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Kia Scoops the What Car? Ultra Low Carbon Award

Monday, January 30th, 2012

Kia has picked up the What Car? Ultra Low Carbon Award for its environmentally efficient range of vehicles. What Car? Magazine particularly praised the new Rio that has carbon emissions as low as 85g/km, which makes the car the cleanest non-electric vehicle in the world.

This isn’t the first time Kia has been noticed for being environmentally friendly, as the all new Kia Picanto was honoured at the magazine’s Green Awards last summer. In addition, these machines have other qualities. They have reasonable specifications, surprisingly sharp looks and pleasingly composed handling, backed up with a 7 year warranty and the quotes for motor insurance isn’t sky high either.

Chief Operating Officer of Kia Motors Europe, Paul Philpott, picked up the award and said, “Kia has been striving over recent years not only to deliver exciting, attractive, high-quality cars – but also to deliver real benefits to customers in the form of cleaner technologies that don’t carry a price premium. We are delighted that What Car? – one of Europe’s leading consumer magazines – has recognised our efforts.”

The manufacturer lacks ‘mass recognition’ among British motorists, despite their environmental credentials. However, there may be something for everyone as the all-new Picanto rivals the popular Ford Ka, whereas the larger Rio is a supermini. The Venga is a compact MPV that competes with the Nissan Note and the Cee’d rivals the Vauxhall Astra which comes in hatchback and estate guise. Other models include the Sorento which is a four wheel driver and the Sedona is a 7 seater people carrier. Would you consider a Kia?

Tags: Kia, Motor insurance, Rio, What Car?, What Car? Awards
Posted in Car Insurance, Car Types, Motor Insurance | No Comments »

Audi A1 Quattro Coming to the UK

Wednesday, January 25th, 2012

At the beginning of the week we blogged about the new Porsche Boxster that is on its way, and today we can tell you all about another new offering from Germany’s fantastic motor industry – the Audi A1 Quattro.

UK Bound

Audi have a planned production of 333 A1 Quattro’s, and they have decided that 20 of them will be sent over here to the UK, despite being left hand drive. That shouldn’t put too many of you off however as the little Audi is sure to be popular thanks to its great looks, impressive performance and relatively cheap running costs, including getting a car insurance quote for it.

The Figures

The A1 will be fitted with a 2.0 litre turbocharged petrol engine that develops 252bhp and 258 lb-ft torque. In a small car those are very impressive figures, and with a four wheel drive system also, the Audi is sure to be a pocket rocket! It will achieve a 0-62mph time in just 5.7 seconds and will go on to reach a very respectable, and in something of such size, quite scary 152mph.

The four wheel drive system will also be one of the best four wheel drive systems out there due to Audi’s history of expertise in producing great four wheel drive machines.

Rich History

Audi have been building brilliantly fun, fast cars for many years now. If we go all the way back to the eighties, they released the original Audi Quattro: a turbocharged coupé that destroyed everything on the Rally scene and was also a great car for everyday use. And more recently, they’ve given us the RS4, the RS6, the R8 and some fantastic little hot hatches, such as the S3 models.

The A1 Quattro, it seems, takes the best elements of the original Quattro and the best elements of the S3 and combines them to be one of the most exciting hot hatches to have been launched in recent years. The A1 Quattro will also be a direct competitor of its bigger brother, the S3 as they have similar performance figures and are a similar size. The A1 will, however, be a rather exclusive Audi due to its scarcity in the UK.

Will you be putting an order in for one of 20 A1 Quattro’s arriving on British shores?

Tags: Audi A1, Audi A1 Quattro, Car Insurance Quote, New car models
Posted in Car Insurance, Car Manufacturer | 1 Comment »

Retro Renault to Return

Wednesday, January 18th, 2012

We’re always on the lookout for fun little cars here, and this week it’s been announced that French manufacturer, Renault, are thinking about adding to their supermini range. The Clio and the Twingo have somewhat waned in comparison to its rivals. Whilst they both look great, they just don’t seem to provide enough va-va-voom anymore.

The new Clio can be criticised for not being as exciting to drive as its rivals, and the Twingo just hasn’t sold as well as Renault would have hoped. It seems Renault have perhaps realised that they need to inject a bit more fun and creativity to their range. How? By bringing back a fun little classic; the Renault 5.

The Original Supermini

The original 5 was first launched in 1972 and was considered at the time to be the first of its kind, and so it can be seen today as the Great Granddad of supermini’s, and so it only makes sense to bring it out of retirement for one last hoorah.

