Mazda Biante special editions launched in Japan

Japan must be rather big on year-end specials, or is it because of the need to clear stocks? Another Mazda vehicle that gets a limited/special/etc edition treatment is the Mazda Biante, which has two special editions - a Mazda Biante Limited Edition and a Mazda Biante NAVI Special.

The Mazda Biante 20S Limited Edition is based on the 20S but gets extra equipment such as leather on the steering wheel, dual power sliding doors and a keyless entry and start system. The Mazda Biante 20CS Limited Edition is based on the 20CS grade and gets HID headlamps, cleanable seats and leather on the steering wheel.

The Mazda Biante 20 NAVI Special is limited to 800 units and as you can probably guess from its name, adds a navigation system. This takes the previously mentioned Biante 20S Limited Edition with the power doors and etc and adds a Mazda G-BOOK Alpha-compatible HDD navigation system, that also has features such as parking assist with front, side and rear guide monitors, a DVD and CD player, an analog TV tuner with printed antenna, Bluetooth hands-free, and steering-wheel audio controls.

Has anyone seen the Biante in grey import showrooms in Malaysia yet? Given the popularity of the Toyota Alphard, it would seem Malaysians like tall roof MPVs as well.

Source : Paultan.org [Read more!]

GM puts Volt engine plant on hold

General Motors, anxiously conserving cash so it can keep operating into 2009, said on Wed it would halt construction of a plant tied to one of its most important projects while the automaker awaits a Washington bailout.

GM said it is putting the brakes on the construction of a factory in Flint, Michigan, set to make 1.4l engines for the Chevrolet Cruze and the Chevy Volt plug-in electric car.

It's just one more effort by GM to hold on to every penny possible as it speeds closer to the day when the 100-year-old industrial giant won't be able to pay its bills.

The company has been scaling back just about everywhere - shutting down vehicle production, ending sports sponsorships, turning off escalators and even cutting back on office supplies - to stay afloat.
GM is seeking up to US$18bil in government loans as it tries to survive the worst US auto sales environment in 26 years. It says it needs US$4bil before this year runs out.

GM board member Kent Kresa told The Associated Press last week that the company might make it into the early part of the first quarter, depending on auto sales, yet GM has several billion dollars worth of supplier payments due shortly after the first of the year, and analysts have said the company probably doesn't have the cash to pay them.

GM announced plans in Sept for the new engine plant in Flint, 50 miles northwest of Detroit, and said production would begin in 2010. But the company is delaying the purchase of big-ticket items needed to build the factory, such as structural steel, spokeswoman Sharon Basel said.

The plant's engines will extend the range of the rechargeable Volt, GM's high-profile next-generation vehicle that will be able to travel 40 miles on electricity alone. They will also power the Cruze, GM's new small car that is supposed to get around 40mpg.

Basel said Volt and Cruze development will continue as scheduled and the company still plans to bring them to showrooms in 2010. The construction delay, she said, may be temporary until the company figures out its cash situation.

"Everything that involves heavy cash outlays obviously is under review," Basel said. "Our intent is to still go forward with a new facility bringing that engine to Flint."

Meanwhile, GM has held off many large expenditures, such as the steel for the Flint plant, Basel said."Those are huge cash outlays, and we don't have the cash," she said.

Basel said there is plenty of time to build the factory, install equipment and get it up and running in time to produce engines for the two new cars. The company already makes the 1.4l engine at a plant in Austria, she said, giving it another option for engines.

"We have lots of options. The construction of the new plant is not going to interrupt our plans for the Volt or Cruze," Basel said.

Work will continue as scheduled on the Lordstown, Ohio, assembly plant, which will make the Cruze starting in mid-2010, said GM spokesman Chris Lee. The company has not formally announced where the Volt will be built, although the Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly Plant was identified in the 2007 contract with the United Auto Workers. Lee said Volt production remains on schedule for later in 2010.

GM said in Sept it would invest US$370mil in the new factory, which will employ 330 hourly and salaried workers and allow the company to double its global production of smaller engines by 2011. The plant will have 300 flexible work stations that will let GM build different four-cylinder engines without retooling.

