The F149 Ferrari California: a new kind of Ferrari

June 20, 2009 at 8:36 pm By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, Ferrari

Ferrari California

Ferrari’s new F149 California was unveiled not too long ago and will be making its way to Naza Italia showrooms pretty soon. When it was first unveiled I think many were put off by how it looked and what it stood for. Some consider it Ferrari’s first Porsche – an A to B car instead of an A to A car, as in the first Ferrari that you can actually use as a daily driver and even on cross-state trips comfortably instead of just for a short weekend drive to somewhere nearby for thrills and back to the garage.

The California also looks smaller than it actually is. Check out the video below of Michael Schumacher talking about the California. You can see that the California is actually larger than it looks. I think it looks smaller because it’s not seriously low like most Ferraris thus the whole scale is not typically Ferrari.

The body is made from aluminium and the design by Pininfarina attempts to pay homage to the old Ferrari 250 California. And it does look similiar, from the shape and the way the headlamps are set in the body, to the size, shape and position of the lower air intake grille. At the same time it shares a family look with the rest of the FMR Ferraris – its older brothers the 599 and the 612.

There are rumours going around about how the California came to be. Some say that the model was originally designed to be a Maserati, which explains why it was designed to be so livable in, compared to the other Ferraris. However the amount of research and development put into the car required it to have a Ferrari badge and thus Ferrari price points and profit margins to justify its R&D cost and technologies. This has never been communicated officially by Ferrari of course, but I can see why it cost so much.

Ferrari California

The Ferrari California is currently the first and only model with a V8 engine installed longitudinally in a front-midship position, that means the engine is in front of you instead of behind you. Power travels through a signature flat propeller shaft to the rear wheels. It’s also the first to feature a 7-speed twin clutch transmission, and this is currently the only option for the California – no gated-manual transmission here, though I’m sure one could come later if there is demand. The chassis rides on a double wishbone setup at the front and a multilink setup at the rear. Optional is a magnetic adaptive suspension, similiar to the one on the 599 GTB Fiorano.

It’s also the first Ferrari with direct injection, which will improve emissions, fuel efficiency, and boost power at lower RPMs. The 4.3 litre V8 is built entirely from aluminium and uses a 90 degree angel between the two V banks, and an 180 degree angle between the cranks. The crank is a flat plane instead of a cross plane, which gives the V8 a more racecar-like sound – like two inline-4s singing or rather shrieking in harmony together instead of an American-ish rumble that you expect from a crossplane crank.

Ferrari California V8 Engine

Power is 460 horses at 7,750rpm and 485Nm of torque at 5,000rpm. Now not only is that a pretty high torque to displacement ratio for a normally aspirated engine, but 75% or 340Nm of that is already available and usable from just 2,250rpm, a testament to the magic of direct injection as well as variable valve timing on both intake and exhaust.

Don’t expect the California to represent an early entry point into the Ferrari buyer experience though – the company has no Boxster/Cayman equivalent in terms of pricing yet, at least here in Malaysia, not sure about overseas. Expect to pay 7 digits for this baby when it arrives here in Malaysia!

Look after the jump for more videos and a gallery of the California.
[Read more...]

19 Comments      

New Porsche Panamera Promo Footage: exterior, interior, retractable spoiler, etc

June 20, 2009 at 6:44 pm By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, Porsche, Videos

Porsche Panamera

Here’s a new set of promotional footage and beauty shots for the upcoming 4-door Porsche Panamera. You can check out the exterior and interior (I think it’s got the most wood in a modern Porsche that I’ve ever seen!) in detail and even watch the car in motion. There’s also footage of how stuff like the retractable rear spoiler works.

Check the video out after the jump!
[Read more...]

29 Comments      


Detroit Electric to supply electric car technology to Dongfeng; potential JV in works?

June 20, 2009 at 12:56 am By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, China, Detroit Electric, Dongfeng, Hybrids and Alternative Fuel, International News

Dongfeng Aeolus Fengshen

Dongfeng has commissioned Detroit Electric to jointly research, develop, market and sell Electric Vehicles in China using Detroit Electric’s electric drive systems.

The Chinese company will provide the cars, and Detroit Electric will provide the propulsion, similiar to the arrangement that DE has with Proton. But the DE-Proton deal involves rebadging the Persona and GEN2 under the Detroit Electric brand, but for Dongfeng, the two companies will study and explore the market entry strategy under the Dongfeng and Detroit Electric brand.

The two companies are also discussing the possibility of forming a joint venture company to manufacture, assemble, produce and supply the electric drive technology in China to the Dongfeng Group and other vehicle manufacturers that want to buy the technology.

Dongfeng does Kia, Nissan, PSA Peugeot Citroen and Honda in China, but they have been recently focusing on developing their own brand too. They recently launched a sedan based on the old Citroen ZX chassis called the Dongfeng Aeolus Fengshen, shown above.

