Honda Civic, the C-Segment contender

2013 is ending soon, and to be exact, another 2 days, and this year, one could only see Honda Civic as the only strong C-segment contender from the Japanese makes.  Of course, comes 2014, we shall have the all new Mazda 3 and Toyota Altis, which will kick Civic's butt real hard.

Take a look at the following table, and all 3 contenders are pretty close to each other, and the Civic sat between the Altis and Mazda 3 in specification and power.  Toyota is always at the end of the chart and shall march on with the 7-year-old engine, with most basic safety, yet attract the biggest sales volume.  The Civic is really for people that wanted a change, who are very sure Toyota is for the forties and above and the Mazda has yet to build its reputation here in Malaysia.  Whether it is in the 1.8-litre, 2.0-litre or even the 1.5-litre hybrid version, the Civic actually looks good.  The rear lamp cluster though take many looks for one to start loving it.  Till the Mazda 3 make inroad, it is the sportier looking C-segment car, carrying the famous Honda i-VTEC SOHC engine.  Many people think Dual Overhead Cam is always better, and this is totally wrong.  It does not matter as long as the unit performs well and could be fuel efficient.

	Civic 1.8	Altis 1.8	Civic 2.0 Navi	Altis 2.0V	Mazda 3 2.0
Engine Power	140HP/174Nm	137HP/173Nm	152HP/190Nm	143HP/187Nm	153HP/200Nm
Transmission	5-speed	CVT 7-speed	5-speed	CVT 7-speed	6-speed
Airbags	2	2	4	2	Maybe = 6
Traction Control	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes
Warranty (Yrs)	5	3	5	3	3
Price (RM)	116k	116k	137k	138k	139k

The interior of the Civic looks all familiar from the previous generation, adopting dual-stack cluster, with the digital speedo on top of the analog RPM meter.  Looks futuristic, but I would want all analog needle if at all possible.  After owning the digital cluster from a Citroen C3, it just look boring, especially in a sporty sedan!  The all new Mazda 3 will have a digital speedo also, but the cluster looks much better, with emphasis on the RPM meter.  Why are they making digital meter nowadays, just hate it.  The 1.8-litre Civic's center dashboard is simple, and the transmission shift looks really outdated here.  A gated shift should make it here to make it more elegant.  Guess Honda is sharing this part with their other models, thus retaining the inline shifter!  Big mistake here.

If you want the fully equipped Civic, you have to get the 2.0-litre, which has additional 2 side-airbag, HID headlights, cruise control and a 6.1" Navigation system with reverse camera.  The drawback, this unit does not come with Bluetooth connectivity, which is so strange as the normal 2.0-litre S-model has this.  Anyhow, Vehicle Stability feature is standard across all models, unlike the Altis, which only fit it to  the most expensive model.  Overall, the Civic always drive good and it is comfortable as the target market is toward the family oriented owner.  For now, let's wait till the new Altis and the spectacular Mazda 3...it is year end anyhow, no one going to buy a 2013 manufactured/registered car in the last 2 days of the year, right!

The Lexus ES 250, an Elegant Sedan

The sixth generation of the Lexus ES should redefine the entry-level luxury car market, with the backing of the ultra-reliable 2AR-FE 2.5-litre engine and 6-speed Super ECT gearbox, which it adopts directly from the Toyota Camry, making it an affordable and easy to maintain Lexus.  

 

Being a front-wheel-drive unit, there are less components to fail and also making it easy to drive.  For those that has been watching a lot of Taiwan and Hong Kong drama, the ES is a popular choice among businessmen and businesswomen, as its design is truly elegant and beautiful.  

Comparing to the BMW 3-series and Lexus IS, those are for the sporty minded people and the Mercedes C-Class is tad smaller and look boring now, till we get the new model in the coming months.  The ES' could effectively sit between the 3 and 5, or the C and E, and at RM280k for the luxury version, which provides additional specs such as semi-aniline leather, HID and LED lights, memory auto tilt and telescopic steering wheel, side doors sunshade, in-built navigation and a set of better looking alloys, is well worth  the additional RM20k when compare to the standard version.

The interior of the ES is very spacious, especially noticeable at the rear seat, which is designed with an almost flat floor.  However, the meter cluster adopt a very boring layout, with limited selectable information that could display in the middle screen such as the TPM system, speed and average fuel consumption, and the throttle mode setting. 

