Month: July 2022

Do you think Malaysians lack road safety awareness? Or do we simply not care? Would new campaigns and a new mandatory curriculum in schools result in safer drivers in the generation to come? Guess it couldn’t hurt.

That’s the view of Parti Bangsa Malaysia according to its senior vice-president Steven Choong Shiau Yoon, communicated to to the media. He said that too many lives have been lost on Malaysia’s roads and this issue required a much more comprehensive solution to properly solve.

The authorities have, for the most part, been asleep at the wheel – or so goes PBM’s sentiment about the handling of road deaths over the past few years, citing the emergence of a worrying pattern of preventable accidents such as those caused by bus and trailer drivers with many past offences. Yet they are still allowed to drive.

Road safety – taught in school 

In a statement, Choong said: “Therefore strict enforcement of speed limits must be imposed, coupled with heavier penalties, and introducing mandatory tamper-proof speed controllers for all heavy vehicles,”

“Malaysians should stop treating our roads and highways as race tracks and everyone needs to play their role towards a safer environment for all. There is a drastic need for a change of attitude and, as mentioned above, this needs to start at a very tender age,”

“The fact is a majority of these road accidents are caused by human error as pointed out by the Malaysian Institute of Road Safety Research (Miros). These include speeding, changing lanes with no signal, running red lights, and mobile phone usage while driving.”

Clearly such a sweeping change to curb such light offences such as ‘speeding’ or ‘changing lanes with no signal’ will take drastic action and will likely be met with public resistance as they are only found to be dangerous in the context of a specific situation and don’t cause accidents in and of themselves.

He also added that road safety education and the inculcation of the importance of good driving practices should be a priority for parents and teachers alike, hinting at a motion to add such things to lesson plans in public schools.

More presently, PBM’s next move is to write a formal letter expressing their concerns and views on how to surmount this problem to Transport Minister Datuk Seri Wee Ka Siong while also seeking a follow-up appointment to speak with him on this matter directly.

Kawasaki kembali ke pasaran Malaysia di bawah Modenas secara rasminya setelah melancarkan 3 model iaitu Ninja 250, Ninja 250 ABS serta Z250 ABS.

Berikutan peningkatan pemilikan saham Kawasaki Motors Ltd (KMC) dalam Modenas, semua model motosikal Kawasaki 650cc ke bawah akan dijenamakan semula dibawah Modenas.

Harga yang ditawarkan bagi setiap model:

Modenas Ninja 250: RM18,900
Modenas Ninja 250 ABS: RM20,500
Modenas Z250 ABS: RM19,500

Modenas Ninja 250

Ninja 250 yang dilancarkan ini merupakan model sama yang dilancarkan oleh Kawasaki Motors pada 2018. Bezanya, Ninja 250 di bawah Modenas ini dipasang di Malaysia dan harganya sedikit murah berbanding RM23,071 ketika dilancarkan 4 tahun lalu.

Modenas Ninja 250 ABS

Merujuk kepada namanya, Ninja 250 ABS ini hadir dengan ciri ABS yang tersedia melalui cakera 286 mm di hadapan dan 193 mm di belakang. Itu sahaja perbezaan antara Ninja 250 dengan Ninja 250 ABS. Motor ini  mencatat berat sebanyak 167 kg.

Modenas Z250 ABS

Z250 pula berkongsi asas yang sama dengan Ninja 250, bezanya, Ninja 250 merupakan versi motosikal sport manakala Z250 merupakan versi naked. Perbezaan dapat dilihat pada panel badan, lampu serta meternya. Berat Z250 dan Ninja 250 adalah sama pada 165 kg.

Enjin Dan Suspensi

Ketiga-tiga model ini menggunakan enjin 2 silinder DOHC 249cc yang menghasilkan 37 hp dan 23 Nm tork dan dipadankan dengan transmisi 6 kelajuan dengan klac jenis assist & slipper.

Untuk bahagian suspensi, ketiga-tiga motosikal ini menggunakan fork teleskopik di hadapan dan monoshock di belakang. Semua model ini hadir dengan rim bersaiz 17 inci bersama tayar bersaiz 110/70 di hadapan dan 140/70 di belakang.

