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DC Avanti – 2.0L Ford Ecoboost-powered Indian sports car

January 6, 2012 at 8:32 am By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, India, International News

Indian design house DC Design has come up with a sports car. Called DC Avanti, the red flat nosed two-door was unveiled at the India Auto Expo by Bollywood legend and car buff Amitabh Bachchan. DC plans to put India’s first sports car to production in 2013.

“We intend to produce 300 units of the Avanti in 2013-2014 and if all goes well we could ramp up the production to go into four figures per annum,” DC Design founder Dilip Chhabria said.

No big engine here, the mid engined DC Avanti will powered by a Ford 2.0L four-cylinder turbocharged EcoBoost engine with 261 bhp. A V6 variant with 394 bhp will follow. Both mills can be had with a 6 M/T or a six-speed dual clutch transmission. The Avanti, which uses aluminium extensively, weighs 1,560 kg, and 0-100 m/h will take less than seven seconds.

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Volvo XC60 Plug-in Hybrid Concept to debut in Detroit

January 5, 2012 at 7:51 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, International News, Volvo

Volvo is set to unveil its XC60 Plug-in Hybrid Concept at the North American International Auto Show next week. The company touts the vehicle as an electric car, a highly economical hybrid and a powerful high-performance car all rolled into one.

It’s powered by a four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine from the forthcoming VEA (Volvo Environmental Architecture) engine family, with 280 hp and 380 Nm on tap, mated to a newly-developed eight-speed automatic transmission driving the front wheels.

The rear axle of the vehicle is driven by an electric motor producing 70 hp and 200 Nm, with juice provided by a 12 kWh lithium-ion battery pack installed under the floor of the load compartment. The battery pack is rechargeable from a regular power outlet, and at 220V and 12A takes just 3.5 hours for a full charge, while at 110V/12A this goes up to 7.5 hours.

The XC60 Plug-in Hybrid Concept’s electric all-wheel drive system is activated by pressing the AWD (All Wheel Drive) button, but instead of the mechanical power transfer of conventional four-wheel drive, the central control unit distributes power between the petrol-driven front wheels and the electrically-driven rear axle.

Three operation modes are available for the car – Pure, Hybrid and Power. In Pure mode, it runs on fully electric mode, with a driving range of 45 km. Hybrid is the standard setting, while Power delivers the maximum power through combined powertrain operation.

The driver can choose to save battery power for later in order to drive on pure electricity at a chosen point. When Save is activated, the generator charges and tops up the battery pack, if necessary, ensuring that there is always sufficient battery power for about 20 km of driving on electricity.

The Detroit debutant, which will carry a “T8″ badge to emphasise the combined 350 hp of the four-cylinder engine and the electric motor, will come dressed in a special white colour and wear 21-inch wheels.

Inside, the cabin will feature unique detailing and colours such as sober dark-blue leather upholstery and inlays of blue-grey wood. Meanwhile, the instruments have been tailored to give the driver all the necessary information about petrol and electricity consumption, battery charge level, remaining range and so on.

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GALLERY: More pics of the Lexus LF-LC Concept surface

January 5, 2012 at 5:31 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, International News, Lexus

More images of Lexus’ LF-LC Concept have emerged, showing off a sports coupe looking sexy in red. With a recent leak by a US mag, there’s nothing left to hide now, so Lexus has contributed a pic or two to the collection.

The LF-LC is a 2+2 sports coupe that takes the company’s design direction a step further. Conceived as a design exercise to explore the future of Lexus design, the LF-LC was created at the company’s Calty design studio in Newport Beach, California. for They worked on it for a year and a half. Apparently, Akio Toyoda himself wanted the LF-LC to “have the ‘wow’ factor”.

“Crafted from a clean sheet of paper at the request of Lexus headquarters in Japan, the LF-LC blends both high technology and organic shapes to connect the driver to the machine,” said Mark Templin, Lexus group vice president and general manager. “The clean lines of the vehicle emphasise motion, creating a distinctive look for this futuristic sport coupe.”

The LF-LC will showcase Advanced Lexus Hybrid Drive. Nice interior, too.

