Volkswagen Mk6 Golf R

It looks like Golf Mk6 hottest version - slated to boot out the Mk5 Golf R32 - has swapped the latter’s 3.2-liter V6 (250hp) for VW Scirocco R's 2.0-liter (EA113) direct injection-turbocharged 4-pot. Beefed up and boosted to pump out 270hp and 320Nm worth of torque, and rightfully (but more costly) powering all four wheels via an all-wheel drive system nicked from the new Audis S3.

A six-speed manual gearbox is standard, while the 6-speed twin-clutch DSG transmission will be optional. 0 to 100km/h sprint is dispatched in 5.7 seconds for the stick shift, while the DSG ‘box will further shave sprint timings down to 5.5 seconds! To put things in perspective, that’s even quicker than the latest Porsche Cayman 2.9 with PDK (5.8 seconds). Top speed however, is electronically limited to 250 km/h for both versions. In contrast, the ‘regular’ Mk6 Golf GTI (EA888 with 209hp) with a DSG gearbox zips to 100km/h in 6.9 seconds and Vmax at 239 km/h.

The wicked Mk6 Golf R will be available as both three and five door hatchbacks. It is expected to go on sale in Europe by the end of this year, while its U.S. market debut is projected by early 2010. No news from Volkswagen Group Malaysia (VGM) on this most exciting Golf version to come in Mk6 form but a probable guesstimate will be H2 2010? On a related note, the Mk 6 GTI is due to be officially unveiled and sold in Malaysia at RM209k (one thousand ringgit per hp?) by Nov/Dec 2009.

Hyundai's Blue Drive at Frankfurt

Blue Drive, Hyundai Motor Co.'s eco-initiative, will move into high gear at the 2009 IAA in Frankfurt. The company has created a special Blue Drive Zone where it will exhibit a wide array of its new eco-friendly technologies and products demonstrating its commitment to lowering emissions and improving the fuel economy of its vehicles.

Among the world debut Hyundai will be exhibiting at Frankfurt include the i10 Electric, a zero emissions urban commuter vehicle, which will see limited series production begin in 2010 starting with the Korean market. It will be sold to government ministries, state corporations and utilities in the first stage. The retail sales date has not been decided. Powered by a 49kW motor and a 16kWh battery, the i10 Electric promises a driving range of 160km and top speed of 130km/h. It features x-by-wire systems for steering, air conditioning, water pump and brake vacuum pump.

Europeans will also get their first chance to see two other important Blue Drive vehicles, which made their world debut earlier this year at the Seoul Motor Show. The Frankfurt Blue Drive Zone will include the Elantra LPI Hybrid which emits just 94g/km of CO2 (European combined mode) and the Blue Will Plug-In Hybrid Electric concept vehicle. The Elantra LPI HEV is the world's first hybrid electric vehicle to be powered by liquid petroleum gas (or autogas) and the first production car to be powered by advanced lithium ion polymer batteries (LiPoly).

A new Blue edition of Hyundai's popular i30, designed in Germany and built in the Czech Republic, will also debut in Frankfurt. It features fuel-saving stop-and-go emissions reduction technology. The i30 1.6 CRDi with ISG generates just 113g/km of CO2.

Related post:

Driven: Hyundai i10

Peugeot 308 (5-door) test part deux: the Turbo version

Apparently, the Malaysian car market is at dearth of proper (officially sold) turbo cars that this Pug seemed heaven sent. More so at quite unbelievable prices of RM112k (initially) to RM114k now. With larger and better looking 17" 5-spoke alloys shod with expensive ContiSportContact3 tyres, climate control A/C, a nice exhaust-gas driven compressor to complement direct injection, plus recently added panoramic glass roof, this Peugeot with a "BMW engine" or "Mini Cooper engine" (BMW-PSA to be precise) must be the default choice for many, seeing that it is the middle child, sandwiched between the sub-RM100k VTi and near-RM160k GT THP175.



