Spotted....and luckily not for sale: Proton Saga Flying Spur

To quote the President of the United States during his election campaign, "Yes We Can" seems totally appropriate. It seems we Malaysians can do everything and anything under the sun. And that we seem to have so much money to actually pay someone to do this kind of stuff. Wouldn't it be better to actually save the money and try buy a proper premium luxury sedan some time in your life instead of actually trying to turn an entry level car into one? 

So a second hand Proton Saga may cost RM20,000 and some mods may cost an extra RM10,000. What is RM30,000 when it'll become a masterpiece? A piece de resistance? A Mona Lisa? Wait a minute...it's a darn Proton Saga for Godssake!!!!!! And I thought the Audi Saga I posted earlier was ambitious.

The Great Wall M4 - Chunky looks & EEV Tax break status equals to asurprisingly good drive against its local rivals

We have something cheap and reasonably cheery on our roads soon and the surprising thing is that this car is coming from China. The car, the Great Wall M4 (also called the M4 Haval) compact SUV has been previewed and will soon be on sale throughout Malaysia. According to the distributors, Go Auto, the Great Wall M4 has garnered about 1,500 bookings since its preview in July of 2014 and it will be seen on our roads by November if all goes well. Quite a feat. It got me really curious too. So when I was invited to spend some time with the M4 as well as some time with the people who are bringing it in I jumped at the opportunity.

Hyundai Experience Car Fest 2014 - 10th to 12th October 2014!!!!

Hello folks! Hyundai-Sime Darby Motors (HDSM) will be organising a car fest ths weekend starting tomorrow, Friday the 10th of October 2014 to Sunday, 12th of October 2014. Expect lots of activities including complimentary driving courses and the usual slew of test drives from the current range of Hyundai vehicles.

If any of you are interested in trying out that Hyundai Veloster like in the pic above, a Hyundai Elantra like below or a Hyundai SUV do head over to the Bukit Jalil National Stadium.

Oh, The event will be held from 9.00am until 6.30pm. And if you're in Johor Bahru, the Hyundai Experience Car Fest will also be held at Jalan Desa Tebrau, Taman Tebrau in Johor Bahru from the 17th to 19th October 2014.

Trucking news: Malaysia competes in the Volvo Trucks Asia Pacific and World Fuelwatch Championship 2014 + Driving Tips

Press Release

Malaysia competes in the Volvo Trucks Asia Pacific and 

World Fuelwatch Championship 2014

Shah Alam, 2 October 2014 – The winner of Volvo Trucks Malaysia’s Fuelwatch

Challenge 2014, Ahmad Bin Othman of Logistik Petikemas Sdn Bhd, Prai, represented

Malaysia at the Volvo Trucks Asia Pacific and World Fuelwatch Championship 2014

held at home of Volvo in Gothenburg, Australia, on 16 to 19 September recently.

In July, Ahmad Bin Othman (pictured below) defeated close to 800 other Malaysian truckers to clinch

the national top spot when he achieved the lowest fuel consumption recording of just 1

litre for 2.52 kilometres in a 40-kilometre drive challenge pulling a 40-footer, 20-tonne

container with a FM 440 62T cab.

New record: Volkswagen Group celebrates 200 million vehicles produced & previews XL Sport Concept Car

VW Group Celebrates a whole lot of vehicles produced...and sold over at the 2014 Paris Motor Show. It also previewed the Volkswagen XL Sport, a concept car powered by a Ducati 1199 V2 engine.

Press Release
• A top value among European automakers

• Record-breaking vehicle XL Sport makes its world debut at Paris Motor 

Show

• French film icon Catherine Deneuve receives €200,000 donation for 

“Cinema for Peace”

Wolfsburg/Paris, October 1, 2014 – A new record for the Volkswagen Group: Europe’s

leading automaker has now produced 200 million vehicles. Volkswagen is one of the

few manufacturers in the world to have reached this impressive total. At the Group

evening, the sports car study Volkswagen XL Sport made its world debut as the 200

millionth Group vehicle. On the occasion of the production record, actress Catherine

Deneuve, founding chairperson of “Cinema for Peace”, received a check for a

donation of €200,000 from the Chairman of the Board of Management of the

Volkswagen Group, Prof. Dr. Martin Winterkorn.