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Volkswagen opens its latest showroom in Kuantan

January 5, 2012 at 5:23 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, Local News, Volkswagen

Volkswagen Group Malaysia (VGM) has opened its latest VW showroom in the country, and the new outlet – operated by authorised dealer Okuan Otomobil – is located in Kuantan, Pahang. The new dealership extends the brand’s reach to customers in the East Coast of the Peninsular, and brings VGM’s operational outlets nationwide to 17.

Ricky Tay, VGM’s MD, said the launch of the showroom is part of Volkswagen’s rapid expansion plans in Malaysia, which was carried out extensively last year to extend the customer satisfaction experience.

“As the first showroom to be launched in 2012, we believe Okuan Otomobil will set the pace for Volkswagen to further strengthen its brand awareness and customer service in the region, especially in the state of Pahang,” he said.

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Hyundai HND-7 Hexa Space concept makes Delhi debut

January 5, 2012 at 4:59 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, Hyundai, International News

Yet another world premiere at the Auto Expo 2012 in New Delhi, and this one is from Hyundai. The Hexa Space is a multi-purpose vehicle concept showcasing how you don’t need to have big to get plenty of interior space.

Indeed, this one rides on the same platform as the company’s compact ix20, and is only slightly wider. The HND-7, as it’s codenamed, measures in at 4.3 metres long, 1.82 metres wide and 1.65 metres tall, and is powered by a Kappa 1.2 litre turbo GDI engine, mated to a six-speed automatic transmission.

Targeted at young urban families in their 30s and 40s, the Hexa Space, which rides on 19-inch wheels, is a machine able to serve many roles, given a unique seat design and layout. It features eight slim, hexagonally-shaped seats that fit together like puzzle pieces, maximising internal space while minimising vehicle width. The choice of the hexagon is simple enough – from honeycombs to architecture, it’s known as an optimum shape in terms of space efficiency.

The seats offer multiple configurations for seating. The centre seats fold flat for greater comfort, while the second row folds flat to create a limousine function and the back row can be folded flat for light-cargo use. Additionally, seven seats can be folded flat for heavy hauling and all eight can be stored away for camping.

In the first two rows of the Hexa Space, the centre seats are positioned slightly behind the seats on either side, allowing passengers to sit three-abreast without feeling cramped. Ingress and egress out of the vehicle is easy due to an innovative door design – the rear doors lift out and slide back, creating wide-open entry on each side.

Other mod cons in the concept are a touch-screen centre console, a push-button shifter and a cluster ionizer air purifier, and storage spaces are tucked throughout the interior.

Live images of the Hexa Space from Auto Expo 2012 courtesy of Motorbeam.com.

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Proton chairman Mohd Nadzmi confirms bid for Khazanah stake, reveals plans for the company should he succeed

January 5, 2012 at 3:03 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, Local News, Malaysian Makes, Proton

Proton chairman Datuk Mohd Nadzmi Mohd Salleh has confirmed that he is one of the bidders for Khazanah Nasional’s 42.7% stake in the national carmaker. Apart from this “management buyout” bid, other parties linked to the deal are DRB-Hicom and the Naza Group.

He revealed that Proton’s management took the matter to him few months ago after rumours of interest in Proton from various parties surfaced. They then asked him to make a bid for it because of his experience in setting up Proton and leading the group in the past.

Nadzmi believes that privatisation is the way to go for Proton, which would enable him to restructure the whole group to turn it around. “I know the business well, and Proton is close to my heart. There is a potential in Proton and that is why I dare to make a bid, and the offer runs into billions,” he told StarBiz.

He however did not reveal the offer that he had submitted, saying that an offer for the net tangible asset price of Proton will be too high as Proton is not an easy project. The man added that he is already in talks with some foreign banks regarding financing.

He has firm plans to recoup back his investment, should he succeed. “It is all about how you juggle your assets. This could be done by increasing the utilisation rate of Proton’s assets, cost reduction and also increasing Proton’s exports. These steps could easily add a further RM500mil to RM600mil to Proton’s bottom line.

“Besides the increased utilisation of the Tanjung Malim plant, Proton needs to transform itself to be a global player, and I believe the upcoming model codenamed P3-21A will be the global car that will transform Proton’s DNA. The car will be a completely different car with better material and design coupled with modern features. One thing is for sure, Proton’s DNA will shift to a higher gear with the plans in place,” he said.

