Tow truck for exclusive cars always at your service!

The cold winter period is close to it’s end providing opportunities for fast and exclusive cars to get back on the road again.

Vehicle transportation company Kurbads offers tow truck service 24/7. The tow truck is specially modified to transport cars with low ride height, providing a quick and reliable quality service.

Last week, we helped to transport Lamborghini “Huracan LP 640-4 Performante” in Riga’s winter damaged streets. This car is a track oriented variant of “Huracan” model. It’s an evolution of base model with an added adjustable carbon fibre rear wing to increase downforce. “Huracan LP 640-4 Performante’s” 5.2-liter V10 has been tuned to produce 631 hp. The weight has also decreased by 40 kg and the car is capable of accelerating from 0-100 km/h in 2,9 seconds and from 100 to 200 in just 6 seconds.

A serious piece of equipment that needs to be put in use in the right conditions!

The surprise car from Volkswagen

The Volkswagen “Karmann-Ghia” was a most unexpected vehicle from a company that had built its reputation on the purely functional Volkswagen Beetle. “Karmann-Ghia” was a proof that the company can build a sporty coupe and convertible, it was an automobile in which style and driving fun took precedence. The Kurbads logistics center was visited by a 1971 model, while the production cycle for the model lasted from 1955 till 1974.

The car’s name summarizes a very complicated pedigree. VW in the early 1950s was a rapidly growing West German carmaker. Karmann was a long-established West German coachbuilder and already was building Beetle convertibles. Ghia was a top Italian styling house.

Coachbuilder Karmann came up with the idea of producing a new Beetle-based coupe. The new small Volkswagen had a wonderfully simple and adaptable floorpan, and it was comparatively easy to built special bodies for it. Volkswagen jumped at the chance when it saw the pretty coupé body that Ghia designed for Karmann.

In the early 1950s, Volkswagen was producing its Volkswagen Beetle, and as postwar standards of living increased, executives at Volkswagen were at least receptive adding an additional model to its range. Launched in 1955 in Europe, this clearly was a different type of VW, and it soon generated its own clientele. The bodywork of course was the big draw. Was it a beautiful car for those years? Some pundits damned it with faint praise, describing it as “ideal for the ladies.” At the extreme, a few asked if it was the most attractive car in the world.

Despite its beautiful, sporty exterior, there is nothing but simple VW-beetle engineering beneath the “Karmann-Ghia’s” hood. Such technology makes it robust and it cannot be called a sports car. However, thanks to its light weight (approx. 940 kg)) and aerodynamic design, it is fast enough for everyday purposes. This 1971 model is equipped with 1,6 liter engine with 60 hp output, enabling the car to accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in 21 second.

The public certainly agree that the 1955 “Karmann-Ghia” was a very good thing, and this sleeker Beetle went on and sold well. Public reaction exceeded expectations, and more than 10000 were sold in the first year. Demand was still relatively healthy into the early 1970s, but the “Karmann-Ghia’s” days were numbered. Karmann needed all the space it could find to build the brand new VW “Scirocco” sports coupe, and ceased production of the Beetle-based cars in 1974. It had built 283,501 coupes and 80,897 convertibles. An additional 23,577 coupes had been built at VW’s plant in Brazil.

VW Group regrouping for a jump to era of electromobilityn

VW Group is doing what it needs to make a strategic change of manufacturing electric and self-driving vehicles. But the change of direction will be costly and it means reorganizing the funds in factories.

Volkswagen’s business in Slovakia, the country’s biggest car plant and largest private sector employer, plans to reduce staff this year for the first time since the 2009 global downturn as part of an efficiency drive.  Volkswagen employs around 14,000 people in Slovakia and the German automaker did not say what that figure would fall to. The Slovak business will also reduce the number of production shifts that make higher-end SUVs as well as cheaper small family cars including the Volkswagen “e-up!”, the only electric car currently made in Slovakia.

There are no cuts in overall output projections, as reduced hours will be offset by an increase in the technical capacity of production lines. Volkswagen said the move was part of a drive to increase efficiencies by 30 percent by 2025, as it strives to fund a costly shift to electric and self-driving vehicles.

At the end of 2018, Volkswagen announced that it is converting two more factories to electric vehicle production and it is partnering with “SK Innovation” for battery cells. The German automaker plans to produce 1,500 electric cars per day at the plant.

