The Skoda Fabia has tipped over half a million 3rd gen and 4 million fabia's in total.

• 500,000th ŠKODA FABIA of current generation runs off production line at Mladá Boleslav plant today
• Milestone vehicle is FABIA COMBI MONTE CARLO 1.0 TSI (81 kW) in moon-white 
• ŠKODA has produced four million FABIAs since 1999

ŠKODA has produced the 500,000th third-generation FABIA in Mladá Boleslav today. At the same time, the manufacturer is celebrating another milestone: the four millionth ŠKODA FABIA since the series debuted in 1999. The jubilee vehicle is a ŠKODA FABIA COMBI with a 1.0 TSI petrol engine and an automatic DSG transmission in moon-white. 

With 91,400 deliveries in the first five months of 2017, the popular small car is currently ranked second on the ŠKODA bestseller list behind the OCTAVIA.

 "Today, we can be doubly proud. 500,000 third-generation FABIAs built and four million FABIAs produced in total are powerful testimonies of ŠKODA’s high production quality," says Michael Oeljeklaus, ŠKODA Board Member for Production and Logistics. “Since 1999, the small car has been one of the key players in our model portfolio and has won over customers around the world. 

Each of the three generations has characterised the development of the brand, featuring the latest technologies and exceptional space for outstanding value for money, complemented with attractive designs and superior technologies for safety and comfort. Now more than ever, the FABIA is a crucial driver of our dynamic growth."

Where it all began: the first ŠKODA FABIA – 1999 to 2007

Shortly before the turn of the millennium, the first ŠKODA FABIA celebrated its premiere at the IAA in Frankfurt in 1999. It was based on Volkswagen's A0 platform and, at that time, set standards in handling, safety and engine technology. As a typical ŠKODA, the FABIA scored with lots of space. At the Paris Motor Show in autumn 2000, the brand introduced the first ŠKODA FABIA COMBI. The ŠKODA FABIA RS made its debut in March 2003. Around 1,790,000 ŠKODA FABIAs of the first generation ran off the production line.

The second-generation ŠKODA FABIA - 2007 to 2014

The ŠKODA FABIA II entered the spotlight at the Geneva Motor Show. The second generation offered even more space with compact dimensions. ŠKODA expanded the engine range to include more efficient powertrains, and equipped the small car with new comfort and safety features. 

ŠKODA first presented the FABIA COMBI in September 2007 at the IAA in Frankfurt. It set new standards in technology and functionality, and the amount of room also increased. The boot volume grew by 235 litres compared to its predecessor.

Rugged exterior with distinctive design elements – this is how ŠKODA presented the FABIA SCOUT, which was also available as an estate, in 2009. With the first ŠKODA FABIA MONTE CARLO, motorsport DNA entered the popular small car. 

This model completed the model range in 2011, featuring a black roof, black alloy wheels, tinted rear and side windows and other expressive design elements. The production of the second-generation FABIA ended in June 2014 after approximately 1,710,000 cars.

All good things come in threes: ŠKODA FABIA III - 2014 to today

In 2014 the Czech manufacturer wrote another successful chapter in the history of this series with the third generation of the ŠKODA FABIA. To date, exactly 500,000 vehicles have left the production line. The FABIA III presents a sharp, dynamic and emotive design language. 

The sporty proportions skilfully allude to ŠKODA’s successful rally cars. With its excellent space on offer for this vehicle class, and innovative safety, comfort and infotainment systems, the third ŠKODA FABIA sets the benchmark in the small car segment. 

As a typical ŠKODA, the onboard equipment features many ‘Simply Clever’ details: the umbrella under the passenger seat, the ice scraper in the fuel cap, the multimedia bracket in the centre console, nets on the backs of the front seats, as well as hi-viz vests and bottle holders.

In early 2017, ŠKODA returned to the Geneva Motor Show. The ŠKODA FABIA received a 1.0-TSI three-cylinder for the first time, providing more power with lower fuel consumption. 

The 70 kW (95 hp) and 81 kW (110 hp) powertrains replaced the 1.2-litre four-cylinder used previously. The revised small car is the first FABIA to feature the mobile online service ŠKODA Connect. With the advanced connectivity offer, FABIA drivers have the option of always being online. 

ŠKODA Connect includes the Care Connect services with assistance- and emergency-call functions. In addition, there are the online infotainment services, which include information on traffic, petrol stations, fuel prices and car parks.

At the same time, the new ŠKODA FABIA offers state-of-the-art safety systems, which have so far only been seen in higher vehicle segments. The model features front-wheel assist with integrated city emergency braking function, adaptive cruise control (ACC), multi-collision brake assist and fatigue detection. In addition, electronic tyre pressure monitoring comes as standard with all FABIA models.

USA - The Limited Edition Focus RS is limited to 1500 units for the USA and Canada only.

• Ford followed Focus RS enthusiast conversations on blogs, forums and Facebook groups, which helped inspire the new 2018 limited-edition Focus RS
• Limited-edition Focus RS to deliver enhanced driving experience with new standard mechanical limited-slip differential to improve performance, unique interior and exterior styling, and new color combinations
• 1,500 Focus RS vehicles for United States and Canada offer customers last chance to get their hands on this generation of Ford’s critically acclaimed performance hatchback

Ford Performance fans talking to each other and posting comments online about the Ford Focus RS hot hatch performance car have led to a special 1,500 unit limited-edition celebrating the end of run of this generation hot hatch. 

Passion from the enthusiast community led Ford to introduce an exclusive new version of its critically acclaimed Focus RS for North America. Ford was listening.The new 2018 Focus RS limited-edition hot hatch adds a few commonly requested features that unique interior and exterior styling, and a new mechanical limited-slip differential.

Available in new Race Red or signature Nitrous Blue body color – both featuring striking new gloss black roof and mirror caps. The rear roof spoiler also features gloss black finish, with blue RS logos on the side wings. Now standard are 19-inch premium painted forged alloy wheels with blue RS center caps.

From the cockpit, the door handles, handbrake lever and turbo boost gauge surround are wrapped in carbon fiber skin, while equipment from the RS2 Package is standard, offering black leather-trimmed RECARO® seats with Miko-Dinamica eco-friendly suede microfiber inserts and RS logo, heated front seats with eight-way power driver’s seat, heated steering wheel, heated exterior mirrors and voice-activated navigation system.

To really excite driving enthusiasts, the global Ford Performance team developed a standard mechanical Quaife® limited-slip differential for the front axle that further improves Focus RS performance. This limited-edition Focus RS will more easily carry speed through a corner on the track, and allow for maximum acceleration on the way out.

“To satisfy strong demand for the ever-popular Focus RS, I’m very excited that we’re bringing this limited-edition vehicle to North America,” said Henry Ford, Ford Performance marketing manager. “We have spent a great deal of time listening to our customers, speaking to owners’ club members, reading comments and suggestions on enthusiast websites, and even studying various forum Photoshop renderings.”

A tight grip on performance

By controlling the torque delivered to each front wheel, the Quaife limited-slip differential enables 2018 Focus RS drivers to fully tap the 2.3-liter EcoBoost® engine’s 350 horsepower. The limited-slip differential limits engine torque delivered to a particular front wheel that has reduced traction on the road surface, redistributing torque to the wheel with more traction to reduce differences in wheel spin that can hamper acceleration and stability.

“Our new limited-edition Focus RS represents accessible performance at its finest,” said Jamal Hameedi, Ford Performance chief engineer. “Improving on the thrilling driving dynamics of the Focus RS is no small task – but our Ford Performance engineers have delivered a drivetrain capable of wringing every drop of performance from the engine.”

The new system seamlessly integrates with standard Focus RS driving technologies, including:

• Ford Performance All-Wheel Drive, which varies front-to-rear torque distribution to suit a given driving situation – monitoring inputs from vehicle sensors 100 times per second and sending an average of 70 percent of drive torque to the rear axle
• Dynamic Torque Vectoring, which uses electronically controlled clutch packs on the rear axle to send 100 percent of an average 70 percent available torque to either rear wheel, and can switch drive from one side to the other in as little as 0.06 second – or about the time it takes a humming bird to flap its wings 4 times.
• Torque Vectoring Control, which automatically applies small amounts of brake force to limit wheel spin at the front axle, further enhancing the tractive force available
• Focus RS Drive Modes, which include Ford-first drift mode for controlled oversteer drifts under circuit conditions, and launch control for ultimate performance off the start line and 4.7-second 0‑62 mph acceleration

Coming to a track near you

Only one thousand limited-edition 2018 Focus RS performance cars will be available in the United States and 500 in Canada, with deliveries beginning in late 2017, marking the last opportunity to order the current generation Focus RS in North America.

The limited-edition Focus RS joins Ford’s iconic Ford Performance vehicle range in North America, alongside the recently launched Ford GT supercar, F-150 Raptor, and much-loved Shelby GT350 Mustang, Focus ST and Fiesta ST.

Note: Vehicle horsepower ratings achieved with 93-octane fuel.

A 2009 Ford Focus RS with just 45 miles on the clock to go under auction at the upcoming CCA Event in Birmingham.

