Swede sensationSwede sensation Volvo to storm premium hatch market with new V40 iSelect.com.au Issue...

Swede sensationVolvo to storm premium hatch market with new V40

iSelect.com.au

Issue 39 ● July 2012

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EditorDavid [email protected]

ProductionLuc Britten

ContributorsRon HammertonHaitham RazaguiMike CostelloTim NicholsonByron MathioudakisTerry MartinJames Stanford

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#38June 2012

Z in the cloudsItalian style meets German efficiency as BMW previews Z4 future

3 Viking of the roadFeisty V40 hatch to add muscle to luxo littlie battle

6 The London lookMini may build Rocketman, but it could take a long long time

9 Seoul sisterUnder next Sorento’s subtle face beats the heart of its Korean twin

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Volvo V40 //

Feisty V40 hatch to add muscle to luxo littlie battle

Viking of the road


By RON HAMMERTON in Verona

VOLVO has chosen to delay the Australian debut of its all-new premium small car, the V40, by about two months so it can launch with the full range in February, priced from below $40,000.

The new V40 range will therefore include a range-topping performance flagship that will go head-to-head with hot hatches like the Audi S3, Volkswagen Golf R and Renault Megane RS250.

Packing 187kW of power and 370Nm of torque from a five-cylinder engine tuned by

Swedish race team Polestar, the V40 T5 will lob in Europe later this year before joining the boat to Australia for the range launch in February.

Other models in the V40 range from launch will be the 1.6-litre D2 diesel entry-level model, 2.0-litre D4 diesel and T4 five-cylinder petrol.

The Belgian-built five-seater will be pitched against the likes of the Audi A3, BMW 1 Series, VW Golf and – from early next year – the all-new front-drive Mercedes-Benz A-Class hatchback in an increasingly crowded and competitive premium compact-car market.

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Life begins at 40: Volvo’s new V40 has all the attributes to challenge its mainly German rivals.

Collectively, the V40 range will provide a new benchmark in small-car safety, boasting a world-first pedestrian airbag that pops up from between the bonnet and windscreen to cushion the head of a pedestrian in a collision.

It will also benefit from an upgraded version

of Volvo’s pioneering City Safe anti-collision technology – which will work at up to 50km/h instead of the previous 30km/h – and pedestrian detection system that automatically brakes to prevent more serious injury to wayward walkers.

A vast array of other safety technologies,

including lane-keeping alert, blind-spot warning system and autonomous braking, have all been engineered for the V40, which deep down shares a platform with the Ford Focus in a hangover from the days when Volvo was a Blue Oval subsidiary.

Collectively, the new safety technologies make the V40 arguably the world’s safest small car, but Volvo Australia managing director Matt Braid told us his company was still to decide which of these safety technologies will be made available in Australia, and whether


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OPEL’S mysterious “completely new convertible” is on the wish list of the fledgling Australian arm of General Motors’ European brand that is set to nail up its shingle in Australia via a 17-dealer retail network in September.

AUDI Australia has launched the five-door A1 Sportback with identical pricing to existing three-door versions, while introducing a brand new entry-level 1.2-litre petrol variant in both bodystyles.

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they would be applied as standard equipment, options or grouped in optional packs.

The V40 gets an all-new electric power steering system – a first for Volvo – and a premium suspension set-up, including a five-link rear end that puts the dynamics of the smallest Volvo at least on par with other European front-drive hatchbacks such as the Audi A3.

The hot T5 will be armed with the same turbocharged five-cylinder engine that graces the current Volvo C30 and S40 flagship models, but with more power courtesy of Volvo’s racing partner Polestar Performance.

An engine management chip developed by Polestar will help take engine performance from 169kW to 187kW – just 1kW short of Volkswagen Group’s 188kW 2.0-litre TFSI engine in the Audi S3 Sportback and Golf R, but with more torque (370Nm versus 330Nm).