For the minimalist center dashboard, the analog clock blend in elegantly and most control could be done from the Electronic Multi-Vision screen.  However, one could feel the sensitivity of the joystick is too strong and could make navigating the 8" screen difficult.  There is also a big round button that changes the throttle map of the engine to ECO, Normal or Sport mode.  When Sport mode is selected, the transmission will keep its gear for longer, producing better torque.  Also note that the ES is not designed as a sport sedan, thus the lack of paddle shifters.  ECO mode is best suited for highway cruising, that could reduce fuel consumption.  In total, the engine could produce 181hp/235Nm, which most will think this is low for a 2.5-litre engine.

Being a Lexus, one could expect all safety features in the ES, and indeed, it has almost everything, except Hill-Start Assist and auto parking.  Being a torque-converter car, why would the hill-start assist needed as in most slope, the automatic gear could handle it.  By the way, the ES has a total of 10-airbag, which include 2 rear-seat airbags and 2 front knee airbags, beside having other 6 at the common locations.

If I were to have this ES, being chauffeur driven is the best.  The rear legroom is huge, and the armrest comes with basic audio control, and if you do not drive beside a truck, it is quiet and comfy to enjoy a cup of coffee with the morning paper.

Of course, being a chauffeur of this car is not too bad, as the front seat and steering wheel could be  electronically adjusted.  During the drive, the steering felt like a feather, making it good for the old folks.  If you like a steering that have much feedback, this is not your cup of tea.  It could remember up to 3 settings.  Lexus should take a step further by recognizing the key holder, and adjust the position when it detect it is the pappa's key or the mamma's key or the rich kid's key.

Like what you see?  Head down to the Lexus Centre and book one today, the wait time is about 3-4 months for the ES, and expect not-so-good service from the salesperson.

The 2nd Lexus Showroom Experience Report Card

There used to be so much hype on the service at the Lexus Center, and I could tell you, it is no other than any other car showrooms nowadays.  The 1st visit to the UMW-owned showroom in Mutiara Damansara is a disaster, which effectively take the CT200h out of my shopping list for a sport hatch. The 2nd visit to the Wing Hing's Lexus Center in Sungai Besi, with the invitation of a friend who is interested in getting the recently launched Lexus ES250.  Let me tell you what is wrong with the center:

1. We have told the sales on a weekend roadshow that we will be visiting for a test drive, and this sales does not even followup with a courtesy call.


2. During the whole session of viewing and test driving the car, the sales was too busy with his other phone calls, which I would think if he missed them, it will cost him few millions worth of transaction.


3. The sales, spent no effort to explain anything about the car, till I asked.  Shouldn't Lexus trained them to at least tell the customer the ES is actually another incarnation of the Camry, sharing the same mechanics, and it is a front wheel drive unit, unlike the IS and GS model, thus it get a decent "affordable price".


4. The sales could not even remember correctly the differences of the standard and luxury model, and I bet they will not even know the differences of a smooth leather and semi-aniline leather seat.  When I ask how many airbag, I was given the number 8 on the ES.  In actual fact and printed on the brochure it has 10!


5. The center has a drink kiosk, with a staff standing, yet did not even offer a drink to the customer, even while we are ordering a car worth > quarter million.  I had to ask again!


6. A luxury car showroom should display its full range of offering, and this place only has 3 cars on display, which is the CT, ES and GS.  I bet they had sold their IS demo car off. Anyhow, I had never seen the RX or LS on display before.  Maybe Lexus will tell customer to go Naza, take a look and test drive the similar Harrier there.  LS is for the filthy rich which will order the car through a secretary, thus a demo car is not needed as well.


7. While I tried to get a full brochure, I was told that they have limited stock on that, thus run out of stock.  So I could only get the 4-flip-folded pages of the lousy brochure.  Oh yes, they do have a nicely designed and printed booklet.  Now you know it, ask for it next time.  Stingy businessman only printed limited number, and in times to come, this could become a limited edition and worth a million on eBay.


8. When we wanted to try the car with highway speed, the sales does not offer us any route that could lead us to a nearby highway, yet keep telling us to round in the Sungai Besi area, and of course, he was too busy on his phone as well.  I remember that when we visited the VW, the sales even have a Touch N Go ready, and ask promptly whether we wanted to hit the highway.


9. We wanted to choose a number, and he shown us the list from the phone which has an exorbitant price.  Couldn't the sales print a copy and make it easier for the customer to choose for a long list, instead of holding a phone.  The price on the list is only negotiable for few hundred ringgits, in which, we could get other runners to help for a much cheaper plate.


10. Though the waiting period is about 3-4 months long, the sales has not offer any assistance on bank loan or insurance coverage, nor told us about the existing prevailing interest rate.  It might be too early, but shouldn't they calculate everything and let the customer know what is the expecting figure!

