Burnt up Audi R8

Audi engineers were testing the R8 despite being released in many markets but the test drive didn't last long. The R8 supercar caught fire. Why? Well, theres alot of claims like some of the petrol managed to get in contact with the very hot exhaust pipes which led to this fire, when re-fuelling the petrol tends to spray all over the place, oil leakage or there is a problem with the gearbox. With this claim we have a quote from an R8 owner and Audi:

"It has been a simple software update for the gear box hydraulic system and this should eliminate the problem"

Audi R8 owners advice is "be carefully before you re-fuel". More incidents can be read below:

Earlier on this year a similar this happened with a RS8 prototype which was lapping around the Nurburgring racetrack undergoing high speed testing. The whole car was burned up but thankfully the test engineer was fine. Also this year a family in Belgium bought a new Audi Q7. Whilst travelling down the motorway in France the whole SUV flipped on to its nose and roll over several times. Its believed the airbags didn't even inflate. The SUV was stopped by a barrier but if the barrier wasn't there the SUV could have fallen down the cliff edge. No-one was hurt. According to Audi, the front passengers side alloy wheel was deformed and caused this accident.

Last winter during cold weather testing in Germany, 2 Audi engineers died on the site after their TT prototype crashed into the back of a truck.

Apparently, Audi is investigating these series of accidents and calling back some models but don't let this put you off buying or being a fan of Audi.

Peugeot 308 Hatchback pricing & spec announced (UK)

Peugeot UK have officially revealed the prices for their new 308. Prices start from £11,995 for the 3dr and £12,595 for the 5dr entry level Urban grade. This grade comes with trip computer, electric front windows, electric operated door mirrors, remote central door locking with dead locks, front side & curtain airbags, drivers and passengers front airbags.

The S grade comes with the Urban features and climate control, front fog lamps, body coloured door mirrors and door handles.

Sport grade come with the S features and comes with cruise control with speed limiter, steering column with airbag, leather steering wheel, rear electric windows, ESP.

SE grade features Sports features and comes with Cielo panoramic glass roof, electric folding door mirrors, electrochrome rear view mirror, auto headlamps and wipers, lumber support, head adjustment.

The GT grade comes with the SE features and xenon headlamps, rear parking aid, alarm, tyre pressure sensor.

Urban spec and prices:

RD4 Radio/CD Player
Classic front grille
Classic rear bumper
Black instrument dials
A+ display screen
15" wheels trims
Electrically operated door mirrors
Grey coloured centre console
Electric front window
Remote control central locking with deadlocks
Trip computer
Front, side and curtain airbags
Drivers and passengers front airbag
ABS + EBFD + EBA

Prices:

3dr - £11,995
5dr - £12,595

S spec and prices:

Urban equipment plus:

Body coloured door mirrors and door handles
Climate control
Front fog lamps

Prices:

3dr - £12,895
5dr - £ 13,495

Sport spec and prices:

S equipment plus:

Steering column airbag
Cruise control with speed limiter
Rear electric windows
Front armrest
Boot net
Leather steering wheel
ESP
Fully body exterior colour
RD4 Radio/CD Player with MP3 playback
Sports front grille
White instrument matrix
C-B/W display screen
17" alloy wheels
Aluminium colour centre controls

Prices:

3dr - £14,395
5dr - £14,995

SE spec and prices:

Sport equipment plus:

Ambiance pack; Fragrance diffuser, ambient lighting
Cielo panoramic glass roof
Electric folding door mirrors
Comfort pack; Lumber support, height adjustment, underseat trays, rear armrest
Electrochrome rear view mirror
Visibility pack; auto headlamps and wipers
Dual zone climate control
Sports rear bumper
White instrument matrix + dials
16" alloy wheels

Prices:

5dr - £15,895

GT spec and prices:

SE equipment plus:

Half leather upholstery sports seats
Carpet mats
Tyre pressure sensors
Alarm
rear parking aid
Xenon headlmaps
Bluetooth handsfree telephone kit
Colour display screen
18" alloy wheels

Prices:

3dr - £18,195
5 dr - £18,795

The new 308 will go on sale immediately across Western Europe (UK, France, Spain, Portugal) after the Frankfurt debut in 2 weeks time.

Crash test results: 2007 Renault Twingo 1.2 Dynamique

The Fiat 500's rival, the Renault Twingo only scored 4 stars in frontal crash test rating. The front scored 28 points for adult safety, 11 points for pedestrian safety and 16 points for side impact safety but there is only 1 seatbelt reminder.

Front impact:

The passenger compartment remained stable during the impact. Structures in the dashboard presented a potential hazard to the knees and femurs of both of the driver's legs and to the passenger's inboard leg.

