SSangyong opens five more dealers to coincide with refreshed range of cars.

Five new SsangYong sales & service dealerships:  Catterick, Derby, Isle of Wight, Penrith and Stoke-on-Trent

With several new models in the pipeline, the importer of Korean SsangYong cars, SsangYong Motor UK, has added a further five locations to its network of franchised dealers, bringing to 14 the number of new dealers appointed in the last 12 months.

         

SsangYong Korando

SsangYong Turismo MPV

                                            

         

SsangYong Rexton W

Coming soon - project X100

The new appointments are:

• Archway Motors, Findern, Derby
• Ash Bank Garage, Werrington, Stoke-on-Trent
• Catterick Caravans, Richmond, North Yorkshire
• Staddlestones, Ryde, Isle of Wight
• Ullswater Road Garage, Penrith, Cumbria

“We warmly welcome these five new partners to the SsangYong franchise," said Paul Williams, CEO of SsangYong Motor UK.

“The SsangYong value proposition is now widely recognised by the motor industry.  The Korando is the lowest priced 2-litre crossover, and the recently launched Turismo, the most competitively priced MPV available.

“The new Rexton W 4x4 arrives in December, which at £21,995 undercuts its nearest rival by several thousand pounds.  This is followed by the launch of the refreshed 2014 specification Korando and Korando Sports pick-up at the turn of the year, and soon afterwards the international launch of our first B-segment model at the Geneva Motor Show next spring.

“We are gearing-up for a very busy year and looking for the right quality of dealers to represent us in a number of locations,” added Mr Williams.

Open points across England, Scotland and Wales include: Aberdeen, Borders, Cambridge, Chester, Greater Manchester, Leicester, Liverpool, London & South East, Luton, Mid & North Wales, Milton Keynes, Newcastle, Reading, Sheffield, Teesside and Watford.

Ford retains best selling nameplate for the Focus for the first half of 2013

• Ford Focus is the best-selling vehicle nameplate globally according to Polk registration data for the first half of 2013
• Globally Focus is up 20 per cent in the first half of this year compared with the same period last year
• In the UK almost nine per cent more customers chose a new Ford Focus this year when comparing the same six months 

 Ford Focus, the best-selling vehicle nameplate in the world in 2012, retains the title for the first half of 2013.

In addition, Ford Fiesta ranks as the fourth best-selling vehicle – making Ford the only brand to have two nameplates among the global top five best-sellers, according to Polk global vehicle registration data.

Ford Focus grew 20 per cent in the first half of 2013 from the same period last year, to 589,709 vehicle registrations, driven primarily by increasing demand from customers in China and other Asian countries.

In the UK 47,675 new Ford Focus cars were delivered in the first six months of this year, up 8.7 per cent on the 43,853 cars sold in the first half of 2012.  Ford Focus is the second best-selling car in Britain behind Ford Fiesta.

“Fiesta and Focus just keep getting better,” said Jim Farley, Ford executive vice president, global marketing, sales and service.  “This is Ford’s ‘One Ford’ global strategy at its best:  great-looking vehicles with leading fuel economy, leading quality, technology and fun-to-drive personalities.”

Both Ford’s Focus and Fiesta are among the top five global best-sellers.  Combined worldwide registrations of Focus and Fiesta –946,143 cars for the first six months of the year, represent an 8 per cent increase.

Alfa Romeo and MTV gives away 6 special edition Giulietta cars

• Alfa Romeo and MTV present special edition Alfa Giulietta FF6 to Fast & Furious 6 competition winner Lisa Clyma from Hampshire
• Lisa correctly identified the movie scene which featured the Alfa Giulietta
• The prize car is one of only six Alfa Giulietta FF6 models produced
• The Alfa Giulietta FF6 is finished in Competizione Red and features a 1.4 TB 170hp MultiAir engine, sports suspension and 18 inch alloy wheels

Alfa Romeo and MTV are celebrating the release of Fast & Furious 6 on DVD and Blu-ray by giving away one of six special-edition Alfa Giulietta models.

The competition asked movie fans to name the scene which features the Alfa Giulietta in a high-octane race in the film. Lisa Clyma, from Hampshire, answered the question correctly by identifying that the Alfa Giulietta is seen racing on a runway and is now the proud owner of the exclusive special edition. Paul Doick, Sales Manager at TH White Alfa Romeo, presented Lisa with the keys to her brand new Alfa Giulietta FF6 on Tuesday 29th October.

