With sales of the tiny a-segment Fortwo having tanked after Summer 2008′s high gas prices started to fall, Roger Penske’s Smart USA has announced a new, bigger b-segment model to launch in the fourth quarter of 2011. The new, five-seat, four-door hatchback Smart, likely to be called the Forfour, will take on the Ford Fiesta, Honda Fit, Toyota Yaris (just as the Scion iQ prepares to take on the Fortwo) and the next Chevrolet Aveo.

The new Smart will not take on the Nissan Versa. And it’s not based on the Nissan Versa, as some news outlets have indicated. While priced against the Yaris and Aveo, the Versa is a c-segment car, more related to Nissan’s own Sentra.The new Smart will use Nissan’s next-generation Micra/March platform, which also is related to the next-generation Renault Twingo (Motor Trend, July 2010). The new Micra launched in Thailand last March, with other Asian nations following. The new March is set to go on sale in Europe in November. It employs Nissan’s V-Platform, which its “godfather,” Noritaka Tsuru, called a “breakthrough project” when revealed to journalists late last year at the 2009 Tokyo Motor Show.Smart says its new model will be built in a Nissan plant in the U.S. It’s likely to be built in Europe for those markets, as well. Roger Penske manages and markets Daimler’s Smart brand in North America, and the Nissan factory connection has long been in the works. You’ll remember that Penske was trying to line up Nissan production of Saturns in early 2009, when he was in negotiations to buy that brand from General Motors. Last spring, Smart owner Daimler announced a strategic alliance with Nissan/Renault.

Nissan’s V-, or “versatile” Platform is designed for 150 to 160 world markets, with two wheelbases. Various models including the Smart Forfour will share 82 percent of their parts while upper bodies are just 40-percent common. V-Platform can handle nothing larger than a five-seater and is designed for 1.0- to 1.3-liter three-cylinder gas engines and a 1.5-liter turbodiesel.The Smart Forfour will get a three-cylinder gas engine for North America, probably the 1.3-liter variant. This new engine family features an offset crank and friction-reducing parts. Nissan said that by making the car lighter, the three-cylinder runs smoother thanks to the lower demands of the platform’s light weight.Its continuously variable transmission from Nissan’s Jatco has smaller pulleys for compact design and better response at lower speeds.With this new platform, Nissan cut 110 to 150 pounds from its previous March/Micra. In Europe, the new base March will weigh just 2,200 pounds. Nissan cut the number of parts necessary to build the March/Micra by 18 percent, for cost, simplicity and weight.

Source

Sexy Sensual Bachata by Vineet and Katrina at Bali Salsa Fiesta 24th – 26th March …

When we’re asked to recommend something in a bland GT, the Accord coupe tops our list. Of course, no one ever asks for bland, just as they never search for lower gas mileage or alcohol-free vodka. So Accord coupe sales trickle along at five percent of Honda cars.

Coupes are about style. Finally, the Accord gets some—gets a lot, actually. This new version shares no skin—or glass or lights or grilles or bumpers—with the sedan. The roofline is lower by 1.7 inches. The look is new and flowing and original. The shape carries its visual weight down low, like a water balloon lying on a table. This is distinctive; you’ll spot this coupe silhouette, and recognize it, when it’s still far off.

Compared with the sedan, the coupe is close-coupled, but not very. The wheelbase is chopped 2.3 inches, leaving it still 2.8 inches longer than the

.

Overall length is 190.9, 3.1 inches longer than before. Aerodynamics are improved, only one tick for drag to 0.33, but more significantly for lift, where the coefficient drops to 0.14 from 0.20.

The 190-hp four is the standard coupe engine, either five-speed manual or automatic. Two V-6s are offered, both rated at 268 horsepower; automatics share the sedan’s selective-cylinder engine. Six-speed manual versions drop that feature in favor of variable timing and lift on the intake valves for better low- and midrange punch. Audio tuning adds thrills to the sound.

Standard wheels are 7.5-by-17-inch alloys, replaced by 8.0-by-18-inchers on V-6 coupes, wrapped in 235/45 all-weather Michelins. Along with the sound tuning, the six-speed version gets a stiffer front anti-roll bar for crisper zigs and zags.

So, the bottom line: Has bland been left behind? The coupe’s sharp new duds make a big impression, but the bones are still Accord.

Article source: http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/car/07q4/2008_honda_accord_coupe-first_drive_review