Topgear News

Nokia on Monday became the latest major consumer electronics company to enter the booming car-navigation market, upping the ante for Dutch market leader TomTom.

The Finnish company, the world’s biggest maker of mobile phones, unveiled its Nokia 330 Auto Navigation device with preinstalled Europe-wide map data from Dutch navigation firm Route 66.

The product will use digital maps from U.S.-based NAVTEQ, and not from its main Dutch rival, Tele Atlas, whose maps are used in a new Nokia N95 phone which doubles as a navigation device.

With fuel prices rising and the government planning to hike the burden on motorists’ wallets even further through pay-per-mile road tolls and ’green’ taxes, drivers looking for ways to fight back and keep their car costs down can find support in a new free guide.

Published by motoring advice website KwikGuides.com (www.kwikguides.com), ’How to Cut Your Car Costs’ covers a range of tips from how to be a savvy buyer and avoid cash-sapping depreciation, to saving money when choosing finance, insurance, servicing and fuel. The advice in the guide can cut hundreds - for newer cars, even thousands - from annual car bills.

LIVING at the extreme is home from home for Land Rover but the off-road legend is about to go beyond limits with the all-new Freelander.

Bigger and better in every aspect than the original, the latest Freelander is about to set a new benchmark among 4×4s.

It is also going up a league when it comes to pricing with the new line-up aimed at the premium buyer.

The top range HSE model will cost £33,990 and even the basic versions will set you back £20,935.

In terms of price only the BMW X3 is in the same bracket but the new Land Rover is going to wipe the floor with its German rival – it’s that good.

Retromobile, a company producing specialist, high performance retro cars in South Africa, will reveal its Ford GT40 at Auto Africa.

“Our stand will showcase our initial four models, which will include the first public showing in South Africa of the GT40, which is Ford’s most successful racing car ever, being the first American car to beat the Ferrari’s at their own game”, explained Peter Lindenberg, who will assist customers on the competition side.

“Already Noble has made inroads on our circuits, and it won the Ultimate Street Car challenge earlier this year, but I expect the GT40 to be very popular on the track”, added Lindenberg who has held national titles in three different forms of motorsport.

CAR crime soars when the clocks go back and the nation is plunged into early evening darkness – with a rise of more than 50 per cent during the four weeks following the start of winter time.

Replacement windows for targeted vehicles – 90 per cent of which are smashed by thieves – increase by an average of 55 per cent immediately after the end of British Summer Time.

Lloyds TSB Autolease, one of the UK’s largest fleet funding and management companies, is warning all those likely to be affected to be prepared.

Is It A Car, Auris It A Toyota?
(article by Jonathan Goddard, taken from pocket-lint.co.uk)

Revealed as a concept at the Paris Motor Show last month, it seems Toyota’s new Auris will be pushed into European service sooner than expected.

Details of the new C-segment vehicle were announced today, demonstrating a startling similarity in looks to the existing Corolla - the model which it will effectively replace. Built in Europe, the Auris will spearhead Toyota’s bold ambition of securing 1.2 million annual unit sales in the Euro zone by 2008.

Disguised examples of the stylish newcomer have already been spotted testing in Japan, but insiders have revealed the production car will closely follow the look of the show model. Its stubby profile and smooth surfaces will give the Endo a futuristic appear­ance - and help it become a more upmarket alternative to the Aygo.

Toyota’s des­igners drew inspiration from the Smart and the quirky Endo, but say their car’s novel styling eliminates the compromises these two models require