Lighter and More Powerful Audi R8 For 2014

Next generation Audi R8 is expected to be launched in 2014 and details about it are already emerged.

Lotus F1 E20 Breaks Cover

Lotus chose to launch the machine in an online broadcast from its factory. The E20 name is to commemorate the 20th F1 chassis designed at Enstone which is the base for its HQ,

Largest BMW Showroom Covering 35,000 Sq Meters Opens In Abu Dhabi

Home of the largest theme park which is known as the Ferrari Theme Park, Abu Dhabi has another landmark to be proud of, introducing the world’s largest BMW Showroom covering an area of 35,000 square meters and housing three premium brands from the BMW Group which are the MINI, Rolls Royce and BMW itself while not forgetting the BMW’s motorcycle line.

Peugeot 208 GTi Concept To Be Revealed At The 2012 Geneva Motor Show

Regarding 2012 Geneva Motor Show is just weeks from now, Peugeot is confirmed (almost) to reveal a new sporty GTi version of recently launched latest generation of 208 hatchback.

Jaguar Introduced Its XK And XKR Special Edition Featuring Artisan Interior

Jaguar has recently announced a new XK and XKR Special Editionthat feature hand crafted “Artisan” interior and only be available for European market.

Thursday

Automatic Transmission Driving Licence To Be Introduced In May 2012

traffic The automatic transmission driving licence will be implemented nationwide in May after the driving curriculum is revised, said Deputy Transport Minister Datuk Abdul Rahim Bakri.
He said the new driving curriculum would enable learner drivers to learn to drive and take a test in an automatic car.


"The ministry is not in a hurry to implement the automatic car driving test to be fair to driving school operators.


"We need to give them time as they have to replace manual cars with automatic cars and this is costly," he told Bernama.


He said, despite the introduction of the automatic transmission driving licence, learner drivers could choose to learn and take a test either in a manual or an automatic car.
Abdul Rahim anticipates that more people, especially older learners and women, would prefer to drive in a car with automatic gears as it is a lot easier.

On the new driving curriculum, Abdul Rahim said it would focus on producing discerning and disciplined motorists to help reduce fatal accidents as human factors were the root cause behind 60 to 70 per cent of the accidents.

"Previously, our curriculum emphasised on driving skills and knowledge on highway code, but now we want to churn out considerate motorists," he said.

On the demerit system known as 'Kejara', he said there was no proposal to replace the system as it was still relevant and used in many countries where drivers, who achieved 15 demerit points the first time, would have their license suspended for six months.

originally posted: Bernama Auto

Analysts Urge Proton To Sell Lotus After 15 Years Of Failure In Realizing A Profit

Lotus-Logo Everything seems wrong for Proton, considering the fact that after 15 proud years of purchasing Lotus Group, there is absolutely no profit at all.

Although Proton’s action of purchasing the Norfolk-based sports carmaker one and a half decade ago brought some “nur” (light) towards Proton’s engineering department especially when we talking about engine making and the tagline “Lotus Ride and Handling” on some of Proton cars seemed promising, we still can’t deny the fact that Lotus is actually burdening its parent company for 15 years and the situation is likely to be continued at least until the year 2014 according to some analysts.

“It will make sense for them to sell it,” equities investor Gan Eng Peng explained to Bloomberg. “Proton and Lotus are not a good fit. They are in different market segments, both in terms of geography and product.”

Lotus sales are struggling everywhere including in the UK. Lotus only only sold less than 2000 cars last year, they need at least 6000 more cars to be sold in order to gain profit. In its homeland, less than 300 vehicles were registered in the first eight months of 2011, achieving 24 percent down in market comparing with 358 cars were sold last year in the same period.

“The only thing we can do is show the current owners, or the new owners, that we are absolutely in line with the business plan that we have presented,” Bahar, who’s based in Norfolk, U.K., said in an interview with Bloomberg last week. “Without the funding support and the guarantees given by the Proton group, we would not survive, end of story.”

source: Bloomberg

Tuesday

Is It Worth It? Wrecked McLaren MP4-12C Is Up For Sale in Holland Costing Nearly Half Of Its Showroom Price

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This silver MP4-12C which was registered in Holland is for sale being unrepaired after suffered a crash and according to the owner, this car suffered from a broken windshield and bumper, several scratches and the airbags went off. The driver wrecked this McLaren after drove it into a ditch, so there might be unseen water damages.

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This particular car had only covered 4000 km on its odometer and is ready for sale for a negotiable  asking price of € 129,500 (RM 534,542). It is a bargain considering that in Holland, the price of a brand new MP4-12C nearly double the figure. Nevertheless, for those who is interested in buying this wrecked car should rethink and hire an expert to reevaluate the value of the damages. The car is up for sale at MrktPlaatz.

