Mercedes C350e plug in hybrid

In the recent months BMW and Volvo launched their plug in hybrids with good response and looks like Mercedes really did jump on the bandwagon by launching their C350e plug in hybrid. This trend looks to stay since the incentive is too good to ignore. The price difference between the fully imported version versus the locally assembled version with tax incentives is well over RM100,000 (about US$25,000). This is a very significant amount and automatically makes the car look more attractive price-wise.

No doubt that Mercedes went all out with this model being much more powerful and have more torque than its closest rival, the BMW 330e plug in hybrid. Nevertheless the launch time for both BMW and Mercedes was barely 10 days apart. From the response BMW received for the X5 it is quite likely that the Mercedes C350e will be good. the car is also attractively packaged with extra items such as 19" wheels and airmatic suspension which both come as standard items.

It will be interesting to see which car company will follow suit. Companies such as Lexus, Infiniti and Ford have access to local assembly plants and this could mean that if BMW and Mercedes see good success from their hybrid sales the other car brands are likely to follow.

Those in the market for a new Mercedes C300 will very likely be tempted to switch to the C350e considering that its fuel economy is far better than the C300 and the 600Nm torque is incredible for a car this size. 

new Ford GT

Ford introduced their latest super car that can hang with the best of that is made in Europe. The Ford GT is the reincarnation of the legendary Ford GT40. The new model is made using all the latest materials and technology any car factory can get their hands on. The car looks spectacular and is worthy of its place next to any Ferrari or Lamborghini. The craziest thing is that Ford decided to make only 500 cars and they will hand pick who will be the lucky buyers for this car!

You would expect Ferrari or Lamborghini doing this with special limited production models and likewise for Porsche but Ford???!! the last model GT had a production run of over 4000 cars and it has its place as a cult car. I am not sure so that producing only 500 units and hand picking the buyers will be a smart thing to do. It does create a sense of exclusivity and keeps that car special however Ford can easily make 2000 units and keep it exclusive. They would also be able to amortise the cost of development and keep more buyers happy. ford can't keep the owners from profiteering from the sale of the car but at least more people would have a chance to own it.

The new GT looks very impressive with its advanced aerodynamics and also using a V6 twin turbo engine. The aim is to improve efficiency in every department and give the car a chance to keep up or beat the best from Europe. The previous model was extremely thirsty and would require regular trips to the gas station compared to European competitors. Ford has already raced this model in Le Mans and is really putting to good use all the development they have done on this car.

Ford certainly have the capacity to build super cars but in this instance the GT is like a demonstration of their capability rather than a profit making exercise. This is the same for Lexus with the LF-A. Lexus didn't make money on the LF-A but wanted to do it to show the world that they are capable of making super cars.

Perhaps after the final unit has rolled off the production line and the demand for the GT is good, Ford may consider extending the production to make an extra few hundred units.

F1 drivers of the current era

There have been many debates about who is the best F1 driver thus far and it is a difficult one to judge because different drivers faced different challenges during their career and the cars they drove were very different. Typical Brits will say it is Lewis Hamilton because of his natural ability to drive the heck out of the car at any given day while Germans will argue that Michael Schumacher is the undisputed best of all with the most number of wins, most Championship titles and most Pole Positions, then the Brazilians will say it is Ayrton Senna. None of these top names can be accurately compared with one another since the cars and technology were different. They all possessed natural talent and incredible tenacity to win.

Now comes a new breed of F1 drivers who will soon replace seasoned drivers like Hamilton. The two names that come to mind are Max Verstappen and Carlos Sainz. These two are sons of former race car drivers with Max Verstappen being the son of Vos Verstappen who was the team mate of Michael Schumacher and Carlos Sainz is the son of the multiple world champion rally driver Carlos Sainz. Racing is in the DNA of these two young drivers and soon another son of a legend will join them, Mick Schumacher, son of Michael Schumacher.

The pressure and expectation on the shoulders of these young drivers is immense having fathers who succeeded in their racing career leaving a legacy behind for their sons. It is not uncommon for sons of previous champions to join the same fraternity, people like Jacque Villeneuve and Damon Hill were sons of champions. Both managed to live up to their father's legacy and won on their own capacity.

There is no shortage of talent in F1 but standing out in the crowd is the hard part. Driving with a top team makes things that much easier in terms of winning but the true talent is on display when the driver can win in a second rate car. Driver's like Sebastian Vettel did so in a Torro Rosso and so did Fernando Alonso. Driver's like Lewis Hamilton had a good car in all of his career so far and that helped tremendously with his wins tally however if he was stuck in a second rate team with a mediocre car, can he win? Of course one would argue if the conditions were right and he had the opportunity he could definitely win.