11 Comments      

8 FOTA members announce new breakaway race series, RIP Formula 1?

June 19, 2009 at 6:21 pm By Paul Tan Filed Under Formula 1, Motorsports

Sepang International Circuit

8 of the current F1 teams that make up the Formula One Teams Association have announced that they (with the exception of FOTA members Williams and Force India) will leave F1 at the end of the current season. These 8 teams are: BMW Sauber, Brawn, Ferrari, McLaren, Red Bull, Renault, Toro Rosso, and Toyota.

Continue reading after the jump for the full story.
[Read more...]

54 Comments      

Honda Stream RST facelift unveiled in Japan!

June 19, 2009 at 2:27 pm By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, Honda, International News

Honda Stream RST

Honda has updated the Stream MPV for its mid-life facelift, or Minor Model Change as Honda usually calls it. Like before, two different powerplants are offered in Japan – a 140 PS 1.8 litre SOHC i-VTEC and a 150 PS 2.0 litre SOHC i-VTEC engine, both from the R-series of engines.

With the pre-facelift model you had the RSZ, a model that had sportier looks. With this minor model change Honda has added another variant called the Honda Stream RST, which joins the Stream RSZ and Stream X up to a total of 3 variants.

Other than different exterior looks, the RST also uses red instead of blue backlighting for the instrumentation panel.

Honda Stream RST

These variants are further broken down into front wheel drive and 4WD variants. The 2.0L front wheel drive models get a CVT while the rest use a 5-speed automatic. With the Stream only just getting updated to the RSZ model here in Malaysia, this minor model change could take some time before arriving on our shores officially via Honda Malaysia Sdn Bhd. Naza might bring it in first.

Look after the jump for a full gallery of the new Stream.
[Read more...]

52 Comments      

ETCM’s new Nissan Sylphy tuned by Impul

June 19, 2009 at 3:12 am By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, Local News, Nissan

Impul Sylphy

Edaran Tan Chong Motor brings its “tuned by Impul” model offering up to three with the new Nissan Sylphy tuned by Impul, which will be exhibited at the SIC this weekend in conjunction with Round 4 of the Super GT International Series Malaysia.

Impul Sylphy

The most obvious addition is the aerokit, which consists of a front grille, front and rear lips, side skirts and a rear wing spoiler. The kit also includes an Impul sports suspension kit which lowers the Sylphy by 25mm compared to the standard model, and features uprated shocks and springs. At the rear complementing the rear lip is an Impul Black II muffler with a polished finish. The Impul Sylphy rides on 17 inch Impul Aura SX-10 Black & Polish Finish Alloy Wheels, wrapped with Dunlop Formula D-01 205/45R17 Tyres. On the inside, the seats are wrapped in black leather with matching Impul black mats.

Impul Sylphy

Nissan Sylphy tuned by Impul 2.0 Comfort RM123,900
Nissan Sylphy tuned by Impul 2.0 Luxury RM127,900

The prices above are OTR inclusive of insurance, road tax and misc other fees for the Peninsular Malaysia, and come with a 3-year or 100,000km warranty. That’s actually quite a premium over the regular Sylphy which goes for RM112,800 for the Comfort and RM116,800 for the Luxury. That’s a RM11,100 premium but it doesn’t sound too bad considering you get wheels, an exhaust and the suspension as well.

Those who already own a Sylphy but would like to fit the Impul kit can also do so but of course you won’t be able to package it inside your car hire purchase installment loan.
[Read more...]

93 Comments      

Updated 308 Turbo with panoramic glass roof

June 19, 2009 at 2:27 am By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, Local News, Peugeot

Peugeot 308 Panoramic Roof

Many of us already know this for months thanks to showroom and insider information but Malaysian Peugeot distributors Nasim Sdn Bhd has only just made an official announcement. The 5-door Peugeot 308 Turbo hatchback has been updated with a full-length panoramic glass roof, a similiar one to the one that its more powerful sibling, the 3-door 308 GT has. Nasim says the updated 308 will be available from the end of July 2009 onwards.

The original price of RM111k has been hiked to RM113,888 OTR including insurance and road tax – so that’s less than RM3,000 for the stunning panoramic roof that measures 1.26 meter square, encompassing two-thirds of the roof.

During hot days there is a one-touch full length electric sunblind that fully covers up the glass roof, which uses athermic glass to reduce some of the heat that comes through whenever you have the sunblind open.

100 Comments      

Renault 5-door hatch EV bound for Frankfurt

June 19, 2009 at 2:10 am By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, Hybrids and Alternative Fuel, International News, Renault

Renault Z.E. Concept

Renault will be unveiling a new all-electric car at the 2009 Frankfurt Motor Show scheduled for September this year. The concept has been developed to go into production in less than 3 years, so we could see it on the road as early as 2011. This new electric car will have a 5-door hatchback body, and will join other Renault EV concepts based on existing models – the Megane EV and the Kangoo EV.

The new electric 5-door hatchback production-destined concept car is said to be built on the Renault-Nissan Alliance B platform, which also underpins cars such as the Renault Clio and the Nissan March. A smaller car such as this would make more sense for now as battery technology isn’t all that mature yet and decent EV range is easier to be achieved with a lighter (and smaller) body.