The United Auto Workers union agreed that new hires for the plant would be paid US$14 per hour, about half the wages of a current UAW worker. It also agreed to a new flexible pact with GM that lets workers do multiple jobs.

The new factory brings the prospect of more jobs to an industrial city hard hit by auto job losses. GM's nearby Flint Engine North plant closed in Aug. - AP

Source : Star-motoring.com

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All-New City Model Set To Boost Honda Malaysia Sales Despite Economic Slowdown

2009 All New Honda City

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 18 (Bernama) -- The All-New Honda City 1.5 sedan is expected to boost Honda Malaysia Sdn Bhd sales in 2009 with 18,000 units targeted to be sold in the first year of its launch despite the current global economic slowdown.

Managing director/chief executive officer, Atsushi Fujimoto, said the company was confident of achieving the target in view of the positive growth in the local motor vehicle market.

"We are looking to sell 1,500 units a month. The market here is much better than in Europe, the US and Japan which are facing a slowdown in their car industry," he told reporters after the launch of City here on Wednesday.

Fujimoto said Malaysia's economy was not badly affected by the current crisis.

"Malaysia has a safe and stable financial system. Honda Malaysia will not call for any retrenchment and cut its operation," he said.

The All-New City model is the third generation Honda City.

It is available in two variants. The City grade S sells at RM84,980 (on-the-road price with insurance) and the grade E at RM89,980.

The grade S offers essential features of the All-New City while the grade E variant offers additional features such as paddle shift, rear reclining seat, rear underseat tray and 16-inch alloy wheels.

The City is powered by the new i-VTEC engine and is the first in the 1.5-litre sedan segment to come with the five-speed automatic gear transmission.

Honda City was first introduced in 1996 in response to the growing needs and want for cars among Asians in tandem with the economic growth in the region.

It has become a strategic model for Honda following the Civic, Accord, CR-V and Jazz, with cumulative sales passing one million units as at late May this year.

Source : BERNAMA

2009 All New Honda City [Read more!]

The all-new Honda City unveiled

Honda Malaysia today unveiled the third-generation Honda City compact sedan in Kuala Lumpur.

The all-new City comes with numerous firsts in its class, combining style, performance and practicality, but more on that as you read on.

There are two variants available, these being tagged Grade E and Grade S. The Grade E comes with additional paddle shifters, rear reclining seats with an underseat tray and 16-inch sport alloy wheels.

Exterior style-wise, the City adopts what Honda calls an ‘Arrowshot Form’ design outlook from end-to-end. Strikingly, the front end resembles a transformable robot from an animated movie, whilst the tail lamps look very much like those found on the BMW 3-Series.

The i-DSI block is history, so the new City goes about its business with a single powerplant choice, this being a newly-developed four-cylinder 1.5l i-VTEC engine which pushes out 120bhp at 6,000rpm and 145Nm of torque at 4,800rpm. Compliant with Euro 4 level emission standards, the City is deemed the most powerful compact sedan in the market to date.
The advanced i-VTEC engine is now mated with a five-speed automatic transmission with Shift Hold Control and is the first in its class. Gone too is the CVT (Continuous Variable Transmission) gearbox, an omission brought about by the rougher style of driving encountered here, according to surveys carried out by Honda Japan’s R&D division.

Compensating for the absence of a manual transmission gearbox (a five-speed manual is available in both Thailand and Singapore) are the paddle shifters in the Grade E, which provides the driver with a sportier means of changing gears.

The steering wheel is now of the tilt and telescopic type, and the footrest is now wider as the accelerator and brake pedals have been shifted more to the right. The car comes with EPS (Electric Power Steering), and safety comes in the form of dual SRS airbags and front seatbelt pre-tensioners and load limiters.

Stopping power is reinforced with ABS (anti-lock braking system) with EBD (Electronic Brake Force Distribution), while BA (Brake Assist) amplifies the driver’s foot force with minimal pedal input.

