BMW 523i(e60) and Mercedes Benz E240(W211)

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 The BMW's 523i

This car here is a drivers car i would say chiefly because whenever it feels better when you're in the drivers seat rather than the passenger's. The best thing that in noticed about this car is when i turned the ignition key and revved the inline 6 all the way up till 6k rpm, and it feels damn smooth, infact alot smoother and silkier than i-vtec engine which i regard as the best engines i've ever sampled.

Power wise, its able, but you'll have to be a little aggressive on the throttle to see it go real fast.The NB25 engine produces 218Bhp at 6500rpm, and generates 250Nm of torque at a low 2750rpm, and it accelerates from 0-100kmh in 7.9 seconds.On paper it does look pretty damn mighty, but in real life it doesn't go as aggressively as the specification suggest. It is quite difficult to provoke a wheelspin, probably due to the large grippy wheels. Although more powerfull than the mercedes e240, the noise that it came from the exhaust still lacks the manly growl that came out from the double sided exhaust of the mercedes. 

Ride wise, as you would expect is sporty. The standard spring of this BMW is comparable to the Avantgarde mercedes with lowered sports suspension, which i think is a little bit bumpy. The cabin is quiet during highway and town runs.The steering is very sharp, responsive, accurate, and with every millimeter of steering inputs, the movements of the wheels can be felt. overly Aggressive Active Steering system perhaps?

The cabin is quite spacious, comfy, quiet and the seats are quite comfortable if you're a passenger, And if you're a driver, there's lots of toys that distract you from driving. The I-drive for example takes time to master, and the gearstick is gimicky and confusing. You push the gear lever down for up shifts and up for down shifts, and to enter P, you'll have to press a button. 

As for conclusion, if you're aged between 20-35, you can buy one for yourself, because this car will probably be one of the most expensive TOY you'll ever had.  With a sea of functions and gadgets for you to play with, and an engine that  revs so sweetly till its redline suggest that it can outrun ah bengs in between traffic lights.And if you don't mind the hard ride, go for the M-sport package, highly recommended.

The Mercedes Benz' 

This e240 has a 2600cc engine that is quite smooth too, but it still looses out to the BMW, in terms of power, its 205hp and 245NM torque is no challenge to the mighty BMW's engine. Where it looses in output, it gains in offering a growly induction noise when revved. When driving around town, this engines needs to be revved to get it to the next traffic lights ASAP, but it doesn't have the silky smoothness of the BMW, and the it feels lazy and relaxed.

The gearchange in this Merc is BADDDD, gearchanges at low speed is jerky, it doesn't matter if the transmissions selector is pressed to comfort, and if its in sporty its even jerkier, but if you drive it faster, these problems disappear. I usually drive it in sport settings, because it sharpens the throttle and gearchanges. The throttle is clasically mercedes like, requiring long travel before it will GO, tricky to modulate at low speed. 

The brakes on this mercedes is a SBC(sensotronic brake) and it doesn't give of much feel to the driver, in town drive the pedal feels is OK, but when you hit it when doing a 180kmh run, it'll scare you, because a slight travel will induce a hard brake, nonetheless the brakes are powerfull enough to stop this big exec.

The ride on lowered and harder avantgarde spec package is good, it betters the BMW, and its good in the corners too. Body roll is very minimal and the Continental premium contact tyre is excellent in holding the big exec on the road as well as offering a quiet ride.

The seats are comfy, but shoulders support is quite lacking, but generally these firm seats are good in holding you in place during spirited driving. 

The cabin is also a very nice place to be in, and personally, i think it is much more better than in the BMW. Rear aircond vents in the center console and B-pillar is a god sent, and they are powerful enough to quickly cool the cabin in the hot weather, and the BMW doesn't have that. Passenger at the back will also enjoy huge space and comfort on long journeys, and it felt less claustrophobic in the light coloured mercedes cabin rather than the darker BMW cabin.

One of the bugbears of this exec is the low ground clearance. The 15mm lowered suspension compared to the elegance version means that the avantgarde car will have to go really slow on speed bumps or poorly surfaced roads. The low front bumper is also susceptible to scratches from road divider, or other higher obstacles.

As a conclusion, If value comfort in your day to day drive to work or holiday, you'll certainly wanted to be wafted home/to your destination with a mercedes. This mercedes is a car that is easy to drive if you do not like to refer to the drivers manual, and if you're 35-50 get the elegance specification because it is much more comfortable and has a higher ground clearance, but if you're young, get one with the AMG bodykit and aggresive 19'inch rims.

