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Volkswagen Tiguan shorlisted for Car of the Year Award

As many of you may already know, the new Tiguan was recently launched in Malaysia, you can find the full article here. Today’s news is once again related to the Tiguan, but this time, this particular VW is one of the three finalists which are in the running to win the “World Car of the Year” award.

The Tiguan is one the German automaker’s most important models currently in its portfolio. Launched in 2007, the name plate has gone on to represent a vehicle that is well regarded around the world. The latest generation Tiguan is available to purchase in 170 different markets and to this day, 3.5 million Tiguans have been sold.

VW has been able to give the Tiguan mild-mannered off-road capabilities while still retaining decent comfort levels and solid German build quality. And whether that’s enough to win the “World Car of the Year” in 2017 remains to be seen, but if you are interested to know more about the VW Tiguan, visit the manufacturer’s local website for further details.

Kahn Design to introduce bespoke Land Rover Defender

Kahn Design is a world-renowned British vehicle designer who takes pride in building some of the most unique vehicles in recent memory. This time around, the design house will be building a one-off version of the Land Rover Defender which will be unveiled at the London Motor Show 2017 in May.

In line with Kahn’s successful track record in vehicle design, the company will pay homage to the off-roader by bringing together subtle influences to recreate a Defender with a modern feel.

Alec Mumford, Chairman of The London Motor Show, said: “It is a pleasure to have Kahn Design at The London Motor Show this year. Creating a truly outstanding tribute to one of the world’s most iconic cars, this immersive display is guaranteed to be a crowd pleaser in Battersea Park. It goes without saying the Kahn Design’s unique and bespoke builds optimise the very best of British ingenuity.”

Mr Kahn, chief designer of Kahn Design said: “For The London Motor Show 2016, I designed a vehicle that celebrates the history and unique personality of the Defender. My designs are known for their attention to detail, so I do not want this Defender to be any different.”

Kahn Design have added their touch to a number of supercars and other vehicles by combining luxury, style and performance. Kahn Design has a showroom in Chelsea, London, where potential buyers can go to order their vehicles.

Aston Martin launch Vanquish S Red Arrows edition

If you fancy owning a bespoke Aston Martin, then you are in luck. The automaker will be building a special edition of the Vanquish S, named The Q by Aston Martin Vanquish S Red Arrows edition.

The purpose, is to pay homage to the men and women of the Royal Air-Force acrobatic team – The Red Arrows. Founded in 1965, the team which comprises of nine pilots, showcase their razor-sharp reactions of their jets at airshows both in the UK and abroad.

Aston Martin adopted the Red Arrows paint scheme for the car and it also has white and blue carbon livery detailing to the white ‘smoke trail’ features on the side streak. An exposed carbon fibre roof panel includes an inlaid ‘charge’ pattern which is said to resemble the canopy of a jet. Union Jack enamel wing badges and titanium exhaust complete the exterior package.

Inside, buyers get Pinewood green inserts and green webbing seatbelts. The signature Red Arrows emblem of nine aircraft in classic ‘diamond’ formation is embroidered on the seat backs, along with unique sill and engine inspection plaques. these plaques will bear the numbers 1 to 10 representing each of the 10 cars that will be produced.

The Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team logo is embroidered on the transmission tunnel, and the rear of the cabin is finished in the 2+0 configuration, allowing for rear-mounted stowage of twin racing helmets, both finished in the Red Arrows livery.

In usual Aston Martin fashion owners will also get a number of accessories which include a racing helmet, racing suit, bespoke embroidered bomber jackets, a special luggage set and a 1:18 die-cast of the the car and the Hawk aircraft.

Only nine of these cars will be available for purchase through Aston Martin Cambridge while the 10th, will be gifted to the RAF Benevolent Fund, the charity that has been established to support former service personnel and their families.

The car was introduced at the handover of the former RAF St Athan facility in South Wales, which is soon to become the automaker’s second manufacturing plant in the UK.

Infiniti posts record first quarter in 2017

Infiniti has announced that it has recieved record sales in the first quarter of 2017 by posting sales of 67,367 vehicles worldwide for the entire quarter, which is said to be an 18% percent increase compared to the same period last year. In March alone, the automaker shifted 28,406 vehicles which a 14% increase from last March.

Roland Krueger, President of Infiniti Motor Company said, “It is gratifying to see that customers around the world continue to appreciate the design, performance and quality they expect from Infiniti. The Infiniti team, and in particular our retail partners, can be very proud of the record first quarter and record month, following our record year in 2016. Our momentum is of course led by new products, with the Q30 and Q60 now on sale in key global markets. The momentum continues next week when we unveil the QX80 Monograph full-size SUV design study in New York, and the QX50 SUV crossover concept in Shanghai the following week.”

