ISLAMABAD: Display surging triggered by heavy rain fall have killed at least 14 people and broken lots of homes in northern Pakistan, government bodies said on Saturday.
Irshad Bhatti, a representative for the country's National Tragedy Management Power said the deaths price may improve as study categories have exposed more deaths but are still assessing the level of reduction.
Most of the deaths were exposed in the northwestern area of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, where nine people approved away and more than 50 homes were broken. In Pakistan-administered Kashmir, six people were killed after a roof compressed.
“The deaths price may improve, we are assessing the reduction. Save work is continuous and comfort actions have started,” Bhatti said.
Adnan Khan, an official from the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa confirmed the deaths price and said he terrifying more deaths.
“Dozens of close relatives have experienced and their homes were broken, several people are still missing” Khan told AFP.
Floods in Pakistan in the summer of 2011 affected 5.8 thousand people, with floodwaters removing creatures, damaging vegetation, homes and features as the country conducted to recover from record inundations the year before.
The Toyota Avalon doesn't get much attention from car enthusiasts or from first-time buyers, but it's the kind of car that Toyota does very well. It's a no-fuss, no-brainer driving experience with lots of room and near-luxury equipment, geared at a big group of drivers that care more about comfort than performance--especially older drivers.
Toyota Avalon
A stretched Camry, when you get right down to it, the California-designed, Kentucky-built Avalon has some well-executed details in an overall look that's quite conservative. Toyota Avalon is longer than the Camry, with a slightly less assertive grille than its new-for-2012 cousin, the Avalon's broad shoulders and crisped-up sheetmetal are an improvement over the last-generation model. The big Toyota's generic taillamps are dressed up with a C-shaped frame of LED lights. The interior's themed around an elegant dual-cowl dash, with the second cowl arcs atop climate and radio controls. In all, and despite some teensy radio buttons and plainly artificial woodgrain, the Toyota Avalon looks a little more extravagant than its station in life.
Toyota Avalon
The cushy Toyota Avalon performs well in a straight line, but cornering isn't really what it had in mind. A 3.5-liter V-6 produces 268 horsepower--and it's a little louder here than before. Power streams to the front wheels via a six-speed automatic transmission, and acceleration is brisk for such a big sedan. This Toyota has decent on-center steering feel, light to the touch, but attentive enough for the needs of drivers just interested in a safe trip. The suspension is tuned very softly, with lots of body roll and underdamped responses.
The of Toyota Avalon cabin is very large, but to understand what the Avalon is all about, you'll need to leave the flat, wide front bucket seats and slip into the back seat, where the Avalon does a convincing impression of a town car. There's so much head and leg room, surrounded by upscale trimmings, that even with the front seats pushed to the back of their tracks, an adult can cross their leg over knee. The rear seats can recline a couple of inches for long-trip comfort, and there's a small window to access the vast trunk.
The Toyota Avalon's an IIHS Top Safety Pick, and along with the usual airbags (and a driver knee airbag) and stability control, it has an available rearview camera and standard Bluetooth. Other standard features include steering-wheel controls; XM; and a USB port. The ritzy Limited version gets ventilated front seats; a power passenger front seat; and keyless entry with pushbutton start.
Introduced a few years ago just as gas prices were beginning to race skyward, the Honda Fit now looks like a happy little piece of automotive prophecy. A subcompact four-door hatchback, the Honda Fit has earned praise for its world-class engineering and design, and it has definitely found its niche with consumers, particularly with the arrival of the second-generation model. With either generation, you'll find crisp handling, an adaptable interior, high-quality fit and finish and a relatively low price. For small-car shoppers, the Honda Fit represents an almost ideal package.
Honda Fit
Current Honda Fit
The Honda Fit is available in two main trim levels: base and Sport. Both come with a fuel-efficient 1.5-liter four-cylinder engine that produces 117 horsepower and 106 pound-feet of torque. A five-speed manual transmission is standard, with a five-speed automatic transmission being optional. Paddle shifters are included with the automatic for the Sport version. Fuel economy is respectably good with either transmission.
Honda Fit
On the base Fit, air-conditioning, cruise control, keyless entry a tilt-and-telescoping steering column and a four-speaker audio system with a CD player, auxiliary audio jack and iPod/USB audio interface are standard. The Honda Fit Sport gains bigger wheels, sportier exterior trim details and a six-speaker audio system with an iPod-friendly USB port. Fit Sports can also be optioned with a touchscreen navigation system.
The Honda Fit is Honda's smallest automotive product, but it nearly matches the total passenger space of the larger Civic sedan. To help achieve this, Honda has installed a compact rear suspension design and placed the fuel tank underneath the passenger seat. Another key advantage for the Honda Fit is its innovative, highly versatile rear seating arrangement. The "Magic Seat" has seatbacks that fold flat and seat cushions that can be flipped upward, creating a tall load area right behind the front seats -- sort of like a crew cab pickup's rear seats. Maximum cargo capacity is an impressive 57 cubic feet.
