BMW M3 Car History

Auto Trader – London’s free motor show – the Canary Wharf Motorexpo.

Source: Auto Trader UK

We like free stuff.

We’re also quite fond of cars too. So a free motor show displaying eye-wateringly hot supercars in one of central London’s most famous locations is, if you’ll excuse the pun, right up our street.

Next week sees the return of the Motorexpo – London’s free motor show held in Canary Wharf.

The show is aimed at a business audience too busy to attend real shows, and offers punters the opportunity to stick a hefty bonus payment down on a model which takes their fancy.

For mere mortals, it is the chance to gawp at some of the world’s hottest and most exclusive machinery.

We’re not exactly sure Canary Wharf is the ideal place for a load of super-expensive supercars to turn up, what with Captain Credit Crunch and his spandex pants tightening the nuts on the economy.

But whatever – we can’t wait to see all this hot metal in the flesh. And for free!

We’ll be dodging distressed bankers on Monday and reporting live from Canary Wharf to bring you all the hot news.

The Fiat Grande Punto is surely the prettiest supermini on the road.

The Fiat Grande Punto is – as its name suggests – bigger than previous Puntos. But that’s not to say it’s lost its youthful charm.

The Fiat Grande Punto is surely the prettiest supermini on the road. Its front is reminiscent of the Aston Martin DB7, which can only be a good thing, while the rear and sides carry on the curvy theme. There are plenty of neat touches around the Grande Punto.

So often interiors fail to live up to the expectations set by the bodywork. Not so with the Grande Punto.

As the Fiat Grande Punto has grown since its predecessor, so has its levels of practicality. There’s lots of room in the front, and all but the tallest of rear passengers can fit in the back fairly easily. At four metres in length, Fiat says the Grande Punto is the biggest in its class, although at 275 litres,

The Fiat Punto feels sure-footed and composed at speed, which has a lot to do with the extra width of the larger car. The steering is precise, although not so razor sharp as other models in the supermini class.

Fiat has been working tirelessly to iron out the niggling little problems which used to beset its vehicles and the Grande Punto seems as well built as anything else from Europe.

With prices starting from around £7,500, the Grande Punto is an exceptionally cheap machine. Even our top-of-the-range test car weighs in at well under £13,000; and that has plenty of bells and whistles. Huge demand (the Punto is one of the 20 most searched for car on autotrader.co.uk) keeps second-hand values healthy.

The Grande Punto oozes style from every angle. It’s great fun to drive, especially in the 1.9 Sporting guise. But best of all is its tremendous value for money.

Read Used Fiat Grande Punto review

The Honda S2000 is all about that incredible engine

For many, the Honda S2000 is all about that incredible engine. It revs – and roars – like a motorbike and is totally unlike any other roadster available today.

The S2000 sports a powerful, 2.2-liter, high revving engine while the high X-bone monocoque frame provides excellent rigidity and load distribution.

Nothing exemplifies Honda racing skill and ingenuity like the S2000 CR “Club Racer.” A firmer suspension, quicker steering ratio and fully functional front and rear spoilers have been specially designed to connect driver, vehicle and road.

The Honda S2000 has a strange blend of head-turning ability, while still having reasonably conservative looks. Its long, low bonnet is the starting point for the car’s sleek looks, and there’s some real design flair with its boiled sweet-coloured rear light cluster held in a smoked glass unit. The S2000 comes equipped with a set of 17-inch alloys and a pair of oversized tailpipes poking out from under the rear bumper. Bold S2000 badging along the front wings emphasises the car’s branding further.

The Honda S2000 scored four out of five stars in the EuroNCAP crash tests, which is competitive for a small roadster which debuted in 1999. It features driver and passenger airbags as standard, although side airbags aren’t available.

 

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Honda S2000

Honda S2000 Car

Honda Accord is known for its look and plenty of features

Honda Accord is a great looking car. The V-shaped grille and 17 inch alloys add an air of class, and the overall design a fine balance of not being too showy or understated. The rear – especially the light clusters – lifts the Accord above the sober styling of its predecessors, and the fancy 17 inch multispoke alloys fitted to our top-of-the-range test car hoist the looks yet higher.

Honda Accord combines high technology and high quality with everyday economy of operation and keen attention to detail. The popular LX and EX sedans are terrific cars with comfort and convenience features that make them great daily drivers. Order the leather interior, and the EX becomes an affordable luxury sedan. The four-cylinder i-VTEC engine is powerful and responsive, delivering strong acceleration performance for passing. The V6 adds another level of sporting appeal.

The leather interior on our EX test car suits the Accord particularly well, and the fittings and dash feel solid, although the plastics used look a little shiny and low-rent. There’s plenty of storage space, and the dashboard instruments are well presented, although the buttons on the central unit could be a little more intuitive to use. The steering wheel adjusts, meaning finding a good driving position is easy.

Honda cars are about as reliable as you can get. The Accord feels well built, and the chances are, apart from servicing and replacing consumables such as brakes and tyres, you’ll never need to see the inside of a garage.

