With activities in the auto industry having come to a standstill and people in many countries having to remain at home, it’s a good time for car enthusiasts to find out more about the history of their favourite companies. For Honda fans, there is ‘Honda Origins’, which retraces the life of company founder Soichiro Honda through an animated series combining Japanese-style manga cartoon drawings, audio and historic photographs.
The audio-visual journey from the beginnings of Honda through to its achievements and legacy is presented over 6 episodes each lasting between 10 and 20 minutes.
The series uses the original manga comic ‘Honda Soichiro Hon Den’, published by Shogakukan Inc., to interweave the founder’s life and unique philosophy on life and business with the evolution of the company from its origins to the successful multinational that it is today.
A story to pass on
The first episode of the series, ‘Bouncing Back’, tells how Soichiro Honda began after the Second World War to found the Honda Technical Research Institute in 1946 in the city of Hamamatsu. His journey towards motorisation started with a generator engine attached to a bicycle. This venture, together with Takeo Fujisawa, his partner, became the Honda Motor Company two years later in 1948.
The other chapters (A Dream is Born; Crisis on the Way to the Isle of Man Declaration; American Advance; Veni, Vidi, Vici: We Hate to Lose) describe key moments of his life and values, and the history of the company, making special reference to Honda’s commitment to motorcycles, cars and racing.
The last chapter in the series (Epilogue) recounts the company’s beginnings as a multinational through its expansion in the USA, and ends shortly afterwards with the joint retirement of the company’s two founders on the same day.
What is ‘success’?
One of the most important values highlighted in the series is perseverance and learning from failure; this is embodied by a quotation from Soichiro Honda that defines the spirit of the company: “’Success’ represents the 1% of your work which results from the 99% that is called ‘failure’”.
With its latest ‘Renault Relax’ campaign, TC Euro Cars (TCEC) is offering its customers savings to on two important wear and tear parts: tyres and batteries. The tyre deal which offers a 25% discount is valid for Captur and Fluence owners, while the battery deal offers a 10% discount.
Owners who make a ‘lock-in’ fee of RM100 from April 15 to May 15, 2020 will be able to secure the promotional price of RM345 per tyre. Redemption for the deal can be made anytime from May 15 to August 31, 2020. The lock-in fee will be deducted from the total invoice at the point of redemption. The promotion applies only to ContiEco Contact 5 205/55R17 tyres. Limited stocks are available on a first come, first served basis.
You can get new tyres for your Captur at RM345 each, 25% cheaper than the usual price.
Additionally, during the campaign period from May 15 to 31 August 2020, all Renault customers will receive free tyre balancing for two tyres and above.
As for the battery deal, the offer is until June 30, 2020 and is only for Atlas BX batteries. The savings would be welcome if your vehicle’s battery cannot be revived after the period of under-utilisation during the long Movement Control Order (MCO).
Book using the Renault E-Store
But the MCO is in effect, so owners can’t go to the showroom or service centre. Not a problem as there is the Renault E-Store at www.renault.com.my which can accept booking and payment online.
During the MCO, the Rencare team will also continue to support customers who need emergency assistance. The team is contactable at 1800-88-8663 (24 hours, 7 days).
Deferred servicing/warranty extension
Renault owners who have had to defer their vehicle servicing due to the MCO need not worry about non-compliance which can affect their warranty. TCEC is providing additional time for servicing until May 28 2020 for all vehicles that were due for periodic servicing between March 18 and April 28, 2020. All service appointments will have a 30-day extension to catch-up on their service intervals.
There is also a 30-day extension until May 28, 2020 for all warranties that expire during the MCO period.
Customers can use the Concierge Service to request for door-to-door delivery within Klang Valley (within a radius of 30 kms from the service centre). This delivery service, previously available only to new and subscription customers, is now being offered free of charge for pick-up and return of serviced vehicles, during and after the MCO period.
Customers can now also schedule their service appointments online by registering for a Renault E-Store account and then use the Concierge Service feature or call 1800-18-8663 (8 am – 8 pm daily).
With many countries having lockdowns or restricted movements, traffic levels have dropped as people travel less. Waze data shows that across the world, Waze users are driving 60% fewer kilometres compared to the February daily average for a 2-week period (February 11 – 25 2020).
In Malaysia, which has had a country-wide Movement Control Order (MCO) since March 18, Waze users are driving significantly less (80% fewer kilometres), compared to the same February daily average.
Waze data shows the sudden and significant change when the Movement Control Order came into effect on March 18.
Despite the overall decrease in the number of people on the road, there are still essential journeys that need to be made every day, such as purchasing necessities, seeking medical care, or to perform official duties for those under essential services.
Understanding that there are places, eg Malaysia, where the authorities are using various measures such as roadblocks to ensure compliance with the regulations, Waze Map Editors and the Waze Crisis Response team are currently working with 58 countries (and counting) to add region-specific relief efforts including road closures, red zones, and more, to the map.