  

A Trip to Broga Hill

6.20am on the first station point, picture taken with 3 second exposure

Oh Gosh, early in the morning and its this crowded already?

We were waiting for the sun to rise at 6.40am;You must be laughing!!!!

Hiking buddies, Yeah there's a girl in the picture, its to show that this track is not as difficult as it sounds.

Nice Carpet, but look closer and its all grass

The view around the valley at 7am

See the difference between the foreground and the background?

7.15am

Its getting crowded

7.24am

7.24.30.00am, that's how fast the sun rises. I quickly grab my camera just as i saw the sun rays rising from behind the hill, and then in a split second *kapoof* the sun is up there.

The sun is happily blasting us with UV's at around 7.30am.

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Bukit Broga is just a 49KM drive away from my place in Ampang via the grand saga highway. This is my first time here, so i've prep myself up with a bag full of stuffs as i would normally do in long hikes. Started my journey at 5am and reached there at 5.40am which is still too dark to hike, so it is important to bring along your LED/XENON/halogen lights along for early morning hike.

It was raining heavily when we started our journey from my home, and when we reached it was still drizzling with rain and mist. Armed only with 2 xenon torches, 5 of us continued our walk into the unknown when it was still dark, wet and slippery.

The trails leading all the way up this hill is unchallenging, safe and i think that kids from age 12 onwards could possibly scale up this hill without difficulties, and on my way down i saw many seniors grannies too. Muddy trails and small sharp rocks are the only difficulties that one encounters during this hike, so it is vital to have a good pair of hiking shoes to protect your feet.

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Coordinates :  N 02 56.345 , E 101 54.088

Equipments to pack :

 -A backpack, don't have to be big because it is a short hike.

-1 bottle of water

-A chocolate bar/snack bar/biscuits and etc.

-Camera

-Vicks/Tea tree oil/ or any ointment that could soothe itchiness and mosquito bites

Attire:

-Wear a long sleeve shirt because, contact between the tall grass and your skin will cause terrible itch

-Wear Tracks,Jeans,Long pants, again this is to prevent mosquito bites and grass contact on the skin.

-A big hat, when tracking on midday, be sure to bring this, as there is no trees and natural shades up here.

-During rainy season, the mud trails can become slippery, thus a good pair of hiking shoes is essential, but my Nike Court shuttle seems to work fine!!!

King Long CAM Placer 15 seater Van review

Engine : Isuzu sourced 4JB1-T (engine also used in hicom perkasa MTB150T, and isuzu trooper 4x4).
Engine type: 4cyl,8 valve, euro 2, turbocharged diesel engine
Transmission: 5 speed manual , full synchro with single plate clutch

Drive type:  front engine , rear wheel drive,
front suspension: independat suspension
rear suspension: Torsion beam with leaf spring
Brakes: front disc and rear drum type

This King Long CAM Placer commercial van is the latest 15 seater van from China Auto Manufacturers group, priced at an affordable RM83,837.60 for private registration and RM84,201.71 for company registration, it represents great value if you compare it againts other chinese competition such as Jinbei. This van offers huge amount of headroom, and small people could easily stand up in the cabin without bobbing his head.

The engine

As expected from every diesel engine, it is noisy and clattery, but thats all that is sacrificed. The engine is powerful, torquey and very economical. Because of my work that involves commercial trucks, i dont find any problems with the engine, and i think that Kinglong has made a wise decision in fitting the world's most popular diesel engine into the worlds most undesirable brand, as it balances it.

The cabin

The cabin is a great place to be in, although the rear seat are a bit upright,hard and covered with canvas and cloth, but i do get a powerful air conditioner, and the ride is quite comfy too. I might scare you when i say the engine is a bit loud, but the quietness and the comfort level of the ride is more than make up for that inadequacies. And a expected too are its quality level which is typically low, although i do noticed that the plastics on the door of this van is less rough and inferior to the Proton Exora's, and the doors close with solid thud'."not so Tinny as expected", and i also liked the LED lights on the wing mirrors of the van.

The drive

The van is powerful and effortless enough to cruise along highways  at a fairly high speed straights, but DO watch out for the corners as it isn't very good there. At speeds of 80-100kmh, the ride is still comfy, but as it goes higher it deteriorates.The supplied onboard computer is a gimmicky device...sure its got reverse camera,trip, info and etc function, but it is difficult to see under a bright day due to poor LCD screen, and its difficult to judge the distance when reversing, even with a reverse camera.

