Toyota and Daihatsu recently announced the launch of the co-developed Toyota Passo and Daihatsu Boon, available for sale in the Japanese Domestic Market with immediate effect. In separate, but simultaneously released press statements, both Toyota and Daihatsu credited each other’s role as partners in developing the Passo/Boon. There is no mention of a role by Perodua, who was said to have been an equal partner in the development of the first generation Passo, which became the Perodua Myvi in our shores.

Toyota Passo + Hana (left) and Toyota Passo (right)

Like the outgoing Passo/Boon, the new one will also be available with the choice of a 1.0-litre and 1.3-litre engine though both are new. The 1.0-litre variant is powered by the three-cylinder 1KR-FE engine replacing the existing EJ-VE three-potter. Power from the old EJ engine is up by 10hp to 68hp, produced at 6,000rpm, while torque has also been upped from 88Nm to 92Nm @ 3,600rpm. Available in both FWD and AWD layout, the former actually meets Japanese emission standards for 2015.

The bigger 1.3-litre version features the 1NR-FE four-banger Dual DVVT (or Dual VVTi, depending on badge) motor replacing the single DVVT K3-VE engine. Hike in output here is as impressive as that in the 1.0-litre models, with 86hp @ 6,000rpm jumping to 94hp @ 6,000rpm, and 116Nm @ 3,200rpm leaping to 121Nm @ 4,000rpm. The 1.3 model is available only in FWD layout. All models feature Continuously Variable Transmission with column shifter as standard without option.

Daihatsu Boon

Compared to the Myvi’s dimensions, the new Passo/Boon is notably shorter in length (3,750mm vs 3,640mm) and height (1,550mm vs 1,535), but identical in width (1,665mm). There is a slightly longer version of the Toyota Passo known as the Passo + Hana, which measures an extra 10mm longer than the standard Passo.

Though there has been no mention of any involvement by Perodua in the Passo/Boon’s development, this is now a possible and likely candidate for a future replacement model of the Myvi. Don’t expect anything this year though, because Perodua’s strategy is to introduce an all-new model once every two years. Thus far, they have been consistent – the Myvi came in 2005, Viva in 2007 and Alza in 2009. Anything in between, not counting the CBU Nautica, are just facelifts.

Following that schedule, the next big Perodua launch is set to take place in 2011. We won’t be surprised to see this fella coming out to replace the Myvi, which would be a six-year old model by then – the ripe old age to be pensioned off.

No mention of any involvement by Perodua.

KON

Pictures: Official Toyota & Daihatsu press release, Autoworld file picture.

For the third successive year, the country’s best selling car is now also the best quality compact car, according to J.D. Power at least. The Perodua Myvi finished top in the Compact Car segment for J.D. Power Asia Pacific’s 2009 Malaysia Initial Quality Study. Topping the survey outright is the rugged Isuzu D-Max pickup, while the likes of the Honda City, Toyota Corolla Altis, and Toyota Innova also returned results that were above industry average, beating rivals in their respective segments.

Now in its seventh year, results for the 2009 edition of the study were compiled based on feedback from 2,874 owners of new vehicles purchased between Sept 2008 and May 2009. Participants of the survey, which owned a combined 52 different models, were interviewed from March 2009 to July 2009, and were asked to provide feedback 200 problem symptoms covering eight vehicle components: vehicle exterior; driving experience; features/controls/displays; audio/entertainment/navigation; seats; HVAC; vehicle interior; and engine/transmission.

From the gathered feedback, the various models were then ranked against each other by the self descriptive term problems reported per 100 vehicles (PP100). The industry average for Malaysia is 136 PP100 in 2009. That’s not very good from a consumer perspective, as it means that on average, something is bound to be faulty when you take home a new car.

The results by segment, extracted from J.D. Power’s website, are as follows:

Compact Car Segment

1. Perodua Myvi (127 PP100)
2. Proton Savvy (154 PP100)
3. Perodua Viva (186 PP100).

Entry Midsize Car Segment (B-segment)

1. Honda City (76 PP100)
2. Toyota Vios (107 PP100)
3. Proton Saga (158 PP100)

Midsize Car Segment (C-segment)

1. Toyota Corolla Altis (80 PP100)
2. Honda Civic (103 PP100)
3. Nissan Sylphy (109 PP100)

MPV/Van Segment

1. Toyota Innova (85 PP100)
2. Nissan Grand Livina (89 PP100)
3. Toyota Avanza (100 PP100).

Pickup Segment

1. Isuzu D-Max (66 PP100)
2. Toyota Hilux (94 PP100)
3. Mitsubishi Triton (101 PP100).

Perodua comments

Yesterday, Perodua issued a press release announcing their recipient of the IQS results from J.D. Power. At a prize presentation held in Perodua HQ, Rawang, J.D. Power Asia Pacific GM Taku Kimoto said, “For the customers, good fuel efficiency is the main reason to purchase a Myvi in addition some (respondents) quoted the attractiveness of the design and the roominess of the cabin.

