Volkswagen held a press launch for the new Polo GTI hot hatch on Monday, and it was probably one of the more interesting ones I've experienced in my (relatively short) media career.
What they did was lay out a small circuit at the Marina Bay Golf Course, and let us journalists loose in the spicy little car. And, knowing how competitive us motoring writers are, there were prizes awarded for the top three fastest times of the day.
How did I fare? Well...
The basic circuit layout was th
It has been a while since I last typed about something from the good old days. Since we live in a society that basically disposes of their cars after a decade or so it is apt that we share something older than 10 years so that we can reminisce on the good old days, or the day old days, depending on the car I choose to review. So let's start the ball rolling with a Volvo. The Volvo 850 T5-R and the 850R models to be exact.
Once upon a time, Volvo was famed for its safe and utterly box-like o
To adopt the lingo of the marketing campaign for the 2011 Suzuki Swift - I'm a fan! And if you went down to the nearest Suzuki dealership to give this new hatch a test drive, there is a pretty good chance you would be one too!
But before you head down to the showroom, my only advice is to throw out or shelf away all your driving experience with respect to luxury marques and sports cars for those 10-15 minutes behind the wheel of this car. Because what the Swift (was and still is) meant to b
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I was a victim of vandalism a couple of months ago and the result is a 5cm deep scratch mark on the right door fender. My car was slightly over one year old then and I had a strong urge to send the car for a paint job. However, a bad paint job by Kah Motors on my former Pearl White FD Civic leaves me with second thoughts
For every year, Ward's AutoWorld magazine picks the best interiors the automotive industry has to offer. For the 2011 season, the publication chose the 10 best interiors after editors analyzed 51 vehicles that were all-new or featured significantly upgraded interior. Ward's Auto picked the 10 winners from all segments, including luxury sedans, economy cars, SUV and MPV.
These cars were chosen after editors completed score sheets for each one based on materials, ergonomics, safety, the human-
Subaru has unveiled the all-new fourth-generation Impreza at the New York Motor Show, which it claims to be more efficient than the outgoing model.
Which is all well and good, but what happened to the Subaru of before?
Subaru used to be known for their cutting edge design and technology. Its Legacy models were handsome and understated-looking executive cars, and the Impreza were highly impressive performers, as evidenced by their success in the World Rally Championship during the 1990s.
Hyundai Motor Company plans to expand its turbo engine family with the introduction of a brand new 1.6L T-GDI turbo engine. Based on the existing 1.6L GDI four-cylinder engine which currently propels the Korean market Hyundai Avante, the unit uses a twin-scroll turbocharger which improves the engine response and performance. At the same time, the turbocharger increases efficiency at low engine speeds, improving combustion efficiency and lowers emissions.
The 1.6L turbocharged four-cylinder
Lewis Hamilton claimed victory at the China Formula 1 Grand Prix held on the 17th of April 2011. It was quite a feat as just before the race the McLaren mechanics were hard at work repairing Hamilton's car which suffered a fuel leak. It was a major victory of sorts as this is the 3rd race of the 2011 season and finally someone has ended Sebastian Vettel's run of victories. He came in second nonetheless ahead of Red Bull's other driver, Mark Webber who himself drove a fabulous race. He started fr
After 13 years of production, Volkswagen has finally revealed the third incarnation of their iconic Beetle, simultaneously launching it at the Shanghai and New York Motor Shows this week.
The new Beetle is purported to be larger and more mature than before, as evidence by its size and shape.
I'm not sure whether the new Beetle will be able to shed its image as a 'girly' car though. It still looks reasonably cute with its shape, and will no doubt still attract its fair share of feminine d
I posted an article on MCF on the parking charges at MacRitchie Reservoir slight more than a year ago (http://www.mycarforum.com/blog/myautoblog/160/welcome-to-macritchie-reservoir-to-pay/). My running buddy told me that there were some amendments made to it and I decided to do some research.
The extracted information from sgcarmart.com shows that the 1st hour of parking from 11am to 5pm is free during weekdays; and the 1st hr of parking from 2pm to 5pm is free on Saturday, Sunday and public
A rear end collision is one of the worst accidents one can get into. Not only is it a major inconvenience, there is a possibility of sustaining whiplash injuries from the impact from being hit from behind.