However, it wouldn’t simply be a case of updating the original with modern technology, as Steve Norman, the global marketing and communications boss for Renault, puts it: “It would be a different type of car, more than a Twingo, and a back up for the Clio. The original 5 made a statement and [it] would have to do the same again. It would be a car to recapture the spirit of the original, but the design would not be retro.”

Redesigning a Classic

So, if the 5 was to make a return, it would almost definitely undergo some redesigns, which is quite necessary and understandable when considering the fact that cars these days need to meet all different types of criteria which are intended to improve safety, and of course they do! These measures may indeed also help to lower a car insurance quote in comparison to a quote for an original 5.

Furthermore, in typical Renault style, we can expect a sporty, hot hatch version of the new 5. Renault did this with the original when they released the Renault 5 Turbo in 1980, and after that the Renault 5 GT Turbo in 1985. Now these are the types of Renault’s a lot of us would want to see return! It would be great to see a new 5 Turbo line up against a new ClioSport.

Concerns

My only query is, how will it stack up against the next generation Clio that is planned for this summer? The original Clio was the successor to the 5, and so, with that in mind, will Renault purposely build the new 5 to be one step down from the new Clio? Mr Norman did indeed comment that it would be “a back up for the Clio”. That surely doesn’t seem right to me however, especially if Renault are hoping to improve their line up.

Surely, if they do indeed go ahead with plans to bring the 5 back, Renault should make the very best supermini they possibly can with all the va-va-voom of old. Why build a half-hearted car to provide back up to a model that is known to have lost some of its passion and integrity? Well, the Clio that is coming this summer is said to “over deliver on design and innovation”, so maybe Renault will restore credibility with the new Clio before they even think about building the new 5.

Tags: Car Insurance Quote, New car models, New cars, Renault 5
Posted in Car Insurance, Car Manufacturer | No Comments »

Fancy a Classic?

Monday, January 16th, 2012

Today we’re blogging about all cars classic. Here on the MotorMouthBlog we’re big petrol heads, and we love a good classic! Whether it’s a bare knuckle MKII Escort RS200, or a refined, sophisticated Aston Martin of the DB variety (5 or 6), we welcome them all!

Classic motoring is a somewhat British past-time, and if you venture out onto the roads on a Sunday afternoon, do not be surprised to come across all types of classic car. The amount of MG’s, Triumph’s and Austin Healey’s I’ve seen cruising around our great British roads is staggering.

Classic Alternatives

With cars developing more and more these days in all sorts of different ways, sometimes it’s nice just to hark back to the raw pleasure of driving. Getting out on those clear country lanes and opening up a rare classic can be a thrilling experience.

Classic cars, it seems, are becoming more popular these days also, especially as an increasing number of people look at cheaper forms of motoring. A small second hand classic could work out to be cheaper than a new, modern alternative. Furthermore, car insurance quotes for classics may just turn out to be cheaper also.

What would you have?

Of course, not all classic cars are about leather driving gloves and relaxing country lanes. There are those that will rattle your bones and shake your teeth. The Lancia Delta Integrale for example, or the Lancia Stratos. Both of which will kick you in the back whilst firing flames out the tailpipes.

Meanwhile, the Ford RS200 and the Renault 5 Turbo are both all out speed demons that derive from rallying thoroughbreds and they both need taming each and every time you get behind the wheel. Such cars offer a slightly different experience of traditional classic motoring therefore. These are cars that are perhaps better suited to track day experiences in order to really see what they’re about.

Personal Favourite

However, my all time favourite classic car has to be the Ferrari F40. Okay, so it’s a bit of a step up to the aforementioned machines, but it was first built in 1987, and so does indeed fall into the classic car category. It’s also a car that most owners would only take out on a Sunday for a cruise, or indeed to the track to pound some laps in.

What I love about the F40 is the true, honest nature of it, the fact that there is absolutely nothing inside apart from a steering wheel, a manual gear shifter, and a couple of seats. It’s a very simple car with true, honest engineering and no electronic wizardry. It was so far ahead of its time also, and was built by Ferrari in an attempt to go one better than their rivals, Porsche, who had recently launched the 959.

Furthermore, the F40 was by no means perfect. It had terrible turbo lag and the designers couldn’t even be bothered to hide the glue that held everything together, because of course covering the glue would mean adding weight. And that attitude to just build a true speed machine rather than care for silly little details is another reason why I love the F40.

It represents every petrol heads thoughts and feelings of what a true, performance car should be like. And the fact that it is now a classic, and that, in my opinion, it is the King of all classics, shows that there has never been anything quite like it!

