Some updates

Okay, just some updates. The Sylphy got crashed, and most probably be written off. On the brighter side, I'll soon write about the Nissan Grand Livina 1.6M and my own Saga BLM 1.3M. Yes, I've finally got a car.

Nissan Sylphy Test Drive

The other car I managed to drive was the Nissan Sylphy 2.0. First impression of the car is that it's kinda roundish. And the rear end still kinda looks odd to me. The front end is nice, and so is the side profile. FYI, there's also a 1.5L unit sold in Singapore, but here, we only have the 2.0L version.

Front end of the Sylphy.
The front end of the Sylphy cannot be said as aggressive, as this car is not a young punk's type of car. I'd say the design slants more towards older customers. The foglight is standard.

Rear end of the Sylphy
The side profile and rear end has a black lower part for the car, which gives an impression that the car is longer. The exhaust is hidden. 2 reverse sensors come standard.

The wheel(s)

The first thing I noticed is the "slightly" undersized wheels. The rims are 15", and IMO, it's 2" too small. To me, 17' would be just nice for the Sylphy. Anyhow, it does offer almost-excellent ride comfort. The other thing is that the rear brakes are not disc brakes, but rather drum brakes. I was like, wtf? Rear drum brakes on a 2.0L car? What is Edaran Tan Chong thinking??

Front Indicator(s)
This little ingenious fella can help the driver to estimate where the front end of the car is, and it also looks kinda cool.

Meter Cluster @ Day time

Meter Cluster @ Night

The meters are simple and nice. Not overly fancy at all. At night, it's not glaring, and it's also very sharp. Well, it may not be Optitron level, but that's good enough.
Center Console
The Sylphy here, has a nicely designed center console. The 2-din HU is decent. Sound quality is good, provided the source is good. The HU is Nissan's own unit, so there's nothing too fancy, and swapping it for a better unit is possible, due to the standard 2-din mounting. The Sylphy is also one of the uncommon CKD cars that offers a heater in the car. Why a heater in such a hot climate you ask? Simple, rainy and nights. Those two can freeze your fingers and those behind. So having a heater is actually a good thing. The aircon's strength is nice and strong, and it's also not noisy at all.
The gear lever
The Sylphy comes with a CVT transmission, and thus does not have a fixed 3-2-L. And the wood grain design throughout the car looks really fake.
Pedals
Nope, no aluminum plated ones, as this is not a youngster's car. The left most pedal is the footbrake, same like how most Mercs have it. It might get some time getting used to, as you will be finding high and low for the handbrake.
The Engine Bay
Here lies Nissan's MR20DE powerplant. The engine is mated with a CVT transmission, which provides very smooth operations. The think paddings around the engine bay keep the NVH levels at a minimum.

So What Do I Think About the Sylphy?
Well, to be frank, I am somewhat satisfied with this car. The ride comfort is almost perfect, and the low noise levels means that cruising on highways won't be a noisy affair. The rear legroom is also very generous. As for driveabilty, I must say this car may not be a drivers' car, but this still can impress. The steering, for example, is variable weighted. This means that the weight of the steering changes according to the speed. For example, when maneuvering in a tight car park, it'll be light, and then cruising on the highway, it'll be nice and heavy. then the power delivery is very smooth and constant. There's no jerk where the car changes gear, which ensures a smooth drive. While cruising in trunk roads at 110km/h, other than looking at the speedo, there's no way of telling that you're going at 110, as the noise level is very low, and the car is very composed at high speeds. Body roll is also kept at a minimum, but the ride is still nice and comfortable. The comfort may also be due to the 195/65 tires. While driving with 5 people in the car, it still has enough grunt to keep going without revving too hard. My verdict is - The Sylphy is a very easy car to drive. Good alternative to the Civic. Generous rear legroom. Comfortable ride. Enough power.

Isuzu D Max Short Drive Afterthoughts

Manged to get behind the wheel of the Isuzu D Max for a short drive.

To be frank, this is not the 4WD version, but rather the lower end FR version. Driftable? Hmmm..
Simple looks, but no fog lights.
Rear view. Yup, it's a 2.5L Turbodiesel.
Meter cluster. OMG, redline at 4200rpm?
Vie of cockpit. Very boring interior. And it's a manual.
Engine bay. Pretty dull looking. Had to be expected cuz it's a workhorse. hey, what's the small words there?
Wow. Turbo. Niceeee~

Well, I must say that this car, initially it's kinda hard to drive, and you need to keep an eye on the tachometer, as the redline is at 4200rpm. And a note to myself, this is not a car to go vroom vroom. The manual shifting is smooth, and the clutch is nicely weighted. Since it's a FR/2WD version, there's no low range box, and this can cripple the D Max off road. It may have a turbo, but no matter how hard I rev, the speed just won't climb dramatically. Anyhow, driving the D Max is quite an eye opener, as the view is so much higher, and it's way longer than the Optra I drive.