Kelengkapan Lain

Lampu hadapan LED
Lampu belakang LED
Tangki bahan api 14 liter
Tinggi tempat duduk 795 mm

Warna

Ninja 250: Metallic Carbon Grey dan Metallic Matte Graphite

Ninja 250 ABS: Metallic Matte Graphite Grey

Z250 ABS: Metallic Spark Black dan Candy Cardinal Red

Ketiga-tiga model motosikal ini akan berada di semua wakil pengedar sah Kawasaki mulai 1 Ogos 2022.

Jason from HondaPro Jason gives the world some good insight about the new 2023 Honda Civic FL5 Type R, including the fact that it will be manufactured in its spiritual home of Japan!

As promised by Honda Motor Co., Ltd, they globally unveiled the new generation 2023 Honda Civic Type R on the 21st of July, 2022. Most of us had to view it online, but some Americans and Europeans were lucky enough to see it up close and personal as Honda exhibited the car in selected countries.

While it was met with fanfare, many fans were annoyed with the premier as Honda left out many vital details, including crucial information such as performance figures.

However, this didn’t stop many American Youtubers from dissecting the FL5 Type R in detail, as they were one of the first people on earth to physically see the car in front of their very eyes.

American Youtuber, HondaPro Jason who dedicates his channel to the ins and outs of Honda cars, pointed out some very interesting things about the new FL5 Civic Type R. 

While we covered what we could from online information, there’s nothing like seeing the car for yourself, where you can pick out certain peculiar things about the racier version of the Civic.

2022 Honda Civic FL5 Type R – It’s a wide girl

Based on the current-generation Honda Civic, we all know by now that the 2023 Honda Civic Type R carries a more ‘matured’ facade. What we can’t tell however is how wide it is. 

Jason starts by saying how concave the hood is and how nicely it works its way “into the massively wide fenders”. Looking at the fender from a different angle, seeing it on screen, the difference between the width of the regular Civic and the Type R becomes quite obvious. Jason also mentions that the wide fender and the side skirt are a one-piece body kit.

The intake grilles are huge – FL5 Type R

Compared to the previous generation Honda Civic Type R, the intake grilles are much larger in the current gen Type R. 

Both the upper and lower air intake grille is larger, and judging by Jason’s crude calculations, it could be up to 30% larger. As a result, “a lot more air will go into the radiator and hopefully keep the engine cooler”.

The hood vent has two functions on the 2023 Type R

The hood vent on the FK8 was meant to help vent out hot air, but the hood vent in the FL5 can vent out “a lot of hot air” as well as take in cooler air. Size matters? 

New turbo and a peculiar-looking thing at the intake system

We all know that the 2023 Honda Civic FL5 Type R is the most powerful Honda Civic Type R to ever come out of the factory, and one of the reasons for this is due to the new turbocharger unit. 

While Jason mentioned that the turbo is a new piece of hardware, he also noticed this peculiar-looking boxed shape hardware baked into the intake system. Unfortunately, he doesn’t know what it is, and we’ll probably only find out when Honda unveils its performance figures later on. 

The Honda Civic Type R will now be built in Japan!

One of the biggest revelations from Jason’s walkaround video is that he noticed that the 2023 Honda Civic Type R was built in Japan. 

In the video, Jason pointed out its VIN on the windscreen, which clearly showed the alphabet J in front of the other alphabets and numbers. According to Jason, this is a clear indication that the Honda Civic Type R will be made in Japan. For the first time in 20 years, all Civic Type Rs will be built in Japan instead of Swindon, England.

Parts of the rear end feel like they were inspired by Mugen and Spoon parts

Jason reckons that the best aftermarket kits inspired the rear spoiler and bumper of the new Honda Civic. 

He said the bumper reminded him of the Spoon bumper, and the spoiler reminded him of the ones created by Mugen. “It feels like Honda literally took the best of aftermarket parts and slapped them on the car”.

Jason ended the video by saying that no one knows its price, power, and suspension setup, but it’ll all be revealed soon as the premier is pretty much about getting a first feel and impression of the car.

Honda, why do you do this to us? Just kiss and tell already.

 

One of the most popular cars on our market, either new or pre-owned, is the Honda City – it represents the mass-market entry-level sedan in the B-segment, and has long been a staple for many consumers over the last two decades. The product has evolved somewhat in its design and positioning, growing more technologically complex and refined – more so perhaps than its contemporary rivals.

