Bentley Continental Flying Spur "Linley" Special Edition For China

China is quickly becoming the ideal place to launch bespoke (…and higher-priced) special edition versions for luxury carmakers. The latest example is Bentley, which will sell just 10 Continental Flying Spurs created in cooperation with British design company Linley.
The Linley limited edition will only be available in what is now Bentley’s biggest market in the world. According to the British carmaker, it “incorporates signature Linley elements that will appeal to customers who value pedigree, lineage, handcrafted quality and peerless design”.
As usual with such editions, the changes compared to the standard Continental Flying Spur are purely cosmetic. The 10 Chinese customers who will opt for a Linley edition of the Flying Spur will get Santos rosewood instead of the “regular” Bentley chestnut or walnut trim covering surfaces like the fascia, console, waist rail and roof console.
The Linley Helix motif is also engraved in the tread plates and throughout the interior in places like the rhodium-plated plaque in the glove box. Unlike the decadent smoke-bashing Westerners, in this China-only edition the best part is reserved for smokers: the rear console is fitted with a Linley-designed box containing a humidor, a cigar cutter and an ashtray.
Finally, since the owner will not be the one driving, he/she and his/her company can enjoy a cool drink thanks to the built-in fridge behind the armrest and rear console with a designated area for bottle storage.

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All-Electric Taiwan Studio X-Gene Avant GT

It’s called the Avant GT and it looks like someone tried to make a Porsche Panamera out of a Honda Crosstour. The pure-electric model was first shown in Shanghai earlier this year and it’s the product of five companies – none of which have any real experience building cars – including Taiwanese design firm Studio X-Gene, financial partner Altair ProductDesign and technological partners Delta Electronics, Wistron and Qisda.

The Avant GT is being marketed as, “a pure electric sports grand tourer” – which I suppose makes it Taiwan’s Tesla or Fisker wannabe. Let’s see what the company bigwigs have to say about it, starting with Studio X-Gene executive director Albert Yang:

"The Avant GT is a unique project for Studio X-Gene and represents the quality of automotive design expertise available in Taiwan today. Partnering with Altair ProductDesign proved invaluable. Combining our design knowledge with Altair's engineering and optimization expertise has allowed us to deliver this exciting, high-performance new vehicle to the Shanghai Auto Show and really make an impact on the automotive community."

When will it be on sale? We don’t know. How much will it cost? We don’t know that either, though we guess we'll find out soon enough.

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Ford will Build Electric Cars and Selling Lincolns in China

Ford Motor Company’s CEO, Allan Mulally, recently told Bloomberg Television that his company might build electric cars with its partner in China while the automaker is also looking to introduce the Lincoln brand into the market.

“As we move towards electrification, you’re going to see more hybrids, plug-in hybrids and all-electric cars”, said Mulally while on a trip to Chongqing, China, for the founding of a new transmission plant in partnership with Changan Automobile Group.

The CEO did not specify when or which EVs Ford is considering to make in China in cooperation with its local partner, only that it depends on infrastructure and progress in battery pack technology. The Chinese government’s intention is to have at least one million electric cars on the streets by 2015 in order to reduce emissions.

Mulally added that Ford, which aims to double its presence in all segments in the local market, is considering bringing the Lincoln brand to China: “We have a great luxury brand in Lincoln. There’s going to be tremendous pull from China to have access to these great vehicles.”

Introducing Lincoln to the Chinese market might prove a profitable movement, since JD Power estimates that luxury car sales will increase by 15% in 2011 alone.

Ford came a little late to the China booming car market party, but intends to make up for it by investing $1.6 billion USD in the construction of four new plants in order to achieve its goals. Currently its share in China is just 2.7%, while GM’s is more than triple, at 10%.

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Saab Announces €70 million Technology Agreement

Like Phoenix, the mythological bird that burns down only to rise afresh from its ashes, Saab has been given a stay of execution.That's because today, Saab Automobile AB announced the signing of a technology license agreement with the Swedish Automobile Coöperatief U.A. (SPV) for the non-exclusive rights in Saab’s (appropriately named, as it turns out) Phoenix architecture technology.

According to a press statement, Saab will receive €70 million (US$97 million) for the licensing agreement, thus securing the short-term funds it so desperately needed – especially after the courts rejected its reorganization plan and denied it protection from its creditors.
In the same deal, Youngman also signed a technology transfer license agreement with SPV for purchasing the license and guaranteeing its payment. The transaction is not yet sealed and the funds will be received when the appropriate documentation is finalized.
Saab intends to repay this short-term bridge loan with a part of the €245 million (US$338 million) it will receive when the Chinese authorities eventually approve the Panga Da-Youngman deal -something the company sincerely hopes will happen sooner rather than later.

