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Hyundai Santa Fe goes the premium route – both 2.2 diesel and 2.4 petrol variants get the treatment

September 28, 2011 at 12:22 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, Hyundai, Inokom, Koreans, Local News

Hyundai-Sime Darby Motors has announced the introduction of a premium variant of the Inokom-badged Santa Fe, with both 2.2 Diesel and 2.4 Petrol seven-seater models now available in the new spec level option.

Externally, the Santa Fe premium gets a subtly enhanced exterior and interior, with a redesigned front grille, black gloss fog lamp rings and front and back skid plates part of the dress-up package. There’s also a chrome tailgate garnish and newly-designed 18-inch wheels for the variant.

Going the Premium route also bags you Downhill Brake Control (DBC); the system receives information from the wheel speed, steering angle and acceleration sensors, and through its hydro-electronic control unit maintains control and speed of the vehicle on steep declines without having to use the brakes. The DBC function can be activated through a push-button located at the gear area.

No revisions to the output of the engines, which are 174 PS and 228 Nm from the 2.4-litre Theta II petrol block and 197 PS and 442 Nm from the “R” 2.2 CRDi turbodiesel mill; both continue to work with the six-speed auto transmission.

The Premium Specification 2.2 Diesel is priced at RM169,258, while the 2.4 Petrol version goes for RM158,517 (both on-the-road, without insurance). You’ll need to be a bit patient to view one though – the variants will only be seen in Hyundai showrooms next week, starting October 7.
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Caterham’s new engineering arm to produce affordable sports cars, inspired by original Seven and F1 tech

September 28, 2011 at 11:41 am By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, Caterham, International News

Here’s the first piece of news from Caterham, since Tan Sri Tony Fernandes and his Team Lotus comrades Kamarudin Meranun and SM Nasarudin bought over the maker of the Seven in April. Caterham will be setting up a standalone engineering business called Caterham Technology and Innovation Limited (CTI).

The new arm will be responsible for the development of an all new line of accessible and affordable sportscars inspired by the lightweight, minimalist philosophy of the Seven and drawing on the advanced technologies and materials from Team Lotus Formula 1 and Caterham Team AirAsia GP2. This includes unique vehicle architectures, high performance engines, advanced materials and manufacturing technologies.

Besides creating next gen Caterhams, CTI, which will be based in Norfolk near the Group’s motorsports operations, will also undertake projects for external companies from the automotive and aerospace sectors.

“The new shareholders are committed to investing in an exciting range of global products over the next 10 years. Tony Fernandes has been very clear from the start that Caterham needed a sustainable research and development business model in order to meet the plans the management have for the road car business. By establishing unique operating principles for CTI, we have managed to attract a world-class team of niche vehicle engineers eager to build on the ethos of Caterham and the DNA of the Seven,” said Mark Edwards, CTI’s CEO.

One of those will be Tony Shute, joining as Head of Road Cars. Shute is an avid motorsport competitor and is credited with bringing the ground-breaking Series 1 Lotus Elise to market. The S1 Elise is still considered by fans to be a purer drive than subsequent versions. “When the opportunity to be involved with creating the next iconic Caterham arose, I couldn’t turn it down,” says Shute.

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Gordon Murray Design TEEWAVE AR.1 electric sports car – a showcase of Toray technologies

September 28, 2011 at 11:30 am By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, Hybrids and Alternative Fuel, International News

Gordon Murray Design and Toray Industries has unveiled a prototype electric sports car called the TEEWAVE AR.1. The vehicle is the result of a commission from the Japanese industrial company for GMD to design, tool and build a fully-functioning prototype vehicle utilising many of Toray’s advanced automotive materials, and took just nine months from concept discussion to running vehicle.

The two-seater EV sports car is powered by a permanent magnet synchronised motor offering 47 Kw and 180 Nm – with juice provided by a 16 Kwh lithium-ion battery – mated to a single-speed transmission, housed in a mid-rear configuration. The powertrain utilises base components used in a commercial electric vehicle currently available, but feature unique electrical architecture and control units developed for it by GMD.

Performance figures include a charging time of six hours and operating range of 186 km as well as a top speed of 147 kph and a 0-100 kph time of 11.4 seconds. The car features a remarkably low weight of just 850 kg (with the battery accounting for 240 kg), and while the numbers above don’t sound blisteringly fast, GMD says that with the torque at hand there’s lively acceleration from a standing start.

