Kia Sportage 2009 Review
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ia's entry in the cute-ute vehicle market, the Sportage was around, in name at least, since 1995. It took a two-year hiatus before coming back for 2005 with an all-new body and mechanicals. It now offers a choice of two of each in terms of engines, transmissions, drivetrains and trims. The crossover also received a significant 'facelift' to the exterior and interior for the 2009 model year onwards.
The base motivator is a 2.0 liter four-cylinder good for 140 horsepower at 6,000 rpm and 136 lb-ft at 4,500 rpm. It is hitched to a five-speed manual, or can be optioned to put power down through a four-speed automatic. The other engine is a 2.7 liter V6 rated at 173 hp at 6,000 rpm and 178 lb-ft at 4,000 rpm. It drives the wheels only via a four-speed automatic. A full-time electronically controlled on-demand four-wheel drive system is optional on every Sportage. EPA fuel economy ratings are as follows: the five-speed, front-drive, four-cylinder returns 20 mpg city / 25 mpg on the highway, with the 4x4 netting 19 / 24 numbers, respectively. Hitch the same combo to an automatic, and the numbers change slightly, to 19 / 25. The auto-only V6 front-driver will get 17 miles to one gallon of regular unleaded in the EPA's city cycle, and 23 on the EPA's open road. Burden it with the 4WD system, and only the highway number drops by two.
Two trim levels of the Sportage are available: LX and EX. Regardless of trim, the wheel and tire package for all Sportages includes 16-inch tires mounted on alloy wheels.
Basic fare on the 4x2 / LX / five-speed / four-cylinder includes an AM/FM/CD Audio System with six speakers, power windows, mirrors and locks, six airbags, 4-wheel disc brakes with ABS, cruise control, traction control, electronic stability control a tire pressure monitoring system and a tilt steering column. Air conditioning, cross bars for the roof rails, floormats, wheel locks, side step bars, a rear spoiler and a cargo tray are the stand-alone options here. Opt for the automatic, and you get air conditioning as well, with the option of adding a remote starter. You can get Kia's 4WD system with the four-cylinder, but only with a manual transmission and air conditioning.
The next step up the price ladder is an LX with the V6, automatic and front-wheel drive, which also includes unique alloys, A/C, metallic accents on the inside and a center console with armrest and storage bin. Added to the stand-alone options is a tow hitch. A Sport package includes fog lights, black mesh grille, dark gray cladding, black rear spoiler, sport gauges, an AM/FM/Cassette/MP3/CD Stereo with six speakers, leather wrapped steering wheel and shifter, and a cargo cover.
The EX, only available with a V6, includes a sunroof, body-color side cladding and fender flare, body-color heated power mirrors, an AM/FM/Cassette/MP3/CD Audio System, keyless entry and alarm, fog lights and leather-wrapped steering wheel. A leather seat and Luxury package are optional, along with the usual stand-alone options.
GM-Segway Unveiled PUMA
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he two tech-giant in automotive and futuristic products unveiled the Personal Urban
Mobility and Accesibility (PUMA). The joint venture companies (GM and Segway Inc)annouced on tuesday (April 07, 2009) that they are working together to develop a two-wheeled, two-seat electric vehicle designed to be a fast, safe, inexpensive and clean alternative to traditional cars and trucks for cities across the world.
Both claimed that this one of the alternatives to the world's urban transportation problems. The soultion could lie in two wheels not four, according to executives for General Motors Corp and Segway Inc.
The PUMA project also would involve a vast communications network that would allow vehicles to interact with each other, regulate the flow of traffic and prevent crashes from happening.
The 136kg prototype runs on a lithium-ion battery and uses Segway's characteristic two-wheel balancing technology, along with dual electric motors. It's designed to reach speeds of up to 56km/h and can run 56km on a single charge.
The companies did not release a projected cost for the vehicle, but said ideally its total operating cost - including purchase price, insurance, maintenance and fuel - would total between one-fourth and one-third of that of the average traditional vehicle.
Ideally, the vehicles would also be part of a communications network that through the use of transponder and GPS technology would allow them to drive themselves. it also said that the vehicles would automatically avoid obstacles such as pedestrians and other cars and therefore never crash. As a result, the PUMA vehicles would not need air bags or other traditional safety devices and include safety belts for "comfort purposes" only.
This is just one of the few of the most revolutionary ideas have been born out of tough economic times, an expert said.
The Tweel: What is it?
he Tweel is a combination of the words tire and wheel because the Tweel doesn’t use a traditional wheel hub assembly from Michelin who first announced it in 2005. A solid inner hub mounts to the axle. That’s surrounded by polyurethane spokes arrayed in a pattern of wedges. A shear band is stretched across the spokes, forming the outer edge of the tire (the part that comes in contact with the road). The tension of the shear band on the spokes and the strength of the spokes themselves replace the air pressure of a traditional tire. The tread is then attached to the shear band. The Tweel looks sort of like a very large, futuristic bicycle wheel.
