Proton Holdings has sold it’s 57.57 percent stake in MV Agusta Spa to an Italian company Gevi Spa. Gevi Spa will assume MV Agusta’s debts and working capital requirements totalling 139.44 million euros, as announced today to Bursa Malaysia by Proton Holdings as part of it’s non-core asset divesting exercise.

Interesting to note that Proton originally acquired MV Agusta Spa last year on July 7 2004 for 70 million Euro, and finally sold it for a token sum of 1 Euro (RM4.48).

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The NAZA Group, controlled by tycoon Tan Sri SM Nasimuddin SM Amin has set up a company called N-2 Sdn Bhd. N-2 is believed to focus on assembling and distributing Chinese-made mini cars, competing with Perodua in the K-car market, like the Kancil and Kelisa.

A Chinese auto company will be involved in a joint-venture to set up an assembly plant in northern Malaysia. Little is known of which Chinese auto company this is, but from past rumours it might be the Hafei Lobo. Just a little speculation on my part though.

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UPDATE: The Nissan Sylphy has been launched in Malaysia! Two model variants are available, both with 2.0L engines. Click to read more and find out details and pricing.

Nissan has launched it’s Nissan Bluebird Sylphy mid-sized luxury sedan in Japan, targetted at today’s executive woman, focusing on hospitality and care in mind.

Click here to read the rest of 2006 Nissan Bluebird Sylphy

Short piece of news. Proton Holdings and MV Agusta management met up on Wednesday to discuss MV Agusta’s future, according to Corrierre della Sera, citing sources. Proton no longer believes it’s 57.7% investment in MV Agusta is strategic, and they are likely to be seeking a buyer for it’s investment now.

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ChangAn Auto Group, based in Chongqing, China has completed negotiations with a Malaysian company to build it’s ChangAn CM8 here in Malaysia. An agreement was signed this week on investing and building an assembly plant for the vehicle. ChangAn Auto is the fourth-largest producer of automobiles in China as of 2005.

Click here to read the rest of ChangAn CM8 assembled in Malaysia

Mitsubishi Motors Malaysia Sdn Bhd (joint venture betweeen Mitsubishi Japan 52% and EON 48%) is in talks with Proton Holdings Bhd and Sime Darby Bhd, among a few other car manufacturers on the possibility of assembling Mitsubishi cars locally.

Currently Mitsubishi models like the Mitsubishi Lancer sedan are CBU models, fully imported, thus having to pay hefty CBU taxes. Mitsubishi Motors Malaysia officials have said they are waiting for the full details of the National Automotive Policy to be announced before deciding which models to assemble locally.

Source: The Edge

A team of engineers at Keio University led by Professor Hiroshi Shimizu has developed this 8-wheeled electric car called the Eliica. Eliica stands for ‘Electric Lithium-Ion battery Car’ and it has some pretty impressive performance statistics.

With 600kW of power on tap, 0-100km/h only takes 4 seconds and 0-160km/h takes 7 seconds - this means it’s acceleration times are faster than a Porsche 911 Turbo. During a test on the Nardo high-speed test track in Italy, the Eliica managed to record a top speed of 370km/h, though theoretically it could touch 400km/h on smoother roads. What makes this car excellent on windy tracks is it runs on a single gear, so acceleration is very linear.

The Eliica is more than 5 meters long, shaped like a bullet and stores it’s batteries and motors low in the chassis, creating a low centre of gravity. It is also low for maximum aerodynamic efficiency, which means headroom is limited. No one taller than 178cm can fit in the car which rules me out since I’m about 181cm.

Kia’s Sidewider concept shown at the Los Angelow Motor Show had originally been a concept vehicle powered by a natural gas turbine, and electric motors in each wheel.

Click here to read the rest of 2008 Kia Sidewinder

Hyundai and Kia designs have always been a ‘rojak’ patchwork of other car designs and they know it, and admit it. We have the new Sonata looking like an Accord, and the previous generation Sonata looking like a Jaguar, the new Kia Sportage looking like a Volvo XC90, just to name a few examples.

Hyundai Group Chairman Chung Mong Koo decided it’s time for Hyundai and Kia to develop it’s own proprietary brand identity and styling language and has invested USD$50 million for two design studios in Irvine, California.

To head these design studios, Chung pulled Joel Piaskowski and Tom Kearns from General Motors, and put them in charge of Hyundai America and Kia America’s design houses respectively.

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Jeremy Clarkson shows his frustration on companies that seem to take make cars as a pure for-profit matter… perhaps you could call it cars with no ’spirit’ or ‘passion’. The victim - our very own Perodua Kelisa.

UPDATE: Recently this video has caught the attention of our MPs such as DAP-Tanjong MP Chow Kon Yeow and BN-Ledang MP Hamim Samuri. Click here to read more about that issue, or if you already know all about that, just enjoy the video in this post and find out what the fuss is all about.

Video after the jump.

Click here to read the rest of Jeremy Clarkson annihilates the Perodua Kelisa