I have always been a sucker for soft-touch dashboards, whatever the class or segment. The slab found in the 308 range has hit my (equally) soft spot, albeit a bit too clinical in design i.e. typical Frenchie style. Ditto the chronometer like instruments. Some say it's a bit too old fashioned in the face of LEDs, Optitrons and the likes. I absolutely love the glow behind the instrument needles and those fine fonts embedded within fully illuminated face et al.





Countlessly , I have mentioned how much I dig those soft yet comfy and supportive seats in the VTi n GT. Strangely, the Turbo' ones get a little bigger but too spineless especially around the edges aka lateral flanks. More shapely versus the VTi's but not as comfortable or hugging, though just a tad so.




There's no mistaking the turbo boost here, since you can actually hear the turbine whine upon quickly lifting off the gas pedal after some amount of revving. With a torque of 240Nm lugging the hatch along, it was definitely a better get-up and go. Gaining mid band speed was also a breeze, thereby hastening overtaking manouvres and delivering spades of confidence along with good body control. But somehow, the overall drive experience came across as being busier than the VTi. Likely due to a missing 5th ratio on the gearbox which was more perceptible here, in the sea of higher and wider torque band.




Ride comfort and suspension pliancy seemed lost too in the crowd of the cheaper VTi and even the GT. Being a little too firm and harsh at times, which even the 18" shod GT don't seem to be bothered with. However, the upside to this is excellent tracking composure, nice incisive lane changing and feeling of axles plantedness (due to excellent rubbers?) exhibited by the 308 Turbo. In fact, on two trips up to Bukit Tinggi and back, the 308 Turbo seemed to have aced even my '07 Colt Turbo with original Ralliart "hard-setting" suspension. That's Peugeot suspension tuning wizardry working for you, I guess.




Slightly biggish steering wheel aside and a wee-bit synthetic light feel, the overall performance of this modern-engined 308 cannot be faulted. And yes, my kids love it on other outings too, they didn't get flung around unnecessarily or got nauseated on even longer interstate jaunts. So those with a young family, you don't need to assasinate the boy-racer in you. Boot space is pretty decent too, but of course the ubiquitous Vios/City or Civic/Altis for that matter have rumps that can carry more cadavers. Still personally, I wish this Turbo had that manual 6-speed auto from the GT or the latest 6-speed auto 'box from the upcoming 308CC. And perhaps a little more of that Lion's magic sprinkling on the suspension damping for more suppleness.





Related posts:

Driven: Peugeot 308 VTi
Peugeot 308 VTi & Turbo launch in Malaysia
Peugeot 308 GT in Malaysia now
All-new Peugeot 308

DRB-Hicom loses Chevrolet brand in Malaysia

Effective August 31, 2009, General Motors Corp (GM) has ended its agreement with DRB-HICOM Bhd for the exclusive distribution of Chevrolet vehicles in Malaysia. Diversified conglomerate DRB-HICOM also faces the risk of losing its role as the local Chevrolet importer as GM is said to be scouting for a replacement. The US carmaker, sources said, is now talking to the Naza group to handle the import, distribution and possibly local assembly of Chevrolet automobiles in the future.

In the interim, GM has turned to listed Permaju Industries Bhd's outfit Cergazam Sdn Bhd to manage the franchise from DRB-HICOM. Cergazam is already the largest Chevrolet dealer, operating four out of seven outlets nationwide.

Switch to RON95 and RON97 status quo petrol in Malaysia: Short changing the motorists!

While most of us will rejoice saving 5 sen per litre switching from RON97 to RON95, it is utterly demoralising and short-changing-the-consumers that the previously 'true' premium grade that the govt will ultimately subject to 'market float' pricing remains at RON 97 octane level. Come Sept 1, this grade will be RM2.00 per litre or higher...AND likely subject to world crude price fluctuation.

I have noted that in MTM online forum that the VW Golf GTI Mk5 (pre-May '09 batches) undeniably requires RON98. Do not forget about the scores of other high performance makes like the Civic Type-R, Evo X, Porsche Boxster/Cayman /911, Subaru Impreza WRX STI (needs RON100 actually!), Mitsubishi Colt Turbo, Toyota Caldina, Mazda RX-8, Merc AMG series, BMW M cars, Audi with TFSI engines, Nissan GT-R etc.

