Expect Mercedes-Benz to use the Snow Farm testing ground near Wanaka for winter trials of the new light truck it is developing to challenge Down Under commercial segment leaders like the Toyota Hilux and Ford Ranger. The carmaker has confirmed it will test prototypes in Australia and New Zealand before the production model breaks cover around 2018. The pick-up will be the … [Read more...] about Mercedes-Benz to test its new ute on NZ Snow Farm’s winter wonderland
Volkswagen
Painting a picture of what Volkswagen, Mazda, BMW are planning
Pictures on this page of the Volkswagen Polo SUV (above) and the Mazda MPS hatchback and BMW M2 coupe (further down) are computer-generated images based on spy shots taken by Automedia’s photographers. How true to life they are won’t be known until the cars themselves are officially revealed. But the Automedia designers who pen the images have a history of being uncannily … [Read more...] about Painting a picture of what Volkswagen, Mazda, BMW are planning
Mitsubishi sales up 20 per cent as market heads for record year
Three results from October sales stand out in what is shaping as a record year for new vehicles: Mitsubishi numbers are running around 20 per cent up on last year and 42 per cent on 2010; Hyundai will finish in the top three for passenger cars for the second year running; and the Ford Ranger will unseat the Toyota Hilux as the country’s long-standing workhorse of … [Read more...] about Mitsubishi sales up 20 per cent as market heads for record year
Lighter, faster Type R Civic possible – if demand is there, says Honda
Honda could make a go-faster version of the five-door Type R Civic hatchback it unveiled at the Paris motor show – if there is demand for such a flyer. It has admitted it is prepared to follow the example of French carmaker Renault, which uprated its three-door Megane RS265 to the RS275 Trophy R to set a lap record for a front-wheel drive car around the Nurburgring … [Read more...] about Lighter, faster Type R Civic possible – if demand is there, says Honda
New Toyota Hilux is bigger inside and out – and beefier
This is the new Toyota Hilux dual cab, pictured in the south of Spain by photographers from spy agency Automedia. The light truck has also been testing in Australia, where pictures of two- and four-wheel drive variants, camouflaged and dusty from Victorian bush tracks, have been published online. In Spain, the Hilux was accompanied by a convoy of Toyotas, including a … [Read more...] about New Toyota Hilux is bigger inside and out – and beefier