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Proton Saga FLX with CVT and ABS seen in showroom!

July 24, 2011 at 5:03 pm By Harvinder Sidhu Filed Under Cars, Local News, Malaysian Makes, Proton

It is indeed an interesting Sunday afternoon for us, as we received news that the Proton Saga FLX is now available for public viewing at a Proton showroom in Kelana Jaya (within the Giant supermarket). More important than being able to view the car is the fact that we now have more juicy information to share with you. First of all, the Saga FLX with CVT is available in two trim lines. It starts off with the FLX 1.3 Standard which also comes with a manual transmission.

This is followed by the FLX 1.3 Executive, also available with a manual transmission as well. Let’s start with the former. The FLX 1.3 Standard uses a 6-speed CVT and the transmission has something called an SAT Switch which stands for Stepped Automatic Transmission, which sort of simulates the feel of a standard 6-speed automatic transmission. This switch is located beside the gear lever.

Based on the Saga FL (AT) Standard, everything else remains the same according to the sales person, though the FLX 1.3 Standard with CVT does not feature ABS. Airbags are also not part of the safety feature list as well.

The FLX 1.3 Executive on the other hand comes with ABS, which allows you to steer your car while performing emergency braking. There is also EBD, or Electronic Brake Force Distribution, which adjusts brake force applied on each wheel.

Other than ABS and EBD, the Executive additionally comes with driver and passenger airbags, seat belt with pre-tensioners, steering wheel with audio controls, height adjustable driver’s seat, electric door mirrors, front fog lamps, a rear spoiler and finally side protector moulding. Also included is a multi-purpose container.

The entire FLX range is available in five body colour options including Solid White, Tranquality Black, Genetic Silver, Blue Rock and finally Elegant Brown, which is what we have here in the photos. Now for the pricing bit. Proton has yet to release official figures but according to the sales person, the FLX 1.3 Standard with CVT is likely to be priced at RM41,998 OTR, which is about RM1,000 more than the 1.3 (AT) Standard.

The same RM1,000 price bump is also expected for the FLX 1.3 Executive, giving an estimated price tag of RM44,298 OTR. The FLX is now available for pre-bookings but at the moment we are unable to confirm when deliveries will start. Nevertheless, something tells us it might be right before the Hari Raya celebrations. The sales person also mentioned that most Proton showrooms should be equipped with at least one Saga FLX display unit.

Continue reading to view an image gallery and to check out brochure scans.
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Nissan Livina X-Gear testing with trade plates in Malaysia

July 23, 2011 at 11:02 pm By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, Nissan, Spyshots

Reader Kevin Ng snapped this white vehicle that looks somewhat like a Nissan Grand Livina and posted it up on our Facebook Fan Page wall. It had its badges taped up and had some kind of off-roader style bodykit, ala the Suzuki SX-4 or the Volkswagen Cross Polo.

But this isn’t a Grand Livina, it’s actually a variation of the Livina called the Livina X-Gear, which is available in Indonesia. The same vehicle is also sold in China as the Livina C-Gear.

The Grand Livina available here thus far is actually an extended Livina, where a third row of seats are added to make it a 7-seater. The Livina is a 5-seater. Both have a 2,600mm wheelbase though, as Nissan managed to cram in a third row via a lengthened rear overhang without having to lengthen the center section of the car.

As you can see, the section between the C pillar and the D pillar on this Livina is quite different from that of a Grand Livina – it is shorter and the rear window kink is differently shaped. You can click on the two pictures above to view a higher resolution image.

Look after the jump for a frontal studio shot of the Livina X-Gear.
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Mark Webber takes pole position for the 2011 German GP

July 23, 2011 at 11:01 pm By Harvinder Sidhu Filed Under Formula 1, Motorsports

Red Bull’s Mark Webber has clinched his second consecutive pole position, this time at the Nurburgring for the 2011 German GP. McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton surprised everyone and managed to secure himself a front row start with his second place. He was just 0.055 seconds slower than Webber’s pole time.

Championship leader Sebastian Vettel only managed third in his Renault-powered Red Bull which interestingly makes this his worst qualifying result through out the 2011 season. Winner of the previous race Fernando Alonso settled with fourth place in his scarlet Ferrari, just ahead of Brazilian team mate Felipe Massa. Nico Rosberg out-qualified his more experienced team mate yet again with his sixth place for the Mercedes GP Petronas outfit.

Jenson Button in the other McLaren only managed seventh ahead of Force India’s Adrian Sutil and Lotus Renault’s Vitaly Petrov. Michael Schumacher will start tomorrow’s race from tenth on the grid.

Team Lotus’ Heikki Kovalainen has to make do with 19th, behind Sauber’s Japanese ace Kamui Kobayashi. Team mate Karun Chandhok who takes over the wheel from Jarno Trulli for this race secured 21st, ahead of the Virgin of Jerome d’Ambrosio and the two HRT drivers. It would be an interesting race tomorrow as Alonso is expected to shake up the front row.

You can view the full qualifying results here.

