New Perodua Alza SR – entry level variant from RM53k

February 2, 2012 at 10:26 am By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, Local News, Malaysian Makes, Perodua

Perodua has introduced a new variant of its MPV called Alza SR. SR stands for “Smart Ride” and this is an entry level variant positioned below the Standard and Advanced spec. It is available for viewing and booking at all 178 Perodua showrooms nationwide now.

Selling for between RM53,013.50 and RM56,513.50 on-the-road with insurance in Peninsular Malaysia, the new variant, available in BX Manual and BZ Auto spec, is Myvi SE priced. Previously, the cheapest Alza was the Alza GX Manual at 55,503.50, so this new one lowers the entry price by about RM2,500.

“The introduction of the Alza SR variant will make it even more affordable for Malaysian consumers looking to upgrade to a more spacious vehicle. Our customers like the versatility and functionality that Alza offers and do not mind having less features available compared with the standard and other variants. However, it does not mean we have compromised on the safety and the aesthetics of the Alza SR,” Perodua MD Datuk Aminar Rashid Salleh said.

Under the hood, nothing has changed, but what’s the difference is spec? The Alza SR makes do with “UV protected glass” on the windscreen only, as opposed to on all glass panels, and there’s no rear wiper. The wing mirrors are manually operated. Fog lamps, airbags, ABS, EBD and BA are unavailable, but that’s the case for the 1.5 SX and EZ as well, so it’s expected.

Note that in the Alza SR automatic, the parking brake has been moved to between the front seats (it’s foot operated in other auto Alzas), and the front seats are separated, not bench style. For the manual variant, there’s no change in layout.

The Alza SR comes in three colours: Glittering Silver, Ivory White and a new hue, Mystical Purple. Perodua targets to sell about 400 units of the Alza SR monthly, which will take up around 13% of Alza’s monthly sales.

Alza 1.5 BX Manual (Solid) – RM53,013.50
Alza 1.5 BX Manual (Metallic) – RM53,513.50
Alza 1.5 BZ Auto (Solid) – RM56,013.50
Alza 1.5 BZ Auto (Metallic) – RM56,513.50

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BMW F30 3-Series Test Drive Review – 320d diesel and new four cylinder turbo 328i sampled in Spain!

February 1, 2012 at 8:54 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under BMW, Cars, Test Drive Reviews

Think BMW, and the first model that usually comes to mind – for most folk – is the 3 Series. Ubiquitous, the model has been at the forefront of things from the get-go, and while the brand has evolved its lineup to incorporate a host of new segment models from the ‘easy-to-figure three-model’ range of the past to the ‘just how many of them are there, really’ of today, the 3er has been very much the standard bearer for the brand, the one by which it has been defined, and association measured. Since 1975, five generations and more than 12.51 million units sold attest to that.

So when a full-model replacement comes about to continue the flag-waving, there’s plenty of bated breath, as well as the inevitable questions. How will it shape up? Will it turn things on its head? Does it change the game, again?

The answer is very nicely, yes and yes. Things haven’t exactly been easy for the 3er in recent times – the grip it has had in the entry-level premium sedan segment has been forcibly relaxed by competition that has studied and learnt from the benchmark, and done so very well. Arguably, the outgoing E90 didn’t help itself – from a design point of view, it was a little too safe, especially from the rear at the start of its life-cycle, almost as if the idea of changing things too much coming in from the E46 would alienate the buyer.

It also didn’t help that on the whole, the E90 felt like it was carrying a bit too much weight arriving at middle-age, and while undoubtedly there are a great many existing generation owners who might argue against this view, I’ve always felt the E90 to be too heavy-set – not ponderous – for its own good from a performance point of view. Simply put, a very able machine, but darker in character than its predecessors, missing that sense of overall sharpness, or that sprightly step, if you will.

Enter the F30, the sixth-generation incarnation of the type. It doesn’t just restore parity in the playing field, but takes the game a few steps further infield, and by all accounts should accomplish far more than the last one did in staying ahead of the chasing pack.

Full story after the jump.
[Read more...]

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VIDEO: Alfa Romeo Giulietta plays ice hockey in the UK

February 1, 2012 at 4:28 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under Alfa Romeo, Cars, International News, Videos

With cold wintery weather forecast for the UK this week, and freezing temperatures set to affect many UK roads, Alfa Romeo UK thought of an unusual way to promote the Italian brand – get the Giulietta to play ice hockey!