Renault will also be exhibiting a new system they’ve devised called the Quick Drop system. You essentially cycle between multiple batteries with your electric car ownership. Drive it into a garage, and the system swaps your car’s depleted battery and puts in a new fully charged one in just 3 minutes.

No further details but we can probably assume the system then proceeds to charge the depleted battery to swap back into the car the next night. Initial implementations will most likely be in public areas (due to high cost of implementing a Quick Drop station?), with Quick Drop points functioning the same as petrol stations.

Full details on all of Renault’s forays into the electric vehicle arena to be revealed closer to the Frankfurt show date.

4 Comments      

Blackberry Storm: for the blogger on the go?

June 19, 2009 at 1:49 am By Paul Tan Filed Under Advertorial

Blackberry StormAdvertorial

I’m sure you can see the relationship with brand power and a product’s price tag now, when you look at the C-segment with cars like the Civic, 308, Lancer, Focus, Altis, and the newly launched Mazda 3. A product with a strong brand somehow can command a higher price yet not really offer much in terms of specs. A brand does not get built out of thin air and the higher price tag will pay back some of the efforts put into brand building, whether it is A&P or the money invested into the product build quality or service network.

This applies everywhere and in the world of mobile phones there seems to be a kind of T-badge of sorts. You know, that device that doesn’t even have a camera in front for video calls, no tethering ability (until recently), or even a changeable battery. It is really something to worry about, because the world of electric cars opens up the possibility of car manufacturing to companies that you would not even consider to make cars before. Battery and electric motor technology is something quite unrelated to the internal combustion engines that have been developed by the big brands over the years.

Anyway I digress. I’ve been looking around recently for a mobile phone to potentially replace by existing phone which has gone out of warranty and from what I hear, is quite screwed up inside now. Too many drops it seems. A good mobile phone with good internet connectivity helps me manage this blog whenever I am on the go. A large and readable screen is very important to browse the comments moderation section of the blog’s WordPress system so I’ve been looking at a few touchscreen phones. The Blackberry Storm and the iPhone come to mind.

The Blackberry Storm has the advantage of Blackberry technology and they’ve pretty much perfected push email so that’s a plus point. Various tests around the internet have also shown that the Storm’s browser is pretty much one of the quickest performing browsers, rendering pages quickly and with proper Javascript support, something important with the long comment list pages in my WordPress. The Storm also has built-in tethering support which means I can use it as a modem for my laptop to update my site on the go.

Most importantly unlike the iPhone, it has a changeable battery, which is something I feel is very very important. Battery life generally goes down over time and you have to perform certain charge cycle rituals to keep it up. I simply do not have time for this, so knowing I can change my battery when it finally conks out (it’s happened to me before!) is important. That way I do not have to change my device if my battery dies.

Coming from a world of phones with regular buttons, it’s also worth nothing that the Storm’s touch screen is “smarter” as in it employs a haptic touch keyboard technology. It means the touch screen is tactile or should i say “clickable” – it provides feedback to your finger when you are typing on it. I’ve tried some Windows Mobile touchscreen phones and just felt weird touching something that did not provide me feedback.

Blackberry Storm GPS

The other thing that a motorist can take advantage of is the fact that that the Storm has an internal GPS antenna. Many swear by Garmin and Malsingmaps and there is actually a version of Garmin Mobile for Blackberry mobile phones. You can easily mount it on your windscreen with kits such as these.

The iPhone is currently only sold by one telco but with the Storm it’s a non-exclusive offering. Two telcos currently offer it and it so happens that my two SIM cards are from each of the two telcos. Celcom offers a shorter contract of only 12 months and there are two packages according to your usage, RM1699 and RM1399. The other telco is selling it for RM2199 with a 24 month commitment. Celcom is subsidising more in this case – it makes sense having trouble picking between a more expensive Civic and a cheaper Focus because it is two completely different products but in this case the product is one and the same so it’s a bit of a no brainer.

The only issue with the Storm at the moment right now is the lack of Wi-Fi, but I’ve been subscribing to an unlimited 3G service so that should not be an issue in Malaysia. I’d not be able to take advantage of the hotel Wi-Fi or an outdoor free Wi-Fi service like the one in most parts of Singapore in case I am anywhere overseas though!

Leave a Comment      

Volkswagen’s 1.4 TSI Twincharger wins 2009 International Engine of the Year Awards!

June 19, 2009 at 1:03 am By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, International News, Videos

The results for the 2009 International Engine of the Year Awards have been released, and the grand overall winner is the 1.4 litre TSI Twincharger engine from Volkswagen, ending for the first time in 4 years BMW’s dominance over the awards.

Quite interestingly out of the 8 entries for the title, 6 and a half are German engines, with the remaining one being the 1.0 litre in the Aygo and the “half” being PSA’s share in the BMW Prince engine, which managed 7th place with 107 points. Check out the videos in this post which talk about the winning engines.

Continue reading after the jump for the full story.
[Read more...]

34 Comments