Tags: Car Insurance Quote, Classic Cars, Classic Motoring, Ferrari F40
Posted in Car Insurance, Classic Cars | 1 Comment »

New Ford Mondeo Coming

Monday, January 9th, 2012

American car giant, Ford, have announced that a shiny new Mondeo is on its way, however, over here in the UK, we won’t be able to buy one until 2013, whilst the American market will be able to get their hands on one this year.

Rapide Resemblance

At first glance, the resemblance the new Mondeo has with an Aston Martin Rapide is quite uncanny, but is it really a surprise when you consider Ford and Aston’s ties? Ford, as of 2007, no longer own Aston Martin, yet they still do have a stake in the British company, and anyway, even if they have decided to make the Mondeo look like a Rapide, well, who can blame them?

The Aston Martin Rapide is a beautiful car, and this new Mondeo looks very pretty indeed. Ford, I think, has thoroughly stepped up their game in recent years. Whether they have a new design team, or whether they have just decided to get creative, it’s working, and all their cars are decent looking machines now. The Mondeo is also likely to be quite a bit cheaper to run than a Rapide whilst still looking like one, and another great thing about Ford’s is that they are always so reliable and cost effective, especially when it comes to car insurance quotes.

Comfort and Ride

A few weeks ago I was a passenger in the back of the latest estate Mondeo and I remember being very impressed. There was, of course, plenty of leg room, but the whole car just felt luxurious and, to be honest, quite executive.

The smell of new leather probably helped somewhat, but the car was a very impressive bit of kit. The ride was comfortable and quiet, and everything about it felt well built. The door, for example, made the exact noise you would want from a new, luxurious car. It felt, and sounded, robust, sturdy and hearty. It’s those little details that can make a car stand out.

New Features

We would expect much of the same with the new car, and Ford has said that it is, pretty much, an all new car. New features include a new multi-link rear suspension and electric steering, which will, using some nifty technology, keep you inside your lane if you begin to straddle two lanes.

The electric steering system will also steer you into a parking space, however, I’m not so sure I would trust such a device when parking in some of the tighter spaces. For example, if there was an electrical fault during the parking procedure it would likely end in tears with no-one to blame but the poor car; at least if you make a mistake yourself, you can blame human error.

The engine to have would be the petrol 2.0 litre Ecoboost Turbo. So, who’s interested? The new Mondeo is expected to sell well in the US this year before then doing the same over here next year. Now may be the time to think about ordering yours! Are you a fan of the blue oval?

Tags: Aston Martin, car insurance quotes, car technology, Ford Mondeo
Posted in Car Insurance | No Comments »

Excitement for the Year Already High

Friday, January 6th, 2012

Here at MotorQuoteDirect we like to keep you up to date with all the latest in the motor industry, and at the start of a New Year it only seems right that we should look ahead to the fun and games that will inevitably be had this year in the world of motoring.

Petrol heads (including myself) all around the UK will be eagerly anticipating a whole host of motorsport events and new car launches this year, and so we thought it would be a good idea to have a general rundown of some the events and cars to look forward to!

The British GP

Naturally, we have to start at the home of British motorsport: Silverstone! This year will see the 67th British Grand Prix take place at Silverstone, deep in the heart of rural Northamptonshire. Now whilst there has been a lot of controversy and unrest surrounding the television rights for the F1 in the UK, this year’s Grand Prix is certain to be a sell out and one of the highlights of, not just the F1 season, but the year. I for one will hopefully be there! Who else is coming?

Silverstone will also host the exciting action that the MotoGP brings. With the tragic end to last season when Marco Simoncelli sadly lost his life, all in the MotoGP world will be keen to honour Marco’s memory in fine style by doing what he loved best – racing, hard and fast!

Goodwood Festival of Speed

Another event that should be penned in petrol head’s diaries is, of course, the Goodwood Festival of Speed. This is always a brilliant weekend when everyone can get up close and personal with iconic racing machines and motorsport heroes from all around the globe. Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button love meeting and greeting the fans that turn up and this year should be no different.

The famed climb up the Goodwood hill is also definitely worth turning up for as the drivers that take part are sure to put a show on. A particular memory of mine is watching Petter Solberg in his World Rally Championship winning Subaru Impreza from 2003 blast up the hill whilst rally-style-drifting round every corner. The word exciting doesn’t cover it.

Of course, in addition, there will also be the Rally GB, the Goodwood Revival, and several notable days out at Santa Pod.

Now the Cars

In terms of some of the most exciting cars arriving on our shores this year, the Pagani Huayra should, hopefully, finally get released. It has been delayed since 2010 whilst Pagani iron out every little detail. The Huayra will pack over 700 horsepower thanks to its V12 powerplant. Getting a car insurance quote on such a machine may well prove expensive with that sort of power. Nonetheless it will all be worth it when you get behind the wheel!