Over the years, there have been various different additions and subtractions from the variant line-up of the Honda City. There have been times when hybrid models were offered in different methods of operation, and also special edition models that have shown up from time to time. One of the most enduring model variants has been the V, which represents the “best” of what the Honda City has to offer, short of the RS model that now sits as the jewel of the range.

Hence the specific variant of the Honda City that we’re looking at today is the V spec model, and in particular one that would have been purchased back in 2017. Things may be a little tricky here as 2017 was a facelift launch year for the fourth-generation model, and residual value may change depending on whether you have a pre- or post-facelift unit. The official price at launch was RM92,000, on-the-road without insurance.

Here’s the breakdown:

Vehicle variant: Honda City V i-VTEC 2017

The Honda City V i-VTEC was one of the most popular non-national vehicles sold of its time, based on the fact that it had strong residual value and came with competitive specifications as the range-topper. For this comparison, the depreciation is calculated based on the list price of RM92,000, with first-year advertised pricing being the first year of depreciation.

2017 Honda City V i-VTEC (RM 92,000)

Year

Car Age

(Years)

Avg Advertised 

Price (RM)

Retained Value

Percentage

Depreciation

Percentage

Cumulative 

Depreciation Sum (RM)

2017

Launch 

Year

72,747.38
79%
21%
19,252.63

2018
1
71,170.11
77%
23%
20,829.89

2019
2
65,699.73
71%
29%
26,300.27

2020
3
61,581.24
67%
33%
30,418.76

2021
4
61,796.08
67%
33%
30,203.92

2022
5
63,402.09
69%
31%
28,597.91

As often is the case with buying pre-owned cars, you can avoid big hits in depreciation with the trade-off being that you don’t get that brand-new car smell. That being said, you can be even more clever with the age of the car you choose as depreciation doesn’t tend to be as linear as you’d expect.

In the graph below, you can see that there is a relatively large hit in the first year of ownership as represented by a 21% depreciation, or RM19,000, and change – characteristic of all new-car sales as the moment you drive it off the showroom floor it plummets in value.

From there, however, you can see that the depreciation is somewhat stabilized as an affirmation of the incredible residual value of the Honda City, let alone the V variant. In the first five years of ownership, the value drops by just under 33%, which may sound rough but in real ringgit terms it comes to RM30,203.92 in depreciation – or RM16 a day over five years.

It is after the five-year mark where we see an interesting bit of data – the residual value for the Honda City V actually bounces back up slightly by RM2,700 or so. This has been influenced by a few factors, namely a really hefty slowdown in new car production as well as long waiting times for new car deliveries. The used-car market has seen a huge improvement in residual values across the board as a result.

With that in mind, if you purchase a four- or five-year-old Honda City V and sell it now, you could even recover your initial purchase cost and then some – maybe even enough to cover the cost of initial maintenance and repairs. That being said, we cannot expect this upwards trend in pricing to continue as the Honda City V doesn’t have the kind of strong intrinsic value that classic cars have leading to their appreciation.

Even without the long waiting times and slow new car production, you would expect the depreciation of the Honda City V to level out after the fifth or sixth year, especially as they are known to be reliable and long-lasting products with relatively low cost of ownership and maintenance. Cars like these tend to be evergreen in that sense, providing reliable transportation to fresh graduates and retirees alike, and being fuss-free in nature and design.

Coming into ownership of one of these, you can expect annual maintenance to be simple as the Honda City V employs a 1.5-litre naturally aspirated petrol engine for propulsion, with a CVT-type automatic transmission that delivers power to the front wheels. The resilience of these powertrain units has come on leaps and bounds from the Honda City of three generations prior.

For some great deals on the Honda City V i-VTEC, click here.

If you’re looking to sell your car, we have a solution for you too. Trade-in your car with carsome.my and get up to an RM1,500 discount voucher for your next upgrade.

The new generation Ford Ranger Wildtrak and GWM POER P12 come with ingenious steps that aid access into the truck bed.

Pick-up truck manufacturers are finally, we hope looking at smart solutions to make cargo beds a bit more accessible to their owners. 

While it’s easy to just plonk cargo on the bed through the flip-down tailgate, pick-up truck owners will attest that they have to be a ninja to get into one or even take items out of the truck bed.  

Traditionally, pick-up truck manufacturers have provided some sort of step to help with the ingress into the truck bed, and usually, this involves integrating a step at the rear bumper, where the middle part is lower than then the rest of it.