Since its launch in May 2005, the Myvi has went on to be the country’s top seller with over 378,000 units sold since. In 2009, it once again topped the nation’s sales charges with some 91,000 units sold.

Also present to receive the award from J.D. Power was Perodua MD En Aminar Rashid Salleh, who said, “This is a very proud day for us as the Perodua brand has earned the trust of the Malaysian public yet again. On behalf of Perodua I would like to thank all Malaysians for choosing Myvi as their car of choice.”

KON

These days, the paths of most people’s lives have the tendency of following an eerily fixed pattern. You’re born. You grow up. You go to school, tuition, college, and eventually university. After three to four years in university, you are then expected to come away with a degree, printed in some fancy cert and presented in some fancy ceremony. With that degree cert, you then go hunting for some nice desk job, climb the corporate ladder, retire, and wait to die. Of course in the midst of all that, you would also need to find your other half, get married, have children, and raise them to go through exactly that same cycle you went through.

It is a vicious cycle, and if you just so happen to drop out of it anywhere along the line, your are almost automatically deemed a failure. If you score say four As from nine subjects in SPM, that’s no longer an achievement. You are asked what happened to the other five. Every Tom, Dick and Harry goes into university these days, and the saying is that, if you don’t have a uni degree, you don’t get a job. As a result, people no longer go to university these days for knowledge, they go for the sole purpose of getting a degree, just so they can find a job when they graduate.

This has led us into a very unhealthy culture. Educational institutions serve no longer as alcoves of knowledge, but as factories of graduates. A degree is no longer a prestige, it’s a necessity. During my father’s days, an SPM graduate can walk into any job. These days, you’re not guaranteed a modest living even if you’re a degree holder. I do not view this as a positive development, as it sidelines too many people whose talents are present, but simply not inline with the rigours of academia. Due to our overwhelming need to conform to the system, we often narrow our sight and fail to see the big picture when it comes to charting our paths in life. There are routes to success that do not involve a bachelors degree in law, or medicine, or engineering.

Though certainly not as glamourous as a place in university, the Perodua Youth Training Programme (PYTP) offers SPM school leavers an alternative in their education options. Yearly, some 40 students are inducted into a six-month in-house training course under the programme, and are coached with basic technical training which would enable them to pick up the Sijil Kemahiran Malaysia 1 (SKM 1) cert.

Just recently, a batch of 25 students completed the programme. Speaking at the graduation ceremony for the 25, Perodua MD En Aminar Rashid Salleh said, “The youths armed with the SKM 1 certification are now certified semi-skilled workers. They can either opt to work or continue their studies.”

Aminar further added that most graduates of the PYT Programme receive offers of employment from Perodua to work as assistant mechanics, assistant body repairer, or assistant spray painters.

Participation in the programme, when it was first opened in 1999 was limited only to youthsliving in Gombak and Hulu Selangor, though Perodua were finally persuaded to open the doors to youths nationwide come 2007. In total, the programme has seen the graduation of 270 students since its inception.

“We received some 400 applications from youths all over the country to undergo the programme every year. This programme forms part of our corporate responsibility in addressing the socio-economic problems faced by school leavers from relatively poor familers, ” Aminar added.

KON

Engineering students of Universiti Malaysia Pahang will get a chance to fiddle with actual industrial tooling robots, as Perodua gave the aforementioned university 13 such robots.

“Students will be able to learn – first hand – the operations of these robots and they can take this knowledge and apply it in any automotive company or any other relevant industry as they see fit,” said Perodua managing director Datuk Syed Abdull Hafiz Syed Abu Bakar at the hand over ceremony at Kuantan on 28 Dec 2009.

Syed Hafiz officiates the handover.

Over a 12-year period since 1997, these robots were responsible for the manufacture of 590,000 Perodua Kancils. With the Kancil now withdrawn from Perodua’s lineup, these robots, though still in good condition, were accordingly decommissioned.

To ensure that the university and its students receive maximum benefit from these robots, Perodua will also provide training to the university’s technicians on the operation and maintenance of them. The robots, which would be used by the Manufacturing Engineering Faculty, is expected to benefit, on average, 200 students per academic year.