Nevertheless of all the not perfect service, a booking was being made (my friend is a China-man, who does not care much about this).  But to me, this is the second time how a Lexus Center could turn people away.  However, there isn't much Lexus Center in the country, so if you damn like the "L" emblem to be in front of your next car, you have not much choice.  Honestly, Lexus makes good cars, but they really need to buck-up their people!

Peugeot 2008...the start of the mini SUV year for 2014

Naza has finally advertised the availability of the CKD Peugeot 2008 this week in the newspaper and their Peugeot website, with a single variant, equipped with the 1.6L VTi Prince engine and 4 speed transmission, similar to the 208 model, asking for RM120k.  You get 120hp/160Nm of power from this familiar engine of choice.  In fact, almost all Peugeot vehicles uses the same 1.6L Prince engine, but in different tunes.

Built on the similar platform of the 208, the 2008 is slightly larger in size, competing in the B-Segment Mini SUV category.  However, unless you have something for the continental made, the Ford EcoSport looks nicer.  Naza has always been generous in equipping cars with all the safety features, yet could sell at a decent price...So now you know how other Japanese made vehicles are being overprice here for the benefit of the distributors and dealers.  The 2008 has 6 airbags with ABS, EBD, EBA, ASR, DSC & ESP and Hill Assist, further complemented by auto headlight, auto wiper, show-me-home light, cornering assist fog-light, and the best of all for those lousy side parking folks...the Smart Park Assist that auto park your car, as well as auto exit from the parking slot.

The dashboard is simple, as most controls are from the 7-inch touch screen.  The meter cluster is similar to the 2008.  I wonder whether people will buy this car just because they like the aircraft style handbrake level, which looks special, but what the heck, it is just a handbrake.  I would prefer an auto parking brake activation switch instead of these manual "ta-ta-ta-ta" handle!

One might want a big trunk in a SUV, but in this mini SUV, you get about 360-litre of space, quite decent, and the big door opening ease loading of big item, like the 29-inch TV, if you still buy them!  Panoramic roof with mood lighting and electric blind is standard, making the car roomier when open.  With our hot weather, glass roof is never practical, and most of the time it will be covered up, and some owner would double or triple tint the roof as well.  

The rear end of the 2008 has a high waistline, with the light mounted higher, which kind of spoil the good front look.  Side profile still look nice, but if you are standing directly at the back, it looks kind of weird.

The 208 drives really good.  In my opinion, if the 2008 is equipped with the turbo Prince engine and a 6-speeder, it could be better.  However, Peugeot position this car for the young and trendy or even the soccer mom, thus a slower engine should not deter them from choosing it over others.  Furthermore, it is a fully equipped car, at an affordable price.  Way to go, Naza!  Why not bring in the Kia Soul for all the trendy fans here.

After about 6 months of the 2008 launched, I am still falling in love with it.  But comparing the the smaller sibling 208, which share the same platform and engine, is it really worth to pay additional RM30k for the 2008, which is slightly taller and larger!  This car really need the turbocharged engine to be justified!

The Balooned 9-Airbag Hyundai i40

If you were in the market looking for an affordable safe car, in the sense that one with the most airbags, now you could get the Hyundai i40, which has 9-airbag in total.  It could have scored > 5-star Euro NCAP if there were additional star in the program. Here is the list of the airbags coverage:

1. Front Passenger
2. Front Driver
3. Front Passenger side 
4. Front Driver side
5. Back left side
6. Back right side
7. Left side curtain
8. Right side curtain
9. Driver Knee

Wow, that's a lot and if all deployed at once, wonder whether the mechanism will actually cause any explosion inside the car, then suffocate everyone. 

The i40 belongs to the similar D-Segment the Sonata, with a smaller dimension, yet command a higher price due to different equipment level and it is designed to compete with European made instead of Japanese.  Designed in Germany, to compete with the like of VW Passat, Peugeot 508 and Ford Mondeo, thus the i40 is available in the Tourer form (Estate), which is a favourite body choice.

Both the sedan and tourer version have similar engine, the Hyundai Nu GDI (Gasoline Direct Injection), which has higher compression, and in turn providing better efficiency and better output figure when compare to the Nu MPI unit.  The sedan unit could provide 176hp/214Nm of power and the estate version unit produces slightly lower of power at 175hp/213Nm.  Both are paired to the common 6-speeder as found in other Hyundai.

