Some Photographs and A Few Interesting Postings on MyAutoBlog by Yours Truly.....

Hello again. I have been pretty busy travelling around the Peninsular recently. I made a 2 trips down South. One to Muar, Johor and one more to the Lion City for a change of air. I basically went to someplace a little more hectic but surprisingly more organized than Kuala Lumpur, so it was good.

The 'murtabak singapore' at Zam Zam and at Victory next door ( both pictured above) is nice on a Sunday morning, or for lunch or for dinner.

Oh yes. Check out this little Suzy. It is smaller than a Jimny SJ413. But it has chunky off-road tires, taller suspension and all the off-road goodies. I wonder if this little car does leave the island for off-road jaunts in Malaysia.

Now I've not been quiet on the writing front. I have been writing new pieces for MyAutoBlog.org.

The following are some that I think are worthy to share in here...........................
1. The Beacham Jaguar MkII.  You now don't have to send that Jag of yours for a modernization in the UK anymore. Click here to read the article.

2. Gordon Murray's T25. A nice small car concept. I like small cars. The original Mini is one of my favourite drives and so was my 2nd Gen Honda Civic. Of course, this is smaller than my Civic, and smaller slightly than the Mini. Go here to see some pics and a writeup about it.

3. Drive a black car? Some more useless research conducted by people who want grants from the government or to show that they are doing something with taxpayer's money at all those Institutes of Higher Learning.

4. The next Suzy Swift is out. Check out how much it doesn't differ here. It may be longer, wider and taller, but it stays the same.

5.Late night shopping at Mustafa's in Little India, Singapore, a Toyota with a Subaru Scoop (even in Singapore we get mods like this) and an old W124 wagon plying the streets of Singapore at night. They don't throw out their old stuff all the time if you know what I mean. Click here for this.

Of Glee, its similarities to Kuch Kuch Hota Hai and the 2010 Satria Neo M-Line

So. Glee has become a supposed international phenomenon. Critics seem to love it and the fans, like the Trekkies from Star Trek, have called themselves 'Gleeks'. The series features numerous song covers sung on-screen by the characters and the musical segments typically take the form of performances, as opposed to the characters singing spontaneously, as the intention is for the series to remain reality-based. Or so the show's producers say. But let me tell you that Glee is nothing new to people here in Malaysia, or India for that matter.

It is like watching a Hindi or Tamil movie from Bollywood, India. People in those movies break into song and dance in the middle of something. Just like Glee. There, we get Amitabh Bachchan, Abhishek Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai, Madhuri Dixit and a brimful of Asha on the '45. These actors and actresses act in movies that have song and dance every 20 minutes or so. In Glee, we have four to five songs, where the same thing happens. People break into song and dance for no apparent reason whatsoever. Or just to look good while dancing and singing like part of an MTV music video. The only difference is that Glee is in English and not Tamil, Malayalam, Hindi, Telugu or any other Indian movie made out there nowadays.

Of course the comedy and the witty dialog would keep you anchored to your telly and watch the movie but the truth is, you're watching an Indian movie being played out in English. Even I find it quite entertaining actually. BUT there is nothing for you to think that Glee is a super cool television program that is totally innovative and unique. It is a Hindi/Tamil/Telugu etc movie adapted for television and then to English. Actually if you wanted to watch people singing, go to a concert, open up YouTube or go to your local pub.

Imagine Glee without the song and dance, would you bother watching it? Imagine watching the hit Hindi movie Kuch Kuch Hota Hai without the song and dance. So you tell me how cool is that then? There. I've said it. It is actually the same thing. So all you Gleeks out there should just borrow or buy some Indian movies and you can get the same high in a different language.

So in the words of Mr “Everything Comes From India” from the BBC series 'Goodness Gracious Me', Glee is Indian (as is Mona Lisa, Leonardo DaVinci, the Queen, etc). There. I've gotten it off of my chest. Now let's talk about cars again.

The Proton Satria Neo is one car which really does not fit me. My good friend recently got one for his wife to use, which is all very fine as the wife is petite. Unlike yours truly who keeps hiting his head everytime he enters the car. I even hit my head trying to adjust the seat. I really forgot about how low the roof of this car was as the only time I actually sat in a Satrio Neo was at the launching and if I remembered properly I hit my head then too.

