Honda Insight becomes first best-selling hybrid (JP)

Honda's all-new affordable Insight sedan was the number one selling vehicle for the month of April in Japan.

According to sales figures from the Japan Automobile Dealers Association, Honda sold 10,481 units of the Insight last month alone. The new Insight was released in February 2009 in Japan. It was the first time ever that a hybrid car held the lead in Japanese monthly sales.

Honda is also doing well overall in Japan, with the Jazz/Fit being the best-selling vehicle for 2008 and still going strong this year, topping sales for March and coming in second to the Insight for April.

In the UK, the Insight sold 229 units in April, out-selling the current Prius.

Press Release:

Honda Motor Co., Ltd. today announced that Insight ranked as the industry's best-selling car among new vehicle registrations* in Japan for the month of April 2009, with sales of 10,481 units (source: Japan Automobile Dealers Association). It is the first time in history for a hybrid model to be the industry's best selling vehicle in Japan for any monthly sales period.

Jazz/Fit was the industry's best-selling car among new vehicle registrations in Japan for calendar year 2008 and the fiscal year ended 31st March 2009. Jazz/Fit was also the industry's best-selling car for the month of March 2009, for the fourth consecutive month since December 2008, until it was displaced by Insight to become the industry's second best-selling car in April 2009, with sales of 9,443 units. It is the first time Honda has occupied the industry's top two best-selling car positions.

Since its introduction on 6th February 2009, the all-new Insight has been very well received by a wide range of customers due to its excellent environmental performance, easy-to-use packaging, light and comfortable driving and affordable pricing.
* excluding mini-vehicles - under 660cc

Hyundai set to bring 100 Equus sedans to United States (U.S)

Hyundai is planning to ship 100 units of its Mercedes S-Class rival to U.S dealerships this Summer, which would explain a recent sighting of an Equus sedan with California distributor licenses plates that was spotted just outside L.A. According to a report, the idea behind Hyundai's decision is to gauge what American consumers think about the company's flagship model that was recently launched in Korea.

Hyundai believes that if it the Equus were to be successful in the U.S, it would hugely benefit the image of the company. "It would decisively shift public opinion in our favour. It would be the capstone," told the newspaper Oles Gadacz, a Hyundai spokesperson at the company's Research & Development complex outside Seoul. Prices are likely to start from $50,000 rising to $75,000.

1939 Fiat Torpedo up for auction (UK)

A 1939 Fiat 2800 Torpedo that has ferried the satanic Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini and General Franco is going under the hammer. It was the official car for King Vittorio Emanuele III and Queen Margherita of Italy, having previously been delivered to the Royal Italian Court in 1939 for use by the Prince of Piemonte and Countess Calvi di Bergolo.

From 1941 to 1943 the car was used by the Princess of Pistoia, going on to become the official car for the first prime ministers of Italy, Einaudi and De Nicola. It stayed at the Quirinale palace until 1963 and has more recently been showcased at the Villa d’Este Concorso d’Eleganza.

Chris Routledge, managing director of Coys, where the car is being auctioned, said: “The example that we are offering at our sale ‘The Legende et Passion’ is the most famous of them all. It is known that the car was used by Pope Pious XII, Benito Mussolini as well as his mistress Claretta Petacci and by Aldolf Hitler and General Franco when they visited Rome.”

Launched in 1938, the Torpedo featured a 6 cylinder engine, independent front suspension and varying coachwork styles. One of the most luxurious vehicles of pre-war Europe, the model was also produced for Italian military general staff. The car is expected to fetch between €240,000 - €270,000 or £215,000 - £240,000 at current exchange rates.

Car sales fall 24% (UK)

New car registrations were down again for April with the number of registrations falling to 133,475 - down 24% over this time last year. So far in 2009, the first four months have seen a 28.5% decline or an 245,184 vehicles not finding buyers. Sales of small cars rose in April, however, as the UK's recession continues to bite. The Ford Focus was April's top dog with over 8,974 units sold with the smaller Fiesta selling 8,395 units. The larger Mondeo has April figures of 2,356. Vauxhall's Corsa supermini sold 7,808 units with the Astra selling 4,549 units. Vauxahll also sold 2,140 units of the aging Zafira MPV and the Insignia with 3,262 units. Volkswagen sold 4,814 units of the all-new Mark VI Golf. Peugeot flogged 3,196 207's and Audi sold 2,439 A3's.

The April figure marks the 11th consecutive slump in sales in a row, but the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) are hopeful, pointing towards the much publicised Government scrappage scheme that gives buyers £2,000 if they trade-in their existing car and buy a new vehicle. The new scheme will be introduced on 18th May.

Related links:

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New car sales rise in EU but drop in U.S

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September sales figures down by 21% (UK)

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Scrappage scheme restricted? (UK)

The small print of the Government’s scrappage scheme for new car sales could limit the £2,000 incentive to cars with a delivery time of less than 3months, a rule that could stop dozens of models from benefiting. Officials at the dealer body, the RMIF, will raise these concerns at a meeting with the government tomorrow, when the working details of the scheme will be hammered out.

“We think the key is flexibility because it will be an issue for some cars,” said an RMIF spokesman. “We are trying to make sure the scheme works.”

Market leader, Ford said some models, like the new Focus RS, would be affected if a three-month delivery limit was specified. One practical problem is that factories have pruned production so hard that a surge in demand has put special-order cars onto three-month or more delivery times.

Despite these uncertainties, dealers have reported a huge increase in enquiries for new cars. Hyundai is quoting a 400% rise, while traffic on Ford’s website in the four days after last month’s Budget equalled a normal month.

Click here to see how the new scheme works and who's part of it.