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2011 Range Rover – now with 4.4 LR-TDV8 turbodiesel

July 23, 2011 at 11:00 pm By Harvinder Sidhu Filed Under Cars, Land Rover, Local News

It was just about a month ago when Land Rover Malaysia introduced the 2011 Range Rover into the Malaysian market with the 5.0 V8 Supercharged which retails at RM798,888. For diesel Range Rover lovers out there, not to worry as the 4.4 LR-TDV8 turbodiesel is now available.

The 4.4 litre V8 oil burner makes 313 PS and a respectable 700 Nm of torque and it replaces the 3.6 LR-TDV8 with a price tag of RM730,000 on the road excluding insurance which is almost RM70,000 cheaper than its petrol counterpart. According to Land Rover, the 4.4 litre diesel engine offers 15% improvement in power, economy as well as acceleration along with a 9% improvement in torque, compared to its predecessor.

With that said, the 4.4 turbodiesel offers a combined fuel consumption figure of 9.4 litres per 100 kilometers. Instead of a ZF 6HP28 6-speed slush box found in the 5.0 V8 Supercharged, the turbodiesel engine is paired to a ZF 8HP70 8-speed automatic. 0-100 km/h is achieved in 7.8 seconds, compared to 6.2 seconds with the force-inducted petrol model.

Just like the 5.0 V8 Superchanged, the LR-TDV8 turbodiesel in Vogue trim line comes with goodies such as the Terrain Response system with Hill Start Assist (HSA) and Gradient Acceleration Control (GAC).

Other features include Adaptive Dynamics which is pretty much a variable damping system. Another interesting feature is the rotary dial operated gear selector, commonly known as Drive Select. The gear selector simply raises upon ignition and it comes in conjunction with the 8-speed transmission.

You can check out the gallery after the jump.
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Daihatsu Sirion launched at IIMS – it’s a Perodua Myvi!

July 23, 2011 at 4:51 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under 2011 Indonesian International Motor Show, 2011 Perodua Myvi, Cars, Daihatsu, Malaysian Makes, Perodua

PT Astra Daihatsu Motor has launched its latest model at the Indonesian International Motor Show (IIMS) 2011 with with plenty of song and dance (not Bollywood, but Party Rock Anthem!). Readers of this website would have already known that the Sirion is a rebadged 2011 Perodua Myvi, and that the car is built in Malaysia and exported to Indonesia – we caught a trailer of Daihatsu badged Myvis heading to a port in June.

Now that we’ve seen and touched it in the metal, we can confirm that the Sirion is identical to the Myvi save for Daihatsu badges on the front, rear and steering wheel, which is a basic looking three-spoke unit (I prefer Perodua’s wheel). There’s also a “VVT-i” badge at the rear, which is DVVT for us, although the new Myvi doesn’t have badges for that.

Of the three variants we have in Malaysia (Standard, Premium, Elegance), PT Astra chose the mid-spec Premium, which has standard features such as Optitron MID, Bluetooth, USB and MP3 functions, power retractable wing mirrors and 14in alloys, among other kit.

According to Perodua MD Datuk Aminar Rashid Salleh, who looked relax blending in with the crowd instead of being on stage, PT Astra is looking at importing the top spec Elegance model at a later stage. For now, it’s the Premium with a 4-speed automatic or a 5-speed manual. It was revealed that PT Astra is targeting sales of 500 units per month – not much, but still much more than the 100 units or so per month rate of the previous Sirion, which was also from Perodua. The majority seller will be the manual variant.

Priced at 139,500,000 to 150,500,000 rupiah (RM48,715 to RM52,556), the Sirion is costlier than basic versions of the Xenia, which is Daihatsu’s version of the 7-seat Toyota Avanza. This ties in with the relatively small 500 units per month and the more “premium positioning” of the Sirion in Indonesia.

The Sirion is also being launched in various locations throughout Indonesia today. Live gallery from IIMS after the jump.
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Daihatsu planning 2 cylinder direct injection turbo engine

July 23, 2011 at 3:50 pm By Paul Tan Filed Under 2011 Indonesian International Motor Show, Cars, Daihatsu

Daihatsu displayed a cut-through model of its upcoming 2 cylinder turbocharged direct injection engine enclosed in a glass case at the 2011 Indonesian International Motor Show, which is the “second stage” in its green technology road map.

The first stage is its eco-idle technology, which includes an i-EGR system to reduce emissions and enhance combustion, and a eco-IDLE system which turns the engine on and of automatically to help save fuel during heavy traffic conditions.

According to Daihatsu, the first stage has already been implemented in existing cars like the latest generation Daihatsu Move, and the car that it is expected to launch in September 2011 will also have it. The third stage involves replacing the combustion engine with a fuel cell, which is quite suitable for the kind of city cars Daihatsu makes.

Daihatsu does not reveal much about the two cylinder turbocharged direct injection engine except that it will have a low displacement and will be 30% more fuel efficient than existing Daihatsu engines.

But clues to the specs of this engine can be found in something Perodua managing director Datuk Aminar Rashid last year at the KLIMS 2010. He revealed the target specs for the engine to be 660cc in displacement – 330cc per cylinder, producing 63 horsepower at 4,500rpm and 100Nm of torque from 1,500rpm up to 4,000rpm.

