The new Chevrolet Camaro might come with the option for a 2.0 liter turbocharged inline-4 engine if fuel prices continue to skyrocket the way they are now, according to General Motors Vice Chairman Bob Lutz.

This engine will be the GM Family II LNF engine, found in the Pontiac Solstice GXP. The 2.0 liter engine produces 260 horsepower and 353Nm of torque thanks to a twin scroll turbocharger, 9.2:1 compression, variable valve timing on both intake and exhaust, and gasoline direct injection.

The Camaro Concept featured a 400 horsepower LS2 V8 engine. The original plans for the production version included a V6 and a V8 engine, both normally aspirated. The V8 will feature a cylinder cut-off system which shuts off one cylinder bank during cruising to get better fuel economy.

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The Maruti Suzuki Swift DZiRE is set to hit India’s shores on the 29th of this month, and a teaser site is already up online. The car is essentially a Suzuki Switch hatchback with a boot tacked on. The site has a few preview images depicting a Swift DZiRE shrouded by shadows, or just parts of the car, but look after the jump and you will find some low resolution spyshots captured from a video.

According to Maruti Suzuki, the Swift DZiRE will feature class-leading equipment that have never been offered in an entry-level sedan in India, like an integrated head unit with steering wheel audio, automatic climate control, dual SRS airbags and ABS brakes.

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Click here to read the rest of Maruti Suzuki Swift DZiRE due end-March

The Nissan Maxima is a large front-wheel drive sedan sold in a few countries like the US and Canada, and is based on the A34 Altima platform. It is not the same Maxima as another smaller car sold in other regions, which is based on the Cefiro/Teana instead.

This is the new 2009 model which will be unveiled sometime this week. Rather irrelevant to our market really, as it is a huge sedan with a large displacement, aimed at the North American market and other similiar countries which like these type of cars. But it’s interesting to see completely different product lines developed for different regions from a single car manufacturer.

No details have been revealed about the car yet, but we should get some along with a whole set of other images soon.

Two more shots after the jump.

Click here to read the rest of Next generation 2009 Nissan Maxima preview

Proton Edar Sdn Bhd has a new CEO - Encik Mohamad Shukor bin Ibrahim, who will also serve as Proton Holdings Berhad’s new Director of Domestic Sales. He has a long history in the Malaysian automotive industry, serving 14 years at Perodua Sales Sdn Bhd before moving on to a short stint as Honda Malaysia Sdn Bhd’s President and COO.

Before Perodua, Encik Shukor was in sales engineering at Petronas Dagangan Sdn Bhd. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from University of Missouri-Rolla in the USA.

The Nissan Skyline R32, R33 and R34 all came with 4-door bodies, though the 2-door coupe variants were far more popular with the car being a performance model and all. Auto Express reports that a 4-door Nissan GT-R is in the works using a stretched version of the R35’s platform, and it will be badged an Infiniti.

The new 4-door performance car will be known as the Infiniti R50, and will use a stretched version of the Nissan GT-R platform.

What’s going to be in the engine bay is still a question though, as supply is an issue for the hand-built VQ38DETT. A VK-based V8 like the 390 horsepower VK50VE may be used instead, but this is a big horsepower deficit against the VQ’s 473 horses.

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At first glance, you may confuse the Mitsubishi Lancer Fortis launched in Taiwan sometime last year with a Toyota Mark X, or some other car, but definitely not the latest generation Lancer. This is because Taiwan’s Lancer has its own styling, featuring its own totally different front and a modified rear end which reminds me of the USDM Civic and features LED tail lamp clusters.

The side profile looks similiar, but with what appears to be a shorter rear end because it does not feature the Lancer’s aggressive protruding snout anymore.

The interior is largely similiar to the original Lancer interior, but Taiwan gets an option for 7 airbags, a DVD player, rear parking camera, and a host of other gadgets. Under the hood is a version of the 4B11 which makes 157 PS at 6,000rpm and 205Nm of torque at 4,250rpm, slightly more powerful than our 155 PS and 199Nm of torque.

