http://www.aussiemotoring.com News and Reviews From the Australian Motoring Scene Sat, 19 Jul 2008 17:54:34 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en This is not a replacement for an existing vehicle Kia Motors Corporation has confirmed that its all-new production model, the Kia Soul, will be marketed globally with a choice of three highly efficient engines (depending on individual markets), when it goes on sale in early 2009. The most powerful engine will be ... http://www.aussiemotoring.com/2008/07/20/another-small-car-from-kia/ Yesterday it was just a rumour that BMW were about to build a small fleet of electric Minis to test the concept and do some serious field trials. Today, with this press release from BMW, it's official.  As part of the Group's Number ONE strategy, the company will begin extensive tests ... http://www.aussiemotoring.com/2008/07/11/the-electric-mini-its-official/ It's being reported that BMW will soon commence building 500 electric versions of it's ever-popular Mini. The Chairman of BMW AG is reported as saying that this small group of cars will allow BMW to gain knowledge and experience in the production of eletrically powered vehicles. It's believed that 490 of the ... http://www.aussiemotoring.com/2008/07/10/bmw-announces-an-electric-mini/ There's supposed to be a recession either here or just around the corner ... interest rates are going up and up ... petrol prices are soaring ... and all those indicators would suggest that we should be seeing a slowing in car sales in Australia. However new car buyers weren't ... http://www.aussiemotoring.com/2008/07/10/bucking-the-economic-trends/ If there's one thing I like about a Toyota Prius ... apart from it's great fuel consumption ... is the fact that you can never mistake it for anything else. There's something unique about the shape that makes a Toyota Prius instantly recognisable and marks it's driver as someone special ... http://www.aussiemotoring.com/2008/07/07/toyota-prius-to-get-a-facelift/ Yes, you did read that correctly ... we are talking about selling Volvo the company and not just a Volvo. For some time now Ford has owned Volvo as part of the Premier Automotive Group that also included Aston Martin, Jaguar and Land Rover but all it has left now is ... http://www.aussiemotoring.com/2008/07/01/pssst-wanna-buy-volvo/ There are some interesting examples of fine old cars hiding in the backstreets of Hervey Bay and the surrounding villages and here is one of them. I've seen this beautiful old 1963 Tbird around Torbanlea - a village just off the Bruce Highway between Maryborough and Childers on several occasions but I've never had my ... http://www.aussiemotoring.com/2008/06/29/1963-tbird/ Earlier this month we reported on the latest car sale figures for the Australian market in May but not every country ... nor every segment ... was as bouyant as the Australian market was in May. In once instance the impact of falling sales has led to some serious re-thinking ... http://www.aussiemotoring.com/2008/06/22/the-ups-and-downs-of-car-sales-in-may/ The new BMW M3 Convertible is about to hit Australian streets and it's definitely something special. The new M3 comes with a high-revving V8 that's even lighter than the six-cylinder unit that powered previous M3s. The new 309kW 4.0 litre motor comes as standard with a six-speed manual gearbox. What makes this ... http://www.aussiemotoring.com/2008/06/20/the-new-bmw-m3-convertible/ There's something about French cars that appeals to me ... they're quirky and definitely fun to drive and that's probably why I still regret selling my Peugot 404 wagon (you could crank start it) and my Renault 12 sedan - the one that was covered in paint blemishes from new ... http://www.aussiemotoring.com/2008/06/19/the-new-renault-laguna/