News: Nissan 370Z Gets A Timely Update

The 370Z was always a handsome looking car but Nissan has decided to take it up a notch - a small one in fact. It's a timely update though considering the fact that the 370Z has been around since 2008. A mild exterior modification includes a redesigned bumper with vertical LEDs, red brake calipers, new 17-inch or 18-inch rims and two new colours - Magma Red and Midnight Blue. The engine and transmission remains untouched and puts out a healthy 326 bhp and 336 Nm of torque enough for a century sprint done in 5.5 seconds. Not that it needs anymore power though.

News: Mazda CX-9 Updated

Mazda CX-9 has gone through another update to look up to years with the new KODO design direction shown through the CX-5 and the new Mazda 6. The engine and gearbox will remain the same but new safety features like Forward Obstruction Warning, Lane Departure Warning and High Beam Control are added into the CX-9 along with an updated audio system. Navigation and speech recognition is also said to be updated. Malaysia will definitely see this update but navigation and speech recognition may not be included. Will have to see when it comes.

News: Singapore Gets Its Own MP4-12C

McLaren has revealed yet another one-off edition of the MP4-12C and it's customized by none other than their own Special Operations (MSO). This time, the special one-off is made for Singapore and there's three of them. The MP4-12C Singapore edition will be embellished with a black and red paint scheme inspired by the McLaren Formula One race car colours and it'll be priced at a cool S$1.28 million - not sure if that's inclusive of tax and insurance. Want one? Getting it will be hard though because two are already sold and there's one more left.

News: Jaguar F-Type is Now Go

The much delayed F-Type is finally here. If you've been a car geek since 2001, you would know that the F-Type was a planned model which never debuted in the real world due to problems in and out of Jaguar. But after a change of ownership, the F-Type is official unveiled after 11 years.

The upcoming F-Type will be based very similarly on the C-X16's silhouette seen here but with its roof cut off. Engines used are delicious as well with a 3.0l V6 pushing 335 bhp and 450 Nm of torque and a more tuned version of the V6 lump producing 375 bhp and 470 Nm of torque. The 5.0l V8 is still under consideration and will probably see itself placed in the top of the range F-Type. So far so good then. Not till you see the waiting list when it comes out.

News: Peugeot Onyx Scooter

 
Peugeot is always known to be eccentric like the Onyx. But if that isn't enough for you, here's a scooter to compliment the Onyx and it's not just any scooter because this has three wheels and two of it is positioned in the front. Weird. The wheels are massive too but that's not the main point, what's more interesting is that you actually position yourself like on a superbike - your body inclined forwards and legs at the rear, like a wading duck - when you're riding this rough and sit up straight like a retard when you're riding in the urbanscapes.

Like the Onyx, the scooter is a hybrid. There's a 400cc internal combustion engine connected to an electric motor giving a combined output of 60 bhp and 58 Nm of torque, all of it powering the rear wheel and a top speed of 150 km/h. During braking, energy is recuperated and stored in the lithium-ion batteries which is then channeled to the rear wheel during acceleration. A mileage of 50km a litre of petrol is claimed while the running on full EV gives a range of 30 km and a top speed of 50 km/h. A combined range adds up to 500 km. Cool? Yeah, but I highly doubt this going into production form.

News: Audi Reveals A3 Sportback and An S3!

Ever wondered about a car that virtually changes little, like your Aunt Matilda that grew a few strands of grey hair and had a few botox jobs done on her cheeks? That's what the next A3 looks like. It matures, looks like its predecessor yet has a bit of a edgier flair than its old self.

Following footsteps of the Quattro concept being boxier and edgier, the new A3 also has 5 doors now and an S version is revealed too. The design may be boxier outside but inside, the designers decided that their cars were a bit too business like and added round air vents. It may be odd at first but it grows on me. In fact, I like the new interior. Anyway, the 5-door version is slightly longer than its three door version of itself - 73 mm to be specific. Wheelbase is also increased giving more millimeters of legroom space for the rear passengers. Boot space is also increased slightly at 380 liters.

