Tuesday 30 April 2013

Innovative Ford test new in-wheel electric motor in electric Fiesta

Innovative Ford test new in-wheel electric motor in electric Fiesta


Innovative Ford test new in-wheel electric motor in electric Fiesta


Ford are testing an electric Fiesta with new, extremely efficient, in-wheel motors.
The motor is provided by Schaeffler in Germany and produces the equivalent of 55 bhp per wheel, but because of the nature of the unit, the effective torque is a huge 500nm.  The Fiesta is not a hybrid, but an all electric car with both rear wheels being driven.   This design with sub-floor batteries will lead to cars being made even smaller but with just as much luggage room as the engine bay is freed up. Some interesting and previously unconsidered upshots of this research such as the ability to turn a wheel through a much larger angle than before or even turning all four wheels will bring about huge benefits in cityFord Fiesta Imagedriving terms.     Interestingly, following initial testing, Ford is said to be putting together a hybrid with the same in-wheel motor and as the motor can be changed to an electric brake by polarity changing, a system along the lines of F1 Kers is being explored, where your electricity used for acceleration is free.
VW, forever on the Green bandwagon, are determined to have  their European vehicles down to 95 g/km before 2019.  Obviously this is an average and electric cars such as the new UP e car, will bring the average down.  With European governments reducing the emissions ceilings forCar Leasing cars to ever lower figures, having a company like VW getting ahead of the targets is useful. That said, although business car leasinghas been affected by the new tax changes, a movement to cleaner cars has all but negated the changes.  VW are rumored to be working on a Hybrid which is also fully electric up to 30 miles. This can be based on any of the new models as they share a platform.  Along with this VW are working on 10 speed versions of the DSG gearbox .  The more ratios you have, the more efficient a car will be.

Monday 29 April 2013

Car Leasing news April 29th 2013

Car Leasing news April 29th 2013


Car Leasing news April 29th 2013


From 1st July 2013, further changes to congestion charge are coming

Fiat 500 Twin Air
 In order to escape congestion charge from 1st July, your car will need to have a CO2 g/km output of less than 75. The draconian new level which  has been badly received by business and private individuals means that unless you drive an electric vehicle then only three cars comply.   The Toyota Prius, the Fiat 500 Twin Air and the BMW 116ED Efficient Dynamics.

Toyota Prius
In a nod to those vehicles supplied via car leasing, the present levels are extended to 2016, as long as you register before July this year.Ignoring the changes is not the answer, the fine for not paying the fee has been changed from £10 to £130. The daily charge is £10.
We reckon that avoiding company car tax is easy, drive a mini  Clubvan
Mini are launching a van version of the popular Mini Clubman.   The windows will be blocked out and reinforced, it will also have a  bulkhead.  Anyone who has driven a Mini will tell you that they are great to drive. The Clubvan will be exactly the same  and as it is a van, your company car tax bill will fall by anything up to a third.

Mini Clubvan
BMW have given a peak at their new electric car
Before electric vehicles make headway into the car leasingmarket and the retail market, it needs a manufacturer of the profile of BMW to come to the party. Well it appears that we are just a few  months from BMW  launching the i3 city car which if it lives up to all the stats will be fantastic.  One of the first things BMW have done is to make the car very light. Acceleration from standstill uses most energy, so losing weight is essential.   BMW  have resorted to a carbon fibre body to achieve this.   BMW are training their technicians to install rapid charges at peoples homes and have also prepared a second version called the “range extender”.
Essentially BMW have added in one of their two cylinder motorcycle engines to generate electricity for the batteries.  The all electric version has a range of about 90 miles and the range extender is about 180 miles.  Fully charging the i3 is supposed to take just 3 hours.

