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Source: Streetfire

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It is powered by the same 4.0-litre V8 engine that develops 309kw and 400Nm with a screaming red line at 8400rpm.

In manual guise, the BMW M3 sedan sprints from 0 to 100km/h in just 4.9 seconds, or just 4.7 seconds when optioned with the seven-speed M double-clutch transmission - merely an 0.1 second handicap over the coupe.

Fuel consumption remains at a frugal 12.4 litres per 100km for the manual and just 11.9 litres per 100kms for the M DCT - a true testament to this remarkable engine.

This will mark the first time an M3 sedan has been sold in Australia, with no sedan model for the previous E46 generation model range, and in the E36 generation, only Coupé and Convertible versions of the M3 were sold locally.

The M3 sedan rides on special M 18-inch light alloy wheels shod with 245/40 front and 265/40 ZR 18 tyres, while 19-inch light alloy wheels are optional, fitted with 245/35 front and 265/35 ZR 19 tyres.

Luxury features such as satellite navigation with an 8.8-inch full colour monitor, TV, Voice Recognition, Bluetooth mobile connection, LOGIC7 HIFI system, Adaptive bi-Xenon headlights, leather upholstery, powered and heated M Sport seats with memory functions, and backrest width adjustment and lumbar support are all standard.

The M3 sedan also boasts Brake Energy Regeneration technology which collects energy on overrun or under braking to charge the battery, allowing the absolute maximum engine power be delivered to acceleration rather than being diverted to power electrical systems.

The new BMW M3 sedan will go on sale from November 22nd, priced from $145,000 plus dealer delivery and statutory charges.

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So I saddled up in the GXL, turbo-diesel variant to see if there was any logic to the purchase of such a massive 4WD.

Throw in a bit of mud-flinging out in the bush, a little bit of city driving and a stint of mountain driving and you have yourself a fully fledged road test.

Toyota has thumbed its nose at the public in something of show of corporate arrogance and prices have increased sizeably from the previous generation LandCruiser, while features have decreased.

It’s Toyota’s belief that people who want to buy the LandCruiser will do so, regardless of its price.

That’s why it astounded me somewhat to see very little in the way of features in the GXL model. Despite the face that it’s a base model, it really did lack common features you would find in other $80,000+ 4WDs.

However, I bit my tongue and went on, in the hope of seeing what the LandCruiser was really about.

Climbing into the ‘Cruiser is a bit of fun, with the big step up from terra firma being eased by grab handles. Once onboard, a rather pretentious starter button is used to fire up the behemoth.

Under the bonnet lies 4.5-litres of twin-turbocharged V8 diesel engine. Producing a staggering 650Nm of torque and 195kW of power, you would expect the LandCruiser to chew through fuel. Not quite.

In fact, I was astounded at how little fuel it actually used. Although there was no trip computer in the base model, I calculated the fuel use to be just under 10.0 litres per 100km – amazing.

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The 4.7-litre V8 engine has been recalibrated for race use, featuring a free flowing exhaust system and air filters, with the standard V8 dry sump lubrication system maintained to help prevent oil surge during cornering.

An evolution of the previous 4.3 litre Vantage N24, the more responsive larger capacity engine provides increased torque throughout the rev range.

“We have built on this success to develop the Vantage GT4, a competitive racing car for professional and semi-professional drivers, but also a forgiving car which will appeal to enthusiasts who wish to use it for track days and club racing.”

The Vantage GT4 can be supplied with either a six speed manual, or a Sportshift transmission with paddle controls, although both versions feature a Valeo twin-plate cerametallic racing clutch and lightweight flywheel to complete the powertrain specification.

Inside, the car has been fitted with a high-strength steel rollcage and Recaro competition seats, suede-trimmed steering wheel with quick release mechanism, Sabelt sixpoint safety harness with a push-button release and Lifeline Zero 360 gas extinguisher system.