You may think that there is no way of avoiding a rear end collision. After all, you are being hit from the rear. However, there is actually a simple trick to avoiding being bumped up your backside.
More often than not, rear end collisions results from tailgating, when someone is follow
The German automaker is preparing an all-new A-class, and we get some insight into what it will look like, courtesy of the Concept A. Falling in line with the rest of the family, the squared off nose is aggressive and wears the Tri-Star emblem proudly. From the side, the Concept A shows hints of the CLS and even the R-Class. Most of the swoopy lines in the concept version are expected to make it to the production A- Class.
Underneath the sheetmetal, the Concept A-Class rides on a new fron
The 6th of April 2011 marked the day where Team Mercedes GP Petronas held its 'Meet the Fans' session in conjunction with the Malaysian Formula 1 Grand Prix. The session, held at the Suria KLCC shopping mall in Kuala Lumpur was a packed and quite successful event with both drivers, 7 time world champion Michael Schumacher and his racing partner, Nico Rosberg spent some time answering a short Q &A as well as signing autographs at the concourse area of the shopping mall. The Mercedes Petronas
The current R35 Nissan GT-R is a car that is admired and adored by many. This is a car that could basically take on a 997 Porsche 911 Turbo and many other current supercars on most roads and win. The other thing about the R35 GT-R no longer carries the 'Skyline' tag. It isn't a Skyline anymore unlike the previous R32, R33, R34 Skyline GT-Rs. But Nissan is adamant that this GT-R still has the same heritage as the cars mentioned above in that it shares the same sort of all-wheel drive chassis (al
Someone has leaked photos of the upcoming 2012 F10 BMW M5. The uber 5 Series BMW Comcept M5 features a more aggressive look overall which takes a lot of styling cues from the E92 BMW M3, especially up front.
The styling features a different front bumper/spoiler, wider front wings with the now signature chrome air vents and LED driving lights up front. The rear features a redesigned bumper with the usual central diffuser setup. Everything looks lean and mean without any excessive styling lik
The BMW Group's two iconic brands, MINI and Rolls-Royce, have come together to produce this rather unique creation, called the MINI Inspired by Goodwood.
It combines the cheeky compactness of the MINI, together with the luxuries of Rolls-Royce. Sounds pretty rich.
I mean, it seems like pretty much in the same vein as the Aston Martin Cygnet, yet somehow it feels a bit different.
Because the MINI has always been a slightly premium hatchback anyway, so to bring it up a level further do
Saab is in deep trouble according to its owners Spyker. The Swedish car manufacturer could seriously bite the dust even after the takeover by Spyker early last year. In fact, Spyker had to let go of a major shareholding of its luxury car manufacturing arm to a UK based investment company to inject some extra capital into Saab but even this little maneuver has not stopped the bleeding. Spyker's annual report had stated that Saab's future isn't certain if they do not secure new funding. I think Sa
Electric 'supercar' maker Tesla which just recently pulled out from Singapore is now in a legal battle with the mega motoring show Top Gear from the UK. Apparently, they are battling it out in court due to Top Gear's depiction of the car. This is not the first time Top Gear is facing the flak from one of the companies which provide them cars to trash around, and neither will this be the last, but I do love Top Gear for their insanity sometimes.. No wait, ALL the time.
According to Tesla, Top
Following the teaser shots circulating online recently, Renault-Samsung has officially unveiled the new SM7 concept at the Seoul Motor Show. The current SM7 model has been on the market since 2004. Designed to preview the production model, the concept features a coupe-like profile with a prominent grille. Modern LED lighting units are present as expected. The red lighting stripe which stretches across the boot reminds me of the Saab 9-5. Nice touch. I hope that the integrated dual exhaust syste
Wearnes Automotive, which represents brands like Renault, Volvo, Land Rover, Jaguar, Bentley and Bugatti in Singapore, held a Media Nite recently to announce the addition of two more brands to their portfolio.
The two brands, McLaren and Infiniti, are without doubt highly-anticipated, and local car enthusiasts can most certainly look forward to a slew of exciting new cars arriving this year.
The biggest news has to be the impending arrival of McLaren, for the first time ever in Singapore
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The 2011 Seoul Motor Show that runs in South Korea from March 31 to April 10 plays host to the world premiere of the all-new Hyundai Blue2 concept study. The name, which is to be read