There are 2 versions of the sedan, with the one getting the "sedan plus" getting the Audio Video Navigator unit, and the standard "sedan" getting a simple audio unit.  The Estate version is the fully loaded unit, even with an electronic tailgate, convenient for the grocery shopping mother.  Since it has all the safety standard, and all other features one could find in other European make, it also command for a premium price, starting from about RM160k up to RM179k.  Even the light switch is the European dial instead of the standard operation from the steering attached stalk.

If you asked me whether a Passat or i40...I can firmly select the VW.  I would think the technology from a Hyundai is still lacking behind the Japanese, not to mention the European.  Both continental and Korean cars are without much residue value anyway, and the handling of the European made is much better, and one could easily feel the build quality is much better in the Passat and the i40 interior does not look as elegance.  All D-segment cars should have luxury and solid as the design language, not any fancy dials and buttons that look dated in no time.  However, if one just want all the features and other nitty-gritty stuff like the sunroof, or the famous fludic design, then no harm choosing the i40.  Hyundai models are now losing to it competitors, especially the Elantra and Sonata are now looking dated, thus the local distributor will need some newer models to uplift the market share. 

The Samurai marches on...Suzuki Jimny

I was delighted when Suzuki Malaysia decided to launch the Jimny here.  This help me recalled the Samurai my friend had while we were still schooling in the States, back in the early nineties.  I still remembered the removable top and how an adventure of self-changed oil caused a leak, which was fixed with the right tightening torque on the filter.  The Jimny was borned back in the 1968, and with more than 4 decades, it marches on and on, without much changes.  Even the existing 3rd-generation was borned in 1998, which make this model 15-year in production.  Wow, an old car, but with its own fans all over the world.

The Jimny is built on the common and proven truck-based ladder frame, though most latest SUV now uses monocoque frame.  The car soldiers on with the Suzuki M13A 1.3-litre engine, capable of producing 84hp with 110Nm of torque.  Not a big figure here, but all in all, the Jimny is a 2-door mini SUV.  It could be popular among plantation owner, or in the construction fields, where this part time 4WD could perform the best.  Both 5-speed manual and 4-speed auto are available.  Dual front airbags and ABS is the standard safety, and nothing more till Suzuki still put the side door beam in their brochure (which new car does not come with the side door beam nowadays!)  The interior are all manual dials and switches, nothing fancy and nothing technological. 

Suzuki never recommend running the Jimny in 4WD mode in normal road condition and if you did this, this could mean damaging the unit.  The 4WD is not mean for high speed driving, but on low speed.  Test unit is not available yet although I have been to 2 different dealers in 2 states.  Both mentioned it is year end and Suzuki only brought in about 30 units and all had been sold, including the unit I saw.  The dealer will not even let me take a look at the interior.  My advise to Suzuki, if this is a demo car, why allow the dealer to sell it so soon.  Again, at almost RM93k, only the hardcore fans will put in the order without testing it.  I love the Jimny for it ruggedness, and for the almost cult status.  I do not own any sawit/durian farm, nor work in the construction sector, nor like to go for any 4WD expedition in the wild insects kingdom, a test drive is needed to determine how well the Jimny behaves in the 99.9999% 2WD mode.

The mid-sized family MPV, Nissan Livina

This is the 2nd generation Nissan Livina, launched back in September 2013.  For all that Nissan in Malaysia, one comment, BORING.  Tan Chong has always been the conservative type, bringing in all the boring cars, but with very specific market for it to compete on.  Livina is the only mid-sized 7-seater MPV in the market, albeit there is a smaller Perodua Alza, it could be a winner.  Anyhow, people that buy the Livina is not about trendy, fashion nor speed, they just wanted a reliable car from point A to point B.

When Livina was in the first generation, people related the design to the muscular Murano...I meant only he facelifted front grill.  This car is mean for the Asia market only, thus it comes with all the basic stuff, such as dual front airbags, ABS (rear brake still drum type)......and......and.......errr...that's all.  The 1.6-litre engine could produce 103hp/150Nm of power, or one could ask for the 1.8-litre which could churn out 125hp/174Nm of power.  Just decent power or I would think the 1.6-litre could be under-powered if the car is fully loaded with 7 passengers.  4-speed automatic is standard, or 5-speed manual for the 1.6-litre engine is available.  I would wonder why a soccer mom would want a manual gear, while busy tending to the kids or babies on board.

So if you wanted a MPV, but do not want a Proton Exora or Perodua Alza, this could be your only choice.  Comparing to these, Livina would live up to the standard and perform like a charm.  At least, it is prettier than the other two.  The 1.6-litre unit cost about RM90k and 1.8-litre unit is priced around RM100k.  Now...you will feel the local brands pricing are much better...You decide!

