Acura searches for perfect blend of performance, comfort |
- Acura searches for perfect blend of performance, comfort
- Power to the people: Detroit debuts sexy sports cars
- Egypt voters overwhelmingly back constitution, says official sources
- Four killed in vigilante clash with Mexican militia (VIDEO)
- New GM team says US, China growth to offset costs in tougher regions
| Acura searches for perfect blend of performance, comfort Posted: 15 Jan 2014 04:57 PM PST
Acura has pulled out all the stops in terms of technology and design to make the cabin of its latest sedan concept as large and roomy as possible without making the car itself too long or too wide. Large, ungainly cars tend to get out of shape very quickly under heavy acceleration, heavy braking or quick cornering. Improving the car's handling characteristics is also the reason why it has very short overhangs; very little of the body extends beyond the wheels. Other neat performance and handling tricks include all-wheel steering—something that Porsche has just readopted for the 911 Turbo—and intelligent all-wheel drive which will push different levels of power to each wheel if necessary to improve grip or avoid a spill. The car also features a dual clutch, eight-speed paddle shift gearbox to wring every ounce of performance out of the engine when required, or to provide a silky smooth gear change for boulevard cruising. So, the car manages to check every box needed to truly offer the best of both worlds—except one, and it's a big one. The TLX Prototype's front grille and headlight light arrangement would look more at home as part of a public festive illuminations display around a small town monument than on the front of a sporty yet luxurious sedan. Hopefully this aesthetic shortfall will be addressed when the car transitions from prototype to production. — AFP  |
| Power to the people: Detroit debuts sexy sports cars Posted: 15 Jan 2014 04:51 PM PST
Around a dozen high performance production cars and concepts were introduced this week, with mixes of raw power, agility and styling to give even the most mild-mannered drivers itchy fingers. It was another sign of confidence that at least the giant US market is fully back to health and ready to enjoy the thrill of driving faster and more furiously. Headlining were two new versions of the Corvette Stingray. One was Chevrolet's official new endurance racer, the CR.7, which it will put to the test at the end of this month in the Rolex 24 hour race in Daytona, and possibly later this year at Le Mans. The second was the street-legal version of that car, the 625 horsepower Z06, dubbed the "American Supercar." It is built on the same aluminum frame and with much of the same speed features as the CR.7 that make it the fastest 'Vette ever. It will be on the market in 2015. "Racing motor sports and winning is a part of who we are," said Mark Reuss, General Motors' head of global product development, citing the previous Corvette's many victories on US tracks. As much a head-turner was Toyota's almost over-the-top FT-1 concept, a racer that started in a fantasy videogame but could one day become a successor to the company's long-missing Supra. With stealthy angles and more vents than a heating system, it garnered raves and pleas to bring it to production. Kia shed its humble reputation with the aggressive GT4 Stinger concept, a pocket rocket wearing lines like a Porsche or a Maserati and carrying a turbocharged 315 horsepower, 2.0 liter engine. Subaru meanwhile showed up with a new version of the WRX, the rally driver favorite. The Japanese manufacturer has still done little about the car's homely looks, but the new WRX promises a stiffer ride, tighter, more stable turning and firmer braking. Those were just the highlights. Other new sports cars included BMW, with the new 2 Series, and a new M3 and M4; Porsche's 911 Targa; Nissan, with its sports car concept believed to herald the next Maxima; Mazda's Club Sport3 concept; and Jaguar's F-type coupe. Some industry analysts said the plethora of new sports cars shows the auto industry letting loose after the hard years of 2008-2011. Dave Sargent, an auto industry analyst at JD Power, said the rise in concept cars "are signs the industry is feeling fairly good about itself. "Particularly in Detroit we had a few years with hardly any concepts and most of the products were fairly main stream and focused on practicality," he said. There was added engine power all around, some of it born of technology advances as the industry tries to meet tougher fuel consumption standards without sacrificing power to the wheels. But concept sports cars are often simply to help build a brand's image and never come to the market commercially, warned Jessica Caldwell of auto industry specialist Edmunds.com. Nevertheless, she said, there is some underlying demand growth as the US economy revives. "The market has more consumers out there willing to buy sports cars than a few years ago," she noted. — AFP-Relaxnews |
| Egypt voters overwhelmingly back constitution, says official sources Posted: 15 Jan 2014 04:50 PM PST
