Hyundai Equus Becomes Costa Rica's Presidential Limo

For his last days in office as the President of Costa Rica, Oscar Arias will be sporting a brand new presidential limo - the Hyundai Equus. The all-new Equus is donated by the government of South Korea, in conjunction with Hyundai Motor Company. The car is currently en route to Costa Rica, and is expected to arrive in the country on April 20th.

The new presidential ride for Costa Rica replaces the outgoing Kia Opirus (Amanti) in the country's presidential fleet. The rear-wheel drive flagship model of Hyundai will be given to Arias who is completing his term very soon, and the keys will be handed over later to president-elect Laura Chinchilla.

There are no indications that the Equus for the Costa Rican President is bulletproof like the model designed for the South Korean President.

[Source: Inside Costa Rica]

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Unfortunate Typo: Hyundai's Mid-Size Hybrid Already?

Stop the presses! Courtesy of the New York Daily News, it looks like we have our first look at Hyundai's anticipated hybrid-electric mid-size sedan. But wait, the car looks strikingly familiar. Is Hyundai reverting to its derivative designs of the past? The Altima name would definitely get the folks at Nissan feisty...

The Hyundai Altima Hybrid gig certainly gave us a chuckle this morning. We checked it out again later in the evening, and it seems that the established publication has still not caught the scent of its unfortunate, but understandable error. Let's see how long this lapse will last.

[Source: New York Daily News]

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NEW: Follow us on Twitter

That's right. Twitter has proven to be an excellent application for receiving news updates on the go or at your desktop. So, TheCarBlogger is following suit with our own Twitter feed:

http://twitter.com/TheCarBlogger

Please comment after the jump for any questions or suggestions.

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NOTICE: TheCarBlogger has a new website address!

We have finally done it. In short words, TheCarBlogger's new URL or web address is:

http://newcarmax.blogspot.com

As if TheCarBlogger isn't already a long name, we have made it easier for readers and new visitors in accessing the website by removing the "blogspot.com" and simply changing it to ".net". We would have opted for the ".com" domain if it was available, but it has been registered before we could snatch it. We hope that this new change will ameliorate your experience here at TheCarBlogger, the only Korean car news website in English (meaning not a brand-dedicated website).

For those who have bookmarked the website, do not worry if it contains the old URL (http://thecarblogger.blogspot.com). In about three to four days, Blogger will complete the transition of our website from the old domain to the new domain. After that, you can still visit TheCarBlogger by entering the old URL as you will be redirected automatically.

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2009: 새해 복 많이 받으세요! & Happy New Year Everyone!

Sydney Harbour, Australia @ New Year's Celebration 2009

Puzzled at the post title? Well, Korean wishes for a Happy New Year are inevitable in a Korean car news blog run by a Korean guy, right? It's just past midnight here in Toronto, Canada, and I would like to wish everyone of my readers from all over the globe a Happy New Year! Let's make sure that 2009 will bring more joy into our lives and ensure it will be a memorable one like the one we just bid goodbye. Farewell 2008 and greetings, 2009!

Photo Credit: L Plater - Flickr

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Spied: Mystery wagon/crossover

Clueless? So am I. Here's a spy shot of an unknown station wagon or crossover car that was caught in South Korea.

The location alone says that it is probably a Korean car, as foreign manufacturers rarely test future cars in the country. In comparison to the Hyundai Sonata parked beside it, the car looks to be fairly large. The length of the car also implies that it might be a 7-seater like the Subaru Exiga. The grille is not alike any corporate grilles from Korean makers. The oval badge is reminiscent of Hyundai or Kia's. The mule also sports Mercedes-Benz AMG styled wheels.

Other than the information above, I am about as confounded as you. Have any insight on what this might be? Post a comment after the jump.

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Reader Sighting: Notable Hyundai billboard in Chicago

A regular reader of TheCarBlogger, going by the alias of tiburonboy23, sent me an e-mail urging me to check out the attached image. It was of a "notable" Hyundai billboard located in Chicago. My first impression was probably along the same lines as many of you - "What the heck?" The image on the banner consists of a partly visible person dressed in Korean traditional garment facing a gargantuan Japanese sumo wrestler with a smug face. I discovered that once you get the jist of this, the image makes a very powerful statement.

