2011 Vauxhall Antara Facelift Prices Start Under £20k in the UK

Following the reveal of its Opel counterpart in mainland Europe, Vauxhall has released pricing and specifications on the UK market Antara facelift, which boasts a barely noticeable makeover and a refreshed engine lineup. Prices for the updated SUV now start from £19,995 for the 2.2 CDTi (163PS) Exclusiv front-wheel drive model, which according to Vauxhall, represents a saving of £2,835 over the outgoing base version.

On the outside, styling changes for the 2011 Antara include the updated front grille with the new Griffin logo, enhanced by fog lights finished with chrome bezels on SE models, new 19-inch alloy wheels and modified rear lights.

Inside, the new Antara's cabin features a revised centre console with extra storage and higher-quality materials, in addition to improved instrument graphics and better interior lighting.

The 2011 model's revised Euro-5 compliant engine line-up includes a newly-developed 2.2-liter CDTI turbodiesel in two states of tune with 163HP or 184HP. The 163HP version is available in front-wheel drive with a six-speed manual transmission only or all-wheel drive hooked up to either a manual or six-speed auto gearbox. The more potent 184HP variant also offers a choice of manual or automatic transmissions, and comes with all-wheel drive as standard. All transmissions have been revised to improve efficiency.

The Vauxhall Antara will not be offered in the UK with the revised 170HP 2.4-liter gasoline engine of its Opel sibling.

GM Europe's engineers have also re-worked the SUV's chassis with revised spring and damper settings.

Finally, Vauxhall has improved safety and comfort features with the addition of an electric parking brake, a Hill Assist System as well as a "shift-up" fuel economy indicator on all models.

"At less than £20k, the new Antara is set to be highly competitive in today's SUV market," said Peter Hope, Vauxhall's Marketing Director. "Its lower emissions, higher output diesel engines and refreshed design will offer renewed appeal to both retail and fleet customers."

Toyota Recalls 134,900 Yaris in the States

Approximately 134,900 Yaris vehicles are being recalled in the U.S. over a seat belt pretensioner issue. On 2006 through 2007 model year Yaris, the Japanese automaker determined that the driver's and front passenger's seat belt pretensioner deployment could affect the sound insulating foam in the center pillar, after a collision. Toyota said that it will begin informing owners of the affected models from early February. According to Toyota, the repair will take approximately one hour, depending on the dealer's workload.

Alfa Romeo 8c Competizione Recalled Along with Maseratis in the US

A few dozens of extremely fortunate American owners of one of the world's hottest sports cars, the Alfa Romeo 8c Competizione, will have to return their Italian beauty for a quick fix after it was discovered that certain models were manufactured with incorrectly torqued front and rear suspension upper and lower ball joint nuts. The recall also affects MY 2008 Maserati Gran Turismo and Quattroporte which share the same platform with the Alfa.

Overall, 7,912 Maseratis and Alfa 8c Competiziones will be recalled in the States. While the Italian automaker did not reveal specific numbers, we do know for a fact that only 84 Alfas were allocated in the U.S.

Maserati said that the incorrectly torqued ball joint nuts may loosen with consequent steering wheel vibration, a growing metallic noise and progressive loss of driving precision in the transients. According to the Italian automaker, continued use of the vehicle in these conditions may lead to damage of the suspension lever, which in the long term and depending on vehicle usage, may cause the ball joint/suspension arm to break.

The firm's dealers will inspect the torque of the front/rear upper and lower ball joint nuts and, if necessary, replace the suspension arms and hub carrier. The recall is expected to begin during February 2009. Concerned U.S. owners may contact Maserati for more information at 1-201-816-2600.

Lexus Recalling 214,500 LS, IS and GS Sedans in the USA

Approximately 214,500 Lexus car owners in the U.S. are to receive a recall notification in their mail box over the next few weeks. The Japanese automaker determined that on certain 2006 through 2008 model year GS300/350, IS250/350, and LS460/460L vehicles, some ethanol fuels with a low moisture content may corrode the internal surface of the fuel delivery pipes. Over time, this condition could lead to the creation of a pinhole in the fuel delivery pipes resulting in fuel leakage. As one would expect, Lexus dealers will replace the fuel delivery pipes with newly designed components at no extra cost.