Conclusion

All this while, i've never been in a chinese made van before, and i actually thought that these vans are inferior and prone to breakdowns, but guess what, My perception is wrong with this van. And i'll suggest this product to those who wants to ferry 15 people, drives around town, wants cheap and good value van.

I maybe selling this product,but i try not to be bias in my reviews, anyway i can be contacted through e-mail to arrange for a test drive.

Review on the Nissan Murano or Impul 725SW SUV

This Nissan Murano or Impul 725SW SUV 4x2, specifications as follows:-

 Engine capacity: The QR25DE is a 2.5 L (2488 cc)
Bore and stroke: 89mm x 100mm
Compression ratio: 9.5.1
Power output : 175 HP / 130KW @ 6000rpm
Torque: 180 ft.lbf at 4000rpm


Performance wise, its just merely OK from the 2.5litre unit, as it need to haul something that's around 1.8tonnes. A hard drive on the stretches of genting highlands will expose all the weaknesses of the handling of any vehicles, and this big SUV is not exempted. This SUV gives a bumpy ride on rough roads even though it has a long travel suspension. The low speed ride is terrible, and small ridges rattled their way into the cabin, and even those fantastic and cushy seats cant seems to hold you in properly in place because the ride can get so bumpy that you will constantly find yourself adjusting your bottom very often.
When cornering, this SUV tends to lurch thru the corners. The amount of body roll is OK, but when cornering, it tends to feel front heavy, making cornering entry feels scary. Thankfully the steering feels is good and accurate, but there's not much feels to it.
The brakes on the other hand feels just 'sufficient' to stop this SUV, perhaps its because of the long travel pedal? The brakes also tend to cook easily, because when i reached the foothill of genting highland, i found myself slamming harder on the brakes to stop.

On highway runs, this thing feels more comfortable, partly due to its smooth CVT gearbox. The engine is spinning at merely 2000rpm when doing 120-130kmh, and at speeds of up to 160kmh, the cabin remains very quiet. But in town the CVT behaves differently, because i found myself braking more frequently in heavy traffic.The gear ratio can be so high that a dab on the accelerator can bring the vehicle so far away. Fuel consumption of this vehicle is relatively high, and i average around 6.4 - 7.3Km/litre when driving around town , but when driving on the highways it improves at around 10-11km/litre.

The interior of this cruiser is a very comfortable place to be in, because it is spacious, the big and cushy seats are comfy feels supportive just like couch would, and it is quiet. Driving controls feels good,  tactility is OK, ergonomics is OK but the overall build quality feels somewhat poor. The doors don't close with a solid "Thud", the back tonneau cover rattles when going over bumps, and door handles that feels too filmsy.
The rear seats are very spacious and comfy, and it can fit 3 big and tall fellas back there comfortably. The keyless entry feature is very usefull, as well as the rear and side camera that becomes indispensable when parking this vehicle in tight spaces.


As conclusion the the ownership of this SUV, i'd say its best suited for highway runs, because its the only place where i find it relaxing to travel in, and also won't scare me. Most auto magazines will tell you how good this SUV is, but let me tell you that it ISN'T, and the only reason why i end up owning this Murano is because there is no other car in the market that is this stylish,big,have good ground clearance, good standard specs, and within the 2500cc range.

The way it drives feels 'similar' to the KIA SORENTO.

Sorry for the poor picture quality,  its taken with my HD2 again, lost my lumix yesterday
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Update 16/4/2010

Taken the Nissan Murano 3.5 AWD for a spin and it is different compared to the IMPUL tuned units. For one the ride is smoother and much much more comfy, but with extra weight at the front, it feels a little more nose heavy when cornering hard. Also, the Nissan Murano rolls more in corners.

So the  Impul 725 is actually, a tuned up version of the nissan murano, that has a terribly harder ride, and a little bit more enjoyable when cornering hard.

Final Year Project

I'm currently studying on the suitable materials for cargo body construction, will start with a design via dassaults systemes solidworks 2009 x64 designing software.

1st stage designing the crossmembers
2nd stage assembling the floor panels
3rd stage assembling the crossmembers and the floor panels
4th stage simulation

But before starting these designs, i'll first have to do test on the various types of woods, aluminium and steels.