Fulham Football Club and Fiat UK Via Motor VIllage are to launch a Limited Edition 500X

A new special edition Fiat 500X has just been launched in London to celebrate the continuing successful partnership between Fiat Chrysler Motor Village UK and Fulham Football Club.

The special version of the popular Fiat SUV – the Fulham FC special Edition – features distinctive styling details, exclusive black, white and red paint finish and unique ‘FFC’ badging, along with a host of 500X standard equipment. It will be sold through Motor Village UK, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles UK’s flagship dealer.

A limited run of just 15 of this celebration range of cars will be built, designed exclusively for Fulham FC season ticket holders. The special cars will cost £21,365 OTR.

Available in two different styles – City Look and Off-Road Look – the car is based on the 500X Pop Star version, and includes among its standard equipment: alloy wheels, front fog lights with cornering function, rear parking sensors, climate control, six airbags, cruise control and 5-inch touchscreen with navigation, Bluetooth, USB and aux-in socket.

The SKYbet Championship football club is also holding a prize draw in which one lucky winner will get to drive a new Fiat 500X Fulham FC Special Edition for two weeks, with their keys being handed over by the team’s players. Signed footballs and shirts are also available as runners-up prizes.

“This is another excellent example of how we are teaming up with Fulham FC and its supporters,” says Fabio di Prima, managing director, Motor Village UK. “There’s the prize draw to win the limited edition 500X for two weeks, the chance to meet the players and the opportunity for season ticket holders to purchase the new car.

“Of course, if a non-season ticket holder would like to buy the Fulham FC Special Edition – or any other of our large range of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles cars – we would be delighted to sign them up!”

“It is important to us to ensure that our partners and supporters have a positive relationship, and being able to offer such a fantastic prize is a really tremendous way of highlighting that,” says Casper Stylsvig, chief revenue officer, Fulham FC.

“The limited edition 500X is really quite unique, so with an opportunity to win, plus an additional competition to meet the players, Motor Village really has excelled itself in giving added value to the Fulham fanbase which we are delighted about; good luck to all!’

Note to editors: Motor Village UK is Official Car Partner to Fulham FC and offers exclusive deals to club season ticket holders on new Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Jeep and Abarth cars. The prize draw is open to Fulham FC season ticket holders, over-18s and holders of a valid driving license.

The What Car? nominations have been announced for European car of the year.

What Car? has revealed the nominees for its annual Car of the Year Awards 2016.

The What Car? Awards are some of the most highly prized automotive accolades by both car manufacturers and the car-buying public combined, because What Car? experts ensure that only the vehicles that deliver exceptionally against strict exacting criteria are shortlisted.

The Pictures below are a representation of

those nominated, and not to be confused 

with what may or may not win any of the awards.

The hugely important Reader Award is one of the most heavily contested, because it acts as a strong indicator of public sentiment towards new cars being brought to market in the next 12 months.

A new category is also making its debut at the 2016 Awards: the Compact Executive Car, for which challengers include the Jaguar XE, Skoda Superb, and Toyota Avensis.

The most coveted of all the trophies up for grabs is the overall Car of the Year Award. The car that will be crowned as overall winner will have to beat the rest of the best across the event’s 18 separate categories.

21* British-built cars have made the long list. Among those, Land Rover models have received nominations across four categories: Small SUV (Land Rover Range Rover Evoque); Large SUV (Land Rover Range Rover Sport); (Land Rover Discovery Sport); Luxury Car (Land Rover Range Rover); and the Reader Award (Land Rover Range Rover Evoque Convertible).

Similarly Jaguar, which builds the F-Type Coupé (Coupé Award); Jaguar XE (Compact Executive Car, Safety Award); Jaguar XF (Large Executive Car, Safety Award); Jaguar XJ (Luxury Car); and the Jaguar F-Pace (Reader Award) in the UK has also received nominations across six categories respectively.

What Car? editorial director Jim Holder said: “It’s a hugely exciting time of the year for us in the automotive business, because the build-up for the What Car? Car of the Year Awards is properly underway and we can now announce the 2016 Awards contenders.

“The job our panel of experts must undertake to determine not only the best performing car in each category, but then the overall What Car? Car of the Year for 2016 is an incredibly rigorous one, because each car must be stand-out and our overall winner, extraordinary.

“Each of those car manufacturers who have made our long list, have done so for reasons of some outstanding individual quality in their latest vehicles.

“Out a total of 138, 21 are built here in the UK, something we should all celebrate.”

Awards are only given to the cars which set the highest standards in their class and only the best of these will be named What Car? Car of the Year 2016. In 2015, the Skoda Fabia was crowned the overall winner.

The 2016 Car of the Year Awards take place on 13 January, 2016 at the Grosvenor House Hotel, Park Lane, London.

The Nominations are :-

21* British-built cars

Bentley Continental GT
Bentley Mulsanne
Honda Civic Type R
Honda Jazz
Jaguar F-Pace
Jaguar F-Type Coupé
Jaguar XE
Jaguar XF
Jaguar XJ
Land Rover Discovery Sport
Land Rover Range Rover
Land Rover Range Rover Evoque
Land Rover Range Rover Sport
McLaren 570S
Mini Clubman
Mini Cooper 5dr
Mini Cooper JCW
Nissan Qashqai
Range Rover Evoque Convertible
Rolls-Royce Ghost II
Vauxhall Astra 

WHAT CAR? AWARDS 2016 LONG LIST
In association with Warranty Direct

CITY CAR
Sponsor: Warranty Direct
Hyundai i10
Fiat 500
Skoda Citigo
Smart Forfour
Smart Fortwo
Suzuki Celerio
Vauxhall Viva
Volkswagen Up

SMALL CAR
Skoda Fabia
Audi A1
Dacia Sandero
Honda Jazz
Mini Cooper 5dr
Seat Ibiza
Suzuki Baleno

FAMILY CAR
Skoda Octavia
Audi A3 Sportback
DS 4
Ford Focus
Kia Cee’d
Hyundai i30
Nissan Pulsar
Vauxhall Astra

ELECTRIC CAR
Audi A3 e-tron
VW Passat GTE
Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV
Renault Zoe Expression
Tesla Model S

COUPE
Audi TT
Ford Mustang
Bentley Continental GT
Jaguar F-Type Coupé
Mercedes-Benz S-Class Coupé
Seat Leon SC

ESTATE CAR
Ford Mondeo Estate
Audi A4 Avant
BMW 3 Series Touring
BMW 5 Series Touring
Kia Cee'd Sportswagon
Mini Clubman
Skoda Superb Estate
Skoda Fabia Estate
Subaru Levorg

MPV
Citroën Grand C4 Picasso
BMW 2 Series Grand Tourer
Citroën C3 Picasso
Ford C-Max
Ford Grand C-Max
Ford S-Max
Ford Galaxy
Seat Alhambra
Volkswagen Sharan
Volkswagen Touran

HOT HATCH 
Ford Fiesta ST
BMW M135i
Honda Civic Type R
Mini Cooper JCW
Peugeot 208 GTI by Peugeot Sport
Peugeot 308 GTI 270
Renault Clio RS220 Trophy
Suzuki Swift Sport

CONVERTIBLE
Audi A3 Cabriolet
Audi TT Roadster
BMW 4 Series Convertible
Citroën DS3 Cabriolet
Fiat 500C
Mazda MX-5
Mercedes-Benz E-Class Cabriolet
Volkswagen Beetle Cabriolet

SMALL SUV
Nissan Qashqai
Audi Q3
BMW X1
Citroën C4 Cactus
Fiat 500X
Ford Ecosport
Honda HR-V
Hyundai Tucson
Infiniti Q30
Jeep Renegade
Kia Sportage
Land Rover Range Rover Evoque
Mazda CX-3
Renault Captur
Renault Kadjar
Ssangyong Tivoli
Suzuki Vitara

LARGE SUV
Sponsor: CAP/HPI
Land Rover Range Rover Sport
Audi Q7
BMW X3
Hyundai Santa Fe
Kia Sorento
Mazda CX-5
Land Rover Discovery Sport
Lexus RX
Mercedes-Benz GLC
Mercedes-Benz GLE
Volvo XC90

COMPACT EXECUTIVE CAR
Sponsor: Allianz Global Assistance
Audi A4
BMW 3 Series
DS 5
Ford Mondeo
Jaguar XE
Kia Optima
Skoda Superb
Toyota Avensis
Volkswagen Passat

LARGE EXECUTIVE CAR
Sponsor: Allianz Global Assistance
BMW 5 Series
Audi A7 Sportback
Jaguar XF
Mercedes-Benz CLS
Porsche Panamera

