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Prodrive and Lola not entering Formula 1 in 2011

April 16, 2010 at 12:17 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under Formula 1, Motorsports

The FIA recently invited possible entrants for the 2011 Formula 1 season to register their interest, but the recruitment drive wasn’t too successful. The deadline is up, and apart from former GP2 team Durango, no other party is fighting for the 13th slot vacated by USF1. Lola and Prodrive, who both applied for a place in this year’s grid but were unsuccessful, declined the offer.

Race car manufacturer Lola feels there is not enough time to be ready for the start of the season. “A 2010 entry under the cost capped and performance balanced criteria was perfect for Lola. We already have F1 standard facilities at our headquarters in Huntingdon. Sadly our well-developed 2010 F1 project, which included a significant wind tunnel programme, had to be frozen in June 2009. The recently announced applications for 2011 has left us with insufficient time to prepare for what would be a quite different programme,” owner Martin Birrane told Autosport.

Prodrive on the other hand, doesn’t believe it can be competitive in F1 and will instead focus on a return to the World Rally Championship next year.

“As expected, we’ve witnessed the financial and technical challenges that the new teams have faced this year in just getting to the grid, let alone being competitive and whilst I have enormous admiration for their efforts I don’t believe this is an appropriate strategy for Prodrive or Aston Martin to adopt.

“However, I have always made it very clear that the timing for a Prodrive entry would be judged on two criteria: that we could be competitive and that the business case would make it a financially viable proposition. Today, if we were to adopt the strategy of starting a new team, I don’t believe it is possible to meet these two conditions,” boss David Richards said.

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Audi A8L with W12 engine to make Beijing debut

April 16, 2010 at 11:12 am By Danny Tan Filed Under Audi, Cars, International News

The Chinese love everything long, when it comes to cars that is. China’s nouveau riche lust after German premium cars, but find them too constricting, which is why there’s a “L” version of every luxury car, from the Audi A4 to the Volvo S80, designed for China. Now Audi, which is the premium segment leader there, will debut the Audi A8L at the upcoming Beijing Motor Show, with long wheelbase and a 6.3-litre W12 engine.

This VW Group engine is called W12 because of its unusual layout: four rows of three cylinders with a 15-degree included angle between the two offset rows of cylinders in each broad cylinder block. The W12, in its latest 6,299 cc form, is an undersquare design. Engineers have enlarged the cylinder bore and added FSI direct injection; the latter needing considerable mods to the cylinder heads. Fuel is injected at a pressure of up to 130 bar. Compression ratio is a high 11.8:1.

Vital stats are 500 bhp and 625 Nm at 3,250 rpm. It gives the A8L a 0-100 km/h time of 4.9 seconds. Top speed is limited to 250 km/h. Audi says that the engine runs “exceptionally smoothly” and the A8L’s occupants are “unlikely to sense any of this supreme power at work unless it is at high engine speeds and severe loads”.

With an overall length of 5,267 mm, the A8L is 130 mm longer than the regular version. The wheelbase has grown by the same amount to 3,122 mm, and as you can see from the picture below, the extra room has been put to very good use. It shows a multi adjustable reclining seat where the boss is massaged by ten air-filled compartments; four programs can be selected via remote control. Feet can rest on a power-adjustable support at the base of the front passenger seat back. Between the seats is a full-length console that can be specified with things like a folding table or a refrigerator.

Other luxuries include roof-mounted grab handles and rear console in fine wood, Valonea leather tanned exclusively with plant extracts which is especially soft and able to “breathe” actively, panoramic glass roof and a Rear Seat Entertainment system with two 10.2-inch screens.

Gallery after the jump.
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New 2WD variant of Mitsubishi Pajero Sport launched

April 16, 2010 at 12:59 am By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, Local News, Mitsubishi

Mitsubishi Motors Malaysia (MMM) has introduced a new variant of its Pajero Sport SUV. Called the Pajero Sport GL, it’s essentially a 2WD version of the seven-seater SUV that was launched mid last year (the original 4WD model is now officially known as the Pajero Sport GS). The GL is targetted to urban users who want the Pajero Sport’s macho image and substantial size, but not its off-road capability.