This crisis response will help those who have the travel for legitimate purposes to get to their destinations promptly and home again safely.
The change in distances motorists in Kuala Lumpur have been travelling while the Movement Control Order has been in force.
Waze has also launched a COVID-19 Landing Page asking governments around the world to contribute data on medical testing centre and emergency food distribution centre locations to help improve its maps for users. Once the data is received, Waze will validate and add the details to the map, and then inform drivers accordingly.
Another initiative that Waze has quickly rolled out is support for drive-throughs and curbside pick-up to help provide users with minimal contact access. This will help compliance with social distancing guidelines. With new Location Personalities badges and search features, businesses which need to update their information can do so in a few simple steps or contact Waze’s support team for help.
For more information about Waze and its community as well as partners’ COVID-19 relief efforts, click here.
The 760 is remembered as the model that saved Volvo and allowed it to exist up till today. Though the company had line of smaller models (the 300 series) from its Dutch subsidiary, it still needed a large volume-seller to take over from the aging 240/260 that had done well before the world got hit by the first of the oil crises.
When the first plans for the 760 were formulated in the mid-1970s, the automotive industry in general was experiencing a lot of difficulties. The first oil crisis had just passed and increasing concerns about air pollution caused by exhaust fumes had brought on stricter emission-control regulations, requiring new engineering solutions at extra cost. It was also a very difficult time as production costs increased and currency issues also made exports more expensive.
The 760 had taken a longer time to develop because it was a crucial model and not just a successor to the 200-series. It was to take Volvo further into the premium segment for the first time and had to be able to attract customers who usually considered the BMW 5-Series or the Mercedes-Benz E-Class (W123 at that time).
The car that was launched in 1982 was entirely new with a design that epitomised the Swedish obsession with ‘function having priority over form’ and it was taken to an extreme. Elegant in some ways, it was also slab-sided – at a time when car designs were ‘softening’ with rounded edges and more curves.
Some thought the looks were rather ‘American’ and that Volvo’s designers wanted to appeal to that market where the company sold the most cars but that was never admitted. Jan Wilsgaard, then Volvo’s head of design, said the car looked the way it did because ‘of function and space optimization’.
Apparently, the finance department wanted a design with straight and flat surfaces, as well as angular lines, preferably 90 degrees, in order to reduce the production costs as much as possible. This led to Volvo’s looking rather boxy for a long time and it would only be in the mid-1990s, with the C70 Coupe that Peter Horbury, who was the design chief, could declare that Volvo had finally gotten rid of ‘the box’.
Wilsgaard’s proposal somehow satisfied the different groups within the company: the rear end was somewhat like a stationwagon with straight body sides and with an abruptly cut-off boot. This led to having almost vertical rear screen and boxy rear section. Designers were in pursuit of ever-lower drag coefficients by making shapes sleeker and it was pointed out that the 700’s Cd of 0.29 was as good as the Porsche 928’s and 10% better than the 264.
The 760 was conceived in a time when conditions changed almost daily and in the company, there were many strong and different opinions regarding the new car. There was no Internet to surf in order to understand consumer thinking but Volvo designers made use of the best possible tool available at the time, a very thorough analysis of the surrounding world.
Very valuable during this process was the use of product clinics which Volvo used for the first time and at which people’s reactions regarding the new car were studied without revealing any details like the brand of car or its origins.
No, this wasn’t from a James Bond movie. It was a dramatic film demonstrating the car’s strength by dropping it from 3 storeys.
Besides safety, it was decided that reliability, fuel efficiency, longevity, serviceability, low noise levels, design and performance – in that order – should guide the development work on the new project which was given the code ‘P31’. It was also decided that rear-wheel drive should be employed, and that the wheelbase should be 10 cm longer than that of the 264 which was Volvo’s flagship then.
The car was also to be somewhat shorter than its predecessor but had to be the same width. Volvos were still being viewed as ‘tanks’ because of their bulk and weight but Volvo was never discouraged by that label though the engineers were told that the 760 should be at least 100 kgs lighter than the 264.
Constant-track rear suspension with subframe in the middle.
What people saw of the exterior was entirely new but Volvo didn’t have the financial resources to develop a brand new platform for the car. So the powertrain and chassis were carried over from the 264, the primary engine being the 2.8-litre ‘Douvrin’ V6 engine which was jointly developed by Volvo, Peugeot and Renault and built at one plant for all of them.
The B23ET turbocharged engine used in the 740 Turbo.
There was also a 6-cylinder turbodiesel unit supplied by Volkswagen and tuned to Volvo’s specifications. It was the quickest diesel car at that time. Later on, Volvo would also offer the 760 Turbo which had unusually quick performance – 8.5 seconds from 0 to 100 km/h – which was very quick for a Volvo in those days.
