Previously, it was proposed that Xenon lights be banned because apparently they pose a significant hazard to other road users, causing them to be blinded because they are too bright. This raised a question as many cars have Xenon lights these days, not just luxury cars like BMWs and Mercedes Benz but even the Honda Civic 2.0, Nissan Latio 1.8 and our very own Waja R3 MME Edition.

But now, Road Transport Department enforcement director Salim Parlan says the ban will only affect cars retrofitted with HID kits, not cars that come with the system from factory. This is a bit hard to enforce as there are some cars that have two variants, one with HID and one without, how do you enforce this? The Civic 1.8 has normal halogen bulbs while the Civic 2.0 has HID bulbs, the same with the Nissan Latio.

I believe that Xenon headlamps should not be banned, but only certain colour temperatures that pose a hazard to car’s own driver should be banned. Some of the higher bluish colour temps can cause fatigue, plus they aren’t particularly useful in the rain. Plus, proper alignment of the HID bulb to ensure the shine does not get into the way of other road users should be done.

Some HID users opt for the cheaper HID kits which only have the low beam, so they usually align it somewhere in the middle of low beam and high beam to make up for the lack of a high beam. You should get a proper Bi-Xenon system with both low and high beam, and align them appropriately.

Best is to retrofit a HID kit with a projector lense system into your reflector headlamps because projectors have been designed in such a way that the beam is cut off on the sides, making sure it only shines the path in front of you and does not get into the eyes of the drivers coming from the opposite direction.

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Thailand has finally granted Malaysian AFTA CEPT preferential rates, dropping tariffs for items coming into Thailand from Malaysia from 20% to 5%. Full details of this approval would be announced later by the Finance Ministry of Thailand.

It previously refused to grant Malaysia the lowered rates because it said Malaysia was not AFTA-compliant because it has an Approved Permits system which Thailand said protects Malaysian automotive companies, creating an unfair environment. Malaysia managed to convince Thailand that the AP system is only to check details of imports and not to protect the local auto industry.

I suppose UMW Toyota can breathe a sigh of relieve now as it can now export it’s locally assembled Toyota Hiace vans to Thailand without being slapped with a 20% tariff which makes it’s prices uncompetitive. It is also good news for Isuzu who recently took up a controlling stake in MTB Sdn Bhd and has decided to make Malaysian one of it’s foreign manufacturing bases.

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The Ssangyong Actyon Sports SUT is a pick-up truck that stands out among it’s competitors, and I’m not just talking about its somewhat unorthodox looks which resembles a shark with a gaping mouth, especially in white. But if you’re willing to put it’s looks aside and are interested to know more about the features and capabilities of the Ssangyong Actyon, look after the jump.

Click here to read the rest of Ssangyong Actyon Sports Pick-Up Truck Test Drive

The Malaysian market Proton GEN2 now has a black interior, as shown above in a photo I took at Proton Edar’s branch in Juru Auto City. The black interior was also launched in the UK. Looks much better than beige and silver doesn’t it?

According to Berita Harian, apparently the proposal to scrap cars more than 15 years old will go ahead but on voluntary basis only, an effort to help improve the sales of new cars which have been in a slump this year so far and has only seen a small pick-up in May.

One who chooses to scrap his car that is older than 15 years old will be reimbursed a maximum of RM5,000 in the form of a voucher that counts towards the sales and excise duty of the new car purchased. Note it says a MAX of RM5,000 - this means it might be lower if whoever decides the value of the voucher thinks your car is worth lower.

Apparently studies have shown that if the scrapping policy is implemented, new car sales will increase by 50,000 to 100,000 cars a year.

Being someone who owns a car more than 15 years old, I am directly someone who falls under the target market of this scheme, and in my opinion, it does not entice me to get rid of my 23-year old Nissan Sunny and buy a new car at all.

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This is a professionally produced somewhat artistic promotional video for the new type 997 Porsche 911 Turbo Cabriolet. It’s a shame that for most part of the video the music covers up most of the 911 Turbo cabriolet’s sweet 3.6 liter turbocharged boxer engine noise. Imagine the frustration of viewing a clip that shows the RPM meter going up to the high ends of the rev range, but all you hear is techno music.

Anyway, enjoy the video after the jump. It even has a short section where it shows the variable vanes in the Variable Geometry Turbocharger working.