But the problem with this is that it only works if the tailgate is not flipped down because if it is, that step aid is pretty much useless as there is no access to it. A way around this problem is to use the tyres as a step, but it’s still not the easiest thing to do as tyres on pick-ups are usually huge.

Recently, however, we have seen a couple of trucks for the Malaysian market with some ingenious features that seem to resolve this problem. 

GWM POER P12

When we got the chance to preview the GWM POER P12 at Go Auto’s HQ in Glenmarie, we were highly impressed with the truck’s rear step-up ladder, which is integrated into the tailgate. 

It’s such a simple and functional idea that solves the truck bed access problem without interfering with anything else, especially the look of the truck. All you have to do is unlatch the tailgate and drop it down, and pull the mini ladder out of the tailgate. The ladder, which sits about a foot off the ground really does make life easier.

2022 Ford Ranger Wildtrak 

While GWM went to the trouble of adding a ladder into the tailgate, Ford went with a simpler idea to help with truck bed access.

During the recent launch of the new generation Ranger Wildtrak, Ford was keen to tell everyone that they had been observing how customers climbed up into the truck bed. This was their inspiration for creating an integrated side-step behind the rear tyres to help provide a strong and more stable way to access the cargo bed. 

While Ford’s idea is simple yet effective, we’re not sure if we are a fan of the look as it makes the area unclean as there is a big gaping hole.

If we had to choose which one we would prefer, we would of course, go for the hideaway ladder in the POER, as it is neatly hidden away when not in use – but then again, the fact that the POER’s ladder needs to be pulled out, makes Ford’s rear box step more functional as it can be easily used all the time.

Both step-up features however will provide owners of the trucks better access to the truck bed, and with this in mind, be helpful no matter how you look at it. It’s better to have something rather than nothing.

Which one do you prefer? Let us know in the comments.

What’s better than the already awesome 2022 Porsche 911 GT3? A Porsche 911 GT3 RS. And yes, it’s going to be launched soon.

Getting ready for its official global launch on 17 August 2022, the new top-of-the-line Porsche 911 is going to be quite a show. Developed and inspired by the 911 RSR and 911 GT3 R GT race cars, the new 911 GT3 RS is most likely going to be extraordinary.

500PS of six-cylinder goodness

According to Andreas Preuninger, Director GT Model Line, “The new 911 GT3 RS is even more optimised for track use than its predecessors. The spontaneously responsive, high-revving four-litre, six-cylinder boxer engine with approximately 500 PS has proven ideal for use at trackdays and club sport events.”

“That’s why we focused primarily on aerodynamics and chassis questions in the development of the new 911 GT3 RS,” added Preuninger.

The current-gen Porsche 911 GT3 is able to hit 0-100km/h in just 3.9 seconds before punching to its top speed of 320km/h. The six-cylinder banger in this one is already a masterpiece, and we’re guessing that the RS will turn things up all the way to 11.

Priced from RM1.7 million (excluding options and taxes) when it was launched back in November last year (that was with the tax exemption), you can opt to have either a seven-speed PDK or six-speed manual. Either way, you’re a winner with this one. The RS? Champion, bro.

 

Kerajaan perlu mewujudkan lesen memandu khas untuk pemandu trak pikap ekoran banyak kes kemalangan maut melibatkan kenderaan itu di Malaysia.

Saranan itu dicadangkan oleh Ketua Jurulatih TIC Advanced & Performance Driving Academy, Azad Jasmi yang mendapati lesen memandu khas itu penting agar pemandu trak pikap mempunyai kemahiran serta teknik pengendalian trak pikap dengan betul dan selamat.

Lesen Memandu Khas Trak Pikap

Azad mencadangkan supaya pemandu trak pikap perlu memiliki lesen memandu khas seperti pemandu lori dan bas iaitu Lesen Memandu Kenderaan Perdagangan (GDL) dan Lesen Kenderaan Pengangkutan Awam (PSV).

“Keupayaan pengendalian dan memahami karakter sesebuah pacuan empat roda ini penting kerana jika berlaku kecemasan, pemandu akan tahu cara yang selamat untuk membrek supaya kereta itu tidak berpusing atau terbalik,” katanya.

Pada waktu ini, sesiapa sahaja boleh memandu trak pikap asalkan mempunyai lesen Kelas D, iaitu motokar berat tanpa muatan tidak melebihi 3,500 kilogram.

