Japanese Car News

[Magnum]

This news came up about 2 weeks ago, I dont know if you guys know about...

THE PAJERO IS DEAD, SAYS MITSUBISHI CEO

MITSUBISHI CEO Osamu Masuko has told US automotive trade publication, Automotive News, that the Pajero, as we know it, is a dead duck. There had been rumours the Pajero, known as the Montero in the US and on sale there until 2006, would make a comeback, but no. And Masuko has pointed the finger at fuel consumption as the reason for knocking the full-size fourby on the head.

https://practicalmotoring.com.au/car-news/the-pajero-is-dead-says-mitsubishi-ceo/

[hrm]

What's wrong with Mitsubishi? They are killing their best built machines.

[Magnum]

Toyota offers "Gi Black Tailored" special edition black-toned Esquire

"Toyota has created the special "Gi Black Tailored" edition for the Esquire and it went on sale January 6.

The Black Tailored is based on the Gi but has black tones for the interior and exterior. It has dark plating for the front grille and front fog-lamp bezel and smoke plating for parts of the hood and the rear garnish, giving it a more luxurious exterior.

The interior also has luxury touches like black coloring for the roof and pillar garnish, pink and gold accents for the passenger side ornaments and door trim ornaments, and special synthetic leather seats.

The appeal of the new model is boosted by the standard feature LED front fog-lamps and automatic rear air-conditioning for all cars. There are also five colors available for the exterior including Ice Titanium Micah Metallic.

The price is 2,569,415 to 3,295,963 yen."

Edited January 7, 2016 by Magnum

[trinity]

What's wrong with Mitsubishi? They are killing their best built machines.

Puzzles me too.. yesterday read an article which said that Lancer & Evo is no more. And last 1600 (limited edition) of US Spec Evos are being rolled out of the factory as of now. The cars are being numbered and offered only in Manual transmission.

http://www.mitsubishicars.com/lancer-evolution

Hope this new EV path they are taking will deliver something better.. (Highly unlikely though)

Edited January 8, 2016 by trinity

[iRage]

Well the demise of the Pajero has been around for some time. Mitsubishi showed a concept of a SUV that to be honest was a monstrosity at the 2013 Tokyo MS; however they were quite careful about not saying it was the next gen Pajero (I believe they referred it to a Pajero like performance inspired SUV). However, this whole US-focus thing is news to me....which is rather strange as the word was they would be pulling out pure Mitsubishi models out of the US (I think it was there worst performing market); so now they are basing their young engineers there ? I guess Mitsubishi using a Nissan Fuga, and President for its flagship sedans should have been early warnings of something bad going on in there...

Edited January 8, 2016 by iRage

[trinity]

Well the demise of the Pajero has been around for some time. Mitsubishi showed a concept of a SUV that to be honest was a monstrosity at the 2013 Tokyo MS; however they were quite careful about not saying it was the next gen Pajero (I believe they referred it to a Pajero like performance inspired SUV). However, this whole US-focus thing is news to me....which is rather strange as the word was they would be pulling out pure Mitsubishi models out of the US (I think it was there worst performing market); so now they are basing their young engineers there ? I guess Mitsubishi using a Nissan Fuga, and President for its flagship sedans should have been early warnings of something bad going on in there...

Yes it was, and after suzuki pulling out it was common belief that most challenged auto manufacturer in US is Mitsubishi. Anyway i believe their newer models such as outlander is doing well in US. Hope something good comes out of their whole new approach. I really really hate to see a day Mitsubishi stop manufacturing cars.

Edited January 8, 2016 by trinity

[terrabytetango]

They don't..but they are reminiscent of wheels like old school DUNLOPs, etc..

Wait till the Modellista parts come for the JDM models.

[iRage]

Wait till the Modellista parts come for the JDM models.

I never liked the modellista offerings...just seems too blingy and modern....

[sathyajithj99]

TRD kit for the next gen Prius.....don't care for the whole car but loving the almost 80s inspired wheels...

[img=http://amd.c.yimg.jp/amd/20160107-10237028-carview-000-1-view.jpg]

It's like having 80's alloys on a futuristic car.

[Magnum]

It's like having 80's alloys on a futuristic car.

Exactly!

