Don’t you just love the way the Americans mutilate the queen’s English, with "center", "harbor", "color", "favorite", "honor", "analyze", "memorize" and all the rest displacing the proper spelling? In the case of the Dodge Caliber’s name, though, the Yanks can’t be faulted, because the car is built in Belvedere, Illinois, so they can call it whatever they want.

Toyota has extended its Quantum range by introducing a new 10-seater people carrier, and dollied up the existing models to fit in with new styling and specifications. Why a 10-seater when there’s already a very popular 14-seater in the line-up? That’s a matter of convenience.

Hands up, anybody who has ever seen a Proton on the road. The Malaysian cars have been on sale in South Africa for two years now, and I don’t think I’ve seen half a dozen of them roaming free in KwaZulu-Natal, where I live. After driving a few Protons, I reckon that’s a shame, because they feel solidly built, they are well equipped and they are very competitively priced.

With just two weeks to go before the judging of the South African Guild of Motoring Journalists’ Car of the Year competition, Malcolm Kinsey has released the results of a parts price survey conducted on the eight finalists, aimed at helping the jurors evaluate the cars fairly. The <i>Mail & Guardian Online</i> has simplified the analysis.

Eight finalists from the more than 100 new car models launched in 2006 were last week evaluated by a panel of motoring journalists to select the Car of the Year for 2007. Which of these deserves to be in with a chance, and which are the losers? After three days of flirting with the cars in Gauteng, South African Guild of Motoring Journalists juror Gavin Foster airs his views.

Honda has followed a 4×4 trend in making the new CR-V more of a family wagon than a true off-roader. The third-generation newcomer has a 25mm lower centre of gravity, a 30mm wider rear track, car-like styling and a more luxurious interior. All of this makes sense when you consider that very few of these vehicles are ever going to be called upon to do much serious off-roading.

Toyota has slotted a brand-new, entry-level seven-seater people carrier into its line-up, and the good news for South Africans is that the little wagon kicks off at less than R100 000. The Avanza comes in either 1,3- or 1,5-litre versions, delivering 67 kW and 80 kW respectively.

Kawasaki’s all-new ZX-6R is just that — all new. The factory has developed a brand-new engine in a spanking new, twin-spar aluminium perimeter frame, blending the best features of the outgoing 636cc ZX-6R and the limited-edition 599cc ZX-6RR track bike into a single package. The new Kawasaki engine was completely redesigned from the cases up — the first in the ZX-6 range in 10 years.

If ever the South African motoring public acknowledged that it owed a debt of gratitude to anybody, Malcolm Kinsey would be the man. Fifteen years ago the Durban-based motoring journalist decided to do an analy­sis on comparative parts pricing of the most popular cars sold in South Africa. The results shocked the industry, and within weeks the companies that had been named and shamed undertook a massive repricing exercise.