新加坡

NEW JAZZ ON THE WAYHonda's all-new Jazz (called the Fit in Japan) will arrive in the first half of next year.迷你倉沙田 The range will include a petrol- electric hybrid, said to be capable of covering 100km on just 2.75 litres of fuel.The model is the first car to be quipped with Honda's Intelligent Dual Clutch Drive (i-DCD) - a lightweight and compact one-motor system. It is mated to a 1.5-litre inline-four with a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission. The motor is powered by lithium-ion batteries.Honda says the car boasts the highest fuel economy of all hybrids in Japan. The normal petrol variant will have a continuously variable transmission.NINE-SPEED AUTO TRANSMISSIONDaimler has decided to put a nine-speed automatic transmission - the world's first with a torque converter - into its Mercedes-Benz E350 turbodiesel. The gearbox, developed in-house, will be made available in other rear-wheel and all-wheel-drive Merc models.Up till now, Mercedes has been relying on its seven-speed autobox.Components maker ZF has devised a nine-gear transmission, which will debut in the facelifted Range Rover Evoque. Ford and General Motors are working on nine- and 10-speed transmissions.NEW-LOOK FLUENCERenault's Fluence has flown into town after a facelift, sporting a new grille, LED daytime-running lights, seven-inch colour touchscreen monitor and digital instrument cluster. Renault claims efficiency has also improved, and the car now qualifies for a $5,000 carbon rebate. The car is priced at $126,000 with COE, and comes with a five-year warranty and five years of free servicing.STUDY ON STOP-STARTS IN 50 CITIESEngine oil specialist Castrol and navigation company TomTom are studying the impact of "stop-start" driving in 50 key cities, including Singapore. Castrol says urban drivers already experience as many as 18,000 stop-starts a year.The results of the study, which will be published in September, will 迷你倉價錢e an analysis of driving behaviour in cities. Data such as the average per kilometre of stop-starts and which cities have the heaviest traffic will be collected.BOSCH WORKSHOP AT CALTEX STATIONBosch has set up its first service workshop at a Caltex station here. The workshop at Caltex East Coast, said to be staffed with mechanics trained in the latest developments in automotive technology by Bosch, will be followed by others in the Caltex network. As part of its debut, the workshop is giving away a pair of Bosch Aerotwin wipers to the first 50 motorists who sign up for a $98 Caltex Havoline service package until the end of September.FIRST REAR ADAPTIVE DAMPERHonda has confirmed that the world's first rear adaptive damper system will be introduced on the new UK-built Civic Tourer, set to be launched next year. This is the first time a rear adaptive damper system has been used in a production model.This innovative system features three settings - comfort, normal and dynamic - all of which have been developed to enhance stability and comfort under varying load and driving conditions.LEAF IS BEST-SELLING ELECTRIC CARRenault-Nissan group has sold 100,000 electric cars worldwide since the first Nissan Leaf left the showroom in December 2010. The group says the cars have saved 53 million litres of oil and 124 million kg of CO2. It has sold more zero- emission cars than all other major carmakers combined. Of the lot, more than 71,000 were Nissan Leafs, making it the world's best-selling electric vehicle.FLY ON A WINGLET -- PHOTO: RENAULT, NISSAN, TOYOTAThe Winglet is not a meaty snack, but a personal mobility solution from Toyota. Appearing like a Segway, the stand-up vehicle is being tested in a three-year programme in the city of Tsukuba, Japan. The lithium-ion battery- powered Winglet has a range of close to 10km and a top speed of 5.6kmh. Its batteries take an hour to be fully charged.迷你倉庫