Without the GS’ Super Select 4WD system, the 1,935 kg GL is 105 kg lighter than its 4WD sister. Apart from that, the only other differences are rear drum brakes and 16-inch wheels as opposed to 17-inch items in the GS. The GL is powered by the same 2.5-litre commonrail diesel engine as the GS and Trition; the DOHC 16v unit makes 134 bhp and 314 Nm from 2,000 rpm. A four-speed INVECS-II automatic with manual mode does transmission duties.

From the outside, one can tell GL and GS apart by the former’s honeycomb grille design (chrome bars for the GS) and six-spoke rims. Oh, and the small ‘GL’ badge of course. Inside, the new variant comes with dark brown leather seats and trim (beige for GS) and does without faux wood inserts. Taking centrestage on the dashboard is an aftermarket 2-DIN stereo system with USB/iPod/Bluetooth connectivity. The Kenwood unit also incorporates a reverse camera. ABS, EBD and dual airbags are standard.

While the Pajero Sport is built on a rugged ladder frame, it’s more than just a Triton with a canopy. The pick-up truck’s rear leaf springs make way for 3-link coil spring rear suspension, so third row passengers won’t bounce like on trampolines. The GL is priced at RM145,467.80 (OTR without insurance), quite a bit cheaper than the RM158,609.80 GS.

At the event, MMM also announced the availability of genuine accesories for the Pajero Sport. Parts for sale are front and rear airdams, rear spoiler, cargo trays, scuff plate, mirror cover with LED indicator and rear garnish.

Official and live images from the event are after the jump.
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Ford expands its EcoBoost range with 4-potters

April 15, 2010 at 5:40 pm By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, Ford, International News

EcoBoostFord has announced a few more engines that will join its EcoBoost range of ‘downsized’ turbocharged engines with direct injection. One is a 1.6 litre inline-4 EcoBoot which will be slotted into the European Ford C-MAX MPV. This is a particularly interesting engine – just imagine what fun it’d be if it gets slotted into the small Ford Fiesta?

The engine has two tunes – one 150 horsepower and the other more powerful version featuring 180 horses and 244Nm of torque. The 1.6 litre EcoBoost even in its 150 horses form can also probably easily serve as a replacement for the normally aspirated 2.0 litre in the Focus. But this probably won’t happen in all countries as with the debut of the new Focus at Detroit 2010 early this year, Ford also introduced a new direct injection normally aspirated 2.0 litre Ti-VCT engine making 155 horses and 195Nm of torque that will be slotted into the new Focus.

Next is a 2.0 litre inline-4 EcoBoost that will be slotted into larger Fords such as the Ford Explorer, the Ford Edge and the Ford Mondeo. With 200 horsepower at 5,500rpm and 300Nm of torque from as low at 1,750rpm this would be an awesome replacement for the 2.3 litre Duratec in the current Mondeo. Lastly there is a revised version of the original 3.5 litre V6 EcoBoost optimized for the Ford F-150 pick-up truck.

Ford also unveiled that it is working on a version 2.0 of the EcoBoost range that adds Exhaust Gas Recirculation to its existing list of technology including direct injection and turbocharging. This variation of EGR typically used in diesel engines will take abit of exhaust gas, cool it in a heat exchanger, and pump it back into the cylinders. This apparently has the effect of reducing combustion temperature, which ultimately benefits the car’s power and fuel economy – by a figure of approximately 5% according to Ford. EGR is also primarily used to reduce the amount of NOx produced during combustion.

Ford is also apparently working on small three cylinder and even a two cylinder EcoBoost unit, although they are still a few years away from production. They could feature in the next generation versions of small Fords like the Ka and the Fiesta.

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Toyota Vios Facelift for M’sia launched: RM72K-RM92K!

