7-seater Wagon R under development by Maruti India and Suzuki Japan

Suzuki is generally perceived as a maker of small vehicles globally with very few exceptions in its lineup, the automaker has started working on a 7-seater variant of its popular  hatchback Maruti Suzuki Wagon R in India in collaboration with engineers from Suzuki Motor Corporation Japan as reported by Financial Express.

The upcoming MPV will be based on the Waggon R MPV Concept showcased at the Indonesia International Motor Show (IIMS) in 2013. The car will be available in both petrol and diesel variants. While diesel is not very popular in Pakistan anymore due to the fuel prices and an abundance of CNG stations and vehicles, diesel is still very popular in India with popular cars like Suzuki Swift also available in diesel variants.

The car is expected to be available from mid-2017 with an estimated price between INR 400,000 and 600,000 (PKR 650,000 and 980,000).

The Suzuki Wagon R is a very successful small hatchback in India due to its price and the zippy and economical K Series engine, but the car is still struggling in Pakistan, trying to fill the gap left by the Suzuki Alto.

If by any miracle, Pak Suzuki do plan to launch this MPV in a similar price bracket then it would seal the doors for the recently introduced FAW Sirius S80 and would become very popular in Pakistan as the only affordable option we have in MPV are the Suzuki Bolan and FAW X-PV.

What does your car’s color say about your personality

Ever wondered why do you see most luxury sedans in White and Black? Bureaucrat in black? Well as they say, your every movement depicts the psychology of your mentality, personality and character and so does your vehicles color.Black Color is known to be the most aggressive. Each color has its own character. Here is what your car`s color expresses about your personality.  

WHITE 

Fresh, pure, pristine and presents yourself as modern and young to the outside world. Your are refined, decent and would challenge yourself.

BLACK 

The color of ultimate luxury, sophistication and power. You are retro yet elegant, classy but nostalgic. You mark your authority and stay calm.

GREY 

You are WYSIWYG “What You See Is What You Get”. You are not flashy, you care more about status quo and less about status. You are practical, sober and pragmatic. You are mature yet trendy and don’t want to stand out. 

SILVER 

It depicts an innovative connotation. It tell about your eye for the sky, your demureness, wealth and projects a high life style.

RED

“Look at me!” You are very energetic, sensual. You want to stand out and are not shy of anything, it screams your boldness. You want to be flashy and like Cooperman says “If it’s a sporty red car, it’s a way of flexing muscles on the road”.

BLUE

It mostly tells about your stableness and happiness. You are loyal, faithful, quiet, cool and unshakable. You are credible and trustworthy, you pick your priorities over money.

BROWN

You are Content. It depicts your neutrality, down-to-earth nature and your happiness of what you already have, you appreciate little things in life.

YELLOW

You will let your inner child out! and wont be afraid. You are upbeat, wilful, extremely confident and have a bold presence.

GOLD

You love the luxurious elements of life and will pay anything for the comfort. It tells about your intelligence.

These statistics are mostly a world standard and non-contradictory. There have been countless surveys around the globe and this is the conclusion.

Myth Busting: Truth about High Octane

Automotive Industry, like any other, has been maligned with ‘myths’ which are presented and repeated many times that people ultimately start to believe it. Unsurprisingly, many of these myths are related to getting better consumption, increasing the power of the vehicle or some covert aspect of internal combustion engine. Gasoline can be a confusing topic, and it is easy to make assumptions about it that may seem logical, which on closer examination, turn out not to be true. A perfect example of this practice can be seen with octane ratings.

What are octane ratings? In Pakistan, we normally encounter two types of petrol quality on the fuel stations. ‘Regular Plus’, ‘Super’ are some commercial names for Research Octane Number (RON) 87 quality petrol sold in the country and High Octane Blended Component (HOBC) fuel grade which refers to RON 97. I’ll get to the significance of these numbers in a bit.

We tend to associate higher number with better quality. More horsepower, higher torque and more miles out of the fuel are always fancied. This is where the myth of gasoline rating creeps into the picture. Time and again, ‘High octane’ is prescribed to provide better fuel mileage and power as it ‘burns completely’ and locks more energy inside it. These blanket statements are simply not true. In fact, the octane rating for gasoline has nothing to do with the amount of power locked inside of it – it actually relates to just how much a fuel can be compressed before igniting. The higher the number, the less likely it is to ignite under pressure.