And yes. That sunshade is utterly useless as it blocks the view completely if you are taller than 5foot 7inches and drive in a proper, straight up position.

Anyway, since I've already complained about this fact before in one of my very first articles (do browse through my earlier stuff and see if you can find it) I'll move on to something different about the Satria Neo aside from the iffy build quality of the car my friend bought. Which was a noisy air-condition blower that goes 'RRRRRRRRRR' if you set it more than one-thirds of the blower speed (lucky being a Proton it was still cold at the speed) and that the seat won't ratchet. Which is really rubbish since the Satria Neo has been around for around four years. Warranty claim will be made on both issues at the 1000km service.

But the main gripe of this article and in true journalistic (or artistic) license I shall harp about the problem of the Satria Neo when you have to use the car at night.

As you can see, the main meter cluster is very nice to look at at night. So is the radio and air-condition controls.

But as soon as you look at the gear gate, you go 'Ahhhh, it has an old world glow to it' ...like it was from a bakelite cased radio that is backlit by a reddish, yellowish glow from a time long forgotten. The 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. Or at the very best, a meter cluster that is lighted from from the 1970s that makes the fonts look blurry and dull.

Basically what I am stating here is that the gear gate is lighted up really badly. It looks like something from days long gone. It does not even properly match the glow from the radio and air conditioned controls. Why is it so hard for this car manufacturer to get even a simple thing like this right? The picture on this does not show the difference as much as I wanted to. But if you have the chance of sitting in a Satria Neo when its dark, you should try looking at the gear gate area when its lighted up.

The great thing was this fact was pointed out by my friend. Basically his statement summed up the car. “The car isn't that bad with the faults that I've found (the blower, the faulty driver's seat and that ugly glow) as the car only cost RM51,000. ” he said. But then just a second later he added “Actually no. It's actually bad, very bad.”

Yes. The Satria Neo M-Line looks good, handles very well (great chassis – you should try it) and now with the IAFM module does not have that stupid torque dip. But again, it is let down by impracticality (for taller people), iffy quality and that retro-when-its-not -supposed-to-be back lit gear gate.

Oh yeah. My friend got the car about 3 weeks ago. This was the car on the first day of ownership. New 17inch rims replaced the stock 16inch rims and tires.

After the second week the car now has a full R3 styled bodykit and does not even look like this anymore. Sometimes my friends really surprise the heck out of me. I may post pictures of it soon in full drag.

Two Articles of Mine on CarThrottle.Com For Your Reading Pleasure

I've got two new articles of mine on carthrottle.com. Click here to read about Lady Gaga, Too Much Money and Mad Cars and here to read about Why I am not too keen on  Hybrid and Electric Cars. Of course I have written about this on myautoblog before, but this is an expanded and a little more detailed article than before. Enjoy.

Racing with the Proton Saga -

Hello. Today I have decided to showcase our venerable and not so good to drive 1st Malaysian car on CarThrottle.com. I somehow believe that if I write stuff like this and the previous piece on the time attack at Sepang people elsewhere will find out more about us in this part of the world. Click here to read about it.

C'était un Rendez-vous ("It Was A Date")

A minor masterpiece in my opinion. And again in my opinion would never be repeated. We let the Wikipedia explanation of the short film tell you guys a bit about it. I think such a movie would and could never again be shot in any city street like the way it was shot. No stunt doubles, just pure madness (up to a level that is). Click here to view the film.

