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2009 Caterham R500 – Top Gear’s Car of the Year

Top Gear has named the Caterham Superlight R500 its 2008 ‘Car of the Year’. The most extreme version of the legendary Seven appeared on the popular BBC show for the first time at the beginning of December, instantly leaving a lasting impression on presenters Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May. In the hands of Top Gear’s mystery test driver, The Stig, the R500 put in one of the most visually spectacular laps around their benchmark test circuit, Dunsfold. Free of any driver...

Hyundai's New Tau V8 Engine in Ward’s 2009 "10 Best Engines" List

Hyundai Motor Company’s all-new 4.6 litre Tau V8 engine, which debuted in the premium Genesis sedan in the U.S. this year, has been named one of “Ward’s 10 Best Engines” for 2009 by Ward’s Auto World. This marks the first time a Hyundai engine has appeared within the prestigious “Ward’s 10 Best Engines” list. Ward's Auto World editors tested the Tau V8 engine in Hyundai’s all-new Genesis sedan recently and concluded, “The engine’s velvety power delivery, competitive performance and...

Award for the Innovative Power Transfer for the SL 63 AMG

The well-known American technical magazine "Popular Science" has awarded the newly developed AMG SPEEDSHIFT MCT 7-speed sports transmission. During the "Best of what’s new Awards", the innovative power transfer of the SL 63 AMG high-performance Roadster achieved first place in the "Automotive" category. The AMG SPEEDSHIFT MCT 7-speed sports transmission claimed victory in the hotly contested "Automotive" category. According to the editors of Popular...

Hyundai-Kia Named 'Car Company of the Year' by Autocar

Britain’s oldest motoring magazine, Autocar, has named Hyundai-Kia as its ‘Car Company of the Year’ at its annual award ceremony in Westminster, London. Citing the Korean giant’s “mind-blowing” ambition, editor Chas Hallet presented the title to Mr. Nam-Yong Kim, President of Hyundai-Kia’s European Research and Development Centre in Germany. Hallett said, “When the irrepressible Hyundai-Kia group started talking, just a few years ago, about wanting to become the world’s fifth largest car...

BMW 3 Series Voted Most Reliable Car

BMW’s biggest selling model range, the 3 Series, has been voted the most reliable car in a survey of Britain’s vehicle leasing companies. The poll, which covered the reliability history of nearly 900,000 vehicles in 2008, also revealed that BMW was the most reliable manufacturer overall. In an historic win over the Japanese car manufacturers who traditionally dominate in reliability surveys, BMW topped the charts in this year’s annual FN50 reliability survey. The BMW 3 Series was the most...

BMW 5 Series Ranked Most Appealing Midsize Premium Car

The BMW 5 Series has been ranked the most appealing midsize premium car. J.D. Power and Associates honoured BMW with the award in the latest Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout Study (APEAL), which determines the degree of satisfaction of customers purchasing new cars in North America. The latest award confirms recent European customer satisfaction studies carried out by J.D. Power and Associates where the BMW 5 Series ranked highest in its segment. In France and Germany in...

Citroen 2CV Hermes - (Global)

What do the Bugatti Veyron and the Citroen 2CV have in common?

Honda’s 2008 CBR1000RR Fireblade Awarded ‘Sports Bike of the Year’ Title - (Global)

Honda’s high-performance CBR1000RR Fireblade has received the prestigious ‘Sports Bike of the Year’ Award from Fast Bikes magazine.

2008 Ford FG Falcon Wins Engineering Excellence Awards - (Australia)

Ford Australia's new FG Falcon has won two of the five awards on offer for innovation in automotive engineering at this year's Automotive Engineering Excellence Awards, announced by the Society of Automotive Engineers

Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione Wins Best Design of the Year - (UK)

Alfa Romeo’s awesome Alfa 8C Competizione supercar has scooped the award for Best Design of the Year in Auto Express’s 2008 New Car Honours, presented by the UK’s most popular motoring title.

Fiat Collects yet another Prize for the 500! - (UK)

Fiat is celebrating again, having scooped yet another highly important industry award for its iconic 500. The hugely successful 500, which was launched by Fiat earlier this year, has just been crowned ‘Best City Car’ in the 2008 Auto Express New Car Honours by the UK’s most popular motor magazine. In doing so, the 500 brings to an end an incredible run for the Fiat Panda, which took the magazine’s City Car title for four consecutive years.

Fiat 500 - The Awards Keep Coming! - (UK)

Just days after the Fiat 500 won the best city car trophy from the UK’s leading motoring magazine, Auto Express, it has now been anointed as the winner of the Supermini and City category winner in the evecars.com Car of the Year Awards 2008, presented by evecars.com, a web site produced jointly by the UK’s leading consumer car magazine, ‘What Car?” and the UK’s fastest growing women’s title, ‘Eve’, and dedicated to helping women get the best car deals.

Citroen C4 Picasso - The Yummy Mummy Award Winner! - (UK)

The Citroen C4 Picasso has taken the title as the best people mover presented by evecars.com, a web site produced jointly by the UK’s leading consumer car magazine, ‘What Car?” and the UK’s fastest growing women’s title, ‘Eve’, and dedicated to helping women get the best car deals, or, as they put it - Citroën’s seven seat people mover is the ultimate Yummy Mummy Car.