Attention has been given to the low weight, low centre of gravity and suspension geometry, resulting in an excellent ride and handling balance, the company adds.

Still, the car is more a showcase for a host of Toray technologies, led by the liberal use of carbon fibre throughout – aside from the aluminium sub-frame, CF features for the monocoque chassis, crash structures and body. The Toray carbon fibre component system used on the AR.1 has a process time of less than 10 minutes, and the carbon monocoque, one of the key technologies of the TEEWAVE, can be applied to all types of vehicle other than the AR.1.

Toray materials and products used in the AR.1 are carbon fibre for the monocoque chassis, crash structures, body, interior and seats, PLA/PET floor mats and luggage mats, paint film on the steering wheel cover, ‘Ultra Suede’ trim on seats and door cards and PLA/Nylon alloy optional floor mats.

There’s also TPO laminated soft touch material with Toray PLA foam and pressure sensitive adhesive on instrument panel, sills and door top trim as well as the company’s Picasus film on the instrument screen and 3GT/PET polyester knit on the A-pillar trim panels.

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DHL in talks with Proton regarding electric vehicles

September 28, 2011 at 10:37 am By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, Local News, Malaysian Makes, Proton

Two weeks ago, national carmaker Proton handed eight electric vehicles (EVs) to the government for running trials with various ministries, which included three Saga EV and five Exora REEV (Range Extender Electric Vehicle) models.

As Proton works towards mass-production of these EVs in 2013, they have an interested fleet customer already. Global logistics provider DHL is exploring the possibility of using Proton EVs in Malaysia. DHL Asia Pacific business development VP Christopher Ong said the company has already initiated talks with Proton.

“We are still in discussion with them and hopefully we will be able to test one of their electrical vehicles, maybe early next year,” he told the media briefing yesterday, adding that this move was in line with the company’s strategy of reducing its total carbon emissions up to 30% by 2020.

Mr Ong hopes that the government will play a role in reducing our carbon footprint, suggesting measures such as imposing carbon tax to encourage people to reduce their CO2 emissions, as well as partnering with the industry to develop facilities for EVs such as charging stations. These would help accelerate Malaysia’s target of reducing carbon emissions by 40% by 2020, he points out.

Curious on how Proton’s EVs work? We’ve exclusively driven the Proton Exora REEV prototype already, click here to read the report.

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SPIED: Hello, are you the new Toyota Avanza?

September 27, 2011 at 2:25 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, Spyshots, Toyota

Here are some shots of a Toyota MPV circulating in Indonesian forums and websites. Taken from a factory line, these images are likely to be of the new Toyota Avanza. The rear shot shows it lining up behind a Toyota Rush SUV, which of course shares the same platform as the Avanza.

The compact seven seater Avanza may be over eight years old now, but it still rules the sales charts in Indonesia. It’s also a success in Malaysia, but the late 2009 introduction of the Perodua Alza has seen Avanza sales whittle down to a couple of hundred units per month. Toyota recently gave its IMV trio of Innova, Fortuner and Hilux a revamp, and it looks like the Avanza is the next!

The front end is quite similar to that of the Etios and Etios Liva in India, and that wide grille is also seen in the Corolla Altis 2.0, so it looks like Toyota wants the Avanza to have more of a “car look”. None of the three recently facelifted IMV models carry this look. While the changed face brings a more rounded and sculpted look, it remains to be seen in the metal if it gels with the Avanza’s boxy shape.

At the back, the more rounded theme continues, and the tail lamps now wrap into the sides. We can also see a new line on the profile between the wheels that sweep up gently, in addition to the current curves that highlight the wheel arches.

Besides the latter, more evidence that this is more than just a simple front and rear nip/tuck is in the different shape of the rear quarter glass/D-pillars, as well as the rear screen, which appears to have more rake on the new car.

If this is indeed the new Avanza, it won’t be coming so soon, if at all. UMW Toyota will be busy rolling out the refreshed IMV trio first (Hilux is already out, click here to read our report) and Malaysia already has the more stylish and modern Perodua Alza for this segment, so perhaps the Avanza isn’t top priority. What do you think?

