The AutoIndustrie Blog

We have moved

2011-10-03T19:57:00.000-07:00

Redirecting you to our new home. Click here if you are not redirected in 5-seconds.Dear readers, thank you for your support for since the inception of this blog. We have revamped our design, and moved to a dedicated host, with a much better layout. We have considered many of your feedback from our last reader's survey. Thank you for taking time to share with us your opinions.Our new site is now

New 2012 Isuzu D-Max Revealed

2011-09-29T17:57:00.000-07:00

We have posted on spyshots of the 2012 Isuzu D-Max earlier. Well the wait is over. Yesterday, Isuzu held a media preview of the new D-Max in Thailand. Interior is similar to its sister car Chevrolet Colorado More information can be found here.

Chevrolet Colorado - Coming Next Month

2011-09-27T08:16:00.000-07:00

GM Thailand announced that its Rayong plant in Thailand is getting ready to start producing the new generation Colorado pickup, which will roll-off the production line sometime next month. Not only is the Colorado built in GM Thailand's Rayong plant, but the 4-cylinder Duramax diesel engine is also built in the same plant. The Duramax engines will come in both 2.5-liter and 2.8-liter capacity,

Toyota Enters Japanese Kei Car Market With Pixis

2011-09-26T18:52:00.000-07:00

Daihatsu is a minicar specialist under the umbrella of the greater Toyota Motor Co. empire. In the past, the arrangement was for Daihatsu to manage the Japanese domestic market "kei" minicar segment while leveraging on Toyota's resources. Daihatsu can tap onto Toyota's immense resources and the kei car segment will be Daihatsu's turf and Toyota would stay away, so to speak. In return, Daihatsu

City Facelift - Differences with the outgoing City

2011-09-26T02:30:00.000-07:00

A follow up to our earlier post regarding the Honda City face lift, or minor model change in Honda lingo. We expect the facelifted City to make its debut in Malaysia before 2011 closes. Below is a compilation of shots showing the main differences between the current City and facelifted City. Needless to say, the differences are very minor. The facelifted model is at the top, while the current

McLaren Automotive announces Asia Pacific business plan

2011-09-23T01:22:00.000-07:00

On the race weekend of the 2011 Singtel Singapore Grand Prix, Ron Dennis, Executive Chairman of McLaren Automotive and McLaren Group hosted a press conference and announced the formation of McLaren Automotive Asia Pte Ltd, the company's wholly-owned subsidiary and Asia Pacific regional office based in Singapore. McLaren Automotive Asia Pte Ltd will be responsible for all of McLaren Automotive’s

Nissan and Mitsubishi extends collaboration in Japan

2011-09-22T09:20:00.000-07:00

Nissan and Mitsubishi has announced their mutual agreement to expand the scope of their existing OEM supply agreements for the Japanese market to include the Nissan Fuga and Mitsubishi MINICAB-MiEV mini commercial van. Under this agreement, Nissan will start supplying Mitsubishi with its Fuga sedan beginning summer 2012 (mid-2012), while Mitsubishi will in return, supply Nissan with its

2012 Honda CR-V Design Patent Leak

2011-09-21T18:58:00.000-07:00

We have seen some relatively clear shots of the 2012 CR-V with minimal disguise. Following that exposure (which originated from China), the latest set of undisguised photos of the 2012 Honda CR-V is from a leaked patent design registration document. Image credits to Autoblog Spain. Is that what I think it is? LED Daytime Running Lights? For interior shots of the 2012 Honda CR-V, read our

Myvi 1.5 to impact sales of Saga and Persona. Really?

2011-09-19T08:50:00.000-07:00

So Perodua has launched the new Myvi, followed by the Myvi 1.5 about three months later. Folks in the financial world have been talking about how the new Myvi would affect sales of the Saga and Persona. Industry analysts at financial research houses have been talking of the same drivel over and over again even before the Myvi Mk2 was launched. In a latest report from The Star Business, Mixed

2013 Toyota Vios Replacement

2011-09-14T18:31:00.000-07:00

The current Toyota Vios is the sedan equivalent of the previous generation Yaris (called Vitz in Japan). The car is sold in USA, Canada, Australia as the Yaris sedan, in Japan as the Belta, while the Vios nameplate is used in Asian markets including ASEAN trade bloc countries (Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore, Vietnam, Philippines), as well as China and Taiwan. North American market Yaris sedan,

Kia Optima Hybrid Sets New Guinness World Record

2011-09-13T07:57:00.000-07:00

The target set by Guinness World Records is 52.27 mpg (22.22 km per liter). The Kia Optima Hybrid achieved 64.55 mpg (27.44 km per liter), across 14 US states, travelling a distance of 7,899 miles (12,712 km) in 14 days. The record breaking attempt by Kia Motors Corporation was adjudicated by officials from Guiness World Records, and in accordance to Guiness World Record regulations, the attempt

Driving a Humvee in Iraq

2011-09-12T07:56:00.000-07:00

Remember sometime back, we posted a story on security and self defence. In that story, we also made a passing statement on offensive driving and why you should not stop your vehicle anywhere or for anyone, and why presidential motorcades have to keep moving at a relatively fast pace. Well, this US Army Humvee in Iraq is taking that practice to a rather extreme end. Apparently, it is safety

