The New BMW Z4 Receives Updates

It has been 25 years after the legendary Z1.

The BMW Z4 will be available five-strong line-up of petrol engines from launch. Customers will be able to choose from three four-cylinder and two six-cylinder powerplants. The entry level model is the sDrive18i, which has a 2.0 litre engine with TwinPower Turbo technology that develops 156 hp at 5,6000 rpm and a peak torque of 240 Nm between 1,250 and 4,400 rpm. Option between a 6 speed manual or 8 speed automatic can be had, with each producing 7.9s and 8.1s respectively for century sprint.

Volvo S60 Polestar Production

A proper, fast Volvo which is also desirable.

Interestingly, Australia has been chosen as a pilot market for this limited edition project – the Volvo S60 Polestar, with the first cars to be delivered to customers in late June 2013. Here are some highlights of the S60 Polestar; Öhlins dampers, high capacity brakes, differently tuned chassis, aerodynamic package that is tuned in wind tunnel, T6 engine with bigger turbo, new intercooler, revised engine mapping and racing exhaust that produces 350 bhp and excess of 500 Nm of torque, 0 to 100 km/h in just 4.9 seconds via 6 speed automatic and Haldex 4WD system.

More pictures and extensive technical details is after the jump.

McLaren Launches Certified Pre-Owned Program For Its Cars

Fancy a pre-reg MP4-12C but comes with extra warranty?

McLaren launched McLaren Qualified, a selection of pre-owned models from model, which are all fully upgraded to the latest specification and have undergone full qualification from McLaren trained technicians. Ensuring you get the most comprehensive bumper to bumper qualification check and restored to its original condition, every McLaren car sold via the scheme is backed up with a minimum of two years / unlimited mileage comprehensive factory warranty, covering parts and repairs, and two years McLaren roadside assistance. In addition, preferential rates are available through McLaren Special Operations as well.

More details in the press release after the jump.

Guinness World Records Reinstate Record

It should be interesting to see when will Hennessey mount a challenge for the record. 

Sometime last week, we reported that Guinness nullified the world’s fastest production car record, which was held by Bugatti Veyron Super Sport, due to grounds that speed limiter was switched off during record setting runs. However, after several rounds of investigation done by Guinness on “what may constitute a modification to a car’s standard specification”, it is confirmed that Bugatti’s record of Fastest production car is achieved by the Veyron 16.4 Super Sport. People at Bugatti must be breathing a huge sigh of relief.

Source: Autoblog

Sir Stirling Moss Says Women Can’t Cope Mental Stress In F1

British racing legend provoked outrage amongst women.

Sir Stirling Moss, a world renowned British racing driver, said in a BBC Radio 5 Live programme that the stress at the Formula One racing would be difficult for a woman to deal with in a practical fashion. Moss said, “we’ve got some very strong and robust ladies, but, when your life is at risk, I think the strain of that in a competitive situation will tell when you’re trying to win. The mental stress I think would be pretty difficult for a lady to deal with in a practical fashion. I just don’t think they have aptitude to win a Formula One race.”

Source: The Telegraph

Image credit: BBC

Edaran Tan Chong Motors Issues Service Campaign

Service campaign to address a recent massive recall. 

After UMW Toyota Motor announced their service campaign, Edaran Tan Chong Motors (ETCM) did the same for their cars. ETCM confirmed that only 4 CBU (Completely Built Up) units of Nissan X-Trail were affected by the recall. Nissan Motor Co. Ltd. Japan announced that a total of 480,000 units of Cube, X-Trail, Maxima and Teana built between August 2000 and January 2004 at Japan are affected by the incorrect propellant wafers with insufficient density installed in certain inflators of the front passenger’s air bag, which may cause the internal pressure of the inflator to rise excessively during air bag deployment.

Tan Chong Express Auto Service Centre has identified the affected units and will immediately contact the Nissan X-Trail owners for this service campaign. For further enquiries, please contact the Customer Service Hotline at 1800-88-8368. All labour and replacement parts for affected 4 units will be free-of-charge.

Source: Nissan, Edaran Tan Chong Motors

Land Rover Malaysia Launches All New 2013 Range Rover

Probably the only car that can get you out of tricky situations in style.

11th Apr 2013 – The all new, 4th generation Range Rover arrived at the Malaysian shore carrying the title as the most refined and most capable Range Rover ever. Designed from a fresh piece of paper, the new Range Rover featured the world’s first monocoque aluminium body, which is 39% lighter than the steel body construction in the outgoing model. Combined with other weight savings, the new Range Rover is a whopping 350kg lighter as well.

Citroen’s “Wild Rubis” Concept

Latest variant to be added to the DS range.

The Wild Rubis concept previews the coming design language of a possibly DS SUV range. As of now the details are quite scarce  but this concept will debut at the upcoming 2013 Shanghai International Motor Show, from the 21st until 29th April. The concept will get full hybrid, plug in technology, with the external design that is set to evoke imagination and emotions.

Source: Autoblog

All-New CRV Receives Record Bookings

Modulo kitted Gen 4 Honda CRV

Honda Malaysia receives close to 3,000 bookings for the all new CRV within the first month of its launch, which is the highest number of bookings for a new car model. Since its launch on the 5th March 2013, Honda Malaysia has achieved 43% of 7,000 yearly sales target of the CRV. It is interesting to note that Thailand has achieved 18,674 bookings since its launch in September 2012 until February 2-13. Honda Malaysia will be launching the 2.4 litre variant in June 2013, but if you want to book one today, you can do so at all the 62 authorised Honda dealerships nationwide.

Detailed press release follows on.

Massive Recall For Airbags Fault

Recall affects Japanese cars only.

Together, Toyota, Honda, Nissan and Mazda issued a recall over faulty airbags assembled by Japanese manufacturer, Takata, for over 3.4 million vehicles globally. UMW Toyota Motor has announced that there are approximately 18,700 units of Toyota Camry and Toyota Corolla Altis manufactured from the year 2000 to 2003, affected by this recall. The defective front passenger airbag inflator is improperly manufactured, that could cause rupture and deploy the airbag abnormally during a crash.

We have not received any news yet about the recall from Honda, Nissan and Mazda in Malaysia, however. It seems like this recall only affect models built between 2000 and 2003. Readers owning models built in this year range are encouraged to confirm with their respective service centres.

Source: UMW Toyota Motor and The Age