While the 2010 Toyota Prado has officially been launched in Europe and Australia, the UAE and other GCC countries will have to wait for a month or two for its local debut. Meanwhile, the new 3-door version of the Prado has surfaced in some promotional Toyota footage.
Honda has developed a new “personal mobility technology,” naming it the U3-X. The experimental unicycle is designed to provide free movement in all directions just like human walking, including side-to-side and diagonally. The U3-X makes it possible to adjust speed, move, turn and stop in all directions when the rider leans their upper body to shift their body weight. This was achieved by systems such as the ASIMO robot’s balance control technology as well as an omni-directional wheel system.
The bloated Audi Q7 received a facelift for 2010, and is now available in showrooms across the GCC. Changes are largely cosmetic in nature, and doesn’t help the pug-faced 4×4 look any better than before.
The 2010 Nissan Altima has undergone a facelift for 2010, although the car is not out yet. However, a U.S. publication has leaked the first image of the updated car.
The 2009 Mini John Cooper Works Cabrio, an upgraded version of the Cooper S Convertible, is now available in GCC countries.
Nissan’s American division is recalling certain 2009 and 2010 Altima and Maxima cars due to a mechanical defect. The upper front “strut insulators” in 26,000 cars may have been manufactured out of specification, resulting in a potential for the suspension’s “strut insulator” to crack.
Holden, GM’s Australian division, is responsible for the Lumina and the Caprice that comes to the GCC. Their HSV tuning arm is also responsible for some of the most violently-powerful rear-wheel-drive V8 cars ever built. Indeed, the Middle East got a taste of HSV in the form of the rebadged CSV CR8 sedan. Now the company has updated their extensive range of tuned vehicles for the Aussie market. The new range is dubbed the HSV E Series 2, and comes in four different body styles and various trim levels, include an ‘SV Enhanced’ customisation package.
Jaguar has released the upgraded 2010 XF in the UAE. While the model looks the same, the real news is under the bonnet, as the V8 versions get larger engines, and there is also a new XFR model.
The Aston Martin Rapide, the self-proclaimed “world’s most elegant four-door sports car,” has officially debuted at the 2009 Frankfurt Motor Show. After months of leaks and speculation, the Rapide does not hold any surprises, except maybe in the way the doors open.
This test was done to celebrate the U.S. IIHS safety institute’s 50th anniversary. The IIHS is a non-government organisation that conducts crash tests on new cars. It is generally accepted that today’s cars are softer and crumple more easily, compared to the hard-boned cars of olden days. So they decided to pit a 2009 Chevrolet Malibu against a 1959 Chevrolet Bel Air to see which one comes out on top.