The suspension has only been slightly retuned for competition; this includes larger diameter front and rear anti-roll bars and adjustable ride height aluminium dampers, as well as single rate, flat ground springs with separate helper springs and a modified front subframe to dial in some extra camber.

Active safety systems are directly carried over to the Vantage GT4, including dynamic stability control, traction control, ABS and electronic brakeforce distribution, providing reassurance and enhanced control in slippery conditions.

Aston Martin Racing is now the only manufacturer to produce cars in each of the GT classes: GT1, GT2, GT3 and GT4.

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A graduated program slowly guides owners through the cornerstones of driving, providing them with a sound knowledge of basic car control, defensive driving and advanced driving techniques.

The centre has been built on a 10.2 hectare plot which formally hosted a special stage of the Rally of Great Britain World Rally between 1998 and 1999.

With a total length of 3.1km, the track has been designed to allow it be split into four separate areas that can be used independently of each other or connected together to form a longer handling circuit.

These four separate areas each host their own unique driving challenges, some inherited from the difficulty of the terrain, and others intentionally introduced to simulate worse-case driving scenarios.

“We have based our Driving Experience Centre at Silverstone for the good practical reasons you would expect; location, access, facilities and international reputation,”

The ‘Kick Plate’ is a 75 metre long, remote-controlled moveable metal plate which is triggered as a car travels overhead, generating the effect of a loss of rear wheel traction.

The ‘Ice Hill’ simulates a sheet of ice across the course by flushing the area with computer controlled water jets, allowing customers to explore general car control as well as understanding the specific handling characteristics of a car.

The ‘Low Friction Handling Circuit’ is a ribbon of specially formulated tarmac and polished limestone, creating an ideal environment where oversteer slides can be provoked, corrected and held - in other words, a whole lot of fun.

Finally, an off-road circuit has been specially built for the Porsche Cayenne and includes steep hillclimbs and descents, deep water and rough terrain.

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While certainly no slouch, the standard Evolution TC-SST on which it is based has received a raft of performance and competition upgrades.

The Club-Spec car boasts an upgraded 248kW engine, TMR race exhaust, lowered progressive-rate springs, competition brake pads and 245R18 R-Spec tyres.

Competition requirements also mean a roll cage, modified front seats with 6-point harnesses and two fire extinguishers have also been added.

The Team Mitsubishi Ralliart team, based in Melbourne, handles the development and preparation of competition cars and enhancement of Mitsubishi road vehicles.

The Lancer Evolution TMR SST Club-Spec is just one of 45 vehicles from Mitsubishi undertaking either competitive or logistical duties at this year’s Classic Adelaide tarmac rally.

Almost the entire Mitsubishi range will be utilised at the event, delivering equipment to stages, checking spectator locations, scanning the rally stages at high and low speeds, leading and following every category and providing transport for the Chief Safety Officer, medical response team, timing team, stewards, scrutineers and other officials.

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Two weeks after he took over the top job at the beginning of October Mr Burela called for an additional 450 redundancies, in addition to the 350 announced in August.

Mr Burela said that Ford Australia was “holding its own” in a challenging situation despite posting an $87.2 million loss in the 2007 financial year.

He admitted the company’s future was inextricably linked to the success or failure of its US parent, which last week posted a $US2.98 billion third-quarter loss.

“I have no plans for further job cuts,” Mr Burela said, adding, “We’ve taken tough decisions, ones that I certainly didn’t take lightly. We’ve worked very, very closely with our unions and our people, the process that we’ve gone through has we’re very, very much linked and tuned into our parent company,” he said.

Answering a question about the short-term support Ford Australia had received from its US parent Mr Burela said: “ While we’re very much linked and tuned into our parent company, our focus here in Australia is to ensure that we’re generating the right level of cash to in fact be able to sustain ourselves and the reality is it’s been challenging and tough, but we’re holding our own.”

He said the company had also been fortunate that when new Ford Motor Company CEO Alan Mullaly took up his position in Detroit he had shown foresight in securing capital and selling off units such as Aston Martin, Land Rover and Jaguar, which had the effect of making Ford stronger than its rivals.