Why would you want to put something in the engine that is difficult to burn? To understand the concept of octane rating in the ignition process let us start with a familiar term ‘knock’ or ‘knocking’. When Fuel is sprayed inside the chamber and mixed with oxygen, designers expect it to remain in vapor form until the spark plug lights it up. The timing of this explosion is critical, as gasoline that ignites too early causes ‘knocking’, which reduces engine output and efficiency.

In standard motor, ‘knock’ is rarely an issue because the compression ratio – the pressure that air-fuel mixture is put under in the cylinder – is low enough that the regular octane fuel is sufficient. There is no benefit of running premium fuel in a standard motor, since it will never be able to take advantage of that gasoline’s higher knock resistance. However, more aggressive engine management schemes, especially those found in turbocharged or supercharged vehicles, can turn up the compression to a high level, requiring much higher octane gasoline to avoid knocking.

Fast Facts:

1. You’ll not get extra power or mileage by running premium fuel in the vehicle, unless the owner’s manual states otherwise. If you are getting better mileage or power, convince yourself that it is all in your head and simply a placebo effect.
2. On the flip side, running low octane fuel in an engine built for premium fuel can increase the risk of engine damage and will certainly impact that unit’s overall performance.
3. It is obligatory for all companies oil refineries to produce at least RON 87 petrol by Ministry of Petroleum. All refineries comply with this threshold while Total Oil Pakistan Ltd. sells RON 90 under ‘regular’ grade tag which is a tad higher than the minimum threshold.
4. All locally manufactured cars require RON 87  petrol which consequently means that all locally produced vehicles come under the umbrella of standard motor.
5. High octane grade may be used in small quantity if the vehicle suffers from knocking.

2015 Suzuki Swift RX – Thailand gets the most exclusive Swift yet

Thailand Auto Show is happening in full swing and a lot of new cars, variants, and facelifts are being revealed and amongst them, Thailand received the most exclusive, the top-of-the-line version of Suzuki Swift, called the ‘RX’.

The car receives HID projector headlights, new 16 inch wheels, a rear spoiler which actually looks decent along with full body kit, and the car has also been given some body graphics or vinyls other than the ‘RX’ badging. Whereas when you get inside, there are features like keyless entry, dual airbags (HAH! Pakistanis!), push button start,  steering wheel mounted paddle shifters, cruise control, audio system with USB connectivity, and the interior trim is available with silver accents.

This particular Swift RX is a Thailand only car, which is priced for 599,000 Baht which converts to 1,856,136 Pakistani Rupees.

The same K12B 1.25 liter petrol engine producing 91 PS and 118 Nm of Torque, and as there are paddle shifters in the car, it means it has  CVT whereas dual front airbags, ABS and EBD are also in the RX version.

HONDA SUCCESSFULLY TESTED ITS SMARTPHONE APP TO REDUCE TRAFFIC JAMS AND FUEL CONSUMPTION

Automakers are investing heavily in making cars safer and more economical for the future. And what better place to begin with then reducing traffic jams as that reduces the risk of collision, saves time by reducing traffic jams and improves fuel economy.

Honda developed a smartphone app which it tested on a toll road between Ulujami and Pondok Ranji in Jakarta, Indonesia with positive results.

The new smartphone app that on average was able to delay the formation of traffic jams by as much as six minutes and improve fuel-efficiency by as much as 22 percent. Tech-On reports that Honda worked with researchers at the University of Tokyo to deploy a new smartphone app in vehicles between September 2012 to February 2013 on a toll road in Jakarta, which monitored the acceleration and deceleration of a vehicle and instructed drivers on when to slow down.

The concept is simple; drivers often struggle to maintain a safe and appropriate distance between them and the car in front, resulting in late reactions that cause the cars behind to do the same. In order to test the effectiveness of its technology, Honda tested two concepts; one that operates as a standalone system, and another that connects to a cloud server to monitor and synchronize driving patterns of the cars involved in the test.

JEEP REVEALS SIX NEW CONCEPT 4X4S FOR MOAB EVENT

Each year Jeep shows off special concepts for the Easter Jeep Safari in Moab, Utah, USA and not all of them reach the production stages but they do garner a lot of deserved enthusiasm from Jeep and 4×4 aficionados.