SPORTS CAR
Porsche Boxster
Audi R8
Ferrari 488 GTB
McLaren 570S
Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG
Mercedes-Benz AMG GT
Porsche 911 Carrera

LUXURY CAR
Sponsor: NEC
Mercedes-Benz S-Class
Bentley Mulsanne
BMW 7 Series
Jaguar XJ
Land Rover Range Rover
Rolls-Royce Ghost II 

SAFETY AWARD
Sponsor: Thatcham Research
Audi A4
Audi Q7
BMW X1
Honda HR-V
Honda Jazz
Hyundai Tucson
Infiniti Q30
Jaguar XE
Jaguar XF
Lexus RX
Mercedes-Benz GLC
Skoda Superb
Suzuki Vitara
Toyota Avensis
Vauxhall Astra
Volkswagen Touran
Volvo XC90

READER AWARD
Sponsor: CAP/HPI
Alfa Romeo Giulia
Bentley Bentayga
Fiat 124 Spider
Ford Focus RS
Honda NSX
Jaguar F-Pace
Range Rover Evoque Convertible
Tesla Model X
Toyota Prius
Volkswagen Tiguan 

Toyota Mirai Hydrogen Fuel cell car goes the distance, achieving an amazing 67 USMPG.

Hydrogen fuel cell saloon sets record driving range for any zero-emissions car on the market

The new Toyota Mirai hydrogen fuel cell vehicle has proved it can go the distance, achieving  67 miles per gallon in official US combined city/highway driving calculations, and an estimated driving range of 312 miles on a single tank – a distance further than for any other zero-emissions car on the market.

Jim Lentz, Toyota North America CEO, announced the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) fuel economy rating for Mirai at the Aspen Ideas Festival in Colorado this week. It confirms that Mirai is the only zero emissions electric vehicle on the market capable of exceeding 300 miles on one fill.

Lenz said: “Toyota realised in the early 90s that electrification was key to the future of the automobile. Just as Prius introduced hybrid-electric vehicles to millions of customers nearly 20 years ago, Mirai is now poised to usher in a new era of efficient, hydrogen transportation.”

Mirai is the world’s first mass-produced hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicle, a four-door saloon with performance that competes with traditional internal combustion engines. Instead of using petrol, Mirai runs on electricity created on demand by hydrogen fuel and oxygen. The only emission produced by this process is water vapour.

Toyota will introduce Mirai in limited numbers in the UK and other selected European markets later this year, following its launch in Japan and, from this summer, California.

CHINA - The latest Qoros, the Qoros 3 City SUV 1.6T launches in China.

Modern distinctive design, ideal for an active city lifestyle, commanding driving position, excellent connectivity, high safety standards

New international car brand, Qoros, is revealing its third series production car, the new Qoros 3 City SUV 1.6T, at the 2014 Guangzhou International Auto Show. 

The pinnacle of the range, the compact City SUV is designed and engineered to appeal to consumers with an appetite for living life to the full, and who are looking for a car to fit into their active, premium, city lifestyle. With its distinctive, modern design it has the flexibility to balance the requirements of the urban commute with the pursuit of weekend leisure activities in the countryside. 

The new compact urban SUV is scheduled to go on sale before the end of December 2014 with prices starting from RMB 140,000.

Sitting 67mm higher than the 3 Hatch, City SUV drivers benefit from a more commanding driving position that delivers a sense of control, safety and security. For day-to-day city driving the City SUV provides better visibility for the driver, while the increased ride height ensures easier entry and egress. 

For out-of-town leisure activities, the new model offers higher ground clearance, larger wheels and robust body protection. The higher ride height enhances driveability and manoeuvrability to give the driver more confidence on rough or uneven road surfaces.

Developed by an international team of experienced specialists and new, young automotive talent from China, the Qoros 3 City SUV 1.6T exhibits the top quality engineering and excellent safety standards with which Qoros is making a powerful global impression.

The City SUV is being manufactured in the brand’s new highly-efficient and environmentally-sustainable assembly plant in Changshu, 80km north-west of Shanghai, on the same production line as the 3 Sedan and 3 Hatch.

Exterior design

The new Qoros 3 City SUV 1.6T features a bold evolution of distinctive signature Qoros design cues, although aesthetic enhancements give the car a unique character and reflect the individualistic preferences of its target customers.

For the compact class, the Qoros 3 City SUV 1.6T features a comparatively long wheelbase (2694mm), generous width (1854mm), and a short rear overhang (815mm). These elegan proportions suit perfectly the vehicle’s bold, high stance (1504mm), distinctive body cladding and detailed styling.