In reviews, we've found the Honda Fit to be a pleasure to drive for a frugal subcompact. The car has a solid feel to it, countering the perception of vehicles in this class as tinny econoboxes. Generally speaking, the Honda Fit continues the model's tradition of providing serious bang for the buck, and its combination of driving dynamics, polish and big-time practicality distinguish it from the competition.
Used Honda Fit Models
The current second-generation Honda Fit debuted for the 2009 model year and has seen no significant changes since.
The first-generation Honda Fit was available for just two years: 2007 and 2008. It came in two trim levels with no factory options available. The base version adhered to a minimalist philosophy, though it still came standard with air-conditioning and a CD player. The uplevel Sport trim was snazzier and, predictably, we favored it. It featured larger, 15-inch alloy wheels, stickier tires, exterior styling pieces, keyless entry, cruise control, a leather-wrapped steering wheel and a premium MP3-compatible audio system with an auxiliary audio jack.
The Fit stuck to the Honda playbook when it came to interior controls, which were intelligently designed and utilized high-quality materials. For a subcompact, the first-generation Honda Fit was surprisingly roomy and versatile. Chalk much of that up to the car's specialized second-row, 60/40-split seat design. The rear seats could be placed into four different configurations, depending on passenger or cargo needs. Folding the rear seat flat provided a surprising 41.9 cubic feet of cargo capacity.
Both trim levels were front-wheel drive and were equipped with a 1.5-liter, 109-hp four-cylinder engine. A five-speed manual transmission was standard, and a five-speed automatic was optional. Fit Sports with the automatic also had steering-wheel-mounted shift paddles.
We found the first-generation Honda Fit to possess an enviable driving-fun-to-thrift ratio. Cornering and acceleration were crisp. The subcompact could achieve 0-60-mph sprints in fewer than 10 seconds with either transmission. Fuel economy was commendable, and safety was good. The whole thing was almost perfect. Almost. The main downside was that although the car seemed less tinny than other cars in its class, at highway speeds the engine made its presence known. The lack of a telescoping steering wheel could also be an annoyance for taller drivers. But on balance the first-generation Honda Fit provided about as much fun, satisfaction and value as you could find in a small economy car.
As compact SUVs get funkier, fresher and ever more daring, theHonda CR-V seems in danger of being left behind, which is slightly ironic given that it was one of the pioneers of the class when it debuted in 1995. Now a new model is being launched in the hope it can regain some momentum.
Honda CR-V
Honda CR-V
The 2012 Honda CR-V goes on sale in Honda’s home market of Japan in two weeks’ time, with a European-spec version scheduled to arrive here by this time next year.
Honda CR-V
And Honda CR-V will have a key role to play, as Honda looks for an upturn in its fortunes. The firm’s UK sales have almost halved to around 50,000 over the last three years, with the past 12 months proving especially problematic due to supply problems caused by the Japanese tsunami. Alongside the Civic, the Honda CR-V will be tasked with increasing this figure significantly.
Honda CR-V
So what can we expect from the newcomer? Well, the styling has been sharpened up, with the lower roofline helping to create a more dynamic look, and a near vertical hatchback. The grille is bolder, too. Honda CR-V is a handsome car and still very obviously a CR-V, but undeniably restrained when you consider what Kia has done with the Sportage, Ford with the next Kuga and Range Rover with the Evoque. Bosses freely admit their policy has been: “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” – so given its continued strong sales in both the US and Japan, perhaps an approach of evolution rather revolution is to be expected.
Honda CR-V
Despite the lower roofline and the fact the Japanese-spec car is 30mm shorter than the outgoing car, the cabin ofHonda CR-V is roomier than before. But hard plastics at the top of the dashboard seem out of kilter with the rest of the interior, which maintains Honda’s usual high standard for build quality. These will be replaced by softer plastics for Europe.
Honda CR-V
The model of Honda CR-V we drove was designed for the Japanese market, and featured some key differences from the car due to go on sale in Britain in around 12 months’ time. The suspension settings seem certain to be tweaked to deliver a softer ride – even on a tame road course at Honda’s Twin Ring Motegi facility in Japan, it felt harsher than you might have expected.
Honda CR-V
Refinement will be improved too – at the low speeds of our brief test drive, noise filtered through to the cabin too readily for our liking.
Honda CR-V
The Japanese market model of Honda CR-V is fitted with 2.4-litre four-cylinder petrol engine delivering around 180bhp and 240Nm of torque. It performs adequately, but the CR-V never feels especially sprightly. The UK engine line-up will comprise Honda’s new 1.6-litre diesel, a 2.2-litre diesel and 2.0 petrol.
Honda CR-V
The biggest bugbear, though, is the electrically assisted power steering. It is extremely light, making low-speed manouevres such as parking simple, but offering little in the way of feedback when you up the pace.
Honda CR-V
Among the technical upgrades is a more advanced four-wheel-drive system. It’s now lighter, to improve fuel economy, and electronically regulates the torque distribution to the rear wheels.
Honda CR-V
An Eco Assist mode is also new. You simply press a button to go into fuel-saving mode, and a dash displays how economically you are performing.
Honda CR-V
All in all, the new Honda CR-V delivers a familiar, competent package. But it’s merely a step forward rather than the major advance we were hoping for.
