Sunday, December 21, 2008

honda city 2009


The newest Honda City was unveiled in Thailand on the 10th of September 2008 followed by India on 25th September 2008. Honda also announced that the City will be offered in selected European countries with a 1.4 liter i-VTEC engine mated to either a 5-speed manual or a 6-speed i-SHIFT automated manual transmission.
Guangzhou Honda will be developing a Honda Civic-sized sedan based on the Honda City chassis for the Chinese market. It will have a new name and a new shape but will use the City's underpinings and a 1.8 liter engine. This new car will compete against Dongfeng Honda's Civic and FAW Toyota's Corolla.
The Thai market Honda City comes in three variants - S model, V Model and SV model. Honda might launch the new City in the Philippines by 2009. It will be launched in Malaysia on the 18th of December 2008. It is scheduled to arrive in Singapore by the end of September. For the first time, the car will be built and sold outside Asia, being assembled in Argentina from 2009 on.
Guangzhou Honda will be selling the Honda City in China from the 12th of December 2008 onwards. Unlike other markets where the largest engine option is a 1.5 liter, the Chinese market Honda City will have an R18A 1.8 liter engine option.

watch the chinese video

Saturday, December 20, 2008

honda civic


Prior to 1973, Honda was a company known more for its motorcycles than for its cars, which were tiny two-cylinder 600cc runabouts. This changed when the Civic debuted for 1973. The Civic offered amazing space efficiency in a fun little car that achieved more than 40 mpg on the highway. Room for four passengers was quite a feat for a car that possessed such diminutive dimensions as an 86.6-inch wheelbase and 139.8-inch overall length. A small transversely mounted engine and front-wheel-drive layout (an arrangement that was something of a novelty to the American car market) and 12-inch wheels maximized interior room. Indeed, early ads for the Civic boasted that it had more passenger room than many larger cars. Two similar body styles were available, a hatchback and a "sedan." These Civics were identical, even the rear of the cars looked the same, except that one had a hatchback and the other had a small vertical panel that opened to allow access to the "trunk." The early Civic had a few style quirks, such as turn signal lights that looked as if they were added on after the car was already built and a bulging center divider in the grille. Standard equipment included power front disc brakes, vinyl seating, reclining bucket seats and a woodgrain-accented dashboard. The hatchback added a fold-down rear seat, an AM radio and cloth upholstery. Options were minimal, consisting of air conditioning, an automatic transmission, radial tires and a rear wiper for the hatchback.












Friday, December 19, 2008

Just about everyone seems to have a Corolla in their past.










Just about everyone seems to have a Corolla in their past. Maybe it was the beater you drove through high school, never once changing the oil, cleaning the interior or asking the squirrels to move from their nest in the trunk. Perhaps it was the first new car you bought with just 60 easy payments, or the car your grandmother drove when she decided to simplify her life in retirement. Corollas have been practically ubiquitous and never terribly exciting.

Thursday, December 18, 2008

Datsun 120Y/B210/Sunny 1975-1980



Datsun 120Y and Datsun B-210 Sunny was extremely popular as it debuted during the gas crisis of the 1970s. It continued to be the fuel-economy leader in North America and one of the least expensive cars available. At the time body styling was popular with buyers. One name in particular used for the American market 120Y was the "Datsun Honeybee". Although regular production in Japan as well as sales in most countries ended with the 1978, the B210 series continued to be produced by Nissan South Africa through 1980.
Six bodystyles were offered: 4-door sedan, 2-door sedan, 3-door coupé, 3-door wagon, 5-door wagon and 3-door van. The coupé still retained fastback styling, but now featured a full hatchback door rather than the small boot lid of the previous generation Sunny.
The final Sunny from model year 1978 to 1982 featured numerous variants, including a fastback station wagon as well as more squared-off, utilitarian models with three and five doors, a coupé, and two- and four-door sedans. These models appeared with Datsun 120Y, 130Y, 140Y and 150Y badges in some markets (depending on engine size) though Sunny was increasingly used for export, too. The North American version was marketed as the Datsun 210. The B310 was known for its high equipment levels and build quality at the time. It was available with the same A-series engines as its predecessor although the B210's optional 63 series 5-speed transmission was replaced with the smaller 60 series unit.
In North America, the only wagon offered was the fastback version. In most other markets, a more traditional two-box wagon was offered.

Some old Peugoets which used to impress me when i was very young

Peugeot 404


The Peugeot 404 was produced by the French manufacturer Peugeot from 1960 to 1978 (certain markets until 1989). The 404 was designed by Pininfarina and manufactured in several body styles: sedan (saloon/berline), station wagon (estate/break) and pickup. A convertible was launched in 1961, followed by a coupé version in 1962.
The 404 was, and in some countries is still, popular as a taxicab due to its reputation for robustness. A 1.9 L diesel engine was also available, as carried over to the Peugeot 504. The 1.6 L petrol engine was also available with Kugelfischer mechanical fuel-injection, later used on the Peugeot 504. A ZF 3-speed automatic transmission was also available. Manual transmissions used a column-mounted shifter.
The French production run ended in 1975 after a total of 1,847,568 units were produced.
The 404 proved very popular in developing nations, due to its high practicality and value for money, which continued to build the vehicle under license so production continued up until 1988 in non-European markets, with a total combined run of 2,885,374 units.