In the USA, Infiniti had the best quarter by selling 43,561 vehicles which is a 33% increase. Further up north, in Canada, the automaker sold 2,800 vehicles but in March alone, 1,292 vehicles were sold. It was a similar story in China too, with the Japanese giant selling 10,000 vehicles and posting a 4% increase in sales for the quarter. For markets in Asia and Oceania, Infiniti has also achieved record sales in countries such as Australia and Taiwan.

Whether the automaker can maintain this momentum for the remainder of 2017 remains to be seen, and all we can do is wait and see.

Ford to introduce latest Ranger in China

Ford will be introducing its strongest selection of pick-up trucks for the Chinese market. After extensive market research into the needs and wants of the average Chinese customer, Ford determined that despite the perception of pick-trucks being reserved for utilitarian work, exposure to western movies and the internet, that is slowly changing.

The Blue Oval will introduce the stalwart Ranger along side its bigger and meaner sibling, the F-150 Raptor in China. Currently, pick-up trucks make up only 2 percent of the vehicle market, but its market share grew to a respectable 14 per cent last year, prompting Ford to launch another one of its most cherished vehicles in its fleet. Released under the Built Ford Tough tagline, the new vehicles should help Ford’s bottom line somewhat.

“We’re very excited to bring Built Ford Tough, one of the world’s best loved and most successful brands, to customers in the world’s largest auto market,” said Mark Fields, Ford president and CEO. “We see a significant white-space opportunity with Chinese buyers increasingly looking for more capable, more refined and more stylish pickups.”

The Ranger, is Ford’s best selling midsize pick up truck in Europe, South Africa and New Zealand. It is also the second best selling truck outside North America. The F-150 Raptor, is offered in China as a four-door SuperCrew model and combines military grade body construction with advanced Ford technologies.

“The F-150 Raptor has created a lot of buzz among Chinese customers since it was revealed for the first time last year and we are extremely excited to have it arriving in our showrooms in China, ready to be delivered to customers,” said Peter Fleet, vice president, Marketing, Sales and Service, Ford Asia Pacific.

Ford has sold more than 26 million Raptor trucks since 1977 and it has been America’s top selling truck for 40 consecutive years. The one sold in China features a 3.5-litre Ecoboost engine that is mated to a 10-speed automatic transmission. Brute power and the go anywhere capabilities have made the Raptor a sought after vehicle around the world, and how well it does in China remains to be seen.

Mercedes-Benz posts record sales for 2017

Mercedes-Benz has had an extraordinay start to the year by posting record sales figures for the first quarter of 2017. March was the strongest month for the automaker in terms of sales figures, as it posted a growth of 14.8% with 228,296 vehicles being delivered globally.

Overall, Mercedes-Benz sales increased to 16% in total for this quarter by selling 560,625 vehicles so far. So strong was the demand for its vehicles that the company has even gone so far as to say that during the same period, the company was considered the premium-segment market leader in a number of countries including Germany, UK, France, Italy, Switzerland, Japan, South Korea, Australia, Canada and Mexico.

“The E-Class Saloon and Estate continued along their successful path in March with growth of around 65 percent. The bestselling model series of Mercedes-Benz has now been completed with the new E-Class Cabriolet, which we presented to the public at the Geneva Motor Show, right on time for the start of spring,” stated Britta Seeger, Member of the Board of Management of Daimler AG responsible for Mercedes-Benz Cars Marketing & Sales.

In Europe, the Stuttgart based automaker posted a 10.8% growth for the quarter with 233,329 vehicles sold. For the Asia-Pacific region, a sales growth of 27.4% was seen with 219,418 vehicles sold. In China alone, Mercedes-Benz managed to shift 49,871 vehicles in March which is about a 30% increase in sales. Though it didn’t disclose any specific figures, the company also said that it posed best ever sales figures for the month of March in a number of other countries such as South Korea, Australia and Malaysia.

In North America, things were just as rosy for the automaker with sales reaching 94,142 vehicles amounting to a 7.1% increase. In fact, Mercedes-Benz even achieved record sales in the three countries which make up the region (USA, Canada and Mexico).

It looks like 2017 has been very good to Mercedes-Benz with its E-Class and GLS being among the most popular models. This news should come as no surprise to most people because over the past few years, the German auto giant has been churning out some of the best looking and best performing premium vehicles in the market. But we shall have to wait and see if the interest in the brand manages to gather more momentum for the remaining quarters of it’s fiscal year.

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