No one is sure which of the following models will eventually see production as last year, at the Mob event, Jeep introduced Forward Control Concept which was met with mostly positive reviews however, it never saw production.

Jeep Grand Cherokee Trailhawk Diesel Concept

The newly introduced 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee EcoDiesel V6 is featured in a bespoke blood-orange paint and rides on 35-inch Mickey Thompson off-road tires on Wrangler Rubicon 17-inch alloy wheels. It also gains enlarged wheel openings with custom fender flares, custom front and rear skid plates, dual rear tow hooks and modified Mopar rock rail, along with an assortment of SRT parts such as the hood and front fascia.

 

Jeep Wrangler Mopar Recon

If it’s power you want, that’s what you’re going to get with the Wrangler Mopar Recon that gets a 470hp a 6.4-liter HEMI V8 crate engine paired to a 5sp automatic. The five-door model rolls on huge 39-inch off-road tires and includes number of Mopar applications, such as front and rear off-road modified “Stinger” bumpers, prototype LED headlamps, slush mats, trailside winch kit and a custom seat made from Navy blankets and Navy camouflage material.

 

Jeep Wrangler Stitch

Jeep has developed a follow-up to the lightweight Pork Chop named the Wrangler Stich, based on the 2013 Wrangler Rubicon. The funky-looking concept has been stripped down and now has a curb weight of 3,000 pounds (1,361 kg). The Detroit company says it shaved weight from the frame, axles, body and interior, while the hood is now made from carbon fiber.

Other highlights include the front seats sourced from the 2013 SRT Viper, the Mickey Thompson 35-inch off-road tires on lightweight 17-inch alloys, and the unique, see-through silver architectural fabric used at the back.

 

Jeep Wrangler Sand Trooper II from Mopar

The Wrangler Sand Trooper II is another follow-up from Jeep and Mopar. It features a 375-horsepower 5.7-liter HEMI V8 linked to a 5-speed automatic, added ground clearance, 40-inch off-road tires, LED off-road lights and headlamps, and an array of Jeep Performance Parts.

 

Jeep Wrangler Flattop

The Wrangler Flatop combines a more upscale appearance inside and out with hard-core off-road gear available from Jeep, like the 37-inch Mickey Thompson off-road tires, the DynaTrac Pro Rock 44 front and Dana 60 rear axles with ARB air lockers and TeraFlex sway bars.

Standout features include the chopped windshield and windowless hard top (both sit 2-inches lower), the metallic sandstone paintjob with copper and brown accents, LED lights, and the dark saddle Katzkin leather seating.

 

Jeep Wrangler Slim

The last Wrangler concept is named Slim after the weight saving measures applied to body and the mechanical hardware. It’s powered by a 3.6-liter V6 and rolls on prototype 17-inch forged beadlock wheels with Rock Lobster rings. The Slim also sports lightweight rock rails, black grille, black hood decal, LED headlights, locking gas cap, Rubicon tires, and a prototype Mopar 2-inch lift kit.

 

THIS IS THE NEW ‘DEAR’ TOYOTA VITZ FOR CHINA!

By Baber K. Khan (bk) on March 19, 2013

It is quite a looker and although Its called ‘Dear’ but then cars name in Chinese and Japanese market have mostly been this way. Ever since the grey (imported cars) market has expanded here, we’re seeing all sorts of ridiculous names, like Honda Life, freed, Mobilio, Parnter, Passport, StepWagon, That’s…and Toyota Biyana (In Urdu, it means the condition or token money one pays to book the car), Voxy, Will, Wish, Gaia, Rectis?, Succeed, and Kluger… there’s so much more.

Chinese automotive website, 163.com says that this is the new Toyota Yaris, and while design-wise, it is based on the Toyota Dear hatchback that was first shown as a concept at the 2012 Beijing Auto Show. The renderings show a sporty little hatch with a newly designed front which is quite tamer then the actual concept with was extreme.

Powered by a new 1.5 liter four-cylinder with 136hp, mated to a 5-speed manual, the new Vitz is expected to debut later this year at the Shanghai Auto Show.

Toyota Dear:

 

Toyota Vios: