Maruti No.1 in JD Power survey for 10th straight year

New Delhi, 28 October 2009: India's largest car maker Maruti Suzuki India Ltd.(MSIL) has topped the list for the tenth consecutive year for customer satisfaction in the country, according to the survey by global market research firm JD Power.

In a survey, 'JD Power Asia Pacific 2009 India Customer Service Index (CSI) Study', Maruti Suzuki India scored 824, on a scale of 1,000 points, followed by Honda Siel Cars India Ltd.(HSCI) at 791 and Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) at 757.

"For the tenth consecutive year, MSIL ranks highest in customer satisfaction with authorised dealer service in India. MSIL performs particularly well in the service advisor and service facility factors," J D Power said.

Only MSIL and HSCI bettered the industry's average score of 785.

The other major car makers in the top ten are Toyota (754), Mahindra-Renault (750), Tata Motors (750), Chevrolet (748), Hyundai (743), Ford (733), Fiat (727) and Skoda (722), JD Power added.

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Toyota Prius wins Japan's Car of the Year Award

Tokyo, 28 October 2009: Toyota's new third-generation Prius hybrid has won the Japan Car of the Year prize. The award, timed to coincide with the Tokyo Motor Show, was made in recognition of the latest model's advances in performance and fuel economy.

Toyota reports that the Prius has been the best selling model in Japan for the last five months - 31,000 units were sold there in September alone – and it is becoming more popular in other markets too.

Toyota's early lead in hybrids appears to be paying off but other manufacturers are hitting back hard. Honda's Insight, for example, offers a less sophisticated hybrid drive-train in a similarly-sized car but at a much lower price, while the European manufacturers are offering advanced diesel models that match or better hybrids for "real world" fuel consumption.....read more @ Toyota Prius wins Japan's Car of the Year Award

2009 World Superbike Championship : Ben Spies Wins

Ben Spies (Yamaha World Superbike) won the first race and then controlled the situation in race 2 to take his and Yamaha's first ever World Superbike Championship title in front of an 86,000 crowd in the final round of the series at Portimao. Noriyuki Haga (Ducati Xerox), points leader going into the decider, crashed out in race 1, making things easier for the Texan, who was fifth in the second race. Michel Fabrizio (Ducati Xerox) took the win in race 2, while Max Biaggi (Aprilia Racing) and Jonathan Rea (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) were the other podium finishers.

Race 1

Race 1 was dominated from start to finish by Spies, who took his fourteenth win of the season and overhauled Haga in the title chase. The Texan, who rocketed away from the line, comfortably held off any attempts at an attack from Biaggi, then upped his pace to go on to take a solitary chequered flag. With this result Spies now has a 15-point advantage over Haga, who lost the front and crashed on lap 7 while making up time in fifth place. The runner-up slot went to Rea, who got the better of Biaggi after a terrific duel. The best Ducati rider to the line in fourth place was Shane Byrne, in one of his best races of the year, while fifth went to Michel Fabrizio (Ducati), who compromised his race with a bad start. Leon Camier had a good run to sixth for Aprilia, while Ruben Xaus finished eighth on the first BMW. Both Suzukis failed to finish, Yukio Kagayama crashing out and Sylvain Guintoli was forced to retire. ...read more

Spyker Supercars News From TheTelegraph UK

The return of any form of car production to Britain is cause for celebration, particularly for Coventry Prototype Panels (CPP) Ltd – the low-volume specialist company that has picked up the Spyker business.

Spyker is about to celebrate its 10th birthday. That it has survived a decade when so many similar ventures have sparkled briefly and then spluttered to extinction is tribute to the tenacity of Spyker's founder and CEO, the Dutch entrepreneur Victor R. Muller. He (and the company's original designer, Maarten de Bruijn) realised that to challenge the existing supercar hierarchy head-on was futile: "People who want to buy a Ferrari – guess what? – they're going to buy a Ferrari," reasons Muller.....read more

Ford Focus RS From TheCarsBlog

This Ford RS began in the 1960’s in Germany and it had success across Europe. It is stylish, yet a cheap and well performance car contributing in every day needs. It has the combination and parts from the 1970 Le Mans Green and also the Escort RS1600.....read more

Volkswagen Golf R 2010 : First Look

Volkswagen, the renowned automobile manufacturer seems to come up with it’s all new Volkswagen Golf R in 2010. Golf R will differ from standard Golf’s. The actual differences will in looks, speed and control.

The facts about Golf R from the courtesy of AutomobileMag:

The Volkswagen GTI is universally loved around the Automobile Magazine office and that love earned the FTI Automobile of the Year honors for 2007. With the Golf R, the GTI formula is cranked up to 11. Underhood is the familiar 2.0T engine, but it manages to crank out an incredible 270 hp and 258 lb-ft of torque thanks to a maximum boost of 17.4 psi. Sign us up.

Of course all that power would completely overwhelm the front wheels, so Volkswagen gave the Golf R all-wheel drive and a choice of DSG or traditional six-speed manual sits between the engine and awd system. The awd system is more advanced than the one found in the R32 Golf and can send nearly 100 percent of the power to the rear axle if needed. Impressively, the Golf R uses less fuel than the R32 while producing an extra 20 hp and a 0-62-mph time of 5.5 seconds with a DSG transmission.

Visual changes from a standard Golf are minimal, but any VW fan will appreciate the LED marker lights in the unique front bumper, a rear bumper with centered tailpipes, and a side skirt upgrade, and bi-Xenon headlights. Gloss black paint covers the mirrors and grille. Black trim and a smattering of R badges spruce up the interior and race seats are optional equipment.

Electronic upgrades include a more lenient stability control program and an optional dynamic chassis control system that modifies steering for comfort, normal, or sport modes.
Golf Rs will ride about an inch lower than standard Golfs and everything from the spring rates to the stabilizer bars have been modified for the R. Upgraded 13.6-inch discs up front and 12.2-inch in back hide behind 18- or 19-inch rims.

We know the Golf R will go on sale in Germany by the end of the year, but no mention of sales in the U.S. has been made yet. There's a good chance VW will import the R if enough buyers can be found. We know the R32 sold out quickly and that speaks well for this R model's chances in America.

Forecast About China’s Auto Sales To Hit 12.6M – Associated Press

China is going to touch magic figures of 12.6 million auto sales in the year ending 2009 which is ahead about 35% from 2008. The senior economist for the Cabinet's State Information Center, Xu Changming said:

China's auto sales have surpassed those of the limping U.S. market for all but two months so far this year, helped by cuts in sales tax and subsidies for more fuel-efficient vehicles. In September, Chinese sales are likely to total 1.25 million units

So in this sense, it seems that China will continue selling more and more automobiles units in next year 2010 despite of any market fluctuations. For more info, read more….