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2009 Honda City Roadshow Schedule

January 12, 2009 at 2:09 pm By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, Honda, Local News, Spyshots

2009 Honda City

Honda Malaysia Sdn Bhd will be holding a roadshow for the new 2009 Honda City from the 14th January 2009 to the 1st of March 2009 in various locations around the Peninsular Malaysia. The following is the roadshow schedule:

14 Jan to 18 Jan 1 Utama, Damansara
13 Feb to 15 Feb Queensbay Mall, Penang
20 Feb to 22 Feb Sutera Mall, JB
24 Feb to 1 Mar Kinta City, Ipoh
25 Feb to 1 Mar Mid Valley, KL

You can check out the new Honda City in person if you’re in the area doing your shopping without having to go out of your way to a Honda showroom, and I understand there are some Honda merchandise to be given away. Too bad you won’t be able to see the red one shown above, red isn’t available in Malaysia as a colour.

Related Posts:
2009 Honda City 1.5E and 1.5S launched in Malaysia
2009 Honda City – in-depth details and specifications

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New Subaru Legacy Concept at the NAIAS 2009

January 12, 2009 at 12:24 am By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, Concept Cars, Subaru

Subaru Legacy Concept

The new Subaru Legacy has been previewed in concept form at the 2009 NAIAS, or the Detroit Auto Show as it is frequently referred to as. From what was previously a sleek luxury cruise with that ever subtle tinge of sportiness, the new Subaru Legacy has grown rather large and has a noticeably high roofline, which Subaru says is designed to improve headroom in the interior. The car even has a little Hoffmeister kink at the C-pillar, so the Accord isn’t the only one doing that now!

Subaru Legacy Concept

The new car is larger, with a 2,751mm wheelbase that is longer than its predecessor, and even slightly longer than the large Subaru Tribeca. Like all proper Subarus (as in those that are not Daihatsu supermini rebadges), the Subaru Legacy Concept has Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive thats hooked up to a 3.6 litre 6-cylinder boxer engine. Subaru did not quote any power figures for this concept’s engine but it’s probably safe to assume that it is similiar to the EZ36 boxer-6 in the Subaru Tribeca that can produce 256hp.

Subaru Legacy Concept

The concept car has a few characteristics that probably won’t make it into the production model, and some of these include the tiny aerodynamic wing mirrors that use cameras instead of a mirror, as well as the 4-seater seating position which is most likely to be traded with a more practical 5-seater that uses a bench at the rear. There is a very comprehensive in-car entertainment system there too, and while it’s not likely to become a standard feature (or even a feature at all), it shouldn’t be too hard for any experienced accessory shop to reproduce it.

Check out a whole hi-res gallery and a video after the jump.
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2010 Toyota Camry (US market) get a facelift and new 2.5 liter VVT-i engine

January 11, 2009 at 11:42 pm By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, International News, Toyota

Toyota Camry
Click for enlarged image

The American’s 2010 model year cars are here and it’s time for the Toyota Camry to get a facelift. Both the Camry and Camry Hybrid facelifts made their debut at the 2009 Detroit Auto Show at the same time, so let’s look at the car’s features.

The Toyota Camry 2.4 has been replaced by a Camry 2.5, using the same 2.5 litre inline-4 VVT-i engine that was introduced with the Toyota RAV4 facelift. This engine is available in two states of tune in the Camry – 169hp in the LE and XLE models while the Toyota Camry 2.5 SE gets a unit that produces 179 horsepower. This engine is mated to either a 6-speed manual or a 6-speed auto, which is another upgrade over the 2.4 litre engine which was matched to an automatic transmission that only had 5 gears.

The Camry Hybrid and the other engines/models of Camry stay largely the same, and the only other differences are a redesigned grille and front bumper with new fog lamps, new wheel cover and wheel designs, larger projector headlamps, and restyled tail lamps. The Camry Hybrid has additional differences on the inside, namely a new instrument cluster and a new material for the seat trim called Fraichir, which is said to be a combination of silk protein and synthetic fiber.

