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Perodua Myvi Wolfrace Design Concept – bling, UK-style

September 23, 2011 at 8:20 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, International News, Perodua


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Over in the UK, Perodua has teamed up with Wolfrace Wheels, a UK-based wheel and design house, to come up with the Myvi Wolfrace Design Concept. The car is based on a standard specification Myvi, but features a number of enhancements, primarily visual.

Items include a luxurious leather/alcantara interior, black polished 16-inch Wolfrace Shark Alutec 5-spoke alloy wheels, low profile Falken tyres and a lowered suspension with Eibach springs.

Elsewhere, the car gets a Wolfrace graphics pack in signature colours as well as a contrasting red tailgate spoiler and mirrors, rear window privacy glass, twin chrome exhaust and high-end Vibe audio upgrade, which includes a bass enclosure. It’s scheduled for production in early October.

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Australian team crowned as 2011 F1 In Schools champions

September 23, 2011 at 4:24 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under International News, Technology

An Australian team has been crowned as the 2011 F1 In Schools World Champions. Pentagliders, from Brooks High School, Tasmania, took home the Bernie Ecclestone World Champions trophy in the finals, which was held in KL on Sept 19-21.

The Pentagliders team, comprising 18-year-olds Tristan Mcarthy, Amy Winter and Nathan Clark and Jack Ball, 17, beat 22 teams from around the world to take the title as well as bag coveted Automotive and Motorsport Engineering degree scholarships at City University London.

The Australians also won the Fastest Car Award, recording a time of 1.084 seconds, as well as the Best Engineered Car Award on route to becoming champions.

Runner-up to the victorious Australian team was German national champions BETAGREEN, from Grootmoor Gymnasium, Hamburg. The all-boys team also won the Best Research and Development Award, with judges noting the quality of the R&D programme it used for the development of the whole car, especially the front wing.

Last year’s title holders, the American team UNITUS Racing from South East High School, Florida as well as James Madison Middle School, Virginia, took third place on the podium.

The host nation, Malaysia, featured in two awards, with Velospeed SIC, from Sekolah Menengah Sains Hulu Selangor, taking the Team Portfolio Award and Axis, a collaboration team from Dubai College, UAE and Aminudin Baki Secondary School collecting the Team Identity Award.

Canada took the knock-out racing glory in the finals of the highly competitive head-to-head racing secion, with the Golden Geckos from Crocus Plains Regional Secondary School, Brandon lifting the Knock-out Racing Award.

Cyber Express F1 Team from Gymnázium J.K.Tyla, Czech Republic, was presented with the Outstanding Sportsmanship Award, which it won for the fair play it showed when distractions put off its opposition in the knock-out competition and the Czech team allowed a re-run. As for Dynamic, from St. John Payne Catholic School, UK, it set a new record with back-to-back Verbal Presentation Awards, adding this year’s title to the one it won last year.

Elsewhere, Welsh team Fflam took the Best Sponsorship and Marketing Award, with Best Newcomer Award being presented to Dresser Racing from Kongsberg High School, Norway and the Collaboration Team trophy went to Trident Racing, a joint initiative from Sebastopol College, Australia and Raffles Girls’ School, Singapore. Ireland, meanwhile, collected two trophies, with Octane Racing from Dundalk Grammar School collecting the Best Team Website Award and the Best Pit Display Award.

The Innovative Thinking Award was presented to Team RedShift from Dubai College, UAE, with the judges commending the team on their superb rear wing design which showed the depth of thought put into developing the team’s car design.
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Fourth-generation 2012 Honda CR-V Concept revealed

September 23, 2011 at 11:58 am By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, Honda, International News

This is the 2012 Honda CR-V Concept that made its public debut at the Orange County International Auto Show in Anaheim, California. It officially shows us the styling direction for the all-new, fourth-generation CR-V, which has been spied testing before. It’s set to go on sale in the US by the end of the year and the production car will debut at the LA Auto Show in November.

Compared to the current CR-V, the concept takes on a bolder look with deeper sculpting of the body lines and a stronger front fascia, which ditches the “double grille” look. The front bumper’s smooth-flowing lines are highlighted by a horizontal three-bar grille that encroaches into the multi-reflector headlight cluster. The lower bumper wraps upward to convey SUV capability with a generous approach angle; the design also improves aerodynamics.

The CR-V’s signature vertical rear taillights remain, but it’s now wrapped into the body, and the result hints at the Volvo XC60. The side glass area also sees a change in shape – the upper line falls all the way down in the current car, but both meet in the middle on the concept. The section aft of the rear doors appear bigger here, too.

We don’t expect the production model to look significantly different from this, perhaps with less showy wheels and a more subtle sump guard. Do you like where Honda is heading with the CR-V?

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Naza Automotive Manufacturing’s Gurun facility achieves 150,000th unit production milestone

September 23, 2011 at 11:49 am By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, Local News, Naza

The manufacturing arm of the Naza Group, Naza Automotive Manufacturing (NAM), has recorded the production of its 150,000th vehicle at its facility in Gurun, Kedah. The milestone was reached yesterday. To mark the historic occasion, Deputy Minister of International Trade and Industry Datuk Mukhriz Mahathir commemorated the 150,000th vehicle, a Naza Forte 1.6SX, produced at the facility.

