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The BMW Group in the US has also released its results for August and luckily theautochannel.com has provided us the reports. The US subsidiary of BMW has describe its August sales as strong with over 30,639 vehicles sold an increase of 19.3 percent over the 25,673 vehicles that was sold in the same period last year. The BMW Group has also increased its year-to-date sales volume to 223,341 vehicles, an increase of 8.1 percent over the 206,530 vehicles sold in August of 2006.

The sales of BMW brand vehicles has also increased by 18.5 percent in August with 26,562 units sold as compared to the 22,421 units sold in the same period a year ago. The year-to-date BMW brand sales have also increased by 8.7 percent to 195,724 vehicles and higher than the 179,724 units sold in the same period of 2006.

The automobile sales of BMW was up by 22.1 percent or 20,825 units sold last August which is higher than the 17,053 units sold in the same month of 2006. The Year-to-date automobile sales have also increased by 9.3 percent to 153,304 units sold versus the 140,250 units sold covering the same period last year.

The Sports Activity Vehicles of BMW was also part of the report with a total of 5,737 vehicles sold which is a little over than the 5,368 units sold last August 2006. The Year-to-date, sales of BMW Sports Activity Vehicles was up by 6.7 percent to 42,132 vehicles versus the 39,474 sold in the first eight months of 2006.

BMW's Mini Brand has also posted an August sale of 4,077 automobiles an increase of 25.4 percent from the 3,252 cars last sold in August 2006. The year-to-date division reports sales was 27,905 automobiles an increase of 4.1 percent, compared to the 26,806 cars that was reported in the first eight months of 2006.

And last but not the least is BMW's Certified Pre-Owned vehicles, which was up by 11.2 percent. The company has reported an August sales of 7,462 CPO vehicles which is more than the 6,713 that was reported last August of 2006. The year-to-date CPO sales are down by 1.9 percent to 57,024 as compared to the 58,129 sales reported in the same period in 2006.

Remember not to consume your entire auto show budget on the Frankfurt Motor Show in Germany since less than 90 days after is the most awaited 2007 Los Angeles Auto Show. You would not want to miss out this exciting show since there would be around a dozen of premiers of both production and concept vehicles courtesy of nine top automakers in the world namely Audi, Chrysler, Ford, General Motors, Honda, Hyundai, Nissan, Toyota, and Volkswagen.

There would also be media days scheduled on November 14 and 15. For this year after thirty years of doing an auto show, the LA Auto Show will be held in fall rather than the customary early January. The main objective of the change in schedule is to attract more exhibitors plus encourage more worldwide and North American vehicle debuts. And with nine of the leading automakers in the world confirming their participation simply shows that the LA Auto Show will surely realize its objectives.

Andy Fuzesi, General Manager of the LA Auto Show as quoted by theautochannel.com said, "Putting more distance between our show and Detroit has allowed manufacturers more time and resources to focus on both and gives the LA Auto Show its own place on the international auto show calendar."

Aside from being renowned for innovative auto designs and strong luxury market, the Southern California has also become an important market for alternative fuel vehicles. And for this year’s LA Auto Show it will continue advocating green auto technology as well as anticipate important developments in alternative fuel vehicle plus of course the announcement of the 2008 Green Car of the Year.

And before I forget the registration for the media days will start on September 1. The show will officially open for the public on November 16 to 25, 2007. For more information kindly visit www.LAautoshow.com.

From a Polish F1 driver, let us now take a trip to the Far East, shall we?

Toyota Motor Corporation has recently launched the redesigned models of the Voxy and Noah compact MPV in Toyota dealerships all over Japan. The two Toyota models target Japanese auto enthusiasts who look for practicality and convenience in vehicle models. These two models has already gained popularity from Japanese customers since its first launch last 2001, and Toyota aims to continue dominating the compact MPV segment with the launch of the 2nd generation models.

Let us take a look what these two MPVs got in store for Japanese peeps.

