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We are officially coming to you today with the top five news stories to come out of the automotive industry this week and here at Shortfall we have come across some great breaking news over the course of the past week. Some of the big talking points for the automotive industry this week have been a certain challenge which has been laid down by the French government for car manufacturers, new sporty variants of upcoming cars and brand new vehicle additions to make their presence felt on the streets. We have today constructed a list of five of the most popular stories to come out of this week that have certainly turned the heads of car enthusiasts all around the world and have brought much more attention to the car industry over the course of just seven days. So lets begin.

 

The five biggest goings on in the automotive industry this week

 

5.The brand new Mini five door model

 

One of the biggest news stories of the week comes in regards to a much highly anticipated vehicle launch. The brand new five door Mini variant has officially arrived on our roads and it looks set to reclaim the spot as far as the smaller car market is concerned. It is no secret that over time the Mini has certainly grown larger and larger, not just in length and height put the overall popularity of the BMW owned brand too. Vehicles such as the Countryman, Clubman and Cooper are some of the best selling Mini models on the market of all time but nothing compares when we go back to the standard Mini. There are some brand new features for the car which have been thrown in during production time with the most obvious addition being the five doors that come instead of three. This version of the car also benefits from a lot more interior space than the previous addition to the range. We see that this version of the Mini has an added 72mm in terms of the height of the car and an added 89mm of length. A more updated 50 litre boot capacity is also as standard with the five door Mini.

 

There are of course some brand new added pieces of equipment to come along with this variant of the Mini which sees additions like a DAB digital radio,Bluetooth connectivity, adaptive dampers,Air conditioning and USB connectivity. The engine of the car though also delivers on some great all round power which helps enhance your overall driving experience. The car is fully fitted with the addition of a 2.0 litre,four cylinder unit which combined with the twin clutch automatic transmission system helps the car to deliver on 191 units of brake horse power. The Mini five door is a front wheel drive model and can reach a top speed limitation of 144 miles per hour and we see that this is helped to reached by the 6.9 seconds in which it takes the car to make the sprint from a standing start to the 62 miles per hour area. The price tag to come along with this brand new version of the car comes in with a purchase price of £19,255.

 

  1. The Volkswagen Polo GTI to become even quicker

 

Our next piece of news today comes to us courtesy of German manufacturer Volkswagen who have announced that next month live from the Paris motor show they will officially debut a more quicker version of their current GTI Polo model. The Polo is one of the biggest vehicle franchises that the automotive industry has ever seen and has been ever since the very first version of the car was officially produced back in 1975. We have seen five generations of the car go on sale over the years and the GTI is definitely the power orientated version of the vehicle. It has been confirmed that this newly updated version of the car will receive a new 1.8 litre TSI engine which will see a deliverance of 189 brake horse power and will also develop 320NM of Torque. This sees an increase of 12 brake horse power and an added 70NM of Torque. Improvements for this version of the car come with more improved C02 emissions and fuel economy. The seven speed DSG twin clutch transmission system that came along with the previous version of the Polo GTI now comes as an optional extra for the car with a standard six speed transmission system coming as standard now. The car has now improved top speed limitations which will now see a slight rise up to 147mph and will therefore be capable of achieving this thanks to the 0 to 62 miles per hour sprint time which occurs now in just 6.7 seconds.

 

There are new standard pieces of equipment that come along with the car aswell as optional extras. As far as your standard equipment features are concerned, we see a brand new steering wheel, sports seating and a brand new infotainment system. Optional extras include the line up of LED headlights and a brand new sports performance bodykit. This Polo GTI model will be revealed to the general public next month at the Paris motor show and order books will open shortly after. The on sale date for the car is expected to be early on into 2015 and expected to start from the £19,000 area.

 

3.Brand new details confirmed for the new Vauxhall Adam S

 

Our next vehicle news story today and one that has certainly put the city car sector on notice is the addition of the brand new Vauxhall Adam S. Earlier on this week the Vauxhall brand officially confirmed some brand new details regarding the specifications to come along with the car and just exactly what it is you can expect to receive when making the purchase on this city car. The vehicle will be officially revealed to the general public and media alike at the Paris motor show and is expected to go on sale here in Britain and across other parts of the world from January of next year. The brand have officially confirmed that regarding the brand new engine range to come along with the car, we can expect to see the addition of a 1.4 litre,turbo charged unit which overall will see the car deliver on 148 units of brake horse power and 220NM of Torque. This means a top speed of 124 miles per hour will be reached from the new Adam model and 8.5 seconds is all that is needed by the Adam S to make it to 62 miles per hour from the get go. Fuel efficiency and weight improvements have also been a key working point for the brand during the production process. Vauxhall have also included some new features to come along with the car which could help the vehicle reach even higher sales rates than the first addition to the line up. Some of these features include the likes of LED daytime running lights,electronic climate control,a new infotainment system and USB connectivity. Prices for the Adam S have not been revealed as of yet but expect a slight increase that comes with the current high spec Adam model which stands at £15,350. We expect to hear more on this from the Paris motor show or shortly after.

