Rumour Has It Nissan Will Launch The 2021 Nissan Grand Livina Soon!

We might just see the
2021 Nissan Grand Livina
 in Malaysia this year!

If rumours from the grapevine are true, it seems that we Malaysians will be spoilt for choice for a compact seven-seater MPV, as Edaran Tan Chong Motor (ETCM) could be introducing the new 2021 Nissan Grand Livina this year.

If the Grand Livina name sounds unfamiliar, we don't blame you for scratching your head because the last time ETCM introduced a car with the same name (Grand Livina L10) was way back in 2007 (updated versions were introduced in 2011 and 2013). The model was taken off its showroom floors and axed in 2017 without a replacement.

The intriguing part of the
2021 Nissan Grand Livina
 is that it's practically a
2020 Mitsubishi XPANDER
. This is after all what
alliances
 are about. The only significant difference between the Nissan and the Mitsubishi is the makeover of Nissan's
V-Motion
 family face instead of Mitsubishi's Dynamic Shield fascia. A redesigned rear bumper and different wheel design complete the Nissan makeover.

Everything else is pretty much identical, including the naturally-aspirated 1.5-litre engine with 104 hp and 141 Nm. Since the engine is the same, you can also expect the 4-speed automatic transmission to be similar as well. In Indonesia, the Mitsubishi XPANDER and Nissan Grand Livina are assembled in the same plant, strengthening the case that both cars are actually non-identical twins.

Since we have come to the conclusion that they are practically identical, we can safely assume that the 2021 Nissan Grand Livina will be as practical as the XPANDER, which features a proper seven-seater arrangement instead of a makeshift one.

The good use of space in the Nissan Grand Livina would mimic the XPANDER's, with cubby holes and cup holders substantially located everywhere in the cabin.

Watch this
video
 to find out how many bottles of water we could fit in the XPANDER.

As far as pricing goes in Indonesia, the Nissan Grand Livina is slightly cheaper than the Mitsubishi XPANDER (around RM60k vs RM65k) and we expect the prices to be not that far apart in Malaysia. Which one should you choose if the Nissan comes to Malaysia is a matter of preference and trust in after-sales support from each individual distributor.


Mercedes-Benz Financial Introduces MobilityPlus Replacement Car Program

The headache of dealing with a car that's stuck in a service centre for over a day can be highly irritating, and some companies offer a courtesy car to alleviate a customer's troubles. With MobilityPlus from Mercedes-Benz Financial, you get more peace of mind if your car is sent for service or warranty claims that take more than 48 hours. The first-of-its-kind program offers guaranteed replacement car services to maintain your mobility.
Both Lease@Ease - their new in house leasing program - and FinanceCare (previously known as Hire Purchase Classic Financing) will feature MobilityPlus, along with their other financing products like Agility Financing for new cars, and Young Star Agility Financing for certified pre-owned cars. The coverage of the plan is nationwide, including places such as Langkawi and Labuan.
“With a clear focus on customer centricity, we continuously aim to go beyond and provide our customers with unparalleled best customer experience through value added services. MobilityPlus exemplifies just this. This innovative solution is available from our leasing and financing product options,” said Mike Ponnaz, Managing Director, Mercedes-Benz Services Malaysia Sdn Bhd.
MobilityPlus coverage is on the first two year period for FinanceCare and Agility finance solutions, and up to four years for their leasing solutions, depending on how long your lease is. The convenience even extends to selecting pick up and drop off points for these courtesy cars, and the cars in question will be made available to the customer within 24 hours of notification by the authorized Mercedes-Benz service centre. There is a 20-day entitlement period for the replacement car annually, at no extra cost to the customer.
Customers who apply for financing solutions with Mercedes-Benz Financial will be eligible for MobilityPlus from the 1st of July, once their finance application is approved.
For the best deals on Mercedes-Benz models, click
here
.


2015 Hyundai Elantra Facelift Introduced In Malaysia, From RM85,888

Hyundai
-Sime Darby Motors (HSDM) has rather surprisingly, and quietly, introduced its 2015
Hyundai Elantra
 facelift.
The refreshed C-segment sedan made its global debut in August 2013, and has finally been launched here in four possible variants.
Here’s how their prices look like, all without insurance, road tax and registration.
Elantra FL 1.6 Elegance – RM85, 888
Elantra FL 1.6 Executive – RM 95,676
Elantra FL 1.6 Premium – RM100, 546
Elantra FL 1.8 Premium– RM114, 984
So What’s New?
PERFORMANCE:
 No mechanical changes have been introduced to the line-up, so the Elantra will still be offered with a choice of the 1.6-litre Gamma four-cylinder MPI petrol engine, and the 1.8-litre Nu four-pot MPI. As before, the sole transmission offered is a six-speed torque converter automatic.
EXTERIOR:
 Design wise, the entire car’s length is now 20mm longer than before: leaving the wheelbase as before, but increasing the length of its front bumper by 15mm, and rear one by 5mm.
The front bumper is different, and most noticeable by the reworked fog lamps. The headlamps have also been tweaked in design which moves away from the previous design and now has LED daytime running lights that swirl upwards away from the front grille, rather than towards it as before.
For the 1.6 and 1.8-litre Premium variants only, HSDM will do you a spot of ‘LED Light Guides’ and projection headlamps.
INTERIOR:
 All variants of the Elantra will benefit from a slightly tweaked interior design, with relocated AC vents and a new gear knob, which Hyundai calls its Transmission Gear Shift Gear Knob…
On all variants apart from the base 1.6-litre Elegance model, there’s also additional rear air-conditioning vents, a MirrorLink Audio Visual Receiver touchscreen infotainment display, and an updated supervision cluster which now features an OLED (Organic Light-Emitting Diode) 3.4-inch screen.
The Flex Steer steering system which lets you vary the weight of the steering wheel between three modes (Comfort, Normal, Sport) is also available on all variants except the base 1.6 Elegance.
SAFETY:
 Nicely, all variants of the Elantra will benefit from the brand’s Vehicle Stability Management system (effectively an electronic stability programme), along with Hill-Start Assist and ABS. However, it’s only the 1.6 and 1.8 Premium that benefit from a full six-airbags, while the rest have to settle for just the two.
Buyer’s Guide:
Available in five different body colours (Creamy White, Carbon Grey, Phantom Black, Sleek Silver and Tomato Red), prices for the Hyundai Elantra will include a five-year or 300,000km warranty, as well as Hyundai’s 24-hour road assist service.
However, if you do purchase the Elantra 1.8 Premium between the 5
th
 of March to the 5
th
 of April, you will enjoy a free three-year service or 60,000km (whichever comes first, with 10,000 service interval).
Full Specifications Sheet (Click to view larger image):


Bangkok Proposes Restricting Vehicle Sales To Curb Congestion

In a swath of new measures to contain congestion in Thailand's capital city, a proposal has been made by Bangkok Governor MR Sukhumbhand Paribatra that would effectively bar the purchase of new cars by people who do not have places to park their vehicle.
According to a report by
Bangkok Post
, to obtain ownership of a new car, buyers would have to present proof to the dealership that they indeed have an available parking spot or otherwise would not be allowed to proceed with the transaction.
The governor said this while speaking at a forum on city traffic management.
Other suggestions to curb the skyrocketing traffic levels have also been put forward, one example is the introduction of fines to those parking along certain roads and causing added congestion in business districts. Another would be higher parking fees in lots within the Bangkok city centre to encourage the use of public transportation.
The governor said that bus services need to be better developed to keep a smooth flow of commuters from outside the city centre up to the last kilometer of their commute. Alternative methods of transportation, such as public river canal boats and bicycle lanes, should also be improved.
He added that elevated walkways and an emphasis on leveraging technology would also be key to improve Bangkok’s transport infrastructure.
“The high rate of urban migration from outlying provinces ultimately needs to be counteracted by developing "satellite cities" on the outskirts of Bangkok that are self-sufficient, so people do not need to enter the capital for work,”
"Questions must be raised as to whether the problems will be solved if authority over traffic management remains scattered among various agencies," he said.
As far as implementation is concerned, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration has no authority on large-scale development plans such as the ones these problems would require, and the Thailand’s central government is being urged to address these issues directly or grant powers to those that can affect lasting change.
MR Sukhumbhand warned that traffic congestion in Thailand’s capital and its surrounding areas would only worsen in the absence of a steadfast plan to tackle it.
Of the 17 million people travelling around Bangkok each day, only 40 percent use public transportation. The Ministry of Land Transportation estimates that as of 2012, the city’s 5.8 million population is surpassed by the number of the city registered cars, with estimates of it reaching 10 million cars by 2029, totaling 22 million trips per day.
MR Sukhumbhand is certain that mass adoption of public transportation is the cure for Bangkok’s current traffic woes and worsening prospects, and added that commuter rail services in the city is expected to increase five fold by 2029 and will cover nearly 300km.


Next-Gen 2022 Ford Ranger To Go On Sale In Malaysia This July 2022

The much anticipated 2022 second-generation T6 Ranger will be going on sale in July 2022.

Sime Darby Auto ConneXion (SDAC), the custodian of the Ford brand in Malaysia, has announced that the much anticipated 2022
second-generation T6 Ranger
 will be available for sale nationwide at the end of this month.

2022 Ford Ranger redesigned

Redesigned from the ground up, the new Ranger has been labelled by Ford as the most versatile Ranger to date, designed as an all-rounder lifestyle vehicle for work, family and play.

The 2022 Ranger has been styled with many new nods to Ford’s larger F-150 pickup truck, and its larger radiator grille can clearly identify this with a horizontal bar that incorporates the Ford badge, which extends across the front to the new “C-clamp” set of daytime running lights. It also looks broader than before, and the reason for that is because Ford has added 50mm to its body width.

From the side profile, there is not much to shout about apart from the more pronounced wheel arches, but at the rear, there is a new tailgate that features the ‘RANGER’ lettering stamped into the metal.

We’ll likely be seeing the selection of variants mirroring the outgoing Ranger,
including the Ranger Raptor
, Wildtrak, XLT and XL.

2022 Ranger Raptor to come with petrol V6?

Speaking of the Ranger Raptor, Ford initially said that the 2.0-litre bi-turbocharged diesel engine would still be made available in other markets, but in March this year, Thailand debuted the Ranger Raptor with its
brand-new gasoline twin-turbo 3.0-liter EcoBoost V6
, with
392hp
 and
583Nm -
which means Malaysia too have a good chance of getting the Raptor in this configuration.

All other variants are expected to get the current EcoBlue 2.0-litre diesel engine, albeit with some slight modifications to improve cooling. The power these engines can put out varies according to model and whether they come in a single or bi-turbo form. The power outputs range from 1
50PS/350Nm - 210PS/500Nm.

