154 Find us Online : www.automan.me | Facebook: AutomanMag | Twitter: @automanmag | Youtube: AutomanVideo AUTOMAN JUNE 2014 2014 JUNE AUTOMAN OMR 0.500 AED 10 QR 10 NOW, THE REGION’S BEST AUTOMOTIVE RESOURCE JUNE 2014 ISSUE NO 154 2014 LAMBORGHINI HURACAN | 2014 BENTLEY CGT V8 S |2014 VOLKSWAGEN GOLF R |2014 PORSCHE MACAN |2014 MINI COOPER |2014 TRIUMPH BONNEVILLE |NISSAN MURANO & PULSAR | MOTORSPORTS | PULSAR & MURANO BONNEVILLETRIUMPH |2014 |NISSAN COOPER MINI |2014 MACAN PORSCHE R |2014 GOLF |2014 VOLKSWAGEN S V8 CGT BENTLEY 2014 HURACAN | 2014 LAMBORGHINI FACE TO FACE ME Exclusive! Jack Rodencal 2014 Hyundai Managing Director, Xcent tested Fiat Chrysler Middle East LAMBORGHINI’S GALLARDO SUCCESSOR, THE ALL-NEW 2014 HURACAN CHECKED OUT IN ASCARI, SPAIN 2015 Kia Carnival | 2015 Nissan Murano 2015 Nissan Pulsar | 2014 Lexus LX570 Supercharged 2015 Mercedes-Benz S63| AMG FIRST Coupe RIDE | | PREVIEWS | | FIRST DRIVES | 2014 Bentley CGT V8 S | 2014 Triumph Bonneville | 2014 Volkswagen Golf R |2014 Porsche Macan | 2014 MINI Cooper SPOT REPORT: 2014 NEW YORK AUTO SHOW | TRENDS: SUB-BRANDING GAINING MOMENTUM PAGE - 27 in this issue CONTENT METER 0 COVERSTORY | COVER STORY 2014 Lamborghini 28-35 2014 LAMBORGHINI HURACAN 28 NEXT ISSUE 36-41 2014 BENTLEY CONTINENTAL GT V8 S Huracan 2015 GMC YUKON Gallardo successor is a OMAN AND REGIONAL NEWS stunning piece of design 6-11 NEW GMC YUKON COMING SOON, NEW CAR LAUNCHES: 2014 HONDA CITY, 2014 SUBARU WRX STI AND STI, BLUE OVAL’s 10 and engineering LATEST TECHNOLOGIES SHOWCASED AT BRAND EVENT IN UAE, REGIONAL PERFORMANCE INDICATORS: NISSAN, JAGUAR LAND ROVER, GENERAL MOTORS MIDDLE EAST, RENAULT, INFINITI. Al Jenaibi organizes ‘TOUR OF Supremacy’ with BMW CARS, MICHELIN SUMMER PROMOTION HELD IN UAE, AL NABOODA OPENS NEW MULTIBRAND CAR SHOWROOM IN UAE, ZUBAIR AUTOMOTIVE GROUP WEBSITE WINS AWARD, SBG RECEIVES 20 THREE AWARDS FROM TOYOTA, NEW VW BEETLE IN REGION, MARKETWATCH, VVIP EDITION NISSAN PATROL ON SALE, VW CC GETS NO-COST ENGINE UPGRADE BRANDWATCH 22-27 TFIAT CHRYSLER AUTOMOBILES GAME PLAN DETAILED, JAGUAR CONFIRMS XE AS NEW NAME FOR FORTHCOMING SPORTS SEDAN, ASTON MARTIN WILL NOT RETIRE 12-CYLINDER 30 ENGINES, ASTON MARTIN CONFIRMS NEW PLATFORM DEVELOPMENT, MAZDA MX-5 CHASSIS FOR NEW FIAT PRODUCT? JAGUAR TO PRODUCE SIX UNITS OF CLASSIC LIGHTWEIGHT E-TYPE, VOLKSWAGEN LOCKS IN DESIGN FOR BUDGET BRAND, SUBARU DETAILS FUTURE BUSINESS STRATEGY, LEXUS PLANNING BIGGER SUV? LEXUS TO OFFER SUPERCHARGED LX 570 EXCLUSIVE FOR MIDDLE EAST, LEXUS SHY OF CHINA PRODUCTION, NEW 40 NAVARRA-BASED SUV TO BE LAUNCHED BY NISSAN SOON, MERCEDES-BENZ FUTURE SUV STRATEGY GETTING CLEARER, US TAXPAYERS WHOPPING $11.2BN BILL FOR GM’s bailout, ANNIVERSARY SPECIALS FROM FORD AND BMW, WIESMANN CLOSED FOR GOOD, EXECUTIVE APPOINTMENTS: MARK FIELDS, JEAN-MARC GALES, YVES BONNEFONT 36 INTERNATIONAL NEWS 50 12-21 2014 NEW YORK AUTO SHOW REPORT ALSO DRIVEN 42-45 2014 VOLKSWAGEN GOLF R 46-49 2014 MINI COOPER 12 54-59 2014 PORSCHE MACAN Bentley Continental GT EXCLUSIVE FIRST DRIVE 60 50-53 2014 HYUNDAI XCENT V8 S Stunning concepts Now, with that extra punch and production cars FIRST RIDE @ 2014 New York 54-56 2014 TRIUMPH BONNEVILLE Auto Show PREVIEWS 42 60 64-65 2014 KIA CARNIVAL 70 54 66-69 2014 NISSAN MURANO & PULSAR 70-71 2014 MERCEDES-BENZ S63 AMG COUPE 72-75 2014 COTY MOTORSPORTS 76-79 FORMULA 1 CHINA/SPAIN REPORTS, JACK BRABHAM 80 80 CHICANE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Mohammad Al Taie AL ROYA PRESS & PUBLISHING PO Box: 343, Postal Code 118 It looks like the recovery in the global car market has gathered steam. The Al Harthy Complex Sultanate of Oman good old battle between GM and Toyota is back on and the volumes are back above 50 million vehicles worldwide. In the process, some market dynamics Email: [email protected] have changed – with China becoming the world’s largest market, the GCC Website: www.automan.me being the most profitable per capita and the luxury segment getting newer Editorial office: players. Tel: +968 24479888 Extn 300, Fax: +968 24479889 Distribution: Tel: +968 24490386, Fax: +968 24121045 We had some interesting one on one discussions with senior global Subscription: industry executives over the past month. One of the outcomes has been Tel: +968 24493701, Fax: +968 24121045 the acknowledgement of a resurgent luxury segment. Bentley has anyway PUBLISHER confirmed its SUV, sending out teasers of what it will look like. And another Hatim Al Taie [email protected] sportscar brand is exploring a 2+2, which should be unveiled for the motorshow season at the end of the year. And mainstream premium brands EDITOR & GM Raj Warrior [email protected] are working hard to catapult newer, more efficient models into the market as well. EXECUTIVE EDITOR Chandan B Mallik [email protected] The