Both models will feature either a 2.0-liter 3ZR-FAE or a 3ZR-FE engine. The engines feature  Dual VVT-i (Dual Variable Valve Timing-intelligent) and  Valvematic continuously variable
valve lift structure. These power plant for Voxy and Noah MPVs offer an excellent fuel efficiency as well as low harmful CO2 emissions. Customers can also match the engine with the Super CVT-i (Super Continuously Variable Transmission-intelligent) and a 7-speed Sports Sequential Shiftmatic transmission.

Other features of the Voxy and Noah MPVs include automatic air conditioner with temperature controls for the driver's side and passenger's side, An Intelligent Parking Assist system,  
Panoramic Super-live Sound System, Smart Entry & Start System, and the HDD navigation system. In addition, the vehicles also comes with a unique instrument panel with three-layer structure and a modern center console.

Here are some other highlights of the two vehicles according to a Toyota official press release

Toyota Voxy
• The front end creates a sharp surface that creates the look of a condensed form packed with power. The stepped headlights, one of the distinctive design features of the Voxy, express stylishness and individuality.

• The side emphasizes the Voxy's simple yet active feel through the door profile with full, curved surfaces, the flush fender lines and the sharp character lines that extend from the front to the rear.

• The trapezoidal silhouette of the rear evokes a sense of stability while the clear and advanced design of the combination taillights gives a cool and stylish impression.

Toyota Noah
• The front end creates a familiar and striking impression with a round three-dimensional body and deeply sculpted form extending from the grille to the hood.

• The side emphasizes the simple yet active feel and modern look of the Noah through the door profile with numerous curved surfaces and the J-shaped character lines of the front fenders.

• The rear creates a sense of breadth with combination taillights that wrap around the sides and a feeling of stability with a trapezoidal silhouette, while the red combination taillights emphasize familiarity.

Last Sunday was a sad day for Poland’s Robert Kubica. Reports based on an in-car radio transmission allegedly coming from race winner Lewis Hamilton’s engineer states that the Kubica has broke his leg.  Fortunately, this news is not yet confirmed so fans of Kubica should better not over react yet.

But Medical Centre officials did however confirmed that Kubica was taken from the 280kph smash without suffering any internal injuries. They further added that the Polish driver is due to have his x-rays and other medical checkups at the L’Hopital du Sacre-Coeur in downtown Montreal.

Kubica’s manager Danielle Morelli has also said during a television interview that the Polish driver spoke nearly normally before he was airlifted.

Kubica’s First Question after the Race
I remember that for every race there would always be famous quotes before and after the race from drivers. Its quite sad that Rubica would have to narrate a horrible crashing incident instead.

Anyway going back to Robert Kubica his first question to the doctors at the L’Hopital du Sacre-Coeur was “Can I race in Indianapolis next Sunday?”
 
Ronald Denis, head trauma at the L’Hopital and the Circuit Gilles Villenueve has confirmed at the Canwest News Service that Rubica has suffered minor concussion and a sprained right ankle. The doctor also added that the Polish driver will need to undergo some neurological tests on Monday.

Dr. Ronald Denis narrated, “When I saw the crash on the screen I was very worried; I thought he was dead. But when we got there, I was very happy to see he was talking. Under the circumstances he is doing very, very well.”

BMW Sauber has also announced that they will make their decision on whether to allow the Polish driver to race in America at the Indianapolis circuit this coming Thursday.

After the 2005 IndyCar season, Scotsman racer Dario Franchitti decided to have a thorough soul-searching and closed the year for victory and fame.

After he experienced 2 severe injuries and won almost 15 open wheel races he was having second thoughts to for go on his career on competing on race. On his interview he said that he was not happy anymore- he thought he had lost passion and interest for the race already.

This year however, he found a strong motivation. And now the man is the champion in the most renowned and world's richest open-wheel event and, along with the Monaco Grand Prix - Indy 500.

Franchitti said, "You know, I was still in shock for a while," the day after captivating the rain-shortened Indy 500. The funny thing is he used up more than a few hours just to pose with the Borg-Warner Trophy with his name inscribed and his face emblazoned on it together with his winning car for photos.