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F1 In Schools World Finals – two awards for Malaysia

September 27, 2011 at 2:15 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under Local News, Technology

Last week’s seventh F1 In Schools World Finals held in Kuala Lumpur saw Malaysia picking up two awards at the event. Malaysian team Velospeed SIC from Sekolah Menengah Sains Hulu Selangor won the Team Portfolio Award and Axis, a collaboration team from Dubai College, UAE and Aminudin Baki Secondary School, were delighted to win the Team Identity Award.

Velospeed SIC, made up of Asyraf Najmie Abd Rahman, Mohd Arif Azizan Abdul Jalil, Alang Ariff Asyraf Muhammad Ghazali and Muhammad Aimran Md Noor from Sekolah Menengah Sains Hulu Selangor, beat off tough competition to win the Best Team Portfolio Award.

The team’s high quality documentation presented clearly and concisely the work that it had put into their entry and was commended by the judges for its professionalism. The team were sixth overall in the World Finals, which was won by Australian team Pentagliders.

“It has been an honour and a privilege to be one of the schools from the host nation and to welcome everyone to our country. We have really enjoyed showing our city to the other students and have had a great time competing in the World Finals. We’re very pleased to have won the Team Portfolio Award as we put in a lot of hard work to make this presentation very special,” team manager Asyraf said.

“The week has been amazing; we have made so many new friends, shared so many memories and learned so much from the students from other countries – we’ll always remember this special time,” he added.

Meanwhile, three students from Aminudin Baki Secondary School – Malik Hisyam, Mohamad Izzudin Hafiz Mohamad Sukri and Muhammad Fahmi Ibrahim – linked with three students from Dubai to form a collaboration team, Axis.

A unique feature of F1 in Schools is the opportunity for students to join with overseas counterparts to compete together as a collaboration team at the World Finals, communicating by virtual technologies such as CISCO Webex and Skype as well as social network sites, telephone and email. This unity help bag the Axis collaboration the Best Team Identity Award and to finish 15th in the overall points standings.

Datuk Dr Wee Ka Siong, Deputy Education Minister, who presented the awards to the winners, had many positive things to say about the initiative. “We need to carve a niche for ourselves for producing students of distinction and excellence. The F1 in Schools Technology Challenge is one of the learning strategies which is proven to be successful in nurturing students’ interest in the fields of science, technology and engineering. This strategy fosters the mind set of continual innovation, entrepreneurship and sportsmanship in a fun and exciting learning environment,” Wee said in his speech at the awards ceremony.

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Audi A6 3.0L TFSI quattro launched in Malaysia – RM515k!

September 27, 2011 at 1:10 pm By Paul Tan Filed Under Audi, Cars, Local News, Videos

The new Audi A6 is finally here in Malaysia, with the sole unit offered right now being the top of the range Audi A6 3.0 TFSI quattro. Priced at RM515,000, it significantly undercuts the similiarly engined 535i by a huge margin and adds the extra traction of the Audi quattro all-wheel drive system.

This sexy beast’s 3.0 litre TFSI V6 engine puts out 300 hp between 5,250-6,500 rpm and 440 Nm of torque from 2,900 rpm to 4,500 rpm. This is the same motor found in the flagship Audi A8L 3.0 TFSI. You might wonder why peak torque kicks in a little higher than normal compared to other TFSI engines – this is likely because Audi has elected to use a supercharger on this V6 engine instead of a turbo. The V6 engine also includes variable inlet camshaft timing and petrol direct injection.

From the crank, power travels to a 7-speed S-tronic twin clutch transmission, and finally to the quattro all-wheel drive system which sends power to all four wheels via a crown gear centre diffferential. The A6′s quattro also has torque vectoring.

A total of twelve colours are availalbe – Ibis White, Brilliant Black, Aviator Blue, Dakota Gray, Ice Silver, Havana Black, Moonlight Blue, Oolong Gray, Quartz Gray, Glacier White, Phantom Black and Garnet Red. The latter two colours are pearl effect colours which command an additional price premium of RM5,000.

Other than the pearl effect paint, the top of the range Malaysian spec 3.0 TFSI can still be specced up if your budget allows it – you can add LED headlamps for RM13,000, a Bang & Olufsen sound system for RM28,000, or a heads up display for RM6,000. For a sportier appeareance, RM30,000 gets you an S-line exterior package which adds sportier front and rear bumpers with a contrasting grey finish for the front lip and rear diffuser.