Friday 26 April 2013

Thinking about Car Leasing, the Hyundai i10 is a perfect Personal leasing car

Thinking about Car Leasing, the Hyundai i10 is a perfect Personal leasing car


Thinking about Car Leasing, the Hyundai i10 is a perfect Personal leasing car


Hyundai Car Leasing choices
Hyundai Car Leasing choices
Hyundai i10 interior picture
i10 interior
The i10 comes with a choice of two engines, either the 1 litre three cylinder  or a 1.2 litre four cylinder. They have 68 bhp and 85 bhp respectively. The baby,  labelled Blue is OK if you don’t spend any time on a motorway but is not under powered day to day. The 1.2 is a great, economical, easy to drive engine.
Hyundai  have improved their suspension and ride quality each year for many years now and the i10 is one of the first of their cars to benefit form a new generation of rear suspension.  The Hyundai  i10 drives well and has light, balanced steering and a gorgeous gearbox.  There is some wind noise but at this price point that is acceptable. The engines are quiet and not rough at all, even the three cylinder.
We have posted a blog video on YouTube of the i10.
In comparison to most its rivals, Hyundai have priced the i10 very competitively, but the five year warranty and good reputation are leading to good future values. As a result, its an ideal candidate for personal car leasing. Its economical, cheap to insure and easy to use, day to day it’s a car you could easily get along with.  Its tidy if not inspiring inside and Hyundai now have a brand image inside and out that is pleasing to the eye.  Just to tick another box for this little beauty, the i10 is always  well up on the JD Power survey, reported in 2012. Bear in mind also that Hyundai give a five year warranty with unlimited mileage and with road side assistance thrown in.
Of all the criteria that people put first when enquiring about car leasing   the specification of a car is among the highest. The i10 does not disappoint. The Active, the best seller, has air-conditioning, electric windows, CD player with USB,  alloy wheels, remote lock, fog lamps all standard.
At Carlease UK, we have joined up with WeLoveAnyCar.com   to bring personal car leasing to a wider audience, click to take a look round.

Thursday 25 April 2013

Mercedes is aiming for directors and company owners with a business leasing beauty


Mercedes is aiming for directors and company owners with a business leasing beauty


Mercedes is aiming for directors and company owners with a business leasing beauty


E250 cdi at Carlease UK
New Front end is stunning
Mercedes-Benz CLS 250
Shooting Brake?
The CLS 250 CDI BlueEfficiency Shooting Brake follows a recent launch of the Jaguar XF Sportbrake with both aiming for a particular sector of the business car leasing sector. Both slightly dubiously named, but the CLS is the one that has the braver looks. The  saloon CLS has been really well received and you see more of them on the road than you would expect for a £50,000 car.
We don’t think the Shooting Brake will be any less a success. There are some fantastic lease deals out there for Mercedes-Benz right now and we expect the good future value of this beauty to make it good value on a business lease.
New CLS interior
New CLS interior
Four lamp cluster headlights
the new front end is completed by the new headlight set up

The car itself is another tour de force from Mercedes Benz. It will carry 5 adults and their luggage or a family and all their camping gear.
The 250 CDI BlueEfficiency is actually a 2.1 litre producing over 200 bhp with a sub 140 g/km CO2 emission and carrying a tax penalty of just 22 per cent.  As seems to be Mercedes policy with models launched this year, they are throwing spec at them.  As standard you get Parktronic with Active park assist, auto climate control, leather interior and Bluetooth.
Mercedes have also thrown in air suspension and paddle shift control on the steering wheel. Mercedes don’t often get the ergonomics and drive of any vehicle wrong and when the pedigree is as good as this, its no surprise that this one drives so well. The instrument panel is typical Mercedes clear and the gearbox is superb.

Wednesday 24 April 2013

The E300 Hybrid is launched at last

The E300 Hybrid is launched at last


The E300 Hybrid is launched at last



E300 Hybrid
With the recent launch of the 300 Hybrid Lexus, the Mercedes-Benz E 300 BlueTEC Hybrid is launched at an opportune time. The headline stats are fantastic, it goes really well, does 65 mpg and its company car tax is only 12%.  This is just  perfect for a business car leasing deal.

Dashboard layout
Mercs new four lamp front end is gorgeous, it will probably define the Mercedes Look.
Assuming you pay tax at 40%, then this beauty will be all yours for just £158 per month in company car tax, all good so far.   Spec wise, it will be launched as an SE (Avantguarde) and the AMG sport.
The SE will have new seventeen inch alloys with LED lights and mock-leather interior. The fantastic Command online system is included as is DAB radio, Parktronic and collisions prevention assist. Folding mirrors and auto-dim inside mirror are in as well.
Additionally, the AMG gets 18 inch Alloys, Sports seat as well as the above spec.   Available as extras are nappa leather and air suspension. 

