Frankfurt Auto Show 2009 – New Sedans

Tara — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 18:13:35 +0000

The Frankfurt Auto Show is almost here. We have the latest news for some upcoming sedans that will grace the occasion:

Rapide from Aston Martin

We have heard a lot about the car and it is time for the Rapide from Aston Martin to say hello to the world. It will be a head turner when the crowd sees its lines. It will be exciting to see how the doors on swan-wing configuration fit in the design. The 470 horsepower engine will be stunner.

5-Series GT of BMW

The Gran Turismo 5 Series from BMW promises a ride with bigger room for its occupants aside from the sexy rounded roofline it has. It will be running on a V8 with twin-turbo engine capable of giving out 400 horsepower. The powertrain is combined with an 8-speed automatic transmission. The car blazes from 0 to 60 in 5.4 seconds going for a top speed of 150 mph with a sport variant.

The Ghost by Rolls-Royce

Rolls Royce claims that the Ghost can meet head on any Bentley Continental anytime. It will carry the looks of the concept car 200EX that you can see on the Rolls-Royce website. Those who can afford it has an option for a V8 or a V12 engine. There is also an option to go for a coupe or a convertible ride.

2011 Mulsanne from Bentley

The new Mulsanne was first unveiled at Pebble Beach. It gets a new design, a new engine, and a sticker price of around $300,000. That will be a hefty price to pay without the other perks of luxury you might ask for the interiors like the drink carts, quilted seats, and aluminum dash. The first unit after the Pebble’s sold for $550K.

Saab 9-5

With GM selling Saab to Koenigsegg, the future is quite uncertain. But the company confirms that a 2010 Saab 9-5 will show up in Frankfurt with a four-door body style or a wagon as your choices.

German Luxury brands lead the US market in diesel segment

Tara — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 04:18:08 +0000

The delay of diesels in the U.S. market from car manufacturers like GM, Ford, Chrysler, Nissan, Toyota, and Honda can be blamed on the shaky state of the economy. European brands like Mercedes Benz, BMW, Audi, and Volkswagen leave their competition behind and why not if they can charge the cost of producing expensive engines to their consumers who go for premium brands.

American and Japanese car manufacturers don’t have the positioning and advantage that the European brands have. The vehicles they produce are mainstream and they do not have significant diesel programs in Europe or other parts of the globe.

The European car makers are grabbing the opportunity to dominate the market as diesel prices drop and as clamor for more fuel efficient engines increase. They are finding the greener solution in diesel which has more energy stored compared to gasoline. Diesel technology can still compete with the emerging hybrid vehicles.

Consumers can save on average about $3000 to $8000 per car compared to getting hybrid systems. Diesel powertrains also prove to be torquey and perform in real driving conditions. The hybrid, on the other hand, has the street image of being the greener of the choices and is more popular nowadays.

The European luxury car makers will definitely push forward with their plans of selling more units in the United States as Japanese and American car makers struggle to bring back their diesel solutions to North America.

Lexus might have something in its fleet to challenge the European marques. The 2010 HS 250h is being marketed as a luxury sedan. It also has the RX hybrid in the SUV segment. Experts are pretty sure though that the 355d of BMW and Bluetec diesel GL-Class and ML-Class (Mercedes), and the Audi 7 will give a good fight.