NAM began operations in May 2004 with a RM500 million facility on an 140-acre parcel of land, and rolled out its first vehicle, a Naza Ria, in August that year.

The facility has produced 18 models at the plant since commencing operations, these being the Ria, Citra, Sorento, Spectra, Suria, Bestari, Forza, Sportage, Spectra 5, Optima, Rondo, Pregio, Picanto and Forte, as well as the Peugeot 407, 308, 207 and the 3008.

Currenly, the following models – Forte, Pregio, Citra, Rondo and the Peugeot 407, 308, 207 and 3008 are assembled at NAM. For 2011, NAM is on track to deliver 15,540 units, with the target for 2012 being 30,050 units. On the export front, NAM has been exporting units of the Peugeot 207 to Thailand and Indonesia, while the Kia Pregio van is being exported to Indonesia.

The facility is currently undergoing a RM714 million upgrading and expansion exercise over a six-year period, which began last year. Under this exercise, NAM will invest in the upgrading of facilities, plant expansion, new model introductions and research and development.

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Suzuki demands Volkswagen detract claims that Suzuki violated tie-up agreement with Fiat engine purchase

September 23, 2011 at 12:46 am By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, Suzuki, Volkswagen

The drama continues with Volkswagen and Suzuki’s rocky marriage – Suzuki has sent a letter to Volkswagen demanding that the German company retract its claim that Suzuki violated their tie-up agreement by purchasing diesel engines from Fiat.

According to Suzuki, their global reputation has been significantly damaged by the announcement, and denies that the diesel engine purchase from Fiat Powertrain Technologies violated the agreement. Suzuki claims they consulted Volkswagen about buying the Fiat diesel engines in January, and both parties came to an agreement at that time.

Furthermore, it is claimed that Suzuki only turned to Fiat after engines offered by Volkswagen failed to meet Suzuki’s specs.

The following is an excerpt from a press release issued by Suzuki this week detailing their side of the story of what happened:

Last year, both companies negotiated for several months regarding the conditions for Suzuki’s use of certain engines manufactured by Volkswagen AG, however, Suzuki’s requirements were never satisfied.

In January of this year, when Mr. Osamu Suzuki conferred with Dr. Winterkorn in Hamamatsu, Suzuki delivered its message that Suzuki would not be using Volkswagen diesel engines together with background reasons.

In response to such explanation, Dr. Winterkorn requested Suzuki to issue a written notification if Suzuki decided not to use diesel engines manufactured by Volkswagen AG. Within a couple days of such request, we formally notified Volkswagen AG of such decision in writing. Immediately after issuing such notice, engineers from both companies who are responsible for this matter also mutually confirmed with each other that Suzuki will not use diesel engines manufactured by Volkswagen AG.

Volkswagen AG has requested Suzuki in the mentioned notice to implement a process to compare the diesel engines manufactured by Volkswagen AG and by Fiat as a remedial action. We believe it is clearly unreasonable for Volkswagen AG to claim on 11 September that Suzuki is in breach of the Framework Agreement based on presumption that this process is deficient, after a considerable amount of time has passed since Suzuki and Volkswagen AG mutually confirmed that Suzuki would not be using such engine.

In addition to the above, we have fully expressed our views in the rebuttal letter which we have sent today and have included references to the factual background of this matter including negotiations that occurred before the execution of the agreement which established the alliance on 9 December 2009, and detailed quotations from letters exchanged between the two companies.

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Honda City SE with special bodykit to be unveiled soon?

September 22, 2011 at 7:46 pm By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, Honda

is Honda Malaysia preparing to launch a special version of the Honda City soon? A contest running on their website seems to indicate so, as the URL of the contest page has the string “citySE” in it. Is there going to be a Honda City SE available soon?

The contest is called the “Guess The Car Parts” contest and it involves the contestant identifying four different car parts from a drop down list. Then you have to fill in a slogan. My guess some of the four photos are also a teaser for perhaps some bodykit accessories that will be equipped on the Honda City SE.

I don’t think this is the Honda City facelift which we saw recently as the design of the front bumper of the facelift is different – an X shape for the front end instead of a V shape. One of the photos for you to guess in the contest kinda looks like the front bumper and it still shows a V shape.

The three best entries with correct answers and best slogan will win an iPad 2. You can check out the contest page by clicking here.

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Nissan to supply Fuga sedan to Mitsubishi in Japan

September 22, 2011 at 4:21 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, International News, Mitsubishi, Nissan


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Nissan and Mitsubishi have yet again expanded the scope of their OEM supply agreements in the Japanese market. From next year, Nissan will provide the Fuga luxury sedan to Mitsubishi, to be rebadged and sold by the latter, and Mitsubishi is to provide its MINICAB-MiEV commercial mini EV to Nissan, also sometime in 2012.

