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With most crossovers, their rugged looks belie a softer, more road-biased drivetrain which is perfectly suitable for most drivers that prefer car-like handling characteristics with an SUV-like appearance. “But what if I’ve only got $100k to spare and want to do some light off-roading?”, you might ask – well here’s where Subaru has got you covered.
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Subaru XV 2.0 EyeSight | Slightly Off The Beaten Track

IN Subaru, XV, Subaru XV, EyeSight, MotorImage

Subaru bridges the gap between the Impreza and Forester with the refreshed XV


Realising they need a model to attract the younger and trendy set - thanks to Honda and Nissan who went ahead earlier with their HR-V and Qashqai respectively - which thinks the Vios is not exactly the cool set of wheels they would want to own, this is what Toyota came up with.
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Compact X-Over Feature 1 – Toyota C-HR Turbo

IN Toyota, C-HR, Toyota C-HR, C-HR Luxury Dual Tone, Crossover, X-over, SUV, Borneo Motors, Singapore, 2018

Toyota decided to go down the less boring route, and this is the result


A trend that’s set to stay.
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BMW X3 xDrive30i M Sport | A Tad Excessive

IN BMW, X3, XDrive30i, BMW X3, BMW X3 xDrive30i, M Sport, BMW X3 xDrive30i M Sport, SUV, Sports Activity Vehicle, Performance Motors Ltd, BMW Asia, 2018

BMW’s well-loved X3 returns with even more muscle - but will local consumers bite, and let history repeat itself?


Quite recently, BMW went slightly aggressive. They’ve launched a range of plug-in hybrid variants for their popular 3 Series, 5 Series and even 2 Series.
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BMW 225XE iPerformance Active Tourer | Would You Like A Piece?

IN BMW, 2 Series, BMW 2 Series, 225xe, BMW 225xe iPerformance, IPerformance, BMW Active Tourer, 2 Series Active Tourer, Performance Motors, Beemer

A host of issues, in terms of infrastructure on our island, is still largely in limbo - so why would you still want a sub-$180k plug-in hybrid from BMW?


Accepting the trophy infront of 60 Car of the Year jurors and over 200 industry colleagues, Volvo Japan CEO Takayuki Kimura said, “This is the first time in Japan COTY’s 38-year history that Volvo has won an award. To be honest, I would have been happy with the Import Car of the Year*. But to come away with the overall Japan Car of the Year is totally unexpected and sincerely humbling. I dedicate this award to the 100 dealers and 1400 staff across the nation.” 
Happenings

Volvo’s XC60 Wins In Japan

IN Japan, Car of the Year, Car of the Year Japan, 2018, COTY, Car of the Year Japan 2018, COTY Japan 2018, Volvo, XC60, Volvo XC60

In a monumental battle for the country’s most coveted car trophy, the Volvo XC60 comes from behind to capture the Car of the Year Japan award


Powered mainly by a 2.0-litre 4-cylinder petrol engine, that on its own, pushes out a decent 181 bhp and 290 Nm of torque. But coupled with the huge battery that sits under the rear boot, the combined power output is a rather heady 252 bhp and a cumulative torque figure of 420 Nm. This enables the hybrid 3-Series to hit 100 km/h from standstill in 6.1 seconds and propels it to a 225 km/h top speed.
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BMW 330e iPerformance | Electrifying

We test the first model in BMW’s performance range - the 330e packs some hybrid punch while retaining its 3-Series drive characteristics


With this 252 bhp variant (the base model gets 190 bhp), Quattro is standard. The lovely new chassis platform known as 'MLB-Evo chassis' yields a car that is lighter, more playful and nimble on the road. Steering inputs are precisely executed and while a little on the light side, never feels vague. I’d dare say the combination of a strong power output and sublime handling almost makes this A5 quite S5-like! I enjoyed driving it more than I did the 3.0-litre S4.
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Audi A5 Sportback 2.0 TFSI Quattro | Evolutionary

The second generation A5 is even better before. Based on Audi’s MLB-Evo chassis, the new car is both great to drive and practical to boot!