Prior to the launch of the 760 in 1982, Volvo previewed the new shape as a stationwagon concept car at the 1981 Frankfurt Motorshow
Volvo also examined the idea of shutting down cylinders selectively when a high power output was not necessary. This was a fuel-saving strategy but it was very crude in operation and it was only some 2 decades later than Honda would be able to get the concept refined enough for use (GM did introduce such an engine in some of its models but it failed to catch on).
The 760 became a turning point for Volvo, product-wise and financially, and formed the basis for the continuation of the company. Like the later Galaxy project which saw Volvo moving into front-wheel drive cars with the 850, the P31 project was a massive industrial undertaking.
Longevity was also evident in the platform which continued to evolve up till 1998 when the last model with its roots in 760 technologies ended production. Records show that 221,309 units of the 760 were made (1,230,704 if the smaller-engined 740 is included) before it was replaced in late 1992 by the 960.
While most Malaysians are remaining at home under the conditions of the Movement Control Order (MCO) which will run till April 28, 2020, there are many who are out carrying out duties that are vital to stop the spread of the COVID-19 virus. These are the frontliners who are also placing themselves at risk of getting infected.
The corporate sector has been providing support in various ways as this War Against COVID-19 is one which everyone has to play a part in. Where UMW Toyota Motor (UMWT) is concerned, providing protective gear is one of the ways that can help the frontliners who travel in vehicles.
This morning, representatives from UMWT handed over 10,000 seat covers, gear knob covers and steering covers which can provide protection over surfaces in the vehicle. The recipients were the PDRM (Royal Malaysian Police) and the Malaysian Relief Agency (MRA). The handover took place at the MRA Warehouse in Petaling Jaya, Selangor.
Additionally, at UMWT’s various outlets, assistance in the form of food, facemasks and other essentials have been gathered and donated from their respective locations. For example, a dealership in Kuala Selangor has donated meals and water to police and armed forces personnel stationed in its vicinity.
Nobody can see it, but it is a factor in a car’s fuel consumption, safety and comfort. It’s called aerodynamics, or the study of how air moves around solid objects. In the automotive world, its application is very practical: reducing a car’s resistance to wind. And all this is tested in its ‘temple’, the wind tunnel. This is how it works.
A hurricane in the room
Typically, prototypes are placed in the middle of a chamber, securely kept to the floor. Huge fans generate airflow and the vehicles can face winds of up to 300 km/h while sensors study their individual surfaces.
The air travels in a circular motion, depending on the size of the rotor and blades. Needless to say, when it’s blowing at full power, no one will be allowed inside the chamber as they would literally get blown out of it.
The car’s resistance data is displayed on the computer screens. Hundreds of numbers to be interpreted and compared to even the smallest variable to improve aerodynamics. Every millimetre of each part is key, since it is not only possible to reduce consumption, but also to increase stability, comfort and safety.
Shaping to go faster
Wind tunnels, while primarily used for development of future models, are also valuable for racing cars. While the goal in aerodynamic efficiency for production models is to lower fuel consumption and improve stability, when it comes to racing cars, optimising the bodywork to achieve higher speeds is the aim.
The performance of rear wings, for example, can be optimised for the best downforce.
CUPRA Racing’s Head of Technical Development, Xavi Serra, explains: “We want the new CUPRA Leon Competicion to have less air resistance and more grip when cornering. First, they will have to compete against the wind. Here we measure the parts on a 1:1 scale with the real aerodynamic loads and we can simulate the real contact with the road. This gives us the result of how the car will perform on the track.”
235 km/h standing still
The facilities where the CUPRA engineers test their prototypes are among the most complete and innovative. They have a special feature that makes the tests seem as if they are made in near-real conditions. However, instead of the car travelling at up to 235 km/h, the same effects are achieved by making the air travel at those speeds.
“The most important thing is that we can simulate the road. The wheels turn thanks to electric motors that move belts under the car,” said Wind Tunnel engineer Stefan Auri.
After hundreds of measurements, the results are compared with the car’s previous generation. “In this sense we’re satisfied; we’ve lowered the drag and improved the downforce, so it’s more efficient than the previous model, which will give us better lap times on the track,” said Xavi, adding that the data obtained will also be used to improve the new CUPRA models.
Supercomputer crunches numbers
The wind tunnel is not the only tool for improving aerodynamics. Supercomputing also plays a key role. When a model is in the early stages of development and there is not yet a prototype to study in a wind tunnel, 40,000 laptops working in unison are put to the service of aerodynamics. This is the MareNostrum 4 supercomputer, the most powerful in Spain and the seventh in Europe. Scientists around the world use it to carry out all kinds of simulations, and in the case of a collaboration project with SEAT, its computing power is used to battle the wind.