[Kavvz]

Well the demise of the Pajero has been around for some time. Mitsubishi showed a concept of a SUV that to be honest was a monstrosity at the 2013 Tokyo MS; however they were quite careful about not saying it was the next gen Pajero (I believe they referred it to a Pajero like performance inspired SUV). However, this whole US-focus thing is news to me....which is rather strange as the word was they would be pulling out pure Mitsubishi models out of the US (I think it was there worst performing market); so now they are basing their young engineers there ? I guess Mitsubishi using a Nissan Fuga, and President for its flagship sedans should have been early warnings of something bad going on in there...

Ugh! All this focus on fat coffee drinkers is disgusting. Especially since their idea of a "Pajero like vehicle' is the Jeep Cherokee or the Jeep Grand Cherokee. Thank goodness for the folks at Toyota and Lexus, hopefully they don't shift gears and start flapping off to America's car industry as well.

[Schiffer]

TRD kit for the next gen Prius.....don't care for the whole car but loving the almost 80s inspired wheels...

Chikeyyaa...

you know that some new toyota models slowly starts to grow on you. Like the Axio for example. THIS NEVER WILL.. It is over styled like a Vezel

and Classic Wheels on the kakka design actually makes it worse,,

[terrabytetango]

Ugh! All this focus on fat coffee drinkers is disgusting. Especially since their idea of a "Pajero like vehicle' is the Jeep Cherokee or the Jeep Grand Cherokee. Thank goodness for the folks at Toyota and Lexus, hopefully they don't shift gears and start flapping off to America's car industry as well.

It's a necessary evil. Porsche are still alive today thanks to their SUV. Lots of car manufacturers, even luxury brands, have realised this. It's only natural Mitsubishi would want a piece of that pie as well. When I lived there, every old Pajero I saw was a rebadged Dodge Raider, and I probably saw less than 10 Monteros in and around the Southern states.

[Kavvz]

It's a necessary evil. Porsche are still alive today thanks to their SUV. Lots of car manufacturers, even luxury brands, have realised this. It's only natural Mitsubishi would want a piece of that pie as well. When I lived there, every old Pajero I saw was a rebadged Dodge Raider, and I probably saw less than 10 Monteros in and around the Southern states.

True about Porsche. The Cayenne is what turned the company around and the Macan actually looks pretty neat. I guess I'm just sad to see the Montero / Pajero get phased out. Its such an icon...

[iRage]

Ugh! All this focus on fat coffee drinkers is disgusting. Especially since their idea of a "Pajero like vehicle' is the Jeep Cherokee or the Jeep Grand Cherokee. Thank goodness for the folks at Toyota and Lexus, hopefully they don't shift gears and start flapping off to America's car industry as well.

The US market is a crucial huge market for every car manufacturer. (for better or for worst) ....it is just that I don't think it is sensible to just focus on that market and design everything based on that because most of the factors that would drive designs for the US market would not necessarily be applicable for the rest of the world.

As for Toyota....well...considering how many Prados and LCs they sell per year to places like the UN; I would say they wouldn't care a rat's @#$ about if their SUVs sell in the "developed" world...

[iRage]

Toyota's "Back to the future" inspired Tacoma and Mirai for the Detroit MS...

[Magnum]

"Toyota Modellista International consequently released various additional customized parts with the addition of new grade and minor updates given to the Toyota Voxy.

The concept of the customized parts is "Advanced and Majestic." With the Modellista Aero Kit (ver. 2), its front mask now has a sportier facade. As for its interior, it has been added with fascinating customized parts such as the LED shift knob that displays its shift position by color on the upper part of the shift knob, enhancing its operability.

The price of the Modellista Aero Kit (ver. 2) is 120,960 yen, while the price of the standard version is 110,160 yen. The LED shift knob costs 39,960 yen."

[Schiffer]

Toyota's "Back to the future" inspired Tacoma and Mirai for the Detroit MS...

Now That

Edited January 10, 2016 by Schiffer

[Magnum]

Autobacs M'z Speed Hustler

[iRage]

The next gen Escudo (which is the size of a Vezel) gets a Maruti-Suzuki counterpart called the Vitara-Brezza...

