The Suzuki Swift was the best-selling new passenger car in New Zealand in May, trumping long-time front-runner the Toyota Corolla. There wasn’t much in it, the Swift (above) and Corolla each sharing four per cent of the segment but Swift recording 272 registrations to Corolla’s 241. In third place was the Mazda CX-5 with 230 units, a continuing reflection of the strong SUV … [Read more...] about May sales: Suzuki Swift the most popular new car
Nissan
A flipside peek into the cabin of the new Nissan Qashqai
This is what buyers can expect the front interior layout of the new Nissan Qashqai to pretty much look like when the new model lands in New Zealand towards the middle of the year. Nissan has yet to release official images of the right-hooker, so we flipped a left-hand-drive picture of the six-speed manual model, which Nissan NZ almost certainly won’t have in its line-up. It … [Read more...] about A flipside peek into the cabin of the new Nissan Qashqai
Star cars of the Detroit motor show
Star cars of the Detroit motor show Some are concepts, perhaps unlikely ever to make it into production, others are road-ready. A few of the road-ready models on show in Detroit will arrive in New Zealand this year. Mercedes-Benz GLA-and C-Class Three all-wheel-drive GLA variants will go on sale here this year, all powered by turbocharged 2.0-litre engines. The 200 … [Read more...] about Star cars of the Detroit motor show
Nissan highlights quality of new Qashqai
The new Nissan Qashqai will arrive in New Zealand around the middle of next year, a couple of months or so after the second-generation X-Trail. Both crossovers share the same platform, an arrangement that allowed Nissan production savings of 30 per cent on the Qashqai alone – money, it says, that was invested back into the quality of the car. Nissan says the Qashqai is … [Read more...] about Nissan highlights quality of new Qashqai
Master craftsmen hand-build Nissan GT-R engines
The term takumi in Japan is used to describe a master craftsman who has perfected his skills over years of work and dedication. At Nissan’s engine factory in Yokohama, the four men who build by hand the GT-R coupe’s twin-turbocharged V6 engines have been designated as takumi. The four – Takumi Kurosawa, Tsunemi Ooyama, Izumi Shioya and Nobumitsu Gozu – collectively have … [Read more...] about Master craftsmen hand-build Nissan GT-R engines