These motors will be paired to a revised 10-speed automatic that’s lighter and more efficient than the outgoing model, featuring a tighter set of gear ratios to improve torque distribution and towing ability. Ford has also offered two versions of 4WD in the Ranger, the first being with the more familiar on-the-fly manual mode while the other is a more advanced, electronically-controlled on-demand 4WD system.

Regardless of variant, the Ranger now features much more premium soft-touch materials within its refreshed cabin, the centrepiece of which is either a 10-in or 12-in portrait-orientated touchscreen with the latest version of Ford’s SYNC 4 infotainment software, which also runs its fully digital instrument cluster.

Safety features in the 2022 Ford Ranger

Safety-wise, the Ranger is available with modern safety systems, such as:

Autonomous emergency braking

Adaptive cruise control with stop-and-go

Lane centring assist

Lane-keeping assist

Blind-spot monitoring

Rear cross-traffic alert with auto brake and reverse AEB

To debut nationwide on 22 July

SDAC is planning to debut the next-generation Ranger in five regions across the country – central, northern, southern as well as Sabah and Sarawak – ahead of its nationwide availability.

The tour will be held over five weekends, starting with the main debut event, which will be starting from 22 July.

SDAC said that those who want to get a first-hand look at the new Ranger should sign up for the tour. Attendees will receive an in-depth product presentation and walkaround of the next-generation Ranger as well as place bookings.

Interested parties can register at the “Keep Me Informed” page at sdacford.com.my, to score exclusive invitations to the debut tour and find out when and where it will be hitting the city closest to them.


August 2016 New Vehicle Sales – Some Improvements Seen

After the massive washout experienced in July, where Malaysia’s new car sales dropped by 26 percent month-on-month, August’s numbers offered some respite, recovering most of the lost ground by registering a 23.2 percent increase in sales.
The improvement is welcomed, but offers little reasons to celebrate as the improved performance is due to a return to normalcy following the short working month in
July
 due to Hari Raya celebrations.
Cumulative sales over the last eight months stands at 370,242 units, still 14.8 percent lower than the same eight-month period in 2015.
The figures would have been a lot lower had it not for the contributions by the Perodua Bezza. Between July 21 and the end of August, Perodua had delivered 10,000 units of the Perodua Bezza to customers.
Highlights:
Perodua recoded slightly over 40 percent increase in sales month-on-month, no doubt boosted by the recently launched
Bezza
. As of 30
th
 August, Perodua says it has received over 25,000 orders for the Bezza, which was launched on 21
st
 July.
Toyota also saw big improvements, growing by 30.5 percent month-on-month, majority of the growth contributed by increased deliveries of Hilux, Fortuner, as well as the recently launched
Sienta
.
Mazda too has regained its footing, growing by over 50 percent from July, following reduced registrations last month due a near two-month long shutdown at its vehicle assembly facility in Kulim, Kedah to facilitate
upgrading works to its paint shop
.
Honda registered slower pace of recovery (it dropped 15.4 percent on July) in August due to phasing out of the Accord. The
new Accord facelift
, whose range topping 2.4 VTi-L model is now RM5,000 cheaper than before, was launched on September 7
th
.


The Mazda 3 MPS Is Coming Back, At Least In The USA

It was the front-wheel drive muscle car of its time, and it’s finally coming back. The question is, will the all-new Mazda 3 MPS come here?

Just a few days ago, Mazda USA put up a tweet with a really short video that reveals pretty much nothing – except for the sound of a turbocharged engine being revved, and an 8th of July unveiling date. By process of elimination, most other news portals have pretty much guessed that this will be the new Mazda 3 MPS, or at the very least a Mazda 3 with a turbocharged engine.

This is exciting news because the last Mazda 3 MPS fizzled out of existence with hardly any mention of a performance variant to replace it in the coming years. For those who aren’t familiar, the Mazda 3 MPS was a hot hatch variant of the regular Mazda 3, and there was one for each of the preceding two generations before this model. They were turbocharged, front-wheel drive machines that put out a healthy amount of power – 263 hp for both generations – and exclusively available in manual.

At the time, the only other performance car that Mazda still produced was the MX-5, and it was easily the fastest Mazda you could buy. In terms of officially imported models, Malaysians only had the joy of the second generation model, and it was not a feat that one should take lightly. At the time, Bermaz fought to convince the engineers that our Malaysian roads and our petrol quality were good enough for the Mazda 3 MPS, and eventually the engineers allowed our market to buy these cars in an official capacity.

What was more surprising was the price of it at the time. It was easily the lowest priced of the available hot hatches, with the Volkswagen Golf GTI, Renault Megane RS 265, and Ford Focus ST all breaching the RM 200,000 mark. This five-door wonder managed to slip in at RM 175,000, which led to a pretty rapid take-up of models upon its launch back in 2011. Suffice to say, it became a bit of a cult hit and with plenty of tuning potential from its 2.3-litre direct injection turbocharged power plant, it was a car enthusiast’s dream as well.

It was not a car without its foibles, but it was the idiosyncrasies that made it such a memorable car. While the body shell was stronger than a regular Mazda 3, there wasn’t much room or budget put into improving the front end geometry so it was prone to some extremely severe torque steer that made it a lot harder to enjoy on a road with bends and curves. On top of that the engine felt a little lazy at lower speeds, more characteristic of an old-school turbocharged engine than the high-response monsters in other offerings at the time.

But we digress. The focus here is that Mazda has finally decided to revive the MPS, and we should all be happy for its arrival. There’s an almost inevitability that this up and coming 3 MPS will be powered by the same turbocharged 2.5-litre engine found in cars like the Mazda CX-9 or CX-5 SUVs. There’s also a chance the powertrain will be tuned to provide slightly more performance than the 250 hp and 420 Nm of torque from low in the rev range.

There’s also a chance it will be an automatic-only model as Mazda doesn’t currently pair the turbocharged engine with any manual gearboxes. That being said, the gearboxes are fairly quick to respond and have full sequential control if you need it, so it should still be a fairly enjoyable drive. Thus far, the engine has only appeared in vehicles that weigh over 1700 kg, but with the Mazda 3 weighing in at around 1300 kg, it should be a fair bit faster with the performance on hand.

For now, we’ll have to wait until the car is officially unveiled – but the drop dead gorgeous looks of the current generation Mazda 3, pair with a burly turbocharged powertrain, is surely a recipe for fun. We can’t wait to see if it’ll hopefully come to us in the next few months and years.


Parents, Especially Fathers, Are The Most Distracted Drivers in Asia Pacific Region

Parents often worry about screen addiction for their children, yet the data shows that it is the adults who are finding it hard to disconnect.
According to a recent survey by Ford on drivers across Asia Pacific, parents are the most distracted group of drivers on the road.
Conducted to provide data to help further understand distracted driving behavior and attitudes, the survey, which coincides with the expansion of Ford’s corporate social responsibility program, says that 43 percent of parents reported experiencing a distracted driving incident compared to 40 percent of people without children.
Out of the total, fathers were most likely to use their mobile phones while driving – making/ receiving calls, texting, using social media or watching something, compared to the mothers who were distracted mainly by other occupants.
So, in an effort to prevent this, Ford is expanding its Driving Skills for Life (DSFL) program in Asia Pacific from nine to 11 markets and will add an increased focus on distracted driving.
Now in its tenth year, DSFL has offered free driver training classes for people across Asia Pacific, including young drivers, expected mothers, Uber drivers and farmers. This year, it will expand to cover 11 Asia Pacific markets, compared to nine in 2016, and will add more of a focus on distracted driving to its training material.
Ford is also launching a public awareness campaign to educate its Asia Pacific employees, customers and the general public about the dangers of distracted driving and pledge to park their phone and connect with life.
This is of course, on top of the brand's features in its cars that minimize distractions from mobile phones. For instance, there is the SYNC 3 - the automaker’s innovative in-car connectivity system which allows drivers to use their voice to make a call, hear a text, listen to music and activate apps - all while keeping their eyes on the road and hands on the wheel.


Cars With The Lowest Service Costs In Malaysia

In the current pandemic state we live in, where the economic future is uncertain, perhaps it's wise to purchase a car with a more affordable maintenance cost over its lifespan.

Not everybody will be looking to do this, but for those who are tightening up their belts, then perhaps these cars listed down below can help keep the money in the bank, instead of burning it away on the road.

According to the Malaysian Institute of Road Safety Research (MIROS), Malaysians tend to travel 28,000 kilometres per year, but to make this easier, we will go on the cars' combined official service costs over a lifespan of 100,000 kilometres, which we assume for everyone is approximately over the period of 5 years.

Things such as brake pads, tyres and other irregular maintenance parts are also not considered or factored in as we are looking at straight servicing costs.

We have also excluded Mazda from this equation as they have free servicing for five years, including parts, labour and lubricants.

Pickup -
Isuzu D-Max 1.9L 4x4 AT

The Isuzu D-Max is one of the most robust pick-up trucks globally, which is why it is adored across the globe. Although it doesn't have the grunt of other pick-ups, it has that exceptional Japanese mechanical reliability going for it. On top of that stellar reliability and efficiency, the Isuzu D-Max is also known as one of the cheapest and easiest trucks to maintain, and it will only cost you RM660 a year to keep it healthy and going.

Combine this with low road tax cost of RM400 annually, and you've got one of the best bang for buck trucks in the market. Perhaps the only expensive expenditure you will need to spend on it is located at all four corners of the truck, as 4x4 tyres are not cheap, ranging from RM400 and upwards.

Small Car -
Perodua Axia

There's no denying this, the Perodua Axia is one of the cheapest cars to run in Malaysia. With an efficient 1.0-litre VVT-i EEV engine under the bonnet, the plucky little car can return 21.6km/l fuel economy which helps make fuel costs low.

There's also the added benefit that the car's road tax only cost RM20 annually and that's really low. The service and maintenance cost annually is RM381, and if you purchase the manual variant, it is slightly cheaper than that.

Compact SUV -
Honda HR-V

Surprisingly, the combined 100,000-kilometre service cost for the Honda HR-V is cheaper than its fiercest rival the Proton X50. Annually, the service cost of a Honda HR-V is RM221 while the Proton is about RM279.

The other thing that makes the HR-V the top contender in this matchup is its tested and proven powertrain and build quality, which means you will have trouble-free motoring for years to come.

Family Sedan -
Honda Accord

Once again, Honda trumps the rest of the crowd with its low priced service costs. Over five years, you will only need to spend RM467 annually on the Accords' service cost, which is not bad considering that the Accord is a really good car.

Since it is also one of the only cars in its segment to have a small 1.5-litre turbocharged engine, you'd be saving a lot on road tax costs over five years. Kudos to them, Honda does it once again. (At the time this article was written, Volkswagen's website did not have a service pricing guide for the Passat, so we can't say whether it is more or less).

Mid Size SUV -
Honda CR-V

There's just no way around it, Honda does present good value when it comes to service costs. For the CR-V, you will be spending RM575 annually on service costs which is considerably cheaper than two of its rivals.