Leob takes on Schumarcher - (Global)

Sébastien Loeb, the most successful driver in World Rallying history, will take on Michael Schumacher and a host of top racers for the title of best driver in the world in London’s Wembley Stadium this year, after the Frenchman confirmed that he will compete in The Race of Champions 2008, which takes place on Sunday 14 December.

2009 Sonata Among Motor Trend’s Top Picks - (USA)

Motor Trend magazine has named the new Sonata as its number two pick among mid-sized family sedans sold in the United States.

Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution gets - Bang for your Buck Award - (Australia)

Mitsubishi Motors Australia Limited (MMAL) announced that its newly-released Lancer Evolution performance sedan has taken first place in the $50,000 to $80,000 category of Motor Magazine’s annual ‘Bang for your Bucks’ awards.

Dodge Journey Wins Ward's "Clever Utility" Award - (Australia)

Ward’s judges presented the all-new Dodge Journey crossover a special achievement award, “Clever Utility,” for its well-thought-out and neatly integrated interior features at the 2008 Ward’s Auto Interiors Show — the publication’s annual auto interior event.

Hyundai Accent Named Most Dependable Sub-Compact Car in the U.S.A.by J. D. Power and Associates -...

The fuel-efficient Hyundai Accent has been named the most dependable sub-compact car in the U.S.A. by J.D. Power and Associates in its 2008 Vehicle Dependability Study (VDS). The highly regarded study measures problems experienced by original owners of three-year-old (2005 model year) vehicles. The study is based on the responses of more than 52,000 owners of new vehicles bought between November 2004 and April 2005.

A Million MINIs Exported from Plant Oxford - (UK)

Since production began in 2001 Plant Oxford in the UK has seen over one million MINIs leave for customers abroad.

One Millionth BMW with Efficient Dynamics Delivered - (Australia)

In its quest for a consistent reduction in consumption and emission rates BMW Group has reached another milestone, delivering the one-millionth model with BMW EfficientDynamics technology.

Mercedes-Benz Celebrates 50 Years in Australia - (Australia)

The year 2008 marks the 50th anniversary of the official establishment of Mercedes-Benz in Australia.

Fiat's Entire Range in the Top Five Greenest Cars in Australia - (Australia)

Fiat has become the first car maker in Australia to have its entire range represented in the top five greenest cars available in Australia, with the Fiat 500 offering Australia’s best fuel economy in one version and the second highest green rating in another version, the Fiat Punto in third spot and the Fiat Ritmo rounding out the top five ‘Top Performers’ in the Australian Government’s Green Vehicle Guide with its newly launched Fiat Ritmo Dynamic 1.4.

Fiat Collects Another Prize for the 500! - (UK)

The Fiat 500 has collected yet another prize to pop into its stylish boot, with the hot-selling 500 taking the prize for the greenest supermini on the UK market in the 2008 ‘What Car?’ Green Car of the Year Awards.

Citroen Collects More Green Awards! - (UK)

Citroen is the only car brand to collect more than one award for its models in the annual ‘What Car?’ Green Awards presented by the UK’s largest consumer magazine, with the Citroen C4 Picasso and the new Citroen C5 taking the top green prized for the people mover and family car titles respectively.

Volkswagen Transporter - First Van to be Awarded Four Stars by ANCAP - (Australia)

Australia’s leading vehicle safety organisation, the Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP), has awarded its first 4-star rating for a commercial van – to the Volkswagen Transporter.

Mitsubishi Pajero Named Best Value for Money Third Year in a Row - (Australia)

Mitsubishi’s legendary Pajero four-wheel drive diesel wagon was last week awarded the Best Value for Money trophy for the third year in a row by Overlander magazine.

Overlander Awards Jeep® With Best Off-Road Vehicle For 2008 - (Australia)

The Jeep Wrangler Rubicon has been awarded Best Off-Road Vehicle for 2008 by Overlander magazine in the recent ‘Best 4WD In Each Class Award’.

Grand Vitara Wins Another Title - (Australia)

The Suzuki Grand Vitara DDiS compact SUV has added another award to its bulging trophy cabinet after being named Best Small Wagon 2008 by Overlander 4WD magazine.

RACV says Kia Carnival is most affordable people-mover to run - (Australia)

The Kia Carnival is the most affordable people-mover to own and run according to the Royal Automobile Club of Victoria's (RACV) annual survey of vehicle operating costs, mirroring the Carnival's performance in the 2006 and 2007 RACV surveys.

World Record Parade of Mitsubishi Evo's - (Global)

On Saturday 12th July the Mitsubishi Lancer Register (MLR) – the UK based organisation for owners and enthusiasts of the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution – successfully created a new World Record for the largest ever parade of ‘Evos’. The event took place at Castle Combe Racing Circuit in Wiltshire, England and was fully supported by Mitsubishi Motors UK.

7.5 Million Engines at the Mercedes-Benz Mannheim Plant - (Germany)

The Mercedes-Benz Mannheim plant marked a milestone on June 13, 2008 when it produced the 7.5 millionth engine in its history. Hermann Doppler, head of worldwide truck engine production at Daimler AG, symbolically presented the milestone engine to Wolfgang Bork, managing director of Spedition BORK. The OM 501 series engine with BlueTec technology will be installed in a Mercedes-Benz Actros built in Wörth. It delivers 320 kW (440 hp) of power and already meets the criteria of the Euro 5...