Short Test Drive: Proton Iriz 1.3MT Executive

.....

Proton has just launched its latest compact car and it is called the Iriz. The name, derived from the flower Iris but with a 'Z' is Proton's latest foray into the compact hatchback market. Prior to this we had the Savvy and before that, we were served the Tiara. Both the Savvy and Tiara were hard hit with criticism and in my opinion, were less than average creations. I wouldn't have bought them too. So is the Proton Iriz a compact hatch that any of us would want to buy or let alone drive? Well, I had a go in the Proton Iriz 1.3 Executive Manual and I think that it is better than any Savvy or Tiara out there. But is it better than its biggest competitor here in Malaysia? The Perodua Myvi?

To answer that question you'd have to start with the Proton Iriz 1.3 specs in direct comparison with a Perodua Myvi 1.3 (the 1.6 Iriz has the same dimensions if you are wondering but I am not touching on that variant here). The Proton Iriz  is longer at  3,905mm (3,690mm for the Myvi), wider at 1,720mm (Myvi: 1,665mm) and is 1,550mm tall (1,545 for Myvi). The Proton Iriz has a longer wheelbase at 2,555mm (Myvi 2,440mm.) The 1.3 litre Iriz's engine, a supposedly new VVT based engine has 95 PS and 120 Nm of torque at 4,000 rpm, (Myvi 1.3 litre has about the same horses if you believe Perodua's statement that the Electric Power Steering brings 10hp back to the 86hp engine - 96hp  and 117Nm torque at 4,400 rpm). 

Trucking news: Volvo Trucks Drives Malaysia’s Progress with Launch of the All-new Volvo FM and FMX

Volvo Trucks Drives Malaysia’s Progress with Launch of the All-new Volvo FM and FMX

Launch event also marks a truck handover ceremony to 1st Malaysian customer to receive this new range – FELDA Transport


KUALA LUMPUR, 25 September 2014 – Volvo Trucks Malaysia today proudly unveils its latest cutting-edge truck range to the Malaysian market – the all new Volvo FM and Volvo FMX. Launched in conjunction with the ASEAN Logistics and Transport Show 2014, the new trucks are poised to become the future generation of haulers set to contribute to the nation’s growing economy.

(L to R - His Excellency Mr. Bengt Carlsson, Ambassador of Sweden to Malaysia; Mr. Mats Nilsson, MD of Volvo Trucks Malaysia and Mr. Wan Mohd Zain  Mohd Ismail, CEO FELDA Transport with the Volvo FM)

“Malaysia as a key Asian market is seeing exponential growth in construction, transportation and logistics sector and we are certain that our new truck range addresses the demand for total transportation solutions. The introduction of our new truck range goes to show that we are committed to our customers and we are here to stay, grow and contribute,” said Mats Nilsson, Managing Director of Volvo Malaysia.

Short Test Drive: Perodua Axia Advance Automatic - Viva Replacement with so much more value for the Ringgit

I have been busy with a whole lot of things these past few weeks. My family affairs, work and other pet peeves have taken some precedent over writing. I managed to take time in between these various activities to look at new car launches and test drives though. On the higher end of things, I spent some time poking about in the interior of a Mercedes Benz S400 Hybrid and it is everything a Chairman, a CEO or even a Towkay would want in a car. Its interior is so darn impressive that it would give any Bentley a run for its money in terms of ambiance as well as tactility. 

News: VW spare parts discounts to those in their 6th year of ownership

A press release from Volkswagen Malaysia states that they will be giving their long term customers discounts on clutch replacements which should include DSG clutch replacements too. Note that DSG means a dual clutch gearbox and they require clutch changes eventually (aside from what ever complaints we may have heard over time). Even the reliable VW Golf GTI Mk5, which does not suffer much problems at all would need clutch changes eventually - Yes, very reliable as I know a chap who has one and has over 160,000km on it. Oh. The Golf Mk6 would need it too. Its dry clutch DSG system needs a little more TLC than a wet clutch DSG.