Click here to read the rest of 997 Porsche 911 Turbo Cabriolet Video

Isuzu Motors Limited has increased it’s stake in DRB-HICOM majority owned Malaysian Truck & Bus Sdn Bhd from 20% to 51%, making it MTB’s new majority shareholder. MTB Sdn Bhd’s management will be replaced by Isuzu personnel who will hold CEO and COO positions, and the company will become a subsidiary of Isuzu Motors Limited. A name change to Isuzu Hicom Malaysia Sdn Bhd is also underway, and Malaysia will become one of Isuzu’s foreign manufacturing bases.

The Alfa Romeo 159 has been graced with the famous TI badge. TI stands for Turismo Internazionale and both the sedan and Sportwagon 159 variants will have this new trim level in their range.

The Alfa 159 TI is enhanced with a unique body kit, lowered sports suspension, 19-inch alloy wheels, red Brembo brake callipers all-round, and chrome effect door mirrors and exhaust tailpipe. On the inside, there is an electrically adjustable and heated leather front sports seats, new sports dials, aluminium sports pedals, kick plates, trim inserts, a leather-clad sports steering wheel and gear knob.

Two petrol units and one diesel unit are available - petrol variants include a 2.2 JTS inline-4 and a 3.2 JTS V6 while the sporty oil burner is a 2.4 JTDM. These engines can be mated to either manual or QTRONIC automatic gearboxes.

Alfa’s Q4 all-wheel-drive system is standard on the 3.2 V6 engine option, but can be specified for the 2.4 JDTM as well, while the 2.2 JTS petrol is front wheel drive only.

Click here to read the rest of Alfa Romeo 159 TI (Turismo Internazionale)

Here is inspiration for any of you whose booked the Nissan Latio Sport 1.6 liter hatchback that went on sale recently. This is the Impul Tiida, based on the Nissan Tiida in the Japanese market which is basically the same car as the Latio Sport here in Malaysia. There is an Impul bodykit as well as a “shopping trolley” spoiler like the one on the Impul March, but what’s interesting is the performance enhancements.

The Impul tuning kit is for the 1.5 liter Nissan Tiida, but the only engine variant that is offered here in Malaysia for the Nissan Latio Sport is the 1.6 liter HR16DE. But perhaps the same supercharger kit can be fitted to the 1.6 liter engine block?

The HR16DE engine in the stock Latio Sport makes 109PS at 6,000rpm and 153Nm of torque at 4,400rpm. Impul’s Compressor kit (supercharger) boosts power up 35 PS, so the 1.6 liter block could end up with 144PS, the equivalent of a modern 2.0 liter.

The supercharger must be coupled with an Impul high power control unit (uprated ECU) as well as better Iridium spark plugs, and you can also fit a high flow Blast II design Impul stainless steel muffler.

Some other options to complement the car’s greater acceleration are better brakes - we’re talking about 6 piston calipers for the front on 282×21mm rotors fitted with Impul performance brake pads, which should definitely be more than enough for a 144PS car.

I am not sure where you can purchase this Impul forced induction kit for the HR15DE, or whether it can fitted to the HR16DE or not, but it shouldn’t be too difficult to adapt it.

Click here to read the rest of Impul Tiida - supercharged Nissan Tiida/Latio Sport

Scott Killeen, an award-winning automotive photographer and publisher has set up Build Book USA, a company which chronicles the build process of award-winning custom cars. First seen on Discovery Channel, Joe Rogan’s (the Fear Factor show host) “Sick Fish” Plymouth Barracuda is a fantastic retro-custom car build from the ground up, literally!

Chip Foose, the famous designer lent a hand to design Sick Fish, but was too tied up with work, so he farmed out the build to Rad Rides, a custom shop in Illinois, USA run by Troy Trepanier. The book details in fantastic detail through full colour photography by Killeen, the entire build process of Sick Fish, right from looking for a car, to inspecting, buying, stripping, fabricating, painting and putting the finishing touches on.

The entire Plymouth Barracuda bodyshell was stripped, and custom parts fabricated to improve the bodyshell. A custom-built Hemi engine was built for the car. The interior was fitted with Dynamat Extreme and a high end audio system, Recaro seats, custom upholstery, Autometer gauges, etc. You can also learn a few customiser’s tricks (Too many to detail here so go buy the book!).

It’s a very inspirational softcover book containing over 800 full colour photographs in about 180 pages, that can serve as a reference and guide for all those of us out there who dream of building up a special ‘Hot Rod’ or ‘Custom’ car project. It’s also a guide in how to do things tastefully and creatively. All parts & tool suppliers are listed throughout the book complete with contact details, to help aspiring custom builders.

RATING: 5/5
CONTRIBUTOR: BEN CORLEY (Seven Builder)

BUY THE BOOK: BUILD BOOK: From Concept to Reality (Build Book: From Concept to Reality, Volume 1)