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The Death Of Dodge Caliber and Nitro

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Dodge has confirmed the death of its 2 heavily criticized models with the end of the year 2011. It is believed that the retirement of these models,  Nitro and Caliber would pave the way for Dodge’s new brainchild, Dart which is a compact sedan built based on the platform of Alfa’s Giulietta to enter the  market starting with its debut next month at the Detroit Motor Show.

Needless to say, the Caliber was introduced by dodge 5 years ago replacing the Neon to compete with other C-Segment cars but never reach the glory. The sales of Caliber achieved the highest figures in May 2008 with 12856 units but in November 2009, the number dropped to just 412 units.

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The story behind the Nitro model is not so different compared to the Caliber. With its cheap interior and poor driving pleasure, this pitiful model received a lot of critics throughout its life time. Compared to its linemate Jeep Liberty, Nitro suffered an aging evolution whereas the Liberty continue to be improved as a better SUV. In March 2007, Nitro’s sales peaked at 7532 units but the dark month arrived in July 2009 with just 1115 units sold.

Ingress To Supply Parts Worth RM84.8 Million To Proton

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Ingress Corporation Bhd has received a letter of acceptance from Perusahaan Otomobil Nasional Bhd (Proton) to supply parts worth RM84.8 million for the carmaker's new models.

In a filing to Bursa Malaysia today, Ingress said the five-year contract was for the supply of door sash, roof drip moulding and beltline moulding.

Ingress said the supply of door sash through its 90 per cent subsidiary Ingress Precision Sdn Bhd (IPSB) was expected to commence by the end of the second quarter of its financial year ending Jan 31, 2014.

It said the project was forecast to generate total revenue for IPSB of about RM70.9 million while the total investment in tooling and equipment was expected to cost RM13.8 million.

Meanwhile, the supply of roof moulding project through the company's wholly-owned unit, Ingress Engineering Sdn Bhd (IESB), will commence by the beginning of the first quarter of the financial year ending Jan 31, 2014.

Ingress said this project was expected to generate total revenue of RM2.3 million for IESB and the total investment for the project was estimated at RM0.1 million in tooling.

The supply of beltline moulding through IESB is expected to commence by the end of the first quarter of the company's financial year ending Jan 31, 2014.

This project was forecast to generate total revenue of about RM11.6 million for IESB while the total investment in tooling and equipment was estimated to cost RM0.8 million.

originally posted: Bernama Auto

Wednesday

Proton To Participate in S2000 WRC Next Year

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Proton will enter next year's Super 2000 World Rally Championship, starting its programme with P-G Andersson and Giandomenico Basso driving on the Monte Carlo Rally.

In addition to its maiden SWRC entry, the Malaysian firm has also confirmed it will defend its multiple Asia-Pacific Rally Championship titles with Andersson and APRC champion driver Alister McRae. The British driver is also expected to play a part in Proton's SWRC assault.

McRae, who is preparing for next year's Dakar, admitted he was delighted to be staying with the British-based Proton Motorsports team.

"The car really came on very well last year," said McRae. "There was a gap between a couple of the APRC rounds when I was out of the car and when I went back to it, it was obvious how hard the team had been working. There's more development to come from the car, but it's got great potential.

"Winning the APRC title was a big thing for me and the chance to go back and defend the championship is great news. I'm looking forward to being back in the car and competing at a very high level again."

After Monte Carlo, Proton will also tackle Sweden, New Zealand, Finland, Spain, France and Britain. Its APRC campaign gets underway in Malaysia in the spring.

Proton team principal Chris Mellors said he was looking forward to another busy season with the Satria Neo S2000s.

"Two cars in SWRC and APRC is a very good programme for 2012," said Mellors. "We enjoyed a lot of success in APRC last year and we learned a great deal to take forward into this year. It's going to be an exciting time for the team."

Mellors added that he hoped to see Proton represented in the IRC again.

"Proton is moving in a different direction for next season," he said, "which means we won't be in the IRC. We are working on some possible options which would mean private cars in that championship. I have to thank Eurosport and IRC for a great series: we had some tremendous competition there."

originally posted: Autosport

Tuesday

SAAB Filed For Bankruptcy Giving Up After Years Of Struggling

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The Swedish carmaker, SAAB Automobile filed for bankruptcy marking the end of the road for this 64 years old aircraft-inspired carmaker.