BMW Shows the Way in 2008 Wheels Gold Star Car Awards - (Australia)

In what is possibly the most comprehensive and realistic new car rating system conceived in Australia, BMW has dominated the field in Wheels magazine’s annual Gold Star Cars awards.

50 Million Peugeot Vehicles Produced – 1891 to 2008 - (Global)

As the world’s oldest continuous motoring brand, Peugeot has gone from strength to strength since 1891, and is proud to announce the production of its 50-millionth vehicle. From its pioneering days as a family business, Peugeot has expanded beyond recognition in little more than a century. From its current 24 production sites around the world, the company has produced more than 160 individual models, from the 201 to the 308.

Kia Sorento awarded top ranking in 2008 AutoPacific Ideal Vehicle Awards - (USA)

The 2008 Kia Sorento has been given the top ranking in the midsize SUV segment in AutoPacific, Inc.'s 2008 Ideal Vehicle Awards (IVA) in the USA.

Persona Named Best Car Of The Year In Malaysia - (Malaysia)

The Proton Persona has been named Malaysia's Best Model of the Year in the 2008 Frost & Sullivan ASEAN Automotive Awards. Launched in August last year, Persona has fast become one of the best sellers in the Proton stable. Proton Holdings Bhd Chairman Dato' Mohammed Azlan Hashim said that the award is testimony to the company's promise to deliver "the right car, for the right market, at the right price and at the right time".

Big Car Performance Wins International Engine of the Year - (Global)

Peugeot’s commitment to developing fuel efficient engines that deliver big car performance is rewarded with success at the 2008 International Engine of the Year Awards, winning the 1.4 -1.8 litre category for the second year in a row.

Citroen Wins Four Top Security Awards - (Global)

Citroën has picked up more awards than any other manufacturer at this year’s British Insurance Car Security Awards at Thatcham’s Motor Insurance Repair Research Centre, the world’s leading test centre for security, theft-proofing and insurance research.

Audi Triple Winner in Sport Auto Reader Poll - (Europe)

Ingolstadt/Stuttgart – Audi has taken first place in three classes in the reader’s poll by the German car magazine sport auto . Readers have cast their votes and named the S3, the RS 6 Avant, and the R8 “The Sportiest Cars of 2008”.

Six Wins for BMW Group in Sportiest Cars of 2008 - (Europe)

Readers of sports car magazine “sport auto” have voted BMW the sportiest brand of the year.

Mercedes-Benz Receives Three Awards for Best Product Quality - (USA)

The Stuttgart car brand receives two gold awards for the highest vehicle quality in their respective market segments, and is also honoured for the world’s best production plant. This outstanding result is one outcome of the initiative launched by Mercedes-Benz to raise customer satisfaction and product quality.

Volkswagen Awarded For Design Excellence And Innovation - (Australia)

The annual Australian International Design Awards has recognised the Volkswagen Eos CSC (Coupe, Sliding & Convertible) Roof and 1.4 Dual Charged TSI Petrol Engine for their design excellence and innovation.

Chrysler’s Turbo Diesel 300C Awarded Best Luxury Car - (Australia)

The Chrysler 300C CRD has been awarded Best Luxury Car at the recent ECOCar of the Year Awards.

Hyundai Wins Light Commercial Vehicle of the Year - (Australia)

The Hyundai iLoad CRDi crew van has been awarded 2008 Light Commercial Vehicle of the Year - Best Medium Van.

Kia Sorento receives top ranking in AutoPacific 2008 Vehicle Satisfaction Awards - (USA)

The 2008 Kia Sorento is the top ranking midsize SUV in AutoPacific, Inc.’s 2008 Vehicle Satisfaction Awards (VSA) of the U.S., an industry benchmark for objectively measuring owner satisfaction of new vehicles. In this competitive segment, Sorento received a higher rating than the Hummer H3, Jeep Liberty, Dodge Nitro and Nissan Xterra.

Camry Is The Best-Selling Australian-Made Car - (Australia)

A record number of 111,891 Camry sedans were produced last year at Toyota's Altona plant in Melbourne's west and sold on domestic and export markets.

Eight From Eight: Lexus Tops J.D. Power Satisfaction Index - (UK)

Lexus has taken out the prestigious UK J.D. Power and Associates customer satisfaction index for the eighth consecutive year.

Jaguar XF Wins 'Design Of The Year Editor's Award' In The 2008 Fleet World Honours - (Global)

Jaguar has claimed the Fleet World 'Design of the Year Editor's Award' for the second year running - this time for the award-winning Jaguar XF.

Toyota Sells One-Millionth Prius - (Global)

Worldwide sales of the Toyota Prius - the world's first mass-produced petrol-electric hybrid vehicle - have passed the one-million mark.

Grand Vitara Named Australia’s Best Compact SUV - (Australia)

The Suzuki Grand Vitara DDiS has been awarded the coveted 4X4 Australia Best In Class 2008 prize as Australia’s best compact SUV.

Audi 2.0 TFSI Wins “International Engine of the Year” Award for 2008 - (Global)

International Engine of the Year jury members felt that the Audi-developed 2.0 TFSI engine is "the benchmark for efficiency and performance in its category" and "a great example of an engine that’s so flexible it can deliver the right solutions for a variety of different vehicles".

