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Russian hybrid electric vehicle to roll out mid-2012

April 14, 2010 at 3:16 am By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, Hybrids and Alternative Fuel

Russia’s second (or first?) richest man is spearheading an effort to produce Russia’s first hybrid electric car. Mikhail Prokhorov’s Onexim Group and Russian truckmaker Yarovit is in a joint venture in which Onexim has poured 150 million Euros in, and the JV is expecting to roll out three prototype electric cars by December this year.

No specs have been revealed yet but the company claims that the new car will weigh about a third as much as the smallest cars produced now and will be priced between 300k to 450k rubles which is between RM33k to RM50k.

The Russian government is of course supporting Prokhorov as they want to wean the country off its fossil fuel dependency. Russia is the world’s biggest energy producer. However it is far from having an infrastructure that can support electric cars.

An IFC Metropol analyst also said that Russians are not used to a light car, given the number of car accidents in the country. According to the analyst, he doesn’t see a ‘real application’ for the cars produced by this project at the moment.

The JV intends to roll out the first cars in mid 2012.

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Peugeot to build new normally aspirated and turbocharged 3-cylinder engines

April 14, 2010 at 1:38 am By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, International News, Peugeot

The trend of engine downsizing continues! PSA Peugeot Citroen is developing a new 1.2 litre inline-3 turbocharged engine to slot into its compact cars and will be investing 175 million Euros over the next 2 years in preparing to build the engine at its Douvrin plant in northern France beginning 2012.

The new 3-pot engine will also have 1.0 and 1.2 litre normally aspirated variants. The turbo 1.2 can probably be used to replace the 1.6 litre normally aspirated Prince engine used in the 308 VTi, while the more powerful 308 Turbo can continue using the PSA Prince engine’s successor. The Douvrin engine plant is a JV with Renault. Not to be confused with the Douvrin engine, which was a shared 2.0 and 2.2 litre engine used by Renault and Nissan in the 70s.

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Blackberry’s RIM acquires iDrive OS maker QNX

April 14, 2010 at 1:28 am By Paul Tan Filed Under BMW, Cars, International News

Could we see Blackberry Email being pushed to BMW’s iDrive in the future for CEOs to check their email from the comfort of their F02 7-Series rear seat? It could definitely be possible sometime soon. We’ll tell you why.

Blackberry maker RIM has just cut a deal to acquire QNX, the company which makes the QNX RTOS. The QNX system powers BMW’s latest version of the iDrive system, the one with the HDD navigation. Audi’s MMI, GM’s OnStar, and Porsche’s PCM are among the other in-car entertainment and communication systems that run on QNX systems.

QNX is very popular for onboard entertainment system usage but it does have a few competitors, such as Microsoft’s Windows Mobile for Automotive and Intel’s new Atom-based system that will run the Intel and Nokia-supported MeeGo operating system.

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Peugeot enters RCZ in 24 Hours of Nürburgring

April 14, 2010 at 1:15 am By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, International News, Motorsports, Peugeot


Peugeot will campaign its RCZ in the 24 Hours of Nürburgring endurance race which happens next month (15-16 May). The French brand’s Audi TT fighter will earn its racing stripes in the D1T category of diesel cars with engine capacity between 1,700 and 2,000 cc. So no mega diesel engine crammed in here, but a 2.0-litre HDi developing 197 bhp. The powerplant is largely stock standard, bar some race parts from Customer Peugeot Sport.

Two examples of the RCZ will be circling the famous Nordschleife circuit – one run by a French team and the other by a German crew. Each is backed by four drivers.

Those who are lusting after this 2+2 coupe would be happy to hear that local Peugeot handlers Nasim Sdn Bhd will be bringing the RCZ to Malaysia. In fact, this blog will be heading abroad to drive the RCZ soon, so watch this space for our impressions and more information.

Click here for a gallery of the road going RCZ. Gallery of the race car is after the jump.
[Read more...]

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GALLERY: BMW 5-Series Heritage

April 13, 2010 at 11:39 pm By Paul Tan Filed Under BMW, Cars

BMW Press have released over 30 photos of all the 5-Series they have built to date. If you own a classic 5-series you’ll probably be interested in checking out the photo gallery after the jump where you can find beauty shots of your car in its most pristine original state.

The 5-er has certainly grown larger, heavier and more powerful over the years. The first 5-er 520i used four cylinder engines making 115hp and 130hp respectively for the 520 and 520i. The most powerful first generation 5-er was the M535i, making 218 hp from its 6-pot.

The 2nd generation 5-Series made its debut with the introduction of the world’s first diesel 5-Series. Engine ranges extended from a low 90 horses up to 184 horses for the most powerful non-M 5-er. The M5 made 286 horsepower from its straight-six with individual throttle bodies. The first diesel 5-er was a 524td making 115 horses from its 2.4 litre inline-6.

