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Isuzu D-Max – all-new model makes debut in Thailand

September 30, 2011 at 6:23 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, International News, Isuzu

Isuzu has unveiled its all-new D-Max pickup in Thailand – the full model change version made its debut yesterday, ahead of the similarly-underpinned Chevrolet Colorado, which is expected to be introduced next week.

Not many details about the vehicle abound, but according to the Bangkok Post, the basic shape for the vehicle – which sits on Isuzu’s new i-Grip platform – in its extra and double-cab versions are pretty much the same, and that the new D-Max rolls in with significantly more heft in terms of overall dimensions compared to the outgoing one, even though no figures were available for it at press time.

The company says that the new D-Max’s body is 42% stiffer than the old one, and will help bring about improved handling and ride. In the double-cab, the larger dimensions of the vehicle bring about more legroom space for rear occupants, who also get more comfy seats at the back.

In terms of engines, three turbodiesel options abound – a 177 hp and 380 Nm 3.0 litre heads the list, followed by a 2.5 litre mill in two output tunes, the first being the familiar 116 hp and 280 Nm as seen on the current vehicle, and the other the VGS version offering 136 hp and 320 Nm. As for transmissions, there’s the usual five-speed manual, but the auto tranny is now a five-speed unit, bringing it in line with current expectation.

Among the features to be found on the new ‘un are traction control and a vehicle stability system, and there’s even an eight-speaker audio system, replete with surround sound. Sales of the vehicle, which will be available in 4×2 and 4×4 configurations, are expected to begin in early October in Thailand.

In related news, Isuzu also announced that it will be constructing a new plant in Thailand to bring up its production capacity to meet the increasing demand for pickup trucks and their derivatives. The new facility – consisting of new painting facilities, 2,000t servo press facilities and assembly/inspection lines – will be built within the Isuzu Motors Thailand Gateway plant.

The new factory, to be built at an estimated cost of 18 billion yen, is slated to begin operation by autumn 2012, and when it is completed, Isuzu Motors Thailand’s pickup truck production capacities in both its Samrong and Gateway plants will be increased to 400,000 units yearly.

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Citroen C4 Aircross – the French Mitsubishi ASX

September 30, 2011 at 5:40 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, Citroën, Mitsubishi

Here’s a Citroen for C-segment hatchback buyers that want some SUV looks and a taller ride height. The Citroen C4 Aircross will hit the market in the first half of next year as a rival to the Ford Kuga, Volkswagen Tiguan and Nissan Qashqai. Like the Mitsubishi Outlander based Citroen C-Crosser, this C4 Aircross is a French take on a Mitsubishi, in this case the ASX compact crossover.

Although the ASX’s compact proportions and that signature profile line remain, there’s no mistaking the C4 Aircross for anything but a Citroen. The Aircross’ light signature, visible by day and at night, is formed by the LEDs at the front, which are vertically aligned in the aerodynamic vents. The shape of the 18-inch wheels and the rear lights, directly inspired by the Hypnos concept car, has been reworked for optimal air flow.

Measuring 4,340 mm long, 1,800 mm wide and 1,630 mm high, the five seater Aircross has a 442 litre boot. A good portion of the roof is made up of a large panoramic glass. At night, the roof is lit up by the LED light guides built into it.

The C4 Aircross will come with PSA’s HDi 110 engine, mated to a 6-speed manual gearbox. Citroen says that this model will be one of the front-runners in its segment in terms of CO2 emissions. More performance comes in the form of the HDi 150 engine. Both are available in 2WD or 4WD form. It won’t be popular, but a 115 hp 1.6L petrol engine with 2WD and a 5-speed manual is also available.

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Mahindra launches XUV500 in India – 2.2L VGT Diesel

September 30, 2011 at 3:50 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, India, Mahindra

Mahindra has launched a new SUV called the XUV500 in India. This modern looking seven seater SUV, viewed as the company’s most important SUV since the Scorpio, is also a landmark model – the XUV500 is the first Indian SUV to be built around a car-style monocoque chassis, which means no ladder frame and truck like suspension here.

The XUV500 is powered by a 2.2-litre mHawk engine with Variable Geometry Turbocharger, VGT. This diesel engine is already found in the old school bodied Scorpio, but boast better figures here: 140 hp and 330 Nm of torque from 1,600 to 2,800 rpm. Indian customers can choose between FWD and AWD variants, but both share a six-speed manual gearbox.

By the way, the Mahindra Scorpio is sold in Malaysia by USF, and the RM113k seven seater comes with a 120 hp/290 Nm version of the mHawk diesel lump, paired to a six-speed auto ‘box.

Quantum leap in looks aside, the XUV500 should be a more comfortable ride than the Scorpio, since it comes with monocoque chassis, front MacPherson struts and rear multi link suspension. It sits much lower to the ground on those 235/65 R17 rubber, and the wheelbase is quite long at 2,700 mm. The AWD is of the full-time on demand variety, and it’s not a serious off roader. No diff lock, but there’s hill descent control.