A Random Outing with Ji Yang

Went out to Plaza Lowyat with Ji Yang today. He drove his Myvi to fetch me there (thanks man!!). While in Bukit Bintang area, the whole damn place was congested as hell. And best of all, parking at Lowyat was full by the time we got there. ==" Oh well, after spending another 20 minutes or so in the jam, he parked the car in Times Square. No big deal. lol.
Anyway, he managed to get the stuff he wanted, which includes a Cooler Master Infinite, 320GB External HDD (Seagate) and 100 pieces of DVD-Rs. As for me, I finally got this ->
Yup, it's a Microsoft Sidewinder X3. Got it for a mere RM49. Looks like I can finally retire my Razer. lol. Very pleased. ^^

Pro -

- Shape much better than the other Sidewinder, fits my hand better
- Nice and smooth
- 2000dpi + laser @ RM49
- Programmable buttons
- Nice rubber scroll wheel. Also very smooth
- Side buttons not that hard to reach

Cons -

- A tad bit too light
- No LCD (has to be expected, lol)
- Might feel "cheap" (to some, lol)

Anyway, we then decided to makan at Old Town. I took the wheel of the Myvi. It's quite an okay car, really. Throttle response is good, and the brakes are reasonably strong. Engine noise might be a bit intrusive to some, but its fine under normal driving. Acceleration wise, it's good up till 60kn/h or so, more than that, there's not much power already. Suspension is fine for city driving, but when driven moderately hard, it starts to show its weakness. Body roll is also a bit too much, but it has to be expected for a car like this. Anyway, it is a reasonably good car for that particular price range.

While at Old Town, I had some chicken rice for dinner. lol.
Nice and filling.. ^^ Also had their signature white coffee. Total bill came to Rm14.30 each. @@ But since it's nice, I'm not complaining.

Thanks again to Ji Yang for this outing. =)

How to be an a$$ behind the wheel pt2

4. Know your car. There's no point of you shifting early in hopes of 1. overtaking and 2. saving petrol. For 1, you need to see ur car's specification sheet to see where the maximum power comes in. There's no point in shifting early before the power kicks in, nor is there a point in shifting AFTER the power kicks in. If and when possible, just press the accelerator when you feel like overtaking. Don't bother about FC or what not. No one really does bother about that anyway. And if you want to save petrol, call a cab, or take a bus. Don't drive lah ! For what you want to drive AND save petrol? It just won't work.

5. Driving a big car, let's say AT LEAST a Waja sized sedan, should allow you to flash other drivers out of your way. Let's say you're driving on the highway in the center lane, then there's this b@$t@rd in front of you that is going so damn slow. Flash your Highbeam to push him out of the way. No need to overtake from the left or right. Just flash him. Chances are, he will move aside. If not, tailgate him. Be very careful as you tailgate him, as he might floor the brakes and you can guess what will happen. I take no responsibilities whatsoever.

Part 1-3

http://my-life-starts-here.blogspot.com/2009/08/how-to-be-a-behind-wheel.html

How to be an a$$ behind the wheel

First and foremost, I do not condone being an ass behind the wheel. You are responsible for all of your own actions, not me. And here goes.

1. See the damn Kancil/Kelisa/Saga in front of you hogging the right hand lane? Tailgate it as close as possible. Keep your revs up, and maintain your distance with the nut in front. Flash your lights if possible to get him/her out of your way. Do note however, that this works better if you drive at least a 3-Series or a C-Class. Anything lower means you will need to work much harder.

2. Constantly shift your gears at 5000-6000rpm. Well, if you drive a diesel, max out at 4000rpm. For autos, just press the accelerator. Don't complain to me about wasting petrol, because, if you want to save, you can take the bus/taxi. Do more in small residential areas, just for the heck of it. Those with 3 cylinder engines (Kancil/Viva) need not apply. The noise is horrible. Those with silky smooth straight six or straight 4 should fare better.

3. Defeat the guy next to you at the traffic light. It doesn't matter what he/she drives, just press the accelerator hard when the light turns green. Watch his face, if not, be prepared to get smoked. Would be better if you can smoke those darn Wiralutions or Wajalutions.

Will add more if I can think of more.

Proton Exora - More pics

These are some pics that I took at a Proton showroom. On the Exora. The rear end of the M Line Exora. Very neat. the exhaust is not very noticeable. And it does not have the funny chrome silver lining that the H Line has.

