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Newsweek

Newsweek



When it comes to cars...

When it comes to cars, he"s experienced, astute, a great judge of how much - or little - it"s worth and what its other strengths or weaknesses are. A plate of chicken tikka and half a lager is the customary fee he charges for these automotive consultancy sessions in the Star of Bengal. He"s inexpensive, unlike the Smart ForFour 1.5 Passion, which is grossly overpriced. The old man and I guessed that it"s a í‚á£7,000-í‚á£8,000 car - not that either of us would be keen to hand over that sort of money when there are others that are better, more desirable and less costly. But the Smart division of Mercedes insists on putting a í‚á£12,370 price tag on it. Crazy.


News of the day
First up is the Fiat...

First up is the Fiat Sedici, which we revealed with exclusive spy shots in issue 884. Built with the help of Suzuki, the car"s name means 16 in Italian - literally 4x4.

Shares Salons

It means a sky view...

It means a sky view and plenty of interior light, even in the winter. But should the sun shine, the roof will disappear under the rear deck in only 22 seconds. The Karmann-designed C-VIEW system is standard on all models.

Lower and longer than the conventional Micra by 110mm and 90mm respectively, the C+C seats four. That gives it a clear advantage over Vauxhall"s Tigra, which only has room for two, but it also means a class-leading 211-litre boot with the roof down or 426 litres with it up. The Micra"s cabin is retained, with different trim and white dials.

Power comes from 98bhp 1.4-litre and 110bhp 1.6 petrol engines, with an 82bhp 1.5 dCi diesel in the pipeline. The C+C will make its official public debut at September"s Frankfurt Motor Show, and go on sale in November. Prices are expected to start at around í‚á£13,000.

Meanwhile, Nissan has freshened up the Micra range, too. Here next month, it has restyled bumpers and grille, with the three-door Sport getting a revamped roof spoiler. The cabin has 10 new colour combinations. Thicker front glass improves refinement on five-door cars, while a 1.2-litre unit replaces the entry-level 1.0 petrol. The sporty 110bhp 1.6 160SR sits at the top, alongside a new 1.6-litre five-door SVE. Prices start at í‚á£8,075.

SEE PAGE 25 OF THIS WEEK"S ISSUE: BMW CC revealed




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