Hybrid and Diesel Tax Credits to End on December 31

If you’re still in the market for a hybrid or clean diesel, you should try to get one this holiday season, as most tax credits are going to expire on December 31, with no new tax breaks in sight for next year. Among the diesel models, the Mercedes ML350 BlueTec is one of the victims, while the natural gas-powered 2011 Honda Civic GX will also lose its $4,000 tax credit. The same goes for the recently introduced 2011 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid and 2011 Porsche Cayenne S Hybrid.
 
Chevrolet Volt and Nissan Leaf buyers are safe for now: both EVs have separate tax credits that don’t expire this year. The Alternative Motor Vehicle Credit was legislated under the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and supported buyers of eco-friendly vehicles with incentives. Currently, hybrids get tax breaks ranging from $900 up to $3,400.
Below is a list of cars and trucks that still qualify for tax credits:

• 2010-2011 BMW ActiveHybrid X6: $1,550
• 2011 BMW ActiveHybrid Li: $900
• 2011 BMW ActiveHybrid 750i: $900
• 2011 BMW 335d: $900
• 2011 BMW X5 xDrive 35d: $1,800
• 2010-2011 Cadillac Escalade Hybrid: $2,200
• 2010 Chevrolet Malibu Hybrid: $1,550
• 2010-2011 Chevrolet Silverado Hybrid: $2,200
• 2010-2011 Chevrolet Tahoe Hybrid: $2,200
• 2010-2011 GMC Sierra Hybrid: $2,200
• 2010-2011 GMC Yukon Hybrid: $2,200
• 2010-2011 Honda Civic GX: $4,000
• 2011 Mercedes-Benz E350 BlueTec: $1,550
• 2011 Mercedes-Benz GL350 BlueTec: $1,800
• 2011 Mercedes-Benz ML350 BlueTec: $900
• 2011 Mercedes-Benz R350 BlueTec: $1,550
• 2010 Mercedes-Benz S400 Hybrid: $1,150
• 2010-2011 Mercedes-Benz ML450 Hybrid: $2,200
• 2010-2011 Nissan Altima Hybrid: $2,350

By Csaba Daradics

Source: Kicking Tires

Fiat Banking on Natural Gas Engines in the US, Thinks Hybrids and EVs Present Too Many Obstacles

Fiat’s comeback to the U.S. with the 500 is just the first piece of a larger puzzle. The company’s CEO, Sergio Marchionne, may give the green light for natural gas-powered cars to be sold in the Land of the Free, as they offer a cheaper way to cut emissions. In an interview with Bloomberg News, Mr. Marchionne noted that electric cars, favored by GM and Toyota, present “too many obstacles” with long recharge time for batteries being one of them.
Another company official, Constantinos Vafidis, who oversees transmission and hybrid development for the Italian maker, said that “natural gas is very suitable for the U.S., especially for public services and goods transportation, where vehicles are refueled from a central base”.

That’s why Fiat wants to target the commercial vehicle segment. The automaker has separated the Ram and Dodge brands last year, thus creating a standalone truck division. In 2012, the range could encompass various vans based on Fiat/Iveco platforms and brought over from Europe.
Natural gas is less expensive to produce, transport and distribute, which makes it an ideal solution for fleet operators. Currently, it costs about $1 less on average than a gallon of gasoline. Also, the additional cost for an engine running on natural gas is $3,000. For a diesel, this amounts to $3,300, while hybrids cost automakers a whopping $8,000. 

Having an edge in production costs and the U.S. being the world’s number one provider of natural gas means that Fiat could become a major player in the eco-friendly niche. The Turin-based maker is Europe’s market leader in manufacturing methane-powered cars delivering some 127,000 units last year.
The only problem is that in America, natural gas refueling stations are vastly outnumbered by gasoline stations. There are only 1,300 stations providing natural gas for 110,000 vehicles, compared to 160,000 stations selling conventional fuels. However, this problem could be circumvented if Fiat can convince government agencies and corporate fleets that natural gas is the way to go.

By Csaba Daradics

Source: Bloomberg

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Kia Soul Does Some Inner Searching with New Special Edition

The Soul Searcher is the latest addition to Kia's Originals line-up, which includes a collection of distinctive versions of the sub-compact crossover. This here special edition is for the UK market and it follows on from the Burner, Shaker, Tempest and Echo. Sales scheduled to start from the 4th January 2011.
The car is cosmetically distinguished by a light green metallic paintwork, and cream and brown full leather interior offset by a two-tone, cream and black dashboard. Furthermore, Kia's designers added chrome front grille and door handles, roof rails, black bezel headlights, front and rear mud flaps as well as 18-inch silver alloy wheels.


Standard specification includes reversing sensors, front fog lights, electric folding door mirrors, privacy glass, dual auto air conditioning and heated front seats, plus an upgraded 8 speaker sound system with subwoofer and external amplifier, Bluetooth and iPod connectivity.
The Soul Searcher is powered by a 1.6-litre CRDi diesel engine available with either 5-speed manual or 4-speed automatic, with prices starting from £16,965 OTR and £18,025 (including VAT at the new 20% rate) respectively.

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New VW Scirocco BlueMotion returns 62.8 mpg UK

Volkswagen is upping the fuel economy ante in the UK with the presentation of new Scirocco and Passat CC diesel range that benefit from the firm's BlueMotion Technology.

Starting with VW's proposal in the compact coupe segment, all entry-level and GT trim models with the 2.0-litre 140HP diesel engine now feature BlueMotion Technology modifications, which include Stop/Start and battery regeneration systems, thus helping to create the cleanest and most fuel efficient Scirocco to date.