PRESS RELEASE

"Volkswagen customers in their 6th year of ownership will be able to enjoy savings of up to 50% for clutch replacements at any Volkswagen authorised service centres nationwide. The offer which guarantees genuine parts from as low as RM1,888 comes as a showcase of Volkswagen’s fervent commitment and continuous efforts to improve the ownership experience of existing customers."

News: The new BMW 518d & 520d.

We should see (at least) the BMW 520d with the BMW's new diesel engines soon hopefully. Nothing more to say actually (Just that I hope these new BMW diesels are quieter than what we get here in Malaysia these days - they're pretty clattery)

PRESS RELEASE
Setting the pace, showing the way: The BMW 5 Series builds further on its efficiency lead in the executive class.

New generation of four-cylinder diesel engines with BMW TwinPower Turbo technology increase the driving pleasure offered by the worldwide bestseller and achieve further reductions in fuel consumption and emissions – The new BMW 520d outclasses its segment rivals in the efficiency race: engine output rises to 140 kW/190 hp, average fuel consumption drops to as little as 4.1 l/100 km [68.9 mpg imp] and CO2 emissions to 109 g/km.

The Mercedes-AMG GT

I am not going to say much about this new Mercedes-AMG sports car as I simply think that its fabulous. It looks smaller, lighter and svelter than the Mercedes AMG SLS. It changes the game slightly from a bruiser of a GT to a smaller, more nimble one for Mercedes-AMG. The SLS may have had more presence, this is more compact.

All-New Mazda MX-5 "Miata" previewed

Mazda has just previewed the all-new Mazda MX-5. The 'Miata' or MX-5 Roadster as it is known to us keeps the tradition going. Supposedly a 2016 model year car, you get the same open top motoring available to you except that it now has edgier styling than previous generations. This fourth generation MX-5 is supposedly also 100kg lighter on some models and it will still be normally aspirated. The largest engine would be the 2.0liter GDI SkyActiv and it should still come with a manual (six speed) transmission as well as an automatic for lazier people (like the previous one).

Spotted for sale: 2013 Honda N-One - Honda's latest retro look Kei Car

There is a dearth of pretty interesting Honda as of late here in Malaysia. You see, now that Honda Malaysia cannot sell the Honda CRZ Hybrid coupe at a reasonable price due to the fact that the Malaysian government has decided to discontinue tax breaks for imported hybrid cars and only give such tax exempts for locally assembled cars. Aside from that slightly sedate, not that fast coupe, there are no interesting Hondas on sale today over here.

A tale about the original Mini and more

Today I've decided to do something different.  I am showcasing the talents of an acquaintance of mine, Mr. Mo Halim. He brings to us a tale about the original Mini (appropriate since it too celebrates its 55th year of existence) and more. One that happened years and years ago and over in ol' England I presume. 

The story

by Mo Halim

My guardian bought one of the first Minis. She loved cars and had been driving since the early 30s in pre-war Malaya. She drove with panache and verve; fast and precise yet so relaxed. She had bought one the first Minis after she was invited to its public debut at a theatre in Birmingham. But after a succession of MGs it was too pedestrian for her driving style. So when the Mini Cooper came out, she immediately bought one.

New Proton Compact Car - AKA the Proton Iriz - Our initial opinion.

Proton has previewed its all-new Compact Car on its own microsite called http://www.betulbetulonz.com.my/. 

BUT to view the car Proton expects us to catch a glimpse of the car by asking us to scan the QR Code on the website and get 3 other friends to do so and then link the photos together. Fortunately for us, and unfortunately for Proton we have Paultan.org, Malaysia's largest automotive portal to do that for us. And in doing so undermines what Proton is trying to achieve with all that nonsense about linking photos together, making life difficult for you and I as well as losing a ton of traffic on their own micro site and getting Paultan.org more hits. Fantastic isn't it? Anyway, for more explanation on the new car which according to sources is to be called the Proton Iriz you could head over to Paultan for more. But if you're here, it means you value what I think about the car.