The bankruptcy is declared after the desperate struggle of SAAB to stay in business after General Motors as it previous owner rejected the attempt of China’s Zhejiang Youngman Lotus Automobile Co  in order to take over the dying company.

Victor Muller, CEO of SAAB who bought the company nearly two years ago from GM cost him USD 74 million (RM 235.14 million) handed the bankruptcy application to the court ending his two years of strives in making SAAB a more competitive carmaker. The Dutch entrepreneur who once led Spyker the supercar maker couldn’t provide enough finance to support SAAB..

“This is the darkest day in my career, probably in the history of Saab. But we had no other alternatives,” Muller said.

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Friday

Proton Exora Bold and Exora Prime Unveiled

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Proton Holdings Bhd has announced the availability of two new variants of Malaysia's first multi-purpose vehicle (MPV), Exora.

In a statement Thursday, Proton said the MPV has an all-new 1.6-litre Campro charge fuel efficiency (CFE) engine with performance comparable to that of a two-litre engine.

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"The Exora Bold Premium and Exora Prime models will only be available for registration by the second week of January 2012," it said.

Its group managing director, Datuk Seri Syed Zainal Abidin Syed Mohamed Tahir, said the CFE engine was available in the new Exora Bold Premium and the top-of-the-line Exora Prime model that would have a continuously variable transmission (CVT).

The Prime 1.6 Premium is retailed at RM88,998 and the Bold 1.6 Premium CVT at RM79,998.

The other variant, 1.6 Standard MT, is priced at RM59,998 and Bold 1.6 Executive MT RM70,998.

Exora Prime is in fact an exclusive version of Exora that features only 6 seating capacity with numerous improvements and enhancements such as a more sporty front and rear bumper, new headlights, new taillights, 16-inch golden rim and a new Absolute Brown color variant. The interior highlights 2 tone leather seat and panel, center console with walnut finishing, headrest screens, multifunction navigation system and  a reverse camera.

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Almost similar with the Prime version, Exora Bold Premium will have all the features of a Prime but lacking in headrest screens and still maintain the original 3 seats second row formation. .

. Proton said since it was first launched in April 2009, a total of 65,049 units of the Exora had already been registered with it receiving some 82,854 bookings.

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"The Exora has a monthly sales average of 1,800 units and with the introduction of Exora Bold Premium and Exora Prime, the company is optimistic of securing a monthly sales volume of 2,000 units," it said.

Last year, the Exora was the only MPV named as one of the top ten cars in Thailand by a renowned English newspaper in Bangkok.

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This year, the Exora Star won two awards in Indonesia -- Best Budget MPV 2011 at the Indonesian Automotive Awards and Best Small MPV 2011 by MobilMotor magazine's ICOTY (Indonesian Car of the Year).

CLICK HERE TO VIEW MORE PHOTOS OF THE NEW PROTON EXORA BOLD

CLICK HERE TO VIEW MORE PHOTOS OF THE NEW PROTON EXORA PRIME

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CLICK HERE TO VIEW MORE PHOTOS OF THE NEW PROTON EXORA BOLD

CLICK HERE TO VIEW MORE PHOTOS OF THE NEW PROTON EXORA PRIME

source: Bernama Auto

Modenas Aims To Be Key Player In Motorcycle Industry

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Motosikal dan Enjin Nasional Sdn Bhd (Modenas) is making the appropriate moves to become a main player in the country's motorcycle industry in the next five years.

Its Chief Executive Officer, Abdul Halim Ismail, said one move has been the formation of a new team encompassing the areas of engineering, design, management and marketing.

"Modenas does not want to be the follower always and the time has come for it to head the industry after 16 years of experience in producing the kapcai motorcycles.

"Our first plan is to come out with a new model that is different from the existing models in the market in the first quarter of next year," he told a press conference after the launch of the new Modenas MR1 model at its plant here today.

Abdul Halim said the new 100cc model, priced at RM2,948 (not including insurance) is expected to contribute significantly to the company's revenue.

This model has the capacity to raise Modenas market share by 10 per cent or to about 60,000 units including the export market based on the projected sales of 500,000 motorcylces in the Malaysian market this year, he said.

He said Modenas was always attuned to market demand and it was with this in mind that the company was planning on producing a new mid-range 250cc power motorcycle to cater to the younger generation within the next five years.

The new models being produced by the company, including the latest and competitively priced MR1, are expected to open up the opportunities for Modenas to penetrate its export markets mainly in Asean and Europe.

Abdul Halim said in terms of quality, Modenas had never compromised and its models are quality tested before being marketed.

He said 80 per cent of their components are locally sourced.