True, the numbers of these 'luxury' imported sport (or sportier) makes may be relatively negligible. My contention is that if the authority were to make these 'rich' owners pay more for high-grade premium petrol, wouldn't it be fairer to make an upgrade to truly premium grade of RON98 or even RON99?

Makes me wonder, is there any way that we can 'influence' and appeal to the policy makers? It may be late now, but perhaps it is possible to make a 2nd round change in the future, this time to the higher octane grade available at our fuel pumps, for which we are made to pay more for? As it is we have already paid through our noses for all the imports tariffs, APs and even excise duty in order to get this higher performance makes, be it official or parallel imports (CBU)!!!

Update: As of Sept.1 2009, RON95 petrol is priced higher than expected at RM1.80 per litre while RON97 suffered a 25 sen hike to RM2.05 per litre.

First Drive: Nissan R35 GT-R

Nissan has upset the pecking order of supercars since the world debut of its R35 GT-R in 2007, even without factoring in the bang-for-bucks factor. In Malaysia, a 2008 model can be had for as ‘little’ as RM600k – 650k, brand new, unused and unregistered. For the money of a Porsche Cayman S, you can have something quicker than a Porsche 911 Turbo (Tiptronic S). Of course, many will argue that the R35 is still a Nissan at the end of the day. Undeniably, the latter is nothing less than Stuttgart’s finest sportcar, an iconic 911 model at that, wearing that solid Porsche badge, rich with racing heritage et al. Well, think about being able to buy two new GT-Rs for the price of one new 911 Turbo, maybe this will put things in better perspective. But is the GT-R as engaging as a 911? Admittedly, I am not an authority on that, since the last time I drove a 997 Turbo was at the Porsche World Roadshow at Sepang F1 Circuit in 2007. Anyway, here’s my brief driving impression of the R35 GT-R at a local parallel importer recently.

Cranking up the V6 is definitely milder versus Porsche’s boxer-6. Heck! Even a 3.4L Cayman S is more melodramatic! No sense of occasion even as you prodded the gas pedal, rousing the engine from idle. Cool and calm, reminding one of a Nissan Sylphy! On the move – at crawling speed - the twin-clutch tranny was a tad jerky in a latchy kind of way but you can feel the horses underneath the front bonnet waiting to be unleashed. Once after a traffic light, all hell broke loose as it ‘teleported’ into a small spot between two cars in an overtaking manoeuvre. Yes! In a GT-R, set your mind to any small crevice in congested traffic, stoke the throttle and with small inputs at the steering, you are already away and safely tucked ahead. Believe me, it’s that easy and effortless, in that proverbial cliché: blink of an eye.

Approaching a right-hander positive gradient ram, the GT-R hit 140km/h faster than you can say “Nissan GT-R” and I was soon negotiating a sweeping corner, with no time to slow down or think for that matter. It’s amazingly planted and fuss-free around bends, what’s more with the sticky, semi-slick standard issue 20” Bridgestone Potenza RE070R. Naturally, with all that electronics-laden drivetrain and suspension trickery, it makes you want to go faster with ever increasing confidence. In other words, you do not feel the speed in an R35 GT-R. Onto a straight then on, it was blistering quick approaching JDM limiter top speed but I eased off seeing that this ‘tester’ had hardly 30km on its odometer. Still not much sound from the engine up front, with just some huff-puff from the rear mufflers, mimicking a mid-engine rumble, or is it just my clouded perception from all that warp speed? And I was nowhere near flicking switches into the more wicked “R” settings for its sportier suspension and throttle mapping. Seeing that my close associate will likely buy this test unit, we decided to turn back to the showroom and not subject it to further premature abuse.