Unlike those models, however, the V40 T5 will be offered only in front-wheel drive, but with special driveline technology to get the power to the

ground. It is expected to match or better the Golf R’s 0-100km/h acceleration time of 5.9 seconds.

Ultimately, a new family of Volvo-designed four-cylinder engines is likely to find a home in the V40 – as well as all other Volvo models – once the new powerplants arrive in 2014.

Mr Braid told us that, although the T5 had yet to be revealed in Europe, it would be available when the new model landed in Aussie showrooms in the first quarter of 2013.

This means the V40 will have a selection of four powertrains – two diesel and two petrol – from the start.

All will have fuel-saving idle-stop, but the entry-level D2 diesel (84kW/270Nm) will come only with a manual transmission.

The bigger 2.0-litre D4 diesel (130kW/400Nm) will have a choice of six-speed manual or six-speed automatic, while the two petrol engines – the 2.0-litre four-cylinder 132kW/300Nm T4 and 188kW/370Nm five-cylinder T5 – will come with the six-speed auto only.

Safe and sound: V40 features a number of Volvo’s acclaimed safety innovations said to set a new benchmark for small cars.

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\\ Mini Rocketman

The London lookMini may build Rocketman, but it could take a long long time


By TIM NICHOLSON and DAVID HASSALL

MINI has produced a sporty makeover for its quirky Rocketman concept to celebrate the forthcoming London Olympics, with features designed to emphasise the brand’s British roots.

The three-door Rocketman is described as a 3+1-seater, sporting three full-size seats and an extra seat the company says is suitable for short journeys.

With a very compact exterior length of just over three metres, only slightly bigger than the original Mini of the 1960s, the car is claimed to offer “a very contemporary take on the ‘creative use of space’ principle that has held sway at the British car-maker

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for more than 50 years”.Designed as a city runabout like

the original Mini, the Rocketman Concept is claimed to combine “innovative ideas for personal mobility in major cities with classical, unmistakably British design features inside and out”, with the latest summer Games edition boasting sporty flourishes throughout the car.

The upper sections of the seat bolsters are made from a rubberised material that is styled on high-performance sports textiles and shoes while a rucksack behind the front passenger seat is made from the same material.

Other Olympic-flavoured touches include a stowage compartment in the centre console that resembles a basketball court and features miniature players.

One of the more clever touches is the 3D-effect graphic design used on the dashboard and door cards, with intricate lettering detailing

the name of every host city in the modern Olympic Games era, with London gaining prominent billing.

Britain’s Union Jack flag features heavily in the car’s design, with red and white accents everywhere from the 18-inch alloy wheels and mirror caps to the boot opener and radiator grille.

Another special feature is the distinctive lighting design for the full-surface glass roof, whose illuminated braces recreate the look of the Union Jack.

In darkness, integrated optical fibres provide indirect illumination of the interior and highlight the design from the outside, but even when the roof is not illuminated, the braces – running horizontally, lengthways and diagonally – continue to shine bright white.

The unusually designed tail-lights are shaped like handles and are operated using what Mini calls projector technology.

After originally being revealed

Basket case: The Olympic theme includes these basketballers playing in the centre console.

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13 19 88 at the Geneva motor show last year, the tiny concept did not make it into production. However, with this being its second showing in just over a year, the Rocketman may not be dead in the water just yet.

If the concept eventually makes it to production, it would fit below the Cooper S Hatch in Mini’s lineup as a new entrant in the prestige light-car segment.

Mini has faced challenges from a number of brands in recent years, with sales being stolen by the likes of the Fiat 500 and the new kid on the block, the Audi A1, while new contenders on the horizon in Europe include the Toyota-based Aston Martin Cygnet.

The body of the Rocketman is made from carbonfibre-reinforced plastic.

Other quirky features on the little Mini

include double-hinged doors, a drawer below the tailgate to store cargo and a grille design made up of stylised Mini logos.

