Congratulations to Kia for being the first Korean manufacturer to win Car of the Year award from the UK’s What Car? magazine. According to the magazine, “the e-Niro beats its rivals via knockout rather than on points, because it’s the first sensibly priced electric car that can fit into most people’s lives.” The company’s press … [Read More]
Category: Motoring
Why Jeju Islanders don’t want Chinese to be allowed to drive?
A while ago we noticed an article in the Korean press which suggested people in Jeju-do were unhappy about Chinese being allowed to drive rental cars on the island when on vacation. I wondered what it was that concerned them. Then, the other day, I came across this article in H’s Week in China publication, … [Read More]
Korea’s Economy in Transition – a report from the recent evening at Asia House
Sometimes, when you go along to an evening talk, you are looking forward to the networking rather than the substance of what the speakers will be saying. Perhaps you think you won’t learn much, and you’re going along out of a vague sense of duty, because other people will expect you to be there. Well, … [Read More]
Dodgy savings bank loans provide unique buying opportunity
Fancy a Lamborghini? Contact the Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation, who are trying to offload assets from failed Korean savings banks. The cars were repossessed when their owners failed to pay up. Via Wall Street Journal http://on.wsj.com/L1CQiS [Read More]
British TV Show Top Gear comes to Korea
South Korea’s version of the hit UK TV series Top Gear debuted at the weekend, complete with The Stig: WSJ http://on.wsj.com/n4AUHM (#). Videos can be found on YouTube here. [Read More]
Formula 1 Fan Forum with Mark Blundell
To mark the second Korean Grand Prix coming up in October, the KCC will be holding a Formula 1 event on 5 September. This is the first Global Korea event related to sports, and should draw in a diverse audience. F1 Fan Forum Hosted by Former F1 Driver and Le Mans 24hrs Winner Mark Blundell … [Read More]
Formula 1 accommodation
£150 a night for a love motel? That's what the Formula One teams are paying, says The Sun. http://bit.ly/b1rp6l # [Read More]
Formula 1 comes to Gwanghwamun
Great pic: Admiral Yi Sun-shin and King Sejong, two of Korea's greatest ancient heroes, look down on a Formula 1 car: http://bit.ly/aqkYKL # [Read More]
Will the Formula 1 circuit be ready in time?
Bernie Ecclestone sticks the boot in: will the Korean Grand Prix circuit be ready in time? http://bbc.in/b6Trph # “We will rush to complete work and FIA officials will see a complete circuit when they conduct a final inspection in two weeks,” said Kim Jae-ho, for the organisers. [Read More]
Is the Kia Rio is safer than houses?
Is the Kia Rio is safer than houses? A motorist smashes through a wall and into a house in Cleveland, UK. http://bit.ly/cti3eV #. The unnamed driver was taken to hospital but suffered only bruising, said police. [Read More]
Kia Cee’d is Top Gear’s Sensible Car
"The Kia Cee’d is a car that lobs the paving slab of reality into the windscreen of preconception". Review on Top Gear, where it gets a creditable 11/20. It’s also the “sensible” car driven by celebs in the new TV series. http://bit.ly/9Qmh4s # [Read More]
Warming up for the first Korean Grand Prix
Warming up for the first Korean Grand Prix to be held in Jeollanamdo this Autumn: http://bit.ly/55QBp5. From JoongAng Ilbo [Read More]
Hyundai Pony named design icon
Hyundai Pony voted the most iconic industrial design in Korea over last 50 years by Design magazine http://bit.ly/4lzdRl. # Designed by the famous Italian car designer Giorgetto Giugiaro in 1975, the Pony was praised for its sleek and modern design and is thought to have elevated the level of design of Korean industrial products to … [Read More]
Kia Cee’d gets the thumbs up
The consensus among the motoring journalists is that Jeremy Clarkson might have to start revising his views on Korean cars1. Korean cars in the UK have the reputation of competing on price rather than quality. But all this seems to be changing with the Kia Cee’d. From the FT this weekend: This is the first … [Read More]
Kia Cerato LX CRDi
Well, it’s not going to win any design awards, but it’s a perfectly OK car. It’s got one of those strange flaps on the boot, and a skirt below the radiator at the front. I think they’re meant to make the car go faster, but if you exit the petrol station too enthusiastically there’s a … [Read More]
Motoring supplement
Ever on the look-out for yet more subjects on which I am totally unqualified to speak, this time I’m trying my hand as motoring correspondent. I don’t have a car (I don’t need one in London), and on the rare occasions when I need a set of wheels I use the local rental shop, which … [Read More]