Specialized

Un potochop

Y el final...

Saludos!

AutoExpress

New Mondeo's In The Family Way

Say goodbye to the Mundano - and hello to Ford's new range of cutting-edge family cars. As you read this, Auto Express can reveal that the blue oval's design staff are putting the final touches to an exciting four-model line-up to replace today's three-strong Mondeo family.

We've discovered that the firm will replace the range with a sharply styled saloon and liftback, a Vauxhall Signum-style estate-cum-hatch, an all-road MAV (or multi activity vehicle) and a modern interpretation of the Galaxy people carrier, tipped to be christened the E-MAX.

The move is intended to drive the Mondeo away from its traditional 'repmobile' reput*tion. Key rivals, according to Ford, will include the Alfa Romeo 156 and Honda's Accord. However, the biggest surprise is that the new family will be based on an updated version of Volvo's S60 platform. This means the range will benefit from top-level safety as well as the option of four-wheel drive.

The saloon, hatchback and MPV will be built at Ford's Cologne plant in Germany. However, current plans would see the MAV made at Jaguar's Halewood factory on Merseyside. Sources have pointed out the new 2005 Land Rover Freelander will also be produced there, using the same Volvo-derived platform.

The first cars to arrive - the MAV and new Sports Estate - will debut at the Geneva Motor Show in 2006, and are expected to hit the road around six months later. But the Mondeo project actually began in summer 2002, when Ford hired a London-based design consultancy to conduct market research. Since then, top brass have given the green light to an audacious plan to build a more radical range of family cars and make a determined drive upmarket.

At a recent customer clinic in Cologne, potential customers were shown the new Mondeo saloon and Sports Estate, alongside more upmarket rivals such as the Alfa 156.

One source told Auto Express that the Mondeo's recent facelift was the beginning of the move into a more premium class of the market. "We improved the comfort and made the car more refined," he explained. "We wanted to mix premium quality and affordability."

Our source then revealed plans for a Volvo XC90-style variant. "The sector is set to broaden to include an MAV model," he told us. This move is thought to be inspired by the success Ford has enjoyed in the American market with the recently revealed 500 executive saloon and Freestyle off-roader.

The new Mondeo family will feature far more striking and assertive styling, according to a senior design source who recently spoke to Auto Express. He also told us he thought the Focus RS "was one of best design jobs of recent years", and hinted that its wide track and pronounced wheelarches could become a Ford signature. "We want the cars to look much bolder, and offer a clear link between models," he added.

What's more, he pointed out that for the past few years the company had emphasised good driving dynamics as a Ford characteristic, but that now "there was room for another area: design".

According to our company insider, a future Mondeo estate would have a shorter rear overhang, be wider, bigger inside, sit lower, look more sleek and have a clever new tailgate design. "Is it possible to combine the seat flexibility of a Signum with high style?" he asked, suggesting this is an issue that Ford is currently working on. Auto Express has also discovered that the re-invention of the seven-seat Galaxy, the E-MAX, has been entrusted to a radical British designer with a track record of innovation.

"He's a family man who is genuinely excited to be penning his ideal family car," explained a source. We understand that the design work is still ongoing, but that the new Galaxy will retain the one-box shape of the original model. However, it will be sleeker and more sophisticated, just as the Focus C-MAX has become in the sector below.

It's also thought that the new platform will offer higher-than-normal driving positions in the saloon and hatch. As the chassis is Volvo-derived, there's said to be space for the new V6 turbodiesel Ford developed in conjunction with PSA Peugeot Citroen. But whether Volvo will allow Ford to use its five-cylinder petrol and diesel engines remains a mystery. Either way, the next-generation 2.0-litre turbodiesels are expected to be the most popular choice.

Six-speed manual gearboxes and five-ratio autos will be the mainstream transmission options, and some sources say a new CVT transmission will also be offered. Four-wheel drive is likely to be optional on the MPV and Sports Estate and standard on the MAV. There's no news yet on whether the all-roader will seat five or seven - but a seven-seater would clash with the E-MAX.

The new models will be crucial to Ford's European arm, as sales of traditional Mondeo-type cars are falling each year. That's because today's buyer - who needs space for a family - is increasingly considering mini-MPVs, compact off-roaders and even models from premium brands such as BMW, Mercedes and Audi. The result is that the market for cars positioned between the VW Golf at one end and BMW 3-Series at the other is shrinking rapidly - as reflected by the struggling Mondeo class.

And one last decision for Ford: with the new range so radically different, is it time to ditch the name? We hear that some within the firm may be pushing for the Mondeo badge to be dropped...

Saludos!

Un poco macarrilla para mi gusto...

Saludos!

