Rolls Royce’s RR4 to be produced
Rolls Royce has confirmed that its concept car, the 200EX, shown at the recent Geneva motor show, will go into production. The RR4 will feature an eight-speed gearbox and will be powered by a new 6.6-litre turbocharged 500bhp V12 engine. Tom Purves of Rolls Royce announced the details in New York where 200EX is on the first leg of a world tour.
“There has been a great deal of interest in this car since we first talked about producing a new model series. . . and the reaction 200EX received at its unveiling was very positive,” said Purves. “As we move closer to the start of production at Goodwood, it is exciting to be able to share some of the specific technical details.
“RR4 will deliver an authentic Rolls-Royce experience – peerless comfort and build quality. However, we have consciously engineered this car to be more involving and dynamic for those owners around the world that will wish to drive it themselves.”
Sharp dive in exhibitor numbers for Tokyo Motor Show
THE TOKYO Motor Show’s exhibitor numbers will plunge 49 per cent this year as automakers including BMW and Daimler, owner of Mercedes, pare marketing spending amid falling demand for new cars.
The event will host 122 companies this year, down from 241 in 2007 when the show was last held. The exhibition, starting October 23rd, has also been shortened by four days. Volkswagen, Ford, General Motors and Chrysler have all withdrawn from the show, one of the industry’s largest, as carmakers cut costs amid the global recession.
At least six major global motor shows, where carmakers typically spend millions of dollars displaying their newest models, have been cancelled or scaled back since November. The British Motor show has been postponed until an unspecified future date.
Porsche, Ferrari, Lotus, Hyundai and Maserati are among foreign brands still expected to attend the show. All of Japan’s carmakers will have stands. Sales in Japan, the worlds third-largest auto market, are dominated by domestic companies, with European, US and South Korean brands accounting for just 6.8 per cent of the total, excluding minicars.
Upcoming Mazda1 bears distinct resemblance to larger sibling
CAR ENTHUSIASTS hoping the 2008 Mazda Kiyora concept would form the base of the up-coming Mazda 1 may be a little disappointed by the prototype spotted testing in France.
Despite its far-from-production-ready-look, the Kiyora was thought to preview the Japanese automaker’s plans to introduce vehicles that are not only good to drive, but also exciting to look at.
However, this is the still-disguised format of the new Mazda1, bearing a distinctive family link to the recently launched Mazda2.
The Kiyora Concept housed a small 1.3-litre direct-injection engine under its body when it was shown but it’s still not clear if this engine, which had emissions of just 90g/km, will make it into the new car.
The engine in question features a new six-speed automatic transmission system and a smart new stop/start system.