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Ford Plans to double its Chinese Market

Since November 2009, China is the world’s top car market, surpassing the US. So it’s only natural for automakers to pay their utmost attention. Among others, BMW previewed the new M5, Peugeot the 508, Nissan the new Tiida and Audi the Q3 at the Shangai Motor Show . The most recent example is Ford, which is planning to more than double its model line-up in the Chinese market according to a senior company executive.

“If you think of the marker as small cars, medium cars, large cars, SUVs, performance vehicles, all those different pieces, we compete in about 22% of that market today," Will Periam, strategy director for Ford’s Asia Pacific and Africa, told Reuters during a recent industry forum in the Chinese city of Tianjin.

"In the future, we expect to compete in about 50%. And that will be by new versions of the products we have and all-new products which aren’t here today,” he added.

Periam also revealed that most of the models that Ford plans to introduce to China, such as the new Focus sedan and the Kuga, will be built at its local plant.

Ford is currently manufacturing the Focus, Mondeo, C-MAX and Fiesta in cooperation with Chongqing Changan Automobile Co. and Mazda Motoe, and its Transit van with Jianling Motors, in which Ford has a 30% stake.

However, Ford missed last year’s boom when a record 18 million vehicles were sold in China, thanks in no small part to government tax incentives and subsidies. But this year the incentive plan has ended and the booming Chinese market has seen its booming sales rate decrease.

Secretary General of China Association of Automobile Manufactures reduced his estimate for 2011 sales growth considerably, from a 10-15% forecast to just 5%. Even so, Ford has increased this year its January to July sales by 13%, to 306,830 vehicles, compared to the same period in 2010, and Ford’s Periam estimates that China car sales will reach 32 million by 2020.

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Video: A Very Bizarre Incident

It’s a crazy, crazy world we live in. Don't believe us? Just take a look at this incident that took place somewhere in Asia, possibly in China if Google Translation did its work (visit the comment section to correct us if we're wrong).
While we can't be certain of the details surrounding this bizarre episode since the description on Youtube doesn’t make much sense after we translate it into English, through the dash-mounted camera we see someone who is driving a small green Toyota being chased by two men, one holding a baseball bat.
Two minutes into the video, we find that the man with the bat has jumped on the moving car and is trying to smash the window before it collides with the vehicle filming the scene... Watch it for yourself in the clip after the break.

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This is What Happens When You Keep Your Eyes on the Girl

The title of this post is pretty much self-explanatory, but if you insist here's the skinny: a man riding his scooter on the road spots a young and apparently attractive woman dressed in a knee-high dress walking on foot.
And as it surely has happened to so many others, one quick look didn't satisfy our protagonist's curiosity (or possibly admiration) so he let his guard down and turned his focus away from the road to get a 360 view of the young woman… See what happens next after the break in the security camera footage.

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Saab Sells 5 Million Shares!!

Exactly a month ago to this day, Saab announced a deal with China's Pang Da Automobile Trade Co. and Zhejiang Youngman Lotus Automobile Co while also revealing a grand plan for expanding its range with three new models, the 9-1, 9-6X and 9-7. It also delivered its first 9-4X in the US. All’s well that ends well, right?

Well, in Saab’s case it looks like we haven’t seen the end just yet. The Swedish firm continues to face a cash-flow problem. Thus, it issued a press release concerning the subscription notice for 5 million shares under a €150 million agreement between Swan and GEM Global Yield Fund Limited.
In other words, the Swedish company is offering a part of its shares for sale, with their price determined on a 10-day pricing period that commenced on August 3.
Saab also said that it expects to pay its white-collar workers' delayed salaries by Friday.Meanwhile it continues negotiations with other parties in order to restart production at the end of August and to fulfill the 11,000 orders it claims it already has received.

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Fiat Marks 500 Launch in China

The first Fiat 500 to make its way into China was presented today in Shanghai by Fiat Group Executive Vice President for International Operations, Lorenzo Sistino.

To celebrate the launch, Fiat crafted a special version named 500 “First Edition” featuring bodywork graphics by five young Chinese designers. The special edition will be available in a limited run of just 100 numbered units ahead of the city car’s regular launch in China on September 15.

The 500 “First Edition” is based on the Lounge trim featuring a three-coat pearlescent white body color, red leather interior and special badges on the door pillars. It is equipped with the 1.4-liter MultiAir engine that delivers 101HP and is mated to a 6-speed automatic gearbox.

The normal 500 that arrives in China in September will feature the same engine and gearbox offering buyers a choice of three trim levels (Pop, Sport and Lounge), 12 body colours, 9 color-material combinations for the upholstery and two interior trims (black or ivory).

All who place an order for the Fiat 500 between July 12 and September 15 will automatically enter a draw with the winner being able to exchange his or her car with one of the 100 “First Edition” models.

Sistino said the 500 hatchback will be followed next year by the 500C convertible and the “500 by Gucci” version, while he also revealed that next year Fiat will launch a new saloon made in its Chinese plant in Changsha with its local partner GAC.

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