New MoT failure figures reveal surprises

BETWEEN January and August 2013 253,000 vehicles failed their first MoT, according to new data. 70 million records from the Vehicle Operation and Services Agency (VOSA) were examined to reveal the patterns of failure for cars receiving their first MoT, required three years from the date of first registration. However, while the best performers have pre-existing reputations for reliability, the bottom of the table reveals some surprises.

Ford EcoSport for Europe heading for Geneva 2013

The Ford EcoSport – a butch little SUV based on the Ford Fiesta – is heading for a European reveal at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show. The new EcoSport arrived in Delhi last year as Ford’s take on the funky little urban warrior market – think Nissan Juke – and it looks a properly purposeful little urban runaround, with its butch stance and statement grill. We thought when the EcoSport launched in India that it seemed more than likely that Ford would start to market the EcoSport in Europe, and last September – at Ford’s ‘Go Further’ event in Amsterdam  Ford confirmed the EcoSport would arrive in the UK and Europe, and now it’s heading for a European debut at next month’s Geneva Motor Show.

Lexus GS 450h – Frankfurt reveal

The revised 2010 Lexus GS 450h launched at Frankfurt We covered the Lexus LF-Ch quite a bit – it was the Lexus big card for Frankfurt – and we managed to catch up with the 2010 LS600h yesterday. But Lexus has also had a fiddle with the GS 450h to produce a 2010 model. Much like the LS 600h the GS 450h gets few exterior tweaks to freshen it up, including a new grill, new rear lights and a fresh set of 18″ alloys on the SE-L version.