It looks more grown up and tamer than the very aggressive Lancer that Malaysia and the rest of the world gets. Which do you prefer? I prefer ours.

View more photos and a video after the jump.

Click here to read the rest of Taiwanese market Mitsubishi Lancer Fortis

Honda Malaysia Sdn Bhd has released some details on the upcoming 2008 Honda Accord. There will be three models available - a 2.0 liter, a 2.4 liter and a 3.5 liter V6, with the V6 model featuring the same Variable Cylinder Management (VCM) technology found in the American and Japanese version.

The 2.4 liter K24 engine will make additional power in this new guise, putting out 180 PS (177hp).

Read more details on the new Accord after the jump.

Click here to read the rest of Upcoming CP3 2008 Honda Accord initial details

Malaysia now has a new Minister of International Trade and Industries - Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yasin, who was the former agriculture minister. He is also an UMNO Vice President. He is assisted by his deputies Loh Wei Keong and Datuk Jacob Dungau Sagan. MITI does play a role in the automotive industry here in Malaysia (taxes, import and export policies, etc), so there could be a wave of changes coming soon. The next few years could prove to be interesting.

We also have a new Minister of Transport - Datuk Ong Tee Keat and assisted by his Deputy Anifah Aman. And perhaps we may finally say goodbye to Samy-fied roads thanks to the new Minister of Works Datuk Mohd Zin Mohamad, and his Deputy Datuk Yong Khoon Seng.

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The E92-based successor to the E46 BMW M3 GTR from 2001 has been unveiled, and it marks BMW’s return to the American Le Mans Series. The new BMW M3 Race Edition is a highly specialized version of the E92 M3 built to tour the ALMS in 2009. It will be used by Rahal Letterman Racing, predominately owned by racing legend Bobby Rahal and American comedian David Letterman.

The new BMW M3 Race Edition’s P65 V8 engine produces 485 horsepower and 500Nm of torque, up from the standard M3’s 414 horsepower and 400Nm of torque.

Read the full specifications and see more photos after the jump.

Click here to read the rest of E92 BMW M3 Race Edition

The 5-seater Mercedes Benz B-Class MPV has received a mid-life facelift which features a new hood, grille, front bumper, rear bumper, new side mirrors, and new tail lamps which are brighter. The B-Class also gets a new model called the Mercedes-Benz B170 NGT BlueEfficiency which features a dual-fuel powerplant, able to run on both premium grade petrol and natural gas, which will allow it to travel over 1,000km when it is fully fueled up with both types of fuel.

Automatic start-stop is an optional feature of two of the more economy-oriented models, the B150 and the B170 BlueEFFICIENCY. Mercedes calls it’s start-stop feature the ECO start/stop function. It automatically switches the engine off when the driver shifts to neutral at low speed whilst depressing the brake pedal. A special display appears in the instrument cluster to inform the driver. The moment the clutch is pressed or the brake pedal released, the engine springs back to life in a fraction of a second.

The new B170 NGT BlueEFFICIENCY engine option uses an engine based on the B170. The driver determines which fuel source the engine is running on at the touch of a button using the multifunction steering wheel. This can be done instantaneously even while on the move. The gas reservoirs are located in the rear and underneath the front passenger footwell. It reduces the B-Class boot capacity by 128 liters to 422 liters, which is still sufficient for a decent amount of luggage.

Other new features include automatic hill-start assist which briefly maintains brake pressure after the driver releases the brake pedal to press the accelerator when starting off uphill. This prevents the B-Class from rolling backwards.

There is also an active parking assist feature which searches for an appropriate spot at the side of the road as the B-Class drives by, and if the driver wishes to use that parking spot, assists the driver by performing all steering maneuvers automatically. The empty spot is detected via ultrasonic sensors by the side of the car, and when found, a message is flashed on the dash display.

The driver then engages reverse gear, confirms the display and presses the accelerator. Active parking assist then takes care of the steering, with the driver doing accelerating and braking only. The system works via 10 ultrasonic sensors around the car.

More images after the jump.

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