On the MR1, Abdul Halim said the model was capable of travelling 200km with a full tank of 4.3 litres fuel.

Modenas expects to sell 4,000 units of the model a month.

originally posted: Bernama Auto

Caterham F1 Team Unveils New Logo

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The Caterham F1 Team has unveiled its new logo for the 2012 Formula 1 season, when the outfit will race under its new name.

The team made its debut last year and raced as Team Lotus in 2011 but, after a long battle over its name, it will be renamed Caterham in 2012, with the current Renault team becoming Lotus.

Caterham revealed its new image on Wednesday.

Team boss Tony Fernandes insisted the Caterham move makes sense for his outfit.

"With Team Lotus, I would have battled to the end if I felt it was the right thing to do, but when you take a dispassionate look at where we were it made absolute sense to start with a clean sheet, and Caterham has given us that chance," said Fernandes in the team's magazine.

"It's the best possible solution for where we want to go - partly because it gives us complete control over everything we do and, obviously, because there's simply no point racing to promote a road car company I don't own. The road car business has always been a sector I've wanted to explore and so here we are.

"But I can't stress enough; this is a serious business venture for us. If I just needed a new name, I could have called it anything, but the synergy with Caterham works better - and it's what I do – take a small business with the correct core values and purpose and expand it and grow it into the global marketplace."

originally posted: Autosport

Tuesday

Lotus’s Opinion On The Driver Line Up For Lotus Renault GP F1 Team in 2012

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Group Lotus CEO Dany Bahar says Renault has delivered proof of its resolve to get back to the front in Formula 1 after opting for talent over sponsorship in its driver choice for 2012.

On the back of the bold decisions to lure Kimi Raikkonen back to F1, and sign Romain Grosjean at the expense of Vitaly Petrov, Bahar believes the soon-to-be-called Lotus outfit has shown how committed it is to success.

"It shows the determination that we have, and it shows that there is understanding of what it will take," explained Bahar during a media lunch in London on Monday.

"The team's two main partners [Gerard Lopez and Eric Lux] said, 'look this isn't about commercial matters and going for the highest bidder, it was about going for the best drivers we can get.'

"We did an analysis together and we said, although Vitaly has a sweeter commercial element to him, we shall go for pure racing. It may be more difficult for us commercially but we are up for the challenge. And we will raise the money if it is necessary."

Bahar believes that following a difficult 2011 campaign, where Renault drifted down the order after taking podium finishes in the first two races of the season, a big reshuffle was needed to lift spirits for next year.

When asked by AUTOSPORT if he felt the team needed to act so boldly, Bahar said: "I think it did, and will continue to need this. With last year's performance nobody was really happy, especially with the development it took, so it was in every shareholder and partner's interest to go for the best possible set-up we have.

"We have to make a lot of changes and improvements to the technical areas, but the management knows that and they are working very, very much on that. I am sure it will be better. I am sure."

Bahar has also thrown his full support behind the job that team principal Eric Boullier is doing - despite recent wild speculation suggesting that the Frenchman could be replaced by former grand prix driver Gerhard Berger.

"Eric's job is not the easiest one," explained Bahar. "It is the same as with any football manager, after a not so good year you are often criticised. He will be criticised and it is not the last time he will be criticised, but the important thing is what he learns out of it, and he identifies the areas where he has to strengthen it.

"And he has identified it. He has a clear plan going forward and we trust him to manage it perfectly. There is no reason to doubt him. But, the operational involvement is mainly driven by Genii – Gerard Lopez and Eric Lux – and we trust them, we have a good relationship and they are doing it."

Bahar has recently extended his contract at Lotus by another four years, following meetings with the company's owner Proton last week, and believes with the 'distraction' of the Lotus naming row now over, that there will be a bigger marketing push for his company in F1.

He also suggested that future plans for closer co-operation between Group Lotus and Genii – either through the car company buying into the team or Lopez taking a shareholding in the car company – remained a possibility.

"Talks are always here, and they have been here from the beginning," said Bahar. "There is a road map that he [Lopez] and I put together, and we are following that road map.

"But I cannot tell you more of what, or how it will happen – but what I can definitely tell you is that we are not working against each other, despite the speculations I have seen suggesting one of us is trying to buy out the other one."

originally posted: Autosport

Lotus City Car To Cost You £29,000, Aimed To Outperform Other Luxury Compact Car

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Lotus is looking forward to introduce an electric supermini which will be performance oriented compact city car targeting to be the rival of Aston’s Cygnet but somehow this electric powered Lotus is expected to be priced cheaper than the gasoline powered “luxurious city car” Cygnet.