Speaking of Tanjung Malim, which is utilised at an average of 52% now, “Proton can raise its utilisation rate by having tie-ups with other brands to assemble or manufacture their products,” Nadzmi opines, while confirming reports that General Motors (GM) is interested in the plant.

Tie-ups with foreign parties is key, citing examples like Proton’s recent deals with long time partner Mitsubishi and Chinese company Hawtai, but Nadzmi does not believe that Proton needs a global OEM to turn the company around. “I hope to do a lot more tie-ups with other brands, as Malaysia today has a lot of capacity, with more collaborations and on a multi-franchise business model, it would be easier to control the local automotive industry.

“Contrary to what some might say, that Proton needs a global OEM to turn the company around, Proton is essentially a brand with Asian roots. How would it fit into the portfolio of a global OEM with its collaborations with MMC and other joint ventures? It would clash with the interest of Proton whereby OEMs like MMC would not be willing to collaborate further as they would run the risk of exposing trade secrets to third parties in the form of another global OEM in the picture,” he explained.

How about the cash hungry subsidiary Group Lotus? “If I buy Proton, I will cut it off, and probably retain a 20 to 30% stake, which translates to a lot of savings every year. There is a lot of potential buyers for Lotus, and once a deal is signed it will be written back to the books of Proton,” he said.

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Maruti Suzuki Ertiga MPV debuts at Delhi Auto Expo 2012

January 5, 2012 at 3:00 pm By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, Suzuki

This is the Maruti Suzuki Ertiga MPV, a production version of the Maruti Suzuki Concept rIII that made its debut in Delhi two years ago. I’m quite curious about the name – rIII becomes Ertiga, sounds like Bahasa Malaysia to me!

The Ertiga sits on a Suzuki SX4 platform stretched to have a long 2,740mm wheelbase (overall length: 4265mm, overall width: 1695mm, overall height: 1685mm). That’s actually a pretty long wheelbase, when you compare it to other vehicles in its class.

The 7-seater compact MPV is powered by either a new K-14 model 1.4 liter VVT four cylinder petrol engine producing 94 horsepower at 6,000rpm and 130Nm at 4,000rpm, or a 1.3 liter Fiat four cylinder turbodiesel engine producing 88 horsepower at 4,000rpm and 200Nm of torque from 1,750rpm.

The interior offers features such as a tilt adjustable electric power steering, twin AC, audio system (USB Compatible, 4+2 speakers), steering mounted audio controls, central door locking and keyless entry, multi information display, power windows with auto down and electrically adjustable mirror.

“The Ertiga brings space, style and compactness to Utility vehicles for customers in India. As India gears to be amongst the largest global automobile markets by 2020, with the foray into UV segment, Maruti Suzuki will strengthen its leadership position in the industry. With Ertiga the Maruti Suzuki will step into the Utility Vehicle segments and effectively create a new Compact MPV segment in India,” said CEO of Maruti Suzuki Mr. Shinzo Nakanishi.

We hear that India will be producing CKD kits to be exported around the world, so this is definitely not an India-only product. Will Suzuki Malaysia offer the Ertiga here in Malaysia?

Live photos by MotorBeam.com

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Maruti Suzuki XA Alpha Compact SUV Concept

January 5, 2012 at 2:53 pm By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, Suzuki

Compact SUVs seem to be the theme at the Delhi Auto Expo 2012 in India. Not content with letting the Ford EcoSport stand alone, Maruti Suzuki unveiled this concept compact SUV called the Maruti Suzuki XA Alpha at the Auto Expo 2012 today.

The Maruti Suzuki XA Alpha Concept took about 10 months of development time, and 5 Maruti engineers were involved in the project. Maruti Suzuki does not currently have an SUV in the Indian market. SUVs consist of about 14% of the total market in India, and a smaller model like the XA Alpha would probably do better in India compared to larger models like the Grand Vitara.

The production Maruti Suzuki XA Alpha will come with a choice of both petrol and diesel engines. The petrol engine is expected to be a 1.3 liter, while details on the diesel engine remains unknown.