Volkswagen’s premium brand Audi wants to cut costs by 15 billion euros  by 2022. The cost cuts would help finance projects such as a shift to electromobility at Audi. Savings are particularly important for VW after an emissions scandal and associated fines. It also faces a big bill to make its combustion engines comply with new anti-pollution rules. Audi has invested billions of euros in Hungary and operates one of its largest production facilities worldwide in the central European country.

The “I.D”., which is a Golf-sized vehicle, is expected to be their first mass-market EV for the model year 2020. VW also unveiled the “I.D. VIZZION” sedan, the crossover all-electric “I.D. CROZZ Concept”, and then there’s the “I.D. BUZZ” electric microbus, which we’ve now learned is going to be produced in 2022.

VW has reportedly issued battery supply contracts worth $48 billion with existing battery manufacturers already. VW confirmed that CATL, Samsung SDI, and LG Chem were amongst the manufacturers who received contracts.

World’s biggest car manufacturer sees the future in electric vehicles. And the future starts now!

First signs of spring in Kurbads – we celebrate our car carrier #97!n

Ancient Latvian holiday Meteni is a holiday between Christmas and Easter, it’s a celebration of longer daylight and coming of spring. Today vehicle transportation and logistics company Kurbads had their festive ritual – we consecrated our 97th car carrier in the Kurbads fleet. It’s marked with ancient Latvian mythology sign Metenis, designed by Alfreds Paulausks.

Metenis is a symbol of new beginning. Inclined cross that fills the emptiness of the Sun symbol, it creates new dynamic progress and symbolizes deliberate entering in new area of life, in a whirlpool of life processes. Symbol makes you look at the bright and beautiful future, new emotions! When using this sign, one evades danger, misfortune and attacks.

Andis Druviņš will drive the car carrier #97, he is a true professional of 8 years of experience in Kurbads. “Andis comes from Bauska, and he really loves Polish naleshniki (barm pancakes). He is a master of his job and he has already driven Volvo and Mercedes-Benz trucks. Also proved himself as technically advanced, when he found a solutions for technical problem on the road,” Anatolijs Vasiļjevs, Kurbads drivers quality manager tells about Andis. “He showed great results driving a car carrier and also he has very good communication with logistics and other drivers. Add his work ethic to those qualities and you will understand why he was rewarded with a new truck, he is a true professional!”

This specific Mercedes-Benz Actros is equipped with the latest OM 470 engine, producing 456 hp. According to Andis’ needs, it is customized with an especially comfortable passenger seat, and also the truck has a factory built climate control system.

In “Actros 1856”, a compromise between comfort, conductivity and grip with the road surface has been found by using the newest technologies. The cabin is built so that the driver can concentrate on the road at all times and avoid traffic accidents.

Tieto hands new logistics program to Kurbads

Vehicle transportation and logistics company Kurbads has received the new internal logistics program developed by Latvian branch of information technology establishment “Tieto Latvia”. The new program will make some processes of logistics easier and Kurbads will provide it’s clients with even higher quality of service.

“It’s 2019, and logistics field puts more and more attention to the latest technologies and automation. The idea of our own program was born when we looked for options to improve connection with our clients. The first step to this goal is automation of our internal processes,” says Uldis Čalpa, program development leader from Kurbads.

“Now we have finished the first round – it will improve generation of invoices and CMRs, and it will also build a united database that will help the logistics employees to follow projects of their colleagues. All the necessary information will be in one place. In the second round, we have planned a mobile application for our drivers, at the moment it’s in research and development stage. In the application our drivers will receive their everyday tasks – information about cargo, delivery address, contact information. It will reduce a chance for mistake and will improve the communication between logistics branch and drivers.”

Raivis Lazdiņš, project manager of “Tieto Latvia” says: “This is an interesting project as we have very little previous experience with logistics companies. It was important to make it visually attractive with a responsive design so it could work perfectly on various devices. We have already started development of the mobile application for Kurbads truck drivers.”

Lamborghini Urus – the first super SUV

The Lamborghini “Urus” is what happens when the maker of the planet’s most outlandish supercars turns its hand to a large five-door family car with proper ground clearance and off-road ability. On paper it’s a clash of purposes, in reality it’s a mouth-watering prospect.

Before you throw your hands up in the air in disgust at the very thought of an SUV wearing the raging bull on its nose, we should mention that this isn’t a first.  Lamborghini initially dabbled with off-roaders in 1970s before launching the “LM002” (nicknamed the ‘Rambo-Lambo’) in 1986.

It’s been a six year wait for the 2012 “Urus” concept to turn into the production car here, but Lamborghini is a tiny company, selling just 3500 cars a year (a figure it hopes to double with the “Urus”). Getting this car right could catapult Lamborghini into a different orbit – with more money to build more supercars we know and love.

