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The best car to film the 2020 Nissan GT-R NISMO in action (w/VIDEO)

The Nissan GT-R is the flagship of Nissan’s high-performance range and the GT-R NISMO can be considered as the ‘pinnacle’ of the iconic nameplate which has a 50-year history. Constantly pushing the performance envelope, NISMO engineers have upgraded the 2020 model’s engine with aerodynamics further enhanced and weight-savings through the meticulous use of exotic materials.

Then came the time to show the sportscar in action and these days, video is a must. There was just one problem – how to film a super sportscar like the GT-R NISMO? It would have been easy to shoot from a helicopter or drone but to have more impact, the view should be as close as possible at ground level.

Enter Mauro Calo, a professional precision driver and automotive video expert known for his work on big-budget blockbuster movies and automotive TV shows. He knew the perfect car to chase and film the 2020 GT-R NISMO – another GT-R.

While Nissan helped locate a suitable GT-R to be transformed into a purpose-built camera car, Calo was already working on the design. Once the car arrived, he and his team fitted a bespoke tubular structure that was welded to the chassis and able to hold the weight of the professional carbonfibre gimbal camera mounting system.

The ultimate high-speed camera car
Until Calo realized his ambition of developing the ultimate high-speed camera car, the vehicle of choice for this type of filming would be a high-performance SUV. However, SUVs lack the speed or agility to follow the world’s fastest performance cars on track.

Thanks to its low centre of gravity, adjustable sports suspension and 4-seat configuration, the GT-R is the perfect base car to accommodate a camera rig of this type. And with the performance of the twin-turbo 3.8 V6 plus its advanced all-wheel drive system, it’s easy to see why Calo chose it.

“When I started to think about developing a high-performance camera car, I quickly realized that the Nissan GT-R was the only car that would meet my criteria,” said Calo. “It has supercar performance, with outstanding all-wheel drive handling and stability. It’s famously reliable, and it can seat the team I need to operate the camera system. There were no other contenders.”

Fabulous footage with high definition
Not many GT-R customers regularly use all four seats, but a typical shoot requires a full camera crew. With Calo at the wheel, a gimbal operator, a focus puller and a director can be in the car at the same time – ensuring fabulous high-definition footage of the world’s fastest cars at high speed (with all safety precautions taken, on a closed circuit, of course).

“I knew already, from driving it on photo and video shoots, what a great car the Nissan GT-R is,” Calo said. “But since I adapted my Nissan GT-R to be a high-speed camera car and have been using it to film some of the world’s fastest cars on track, my respect and appreciation of its performance, reliability and stability has only increased. It amazes me and the teams I work with every time we use it.”

With careful choreography planned in advance and coordinated via walkie-talkie, the two GT-Rs chased each other around the Lausitzring racetrack in Brandenburg, Germany, as part of the GT-R NISMO’s media preview event. The recorded footage has been viewed millions of times on YouTube and other social media platforms.

This Lego Nissan GT-R Nismo is what you’ll want in 2020

PUSPAKOM services now include roadtax renewal for light commercial vehicles

Commercial vehicle operators will soon be able to renew their roadtax at 54 PUSPAKOM inspection centres nationwide. The renewal is available for light commercial vehicles with a maximum permissible laden weight (BDM) of 7,500 kgs or less.

The additional service will be implemented at the inspection centres in stages over the next three months, with the Wangsa Maju inspection centre being the first from yesterday,

According to PUSPAKOM’s CEO, Shukor Ismail, offering the new service is part of the company’s effort towards making PUSPAKOM a One-stop centre for the convenience of customers and the public. “We aim to offer services to deal with vehicle-related matters besides vehicle inspections. Currently, PUSPAKOM centres also provide vehicle insurance renewal services and with the roadtax renewal available, customers have more locations to get their roadtax renewed,” he said.

“Implementation of this initiative will enhance the level of service related to government services, especially vehicle inspection, to meet current customer demands that require efficient, fast and efficient service provision,” he added.

