The Champion • Wednesday 15 June 2011
MOTORS
Our political parties lack petrolheads
Britain and is being funded entirely by Nissan. It will build on the success of the current Qashqai which is the highest–volume car produced in the UK with export levels of around 80 per cent. The company’s UK plant, in Sunderland, has been producing cars since 1986 when it built the Bluebird, and is also lined up to build the LEAF electric car from 2013. For more motoring news, reviews and opinions by The Champion’s David Simister, log on to www.lifeoncars.blogspot.com
01704 548147 www.norwoodcars.co.uk IC MAT AUTO
Volvo seems an unlikely car choice for former Prime Minister Gordon Brown. Code NA well–built and proudly British. Oh, and not here any more. Perfect. David Cameron, I suspect, is much more Volvo; plenty more street cred and always full of clever ideas, but ultimately a darling of the middle classes. Nick Clegg, meanwhile, is any car you want him to be but with the the unfortunate snag of a knackered steering rack; vaguely promising to go in one direction, but then suddenly snapping at the last minute and going in the other. Don’t worry; for the sake of impartiality I’ve got to take the mickey out of each of the three big parties equally. The best bit about all of this though, was that Project Volvo actually upset
the Swedes so much that they went on the defensive and issued a press release distancing their cars from Gordon Brown, in which they said senior politicians are all out of touch and haven’t got a clue about what modern Volvo stands for. Peter Rask, Regional President of Volvo Car UK, Ireland and Iceland, said: “If only the Labour party had been like today’s Volvos – dynamic, agile and innovative – perhaps the UK economy would have been in a better place than it finds itself today!” We’ll get the Prime Minister’s reaction to that in a minute. Oh wait...
Road test by
David Simister
alloy wheels, a simple soft top roof and a paint scheme stolen from a Seventies spacehopper, this Smart has a sense of fun! It really is a car for anyone who grew up riding a Raleigh Chopper; like the bike, it’s not the most sensible or practical way of
getting from A to B, but you won’t care because it stands out wherever you take it. If you remember the completely bonkers Bond Bug from the early 1970s (and if you don’t, Google it), you’ll know this is the nearest thing you’ll get in 2011. It might not have the
same surefooted handling through the corners as the IQ – there’s a lot of roll thanks to the skinny tyres and the tall stance – but it’s got plenty of poke from its rear–mounted engine, and will easily cruise at motorway speeds on longer journeys. You also get a choice between two 998cc engines – a 71bhp hybrid or an 84bhp turbo unit, depending on whether it’s frills or thrills you’re after. Sure, for the £9,995 the Midnight Orange costs you could buy all sorts of sensible superminis with more seats, roomier boots and bigger engines, but that’s missing the point. In a world of grey, boring boxes, this is a Belisha beacon which stands out and makes you smile.
Aston Martin’s Rapide to be built in Britain THE first Aston Martin to be made outside England is coming home, the company has confirmed. Production of the Rapide, a four–door luxury saloon, will move to
NISSAN has given the nation a reason to get all patriotic after it announced the next Qashqai will not only be built here in Britain, but designed and engineered here too. Carlos Ghosn, chief executive of the Renault–Nissan Alliance, told Prime Minister David Cameron that the next generation of the company’s hatchback crossover, a regular in Britain’s bestsellers lists, will be developed entirely in the UK and safeguard 6,000 jobs. The new Qashqai represents a £192 million investment in
NORWOOD CAR SALES SAVE 100’S OF ££££’S
Latest Smart is retro and fun IT’S small, easy to park, cleverly packaged and is priced to have a premium feel. Yep, I’m a big fan of Toyota’s IQ. The Japanese small car upstart left the Smart smarting two years ago by offering twice the amount of seats in a car just as small, so when I drove the normal Smart ForTwo last year it wasn’t a car I could recommend over its more practical rival. I’ve still got my bets on the next–generation Smart offering buyers the full four seats whenever it arrives, but it still begs the question. Why buy the current model over the IQ? Simple, if it’s this Midnight Orange edition you’re trying. With big
Nissan to boost British industry
the company’s base in Warwickshire next year. When it was launched it was the only Aston not to be built in Britain, with all Rapides being assembled at a site in Austria.
Work on readying Aston Martin’s Gaydon headquarters for its arrival will begin immediately with a view to production commencing in the second half of 2012.
