Next Ford Mondeo to be world car

The next Mondeo is set to follow the Focus and Fiesta and become Ford’s third world car.

Insiders at the highest level have confirmed that designs for the new Mondeo are now nearing completion and the finished car is expected to hit the showrooms in 2014, when it will replace the European Mondeo and the U.S market Fusion. Like the new Focus, it’s also expected to be manufactured in Europe, the U.S and China.

In a break from tradition though, the new Mondeo is being designed and engineered in the U.S. The finished production car though will be sold globally with no design changes to suit local markets, although as with the Focus and Fiesta there will probably be small chassis alterations to suit local driving conditions.

Poor exchange rate could be higher VW prices (UK)

Volkswagen prices will have to rise if the Pound continues at its current low level against the Euro, says the new group head of sales and marketing, Dr Christian Klingler.

'Up to now we are handling the strength of the Euro, but if the Pound stays at a low level prices will rise,' said Klinger.

It is a problem VW faces in other countries with weak currencies, including America. That is one reason why VW is moving away from the idea of global cars -the strategy that Ford is pursuing - and starting to focus on local production tailored to specific markets.

VW will open its first U.S factory at Chattannooga, Tennessee, in the middle of 2011. It will produce a mid-sized saloon for America, Canada and Mexico at the rate of 150,000 models a year, which means the next-generation Passat is unlikely to cross the Atlantic.

'One of the reasons for choosing Chattanooga is exchange rates,' said Klingler, 'but we must also consider the needs of our customers in different areas of the world. We try to adapt our cars for the needs of the market.' 

The VAG group – which includes Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, Seat, Skoda and now Porsche – is the third-largest vehicle producer in the world. Last year it sold 6.3 million vehicles and claimed 11.4% of the global market. 

'Audi did better than expected, Skoda was very strong and Seat showed an increase despite the weakness of its domestic market,' said Klingler. Bentley sales were down by nearly 40%, but Klingler says this was 'a situation that was a consequence of an external crisis'. He forecast: 'It will come back.'

Special-edition Hyundai i10, i20 & i30 launched (UK)

A series of new special-edition Hyundai models will arrive in 2010, bringing upgraded styling and equipment to the i10, i20 and i30 ranges.

Prices for the new models – all called Edition – start at £8,425 for a 1.1 litre i10 and run to £14,700 for the 1.6 CRDi i30.

At the top of the range, the i30 Edition has a sporty look and the choice of petrol or diesel engines, with prices from £13,400. Standard equipment includes alloy wheels, sports pedals, remote central locking and 4 electric windows, while an engine stop-start system is a £200 option.

The i20 Edition comes with the 1.2 litre petrol engine, in both 3 & 5dr bodies, and with a choice of two optional exterior colours. Costing from £10,565, it has half-leather seat trim, air conditioning and remote central locking.

The cheapest of the new Edition models is the i10, which comes with a 1.1 litre petrol engine and alloy wheels, side mouldings and front fog-lights, air-conditioning and electric windows. Thanks to its 119g/km CO2 emissions, its annual road tax will cost just £35.

Next Seat Exeo will be bespoke

SEAT’s next-generation Exeo will be less dependent on VW Group technology and be more of a bespoke SEAT product, according to a company source. The current Exeo is basically a previous-generation Audi A4 and was born out of SEAT’s desire to get a saloon car to market quickly under former president, who used to work for Audi, Erich Schmitt.

But our source confirmed that SEAT would eventually replace the Exeo with a car that was more of a bespoke Seat product.

“The current Exeo was a very good solution to our desire to get a saloon to market very quickly,” said the source. “We needed to be in that segment and the old A4 was the best option, but its replacement will be very much a Seat product, relying less on VW Group technology.”

The source didn’t put a timescale on when the next Exeo would be launched but they did confirm it would be developed at its Martorell facility in Spain. They also said that SEAT had no plans to repeat what it did with the Exeo on other models.

The source compared the next Exeo to the current-generation Skoda Superb. The original Superb was heavily reliant on borrowing from the Volkswagen Passat but the current model is much more of a bespoke Skoda product.

Entry-level Volkswagen Scirocco introduced (UK)

A new entry-level Volkswagen Scirocco will go on sale 4th January priced from £18,860 – £800 less than the current entry-level model.

The new car will be powered by a 121bhp 1.4 litre petrol engine, quite the opposite to the current entry-level model, which has a 158bhp engine. The new model’s 0-62mph time of 9.7 seconds is almost two seconds slower than the more powerful car’s but its CO2 emissions of 146g/km make it the cleanest petrol-engined model in the Scirocco range. The 121bhp car also returns 44.1mpg – better than the 158bhp car’s 42.8mpg with the same six-speed manual gearbox.

Standard equipment includes a 6-CD autochanger, air-conditioning, 17” alloy wheels, stability control and 6 airbags. Adaptive Chassis Control, which tailors the car's suspension to suit different road conditions, is a £765 option.

Volkswagen has also announced a new optional styling pack for GT models. The £950 Lugano Black package includes 19" alloys finished in gloss black as well as extra Piano Black inserts in the cabin.

Facelifted Maybach uber-limo confirmed

Mercedeas boss, Dieter Zetsche has admitted that the super-luxury Maybach saloon will be facelifted next year - but he refused to confirm that a next-generation car was being planned, adding to rumours that the brand is being axed. Test mules of the facelifted model were spied eariler on this year.