To describe it in laymen's terms, the pygmy Koreans are determined to beat the Japanese giants. Had Hyundai posted this billboard a decade ago, we could only go so far as to lauding them for having at least the determination. Flash forward ten years later and it shows that the Koreans have become worthy opponents to the Japanese. Perhaps, flashing forward another ten years, we might see the tiny guy standing on top of the fallen wrestler. If Hyundai-Kia's recent #5 ranking of worldwide sales serves as an indication, that image has never looked clearer.

Editor's Note: What is your opinion of the billboard? Post a comment to share your thoughts.

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TheCarBlogger is redesigned

I marked the genesis of TheCarBlogger on January 14th, 2007. That was when I was in Grade 7 and hardly knew the intricate HTML language. Today is June 22, 2008. While it does not mark any anniversaries, it does the mark the beginning of a new face for TheCarBlogger. I promised you last year that we were planning a full redesign of the website. The promise has been delivered. Along with the new design, I renew my commitment to deliver you with the latest news on Korean cars.

Now that the new design is here, I'm clamoring to unearth new ideas for improvements to the website. While I enjoy doing challenges on my own, I would like to ask you for ideas and suggestions as well. Whether it be the new design or anything else regarding TheCarBlogger, please send me an e-mail at thecarblogger@hotmail.com or post a comment right here. Thanks everyone.

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Exams, Exams, Exams

To put a long story short, exams are commencing for me this week. Some of you readers might know that I'm a Grade 8 student currently. For others, surprise! As a student who aims to improve on every aspects of his life (school, TheCarBlogger, etc.), I will be studying throughout this week and partly next week. The first exam starts this Monday, and the final exam will be held on Tuesday, June 10.

Final exams are worth considerably for the term average of students. Thus, I will post less this week due to the event and I would like to make a sincere apology to those who visit TheCarBlogger daily. Thanks for stopping by, and don't forget that the stream of posts will kick off again next Tuesday.

William Lee
Editor-in-Chief: TheCarBlogger

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TheCarBlogger Goes Seoul-o

For those who still hang on to us and check our blog every so often, I thank you very much and I can't find the right words to express my gratitude towards you folks. For long periods ever so often since the end of the summer break, TheCarBlogger has been facing unexpected hiatuses disappointing many of our daily readers. The number of our visitors dropped significantly from an average level of 600 visitors to somewhere near the 200 level. This drop prompted me to find out the best solution for this problem, so it benefits you.

Since the first day of the opening of TheCarBlogger, the majority of our articles reported on cars and news in North America. We also had quite a few international articles. You might have also noticed that we like to report on events occurring in South Korea. Exclusive spy reports of the upcoming models from Hyundai and Kia were frequent and it was those articles that garnered the most attention to our site from around the world. Add to that, the popularity of Korean automobiles has gone through the roof over the recent years. So, what does this even have to do with the big news waiting to be unleashed. Well, you already have somewhat of an idea now.

From today, TheCarBlogger is your source for the latest automotive news sprouting from the Korean automotive industry. As a Korean myself, TheCarBlogger gains great advantages over other international automotive websites that need more than a Google Translator to report on the latest reports from Seoul. This change means more than just news from the Far East. TheCarBlogger will also be here to report on the latest news of Korean automakers around the world, including the U.S. and Europe. Has Ferrari officially signed the deal to officially enter the Korean market (actually, they will officially on November 16th)? TheCarBlogger will be here.

So, with all this corporate mumble, what advantages do you get? Well first, there is currently no professional Korean automotive blog that reports 100% in English anywhere on the web. That means no more digging on Bobaedream with Babelfish or a Google Translator. Exclusive information and images regarding upcoming Korean cars will be right here. I can proudly concur that:

TheCarBlogger is the first English Korean automotive blog on the web.