Light commercial vehicle — *At present, the renewal service is available only for light commercial vehicles (like this Nissan NV200) that have a BDM (maximum permissible weight) of 7,500 kgs or less.*

PUSPAKOM is also considering extending the roadtax renewal service to privately registered passenger vehicles later on.

For more information, the public can call PUSPAKOM at 1-800-88-6927, send email to customerservice@puspakom.com.my, visit their official Facebook Page or website at www.puspakom. com.my.

Fuel Prices For February 8 – 14, 2020

Geely Auto looks at ‘passenger safety’ from a different perspective, aims to make cars ‘healthier’

‘Passenger safety’ in a motor vehicle would be expected to relate to protection during accidents and perhaps the way interior features are designed so as not to cause injuries. Some examples would be the shape of switches and how they project from the dashboard and the type of materials used in areas where the head may hit during a violent accident.

Now, with the outbreak of the coronavirus, one carmaker is adding protection from harmful substances in the air inside the car to ‘passenger safety’ requirements. The carmaker is Geely Auto which has allocated 370 million RMB (about RM220 million) of funding to further the development of ‘healthy, intelligent vehicles’.

The initiative, announced recently not only adds a new dimension to Geely’s understanding of ‘passenger safety’ but also represents a new development direction for automobiles. Until now, addressing air quality in the cabin has been mainly through the use of filters in the ventilation system. Some cars also have a system using nanoe-technology with fine e-ion particles said to be able to deactivate airborne bacteria.

Geely MPV — Geely Auto’s global R&D and design networks will jointly research new environmentally-sustainable materials with anti-bacterial and anti-viral properties which can be used within air-conditioner systems and on frequently touched surfaces such as buttons and handles.

The development of a ‘healthier’ car differs from specialized medical vehicles in that Geely’s products are made for ordinary consumers. A car with comprehensive virus protection not only requires the capability to isolate harmful substances in the air, and it must be able to quickly and effectively purify cabin air for occupants.

Geely Auto’s global R&D and design networks based in Europe, USA and China will jointly move to develop and research new environmentally-sustainable materials with anti-bacterial and anti-viral properties which can be used within air-conditioner systems and on frequently touched surfaces such as buttons and handles.

Geely Auto will make full use of its global R&D system and resources as well as cooperate with professional medical and scientific research institutions to set up special project teams to work on the new research.

Volvo Cars, also a member of the Zhejiang Geely Holding Group like Geely Auto, would be able to contribute a lot of its experience in this area as it would surely have for other safety aspects. For decades, it has paid attention to air quality inside its cars and developed features like the Clean Zone Interior Package and the Interior Air Quality System (IAQS) to maintain high air quality in the passenger compartment. The IAQS is a fully automatic air quality system that separates gases and particles to reduce the levels of odours and contaminants in the passenger compartment.

CleanZone in the Volvo XC60 — *For many years, Volvo Cars has offered air quality systems in its cars.*

“Epidemic prevention is a job that requires the long-term effort of wider society. As the most common mode of transportation, consumers spend a considerable amount time in their cars, akin to a ‘second home’. Only by making healthier products can we meet consumer demand for better quality of life,” said An Conghui, President of Geely Holding Group and President & CEO of Geely Auto Group.

“Based on the automotive industry’s development direction built around electrified, connectivity, intelligence, and shared mobility, auto companies should commit to developing products that help protect the health of drivers and passengers. This will become one of Geely Auto key long-term development objectives,” he added.

Meanwhile, the Geely Holding Group joined hands with the Li Shufu Foundation to set up a special 200 million RMB (about RM118.4 million) fund in support of the new coronavirus prevention and control, with a focus on the mass purchasing of much-needed medical supplies for China in the short term.