Attractive ex showroom Delhi prices start from Rs 10.8 lakh (RM70,400) for the 2WD W6 spec to Rs 12.88 lakh (RM83,900) for the range topping AWD W8 model.

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Swedish Automobile to sell Spyker Cars for US$44 million

September 30, 2011 at 3:35 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, International News, Saab, Spyker

The journey continues, though on a different tack. Reports say that Swedish Automobile, the company that owns cash-strapped Saab and Spyker Cars, has announced its intent to sell off Spyker to an American private equity firm called North Street Capital for a sum of US$44 million.

Swedish Automobile had early this year said it was going to let go of Spyker, but the name mentioned then was CPP Global Holdings, owned by Russian businessman Vladimir Antonov. A MOU was signed between the two companies in February, but the deal, which was expected to go through, did not; an announcement was made in August saying it had been put on hold.

The deal represents Swedish Automobile’s latest effort to raise capital to turn around Saab, though reports add that the latter may not see the money; proceeds from the sale are to be used to pay off a loan to Antonov. Though the company is being sold, Victor Muller, who is Swedish Automobile CEO, will remain as CEO of Spyker as well. As for the troubled Saab, the journey to being saved continues, but it at least looks like all the time and effort doing so can now be focused on it.

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GM to introduce industry’s first front centre airbag

September 30, 2011 at 1:39 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, General Motors, International News, Technology

One more added on the safety item list. General Motors is set to introduce the industry’s first front center airbag, which is an inflatable restraint designed to help protect drivers and front passengers in far-side impact crashes.

Designed to work collectively with the other airbags and safety belts in a vehicle, the front centre airbag deploys from the right side of the driver’s seat and positions itself between the front row seats near the centre of the vehicle.


Without, and with, the FCAB, single front occupant. Looks painful.

The tethered, tubular airbag is designed to provide restraint during passenger-side crashes, be it with a single or double front occupant scenario – the airbag acts as an energy absorbing cushion between driver and front passenger in both driver- and passenger-side crashes. It is also expected to provide benefit in rollovers.

GM and its technology supplier Takata developed the airbag over the course of three years, testing many design iterations to achieve packaging, cushioning, and restraint in a variety of crashes and occupant positions.


Without, and with, the FCAB, two front occupants. Definitely painful.

While the front centre airbag is not required by US federal regulations, it is expected to improve the safety performance measurements in such-equipped vehicles in terms of third-party crash test performance.

The front centre air bag will be introduced by GM on the Buick Enclave, GMC Acadia, and Chevrolet Traverse midsize crossovers in the 2013 model year, and will be standard fitment on Acadia and Traverse with power seats and all Enclave models.

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Ford Explorer made from LEGO, all 382,858 bricks of it

September 30, 2011 at 12:13 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, Ford, International News

Yet another full-scale vehicle replication with LEGO bricks has come about, and this one is of a Ford Explorer. The bright red LEGOLAND Florida edition Explorer is set to be the lead display at the new 150-acre LEGOLAND Florida theme park in Winter Haven, near Orlando.

Crafted by 22 Ford employees in Connecticut, the ‘vehicle’ is made up of 382,858 LEGO bricks, and those numbers translate into a rather hefty beast – the structure is supported by a 348 kg interior aluminium base, and with all the bricks in place, tips the scale at 1,203 kg.

The vehicle ‘rolled off’ the line at Ford’s Chicago Assembly Plant earlier this week, and will now make its way to Florida, where it will be loaded on to a trailer with transparent sides and serve as a display at the theme park, which opens on October 15. In 2004, a life-sized LEGO replica of a Volvo XC90 was built, also for a LEGOLAND, this one in California.

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SEMA 01: ARK Performance 210 hp Hyundai Veloster turbo

September 30, 2011 at 12:10 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, Hyundai, Koreans

This mean looking machine is team effort by Hyundai and ARK Performance, to be shown at the 2011 SEMA show in November. The ARK Performance Veloster comes with a custom twin-scroll turbocharger increasing the stock 1.6-litre engine’s horsepower to 210 hp (from 138 hp) and matching aesthetics.

Many other goodies have gone into the coupe, including custom intercooler system with piping, custom oil cooler, turbo manifold, lightweight pulley system, six-pot brake kit, eight-point Chromoly rally style roll cage, DTP track coilover system and GRIP dual exhausts as well as RSEPC downpipes and test pipes.

“The Hyundai Veloster is an ideal car for enthusiasts with its distinctive design and dynamic architecture. At SEMA, our ARK Performance Veloster will bridge the realm between an affordable sports car and an extreme motor sports vehicle. From the first Tiburon, to the Genesis Coupe, and now with the Veloster, ARK Performance continues to uphold the torch as the pioneer of aftermarket performance manufacturing for Hyundai,” said Ted Lee, owner of ARK.