I would very much appreciate feedback on this change and throughout the course of the week, you'll be seeing some physical changes made to the blog. We're in the process of implementing a new domain as well.

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Poll: What Do You Want More From TheCarBlogger?

Our heads are practically bleeding because we continuously scratched them trying to find out what we need to improve, add, remove from TheCarBlogger. After all, our ambition surrounds on the fact of reform. We don't want to be the top of the top, but darn close to it though. As of now, we stand no chance against the big rigs like Autoblog, LeftLaneNews and egmCarTech. We don't desire to be superior to them. We like to take the step-by-step route and find things to improve day by day. We're already in high gear in developing our videocasts, slated to arrive later in the year. We'll zip our mouths from here, but you can see how much we clamor over improving.

Our main and lone target base is you, readers and avid automotive enthusiasts. We are catering to the most fun group of people in society. We love cars and you do too. So, we want to have a little more fun by delivering automotive news to you, for browsing at home, work, or at Starbucks. We want to know what you want more from TheCarBlogger. You must have a little iffy issue of TheCarBlogger somewhere. Here's your chance to voice it. We know sending an e-mail is a pain in the bum. With the interactive poll at the bottom, just add your choice or vote up on the choices already given. We would really appreciate your participation in the poll as we are obsessed in making our blog a tiny better than the day before.

(No we won't give you a Ute...international vehicle importing fees are over the roof these days.)

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Poll: What Do You Want More From TheCarBlogger?

Our heads are practically bleeding because we continuously scratched them trying to find out what we need to improve, add, remove from TheCarBlogger. After all, our ambition surrounds on the fact of reform. We don't want to be the top of the top, but darn close to it though. As of now, we stand no chance against the big rigs like Autoblog, LeftLaneNews and egmCarTech. We don't desire to be superior to them. We like to take the step-by-step route and find things to improve day by day. We're already in high gear in developing our videocasts, slated to arrive later in the year. We'll zip our mouths from here, but you can see how much we clamor over improving.

Our main and lone target base is you, readers and avid automotive enthusiasts. We are catering to the most fun group of people in society. We love cars and you do too. So, we want to have a little more fun by delivering automotive news to you, for browsing at home, work, or at Starbucks. We want to know what you want more from TheCarBlogger. You must have a little iffy issue of TheCarBlogger somewhere. Here's your chance to voice it. We know sending an e-mail is a pain in the bum. With the interactive poll at the bottom, just add your choice or vote up on the choices already given. We would really appreciate your participation in the poll as we are obsessed in making our blog a tiny better than the day before.

(No, we won't give away an Aston. It's just so cool.)

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Going to the source ain't the same anymore, embedded images added

Taking effect from this very post, all our sources of the articles we post on TheCarBlogger will be embedded on the main image above the text. We got this idea from Autoblog (thanks folks) and decided to play with the complicating HTML to a great result. Up until this post, we played it the conventional way with the sources of our posts cited between some dull parentheses like this:

[Source: Autoblog]

Now, you can simply click the main image of the post above the text to be redirected to the source of the article. A sample image above demonstrates this new feature for easier comprehension. This is no big news, but we want to avoid any confusion from our readers who want to visit the source who traditionally look for the hyperlink at the end of the post. We will still cite our sources, however without the hyperlink like this:

[Source: Autoblog]

Our continuous pursuit in looking for the tiniest improvements for TheCarBlogger have been showing slowly as you might have seen some of our new features in the site. The fully revolutionized (not really) sidebar adds a Breaking News feature, Featured Posts, Spy Corner for the folks who want an earlier glimpse at upcoming cars, New Model Launches for a highlight of new cars launched over the past month and Recalls Notice for a quick look at what vehicles are currently under recall. You can click the thumbnails for added convenience.

If you have ideas for TheCarBlogger, send us an e-mail at thecarblogger@hotmail.com.

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TheCarBlogger reaches 500 posts!

