Thai Honda Accord gets good marks overseas
New Honda
Accord
The new Honda Accord which is made in
Thailand has received some good marks from Drive.com
e-magazine, with their summing up of the new Accord being
“Sharp value and quality finishes help the Honda Accord
stand out among more established large car peers.”
The review went further noting the good points as being:
“Sharp pricing
Plenty of equipment for the money
Spacious and stylish interior
Quality materials and finishes
Strong attention to detail
Economical four cylinder for a large sedan.”
Having driven the new shape Accord, which I think looks
absolutely fabulous from all angles, I do agree with their
tester’s comments. The spaciousness inside in particular,
and the attention to detail in the finish. In many ways,
this car is a tribute to the Thai workers who screw these
things together.
The Australian spec Accord gets a dual zone climate control
air-conditioning system, cruise control, power windows,
remote locking, six-stack CD player and an input jack for
iPods and other MP3 players. You also get leather seats, a
sunroof, heated front seats and a powered driver’s seat.
There’s also things like front fog lights and larger, 17
inch alloy wheels.
“It makes for a comprehensive package that’s made better by
the upmarket interior presentation. The made in Thailand
Honda Accord boasts restrained use of chrome as well as
silver touches inside and a quality, tactile collection of
interior plastics that are a step up from the asking price.
“The Accord’s 2.4 liter four cylinder manages a respectable
133 kW of power. The engine does a reasonable job and is
happy to be revved hard to glean better performance. It gets
vocal towards the upper end off the rev range, though.
“The upside of the Accord - and it’s a big one these days -
is relatively frugal fuel use. Its claimed 8.8 liters per
100 km consumption is some 15 percent better than its prime
Holden/Ford six-cylinder rivals.”
With a large body and a relatively small engine, the new
Accord is not one to buy if you are looking for a sporting
saloon. Go and look at an upper range BMW if that is what
you want (and be prepared to pay for the privilege).
Comfort and practicality is what really makes the new Accord
stand out, especially when you look at what you get for the
price (1.2 million baht and upwards to around 1.6 million
depending on level). Drive.com gave it five stars out of
five. “Impressive interior space for the new Accord,
something that’s amplified with the angled dash that sits
relatively low. Rear seat space, too, is generous, even for
large adults. The seats, though, could do with more lateral
support.” Their overall verdict was “Four Star, large car
newcomer worth a look if driving excitement isn’t a
priority.”
I would probably agree with most of their review, though I
do not agree with looking at “driving excitement” in a car
which is obviously not designed to be a sporting chariot.
For me, the comfort and practicality at the price is what
makes the new Accord a stand-out amongst others in that
group.
Finally, the gift for
someone who has everything!
Here it is, a James Bond style watch from Jaeger
LeCoultre and the AMVOX2 DBS Transponder watch has a license
to unlock the doors of your car.
The
ultimate watch?
James Bond’s famous ‘Q’ branch gadgets have taken a step
into the real world with a new watch that controls access to
your car, just like the remote locking key ring.
The 18 carat pink-gold watch will be unveiled publicly on
the eve of October’s Paris motor show, becoming an
exclusive, circa-$50,000 gift for the driver who has
everything.
Owners can simply unlock the doors by approaching the car
and pressing ‘Open’ (there are no buttons) located between 8
and 9 o’clock on the sapphire-crystal watch glass. The car
can be locked by pressing ‘Close’ between 3 and 4 o’clock.
Jaeger-LeCoultre spent over 18 months to develop the watch,
where engineers worked on shrinking the transponder to a
size and weight that could fit inside a watchcase. The
result is a transponder that weighs just a few grams and is
half the size of the same system inside the DSB keyfob.
Watches have been a popular Q-branch gadget throughout the
James Bond franchise, designed for various uses including a
garotte, magnet, buzz-saw, radio transmitter, TV monitor,
and remote bomb detonator.
There is only one requirement before you get this watch for
the car enthusiast you want to surprise. You have to order
it when he or she lines up for a new Aston Martin DBS V12.
Autotrivia Quiz
Last week I mentioned that Mercedes-Benz
tried to make a come-back in motor racing in 1951. I asked
where and what cars did they run? The answer was the Peron
Cups in Argentina and the cars were the 1939 Mercedes W
163’s (though some claim it was the W 154, running the M 163
engine). (They were not successful!)
So to this week. An easy one. Where did the Sex-Auto come
from? Hint: It was not Patpong Road.
For the Automania FREE beer this week, be the first correct
answer to email [email protected]
Good luck!
A fuel in paradise?