The BMW-owned company claims the concept, which runs on big 18-inch alloy wheels, is designed for “driving fun in tight spaces” and reaffirms its “commitment to the brand’s British roots”.

“The classic Mini reached out from its homeland to leave an indelible mark on roads around the world,” said the company. “The new Mini Rocketman Concept wears its British heritage on its sleeve (and) embodies a typically British form of sporting elegance.”

BMW is a major sponsor of the London Olympics and will show the Mini Rocketman near the Olympic and Paralympic Village from late July to early September.

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Under next Sorento’s subtle face beats the heart of its Korean twin

Kia Sorento //

Seoul sister


By HAITHAM RAZAGUI

IT MAY look like a mild facelift of Kia’s popular Sorento seven-seat SUV, but behind the familiar-looking skin are new underpinnings shared with the next-generation Santa Fe from sister company Hyundai that debuted at the New York motor show in April.

Due for Australian release in the fourth quarter of this year, Kia says the updated Sorento will go upmarket with more soft-

touch cabin surfaces, a new eight-inch multi-function display and an LCD instrument cluster.

The optional panoramic sunroof has been enlarged and Kia has ditched its cross-beam in the roof, while the redesigned centre console has a straight gate for automatic variants (rather than the outgoing model’s staggered shift) and the selector gets a leather boot.

External changes also indicate the Sorento’s posher aspirations, comprising

a new headlight design with LED daytime-running lights, a redesigned tailgate panel with re-shaped LED tail-light clusters and new bumpers featuring more body-coloured areas.

Vertical foglights in the front and rear bumpers replace the circular front units and



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horizontal rear units, while the new look is topped off with a larger range of alloy wheel choices, including 19-inch items.

The new Sorento is claimed to have improved ride, handling and refinement characteristics and, as with other models in its line-up, Kia Australia says it will apply local ride and handling tweaks to the Sorento.

Without going into detail, Kia also promises “enhanced powertrains for best-in-class fuel economy with lower emissions” plus “additional convenience and safety measures”.

A new 3.3-litre direct-injection petrol V6 engine that will go into long-wheelbase versions of the US-market third-generation Hyundai Santa Fe is a likely candidate for the Australian Sorento, to replace the 3.5-litre

unit of the outgoing model.The well-regarded 2.2-litre CRDi turbo-

diesel will probably continue service, albeit with some running changes to improve efficiency and refinement.

Weight savings applied to the Santa Fe could also turn up on the Sorento, with the Hyundai using 30 per cent more high-strength steel to increase rigidity by 16 per cent while reducing mass by up to 136kg.

At least some technology from the new Santa Fe will make its way to the Sorento, such as the torque vectoring system that distributes drive to – or brakes – individual wheels according to need as a way of improving cornering stability and reducing oversteer or understeer.

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\\ BMW Zagato Coupe

Z in the cloudsItalian style meets German efficiency as BMW previews Z4 future

By DAVID HASSALL

BMW chose the prestigious Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este on the banks of Lake Como in Italy to reveal a stunning new coupe created in collaboration with the esteemed Zagato design house.

Though clearly based on the company’s Z4 two-seater and meeting global legal requirements – like most Zagato design exercises – the road-registered BMW Zagato Coupe is described as a one-off and might not go into production, even on a limited basis.

However, sources at the event in northern Italy in May have been reported as saying the sleek hand-beaten aluminium body might point towards the next-generation Z4 that will supersede the E89 series that has been around since 2008.

BMW noted that the increasingly high-profile Villa d’Este classic car show began as a get-together of coachbuilders presenting one-off hand-built creations, and that the BMW Zagato Coupe follows that tradition.

The Bavarian car-maker, which is a major


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sponsor of the event and has previously produced exclusive concept cars for it, said the Zagato Coupe was not only road-legal, but had been high-speed tested at a BMW test track.