All-new Audi A3 Cabriolet

The sleek-looking Adui A3 Cabriolet is now on sale with prices starting from £20,750.

There will be a choice of a 1.8- and 2-litre petrol engine producing 156bhp and 196bhp respectively and more frugal 1.9 and 2-litre diesel engines.

Standard features on the Adui A3 Cabriolet – which was announced last November – include 16-inch alloys, air-conditioning and a semi-automatic hood which is released from the windscreen rail manually but retracts and raises at the touch of a button.

Audi A3 Cabriolet

“Automotive depression” full-blown; auto sales plunge 41% in February

News Source: Top News

With regard to the dire straits the automobile industry is in, there is no overlooking the statement by equity analyst Efraim Levy, of Standard & Poor’s: “We are in an automotive depression,” full-blown!

The latest blow to the already much-existent snag in the auto industry has come in the form of February reports about auto sales in the US – the dismal figures indicated a 41 percent plunge, with the sales practically all of the country’s six leading automakers dropping at least 10 percent from the previous year figures.

The company-specific plunging sales figures indicated a 53 percent drop for GM; 48 percent for Ford; 44 percent for Chrysler; 40 percent for Toyota; 38 percent for Honda; and 37 percent for Nissan.

Full detail – Top News

The A-Class is a superb space package which could be considered against far larger cars.

Since the first Mercedes A Class was sold in 1998, more than 1.1 million have found homes worldwide. That has a lot to do with its supermini sensibilities and the peerless image the car’s Three Pointed Star badge brings.

This model has a sportier stance than its predecessor – especially with the three-door version. It has a pair of sweeping headlights up front, a bolder grille and flowing lines along the side. The edges of the rear screen flow into the sides of the taillights, which in turn drops to form a low boot sill, which makes loading luggage simple.

The A-Class’ interior is immediately recognisable as a Mercedes. High quality materials and an excellent fit and finish are employed throughout.

Mercedes. cite the A Class‘ clever ‘sandwich floor’ – which means parts of the engine and other drivetrain components sit beneath a second floor – as the secret to its interior space.

Mercedes are often bought for its perceived reliability, and the A Class does a lot to cement that reputation.

Combining Europe’s love of small cars with Mercedes’ iconic badge was a very smart move. But looking beyond the badge, the Mercedes A Class is a superb space package which could be considered against far larger cars.

Read more about Mercedes cars

• Mercedes
• Mercedes Diesel
• Mercedes C Class
• Mercedes CLK
• Mercedes SL
• Mercedes A Class
• Mercedes Cars
• Mercedes Benz Cars
• Mercedes E Class
• Mercedes Benz

The E-Class is an excellent all-rounder.

The Mercedes E Class has traditionally gone head to head with the BMW 5 Series. But while BMW took some huge risks with the look of the Five, Mercedes has followed its traditional route – classy and understated.

For anyone who hasn’t driven a Mercedes before, there’s a huge sense of occasion staring down the bonnet at the three-pointed star sitting proud on the car’s nose. It’s a true automotive icon.

The Mercedes E Class range offers something for everyone – from a wheezy 1.8-litre petrol, through a variety of excellent diesels to the supercar slaying E 63 AMG. The 3-litre diesel fitted to our E 280 CDI was superbly refined and offered very good performance – 0-62mph in 7.9 seconds and a top speed of 149mph. Having said that, the E felt slower than the figures suggest.

Despite its facelift in 2006, many of the E Class‘ components date back to 2002, and are well proven. In fact many of the replacements were to answer reliability problems with early cars, and needed to be extra tough

The E Class is an excellent all-rounder. It remains competitive in terms of the way it drives and the comfort it offers. With its understated styling, the E-Class has – and will continue – to win over thousands of motorists.

Read more about Mercedes Cars

• Mercedes
• Mercedes Diesel
• Mercedes C Class
• Mercedes CLK
• Mercedes SL
• Mercedes A Class
• Mercedes Cars
• Mercedes Benz Cars
• Mercedes E Class
• Mercedes Benz

BMW X5 – Sport Activity Vehicle

BMW X5 – Brilliant to drive; lots of useful technology; now available with seven seats.

BMW says it coined the phrase Sports Activity Vehicle – SAV, combining the presence of an SUV with the handling of a saloon car.

BMW X5 has a contemporary look making it among the most handsome cars in its class. There’s no denying the BMW X5 has massive presence on the road.

The BMW X5′s unique selling point is the way it handles. It corners almost as flatly as the 5 Series saloon with which is shares some DNA, and although the steering is slightly vague (very few SUV have really responsive steering), it can be hustled along winding roads at an impressive rate. Unsurprisingly for a 4×4, there’s no shortage of grip either

The BMW X5 feels like a solid machine, and the quality and fit and finish is commensurate with a premium-badged SUV costing upwards of £40,000.

BMW X5 4x4

bmw x5 4x4

BMW X5

BMW X5 Car Pictures