Honda Malaysia will launch 3 all-new models as well as one updated model during 2023 with the aim of achieving a total sales volume of 80,000 units. With the Malaysian Automotive Association forecasting a Total Industry Volume of 650,000 units for this year, this would give Honda a 12.3% market share.
The target is similar to that of 2022 but last year, it exceeded the number by 290 units to take a share of 11.1%. The achievement kept Honda in the No.1 position in the non-national passenger car segment (which excludes pick-up trucks and commercial vehicles) for the ninth consecutive year since 2014. During the year, the brand also recorded its highest ever sales in Malaysia with more than 10,500 units delivered nationwide.
Speaking to the media at an event recently, Honda Malaysia President & Chief Operating Officer Sarly Adle Sarkum said that as part of the company’s strategic business direction, it will launch a new model in an entirely new segment during the third quarter of 2023.
The second round of the 2023 Formula 1 World Championship saw reigning champion Max Verstappen starting from 15th after driveshaft failure forced him out of qualifying, and Charles Leclerc in 12th after taking a 10-place grid drop for using more than his 2 allotted ECUs for the season,
Verstappen’s team mate in Red Bull Racing, Sergio Perez, had a poor start from pole position and was passed by a forceful Fernando Alonso in the Aston Martin. However, the Stewards would give Alonso a 5-second penalty for incorrect starting location.
Reliable, fuss free, efficient and comfortable, the Vios has been the choice of the Malaysian middle-class since it was first introduced in 2003.
It is almost impossible to fault the Vios but if it had to be brought up then the second-generation “Vios Dugong” that received the most heat for the way it looked.
But in all fairness, pareidolia is the last thing car designers consider when coming up with a new design. Fair play to Malaysians though, we are the best at coming up with imagining things and coming up with car names – ‘Civic Mayat’, anyone?
So there is no denying that the Vios is hugely popular, Toyota Malaysia says over 505,000 units have been sold since the early 2000s.
But the Vios was quickly becoming stale and many started to ponder whether Toyota was even serious about continuing to produce the Vios. It’s not often that car makers push a model over five years without an update, but Toyota had milked the third-generation Vios for nine whole years before the new fourth-generation model was introduced in Thailand towards the tail end of 2022.
Now that the new Vios is here, the spotlight will undoubtedly will be on it. But the new Vios is prepared to shine, it is well-prepared to even steal the spotlight from its competitors in some aspects because there are some things that it does better than even the likes of the much loved fifth-generation Honda City.
But there’s so much that is new, we decided to break it down to bite sized nuggets of information for you:
Design
This is definitely the most obvious thing but the new design (which to some eyes happen to look like a compressed Camry) is not just visual, but it’s also functional as well. Take the front bumper with aerodynamic wings (or curtains) at either end, finished in gloss black. These are not just for visual drama but are there to improve aerodynamic efficiency and reduce drag as the car slices through the air. Toyota also says that it works to cool the brakes as well. And to ensure that bystanders that are curious enough to look closer know what they are for, the words Vortex Generators are boldly printed on them.
The rear of the car looks like it was perhaps inspired by a 3-Series or even a Honda City, though that is up for debate. However the rear diffuser is also said to be functional and has “flat-ish” under body rear tray that perhaps aids aerodynamics as well. We were also told that the gloss-black aerodynamic wings at either end of the rear bumper are said to channel air away from the car rather than letting it swirl at the edges of the bumper. Supposedly to reduce drag and reduce noise that may intrude back into the cabin.
It has grown in size
The new Vios is based on the new Daihatsu New Global Architecture (DNGA), and is a product of a Toyota-Daihatsu collaboration called the ‘Emerging-Market Compact Car Company’ (EMCC). This is an internal company, and for those not in the know, Toyota is the parent company of Daihatsu.
Now that we have those details aside, the Vios’s underpinnings means that the car is now 5mm longer, 10mm wider, 5mm taller and more importantly, the wheelbase of the Vios has grown by 70mm.
The increase in size is quite clear to see with the new design clearly making the car look much bigger.
Fast-Back Design
It may sound like a stretch for Toyota to use that word on a Vios, but that swooping rear roof line is what inspired the adoption of that monicker. And in all honesty, the design of the new Vios looks fantastic. It is the single biggest leap forward for the all-new Vios and as far as first impressions go, it had us at Hello!
But that Fast-Back design which Toyota so loves to talk about comes at a cost, and unfortunately the head room and overall feel in the back takes a beating. Because of the way the roof sweeps down, there’s hardly any headroom for anyone taller than 178cm and the windows seem a little smaller than before and this sacrifices the amount of light that gets into the back cabin, making it feel smaller.
But the quality is amazing!
We drove the top of the line G-spec that comes with all the goodies and a full leather interior and it is just WOW! The design is fantastic and there’s soft touch plastics everywhere and the plush leather covers the dashboard, the door panels, the raised centre console and even the sides of the console where your knees rest.
Current Toyota Veloz owners will recognise the interior but that’s not a bad thing.
The switches and buttons are from the Toyota/Daihatsu parts bin
And yes even the meter panel is similar to the Myvi. Remember the EMCC company we mentioned earlier in this article? Well that’s the by-product of having one company produce a diverse range of models, you can’t run away from the parts sharing.