“Allan Mullaly saw the clouds on the horizon and one of the very first things he did was to go to the markets and secured a level of funding that, when one looks back now, you would say was an absolute stroke of genius. The divestiture that took place once again under his leadership was also a stroke of genius.

“I think, although things are challenging and very tough, we’re holding our own.”
Mr Burela said the Australian Government’s $6.2 billion automotive industry package was not a “bailout” but a blueprint for sustainability for Australian carmakers, which encouraging them to invest in the latest technology.

“My view is there is plenty there for us to work with, we’ve just got to work at it. This package, quite frankly, isn’t a bailout of the industry because what the government has done is said ‘we’ll invest in you if you invest in yourself’.

“The onus is now back on us as manufacturers to say how do our plans fit into that and do we need to go out there and do some rethinking about the things we thought before versus the things we need to do for the future?

“What we need to do is now dissect the plan in terms of its detail to look at number one where is the market going and how does the plan support the market growth over time and how do we then ensure that we are investing in technologies and products that actually fit the market and that also plays to the strengths of the plan.”

Mr Burela also said that Ford’s plan to manufacture the next-generation Focus small car in Australia from 2011 would be revisited to ensure it attracted the maximum leverage from the Government.

“To be honest I don’t know where the qualification would be, but what we would need to do is go back and look at the plan and say are there things that we should add to the C-car plan that will then help make the C-car plan even more viable than what we believed it to be at the time we made the decision to build it in Australia. So can we compliment the current plan that we have,” he said.

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The Japanese COTY awards are scored by a panel of 65 jurors (mostly motoring journalists) who are each allowed to nominate twenty-five points. Ten points must be given to the one car they like best with the remaining fifteen points to be allocated among four other cars. In all 39 of the judges allocated points to the iQ.

The top ten list of this year’s contenders is as follows:

1. Toyota iQ (526 points)
2. Citroën C5 (223 points)
3. Nissan GT-R (201 points)
4. Audi A4 Avant (180 points)
5. Jaguar XF (115 points)
6. Daihatsu Tanto (100 points)
7. Fiat 500 (90 points)
8. Honda Freed (62 points)
9. Mazda Atenza (60 points)
10. Suzuki Wagon R (37 points)

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Mr Purchase of the VACC said of the scheme “In August, VACC made its submission to the Senate Economics Committee, on behalf of independent service station owners in Victoria and Tasmania, stating it was ‘opposed to regulation of prices in the retail fuel market that will handcuff retailers and will not introduce greater transparency to the wholesale supply of fuels’.

“Fuelwatch was flawed because it targeted retail fuel prices. The only way to ensure cheaper fuel prices is to allow independent service station operators fair and equitable access to competitive fuel supply at the terminal gate. The wholesale market is all-but wholly in the hands of the big oil companies.

“VACC believes the proposal by the Service Station Association (SSA) to force the oil majors to share port facilities with competing importers will introduce greater competition at the wholes level.

“VACC recommends the ACCC and the new Petrol Commissioner, Mr Joe Dimasi, turn their attention to the operation of the wholesale fuel market, the buy/sell arrangements and the relationship between the oil majors and their supermarket partners.”

Though talks in the Senate did not completely rule out re-introduction of a similar scheme further down the track, for now at least common sense has prevailed.

CarAdvice are keen to hear your thoughts. Do you believe the FuelWatch scheme could have worked?

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Not quite. The Berlina is priced more cheaply, so you’d expect that on a spec-per-dollar basis, the Berlina should at least match, or better the Calais. What do you get, then for your $41,790?

Well, you get six airbags, rear parking sensors, ESC, heaps of room, an excellent Bluetooth system, dual-zone climate control and a four-star safety rating.

So, it’s not too bad in the pricing stakes. The immense room is something that really helps, though. Front, rear, boot, everything is big. That means comfortable travel, too. In comparison with the SS version we also tested earlier, though, the Berlina’s seats are quite flat.

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