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John Mellor’s GoAuto News Quattroporte now $36K more affordable as EAI cuts pricing of key cars Fancy yourself an Asset Finance Top Gun? PROVE IT! Join our Car and Equipment Finance Team that’s gunning above the rest! “ Coming from a car dealership background, I was looking for greater stability and security in my job, a better work-life-balance and more flexibility in my role. I found that when I joined the Car Finance Centre, the team is young, vibrant and passionate about what they do. It’s incredible how simple the loan process is, it makes life easier for me but more importantly all the customers I service.” New Car Finance Centre Sales Associate recent recruit Keiron Rice. Commonwealth Bank is renowned for providing quick and easy, accurate car and equipment finance. Due to recent growth, we are seeking Car and Equipment finance professionals that are highly motivated and energetic to join our sales, credit and customer service divisions. To apply please visit www.commbank.com.au/careers and click on the Job Search link. Enter Job reference number 914256 in the keyword search area and complete an online application. Experience in finance is essential, preferable in vehicle or equipment finance. OUR VISION IS TO BE AUSTRALIA’S FINEST FINANCIAL SERVICES ORGANISATION THROUGH EXCELLING IN CUSTOMER SERVICE. SUBSCRIBE FREE: www.GoAutoMedia.com Maserati price meltdown By MARTON PETTENDY MASERATI’S Quattroporte is now $36,000 more affordable in Australia following a range-wide reshuffl e that passes on currency-based savings to new customers but is likely to disappoint recent buyers. The sleeker GranTurismo coupe and GranCabrio convertible have also come in for price cuts of $10,000 or more as part of the latest Maserati range repositioning, which also aims to more distinctly separate its luxury and sports models. The Quattroporte sedan range – which will be replaced by a signifi cantly lighter and more effi cient model expected to appear at next year’s Paris motor show – now opens at $250,000 (down from $286,000) for the entry-level 4.2-litre V8 automatic. Australian Maserati distributor European Automotive Imports (EAI) says the lower pricetag takes advantage of the surging Australian dollar and positions the base Quattroporte to better compete with the least sporting versions of its most direct rivals. Of course, that means Porsche’s Panamera, which costs less than $200,000 in V6 petrol and MASERATI PRICING: Quattroporte (a) $250,000 (-$36,000) Quattroporte Sport GT S MC Sportline $298,800 (unchanged) Quattroporte Sport GT S (a) $328,900 (unchanged) GranTurismo (a) $288,800 (unchanged) GranTurismo S (a) $308,000 (-$10,500) GranTurismo S MC Shift $345,000 (-$900) GranTurismo MC Stradale $364,900 (new in June) GranCabrio (a) $328,000 (-$10,000) diesel guise, and $279,800 with a 4.8-litre V8. EAI spokesman Edward Rowe said the cheapest Quattroporte will also offer a range of more luxury-oriented features from an expanded range of nine million possible colour and trim choices, including plush-pile carpet mats and comfort seats, to better differentiate it from more sporting Quattroporte variants. “The 4.2-litre Quattroporte has been repositioned to focus on the luxury part of that market sector, and remains fully competitive with new arrivals,” said Mr Rowe. “It has been given a range of luxury equipment and a price that will make it even more appealing to customers in the area of the market that is growing. It is there to bring new customers to the brand.” Pricing for the 4.7-litre Quattroporte Sport GT S models remains unchanged at $298,800 for the Sportline version with MC Shift sequential transaxle, and $328,900 for the top-shelf variant with a conventional automatic transmission. However, just as the May 18, 2011 Page 14 base Quattroporte 4.2 comes with more luxury features, a number of extra sportsoriented features will be added to the more powerful Quattroporte 4.7 models, which have traditionally attracted the bulk of sales. “The Quattroporte MC Sportline represents even better value for our traditional customers – it is now a better equipped, more overtly sporting car for traditional customers,” said Mr Rowe. While pricing of the GranCabrio drops to $328,000 without any change to specifi cations less than a year after its local launch, the closely related GranTurismo coupe range continues to comprise three variants and will be topped by the wild new GranTurismo MC Stradale in June, priced from $364,900. Incidentally, both the stripped-out GranTurismo Stradale and the new, more powerful GranCabrio Sport fl agship will make their Australian debuts at the Melbourne motor show on July 1, when pricing for the latter will be revealed before it hits local showrooms in early 2012. FULL STORY: CLICK HERE Quattroporte