April 15, 2010 at 3:46 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, Local News, Toyota

UMW Toyota has launched the facelifted Toyota Vios this afternoon. Like most MC (minor change in Toyota speak) cars, the makeover is limited to the front and rear look, wheels and cabin trim while the internals are unchanged. Powered by the tried and tested 1NZ-FE 1.5-litre with 108 bhp and 141Nm mated to a four-speed automatic, the refreshed Vios sees a slight increase in price over the old car, ranging from RM1,100 to over RM2,000 depending on variant. Here are the new prices, which are OTR with insurance:

  • Vios TRD Sportivo RM92,000
  • Vios G RM87,300
  • Vios E RM81,500
  • Vios J (A) RM76,090
  • Vios J (M) RM71,990

Up front, the main change is the radiator grille, which brings some “Camry style” to the Vios. The grille now has two chrome horizontal bars as opposed to the previous single split, while the fog lamp housings are now in silver. At the launch event, UMWT showed off the range topping TRD Sportivo and the G-spec, and both came with new design 15-inch alloys and door visors. At the back, the MC Vios gets new taillamps that has more detailing compared to the plain old units. The chrome strip above the number plate is also longer and more prominent now. I have a feeling Toyota wanted to give the Vios a “classier” feel with this facelift, and the grille, chrome and multi-spoke alloys are supposed to create that effect.

Inside, the theme continues with piano black trim on the trademark “waterfall” centre console and chrome on the gear shifter base, hand brake knob and door handles (chrome package only for G). There’s also a new steering wheel with its base flattened off slightly and redesigned audio controls on the left spoke. In the G, the wheel is covered in dimpled leather while the TRD Sportivo gets red stitching to match the rest of its red/black cabin. The G gets combination leather seats and a light grey/beige theme, which further enhances the Vios’ airy, spacious feel. Variants lower down the range get dark grey fabric. We don’t get the Thai market’s HUD, start/stop button and AUX jack.

Equipment wise, all variants come with ABS with EBD and Brake Assist. J-spec cars get a driver’s airbag while the rest comes with two. Most of the goodies such as rear disc brakes, 15-inch rims and integrated stereo are only for the TRD Sportivo and G-spec. As before, the TRD Sportivo can be ordered with optional sports suspension. Scanning through the spec sheet, I saw that both manual and auto J-spec cars now come with power adjustable and retractable wing mirrors, which wasn’t the case previously, if memory serves right.

UMWT started taking orders for this car in February, and has over 2,500 bookings in hand as of now. The company plans to sell 32,400 units of the Vios this year and is confident of retaining the model’s No.1 position in the B-segment.

Pictures from the launch after the jump.
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AD: Broadband has changed online content consumption

April 15, 2010 at 11:45 am By Paul Tan Filed Under Advertorial

Broadband has changed alot of things with the online scene here in Malaysia. Without broadband, websites such as this simply would not exist. People would continue to refer to magazines and the auto pullouts in newspapers as surfing for car news (or rather ANYTHING) online on 56k dial-up modems would be a seriously draggy experience.

I remember in the 90s, building a website involved making everything as small and fast loading as possible. Images had to be highly compressed, resulting in reduced clarity. It was insane to wait for a high resolution wallpaper of a really nice car to load. And internet was charged by the minute! I was paying far more back in the 90s for internet access than what I am paying now.

Now we can have high resolution photos and even video streaming, which are regular content features over here at this blog. Our ‘sister publication or rather TV show’ Driven can also be streamed online in case you missed an episode on 8TV.

And then came mobile broadband. Which was slow, but when 3G came along true comfortably speedy mobile broadband was a reality. And this completely changed the experience of people like us whose job involved reporting fast and accurately. After a car launch, both Danny and I can immediately head to the nearest cafe preferably with a power socket, hook up our 3G broadband dongle and upload the news.

Basically broadband has encouraged online content consumption and we have broadband to thank for this site even existing. If you would like to get your own 3G mobile broadband, you can check out the PC Fair this weekend. Celcom is having some pretty godo promotions including a limited edition World of Football 2010 pack.