Just like the Honda Accord, the CR-V is also equipped with a small 1.5-litre turbocharged engine, which means you'd be saving a lot of money on road tax costs over five years.

*For the purposes of this article, we've used the servicing costs from each manufacturer website. We've not factored in costs such as tyres, brake pads, or other items you may have to change during the five-year lifespan of the car as these costs are subjective to brand and quality as well as external workshop pricings.


Would You Pay RM74k For A Renault Twizy?

You may have seen it on the road, zipping in and around lunch-time traffic with no windows and without any air-conditioning, and finally, TC Euro Cars, the official distributors of
Renault
 vehicles in Malaysia, have actually launched the Renault Twizy here.

It’ll cost you
RM74,117
 (OTR with GST and insurance) for the privilege to ‘Get Twizy With It’, and we wouldn’t be too surprised if you weren’t as pleased to learn of its price being nearly three-times that of a
Perodua

Axia
, which itself offers cosy seating for four, air-conditioning, doors with windows, and a boot.

Just to clarify, the little French Twizy doesn’t come with any of that. Or actually, it does come with a boot. Albeit a very small one, and you'd have to forego the rear seat to go with that option. No windows either, and the good news there is you can carry some tall cargo if you’re creative, but the bad news is that you’re at the mercy of Malaysia’s weather. The scissor doors are pretty cool, though, and the Twizy’s interior is water resistant. Unfortunately, your clothes and nostrils probably aren't.

So yes, if you’re in the market for affordable personal mobility, the recently-launched Twizy is certainly not for you.

What’s it for?

Well, having a friendly chat with my colleagues Daniel Wong and Gerard Lye about it, we’re torn. Daniel, who did manage to have a quick drive in it is in favour. While Gerard, young and full of energy, equally shares a similar opinion.

First off, you’ll need money – I think we’ve covered that point. And you’ll need to live and commute to nearby places so your charge can take you there and back where the all-important plug-point lies.

There are plans for
publicly accessible charging stations
, which is great when the time comes, and you could technically charge it at work (for example) if there’s an outlet handy. Renault says it will take around 3.5 hours to fully charge its 6.1kWh lithium-ion battery - good for around 100 kilometers of range. Impressive.

It’s designed to be a compact and should make easy work of city traffic. The trouble is it’s not really slender enough to weave through traffic like a motorcycle. So if they’re stuck, you’re stuck. And worse, you’ll be breathing in a lot of fumes when you’re sandwiched by congestion. But parking should be a cake walk.

Get going, and despite the 17hp and 57Nm of torque not setting the roads on fire, the Twizy should be quite zippy in low to medium speeds due to the electric motor’s instant shove and the 475kg. Being so light, it should be quite fun in the corners too with its quick, light, and unassisted steering, even if everyone is overtaking you. Its top speed is 80km/h, by the way.

The Good Points

Yes it is electric, which means zero emissions and charging it should cost way less than a refill of petrol over the same distance covered. It also has a Bluetooth handsfree kit that offers music playback and an audio-in jack. A nice addition, if its you can hear the music.

It’s a fun little thing to see and to drive. Struggling as we are to make a practical case for it here, people will smile when they see it and that sense of light-heartedness permeates its design and character.

A perfect ownership scenario: If you lived on an island or rural-ish area with a relatively developed levels of modern amenities but don’t need to get anywhere in much of a hurry and can appreciate the fresh air and quiet of the outdoors. For example, if you lived in Langkawi and travel around 100 kilometers a day or less, the Twizy would be ideal.

Speaking of which, renting a Twizy while on holiday would also be rather fun. Think about it, keeping with the Langkawi example, if you were to exit the hotel lobby and go exploring in the Twizy and how involved in the trip you’d feel.

But…

Despite how fond we are of it, we’re struggling to find a practical use case for the Twizy here in the Klang Valley. We live in a country with hot, humid, and often very wet weather, and conditions would have to be within a narrow spectrum for you to drive the Twizy comfortably.

Even if the weather was cooperating, there’s still the small matter of fumes, noise, and, sorry for belabouring the point, the depressing realization that everyone else on the roads (on four wheels) is likely far more comfortable than you but paid far less for the pleasure.

It is, after all, meant to be thought of and used as a replacement for a scooter and not an alternative to your car. And for that, RM74k is a big ask.


Drivers, Did You Know That An Unbuckled Rear Passenger Can Kill You?

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), an American nonprofit organisation which ultimately works towards reducing the number of motor vehicle crashes, has revealed that a majority of rear-seat passengers don’t think that it’s necessary to buckle up.
The recent survey conducted by IIHS reflected that many rear-seat passengers don't think belts are necessary because they perceive the back seat to be safer than the front. This shows a clear misunderstanding about why belts are important, no matter where a person sits in a vehicle.
While driver and front passenger belt use has been extensively studied, there is not a lot of research on why rear-seat passengers don't buckle up. Prior IIHS surveys of belt use among adults focused on their belt-use habits in general, but not specifically belt use in the rear seat. The latest study fills this gap.
"People who don't use safety belts might think their neglect won't hurt anyone else, but that's not the case. In the rear seat, a lap/shoulder belt is the primary means of protection in a frontal crash. Without it, bodies can hit hard surfaces or other people at full speed, leading to serious injuries," said says Jessica Jermakian, an IIHS senior research engineer and a co-author of the study.
That being said, regardless of whether it is the U.S, Africa, or Malaysia, please remember to buckle up before its too late.


LA 2018: Hyundai To Introduce Flagship 8-Seater Palisade SUV

Hyundai has announced the name of its upcoming flagship SUV – Palisade. Palisade, like other recent Hyundai models, draws its inspiration from a series of coastal cliffs and the Pacific Palisades, a high-end neighbourhood in Southern California.
The upcoming Palisade SUV will sit at the top of Hyundai’s hierarchy, above the 7-seater Santa Fe. Hyundai also confirmed that its new Palisade will be an 8-seater model and will feature a wide array of safety equipment. Powertrain details are expected to be made known when the model is launched later this month.
Hyundai will premiere the new Palisade at the 2018 Los Angeles Auto Show on 28
th
 November, before hitting showrooms in summer 2019.
Other Hyundai models that are inspired by locations around North America include Kona, Santa Fe, and Tucson.


Fuel Price Update: 22 – 28 February – Prices Down

The Ministry of Domestic Trade, Cooperatives, and Consumerism (KPDNKK) has announced new petrol and diesel prices for the week of 22
nd
 to 28
th
 February and are as follow:
RON95 –
RM2.17
 per litre (down 6 sen from RM2.23)
RON97 –
RM2.43
 per litre (down 7 sen from RM2.50)
Diesel –
RM2.13
 per litre (down 6 sen from RM2.19)


The S60 T8 CKD Is Coming on Monday

One of the more exciting and recent additions to the entry level luxury sedan segment was the Volvo S60 T8 which was launched late last year. As is the case with most luxury car brands, these models are first introduced as a CBU (fully imported) unit, before they are eventually locally produced with the benefit of either lower pricing or a longer list of features.

We’ve received word that the CKD (locally assembled) variant of the S60 T8 will be launched on May 18, and here’s what we think you should expect. For this, we look at a comparison between the CBU and CKD variants of the XC90 T8 sold here. What we saw was an RM 50,000 price reduction from RM 453,888 to RM 403,888 for the XC90 T8.

The number of paint colour options when down from eleven to five – all in monochrome variants. The interior was left largely unchanged with Nappa leather, although interior colour options were restricted to just Charcoal black. Thankfully, across Volvo models there is the common 9-inch portrait touch screen that forms the centrepiece of the dashboard, so you don’t need to worry about that disappearing.

As a result, we’re probably going to see a very competitively priced luxury sedan that packs that ever interesting 407 hp and 640 Nm of torque through its twin engine powertrain – a twin-charged two-litre engine up front delivering powers to the front wheels, and a motor at the rear to provide drive to the rear wheels.

The current Volvo S60 T8 CBU goes on sale for RM 295,888 – on the road, without insurance, and inclusive of the five-year, 120,000 kilometre factory warranty. Among the colour choices, Fusion Red is still currently available although that may vanish as the transition to CKD happens. The S60 T8 also wears the more aggressive R-Design kit which highlights a sportier and more youthful side we’re happy to see Volvo indulging. So if we assume an RM50,000 reduction in price from the CBU, that would mean the CKD S60 T8 will cost RM245,888 OTR.

Among D-segment cars that would place it in competition against the Honda Accord, Toyota Camry, Mazda 6 Sedan and Volkswagen Passat. Now the closest with regard to horsepower would be the Mazda at 195 hp, that's a whooping 212 hp extra in the Volvo. Yes, the Volvo would also be the most expensive in its segment but having driven the XC60 T8 CBU we know for a fact how exhilarating that engine is. If you missed it, check out my colleague squealing in joy
here
 during the review.

For those of you interested in a test drive, guess what?

Volvo will Bring the Test Drive To You. Click
here
.


Nissan R&D Has Miniature Car Wash For Paint Testing

Many of the manufacturer Youtube videos nowadays showcase the manufacturing, engine assembly, design sketches and of course, chassis dynamics validation with many driving sessions at Germany’s Nurburgring circuit when developing a new model.
At Nissan NTC USA, engineers working with the development of paint coating technology seem to found creative ways to wash their collection of scale model Nissan cars. In the video, it looks like washing the car is not our engineer’s main objective, as he pours a lot of dirt on to the Passion Red Nissan 370Z!
The bush in the miniature car wash spins to nearly 180rpm and thousands of bristles combined with the dirt ferociously hit the 370Z. One would assume with all the punishment of pressure and sharp grit, the little car will change from red to die-cast silver once the bristle moves away.  Nope. That is how tough the car paint is!
The scale model is just an illustration, and some fun before the holidays. Nissan tests new paint samples using the rectangular plates (painted yellow in the video), which are place into the miniature car wash.
These sample plates are tested multiple times to ensure a top-quality finish that hold-up to the tough environment of automatic car washes. There we have it, more insight into how much testing and development work is done on our cars before reaching the showroom.


