Fisker Looks for Strategic Partners in China, Hasn’t Built a Car in Six Months

The Karma might look gorgeous but things aren’t looking very good for its maker, Fisker, right now. In 2012, despite having delivered some 2,000 Karmas, it’s had its federal loan frozen, issued a number of recalls on the Karma, saw its battery supplier, A123 Systems, go bankrupt and 16 of its cars being destroyed by hurricane Sandy and, to top it all, it hasn’t built a single car in the past six months.

So the company is looking for partners and investors. And what better place to turn to than a country that wants to acquire high-end EV technology? That would be China; according to a report from Reuters, Fisker’s top executives are trying to find a strategic partner that would help them get things started again.
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BYD's Qin Electric Sedan gets a Dashboard-Mounted "i" Robot

We thought we were done with our coverage on the BYD Qin concept until its world premiere at next week's Auto China 2012 in Beijing, but the Chinese automaker released two more photos of the pure-electric sedan in which, surprise, surprise, we found a robot lurking on top of the dashboard.

The pint-sized creation is called "i" Robot and it looks like a cross between a Google Android robot and EVE (Extraterrestrial Vegetation Evaluator) from Pixar's WALL-E film – that or a futuristic version of South Park's Kenny…

The Chinese carmaker tells us that the "i" Robot remains out of sight, hidden under a special compartment on the top of the dashboard until the driver starts the car. BYD added that the robot can communicate with the passengers through voice, movement and by changing its digital facial expressions.

That's all we have for now about BYD's "i" Robot, but we gather the Chinese automaker will share more details next week.

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China's Chery Preview Two New Concept Models Ahead of the 2012 Beijing Auto Show

The forthcoming Auto China Show 2012 in Beijing will host the world premiere of two new concept models from the country's fourth largest automaker and Jaguar-Land Rover Group's newest associate, Chery Automobile.

The Chinese carmaker announced that it will bring the TX design study for a stylish compact crossover model and a more futuristic prototype called the Ant Concept at the Beijing show.

The TX is said to hint at a new crossover model as well as a fresh design direction for the company's next generation of models.

The Ant Concept car is more on the fantasy side of things proposing a new way for city commuting through identical vehicles that can connect to each other.

Chery said that is also plans to show several production models in Beijing.

Source: Carscoop

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Lamborghini CEO Says SUV Could Launch in 2017 if it Receives the Green Light from the VW Group

IThere's no end to the news surrounding Lamborghini's upcoming SUV project, which will be previewed through a thinly disguised concept model at the 2012 Auto China Show in Beijing on April 23 to test the waters in the same way that Bentley did with the EXP 9 SUV study in Geneva this past March.

According to a report in the German business daily Handelsblatt, Lamborghini Boss Stephan Winkelmann believes that the SUV is a crucial model for the brand that has been losing money since 2009, and that VW will most likely give the green light, in which case, it could launch onto the market in 2017.

"We definitely need a third line in the mid- and long term," said Winkelmann. "An SUV would be the first Lamborghini for everyday use, not just for the race track or weekends. We would have the opportunity to win new customers. It usually takes 48 months until an all-new vehicle arrives at dealers, so the new Lamborghini would not be available to buy before 2017."

The news daily quoted VW Group sources as saying the decision for the production of the luxury SUV "is certain to be positive".

The Lamborghini and Bentley SUVs will share their platforms and select hardware with the next Audi Q7, VW Touareg and Porsche Cayenne models. It is believed that the Lamborghini model will use a modified version of the Gallardo's V10 powerplant.

Handelsblatt reported that Bentley did not show the EXP 9 SUV to the VW Group's top brass in Wolfsburg before the big reveal in Geneva, something that did not sit well with the automaker's executives after the hugely negative reactions about the SUV's design from the public and the press alike.

The newspaper says that Winkelmann has been treading the waters carefully to ensure that Lamborghini's model will not receive the same fate.

"For the brand, emotions are important," he told the paper, adding that any new model "must always be immediately recognizable as a Lamborghini", which will be the case with the SUV.

Source: Carscoop

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Russians Teach us How Not to Pull a Truck with Another Truck

Thanks to the prevalence of handheld filming devices, nowadays we can amuse ourselves with incidents that occur half way around the world that otherwise we would have never known happened.

In one such instance, a driver of a Russian Kamaz truck wanted to help a fellow driver whose truck of Chinese origins (according to the YouTube uploader) was stuck on a snow-covered road.

From what we can tell, someone probably put the chains around the bumper instead of hooking them up to the chassis and as a result, the Kamaz pulled off the entire front end of the Chinese truck!

See what happened in the video that follows after the break.

Source: Carscoop

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Fiat to Launch Dodge Dart as the New Viaggio in China, Hatchback Version May Replace Bravo

At next month's 2012 Beijing Auto Show, Fiat will whip the covers off a new compact sedan model named the Viaggio before it begins producing the car in China in July, ahead of its market launch later in the year, according to a report from Autonews Europe.

The new sedan, which is named after the Italian word for Journey, will be a rebadged version of the new 2013 Dodge Dart sedan that will reach U.S. dealerships this May with a starting price of $15,995 (€12,100 / GBP 10,100).

The Dart is based on a modified version of the Alfa Romeo Giulietta's platform. It measures 4,672mm (183.9-in. long, 1,830mm (72-in.) wide, 1,465mm (57.7-in.) tall and rides on a 2,703mm (106.4-in.) wheelbase.

In theory, it competes against C-segment sedans like the Ford Focus and VW Jetta, but it's actually longer and wider than some D-segment saloons such as the new BMW 3-Series.

In China, Fiat's version of the Dart will be offered with its 1.4-liter petrol engines in both naturally aspirated and turbocharged forms, which will be built locally.

The Viaggio will be the first model to be produced from Fiat's joint venture with China's Guangzhou Automobile Group at a new factory with an initial annual output of 140,000 vehicles, which could rise to around 250,000 cars.

Fiat hasn’t had much luck with its Chinese joint ventures as the Italian company dissolve its money-losing partnership with Nanjing Automotive back in 2007, while another attempt to cooperate with Chery Automotive the same year failed to go through.

The Italian automaker aims to sell up to 300,000 cars a year in China by 2014 from less than 1,500 in 2011, as it tries to offset its loses in Europe due to the ongoing economic crisis.

Autonews said that according to Fiat sources, aside from the sedan model, there are plans to produce a five-door hatchback version of the Viaggio/Dart, which could be exported to Europe as a replacement for the Bravo.

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