Tuesday 23 April 2013

Carlease UK Video Blog | Vauxhall Astra SRi | Car Leasing Deals

Carlease UK Video Blog | Mercedes ML | Car Leasing Deals

CarLease industry news and new launches

CarLease industry news and new launches

Vauxhall/Opel inVauxhall Opel Contract Hire  Europe have benefited from huge investment by General Motors and also have a new boss, Karl-Thomas Neumann. With his team he has driven and spent time with every one of their cars and come to the conclusion that the problem is not the product but the image of the product.
To this end, Opel are planning 23 new cars and nine new engines over the next few years, concentrating on technology, innovations and above all quality. Look back at VW twelve years ago and of course Ford from five years ago and they have taken a similar route to growth. Vauxhall/Opel have always been strong in the Car Leasing sector and want to establish that.
Mercedes Benz Contract Hire Mercedes-Benz is working on a baby SUV, design cues being taken from the G-class and little bigger than a VW Polo.  It may be a car that Mercedes have to make as VW ready their new Taigun SUV, a mini SUV which has already been shown in Brazil.  This may be the first car released as a result of a joint venture between Renault/Nissan group and Mercedes-Benz. The next one is expected to be a Renault based on the outgoing E-Class.
Kia Procee'd at Carlease UK
Interior image
Kia Procee'd new wheels
Kia Proceed Wheels
Lots of road test are appearing of the new Kia Procee’d 1.6 GDi so we thought that at CarLease UK we had better borrow one and give you our views. It shares the family look front end of the Kia range, which is not a bad thing. The one we drove is the 126bhp diesel, which is expected to be the big seller. Frankly, what this car does is everything reasonably but nothing outstandingly. The engine is strong and drives well but many are more economical and cleaner.  Its big enough inside and quality is fine, but its not going to scare VW or Ford.The  ride is fine, but is not a Focus.   To be clear though, car for car the Kia is going to undercut its rivals and where lease deals are concerned the first thing that a customer sees is the price.  This car will sell.

Wednesday 10 April 2013



Hybrid cars may become the company car of choice


Just a few years ago, cars were simply not reliable, but the Japanese manufacturers introduced slick changing, bullet proof gearboxes and engines that  ran for ever in the 1970’s.   Europe had no choice but follow the lead and  running costs reduced and service risks were improved endlessly.
The increase in servicing costs over the last few years  has been a reflection of several things.  One, a ruling in the late 1990’s meant that any VAT registered servicing centre could carry out routine servicing to manufacturer specification and as long as they used factory parts, the warranty was maintained.  Second, car prices have been suppressed year on year and dealer percentage mark-up  has been reduced along with manufacturer profit to keep the sales going. Thirdly, worldwide recession has led to buyers looking at whole of life costs and reliability/efficiency Is part of the calculations. Dealers have therefore targeted servicing as an area of recouping profit and this can be seen in the ever rising labour rates. Toyota Prius Hatchback 1.8 Vvti T3 5dr Cvt Auto [Nav]
When planning a fleet of vehicles, companies will nowconsider all the solutions that business car leasing can offer them. More efficient cars have been developed to try and compete head on with hybrids efficiency, but with few exceptions, the latest hybrids are leading the way as time is proving that they have in fact got some of the lowest overall running costs.
How come, well the  numbers of hybrids have grown and the technology and servicing has become mainstream.  Aftermarket parts and trained technicians being available has driven down prices.  Manufacturers also point to hybrids having low stressed components which will invariably lead to less failures.
Governments and local authorities encourage Eco-vehicles. London for example, makes no congestion charge for a vehicle such as the Toyota Prius, which with a CO2 emission of only 89 g/km and can save as much as £10 per day on your charges. From a drivers point of view, benefit in kind is also reduced.
Driving a hybrid is much the same as a petrol or diesel car. The initial 0-10 mph is sometimes fully electric and can be a bit eerie, but this is in fact the part that uses most fuel and combined with regenerative braking in town, saves significant fuel in a town environment.
Porsche Cayenne ImageAs a business  choice, eco-car ranges available in our business car leasing deals offer a huge range of choice. So much so that virtually no area of company car type is not covered from the Toyota Yaris hybrid all the way up to Porsche Cayenne hybrid and a new range of Mercedes-Benz E Class hybrids due any time now.

Tuesday 9 April 2013

US Treasury Secretary Jack Lew seeks a boost in demand

US Treasury Secretary Jack Lew seeks a boost in demand

Jack Lew said policies to promote consumer demand would be ‘helpful’
The US Treasury Secretary has been in Europe and is asking the countries with any capacity to help boost economic growth via consumer demand in what seems to be dig at Germany.
Speaking after talks with the finance minister in Germany, he pointed out that the economy in the US was affected by problems in Europe.  But whereas it appears obvious thatMercedes-Benz ImageGermany should dip in to its huge reserves, the German finance minister, Wolfgang Schaeulbe was himself revealing the latest data showing that imports and exports are down.  Evidence that internal demand is weakening in Germany can be seen in the 4% fall in imports, whereas exports have fallen 1.5%.