Huracán that features on the cover this month’s issue is Lamborghini’s CONTRIBUTING EDITOR replacement for the Gallardo. It raises the bar for the segment, with class- Anne Kurian [email protected] leading interiors, an amazingly stylish exterior and a hundred thousand Rial HEAD OF DESIGN price tag. But what is really important is that it also symbolises a change in Antony Karlo the mind-set of a major brand – it realises that customers who pay so much expect their cars to be multi-modal, fulfilling the need for a track car along PHOTOGRAPHY Elvis John Ferrao with a city commuter. To their credit the Huracán beats the Gallardo on the track and beats the class as a regular drive on the road. MARKETING Sayantani Ghosh [email protected] However, the way in which we interact with our cars also seems to be set for a CIRCULATION change. Google has taken the next step in its exploration of an autonomous [email protected] drive by announcing its own car – without steering wheel, brake or even FINANCE & ADMIN an accelerator pedal. If ever that goes mainstream, we may just become a Sumy Mol [email protected] magazine of a rapidly disappearing genre – the human-driven car. Google’s move symbolises the trend towards offering solutions that serve as market WEBSITE & IT Mohammed F Draz [email protected] disrupters. For starters, if you have a car that will take you wherever you want, who needs a human-driven taxi? And why would you wait for a bus PRINTER when you could summon one of these bugs to your location through your Ruwi Modern Printers LLC, Muscat Tel: +968 2479 4167, 2479 8157 smart phone? Fax: +968 2470 0545 Admittedly, we are still some time away from the day when legislation around © 2014 All editorial content of Automan in the magazine the world will allow these devices on the main road. Can it truly be called a and its website is copyrighted and may not car? be reproduced in any form without the written consent of the management of AL ROYA PRESS & PUBLISHING Now, Automan is available in bookshops in Automan accepts unsolicited exclusive editorial material, but reserves the right to publish any such the United Arab Emirates too! Get your copy material. Once published, the copyright for any or let us know which outlets you would like such material will vest with AL ROYA PRESS & PUBLISHING to see us in the company’s Earth Dreams technology. Meanwhile, Honda has introduced some improvements to the carry over engine from the previous City and this has improved fuel efficiency from 6.6-litre/100km with the old auto to 5.7-litre/100km. The new City features 24 per cent improved rigidity over the outgoing model and changes have also been made to the steering, while the suspension has been tweaked for an improved ride. Honda claims the car has been structurally designed to score a maximum five-star rating in the NCAP frontal off-set, side- and pole- impact collision tests. onda Motor Co. A lot of attention has been paid in getting (Middle East the feature pack up to date and the key HOffice) introduced highlight in the cabin besides generous space its C-segment new sedan, is a completely new dashboard with piano- the City, for the Middle black finish accents and a control panel touch NEWS Oman & region East in Dubai last month. screen beneath a larger seven-inch advanced BLUE Oval’S latest technologies showcased at brand event The sharper styled new integrated audio screen. External devices can n a bid to keep its core audience well- marketplace, it’s more important than ever the car to see and respond, whereas Ford arrival will be offered be paired via various ports like USB/HDMI. connected, over 300 regional Ford sales for us to highlight how Ford cars stack up claims that the all-new Ranger has been in three grades with an Cargo space is up from up from 506=litres consultants, fleet customers and media against the competition,” said Kalyana tested in places offering various levels introduction of a new to 536-litre cargo capacity. The car was also I were invited to experience Ford brand Sivagnanam, director, Marketing, Sales and of challenges such as Australia, Dubai, base grade -DX followed launched in Oman by its official importer culture, DNA and pillars as manifested in Service, Ford Middle East & North Africa. Thailand, North America, Brazil, Sweden by LX and the top-of-the-line retailer. Prices in Oman begin at OMR5,949 its latest technologies and products across The track and off-road demonstration and South Africa. Ranger prototypes have EX. Only one engine, the 1.5-litre for entry DX and OMR6,869 for top EX model. the spectrum. exercises also included a key Japanese reportedly clocked more than a million i-VTEC delivering maximum power of And despite the political unrest in Thailand Dubai’s Autodrome was chosen as the brand rival.