January 14th, 2007 marked the genesis of TheCarBlogger. Since then, we have reached our 500th post today. From our first day of operation, we have changed dramatically inside and out. Just looking back at our archives to our first weeks imply that we have definitely improved abundantly. All of this, however, would not have been done if it weren't for our faithful readers. It was your visits that motivated us to advance everyday and we can't thank you guys enough for visiting TheCarBlogger. Writing our 100th post, which was an article regarding the introduction of the Land Rover LR3 Cargo, seems like just yesterday to us.

We'd like to give a big thanks to our friends over at Autoblog for their continuous support for TheCarBlogger. 500 posts is just the beginning for us. We will, no doubt, bring you fresh automotive news hot off the press everyday. As a little extra treat for our readers, we'll spill the beans on what's in the pipeline for us in the coming days. Bi-weekly podcasts are our first priority for our readers to download in their iPods. Look for our first podcast episode to appear in the fall. We also recently registered the domain 'http://www.newcarmax.blogspot.com' and we are in the process of implementing the new domain. Who knows? A full-on redesign of the blog is in our rumor box.

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TheCarBlogger gets its own facelift

We think all our readers were smart enough to notice the minor redesign that we implemented not too long ago. To newcomers, we forgive you as TheCarBlogger shows massive growth everyday and new readers pour in everyday. As we look for improvements each day, we decided to undertake a minor redesign of the blog template. The main highlight of the changes is the riddance of the old two-column design in favor of the new three-column design we implemented. This new change gives the the blog a fresher and more organized look.

A minor change that we've also installed is the labels at the left column which makes viewing the blog more efficient than ever. Select the category you wish to view from the massive list of categories and you'll get there in a click.

A new widget has been also installed in our blog below each post. The AddThis Social Bookmarking makes bookmarking or sharing a post we've made easier than ever. Some of the services that you can share a post include: Del.icio.us, Digg, Ask, Facebook, Google Bookmarks, Technorati, Windows Live Bookmarking and Fark.

We continue to look for improvements for our blog everyday and you can help us. Send us an e-mail at thecarblogger@hotmail.com
If you have any news tips or corrections, please send us an e-mail at tcbresearch@hotmail.com

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TheCarBlogger to go on a VERY short hiatus

Hiatus? You would think we're crazy as the world of automotive news moves rapidly and there's no time for pausing. We gave that a thought or two and we never intended to go on this hiatus. However, in life, personal issues can occur at the most unexpected time and we figure that now is a very appropriate time to go on a short hiatus.

To make things short, being mugged is very unpleasant. Today, my friend and I were mugged in broad daylight in front of our local subway station. Before I go on, I apologize to anyone who might be offended by the short recount of what had happened today. We figure that reading this might help you alot as you might face this when you go and come from work everyday. Two males, older in age than us, approached us out of nowhere while my friend and I was walking back from school. They were wearing bandanas on their faces to cover their identity, and they did a real good job in making themselves look like a true criminal. In our thirteen years of life, we've never encountered a mugger ever in our lives. They threatened and commited bodily harm on both my peer and I and my peer was bruised slightly from a rock thrown by one of the muggers at his shoulder blade.

Following our instincts, all we could do was run at that time. We never gave anything that they have requested (electronics, MP3 players, etc.), but they managed to make a mark on both of our lives. We will not further comment on the event, but we emphasize to you, our readers, that you should always be prepared for events like that as they can occur in the most unexpected times in the most unexpected places. Our situation occurred in broad daylight and a few witnesses got their looks on two average students being mugged with physical contact. We feel that we should take a 24-hour hiatus to relieve the mental shock we have received. We recommend you visit our friends over at Autoblog for continuous automotive news. Thank you very much for understanding and we'll be back tomorrow where our flow of automotive news will restart into full throttle.

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Freightliner introduces the Cascadia

Freightliner, the big-rig department of Daimler-Chrysler, unveiled its new Cascadia today. Built on a new platform, it is built on DCX's own Global Heavy-Duty Engine platform, with powertrains expected to arrive later this year from Detroit Diesel. It is on the light side on the scale thanks to its aluminum cab, and it is more fuel efficient than its predecessor due to a more aerodynamic design, tested numerously at Frieghtliner's wind tunnel.