So the air-conditioning dials are from the Veloz as is the steering wheel. The switches too. The meter panel too is similar to the Myvi and Axia, which to some might be a deal breaker. So the only way around that is to not get inside a Myvi or an Axia.
It is loaded with features!
The new Vios is undoubtedly going to give its competitors a hard time and that’s not just because of its looks and quality and the fact that it’s a Toyota.
It comes with WIRELESS Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, which is a first for its segment. To complement that it also comes with a wireless charge pad for added convenience.
Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC) is amazing and always handy especially during long distance drives. It also comes with Lane Keep Assist and Lane Departure Warning – as annoying as those features can be, they work great with the ACC.
Front Departure Alert is one of the most underrated pieces of technology in a car. How many times have you been stuck behind a car or held up traffic just because the driver ahead or you were too busy scrolling through Facebook? This feature is for you! It alerts you when the front car has driven off so you never hold up traffic again.
Safety is the name of the game
This is probably the most cliche part of this article but it is true and essential for the people that buy the Vios – young college go-ers, first car buyers, young parents, retirees. The Vios comes packed with six airbags and the Toyota Safety Sense (TSS).
TSS alone offers seven different technologies to keep occupants safe and that does not yet include passive safety features.
The car is lighter and more rigid
Achieved by using that DNGA platform, the car weighs in at a full 110kg lighter. And though it may be down on power when compared to the Honda City, it actually has the same acceleration figure because it is much lighter.
The chassis is also stiffer than before making the car safer. This also gives it a nimbler feel and that is felt through the steering wheel that reacts to every input.
Same powertrain!
Well, almost the same powertrain – at 106hp and 138Nm of torque, the new Vios is slightly down on power compared to the model it replaces.
But there’s a new D-CVT gearbox that uses a single pulley and dual gears to offer seven virtual gears (the technical details warrant an article by itself).
The new gearbox makes the car more economical yet gives it a spirited feel during acceleration simply because it is lighter.
There’s only one USB slot at the front
Yes that’s quite a bummer but Toyota is only offering a single USB slot up front and that too in the housing of the 9-inch touchscreen which makes it feel like an afterthought.
Toyota’s engineers from Japan were available for questions and we did ask them why they only offered one USB port.
Besides pointing towards market research results and the fact that there is a wireless charge pad, they also say that too many USB ports tend to clutter the area which makes it too messy and dangerous even.
There are two USB ports at the back though, one Type C and one Type A.
Oh, and we love the fact that there are cupholder built into the dashboard and into the rear door panels, making this the perfect road trip car.
And one final detail that you should know about is the fact that the all-new Vios is quieter. Achieved through the clever use of foam technology around strategic areas (Toyota didn’t say where), Toyota also uses acoustic glass for the three front glass panels (driver, passenger and windscreen). This helps to keep the NVH levels down to an impressive level.
The Toyota Vios goes on sale on the 20th of March with only two variants being offered and a possible price tag of RM90,000 for the entry level E-Spec and RM96,000 for the top of the line G-Spec.
Land Rover is 75 years old this year and no doubt, the carmaker famous for its 4×4 models – long before SUVs came into existence – will be celebrating this milestone year in various ways. Another company that is also joining in the celebration is LEGO, the company which sells those build-it-yourself models made of little bricks.
In the past, LEGO has offered the Defender and in 2019, to coincide with the launch of the New Defender, a classic Defender 90 was also offered in the Technic series for older fans. Now, for the brand’s 75th anniversary, it is bringing back the Defender 90, also in its original classic form, as a LEGO ICONS model.
The law requires the owners of all motor vehicles used on public roads in Malaysia have valid insurance coverage for the vehicle. This insurance coverage can be one of two types – comprehensive or third party – and must be from a registered insurance company. It is up to the owner to choose which one although if the vehicle is still under a hire-purchase loan, then the bank will want comprehensive coverage to ensure it will be compensated in case of loss.
The difference between the two types of motor insurance is that comprehensive provides for compensation for the vehicle’s repairs if damaged or if a total loss (stolen or beyond repair. Third party coverage does not provide any compensation to the vehicle owner for anything. It only compensates other parties the vehicle has an accident with, either for their injuries/death or damage to property. If the vehicle is stolen, the owner will not get anything from the insurance company.
Like roadtax, insurance is usually renewed annually and the value insured will usually be adjusted to reflect depreciation (in the case of comprehensive coverage). The coverage for comprehensive insurance is usually standard but there are also certain exclusions for which compensation will not be given. For example, belongings in the vehicle which are stolen would not be covered and accessories like an expensive audio system might also not be covered. Not everyone is aware of the fact that there are exclusions.
The 2023 Formula 1 World Championship continues in the Middle East after the opening round in Bahrain with Round 2 at the seaside resort and port city on the Red Sea where the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix is being held this weekend. Situated 30 kms from Jeddah, the is the third time that the city is hosting a round on its Corniche street circuit.
Like the Bahrain GP, the Saudi Arabian GP will also be run at night on the 6.174-km circuit, the second longest in the 2023 calendar (after Spa-Francorchamps). Designed by Carsten Tilke, the son of the famous F1 circuit designer, Hermann Tilke, this is the fastest street circuit in the F1 calendar at the moment. Speeds on simulators have averaged over 250 km/h around the track which has 27 turns, the most of any circuit this year.