Celcom Broadband Packages:

  • Broadband Basic – RM68 a month*
  • Broadband Advance – RM98 a month*
  • Celcom Broadband Basic/Advance + USB Modem + HP Netbook at RM888 (RRP RM1199)*
  • Celcom Broadband Basic/Advance + USB Modem + Wireless Gateway at RM350 (RRP RM499)*
  • Celcom Broadband Advance + USB Modem + Wireless Gateway at RM139 a month*

*12 months contract period, RM100 registration fee

The Celcom Broadband Limited Edition World of Football 2010 USB Modem Pack consists of a Limited edition World of Football 2010 USB Modem, a 1GB Soccer Boot USB thumbdrive keychain and a miniature ball.

You also stand a chance to win this specially ‘skinned’ Perodua Myvi SE Automatic or a similiarly skinned Modenas CT100 motorcycle.

If you surf your favorite websites mainly at the office you may want to get a broadband package only for your weekend usage. In that case you can purchase a Celcom Broadband Prepaid Pack with preloaded credit of RM20. Then 24 hour unlimited internet charges are RM6 or you can also buy a weekly pass which is RM20 per week. You can use the prepaid pack to try out Celcom Broadband and see if you like it.

This is an advertorial to support a sponsor’s promotional event.

Look after the jump for the full PC Fair 2010 schedule and a PDF brochure of the PC Fair promotion. There’s one in the Klang Valley this weekend at the KL Convention Center.
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Honda Malaysia achieves monthly record sales in March

April 15, 2010 at 9:49 am By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, Honda, Local News


March must be a very lucky month for the auto industry. Not only did Perodua achieve its best ever monthly figures, now Honda Malaysia has announced that the 4,041 units it sold in that month is the highest ever in the company’s history. March was the biggest contributor to Honda Malaysia’s first quarter sales of 10,025 units, and they are looking good to meet the annual target of 40,000 units, especially when a new model will join the range next week.

The B-segment City was responsible for 43% of the total sales, with more than 4,000 units sold. Honda Malaysia would be happy to maintain City sales at this level with fresh rivals in this price segment – besides the C-segment Kia Forte, buyers can opt for superminis like the Mazda 2 and soon to be launched Ford Fiesta.

The just facelifted CR-V has done well too – 556 units have been sold while 1,600 of bookings are in line. The Accord and Civic respectively contributed 19% and 18% to the total sales, while CBUs models Jazz and Stream stood at 6%.

It’s no longer a secret now that the new model is the Freed, which is described by Honda as a “compact premium MPV”. The seven-seater based on the Jazz/City platform will be launched on 22 April. Click here for a “plant tour” of PT Honda Prospect Motor Indonesia, where our Freed will roll out from. Watch this space for the launch report.

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Lexus IS 250C previewed up close and personal

April 14, 2010 at 6:23 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, Lexus, Local News


The convertible version of the Lexus IS glided into our market quietly last month; only a press release alerted us of Lexus Malaysia’s latest addition. There won’t be test drive units available for the media (so we’re told), so Lexus Malaysia organised a media preview session where we got to feel and touch, but not drive the IS 250C.

Priced at RM432,000 OTR without insurance, the IS 250C is the brand’s second drop top model after the SC 430 (Toyota Soarer) and competes with the likes of BMW’s 3-Series Convertible and the Audi A5 Cabrio.

Continue reading the report after the jump.
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BMW Malaysia introduces 730Li and Individual 760Li

April 14, 2010 at 2:00 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under BMW, Cars, Local News

BMW Malaysia has fleshed out the local 7-Series range at both ends with this morning’s introduction of the entry level 730Li and the range topping Individual 760Li. The two new variants bookend the existing 740Li, 750Li and the diesel 730Ld. As with all local spec limos, the 7-Series range comes only in long wheelbase form, hence the ‘L’ in the name.

The 730Li is imported CBU from Thailand, and at RM648,888 (OTR without insurance, with BMW Service Inclusive + Repair) lowers the entry point for the F02 7-Series by RM50,000 – previously, the 730Ld was the most affordable 7 at RM698,888. The 730Li now matches the locally assembled Mercedes-Benz S300L in price; the Merc is actually costlier by RM1,000 but shoppers at this level spend that sum of money on a night’s dinner, so let’s consider them level. Geoffrey Briscoe, BMW Group Malaysia’s Managing Director said: “This is the 7-Series that our customers have been asking for, and it will form the bulk of 7-Series sales.”