Entertainment for the occupants inside the City is provided by an advanced audio system that is compatible with MP3 players, iPod, USB memory or a mobile hard disk drive. In the Grade E variant, you get a six-speaker system with steering wheel audio controls, while the Grade S makes do with a four-speaker arrangement.

The all-new City does not compromise in rear passenger convenience with a fold-down armrest that also houses integrated cup holders.

Another first in its class, the City’s rear trunk is able to contain a whopping 506l of cargo, which is equivalent to being able to store four nine-inch-wide golf bags.

As mentioned, the Grade E’s rear seats can be folded in a 60:40 split configuration for extended luggage carrying capacity, and is fitted with an underseat tray to stow away wet umbrellas or footwear.

There are a total of five colours to choose from – Alabaster Silver Metallic, Bold Beige Metallic, Polished Metal Metallic, and new colours Crystal Black Pearl and Deep Lapis Blue Metallic. Unfortunately, a striking signature colour called Habanero Red Pearl, as well as a very pretty Tafetta White, is not available.

The Honda City is manufactured in Malaysia, with 30% of the parts sourced locally, including the seats and instrument panel, while the rest are from Japan.

According to Atsushi Fujimoto, managing director of Honda Malaysia, the previous City was still doing quite well into the end of its run, having registered a total sales volume of 8,000 units from Jan to Nov this year. With the arrival of the new one, Honda Malaysia is targeting to sell about 1,500 units of the new City on a monthly basis, and pre-launch bookings have been brisk, with more than 1,500 orders to date - as of launch time, the waiting period is a month, though that is surely to change if more orders come about.

The City rolls in at RM84,980 for the Grade S and RM89,980 for the Grade E (both on the road, with insurance) and comes with a three-year warranty or 100,000km and six months free service or 10,000km, whichever comes first.

A Modulo accessories package is available to spruce up the City’s exterior, and this consists of front, side, rear and trunk spoilers, all for an additional RM4,750.

Source : Star-motoring.com [Read more!]

Honda To Quit Formula One, Citing Global Financial Crisis

TOKYO, Dec 5 (Bernama) -- Honda will withdraw from Formula One by the end of this year, citing deteriorating business conditions due to the global financial turmoil and the worldwide economic downturn.

"Near-term uncertainty surrounding the global economy continues to grow and we expect recovery to take some time," President Takeo Fukui of Honda Motor Co., Japan's second-largest automaker, was quoted by Kyodo News Agency as saying Friday.

"It was a very difficult decision," Fukui said.

Source : Bernama [Read more!]

2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid

The Fusion Hybrid uses an evolution of the powertrain in the Escape Hybrid, and it promises to be the most fuel-efficient mid-size hybrid sedan, besting the hybrid versions of the Chevy Malibu, Saturn Aura, Nissan Altima, and Toyota Camry, while falling short of smaller fuel-sippers like the Honda Civic Hybrid and the Toyota Prius.

Like the hybrid Escape, the Fusion uses a 2.5-liter four-cylinder gasoline engine, modified to run on the more efficient-but somewhat less powerful-Atkinson cycle. The Fusion, however, has its own specific continuously variable automatic transmission, its own electric motor, and its own lithium ion battery pack. The system's total combined power output is 191 hp, which is enough to provide decent acceleration. Ford says the Fusion Hybrid is able to run in engine-off, pure-EV mode at speeds up to 47 mph, but that doesn't mean the engine only starts up once you reach 48 mph. Trying to accelerate to 47 mph in EV mode would take an eternity (and likely enrage the line of drivers behind you). In truth, engine assistance is needed for all but the most glacial acceleration. But the fuel frugal needn't worry too much that they're slurping the world's oil reserves, since Ford's hybrid system engineers advise that the most economical driving is done by accelerating normally-using the gasoline engine-then backing out of the throttle, getting the car quickly into EV mode. Under those circumstances, yes, you can go as fast as 47 mph without aid of the gasoline engine, depending on the batteries' state of charge. That is, until you encounter an uphill grade.