Menurut Azad, lesen Kelas D yang digunakan pemandu pacuan empat roda ketika ini tidak sesuai dengan cara pengendaliannya yang berbeza dengan kereta lain.

Azad turut menyebut bahawa kebanyakan mereka yang mengambil lesen memandu Kelas D akan berlatih memandu dengan menggunakan kereta jenis Perodua Kancil atau Perodua Axia.

“Bagaimanapun, selepas mendapat lesen, mereka pandu pacuan empat roda yang mempunyai fizikal yang jauh lebih besar, tinggi serta enjin yang lebih berkuasa,” katanya kepada Kosmo.

Bahaya Trak Pikap

Secara umumnya, Azad memberitahu kenderaan pacuan empat roda tidak boleh dipandu terlalu laju terutamanya ketika digunakan untuk mengangkut barang atau beban.

Jelasnya, kedudukan titik graviti trak pikap adalah lebih tinggi menyebabkan ia menjadi kurang stabil berbanding kenderaan yang lebih rendah dan dekat dengan permukaan jalan.

“Lebih teruk apabila sikap pemilik yang tidak mengenali secara menyeluruh sifat kenderaan itu dan terus memandu laju sehingga hilang kawalan dan mudah untuk memasuki laluan bertentangan atau terbabas,” ujarnya.

Kursus Dan Latihan Memandu Trak Pikap

Presiden Persatuan Pengguna Jalan Raya Kebangsaan, Datuk Mohammad Hisham Shafie pula berkata, mana-mana individu yang mahu memandu trak pikap juga perlu menjalani latihan atau kursus bagi meningkatkan advokasi.

Katanya, antara sebab utama kemalangan masih berulang disebabkan sikap pemandu selain terdapat perbezaan antara cara pemanduan pikap dengan kereta.

“Kita sedia maklum bahawa trak pikap adalah lebih besar dan memiliki kuasa yang lebih tinggi menyebabkan segelintir pemandu tidak mahu bertolak ansur dan juga bersikap ego.

“Jadi, satu program advokasi melibatkan teknik memandu dan pemanduan berhemah perlu diterapkan dalam sistem sedia ada,” ujarnya.

Beliau turut menyarankan Jabatan Pengangkutan Jalan (JPJ) dan institut memandu untuk melakukan pemeriksaan ke atas pemandu untuk tempoh tiga tahun hingga lima tahun sekali bagi memastikan mereka layak untuk mengendalikan kenderaan itu.

“Sepatutnya selepas individu ambil lesen, pemandu perlu menjalani semula latihan, teori dan praktikal dalam tempoh tiga hingga lima tahun sekali bagi memastikan kompetensi dan kecekapan pemandu adalah berada pada tahap yang baik dan memuaskan,” tambahnya.

Beliau juga menegaskan, penguatkuasaan undang-undang juga perlu ditingkatkan supaya tiada individu memandang ringan terhadap peraturan sedia ada.

The new 2022 Honda HR-V has just been launched and many people we know are comparing it against the Toyota Corolla Cross – but how do the non-turbo variants compare? 

Here we are in the middle of 2022, and car buyers who are looking to get a new SUV have a much harder choice to make thanks to all the new options in the market to date.

Honda Malaysia has unveiled its latest 2022 Honda HR-V line-up, and we want to see how the non-turbo 1.5S goes up against the likes of the Toyota Corolla Cross 1.8G and Toyota Corolla Cross 1.8V, which were launched back in March 2021. This is the battle between the non-turbos, baby!

These two models are constantly put head-to-head (and they were level on some occasions), but with the new HR-V S variant being fitted with a smaller 1.5-litre N/A engine, will the outcome carry a big difference compared to the 1.8-litre also N/A mill in the Corolla Cross?

Below is the spec sheet between the three models for your perusal before we break them down further.