News: BMW launches the wind in your hair BMW M4 Convertible

For those that want the wind in your hair and miles of empty space above your head as well as the need for speed (and oversteer), you can now opt for the the BMW M4 Convertible. Yay!!!  4.4 secs to 100km/h with the DCT to those that want to know. It looks gorgeous with both the top up and down in my opinion.

PRESS RELEASE

The arrival of the new BMW M4 Convertible (fuel consumption combined: 9.1–8.7 l/100 km [31–32.5 mpg imp]; CO2 emissions combined: 213–203 g/km) sees BMW M GmbH making another alluring addition to its legendary high-performance sports car line-up. The new M4 Convertible replicates the performance figures of the new BMW M3 Sedan (fuel consumption combined: 8.8–8.3 l/100 km [32.1–34.0 mpg imp]; CO2 emissions combined: 204–194 g/km) and the new BMW M4 Coupe (fuel consumption combined: 8.8–8.3 l/100 km [32.1–34.0 mpg imp]; CO2 emissions combined: 204–194 g/km), but emphasises its stylish and distinctive appearance through its individual character and places the fascination of sporty and dynamic open-top driving at centre stage. The new model finds BMW M GmbH drawing inspiration from a long tradition: BMW’s high-performance sports car for track and road is entering its fifth generation in open-top form with this new chapter in its history headed “M4 Convertible”. 

Happy Merdeka Day - Tales of motoring since '57 and some advice to all Malaysians

Happy Merdeka Day. That's Happy Independence Day to those that do not understand Malay. Malaysia celebrates fifty seven years of independence today, well, with the small note that Sabah and Sarawak joined us a few years later in 1963. Anyway, the ride from 1957 to 2014 has been exciting, right?

BRABUS Tuning for the W205 Mercedes Benz C-class without sport package

BRABUS  W205 without sport package. I wonder what that means. I am guessing it is for a normal C-class that comes without the AMG sport package that has the 'A' shaped bumper beneath the grille and more aggressive AMG designed bodykit. BRABUS takes the basic W205 C-class and adds their own sport bodykit to it making it a BRABUSified, if there is such a word, W205 C-class.

News: Inokom Assembles And Exports the Hyundai Elantra To Thailand

INOKOM Corporation Sdn Bhd (Inokom), which had sealed a deal with Hyundai Motor (Thailand) Co. Ltd. (HMC Thailand), will assemble and export 1,000 units of the Elantra, Hyundai’s popular C-segment passenger car to Thailand in the first year. The Elantra Nu1.8L is the only model that is being exported to Thailand. The number of units for export to Thailand is expected to increase in tandem with market demand as the Malaysian-assembled model is being priced cheaper due to the ASEAN Free Trade Area Agreement (AFTA).

Century Batteries - Car Battery Videos

Century Battery Malaysia had produced two videos in order to educate vehicles owners about batteries in general. The vids may be over a year old, but somehow, not much promotion has been made by them and no one actually knows that  these locally produced videos exist. (Notice the lack of views to date).

Have a look and see. You may gain some know-how.

Volvo previews the 2015 All-New Volvo XC90 - Finally... but it seems to be worth the wait!

And finally, Volvo has revealed to us the All-New Volvo XC90. The XC90 has been around for ages. If you thought companies like Proton or Maruti Suzuki over in India have been building the same model for years you can add Volvo to the picture. The previous first generation XC90 had been on sale almost forever in Automotive industry years. 2003 to 2014 is a good eleven or so years (sorry, I can't count that well) and Volvo has come up with this chunky Tonka Toy looking replacement which actually tickles my fancy!

Global Facelifted Toyota Camry previewed in Russia. It STILL is ugly.

Toyota Russia has previewed the facelifted global variant of the Toyota Camry which may, I state again, may be the new face of the Malaysian variant of the car. By the looks of it, we are still going to get that tank-like body as the major change is only upfront with new lights, grille and front bumper. The rear is largely untouched and still looks heavy if viewed from the side or from the three quarter angle. This is unfortunate, as the USDM variant is all about curves and looks a helluva better than this.

What's the best affordable 5 year old car you can buy in Malaysia?