The 730Li is powered by the N52 3.0-litre inline-six engine pushing out 258 bhp and 310 Nm of torque, more than what S300L’s similarly sized V6 makes. Although it’s the only current Seven to do without turbos, performance is very decent for a 1.9-tonne limo – 0-100 km/h is done in 7.8 seconds and top speed is 245 km/h. Average fuel consumption is 10.2 km/l. As part of BMW’s Efficient Dynamics, the Seven gets selected aluminium body panels to reduce weight and brake energy regeneration.

You don’t get an “empty” limo either; the 730Li comes with rear climate control and two rear 8-inch LCD screens where one can plug in his/her laptop, camera, iPod and game consoles. The base F02 also comes with Dynamic Drive Control and BMW Connected Drive. The latter includes satellite navigation, 80GB hard disk space and BMW TeleServices. Visually, one can tell the 730Li from the 740Li from its exhaust pipes (two on one side, as opposed to one on each side) and smaller 18-inch wheels.

At the other end of the scale is the 760Li in Individual spec, which means there’s more scope for personalisation than its stablemates (paint, leather, trim, features and wheels). This ultimate 7-Series is propelled by a twin-turbo 6.0-litre V12 engine with 544 bhp and 750 Nm, enabling it to sprint to 100 km/h from rest in only 4.6 seconds, which is 0.1 sec faster than what BMW quotes for the M5! It’s also the first BMW to be launched in Malaysia that features the new 8-speed ZF transmission. This RM1,388,000 car wasn’t shown at the event, so look after the jump for live images of the 730Li.
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Virus to help split water into hydrogen for fuel cells?

April 14, 2010 at 1:55 pm By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, Hybrids and Alternative Fuel, International News, Technology

This has to be the geekiest and coolest piece of news related to the alternative fuel industry that has come out in a while. A hydrogen fuel cell is one very clean way to generate electricity on the fly in a car, eliminating the need for long waits for recharge times. But the hydrogen has to be generated first and that also requires alot of energy. One of the best sources of hydrogen is water, as it is so abundant. In fact, water is a byproduct of the fuel cell electricity generation process.

Wouldn’t it be nice if you could store the water in the car and just synthesize it into hydrogen and oxygen on the fly? The fundamental laws of physics says that this is not possible as you cannot create energy out of nothing. It would take alot of energy to separate the water into hydrogen and oxygen. There are many who claim to have ‘broken’ this law, such as the massive Hydroxene and LMG tie-up publicity that happened quite a while back in our very own Bolehland.

Researchers are looking for more and more ways to create hydrogen in a cheaper way in terms of energy expenditure than existing methods and the latest is an effort by a team in MIT. It is basically artificial photosynthesis using a modified virus and sunlight to split water into hydrogen and oxygen atoms. An engineered bacterial virus called M13 binds with the molecules of a catalyst (iridium oxide) and a biological pigment (zing porphyrins). They become wire-like devices that can efficiently split oxygen and hydrogen from water. The virii are encapsulated in a microgel matrix to maintain a uniform arrangement, keeping them stable.

“The role of the pigments is to act as an antenna to capture the light. and then transfer the energy down the length of the virus, like a wire. The virus is a very efficient harvester of light, with these porphyrins attached,” says Angela Belcher, the Germeshausen Professor of Materials Science and Engineering and Biological Engineering.

Right now what the system does is extract the oxygen, but the hydrogen atoms get split into their component protons and electrons. A second part of the system is still under development that will combine these hydrogen atom components back into proper atoms and molecules. They also need to find a cheaper catalyst.

This artificial photosynthetis still has a long way to go however. According to DuPont Professor of Materials Chemistry and Physics at Pennsylvania State University Thomas Mallouk, for this system to be cost-competitive with other approaches to solar power, it has to be at least ten times more efficient than natural photosynthesis, be repeatable a billion times, and use less expensive materials.

This isn’t going to happen in the new feature, but the ideas that this research project has brought up could help with the big picture of alternative fuel! For now, a prototype device than can carry out the splitting of water into oxygen and hydrogen should be able to be ready in two years, according to Professor Belcher.

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