10 top selling cars in April (U.S)

Unsurprisingly, U.S car sales continued to plummet in April with a 37.4% decrease over the same month a year ago. With the talk of downsizing, large pickup trucks like the Ford F-Series, Chevy Silverado and Dodge Ram continue to dominate the top spots in the list with the best selling vehicles in the country.

The F-Series and the Silverado took second and third place respectively, over-taken only by the Honda Accord. The Japanese car firm Civic took fourth place followed by Toyota's Camry and Corolla models. Ford's recently updated Fusion finished in the seventh place, above the Dodge Ram truck and Chevy's Impala and Malibu.

Best Selling Cars and Trucks in April 2009:

Honda Accord: 29,212

Ford F-Series: 28,757

Chevrolet Silverado: 26,437

Honda Civic: 26,252

Toyota Camry: 25,324

Toyota Corolla: 18,534

Ford Fusion: 18,321

Dodge Ram: 17,903

Chevrolet Impala: 17,532

Chevrolet Malibu: 14,665

Car sales up again by 19.4% (DE)

Most international car markets are seeing minus double digits (U.S. sales were down 37.4% in April), in Germany, the market continues to respond widely to the government's incentive scheme to scrap old cars and buy new ones that was introduced in February. Following a 40% jump in car sales in March to around 401,000 units, new car registrations rose by 19.4% in April, to about 380,000 units.

According to the data provided from the VDIK car importers association, new car sales in Germany during the first 4 months of the year are at their best level since the record year of 1999.

The incentive scheme pays owners €2,500 to scrap vehicles at least 9 years old if they go and buy a new car from any carmaker in exchange. After seeing the success of the measure, the German government decided to extend the scheme until the end of year.

What's more, the scheme has also significant environmental benefits as older vehicles with higher CO2 emissions are being replaced by newer, cleaner and of course, more fuel efficient models. According to VDIK President Volker Lange, CO2 emissions from the cars registered in Germany during the first quarter of the year were down by around 6.5% over a year ago.

The UK has will introduce a similar scheme within a few weeks, where cars, vans or taxi's 10 years old + can be scrapped for any new vehicle (car, taxi & commercial vehicle) - there are no CO2 emissions limit like other EU countries, however, the scheme will only last until March 2010 or whenever the grant runs out. Only 300,000 people can benefit from the UK scrappage scheme since £300m is available. Response has so far been positive.

Related links:

New car sales rise in EU but drop in U.S

Car sales fall by 21%

November car sales fall 36.8% (UK)

Car sales in October fall 23% (UK)

September sales figures down by 21% (UK)

Top 10 best and worst selling cars of 2008 (UK)

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French car sales plummet

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Tata Nano orders surpass 200,000 (IN)

The Tata Nano, a car built for the masses has received over 203,000 orders, more than double the number of cars that will be made in the initial production run.

Potential Nano buyers were required to pre-order cars ahead of a deadline of 25th April with recipients of the car then being decided by a lottery.

According to official figures from Tata, 70% of the orders were placed on finance and 30% were fully paid. Of the fully paid bookings, around 4,000 were made through the company's website.

There are 3 trim levels available for the Tata Nano. Of the bookings, 20% were for the Nano Standard, 20% for the Nano CX and 50% for the range-topping Nano LX. The potential buyers will now be told within 60 days whether they have been successful in the lottery.

Deliveries will start this July and are expected to be completed in the last quarter of 2010. However, Tata has pledged it will make all efforts "to ramp up production and deliver earlier."

The value of the bookings made for the Tata Nano is $101 million (£67 million). Buyers who do not succeed in the lottery but still want a car will be paid interest on their deposit, while those who drop out of the scheme will have their money refunded.

2007 Ford Fusion vs American Buffalos (U.S)

In order to create some buzz, Ford USA posted this story on their media site. Ford released this image along with the story the owner of the '07 Fusion sedan, 51 year old Maureen Edgerton from Montana, who had an unfortunate encounter with a heard of buffalo near Yellowstone Park as she was driving home on 11th April 2009.

According to Ford, the 55mph impact killed several of the migrating "American buffalo" on a snowbound motorway, but Edgerton managed to leave the scene with only minor scrapes and bruises.

"While Ford Motor Company does not have specific requirements to protect customers in collisions with bison or other animals, all of the company's vehicles are designed and tested to meet rigorous crash safety requirements," said Ford in a statement released to the press.
"These requirements help protect occupants in all sorts of collisions, even with bison, which can grow to more than 6 feet tall, 11 feet long and weight more than 2,200 pounds."

Edgerton said: "The crash was like a war scene. By the time it was over, the hood was smashed in, the mirrors were ripped from the doors and the windshield was shattered, but the interior of the car wasn't affected whatsoever. And the car was still running and not leaking fluid and the tyres weren't deflated. Everyone who came to the scene asked 'what kind of car is this?' because they couldn't believe it was possible to walk away from such a crash."

London air kills 3,000 people annually (UK)

Satellite low emission zones are needed in London to reduce an estimated 3,000 pollution-related deaths in the capital each year, a London Assembly report has warned. The study has called for a number of urgent measures to improve air quality and says emissions - mainly from diesel engines - are contributing to a wide range of health problems.

Government figures estimate pollution-related health costs for the UK have reached £20 billion a year. The Assembly Environment Committee now wants London mayor Boris Johnson to look into using biofuel for all public transport and reduce bus emissions by 90%.

It also wants targeted low emission zones and electronic information panels in public areas that will relay real time pollution levels. The report also said the mayor should also look at more ways to get people out of their cars and onto bicycles in and around the capital.

Darren Johnson, Chair of the Environment Committee said: “London’s air pollution is a serious problem now and for future generations. Reducing air pollution is not just about improving the environment in some abstract way. Our report shows that it’s about saving lives.”