The key was to showcase the Giulietta’s All Weather mode via Alfa’s driver selectable D.N.A. system, and Alfa teamed up with stunt driver Paul Swift and the UK’s top ice hockey team, Coventry Blaze, to create the video you see here.

In the 1:41 clip, captured solely by the iPhone 4S, you’ll see the sexy C-segment hatchback taking on Blaze star David Phillips in the Coventry Skydome ice rink, in a challenge of icy skill and pinpoint control.

In the “man vs car” battle, the fella in red delivered two cool trick shots – striking a one-inch thick by three-inch diameter hockey puck from just inside the end zone into the home team’s six feet wide net guarded by a goalie. Remember, do not attempt to drive into Sunway Pyramid to repeat these tricks, however fun it looks :)

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VW to assemble T5 Transporter and Multivan in Indonesia

February 1, 2012 at 1:57 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, International News, Volkswagen

Volkswagen will assemble “Semi Knocked Down” (SKD) units of its Transporter and Multivan vans in Indonesia. Both based on the current T5 platform, the vans will be for the local market. Indonesia is ASEAN’s most populous country and people carriers are the most popular choice of vehicle there.

The T5 Transporters and Multivans will be built at Volkswagen’s Hanover plant in Germany before being transported to its SKD Center in Bissendorf/Wedemark nearby. Here, the vehicles will be partially disassembled and before making the long journey to Jakarta via Hamburg. At the destination, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles’ partner Indomobil/Garuda Mataram Motor will pay duty on the SKD units before piecing back the vans.

“We are very pleased that this successful and trusted partner is now also assembling our models for this growth-oriented market. This ensures the product quality which Volkswagen customers are accustomed to, and which they expect from a premium product like the T5,” said Jens Ocksen, Member of the Management of Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles for Production.

A hassle yes, but the duties and taxes saved over bringing in a fully CBU car from Germany must be worthwhile. VW plans to assemble around 220 T5s this year, and the first vehicles will be delivered this month. Do you think a Hyundai Starex type of Volkswagen passenger van will work in Malaysia?

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Proton P3-21A rear end uncovered for the first time?

February 1, 2012 at 11:07 am By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, Local News, Malaysian Makes, Proton, Spyshots

Remember the yellow Proton P3-21A that showed the upcoming sedan’s face uncovered? It looks like a partial rear shot of that car has been circulating online, showing us the tail lamps without any masking. Even as we analyse it, bear in mind that this may or may not be the final production design.

Shown at funtastickodesign, the lone image shows a rear lamp cluster that’s unlike the wraparound old Subaru Legacy style rear design of the Tuah concept, so perhaps Proton is looking at a more contemporary look. The edges look a bit sharp and abrupt, though.

We can see that there’s a chrome bar visually linking the two sides of the tail lamps, like how Jaguar does it for the XF.

What we see here is also consistent with what’s visible from the masked test mules running around – full red with a clear strip running in the middle, with part of the lamp extended into the boot lid.

Do you prefer this or the rear end look of the Tuah concept?

239 Comments      

Reports: Volkswagen AG directors visit DRB-Hicom, looking into technical collaboration with Proton

February 1, 2012 at 9:15 am By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, Local News, Malaysian Makes, Proton, Volkswagen

Reports linking Volkswagen with Proton have emerged, with the national carmaker’s new owner playing host. According to Business Times, DRB-Hicom is understood to have hosted two Volkswagen AG group directors last Thursday. The duo met with key stakeholders of DRB-Hicom, including its top management.

“They also reviewed all Proton Holdings Bhd’s models,” the publication’s unnamed source revealed. BT says that the Volkswagen directors came down to evaluate the possibility of having a collaborative technical agreement on technology transfer with Proton.

“This is the first step and I think that there will be many more such meetings before a deal could be struck,” their source added.

As all of us know, this isn’t the first time Europe’s biggest carmaker Volkswagen is being linked with Proton; the previous marriage attempt broke down because of issues over majority stake. With a new owner in place (DRB-Hicom is VW’s local assembler), will this latest “on” in the “on-off” relationship stick, or will it fizzle out like it always does?