These small 660cc turbocharged engines are really not unusual at all to Daihatsu or pretty much anyone else who participates in the JDM K-Car market. Daihatsu currently has a 658cc engine making 64 PS at 6,400rpm and 92Nm at 4,000rpm. Even Honda who has not toyed with turbocharged engines much in its world cars has a 660cc i-DSI turbo with 64hp and 93Nm in Japan.

But there’s quite a difference between the existing 660cc turbo engines in Japan and this upcoming Daihatsu engine. For one, the JDM engines are all 3 cylinder engines, while this new engine is a 2 cylinder. And if Datuk Aminar Rashid’s quoted specs come true, the planned 2 cylinder will also makes its peak power and torque at much earlier RPMs – 4,500rpm and 1,500rpm compared to the existing breed which only produce its peak power and torque at 6,400rpm and 4,000rpm respectively.

Look after the jump for photos we snapped of the cut-through two cylinder model.
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Mazda 2 receives “facelift” at the Indonesian Motor Show

July 23, 2011 at 3:01 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under 2011 Indonesian International Motor Show, Cars, Mazda

There’s no missing the Mazda booth at IIMS 2011, thanks to the brand’s infectious “Zoom Zoom Zoom” song playing in the background. There weren’t any world debuts, just local launches for the MX-5 and the Mazda 8 MPV, but something caught our eye, and it’s this red hot Mazda 2 with an unusual face.

This isn’t a “new” or “facelifted” Mazda 2, but more likely a local project that souped up the car for promo purposes. We can see the latest 2′s big smiley mouth here, but without the accompanying grille. The foglamp elements have been changed, as are the insides of the headlights, which feature a single projector with BMW style angel eye running lights.

The five-door hatch’s sporty profile is boosted by huge 18in wheels wrapped with Yokohamas, silver painted wing mirrors and thick side skirts. The rear gets LED tail lamps and a grey lower bumper with VW Golf R32 style twin centre exhaust pipes.

Perhaps this can be inspiration for Malaysian Mazda 2 owners. View the rest of the pics after the jump.
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Geely Panda puts its paw on the Indonesian market

July 23, 2011 at 1:48 pm By Paul Tan Filed Under 2011 Indonesian International Motor Show, Cars, Geely

Of the many cars that Chinese car manufacturer Geely put on display at the 2011 Indonesian International Motor Show, this one caught our eye – the Geely Panda.

The entire car is Panda-themed, for example the black rings around the Panda’s “eyes”, the cartoon Panda on the floor mats, and even the tail lamps are designed to look like a Panda’s paw print.

Being an A-segment car it’s not very big inside but one thing we noticed is that it did not have the strong and suspiciously dangerous-smelling scent of cheap plastic that we’ve come to encounter with some Chinese cars in the past.

Geely also claims the Panda is the first car to achieve a 5 star crash safety rating in China’s independent C-NCAP collision testing.

The cutesy circular theme continues on the inside. The glove box looks quite unique as it is not your typical glovebox but is instead accessed by a sliding cover like you’ll usually find on center consoles in the middle of the front seats.

Power comes from a 1.3 litre inline-4 which makes 85 horsepower and 110Nm of torque. It’s priced at about 95 million Indonesian rupiah, which translates to about RM33,000.

Look after the jump for more pix and a video of the Panda.
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Karun Chandhok replaces Team Lotus’ Trulli at German GP

July 23, 2011 at 1:41 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under Formula 1, Motorsports

Team Lotus is giving Karun Chandhok his first F1 start since last year’s British GP. The Indian driver will take Jarno Trulli’s place alongside Heikki Kovalainen at the Nurburgring. Chandhok is Team Lotus’ reserve driver, and has been behind the wheel of the T128 in practice sessions at Australia, Turkey, Valencia and Silverstone this year. This arrangement is a one-race affair.

Team boss Tan Sri Tony Fernandes said: “I want to take this chance to thank Jarno for helping make Karun’s opportunity this weekend possible. He has been extremely accommodating in stepping to the side for this race and our commitment to him is unwavering.”

The AirAsia chief brushed off talks that Trulli will be permanently replaced. “I am delighted to confirm that we are in the process of negotiating an extension to his contract with us and we are all looking forward to unveiling the details of that very soon. He is a key member of our team and I hope that we can give him a car as soon as possible that allows him to utilise his considerable talent to the full.

“For this weekend he will be on hand to lend his huge experience and support to Karun and I am sure Jarno, Heikki and Karun will do me, the whole team and all our fans very proud indeed,” Fernandes added.

Chandhok was 1.5 seconds off Heikki’s pace in Friday practice.

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VIDEO: A 360 degree look at the Daihatsu A-Concept

July 23, 2011 at 1:24 pm By Paul Tan Filed Under 2011 Indonesian International Motor Show, Cars, Daihatsu, Daihatsu A Concept

It’s the first public day of the 2011 Indonesia International Motor Show, and the first thing we did when we got here was take a high resolution video of the Daihatsu A-Concept on display at the Daihatsu exhibition. Enjoy a closer look at the A-Concept in motion.

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