Articles by Paul Gover

A demanding new-model program, including a three-car attack with a new Impreza family, is forcing the Japanese company to end its time as a minicar maker. Fuji Heavy Industries began in the car business with the tiny Subaru 360 in 1958 and has has plenty of support from Japan's sub-600cc car buyers - who shop in what is called the Kei class - since then. Sales of Subaru's babies peaked in 1990 with 270,000 sales, but the number has fallen sharply to just 93,000 in 2010. Production of the Stella - which is also the base for Subaru's first plug-in electric car - ended last month and the Sambar commercial vehicle will also die soon. Subaru will not totally abandon the Kei class as it has plans to do a badge swap with cars built by Daihatsu, just as Suzuki supplies Kei cars for Nissan. The production line space previously devoted to the baby cars is being turned over to the expanded Impreza range - a conventional four-door sedan and hatch, a dedicated WRX-STI model and the upcoming VX crossover - as well as the two-door sports coupe being jointly developed with Toyota.

After a major bailout by the American government, and a new partnership with Fiat of Italy, the US maker has just reported its first black-ink result since 2009. It banked $106 million on its first-quarter operations for 2010, compared with a $180 million loss for the same period in 2010. Chrysler's revenue improved 35 percent through the quarter to $12 billion as its worldwide sales - led by the successful new Chrysler 300C in the USA and the latest Grand Cherokee from Jeep - improved by 18 per cent. The result is praised by anaylsts at Morgan Stanley in the USA, which calls the results "impressive". "Chrysler Group's improved sales and financial performance in the first quarter show that our rejuvenated product lineup is gaining momentum in the marketplace," says Chrysler's chief executive, Sergio Marchionne, who took the top job as part of Fiat's buy-in to the company two years ago.

The Rio is the Korean company's price fighter and must do the heavy lifting for the brand as it lifts its lineup and reputation downunder with everything from the upscale Optima to the sellout Sportage diesel. The Rio is previewed as a four-door sedan in the Big Apple, alongside a revamped Soul with Kia's new 'face' on the front and a bigger platform below, following the unveiling of the five-door hatch in Geneva in March. The sedan is more elegant than before and expected to spread the Rio's impact as Kia  Australia looks to lift sales beyond the current level of 650 cars a month. It is already into runout and a major push could easily lift total sales - with three models - towards 1000 a month. "Kia is learning all the time. The new Rio shows that and also reflects the changes in our cars," says Kia Australia spokesman, Kevin Hepworth. The sedan, like the hatch, is based on the mechanical package of the Hyundai i20 but with considerable changes and tweaking for Australia under the control of the company's resident chassis guru, Graeme Gambold. But the bad news is that prices are likely to rise a little, from today's starting sticker at $14,990, despite the strength of the Australian dollar. Kia Australia is planning a staggered rollout of the Rio as supplies become available from Korea. "The five-door hatch will be the first car for us, in August," says Hepworth. "We don't have a definite timing on the four-door sedan, but we're expecting late this year or very early in 2012. The three-door hatch that completes the lineup will be revealed later in the year at a major motor show." Kia is claiming class-leading efficiency for the new Rio, thanks to 1.4 and 1.6-litre engines which start with 102 kiloWatts. "We're still finalising the engines, but we hope to get both," says Hepworth. The Soul is confirmed with a 1.6-litre direct-injection GDI petrol engine and relatively minor body changes to bridge the gap between the current model and an all-new Soul 2012. "The facelifted Soul should be coming to Australia by the end of this year," says Hepworth. "It's an opportunity to put a new engine, the 1.6-litre GDI, in the car, and give it a bit of a tweak to keep it fresh."

A Rio GTI is only a question of time and there is also likely to be a genuine Kia sports car as a motor show hero in 2012 before full-scale production in 2013 or 2014.

China is clearly on top of the car world in 2011.