Look after the jump for more photos of the new Camry facelift. Please note this is not the same car as the Camry we get here. Our ASEAN Camry is actually the Australian Toyota Aurion, which has yet to be facelifted. Hopefully our facelift gets the new 2.5 litre and 6-speed auto too.
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W212 Mercedes-Benz E-Class low-res gallery

January 11, 2009 at 6:25 pm By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, Mercedes Benz

W212

Here are more low resolution images of the new 2010 Mercedes-Benz E-Class. This new W212 E-Class replaces the W211 currently sold in Malaysia, and finally retires the Kompressor engine in the base model, replacing it with one that is turbocharged and direct injected. I’m in the midst of uploading the full high-resolution gallery right now, but for the moment please enjoy this low-res gallery that made its appearance on the internet shortly before the high-res ones were released officially in the Daimler Global Media Site.

Related Posts:
LEAKED: 2010 Mercedes-Benz E-Class (W212) Brochures
[Read more...]

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Audi Sportback Concept pre-Detroit leaked images preview upcoming Audi A7 four-door coupe

January 11, 2009 at 3:48 pm By Paul Tan Filed Under Audi, Cars, Concept Cars, International News

Audi A7
Click for enlarged image

First hi-res images of the Audi A7 Sportback Concept (the nameplate on the car seems to say Audi Sportback Concept) set to be displayed at the Detroit Auto Show tomorrow have been unveiled on the internet. The front-end looks alot like the ones shown on the Audi metroproject quattro and its evolution, the Audi A1 Sportback Concept, except the front grille loses the vertical slats, leaving only the horizontal ones.

It has a fastback roofline, more like the Porsche Panamera rather than the Aston Martin Rapide, which might lead some to think its going to have a hatchback boot, but a look an image of the rear after the jump and you can see the bootlid’s lines do not really meet the rear glass in a way that a hatch would, but then again Audi could also be doing a hatchback-sedan dual bootlid combo much like Skoda’s new Superb.

The Audi A7 is said to be larger than the Audi A6 and built on the new Audi MLP platform, which is modular in terms of length and width to suit different sizes of cars while retaining many components in the interests of economies of scale.

4 more images after the jump!
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Thule roof racks and roof boxes in Malaysia now available from Proton Parts Centre

January 10, 2009 at 12:35 am By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, Local News, Malaysian Makes, Proton

Thule Proton

Proton subsidiary Proton Parts Centre Sdn Bhd is now a corporate distributor for Thule products. Proton Parts Centre now has the right to distribute Thule products through dealers in Malaysia, Indonesia, Brunei, Singapore and other export markets which Proton has a presence in. The Thule brand originates from Sweden and is no stranger to motorists, as it is one of the most well-known manufacturers of roof racks, roof boxes, bicycle carriers, and other similiar means to enhance your vehicle’s luggage capacity. This new agreement is timely and a sign of Proton readying to launch the new Proton MPV, likely in the next 3 months, as roof racks and roof boxes would complement an MPV’s usage well.

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New Honda Insight hybrid details revealed early in Belgian official Honda magazine

January 9, 2009 at 3:38 pm By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, Honda, International News, Spyshots

Honda Insight

To think that we had assumed Honda had gotten rid of it’s i-DSI engines, with the new City being available solely with a range of 4 cylinder SOHC i-VTEC engines, but no, we were wrong! The i-DSI engine is still alive and kicking in the new Honda Insight, as these scans from Honda’s official magazine in Belgium reveal.

The Honda Insight will be powered by an Euro 5-compliant 1.3 litre (1,339cc) i-DSI i-VTEC engine that has 8 valves (2 per cylinder), Dual & Sequential Ignition (2 spark plugs per cylinder), and variable valve timing that produces 88 horsepower at 5,800rpm and 123Nm of torque at 4,600rpm.

Not quite the 1.5 litre i-DSI that we are so familiar with, the one that produces its peak torque at a nice 2,700rpm, but looks decent. The somewhat anaemic power figures are helped by the IMA electric motor which adds another 13.6hp and 103Nm of torque. This engine is mated to a CVT transmission, which has optional steering wheel paddle shifts.

