At this Round 2 of the speed offroad championship generated much excitement as H. Syamsuddin with navigator Michel managing to beat Rifat Sungkar and navigator Indra Prasetyo in the G3 class. Although both recorded the same total time of 15 minutes 21.5 seconds on all four special stages (SS) contested, but according to the rules the event, if it happens that there’s the same time recorded at the end of the race, then the winner is determined by the results of the first SS.

At SS1, H. Syamsuddin with the UTV Polaris worked out as the winner with a time of 3 minutes 33 seconds as compared to Rifat Sungkar with the Mitsubishi Pajero Sport who managed a time of 3 minutes 33.9 seconds.

Then in SS2 and SS3 both H. Syamsuddin and Rifat Sungkar were exchanging lead stage times. Then the challenge becomes much more difficult in SS4 because the track becomes muddy due to heavy rain the night before, with Rifat just 0.9 seconds ahead of H. Syamsuddin who just managed a time of 3 minutes 48.8 seconds. But the total time of the four SS showed that H. Syamsuddin turned out as winners of this Round.

Meanwhile, Power F Speed Offroad Team managed to ranked first for the best team category. The second position was won by GT-Radial Hasstex and third place was by JF Sulfur Autotech.

The Indonesian National Speed Offroad Championship Round 2 this time around was attended by 170 participants with more than 20 teams amongst 14 classes along the 3.7 km super extreme track.

Arijanto Notorahardjo, GM Marketing and Sales Retail of PT Gajah Tunggal Tbk, acknowledged that he was surprised and proud too that the number of participants for this Indonesian National Speed Offroad Championship Round 2 was back with record-breaking numbers as compared to Round 1 in Bukit Kemiling, Lampung last April.

“With the increasing number of participants taking part in this Indonesian National Speed Offroad Championship Round 2, making the competition more fierce, and as such also spur us to continue to conduct research to improve the performance of GT Radial Savero Komodo MT tyres, so that the offroad drivers who competed in this event can always perform and give their best performance,” said Arijanto.

GT Radial Savero Komodo has been the official tyres for the Indonesian National Speed Offroad Championship since 2011. As regards to the participation and use of the tyres in events such as the prestigious off-road speed challenge, thus proving that the GT Radial Savero Komodo tyres is the best offroad tyres most suitable in Indonesia.

By komar johari

The production switch maximizes Toyota’s utilization of the French plant and frees up capacity for the introduction of a new product in Japan

Toyota will produce about 25,000 gasoline-powered Yaris units a year for export to North America, which represents more than 10 percent of output at the French plant. The automaker has spent 10 million euros adapting the site to build the car to North American specifications.

By aseanautobizmagazine

The factory will be located in the Russian republic’s town of Elabuga where the Ford Sollers joint venture already produces vehicles.

The plant will manufacture three different versions of 1.6-liter Duratec engines starting in December 2015.

By aseanautobizmagazine

By aseanautobizmagazine

“We expect our capacity in China to become constrained by 2015 and 2016 … and are considering a plant with a capacity of 300,000 units,” Hsueh Yung-hsing told reporters, adding that western China is a candidate for the new plant.

Hsueh, who is in charge of China operations for Hyundai and its affiliate, Kia Motors Corp., said a new plant is needed for the South Korean automakers to maintain their Chinese market share of 10 percent.

He also said the construction of a third Chinese assembly plant by Kia Motors would be completed in February 2014, which will generate total manufacturing capacity of 1.8 million vehicles in China for Hyundai and Kia.

By aseanautobizmagazine

The factory will be built with joint venture partner SAIC, and production is set to start as soon as 2016, the newspaper said, without citing sources.

Volkswagen was not immediately available for comment.

With sales of 2,812,825 vehicles last year, China was VW Group’s largest market. The company has 12 car and component production plants in the country.

By aseanautobizmagazine

The concept of BMW emergency vehicles and the integration of specific equipment facilities are carried out in close cooperation between the BMW Group and specialists from the respective public authorities and institutions. Innovative BMW technologies and permanent further developments implemented in close collaboration with firemen, emergency doctors and rescue workers ensure that the steadily increasing demands on modern emergency vehicles are fulfilled by BMW in a professional manner.

Just like the basic BMW emergency vehicles themselves, the specifically integrated special equipment options conform to the highest standards in terms of functionality, quality and safety. This is guaranteed by integrated development of the application-specific components and the manufacture of these special models parallel to the respective series production models.

One particularly illustrative example of integrated development is the impact protection feature for the loading floor of BMW emergency vehicles – a convincing example of BMW developers’ consistent aspiration to achieve optimum safety.