The two new OEM project agreements are part of the core agreement signed in December 2010 to expand cooperation between the two companies, and follow on a prior agreement for Nissan to provide the NV200 Vanette compact van to Mitsubishi (rebadged as the Delica D:3) beginning this October, as well as the establishment of the NMKV minicar joint venture, which was announced in June 2011.

As an interesting aside, the Fuga was being bandied about as the Perdana replacement for top-level government use only, though speculation has pretty much dissipated with the announcement of the impending Proton-MMC collaboration. To think it could somehow pop up again in the picture, as a Mitsubishi, is improbable, all very far fetched.

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Mitsubishi Pajero Sport VGT – 178 PS, 350 Nm, RM167,375

September 22, 2011 at 2:34 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, Local News, Mitsubishi

Mitsubishi Motors Malaysia has unveiled the Pajero Sport VGT, a higher powered version of the seven-seat SUV. The launch ceremony was held at Midvalley Megamall this morning, and display units will be at the mall’s Centre Court all weekend.

The big news for the Pajero Sport VGT is under the hood. It is powered by a 2.5-litre DI-D commonrail diesel engine, which is essentially the same as the unit powering the standard Pajero Sport and Triton, but with Variable Geometry Turbo (VGT). With those variable vanes, the DOHC 16v engine puts out 178 PS of power and 350 Nm of torque from 1,800 to 3,500 rpm.

The non VGT turbodiesel in the Pajero Sport GS and GL does 136 PS and 314 Nm, so we’re looking at a substantial improvement of 42 PS and 36 Nm. Max torque in the VGT is also spread across a wide range, compared to the 2,000 rpm peak of the non VGT engine.

The drivetrain improvements don’t stop there. The Pajero Sport VGT comes with a 5-speed INVECS-II automatic, which has one extra forward ratio over the GL and GS. Like the four speeder, the VGT’s gearbox also comes with sport mode, but there’s the addition of steering paddles shifters. The long magnesium paddles are the standard Mitsubishi items as found in other models, which works well.

Power is transferred to the surface via Mitsubishi’s Super Select 4WD system, which has four modes: 2WD High Range, 4WD High Range, 4WD High Range with Locked Centre Differential and 4WD Low Range with Locked Centre Differential. Changing between 2WD and 4WD high range modes can be done on the fly at speeds of up to 100 km/h.

Equipment wise, the Pajero Sport VGT comes with a 2-DIN Kenwood touch screen head unit with GPS. The colour screen of the ICE also doubles up as display for the reverse camera, which is standard. Besides that, the VGT comes with cruise control with buttons on the steering and automatic air con, which are already on the Pajero Sport GS.

We noticed that the front seats look different, and MMM confirms that the design has been revised for more support. They’re leather wrapped, by the way.

The Pajero Sport VGT is priced at RM167,375.80 on the road without insurance, which is about RM5,000 costlier than the GS 4WD variant. Seems like fair value for the extras, which is why MMM is looking at a 50% increase in sales volume for the Pajero Sport range with the addition of the VGT.

Live gallery from the event is after the jump.
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Mitsubishi begins i-MiEV joint testing with PTT in Thailand

September 22, 2011 at 2:28 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, Hybrids and Alternative Fuel, International News, Mitsubishi

It’s a step further towards going the EV route in Thailand for Mitsubishi – Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (MMC) has announced that its Thai subsidiary Mitsubishi Motors Thailand (MMTh) has begun joint testing of the i-MiEV with PTT Public Company Limited, which is the largest energy company in the country.

Mitsubishi Thailand has started specific testing with two power companies, these being Metropolitan Electricity Authority and PEA ENCOM, as part of its efforts towards researching consumer acceptability, marketability, as well as charging infrastructure in the kingdom.

PTT plans to install a quick charger at the PTT Research and Technology Institute by the end of this year, so both PTT and MMTh will actively cooperate in the research and the development of EV charging infrastructure.

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Free LRT/Monorail passes in support of World Carfree Day

September 22, 2011 at 2:01 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under Local News, Public Transport

Today happens to be World Carfree Day – every September 22, the initiative to go carless for the day is held, to remind us why we shouldn’t be beholden to the vehicle. Of course, that’s easier said than done – forsaking the car in getting about one’s daily business, especially here in KL, is very much a pipe dream for most on weekdays.

On weekends, however, there’s a better chance of needing – and wanting – to go around with a car, and with that in mind, Prasarana is looking to do its bit to help reduce the carbon footprint; the company is offering a total of 150,000 free one-way travel coupons on the Light Rail Transit (LRT) as well as the Monorail system. The initiative – in support of World Carfree Day – will see these passes being handed out on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays, from today. No mention of when the campaign stops; presumably, when the passes run out, one assumes.

The bus service to and fro to stations now features 150 additional buses (with expanded area coverage), which Prasarana says brings down the waiting time for one from 20 minutes to 15, and there are bicycle parking facilities available at 17 LRT stations, if you think you’re game to go two-wheeled part of the way. Might want to bring enough locks to secure your ride though.

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