1966 Morgan 4/4 on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Skoda up!grades with five-door Citigo

On this side of the Atlantic, one Volkswagen division's new product may not have a significant impact on those of another. That's because the German auto giant's brands are kept quite separate in North America. Less so, however, back in Europe, where a new VW is likely to reappear in due time as a Seat or Skoda.
Case in point: the new Up! city car, which is also sold overseas as the Seat Mii and Skoda Citigo. And, true to form, with the Volkswagen brand having enlarged its city car to a five-door, its Czech cousin has followed suit.
And so, starting in May (after its debut at the Geneva Motor Show), European buyers will be able to get their hands on a five-door Citigo, offering the same 1.0-liter three-cylinder engine (in either 60- or 75-horsepower guise) as the Up, Mii and three-door Citigo. Details in the press release after the jump.

Seat Toledo leaks out ahead of Paris reveal

A concept version of the Seat Toledo was shown off at the Geneva Motor Show earllier this year, but it was clear that the concept was code for "almost identical to production." Four images of what appears to be the final version of the Toledo have dripped onto the Internet, and sure enough, the only exterior difference we can spot is that the mirrors now have body-colored uppers.
As a reminder, although it looks like a three-box sedan, it is still a five-door hatchback with a 17.6 cubic-foot boot capacity (slightly less than a Ford Mondeo) and slotted between the C- and D-segments in size. Engines are expected to be those also going in the Škoda MissionL concept, which will be the Škoda Rapid in production form and is the Toledo's sister car in the Volkswagen Group herd.
Price will be the Toledo's strong point, with Geneva-era rumors of a base price at €13,000 to €14,000 (around $16,300-$17,600 USD). In keeping with such frugality, engines are predicted to be of small-displacement and lowly horsepower in both petrol and diesel forms. After it debuts at the Paris Motor Show, along with the new Seat Ibiza and the Rapid, the Toledo should be in dealerships shortly thereafter.

Why are these new Skoda models getting crushed?

The massive number of safety devices, explosives, electronics and construction materials in modern cars means that extricating someone from a wrecked vehicle is no longer just a matter of a Sawzall and twelve minutes. Carmakers work with first responders so that the men and women who save lives can actually figure out how to get to the lives in question without doing further damage to the people inside or themselves.
And that's apparently what's happening in the three videos below: Škoda gave rescuers in the Czech Republic a Superb, Octavia and Yeti to practice on, and the fire team used some heavy machinery to bash things up a bit before getting to work. We're not clear why they needed new models to practice on, so we're hoping that these cars were preproduction non-VIN vehicles that were destined for the crusher anyhow. The video isn't revelatory, it's just a behind-the-scenes look at how the people who help you help themselves first. You can watch it all in the videos below.