“Zagato has always provided its customers with ready-to-drive cars which can be sent into action on the road or race track without

further ado – and the BMW Zagato Coupe fits the same template,” said Andrea Zagato, who is the third-generation leader of the company.

“It is relatively easy to build a design study which is not intended for use on the road. Not having to meet any stipulations governing crash safety or pedestrian protection opens up

a host of new avenues in terms of design. “The challenge lies in injecting the emotional

appeal of a concept car into a road-legal machine. And we think we have succeeded in doing just that with the BMW Zagato Coupe.”

However, BMW did not reveal what lurks beneath the long bonnet of the car, leaving us

to ponder whether it is a V8 or a version of the 3.0-litre turbo unit that powers the top-spec Z4, producing 250kW of power and 450Nm of torque.

In terms of styling, the red coupe blends modern lines with a more classic style, including a sharp cut-off tail in the ‘Kamm’

Sleek by design: Zagato’s stylish yet muscular lines provide a tempting taste of a future Z4.



style, as featured on the historic BMW 328 coupe that won the Mille Miglia road race in 1940.

Clearly defined hips form flared wheelarches over the 19-inch five-spoke alloy wheels and lead into an Aston Martin-style built-in spoiler that abruptly terminates the muscular rear end. The tail also features a transparent panel between the tail-lights that matches the tinted

glass of the rear window.The roof sports a “double-bubble” roof,

which features on almost every Zagato design, and which also graces the production Peugeot RCZ sportscar. Zagato claims the two domes built into the structure of the roof provide a reduced frontal area and increase the body’s torsional rigidity.

While the nose sports a familiar-looking

BMW kidney grille, closer inspection reveals a mesh that consists of hundreds of small Zagato ‘z’ letters, and the long bonnet sports a pair of air intakes for the engine along with contours that lead into the double-bubble roof.

Bringing together the 93-year-old Milan-based design house with BMW was an easy collaboration for Zagato chief designer Norihiko Harada and BMW Group Design

senior vice-president Adrian van Hooydonk, who are old friends and admirers of each other’s work.

It is BMW’s first collaboration with an Italian design house since the Giugiaro-designed M1 coupe in 1978 – but not the last, it would seem.

BMW said the Zagato Coupe “heralds a new chapter in the tradition of cooperation between BMW and Italian designers”.

Fit and finish: Coachbuilders at Zagato in Turin formed the stunning coupe body by hand.


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“Working with Zagato was a fantastic experience,” said BMW Automobiles head of design Karim Habib.

“It was extremely enriching for us to create something with people who share our understanding of good design and passion for cars.

“And that is what makes the car so special – the open and constructive dialogue with Zagato, their experience, craftsmanship and incomparable sense for forms. All of these gifts are wrapped up in the BMW Zagato Coupe.”

The project also re-established a connection with the Italian Rivolta family, from whom BMW bought the production rights to the famous Isetta “bubble car” in 1954.

The reconnection six decades later comes through Marella Rivolta, who is the wife of Andrea Zagato and the art director responsible for the BMW Zagato Coupe’s interior trim and colours.

The mainly grey interior – with light and dark shades of leather – is contrasted by red decorative stitching in the instrument panel, doors and seats, with a “z” embroidered into the seats.

Overall, the Zagato Coupe is designed to “exude the promise of a very special driving experience”.

Mr Harada said the extremely long bonnet, greenhouse set well back and double bubble roof and Kamm Tail sum up the dynamic focus of the car as only a coupe could, while the flowing roofline melts away into the compact, muscular rear, where the car’s power is transferred to the road.

“For me, the BMW Zagato Coupe holds a very special magic,” said the chief designer. “It exudes a certain spontaneity which, when combined with the type of unconventional solutions typical of Zagato, lend the car a very individual elegance.”

Comover: Zagato’s usual “double bubble” roof was notable on the coupe’s Lake Como debut.

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Swede sensationSwede sensation Volvo to storm premium hatch market with new V40 iSelect.com.au Issue...

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