[Gummybr]

Renault has unveiled the Alpine supposedly with a 1.8l Petrol Turbo engine with 250bhp that goes upto 300bhp. This for me would be the ideal platform for the new Z car. A lighter performance oriented car.

http://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/new-cars/alpine-vision-concept-unveiled?utm_medium=EMAIL&utm_campaign=Enews%20bulletins&utm_content=ACAR%20Enews%20Bulletin%20working%20Extra%20story%20subs%20%2816.02.2016%29%3A%3Aheadarticle1&utm_source=20160216

[Magnum]

Honda previews all-new Vezel RS on official website

"The soon-to-be-released RS will offer a new type of driving enjoyment.

Its low and wide exterior features a sporty and powerful design with an exclusive front grille, lower garnish painted in crystal black, and 18-inch aluminum wheels. The interior offers a sophisticated presence with suede covering on the seats, instrument panel, and center armrest.

Honda has posted images of both its cabin and exterior on their website and are accepting registrations for e-zines that offer the latest information on the Vezel and their website."

Edited February 18, 2016 by Magnum

[Magnum]

All-new Honda Odyssey: Its small & low-cost hybrid system was based on the Accord

Honda announced that they facelifted the Odyssey and developed a new hybrid version for this model that will be released beginning February 5, 2016.

The hybrid system of the Odyssey is based on the system equipped in the Accord, and aside from having a small and lighter body, it has higher torque and output, with a fuel consumption of 26km/L, putting it on the top among its class.

According to Honda R&D Center Senior Researcher Naohiro Yonekura, who is also in charge of developing the powertrain, "There's no way that the utility value, which the Odyssey was known for, would get tarnished, so we made it smaller and lighter. Then, we also furthered its development since we wanted to improve its performance. An actual fuel consumption of 20km/L would certainly exceed the expectation of customers towards a hybrid vehicle. But since we wanted to exceed such expectation (based on the catalog fuel consumption value), we worked on achieving the 26km/L fuel consumption, for our customers to be satisfied with it."

As for concrete improvements made, he said, "As for its two motors for driving and generating power, these adopted a square copper wire, from the usual round copper wire. Due to Honda's original high density technology, which optimized the manufacturing process such as copper molding and incorporation, as well as the existing manufacturing method, the Odyssey achieved a 23% smaller and lighter body with higher torque and output of 8Nm and 11kW respectively."

Moreover, he mentioned, "The PCU has been downsized by 23% and is lighter by 27% because of the low-loss semiconductor, the power semiconductor, and the high integration ECU, and has been directly mounted to the transmission. As for its instruction processing unit (IPU), aside from having a more improved output and energy, its battery also has better cooling efficiency, and with its integrated ECU function and smaller accessories, it has become smaller in size by 11%, and lighter by 6%."

Furthermore, Senior Researcher Yonekura also clarified, "We released the Accord Hybrid long before we released the existing Odyssey, and we received a proposal to have it mounted with the same system used in the Accord. But in order to meet the expectations of the buyers of our three million units, it is necessary to make it more compact and low-cost."

Its hybrid version costs from around 3.56 million to 4.0564 yen, while the gasoline version's price ranges from 2.76 million yen to 3.6254 yen.

Edited February 18, 2016 by Magnum

[Magnum]

Nissan equips first auto brake to NV350 Caravan main grade

For this minor update, the NV350 Caravan's main grade '2WD long body and low floor AT Van' adopts an automatic brake, a first in the 4-number light van class. Moreover, it is also mounted with the new Emergency Brake Package, which is equipped with Vehicle Dynamics Control (VDC) and Hill Start Assist systems, generating better safety performance.

Furthermore, aside from adopting Dark Blue as a new color, one part of the GX grade as well as the EX pack can also be embellished with White color, creating a wider color variation.

It costs from 1,948,320 yen to 3,562,920 yen.

Autech facelifts NV350 Caravan Ride & LV Series

Edited February 18, 2016 by Magnum

[john cooper]

Bling bling

Today received a email from Toyota NZ advising to book a time to replace the seat belts due to a global RAV4 recall. below is the full detail found online for the same

http://www.stuff.co.nz/motoring/news/77061433/toyota-new-zealand-recalling-almost-13000-rav4-vehicles

regards

JC