LEAKED! - This is the new Chevrolet Agile

Indian Autos Blog has just published what it says to be the first official image of the new Chevrolet Agile. Check it out below.



We did not have time to talk to them, but all major Brazilian magazines have already published the same image, what confirms this is really the new Agile. Anyway, since the image is not available so far in the official means of communication of GM, the image can be called a leak. No official information on technical specs has been released so far.

Although Agile will be built in Argentina, it has been completely developed in Brazil, at a cost of US$ 400 million, entirely raised by GM do Brasil, or else, with no foreign investments, such as the US taxpayers' money.

Agile must also be produced in the USA, where it is supposed to replace Aveo, something the magazine Motor Trend has already confirmed. The plant of Lake Orion, Michigan, has been chosen to produce the new hatchback, which is set to challenge Ford Fiesta.

The platform of the car is said to be Gamma II, the same one used by the so called Corsa D, the fourth generation of the car. The new Agile will bear a wheelbase of 2.51 m, what will make it be able to face newer small cars, such as Ford Fiesta and the upcoming VW Polo V. Engines are expected to be the same ones already in use in South America, or else, two petrol options, a 105 bhp 1.4-litre and a 129 bhp 1.8-litre. No word, so far, on a diesel option.

Besides the hatchback, in three and five doors, we can expect for a sedan, a pick-up truck and a SUV inspired on the GPix concept.

Updated

Source: Indian Autos Blog

Fiat Linea may be sold in the USA as the new Dodge Neon

Fiat and Chrysler alliance may take 18 months to produce its first cars, but Autocar has already anticipated one of the possible vehicles to come up from that marriage: a new Dodge Neon. The car would be based on the Fiat Linea. If Autocar has stated that, we have no reasons whatsoever to doubt it. And the talented designer Theophilus Chin has given us his vision of what the car may look like, and we are very inclined to think he has hit the nail in the head.



Fiat Linea uses two engines in Brazil, a 1.9-litre flexfuel unit and a petrol turbocharged 1.4-litre, known as T-JET. In Turkey, where it is also produced, the car is powered by the T-JET, a petrol 1.4-litre engine and two diesel engines, the 1.3-litre Multijet and a 1.6-litre unit. We expect the USA version to use the 1.9-litre engine, as well as the T-JET with some improvements. Meanwhile, have a look at what may appear in a Dodge dealer next to you (the one that remains open until that, of course; let's hope them to be many).




Source: Theophilus Chin

Bajaj ULC will also be built in Brazil as a Renault or Nissan

The next Brazilian (and South American) Renault can be the small SUV based on Dacia Duster, but it certainly is not the one that is going to drive more attention. That task is up to Bajaj ULC. According to "The Hindu Business Line", this vehicle, which is expected to be presented in 2012, will be built in Brazil.



It is still not defined whether the new car will wear a Renault or a Nissan badge, but we would bet on Renault because of its dealer network, which is bigger than Nissan's in Brazil. The ULC will cost about US$ 3,000 in India. In Brazil, its price is expected to be at least three times higher than that, what would still make the car amazingly cheap for Brazilian standards.

Bajaj ULC is still under development by Bajaj Auto, Nissan and Renault. The idea is to turn it into a world project, more remarkable by its fuel consumption (about 35 km/l) than by its price. We just hope development to be quicker.




Source: The Hindu Business Line via Indian Autos Blog

VW plans to put Chico into production to beat smart fortwo

Last November, AutoCar released the information Volkswagen intends to have a very fuel efficient car. This car would be based on the future Lupo platform, nowadays known as the up! concept, and would be called Chico, after a small hybrid concept presented back in 1991. Chico, in Spanish, means "small, tiny".



Besides having a product on a market segment that promises to grow rapidly, as the presentation of Toyota iQ states, Volkswagen aims to lower its emission and fuel consumption rates. The goal established for Chico is 50 km/l and 60 g/km of CO2, according to AutoCar.

If the first Chico was to be taken into consideration, this number would be easily reached, since the small car was able to reach 71.43 km/l with its hybrid powertrain. If its only propulsion system was its 636 cm³ two-cylindre petrol engine, able to generate 34 bhp at 6,000 rpm and only 45 Nm at 3,000 rpm, it would spend 23.36 km/l at a constant speed of 90 km/h.

The problem is Volkswagen intends to use a larger engine with no hybrid help to accomplish its targets. There are two options: a 1.2-litre four-cylinder direct-injection engine with cylindre deactivation (up to two of them can be deactivated) and a 1.2-litre three-litre turbodiesel engine. Start-stop system, regenerative brakes and low-rolling-resistance tyres will be standard for the new Chico.

The previous Chico was 3.15 m long, 1.60 m wide, 1.48 m tall, with a 2.05 m wheelbase. Since it was very frugal, its fuel tank did not need to be larger than 20 l. Chico was considerably heavy, with an unladen weight of 785 kg. Aerodynamics are also something to be improved: it had a cx of 0.32. As well as iQ, it was a 2+2 vehicle, with a 60 l luggage compartment. The top speed of 131 km/h was a clear sign performance was not to be cherished. Accelerating from 0 to 100 km/h took as much as 30 s. Let's hope the production series car improves all these numbers.















Source: AutoCar