"The film shows an eight-minute drive through Paris in the early hours of the morning (05:30hrs), accompanied by sounds of a high-reving engine, gear changes and squealing tires. It starts in a tunnel of the Paris Périphérique at Porte Dauphine, with an onboard view from an unseen car exiting up on a ramp (and from there following this route) to Avenue Foch. Well-known landmarks such as the Arc de Triomphe, Opéra Garnier, and Place de la Concorde with its obelisk are passed, as well as the Champs-Élysées. Pedestrians are passed, pigeons sitting on the streets are scattered, red lights are ignored, one-way streets are driven up the wrong way, center lines are crossed, the car drives on the sidewalk to avoid a garbage truck. The car is never seen as the camera seems to be attached below the front bumper (judging from the relative positions of other cars, the visible headlight beam and the final shot when the car is parked in front of a curb on Montmartre, with the famous Sacré Cœur Basilica behind, and out of shot). Here, the driver gets out and embraces a young blonde woman as bells ring in the background, with the famous backdrop of Paris. Shot in a single take, it is an example of cinéma-vérité. The length of the film was limited by the short capacity of the 1000 foot 35mm film reel, and filmed from a (supposedly) gyro-stabilised camera mounted on the bumper of a Mercedes-Benz 450SEL 6.9. A photo has surfaced that seems to reveal an Eclair cam-flex 35mm camera with a wide angle lens, and a typical "speed rail" hard mount - no gyros - on a Mercedes. This model, which could reach a top speed of 235 km/h (146 mph), was only available with a 3-speed automatic transmission. Yet, one can hear gear changes up into 5th, as well as heel-and-toe down-shifting with a high-revving engine indicating speeds of well over 200 km/h. Calculations made by several independent groups showed that the car never exceeded 140 km/h (85 mph). Lelouch himself claimed that the top speed achieved was over 200 km/h, somewhere between 230 km/h and 240 km/h. It is suggested that the soundtrack was dubbed with the sound of Lelouch's Ferrari 275GTB, which has a corresponding number of gears and a V-12 sound that is quite distinct from that of any V8, including the 6.9 liter V8 of the alleged Mercedes camera car.

A making-of-the-rendezvous documentary indicates that Lelouch himself was the driver, that the car driven was the Mercedes, although the sound track is from a Ferrari. One observer was posted, with a walkie talkie, close to the Louvre palace at the only blind junction (archway) to assist the driver, however Lelouch has revealed that the radios failed, and if the assistant had tried to warn him of a pedestrian the message would not have been received.

In 2002 Spirit Level Film and Lelouch restored and re-mastered Rendezvous from the original 35 mm negative and released it on DVD.

Comments attributed to Lelouch indicate that he acknowledges the moral outrage over his method of shooting this film as valid. He also states that he was prepared to take the risks in making the film, but that he however was also ready to drop it if he came across any unexpected risk (pedestrian, hurdle, etc.)."

Anyway it was 1976, long ago...but it was bloody marvelous!

Old vs. New Part II: 1990 Mercedes Benz 200E W124

Hello again and welcome to Part II of the Old versus New article. Previously I wrote about the newly facelifted Proton Persona SE Elegance. It is an affordable Malaysian made car which I think is a good car to drive. Albeit with a compromised driving position. The car I drove was fresh out of Proton's car lot and was quite a decent drive. Surprisingly it also felt well screwed together. Cheap, but well put together.This car is something that I would recommend to a person who wants a sprightly drive yet is still looking for this at the lower end of the car buying spectrum.

Two Families in Malaysia Are Using The Most Pathetic Mini MPV in the World!!!!

Remember me writing about the Chana Era CV6? I never thought I'd see people actually buying the darn thing and driving it on Malaysian roads. Why would they even buy this abomination is beyond me, and beyond most of you readers out there too.

I managed to capture one of them in the photo above sometime last month. Look how obscenely narrow it is. I apologize for not taking a photo up close as I was actually amazed someone actually bought one and forgot to whip out my camera phone.

 I forgot about it, but then sometime last week I saw another one on the North South Highway somewhere near Pedas-Linggi. A man was driving it with his wife. He didn't have a paper bag over his head as I would have if I were driving it.

I then remembered about the photo I took, and I remembered that the car in the photo was driven by a lady. And it had curtains in it. It looked like some love and TLC had been put into that car. The question is why ever for?

It is sooooooo narrow that it does not look one bit proportioned. It looks like one of those reef fishes....like the one pictured below. Tall and narrow, able to squeeze between coral. The Chana? Tall and Narrow, easier to topple over when taking evasive action.

-The Chana CV8 MPV ...Really.