When combined with a six speed manual gearbox, fuel economy on the Scirocco 2.0 TDI 140HP is improved from 55.4 mpg to 62.8 mpg UK on the combined cycle (51.4 to 57.6 DSG), while CO2 emissions drop down from 134 g/km to 118 g/km (145 to 129 DSG).

The German company also announced updates to the more powerful 2.0-litre TDI 170HP engine fitted to the Scirocco GT. These changes result in fuel economy figures improving from 53.3 mpg to 55.4 mpg UK for the manual gearbox model (50.4 to 51.4 DSG) and CO2 emissions reducing from 139 to 134 g/km (147 to 144 for DSG) .

The Passat CC line-up also sees BlueMotion Technology models with regenerative braking and Start/Stop systems replacing existing diesel versions. The updates help the 2.0-litre TDI 140HP Passat CC achieve a combined 60.1 mpg UK, up from 50.4, while CO2 emissions are reduced to 125 g/km, down from 146 g/km.

The 170HP version of the 2.0-litre diesel engine also boasts improved figures with fuel economy up to 57.6 mpg UK (51.4 DSG) and emissions down to 129 g/km (144 DSG).

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Jeep Patriot gets New 163HP 2.2 CRD Diesel from Mercedes in Europe

Jeep announced today that the UK-spec Patriot can be ordered with a new, 163 hp 2.2-liter diesel engine, sourced from Mercedes. In addition, the American SUV also gets improved trim levels. Replacing the previous Volkswagen 2.0-liter four-pot, the new powertrain features common-rail technology, which increased power by 23 hp and 10 Nm (7.4 lb-ft).


The Jeep Patriot 2.2 CRD sprints to 100 km/h (62 mph) in 10.7 seconds and can reach a top speed of 201 km/h (125 mph). The newly found grunt (maximum torque is 320 Nm or 236 lb-ft) is also enough, says the American maker, for towing a 2,000 kg (4,409 lbs) braked trailer.

Fuel efficiency is better too, as the diesel Patriot is rated at 42.8 UK mpg (35.6 US mpg or 6.6 lt/100 km) in the combined cycle.

Four trim levels are available (Sport, Sport+, Overland and Limited) and all variants come with new standard features, such as body colored door handles, Hill Start Assist, leather wrapped handbrake and active head restraints for the driver and front passenger.

The base price for the Patriot 2.2 CRD is £21,995.

By Csaba Daradics

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2011 Opel Antara Receives Minor Facelift with Renewed Engine Lineup

Following in the footsteps of its sister Chevrolet Captiva model, the Opel / Vauxhall Antara has received a mid-life refresh. It hasn't been around for long so there are no big styling changes for this facelift, just minor tweaks here and there to keep the crossover model looking up to date in a line-up of newer Opel products such as the Meriva, Astra and Insignia.

For the 2011MY, the Antara gets a new front grille with a less prominent logo and redesigned front bumper with new fog lights and lower grille styling, plus modified rear light clusters and optional 19-inch light-metal wheels. Interior changes come in the form of a new center console with extra storage solutions, new materials and added color options.


The most important changes for the Antara are hidden under the hood as Opel has fully re-worked the engine line-up, which is Euro-5 compliant. The latest entry to the range is a newly-developed 2.2-liter CDTI Turbo diesel, which comes with two outputs: a 163hp version that offers 36 hp more than its predecessor model, and a 184 hp variant offering 34 hp more power.

The 163 hp variant is available in front-wheel or all-wheel drive as well as with manual or automatic six-gear transmissions, while the 184 hp also offers a choice of manual or automatic transmissions, and comes with all-wheel drive as standard.

As for the gasoline line-up, the 2.4 liter four-cylinder unit now produces 170hp, or, 30 hp more power and like the diesel variants, it is is available in front-wheel or all-wheel drive and comes as manual or automatic six-gear transmission.

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Mazda3 gets Revised 1.6-liter Diesel in Europe, Returns 4.4lt/100km or 53.5mpg

Mazda has updated the 1.6-liter four-cylinder diesel engine offered in the Mazda3 hatchback and sedan models, making it Euro 5-compliant, more powerful (115 hp vs 109 hp) and even more economical. The new version needs just 4.4 lt/100 km (64.2 UK mpg or 53.5 US mpg) and it's mated for the first time to a six-speed manual transmission.

The five extra horses won't rock your world, but the 1.6 MZ-CD delivers 30 more newton-meters (22 lb-ft) of torque, which should definitely count. Engineers achieved this by using a new common-rail fuel injector system, with piezo injectors, and a variable-geometry turbocharger, which not only increased the torque to 270 Nm (199 lb-ft), but also made it available between 1,700-2,700 rpm. Peak power is delivered 400 rpm lower than before, at 3,600 rpm.

The extra oomph doesn't really translate into better acceleration figures - at least not on paper- but the Mazda3 1.6 MZ-CD is no slouch either. It accelerates from standstill to 100 km/h (62 mph) in 11 seconds, matching its predecessor, and can reach a top speed of 186 km/h (116 mph).

Also new is the maintenance-free diesel particulate filter (DPF), which no longer needs an additive to burn off the particulate matter, thus reducing running costs. Also thanks to the DPF, the new engine emits just 117 g/km of CO2 in the combined cycle.

Mazda hasn't provided any information on pricing and availability yet.

By Csaba Daradics

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