The E34 was the third generation 5-series, starting from a 520i all the way up to a 535i, and then an M5. The petrol engines were exclusively 6-cylinder, and power was from as low as 115hp up to 211hp. The E45 M5 featured 6-potter engines making between 315 horses to 340 horses when it was updated in 1992. 1992 also introduced the V8-powered 530i and 540i models, using the same engines in the E32 730i and 740i. The E34 was also the first 5-er to feature electronically controlled all-wheel drive in 1991.

The fourth generation is my favorite 5-er. By now, more and more creature comforts have started being featured in the 5-er’s cabin including a multifunction steering, GPS navigation, active seats, DSC stability control, and etc. It was the first large-scale production car worldwide made almost completely of light alloy. You started off with a 150hp 520i inline-6, but the most powerful models were the 540i and M5, with the M car making 400 horsepower from its 4.9 litre V8 engine. Compare this to 218hp from the original M535i.

And then of course came the E60 which we only just recently said goodbye to. Well, not exactly since it is still on sale here in Malaysia pending the launch of the F10. The E60 also still holds the M5 crown since the F10 M5 has yet to be unveiled. The E60 had a controversial love or hate Chris Bangle design. How many of you used to dislike the E60 but now have grown fond of it since it has been replaced by the F10?

BMW E60

Because of the 7 year model lifecycle between BMW cars, you can see huge changes between models because of the progression of automotive technology. This car was complicated and full of tech – iDrive, DSC, Active Steering, Adaptive Drive, Head-Up Display, BMW Night Vision, Active Cruise Control with Stop & Go and Lane Departure Warning and etc.

From 2005 to 2008, the E60 BMW 5 Series was the best-selling car in its segment for four years in a row, with worldwide sales of this model generation amounting to more than a million units by the end of 2007. But not in Malaysia of course, where the E-Class rules in terms of official sales (no way to count the grey imports!).

Look after the jump for a full gallery of the 5-er lineage.
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Perodua breaks sales and service records in Q1 2010

April 13, 2010 at 11:32 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under Local News, Malaysian Makes, Perodua


Is the economy back in full swing and fully recovered from the global financial crisis? It has to be, because sales records are tumbling everywhere, from Audi to Perodua. Malaysia’s automotive market leader held a press conference earlier today where Perodua’s Managing Director Aminar Rashid Salleh completed his 100 days at the helm by announcing new records achieved over the past quarter.

In March 2010, Perodua sold close to 18,500 units, breaking its previous record of 17,050 cars set in July 2008. Last month’s bumper figures contributed to Perodua’s first quarter 2010 total sales of 47,751 units, which represent a 24.5% jump from the same period last year. From the Q1 total, the Myvi was Perodua’s top seller at just over 18,000 units. The smaller Viva trailed by less than 1,000 units while the Alza did 12,640 units. The latter has chalked up 27,000 bookings since its November 2009 launch.


En. Aminar expects the second quarter of the year to be better than the first. “We will be happy to maintain our market share of 31.1% in tandem with the forecasted TIV of 550,000 announced by the Malaysian Automotive Association recently,” he said.

On successfully defending the top spot from Proton, Aminar said that Perodua never set out to be number one and is “blessed to be where it is now”. He also had this to say: “Perodua is not here to compete with Proton; we complement each other. We (Perodua and Proton) have about 100 common vendors and we’re working to improve their standard,” revealing that Perodua and Daihatsu sent selected vendors to Japan for training and will continue to do so even after the official Japan-Malaysia agreement to develop local vendor capability expires next year. The chief used kita tak boleh jadi juara kampung sahaja (we can’t be champions on home soil only) to stress the need for local vendors to meet international standards.

At the media briefing, Perodua was also keen to highlight the growing number of owners bringing in their cars to official service centres. March saw 148,000 cars, which is another personal best for the company. Aminar attributes this to a better customer database (collected from the rear seat belt fitting exercise) and more affordable service menus.

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Saab 9-5 – 500,000km of European chassis testing

April 13, 2010 at 11:19 pm By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, Saab

Now that the whole drama about whether Saab will go on as a car company has ended since it has been sold to Spyker, it’s time to see its first post-GM car launch, though not necessarily the first post-GM developed car. The new Saab 9-5 has undergone over 500,000km of chassis testing on European roads from the frozen wastelands of northern Sweden to the plains of southern Spain.

The man leading the test team is Peter Johansson, Saab’s chief test drive. He and his small team of chassis experts work on fine-tuning the chassis dynamics of the new 9-5 – there are over 250 measurement criteria to assess the handling, ride and refinement of the car. The test fleet consists of a core fleet of 15 cars including all the major technical variations.

When you get in the car and drive, you feel like you are part of the vehicle. You feel directly connected to the controls and the car really becomes an extension of the driver. This is why the new 9-5 is fun and so rewarding to drive. Throughout the development process, we focused on giving this car all the exciting driving characteristics you would expect from a Saab. The electronic systems such as the stability control, DriveSense adaptive chassis and our XWD system must all work together. The stability control, for example, must not get in the way of enjoying the benefits of the chassis and transmission systems,” said Peter Johansson.