2016 Subaru XV Quick Impressions Review In Bangkok - Less Is More

Perhaps without you even realising it, the
Subaru
 has snuck in quite a fair number of their
XV
s onto Malaysian roads and is now, locally as well as globally, the most popular Subaru on sale - with good reason. The Japanese marque took its most compelling feature, its Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive (SAWD) system, and applied it as a central focus into a car that takes on one of the most popular vehicle classes, the compact SUV or crossover. And with aid from its low-mounted flat boxer engine, the XV is also one of the most stable and dynamically-endowed cars in its class.
We've previously covered the 2016 Subaru XV during its regional unveil in Bangkok earlier this month, read up on that
here
.
For 2016, Subaru hasn’t deviated much from the formula they’ve found to be so successful, and the iterative updates makes themselves very apparent in more subtle but, to the driver, very appreciable ways.
Key Specs
Price:
RM130,000 (provisional estimate)
Engine:
2.0-litre DOHC Subaru BOXER with Dual Active Valve Control System
Power:
148hp @ 6,200rpm
Torque:
196Nm @ 4,200rpm
Transmission:
 Lineartronic CVT with 6-speed manual mode and paddle shifters
Curb weight:
1,445kg
What’s New
We’re operating from a rather narrow perch, to be honest, as our time spent with the 2016 Subaru XV was not over a prolonged period. That will come after the car’s launch in Malaysia. We’ll be blunt - there’s little to distinguish the newer XV from the older. Actually, one could even (somewhat unfairly) consider this to be a facelift, but the changes that Subaru have instituted go deeper than mere fascia (we’ll get to that later).
To the eyes, at least, a keen observer would notice the tweaked wheel design first. Still a set of five spoke, 17-inch rims in a contrasting two-tone finish, but warped for a more dynamic look. There’s also the L-shaped daytime running lights that sit to the side of the front fog lamps.
But that’s about as much as you’ll have to go with if you’re inspection is merely on the car’s exterior. Step inside, and you’ll also have to apply a little more brainpower to spot the new bits, which as far as we can tell are limited to the higher-end 2.0i P variant: 6.2-inch touchscreen infotainment unit, steering controls for wireless phone operation and multimedia, electrically-adjustable seats, and aluminium pedals.
It’s also worth noting that the leather quality on the new 2016 XV does feel nicer, the seats have improved sink, bounce and texture that add to the overall more refined air over its predecessor, as does the overall togetherness of the dashboard as a whole.
Drive - The Test Sessions
On a windswept concrete expanse just across from the Bangkok IMPACT Exhibition Hall, on the outskirts of Bangkok, Subaru had prepared a number of different test areas for us to experience the improvements they’ve furnished onto their new XV. But before that, we were treated to a stunt performance by the very talented and spritely Mr Russ Swift in a
WRX
,
WRX STI
, and new XV.
Obstacle Course

- Following a safety briefing, we were escorted to the first course on the roster that’s meant to test how the XV handled across uneven terrain - the first obstacle was to test how the car levelled itself with one or two wheels off the ground and how the grip vanished from one wheel (or more) and left the Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive system to channel it elsewhere. Of course, the XV as we already knew, handling this rather well.
The second obstacle was a more traditional off-road track, with slippery sand that required the car to shift power around to find grip and not sink itself while trying to move forward. The XV coped with that quite well too, as you’d expect. Following that was a ramp with rollers set up to demonstrate the all-wheel drive system to find enough grip to pull away even when only one tyre is able to find traction. A little more throttle was all that was needed to unstick the car.
Handling Course -
This is where it got more interesting -  a real chance to feel the improvements Subaru has made to their updated XV. While the exterior, as we’ve mentioned, hasn’t seen any sort of drastic alteration, it becomes clear where that attention has instead been placed.
After driving the older XV and the new XV back-to-back, it becomes immediately apparent once you turn a corner how much more ‘together’ the 2016 XV feels. Through the bends, it responds quicker to that initial steering wheel shove and there’s less understeer overall (more on that later), allowing us to take the slaloms at higher speed more confidently.
Acceleration was very linear as was expected from the XV’s Lineartronic continuously variable transmission (CVT), with the usual noise and vibration associated with that kind of transmission being better damped than in the older XV, although we had hoped that the car was more urgent off the line.
Freestyle Driving Track -
We were allowed multiple sessions of one or two minutes each on a wide sectioned-off area with four circles made up of safety cones which were placed to encourage us to try keeping as tight a line as we could while accelerating quicker and quicker.
Here, too, we were given the older XV as well to drive to contrast with the newer. And similarly felt the front end had considerably more bite and did not succumb to washing out to understeer quite as early, allowing us to better judge the level of front-end grip before the tyres gave in to inertia.
The older XV did start to feel numb as the limit of grip approached, and then arrived without us knowing. The new XV gave us more feedback, permitting more throttle and steering modulation in addition to the delayed understeer.
The torque vectoring system and Vehicle Dynamics Control (VDC) system also stepped in where necessary to make sure that line between driver input and the car’s directional control was in sync, and was noticeable during the quick change in direction to stabilise the car’s weight transfer and during acceleration out of corners to send torque to the inside wheels.
Parting Thoughts
Of course, we’ll have to get our hands on the 2016 Subaru XV when it makes its Malaysian debut to form more concrete conclusions, but in our brief time with the new XV, we were able to collect some early verdicts.
It struck us as the kind of update Subaru would concoct, with driving capability and experience placed considerably higher in their list of priorities while cosmetic updates added only where necessary. It’s not like the XV is looking old, quelling an argument for exterior changes for the sake of change of any kind. And from a driver’s point of view, the changes they’ve instead been focusing on are appreciable and welcome, and would be my personal choice over anything purely superficial.
The Subaru XV exists and technically competes with other crossovers and compact SUVs such as the Mazda CX-5, Honda CR-V, or Toyota RAV4, but none of its rivals can really keep up with it when it comes to out-and-out driving ability, on road and off. But has Subaru chosen rightly in taking an iterative step with their newer XV, and perhaps allowed their competitors to catch up? We'll find out.


Lexus is Dropping the 't' Badges For Their Turbo Models

Over the last few years, people have lamented how luxury car manufacturers have changed the numbering on their product badges such that they are no longer representative of engine capacity, but rather "equivalent" performance. This became an especially big problem with the widespread introduction of turbocharging, where now a "30i" or "300" badge on a BMW or Mercedes-Benz respectively refers to a high-spec turbocharged 2.0-litre engine.

Lexus seemed to have held out for a while when they 'went turbo', sticking rigorously to the capacity-based numbering and tacking a 't' on the end to denote the addition of a turbocharger. And all was well in the world, and there were a few who were happy that Lexus stuck to what they perceived to be appropriate convention. But it seems that with the up-and-coming Lexus UX, the Japanese luxury car brand will be dropping the 't' badging and instead will adopt the 250 badge to represent their 2.0-litre turbo, as reported by Go Auto.

But why is this the case? There are a few reasons to justify the abandonment of the turbo badge, partially for marketing reasons and partially for internal reasons. We'll use BMW as an easy example to begin with: their turbocharged 2.0-litre engine comes in either 184 PS/270 Nm or 252 PS/350 Nm flavours. The former is designated with a 20i badge, as in the 320i and 520i, while the latter uses a 30i badge as in the 330i and 530i. This is easier for consumers to understand and differentiate rather than Audi's simple 2.0 TFSI designation that could mean a variety of tunes.

The next argument for dropping the 't' and increasing the number is that everyone else is doing it. While purists would prefer if Lexus stuck to their guns with this naming scheme, the reality is that average customer will have a difficult time rationalizing that a GS200t has a comparable amount of performance to a BMW 530i. Mercedes-Benz and BMW have been fairly similar in terms of their number and naming, and perhaps it's time Lexus followed suit (and Audi as well).

Perhaps as an indication of progress, this new numbering scheme is better as well. BMW is again a good example: how does one explain that an F30 320iT (if we were to go by old convention) is faster than an E46 330i? The simple and far less confusing solution is to go with the equivalent performance idea, and using 330i instead of 320iT is a fairly good representation of what kind of performance to expect.


Stretches Of LPT2 Highway Found To Be Problematic, Needs Immediate Attention

It has been a fairly circulated notion that the East Coast Expressway 2 (LPT2) has gathered quite a reputation for being one of the more precarious roads in Peninsular Malaysia. A recent inspection revealed that the highway needs urgent attention as stretches were found to be abnormally bumpy while others susceptible to ponding during heavy downpours
The ponding problem, of course, being the more serious of the two – it is a term used to describe the slow rate at which rain water drains from the road, resulting in accumulated ponds. Police statistics worryingly show it had led to 72 accidents since early 2015 alone.
Present during the inspection was Works Minister Datuk Fadillah Yusoff, who felt the troublesome stretches – which were approximated at 20 percent of the entire highway length – needed to be rectified immediately, stressing certain portions were critical.
“The reading of the road scanner shows that certain areas were bumpy while some smaller areas were critical,” Fadillah told a press conference at the Perasing rest area.
The inspection itself was carried out by several road scanners belonging to Ikram Paves Sdn Bhd (IPSB), who had been appointed to carry out a full audit on the expressway following the minister’s announcement on the matter, writes Bernama.
The repair works will commence as soon as possible, but will take some time. In the near term, Fadillah outlined early preventive measures, such as a drainage system be built to increase water flow and reduce ponding. For the bumpy stretches, contractors will be dispatched to smoothen out as many spots as they can before carrying out more thorough resurfacing.


Samsung Owns The Self-Driving Car Patents Market

Samsung Electronics Co. has been reported to have filed the largest number of patents related to self-driving cars in Europe.
According to the report by the
Korea Harald
 and the European Patent Office, there were close to 4,000 applications related to self-driving vehicles in 2017. Technology and communication companies are still the leaders in pushing for self-driving vehicle technology, as opposed to traditional vehicle manufactures.
Samsung Electronics held the most patents at 624, followed by Intel Corp. at 590, Qualcomm Inc. with 361, and LG Electronics Inc. at 348. The leading European firm (as well as automotive-related) is Bosch with 343 patents. The data was taken during the period from 2011 to 2017.
Having said that, Europe is still the base for patents filing, accounting 37.2 percent, slightly edging the USA with 33.7 percent.
The key Asian nations only contributed less than a quarter of total patents filing- Japan at 13 percent, South Korea with seven percent, and China just three percent.
Diving deeper into the South Korean market, data compiled by the Korea Institute of Intellectual Property revealed that
Hyundai Motor
 filed the highest number of related patents over a ten year period ending 2017 with 981 patents. This was followed by Hyundai Mobis with 686 and Mando Corp. with 564 patents.
LG Electronics and the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute posted 293 and 238 patents, respectively.


Mitsubishi’s All-New 2022 Outlander Turns Up The Heat (Finally)

Fancy a guess at how long production on the current 3rd-generation Outlander has been chugging along? Wrong/Correct! 9 years is the answer.

There aren’t that many passenger vehicles, particularly in the highly competitive SUV space, that have been left out in the field as long as this has. It’s a shame Mitsubishi couldn’t deliver on a worthy ground-up successor sooner, but it was fairly lucky
how consistently the ageing 7-seater kept performing
 next to its younger, more advanced competitors.

Then again, with many of its staple models now axed from the line-up entirely, there aren’t too many other stablemates to get in the Outlander’s way. In any case, this all-new 4th-generation version looks to be very promising, adopting a very sleek approach to its exterior and interior both, as if it were actively trying to shed any memory of its former self.