Thanks to the MQB platform and despite the size increase, the new A3 is up to 90 kg lighter than before. Three engines are available for a start; a 1.4l TFSI producing 120 bhp, a 1.8 TFSI pushing 178 bhp and a 2.0l TDI generating 149 bhp. More engines will follow suit like the 1.2 TSI seen in the Beetle and the rest of the Volkswagen derived vehicles and hybrid but that'll be another story. A six-speed manual comes as standard while the S-tronic transmission is available with a bit more cash. Quattro all-wheel-drive system is also in the options list but that's only available for the upper end models which means the 1.4l TSI will be missing in action. 

There's an S3 coming too and it'll get an updated and lighter 2.0l TFSI engine capable of 296 bhp and 380 Nm of torque. Also similar, the S3 gets a six-speed manual and an S-Tronic transmission is available as an option. Bet you'd be pissed to know that the new electronic damping system and brakes are also on the options list. With the S-Tronic transmission, 0 to 100 km/h is done in just 5.1 seconds. The manual gets it done in 5.4 seconds, 0.3 seconds slower but you won't notice the difference unless you're Simon Cowell. Top speed is limited to 250 km/h and claims that the new S3 can return 14.5 km per litre of petrol. A sports suspension is fitted which makes it lower than the A3 and makes it more capable around corners.

It is also lighter too - 60 kg difference or an average American woman depending on which way you look at it and houses the S package bodykit and badges. As always, aluminium trims are to be found everywhere, there's a boost pressure indicator inside, sports seats and S badges. Yes, S badges, coo all you want about it.. 

Sleeker interior right?

Boost gauge!

News: Aston Martin's New DB9 Kills Virage Off

Never sure why we, editors in BHPmagazine love Aston Martin despite its short comings of not producing an all new engine, let alone an all new design direction. And to know that Aston Martin has officially announced the demise of the Virage and made room for an updated DB9, I forgive them. Even more frustrating, the updated DB9 even shares styling cues of the Virage and a slight know how of the new Vanquish. Still, I never question my patience with them.

And then, there's the interior which isn't what you would find in the Vanquish, all polished and jewelry like. Instead, it's the same interior back from yesteryear. Yes, you do get a full grain leather embraced in the interior plus the steering wheel, a walnut fascia trim, a graphite centre console and iridium silver surround but is it enough to convince your mates that you've got a 2013 DB9?

Not until you tell them you've got an updated engine from Aston. Before, the DB9 housed a 6.0l V12 capable of 470 bhp and 600 Nm of torque. Now, it's the same 6.0l V12 but - and it'll be a long but - Aston has revised the engine block together with the intake manifold and machined combustion chambers, given it a new head, larger throttle bodies, and uprated fuel pump allowing it to produce 510 bhp at 6,500 rpm and 620 Nm of torque at 5,500 rpm. That's DBS territory and then some. 0 to 100 km/h now takes 4.6 seconds  but top speed has been reduced to 294 km/h. Not that you'll reach that speed in Malaysia. A Touchtronic 2 six-speed paddle shifted gearbox is integrated in the car along with a limited slip differential and a manual gearbox isn't available anymore. It's a sad thing really since Aston's automated gearbox isn't as efficient as the manual version.

Because the engine is now placed lower, the car has a better center of gravity and weight distribution is a very positive 50/50. 1,785 kg doesn't make the DB9 a lightweight contender but with this amount of power, it seems enough to impress Bond, James Bond. The British marque's upgraded Adaptive Damping System (ADS) is implemented into the new DB9 and gives it a range of modes to choose from - Normal, Sport, Track. Standard equipment in the DB9 include 20-inch rims, electric sports seats, satnav, automatic bi-xenon headlights, automatic wipers while a reverse camera and removing the rear midget seats remains an option. A price tag starts from £131,995 (RM 655,901) for the base coupe model. A lot you say? Cheaper than the Virage anyway.