As the firm’s head of R&D, Maurizio Reggiani, points out, Lamborghini gets to cherry-pick what it wants from the VW Group inventory, and to achieve its aims – best performance of all; within the top group for comfort and off-road ability, apparently – it has thrown everything it can at the “Urus”.

Four-wheel steering, for example, that turns the rears by +-3 degrees. This means at low speeds, where they turn opposite to the front tyres, the virtual wheelbase is shorter than a “Huracan” – handy for hairpins and tight parking spaces. 

Then there’s the active roll stability control, which firms up the outside suspension in fast corners keeping you flat with the horizon, but can also decouple each wheel when you’re hammering down a dirt track. It’s possibly the most impressive piece of tech on display – virtually negating the higher centre of gravity.

If we talk about Lamborghini, we are obliged to talk about numbers. “Urus” uses the same 4 liter V8 turbo engine that is the power station of Porsche “Cayenne” and Audi “Q7”. But it’s fine tuned and now produces more than 100 BHP more, a total of 641 BHP. It’s also a lot lighter than it’s opponents. More power and less weight allows the car to accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in 3,6 seconds. While maximum speed is 305 km/h.

A full two years of production is already reserved, starting in 2018, which means 3,500 cars a year at Lamborghini’s recently-enlarged plant. 2017 was the first year this minnow of a company turned over €1bn, and that was before the “Urus” came along to double the numbers

While it may not be the type of vehicle we’ve grown accustomed to seeing from the automaker, it is indeed a stunning performance machine that is worthy of the badge.

Starting price from around 165 000 EUR.

Passenger car market review 2018 – Latvia, Europe and World

In 2018, new passenger car registration in Latvia, Europe and Worldwide wasn’t so successful when compared to the year before. The growth has been very insignificant, a lot smaller than was expected. But the stagnation has it’s reasons that make look more optimistic to 2019.

Last year, the new passenger car market saw a growth of just 0,1%, while in EFTA countries there was even a drop by 0,04%. Numbers show that 2018 could be called as a year of stagnation in Europe.

Latvia – a year before jump.

According to Auto asociācija data, 19 272 new passenger cars were registered in Latvia last year, 1,7% more than in 2017. The forecast was much more optimistic – 20 300 cars. The biggest rise has been evidenced in commercial transport segment – nearly 7%.

It seems that passenger car market had two completely different market situations – one in the first half of the year, and completely different in the second half. On September 1st 2018, the new rules for measuring of fuel consumption and CO2 emission came in force. There is still a lot of discussion about this in Europe. For some time there was a political confusion, unsolved legal questions connected to vehicle testing, followed by huge jams in laboratories and, finally, a challenge in automotive logistics sector. The manufacturers that presented new models in 2018, it hurt the most. This problem will continue also in 2019.

Clients in Latvia still favor Volkswagen vehicles (2 718 sold units), followed by Toyota (2 481) and Škoda (1 322), with Nissan in close fourth.

The most sold car model in Latvia is “VW Golf”, swapping places with the champion of 2017, “Nissan Qashqai”. Third place goes to “VW Tiguan”. Among private persons, different SUV are very popular, eight models out of 10 are SUVs, with most popular being “Nissan Qashqai”, “VW Tiguan” and “Toyota RAV4”.

Electromobiles throughout the world are becoming more popular. It’s not the case in Latvia, as use of the electromobiles is growing very slowly – just 0,43% or 73 new cars were registered in Latvia last year. People are just not interested in buying those cars without government support. 

The micro competition between the Baltic States hasn’t changed a lot. Latvia is still behind Estonia and Lithuania. Despite the logistics problems, Estonia enjoyed a steady 3,6% growth, while Lithuania even 25%. But it’s really not very precise information – thanks to a very grateful conditions for one day permit, many citizens and establishments from neighboring countries choose to register their cars in Lithuania.

No change in Western front – Volkswagen sits on the throne!

2018 was not a good year in Europe as for a very long time, a small decline was experienced – 15 624 486 new cars were registered, 7000 less than the year before. In five biggest markets, only two saw increase in car sales – France by 3% and Spain by 6,8%, while there was a small decrease in Germany (-0,2%), Italy (-3,1%) and Great Britain (-6,8%). For the second year in a row, the biggest growth is in Lithuania (+25%), followed by Romania, Greece, Croatia and Hungary.