I suppose it is cheap at RM40K or thereabouts. You get a 1.3liter MPV with twin sliding doors, extremely hard plastic everywhere, signal and wiper stalks from a 1970s Bedford truck and the added bonus of being extremely fishy looking. Anyway, I am unpleased to report to you guys that there are two registered Chana CV8s prowling the streets of Malaysia. Oh, the Horror. The Horror.

If you spot one, do take out your cameraphone and send me a copy of this 'mini Alphard' *cough*cough*bleargh!!!!*. I'd love to print it out and burn it.

First Drive: The People's Car Model Golf GTI Mark VI

Yes. I have driven a recently produced People's Car and the article is posted on Carthrottle.com. Click on the title above or here.

Old vs New: Part I - The Proton Persona SE...oooops Persona Elegance

So its now time for me to start writing another one of my 'unbiased' points of view on a certain car or cars. The past six months have been pretty good to me in terms of motoring as I started to write for myautoblog.org and then for www.carthrottle.com. I have to thank a very old pal of mine, Chan Lee Meng of uglychickens.blogspot.com who pointed me to the direction where I should be paid for what I write as he thinks that some of my articles are pretty decent. I suppose he was right, and I therefore owe him one. Big time.

Something about the current B8 Audi A4 1.8TFSI

Click the title above or here for an opinion on the Audi A4 reliance to electronics and sensors.Written by yours truly and published on www.carthrottle.com.

A Very Car Related Saturday For Me: Two Different Rides in a Day

 

I had a chance to drive the newly facelifted Proton Persona on Saturday. It was the full spec RM59,500 Automatic SE version and I will write up something about it soon. No it isn't a supersports car or anything like that. BUT, it is actually relevant to most Malaysians looking to buy an affordable decent handling car. I drove it through the roads around Batu Tiga in Shah Alam, through the NKVE (Shah Alam to Damansara) and then towards Mont Kiara/Segambut Dalam via SPRINT - Bukit Kiara. Quite interesting.

It is 100% better to drive fast than any stock Perodua Myvi SE which sells for RM52,000. It is also better than actually spending an extra RM13,000+ on a basic Toyota Vios J with an auto box. Don't mention the Saga. That is just a form of transport slightly better than buying a Datsun Sunny.

It is the best handling extremely affordable 4 door sedan on the market. There are some issues of course. Wait for a full write up soon.

But, while testing a brand new car (the Persona was two weeks old) , I thoroughly enjoyed hustling this 20 year old car around.

Of course this wasn't the first time I've had the opportunity to do so in this car but this time, I was driving it for most of the day (swapping driving duties with the owner) as we scouted for parts shops, number plates, paint shops for the car and food for us throughout Klang Valley. I also really pushed it hard through a few corners, like the Jalan Semantan left hander down into Jalan Duta at around 80km/h.........and it was....something worth writing in detail about.

After driving a two week old car and a twenty year old car in the same day the conclusion is utterly surprising. I will also be writing about this and the cornering experience in both cars soon!

Time Attack At Sepang With The LMY 'SNAILZ'

-Y.C Foo's STI

This happened last Sunday. It was an event worth watching, even if it was really wet. I wore traditional moccasin style loafers which had their soles stitched to the insole. The water wicked through the threads causing feet to be really damp throughout the whole event. But it was worth it. Read and enjoy by clicking on the title above or here.

-Andy having a breather after a wet session

- Jun's front end

A big shout out to LMY Automobile & Services Sdn Bhd (SS13 Subang Jaya), the proprietor of LMY cum car tuner extraordinaire Mr Andy Lee, Mr Foo, Mr. Jun and all the Snailz boys who attended the event and made this article happen.

- a 430 Scud and LMY's S204

-An Exige belting it out in the wet

- A Impreza TS belonging to a friend of mine at the HPC track session before the time attack. Another LMY track 'kaki'

Thanks to Mr Baharudin Ide of Sharptone Photographic for the excellent pictures. Those not so excellent ones are by yours truly.

New Article on Carthrottle.com - Volkswagen Phaeton is Pointless

Yup. Another one of my articles has been published for all to read on Carthrottle.com. Click on the title or here to read it.

