A round-up of motors news in brief
Mitsubishi confirms i-MiEV price
Mitsubishi has confirmed that its new electric small car, the i-MiEV, will cost €28,995, including a €5,000 Government grant. Orders are being taken now, with deliveries from January 1st. The company claims a range of 130km on a full charge, which takes seven hours on a domestic network, although a quick-charge point can top it up to 80 per cent of full power in 30 minutes. Mitsubishi also claims a top speed 130km/h. As with the Nissan Leaf, owners will have to buy the batteries as part of the overall price rather than lease them. And, as with the Leaf, that’s likely to concern a few potential buyers, who will fear that advances in battery technology over the next five years may mean their cars lose more of their second-hand value, because of their limited range, than models expected to be launched in the next few years.
Mazda heads off in new design direction with concept car
Mazda has unveiled its Shinari concept car (above), which will make its public debut at the Paris Motor Show at the end of next month.
The car marks the birth of a new design direction for the brand. The design study is a four-door coupé, with a very prominent forward-leaning front grille, that is likely to form the basis of a replacement for the Mazda6 model, albeit a significantly toned-down version.
One feature inside will be an emphasis on greater connectivity for portable technology devices.
The design theme is a stark move away from the more friendly Mazda face of the early part of the last decade, as the brand seeks to be seen as a good-value premium brand.
New Lexus
Lexus has introduced its new IS200d diesel model here, replacing the IS220d. The Audi A4 rival from the premium Japanese brand now starts at €34,680 for the IS200d, powered by a new 150bhp 2.2-litre engine with emissions of 134g/km that falls into tax band B, with annual motor tax of just €156. Lexus has also added a new F-Sport grade to the IS line-up, based on the IS-F variant. For the IS200d the F-Sport version starts at €38,620.
Correction
In last week’s Motors a story on car warranties incorrectly quoted BMW’s aftersales director, Paul Murray, as stating that customers who went outside the dealer network to have cheaper services and repairs carried out on their cars would not enjoy goodwill when they returned to franchise dealers to have major repairs carried out.
This quote was actually from another, non-BMW dealer and did not relate to the German brand.