At the front, additional cladding and a front skid-plate give the face a more rugged, masculine look. The round fog lights are set into boldly-contoured recesses that wrap around the bumper, details that provide energy and poise.

The side profile features bold wheel arches – defined by protective body cladding which continues along the side sills and doors – along with larger wheels and tyres and the larger two-part, two-colour roof spoiler.

The deep rear bumper (part body colour, part graphite) features twin exhaust pipes which are set into a new silver rear skid-plate to provide added protection when traversing poor road conditions.

Reinforcing its increased ride height, the City SUV is offered with large alloy wheels. As standard, 17-inch alloys are fitted on Active, Style and Style Plus models and 18-inch designs on the range-topping Excite model.

The Qoros 3 City SUV 1.6T will be available in a range of five exterior paint colours – all available without extra cost: Crystal White (solid), Starlight Black, Diamond Silver, Shimmer Grey and Sunrise Red (all metallic).

Interior

In common with all Qoros models, the City SUV’s cabin is dominated by a clean, horizontal design theme that emphasises the spacious interior. The hip-point of the front seats is raised by 10mm, so the driver’s eye-level is 67mm higher than in the 3 Hatch, giving a commanding view of the road.

When launched in China, the Qoros 3 City SUV 1.6T will offer customers a choice of four trim specifications – Active, Style, Style Plus and Excite.

Standard features on all versions of the City SUV include the brand’s innovative Qoros MMH™ (Multi Media Hub) infotainment system, Bluetooth® for hands free calling and wireless music streaming, all-round electric windows, electric exterior mirrors that feature turn indicator repeaters, and dual exhaust pipes.

Interior feature highlights on the entry-level Active models include keyless start, 17-inch alloy wheels and manual air-conditioning.

The Style models will also benefit from the six-speed QorosTroniq™ 6DCT automatic transmission, dual-zone automatic air-conditioning, cruise control and a rear parking camera, as well as advanced QorosQloud™ 3G connected services with enhanced navigation and networking.

Buyers of Style Plus models also receive leather seats with the front seats heated and electrically adjustable, plus automatic door mirror folding, a tyre pressure indicator and a powered tilt/slide sunroof.

Top-of-the-range Excite models add Xenon headlamps, 18-inch alloy wheels, keyless entry and keyless start, ‘dusk-sensing’ auto on/off headlights, a rear parking camera with dynamic guideline and distance sensors, and full cabin ambient lighting.

As befits a model designed to deliver optimal lifestyle practicality to active customers, the standard 60:40 split rear seatbacks fold individually to optimise cargo carrying flexibility. Folding both seatbacks down increases cargo capacity to 1,105 litres when loaded to the roof. Style Plus and Excite models incorporate a rear seat ski-hatch.

In addition to the 2.8-litre glovebox (air-conditioned on Excite models), there are numerous further storage compartments, including in the front centre console and front arm rest, as well as wide door pockets in all four doors and front seatback pockets.

Refinement in the interior is optimised thanks to extensive NVH (noise, vibration, harshness) and acoustics development, which was a high priority for Qoros’ vehicle development team. It succeeded in controlling and suppressing vibrations and noise from within the vehicle – engine, transmission and other components – as well as those triggered externally, such as tyre roar and wind noise.

QorosQloud™ connectivity and touchscreen infotainment

QorosQloud – the portal to an exclusive suite of connected services – will be included as standard on Style, Style Plus and Excite models in the Qoros 3 City SUV 1.6T range. QorosQloud is part of Qoros’ strategic objective to be innovative and creative in meeting the lifestyle needs of the modern, metropolitan consumer.

Accessed in the City SUV via the advanced eight-inch Qoros MMH™ system (see next section), QorosQloud services can also be accessed from a dedicated website and apps for Apple iOS and Android. 

As a result, QorosQloud is integrated across customers’ connected devices and enhances the way they interact with and incorporate their car into their digital lives. 

This creates a closer connection than ever between the driver, the vehicle, the dealer and the digital world. It enables motorists to remain ‘always-connected’ to navigation and traffic information, their social networks, and the car’s condition, maintenance and service requirements.

From early 2015, a new incarnation of QorosQloud – QorosQloud 2.0 will be available. This further enhances the simplicity of the user experience for the driver, making it more intuitive and fun to use.

