Cars For Export - UK New Used

THE KIA SPORTAGE FEATURES

The irony of it all hits like a snowball right on the kisser. Value-for-money motor manufacturer Kia launch their latest offering in the millionaires' winter playground of St Moritz. When you think some visitors to this resort for the rich probably spend more on a night off piste than the cost of Kia's all-new Sportage SUV, last week's location came as quite a surprise. However, maybe this lavish launch signals the celebratory mood and increasing fortunes of the Korean marque.

After all, they are Europe's fastest-growing motor manufacturer for the second year running and have sold more than 30,000 vehicles in the UK this year alone. And Kia have also picked up major awards along the way - the Picanto was recently voted Scottish Small Car of the Year. Meanwhile, its bigger brother, the Sedona has become the country's best retail selling large MPV while the Sorento has made a sizeable mark in the sports utility vehicle segment. All this has been achieved against a backdrop of a dip in the market towards the tail end of this year. So, to bolster all this success comes the striking new Sportage, which officially goes on sale at the start of next year - although many Kia dealers are already taking orders.

Kia are no strangers to this particular marketplace with the previous generation Sportage making immediate gains. Although latterly the arrival of the Toyota RAV4, Land Rover Freelander and Honda CR-V cut its early advantage. The motor manufacturer went back to the drawing board in a bid to claw back their stake in this expanding sector. The end result is a dynamic-looking machine that won't give its rivals a snowball's chance when finally unleashed. The new Sportage scores in a number of ways - not least its price tag, which seriously undercuts the opposition by several thousands of pounds.

It will cost £14,495, some £1500 less than a three-door Freelander and £2400 less than the five-door equivalent. In terms of overall exterior design lines these have been largely fashioned alongside those of the Sorento, which is no bad thing. From the outset the designers favoured a sculptured front end to extol its powerful presence and durability. There is also a huge expanse of glass, particularly at the rear, which is shaped for a sporty look. This sporty theme is further enhanced by the 16-inch alloy wheels, which give the vehicle a more aggressive appearance, and the standard fit roof rails, which stretch to accentuate a long, angular roofline. First impressions, I feel, are always quite important and certainly the new Sportage gives a very good first impression. It's more imposing than before and will easily match anything currently around.

Looks aside, I was also impressed with the quality of the finish inside. The cheap and cheerful look has been ditched and replaced with good quality trim and soft-to-the-touch materials. The interior space has been put to good use with ample leg and elbow room for five adults. Functionality is a key word for the Sportage thanks to the 60/40 split rear seating arrangement. Furthermore, the rear hatch door has been treated to a split personality as well. You can open the glass screen without having to open the whole thing. Kia have also ditched their previous trademark rear door-mounted spare wheel, preferring instead to place this under the boot floor. When up and running the Sportage will be offered with three engines, including a two-litre diesel unit later next year.

Best by far of the initial engines is the 2.7-litre V6 petrol, which really allowed the Kia to belt along the Swiss motorways at high speed. Highly responsive, particularly when married to a four-speed automatic transmission, it also proved a winner when tackling the twisting, winding hairpins leading up to St Moritz. The two-litre, 16-valve CVVT petrol was a different kettle of fish and you really had to work the manual gearbox to get any sort of response.In terms of handling the Sportage proved a real friend by ironing out any challenge tossed in your direction. It soaked up all the bumps and bruises like an old boxing pro. There is little evidence of body-roll with the vehicle responding beautifully thanks to its sophisticated 4x4 system that transfers drive from front-only to all four wheels. In severe conditions the all-wheel drive system can be manually engaged to override the programme.

The UK Automotive Exportation sector is a global leader in process and product innovation of New and Used Second Hand Autos to the rest of the world. Within the European Union, the UK’s Exportation industry has the best car and commercial vehicle makers and exporters. British citizens (English – England, Welsh – Wales, Scottish – Scotland and Irish – Ireland) bought over 2.5 million new cars in the UK last year, 0.4 million European Cars and 5.6 million used second hand cars. Cheap car and auto production is rising since joining the European Union, now exporting about 1.67 million cheap units. New and Used Second Hand Commercial vehicle exporters and passenger vehicles production, looks set to exceed 600,000 auto units for the first time since 1998.

In the recent years, the exportation of new and used cars from the United Kingdom (UK) to the rest of the world (including Japan) has significantly increased. This Exportation success is in contrast to past years where the bulk of vehicles being exported from exporters in Europe, were mainly from Germany. Japan however, still dominates the world’s bulk source for the exports of cheap new and used cars either second hand, or from car Auctions. These cheap Japanese vehicles to many countries worldwide including Britain and the rest of European Union, was due to the reliability that these cars have and the cheaper costs of running Japanese vehicles in general.

The purchase of second hand cars from Auctions and Auction houses such as the British Car Auctions has significantly dropped with the increased strength of the British pound. Joining of the European Union has also reduced popularity of Car Auctions in the UK because cheaper Cars can be exported and Imported from Europe – Germany in Particular - without restriction and risks associated with car Auctions. The sector now accounts for over 9% of our total export of goods. Over the last 5 years UK has exported, on average, over a million cheaper cars a year - a fivefold increase in real terms since 1986 and twice the amount from Germany. Japanese, German, African and American manufacturers import cheaper British built cars into their home markets and over 70% of UK Car Exports go to Europe, including Germany.

UK CAR MANUFACTURING INDUSTRY

‘British Japanese’ Honda and their English brokers - whose Swindon facility is the UK's largest exporter of passenger cars to Japan, America, Asia Middle East and Africa. British MG Rover and their brokers - whose joint venture with Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation will help to fund the exporting and development of new vehicle models at cheaper manufacturing costs. ‘British Japanese’ Toyota and their English brokers whose £50 million investment at Burnaston has raised the exporting capacity by more than 50,000 and created 500 jobs;

‘British American’ Ford and their brokers - where 25% of the company's entire global engine production, and all its diesel engines, now come from the UK at a much cheaper rate than anywhere else on the world. These cheap rates ensure that the United Kingdom (UK) is ahead of the rest of the manufactures in car exporting. British GM Vauxhall and their Brokers - where production at Ellesmere Port is to be expanded to meet demand for the new Astra cars. ‘British Japanese’ Nissan and their English brokers who blazed the trail to the UK in the early 1980s, and continues to run the most productive car manufacturing site in Europe.

Great Britain - Especially the English industry is continuing to show a firm commitment to the science budget - more than double since 1997 to £3.3 billion by 2007/8. The English, Scottish, Irish and Welsh secured £12million for the hugely successful Manufacturing Advisory Service - a program that has boosted manufacturing by more than £53million, delivering an average £100,000 added value to every manufacturer that goes through the full program.

THE FUTURE OF THE UK CAR INDUSTRY (EXPORTATION AND MANUFACTURE)

It is anticipated that the Exporting of New vehicles and second hand used cars and the funding for the Technology Strategy will increase by £140m per annum by 2007/8. Taken with the re-direction of existing spend on exports innovation, this will increase spending on the Technology Strategy to more than £250m per annum on exports, by 2007/8. Helping British (English, Scottish and Irish) Car manufacturers and exporters pull through new technologies and processes from the science base and turn them into competitive exporters advantage.

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