Minimal boot space when full load. Well, you can pack, erm, 1 golf bag.
Hidden compartment under the boot area. Good for hiding stuff that are, well, not good for people to see.

The M Line does not have a front fog light. But this can be fixed by visiting your nearest Brother's Workshop
Simple and yet functional gear knob with gated gearshifters.
Clarion head unit with Bluetooth, iPod connectivity, WMA/MP3 playback
Rather bland steering wheel. Well, at least it has the Call and End button, for handsfree moments.
Window controls. That looks very familiar..... And the panel sounds very very hollow.Under the hood, we have the Campro CPS 1.6, which produces 125hp and 150nm torque. Should be enough for this car.
Eh, no insulation here? Funny
First Proton to use these kind of batteries. No more wet batteries. Yay

Ah yes, the controversial name. Cannot be named after a flower. But that is Ixora. This is Exora.....
Proton's first car to feature LED lighting. Nice touch.

This looks familiar..no wonder..It's from the Waja..
Funny name for funny color. Nuff said

I am interested to do a test drive this car. Will anyone loan me?

Proton's First MPV - Exora

Oh really? Then what about the Juara? Not MPV? Why was it not mentioned while the Exora was launched?Oh well.

When Proton's CEO launched it, he mentioned that there was 2 versions available, namely the High Line (H line) and Medium Line (M line). What he did not mention was the Baseline version. ( B line). You see, the B line was featured for a split second, but there was no news after that. This is how the B line should look like.

Well, you still need to add in the seats, light and interior fillings. Other than that, voila! You have made your own B Line Exora. Prices are expected to be in the region of Rm40,000. Very good value for money, really. Due to its very light weight chassis, the B line Exora will be used for Genting's Taxi route. The high revving Campro CPS engine should also help a bit. Passengers who falls out of the car shall be covered by Proton's extensive 5 year warranty.
But if you want yours to look like the M line or H line, be prepared to fork out another RM29k for the doors, bumpers etc.

Here's a link to Proton's mysterious B Line Exora -> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RPj67l5mMx4

Notice the first few seconds, that is the B² Line Exora, followed by the B Line. Not much is know about the B² Line, as it could be a prototype to replace our Malacca and Penang trishaw.

PCFair Sucks

Screw it. I went to PCFair today. First thing that came to me was the iPhone. Godamnit. It is a bloody overhyped phone. Please stop it, it gets darn annoying. And then the guys from Streamyx swarmed over to me. I really wanted to shout at them about the speed I surf using streamyx. No really, imagine downloading a 100MB file @ 100 bytes per second. No wonder streamyx got last place in the World's Worst Semi Broadband Survey.

Then there was the hardware, or rather the lack of it. I remember, a few years back, ASUS, Gigabyte they all had the pride to display all and future motherboards and graphics cards that are coming soon. And what were they doing this time around? Yet again overhyping over the god-forsaken underpowered EeePC. Damn. And then there was the babes. Which are not as nice as before. Nuff said.

Traffic. sucks. I waited 45 minutes for a bus to KLCC. Because people parked illegally. But it was not their fault. Some smart ass decided that the car park is a waste of space, lets build a building. And so they did. People could not find any parking, and decided to double park. The the jam begins. Well, to be honest, parking space in KLCC is still aplenty. I saw a few empty parking spaces while walking there.

I will avoid going to any future PCFairs in a foreseeable future. Simply because it underdelivers. Crap. Unless there is anything in particular that I want (but then there is Low yat plaza), I would not go to another PCFair. Again.

But it's not all bad. While walking through Suria KLCC, I saw this beauty.
Yup. A Mercedes Benz C63 AMG. A real one. Not the bloody bodykit wannabe.


Nothing much here to distinguish it from the latest facelifted C class.
Well, it says here 6.3, but the engine is really a 6.2 litre one. But still packs one hell of a punch.
But upon closer inspection, look at the cross drilled disc brakes, and those gorgeous rims. StunningAs jezza says, there is an ex-murderer in the engine, you would be extremely lucky to get put of the car alive.

My 100th post !

Let's make this a bit special. Japanese vs American. That would sound good.
So here is the America's contestant. The Shebly Gt500. Yum. I do like the imitation Gulf Oil-like colors.
And as for Japan's contestant, we have the Evo X from, my last post. Both looks just as good. Although I am dumbfounded that the Shelby looks smaller than the Evo.


Which one would I pick? Definitely the Shelby. A rumbling V8 would make my day better. Unlike the Evo X, the Shelby was made for pure power, but the handling is not so great.

Tomica Honda NSX-R

I saw this at Jusco the other day, but I did not have enough cash with me. So I told my dad to upfront me the cash first. This is also my first Tomica. So far, the next car I may buy would be the Suzuki Swift Sport.