Bugatti’s new Galibier is also set to launch in 2012 and I have picked this out of a bunch of cars because it is basically a four door Veyron. It will have over 1000 horsepower and will probably weigh over two tonnes. Price tags are thus far unknown, but expect them to be near, if not over, the seven figure mark!

There is so much more to look forward to this year in the motoring world, and we will be sure to blog about those big events as they happen, and those special cars as they are launched. Stand by ladies and gentleman for another fuel injected year!

Tags: British Grand Prix, Car Insurance Quote, Goodwood Festival of Speed, Silverstone
Posted in Car Insurance, Events | No Comments »

New Mercedes SL Announced

Wednesday, December 14th, 2011

Here on the MotorMouthBlog we feel that we write about interesting topics, and subject matters that will appeal to our readers, and so today, we are bringing you the news that any petrol head (which we are) will find interesting. That is the news that there is a new Mercedes SL.

A Reputation to Uphold

Mercedes has recently, in my own personal opinion, produced some of the finest luxury cruisers on the road. They’ve got the styling right, they’ve got the engines right, and to some extent, they’ve got the prices right. The name Mercedes evokes a sense of quality, refinement and class, however, depending on what particular Mercedes you are thinking about, words such as lunacy, joy, excitement and thrilling are also true. The AMG Black models for example are thunderous, bellowing brutes that will etch very wide smiles into your face; and that’s before you turn the key, or push the starter button as the case may be.

What’s the Performance Like?

SL’s of the past have been gracious models, however, the new SL looks to be a rather edgy affair, especially if you go for the SL500 which will kick out 435bhp from the 4.6 litre V8 power-house.

Mercedes claim that this new engine is 22% more efficient than the previous SL500 which had a 5.4 litre V8. Great news then for fuel bills! Whether this improved efficiency will make a positive difference on a car insurance quote remains to be seen, however, when buying a Mercedes-Benz, owners will be aware of the type of price they will have to pay for their car insurance cover.

In terms of the performance, the SL500 will hit 60mph in a blurry, yet refined, 4.6 seconds, whilst the smaller SL350, with a 3.5 litre V6, will get there in just over one second more. Of course, as we expect these days, the Mercedes SL will come limited to 155mph.

Innovation and Detail

Continuing a long line of innovation from Mercedes-Benz, the SL comes with almost an entirely aluminium structure, and the SL is the only car in its class to feature FrontBass. This allows the aluminium structure of the car to be used as a bass woofer.

The new SL is also packed with a range of brilliant features, such as a steel and glass folding roof along with Magic Sky Control which will allow owners to change the tint of the glass. There is also a Magic Vision Control system fitted to the car which is a rather sophisticated wiper system that delivers warm water directly to the wiper blade. The attention to detail never ceases to astonish us!

The new SL is sure to be a hit; will you be making your way to your nearest Mercedes-Benz dealer? Or would you prefer something else? Why not let us know your thoughts…

Tags: Car Insurance Quote, Mercedes SL, Mercedes-Benz, Mercedes-Benz SL, motor insurance quotes
Posted in Car Insurance, Motor Insurance | No Comments »

Sales Increase for Bentley

Monday, December 12th, 2011

Bentley have seen UK sales increase by over 20% last month according to the latest statistics that have been released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). According to the stats, the Crewe-based firm have sold 65 cars in the UK in November, this is 20.4% more than the same period in 2010.

Sales Figures

So far this year, Bentley has sold a total of 986 cars in the UK. This is up by 4.5% during the same period last year. This is encouraging news for the automotive sector and those more exotic, luxury car makers. The number of luxury car owners looking for car insurance cover has, therefore, increased this year.

The economic recession has hit us all hard and big businesses have been suffering too. Especially those that manufacture luxury products, such as expensive cars, as less and less people feel the need to own one during times of financial uncertainty. Of course, the price for motor insurance on such expensive vehicles will have put many people off during the economic downturn.

A Bentley spokesman has been commenting on the recent revival they have seen however: “Bentley continues to do well, with global sales up around 30 per cent in November, continuing the annual trend which is seeing total sales increase by around one-third in 2011. Chinese growth is relentless as we surpassed 1,500 cars in the region for the first time.” Many car firms have seen great sales in China as the country continues to prosper.

The spokesman added: “However, established markets such as America and Europe are also increasing, reflecting strong demand for the Mulsanne and, in particular, the new Continental GT. The UK was up despite the on-going economic uncertainty but with the new Continental GTC reaching dealers from December, the prospects for the New Year are promising.”