Evidence of certain German car manufacturers attempting to target the UK with units that would have gone to Greece, Italy or Spain,  can already be seen in some of the business car leasing  and personal lease deals being offered directly by Mercedes Benz.   But, Germany itself  has something of a balancing act going forward, this, an economy that has boomed enormously by virtue of a  captive market for  its exports and a currency that no matter how successful that economy, has not changed in value relative to its main market.  It did affect the Euro value as a whole, but this was weighted by the weaker economies who need low interest rates to sustain growth and fit the criteria of the Euro. In order to maintain this position, Germany appears to have no option, once the politicians can get it past the public perception, but to support the very markets that buy their exports, such as Greece, Spain, Cyprus and Italy.
The Euro has weakened again recently after a few years of strengthening relative to the Pound and Dollar.  Now events such as the Italian elections and the unknown problems in Cyprus have  investors running scared of the Euro and taking, if only short term, an interest with the Pound and Dollar.
Once Germany begins to invest in its own customers, it will be doing exactly what the US is asking right now, but nothing about the whole position will have changed, except the US pushing Germany toward the obvious. Without exports the German economy virtually stops  and without the Euro, the Deutschmark, or whatever the currency would be,  would race upward in value, without its protection brought by the Euro, and render its newly expensive goods unsalable

Monday 8 April 2013

Think business car leasing and you can’t help but consider the Range Rover

Think business car leasing and you can’t help but consider the Range Rover

If your new lease car is a company car, then business leasing will be something that you are going to need to read about, study and then take advice on. At CarLease UK, we love the Land Rover product and judging by the amount of business enquiries that we get for new Range Rover and Evoque business car leasing so do you.
The new Range Rover is now on the road and we have some on order for customers. The new SPORT is just round the corner.  Range Rover are releasing snip-its of information, but not inclNew Range Rover Sport uding prices.  The Sport will be at least 400 kg lighter, but although it appears by its design to be much shorter, it is in fact only 5 inches shorter.
It is to be set up on a tighter, better handling chassis and  will have the new 5 litre V8 with more than 500 bhp.  The new Land Rover 8 speed transmission, from ZF, is carried over into the Sport and we expect the car to be very capable off road as Land Rover will be applying every bit of know-how that they have to this car.

Friday 5 April 2013

Choosing a leasing company for your business car leasing

Choosing a leasing company for your business car leasing

So, you have decided on a car, you have even decided on a colour and now you need to choose a leasing company for your business car leasing.  Whether you are the driver or the business owner, before you get your car, you are going to need good, honest advice and help. At CarLease UK, we have been established since 1958 and have never veered from a course of honesty and fairness.Mercedes-Benz E Class Diesel Coupe E220 CDI BlueEFFICIENCY Sport 2dr Tip Auto
To get you the best lease deal we can for your new lease car, we work with the three main funders in the leasing industry, Network, Lex Autolease & ALD Automotive.  Along with our fantastic admin team and account managers we will guide you through every step of the deal.
Firstly, we have as many as 9000 prices on-line; the price represented always being the best value for that car over the time period that you have selected. These prices are for the car only but we can add additional services such as maintenance and GAP cover.
Your new lease car will be brand new and delivered to your door, it will have a full UK manufacturer warranty and will have road side assistance/break down cover included for between one and three years.  New cars are more reliable, the tyres are brand new and your company image is enhanced plus you can choose to swap your car every 2, 3 or 4 years.
Purchasing a car outright seems easy at the outset, but what when you get to the end? Well if you lease from CarLease UK, we will arrange for your car to be picked up and your new lease car will replace it. Just think, no tyre kickers, no dodgy bank drafts.  Even when a purchased car has long gone, you will still be writing it down on your books for years to come, compare that with full write down during the period of your lease.  The lease is fixed of course so the depreciation is built-in and not a surprise at the end, plus, as leasing companies buy cars for less , even with a small mark up for them included, you can easily end up paying out less.
We admit to being a bit Eco at CarLease UK. We stay on top of new developments in hybrid, electric and economical diesel cars and bring them to the market where possible.  Taking the Eco route for your company cars brings benefits of lower running costs, increasingly so as fuel costs rise and benefit in kind will be reduced for your staff if you choose a green car. We regularly cover these topics on our blog.