The smart utility vehicle (suv), scheduled for the year 2006, will bear the name smart formore. This fourth smart model range will also mark the company's entrance into the US market. With the introduction of the new model, suited to all road and driving conditions, smart will be represented in the world's largest automotive market for the first time. The four-wheel drive smart formore will also be launched in the company's other core markets at the same time.

From the beginning of 2006 the smart formore will be built in the DaimlerChrysler plant in Juiz de Fora, Brazil. The plant has a capacity of 60,000 cars per annum. In a full sales year, smart plans to sell half of these in the USA and half in their other core markets.

“With the smart formore we will be applying the typical smart characteristics of innovation, functionality and joie de vivre to the SUV sector. The new smart model will be a distinctive vehicle, unique in the market - so unique that we translate `suv' as smart utility vehicle,“ explained Andreas Renschler, President of smart gmbh. “The smart formore will provide a driving experience loaded with adrenaline - off road as well as on-, expressive design and a high utility value. It is the ideal model to launch the smart brand in the US market.”

With the name smart formore, smart is following the naming logic which it began with the four-seater forfour. The basic principle of this logic is to give names which have a direct connection to the uses of the vehicle concerned. Therefore from 2006 the smart formore will be added to the range of new smart model names, the smart fortwo coupé, smart fortwo cabrio and smart forfour. The smart roadster and smart roadster-coupé are to retain their original, well-known names, since these already describe what all smart models have to offer - sheer driving pleasure.

Eso que lleva atras es el escape o un buzón de correos?

Un poco moña el coche, no?

Saludos

Por cierto, alguien sabe por qué se llama Q7?? La "Q" es por Quattro?? y el "7"??

Creo que está claro que la Q es por Quattro. El 7 deduzco que es porque es un modelo superior al A6 e inferior al A8.

Saludos

Buffff!!!! Yo voy a terrassa tos los dias y tambien veo cada uno . . .

Por cierto, ten cuidado cn el coxe de los mossos de incognito. Hay dos modelos: Nissan Primera blanco y Seat Toledo plateado

En la C-58 el Seat Toledo me lo encuentro mucho, en cambio el Nissan solo una vez. Este ultimo lo veo más por la AP-7. En la Ronda Litoral muchas veces hay una Renault Megane Scenic de las antiguas de color azul oscuro con los cristales de detrás tintados, esperando para hacer una foto finish.

¿Sabes que coches camuflados hay por dentro de Terrassa?

Saludos

Hoy ha sido uno de estos dias extraños en que te dan ganas de reflexionar.

Primero al ver a dos subnormales picandose en la Ronda del Litoral de Barcelona. Uno iba con un Porsche GT3 (el primero que he visto en mi vida) acelerando a fondo de forma innecesaria y detrás suyo al tuning de turno con un Golf 4 intentando demostrar quien era más macho y poniendo en peligro la vida de los demás.

Una vez llegado a Terrassa cerca de los ferrocarriles un hombre parecía haber sido atropellado por un coche y estaba en el suelo gritando de dolor ante la mirada de todas las personas que no sabían que hacer.

Al llegar otra vez a Barcelona, me encuentro también al lado de la Ronda Litoral a un Fiat Punto blanco estampado contra un camión aparcado y en una calle solitaria donde es todo recto. No se como han quedado los ocupantes, ya que no he podido ver el interior.

Y ahora mismo leyendo la versión online del Periodico veo que un motorista en Roda de Bará ha fallecido con su Honda Scoopy al impactar contra otro camión que estaba en el arcén averiado.

Todo esto en solo 6 horas....

Saludos...

Edito, pensaba que hablabas de perros...

+1

A mi me pasa igual. Casi siempre que voy a un desguace es al de la Garriga (Tamayo) o por la zona de Viladecans y da bastante pena. Con ese silencio, ese olor a humedad del paso del tiempo, el polvo y el pensar que alguno se habrá quedado ahi me da mucha pena.

Me daría mucha pena dejar mi querido Audi 100 a merced de las maquinas para que sus dias terminen entre polvo, humedad y chatarra...

Él, nunca lo haría...

Saludos

??????????????¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿

Mi no entender

En la segunda foto la palabra a utilizar es horrendo

Saludos

Saludos! <_<

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Otra

Siento no poder poner las especificaciones, pero aqui os dejo estas fotos del prototipo.

jod**, este es dificil...

Parece un Nissan X-Trail, pero es que es demasiado largo para serlo...

Más que de la semana pasada, yo diria del año pasado :o

Yo también opino que es un MG TF

Y la foto en grande:

FOTO GRANDE

Saludos

Eso es un TT AllRoad!!

Yo me quedo sin duda con el amarillo

Saludos!

De delante se salva, pero la trasera horrenda!