There you have it, my first drive in a new Nissan GT-R. It’s very rapid, highly responsive, tenaciously grippy and absolutely awesome on the road. While the overall feedback was relatively muted somewhat, it gets an extreme boy racer’s job done, ruthlessly cold and calculated. I can’t help but feel that the GT-R is exceptionally capable to the extent of being a tad too clinical in its execution of speed, handling and tactile feedbacks. A smidgen too synthetic, you might say, a little akin to virtual driving in video games, I reckoned. However, things may be different should I get to drive this GT-R again a few months down the road, with its twin turbocharged VR38DETT lump (480 bhp/588 Nm) more run-in, going for perhaps more distant interstate jaunts and/or uphill to Bukit Tinggi or Ulu Yam. I just gotta make sure I have a stiff cup of coffee beforehand…in black preferably!

NST-Maybank Car of The Year 2009 Nominees

As we edge towards the end of the year, the list of NST-Maybank COTY 2009 nominees grows longer.

This list is not final though. As the judges sit down for their meetings, the list can either grow longer or shorter.

Judges will debate on the nominees, and according to the last meeting held on July 28 2009, it has been decided that all minor facelift models should not be enlisted again.

As for model variants, the judges have agreed that all variants should be included, and the judges will judge them individually. This is a good move as some of the model variants offer very good value for money, an area deemed very important in our domestic market as our cars are rarely cheap.

For cars that are not tested (no test car for example), they will still be in the final list but with a note to explain that the cars were not tested.

Below is the list, last updated on July 31, 2009:

A- Entry Level Car
Chana Era CV6
Perodua Viva Elite
Hyundai i10

B- Premium Small Car
Fiat 500
Honda City 1.5L Grade S
Honda City 1.5L Grade E
Toyota Vios 1.5 TRD Sportivo (with TRD suspension)
Alfa Romeo Mito

C- Family Car
Chery A520 2.0
Ford Focus 2.0L Sport
Ford Focus 2.0L Ghia
Fiat Bravo Duologic
Nissan Sylphy Impul 2.0L
Hyundai i30 1.6L
Hyundai i30 2.0L
Mazda3 Sport 1.6L
Mazda3 Sport 2.0L
Peugeot 308 Turbo
Peugeot 308 VTi

D- Executive Car (below RM200,000)
Alfa 159 2.2
Honda Accord 2.0 VTi-L

E- Premium Executive Car (above RM200,000)
BMW 325i Sports (Facelift)
Lexus Is 250 (Facelift)

F- Limousine
BMW 740Li
Maserati Quattroporte

G- Performance Car (below RM300,000)
Alfa GT 2.0
Mazda RX-8
Subaru Impreza S-GT 2.0 Turbo
Subaru Impreza STI 2.5 Turbo

H- Performance Car (above RM300,000)
Alfa Brera 2.2
Alfa Spider 2.2
BMW Z4 sDrive23i
BMW Z4 sDrive35i
Porsche Boxster
Porsche Boxster S
Porsche Cayman
Porsche Cayman S

I- Midi MPV
Chana CM8
Nissan Grand Livina Impul
Honda Stream RSZ
Proton Exora CPS (A & M)

J- Large MPV
Weststar Maxus LDV
Mitsubishi Grandis

K- SUV (RM150,000 - RM250,000)
Chery Tiggo 1.6 (M)
Chery Tiggo 2.0 (A)
Ford Escape 2.3L
Mitsubishi Pajero Sports 2.5L
Subaru Forester 2.5XT Turbo

L- SUV (RM250,000 - RM350,000)
Land Rover Freelander 2
Volkswagen Tiguan 2.0
Audi Q5 2.0T
Volvo XC60 SE

M- SUV (RM350,000 and above)
Range Rover 3.6 V8
Range Rover Sport 4.4 V8
Range Rover Sport 2.7 V6
Land Rover Discovery 3
Lexus RX350
Mercedes Benz ML350 Facelift
Volvo XC90 D5 Diesel
Volvo XC60 LE

N- Twin Cab Pickup Truck
Ford Ranger 2.5TDCi
Nissan Navara 2.5 LE