MODEL
2022 HONDA HR-V 1.5S
2021 TOYOTA COROLLA CROSS 1.8G
2021 TOYOTA COROLLA CROSS 1.8V

PRICE
RM114,800
RM128,303
RM134,429

ENGINE
1.5L DOHC iVTEC
1.8L DOHC Dual VVT-i
1.8L DOHC Dual VVT-i

POWER
121PS @ 6,000rpm
139PS @ 6,400rpm
139PS @ 6,400rpm

TORQUE
145Nm @ 4,300rpm
172Nm @ 4,000rpm
172Nm @ 4,000rpm

TRANSMISSION
CVT
7-speed CVT with Sequential Shiftmatic
7-speed CVT with Sequential Shiftmatic

DRIVEN WHEELS
FWD
FWD
FWD

BOOT SPACE
Not specified
440L
440L

INFOTAINMENT
8-inch Advanced Touch Display
9-inch Capacitive Touch Screen
9-inch Capacitive Touch Screen

SPEAKERS
4
6
6

AIRBAGS
4
7
7

SAFETY

Collision Mitigation Braking System

Adaptive Cruise Control with Low-Speed Follow

Road Departure Mitigation

Lane Keep Assist

Auto High Beam

Wide-angle rearview camera system

Parking sensors

Auto Brake Hold

Hill Descent Control (HDC)

Agile Handle Assist (ASA)

Cruise Control

Blind Spot Monitor

Rear Cross-Traffic Alert

Tyre Pressure Warning System

Parking Sensors

Vehicle Stability Control

Traction Control

Hill-Start Assist Control

Emergency Brake Signal

ABS, EBD, BA

Pre-Collision System

Lane Departure Alert with Steering Assist

Dynamic Radar Cruise Control

Lane Tracing Assist

Automatic High Beam

Blind Spot Monitor

Rear Cross-Traffic Alert

Tyre Pressure Warning System

Parking Sensors

Vehicle Stability Control

Traction Control

Hill-Start Assist Control

Emergency Brake Signal

ABS, EBD, BA

Safety Specs – Honda Sensing or Toyota Safety Sense?

Safety-wise, the 2022 Honda HR-V 1.5S is on par with the Toyota Corolla Cross 1.8V due to the complete offerings in terms of the Honda Sensing and Toyota Safety Sense.

The Corolla Cross 1.8G is left slightly behind due to the missing Lane Departure Alert with Steering Assist, Dynamic Radar Cruise Control, Lane Tracing Assist, and Automatic High Beam, which are readily available in the 1.8V.

The downside of the HR-V is that the base model only has four airbags (compared to six in the other three due to missing curtains). That’s quite a difference when you notice the Corolla’s seven airbag setup (with curtains & driver’s knee) for both the G and V variants.

1.5L vs 1.8L

As for the powertrain, it’s true that you’ll be paying less for road tax in the Honda HR-V and its 1.5-litre engine, and it’s only 18PS down compared to the Toyota Corolla Cross non-hybrid duo (although torque is considerably lower by 27Nm, which can be noticeable depending on occupancy and cargo).

With that being said the Corolla Cross outputs its maximum power at 6,400rpm compared to the HR-V at 6,000rpm, its higher torque production is a clear winner for the Toyota with more torque getting laid down at a lower rpm range. 172Nm @ 4,000rpm from the Corolla Cross simply stomps the HR-V’s 145Nm @ 4,300rpm.

Price

There’s a reason why there are so many Toyota Corolla Cross models on the Malaysian roads today – competitive pricing. From RM128K-RM134K, it’s honestly a good price for an SUV of this size, power, and calibre.

The 2022 Honda HR-V might bring the heat when it comes to design and overall offerings, particularly the 1.5 S which has a slight advantage thanks to its slightly lower pricing (RM114,800) . It’s still a good offering, though, probably has a slight advantage against the Corolla Cross 1.8G when looking at the overall specs, but it’s neck and neck with the 1.8V in our eyes.

Mini has previewed an EV that marks the brand’s next-gen design – the Mini Concept Aceman.

This new concept from Mini portrays the brand’s direction in design as well as technological innovations together with its signature driving experience that we’ve adored over the years.

The Mini Concept Aceman will also act as a bridge between the Cooper and the Countryman, which also means that it’ll be a completely new model offering if it does go into production. There’s already a Mini Cooper SE, but this Aceman? We’re digging the looks.

New design era for Mini

Exterior-wise, Mini enthusiasts can appreciate the unmistakable design cues found on the Aceman concept, but moving forward as a brand, the constant evolution together with innovations in tech has led to a more ‘holistic user experience’ when it comes to space and overall interaction.

Speaking of space, the Mini Concept Aceman is able to maximise its interior space thanks to the brand’s freedom to design an entirely new EV concept. Four doors, a huge boot space, and seating for five people paired with decent dimensions (4.05m length, 1.99m length, 1.59m height).