Those following the Mitsubishi journey for the past few years know it to be peppered with periods of uncertainty even after it came under the wing of the
Renault-Nissan Alliance
. It was during this period that it openly and aggressively shifted its focus to SUVs.

We’re glad to find out that this isn’t merely a heavy revision of the outgoing model either. The 4th-gen Outlander sits on the newer (but almost as old) CMF-C/D platform shared with the
latest Nissan Rogue
 (X-Trail) that’s constructed with high tensile steel. This boost in structural rigidity not only means increased safety but allows strategic use of lightweight material which improves weight distribution and fuel economy.

In 2019, the company brought the
Engelberg Tourer Concept
 to the Geneva Motor Show, and just shy of two years later, it’s pretty obvious how much design inspiration this all-new Outlander takes from it. Upfront, the distinct Dynamic Shield corporate face opens up first impressions boldly and is capped off by a very nicely integrated clamshell bonnet.

Though Hyundai is also attempting to incorporate split format headlight and daytime running light (DLR) housings such as on
the Santa Fe
, the ones worn by the Mitsubishi are much better executed. The low/high beam LED cluster is large and located midway up the fascia where it might have maximum beam radius and uniformity whereas the DRLs are placed at the very top and can be as thin and squinty as it wants to be.

The Outlander’s side profile is more understated but sticks to the classic two-box SUV shape. However, that sense of weight and girth is hidden somewhat thanks to an A-pillar that’s obscured by its black finish, giving the glasshouse a sort of wraparound visor quality, especially against a white body colour.

The minimal amount of dark body cladding around the wheel arches is very much appreciated, preserving the Outlander’s praiseworthy aesthetics, and frames the new 20-inch alloys quite nicely. At the rear, the ‘floating roof’ effect is further underlined by black accents that visually separate the roof from the rear-most upright pillar. Its tail lamp cluster is subtle but manages to retain the same aggressive look from the front end.

Inside is perhaps where this Mitsubishi has impressed us most. Just a cursory glance will reveal just how much more modern and visually cohesive it is over the older model. Its clean lines, ample screen real estate, more upmarket materials, pleasing textures, and minimal use of buttons will surely help it sway new customers despite how similar it looks to interiors from Mazda, Hyundai and Toyota.

Dimensionally, this newest iteration is a marked step ahead of the outgoing Outlander, measuring 51mm wider and 38mm taller with a 36mm longer wheelbase that results in a nose-to-tail length of 4709mm, or 15mm longer overall. What this translates to is a big improvement in front/rear legroom and shoulder room.

Though there is plenty of change both visually and with regard to practicality, some things remain static. In the case of the Outlander, at least at launch, it’s still powered by a naturally aspirated four-cylinder petrol engine mated to a CVT (with 8 virtual ratios).

However, as overly familiar as this might sound, this is no MIVEC under the bonnet. In fact, the powertrain package is wholly lifted from the Nissan camp and is, in fact, also shared with the X-Trail. Assuming this is the same QR25DE 2.5-litre unit that’s slotted
in the Renault Koleos
, expect an output of around 183hp and 245Nm.

Variants with all-wheel drive will use Mitsubishi’s latest Super All-Wheel Control (S-AWC) system with better torque vectoring and more precise power split between axles, though Mitsubishi might derive secondary axle drive from an electric motor when the inevitable PHEV versions arrive.

The 4th-generation Outlander is expected to go on sale in key markets as early as mid-2021 with an Australian rollout likely slated for Q3. The same should apply to Southeast Asia, and we're hoping for some word on that from Mitsubishi Malaysia sooner rather than later.


Volvo V60 Interior Earns A Spot On 2019 Wards 10 Best Interiors List

The Volvo V60 wagon’s interior has bagged a spot as one of the Wards Top 10 Best Interiors of 2019.
Every year, the Wards editors evaluate significantly redesigned interiors with a focus on fit-and-finish, ergonomics, materials, comfort, and aesthetics. For 2019, 32 nominees were considered, of which, the best 10 make the annual list.
According to Wards, “The Swedish brand expertly weaves an upholstered plaid interior that is visually stunning, environmentally friendly and uniquely European. But beyond the fabric, the V60 shines as the interior achieves a soothing sense of design harmony with soft-touch surfaces complemented by glistening hard trim,”
Launched last year
, the Volvo V60 is based on the company’s Scalable Product Architecture (SPA) platform which also underpins the 90-series models (S90,
XC90
), and thus features the award-winning Sensus infotainment system with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay integration. The central tablet-style touch screen units controls air-conditioning, navigation, and connectivity functions.
Elsewhere, the V60 also touts key interior elements such as a panoramic moonroof, aluminium inlays, and the new city-weave textile interior.
The V60 is the second model in Volvo’s current lineup to be shortlisted in the Wards Top 10 lists after the XC90 in 2016.
For the best deals on Volvo vehicles, click
here
.


Malaysia's AP system remains Intact despite Tesla's entry, says Trade Minister

The Minister of Investment, Trade, and Industry (MITI), Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz, clarified that the government has no current plans to phase out the approved permit (AP) system for car imports.

He assured reporters that the AP system is still in effect, even though
Tesla Inc, a global electric vehicle (EV) maker
, has been granted permission to sell cars in the country without adhering to the usual AP rules.

Tengku Zafrul made this statement while officiating at the Proton Global Investors and Vendors Convention 2023. He emphasized that there are no discussions at present about abolishing the AP system.

The government's decision to allow Tesla to operate in the country without AP rules is part of the BEV Global Leaders initiative by MITI. The initiative aims to stimulate the demand for battery electric vehicles (BEV) in the local market and foster the development of a supportive ecosystem for BEV adoption.

Despite permitting Tesla to bypass the AP system, Tengku Zafrul clarified that the AP mechanism will still be in use. If any other carmaker brings the technology that Malaysia seeks, they will also be allowed to operate under the AP system.

The key criterion is the value and technological advancements that the companies can offer, and the government intends to treat all eligible companies consistently. The AP system is not exclusive to Tesla but extends to other carmakers who meet the required standards for technology and innovation.


Mitsubishi XPANDER Assembly In Full Swing, Launch Around The Corner

The Mitsubishi XPANDER is another one of those hotly anticipated new models to launch at the tail end of 2020, but any delay that might have been caused by the big bug and the resulting Movement Control Order(s) could have only served to
ramp up the hype
.

In a new video streamed live over Facebook this morning, Mitsubishi Motors Malaysia went into more detail on their newest model to hit local showrooms. While the actual units of this high-spec single variant are not actually in dealerships yet, the company wanted to squeeze in a little more insight into the 7-seater’s feature set and assembly process.

The first examples of the Malaysia-spec XPANDER have already rolled off the assembly line in Pekan, Pahang, with full CKD operations expected to be in full swing by November. However, we still have no prices or any indication that there is more than a single variant.

As my colleague Adam explained at a
closed-door preview event last week
, the XPANDER will more or less be identical to the versions that first made their debut in the Indonesian market back in 2017, selling around 270,000 units so far. There are a few SUV-inspired cosmetic touches that has lead Mitsubishi to term this as a crossover -
we strongly disagree
. This is an MPV, deal with it.

Other highlights include 16-inch wheels, LED headlamps, a 9-inch infotainment system with support for Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, leather seats, a 360-degree all-round view monitor, and an ample selection of storage compartments. It also claims to offer best-in-class cabin space.

Unfortunately, these are all aspects of this particular ASEAN-specific model that we (mostly) are all familiar with. In essence, the XPANDER as a new car proposition has pretty much already been clearly communicated to the public, except for that all-important price tag. This video overview, while very well produced and does show it in a rather stylish light, does not provide any new information.

In, case you missed it, powering the new Mitsubishi is a naturally aspirated 1.5-litre MIVEC petrol engine that outputs 105PS and 141Nm of torque. That’s near-enough level with its closest competitors, the Perodua Aruz, Honda BR-V, and Toyota Avanza.

But again, the price point can either greatly enhance or sour the XPANDER’s appeal at launch,
especially because
 there will likely be some overlap between it and the Proton X50 despite them occupying different segments. Hopefully, MMM will choose to reveal it sooner rather than later, along with a full launch. Expect that in November too.


MINI hits major milestone- 3 Millionth Car Rolls Out of their Oxford Plant

History has a funny way of repeating itself. When the original Mini was put into production in 1959, it took roughly 13 years for cumulative variant production to hit the 3 million unit mark. For MINI's Oxford plant, it has taken them 15 years to reach that same milestone, but perhaps this is less of a comparison as a great number of MINI models are produced outside of Britain as well.
Conversely, it could be argued that that classic Mini was more of a mass-market, everyman's kind of car, while the modern MINI is a car that is reserved for the left-field crowd, edging into luxury territory under the control of BMW Group. If you consider this, then MINI's production figures and performance are far more impressive given that the market is much smaller now and there are far more options available to consumers.
It also shows how the production and sales of MINI products has greatly accelerated since those nascent years, with aggressive marketing and a strong push into fresh markets, along with a diverse product range that appeals to a variety of customers. From a mere 40,000 units sold worldwide back in 2001, the number exploded to nearly 340,000 units sold through 2015- and you can expect that number to continue onwards and upwards.
In any case, perhaps most fitting of all is that the 3 millionth model is a JCW Clubman. It is a modern take on one of the original Mini variants, and it has evolved in its second generation to become something with far better crowd appeal. The JCW (John Cooper Works) prefix denotes a high-performance model, and it also happens to be MINI's first model which offers the ALL4 all-wheel drive system with the JCW package.


Brilliant Citroen AMI Bags Another Award – The EV The World Doesn’t Know It Needs

The cutesy little Citroen AMI has secured yet another award, this time from claiming GQ magazine’s Microcar Of The Year, shortly after bagging Top Gear magazine's ‘Disruptor Award’ proving that this little car is fast becoming a revolution in last-mile travel for urbanites since its global launch in February last year. It could well be the EV much of the world doesn’t even know it needs.

Measuring just 2.42 metres in length, the Citroen AMI is a tiny
full-electric BEV
 which is powered by a small 5.5 kWh battery, which is claimed to give it a range of just under 70km. The AMI can easily be charged via the on-board electric cable located in the passenger-side doorway and requires just 3 hours for a full charge on a conventional 220 V socket.

An 8hp electric motor gives it a top speed of 45km/h, plenty for most short city commutes. Weighing in at just 485 kg with batteries included, the AMI focusses on being light, small and cheap, in many ways, like the original Citroen 2CV revolutionised mobility for the French masses all those decades ago.

The AMI is short on equipment though, included as standard is a heater, a tiny infotainment screen,
USB charge port
 and panoramic roof. And as a nostalgic nod to the history of the Citroën brand, manual side windows that can be opened by tilting the glass upwards, just like the 2CV. Another cool feature is the AMI’s suicide door on the left (driver’s side in Europe) and conventional opening right door.