“These robots are very precise one, you know?”

“Our hope is that they take this opportunity to learn as much as they can to prepare themselves in the ever demanding job environment,” Hafiz said.

Additionally, 60 less fortunate children from around Kuantan and Gambang were the recipients of a set of back-to-school items from Perodua. A small ceremony was held at Perodua Sales Kuantan branch, where the children were given stationeries, school bags, and some pocket money for the new school year.

KON

KON was at the KL Convention Centre to witness Perodua launch the all-new Alza MPV. Here are his pictures from the  scene.

Introducing, the Perodua Alza

The Alza takes centre stage.

Guests of the launch crowd out the display cars.

The rear three-quarter view

Dashboard is simple, and functional

Perodua calls this the Advanced Version. Whatever, we think Premium is good enough.

Power comes from Toyota’s 3SZ-VE 1.5-litre inline-4.

Malaysians love fiddling with things…

Using it as a seven-seater makes space a premium.

Showrooms nationwide will be open till 12am for the next few days, eager to accept your bookings. They’ve already received 3,500 as of 2:00pm, 23 Nov 2009. Fifty units are set to go on the road on 24 Nov 2009.

KON

See also:
- A spin in the Perodua Alza
- Our live updates on Twitter from the launch

Big changes at Proton soon?

So I was told.

That’s all I can say.

Late last year there was talk that current MD, Datuk Syed Zainal Abidin Tahir may be replaced, that story died down

Then Datuk Nadzmi Salleh was made Chairman, this old hand at Proton may have his own ideas… they say Old Proton boys don’t look at Perodua boys too kindly… hmm a bit of cross-town rivalry I guess

10-times champ dominated the 2008 season

Team GSR Pennzoil celebrated a spectacular year in the Malaysian Rally Championship 2008 with lead driver Karamjit Singh taking home the trophy for first overall this sixth and final Round and scoring his tenth Championship win.

He was trailed by Team Manager, Gunaseelan Rajoo who finished second today and fellow team mate P. Nandakumar who finished third.

Karamjit also won the P12 category while Gunaseelan took home the A8 category trophy.

“This year went as planned, we wanted to be the top two cars and we are and, of course, we clinched class wins and the Team trophy,” said Gunaseelan.

“We are happy both cars got through the very rough stages intact and without serious problems,” he added.

Karamjit’s said he’ll rally for another 10 years. “Everyone is asking me when I will retire. When I get another 10 MRC Championship trophies I will,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Perodua M5 Racing Team had to be happy with Jamaluddin Tukimin coming second in P9, three seconds behind Amir Ahmad.

Jamal fought hard for two days and he ended yesterday with a five second deficit but could not close the gap on Sunday.

Perodua M5 Team Manager, Garry Chua was happy that Jamal was consistent and kept the car together through both days.

“On Sunday he had a brush with a tree while avoiding Sutan’s car which was stranded by the roadside and that affected the Kelisa’s handling but otherwise it was still drivable,” Chua said.

The Perodua Viva 4WD Turbo of Lim Leong Onn hit a rock in SS15 and could not complete the SS.  Despite the crash, Lim scored enough points throughout the season to end up third overall in the Driver’s Championship.

Kan Chee Hong rolled his Perodua Myvi in the very first SS of this Round and the extensive damage kept him out of the race.

Muhammad Siraj Abdullah took out the P10 Category and fellow MRU team mate and Manager Muhammad Rafiq Udhaya the Showroom Category. ‘Mike’ Ariokiasamy Ratnam finished first in the P11 category with P. Nandakumar close behind him.

Azizul Jamin took home the Clubman category and Amir Ahmad finished first in the P9 Category.

Indian competitors Arjun Rao and Musa Sheriff will have fond memories of their 2008 Season in Malaysia taking out the N4 category and Musa finishing as runner-up co-driver overall.  Jagdev Singh finished first.  Musa and Arjun will return to compete in the 2009 Season if they can find extra sponsorship.

Final Results (For full results visit www.malaysianrally.com)

Top 5 Times:

Karamjit Singh/Jagdev Singh    1:26:34

Gunaseelan Rajoo/Manohar Menon    1:30:29

P. Nandakumar/Suresh Parkash Sharma  1:38:02

Muhammad Siraj Abdullah/Abi Ridzuan  1:39:45

Arjun Rao/Musa Sheriff (India)    1:43:23

Armed with a pair of media passes, this writer and his companion were given free access to the paddock and pits for the 5th round of the 2008 Sepang Drag Battle.