Back to the Delkor Battery report card

I am like a car battery salesman, keep pushing the brand Delkor whenever and wherever I can.  Since my Honda City couldn't start yesterday, though the battery still good to power the light and alarm, just not good to crank the engine, the Delkor I had in this car lasted 1054 days, that is 2 years 10 months 19 days, with about 60,000km on it.  I paid RM220 for this in 2011, so it is about 21-cent per day.

So now, I bought a new Delkor, and it is now RM230, which is still more expensive than other brands, but the duration it will last is well worth the money.  For example, if you get a Yuasa, Yokohama, Bosch, Century or Panasonic which usually last 1.5 years if you were lucky, it will cost around RM170 - 220, that is about 31-cent per day in average, which is almost 10-cent more than the Delkor.  If you get a similar-price Century Ultramax at RM230, with 21-month warranty, it still has a shorter lifespan than the Delkor.

There are a lot of brands in the market now, including some from Korea.  UMW recently started distributing the brand, Solite, from Korea, which is cheap as well, but I believe not all batteries are created equally.  You could save some money from having other brand, but as I had written before, Delkor is not any battery, but a bunny that keep going and going.

P/S: Do not trust the battery inbuilt hydrometer.  This is just an estimate, but not accurate.  In my case, the battery is still good for all eletronics, but not for the engine crank!  Though I already felt the sluggishness of the battery few weeks back!

The Chic and Trendy mini SUV, Ford EcoSport

The EcoSport is based on the Fiesta B2E platform and it has its root from Brazil.  B-Segment SUV will be the next hot car for this decade, as all the big clumsy SUVs start losing their fame, especially when everything in Malaysia increase in price, yet the government still tell the people inflation rate is low.  Except for the chic and trendy outlook, this car almost share everything from the Fiesta.  Ford Malaysia is likely to make the 1.5L unit available for a start to check out the market sentiment of the mini SUV, which should keep the price low.  Power is delivered via the same 6-speed Powershift unit, with about 110hp/140Nm on the tap.  It it were the 1.0L Ecoboost engine, it shall make 123hp/170Nm of power, but you need to pay more for newer technology.    However the old Ti-VCT engine is proven at least for the past decade.

 

We are into the end of 2013 now, thus the official launch should be 1st quarter of 2014. I am guessing the price could range from RM100k - 100k, pricing it slightly below the Peugeot 2008 which should be available during the same period as well.  

The car will have all the safety you need, with all round airbags, hill start assist, ABS, traction control and the similar Ford Sync that allow you to talk to the car or it could read out your SMS to you.  With 200mm ground clearance, it is good to avoid most flash flood we get here.  Your wife or girlfriend will like this car as seating at a higher position allow them to have better all round view, making parking easier, thus you could ditch the idea of having a reverse camera.  The car should also hit the parking curb first instead of the wall due to the height, saving scratches of the front lip.

Let's hope Ford will make this available fast, in some funky colours, and it is time to see more of these mini SUV on the road.  We are just fed-up of looking at CRV and Harrier!  The Mars Red as shown here is fabulous.  What about some green tone!

The decent everyday, everyone hatchback...Suzuki Swift

 

You wanted a hatchback, but could not afford the any European model, and the Korean is out of your picture due to poor resale value, the popular Japanese makers put too much effort in selling their B-segment sedan, thus leaving you with only one choice, which is the Suzuki Swift.  The basic unit start from RM68k and the fully loaded unit at RM76k, fully CKD, sounds just right!

With the recent facelifted model, Suzuki has kept to the original design that did so well, and one could notice the rear lights now slope better for a sportier look instead of the old "upright slope".  The 1.4-litre engine is similar, paired to a 4-speeder transmission, producing a healthy 95hp/130Nm of power.  It has the standard 2-airbag, keyless entry and start button, and the dashboard is very well integrated with simple and functional design, which looks much better than other Japanese-made sedan.  The only thing lacking on the 1.4-litre unit is the ESP, which is available is the Swift Sport 1.6-litre unit, which goes for a whooping RM106k.  I would think people that buy the sport model is a bit crazy.  With this kind of money, you will be spoilt for choices.

Total of 6 colours available, which is a lot for a CKD unit, and the best colour should be the Olive Grey, which looks elegant, and not the normal boring grey.  This greenish colour looks really nice.

So what are you waiting for...is it because of questionable resale value, or a not very reputable after-sale distributor shying you away?