"The contribution of Maybach is not significant or relevant but there are only two players in this market and we are one of them – referring to Rolls-Royce. But there are no plans in the long run," he said. Zetsche also revealed that he thinks that luxury buyers' tastes are changing towards more "discreet and subtle luxury".

North East to get first Nissan LEAF electric cars in Spring 2011 (UK)

Nissan has signed a contact with development agency, One North East that will help to strengthen the North East of England as the UK’s national centre for developing ultra-low-carbon vehicles. Under the agreement, One North East has agreed to install at least 619 charging points by the start of 2011, with electricity provided free of charge until the end of March 2012 or until an itemised billing service is available.

It has already installed two charging points for public use in the car park at its head office. The agency will also work with other companies in the area to create at least 200 free dedicated public parking spaces by November 2010, as well as introducing preferential access to certain roads and areas.

The agreement also sets commitments on incentives for drivers, as well as education and demonstration initiatives to be introduced over the next two years. At the same time, Nissan has also agreed to supply LEAF cars to the region in early 2011 and to give priority to orders for the car from the North East.

The forthcoming LEAF EV is billed as the world's first affordable, zero-emissions car. Using lithium-ion battery, the LEAF has a range of more than 100 miles (160kms). The LEAF will launch in Japan Winter 2010 with U.S and European launches happening in Spring 2011.

Can a Volvo travel 827 miles on one tank of diesel?

That's the million dollar question in the fuel economy test. Two middle-aged men, Dom Jolly and Rufus Hound made a trip from the Volvo UK HQ in Marlow, Buckinghamshire to Milano, Italy and back again. Why? It's a journey about friendship and fuel economy, primarily the latter.

The car used is a 2009 Volvo V70 DRIVe which is powered by a 1.6 litre turbo-charged diesel engine, producing 109PS. Fuel economy is rated at 57.7mpg combined with a CO2 output of 129g/km. Prices start at £23,245.

The two part video can be viewed here.

Mercedes to be flexible with right-hand drive markets

Mercedes has promised to be 'fully flexible' with its next generation of cars so that anything available in left-hand-drive models can also be fitted for right-hand drive markets like hybrid technology and 4-Matic.

'We know we have maybe not done enough in the past, but in future there will be no restrictions,' said Dr Thomas Weber, the company's head of research and development. The head of Mercedes UK, Wilfried Steffen said with the next generation of cars, you will be able to have everything. We will prepare our vehicles for all markets.'

For many years, British buyers have been without the 4-Matic available on many cars sold in Europe and America because it was never engineered to fit into right-hand-drive models. The GLK compact SUV is not sold here for the same reason. That left Mercedes UK missing a rival for the BMW X3, Land Rover Freelander, Infiniti EX, Cadillac SRX and Audi Q5, as well as a series of cars that could compete with Audi's Quattro range.

The change of heart is particularly important with greater hybridisation of the range on the way. With countries all around the world targeting lower fuel consumption and CO2, none would want to miss out on technology that could help achieve those goals.

Dr Weber says there will be a hybrid version of every Mercedes 'above the C-Class', so that includes the E-Class, GL-Class, GLK, SLK, SL-Class and Viano and the flagship S-Class – at the Frankfurt show last Autumn the company announced it would offer a 90mpg, 74g/km hybrid version of the next-generation model, but that's at least two years away. A S-Class hybrid is already available.

In the meantime, the current car is to get a 4 cylinder diesel engine because of demand from markets where there are CO2-related motoring taxes. This will be badged S300 CDI and will be powered by a high-power version of the company's 2.2 litre turbo-diesel engine. Despite the relatively small capacity, it shouldn't be short of muscle – Dr Weber promises it will deliver 370lb ft of torque.

Price of diesel cars set to soar (UK)

If you think the premium for diesel cars is expensive now, wait until 2015 – when it will run into many thousands of pounds.

That's the prediction of Dr Thomas Weber, head of Group Research and Mercedes-Benz cars development, who says diesel vehicles will need expensive adaptation to meet Euro VI emissions standards being introduced in 2015. The move to Euro V emissions standards has already added costs to the production of diesel cars, with the need for costly fuel injectors and, in many cases, particulate filters.

Weber says: 'Exhaust treatment for Euro VI will add thousands to the cost of diesels in the factory. If, as a manufacturer, you want to be the market leader, you'll need to have a hybrid, too, which will add thousands more.'

The costs that diesel-car production will have to absorb means alternatively fuelled vehicles, such as Mercedes' B-Class F-Cell hydrogen fuel-cell will become more affordable when compared with diesel-powered vehicles.

Although questions remain over the production, transportation and storage of hydrogen, Weber says: 'We are deeply convinced it's an important technology and the right way forward.' While Weber does not rule out other technology, he believes that, in the long term, hydrogen will become cheaper than fossil fuels.

He predicts hydrogen will eventually fall from €8 to stabalise at around €3 (£2.70) a kilo which is enough to travel approximately 60 miles. There are no immediate plans to bring the fuel cell Mercedes to the UK, but 100 customers will soon lease the new Smart Electric Drive in this country.

The Smart is another strand of Weber's future fuel strategy.

2009 BMW X1, which is sold strictly with a diesel engine in the UK