Officially classed as an electric quadricycle, the AMI is actually accessible to anyone over the age of 14 in France, or 17 in the UK, but requires no driver’s license to operate. The AMI costs just under EUR6,000 (RM29,231) to buy outright, or lease it monthly for around EUR19 (RM93) through the Citroen dealer network or selected leasing companies depending on the European market.

Alas, we would probably never get the Citroen AMI here. Nevertheless, wouldn’t you love a small yet spacious 2-seater which offers near-zero fuelling and running costs for just under RM100 a month?


Salah Ke Pakai Selipar/Kaki Ayam Semasa Memandu? – Undang-Undang Jalan Raya Di Malaysia

Tahukah anda di negara ini, perbuatan memandu kenderaan dengan
memakai selipar
 merupakan satu kesalahan dan boleh
disaman
?

Betul! Tetapi ianya tidak tertakluk kepada semua pemandu. Pemakaian kasut ini hanya diwajibkan untuk pemandu
kenderaan komersial
 sahaja. Pemegang lesen memandu vokasional (GDL dan PSV) seperti lori, bas, teksi dan
kenderaan e-hailing
 boleh didenda sehingga RM150 jika didapati tidak memakai kasut ataupun tidak berpakaian kemas ketika memandu.

Semua pemandu kenderaan berat termasuk kenderaan perdagangan seperti lori,
treler
 dan bas diwajibkan memakai kasut semasa memandu bagi meningkatkan keselamatan mereka dan pengguna jalan raya lain. Pemandu Kenderaan Perkhidmatan Awam (PSV) juga boleh diperiksa dari semasa ke semasa di bawah peruntukan Kaedah-kaedah Kenderaan Perkhidmatan Awam (Pelesenan dan Kelakuan Pemandu, Konduktor dan Penumpang) 1959.

Ingat tak kes pihak
JPJ
 menyamar jadi penumpang bas ekspres untuk mengesan kesalahan dilakukan pemandu bas ekspres pada musim cuti perayaan Tahun Baru Cina tahun lalu? Seramai 2 orang pemandu bas ekspress telah disaman kerana memakai selipar ketika memandu. Terperanjat pemandu bas ekspres tersebut sebab tiba-tiba disaman penumpang.

Untuk kenderaan peribadi pula, tiada undang-undang yang mewajibkan pemakaian kasut ketika memandu. Jadi ianya bukanlah satu kesalahan dan pemandu kenderaan peribadi tidak akan disaman jika memakai selipar ketika memandu. Jadi pemegang lesen kereta kelas D dan penunggang motosikal tidak perlu risau tentang perkara ini.

Meskipun pemakaian kasut tidak diwajibkan pada pemandu kenderaan peribadi, perbuatan menggunakan selipar ketika memandu berisiko mendatangkan masalah dan bahaya kepada pemandu. Selipar yang longgar dan mudah tertanggal berisiko untuk tersangkut di celahan pedal klac, brek dan minyak sekaligus membuatkan pedal tersebut tidak dapat ditekan dengan sempurna.

Penggunaan selipar ketika memandu juga mendatangkan bahaya jika tapak selipar tersebut sudah haus dan tiada cengkaman. Sekiranya basah, anda mungkin kehilangan kawalan pedal dan menyebabkan
kemalangan
. Lebih menyakitkan, ia boleh menyebabkan kecederaan parah pada kaki anda.

Tidak dinafikan, ada sesetengah pemandu yang gemar memandu dengan berkaki ayam kerana ingin merasa sendiri pedal tersebut menggunakan kakinya. Tetapi, memandu dengan berkaki ayam langsung tidak akan membantu ketika dalam situasi kecemasan. Sebab itu anda dinasihatkan untuk menggunakan kasut yang sesuai ketika memandu.

Penggunaan kasut yang bersesuaian juga memainkan peranan. Kasut yang tidak terlalu tebal, tidak terlalu nipis serta mempunyai cengkaman yang kukuh membolehkan pemandu merasai sejauh mana pedal ditekan atau dilepaskan selain menekan brek dengan kuat sewaktu kecemasan. Dengan pemakaian kasut yang betul, anda boleh menekan brek dengan cepat serta memberi sokongan yang lebih selesa untuk perjalanan jauh.

Kesimpulannya, perbuatan memakai selipar ketika memandu merupakan satu kesalahan bagi pemegang lesen memandu vokasional (GDL dan PSV). Untuk pemandu kenderaan peribadi, anda bebas untuk memakai apa sahaja ketika memandu.

Walaupun penguatkuasa tak berapa tekankan tentang perkara ini, tetapi atas faktor keselamatan, anda sangatlah digalakkan untuk sentiasa memakai kasut ketika memandu.

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All-New 2018 Kia Cerato To Debut At Detroit

Kia is fast picking up in many parts of the world, but one of their stronger markets is Australia.
GoAuto reports
 that the all-new Kia Cerato is going to debut at the upcoming Detroit Auto Show next year, promising to be safer and more sophisticated than the outgoing model. The sedan variant is expected to arrive in Australia in the middle of 2018, with the hatchback coming a few months after. It's likely to be based on the Kia Novo concept that debuted at Seoul 2 years ago.
In Australia, Kia aims to move 20,000 Ceratos this year and to exceed that figure next year. They're banking on this all-new model to boost sales, despite the fact that they've already exceeded their sale figures from 2016. Part of this expected improvement in sales will likely be to higher specifications. The current model scores a 5 Star ANCAP rating, but it will need more in terms of active safety to qualify for a 5 Star rating in 2018. Forward Collision Warning and Lane Departure Warning are amongst the systems that are expected to be included.
Currently, the Kia Cerato is offered in our market as a sedan and coupe, with 2 variants for the sedan: a naturally aspirated 1.6-litre engine (130 PS, 157 Nm), and a naturally aspirated 2.0-litre engine (152 PS, 192 Nm). The coupe is offered with a singular turbocharged 1.6-litre mill (204 PS, 265 Nm). The 1.6-litre sedan goes for RM 94,406.20, the 2.0-litre sedan goes for RM 121,266.47, annd the turbo 1.6-litre coupe goes for RM 135,888.00- all prices on-the-road, exclusive of insurance.


All Of The Lights - A Deepavali Special

Automotive lighting has come a long way from just headlamps and tail lamps. Being the festival of lights, let's go through all of the different kinds of lighting you can find in a car.

Does a car really need more than a pair of good headlamps and tail lamps? Not really, but one can't deny that the various other lighting elements in a modern car really help to add a level of luxury and complexity that elevate the experience to another level. Seeing as we're on the approach to Deepavali, the festival of lights, let's run down all the various lights you can find on a car.

Headlamps

Halogen, bi-xenon, HID, LED, laser light - these are all the main lighting elements that have lit the way for motorists over the last few decades, in order of modernity. Each step has seen a great improvement in visibility, in terms of range, spread, and clarity. The most modern iterations of headlights even actively adjust the beam pattern via computer control to avoid blinding oncoming traffic.

Tail lamps

Sometime in the 1970s, tail-lamps started to become integrated as single units rather than individual bulbs spread across the rear of a vehicle. Nowadays it's common to find that a single tail lamp unit will house a brake light, reverse light, signal light, fog lamp, and of course the regular lighting elements that switch on in low-light conditions. Technology has gone from regular filament bulbs, to LEDs, and now even intricate designs thanks to filament technology which can produce curved lighting elements.

Fog lamps

While fog lamps were largely popular and a legal requirement in many countries (that actually had thick fog), they have been slowly phased out and integrated into the main headlamp cluster rather than being individual units sat in the front apron of a car. The function of a fog lamp is to provide better illumination as fog tends to sit a little higher off the road, and a fog lamp would be able to shine underneath in order to provide a little better visibility.

Daytime Running Lights

Perhaps the largest and most prolific styling addition in the last decade is the Daytime Running Light, or DRL. Equal parts style and safety, DRLs became common first as a standalone item on certain cars, and then eventually being integrated into the headlamp cluster as well. The name says it all: these lights turn on even during the day, and while bright enough to be visible they aren't designed for lighting the road ahead. They are a legal requirement in Europe as it greatly improves visibility of cars in your mirrors.

Cornering Lights

Something that has long been phased out in favour of newer technology is the cornering light, but it was a novel idea that greatly improved visibility when, well, going around corners. The idea was that if you turned right or left, an additional light facing that direction would come on and provide extra illumination in the direction of the corner - and for the most part these systems worked pretty well. Nowadays, cars have adaptive headlight systems that will redirect the main headlamp beam in the direction of steering - but this old-school system was even found on some Proton Satrias and Wiras!

Puddle Lamps

This is something that's still fairly limited to high end cars, but still a really nice feature to have and something we hope will eventually trickle down to the mass market. Puddle lamps are those little lights that illuminate the ground near the doors, either when you unlock or open the door. They're designed to help you avoid puddles, mud, or other kinds of nastiness you may step in - and in general they're a really nice touch, especially when combined with motifs or designs specific to the car.

Ambient Lighting

What was once perhaps a little excessive or tacky, ambient lighting has really increased in popularity as execution and refinement have made it quite a pleasant look for a car at night. Many luxury cars come with ambient lighting around the cabin - some offering three colours, while some going as far as offering an infinite range. Done right, ambient lighting can make a car as aesthetically appealing as a lounge, and helps to stave off a feeling of emptiness when rolling down a dark highway or back road.

Starlight headliners

This is something that we don't see anywhere besides Rolls Royce, and understandably so as executed poorly it could look incredibly bad. The starlight headliner mimics what a starry night sky would look like, but it's more than just your 1960s-era Star Trek effect with holes poked in a sheet of cloth. Fibre optics are used, and the pattern is painstakingly made with 1,400 to 1,600 holes even arranged in a constellation if you so desire. The inspiration behind this? A specific customer who had extreme light sensitivity, and could only read by starlight out at his ranch. Talk about going the distance.


The Idiot's Guide To Vehicle Tinting In Malaysia

For most of us, installing a sharp looking tint package is possibly the first thing we do after buying a new car or even second-hand car but it's also the first mistake many car owners make.

This is because, for most consumers, it's easy to get muddled up with the technicalities of window tinting films. Think about it: even changing your tires is easier.

 Vehicle Tinting In Malaysia

Jargon such as film thickness, Visible Light Transmission (VLT) and UV protection are commonly thrown around, not to mention the plethora of brands promising the same thing but with huge variation in prices. It can be a bit unnerving (picking the right tint package) even for someone with a reasonably good understanding of cars.

Regardless of whether you own a family hatchback or an executive vehicle, it's important to understand these simple tips the next time you are looking at tinting your car.

Tint Legality

Under the watch of former Malaysian transport minister Anthony Loke, who changed the legality of minimum visible light transmission (VLT), Malaysians were allowed to tint their vehicle with 70% VLT at the front windscreen, 50% VLT on the front two windows, and go as dark as you want on the rear windows.

