2011 Volkswagen Touareg Tdi Sport Utility 4-door 3.0l on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Poor headlights cause 40 cars to miss IIHS Top Safety Pick rating

Over the past few months, we've noticed a number of cars and SUVs that have come incredibly close to earning one of the IIHS's highest accolades, the Top Safety Pick rating. They have great crash test scores and solid automatic emergency braking and forward collision warning systems. What trips them up is headlights. That got us wondering, how many vehicles are there that are coming up short because they don't have headlights that meet the organization's criteria for an "Acceptable" or "Good" rating. This is a revision made after 2017, a year in which headlights weren't factored in for this specific award. This is also why why some vehicles, such as the Ford F-150, might have had the award last year, but have lost it for this year. We reached out to someone at IIHS to find out. He responded with the following car models. Depending on how you count, a whopping 40 models crash well enough to receive the rating, but don't get it because their headlights are either "Poor" or "Marginal." We say depending on how you count because the IIHS actual counts truck body styles differently, and the Infiniti Q70 is a special case. Apparently the version of the Q70 that has good headlights doesn't have adequate forward collision prevention technology. And the one that has good forward collision tech doesn't have good enough headlights. We've provided the entire list of vehicles below in alphabetical order. Interestingly, it seems the Volkswagen Group is having the most difficulty providing good headlights with its otherwise safe cars. It had the most models on the list at 9 split between Audi and Volkswagen. GM is next in line with 7 models. It is worth noting again that though these vehicles have subpar headlights and don't quite earn Top Safety Pick awards, that doesn't mean they're unsafe. They all score well enough in crash testing and forward collision prevention that they would get the coveted award if the lights were better.

Skoda launching two new CNG-powered vehicles in Europe in June

Skoda's second- and third-ever production compressed natural gas (CNG) vehicles aren't exactly speed burners, but they are efficient. The Czech automaker, which is owned by Volkswagen, will introduce its Octavia G-TEC and Octavia Combi G-TEC models to most of Europe next month. Skoda's first CNG model was the Citigo, which debuted in 2012. The Octavia models will have a turbocharged 1.4-liter engine that will deliver about 109 horsepower. Quickness isn't these cars' virtue, as their 0-60 mile per hour acceleration time will be almost 11 seconds. But they can go as far as 826 miles on their tanks of gas and CNG, enough to go from Prague to Rome in one shot, in case anyone was curious. Or nuts. The move by Skoda makes sense, as the CNG market in Europe has long been far further along than it is on this side of the pond, where CNG has primarily been used to move delivery trucks, but it's now available in pickups form Chrysler, Ford and General Motors as well as passenger cars from Chevy and Honda. The Skoda Citigo has moved almost 2,000 units since its debut, with 1,300 vehicles sold last year alone. That car can go as far as 385 miles on CNG and gasoline combined, which is impressive but not quite as bladder busting as the Octavia models. Check out Skoda's press release below. SKODA continues its CNG offensive with the new SKODA Octavia G-TEC Launch of the new SKODA Octavia G-TEC and new Octavia Combi G-TEC in June First SKODA Octavia with natural gas drive as standard; 97 g CO2/km High-performance technology: bivalent turbo engine 1.4 TSI/81 kW The ultimate in fuel economy: up to 1,330 km with natural gas and petrol SKODA Citigo G-TEC has enjoyed market success since 2012; only 79 g CO2/km Natural gas is the environmentally-friendly, cost-effective alternative Mlada Boleslav, 19 May 2014 – Expanding its environmentally-friendly model range, SKODA is renewing its emphasis on compressed natural gas vehicles. The new SKODA Octavia G-TEC and the new SKODA Octavia Combi G-TEC will be given their market premiere in June. This will increase the brand's CNG range to three models. Since the end of 2012, the little natural gas-drive Citigo has been successfully touring the European markets. "With the new Octavia G-TEC and the Octavia Combi G-TEC, our model range is becoming even more environmentally-friendly," says Dr Frank Welsch, SKODA Board Member for Technical Development.

Volkswagen adding R-Line trim to Touareg, Tiguan for 2014

Volkswagen introduced its aggressive R-Line appearance package on the CC and Beetle last year, but later this year, this treatment will also be applied to VW's crossovers, the Tiguan and Touareg. Both sporty-looking utility vehicles will be unveiled next week at the Detroit Auto Show.
The 2014 Tiguan R-Line comes standard with bi-xenon headlights and LED daytime running lights, and the package adds 19-inch wheels, grey fender extensions, body-color side skirts and a liftgate spoiler. Inside, the R-Line adds a flat-bottom sport steering wheel with paddle shifters, a black headliner and numerous metallic trim accents such as the stainless scuff plates, the aluminum pedals and metallic finish on the instrument and door panels. The Tiguan R-Line will be offered in front- and all-wheel drive configurations.
As for the 2014 Touareg R-Line (shown above), this model gets an ever more distinctive look with an aggressive front fascia, 20-inch wheels and dual oval-shaped exhaust outlets in addition to the painted side skirts and LED taillights. Similar metallic interior trim pieces found inside the Tiguan R-Line will also make their way into the Touareg as well as gloss black accents on the instrument panel and center stack.