• A ‘brand new’ 2009 Ford Focus RS, with just 45 miles on the clock, will be auctioned at Classic Car Auctions’ (CCA) next sale.
• The car has been kept in storage since new.
• The car joins a host of other highly collectible Fast Fords for sale at the two-day auction.

A 2009 Ford Focus RS, with just 45 miles on the clock, is ready to be sold at Classic Car Auctions’ (CCA) two-day auction at the Practical Classics Classic Car and Restoration Show, taking place at the NEC, Birmingham.

The delivery mileage car is essentially brand new having been kept in storage for the last seven years. One family owned from new, the car has had just two registered keepers, a pair of husband and wife Ford fanatics.

The Performance Blue car has had one service, carried out in October 2016, and was MoT'd in 2015 and 2016 with the current MoT valid until October 2017. It is estimated at between £32,000 and £36,000 when it goes under the hammer next month.

“The MK2 Focus RS has all the makings of a future classic and indeed are proving popular at auction. Back in February our sister company Silverstone Auctions offered an Ultimate Green example with just 1,800 miles which sold for an amazing £41,063 including buyer’s premium,” comments Guy Lees-Milne, general manager and classic car specialist at CCA.

“With the launch of a new Focus RS to much fanfare and continued demand for all things Fast Ford we expect a similar amount of interest with this amazingly low mileage example,” added Guy.

At CCA’s biggest ever sale, there’s a huge selection of other Fast Fords on offer with everything from a Fiesta XR2 to Escort RS Turbos and Capris.

Highlights include a low mileage 1992 Ford Sierra Sapphire 4x4 Cosworth, estimated at between £20,000 and £25,000. The ex-Ford demonstrator example was restored by RS Classic Cars and Service last year, after being professionally stored from 2005 to 2016.

A 1983 Ford Escort 1600i in concours condition is estimated at between £18,000 and £22,000. Also restored by RS Classic Cars and Service in 2016, the car is totally standard and even includes the original radio. It comes with the original handbook and service book with nine stamps, plus full restoration invoices.

“Our biggest ever CCA auction is a perfect opportunity for Ford fans to purchase their dream classic and so I’d encourage potential buyers to come and visit us at the NEC”, concluded Guy.

WORLDWIDE SALES - AUDI - The german giant drops sales in February for the first time in some time.

• Around 125,100 deliveries worldwide in the month – down 1.1 percent
• Sales chief Dietmar Voggenreiter: “We are preparing for future opportunities in China with far-reaching strategic decisions”
• A5 Coupé due to be launched in North America

AUDI AG delivered around 125,100 automobiles in February. In North America (+16.1%) strong demand for the Audi A4 and the Q7 in particular once again translated into double-digit growth. Likewise in Europe (+1.9%), the Four Rings achieved the best start to the year in its history and continued to grow in February. 

In China, Audi is currently holding intensive talks with its local partners in order to position the joint cooperation suitably for the planned next stage of growth. In this phase the Chinese dealers are managing their business cautiously and reported 5.8 percent fewer deliveries in the past month than a year ago. Global sales in February were thus 1.1 percent below the record-breaking figure from 2016.

“We see huge opportunities for the future in China, as the world’s leading market for sales, digitization and e-mobility,” says Dietmar Voggenreiter, Board member for Sales and Marketing at AUDI AG. “We are preparing our business model for these opportunities and intend to take far-reaching, sustainable decisions with our partners. In so doing we are taking a challenging, yet important step.”

In January, Audi decided with its joint venture partner FAW to intensify the joint collaboration in China as part of a strategic growth plan. The agreement envisages, among other things, extending the locally produced portfolio with further electrified models. 

In the second step, the operational implementation of the future agenda is now to be defined with the Chinese dealers. Furthermore, Audi is looking at future collaboration with SAIC in a potential second joint venture in order to open up further market potential. “This phase of far-reaching strategic structural decisions will still take some time. 

The top priority for us is to further develop the Chinese business profitably for all partners,” says Voggenreiter. Meanwhile, the Chinese dealers reported 32,155 delivered automobiles for the month of February, 5.8 percent less than one year ago, following a sharp drop in sales in January compared with 2016.

By contrast, Audi sales grew in Europe, where around 66,400 deliveries in February exceeded the 2016 figure by 1.9 percent. The brand achieved substantial gains especially in southern Europe: In Spain, sales rose by another 7.1 percent to 4,949 units and in Italy even by 29.9 percent to 6,125 customers in the month. 

With the new Q2, Audi is successfully attracting an above-average number of new customers in both markets; Italy is currently the largest export market for the city SUV. Across all models, the constant growth over the past few months for Audi was also maintained in the German domestic market (+1.8% to 29,017 cars) in February. 