[Source: Autoblog]

Continued- Official press release

PRESS RELEASE:

Freightliner Trucks Introduces Ground-Breaking New On-Highway Truck

-Freightliner Cascadia™ Optimized for Fuel Efficiency, Cab Comfort and Drivability
-Andreas Renschler, DaimlerChrysler Board of Management Member responsible for the Truck Group: "First truck equipped with new global Heavy-Duty Engine Platform and common Electric/Electronic Architecture"

Stuttgart/Charlotte, N.C., May 03, 2007
Freightliner Trucks today launched the Cascadia™ – a revolutionary new Class 8 truck for on-highway applications. Built from an entirely new platform, the Cascadia delivers significant fuel savings and is designed based on the Run Smart™ philosophy to be the most productive, efficient, and drivable truck on the market. Plus, with its new styling, a quieter and more comfortable cab, ergonomic controls, and exceptional handling, the Cascadia was specifically constructed with driver comfort and improved operating ratios in mind.

Andreas Renschler, Member of the DaimlerChrysler Board of Management responsible for the Truck Group, said at the official presentation of the new truck in Charlotte, North Carolina: "With our five truck brands Freightliner, Sterling, Western Star, Mercedes-Benz and Mitsubishi Fuso ensuring our world-wide presence, we are able to leverage the global resources and expertise of the Truck Group for the benefit of each brand." Renschler continued: "The Cascadia profits in many ways from our global experience: It is the first truck that will be equipped with our new global Heavy-Duty Engine Platform as well as the new common Electric/ Electronic architecture. Freightliner's new flagship truck will be manufactured using our high level DaimlerChrysler production system."

The Cascadia was designed to easily accept EPA '07 emission engines. Its expandable electronic platform can easily accommodate the technology. Plus, the Cascadia was built to be paired with the all-new global Heavy-Duty Engine Platform, the first of which will debut later this year under the Detroit Diesel engine brand.

The Cascadia offers a 3 percent improvement in fuel economy over previous models. To achieve this, more than one million engineering hours, including 2,500 hours in Freightliner's state-of-the-art full scale wind tunnel, went into its development. It is the first truck built and engineered using Freightliner LLC's wind tunnel – the only testing facility in the world built specifically for Class 8 vehicles.

"Our customers are faced with the consequences of ever-tightening emissions standards, higher fuel prices, rapidly escalating wages and benefits, and a dire shortage of maintenance technicians," said Chris Patterson, president and CEO of Freightliner LLC. "Freightliner was built on solving our customers' most pressing concerns, and only Freightliner has the resources and the know-how to bring a completely new model to market at this difficult time for the trucking and truck-building industries."

Freightliner initiated an extensive study of its key customers' needs and issues to evaluate product improvements that could alleviate these stresses. Numerous fleet owners and owner-operators provided detailed feedback about everything from cost-saving features to comfort options and aesthetic attributes.

Thus the truck also was designed to maximize payload. The aluminum cab boasts a significant weight savings over steel, and the hood, bumper and quarter fenders are lighter than comparable models. All of these improvements enable operators to haul more freight.

Features such as improved diagnostics, an HVAC system designed to reduce repair frequency, and breakaway side extenders ensure that the Cascadia stays on the road and out of the shop. Other maintenance upgrades include an easy-to-replace roped-in windshield, extended life headlamp bulbs, and easy access to the engine and accessory components mounted to it.

When developing the Cascadia, Freightliner engineers studied the needs of drivers and how they operate their vehicles. This feedback was the basis for design features like a wider cab with automotive styling, ergonomic controls, and extensive lighting and storage space to make the cab more comfortable and livable. With all these features, the Cascadia will also boast a high resale value.

The Cascadia is available for order in mid-May, with trucks rolling off production lines in August 2007.