The classic three-way body division synonymous with Mini has been maintained paired with a much smoother exterior for enhanced aerodynamics (very important for an EV). That’s clearly visible via its fully-closed front central grille with matrix LED units placed in between a set of also matrix LED headlights with green contour lighting – a great way to attract potential EV owners in the future. That, and those 20-inch wheels housed within those muscular wheel arches. Sexy.

Expressive colours of the youth

Colour options for this potential new Mini EV are also a bit ‘out there’, but it’s actually quite nice. There’s the Icy Sunglow Green which is a light shade of turquoise with a mix of gold, paired with that classic British Racing Green for the roof? Definitely fire.

Even the roof rack takes an interesting turn with green fastening straps with iridescent coating with multiple colour spectrums. Then there’s the front and rear valences fitted with very loud pinkish orange loudspeakers because why not?

MINImalism interior

The futuristic yet colourful theme for the exterior flows into the interior but with a more minimalist touch. According to Oliver Heilmer, Head of Mini Design, “We have concentrated on a simplistic appearance in combination with premium materials and welcoming colours. Digitisation enables us to make do with few operating elements and at the same time to maximise the experience in a way that is characteristic of Mini.”

You can see these via its flat-designed dashboard to mimic the looks of a soundbar, wide yet gently curved surfaces on the door panels, and a large panoramic glass roof further adds a sense of space and ambience to the occupants. All that futuristic stuff is brought a bit down to earth with the addition of soft knitted textile surfaces.

Then, you are shot back up to space thanks to that round OLED display and other toggle switches and rotary knobs that add a nice dose of modernism with a dash of ‘intuitive operations’. 

Since it’s still a concept, the Mini Concept Aceman has the potential to be a far greater EV compared to the Mini Countryman SE solely because of the freedom the designers have in creating a brand-new platform for the brand.

Hopefully, when it exits the concept car stage, we can get more info about this funky-looking EV Mini like performance figures and EV range. You have our complete and utmost attention, Mini.

 

The Honda City Hatchback is a premium-feeling small car that’ll make you forget about the Honda Jazz and possibly its main rival, the Toyota Yaris. 

When Honda Malaysia announced that they would be phasing out the much-loved Honda Jazz to make space for the City hatchback, there were a lot of sad Honda Jazz fans making a lot of noise about it.

After three generations, nine years, and over 100,000 units sold, we can see why they were unhappy about this move – because the Jazz can be considered a very successful and loved Honda model in Malaysia.

We too were skeptical about the City Hatchback’s capabilities of filling in the void left by the Jazz – until that is, we got behind one.

We recently had the opportunity to spend nearly a week with the Honda City Hatchback, and boy, oh boy did it make us forget the Honda Jazz!

The variant that we had is the City Hatchback 1.5L V. It’s the top variant without going hybrid, as it has pretty much everything you need except Honda Sensing. If you want to add Honda Sensing to the V variant, you would need to add another RM4k to the price, as Honda offers the V variant with their full suite of safety features, called the Honda City Hatchback 1.5L V-Sensing.

Honda City Hatchback 1.5L V Specifications

Engine: 1.5-litre 4 Cylinder, 16 Valve, DOHC i‑VTEC
Transmission: Continuous Variable Transmission (CVT)
Power: 121PS
Torque: 145Nm
0-100 km/h: 10.7 secs
Top speed is 195 km/h

2022 City Hatchback Exterior – Luckily there’s the Modulo bodykit

As a person that prefers an aggressive and sporty-styled hatchback, it pains me to say that the Honda City Hatchback looks like a big softy. Everything from its front end to its side profile is a bit too round for my liking, but the rear end in my opinion has a good blend of sportiness and elegance.

Some buyers might not share my view on this, and I can see why because not everybody wants an aggressively styled hatchback. However, in hindsight, the roundness of the exterior design can be considered an elegant bit of body design, one that would appease fashionistas and trendy people. 

But if you prefer a bit more aggressiveness in regards to body styling, luckily, Honda offers the Modulo body kit, which adds a bit of spice to the cutesy look of the City Hatchback. For RM3,825, you get to add some sharpness to the round hatchback as Honda will install a front under spoiler, side under spoiler, rear under spoiler, and tailgate spoiler.

