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All the locally assembled models and where they are produced

Local assembly of vehicles has been going on since the mid-1960s when the government offered incentives to carmakers to build factories and assemble their vehicles in Malaysia, or have the vehicles assembled under contract by other parties. The move was to put Malaysia on the path towards industrialisation and the auto industry was to serve as a catalyst, as it had in countries like Japan and Germany.

From a handful of factories in the late 1960s, mainly in Selangor and Johor, the network of assembly plants spread across the country to states like Pahang and Perak, and even East Malaysia. The number of factories has risen and fallen as market conditions have changed over the past 50 years, and there are 22 active plants today which collectively produced 380,940 units of passenger and commercial vehicles during the first 8 months of this year.

From the start, the government encouraged the sourcing of parts locally as well to develop the auto industry in a comprehensive way. Incentives were also given for using more local parts as well as for investments made to grow local assembly. However, where exports are concerned, Malaysia has not been as strong as Thailand and Indonesia and it is only in the past decade that a few carmakers have started to use Malaysian plants as regional production hubs for some models.

*Aerial view of HICOM Automotive Manufacturers (Malaysia) in Pekan, Pahang. Brands such as Isuzu, Volkswagen, Mercedes-Benz, Mitsubishi FUSO and DEFTECH assemble their products at the complex.*

McLaren Mercedes is coming back to Formula 1!

The super successful McLaren Mercedes titan duo is coming back to the world of Formula 1 and we can’t be more excited about the legendary prospect. McLaren Racing together with Mercedes-Benz announced that the McLaren F1 team will be powered by Mercedes starting in the 2021 season. (more…)

Sime Darby Auto ConneXion participates in 14th Ford Global Caring Month

Big corporations continue to be successful because of the support and business the communities they operate in give them. Never forgetting this, companies like Ford Motor Company have a Global Caring Month where thousands of its employees around the world participate in community projects to reciprocate and to create positive impact in people’s lives

For the 14^th year of the Global Caring Month, Ford together with its sole distributor, Sime Darby Auto ConneXion (SDAC), organised a full-day activity for the elderly at the Sincere Care Home to help improve their living conditions as well as to provide emotional support. During the full-day visit, SDAC-Ford volunteers offered help with housekeeping and meals preparation and entertaining the senior folks. Apart from food and games, a spa corner offering manicure, pedicure, facial and haircut services were also set up by the talent volunteers to help groom the residents of the nursing home.

Sincere Care Home is a nursing home dedicated at looking after senior citizens who were found living on the streets, sent by families who are less able and referred to by the hospital. To help reduce the financial burden of its daily operation, the volunteers also made contributions in kind and in cash.

Enhancing quality of life
“Ford Global Caring Month programme is a great platform and we are proud to be a part of it. Each year, we get to contribute to a different cause and make a difference in people’s lives. Together with Ford, we are committed to enhancing the quality of life for people in our communities where we live and work” said Syed Ahmad Muzri Bin Syed Faiz, Managing Director, Sime Darby Auto ConneXion.

Ford Global Caring Month is a signature annual event of the Ford Volunteer Corps. Since its launch in 2005 by Executive Chairman Bill Ford, Ford Volunteer Corps members have contributed more than 1.5 million hours of community service in 50 countries, representing more than US$40 million of in-kind community investments. During the month, the Ford Volunteer Corps tackled hundreds of projects in cities, towns and villages in six continents. Ford Fund is contributing more than US$675,000 in grants to purchase tools and supplies for many of the global projects.

“Ford volunteers are improving access to clean water, feeding the hungry, building homes, renovating schools and providing opportunities to help make people’s lives better all over the world,” said Todd Nissen, director, Ford Volunteer Corps. “Each Ford volunteer is making a valued contribution to stronger communities and a better world.”