120 Volkswagen Tiguan SUVs provide transport at PETRONAS Le Tour de Langkawi

Volkswagen Passenger Cars Malaysia (VPCM) is once again the Official Automotive Partner of the PETRONAS Le Tour de Langkawi (LTDL). It is the third time for Volkswagen’s involvement in the event which is being run for the 25^th time.

VPCM has provided 120 units of the Tiguan Highline for use throughout the 10-day event by riders, safety marshals and officials. The model provided has a 1.4-litre turbocharged direct injection TSI petrol engine with a 6-speed wet clutch direct shift gearbox (DSG). Its output of 150 ps/250 Nm means there is adequate power for all situations while also being economical.

*Latest Volkswagen Tiguan Highline, priced from RM165,990.*

The Tiguan’s SUV bodystyle makes it ideal for its role in the LTDL. It has a spacious cabin and cargo area to transport gear and other items. To date, 5 million units of the Tiguan have been sold globally, the bestselling SUV in Volkswagen’s range.

“We are honoured to be back as part of LTDL this year as the race celebrates its Silver Jubilee, and we are confident that the Tiguan will be a good fit and support to the operations team in terms of safety, endurance, agility and speed. On behalf of Volkswagen, we wish the participants all the very best for this year’s race,” said Erik Winter, Managing Director of VPCM.

Le Tour de Langkawi is a multiple stage bicycle race that has gained many accolades and is now recognised as a highlight in the global competitive cycling calendar, attracting the world’s top road cyclists. 21 teams are taking part in the event which started in East Malaysia and continue across Peninsular Malaysia from Kuala Terengganu. The finale will be at its birthplace in Langkawi on February 14.

Visit www.volkswagen.com.my to know more about the Tiguan and where to test-drive one.

CUPRA uses 3D printing for new TCR racing car’s parts (w/VIDEO)

At first glance, it looks like a normal mirror, but it isn’t. It is a 3D-printed part, a technology that CUPRA has begun to implement in the development of the new Leon Competition racing car in collaboration with HP. Greater agility, efficiency and flexibility are the benefits of a system that is set to revolutionise car development.

“For the new CUPRA Leon Competition, we modelled the steering wheel’s centre control module, the bonnet air vents, door mirrors and the brake and water-cooling inlets,” explained Xavi Serra, the Head of technical development at CUPRA Racing. “These parts were produced using HP’s industrial-grade Jet Fusion 5200 3D printing solution and included in the demanding development tests put to the new racing model.”

More efficiency, greater speed
The main goal with this technology, which offers multiple benefits, is to have a lot of parts in a short time. Engineers can quickly test a wide variety of designs and furthermore, since vehicle development is now done in parallel, this technology enables quicker response to any changes in the design process.

“The work with CUPRA demonstrates the power of 3D printing and digital manufacturing – changing the way the world designs and manufactures,” said Virginia Palacios, Head of Systems Product Management, 3D Printing & Digital Manufacturing, HP Inc.

Wind-tested 3D parts
In TCR competition, the door mirror is a part which, according to the rules, must have the same shape as the production car. But the CUPRA engineers went one step further. “We wanted to add an additional function, which is to cool the driver. We therefore had to design an air intake in the maximum pressure zone to achieve this effect,” said Xavi.

The place where these materials are tested is the wind tunnel, where the 3D-printed parts are verified in exactly the same way as the rest. “The bigger the variety of parts we can test in this facility, the better. It enables us to make much faster progress,” he added.

2020 CUPRA Competition — *The new Leon Competition with its 3D printed parts was tested to the limit on the Portimao track in Portugal.*

As it is a racing car, the final phase of development can only be carried out in one place: the circuit. “The results were excellent, and some were even surprising, because we were looking to push the material to its limits,” the CUPRA engineer reported.

Making complex ideas a reality – fast
“3D printing is going to signal a turning point in the automotive industry by accelerating lead times and HP 3D technology is helping designers create parts that could not be produced with other technologies,” said Palacios, predicting that the technology will continue to be key in countless fields to make the most complex ideas a reality.