Sales Forecasts

It is little surprise that Bentley will be excited by what 2012 could bring them, with new models on the horizon and increasing sales forecast.

The SMMT has reported that the total amount of UK car sales declined by 4.2% in November to 134,027 units, however, this is still 5,000 units above the SMMT’s forecast. This year, thus far, total vehicle registrations are down by 4.5%, at 1,822,065 units.

The SMMT feel that the market will better its full year forecast of 1.923 million, however, they added that they are remaining cautious for 2012. Nothing can really be taken for granted in such an unstable economy!

Tags: Bentley, car insurance cover, car sales, Motor insurance
Posted in Car Insurance, Motor Insurance | 2 Comments »

Uninsured Drivers Rife

Monday, December 5th, 2011

I came across some interesting news last week regarding car insurance dodgers. The news was that the Director of AA Insurance was expressing his personal concerns at the lenient nature taking by the authorities who hand out fines for driving without car insurance cover.

Simon Douglas was quoted saying: “We’re failing honest motorists by such lenient fines. In my view, it’s vital to get the message over to this motoring underclass and, importantly, to their friends and families, that driving without insurance is socially unacceptable.”

Fines

The average fine for someone caught without insurance is just £200; however judges do have the power to fine them up to £5,000. It seems they simply choose not to. Mr Douglas also noted that uninsured drivers cause around 160 deaths every year whilst injury a further 23,000 in the process.

This is alarming news, and when put like this, in my opinion, those driving without insurance are a liability to not only themselves but, more importantly, others, and therefore these drivers should have their licence stripped from them, and thus taken off the road.

Road Safety

Rachel Davey’s article on this news also highlighted that the UK roads currently has one in every 25 drivers uninsured, whilst in Germany that figure is much better at one in every 500 drivers.

This does not look good for a country that is constantly pushing the message of safe driving, whilst in Germany they still have unrestricted areas of their famous Autobahn. Authorities in the UK are quick and efficient when it comes to installing cameras and imposing speed restrictions, yet we have huge numbers of drivers on the roads that do not deserve to be there as a result of not paying for a motor insurance quote.

Perhaps now is the time to take a stand against such drivers by imposing harsher fines. By targeting people’s wallets we can be sure that the message will spread like wildfire. Driving without insurance is irresponsible, yet people still do it. If we make sure that driving without insurance will become extremely costly to those that do it, then we may just see that figure of one in 25 begin to improve dramatically.

What do you think? Should uninsured drivers have their licence taken off them? Should the fines be substantially increased? Please feel free to let us know your thoughts.

Tags: AA, Accidents, car insurance cover, Injuries, motor insurance quote
Posted in Car Insurance, Motor Insurance Quote | No Comments »

The Average Driver Spends up to £2,999 Year on their Car

Wednesday, November 30th, 2011

According to the latest research from Age UK Enterprises, the commercial services arm of Charity Age UK, the average driver spends nearly up to £3,000 every year on their car. The survey shows that price is the most important factor when people pick a car, with 23% (one in four) opting for the cheapest, most drivers still spend a tremendous amount annually on car insurance cover and the general costs of running it.

Car Owners

Two thirds of all adults own a car in the UK, which increases with age, with four out of five (81%) of 55 to 64 year olds owning a car. Women (64%) are less likely to own a car compared to men (69%), but only by 5%.

Annual Outgoings

The research found that most drivers do not help themselves to save money, such as comparing motor insurance quotes, even though owning a car accounts for a significant proportion of annual outgoings. 63% (two thirds) admitted staying with their current car insurance provider the last time they renewed. The survey showed that as drivers get older (70% for the 60+), the more loyal they were to the brand.

Managing Director of Age UK Enterprises, Gordon Morris, said “Despite the economic downturn, the UK remains a nation of car owners with those in later life the most likely to have a car whilst spending a significant amount every year maintaining it. While consumers are cautious about price when they buy their car, too often they don’t take action during its lifetime that could save them money.

“With the cost of running a car soaring every year, we encourage every driver to review what they currently spend on their car, and particularly their insurance cover. Consumers must shop around and ensure they have the information they need to make an informed choice, buying only what provides best value and appropriate cover for their needs. However, they also need to consider that some providers offer low initial prices which then rise sharply on renewal or come with high excess, making the need to shop around even more essential.”

Tags: Age UK Enterprises, car insurance cover, comparing motor insurance quotes, research, survey
Posted in Car Insurance, Motor Insurance Quote | No Comments »