Click here for other news and articles about Ford and SDAC in PISTON.MY

Potent lightweight Corsa RR Turbo racer from ATS Automobili for RM504,000

Back in the 1960s, a group of Ferrari directors and engineers left the company to start a new one known as Automobili Turismo e Sport (ATS) with the aim of being a rival in F1 as well as on the street. The attempt didn’t go well and the company had to close down in 1964 after producing just 12 cars. However, over 50 years later, ATS has been revived and true to its heritage and to its roots, its Corsa division has made a comeback on racing tracks with a new and in-house developed car: the RR Turbo.

ATS Corsa has followed the principles of knowledge, power and strength to create its own brand new car. Essential and for track use, the RR Turbo is dedicated to all those drivers and teams that are looking for top performance figures in a car with an accessible price but equipped with premium parts.

Customers will benefit from ATS-Sicom carbo-ceramic discs with lightweight monoblock calipers, double wishbone pushrod suspensions with electronic Tractive shocks absorbers adjustable from inside the cockpit via a touchscreen display, Michelin tyres, AIM dash logger, electro hydraulic transmission with paddle shifters and a tablet console linked to the in-car cameras able to record and live-stream track sessions.

A typical Italian GT
Developed entirely by the ATS Automobili’s Design & Engineering department, the RR Turbo immediately sets itself aside, thanks to the beauty of its fluid and original lines, typical of the best Italian GT and for the attention to detail, responding to the values of Italian tradition and therefore of ATS Automobili.

The RR Turbo is a track weapon with credible numbers: 600 bhp; 780 kgs; 1.3 kgs/bhp power-to-weight-ratio. The RR Turbo has been engineered around a chromium molybdenum spaceframe chassis weighing only 40 kgs (without roll-bar) and the first of its kind to blend the most race-proven technology with the revolutionary concept of the monocoque.

The chassis tubing is welded to form a central tub-core which is paired with the FIA homologated roll-cage, giving high torsional rigidity and reaching the maximum levels of safety. Such a construction also allows to have a spacious and comfortable cockpit, providing more than enough room for taller individuals.

The RR Turbo hides under its bodywork an unexpected layout for a GT. As a matter of fact, just like in sports prototype and Formula cars, the engine and the gearbox are linked together by a monoblock bellhousing which acts as a support for the suspensions, dampers, wing mount and exhaust.

2-litre turbo engine from Honda
The heart of the RR Turbo is a Honda-supplied turbocharged 2-litre 4-cylinder engine. Developed by ATS Corsa with a closed-deck construction, it is equipped with forged pistons, head with bespoke intake and exhaust manifolds and Garret turbocharger. Managed by an Hondata ECU, the RR Turbo’s output reaches 600 bhp at 8,500 rpm and torque peaks at 530 Nm between 4,000 to 7,000rpm. Power delivery to the wheels is through a 6-speed 3MO FTX sequential transmission with limited slip differential.

The standard braking system is characterized by 4-piston Brembo calipers with steel discs but for those wanting more stopping power, there are also ultralight ATS-Sicom monoblock calipers paired with 350 mm carbo-ceramic discs front and rear.ATS Corsa’s goal is to offer a competitive machine suitable from week-end track days to professional racing. The RR Turbo has been developed to be a multi-purpose racing car able to offer top-level performance in the vast majority of FIA events in all of Europe. It is priced from 110,000 euros (about RM504,000) for the basic car and first deliveries are expected to start in early 2020.

New Land Rover Defender’s Mild Hybrid Electric Vehicle system provides ‘future-proofing’

Throughout its 67-year life, the original Land Rover Defender was offered only with petrol or diesel engines. That’s not unusual since it was developed from a product of the late 1940s, long before the era of zero emissions and greater consciousness to preserve the environment. Its powertrains were robust, as required by customers, and had been improved to deliver better performance and meet progressively stricter emission control regulations.

However, when it came to developing the successor, the world had become a very different place. From the 1970s onwards, air pollution – blamed largely on exhaust emissions from motor vehicles – persuaded governments to introduce regulations forcing carmakers to reduce emissions. These regulations, especially in the more developed countries, kept getting tougher and tougher. And with rising fuel prices, there was also a need to reduce fuel consumption even if there was indifference to concerns about fossil fuel supplies diminishing and running out at some point in the future.