Thursday 4 April 2013

Eco-leasing the way forword as Diesel, Hybrid and Electric improve

CarLease UK Blog

Massive advances in diesel technology have reduced output of poisonous gases by as much as 90% in just the last five years. These advances and low sulphur fuels have called into question the necessity of banning cars from our city centers   Efficiency and tax benefits, including benefit in kind,  give you every reason in the world to consider eco-car leasing for yourself privately or for your business, but don’t forget to include some of the more efficient diesels in your calculations.
Cars like the BMW 320D and the latest VW Golf  are now so economical that they easily qualify for the CarLease UK list of eco-cars .  Extend this to include the Toyota PriusHybrid and its plug-n brother and even the Chevrolet Volt and the list grows to include some seriously economical cars.  Soon we will have very competent electric cars such as the Nissan Leaf and Renault’s fantastic range of electric cars.   Nissan are going to build, starting real soon, the Leaf in a purpose built factory in Tennessee and first indications are that the lower price of the car will be well received. In fact, initially allocation of the Leaf, Japanese made, has sold out many times over.
Volkswagen Golf Golf Hatchback Image
BMW 3 Series Diesel Saloon 320d M Sport 4dr Step Auto



It seems that whereas the all-electric cars are booming in the US, the hybrid units from Vauxhall/Chevrolet are not selling as well as expected. This is good news for Europe as production will be allocated to here and maybe drive prices down to compete head on with the Prius.
Ford of course have initially gone down the 1.0 petrol route, with our test here.  They are though just about to launch a number of Hybrids in Europe.  They will be marketing them along with a newly developed APP.  The one litre engine drives superbly and relies only on known technology to achieve great consumption figures and convenience of use.  The UK take up of this engine in the Focus and Fiesta has been really good and FORD deserved their engine of the year award.

Tuesday 2 April 2013

Ford Hybrid APP becomes reality as Eco Car Leasing steps up a gear



Ford hybrid APP becomes reality as Eco Car leasing steps up a gear


Suppose for a minute, you lease a new car and part of your decision process was to save money on your running costs.  Yes, its complex deciding on which one you should have and eco-car leasing is better populated with options than ever. Now, for example, you will probably have included some of the BMW diesel range which can compete head to head with hybrids, plug in hybrids and full out electrics.
Ford, whose EcoTech 1.0 petrolFord Fiesta Fiesta Diesel Hatchback 1.6 Tdci Zetec Econetic 3dr engine we have testedhere, are running a competition for a programmer/APP designer to come up with an interface that allows them to check levels, settings  and range/economy on their smartphone.
They have labelled it the Personalized Fuel Efficiency App Challenge and hope to get ahead in the race to make hybrid/electric cars less complex to the end user.
Fords sensitivity has come about because of recent cases in the US where both the C-Max and Fusion have returned poorer consumption figures than Ford advertised.  In the United States this is rather more serious than it is in Europe, where the word indicative is spread liberally about the brochure to protect a manufacturer.  Without doubt the cars are capable of returning consumption figuresToyota Prius Image equal to the published data. But, hybrid vehicle consumption is affected much more by driving style than petrol and diesel cars, so Ford set about coming up with a scheme of optimizing a driving style and the APP idea was born.
The App will be expected to look at live and short term historic data to analyse a driving style.  This way it can help to work to an optimum style.  In time, the APP can be extended to include warnings such as fuel level, battery level and temperatures it may also be extended to incorporate route planning and optimizing the route and for sure it will in the US be used as proof in an ever more litigation littered society.

Aluminium based eco battery to come




Aluminium based eco battery to come




Rumored to be Citroen, a car maker has signed an exclusive deal with the Israeli development company Phinergy. The change to Eco-Car-Leasing from this will just be fantastic.   Their break through has been in the manufacture of battery technology that uses only fresh air, water and aluminium.  Now before you get excited about using up metals, bauxite, the base of aluminium if far and away the most common of all metal bases.
Citroen C1 Image
The C1 is being used to test the battery
The battery is capable of up to 1000 miles on a charge by creating electricity which is stored in and used from a lithium ion battery.  A prototype is running, in the form of a Citroen C1 but is anything up to 3 years away from production. Already the system is refined enough to have its own APP which calculates your range at any time and shows it on your phone.
Water fuel?
Water is used for the electrolyte through which ions pass and give off energy as the move across the battery and charge the li-0n battery to power the motor.  Aluminium provides the anode and air is the cathode, the metal is slowly used up as the system generates.  So far in tests water fuel is added every 200 miles.
The technology was proven as long ago as 2002, but it is only recently that it has been made to work on this scale. The theories have proven to be correct. The batteries will be lighter than present technology and low on use of exotic materials .
Hyundai, so long a conservative car builder, is again pushing the outer technology boundaries with a fuel cell car going into production. On the back of  2 million miles of testing, the  Tucson, or IX35, is nearing production as Hyundai will be using its own cells and all its own technology.  The test vehicles are covering 400 miles on a full hydrogen refill of 5 kg.
Given that this is a very likely alternative to fuel oil, be it diesel or petrol, in the future, then Iceland will surely become the next middle east of the world as it possesses a massive proportion of the world’s naturally occurring hydrogen.