A five year old budget car should be a reasonable used car purchase. The reason being that most Malaysians rake up about 25,000km per year and at about five years old, 125,000km later it still has a good 100,000km before things start going wrong. If the car hasn't been neglected by its previous owner that is. . So at around 100,000km, most would only require a timing belt change (if required), an oil change for the transmission and engine as well as some secondary belting for the car. So what can we buy cheaply and that isn't a Perodua Viva sized car.

To Infiniti or Not To Infiniti....

The Infiniti Q50

Infiniti is a budding car company here in Malaysia. Not a whole lot of Malaysians would know what an Infiniti car is. This is because Prior to the 1990s, there was no such thing as an Infiniti. An Infiniti is actually Nissan's luxury car marque that they use to target the premium motoring segment in where a regular Nissan would not be able to. This is very similar to what Toyota is offering when they started Lexus.

Unlike some other brands, the difference between a VW Group car from another is....

a heck of a lot........

This staid lookimg sedan drives better than.......

Over the years I have driven a fair number of cars from various makes or manufacturers. What makes me want to try car after car is the fact that every one offers a different driving experience from one another. In some cars the interaction between man and machine is so satisfying that this car would be the one to drive. Some cars are so clinical they feel like an operating theater on wheels. Some give you that five star hotel feel on wheels. Some would feel like you're driving in the LeMans. Whilst this is quite true, it could be otherwise as most car companies have become predictable in how their cars drive. Or handle.

News and a Rumour: The Perodua Axia and a supposed Proton Persona

Perodua
Perodua is launching the Perodua VIVA replacement called the Perodua Axia soon. Tentative price lists on all variants are out and prices start atRM24,900 for a solid coloured Axia up to RM44,900 for a full specced Axia AV automatic.

TEST DRIVE: 2014 Volkswagen Jetta 1.4TSI CKD - The wolf in sheepskin

A Volkswagen Jetta is simply the iconic Volkswagen Golf with a boot. But it actually isn't as straight forward as that in the first place because Volkswagen does not simply slap on a boot onto the Golf. Take for example the current CKD (locally assembled) Jetta 1.4TSI that I tested here, it is actually based on the previous generation Volkswagen Golf Mk6 chassis with a longer wheelbase and totally different body panels. The Jetta also does not drive like the Mk6 Golf 1.4TSI nor does it feel like a Mk7 Golf 1.4TSI. But I'll get to that in a bit.

Interesting cars around town: Classic Mercedes Benz 220se cabriolet

This was spotted by a friend over in Shah Alam recently. A nice Mercedes Benz 220se cabriolet from the 1960s. It sports a new number plate and I believe it is a recent import using a classic car status AP. There are two or so importers specializing in these sort of cars and I am glad there is a market for it.

Would love bringing in an Audi Quattro, a Lancia Delta HF turbo  (versions from 1985 should qualify) or the Integrale (first versions may qualify)  or even a Mercedes 190e Cossie from the 1980s if I had the dough.

Some thoughts on the all new 2014 Honda Jazz

Had a look at this mid spec Honda Jazz. Its big. Very practical but me thinks that it desperately needs a Honda Modulo body kit to hide its length (yes it look like a stretched previous model with a funky front end) and make it look more hunkered down. Interior plastics nothing to shout about but it is well fitted together.

Would I buy it for RM77800? Maybe if I wanted its practicality I would but I dont. I would either buy a VW Polo 1.6 hatch (better built and drives well) or even the Proton Suprima S (a larger, more performance oriented car that could be cheaper with discounts) over this.

Note- this was posted earlier on motoring-malaysia.blogspot.com's Facebook page. Do follow us over there folks. We discuss stuff occasionally.

Spotted for Sale: A 'unique' Honda Civic 2nd Gen for sale

I am flabergasted. I actually own a second generation Honda Civic and used to drive it in the 1990s. But never did I imagine the ingenuity of  my fellow Malaysians when it comes to car modification. Ignore the turbo stickers as according to the original posting, found on a Facebook Honda group, the car has a B18cr engine. Must be the 1.8liter Type-R engine from the DC2 Integra Type R.