Well, Honda tried taking a slice of this pie with two models. Ironically while Toyota needed only one model to make this niche bourgeois, Honda on the other hand needed the Insight and Civic Hybrid.
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Hyundai Ioniq | Isn’t It Ironic

IN Hyundai, Ioniq, Hybrid, Hyundai Ioniq, Family car, Hyundai Ioniq Hybrid 1.6 GLS (A), Komoco Motors, 2017

Hyundai’s first hybrid attempt seem highly attractive - and this is a cause for concern for Toyota


And so today we have the new Impreza with us. Based on photos alone, you might think the new Subaru Impreza is just another Impreza; you know, with the usual ingredients namely a regular family car with four-wheel drive. Full stop.
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Subaru Impreza 1.6 Sedan | Who Would’ve Thought

IN Subaru, Impreza, 1.6-litre, Sedan, Subaru Impreza 1.6, 2017, Family sedan, Singapore, Motor Image

The Impreza has come a long way, and this iteration is put together so damn well


The nonprofit group's goal is to promote more choice in how smartphones get connected to in-vehicle technologies like dashboard displays and voice recognition, and in other programming, Ford and Toyota said in a joint statement. Toyota has resisted offering Apple's CarPlay and Google's Android Auto in its vehicles, citing concern that doing so would diminish safety and security. Ford, on the other hand, offers them on all its 2017 model vehicles; but the automaker still wants an open-source software platform that all app developers can use as an alternative to those of Google and Apple.
Happenings

Ford And Toyota Forms Alliance

IN Ford Motor Company, Toyota Motor Corporation, SmartDeviceLink Consortium, Google Android Auto, Apple CarPlay, Ford, Toyota, Google, Apple, SmartDeviceLink, Mazda Motor, PSA Group, Fuji Heavy Industrie

In a move to prevent both Google and Apple from conquering in-vehicle apps, Ford and Toyota have stepped in together to form a telematics alliance


To make it even worst for Honda, the local Mazda dealer then aggressively marketed the 3; this in turn became another success story, and so whenever the general public looked into this segment, the Corolla Altis, Jetta and 3 were the obvious choices. Even the Fit/Jazz audience who wanted an upgrade looked elsewhere - if in the past they would trade it in for a Civic, the parallel-imported Vezel was the model they would go after instead.
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Repeating History | Honda Civic VTEC Turbo

IN Honda Civic, Honda, Civic, Civic sedan, 10th Generation, 10th-gen Civic, VTEC Turbo, VTEC, Turbocharged

Expectations are high with the 10th-gen Civic, so now that it's here, can it regain what its predecessor had lost?


But suddenly the Germans decided they wanted to be part of the party too. Along came the Mercedes-Benz ML, BMW X5, Porsche Cayenne and Volkswagen Touareg. The Japanese didn’t want to lose out too, churning out more modern versions of their ‘Jeep’ – the Mitsubishi Pajero suddenly won’t look out of place at the driveway of Marina Mandarin, the Toyota Land Cruiser Prado became a status symbol and, later on, Nissan’s Murano became the choice of soccer mums.
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Coming In Late | Mercedes-Benz GLC250 4MATIC

IN Mercedes-Benz, Mercedes, GLC250, 4MATIC, Mercedes-Benz GLC250 4MATIC, SUV, Daimler South East Asia, Cycle & Carriage

Is Mercedes-Benz's super late entry into this segment a good or bad thing? Or has the X3 and Q5 sorted it out already?


For now though, early adopters of the RX Turbo won’t be missing out on much, as they’ll still enjoy the same improvements and changes made to the rest of the car. First up is the exterior styling – the radical new look is more in line with the company’s new styling direction. From the oversized Spindle grille to the LED light clusters to the sharp origami-like creases in the sheet metal, the styling of the new RX screams aggression, with nary a curve to be found.
Happenings

4th generation Lexus RX makes Singaporean debut

IN Lexus, RX, SUV, Turbo, V6, Launch, Singapore, Borneo Motors

Latest version of the popular luxury crossover boasts enhanced comfort, sharper styling (literally) and a turbocharged engine.