John Mellor’s GoAuto News Corvette confi dence General Motors reveals plans for radical coupe and an eight-speed auto By MARTON PETTENDY GENERAL Motors has revealed it will soon begin preparations to build Chevrolet’s nextgeneration C7 Corvette super-coupe and an all-new eight-speed automatic transmission for a range of future models. The news was announced on May 10 – just days after it posted a $US3.2 billion ($A3b) fi rst quarter net profi t on top of its fi rst full year in the black since 2004 – as the US auto giant revealed it will invest $US2 billion ($A1.9b) in plant and equipment in North America. GM also confi rmed it will continue to produce the current Corvette for at least two more model years, corroborating recent US reports that the replacement for GM’s all-American sportscar icon will appear in 2013, when it could become the fi rst midengined Corvette. “Plant improvements and installation of new equipment to make the nextgeneration Chevrolet Corvette will begin soon while the current-generation Corvette is assembled for at least the next two model years,” said GM. Please send your resume to Bartons Dealer Principal - Mark Beitz markb@bartonsbayside.com.au BARTONS HOLDEN & MITSUBISHI 200 Tingal Road Wynnum. 3396 7777 BBSE164941_0511 BETTER BARTONS bartonsbayside.com.au BARTONS BUY BUY SUBSCRIBE FREE: www.GoAutoMedia.com Ford details gruelling development program for next-generation Focus XR By MARTON PETTENDY FORD of Europe has released details and images of its next-generation Focus ST development program, but has provided few clues to the all-new Focus XR that is due on sale in Australia next year. Previously confi rmed to join mainstream versions of the third-generation Focus hatch and sedan, which will go on sale in Australia in August, the hot ST version is currently undergoing validation testing in Europe. Ford says a fl eet of about 60 prototypes Some Chev web bloggers went wild with speculation the next Corvette will ditch its traditional front-engine confi guration in favour of a more exotic mid-engine layout after a top GM executive promised the existing model’s successor will be something “completely different”. All offi cial details of the new Corvette remain under tight wraps, but GM North America president and former GM Holden boss Mark Reuss has said it will be a genuine competitor in the high-end sportscar market, presumably including the fi nest supercars from Porsche and Ferrari. It has even been suggested the 2013 Corvette – which is likely to continue to be a left-hand-drive-only model positioned above Chevrolet’s Australian-designed LHD-only Camaro coupe – could come with a split rear window, a design element not seen since the 1963 model. based on the garden-variety models already on sale in the US – plus a few based on the previous Focus ST/XR – have been put to the test on everything from British B-roads to Californian freeways and from May 18, 2011 Page 15 Corvette Z06 Centennial Edition GM’s fresh cash injection will also result in the retention of about 250 jobs at Toledo to produce “an all-new, advanced eightspeed automatic transmission for future vehicles that offer customers improved fuel economy and outstanding performance”. Announcing the investment at the 54-yearold Toledo transmission plant last Tuesday, GM chairman and CEO Dan Akerson said his company’s latest investment – including $US204 million for Toledo – would create or preserve more than 4000 jobs at 17 GM facilities in eight US states. “We are doing this because we are confi dent about demand for our vehicles and the economy,” said Mr Akerson. “This new investment is on top of $3.4 billion and more than 9000 jobs that GM has added or saved since mid-2009.” FULL STORY: CLICK HERE Germany’s famed Nurburgring to extremely cold conditions in northern Europe. It is therefore unclear from the three frontal ‘spy’ images of the same semidisguised fi ve-door prototype whether the Focus range-topper will wear the gaping Aston Martin-style grille of the bright orange show car that debuted at last year’s Paris motor show, or its oversized rear wing and dual central exhaust outlets. FULL STORY: CLICK HERE DEALERSHIP SERVICE MANAGER Holden and Mitsubishi Dealership Rare Opportunity Bayside Location Bartons Holden and Mitsubishi are a Family Owned dealership located on the Bayside at Wynnum. We are seeking expressions of interest for an Experienced Service Manager to take control and expand our already succesfull service department. Due to a career change, our service manager is leaving after 14 years to pursue new challenges. The Bartons Service Department is regarded as the benchmark in service departments in both Holden and Mitsubishi. Averaging over 1000 R/O's per month, managing 28 staff, a workshop and a PreDelivery centre, this job requires the "Best of the Best" in service managers. If your looking to join a family owned company with a strong loyal culture without the hassles of the larger automotive groups, Bartons is the place for you. An attractive remuneration package with potential to earn in excess of $100k plus superannuation and a company vehicle is on offer for the right candidate.
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