Subaru Wins Second International Engine of the Year Award - (Germany)

Subaru’s 2.5 litre turbocharged engine has won an International Engine of the Year Award for the second time in three years. The four-cylinder boxer turbo that powers the new generation Impreza WRX and Forester XT, won the 2.0 to 2.5 litre class in the awards, announced this week at the Engine Expo in Stuttgart, Germany. Subaru won the same award in 2006.

BMW Straight Six Defends Engine Of The Year Title - (Global)

With six awards for five engines gained at this year’s “International Engine of the Year Awards”, BMW has successfully defended its position as the world’s leading manufacturer of efficient high-performance power units.

BMW Group Wins Prize For “The Best Factory 2008” - (Europe)

BMW’s largest manufacturing facility has won the industrial competition for “The Best Factory / Industrial Excellence Award 2008”. The Dingolfing plant, which is most significant industrial centre in Lower Bavaria, Germany, builds the BMW 5 Series, 6 Series and 7 Series. BMW is the first automotive manufacturer to receive the prestigious European award since 2002. The award acknowledges outstanding production management which gives companies a permanent competitive advantage.

Honda Civic Type R Wins Design Excellence Award - (Australia)

Honda’s hot hatch, Civic Type R has won the 2008 Wheels Automotive Design Award and Best Interior category. The Civic Type R, with its futuristic looks and exceptional performance impressed the judges, receiving the highest marks for design innovation. Wheels judges said “…there’s no denying the Honda hot hatch has a style all its own…” while judge Sally Dominguez from the ABC’s New Inventors said “brilliant and thorough realisation of original concept car. No compromise in execution. Fine,...

Nissan Patrol Awarded ‘Best 4WD Of 2008’

Nissan’s legendary Patrol turbo-diesel comes out on top of a field of highly fancied competitors to be voted ‘Best 4WD of 2008’ in Australian 4WD Actions people’s choice award.

Toyota Produces 2.5-Millionth Car In Australia

Toyota Australia's manufacturing plant at Altona in Melbourne this week produced the company's two-and-a-half millionth car.

Author Prize for New smart Book: smart also Successful as a Book

The highly regarded "Motor Presse Club" has awarded the author prize 2008 to the book "sideways. a smart art project".

Green Citroen Takes Diesel People Mover Prize - Again!

Citroën has been named as the Green Car Maker of the Year and its award-winning people mover, the Citroën C4 Picasso, has been named for the second year running as the Diesel People Mover of the Year in the annual ‘What Diesel Car?’ awards. Citroën’s commitment to low fuel consumption cars, people movers and vans with its advanced diesel engines and the SensoDrive and EGS robotized gearboxes that further reduce fuel consumption and emissions, as well as its advanced research into planet-saving...

Fiat 500: Best Small Diesel! - (Australia)

The Fiat 500’s bulging trophy cabinet has just picked up another award to join, amongst others, the European Car of the Year award, with the chic little Italian being named as Best Small Diesel Car by the UK’s “What Diesel Car?” magazine.

Citroen Celebrates 60 Years of the 'Tin Snail'

Citroen is celebrating the 60th birthday of one of the world’s most influential small cars, the Citroen 2CV which was not just a spectacular success its own right, but which also set the layout for generations of small cars to follow – monocoque construction, front-engined, front wheel drive, a light use of materials and fuel and excellent space utilisation – unlike other small cars of the same era. Although production of the Citroen 2CV, nicknamed the ‘Tin Snail’ because of its distinctive...

A Toyota First - Australia's Best-Selling Car

Toyota Corolla is the best-selling car in Australia for the first three months of 2008, according to official figures released today. It is the first time a Toyota vehicle has been the overall market leader for the first quarter of a calendar year. Australians bought 12,002 Corollas between January 1 and March 31. This was almost 500 sales ahead of the next best-selling model.

BMW Pocket Rocket Named 2008 Car of the Year

The all-new BMW 135i Coupé, which goes on sale in Australia next month, has been named Car of the Year.

Global Sales of Nissan's Tiida Top One Million

The Tiida was initially launched in the Japanese market in September 2004, followed by a rollout to the general overseas markets including China in 2005 with subsequent launches in North America and Europe in 2006 and 2007 respectively. The Tiida has garnered high praise due to its spacious and modern interior, impressive driving performance and fuel efficiency.

All-new Mazda2 Wins 2008 World Car of the Year Award - (Global)

From an initial entry list of thirty-nine (39) new vehicles from all over the world, the overall 2008 WCOTY title was announced on Thursday March 20, 2008 at the New York International Auto Show. The Mazda2 edged out the Ford Mondeo and Mercedes-Benz C-Class to take the overall award.

Mercedes-Benz scores First Choice in Kelley Blue Book Brand Image Awards

The Kelley Blue Book Brand Image Awards recognize automakers' outstanding achievements in creating and maintaining brand attributes that capture the attention and enthusiasm of the new-vehicle buying public. Awards are presented to top brands in seven vehicle categories, for Best Overall Interior Design and Best Overall Exterior Design across all categories and the Best Overall Prestige Brand.