For those Audi lovin' people out there: Audi 1.8TFSI driven

Some light reading for you guys out there. Published on myautoblog.org.  Read it by clicking highlighted part before this or the title above.

A New London Taxi Called The "ENGLON"

Ah, yes.....almost nothing is sacred anymore. I wrote this piece of news for myautoblog.org and I predict that there will be nothing really "English" for us to buy anymore. Its not only about cars. British Brogues aren't British, British pottery by factories in Indonesia, etc.

No I'm not British. But its the loss of hand-craftsmanship as well as the loss heritage that worries me. I got a ride in a proper London Taxi when I was really young. But my kid may not have a chance to do so if we don't go there by the next decade or so if things go as the Chinese plan. Go on and read the article. Click on the title or where it's highlighted above.

Are You a Motorhead? Bought a Myvi SE? Well, You Bought the Wrong Car

Last weekend I had a go in a Perodua Mvyi SE. I had to help a good friend of mine move cars around as the family was preparing the front of the house for a kenduri (a get together). This car is the Myvi that Perodua sells fully loaded. It comes with seats, doors and wheels. Like all Myvis but adds tough looking front and rear bumpers, side skirts, different (slightly sportier in design) rims but still in the same size, ABS, airbags, leather seats and the latest ones come with a USB connection to play the thousands of (mostly illegal) downloaded songs through the factory sound system. There is sadly no power or handling upgrades coupled with this version of the Myvi.


This Myvi SE or Myvi Special Edition comes with everything a supermini should and could have. And because of this Perodua sells about a gazillion units of this per day. Especially in that Tangerine Orange colour you see almost everywhere. Everyone seems to like this version of the Myvi, guys seem to think its sporty, girls like it because it comes in that funky orange. Both sexes must think that they've made a fantastic choice by buying the most expensive of all the Myvis around. And they are happy with it, oblivious to the fact that the SE is actually the worst Myvi of them all, in terms of actual driving pleasure. In terms of transport, even a bullock cart can do the same function.

So now some of you Myvi owners out there may be actually shaking your heads in disbelief or may be about to start cussing and swearing at yours truly right now but I have valid reasons saying what I did above. Actually I have only two reasons why the SE is a very bad choice over the standard Myvi. And to make it a story worth reading I shall explain forthwith. Oh. Do remember that I am an experienced motorhead. I know what I am saying here.

If you are someone who is supposedly someone who likes driving fast and thinks that he's Jenson Button or a Sebastian Loeb who likes taking fast corners all the time but has a budget of around RM50,000 you should never buy the Myvi SE. The fact of the matter is that the SE, for all of its RM50,000 plus cannot take any corner faster than the standard Myvi, or for that matter any Proton out there in the known universe.

The SE, has seat coverings made from a few cows. This fact I know. But the fact that I didn't know was that the cow was used to cover one of the flattest known vehicular seats in the known universe. Perodua also didn't You see, in order to drive a car you have to get in it and sit yourself down in it. So I get into the SE that has twenty thousand kilometers on the clock, and slide in, and you keep sliding. The leather somehow gets more slippery after some time as the seats do not have any ribbing, perforations or grooves to at least make it grip the body a little. There is no product development at all. Perodua just slapped on the cows because people here think it makes the car more luxurious. More luxurious yes, but more rubbish at cornering too.

This slip-sliding does not stop. The leather seats are so slippery that when you do a sharp right or left turn your butt heads towards the outside of the corner. If you really take a right hand bend at faster than usual speeds you are surely to end up on the passenger side if you don't hold on tightly to the steering wheel. This is disappointing for a guy that relishes in the finer points of handling .

If you bought a basic Myvi, it would come in cloth seats. Of course the seats have the same lack of side support and the same lack of under tigh support as the SE, but the fabric used (like in other cloth seats) tend to grip to the clothes you wear. Hence you get slightly more support during corners. So if you took a corner enthusiastically, your butt would at least remain where it is supposed to be. So if you think you're driving the sportiest and most expensive Myvi out there by getting the SE, you're terribly wrong. The fastest Myvis are those with cloth seats. Really.