When the Tweel is put to the road, the spokes absorb road impacts the same way air pressure does in pneumatic tires.The tread and shear bands deform temporarily as the spokes bend, then quickly spring back into shape. Tweels can be made with different spoke tensions, allowing for different handling characteristics.
The Tweel does have several flaws (aside from the name). The worst is vibration. Above 50 mph, the Tweel vibrates considerably. That in itself might not be a problem, but it causes two other things: noise and heat. A fast moving Tweel is unpleasantly loud [Source: CBS News]. Long-distance driving at high speeds generates more heat than Michelin engineers would like.
Another problem involves the tire industry. Making Tweels is quite a different process than making a pneumatic tire. The sheer scale of the changes that would need to be made to numerous factories, not to mention tire balancing and mounting equipment in thousands of auto repair shops, presents a significant (though not insurmountable) obstacle to the broad adoption of airless tires.
Because of these flaws, Michelin is not planning to roll out the Tweel to consumers any time soon. “Radial tire technology will continue as the standard for a long time to come,” said Michelin’s press release touting Tweel development. They are initially working on Tweel use in low-speed applications, such as on construction vehicles.
The Tweel is perfect for such use because the high-speed vibration problems won’t come into play, and the ruggedness of the airless design will be a major advantage on a construction site. Michelin is also exploring military use of the Tweel.World's Cheapest Car Announced
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s a follow-up with the last issue from TekhPoynt.Com (2009 Cheapest Cars), India's Tata Motors is set to launch the world's cheapest car amid predictions the vehicle could transform how millions travel and fears it would bring more traffic jams on Indian roads.
Tycoon Ratan Tata was due to unveil the four-door jelly-bean-shaped car with tear-drop lights on Monday at a "revolutionary high-tech" audio-visual show in India's financial hub Mumbai, a spokesman said.
The car is slated to cost just $US2,000 ($A2,900) for the no-frills version that has a two-cylinder 623 cc, rear-mounted engine with a top speed of 105kp/h.
Ratan Tata, an architect by training and head of the sprawling tea-to-steel Tata Group, dreamed up the Nano car to get poor Indians off unsafe motorcycles.
"There's no safety in two-wheelers especially with the whole family," said New Delhi resident Ganesh Khand, 38, who now has a motorbike but wants a car to be able to transport his wife and two daughters safely.
One analyst said, "This is a value for money car".
The basic model has a four-speed manual transmission, no air conditioning, electric windows or power steering, but deluxe versions will be available. Here's an image (from samaw.com) explaining why Tata Nano makes cheap:
The launch comes at a tough time for India's top vehicle maker, hit by a slowing domestic economy, a credit crunch and a deepening world financial crisis that has hurt sales of British luxury marques Jaguar and Land Rover which it bought last year for $US2.3 billion ($A3.34 billion).
But demand is expected to be hot for the Nano with just 30,000 to 50,000 of cars likely to be sold in the first year because of limited production capacity - a fraction of the original target of 250,000, auto analysts said.
Dealers say they've been flooded with queries about the car whose debut was delayed by several months when violent protests over the acquisition of farmland for the project forced the Tatas to shift the Nano plant from West Bengal state to Gujarat, known as more business-friendly. But the Gujarat plant won't be ready until late 2010, meaning production must come from existing factories, reducing output.
Tata has been likened by India's media to US automobile pioneer Henry Ford for conceiving the car. "I observed families riding on two-wheelers, the father driving the scooter, his young kid standing in front of him, his wife seated behind him holding a little baby," Tata said when showing the prototype in 2008.
So automobile's prizes gone crazy nowadays, hah?
2009 Cheapest Cars
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issan offered its entry-level sedan 2009 Versa for less than $10,000, and it will be the cheapest new car available in the United States. The new Versa is made in Mexico. It will cost about $3,000 less than the current cheapest Versa. 
The no-frills Versa, which will not include air-conditioning or power windows, will cost $9,900 or about $1,000 less than the country's current least expensive car.
The 2008 Hyundai (10,775) and 2008 Kia Rio ($10,890) are currently the two least inexpensive cars in the United States. The Smart ForTwo, available in the U.S. for the first time in 2008, has a base price of $11,590.
"A sticker price under $10,000 is certainly appealing to customers in an economy where people don't have money anymore," Robyn Eckard of Kelley Blue Book said in a recent interview in the Los Angles Times about the new batch of inexpensive cars available in the United States.
Globally, nine cars are currently available for substantially less than $10,000. Tata Motors in India is planning to soon sell the Nano, a $2,500 car, and it will be the world's cheapest new car.
The new Versa will have a 1.6-liter engine, rather than the 1.8 liter offered on the current Versa. It will get an estimated 34 mpg on the highway, compared with 33 mpg currently.
According to Forbes.com, the 10 cheapest current or soon-to-be offered cars in the world:
1. Tata Nano, $2,000
2. Chery QQ, $4,781
3. Suzuki Maruti 800, $4,994
4. Geely MR, $5,500
5. Geely HQ, SRO, $5,780
6. Chery A1, $7,394
7. Tata Indica, $8,894
8. Hyundai 110, $9,096
9. Fiat Palio, $9,242
10. Renault Logan $9,477