About 90 per cent of voters approved the constitution, the state news agency and a government official said. It comes as no surprise: the constitution won wide support among Egyptians who backed the army overthrow of President Mohamed Mursi in July, and there was little or no trace of a no campaign as the state presses a campaign on dissent. Mursi's Muslim Brotherhood, which is sure to dispute the official numbers, had called for a boycott of the two-day vote, seeing it as part of a coup against a leader freely elected 18 months ago. It had called for anti-government protests. After nine people were killed in clashes between police and Mursi supporters on Tuesday, the protests stretched into yesterday. Protesters skirmished with the police near the presidential palace. There were no reports of deaths. The Interior Ministry said 444 people were arrested during the two days of voting. State news agency MENA, citing early indications, said the approval rate exceeded 90 per cent in many of the polling stations that had reported results. An Interior Ministry official said turnout so far may have exceeded 55 per cent, though MENA did not give a figure. "The approval of the constitution is perhaps more than 95 per cent," Major General Abdel Fattah Othman, director of public relations for the Interior Ministry, told private satellite channel Al-Hayat. The referendum is a key step in the political transition plan the interim government has billed as a path to democracy, even as it presses a fierce crackdown on the Brotherhood, Egypt's best organised party until last year. In a widening crackdown on dissent, the authorities have also arrested secular-minded activists in recent months, including prominent figures in the historic 2011 uprising against President Hosni Mubarak. One moderately Islamist party said its supporters had been arrested while campaigning for a no-vote in the referendum. Stock market rally
Sisi's supporters see him as the kind of strong man needed to restore stability to a country in political and economic crisis for nearly three years. The stock market has rallied to three-year highs this week. High turnout would be seen as a strong stamp of approval for the new, the army-backed order. A Sisi presidency would turn back the clock to the days when the post was controlled by military men - a pattern broken by Mursi's one year in office. "You could see the re-emergence of a domineering president," said Nathan Brown, a professor of political science at George Washington University and an expert on Egyptian affairs. At many polling stations across the Arab world's biggest nation, the referendum at times appeared to be a vote on Sisi himself. Women chanted his name and ululated as they stood in line to vote, while a pro-army song popularized after Mursi's overthrow blared from cars. The draft constitution deletes Islamic language written into the basic law approved a year ago when Mursi was still in office. It also strengthens the state bodies that defied him: the army, the police and the judiciary. Analysts say the government is anxious for a result that outstrips votes won by the Brotherhood in the last three years: 10.7 million people voted for the Islamist-tinged constitution approved when Mursi was still president, and Mursi won the presidency with 13.2 million votes in 2012. Egypt has more than 52 million eligible voters. But some local and international organisations have been heavily critical of the political climate ahead of this vote. The Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies criticised Egyptian media for "stoking hatred towards the Brotherhood" and contributing to a climate of intimidation. The US-based Carter Centre, which has monitored most of the votes held over the past three years of political upheaval, sent only a small observation mission after voicing concern at "narrowed political space" around the vote. Another US-funded group, Democracy International, had 83 observers deployed across the country. Programme Manager Dan Murphy told Reuters observers were reporting that "from a technical standpoint the process is proceeding normally." The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington warned that international players risked lending legitimacy to a "flawed and undemocratic progress." While Western states have criticised the crackdown and called for inclusive politics, they have put little pressure on Cairo.Egypt, which controls the Suez Canal, has been a cornerstone of US policy in the Middle East since the 1970s, when it became the first Arab state to make peace with Israel. — Reuters |
| Four killed in vigilante clash with Mexican militia (VIDEO) Posted: 15 Jan 2014 04:48 PM PST
A convoy of 200 military and federal police arrived in Apatzingan, where they stood guard at the mayoral office while officials met with members of the vigilante groups. Hours earlier, police clashed with civilian militia in Antunez ,where four civilians were said to have been killed. Speaking after the clash, Hipolito Mora, a spokesman for the vigilantes, said the groups would not seize more towns. The vigilante groups were set up by civilians who claimed that the state has failed to protect them from drug cartels. The conflict in Michoacan has become the greatest security challenge for President Enrique Pena Nieto in his 13-month administration. Vigilantes seized the town of Nueva Italia on Sunday, January 12, after clashing with drug cartel members, before heading to Apatzingan. According to the BBC, more than a hundred men entered the town and disarmed local police. They exchanged fire with alleged members of the Knights Templar drug cartel. — Reuters |
| New GM team says US, China growth to offset costs in tougher regions Posted: 15 Jan 2014 04:45 PM PST