The next thing that made me slightly upset is the brakes. Really crappy ones at that. The brake pedal is spongy and travels a fair bit before there is a semblance of bite. In other words it lacks feel and progression. It feels as if I'm stepping on a sponge cake or on jelly. Hello Perodua, pedal feel please?

But this problem afflicts all Myvis (maybe less so with those basic models without ABS as ABS robs some feel sometimes), so there is not much you can do about it other than improve the braking system by better pads, brake fluid, discs and maybe steel braided hoses. You may be able to get some pedal feel from this close to a thousand Ringgit investment on the braking system.

Maybe you get monkeys if you pay bananas. The Myvi tries to cover all bases. It covers looks, space and practicality well. It has above average build quality for a car that costs in the RM50,000 region. It has all the stuff an average Malaysian wants to have in a car. Except for brake feel. It will stop. But it lacks tactility and feel. And I hate sponges. With the exception of a certain Mr. Squarepants.

But I can now understand why Jeremy Clarkson didn't like the Myvi, claiming the brakes, seats and the interior were rubbish. He is right in at least two of the three counts. I find the interior of the Myvi decent. It won't cause headaches to anyone buying this car for RM50,000 or thereabouts. If it costs RM2 million, then I'd really bitch about the spartan interior. Its a cheap car for Godssake.

• SO, If you are a girl, or a guy who thinks that it is just a funky kind of car that just allows you to go from here to there, then you can go ahead and enjoy that SE of yours without a complain from yours truly. You have my blessing.

• BUT, if you are an SE owner who purportedly likes motorsport, fast driving and handling and you are now reading this, let me put it plainly....You BOUGHT THE WRONG CAR.

• OR if you still feel you bought the right car, well, it has the WRONG seats then. Buy aftermarket seats with proper support. Even cheaps one would do. Trust me on this. Anything is better than the stock leather seats.

This is the Myvi that you want to take corners with. It looks decent too.

So there you have it. Two major flaws in the Myvi SE. In the base Myvi, you can at least take corners without worry and without the bodykit and sporty looks, the car is no longer a pretentious piece of machinery. You feel normal and its not like driving the SE, which is supposedly special, but isn't special.

If you actually like driving and want to buy a car at the price of a Myvi SE, buy a basic Myvi and use the money you saved to modify the brakes or then again don't bother. Buy any Proton Persona, Gen2 or heaven forbid, the only for hobbits, Satria Neo. At least these cars come in proper seats that at least have some waist and hip hugging seats. Slightly bad quality nonetheless, but at least they corner well.

The French Government Gives Schummi an Award. Tony Fernandez too! Why?

This piece of news is interesting to me and that is why I am posting it here.

"Last night at the Hotel Matignon in Paris, French Prime Minister Francois Fillon has awarded seven-time F1 World Champion Michael Schumacher of the Legion of Honor.

Among the guests at the ceremony held in honor of the person making his return to F1 after three seasons of absence, could see his former boss at Ferrari and current FIA president Jean Todt and his great friend Jean Alesi.

"To find a relevant comparison, we must go back to the origins of Formula One and the legendary Juan Manuel Fangio, your only rival, "said the Prime Minister, we know a great lover of motorsport.

Earlier this month, the Lotus team manager Tony Fernandes had received same award for his contribution to aviation French (Fernandes is head of Air Asia).

Created by Napoleon in 1802, the title of Officer of the Legion of Honor is the highest honor that France's government may grant a non-French citizen." From Autoblog france.


1. Tony Fernandez contributed to French Aviation? How? Putting more croissants into his airlines? AirAsia for sure does not have any direct routes to France. Maybe lots of French tourists use AirAsia, in Asia? Maybe French people like giving out awards to people who've accomplished a lot throughout the world. Too many maybes. 


2. Schummi on the other hand may be quite deserving of the award. He surely had tons of people throughout Europe admiring him for his achievements in motorsport. A whole lot of young Frenchmen would want to follow in his footsteps. But maybe they should become chefs and cooks as the French create beautiful food. 


But Dato Tony Fernandez? 


Anyway, now that Schummi is under a PETRONAS sponsored company and knowing the Malaysian way of doing things, I predict that Herr Schumacher will be given one of those awards from Malaysia soon. Like Dato' Jean Todt. We may see a Datuk Michael Schumacher soon.