Two different trim levels are available – the Insight Comfort and the Insight Elegance. The Comfort has the necessities such as automatic climate control, airbags and etc. The Elegance version adds some extra equipment such as fog lamps, cruise control, heated front seats, automatic headlamps and wipers and the previously mentioned paddle shifts.

Honda rates the new Honda Insight at a consumption of 4.4 litres per 100km on the combined cycle, and 101g/km of CO2 emissions. More details will be revealed at the official unveiling, but for now check out the brochure scans after the jump.
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Cheaper RON95 fuel to be introduced mid-2009

January 9, 2009 at 3:55 am By Paul Tan Filed Under Local News, Malaysian Fuel Prices

Fuel Wallet GaugeIt’s right in the middle of the month now, and some of you might be wondering what happened to any fuel price revisions that typically happens at the starting of a month, and whether there will be any revisions in the middle of this month.

Well, don’t keep your hopes up high as Datuk Shahrir Samad says average crude prices have remained at a similiar level this month compared to the previous, so no fuel price revision is expected. However he does have some new updates for us regarding fuel prices.

By middle of this year, RON95 will be introduced to provide cheaper fuel so that people who have cars that aren’t so demanding on the octane levels can use it. But RON97′s price will be increased via a fuel tax, which will be used to subsidise the new RON95 fuel. RON95 will replace RON92 and is expected to be priced at the same level as RON92 is currently. He expects RON92 fuel to be an average of 10 to 11 sen cheaper than RON97.

His ministry will also reveal a chart on how retail fuel prices in Malaysia are calculated next week, which should put an end to endless questions by consumers on how the prices are calculated and how much the government is making from us via fuel taxes, if they are earning any at all of course. All of this will be answered next week, if things go as planned. Fuel prices in Malaysia are dependent on Singapore’s Mean of Platts Singapore (MOPS), a regional fuel price monitor. Australia also uses MOPS to calculate their fuel prices.

Source

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Supercharged Lotus Evora with 350hp in the works

January 9, 2009 at 3:07 am By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, Lotus, Rumours

Lotus Evora

Thanks to Lotus, we now know Toyota’s 3.5 litre V6 can be forced inducted to a nice 350hp and 400Nm of torque without any modifications, as a source in Lotus discovered during the development of an upcoming “Evora SC” and revealed to Autocar UK. The Lotus Evora SC will make at least that amount of power, and will drop 0 to 100km/h acceleration time to below 5 seconds. The Lotus Evora is expected to do in in approximately 5.5 seconds. The Evora SC’s supercharger will be fitted between the V6 engine’s two cylinder banks, so it won’t intrude into rear visibility like the supercharged Elise does. If the Evora goes for £45,000, the supercharged Evora is expected to retail for between 55,000 and £60,000.

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Volvo FH16 is the most powerful truck in the world!

January 9, 2009 at 2:35 am By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, International News, Videos, Volvo

Volvo FH16
Click for enlarged image

Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the REAL mother trucker! The most powerful truck in the world as of today is the new Volvo FH16, which can proudly display a 700 horsepower badge thanks to its D16G engine, which puts out a massive 700 horsepower and 3,150Nm of torque in its highest state of tune. The 16 litre engine is also Euro 5 compliant, which is important since that regulation will come into force in October this year.

Volvo D16G Engine“The Volvo FH16 is intended for the very heaviest and most demanding of transport operations. It is also a highly prestigious truck for the customer who is looking for something truly out of the ordinary. Now, with 700 hp, the Volvo FH16 sets itself apart from everything else in the industry,” says Staffan Jufors, President and CEO of Volvo Trucks, clearly very proud of the new truck.

Despite the power increase, Volvo has rated the new 700 horsepower truck to consume the same amount of fuel as the previous edition which puts out 660hp. The FH16 is also available in 540hp and 600hp versions, which come with 2,650Nm or 2,800Nm of torque respectively.

These kind of trucks are a rare sight in Malaysia. There aren’t that many uses for such a powerful engine, plus it could be that our displacement-tied tax structure forces some people who want to save ob road tax costs to use underpowered trucks for hauling way more than they were designed for. That is why you can see trucks stranded on a slope sometimes, usually thanks to a burned out clutch from the strain they have to pull.

Look after the jump for a video of the truck in action.
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