Child-protection:

With the front seats set to the Euro NCAP test position (mid-position of fore-aft adjustment), the child restraints recommended by Renault could not be fitted in the rear seats. Therefore, it was not possible to establish the child protection rating of the Twingo.

Pedestrian protection:

The bumper offered predominantly fair protection to pedestrians' legs. However, the front edge of the bonnet was rated as poor and scored no points. The bonnet surface was rated as predominantly poor for the protection offered to pedestrians' heads.

Crash test results: 2007 Fiat 500

EURO NCAP FIVE-STAR SAFETY RATING FOR FIAT 500:

The Fiat 500 has just achieved the prestigious Euro NCAP five-star crash safety rating, (with a total of 35 points), so taking over top spot in its segment for safety.

This important award adds to those assigned recently to the Fiat Bravo and Grande Punto, and confirms the special attention Fiat Automobiles SpA pays to all aspects of driver and passenger protection.

This is the first time that a car of this size has achieved five stars and the 500 is now one of the safest vehicles on today’s roads. To achieve the rating, Fiat designers examined every possible type of accident: front and side impacts, roll-overs and rear-end collisions. The different speeds at which collisions take place, different types of obstacles and the protection of occupants with widely varying physical characteristics, were also taken into consideration.The Fiat 500 offers, as standard, two dual stage front airbags, two front side airbags for chest/pelvis protection, two window-bags and a driver’s knee airbag. Front seat-belts with a double pretensioner and load limiter are also standard equipment.

As well as incorporating a high performance braking system, the Fiat 500 features ABS anti-lock brakes with EBD (Electronic Brakeforce Distribution) and ESP (Electronic Stability Program). This sophisticated system is standard on the 1.4 16v version and an option on the other two versions (1.2 and 1.3 MultiJet).

The Fiat 500 is a car designed and built to achieve the highest levels of quality, as the safety award by Euro NCAP confirms. This total protection feature has contributed to the sales success of the model – since its launch this summer the car has already won over Italy and France, with around 70,000 orders to date.

New Car: 2008 Lexus GS Facelift

Compared to the current car Lexus is playing it safe with their new facelifted GS sedan. There are subtle changes like revised headlights, bumpers and grilles. A new stability system dubbed "active stabilisatorsystem" will be on the option list for the GS450h (2nd picture).

Lexus will be at IAA in Frankfurt to unveil the new GS sedan and the new car will be on sale at the end of the year in Europe.

Chevrolet Malibu/Malibu Hybrid pricing announced (U.S)

Consumers shopping for a no-frills Chevrolet Malibu will have to shell out $2,100 more for the redesigned 2008 model.Chevy said the base 2008 Malibu will be priced starting at $19,995. Its predecessor, the 2007 Malibu, started at $17,865. An uplevel version of the previous-generation car has been carried over in limited numbers for model-year 2008. Rebadged as the Malibu Classic, its sticker is $20,880.

Chevy said the new Malibu is well equipped in the base version, with standard antilock disc brakes, six airbags, traction control, turn-by-turn navigation, air-conditioning and XM Satellite Radio.

The base and optional engines are bigger and more powerful for '08. Malibu gets a DOHC 2.4-liter four-cylinder rated at 169 horsepower, with an optional 252-hp DOHC 3.6-liter V6 also available. A four-speed automatic transmission is standard on four-cylinder models, while the V6 comes with a six-speed automatic.

Prices range up to $26,995 for the top-of-the-line Malibu LTZ.

A new Malibu Hybrid will carry a sticker of $22,790. It comes equipped with the 2.4-liter four-cylinder with electric assist. The EPA mileage ratings for the hybrid are only slightly higher than for the standard four-cylinder gasoline model — 24 mpg in the city and 32 mpg on the highway for the hybrid versus 22 and 30 for the gasoline.

The Malibu and Malibu Hybrid go on sale in November.

Volvo XC70 pricing announced (U.S)

The redesigned 2008 Volvo XC70 will be priced at $37,520, including a $745 destination charge, when it arrives in U.S. showrooms on October 1, the company said.

The 2007 Volvo XC70 2.5 T started at $37,115, including a $695 destination charge.The 2008 model gets several improvements, most notably its first six-cylinder engine, a 3.2-liter inline-6 that is found in the Volvo S80 and makes 235 horsepower at 6,200 rpm and 236 pound-feet of torque at 3,200 rpm. That is 27 more horses than the outgoing turbocharged inline-5. The new engine is linked to a six-speed automatic transmission.

Other highlights include first-time standard Hill Descent Control and new dual height-adjustable booster cushions for kids, a feature that Volvo is describing as a "world first".

Volvo says the U.S. is the largest market for the XC70, with about half the projected annual production of 38,000 coming to North America.