Icons for Connoisseurs - Thirty Years of the BMW M1

The star came in pure white: When the 64th Paris Motor Show opened its gates in autumn 1978, sports car fans and lovers had only one destination – the stand of BMW Motorsport GmbH. There they were able to admire a super-low, extremely dynamic new model making it quite clear at very first sight that this was Germany’s fastest road-going sports car: the BMW M1, 1,140 millimetres high, 204 kW strong, and well over 260 km/h fast. “Everybody was crowding around BMW’s new mid-engined sports car”,...

BMW Wins World Green Car of the Year

A diesel powered BMW 1 Series has been voted “World Green Car of the Year”.

Audi R8 is Named as 2008 World Performance Car and World Car Design of the Year

The Audi R8 has achieved a double victory at the 2008 World Car of the Year awards, winning both the World Performance Car and the World Car Design of the Year awards. The super sports car from Audi was chosen for these awards by 47 World Car jurors from 24 countries throughout the world, including Australia.

Acclaimed Design Awards for BMW Group

BMW Groups’ excellence in pioneering design has again been acknowledged with six vehicles awarded for outstanding product design at this year’s presentation of the 2008 red dot awards. In addition, two of them, the BMW 3 Series Convertible and the BMW G 450 X motorcycle also won awards in the special category “red dot: best of the best” for outstanding design achievements in the automotive, transport and caravan segment.

Hunter Subaru is National Retailer of the Year

Hunter Subaru, Maitland has been named Subaru’s 2007 National Retailer of the Year.

Fiat 500 Voted Best Small Car in 2008 Auto 1 Awards

The new Fiat 500, already European Car of the Year 2008, has just taken top honours in the Small and Compact Vehicle category at this year’s glittering Auto 1 Awards, held in Geneva last week. Pitched against tough opposition, Fiat’s chic new city car comfortably won the class, taking votes not only from the Auto 1 organisation’s editors, experts and racing drivers, but also millions of enthusiastic readers across Europe.

HSV Grange wins prestigious new car award in New Zealand

HSV's flagship luxury and performance vehicle, the WM Grange, has captured the best luxury car award in the Automobile Association of New Zealand's annual motoring awards.

Škoda Auto has Already Produced Two Million Octavias

Today Škoda Auto has produced its two-millionth Škoda Octavia in Vrchlabí. The milestone-marking vehicle is a silver Octavia Scout 2.0 TDI, i.e. the leisure-time version of currently best-selling Škoda model.

‘Top Safety Pick’ Prize for Josef Haberl. Chief BMW Safety Specialist Receives Award

Josef Haberl, head of BMW Group vehicle safety and internationally recognised specialist in this field, has been honoured with an exceptional award shortly before his retirement.

Audi Rewards Dealership Excellence

Audi Australia has announced the winners of the inaugural Audi Dealer of the Year – Mark of Excellence Awards.

Europe Votes for Volkswagen Tiguan as “Best SUV”

Europe’s toughest jury has made its choice. This year’s coveted Auto 1 Trophy in the category “Off-Roaders and SUV” goes to the Volkswagen Tiguan. More than 40 million readers of the Auto Bild Group as well as trade experts were called upon over the past months to pick the best vehicles from among 74 new models. Last night, Dr Ulrich Hackenberg, Volkswagen’s executive board member for development, accepted the prestigious prize at the 78th Geneva Motor Show.

Mazda3 Australia's Best for Active Safety

Mazda3 is most likely to help you avoid a crash than any of Australia's best-selling vehicles, according to the results of an independent active safety study.

Kluger Tops Medium SUV Segment

Toyota's new-generation Kluger has topped the sales charts for the first time in its segment, according to official figures released today. The sales results show Australians bought 1404 Klugers in February, giving it victory by more than 100 deliveries over the long-term segment leader. Launched in August, new Kluger has been selling at triple the rate of the previous model.

Couple Sets New Fuel Economy Standards for SUVs in a Jeep® Compass and Jeep Patriot

John and Helen Taylor, fuel economy enthusiasts, drove a Jeep Compass and a Jeep Patriot, both standard production vehicles equipped with 2.0-litre turbo diesel engines and carrying two people and their luggage, from London to Berlin on less than a single tank of fuel each – an unmatched achievement among SUVs. "This new achievement helps to establish Jeep Compass and Patriot as industry leaders and proves that it is possible to offer global customers fuel efficiency and capability in the...

BMW 3 Series Convertible Wins Gold Medal for Design

The stylish BMW 3 Series Convertible has won a coveted Gold Award for excellent design in the 2008 iF Product Design Awards. The 3 Series Convertible follows in the footsteps of the 3 Series Coupé and 3 Series Sedan, which were judged winners for outstanding excellence in design in the previous two years. The previous-generation BMW 3 Series Convertible also picked up the exclusive award, back in 2001.

Two New Fuel Economy Guinness World Records!!

John and Helen Taylor, driving a brand new Peugeot 308 HDi, have completed a 25 day ‘Round Australia’ journey and set two new fuel economy Guinness World Records.

Off Road Readers Have Made Their Choice:The Volkswagen Tiguan is the SUV of the Year

The readers of OFF ROAD, a German trade journal, have given the SUV of the Year prize to the Tiguan. Attracting 17.4 % of the votes, the Tiguan emerged as the readers’ choice among the 20 nominated vehicles, ahead of its second and third-placed rivals the BMW X3 and the Land Rover Freelander. In the exceptionally prestigious category of Luxury Off-Roaders, the Volkswagen Touareg won the number-two ranking amidst a field of eleven rivals for the award in this category.

