Honda is generally associated as a company that produces cars and motorcycles. In a departure to traditional wheeled vehicles, Honda also pursuit in researching more radical mobility technology. The result is ASIMO, Honda’s Advanced Mobility Technology.

The concept behind Honda’s robot R&D was to create a viable mobility technology that allows robot to live with and help human kind. With two-legged walking capability, the robot would be free from purpose built roads and be able to maneuver with human. This includes circumventing objects, going up and down stairs, and walking on uneven roads. The ultimate objective is, of course, to allow the robot to live in a human home and not confined to purpose built environments.

Contrary to popular misconception, ASIMO is not a reference to popular science fiction writer and the inventor of the Three Laws of Robotics, Issac Asimov, but an acronym for “Advanced Step in Innovative Mobility”

the whole lineup, from experimental models to the new ASIMO

The first version of ASIMO was unveiled in 2000 following a slew of experimental models developed by Honda started from the 1986. The first seven models (E0 to E6) were basically just walking legs, three other humanoid robots with upper limbs were developed from 1993 to 1997 before ASIMO was launched. Almost a quarter century of dedicated development.

The current version of ASIMO, first unveiled in 2005, has seen numerous improvement over the previous version. The robot can walk at a leisure speed of 2.7 km/hour, and for the first time, run at 6 km/hour. ASIMO can also do what most other things human is capable of, this includes recognizing people’s face and interact with them via its head-mounted camera, maneuver around obstructions, as well as dance in tune with music.

By being programmed and operated wirelessly, ASIMO can perform a number of tasks including fetching coffee, walking hand-in-hand with a human, and even conducting a symphony ochestra.

ASIMO runs on Lithium Ion battery with a continuous operating time of 40 minutes to 1 hour. The robot will automatically identify and walk to the closest charging station when its remaining battery level falls below a certain level. This ensures that there isn’t any human intervention needed to recharge the robot.

Honda’s commitment to continue development of ASIMO and its advanced mobility technology will only mean that the robot will one day take an active role in fulfilling serious functions in society. It may serve as another set of eyes, ears, hands, and legs for all kinds of people in need.

Hopefully soon enough, we will all have an ASIMO or equivalent serving as the helper at home instead of having to hire foreign maids like we do now.

For more information, you can visit Honda Advanced Technology

Ford Focus was the car that replaced the venerable Ford Escort (or Ford Laser in this region) about 10 years ago. The car I got was the newly face lifted 2nd generation Focus, the 2.0 Sports hatch.

At first glance, I was quite impressed with the built of the car. The doors felt solid, workmanship on the exterior pretty much flawless, and the interior too was rather refined.

After adjusting the seats (manually) and steering wheel to make myself comfortable, I noticed that the visibility of the car was very good. Very big windshield and the small A pillars gives you a very clear picture of what’s happening in front, while the bigger than usual side mirrors offer a clear rear view. The smallish center rear view mirror though, is no different from most other cars.

Meter cluster is mounted right in front of the wheel with the tachometer (red line at 6500 rpm) and speedometer sandwiching a central display and two smaller meters on top (temperature and fuel indicator).

The display is bright and pretty easy to read in both day and nighttime driving conditions, with the central display showing current fuel consumption, number of kilometers left for available fuel, outside temperature, current gear (with sequential shift), trip meter, and a few other information with the manipulation of a little control stick.

The car also comes with a 6 speed CD changer (with mp3 function) and 6 speakers that performs pretty decent for an OEM unit. There is also a steering column mounted audio control for changing radio channels, volume, track, etc.

Air conditioning performance is one of those things that is of supreme importance in this country. While this fully imported model still comes with heater, the air conditioning did not disappoint. Driver and passenger gets to control their own temperature zone, and there are also two air vents for the rear passengers.

The ride of this car was actually pretty smooth and comfortable with a very good level of noise insulation. However, the car really shines when you attack the corners with heavier foot. While the 143hp engine with it’s 4 speed auto transmission isn’t exactly in the sports car’s league, it is pretty sufficient for city driving and those occasional spirited moments.

The price? RM 116k or so for both the sedan (with leather seats) and sports hatch model.

The 2008 white Proton Saga BLM

While the first generation saga came with a choice of 1.3 or 1.5 liter engine (the later Iswara face lift model only had 1.3), the BLM come with only one engine choice. The 1.3 liter Campro I4 that churns out a respectable 94 bhp at 6000 rpm. For a car that weigh just over 1 tonne (about 100kg heavier than it’s predecessor), this is a pretty reasonable power to weight ratio for city and highway driving with an occasional trip to Genting.

The new car is also bigger and better than the previous version. More interior space as well as new and improved design in every aspects. It is actually quite surprising that the car is based on the same platform with Proton Savvy.

2008 Proton Saga BLM rear view

Proton Saga comes either with Automatic or Manual transmission. Pricing is from RM31,500 to RM39,800 and they are currently selling like hot cakes. Proton is planning to sell about 50,000 to 60,000 Sagas per year. In fact, together with Proton Persona, the car maker has improved it’s financial stage tremendously, announcing a net income in the three months ended March 31 at 236.4 million ringgit.

