dismantled at the end of the contest.But it could have a longer lease of life thanks to its effectiveness in slowing the stream of traffic that does high-speed rat runs through the village centre.Christopher Hodgkinson’s mother, Sheila, said in a report on BBC News that her son built the Clarkson police scarecrow because he was annoyed about the speed of cars passing through West Mickley.She was quoted in the report as saying: "This is what he's always played war about because the speed along here, they don't stop." Mrs Hodgkinson said Christopher had chosen the Clarkson face for his scarecrow because he was a fan of the Top Gear star. 

And in that time, the world’s most expensive supercars have been sorted around their track, along with a few reasonably priced ones.That history offers a solid baseline comparison, but who can keep all the lap times and conditions in their head? Nobody, except perhaps that thick-spectacled geek poring over a scientific calculator on the 7.15 bus.But now you can keep all the info on your wall, thanks to the clever lot over at Boostlabs.com. They’ve amalgamated 10 years of lap times and other crucial Top Gear data into a stunning infographic chart that can be downloaded and printed.It’s also a very, very large chart: measuring 250cm tall by 60cm wide – even taller and wider than a latter-day Clarkson, in fact. The chart is available from their website (see link below) and promises at-a-glance data to solve any pub argument about the Top Gear results.Boost Labs have analysed and organised all the data, developing it into an easily understandable – and damn fine looking – infographic.The data crunching has produced some winners in the eyes of Boost Labs, who have added trophies for Lightest Car, Fastest Lap, Most Power, Most Affordable Speed, Hungriest Car, Best Gymnast, Longest Power Lap Leader, and Most Random.There’s some extra background on the track itself and of course the legion of mysterious test drivers whose name is The Stig.Download the infographic at http://www.boostlabs.com/portfolio-item/topgear-infographic/

The Ferrari SP12 EC – the last two letters being the rock god’s initials – reportedly set Clapton back about $4.75 million, although Ferrari declines to reveal the price.The SP12 EC was created by the Italian supercar maker’s styling studio Centro Stile Ferrari as a joint project with famed design house Pininfarina. In an official statement, Ferrari confirmed that the one-off car was influenced by Clapton’s love of the 1970s and early 80s 512 Berlinetta Boxers he’s previously had in his enviable carport.

Executive city location, gorgeous (of course) supermodel date, even man’s best friend. They all get ditched for a spin in the Subaru BRZ, according to this latest bit of blatant promo film. And the spin on the video is that nothing will compare. Carsguide hasn’t had more than a few laps in the car, so we can’t comment thoroughly on that. But it certainly looks the business – easily one of the best designs to wear a Subaru badge in …well, ever. And that alone is good enough for us to give the footage a thumbs-up. And it may be as close as we’re going to get for a while. The hot rear-drive coupe launches here in July, and just about all the stock is already sold. It promises to be a cracker, with a 2.0-litre direct-injection petrol engine putting out 147kW of power and 205Nm of torque, and mated to either a six-speed manual or six-speed automatic transmission.

Revealed today by German tuning house Gemballa – better known for highly customised Porsches than gangsta bling – the sparkling new paint is made from crushed diamonds. There have been glittering car finishes long before now, with metalflakes still popular in certain sections of the market. But Gemballa claims theirs is the first to use real diamonds rather than glass or crystal dust. It’s also a far cry from the so-called diamond encrusted cars (in reality, crystal covered motor show concepts that do the viral email rounds, usually with diatribes about them being owned by Middle East royalty who are luxuriating in our petrodollars). And it’s just a few days too late to upstage the gold-plated Mercedes-Benz models that were announced earlier this week as a shuttle service for the celebrities at the Cannes film festival. The main difference is that you can cover a car with Swarovski or glass beads for a few hundred dollars. Gemballa’s diamond treatment is going to cost a whole lot more. How much? The company is not saying, but hopefully it will be well out of reach of anybody who currently has a hit on the rap charts. But it might present a threat to established betrothal customs. Forget about the hackneyed solitaire rock from Tiffany, get down on your bended knee and offer to paint her car, lads.  

Star driver Lucas Ordonez is more used to the sunshine of Spain, but see how he gets to grips -- and loses grip -- in the Losna Isbane Ice Track in Lillehammer.Being billed as a 'baby Godzilla GT-R', the Juke-R is the first ever super crossover.It has grown from the first Micra-based concept developed by Nissan and built by motorsports outfit RML with input from Nissan Technology Centre for Europe .Under the bonnet is a406kW  3.8-litre twin-turbo V6 engine adopted directly from Nissan's flagship supercar, however the limited-edition production version gets the new GT-R running gear rather than the concept's MY10 version.

  The roadster will be based on the rear-wheel drive MX-5 platform and built at Mazda’s plant in Hiroshima, Japan. However the two cars will be given individual styling treatment – and carry different engines – for each of the badges. A statement from Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne said the joint project highlighted Fiat’s commitment to building Alfa Romeo into “a truly global brand”. “By partnering with Mazda, we will be co-operating with the recognised leader in compact rear-drive vehicle architectures in order to deliver an exciting and stylish roadster in the Alfa Romeo tradition. We are appreciative of this collaboration with Mazda and look forward to maintaining a fruitful and continuous relationship,” the statement said. Mazda hinted that the collaboration would be followed by others. “Establishing technology and product development alliances is one of Mazda’s corporate objectives and this announcement with Fiat is an important first step in that direction,” the Japanese carmaker’s CEO Takashi Yamanouchi said. The announcement said the Alfa-Romeo version of the car would start rolling off the production line in 2015, which means the new MX-5 could arrive in showrooms ahead of its Italian relation –possibly by early 2014 at the latest -- although Mazda is not ready to confirm dates yet. “We haven’t made any announcement of a production start date for the next MX-5,” was all Mazda Australia spokesman Steve Maciver would share on the subject. However he was clear on which side of the partnership would be responsible for development of the project – and why. “Rear-wheel drive has been the basis of the MX-5’s success over the years,” he pointed out. “We will lead the development, with the project based on the next generation MX-5 platform with Skyactiv technology and the benefit of Mazda suspension tune and dynamics. However my understanding is that Alfa will use a Fiat powertrain.” Both companies have been seeking partnerships in the crusade to trim costs and expand markets. Marchionne has said previously Fiat’s brands (including Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge) need to expand to annual global sales of 6 million – a 60 per cent rise on the 2010 total of 3.6 million. Meantime Mazda, despite its success in the Australian market, had global sales of 1.3 million and is looking to head of a fourth year of losses by activating more volume at its factories.