“India is set to become one of the top automobile markets of the world. This may become evident as early as the next Delhi Auto Expo. Maruti Suzuki will lead India’s automobile growth and evolution by strengthening its compact car portfolio, entering new segments and creating new product categories across fuel options. The Concept XA is designed for a market of customers with a young urban lifestyle. This Concept showcases the unified R&D efforts of Suzuki and Maruti which will be a big asset for us in India in the future,” said Managing Director and CEO of Maruti Suzuki, Mr. Shinzo Nakanishi.

Live photos thanks to Motorbeam and Maruti Suzuki.

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Ford EcoSport is ASEAN-bound – SUV is third of eight global One Ford offerings slated for the region by 2015

January 5, 2012 at 1:53 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, Ford, International News

Ford has confirmed that the EcoSport SUV, which was officially introduced at the Auto Expo 2012 in New Delhi, will be coming to ASEAN markets. The vehicle is the third of eight all new global One Ford vehicles destined for the region by around 2015.

Developed by Ford’s Development Center in Camaçari, Brazil, the EcoSport sits on the company’s global B-segment platform, which will provide the basis for a family of vehicles expected to eventually represent two million units annually.

Ford has big plans for the vehicle, and says that the SUV is a significant linchpin in its plans to achieve its goal of increasing worldwide sales by nearly 50% by mid-decade to eight million vehicles a year, of which 60% to 70% of sales is expected to come from the Asia Pacific and Africa region.

No introduction dates have yet been bandied for the EcoSport in the ASEAN market, but the company says that it’ll be produced at Ford Thailand Manufacturing’s facility in Rayong, Thailand.

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BMW 5 Series now with four-cylinder turbo engines in Malaysia – 520i and 528i M Sport wear the new mills

January 5, 2012 at 11:49 am By Anthony Lim Filed Under BMW, Cars, Local News

BMW Malaysia has announced the arrival of new petrol variants for the 5 Series, featuring the new 2.0 litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine in two different outputs. The new engine, which features twin-scroll turbocharging, Valvetronic variable valve control and Double-VANOS variable camshaft control, finds its way into the new 520i and 528i M Sport models.

The 520i’s motor turns out 184 hp and 270Nm of torque, and performance figures for the car include a 0-100 km/h time of 8.0 seconds and a 226 km/h top speed, as well as a claimed 6.4 litres per 100 km fuel economy.

Meanwhile, the TwinPower Turbo technology powerplant on the 528i M Sport offers 245 hp and 350Nm, and the extra horses translate to a 0-100 km/h time of 6.3 seconds and a 250 km/h top speed, with little sacrifice to claimed average fuel consumption – the car supposedly does 6.8 litres per 100 km.

As before, there’s the usual dollop of features and kit, with Brake Energy Regeneration, electromechanical steering and an 8-speed automatic transmission as standard, and the Auto Start/ Stop function now features across the model range.

Additionally, all the new variant entries also reflect upgraded equipment in its Driving Experience Control, which is the button located on the centre console that enables the driver to adjust mode settings for the vehicle’s accelerator, engine, steering, transmission, suspension system and traction control.

The modes available include COMFORT+, COMFORT, SPORT, SPORT+ and, for the first time, ECO PRO mode as standard. ECO PRO mode, which can help the driver to achieve fuel savings of up to 20%, depending on their individual style of driving, automatically optimises the vehicle’s drivetrain, heating and air conditioning strategy, as well as other electric comfort functions. It ensures fuel efficient throttle operation by dampening your throttle input so heavy footed people can drive fuel efficiently.

These new drive modes replace the old COMFORT, NORMAL, SPORT and SPORT+ modes. Essentially COMFORT has been renamed to COMFORT+, and NORMAL has been renamed to COMFORT.

The two new petrol new variants are joined by the improved 520d sedan, which offers 184 hp, 380Nm and 8.1 seconds for the century sprint and a 225 km/h top speed for numbers.

Price-wise, the 520i rolls in at RM358,800, while the 528i M Sport goes for RM409,800 and the 520d is priced at RM333,800, all on-the-road, without insurance, with BMW Service Inclusive + Repair (BS+RI). The new cars will be in all BMW showrooms from this weekend onwards.

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