Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Economic Stimulus? On Blogging and on certain events in the Automotive World

Ah, that's more like it. A RM60 BILLION stimulus package is what we all need. Provided the money reaches the general public instead of going through some politician's campaign fund first. Aside from that, let's add some figures to the picture. America, the main cause of this current economic turmoil is spending USD$200 Trillion and our neighbours are spending SGD$21 billion. I suppose our package is somewhat 'reasonable', before you take into account the fact that Singapore has about 7 million people to feed compared to at least 27 million of us here. America has around 290million people by the way. You guys do the math. Is the economic package big enough?

On another note, it's been fun blogging for the past two and a half years. Of course, this blog doesn't read like most blogs, where some would write on what they had for breakfast, what they had for lunch and then what they had for dinner. What dress they choose to wear today, yesterday or tomorrow. What they feel about the current political scenario or what pictures or poems they took or wrote. On an average, I write about 1.5 articles per month and since this blog's been around for almost 3 years, do feel free to browse what I've written previously.

On an automotive note, I am pretty happy that the new Honda City looks like a car instead of another tadpole on stilts. I truly despise the previous one. There is no other car that's as horrifying to own. Well, maybe the Hyundai Accent (also the previous one with all those stupid RX-S badging and fake scoops) as that car is so anonymous that a lamp post outshines it.

I also somehow pleased that most of my friends and relatives choose to purchase somewhat different from the norm automobiles. The recent being my wife's cousin, who is a somewhat happy owner of a Toyota Caldina GT4. I told him that it was a better alternative than one of those Toyota Wish or Estimas that everyone who's married with kids wants to own. He recently got married and all the best to him.

At his wedding reception his government contractor friend with a Mercedes E55 look a like was there. Now he has gone nearly the whole hog to transform his W211 E240 into a quasi-E55. The only difference is the 6 cylinder hum from the engine and a lack of a humongous rear diff that the E55 has. This a a chap who paid almost RM25K for a set of AMG brakes to make the look complete. The things people do to achieve automotive bliss.

I have to give a big hand to the guy who owns the blue Lancer Evolution 7.10. I'd say his ride is now an EVO 7 point 10 on the richter scale. It has everything and safely pumps at least 450bhp at the engine. This is after meticulous research, a brilliant mechanic and an owner who does not cut corners to achieve a target. Another way to achieve automotive bliss. But I'd hate to be the passenger in that car right now. When it had 350bhp at the engine I was slight nauseous, with 450bhp, I'd destroy his car mats.

On a closing note. Now that there are 3 lanes on the North-South highway. Things are so much better for me. I don't mind travelling North or even South. My last trip to Singapore took me 3 hours with a 45 minute break at Air Keroh, Melaka. And last weekend, traveling back from Muar took a decent time even with ridiculously heavy traffic due to the recent 3 day weekend. It should have been done years ago.