If you were wondering where the more affordable models are – Audi says they will be bringing the 2.0 TFSI to complement this model soon, so we’ll bring you more news on that when it is available. The normally aspirated 2.8 litre V6 will not be available for now. Look after the jump for a huge photo gallery of the new Audi A6.
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Basso finishes 10th for Proton in IRC San Remo Rally

September 27, 2011 at 1:07 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, Motorsports, Proton, Proton Satria Neo

Some late news about the San Remo Rally, which concluded on Sunday – Proton finished 10th when Giandomenico Basso reversed his misfortunes on the first day and made the most of his home rally advantage and knowledge to secure final championship point in round nine of the Intercontinental Rally Challenge (IRC).

Fighting from 13th, after conceding 8th position when an intercom failure forced him off the road and losing more than five minutes, Basso pushed on – not even an alternator problem on the final day could deny the Italian as he powered the Satria Neo S2000 past Swiss Peugeot driver Grégoire Hotz on the very last special stage of the rally.

The result represents a big leap forward in the development of the Satria Neo S2000, which finished 18th in its debut at San Remo last year. Frenchman Thierry Neuville won the 53rd running of the rally in a Peugeot 207 S2000 ahead of Skoda’s Andreas Mikkelsen.

“We had a fantastic drive on the second and final day with a lot of catching up to do. Despite the early and many setbacks faced, overall, it has been a very rewarding rally for both Proton and I personally. The results have certainly proven the car has grown even more competitive over the short span of one year. We believe the Satria Neo S2000 has every bit the potential of fighting for victories in the IRC,” said a delighted Basso, who last won the San Remo Rally in 2008.

Chris Atkinson’s rally, meanwhile, had come to an early end. with an electrical problem putting paid to his rally on the opening special stage. The challenging San Remo asphalt had also taken its toll on Peugeot’s Guy Wilks, who retired on the same stage after hitting a bridge.

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Hyundai and Kia increase European production capacity

September 27, 2011 at 12:20 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, Hyundai, Kia, Koreans


The Koreans have been on form for quite some time now, and they’re even making headway in Europe, the toughest battleground for Asian manufacturers. Demand for new models has pushed Hyundai to increase production at its Czech Republic factory.

Originally, Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Czech (HMMC) planned to move from two-shift to three-shift production at the start of October, but has been doing so since last week (19 Sept). The company hired 800 new employees to work on this extra shift. In total, Hyundai and its suppliers employ 10,000 people in the Nošovice area of the Czech Republic.

The up in production is thanks to rising demand for the ix35 (Tucson to us) and Frankfurt debutant new i30, which will hit the showrooms early next year. By the way, HMMC has stepped from one shift to three in less than three years.

Sister brand Kia also has plans to increase production. The more youthful brand of the duo will introduce a third production shift at its European production hub in Slovakia along with 1,000 new staff. Three-shift operations are scheduled to start in Zilina by the first quarter of 2012.

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Chery and Magna Steyr join forces to penetrate Europe

September 27, 2011 at 11:16 am By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, Chery, China


If you can’t do it on your own, why not get some help? Chinese carmaker Chery is planning to enter Europe with the help of Magna Steyr, which is based in Austria and builds cars such as the MINI Countryman, Peugeot RCZ and Aston Martin Rapide. They were also contract manufacturers for the first gen BMW X3 and the folding roof of the Mercedes SLK.

According to FT Deutschland, Chery Quantum Auto, a 1.5 billion euro joint venture between Chery and Israel Corp will build three compact models to be sold in China and exported to Europe, reaching the continent next year. The cars, developed by Magna Steyr, will be built at a new factory in Changshu (near Shanghai) with an initial capacity of 150,000 units per year, rising eventually to 500,000 units.

Instead of using Chery’s badge, the cars will be sold under a new brand called Qoros. The cars are designed to meet Western standards and are expected to cost around RM46.700 to RM63,500, the report adds.

On its website, Tel Aviv listed Israel Corp says Chery Quantum was created to manufacture and market a new brand of premium Western-standard vehicles. “The vehicles will meet high safety and environmental standards by combining Chery’s manufacturing capabilities with Western design, engineering and safety standards.”

The JV is also looking at alternative powertrains. Israel Corp, the country’s biggest industrial conglomerate, already owns a 30% stake in Better Place, an electric mobility firm that specialises in battery exchange centres.

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