For Round 5, participating cars were divided into seven categories, labelled A to F. Category A was defined as the Open Category (read: no-holds barred) where teams are not restricted in terms of the modifications they perform to the car. Cars playing in this category are the meanest of the lot, with extensive powertrain and chassis modifications.

Some cars in Category A were observed to have had their complicated multi-link rear axles stripped and replaced by a solid axle in the name of weight saving. The winner of the category was Lai Wee Sing of Team R-Engineering in his Proton Satria. With this victory, Wee Sing was crowned overall winner of the Sepang Drag Battle season for 2008.

It was the same story in Category B – 2WD Forced Induction, with Wee Sing’s Team R teammate, Mohd Zamri Ahmad, who won both the round and the season, though unlike Wee Sing, Zamri had sealed his crown much earlier in the season. Category B cars are limited to 3,000cc engine capacity and can only have one of either turbocharging, supercharging or NOS.

In Category C – 2WD Natural Aspirated, cars with engines up to 2,000cc are allowed. The engines can be equipped with variable valve timing systems, but must not be fitted with NOS or forced induction systems. The title in this category went to Mohd Maziz Ahmad, who could afford to skip the round and make way for Ahmad Firdaus Ahmad to win the race on the night.

The regulations are further tightened in Category D – 2WD Limited, with maximum engine capacity shrunk to 1,600cc and variable valve timing prohibited altogether. Ismail Mutalib won it for this category and thus sealing the Category D title for himself.

Category E – K-Car was the playground of all the souped up Kancils and Kelisas. These are Peroduas that you don’t want to mess with, as I personally timed a couple of them to have clocked 12 – 13 seconds during their practice lap. To put that figure into perspective, that’s the territory of cars like the BMW M5, Ferrari 612 and Mercedes “55 AMG” variants.

It should be noted that, these cars were given the option of turbocharging or supercharging, with minimum weights of 650kg (NA) or 750kg (forced induction) invoked on the cars. The Category E winner on the night was Azlee Awang, who came in ahead of season champion Azery Mohd Norazli.

Category F – Avantech On The Road Class was a playground filled mainly by Hondas and Satrias. Split into VTEC and non-VTEC subcategories, cars in this category battle it out only as a one-off, with no season titles at stake. The technical restrictions are almost identical to that for Category C in addition to the cars needing to be road legal and having their exteriors and interiors intact. Zainal Abidin Abdul Rashed and Kamarul Azeman Arshad won it for the VTEC and non-VTEC categories respectively.

The final category was Category G – Campro, where, you guessed it, Campro-powered cars contest amongst each other in yet another one-off. This category was originally opened to 4G18 and 4G92 powered Protons before the organisers changed their minds and renamed this category to be the Campro Drag Battle.

Participants in this category see far more technical restrictions than the rest. For a start, the cars must be powered by Campro engines displacing no more than 1,601cc. Participants are free to modify their transmissions, brakes, suspension and ECU, but the car must weigh more than 1,500kg (excluding driver). It was even stipulated that the front and rear passenger seats were to be in place – not that I saw there were any.

Indeed, it made me wonder if the engine capacity restrictions were adhered to. The stock Campro already displaces 1,597cc and a simple reboring or restroking by just half a millimetre would already increase the engine capacity to 1,618cc or 1,606cc respectively - that’s just half a millimetre. I know for a fact that there are tuners who have rebored and restroked Campros up to nearly 1,700cc.

Winning the Campro Drag Battle, was Mark Darwin, who drove the only Proton Waja on the day, beating a score of Gen.2s and Neos. Further down the pecking order are a couple of Proton Personas who participated under the banner of the The Persona Club.

With the end of Round 5, the Sepang Drag Battle 2008 concludes. However, the action at Sepang did not end there, as there is the A1 GP this coming weekend to look forward to!

Reference:  News | Sepang Circuit

Pictures courtesy of Mr. H.C. Gui.

This is one mean Satria.

Solid rear axle, with drum brakes!

The VTEC army ready to take on Cat F

Cat G participants pit here – for Campro Drag Battle.

Poor Gen.2 stripped to bits.

Stock-standard looking Persona

The Kancils mean business too. Many of them clocked 12-13 secs for the quarter mile.

Cars lining for the first practice.

…and off they go!

It all went past us in a blur.

The sun sets, but the action goes on.

All the Hondas jockeying for positions.

Beauty shot of the grandstand.

Malaysian dragsters

Check out those massive tyres…

Visitors from Singapore also present.

Crouching camera, hidden power.

Crowd and cars together.