This Lotus city car is believed to be an extensive reworked of Proton’s Emas and is expected to offer better satisfaction of luxury and performance compared to the Proton. It is expected that the Lotus city car to cost around £29,000 (RM 140 thousand) which means it would be sold for £2000 (RM 10 thousand) less than the Cygnet.

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According to Daby Bahar, CEO of Group Lotus, the Lotus city car is aimed to outperform small BMWs, MINI and Audi.

“There’s no point in trying to fight the MINIs, and the small BMWs and Audis unless you have a special offering. Our car will be an EV or range extended EV and will offer performance of no other small car.” said Bahar.

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The Lotus city car will have an electric motor and a 1.2 liter three cylinder petrol engine capable of producing 72 hp of power output. It could accelerate to 100 km/h from a stand still in 9.0 seconds and would achieve a top speed of 170 km/h. The electric motor could powered the car to travel 60 km before the petrol engine activated.

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Click Here To View Complete Gallery Of Lotus CityCar Concept

 

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RM 34.7 Million 999HP Red-Gold Mercedes McLaren SLR

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Swiss businessman, Ueli Anliker is now selling his modified McLaren SLR for a £7 million (RM 34.7 million) worth of good money. Regarding the the ridiculous price, it is not a surprise to see the car is far from being an ordinary SLR. He employed a team of 35 who took a total of 30000 punishing man hours costing more than £3.5 million (RM 17.4 million) to develop this such extravagant.

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The flamboyant Anliker is proud to say that this extraordinary SLR is covered with 25 layers of red paint and 5kg of gold DUST costing over RM 950 thousand layered onto it. There are more bold features highlighted on the car including 24 karat gold plated wheels with ruby-encrusted lug nuts, gold trimmed interior, golden rear trunk carpeting, jeweled indicators, gold trimmed steering wheel, gold door sills, gold plated headlights surrounds and a ruby covered switchgear.

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Anliker has also did a superb job in enhancing the heart of the SLR. The supercharged 5.4 liter engine has been upgraded to be capable of producing 999 bhp, almost 360 bhp more than the original capability. The ground-breaking figure is responsible for giving the SLR a top speed 0f 210 mph (338 km/h ).

Click Here To View The Full Gallery Of This Red-Gold SLR

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Monday

Bridgestone Announced Airless Tire

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Bridgestone showcased airless tires concept that could be more environmental and safer at the Japanese Motor Show.

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It uses structure spokes that stretch along the inner side providing support to the entire tire. Hence, eliminating the need of air.

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This non-pneumatic tire is solid and can support the weight of a car.and also pliable to absorbs shocks caused by bumps on the road.

The tire’s structure spokes is made from reusable thermoplastic resin which is fully recyclable.

It is still in the R&D phase but Bridgestone had already demonstrated working version on an electric cart. Nevertheless, the demo purposed tires can only support up to 330 pounds which is far from being able to support full-sized vehicle.

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Mahindra Eyes Malaysia For Its New Regional Assembly Plant

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One of India's top auto-makers, Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M), has hinted that Malaysia could be a choice for its proposed new regional assembly plant.

The automotive company, a leading arm of India's reputable Mahindra Group conglomerate, is considering several countries in the Asean region, including Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand.

"The company is exploring Indonesia and Thailand for the automotive business, and from the tractors perspective, Thailand, Malaysia and Myanmar are on the radar," Pravin Shah, chief executive, international operations, automotive & farm equipment sectors, told the Economic Times.

Terming Southeast Asia as "an important, big markets for M&M's overseas growth," Shah said the proposed new plant would cater for the entire region.

The plant is likely to roll out M&M's utility vehicles, pick-up trucks and tractors.

"We are at present in talks with various parties and evaluating the different possibilities for setting up base with an appropriate business model," Shah told the newspaper.

The company at present exports about 700,000 units of utility vehicles and pick-up trucks, and 55,000 tractors to major Asean markets annually.

originally appeared: Bernama

Spyshot Special: Proton Exora Prime CFE Photos Leaked

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Photos of Proton’s new baby, reportedly to be called as the Exora Prime CFE has been leaked featuring new front bumpers, smoked rear lights and a new bodykit.

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According to our source, this new Exora Prime will be powered by 1.6 liter CFE engine (widely believed stands for Charged Fuel Efficient) producing 138 HP and 205 Nm of torque somewhere near the figures of 3000 rpm.

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The interior highlights some enhancement including wood grain trim centre console.

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The upcoming Prime is believed to be soft=launched this mid December before the official launch early next month.

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image source: KizzKazz

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