2008 Dodge Challenger, the classic muscle car

This baby churns out 425 bhp with a massive 420 lbs/ft torque off the 6.1-liter HEMI V8. A 5 speed AutoStick automatic transmission is mated with this engine. A set of 20″ wheels complete the package. Although the car weighs a hefty 4140 lbs, it is still able to do 0-100km/h in less than 6 seconds and a 1/4 mile time below 14 seconds. We shall wait for the real world results before the end of this year.

Other than the in-your-face exterior that is both very effective and aesthetically pleasing, the race inspired interior is equally as good. The simple black and blue lume color scheme is a stark contrast with the loud orange exterior, but somehow jives very well.

luxurious and classy interior

Of course, for the US $40k you pay, the Challenger SRT8 does come with other bells and whistles like GPS, keyless entry and hands-free system. Then again, for a car this impractical with the current fuel price, who cares? All we want is to have some tire-burning fun. I’m sure there aren’t many people from the 6400 cars booked this year who’ll use it as a daily driver.

Kia Soul concept in the Autoshow

The design of Soul is very distinctive and quite unlike any other compact SUVs, the chief designer at Kia Motors Europe Gregory Guillaume was quoted saying “The all-new Kia production car will be a car that defies classification and encourages customers to build an emotional bond with their new purchase by providing a creative platform that they can customise to match their car to their own character. It will appeal especially to the young-at-heart – whatever their age”.

Kia Soul on the road

A 2.0 liter 4 cylinder engine mated with a 5-speed automatic transmission would be driving the Soul. Although an SUV, this car is most likely to get only front wheel drive, there is no 4 wheel drive version as yet. You can call this a car-type SUV rather than something you would want to take off road.

To give you an idea on the power from this car, the current 2.0 liter engine used in Kia Spectra produces 138 bhp. Pretty tame for an SUV, hopefully they boost up the power output a little since the Spectra is certainly a lighter car.

This car is definitely going along the line of Mini Cooper and VW Beetle 2.0, with attractive styler that will likely to capture the younger crowd. Pricing should be around US $16-18k when it is launched this summer.

In the heart of this compact 2-door 4-wheel drive sports sedan is a heavily tuned 2.0 liter TDI diesel engine that churns out 221 bhp with a massive 332 lb/ft torque that you would expect from a diesel. A six speed gearbox completes the package. The car is capable of 0-100km in about 6.6 seconds.

Audi A3 Clubsports quattro

The car was built specifically for an annual VW and Audi get together in Austria, lets see if Audi will bring this baby to the market. With that kind of performance and look it should be able to sell very well alongside popular offerings such as the VW GTi

The web magazine also holds the Truckin Ride of the Month competition too, you just need to submit the pictures of your outstanding truck or SUVs via the website to stand a chance to win a free truckinweb t-shirt. For this month, the last day of submission is 17:00 p.m. PST 6/22/2007, and the voting process starts from 17:30 p.m. PST 6/22/2007 till 17:00 p.m. PST 6/30/2007. The top three highest voted trucks will win the t-shirt. You can submit up to 4 pictures, pretty simple process.

Other features of the site includes a price checker for new trucks in US, just select the make and model from drop down menu, and key in the zip code of the location you wish to purchase the truck and viola, instant price list. A pretty nifty information to have before heading to your local dealer.

There is also a forum you could ask questions should you need to find otherwise hard to find information. However, above all, the most interesting feature of the website must be the Multimedia section. There you can download wallpapers of your favorite ride, and there are plenty of videos too, though titled truck videos, most of them are bikini contests of girls with trucks, check it out!

To complete the portal, a trucking blog is built in too.

The sales of Toyota vehicles already surpassed DiamlerChrysler last year and now stands roughly at 15%, increased from about 10% from five years ago, while Ford is still struggling after it’s restructuring and predicted that their market share will stabilize at around 14-15% within 2 years.

This is with regards to the American market, Toyota is a very close second to GM globally. Even here in Malaysia, Toyota and Perodua (basically re branded Toyota cars) chalks up about 50% of the local market.

There seems to be no signs of Toyota going stopping their momentum.

source: cnn money

This concept car has a panoramic roof, with the front wind shield, roof, and rear screen forming a single unit that provides almost 180 degree of unobstructive view. Not entirely sure how one can get away from the sun though. This Mustang also comes with the scissor doors made famous by Lamborghini.

the next American stallion?

Although this pony comes in at a hefty 1,500 KG, it does have an engine capable of 500 hp with huge amount of torque (480 lb/ft). Those fat 20″ wheels should come in handy to distribute the power onto the tar.

Will this concept make it to the road? We shall see, the major hindrance might be the unique roof though. A big piece of curved glass is expensive to produce and not easy to take care.

Specs at a glance:
Engine: front mounted, rear wheel drive,
estimated 500 hp, 480 lb-ft of torque
4.6L, 24-valve SOHC V8 Supercharged
Curb Weight: 3,307 lbs (1,500 kg)
Wheels (front/rear): 275 40 ZR20 / 315 35 ZR20

sources:
automobile.com
abc news

a jeep splashing through the mud

There are two participants for every car (4×4 jeep). Whenever the vehicle gets stuck, which happens frequently, the co-driver will have to go down and get the towing cable tied to the nearby tree to pull the truck out of the mud. Not exactly an easy task.

co-driver getting busy

I did not stay long at the area as it was starting to rain, but was able to snap a few photos. Interesting stuff, definitely a lot more work than normal racing.

The bernama article on this event.