Freightliner Trucks is a division of Freightliner LLC, headquartered in Portland, Oregon, and is the leading heavy-duty truck manufacturer in North America. Freightliner LLC produces and markets Class 3-8 trucks and is a part of the DaimlerChrysler Truck Group, the world's leading commercial vehicle manufacturer.

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TheCarBlogger is on Facebook!

TheCarBlogger has opened on January 14th, 2007. On April 2nd, 2007, TheCarBloggerGallery kicked off full throttle. TheCarBlogger became the number one blog for the latest automotive news from around the world. TheCarBlogger continuosly expands everyday and starting from today, you can find TheCarBlogger on Facebook.

Facebook is the number one website for interacting with your peers and people that you have just met online. Interactivity is the key word here and TheCarBlogger is the first automotive blog to have a portal on such a website. As you stop by, check out TheCarBlogger@Facebook to see what's going on and have the chance to interact with other visitors, automotive enthusiasts like you, that come to TheCarBlogger.

If you are a Facebook member already, you can join the group at a single click of a button. If you're not, you can register for Facebook here and we're pretty sure your fellow peers most likely have a Facebook account already.

TheCarBlogger@Facebook

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Kelley Blue Book picks coolest vehicles under $18K

Cool doesn't have to be expensive. At least that's what the folks over at Kelley Blue Book figure. The website of the authoritative car-buying resource has put together a list of what they figure are the ten coolest cars you can buy with less than $18,000.

[Source: Autoblog via Kelley Blue Book]

Continued- Article, full list

There are some definite good choices on the list, but some of their choices – and how they arrived at them – leave us scratching our heads and wondering if their cool-meter doesn't need recalibration. Rather than taking the entirely subjective Top Gear "Cool Wall" approach and anointing a car cool or not based purely on image, KBB.com came up with a list of criteria. A cool car, they figure, should have folding seats. Huh? Yeah, versatility was their first criteria, including such features as "clever cubbies and innovative storage solutions" as a prerequisite for classifying a car as cool or not. (That way you've got more places to hide your coolness.) Also taken into consideration were such factors as safety, fuel economy and cabin space, before subjective assessments came into the mix.

The resulting list includes a Chevy pick-up at the top, followed by a Focus, a tiny Honda, an Hyundai, a Jeep, a Mazda3, a Nissan hatch, a Scion, a Suzuki and a VW. Each was included in the sub-$18k list based on Kelley's own proprietary blue-book value.

-2007 Chevrolet Silverado Classic (Regular Cab Manual WT)- $17,015
-2007 Ford Focus SES 2-Door Hatchback- $16,180
-2007 Honda Fit- $14,445
-2007 Hyundai Tiburon- $17,295
-2007 Jeep Patriot- $14,985
-2007 Mazda MAZDA3- $18,175
-2007 Nissan Versa- $13,075
-2007 Scion tC- $16,980
-2007 Suzuki SX4- $17,124
-2007 Volkswagen Rabbit- $15,630

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Brilliance headed to the US as early as this year

Having begun its European expansion the next step for China’s Brilliance is the lucrative US market. If everything goes to plan, the company could be shipping models as early as this year or early 2008.Brilliance already sells the BS4 sedan in Europe and plans to expand this to include the BS6 and an unspecified coupe model. Other models in the pipeline for overseas consumption could include a compact car and a mid-size SUV within three years, reports Reuters.

[Source: Motor Authority]

Continued- Article

It’s not clear whether the company will retain the Brilliance brand name or plans to introduce a new brand specifically for the US market. Chinese car makers will need to ensure build quality and reliability are top-notch to compete with Japanese and Korean models. One point in Brilliance’s favour is its partnership with BMW in China, which gives the fledgling company experience in building premium sedans.

Despite this, the BS6 misses out on numerous safety features that are usually equipped as standard these days, such as side and rear airbags, stability and traction control or even a lap-sash seatbelt in the center rear seat. The car runs a 130hp 2.4L four-cylinder engine sourced from Mitsubishi, which pushes the BS6 to 100km/h from rest in a tardy 12 seconds.

It looks like it’ll be at least another five years before the world’s carmakers begin to feel the might of China.

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