More than 240,000 Nissan Pathfinders, Frontiers and XTerras Recalled

Today, the National National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced that Nissan is recalling 242,720 MY2005-2009 Pathfinder, Frontier and XTerra vehicles sold in certain States of the country (see details after the jump) which use heavy concentrations of road salt in the winter. A mixture of snow/water and salt can enter into the vehicle's front crash zone sensor (CZS) housing causing it to rust. If this occurs, then there could be a signal interruption resulting in the non-deployment of the driver and passenger front air bags in the event of a crash.

Nissan said that the vehicles affected were originally sold in or, are currently registered in the States of Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and the District Of Columbia.

Nissan said that dealers will replace the front CZS with a redesigned sensor free of cost while owners in the other states will receive extended warranty coverage for the sensor to 10 years. These owners will be notified of the warranty extension by mail and will receive a sticker to place in their warranty booklet explaining the extended warranty coverage.

MINI Recalling MY'07-'08 Cooper S for... Protruding Tailpipes

Well, here's a new one. BMW Group is recalling 28,450 MY2007-2008 MINI Cooper S models in the States because the vehicle's centrally located exhaust tailpipes protrude slightly beyond the rear bumper. And what is the problem with that, you may ask. The problem is -according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)- that it is possible for inadvertent contact to occur with a person's leg. If this happens when the tailpipes are hot, then a burn could occur - and we can all imagine what a painful experience that could be. To solve this minor 'problem', BMW / MINI dealers will replace the tailpipe with a new shorter one free of charge. The recall is expected to begin during January 2009.

Jaguar Recalling 3,754 XFs for Minor Electric Glitch

There are recalls where there have been serious injuries or even deaths and recalls which simply involve faulty components that cause no harm. Jaguar's recall falls into the second category as the reason why the Indian-owned British automaker is calling in 3,754 MY2009 XFs in the U.S. for inspection is for instrument cluster speaker function problems. In particular, the speaker wires may fracture meaning that a series of audible notifications will not be heard by the driver. These include the seat belt warning, lights 'on' warning, driver's door open with key in ignition, driver intervene (adaptive cruise control vehicles only) and seat memory. For more info owners may contact Jaguar directly at 1-800-452-4827.

Mercedes-Benz Recalling 1,515 MY2007 S-Class Sedans

Even though it's not the best of things to happen, it's always useful to know when and why your vehicle is being called in by the manufacturer. The latest recall in the States concerns the 2007 Mercedes-Benz S-Class. According to the German automaker, due to a manufacturing process flaw from the supplier's side, the radial knuckle of the front strut may fail after significant mileage accumulation combined with exposure to high continuous stress by driving on rough roads. If the radial knuckle happens to fail, then the steering control of the vehicle may be affected. Merc said that the recall is expected to begin in December and that its dealers will replace any problematic front struts free of charge.

Recall: Honda Calling in 3,940 Accords and Civics

A defective driver's airbag inflator is the reason behind a recall of 3,940 MY2001 Honda Accords and Civics in the States. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) stated that in these particular models the driver's air bag inflator could produce excessive internal pressure. In the case that an affected air bag deploys, the increased internal pressure could rupture the inflator allowing metal fragments to pass through the air bag cushion material possibly causing injury to vehicle occupants. Honda said that the recall is expected to begin on or before December 22, 2008, with dealers replacing the air bag inflator free of charge.

BMW Recalling 2,500 M3s Over Double Clutch Gearbox Glitch

There's a saying, with each new piece of technology, there will be new and improved glitches. In BMW's case, the glitch has to do with its first ever double-clutch transmission called DCT that was introduced in the latest generation M3 models. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), a transmission software problem can lead to multistage downshifting of the 7-speed double clutch gearbox under rapid deceleration. In conjunction with the V8 engine's fuel cutoff at low vehicle speeds, there is a possibility for the engine to stall.

To deal will the problem, BMW's dealers will reprogram the engine and transmission electronic control unit with updated software free of charge. NHTSA said that the recall is expected to begin during November 2008. However concerned M3 owners in the U.S. may contact the Bavarian firm at 1-800-831-1117.