Remember. If you read that Malaysia was giving Schummi an award.....YOU READ IT HERE FIRST!!!!!!

A Peugeot 308 1.6 Turbo review for CarThrottle.com

Hello people. This is a review on the Peugeot 308 1.6THP Turbo auto that is sold here in Malaysia on a UK based website. One important point I have to state is that the review was written from a Euro-centric point of view, where car prices make sense and you don't get a 308 turbo selling for the same price as a Lancer 2.0GLS or a Civic 1.8 or much cheaper than a 1.6 Golf Mk5 that sold here for RM150K.

In our market, I guess you HAVE to live with its major handling shortcomming as no car in the RM115K price range would give you a corker of an engine, overstyled French design, a decently large interior and high speed cruising pleasure (not windy road pleasure, mind you). If you were to compare to the others in the price range, you may be swayed by what the Peugeot 308 offers.

The Missus and I are trying to poison my sister-in-law to go get the 1.6 normally aspirated version that costs around RM95K. RM95K for a French car against a RM84K Kia Forte, RM90K Honda City, RM80K Toyota Vios, RM85K for a Mazda 2 hatch, RM99K for a Hyundai i30 and a RM92K Nissan Latio sport hatchback. This is one of the most confusing car markets around as car classes overlap like crazy.  Hopefully this would mean that I get to try that version too.

Have a read guys and gals. The article can be found in detail here. Feel free to comment.

Penang: The land of nice ol' buildings, ferries and prawn mee.

Another of my road trips. This time it was a wedding that brought me and my family up North, to Butterworth, Penang. Now Penang is another island that somehow has a different flavour from the rest of Malaysia. The people, the food and the places on and around the island give Penang a distinct character that I can never get bored off. Regardless of who actually runs the state things are still the same as my last trip sometime last year. It is currently under the rule of the opposition joint party Pakatan Rakyat. But since they are now in power in Penang they are no longer the opposition party over there, so just ignore the politics, which often makes no sense at all and enjoy Penang for what it is.

The road trip this time was pretty normal. No B-road jaunts as we had time to catch. I wasn't bored out of my mind as I was driving a decent speed (I'm not telling you guys how fast as that would be detrimental to yours truly), enjoyed the stretch after Ipoh Utara toll where the road goes up, over a mountain range and into a tunnel (called the Menora Tunnel) and then the road goes super windy and very interesting downhill. This is where handling reigns supreme and where thrills are aplenty. 

-The unscheduled pitstop in Simpang, Taiping

And if not for an unscheduled 'pit stop' in Simpang, Taiping due to the worn out rubber brackets that held the exhaust up giving up the ghost (and requiring a section of the pipe replaced and new brackets put in) we would have reached Butterworth even sooner than expected. Anyway it still took us about three hours forty five minutes from the Sg. Buloh R&R with that hour long pit stop (hah, I HAVE answered how fast I went - you just have to do the math) and, the food at the kenduri was good and we then headed for Penang Island to check ourselves into a hotel that we had reservations for.

The good thing about Penang is that there are still old and unique buildings here and there. It is a real nice mix of old and new. There are not many places where there is such a mix like Penang. I mean, where can you find a KFC located in an old colonial styled mansion? Or quaint bungalows located right beside condominium towers to the left and right of it?

After Georgetown and a trip to Batu Feringgi the night before to visit the night market. We ended up taking the ferry back to the mainland as the kid has not experienced a ferry ride before. It had been eons since I myself took the ferry. In fact, I think ever since the bridge was opened in the mid 1980s, we stopped using the ferry. It is a motoring experience that does not require you driving, with the exception of you driving on and off the ferry. I mean, where else in Peninsular Malaysia can you take your car for a boat ride? I have to put this Penang ferry ride as a Malaysian motoring experience that a person should experience at least once. We headed to Alor Setar for some shopping at Pekan Rabu. This was were the wife wanted to go buy good rojak sauce and those traditional Malay snacks.