Honda City Facelift - Q4 2011

2011-09-08T07:48:00.000-07:00

The Honda City is Honda's main sales volume driver for many developing markets, especially those within the ASEAN trade bloc, where it spars with the Toyota Vios. In India, the City is sold as a premium car. Believe it or not, chauffeur driven Honda City is a rather common sight. Thus explains the reclining rear seats feature. The City was first launched here in December 2008, meaning that is due

Reader's Survey

2011-09-05T06:43:00.000-07:00

<p>&amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Loading...&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;gt;</p>

2012 Asian Market Camry - full pictures

2011-08-25T21:07:00.000-07:00

An anonymous reader sent us a tip that undisguised pictures of the 2012 Asian market Camry have been released on the net, first picked up by the folks at AutoBlog. This will be version that us in ASEAN trade bloc markets, including Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia will be receiving. Some details may differ though. All of the pics below refer to the flaghip 3.5 V6 version, which is not likely to

Hyundai Does A Final Destination With Veloster

2011-08-22T07:11:00.000-07:00

Final Destination 5 is currently showing in cinemas. Not sure if it was coincidental or intentionally timed, but the ad below sure reminds us of a Final Destination like theme. The ad was commissioned to a Dutch creative agency Fitzroy. However ad was deemed too controversial (death theme) for mainstream Dutch television and did not make the final cut. Fortunately however, the good folks at

Rainbird Garage

2011-08-16T01:43:00.000-07:00

I have always been a fan of classics. And I’ve been trying hard to contain my itch to get a W201 190E. Not that it’s going to be a reality soon, given that I have more pressing financial bills to settle, but it doesn’t hurt pouring over the classifieds. And then I came across Rainbird Garage, a new upstart based in Bandar Puteri, Port Klang Selangor. To my knowledge, it is the only classic car

2012 Honda CRV Spyshots Undisguised

2011-08-13T07:30:00.000-07:00

Finally, some shots of the 2012 CR-V, minus the disguise materials have surfaced on the net. We have posted quite a bit on the 2012 CR-V, including its infamous validation prototype crash into a Toyota Highlander in California. Images via Sohu Auto. Is that LED daytime running lights? In an earlier post, we have given our comments regarding the possible reasons behind the CR-V's rear design

Audi Urban Concept Spyshots - City e-tron

2011-08-11T22:58:00.000-07:00

By now, you should've seen sketches of Audi's Urban Concept, ahead of its unveiling at September's Frankfurt Motor Show. Forget about the sketches for now. Below are spyshots of the actual Urban Concept vehicle. Seems that some kind of video shooting was going on. Images via WorldCarFans. The Urban Concept reminds me of this. Below are the sketches released by Audi. Update : This is the video

Porsche Boxster Taxi in Thailand

2011-08-10T07:59:00.000-07:00

Saw the viral video of a Porsche Boxster taxi in Thailand already? Don't know what we are on about? Read on. Samsung is introducing its Galaxy S II smartphone in Thailand. And it didn't want to do a conventional product launch. After all, if you are going against someone like Apple, you can't just be good or good enough. You have to be awesome. So the advertising folks engaged by Samsung (I don't

2012 Isuzu D-Max Leaked Patent Sketch

2011-08-09T22:31:00.000-07:00

The Isuzu D-Max is one of the best selling trucks in Thailand, where it vies for the sales crown title with arch-rival Toyota Hilux. The D-Max was first unveiled in Thailand, back in 2002. Now in its 9th year, the D-Max is already at the last legs of its model life, as if the numerous limited edition / special edition / marketing campaign models are not obvious enough. A new model, codenamed RT-

America's Best Car TV Commercials of 2011

2011-08-09T06:29:00.000-07:00

What's the best car commercial of 2011? This year's 63rd Primetime Emmy Awards will take place on September 2011. The award honors excellence in American television primetime programming. One of the awards category is Commercials. TV commercials that from June 1, 2010 - May 31, 2011 on American TVs are eligible. This year, three car commercials have been nominated for entry. It's quite a high

2012 North American Market Camry Undisguised

2011-08-08T07:40:00.000-07:00

Forget about the teaser images. This is the 2012 model year North American market Camry, and for the first time, seen with its normally heavy camo materials stripped. The series of shots were obtained by professional crew of automotive spyshot photographers KGP Photography. The minimal camo material suggests that the vehicle was in the middle of a TV commercial shooting. Note that the model shown

Obstacle Course TV commercials

2011-08-05T07:24:00.000-07:00

The obstacle course themed TV commercial is getting quite popular of late, not just amongst performance oriented cars. Even Mitsubishi is having a go at it now, with its Outlander GT SUV. Watch the TVC below. Noticed how much understeer that Outlander was pushing? The commercial is done by Brazilian creative agency Africa. As in the company's name is Africa. The most recent obstacle course

2012 Honda CR-V prototype involved In accident with a Toyota

2011-07-28T06:46:00.000-07:00

We have talked quite a bit about the 2012 CR-V. In the first post, we explained that Honda wasn't copying anyone in the CR-V's design, but the logical reasons behind the CR-V's similarlity with the silhouette of a Volvo XC60. Subsequent post was about whether Honda is debuting a 7-seater version of the CR-V. A few days after that, we learned that the heavily camouflaged validation prototype CR-V