A new management team led by Chief Executive Officer Mary Barra and President Dan Ammann took the reins on Wednesday, saying the company expects a slight uptick in pre-tax profits this year, while margins likely will remain flat until 2015. Analysts labeled GM's forecast conservative and disappointing, though they noted it also provides the automaker's new leadership with flexibility. "While the guidance was slightly disappointing, we think this set-up could create a good entry point and better frames GM heading into the rest of the year," RBC analyst Joseph Spak said in a research note. "The guidance also gives the new management team a little more wiggle room to deal with in their first year." He also said Tuesday's announcement of a better-than-expected quarterly dividend, the company's first in six years, will also support the stock. Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jonas called the forecast "appropriately conservative" and said he expects North American profit margins in the mid- to high-8 per cent range this year, rather than 9 or 10 per cent. "We believe the company should have positive earnings revision risk once the dust settles," he said. "The challenge of owning GM is that the company is still in the early innings of executing its structural turnaround while the US auto cycle is approaching the later innings." China remains GM's strongest market. The automaker plans to open four new plants there through 2015, increasing annual production capacity to 5 million vehicles, keeping neck and neck with chief rival Volkswagen AG. In comparison, GM built 3.3 million vehicles in North America last year. "We continue to perform well in the two most important markets in the world, the US and China," Barra said in a statement. "We're taking advantage of our strength in these countries to restructure and make the investments necessary to grow profitably in other parts of the world." GM plans to launch 17 new or upgraded models this year with joint-venture partners in China, including the Cadillac ATS, Chuck Stevens, who succeeded Ammann as chief financial officer, said at a Deutsche Bank auto analyst conference. The automaker sold 3.1 million "very profitable" vehicles last year in China, Stevens said, and expects volume to grow again in 2014. Margins likely will remain flat this year, but GM anticipates improved sales and earnings in 2015, he said. Growth in China will be driven in part by a push to boost the Cadillac brand. GM expects Cadillac sales there to double over the next two years, to 100,000 in 2015. Europe remains something of a problem child for GM. The company cut its losses and boosted revenue there in the second half of 2013. With the withdrawal of the Chevrolet brand in Europe, GM's Opel subsidiary expects a modest increase in sales volume and market share this year, Stevens said. But GM Europe's financial performance could deteriorate further, in part because of currency volatility in Russia and restructuring costs associated with the impending closure of Opel's Bochum plant in Germany. Ammann described 2014 as a "transition year" in Europe, where Opel will introduce a redesigned Corsa subcompact late in the year. A redesigned Astra compact is expected to follow in early 2015, along with new families of gasoline and diesel engines, helping to drive GM's European operations back to break-even, Stevens said. He later said at an Automotive News industry conference that GM's Opel unit in Europe was in its best shape in a long time, but Europe remains a "very, very fragile" economy. Barra and Ammann are taking over a company that has undergone dramatic changes in recent months, including the exit of the US government as a shareholder and the restoration of a dividend on its common stock. Ammann said GM expects pre-tax earnings in the first quarter to be lower than normal because of restructuring expenses and the launch of new US models, including heavy-duty versions of the Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra pickups and redesigned full-size SUVs at Chevy, GMC and Cadillac. He told reporters that most of the restructuring charges are related to announcements made last year. GM expects capital expenditure of US$7.5 billion in 2014, and said it will spend about US$3.9 billion to redeem its remaining Series A shares. In addition, the newly restored common dividend will return about US$1.8 billion to shareholders. The automaker is "on path" to achieve pre-tax margins of 10 per cent or better by 2015, Stevens said, despite ongoing risks in North America and some international operations. Slowing sales growth and higher incentives will put more pressure on US vehicle prices and margins, said Stevens. But he acknowledged "a lot of uncertainty" in the highly profitable full-size truck market, where GM's Silverado and Sierra will square off later this year against the redesigned Ford F-150. GM's South American operations had their second straight profitable year in 2013, but continued volatility in Venezuela and Argentina present financial risk, Stevens said. "Brazil is the market that matters most" in South America, he said. GM in the past year has launched three new small cars in Brazil, including the Prisma, the Onix and the Tracker, and will add a fourth this year — a small crossover called Spin. GM expects to maintain its current market share in the region, while increasing pre-tax profit and margins, Stevens said. The company said higher restructuring costs in 2014 will include the closing of manufacturing operations at its Holden subsidiary in Australia. Ammann said most of GM's heavy restructuring costs "are behind us" and that those charges should drop significantly in 2015. Also yesterday, GM promoted Steve Hill to vice president of US sales and service, replacing the promoted Alan Batey, who took over as head of North American operations. GM shares ended down 64 cents, or 1.6 per cent, at US$39.38 on the New York Stock Exchange. — Reuters |
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