What's in a name: The Bluebirds - Cardiff City and the Nissan Bluebird

This recent Eid Ul Fitr or Hari Raya to most Malaysians, I had a few friends over. In between the  constant eating of nasi minyak, lemang, lontong and ketupat, we ended up talking about Nissan and a football team over in the UK. I thought I'd share with you folks out there what transpired.

Most of us are aware that Malaysian tycoons have started making themselves known in football (or soccer as the Americans call it). We have Tan Sri David Tony Fenandez owning the Magpies, or Newcastle United and Tan Sri Vincent Tan owning Cardiff City, also nicknamed the Bluebirds. I for one am not a football fan and whilst it is good Malaysia has a foothold in a sport that most Malaysians love to watch, but are terrible on the pitch - look at most of the football games played in the Malaysian league these days, I think that a third division English league team played against any of them, they'd come up league champions if they tried. Cardiff City would be like Manchester United, FC Barcelona or even Ajax Amsterdam.

JD POWER Asia Pacific's Mass Market Brand Dealer Service Customer Satisfaction Survey Malaysia 2014 - Toyota comes up top

Welcome back folks. This is the first article after a short hiatus due to the recent fasting month. Let's get things started.

Toyota has come up tops in J.D Power's Asia Pacific Customer Satisfaction with Dealer Service among mass market brands in Malaysia for 2014. Note that this means that you will not see Lexus, Infiniti, Mercedes Benz, BMW, Audi and those that are obscenely priced. And dear readers note that Volkswagen IS a mass market brand under this survey - I told you earlier that it seems that Malaysians think too highly of the brand.

Sunday Car Porn: The Carrozzeria Touring Superleggera coach building company

It's another Sunday. Today I thought that I'd give you folks a history lesson on one of the best in Italian Coachbuilding. Most of you would be familiar with them designing and constructing the Aston Martin DB5 (below)  styling (oh, you know, the James Bond car)

Formula 1 tests 18 inch wheel and tyre combo - Bye Bye 13 inch balloons?

When I was avidly following Formula 1 (F1) in the early 2000s I always wondered why the heck they keep using 13inch wheels with balloon-like tyres especially when road tyre technology has evolved into rubber band thin tyres running at least 18 inches those days (these days cars run even larger sizes). Then we also had the DTM and BTCC which ran 18 inch wheels and tyres. Also slimmer than the donuts used in F1. But now, F1 together with official tyre supplier Pirelli has decided to test the use of 18inch wheels on the cars. If all goes well, we may soon see F1 cars having more realistic looking rubber bands instead of the donuts used nowadays.

On the marketing of automotive products, the Peugeot 2008 Dakar Buggy and something Spotted on Sale with Ralliart on it.

You know automotive marketing has come a long way. These days manufacturers have motorsport divisions that promote their products through racing and this in turn sells their cars to the general public. It has now spilled over to a complete lifestyle thingy nowadays. You see a manufacturer promoting their latest SUVs with either a bicycle or a surfboard strapped on it. You also see rally cars parked beside their normal road versions.

News: Subaru BRZ will have a second generation says Fuji Heavy Industries' boss

The Subaru BRZ will not be a one hit wonder. In response to the earlier report, the President of Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd has stated in Automotive News that Subaru plans to have another generation of the BRZ. Yasuyuki Yoshinaga, president of Subaru's parent company, Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. also added that the current arrangement with Toyota will continue even though Toyota have another joint-venture arrangement with BMW to come up with a hybrid coupe.

Toyota still has a place in the BRZ story due to the fact that Subaru needs the volume that Toyota can sell (the BRZ's Toyota twin is the GT 86) in order for the BRZ to be viable in the first place. Whatever it is, it looks like this pure, normally aspirated rear wheel drive coupe is here to stay. For now that is.

BMW M4 on the 'Ultimate Racetrack'

Here we have the BMW M4 on an aircraft carrier with a racetrack on it. Yes it is a mash-up of actual driving and CGI of a racetrack on an aircraft carrier. Marketing at its best. But, so's the driving in the vid too!