The Chevrolet Cruze is yet another product that is part of General Motors’ competitively-revamped product line. With so much riding on it, we were hoping we had finally found something to topple the Honda Civic. Unfortunately, after our tests, the current Civic remains the “best” compact car of its time. However, the Korean-built Cruze is a much more palatable proposition, considering its base price undercuts that of the Civic by more than 25% in the UAE!
Continuing the barrage of recalls by all manufacturers these past few months, Subaru has joined in, issuing a recall for 1,585 units of the 2010 Subaru Tribeca in the United States.
It is a given that most people do not use child-safety seats while driving with their kids in the GCC. It has mostly to do with the cultural mindset that will be hard to overcome in the short term, although the cost of child seats can also be a deterrent. When I was a kid growing up in Dubai, I rode in the back seat of my budget-minded father’s craptastic 1988 Honda Civic, with a broken rear-door latch that used to fling the door open on occasion at highway speeds. In the front seat, my mother refused to belt up until it became law.
The long-awaited 2010 Honda Civic Type-R has finally reached the shores of the UAE. Available in Dubai and Abu Dhabi showrooms, the Type-R debuts alongside the European Honda Civic 5-door hatchback, both for the first time in the GCC.
Following the Asian recall, General Motors in the Middle East will conduct a recall of Chevrolet Captiva and Cruze as well as GMC Terrain vehicles, all built at the GM Daewoo factory in Korea.
The current Subaru Impreza WRX sedan is lukewarm, to say the least, looking like a econo-appliance rather than the sporting compact that it is. But the 2011 model is going to be facelifted, with a widebody kit similar to the WRX STI.
McLaren Automotive has released more details about its expectations for, the Middle East market, where it will launch the first in its range of high performance sports cars from spring 2011. The announcement follows the world debut of the new McLaren MP4-12C at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, England, where the two most recent Formula 1 world champions, Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton, unveiled the new car.
Jaguar released the 2011 version of the supercharged XKR coupe at the 2010 Geneva Motor Show, although it looks the same as the already-facelifted 2010 version. It looks like the only change is an optional increase in the speed limiter, up to 280 kph from 250 kph before.
Nissan unveiled the all-new 2011 Micra at the 2010 Geneva Motor Show. While the previous generation was a mini Europe-only hatchback almost as quirky as the Mini, the latest variant is intended to be a “world car” and as such, has been dumbed down to look like a 1990s Korean clunker.
The McLaren MP4-12C, the new supercar with the forgettable name and the derivative styling, might still have some hope in the exotic performance arena. In a field dominated by Ferrari, Porsche and even Nissan, the McLaren may at least match them all with respectable performance numbers.