A Vader helmet seems to being exploding through the nose of the LF-Gh concept car that appears at the New York auto show and also previews a new design direction for the Japanese luxury brand.Lexus cars have always been plain and simple, but now the company says  it's time to get aggressive as it shifts into the next step of its plan to challenge Benz and BMW ."The front face is a big leap for us in terms of expression and  boldness," the global design boss for Lexus, Simon Humphries, tells  Carsguide in New York. He says the official name of the grille shape is bi-conic, but it's also known as the spindle and the hourglass. "We call it a spindle. Although it's proper name is b-conic," he says.Regardless of its name, and Darth car also works for Carsguide, the nose is just part of a push that will quickly transform the LF-Gh from a motor show tease into the next mid-sized Lexus GS. Lexus has deliberately shielded any technical detail on the concept  car, short of basic dimensions that place it closely alongside the current GS. There is nothing concrete on its powerplant or drive system, not even the size of any petrol engine in the nose. The mechanical detail is expected later in the year, leaving the Big Apple appearance to focus on the body design. Even the car's cabin,  which is claimed to put a much stronger focus on the driver, is deliberately shielded with super-dark tinting on the windows.Humphries says the LF-Gh is a turning point for Lexus as it looks for  a new direction. "America is a big thing for Lexus. From a design perspective, we're reaching a tipping point in design," he says. "This car, for us, is a significant shift. It's back to a more  fundamental simplicity. It's very pure." He points to everything from the smooth sides of the body to the clean-and-simple sweep over the boot at the back end, the steeply-raked   windscreen and even the 20-inch alloy wheels.But Humphries always comes back to the nose, and the new Lexus 'face'. Just like Audi and Mercedes-Benz and so many others, his brand is finding its new look and the concept style will be quickly moved into  the rest of the showroom."What we're going to do is start implementing this as soon as possible. You will see it within a year or so," Humphries says. "You can already see it in the CT200. The outline is already there." He will not be drawn on lines between the concept car and the next GS,  but promises something much more aggressive today and into the future. "You're going to have to wait and see what happens with the production version (of the GS). We plan to take the grille throughout the lineup, in basically a similar form."

It's the GT and, as the name suggests, it takes a similar approach to the 5 Series GT that's already sold in Australia from just over $150,000.The new 3 Series is expected to a raised seating position and ride height like the Five and will also have a smaller take on its two-tier rear hatch design, as design drives the shape and functional work.The 3 GT is expected to come with both rear and xDrive all-wheel drive, with a range of petrol and diesel engines, although the car is too far away from Australia for any solid speculation.Even so, this Carparazzi picture confirms BMW's plans and points to a preview at the 2011 Frankfurst Motor Show in September.

The Peugeot 508 SW is getting the crossover treatment to compete in Europe against a variety of high-riding wagons including the Audi Allroad, Volvo XC70 and Skoda Octavia Scout.The mechanical package will be much the same as the near-new 508 wagon, but the Allroad - if that's the name it eventually gets - rides a few centimetres higher to make it suitable for weekend escape work.Carparazzi says the Allroad should be ready for the road in time for the Frankfurt show.

When Opel sets up in Australia next year as a standalone brand, and not just with cars that form part of the GM Holden lineup, the compact Astra will be its make-or-break frontliner.The new Astra is already a motor show star and now Carparazzi has pictures of the go-faster hero car, the OPC model.It is predicted to get a 27 per cent power hike with a 2.0-litre four cylinder engine that makes 225 kiloWatts, as well as pumped-up bodywork and the rest of the stuff it needs to compete with the Renault Megane RS 250, Ford Focus RS and others.

That's the problem facing Mercedes-Benz as it brings the open-air version of its SLS supercar closer to showrooms.The car with styling inspired by the 1950s gullwing has picked up the same nickname, but the SLS Cabrio is coming without the quick coupe's signature gullwing doors.These Carparazzi pictures show a car that looks ready for showrooms, but its on-sale date is not expected to arrive until sometime in the second half of 2012.