-Kedah, very hot and humid this time around

On the trip back from the extremely hot and humid Alor Setar, we stopped at Sg. Dua in Penang. This is a small town aptly named as its location is between two rivers. The town is located just off the North-South highway and has its own exit (Exit 165). This thing that this little place is most known for to Northerners is that the town is famous for prawn mee, or 'mee udang' in Malay. You turn off the highway and you will find lots of stalls, both small and large, but most of them with the 'mee udang' signage in front of them. Since we were down for a wedding and we had a Penangite among us, he recommended us to the shop above, which was located further in from the roadside stalls and beside one of the two rivers at Sg. Dua. Pretty scenic and a nice spot to enjoy seafood with family and/or friends.

-good food beside a river...ah the life.

I am not a prawn eating human being, but the rest of the family members were, so at the restaurant they started choosing the size of the prawn or prawns that they wanted in the large (for sharing) bowl of prawn mee, and then wait for it to be served. For a a person who does not like prawns, I have to say that it was pretty good mee served in suculent thick gravy, slightly sweet and spicy with a hint of prawn in the gravy. Since the prawns were fresh, I was told that it was superb. Yes, I know. A non-prawn eater writing a review on prawn mee. Anyway, I had the 3 flavour fish ('Ikan Tiga Rasa') and deep fried small fish in batter, both tasted great. It should since you could choose what fish you wanted. Try finding it, Restoran Aur Gading in Sg. Dua, Seberang Prai.

Do Check Out An Article of Mine On CarThrottle.com

I did a piece for CarThrottle.com titled Brand Marketing Gone Wild: Aston Martin and Ferrari. Its a relatively new automotive website (launched end 2008) and is a start-up venture. It is more Euro-centric and Ameri-centric, with a performance car bias and UK based (with more American based writers). If things go well, I may be contributing there as well as over at Myautoblog.org. Click on the title or here to read the article.

Its like driving drunk if you use the phone with a hands free kit while driving - utter nonsense!

Do read the article and see if you agree with me. I sure hope that Deputy Director of the RTD reads the original news report properly as it's utter rubbish. 200 tests subjects, which I think is too little and there is no real comparison between having a chat with the hands free while driving, eating a burger while driving, talking to a friend about quantum physics and doing extremely advanced mathematics while driving or driving a car with three loud children screaming non stop for 30 minutes. Do click on the title to read the article or click here.

My review on the newly launched Mazda 2 sedan is out.

Hello again. The review on the Mazda 2 sedan has been posted on myautoblog.org.  Click on the title or the highlighted part earlier to see what I think of it.

The blue Evo above and two articles on myautoblog.org: the ST185 Celica and about car electronics

Hello. It's a pretty nice Sunday today. Nice as that it's 11.00am and I've just woken up. It has been a pretty good week as far as motoring is concerned. Nothing fancy like driving any cars like what I did last week. Just a nice Teh Tarik session with the boys from LMY snails on Friday night. LMY snails (named after theshape of the turbo) is an unofficial group of us that frequent a fantastic Subaru (all types), Mitsu (a few good ones - a Makinnen, few 7s, 8s and X), Nissan (some 350z, V35 Skyline) etc. all in one tuning/workshop/bodyshop/paintshop and gathering spot named LMY located in a 'secret' building in Subang Jaya.

 One good example of a car exclusively tuned by LMY is the blue car in the opening picture on top, a Mitsubishi Evolution 7 that has 460Nm of torque. I am not telling you the horsepower as yet. But that isn't that important as when you drive this car you'd find that turbo lag has been banished and off-boost response and power is amazing. On boost, it was fabulous, scary and epic, yet still very controllable. Never has that much power been so efficiently put down and still so drivable, with the exception of getting used to the racing clutch. I shall write about the driving experience of this car soon. Do not ask me how soon but a drive like the one I had in that car means that it is worth keeping a record of.

Anyway, lets see two of my recent articles posted on my myautoblog.org. One on the Toyota Celica GT4 ST185 and another about electronics in cars.
Click on the highlighted links of each subject to go directly to it.

Do read these articles and any others. And if any of you out there who frequent this site (with the exception of the regulars I happen to know), please leave a few words in the comments section of this blog so that I know you guys are out there.