Volkswagen TSI Engines Clinch Another Title:Twinchargers Win the Votes in Eastern and Central Europe

At a ceremony in Istanbul, Volkswagen last night received the renowned “TechnoBest” technology prize for its TSI engines. The prize is awarded by a motoring jury from the automobile markets of Eastern and Central Europe. The jury said the Volkswagen TSI demonstrated genuine advancement in the field of petrol-engine technology.

Mazda Receives Japan's First Human Rights Merit Award

Mazda Motor Corporation has been honored with the Human Rights Merit Award by Japan’s Ministry of Justice and the National Federation of Consultative Assemblies of Civil Liberties Commissioners. The award was established in fiscal year (FY) 2006 to recognize significant achievements in the field of human rights protection by an individual or an organization. The award was handed out for the first time in FY2007 (April 2007-March 2008) and Mazda is the first corporation in Japan to receive it.

Hyundai’s i30 Chosen as Spain's "Car of the Year"

The Hyundai’s i30 was chosen as Spain’s ‘Car of the Year 2008’, proving once again that the Korean company, the world’s fifth-largest automobile manufacturer, has made huge advances in technology, design and safety. The award follows the i30’s recent recognition in Australia, where it picked up CARSguide’s ‘2007 Car of the Year’ and ‘2007 Green Car of the Year’.

Mazda Ranks Highest in New-Vehicle Ownership Satisfaction in Australia

Mazda ranks highest in satisfying new-vehicle owners in Australia, according to the 2008 J.D. Power and Associates Australian Vehicle Ownership Satisfaction StudySM released today.

BMW Welt Attracts Over Half a Million Visitors.

In the first 100 days following the Opening Ceremony on 17 October 2007, more than 500,000 guests have visited BMW Welt and no less than 3,500 cars have been handed over to their proud owners in the Car Delivery Centre, where customers are absolutely thrilled by the detailed and individual briefing they receive on their new BMW.

Innovative Mercedes-Benz DIESOTTO Engine Awarded

The DIESOTTO engine developed by Mercedes-Benz, which combines the best attributes of the petrol and diesel engine, was awarded the "Environment Grand Prize" in Paris. The sought-after environmental award was received by the Head of Mercedes design, Prof. Peter Pfeiffer, and Reinhardt Lyhs, President of Mercedes-Benz France, during the 23rd "Festival Automobile International". The award is presented for technological achievements in the fields of environmental protection and...

Renault Laguna Estate - 'Most Beautiful Car of the Year'

The recent 23rd annual International Automotive Festival of Paris has named the new Renault Laguna Estate as the 2007 'Most Beautiful Car of the Year' along with the 'Most Beautiful Interior of the Year'.

Hyundai Drives 50th Annual GRAMMY Awards Celebration Lunch in Sydney

Hyundai, official automotive sponsor of the 50th Annual GRAMMY Awards celebration lunch in Sydney, today got the party started by escorting VIP celebrities and music and entertainment industry insiders to the official lunch in a range of Hyundai’s stylish and award-winning vehicles.

Stars Come Out for BMW CleanEnergy Award

British adventurer and environmentalist, David de Rothschild, together with Russian opera star Anna Netrebko, will tonight hand over the BMW CleanEnergy Award at a grand charity gala event.

Mazda Wins Design Grand Prize in Paris

Mazda Motor Corporation has won the coveted Grand Prix du Design at the 23rd Festival Automobile International in Paris. Laurens van den Acker, General Manager of the Design Division of Mazda Motor Corporation, accepted the award yesterday at a gala ceremony held at the exclusive Les Invalides in Paris. This is the second major design prize for Mazda at the Festival Automobile International in Paris: in 2006, Mazda Senku was chosen “Most Beautiful Design Concept.” Another concept car, the Mazda...

smart fortwo mhd Receives Environmental Certificate

Stuttgart - The German “Öko-Trend” environmental research institute has awarded its environmental certificate for cars to the smart fortwo micro hybrid drive (mhd). In extensive analyses by experts from the Wuppertal-based independent institute the smart fortwo mhd scored top marks for all environment-related criteria.

Corolla Takes Early Sales Lead

Toyota Corolla has taken an early lead as Australia's best-selling vehicle in 2008, according to official sales figures released today. Corolla sales last month were a January record of 3,843 - or 10.3 per cent better than the previous January record set a year ago. It was the second month in a row Corolla has led the sales charts following another market-leading performance in December.

Maserati Quattroporte Continues To Collect Awards

With more than 46 international awards already in its trophy cabinet, the Maserati Quattroporte’s ability to win awards showing no signs of abating with the acclaimed luxury super car opening its 2008 account with another three leading awards.

Volkswagen de México Celebrates Ten Years of the New Beetle

Puebla, February 1, 2008 – Prof. Dr. Martin Winterkorn, Chairman of the Board of Management of Volkswagen AG, today opened the ceremony celebrating the tenth anniversary of the Volkswagen New Beetle in the presence of the President of Mexico, Felipe Calderón Hinojosa, and guests from politics and industry.

Mercedes-Benz Hybrid Bus is Awarded the 2008 DEKRA Environmental Prize

At the World Mobility Forum the Mercedes-Benz Citaro G BlueTec Hybrid urban bus was presented with the 2008 DEKRA environmental award.