More handling and high speed stability tests were done at closed tracks such as as the Nordschleife and the NARDO high-speed bowl in Italy. For extreme snow and ice testing, the team used a 10km forest track at the Colmis test facility in Northern Sweden, just outside the Arctic Circle. The track has a rollercoaster ride of dips, crests, hills, off-camber bends, all on narrow paths lined with unforgiving boulders and trees, which the 9-5′s Haldex XWD system has to tackle.

Pre-booking of the 9-5 has started in some countries. Not sure about what’s happening in Malaysia as we’ve generally been quite disconnected from the Saab here in Malaysia.
[Read more...]

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The BHPetrol Double Barrel Hunt

April 13, 2010 at 7:30 pm By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, Local News

Tune in to season one of Driven at 10.30pm on 8TV every Sunday and find out the number of times BHPetrol’s Double Barrel Nozzle appears on the show. Then log on Driven’s website and click on The Double Barrel Hunt link on the menu bar. This is a weekly contest and it runs from 11th April till 13th April 2010 for ten weeks. Purchase a minimum of RM30 at participating BHPetrol stations to be eligible to enter The Double Barrel Hunt. Ask for a card and you will be given one with a serial number. You will need to keep your copy of the card. If you miss the episode you can log on to Driven’s website and watch the episode again.

Top five winners will be selected every week. First place winners from all ten weeks will be invited to attend the Driven Track Day on 25th June where a Grand Prize winner will be selected. Top five winners every week will walk home with following prizes from BHPetrol, Nokia, V-KOOL and Three Bond Looks Ultra Glass Coating Neo:

- First Place: Nokia E52, RM500 BHPetrol voucher, Driven merchandise
- Second Place: RM500 V-KOOL ELITE rebate, RM400 BHPetrol voucher, Driven merchandise
- Third Place: RM500 V-KOOL ELITE rebate, RM300 BHPetrol voucher, Driven merchandise
- Fourth Place: RM300 Three Bond Looks Ultra Glass Coating Neo, RM200 BHPetrol voucher, Driven merchandise
- Fifth Place: RM300 Three Bond Looks Ultra Glass Coating Neo, RM100 BHPetrol voucher, Driven merchandise

First place winners from every week (total of 10) will be invited to attend the Driven Track Day on 25th June and each will enjoy the following:

- Taxi ride in a race car, AXLE Motorsport merchandise and Driven merchandise
A Grand Prize winner will be selected and will walk home with the following:
- RM5000 BHPetrol voucher, Nokia N97, Three Bond Looks Ultra Glass Coating Neo treatment on a Standard sedan worth RM1950.

Click here to join the Double Barrel Hunt!

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ZF Sachs develops carbon fiber suspension damper

April 13, 2010 at 1:58 pm By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, Technology

Carbon fiber has been used in many exotic applications in cars but I’ve never seen a carbon fiber damper before! Unlike the Bose suspension system which is exotic in its own complicated way, ZF Sachs basically just aims at reducing weight with this new ultralight carbon fiber damper designed for use in A-segment cars.

It only weighs half the weight of today’s aluminum lightweight damper. Partially sprung and unsprung masses are reduced too, which according to ZF Sachs leads to better ride comfort.

According to ZF Sachs’ Head of the Powertrain and Suspension Components Dr. Peter Ottenbruch, the damper design is realistic in terms of feasibility and cost analysis and can easily be transferred to volume production.

Could we see carbon fiber dampers be used in premium A-segment cars like the upcoming BMW Megacity range of front wheel drive microcars?

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Audi surpasses Mercedes in sales, next target is BMW

April 12, 2010 at 4:33 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under Audi, Cars, International News


Audi is ambitious and aggressive. The brand with the four rings wants to overtake both BMW and Mercedes by 2015 to be the world’s leading luxury carmaker with sales of 1.5 million per annum. With the revelation of first quarter figures, Audi is right on track as it has surpassed Mercedes-Benz to take the No.2 spot in the premium sector for the very first time.

Ingolstadt’s sold 264,100 vehicles in Q1, up 26% compared with the same period last year. At the same time Daimler sold 248,500 Mercedes-Benz cars, while leader BMW is expected to release its numbers before the end of April.

Cruicially for Audi, which is the VW Group’s fattest cash cow, the improved numbers are due to success in rapidly growing markets such as China. Audi sold 51,449 cars in China in the first quarter compared to 34,179 for BMW and 24,100 for Mercedes, a fact that any visitor to cities such as Shanghai won’t be surprised to hear – it’s apparent from the eye. Audi is targeting 200,000 units in China for 2010, up from over 150,000 last year.

Although it won’t be smart to bet against Audi’s continued rise, the brand still lags behind BMW and Mercedes in another key market – USA. It does however have the baby A1 as a major weapon this year. Audi has high hopes for its MINI rival and expects 80% of buyers to be Audi virgins. The A1 is expected to contribute 100,000 units to annual sales in the future.

“With these sales results, we have even surpassed the comparative figures from our record year in 2008,” said Audi sales chief Peter Schwarzenbauer, adding that Ingolstadt expects “continued growth compared to last year” in Q2. Audi sold about 256,000 cars in the second quarter of 2009. Next target, BMW.

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