2022 City Hatchback Interior – Jazz who?

While the exterior is more a case of my beauty is your ugly, I believe everyone would agree that the interior of the City Hatchback is pretty darn lovely. It’s definitely a step up from the Jazz and makes its main rival, the Toyota Yaris feel like its interior was designed by a pick-up truck designer.

Everything from its Apple CarPlay and Android Auto friendly 8-inch touchscreen infotainment system to black leather seats with white pipings just oozes class. Of course, there are soft-touch materials where it matters, but even the hard plastics don’t look or feel cheap. That infotainment system by the way is now one of the snappiest infotainment systems we have experienced, which does make the system feel way more expensive than it really is. 

Speaking of expensive, the hatchback’s interior is well insulated from NVH. As a result, you don’t feel any vibrations from the engine and driveline, and the car is quiet on the move. The insulation and refinement almost make you forget that you’re in a small hatchback instead of a deluxe sedan.

I took a Jazz owner out for a drive, and they can attest that everything is much better in the City Hatchback. He said although headroom is not as good as the Jazz, everything from the materials used, interior design and NVH is day and night compared to the dropped Jazz.

But we still have to be thankful to the Jazz, as the famed 4-Modes ULTRA Seats from the Jazz have been equipped in the City. This gives the City Hatchback great versatility, especially when needing to carry tall or weird items such as plants. These ULTRA seats are actually a godsend cause the 289-litre boot is a bit small, so you’ll probably be using them a lot.

2022 City Hatchback powertrain and handling – Great in both departments

All City Hatchbacks except for the RS hybrid variant gets the venerable 1.5L DOHC i-VTEC powertrain, which produces a healthy 121PS of power and maximum torque of 145Nm. It’s actually the most powerful engine in its class and probably one that is most eager to rev. 

As soon as you press the accelerator pedal, the City lurches forward without delay. This sharp and eager-to-rev engine helps the City feel sporty and predictable. But all this instant power delivery isn’t the doing of the engine alone, as it is combined with a refined and equally smooth operating CVT transmission.

The City hatchback feels like it has all the right attributes to be a fun city car. Moreover, its fuel consumption isn’t bad either returning a 5l/100km fuel economy reading during our mixed driving test. Yes, that was on eco mode, but we drove the car normally without trying to be cautious about wasting fuel.

Our favourite part of the powertrain however was its noise. It didn’t sound rough with a lot of treble, but instead, you get this lovely bassy VTEC note which kind of reminds us of those awesome VTEC noises from Hondas back in the nineties. 

The ride and handling of the Honda City Hatchback is a chameleon. Although it is on the slightly stiffer side, there’s plenty of comfort being offered in the hatchback. The suspension soaks up all road imperfections without effort, and the car finds it easy to go over speed humps without slowing down. Because of this, we did think it’ll be a bore around corners, but the hatchback proved otherwise and was fun to drive. 

We even did a little slalom test with the City Hatchback. The combination of precise and eager power delivery with sharp handling made the City Hatchback a fun car around the course. We’d rather be in the City Hatchback rather than of its main rival when it comes to tight city roads. 

2022 Honda City Hatchback safety – Basic safety with the bonus of LaneWatch

There’s only one downside to the Honda City Hatchback 1.5L V, but that’s only if you consider its safety equipment when compared to the Toyota Yaris G. 

For RM4,000k less, you get a Yaris with Toyota’s full suite of advanced safety features, while the City 1.5L V only comes with Honda LaneWatch. To get it on par with the Yaris’s safety features, you will have to pay RM4,000k extra and get the 1.5L V-Sensing.

However, if you’re not too concerned about having extra safety features, then you’re pretty much set. Still, we’re pretty sure you’ll appreciate the Honda LaneWatch on the V variant as it helps with lane changing. 

Conclusion

After experiencing the City Hatchback for nearly a week, we can safely say the Jazz will not be missed. Yes, there is less headroom in the cabin when compared to the Jazz, but everything else is pretty much better in the City Hatchback.

While the price of the car might seem pricey to some, you get what you are paying for. If you want a small car that is premium in feel with a refined powertrain and is fun to drive, then don’t bother looking elsewhere, this is the car for you. 

But if you want a small car with more safety features, then perhaps the Toyota Yaris G is a better proposition, but even then, you could just top up another RM4k and get the 1.5L V with Sensing.