Mazda2, Mazda3 Top German Reliability Survey

Mazda has taken first and second places in a German reliability survey that analysed over 9 million inspections of 194 different models across 160 criteria.

Fiat 500 Collects Car of the Year 2008

Fiat was officially presented with the European Car of the Year 2008 award last night (28 January 2008) at a special ceremony in Berlin after 57 of the 58 judges placed it in their shortlist and now fewer than 33 judges gave the Fiat 500 the top spot. With the presentation of the award to the Fiat 500, Fiat has now won 12 European Car of the Year titles. “We have gone a long way in a short space of time,” said Sergio Marchionne, C.E.O. of Fiat Group Automobiles at the ceremony. “And I am proud...

Fiat Group Reports its Largest Ever Trading Profit

The Fiat Group has recorded its largest ever trading profit in its 2007 Annual Results, with a trading profit of Euro 3.2 billion based on a turnover of Euro 59 billion, up 12.9 per cent on 2006 with a 66 per cent increase in trading profit and the Automobiles sector almost doubling its profit over 2006 to Euro 1.1 billion. The Fiat Group has also announced that it has extinguished its net industrial debt in 2007. With sales of 2.234 million vehicles, Fiat achieved its highest ever sales since...

Toyota's 'Boy From the Bush' is Australian of the Year

Toyota Australia today congratulated country music legend Lee Kernaghan OAM on being named Australian of the Year. Prime Minister Kevin Rudd made the announcement during a ceremony at Parliament House in Canberra. Toyota Australia's senior executive director sales and marketing David Buttner said Kernaghan was a worthy Australian of the Year.

LandCruiser 'Quinella' in 4WD Award

Toyota Australia's LandCruiser 200 Series has claimed first and second places in Overlander magazine's 4WD of the Year award. The magazine said LandCruiser had won the quinella with the GXL turbo-diesel narrowly out-pointing its VX petrol stablemate. "The new turbo-diesel 200 is not just 4WD of the Year for 2007. It is good enough to be 4WD of the decade," Overlander said.

The Mercedes-Benz C-Class is Wheels Car of the Year

The Mercedes-Benz C-Class has been awarded Wheels Magazine’s Car of the Year. The award-winning C-Class beat every eligible new model passenger vehicle launched in Australia during 2007 to win the prestigious Wheels Car of the Year award, regarded as one of motoring’s most coveted prizes world-wide.

New Jaguar XF Wins 'Car Of The Year' At What Car? Awards 2008

Jaguar's new XF has claimed top prize - the highly respected 'Car of the Year' award - at the 2008 What Car? awards in London last night. The XF also took top place in the 'Best Executive Car' category, ahead of the BMW 5 Series and the Mercedes CLS.

Quality Rankings Underline Outstanding BMW Reliability

The latest independent quality rankings have reinforced BMW’s reputation for premium-level quality. The prestigious “Yellow Angel” award presented to BMW this month by the German automobile association ADAC for best performance in the “Quality” category is the latest example of the outstanding performance of every member of the BMW and MINI family.

The Mercedes-Benz C-Class is Voted the Most Popular Car in Germany

The Mercedes-Benz C-Class has emerged the winner of Germany’s largest vote for the most popular car by a wide margin. The motoring organisation ADAC has presented its sought-after "Yellow Angel 2008" award to this Stuttgart-made public favourite.

Prize for TSI and DSG: “Yellow Angel 2008” Award for Volkswagen’s Latest High-End Technologies

Volkswagen was today awarded the ADAC (German automobile club) “Yellow Angel 2008” prize. Europe’s most successful carmaker won the award in the category “Innovation and Environment” for the latest TSI engine and its new 7-speed DSG technology – a combination employed exclusively by Volkswagen. 7-speed DSG is available immediately in combination with the new 90-kW TSI engine or a 77-kW (105-PS) TDI for the Golf, Golf Estate, Golf Plus and Jetta.

What Car? Award 2008: Double for Volkswagen

Yesterday Volkswagen scored victories all over Europe. At midday, Germany’s Automobile Association ADAC presented its “Yellow Angel” award to Europe’s biggest carmaker in Munich. A few hours later in London, Volkswagen won the prestigious “What Car? Award” in two categories.

Citroen Wins 'What Car?' Magazine's People Mover of the Year - Again!

The Citroën C4 Picasso has been named ‘WHAT CAR?’ People Mover of the Year for the second year running, at the magazine’s prestigious 2008 awards in the UK. The Grand C4 Picasso 1.6 HDi SX bowled over the team at ‘WHAT CAR?’, the UK’s leading monthly magazine, with its class-leading levels of practicality and comfort, generous dimensions, great all-round visibility and host of innovative ideas.

New Sales Record for Mercedes-Benz Vans in 2007

Daimler AG ended 2007 very successfully with a new sales record, having sold 289,076 vans worldwide (2006: 256,895 units). Sales in Germany amounted to 71,262 units (2006: 67,309 units).

Mercedes-Benz Posts Best Sales Year in Company’s History

In 2007 the Mercedes-Benz Cars division increased sales of Mercedes-Benz, AMG, Maybach, and smart passenger vehicles worldwide, with sales totalling 1,285,900 vehicles (2006: 1,260,600 units). With this two percent growth, the division set a new sales record.