The Alfa Giulietta FF6 is powered by Alfa’s award-winning 1.4 TB 170hp MultiAir engine and boasts an array of exclusive features and equipment. Each of the six models bears a Fast and Furious 6 plaque, as well as a dashboard panel signed by the movie’s star-studded cast, including Vin Diesel & Paul Walker.

Each FF6 model is finished in Alfa Romeo’s exclusive Competizione Red with dark titanium 18-inch alloy wheels and red Brembo brake calipers. Side skirts, a rear spoiler and sports suspension complete the Fast and Furious look and feel. Inside there is full leather upholstery and sports seats as well as aluminium sports pedals and signature Alfa D.N.A. driving mode selector, allowing drivers to turn up the heat for a more dynamic driving experience.

The Alfa Giulietta was the only unmodified car to feature in the latest Fast & Furious film and the commemorative FF6 Special Edition is now on sale priced at just £25,675.

Alternatively, the Alfa Giulietta is also available from just £199 per month with 0% APR representative* on PCP, while the Alfa MiTo supermini is available with 0% APR representative & a 45% deposit^ across the range.

Suzuki to wow crowds with a number of new concepts in Tokyo.

Suzuki Motor Corporation will display several concept exhibits at the 43rd Tokyo Motor Show 2013 (organised by the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association) which will open to the public at Tokyo’s Big Sightbetween November 23 and December 1, 2013.

The theme of the Suzuki booth at this year’s show is: “Let’s Create a Brand New Story”. Suzuki recognises that the daily life of each and every customer is a story, and by adding something to each of those stories, the desire to create different, brand new ideas together with our customers, is put into the theme.

Based on the Suzuki slogan of “Small Cars for a Big Future”, the concept cars exhibited at the show offer cars that are currently in demand, cars that should be available in the near future, and cars for the more distant future. In order to build a Brand New Story that will add excitement and passion to the daily lives of customers around the world, the cars are packed with Suzuki’s attractive products and unique leading-edge technology.

In addition, the design of the Suzuki booth features an S-shaped border that depicts lightness and softness to an open construction that expresses a bright future. A wide panoramic screen measuring 3.6m x 40m is set at the back of the stage. Introduction videos of the concept cars will be streamed across the main stage to show the Brand New Story of Suzuki and its customers in a beautiful image, all of which were produced by movie director Shunji Iwai.

Main Exhibits

Crosshiker: a compact crossover that fuses fresh new styling with a dynamic weight reduction and highly-efficient power train

• The Crosshiker is a compact crossover, which is an alternative offer of the G70, the concept car packed with lightweight and fuel-efficient technologies that was exhibited at the 2011 Tokyo Motor Show. It uses the next-generation lightweight platform adopted for the G70.
• It features a size of a compact car while weighing just 810kg, the weight of a minicar. With a newly developed 1-litre 3-cylinder engine, it strikes a good balance between power and environmental performance.
• The Crosshiker inherited the G70 concept “Eco-friendly on the inside while having a design with personality that would evoke passion in users”, while adopting more exciting styling and a design befitting a crossover tailored to adults keeping a playful mind.

X-LANDER: a real 4WD hybrid with a distinctive personality

• Suzuki wants drivers to use this car in the city as well as sometimes go out to play in the field. This concept model is packed with such intentions.
• Based on the Jimny, Suzuki’s world-class compact 4WD vehicle, the X-LANDER is equipped with a 1.3L engine and a newly developed automatically controlled manual transmission.
• It incorporates a compact lightweight hybrid system equipped with a highly-efficient motor built onto a 4WD system, achieving both up-to-date environmental performance and excellent running performance.
• The vehicle design is loaded with full of playful touches so that the vehicle looks like a fusion of off-road power and mechanical precision.

HUSTLER: the challenge to a new genre, a crossover that suits an active lifestyle

• This is a crossover type concept model of a new-genre minicar that suits the active lifestyle of people who love the nature, love the outdoors, and love sports.
• This is a stylish yet practical design with plenty of SUV touches, combining an exterior that looks like it belongs in the outdoors with a roomy, comfortable, and useful interior.

HUSTLER Coupe: the challenge to a new genre of minicar, a crossover coupe with a beautiful silhouette

• This is a concept model that adds further design variation of a coupe silhouette to the reference exhibit HUSTLER.

iV-4: a compact SUV with a powerful design that carries on the Suzuki SUV image

• The iV-4 is a compact SUV concept model newly offered by Suzuki, who has earned much praise for its Jimny, Grand Vitara, and other compact SUVs.
• Its concept “Grab Your Field” has the meaning to let users pursue their own pastimes and lifestyles.
• This model is equipped with Suzuki’s next-generation 4WD system ALLGRIP and will be launched in Europe in 2015.