The current season's championship race is not very interesting because it appears that Mercedes is having an internal battle between the two drivers but once the regulations change again in 2017 there might be a shake up and some secondary teams may be able to pull something over the big teams. this was what happened with Brawn GP team and got lucky with an aerodynamic component design that allowed them to have a massive advantage.

more plug-in hybrids coming to Malaysia

It appears that Volvo's entry with the XC90 plug-in hybrid has really opened up the doors for other car makers to follow. BMW being the one that is hot on this topic with the introduction of the X5 plug-in hybrid and the soon to be launched 3 series plug-in hybrid. The key point about jumping on this bandwagon is to enjoy the tax incentives provided by the Malaysian Government. Previously when the Govt closed the incentive for imported hybrid cars the sales of hybrid cars dried up literally over night. The Govt changed its rules that now requires car makers to locally assemble the hybrids to qualify for the tax incentive.

The tax incentive is a big deal as it can tremendously reduce the price of the car for consumer. Like with BMW's X5 plug-in hybrid the price is easily 30% cheaper than if it was fully imported. The new 3 series plug-in hybrid is expected to be priced around US$60,000 which is considerably cheap compared to fully imported version that would very likely cost US$20k more. what this means is that ownership of the car becomes more attractive to the consumer and will allow them to undercut Mercedes and Audi of the comparable model.

Malaysian car buyers are price sensitive and it is very obvious with the impressive sales of the X5 hybrid thus far. Saving 30% on the car meant that the car is within range for more buyers. I now wonder which other car company will follow this trend. If many car makers also embark on this type of tax incentive exploitation it won't be long before the Malaysian Govt will stop providing such incentives since it will erode away their tax revenue from the auto industry.

Since many car makers already have their own plug-in hybrids it is likely that many will be seriously studying this tax incentive however setting up an assembly facility for one or two models may not be feasible but tagging on with an existing production facility will make sense.

Malaysia has one of the highest taxes imposed on cars and reducing the amount of tax paid per car will make a massive difference to the consumer. BMW and Volvo are definitely bold to take this step and it is paying off well for them. It is good to see creative thinking of these car companies and I hope that more car makers will follow the trend.

revival of old brands

Old brands such as TVR and Bristol are making a come back and hopefully it is one that will see them stay afloat for more than just a decade or so. In recent news investors have revived TVR and Bristol brand. Both are known for specialist design sports cars with character.

TVR was previously owned by a Russian whizkid who invested heavily in the company in the attempt to turn it around but the revival was short lived. TVR had the potential to grow but it didn't have the right model mix. TVR being a sports car manufacturer the timing was also wrong. At a time where sports cars business was not exactly thriving TVR was focusing too much on sports cars. TVR could very well make a sports saloon which would appeal to more people. Making only sports cars the appeal was limited to those looking to buy a sports car. If TVR offered a M5 rival or even a smaller M3 rival it could possible stay afloat since it would appeal to a much wider customer base.

Bristol is no different since it focused only on building sports cars. The similarity of both brands and they way the did business really led to their demise.

These two car brands do have their following and hopefully they are able to turn a profit with careful product planning and appealing to a wider customer group. They can still be specialist in the sports car field but having additional models will not hurt. Just like how Porsche turned from a sports car maker into a major luxury brand is enough proof to justify this. Porsche makes more money now than ever before and the profits come from the non sports car models. Porsche still keeps true to its sports car heritage by making the cars sporty to drive and driver focused, this can also be done for TVR and Bristol.

It will be interesting to see how TVR and Bristol can turn around. It will take time for them to develop new models and take some risk on non sports car models. It would take at least 3-5 years to see any significant results.

Car ownership preference changes with age

Our taste in things change as we grow and this is no different for cars. During the early years of having a driver's license one would be the hot blooded racer wannabe who would yearn for the most bang for your buck car you can get your hands on. This would likely be something that was fast and raw. At that age you wouldn't be too bothered about comfort, the aim was to go fast.

Then came the next phase of life when you can afford better cars and would upgrade from a Japanese turbo charged car to possibly a European sports saloon. After this you are married the next car would likely be a SUV and possibly a MPV to lug around the more than necessary baby strollers and etc.

Once that is done the matured racer is back with a sporty German saloon or a uprated SUV with some serious muscle. For those who mellowed tremendously during the family era would probably end up with a Lexus or some luxobarge that will be super comfortable but boring as hell to drive.

Looking back from the time you were in your teens and to the time you hit your 50s, the change in taste of cars vary tremendously. During the teenage years one wouldn't be bothered with a car like a Bentley not would he want one as it carries a much more matured image while a man in his 50s would love the Bentley and would cringe at the thought of driving a Subaru WRX.

The evolution of one's taste in cars is very interesting as each phase in life has a big influence on how one thinks about the car he drives. Many would learn the lessons associated with ownership of different types of cars and also how much money one would need to spend to keep up with their interest in cars.

Some cars just cannot shake their image of being say a boy racer car or a gentleman's car. Typically you can say that cars like a Subaru WRX is a boy racer car while a Bentley continental or an Aston Martin is a gentleman's car.