In the car, QorosQloud is accessed through the innovative Qoros MMH system that is fitted as standard to every Qoros. With an eight-inch capacitive touchscreen, it is one of the first touchscreen infotainment systems in the world to be specifically designed to maximise the opportunities and capabilities of multi-touch gestures.

Qoros MMH was designed and developed to safely manage information displays for minimal driver distraction and to optimise ease-of-use while on the move. The innovative user-interface is based on the finger ‘swipe’ concept of modern smartphones.

Those who enjoy high quality music to enhance their journey are well catered for across the entire Qoros 3 City SUV 1.6T range, with a four-speaker 100-watt audio system fitted to the Essence models as standard, and a six-speaker 150-watt audio system for the rest of the line-up.

Powertrain

The new City SUV will be available with the brand’s powerful, efficient 1.6-litre four-cylinder turbocharged gasoline engine as standard.

The European-developed turbocharged 1.6-litre 16-valve VVT (variable valve timing) engine suits the extra flexibility required for city and country driving. The engine produces 115 kW (156 bhp) power and 210 Nm torque over a broad rev range between 1,750 and 5,000 rpm.

As standard, this engine is paired with the six-speed manual transmission in the Active model, accelerating the City SUV from zero to 100 km/h in 10.1 seconds. 

Also with six speeds, the smooth shifting QorosTroniq™ 6DCT transmission is standard on Style, Style Plus and Excite models. With this gearbox, acceleration to 100 km/h is achieved in 10.8 seconds and top speed is 208 km/h.

Fuel economy is amongst the very best in the compact class, achieving 6.8 l/100km with the manual transmission and 6.9 l/100km with the DCT (NEDC cycle).

Vehicle dynamics

The vehicle dynamics of the new Qoros 3 City SUV 1.6T have been developed to fully exploit the new car’s higher chassis, wider track (up by 9mm at the front and 2mm at the rear compared to the 3 Hatch) and longer wheelbase (up 5mm), while also being tailored to deliver driving characteristics to rival those of compact SUV’s developed by leading European brands.

Like the highly acclaimed 3 Hatch and 3 Sedan, the City SUV’s suspension features MacPherson struts at the front and an OMEGA-shaped twist beam at the rear to provide an ideal balance of responsive handling and a compliant ride.

Several chassis modifications ensure that the City SUV has similar ‘DNA’ characteristics to the 3 Hatch in terms of ride, handling and steering, despite its higher centre of gravity.

Stopping power is provided by 305mm ventilated disc brakes at the front and 285mm solid disc brakes at the rear. Anti-lock braking (ABS) and electronic stability control (ESC) systems were developed in conjunction with TRW specifically for the Qoros 3 family of vehicles.

Safety

The City SUV embodies the same Qoros Crash Management System philosophy as the 3 Sedan and 3 Hatch, each of which carry a maximum five-star ranking from Euro NCAP.

In September 2013, the City SUV’s stablemate, the Qoros 3 Sedan, secured the accolade of being the first car developed in China to achieve the maximum five-star rating in the Euro NCAP crash tests and was also ranked the ‘safest car’ of 2013.

ABS (anti-lock braking system), EBD (electronic brake distribution) and a driver-set speed limiting device are standard across the range, as are ISOFIX child seat mountings with top tethers on the right and left rear seats.

Additional standard safety equipment on all City SUV models, apart from the entry-level Active, will include: ESC (electronic stability control), ETC (electronic traction control), BA (brake assist), and CBC (cornering brake control), automatic brake disc cleaning, a seat belt reminder for the driver (and front passenger on Excite models).

Latest Qoros model to be launched at the 12th Guangzhou International Automobile Exhibition.

Qoros, the new international car brand headquartered in China, will unveil a new production model  on 20 November 2014.

The new Qoros 3 City SUV is designed for a more premium metropolitan lifestyle, perfect for urban cruising and country driving. And thanks to innovative connectivity, drivers can make the most of every journey.

Its modern design and flexibility is exemplified by its increased ground clearance, large wheels, and a more commanding driving position. It offers generous space and more control for an exciting driving experience.

The new Qoros 3 City SUV will join the 3 Sedan and 3 Hatch in Qoros’ growing family of cars. As well as its purposeful, rugged looks, it will exhibit world-class standards of engineering, safety and quality. It will also feature the brand’s pioneering and award-winning QorosQloud™ connected services platform.