 

  1. The Volvo XC90R is revealed

 

One of the biggest news stories of the week to come into affect this week was that Swedish manufacturer Volvo have officially confirmed that when their brand new luxury SUV model the XC90 goes on sale next year, a more sporty version of the car will also go on sale too and is being marketed under the name of the XC90R. Although not confirmed as of yet,it is expected that this version of the car will go on sale at the same time as the XC90 next Spring. Some brand new exterior features will find their way into this version of the car as will a brand new range of the manufacturers Drive E line up of units. Regarding those exterior alterations made to the XC90R, it has been confirmed that the additions of 20 inch alloy wheels,a leather key remote,sports seating and changed floor mats will be some of the more eye catching features. The engine range that will come along with the car have not been confirmed as of yet but is expected that Volvo's Drive E range will come into play here which will see a 394 bhp delivering hybrid powertrain be a part of it. Both a T6 petrol and a D5 diesel unit are also expected to find their place of pride in the XC90R. The petrol engine is set to deliver on 316 brake horse power whereas the diesel unit will see a development of 222 brake horse power. The car is expected to go on sale with the standard XC90 model which sold out in the day one online sales three weeks ago in two days. A price tag for the XC90R is not yet available but expect it to rise slightly compared to that of the XC90 standard model.

 

1.The French government put down a challenge to car manufacturers

 

This week the French government officially put down a challenge to car manufacturers to put a car into production by the year 2020 which returns just 141mpg. At this moment in time we have seen three manufacturers respond to the challenge and these include, Renault,Citroen and Peugeot, the three big main French car firms. Renault have responded with the Eolab concept vehicle, Citroen with a revised C4 Picasso variant and Peugeot with a brand new SUV hybrid concept car. All three vehicles will be seen make an appearance from the Paris motor show and Renault will have two displays of their Eolab concept idea with one being for study purposes. The Eolab is designed to be even more lightweight than the companies current Clio model and has introduced over 100 new ways to help improve upon fuel consumption. From electric only, Renault have claimed that the car can reach 37 miles distance travelled before the engine kicks in and a recharge is needed. It has been confirmed that the engine unit that will come into play with the Eolab is the same unit used in the current Renault Twingo which is a 1.0 litre,three cylinder petrol engine. A power development of which comes in at 74 bhp. The electric motor that will also run along side the engine will see a power deliverance of 67bhp and will deliver on 200NM of Torque.

 

Citroen are another brand to answer the challenge and they plan to take on the Eolab with their brand new C4 Cactus Airflow model. A 1.2 litre, three cylinder Puretech engine is thrown into the mix as is the hybrid technology that comes along with the car. Fuel consumption for this version of the C4 Cactus is cut by thirty percent compared to that of the previous addition to the range. A brand new body style finds its way into the car as do the wheels which help improve upon aerodynamic for the car by at least twenty percent. There is currently no word as of yet on a potential release date if the car sees production or even a price tag to come along with it. It will be interesting to see how the car plays out after its first public reveal in Paris next month though.

 

The final response to this challenge comes from The French brand Peugeot who have officially announced that they are working on a brand new hybrid SUV concept vehicle idea which is being known as the Quartz. What better way to make an impact on the car market if this vehicle is indeed to see production. Both the hybrid and SUV sector are two of the biggest car markets around the world right now. Manufacturers are constantly working on new technology and power trains for their hybrid vehicles which has seen the popularity of the sector sky rocket over the years. Vehicles like the Toyota Rav4 and the Nissan Qashqai and Juke have also helped the SUV range climb higher ranks than ever before. The Quartz will receive a 1.6 litre turbo engine and will also be joined by not one but two electric motors. Both the front and rear axle of the car will be the positions of both motors and between them will deliver on 228 units of brake horse power. Power deliverance from the engine alone has been confirmed to come in at 266 brake horse power. A brand new compact steering wheel will also be included with the car which will carry new controls for the use of new driving modes,indicators and gearshifting. A fully leather interior will also find its way into the car. It is expected that the car will arrive on our roads from 2016 and a price tag around the £18,000 is more than likely going to come along with the vehicle.

 

What more can we expect from these developments ?

 

It certainly has been a big week for the industry and with the Paris motor show arriving a mere month away we expect to hear a lot more on the vehicles listed above by the time the new year rolls in. With such big news stories breaking throughout the course of the week, a lot more car manufacturers are expected to reveal new ideas and designs over the next few weeks in time for Paris. Expect to hear more on some of the vehicles listed above at the motor show itself,before and after.