This created some controversy as some commented that technically, people could go ask dark as they wanted and create a panel vehicle (like those commercial vehicles with no windows at the rear of their automobiles). To add on to the controversy, private vehicle owners could go completely dark at the front too, and all they had to do was apply for it, which would incur some costs. It was set this way to help people with medical conditions, but we all know some VIPs who took advantage of this situation.

How dark is too dark?

Darker tints means cooler cabin: this is a common misconception peddled by shady tint installers to try and make a quick buck. Darker coloured tints don't necessarily offer better heat and UV rejection. The effectiveness of any tint is dependent on the properties and construction of the film layer(s) and not the colour of the tint itself. In some cases, a darker tint will even attract more heat – compounding the problem.

Heat rejection properties are more important than the physical appearance of the tint. Drivers also need to strike a good balance between outward visibility and darkness of the tint. A darker tint might appear fine in the day, but not at night. Dark tints can make even simple act of parking in the rain at night unnecessarily difficult, because even reverse cameras won't be of much help in the rain.

As a general rule of thumb, tints for the front windows and windscreen should have a VLT of no less than 50%, while the ones for the rear should not go below 30%.

Understanding security tints

You might have seen promotional videos of security tints that can secure a window when repeatedly smashed with a baseball bat. Such tints don't exist. What was done was that the installer had layered multiple layers of film onto the window. This is not feasible for your car as doing so will distort the outward view and the increased thickness adds stress to the car's power window regulator. In other words, it is not possible for the security film installed on your car to perform like the demonstration you saw.

Security films merely make it harder to break the glass but it doesn't make it unbreakable. The only unbreakable windows are bulletproof ones used by armoured vehicles, and those windows can't be wound down.

Different tints for different needs

Not all car windows are the same, thus there isn't one solution for every car. For instance, the windscreen of a Toyota Vios and a Mercedes-Benz S-Class will have widely varying features in terms of construction, thickness, factory coating, and acoustic properties.

Contrary to what many tint shop dealers are promoting, there is no perfect tint. Different films have different properties, each with their own pros and cons - hence why premium tinting films come in so many varieties. A good window tinting service provider will first seek to understand your needs and the type of vehicle you are using, rather than pushing the same tinting product to every customer.

Warranty and quality

Do you know where the tinting/security film that you are purchasing comes from? Just because the film says Brand X, it doesn't mean that it is manufactured and guaranteed by Brand X. Many tinting film brands are merely just that - a generic OEM brand stamped on a generic film purchased from a generic supplier.

While OEM products are common on all consumer products today, tints manufactured in-house typically have a higher quality. Of course, these higher-quality films cost more. Enquire also about the terms and conditions of the warranty, not just the period of coverage.

From our observation, cheap tints are usually really dark film tints, and the colour of these tints are not really black. They typically have some green hue to it, which makes them look off. Expensive tints do not need to be very dark to be effective, and the colour of the film is that nice crisp black colour with no green or blue hue. They just look classier and work to keep the cabin cool without the need of making the windows very dark.

We hope you're a little more informed after this about tints which should make you harder to cheat the next time you're in the market for a tint. Forearmed is forewarned after all.

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Ford Thailand Shows You How To Load Your Pickup Properly

While pickup trucks may offer a huge amount of boot space and lots of flexibility in terms of how you load your cargo, there are still a lot of ways this can go wrong. You see it from time to time, with objects strewn by the side of the road after escaping from the cargo area of a pickup, or perhaps swinging around precariously. Even if you don't load your cargo bed up to full capacity, it can be a tricky problem in itself.
But Ford Thailand is here to help you with a couple of simple tips. If you don't know what they're saying in the video above, just read on below and try to follow along with it.
1. Get a sticky mat for your truck bed
If you’re worried about things sliding around in the back of your truck and getting damaged, a truck bed mat is a simple and effective solution. A mat can keep your tools and goods safe, and stop them from falling out onto the road.
2. Put small items in a tool box
There is nothing worse than getting out after a long drive to a job and having to fish around in every corner of the truck for what you need. Putting small objects in tool boxes will keep things neat and tidy, and save you a potential headache.
3. Load heavy items toward the front
If you have any heavy items in your load they should go at the front of the truck bed. That way the truck’s center of gravity will stay more stable as you drive, keeping you and your goods safe.
4. Wrap things up tightly
Tape, cable ties and cling film can be used to hold items tightly together so that there is no chance of them coming loose and causing trouble as you commute to and from jobs.
5. Tighten loose items
If anything is in danger of slipping around, strap it down with a ratchet strap. This way, when you’re taking corners and conquering road bumps, your load will stay in place.
6. Attach a flag to oversize items
If you are carrying any loads that reach over the edge of the truck bed, attaching a red and yellow flag can help other road users and pedestrians see them more clearly and avoid accidents.
7.  Secure everything
Once the last item is loaded, use ratchet straps to secure everything as tightly as you can so that nothing is in danger of falling out of the truck, and hurting your wallet, or another person, in the process. If you don’t have ratchet straps to hand, rope can do the job too.


First Ever 2020 BMW X3 M Competition Arrives - 510 hp, RM886k

BMW Malaysia has introduced the first-ever X3 M Competition, further expanding the brand’s premium performance SUV offerings.

Since it is a full-blown M Competition model, the X3 M, compared to the regular X3, looks much more aggressive, with exterior features that include a distinctive front apron with large, hexagonal air intakes, adaptive LED headlights, M Sport exhaust system, four black chrome tailpipes, as well as 21-inch bicolour M light alloy wheels.

Further complementing the exterior are goodies like the adaptive M suspension system, as well as blacked out kidney grille surrounds, side gills, and wing mirror caps. The BMW X3 M Competition also features a slim diffuser in high-gloss Black and an M-specific roof spoiler.

Powering the new X3 M Competition is a newly-developed 3.0-litre M TwinPower Turbo straight-six petrol engine that produces 510 hp and 600 Nm of torque, enabling the model to hit a top speed of 250km/h (limited) and do the century sprint in merely 4.1 seconds. Fuel consumption on the other hand, stands at 10.6 litres of fuel per 100km.

Sending all the power to all four wheels is an eight-speed M Steptronic transmission with Drivelogic – capable of performing automatic or manual gear changes via the gear selector lever or the shift paddles on the steering wheel.

Three Drivelogic modes are available - Efficient, Sport, and Sport Plus – for extremely short shift times. The chassis of the new BMW M model has also been upgraded with a high proportion of M-specific components for even sportier driving characteristics – improving not just performance but handling and lateral dynamics as well.

The M xDrive intelligent all-wheel drive also allows for conventional variable power distribution, or a Sport mode with even more pronounced and dynamic rear-wheel bias.

Inside, the cockpit of the X3 M Competition feature entry sills bearing the M model designation, front seats with active seat ventilation and lumbar support, special trim levels, M leather steering wheel with shift paddles, red M Drive buttons, and a red Start/Stop button.

These are complemented by the redesigned M gear selector lever and the three-level controls for the engine, damper and steering responses.

Further M-specific highlights found in the new X3 M Competition include interior trim finishers in 'Carbon Fibre', decorative seams in BMW M colours, M seatbelts, M pedals, along with an M-specific instrument cluster, and knee pads.

In terms of luggage capacity, the X3 M Competition has a boot space of 550 litres that can be increased to 1,600 litres.

Where safety and driver assistance are concerned, the X3 M Competition benefits from a Head-Up Display with M-specific display variants, Parking Assistant Plus featuring Surround View and Remote 3D Service, Driving Assistant Plus and Parking Assistant Plus, automatic tailgate operation, and ConnectedDrive Services.

Infotainment on the other hand, is being taken care of via a 10.25-inch Control Display that can be operated via the iDrive controller, by touch, and the BMW Gesture Control. There is also a Harman Kardon surround-sound system with 600W amplifier power, nine channels and 16 speakers.

Priced at RM 886,552 on the road minus insurance and SST, the new X3 M Competition can be owned with monthly instalment plans starting from RM 10,118.

The SUV also comes with the complete BMW Group Malaysia Premium Ownership experience which includes BMW 5-Year Unlimited Mileage Warranty with Free Scheduled Service Programme, BMW Roadside Assistance and Accident Hotline, BMW Group Loyalty+ Mobile App – BMW Privileges Card, as well as BMW Service Online.

For a limited time only, BMW Group Malaysia is also offering special programmes and campaigns for a range of BMW M models from 15th August to 30th September 2020.

The Limited-Time M Town Special Support offers new owners of the BMW M2 Competition, BMW M4 Coupé, BMW M5 Sedan, BMW M850i xDrive Coupé an attractive price reduction of RM25,000, RM45,000, RM70,000 and RM75,000 respectively.


2022 Kia Carnival (CKD) To Get Full ADAS Features, Bose Audio, Dual Sunroof

Kia is pretty much on the cusp of launching the locally assembled 2022 Kia Carnival version of their newest MPV that debuted on Malaysian soil in late 2021.

Since its initial appearance
 as a fully imported (CBU) vehicle in a sole 11-seat configuration, the public has been anticipating the eventual emergence of a better-equipped, possibly cheaper 4th-generation (KA4) Carnival from new local distributors Dinamikjaya Motors.

2022 Kia Carnival CKD - but not cheaper

As was previously reported
, a Kia dealer in the Seri Kembangan area has been pretty liberal with information about the yet-to-be-launched MPV in locally assembled form in addition to accepting new bookings.

Now, the same dealership has published more detailed specifications of the incoming models alongside comparisons against the 11-seat CBU Carnival, which will presumably be discontinued once the current inventory is depleted. Interestingly, with a starting price of around RM235,000, it’s priced considerably higher than the RM196k version that was sold previously.

Clearly, Kia is hoping to compensate for this price bump with a much longer list of standard equipment, but it has yet to be seen if customers will also agree.

The powertrain is
carried over unchanged
 with all variants powered by a 2.2-litre turbodiesel four-cylinder that outputs 202PS and 440Nm of torque that sends power to the front wheels via an 8-speed automatic transmission.

In terms of the exterior, there shouldn’t be much to differentiate between them as they should share the same body colour options as well as a set of 18-inch wheels.

Besides the seat count, this ‘entry-level’ CKD version will essentially come fitted with all the kit already found on the CBU version such as the analogue gauge cluster but adds a 12-speaker Bose audio system.

7-seat or 8-seat Kia Carnival?

Above this, buyers will get the option of a ‘High-Spec’ range-topper Carnival but have the option of choosing a 7-seat or 8-seat cabin. Upgrades include a 12.3-inch fully digital instrument cluster, dual powered sunroofs, heated/ventilated front seats, and LED interior lighting.

Importantly, it’s this variant that receives a full suite of active safety and driver aid features above the 360-degree camera system, Rear Cross Traffic Alert, and Blind Spot Monitoring that the CBU version had and will now be shared by the CKD 8-seater (Mid).