In order to help would-be hyper-milers, the Fusion Hybrid has its own unique instrument cluster, in which the speedometer is flanked with several LCD color displays that help the driver keep tabs on the unique powertrain and monitor his all-important mpg. One can select from four different settings (called inform, enlighten, engage, and empower) to choose how much info is displayed. The most advanced setting not only shows when you're in EV mode but also how close you are to the threshold, whereby you'll slip out of it and wake the engine. This works far better than a simple EV indicator to help you maximize EV time (and hence fuel economy). For those who do well, another part of the display shows an image of a vine, which grows a bit larger after every three-minute segment in which you're driving efficiently. Stomping on the gas should cause it to wither and die, but that doesn't happen.

Within the Fusion family the Hybrid is its own trim level, perched just above the SEL. Pricing is not yet available, but we expect that the hybrid premium over a four-cylinder SEL will be roughly the same as that of the hybrid Escape, which should put a Fusion Hybrid in the mid-$25,000 range. Sure, at the moment, gas is cheap again, but does anyone think it will stay that way? When prices shoot back up, the $3000 or so extra you'd spend on a hybrid Fusion will likely seem well worth it for this combination of exceptional economy, acceptable performance, and a high degree of livability.

Source : automobilemag.com

2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid

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Petrol and diesel down 10 sen

PETALING JAYA: Petrol and diesel prices have been slashed by another 10 sen effective today.

The price of RON97 petrol is now RM1.80, while RON92 is selling at RM1.70 a litre.

The pump price of diesel is now RM1.70 a litre.

In a statement, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said the reduction was in line with the drop in global crude oil prices.

The retail prices of petrol and diesel have been gradually lowered from their highs of RM2.70 and RM2.58 respectively in June.

Pan Malaysian Bus Operators Association president Datuk Ashfar Ali said the drop would hardly impact his operational costs.

“The damage is already done. The price of daily necessities and foodstuff have gone up and nobody will reduce their prices.

“Spare parts are still expensive – their prices have not gone down either. And the bulk of the diesel used for our operations is under the fleet card system, where it costs RM1.43 a litre.”

Ashfar suggested that the subsidised diesel enjoyed by bus operators could be reduced by a further 13 sen to RM1.30.

“With the lower global crude oil price, I feel the Government can afford it.”

Pan Malaysian Lorry Owners Association president Er Sui See said with cheaper diesel, lorry operators could consider maintaining transport prices.

“At RM1.70, I think we can sustain the price. Diesel accounts for 35% of our operational costs, and only about half of the operators benefit from the fleet card system.”

Source : thestar.com.my [Read more!]

Perak Govt Buying Camry To Replace Perdana V6

IPOH, Dec 12 (Bernama) -- The Perak government Friday approved the purchase of 16 Toyota Camry 2.4 cars for official use by its state executive councillors and senior officers to replace its fleet of Proton Perdana V6 said to have worn out. Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin said the decision was made because the repair and maintenance costs of the Proton Perdana cars currently in use were high as the cars were old and had frequent breakdowns.

Speaking to reporters after chairing the state executive council (exco) meeting here, he said the purchase of the new cars costing over RM2 million would be made soonest possible and the Proton Perdana cars then sold off.

The Perak government had at the state assembly sitting on Nov 13, claimed that the previous Barisan Nasional government had spent about RM1.3 million to repair and maintain the official cars of the Menteri Besar and state exco members from 2004 to March 2008.

In another development, Mohammad Nizar said the issuance of permanent land titles to residents of new villages and planned villages was expected to be made before this Dec 25.

He said many applications for the land status had been received from residents.

The state government's move to convert the 99-year leasehold of land to 999-year land ownership title became controversial as it was said to have violated the National Land Code.

The Menteri Besar also reiterated that the state government had issued a directive that all housing projects on hillslopes be stopped until confirmation from the Environmental Impact Assessment reports, Public Works Department and the Minerals and Geoscience Department that the projects were safe.

Source : Bernama [Read more!]