I received this letter from a confused Chiang Mai
resident:
“I would like some advice and maybe it is also interesting
for your readers. I am a permanent resident of Chiang Mai. I
drive a Mazda 323 automatic bought new in August 2000. I
always used petrol 95. That is not available anymore. Now I
have to use petrol 91. I can hear and feel it is less good
for my car. I would like to use Gasohol. But the Mazda
garage told me that I can not use it in my car. I read in
the newspapers that maybe there will come a time that petrol
91 is also not available anymore. I went back to my Mazda
garage but they still told me I can not use gasohol. After I
told them what to do if petrol 91 is not available they told
me then I have to use gasohol? I am totally confused now. My
friend who drives the same Mazda, bought also in 2000, uses
gasohol already for three years and did not discover any
problems. Meanwhile in the Bangkok Post there is a
discussion about E85 and the use or misuse of a magic box
which you can put in your engine to change from petrol to
E85. I would appreciate it if you can shine some light on
this matter. I will not be the only one with this problem.
Thanks, Annelie, Chiang Mai
Dear Annelie,
You are quite correct, you are not the only one with this
problem, and quite frankly, the conflicting stories from the
government has not helped. Now they are promoting E 85, and
before that E 20 and E 10 and the ecocar which is supposed
to run on petrol, or ethanol, or diesel, or pineapple juice.
Who would know?
Since we only have one car in Thailand that can run on E 85
(the Volvo C30), this is not going to produce a queue at the
pumps (sorry, pump). The manufacturers are also saying that
there is not enough tax incentive for them to bring in E 85
compatible vehicles. It is currently a schmozzle.
Now getting back to your problem with the Mazda 323 (a great
little car by the way), I would be listening to your local
Mazda agent. It will run on 91 octane fuel, though the spark
may have to be retarded just a tad. They can do that for
you. I also do believe that 91 gasoline will be available
for many years, so I wouldn’t worry yet. Forget 91 gasohol,
in my opinion. The savings at the pump do not counter
balance the increase in consumption with gasohol blends.
Finally, forget ‘magic boxes’. To change to ethanol based E
85 fuels requires more than a little tweaking of the engine
spark system. If it were that easy to convert, your local
manufacturer’s agent would be equipping all their new cars
with it.
Chevrolet Cruze - the
new Optra?
Finally, GM can see that its future (survival)
depends upon good looking small fuel efficient motor cars.
Even in Detroit, the home of large capacity American iron.
Chevrolet
Cruze
The new Chevrolet Cruze looks like being the replacement for
Chevrolet’s rebadged Daewoo Lacetti - which became the
Chevrolet Optra.
It will become a new global small car for GM and hits
European showrooms in March 2009 before launching in other
global markets. The five-seater coupe-style sedan is
reported to have been developed in Germany and designed in
South Korea.
What did we learn from
Valencia?
The first thing we learned was that despite
producing a reasonable orange, Valencia certainly managed to
produce a dreadfully boring Grand Prix. It was so boring,
the only exciting information that James Allen could give us
was the fact that there will be the annual tomato throwing
competition next week. I suggest that next year they combine
the Grand Prix and the Tomato Throwing. Fans can then throw
oranges at Bernie and the FIA stewards, and tomatoes at the
F1 procession which takes place around Valencia’s streets.
I will get to the race, but let’s deal with the stewards
decision first. Massa’s Ferrari is released into the path of
Adrian Sutil’s Vindaloo Special. Well covered by TV, guilty
as charged, yer Honor. However, the chicken excreta stewards
say their decision will be given after the race. After? What
were they waiting for? A brown envelope from Ferrari
perhaps? Or perhaps a word from Bernie? However, one hour
later they did hand down their decision. With the wisdom of
Solomon, Massa was found not guilty, but fined 10,000 euros
and given a reprimand! Come on, chaps. If he’s not guilty,
why the fine? Cluck, cluck, cluck and another handful of
corn for the stewards. Mind you, what Massa is going to do
with that incredible trophy, I do not know. Obviously the
Valencia people had forgotten about a trophy for the winner
and in desperation stole the rudder from some yacht in the
harbor!
Perhaps much can be explained by the first lap demise of the
Sulky Spaniard after being rear ended by the Kamikaze Kid in
the Williams. With no Spaniard in the race, the television
schedule was thrown into complete chaos. In fact, the TV
director probably expected the race to be stopped, but he
didn’t know about our Bernie, did he? In actual fact, if
they had stopped the race it would have been more exciting.
And so to the race. Did anyone see any passing? I didn’t,
other than another of Coulthard’s super-optimistic lunges
that didn’t come off. I’ll miss him next year. The other
drivers won’t though. Raikkonen needs his bottom spanked for
another surly performance. Kubica got a plastic bag stuck
under his nose which slowed him for a couple of laps, but a
quick sneeze and he was back up to speed. As for the rest?
Forget it!