Franchitti heads to the Milwaukee Mile for Sunday's ABC Supply/A.J. Foyt 225, the sixth race of the IndyCar season. He is just three points behind series leader Scott Dixon, the Indy runner-up, and two behind Dan Wheldon.

The closest Franchitti has come to a title was in 1999 when he tied with Juan Pablo Montoya at the top of the season points. Montoya got the title with more race wins -- seven to Franchitti's three.

So if you’re looking for a nice, quiet and relaxing drive the last place to head to should be the streets of Miami. That is, if the latest report in the AIADA newsletter saying that for the second consecutive year Miami has received the title of worst road rage city based on the survey made by AutoVantage - a Connecticut-based automobile membership club.

In the survey, Miami motorists said they saw other drivers slam on their brakes, run red lights and talk on cell phones.
Miami once again emerged as the city with the least courteous drivers among the set of 25 major metropolitan areas included in this national study. Only 6% of the regular commuters interviewed in Miami felt that drivers in their city were “more courteous” than commuters in other major American cities.
The twenty worst cities, in terms of people’s reported driving behavior were:

1.Miami            
2.New York       
3.Boston        
4.Los Angeles       
5.Washington, D.C.   
6.Phoenix               
7.Chicago       
8.Sacramento       
9.Philadelphia       
10.San Francisco       
11.Houston       
12.Atlanta       
13.Detroit
14.Minneapolis/St. Paul
15.Baltimore
16.Tampa
17.San Diego
18.Cincinnati
19.Cleveland
20.Denver
21.Dallas/Ft. Worth
22.St. Louis
23.Seattle/Tacoma
24.Pittsburgh
25.Portland

On the other hand this year, Portland obtained the merit of having the most courteous drivers despite that Portland was one of the new cities added to this 2007 study. Almost one-half of the commuters interviewed in Portland said that drivers were more courteous in their city than in others.

The list of the ten cities with the most courteous drivers this year includes:

1.Portland        
2.Pittsburgh          
3.Seattle/Tacoma    
4.St. Louis        
5.Dallas/Ft. Worth    
6.Denver        
8.Cincinnati        
9.San Diego        
10.Tampa        
11.Baltimore        
12.Minneapolis/St. Paul    
13.Detroit
14.Atlanta
15.Houston
16.San Francisco
17.Philadelphia
18.Sacramento
19.Chicago
20.Phoenix
21.Washington, D.C.
22.Los Angeles
23.Boston
24.New York
25.Miami

Abandoning cars has grown as a major and increasing problem in many areas in recent years and doing so are blight on our environment. This persuades criminals to do dreadful things and it makes a certain area look nasty.

A vehicle that is considered to be abandoned it must, first it must be untaxed, on the road and not on private property.

So if you’re thinking of abandoning you’re wrecked car somewhere else, better think twice! I bet the following section from the consultation paper from the Department of Transport will help you realize what’s the best thing to do with you’re non-functioning vehicle.
In the UK, they have sanctions against people abandoning vehicles and these are:

* Abandoning vehicles is a criminal offence under the Refuse Disposal (Amenity) Act 1978, carrying a maximum penalty of a fine of £2500 or three months' imprisonment, or both. In practice, the difficulties in tracing the person currently in possession of the vehicle mean that the number of prosecutions is negligible.

* End of life vehicles are to be classified as hazardous waste under the Hazardous Waste List. The maximum penalties for the unlawful deposit or disposal of such waste under the Section 33 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 are, in a magistrates' court, six months' imprisonment or a fine of £20,000, or both; and, in the Crown Court, five years' imprisonment or an unlimited fine, or both.

bandoned vehicles that are not claimed are sent to H Ripley and Company in Hailsham for recycling and to have little waste as possible it has to undergo processes.

1.    De-pollution – all harmful pollutants (like oil, petrol, diesel and brake fluid) are drained off separately using specialized equipment
2.    Vehicles are then dismantled (reusable parts are saved and sold for reuse

3.    Tires are sent for shredding and are made into the soft surfaces on which horses are exercised

4.    Metal bulk also undergo processed and squashed into a cube then it will be melted and made into steel beams for use in construction
Well at least people there are careful of leaving wrecked cars just anywhere.

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