Of course, BMW emergency vehicles also profit from the technologies and equipment options featured in the series production vehicles. The BMW EfficientDynamics strategy, for instance, which comprises intelligent energy management, consistent lightweight construction as well as targeted aerodynamics and engine efficiency measures, guarantees a reduction in fuel consumption and emissions, whilst at the same time optimising the operational readiness and effectiveness of the emergency vehicles.

BMW ConnectedDrive, which stands for the intelligent networking of the vehicles with the environment, ensures ideal working conditions for emergency service staff. It manifests itself through an intelligent interplay between online services such as BMW Assist and BMW driver assistant systems such as Head-Up Display, which displays driving-related information directly within the driver’s field of vision, thus allowing the driver to keep his/her eyes on the traffic situation at all times. Head-Up Display provides information on speed, for example, and shows navigational instructions and information provided by the Speed Limit Info feature.

Likewise, BMW Night Vision with person recognition should not remain unmentioned. An optional thermal image camera inside the double kidney grille transmits images of persons and animals located at a distance of up to 300 metres onto the Control Display. In additional, from a distance of 100 metres, the person recognition function also gives an optical warning as soon as persons move on the carriageway. As a result, the driver is informed of potential hazards significantly earlier, thus enabling him/her to react faster. All of these assistance systems help the emergency vehicle driver to remain in full control of the vehicle and the traffic situation even under extreme conditions.

A particularly significant feature for emergency vehicles is Real Time Traffic Information (RTTI), a system that facilitates high-precision data processing for real-time route-calculation, thereby ensuring that the navigation system finds the fastest way to the desired destination at all times and under all circumstances. A further function is the enhanced emergency call feature provided by the BMW Assist online service. In the event of the emergency vehicle being involved in an accident, comprehensive accident-related data is transmitted to the BMW Assist Call Centre in addition to the exact location, thus facilitating fast and targeted assistance at the scene of the accident.

The BMW Group

The BMW Group is the leading premium manufacturer of automobiles and motorcycles in the world with its BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce brands. As a global company, the BMW Group operates 28 production and assembly facilities in 13 countries and has a global sales network in more than 140 countries.

In 2012, the BMW Group sold about 1.85 million cars and more than 117,000 motorcycles worldwide. The profit before tax for the financial year 2012 was euro 7.82 billion on revenues amounting to euro 76.85 billion. At 31 December 2012, the BMW Group had a workforce of 105,876 employees. 

The success of the BMW Group has always been built on long-term thinking and responsible action. The company has therefore established ecological and social sustainability throughout the value chain, comprehensive product responsibility and a clear commitment to conserving resources as an integral part of its strategy. As a result of its efforts, the BMW Group has been ranked industry leader in the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes for the last eight years.

BY komar johari

Indian driver Gaurav Gill, who very nearly won the championship last year for MRF, will drive one Fabia Super 2000 with current Finnish Rally Champion Esapekka Lappi, driving a second entry.

“Skoda’s tradition of excellence and competent motorsport is more than 100 years old,” said Skoda head Professor Winfried Vahland. “Skoda’s entry to the APRC is an important step in terms of the brand’s growth offensive in international markets. Asia is exactly the region where our ambition is to grow substantially in the coming years. Demonstrating local people’s enthusiasm about rallying, the APRC is one of the key motorsport competitions in this region, offering us a great opportunity to present our brand to a large audience.”

Skoda Fabia’s run by the Racetorque team from Australia won the APRC manufacturers and drivers title in 2012 with Australian Chris Atkinson and MRF. Skoda has also won titles in the Super 2000 world championship, the European championship and Intercontinental Rally Challenge.

“Skoda is growing worldwide and is experiencing one of the most dynamic periods of its long history,” said Skoda Motorsport head Michal Hrabanek. “We are proud to see Skoda Motorsport contributing to this growth.”

For Esapekka Lappi, a Skoda factory driver since the start of the year, the upcoming APRC campaign presents a major opportunity. “Everyone knows the WRC is moving away from Europe so it’s good to try these different events in different countries,” said the 22-year-old. “After our first successful appearances for Skoda Motorsport, we appreciate this chance to represent the brand also in the APRC. It is a great opportunity to show our competence.”

APRC president Steven Kennedy added: “Official confirmation from Skoda that they will enter the 2013 APRC is great news and to bring the current Finnish champion Esapekka Lappi into the team adds another international element to our championship.”

The 2013 APRC begins on the International Rally of Whangarei in New Zealand from 18/19 May. It also includes events in New Caledonia, Australia, Malaysia, Japan, China and Thailand.

Last month it was announced that Toyota Racing Development and Cusco Racing would link up to run a Vitz RS in the APRC.

BY komar johari

BY aseanautobizmagazine