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Honda’s Thai plant to resume production end of March

February 1, 2012 at 8:36 am By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, Honda, International News

Some updates about Honda’s Thai production, which was expected to be out for up to six months from October last year when it was inundated with floodwaters. The company says it is planning to resume vehicle production at its assembly plant in Rojana Industrial Park, Ayutthaya, by the end of March.

The plant was severely affected by the flooding that hit the Kingdom last year; production was suspended on October 4, and the company has since been restoring plant facilities and manufacturing equipment since completing the drainage of the floodwater and carrying out cleaning up operations.

“In October 2011, we had to temporarily suspend production at our facilities in Rojana Industrial Park, which inevitably impacted unit sales. We have finished repairing and installing production equipment and are now running thorough system checks,” Honda Automobile Thailand’s executive vice president, Pitak Pruittisarikorn said in a statement.

He added that until production at Ayutthaya resumes, the company will import Jazz and Accord models from Japan for local sales. Production of parts for export to Honda’s plants in other ASEAN countries will also resume – Honda says that it expects these plants, which had to suspend production due to a shortage of parts, to restart production in April.

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Malaysians to take on new Ford Ranger in the “Global Ford Ranger Challenge” – winner drives the truck home!

January 31, 2012 at 5:34 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, Ford, Local News

Ford will officially kick off the “Global Ford Ranger Challenge” tomorrow (1 February), a unique, worldwide experiential marketing campaign leading up to the launch of the all-new Ford Ranger later this year. The campaign will give Malaysians a chance to put the famous “Built Ford Tough” claim to the ultimate test by taking the new Ranger through tough, real-life challenges.

You can begin submitting ideas for the challenge online tomorrow and five lucky entrants will be selected to get behind the wheel to turn their idea into reality. Not only will these five be the first consumers in Malaysia to test the Ranger T6, the one with the best challenge (as chosen by the public) will drive away with his/her very own new Ranger XLT 2.2L Manual!

Entries can be submitted to www.fordrangerchallenge.com.my or via Facebook. The time frame is from 1 Feb to 15 March, and the finalists will be announced on 31 March. A new Ranger will then be loaned to each of the five finalists, who will carry out their nominated challenge with the help of a professional film crew provided by Ford. Footage will be uploaded to the Global Ford Ranger Challenge website for the public to view and vote.

The winner of the truck will be announced at the launch event of the new Ranger in Malaysia. Additionally, people who vote online will be entered into a lucky draw for a range of prizes. Online voting will happen throughout the month of May.

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Skoda Citigo five-door set for Geneva debut

January 31, 2012 at 3:11 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, International News, Skoda

Some news about the Skoda Citigo. The company has announced that the five-door version of the city car – essentially the cousin of the Volkswagen Up! – is set to debut at the Geneva show next month, joining the three-door version which was revealed last September and which began selling in its home market, the Czech Republic, in late 2011.

Like the three-door variant, it’ll be powered by a 1.0 litre three-cylinder MPI mill in two output tunes, 60 PS and 75 PS, and should be presumably mated to the same five-speed manual transmission as found in the former. Both five- and three-door models are scheduled to be successively launched in European markets starting from mid-May this year.

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Ford’s 1.0 litre EcoBoost mill set to make market debut in March, to be available across the Focus model range

January 31, 2012 at 2:00 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, Ford, International News

Ford’s new 1.0 litre EcoBoost engine is set to make its market debut in the UK, across the Ford Focus range starting from next month. The turbocharged, direct injection three-cylinder mill, which was officially unveiled in Frankfurt last year, will be available with two power levels, these being 125 PS and 100 PS.

The 125 PS output tune delivers 170 Nm of peak torque (200 Nm with overboost) between 1,400 and 4,500rpm, giving it the highest power density of any Ford production engine to date. In terms of numbers, this is equivalent in terms of power to the naturally-aspirated 1.6 litre Duratec Ti-VCT engine as found in the Focus, while the torque from the EcoBoost shades the 159 Nm in the NA 1.6 (conversely, the 1.6 Ti-VCT in the Fiesta here has 122 PS and 148 Nm).

After its debut in the Focus, the UK-developed engine is set to feature in the C-MAX, Grand C-MAX and all-new B-MAX later this year.

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