Happenings

Back To Basics

IN Toyota, S-FR, Lightweight, Sports car, Concept

Building on momentum of the GT86 Coupe, Toyota unveils a sports car concept that is even smaller and lighter than its already svelte bigger brother - enter the S-FR concept


But boy oh boy how things have changed for Jaguar now with their latest compact executive sedan. I strongly urge you: If you are about to head to either BMW, Mercedes-Benz or Audi showroom to confirm your order for the 3 Series, C-Class or A4 and hand over the deposit cheque, hold on to it first and tell the salesperson you intend to ‘sleep on it for another night’.
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Jaguar XE 2.0 Prestige | Cat's Out Of The Bag

IN Jaguar, XE, Jaguar XE, Jaguar XE sedan, Jaaaaag, Wearnes Automotive

Jaguar’s latest XE poses a real threat to the more established Germans – hold on to your chequebook first


And I’m saying this based on its price tag. The Passat 1.8 TSI in Highline spec here commands $156,300 with COE.
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Volkswagen Passat 1.8 TSI | VW’s New Opus

IN Volkswagen, VW, Passat TSI, Passat, 1.8 TSI Highline, Large Sedan, Volkswagen Large Sedan

VW’s latest contender in the large sedan segment hits the right notes, but the only challenge now is to sway buyers into its direction


In contrast, the interior is where the bulk of the revisions have been made. Like the refreshed CX-5 we tested recently, the clunky old radio and infotainment system has also been replaced with a new one called MZD Connect, which integrates music, Bluetooth and navigation capabilities onto a high-resolution 7-inch touchscreen. This system is the same as found in the 2, 3 and CX-5, which means its various pros and cons are also present in the 6 – easy to use in general,with smart graphics, but with a very convoluted Navigation function. Check out our CX-5 review for more info.
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The 6-iest Of Them All | Mazda 6 2.5 Luxury

IN Mazda, 6, Family, Sedan, Saloon, Luxury, Eurokars, Singapore

Who ever said that family sedans had to be dreary, humdrum and bloated looking?


Power gets to the road via a pair of 6-speed transmissions. An automatic is optional but the manual offers enough convenience features to make life easy, with features such as hill-start assist and automated rev matching. The latter is particularly useful, helping to prevent stalling and allowing quick, seamless downshifts.
Happenings

Modern Workhorse

IN Toyota, Hilux, Pickup, Rugged, SUV, 4x4

Now in its eighth generation, Toyota has thoroughly revised the Hilux with the same values of ruggedness and utility, but added a good dollop of everyday usability as well.


From these photos, courtesy of civicx.com, you could see how Honda has taken an all-new approach towards their exterior design. Undeniably, it looks upmarket thanks to the svelte sports back approach ala Audi A5 Sportback and BMW 4 Series Gran Coupe. It's still too early to say whether Asia's market will get this body shell, but we're keeping our fingers crossed.
Happenings

Honda's 2016 Civic Caught Undisguised

IN Honda, Civic, Honda Civic, 2016, 2016 Civic, 2016 Honda Civic, Civicx.com

Next generation Civic shows Honda's designers have taken a braver design approach, a stark jump away from its predecessor


After a month of using Caltex petrol with Techron, Jason was ready to share his thoughts. We caught up with him to get his verdict; and he was rather excited to say the least.
The Pit

THE CALTEX TECHRON – BURNPAVEMENT READER SURVEY

IN Caltex, Chevron, Techron, Singapore, Toyota Wish

We catch up with our second panelist, Jason Lie, who tested a month's worth of Caltex petrol with Techron.



© 2015 BURNPAVEMENT