In the United Kingdom, by contrast, the local generation changeover for the right-hand-drive versions of the Audi Q5 and the A5 Sportback left its mark. 5,203 units sold in the United Kingdom was 2.8 percent below the previous year’s figure. Business in Europe continued to be dampened by the market weakness in Russia: down 22.9 percent to 1,350 automobiles in February.

Among all markets, the United States achieved the largest growth in terms of sales volume most recently. 13,741 customers in total decided to buy a model from Audi of America in February, up 17.3 percent compared with the same month in 2016. 

Demand for the Q7 continues to be particularly high in the U.S. market: The full-size SUV saw sales rise in February by 49.8 percent to 2,477 units, thus climbing into second spot of the bestselling Audi models in the United States since the start of the year. 

Across all Q models, Audi’s SUV sales increased last month by 35.8 percent to 6,874 U.S. customers. Sales of the A4 also increased further in February to counter the market downturn in the sedan segment, with the model achieving a 30.1 percent increase to 2,377 deliveries in the United States. 

In Canada, sales of the A4 rose to more than double the previous year’s figure (+132.2 percent to 418 A4 models), on the back of a similar jump in January. Total sales across the entire portfolio also proved very positive in February for Audi Canada: 1,970 cars sold once more represent high growth of 27.8 percent.

In March, the new Audi A5 Coupé will be premiered in the United States and Canada. The United States has been the largest global sales market for the first generation of the model. The sporty Audi Coupé has captured two thirds of its U.S. drivers as new customers for the brand.   

By contrast, Audi sales grew in Europe, where around 66,400 deliveries in February exceeded the 2016 figure by 1.9 percent. The brand achieved substantial gains especially in southern Europe: In Spain, sales rose by another 7.1 percent to 4,949 units and in Italy even by 29.9 percent to 6,125 customers in the month. 

With the new Q2, Audi is successfully attracting an above-average number of new customers in both markets; Italy is currently the largest export market for the city SUV. Across all models, the constant growth over the past few months for Audi was also maintained in the German domestic market (+1.8% to 29,017 cars) in February. 

In the United Kingdom, by contrast, the local generation changeover for the right-hand-drive versions of the Audi Q5 and the A5 Sportback left its mark. 5,203 units sold in the United Kingdom was 2.8 percent below the previous year’s figure. Business in Europe continued to be dampened by the market weakness in Russia: down 22.9 percent to 1,350 automobiles in February.

Among all markets, the United States achieved the largest growth in terms of sales volume most recently. 13,741 customers in total decided to buy a model from Audi of America in February, up 17.3 percent compared with the same month in 2016. Demand for the Q7 continues to be particularly high in the U.S. market: The full-size SUV saw sales rise in February by 49.8 percent to 2,477 units, thus climbing into second spot of the bestselling Audi models in the United States since the start of the year. 

Across all Q models, Audi’s SUV sales increased last month by 35.8 percent to 6,874 U.S. customers. Sales of the A4 also increased further in February to counter the market downturn in the sedan segment, with the model achieving a 30.1 percent increase to 2,377 deliveries in the United States. 

In Canada, sales of the A4 rose to more than double the previous year’s figure (+132.2 percent to 418 A4 models), on the back of a similar jump in January. Total sales across the entire portfolio also proved very positive in February for Audi Canada: 1,970 cars sold once more represent high growth of 27.8 percent.         

In March, the new Audi A5 Coupé will be premiered in the United States and Canada. The United States has been the largest global sales market for the first generation of the model. The sporty Audi Coupé has captured two thirds of its U.S. drivers as new customers for the brand.

    

Sales forAUDI AG	In February			Cumulative
	2017	2016	Change from 2016	2017	2016	Change from 2016
World	125,100	126,497	-1.1%	249,100	269,769	-7.7%
Europe	66,400	65,156	+1.9%	128,200	125,072	+2.5%
- Germany	29,017	28,507	+1.8%	51,944	50,340	+3.2%
- UK	5,203	5,355	-2.8%	16,956	17,301	-2.0%
- France	5,254	5,262	-0.2%	9,658	9,487	+1.8%
- Italy	6,125	4,715	+29.9%	11,129	8,970	+24.1%
- Spain	4,949	4,619	+7.1%	9,877	8,875	+11.3%
USA	13,741	11,718	+17.3%	26,942	23,568	+14.3%
Mexico	1,086	1,208	-10.1%	2,197	2,386	-7.9%
Brazil	630	1,326	-52.5%	1,465	2,710	-45.9%
China (incl. Hong Kong)	32,155	34,152	-5.8%	67,336	88,554	-24.0%