Electrification the way to go
For Land Rover, as for other carmakers, it was clear that there were limitations to engineering the internal combustion engine to meet toughest regulations. The better solution was to use electrification, an approach that had become increasingly viable since Toyota and Honda introduced hybrid powertrains in the late 1990s. Pure electric powertrains remain expensive due to the high technology costs but hybrids are now into the mainstream and almost every carmaker has adopted the technology.

So for the new Defender, it was clear that while less developed markets would still require conventional engines, the future dictated that there must be a hybrid powertrain under the bonnet. This led to the development of Mild Hybrid Electric Vehicle (MHEV) technology that is available from launch while a Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) powertrain will join the range next year. This will offer silent zero-emissions driving in EV-mode, giving Land Rover owners an entirely new experience off-road.

MHEV with 48V system
A key feature of the Defender’s MHEV is its 48-volt battery pack consisting of 14 x 8Ah lithium-ion pouch cells that can store up to 200Wh of electricity. The MHEV system is not new to Land Rover, having first been used in the Evoque and has been further refined. Separate from the normal vehicle battery, it generates up to 142.5 Nm of torque which enhances acceleration.

A DC/DC converter installed at the back provides energy to the battery pack as well as the vehicle’s conventional battery. There’s also a Belt-Integrated Starter Generator which ‘harvests’ electrical energy while driving. Whenever the driver lifts off on the throttle pedal, electricity is regenerated to the battery pack where it can be utilized.

2019 Land Rover Defender — *The new Defender’s platform has been engineered for conventional petrol and diesel powertrains as well as hybrid powertrains.*

The in-line 6-cylinder 3-litre Ingenium petrol engine features both a conventional twin-scroll turbocharger and an advanced 7 kW electric supercharger. In combination with the other advanced technologies, total output is 400 ps/550 Nm with a claimed 0 – 100 km/h time of 6.1 seconds. Fuel consumption is claimed to be 10.4 kms/litre.

Software updating – without going to the service centre
The extensive array of electronic systems in the new Defender mean that ‘future-proofing’ is necessary and software updates can be sent over the air periodically. Up to 14 onboard electronic control modules, more than any previous Jaguar Land Rover vehicle, can receive updates, without the need to visit a Land Rover service centre. In this way, the Defender will get better with age. Customers in remote locations can still get the updates – all that’s required is a data connection via a satellite-phone.

Although electronic systems installed in motor vehicles these days are ‘hardened’ and able to withstand the harsh conditions during daily use, they have to endure even more severe and extreme conditions in a vehicle like the Defender. Given that many owners will go off-road and over the roughest terrain on the planet, Land Rover engineers had to conduct rigorous testing all over the world and in the most extreme conditions. Serious attention was given to electrical connections and the effects of impacts on components like the battery pack. Even in the 21^st century, the original 4×4 reborn has to maintain as well set new standards for toughness and capability.

Click here to read more about the New Land Rover Defender

F1 (Round 16) – Highlights Of The 2019 Russian Grand Prix And Results

♦ Lewis Hamilton finally gets a win after 4 races and increasing assurance of another world championship title, possibly being confirmed in Mexico.

♦ Controversies again in the Ferrari camp led to Sebastian Vettel retiring with engine problems and Charles Leclerc losing his lead due to the virtual safety car being deployed.

♦ Red Bull’s two drivers – Max Verstappen and Alexander Albon – started the race in poor form, the former having been given a penalty and the latter having had an accident in qualifying. But they managed to finish 4th and 5th (Albon moving up from 20th at the beginning) to collect points for the team.

♦ Poorly planned pit stop saw Kimi Raikkonen’s Alfa Romeo immobile longer than necessary and dropping way down the field to end 13th. He must miss the lightning-quick and precisely planned pit stops at Ferrari.