56 Peugeot 1007 1.4 Dolce WAS £4495
NOW £4395
07 Suzuki Ignis 1.3 GL Estate
£4195
03 56 07 02 07 07 07 56 56 56 04 07 05 05 04 05 05 02 04 X 52 04 52 51 02 02 02 51 X R S 02 W R
03 BMW X5 3.0i Diesel 4x4
£9995
IC MAT AUTO
07 Citroen Xsara Picasso 2.0i 16v Exclusive £5495
ATER 7 SE
IC MAT AUTO
56 VAUXHALL ZAFIRA 1.6 LIFE MPV
07 Citroen C4 1.6i 16v SX
£5595
£4795
BMW X5 3.0 T DIESEL AUTO, silver, black leather, sat nav, s/history, full elecs...................................... £9995 VAUXHALL ZAFIRA 1.6 LIFE MPV, 7 seats, low mileage, only 28,150 miles, a/c, CD etc ..................... £5595 CITROEN PICASSO 2.0 AUTO EXCLUSIVE, red, full spec, alloys, panoramic roof, history, cruise.......... £5495 JAGUAR 3.2 V8 XJ SERIES AUTO, green, full cream leather, full elecs, luxury ....................................... £5495 CITROEN C4 1.6i 16v SX AUTOMATIC, 5-Dr Hatch, in silver, r/c/locking, a/c, CD, low mileage ............. £4795 FORD MONDEO 1.8 LX 5-Dr, panther black metallic, FSH, a/c, CD, quality car ......... Was £4695 NOW £4495 RENAULT MEGANE 1.4 AUTHENTIQUE 5-Dr, 28k, grey, A/C, CD, history, low insurance ...................... £4495 FORD FIESTA 1.25 STYLE CLIMATE 3-Dr mauve, 38k, a/c, efw............................................................ £4495 PEUGEOT 1007 1.4 DOLCE, 3-Dr, black, very low mileage, only 13,000 miles, e/s/doors, very economical car................................................................................................... Was £4495 NOW £4395 RENAULT SCENIC 1.6 DYNAMIQUE, 5-Dr, alloys, CD, a/c, low mileage, panoramic roof....................... £4295 HONDA ACCORD 2.0 VTEC SPORT 4-Dr 1/2 leather, full electrics, silver, 61k ........................................ £4295 SUZUKI IGNIS 1.3 GL, 5-Dr, only, 34,000 miles, one owner, FSH .......................................................... £4195 VAUXHALL MERIVA 1.7 CDTi DESIGN DIESEL, 5-Dr, FSH, a/c, cruise, sunroof, alloys......................... £3995 FORD FIESTA GHIA 1.6 5-Dr, silver, 77k, alloys, full electrics, CD, a/c ................................................... £3995 FORD FOCUS 1.5 GHIA 5-Dr AUTOMATIC, met red, alloys, only 51,000, a/c, CD ................................. £3795 PEUGEOT 206 1.4 S ESTATE, ice blue, 49k, FSH, a/c, CD, very versatile, very low mileage at 49,000 ........................................................................................ Was £4995 NOW £3695 NISSAN ALMERA 1.5 S, 5-Dr, silver, low mileage at 40,000, full elecs, a/c, CD, great value .................. £3495 BMW 316 Ti SE COMPACT, silver, 115k, alloys, full elecs, a/c, cruise, stunning condition..................... £3495 VAUXHALL CORSA 1.0 12v LIFE, 3-Dr, blue, ONLY 32,000 MILES, very economical, low tax/insurance.. £3295 VW BEETLE 2.0, silver, 69k, alloys, full elecs, multi CD, very chic looking.............................................. £2995 FORD FOCUS 1.8 GHIA ESTATE, blue metallic, excellent car, low mileage, service history, great value.. £2895 FIAT PANDA 1.1 ACTIVE, 5-Dr, silver, low insurance and tax, 58k, highride, easy to drive ...................... £2695 FORD FIESTA 1.3 FLIGHT, 3-Dr, black, alloys, sunroof, low mileage, last owner 8 years, great value .... £2295 MAZDA SUPREMACY 1.8 GXi, blue, s/history, full elecs, 5 seats.............................. Was £2495 NOW £2295 RENAULT LAGUNA 2.9 DYNAMIQUE, 5-Dr, silver, e/s/roof, alloys, 1/2 leather, 65k .. Was £2495 NOW £2195 RENAULT SCENIC 1.8 PRIVILEGE, silver, twin s/roofs, full elecs, 1/2 leather, highride, 83k .............................................................................................................. Was £2495 NOW £2195 FORD MONDEO 1.8LX, 5-Dr, grey, 109k, service history, CD, a/c, very good drive................................ £1995 FORD FIESTA 1.3 FLIGHT, 3-Dr, grey, 64k, s/roof, alloys, CD, economical ............................................ £1895 FORD FOCUS 1.8 ZETEC, 5-Dr, silver, a/c, alloys.................................................................................... £1795 Part Exchange Bargains MAZDA MX-5 1.6 MONZA, soft top, cream leather, excellent for the year............................................... £1695 MGF 1.8 VVC, blue, cream leather, looks and drives well........................................................................ £1495 ASTRA 1.5 CLUB, 5-Dr Hatch, good car, FSH, T+T 9/11, only .............................................................. £1295 ROVER 75 2.0 VS CLUB, silver, 88k, climate, alloys, service history, cambelt done ............................... £1095 MITSUBISHI GALANT 2.5 AUTOMATIC SALOON, 4-Dr red, alloys, e/windows, e/mirrors, r/locking, a/c, Tax 08/11.............................................................................................................................. £795
Norwood Road, Southport PR8 6EE (opp. Thatch & Thistle, next to Enterprise Car Hire)
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IT’S got to be one of the best car–related tales I’ve ever been told. David Cameron is a sports car and Gordon Brown is a Volvo. Ed Balls and the tabloids told us so. The “If you were a car, what would it be?” question’s been doing the rounds in the motoring magazines for donkey’s years but thanks to the emergence of – and I’m honestly not making this up – Project Volvo from the Labour party’s skeleton closet it’s suddenly a game that’s entered the national consciousness. It’s a fun way of matching up your own automotive prejudices with people you don’t like very much. It’s also a fun way of wasting the next five minutes. Project Volvo, I reckon, shows up not what people thought of Gordon Brown a few years ago but the lack of petrolheads in the last Labour government (with the possible exception of Stephen Ladyman, who owned an Alfa 156 at the time). Gordon Brown a Volvo? Not a chance. Given the task of assigning an automotive brand to our last Prime Minister, I’d opt instead for Humber. Like him, it’s sturdy, reliable,
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