Audi Awarded Yellow Angel for Best Image

Audi has taken first place in the AutoMarxX image and brand study by Germany’s ADAC automobile club. Rupert Stadler, Chairman of the Board of Management at Audi, accepted the coveted “Yellow Angel” prize earlier this week in Munich. “Our product and quality initiative continues to bear fruit. This important award goes to our entire Audi team,” Stadler said at the award presentation. “Without their contributions, our success would not be possible.”

International Engine of the Year Now Available Across 3 Series Family as 335i Touring Arrives

The new 335i Touring completes a full house for the award-winning Twin Turbo High Precision Injection engine in the 3 Series family. The 3.0-litre engine, with its impressive 225 kW power output and muscular 400 Nm of torque is now available in the shapely and sporting 3 Series Touring, joining the 335i Sedan, Coupé and Convertible variants.

Bentley Design Director Dirk van Braeckel Follows in Famous Footsteps

Dirk van Braeckel, director of design at Bentley Motors, has been awarded the prestigious European Automotive Design Award by Designers (Europe), in partnership with FEBIAC, the Belgian automotive industry association. Previous winners of the award, which honours excellence and originality in automotive design, include Giorgietto Giugiaro in 2004 and Sergio Pininfarina in 2006.

Bentley design director Dirk van Braeckel follows in famous footsteps

Audi AG Announces New Sales Records in all Regions in 2007

2007 was AUDI AG’s twelfth record year in a row worldwide. From January through December, 964,151 cars were handed over to customers – 6.5 percent more than in 2006 (905,188). Audi posted growth in sales in every region. The brand with the four rings chalked up records in more than 50 markets. “The outstanding sales figures for 2007 are an important step on the path to reaching our ambitious corporate goals. We were able to grow in all sales regions and we will continue to maintain our fast...

Fiat 500 Goes Underground!

The Fiat 500 is going by train to collect the 2008 European Car of the Year Award with the two display cars for the award ceremony in Berlin spending the two weeks prior to the event on 28 January 2008 going around and around a 145 km route on the Berlin underground railway, the U-Bahn. More than 5,000 Germans have already put their name down for the new Fiat 500, so many of the 1.8 million people expected to see the Fiat 500 on the U-Bahn will see their new car for the first time as it passes...

Mazda CX-9 Wins 2008 North American Truck of the Year Award

Mazda Motor Corporation’s CX-9 crossover sport utility vehicle (SUV) has been named North American Truck of the Year. The Mazda CX-9 received the award at the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in Detroit, Michigan, on January 13, 2008 (January 14, Japan time). This is the first time that a Mazda vehicle has won this prize.

Bentley Sets New Global Sales Record in 2007

Strong growth in both emerging and traditional markets takes Bentley above 10,000 units for the first time. New sales record set in the UK market

Australian National Museum Reveals Citroen's Role in Australian History

No one would be surprised to learn that the car has played a major role in the development of Australia during the past 100 years or that two cars should take pride of place in the Australian National Museum in Canberra, the nation’s capital. However, the fact that one of them is a little, yellow Citroën would come as a surprise to most visitors as they enter main hall of the Museum.

Record Year for Peugeot in Australia

Peugeot Automobiles Australia has recorded its best ever yearly result, with 8,807 new Peugeots sold in 2007. The record result reflects an increase of 8.6% compared to 2006, and eclipsed the previous record of 8,107 achieved last year. With products competing only in the passenger car segment, Peugeot’s 8.6% growth was ahead of the segment’s rise of 6.5%

Brussels Sprouts Three New Citroens! - New Citroën C5, Nemo Combi and Citroën C8 debut

With the launch of three new models, Citroen has lifted the status of the Brussels International Motor Show to a new level when it opens its doors this week (16-27 January 2008) with the wraps coming of the new Citroen C5 sedan, the Citroen Nemo small van and the largest Citroen MPV, the Citroen C8. The Citroen C5 will make its debut in Australia in the middle of 2008, with the Nemo van following in the third quarter, while the new Citroen C8 is available to Australians via the Citroen...

Chrysler Australia Breaks Magic 10,000 Sales Barrier in 2007

With 29 months of consecutive growth and four months where Chrysler Australia exceeded 1000 new vehicle sales, it’s no wonder another record falls. Chrysler Australia recorded 10,885 new vehicle sales for 2007, a 19% increase over 2006 and substantially outstripping passenger/SUV market growth of 8.6%

Citroen Sales Increase Heads PSA Citroen Growth

In a European car and light commercial vehicle market up by a slight 0.7%, PSA Citroen's registrations rose for the first time since 2002, to 2,333,000 units – including 1,226,000 Peugeots and 1,107,000 Citroëns – representing an increase of 0.9%. After several years of market share decrease, the Group's market share held firm at 13.8% (7.3% for Peugeot and 6.6% for Citroën) in a challenging business environment. PSA Citroen is Europe's second largest manufacturer of cars and the leading...

Mazda2 is NZ Car of the Year

The Mazda2 was judged by the country’s leading motoring writers and broadcasters to be the best new car for 2007. In awarding the Mazda top honours, members of the New Zealand Motoring Writers’ Guild gave consideration to all aspects of the car. As well as its performance and handling, the facets under consideration included suitability for the task for which it was designed, its value for money, ease of operation, fuel economy, and build quality, along with its level of home comforts, safety...

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