The ARK Performance Veloster will also showcase interior and exterior mods including an open wheel concept with aggressive fenders and Nitto tires. ARK will also develop Veloster specific parts to showcase the tunability of the car to the American Import Tuner crowd. The Veloster was unveiled at this year’s Detroit show. Read all about it here.

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Naza Group hoping Gov’t will reduce duties on cars

September 30, 2011 at 11:11 am By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, Local News, Naza

According to a report, the Naza Group of Companies says it is hoping that the government will see fit to lower the duty structure for cars by 20% to 30% for the 2012 Budget to give businesses a boost and the public the ability to spend more.

Its joint Group executive chairman Datuk SM Faisal SM Nasimuddin said the people are complaining that the duty structure was too high, adding that a reduction in duties would help create an interest among the people to buy cars, the report by Bernama stated.

“A lot of people have liquid cash but they need the right reason to spend. If we can lower the duty structure, it will help increase the saving power. There’s no point people having so much cash and they don’t want to spend. the economy will not grow,” he told Bernama at the launch yesterday of the Naza Racing Team, which will be competing in the Ferrari 458 Challenge Trofeo Pirelli Round 4 in Sepang this weekend.

In related news, Naza is hoping to bring the series to Malaysia as part of the calendar on the Ferrari Challenge Asia Pacific racing series, which is managed and coordinated by Ferrari, and that the race this weekend was an initiative carried out by the company to steer things this way.

“If they are happy with the exposure and the hospitality we show them, I’m not surprised that next year, we’re going to have five or six Malaysian cars on the Sepang circuit,” SM Faisal said.

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Hyundai self developing 10-speed automatic transmission

September 30, 2011 at 10:46 am By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, Hyundai, Koreans

How much is too much when it comes to gears? Cars like the BMW 5-Series come with eight forward ratios now, which is already a lot, but you can count on someone trying to outdo that. That someone is Hyundai, which is reported to be developing a 10-speed automatic transmission. Yes, 10.

Bloomberg News reported Park Seong Hyon, president of Hyundai Motor Group, the umbrella company of Hyundai Motor Co and Kia Motors Corp, saying that they’re developing the said 10 speeder for future luxury vehicles starting in 2014.

These could possibly including the next Hyundai Genesis and Equus luxury sedans. ZF is rolling out a 9-speed auto in 2013, and this one will retake the lead, if no one else joins the race.

Automakers are increasingly using transmissions with more gears to cut fuel consumption and emissions, and this piece of news signals that the Korean carmaker is firmly on the path of developing its own transmissions, instead of picking one off the shelves of ZF, BorgWarner or Aisin.

The 6-speed slushbox servicing the current Sonata and Tucson is an in house effort, and earlier this year, Hyundai launched an self developed 8-speed auto for the 2012 Genesis and Equus sedans. But 10?

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Nissan Latio gets facelifted – range now down to two variants, a hatchback and a sedan; hatch goes 1.8L

September 29, 2011 at 9:16 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, Local News, Nissan

Edaran Tan Chong Motor has announced the introduction of the facelifted Nissan Latio. The model range, which previously consisted of four variants (three sedan, one hatchback), has now been scaled down to two, a hatchback and a sedan, both in Comfort level specification.

The biggest change, aside from the cosmetic enhancements, is with the hatchback, which is now available only in 1.8 litre guise. The car gets the MR18DE mill, which offers 126 PS at 5,200 rpm and 174 Nm of torque at 4,800 rpm.

As for the sedan, that which has been retained is the entry-level unit previously, and it wears the trusted HR16DE 1.6 litre engine, with 109 PS at 6,000 rpm and 153 Nm at 4,400 rpm the figures. It’s only available with an auto transmission.

For the facelift, the Latio hatchback gets a newly-designed front grille and front bumper, as well as a new rear bumper, which the company says “gives a presence of motion and energy.” The car also gets new headlamps, and in the case of the hatch, new rear lamps as well. The sedan gets the front bumper and grille job, but no changes to the rear.

Inside the cabin, the Latio hatchback now comes with steering wheel audio controls and a new audio head-unit player with an Auxiliary input for portable audio devices. It also features a new white background meter display, replete with silver trim for the instrument dial cluster. Elsewhere, the hatchback is now equipped with an automatic air-conditioner system with digital display, and the trip meter readout now offers instant and average fuel readings.

The Latio 1.8 AT hatchback is priced at RM99,800, while the 1.6 AT sedan goes for RM89,800, both on-the-road inclusive of insurance; Latio buyers will also get a Solar Gard Armorcoat tinting package worth RM1,400 thrown in for free.

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