Beyond this, the incoming top rung Carnival will get High Beam Assist, Smart Cruise Control, Lane Keep Assist, Driver Attention Warning, and Forward Collision Avoidance (AEB) with Junction Turning.

We’ll have to wait and see if Kia’s new distributors will continue to offer the 11-seater as a locally assembled variant but judging against the relatively small number of buyers that actually need that sort of carrying capacity, it’s likely that 8 occupants are to be the maximum capacity going forward.


2017 All-New Hyundai Elantra, New Tucson T-GDI Tentative Prices Revealed

Hyundai-Sime Darby Motors (HSDM) will be launching two new models soon, the all-new 2017 Elantra and updated 2017 Tucson T-GDI. The company had earlier
teased
 the Tucson T-GDI and
bookings
 for the all-new Elantra are open.
Thanks to a tipoff by one of our readers, we now know the details of the two upcoming Hyundai models, though these are unofficial.
Starting with the 2017 Hyundai Tucson T-GDI, here are the tentative full specifications:
According to the pricelist, the 2017 Hyundai Tucson T-GDI will have a tentative price of RM149,890, OTR with insurance.
Moving on, we have the upcoming all-new 2017 Hyundai Elantra, which will be available in three trim levels.
Starting from the Elantra 2.0 Executive, buyers will tentatively receive these kit:

According to the price list, the entry-level 2017 Hyundai Elantra 2.0 Executive could be retailing for RM119,899, whilst the Elantra 2.0 Dynamic could be priced at RM124,237. The turbocharged Elantra 1.6 could be priced at RM135,404. All prices are OTR with insurance. All prices stated above are tentative as Hyundai Malaysia has yet to officially debut these models.
Thanks Laura for sending these in!


Cara Aktifkan Kad NFC Touch 'n Go Guna Telefon Pintar

Touch ‘n Go
 bakal melancarkan
Enhanced Touch ‘n Go Card
 atau dipanggil kad TNG generasi baharu yang dilengkapi dengan ciri NFC (
Near Field Communication
).

Baru-baru ini, pihak TNG telah berkongsi beberapa buah video berkenaan kad baharu tersebut di saluran YouTube mereka namun video itu telah dipadamkan kerana ia dipercayai telah tersebar tanpa sengaja.

Kad NFC Touch 'n Go

Tidak lama lagi, TNG bakal melancarkan kemudahan menambah nilai kad fizikal baharu mereka yang dilengkapi fungsi baharu NFC yang membolehkan pengguna menambah nilai kad fizikal melalui aplikasi TNG
eWallet
 sahaja.

Kad fizikal yang sedang digunakan oleh TNG pada ketika ini tidak dilengkapi dengan ciri NFC. Ini bermakna pengguna perlu membeli kad
Enhanced Touch ‘n Go
 baharu untuk menggunakan fungsi tersebut.

Dengan kad Enhanced Touch ‘n Go, pengguna boleh menambah nilai kad fizikal mereka tanpa perlu ke kiosk,
stesen minyak
, 7-Eleven atau kaunter perkhidmatan tanpa sebarang yuran tambahan
.

Cara Aktifkan Kad NFC TNG

Fungsi ini boleh digunakan bagi peranti iOS dan Android yang mempunyai ciri NFC sahaja

Pautkan kad tersebut ke aplikasi eWallet untuk semak baki serta tambah nilai

Tambah nilai kad menggunakan baki eWallet

Letakkan kad baharu dibelakang telefon pintar selama 5 saat

Selain itu, baki kad baharu itu juga akan diasingkan dari baki eWallet, sama seperti kad fizikal sedia ada ketika ini.

Mana Nak beli Kad NFC TNG?

Berdasarkan video yang tersebar itu, kad baharu TNG dengan fungsi NFC ini boleh didapati secara terus di aplikasi TNG eWallet, sama seperti proses membeli
Tag RFID
 melalui aplikasi terbabit.

Selain itu, video itu juga memaparkan bahawa kad ini dijual pada harga RM10 tidak termasuk caj penghantaran.

Menurut perkongsian sebuah portal gajet dan teknologi, jurujual TNG di NU Sentral berkata ciri tambah nilai secara NFC menggunakan aplikasi TNG eWallet dijangka mungkin hanya aktif sekitar bulan Mei nanti.

Pada awalnya, pihak TNG telah pun menjual kad NFC ini kepada umum, namun ia telah diberhentikan atas sebab yang tidak diketahui. Mungkin ingin menunggu tarikh pelancarannya.

Kalau ada yang tidak sabar, anda boleh mendapatkan kad NFC ini di platform jual beli atas talian dengan harga yang lebih tinggi. Walau bagaimanapun, fungsi baharu tambah nilai melalui NFC ini hanya akan boleh digunakan apabila kad baharu ini dilancarkan secara rasmi kelak.

*Kredit foto: Soya Cincau


Porsche GT3 Driver Survived Unbelievable Crash

It's amazing how a relatively gentle prod can send a car into an exploding cluster fug of dirt and metal. It's also amazing how Pedro Piquet (Nelson Piquet's son) remain unscathed, and it's super amazing why many claim one-make races are boring.


Budget 2016: No Tolls on Pan-Borneo Expressway

Despite all the headlines we are seeing about the recent hikes in toll rates around the Klang Valley, Prime Minister Najib Razak has pledged that the 1,090km Pan-Borneo Expressway, will be toll-free when it is completed.
According to Najib Razak at today’s tabling of the 2016 Budget, the 1,090km Pan-Borneo Expressway - which stretches from Sarawak to Sabah - is expected to be finished in 2021 at an estimated cost of RM16.1 billion. To add to that, the government will also be building a 706km highway from Sindumin to Tawau in Sabah at an estimated cost of RM12.8 billion next year.


New Honda HR-V Facelift Launched In Thailand – Adds LaneWatch And AEB

The new facelifted Honda HR-V is now on sale in Thailand. The updated five-seater crossover can be differentiated from its predecessor by the new front bumper, and new grille. A new Civic-style reflector-type LED headlamp also replaces the previous model’s projector-type LED units.
The tube-pattern LED tail lights are different from the ones we have here on our Malaysia-assembled HR-V but note that this tail light was already available in Thailand as an optional item since the pre-facelift HR-V. The new facelift model’s merely adds an ornamental material on the housing.
Highlights of the new model are the addition of LaneWatch camera-based blind spot monitoring system, autonomous emergency braking (AEB, or City Brake Active System as Honda calls it), and the introduction of a new RS variant, which adds a sporty bodykit and different design 17-inch wheels.
LaneWatch was previously only available on the CR-V and Accord. It works only on the passenger-side and uses a camera located under the left-side wing mirror to feed video stream of the rear-left section of the vehicle, the area most susceptible to blind spot, into the infotainment display screen every time the left-side indicator is used.
City Brake Assist is a simpler, lower cost version of the Collision Mitigation Braking System (CMBS) feature used by the CR-V and Accord’s Honda Sensing suite of driving assistance features. It works on a similar principle as CMBS, but at lower speed ranges of below 30 km/h. It also prevents the car from lurching forward to an obstacle in front due to pedal misapplication.
The Thailand-market HR-V also comes with a panoramic sunroof but this feature was already available in higher range variants of the pre-facelift HR-V.
The powertrain is unchanged, with the same 1.8-litre SOHC i-VTEC naturally aspirated petrol four-cylinder petrol engine driving the front wheels via a CVT-type automatic transmission.
There are three variants on offer, with prices ranging from THB 949,000 to THB 1,059,000.


Honda SUV RS Concept Didedahkan Di GIIAS 2021

Buat julung kalinya, Honda secara rasminya telah mempertontonkan model SUV RS Concept di Gaikindo Indonesia International Auto Show (GIIAS) 2021.

Honda SUV RS Concept merupakan
SUV
 pertama yang ditawarkan dalam varian RS. Reka bentuknya kompak, sporty dan agresif sememangnya bakal menjadi buruan pembeli muda yang gemarkan SUV bersaiz kecil.

Sekali pandang, warna tema pada Honda SUV RS Concept ini kelihatan seperti
7 model Edisi khas
 yang yang pernah dikeluarkan oleh
Honda Malaysia
 pada tahun ini. Ia menggunakan gabungan hitam putih bersama kemasan merah.

Rupa depannya agak garang dan bercirikan futuristik dengan penggunaan lampu utama yang tiris sambil ditemani DRL bersama beberapa jalur
LED
pendek di hujungnya. Bahagian grilnya pula dihiasi dengan elemen petak yang berwarna hitam putih yang segar dan agak berlainan dengan gril yang ada pada
HR-V
.

Oleh kerana SUV RS Concept ini lebih kecil berbanding HR-V, bahagian sisinya kelihatan agak seksi dengan penggunaan rim, wheel arch, bumbung dan cermin sisi berwarna hitam. Rel bumbung turut tersedia pada model ini. Bahagian belakang kereta ini pula dilengkapi dengan lampu LED yang memanjang dan bersambung ke logo Honda yang berada di tengah.

SUV kompak 5 tempat duduk ini telah direka di Thailand sebelum dipertontonkan pada umum buat pertama kalinya di Indonesia. Buat masa ini, model tersebut masih lagi belum lagi dijual di pasaran Indonesia mahupun pasaran lain di dunia.

Persoalan seterusnya, adakah Honda SUV RS Concept ini akan diperkenalkan sebagai Honda ZR-V kelak? Walaupun masih terlalu awal untuk berkata demikian, namun kalau nak diikutkan, segala petanda yang diberikan memang menuju ke arah itu. Menurut khabar angin yang sedang hangat tersebar buat masa ini, Honda ZR-V akan dibina berasaskan daripada
Honda BR-V
 dan dari kerangka Honda Amaze di India.

Honda Indonesia juga mengesahkan bahawa model ini bakal ditawarkan di pasaran Asia Tenggara, termasuk pasaran Malaysia. Jika model ini diperkenalkan sebagai Honda ZR-V di Malaysia kelak, ia pasti akan memberi saingan sengit kepada SUV kompak keluaran tempatan iaitu
Perodua Ativa
.

Perincian lebih menyeluruh masih lagi tidak diketahui seperti rangkaian kuasa, ciri keselamatan dan dimensi kereta. Perincian lain dijangka akan didedahkan kepada umum dalam masa beberapa minggu lagi.


Fast & Furious 8 Trailer 2 – When Autonomous Cars Go Rogue

The upcoming eighth installment of the Fast and Furious franchise will hitting the silver screens next month. From the first trailer, we have been told by the new movie’s plot will centre around Vin Diesel’s Dominic Toretto character going rogue, betraying his friends.
Now, the second trailer to the upcoming movie has shed a bit more light. Not only is Toretto going rogue, but the villain in the movie, a new character named Cipher played Charlize Theron, possess a technology that is able to take control autonomous/semi-autonomous driving cars and turn them into mobile remote-controlled weapons.