In a competition between brands, Volkswagen dominates, rising their sales volumes and achieving 2,7% growth – 1 752 162 new Volkswagen vehicles were registered in 2018. Despite a 3,9% decrease, Renault (1 105 778 sold cars) still holds second place, selling 100 000 cars more than closest followers FORD and Peugeot.

2018 was great for Jeep (+55,6%), Jaguar (+20,6%), SEAT (+12,8%) and Dacia (+11,7%). From TOP5 brands the biggest jump in sales goes to Peugeot – 5%. Not so good year was for Chrysler (-19,8%), Land Rover (-14,0%), Nissan (-12,8%) and Audi (-12,4%).

World – China out of reach.

When looking at global markets, China still is the biggest one. 23 236 300 cars were sold in China last year(more than a million less than in 2017). This is the first time in two decades, China experiences a decrease in sales volumes. But is still the biggest margin by a long way. 

The second biggest market, USA, had a slow 0,5% growth, stagnation in Europe (0%), Japan (0,1%), while increased sales were in India (+5,1%), Brazil (+13,8%) and Russia (+12,8%). Russia’s market grows for 22 consecutive months.

A drop in China, stagnation in biggest markets means that global car sales fell by 168 000 units in 2018. 68 157 900 new cars entered the roads last year.

Kurbads joins memorandum for safer traffic

On 9th of January at the office of Bikernieki race track the event “Izkāp no telefona!” (Get out of the phone!) took place. This memorandum invites not only casual drivers, but also establishments to join the battle against mobile phone using while driving a vehicle.

Kurbads company in the event was represented by Ivars Čiblis: “Very interesting and educational event with a very topical mission. The statistics about road accidents that happen because of using mobile phones is very alarming but it can be prevented. We also invite our drivers not to use the phone while driving – we put safety first!”

The aim of the campaign organizers is to achieve that battle against using mobile phone while driving becomes the top priority for employers also. Joining the memorandum means that we pledge to educate and explain our employees about risks and dangers, and also to find suitable solutions to reduce this problem among employees.

Despite the fact that most people know the risk about using the mobile phone behind the wheel, more than two thirds (72%) drivers use the devices while driving everyday. 20-30% of the crashes in Latvia and worldwide happen due to careless driving, mostly because smartphones.

Think about the safety of you and others – don’t use the phone while driving a vehicle!

A victory in James Bond style goes to Māris Purvēns. Kurbads celebrates 2018!

If a random person walked into Kurbads annual New Year party, then he would think he has walked into a meeting of high ranked diplomats or is attending World Economic Forum, but in reality these people are Kurbads employees in tuxedos and evening dresses enjoying the evening and celebrating best workers of 2018!

To continue tradition with different topics each year, when in previous years the Gala ceremony was in style of beasts, animals and superheroes, this time the game black and white color was honoured, fancy costumes, where men looked like James Bond on a mission and ladies shone like Hollywood Divas.

To warm up the public for the most anticipated event of the year – to honor the best of the best in various categories, the host Toms Liepājnieks organized some games for all to play, and also invited musician Rihards Lībietis and the band “Henrix”, music of which, warmed up not only hearts but also a lot of legs on the dance floor.

The crescendo of the evening is the award giving ceremony where the most prestigious title is “Kurbads driver of the year”. For three years this category was dominated by Māris Baumanis but not this time as the title went to Māris Purvēns!

Our 7 champions:
Kurbads best driver of 2018 – Māris Purvēns!
Kurbads best employee of 2018 – Toms Hartmanis!
Kurbads best warehouse and PDI employee – Ilmārs Brasliņš!
Kurbads best truck service employee – Andris Matesovičs!
Kurbads best young driver – Jānis Bondars!
DBC autocentrs best employee – Rihards Mesijs!
Rumbulas sporta centrs best employee – Renārs Valters!

Kurbads employees enjoying Christmas!

Flavor of gingerbread, hardwine and skillful skating. That’s how Kurbads friendly employees enjoyed the Friday evening, having a joyful time together with families at the cosy Kurbads ice rink!

Mid December is the time when one Friday evening the work is halted and everyone gathers together to rest for a while and enjoy the Christmas spirit. It’s an opportunity to show colleagues your latest moves on ice, improve your skating or show the first steps for the youngest member of the family.

At the meantime the gastropub Ūsiņš magically turns into Christmas elf workshop where creative gingerbread is baked with a help of big and not that big hands. Every client will get a chance to taste them at the Kurbads logistics centre or at Kurbads ice rink.

Merry Christmas!