Peugeot 504

The Peugeot 504 is a large family car produced by French automaker Peugeot between 1968 and 1983 in Europe. The car was produced until 2005 in Nigeria.
The Peugeot 504 made its public debut on 12 September 1968 at the Paris Salon. It was a four-door saloon, available in carburated and injection 1796 cc four-cylinder petrol engines, rated at 82 bhp and 97 bhp respectively. Both models were available with either a four-speed manual (steering column shift) or automatic (ZF 3HP22) transmission. Both models also had a sunroof fitted as standard.
The 504 was European Car of the Year on its launch. It was praised for its modern styling, solid build quality, smooth ride, strong engines and top notch refinement.
The 504 Injection two-door coupé and two-door cabriolet were made available to the public at the Salon de Geneva in 1969. These models were mechanically identical to the saloon version. Available models:
504 4-door saloon
504 Injection 4-door saloon
504 Injection 2-door coupé
504 Injection 2-door cabriolet
The 504 was also produced in Kenya until 2004 and in Nigeria until 2006 when Peugeot stopped shipping 504 kits from France. The 504 is still available new in Nigeria (2008).

oLd NiSSaN SuNnY(SeNtRa).. my FaVoUrAte

B12 (1986-1990)
What a Lovely car it was..


Also called Nissan sunny / sentra Production 1986-1990 Body style(s)
2-door sedan3-door hatchback4-door sedan5-door station wagon2-door coupe with Layout
Front engine, front-wheel drive / four-wheel drive
Engine(s) 1.6 L (96.7 cid) E16(s) I41.6 L (96.7 cid) E16(i) I41.6 L (96.7 cid) GA16(i) I4
Transmission(s) 4-speed manual5-speed manual3-speed automatic This generation carried on the multitude of body styles that the B11 had, including station wagon, 2 and 4-door sedans, 3-door hatchback and the Sport Coupe. The B12 chassis was first produced and marketed in 1985 in most parts of the world; however, was first offered to the United States in 1986. For 1987, all Sentras but the Sport Coupe came standard with the E16(s) with 69 hp (51 kW) and a 5-speed manual transmission. In 1988, all Sentras had the 70 hp (52 kW) E16(i), which was offered for this year with throttle body injection (TBI). In many parts of the world the E series soldiered on in the B12 chassis with some getting the multi-point fuel injection E16E engine. Diesel engines were also offered in some models, but were rare and only available in certain parts of the world. From 1989 to 1990, the only engine choice was the 90 hp (67 kW) GA16i, a 12-valve SOHC version of the later GA16DE. The B12 carried over a radically modified 4-wheel independent suspension from the B11, with 4-wheel disc brakes an option in some parts of the world. This was the start of the model classes which were standard through the 2003 model year (not all classes were available every year) having the "E" as the low level economy car, the "XE" as the base model, the GXE as the top level for the 4 door sedan, the sporty "SE" coupe, and the "SE-R" as the top of the line performance model. The GXE (available from 1987 to 2003) had a body colored bumper, areo side mirrors with manual remote control, tachometer as well as standard 13" 175/70/R13 alloy wheels along with air-conditioning, variable intermittent wipers, but no standard cassette deck nor any power windows/locks/mirrors. The SE also had dual mirrors, air conditioning, tachmoeter, and power door locks and windows in some markets and possibly electronic fuel injection. Back seats only came with safety lap belts and shoulder belts probably didn't exist until later models or perhaps until the next generation.
The B12 chassis would be the last chassis to offer a station wagon model, which was marketed as the "California" in some Asian markets. Even more rare are the four-wheel drive versions of the station wagon, offered as an option in 1988 and 1989 model years. These models featured an electrically-activated 4WD single-range transfer case to drive the independently-suspended rear wheels, making them selectable four-wheel-drive and not full-time four-wheel-drive vehicles. Starting in 1988 for the 1989 model year, the Nissan logo on the front grill was also switched from the right hand side to the center.
The Sport Coupe was a sportier style of the Sentra. It shared few if any of the body panels with the standard model. It was only available with the E16i or GA16i, and did not receive Nissan's CA18DE that was offered in the Sunny ZX Coupe. All Sport Coupes had dual sway bars, dual remote-adjust mirrors, and a tachometer next to the speedometer. The SE model added features like air conditioning and rear speakers.
B12s are known for reliability and great fuel economy, and are considered by enthusiasts to be good low budget project cars due to interchangeability of parts with other Nissan models.
In Kenya (East Africa), the B12 is imported and marketed as Nissan Sunny and comes with a 1.3 or a 1.5 Litre Petrol Engine. The 1.3 Litre litre version is assembled locally (1.3 SLX) and is known for greater reliability than the imported versions.
In Canada, the four-door sedan had been in production until 1993, and was called Sentra Classic to distinguish between the late B12s and the B13s released in 1991. It replaced the Nissan Micra 3/5-door hatchbacks, which were discontinued that time, and were also only sold in Canada. All 1991-93 "Classic" models came with the 70 hp (52 kW) E16i and the choice of two transmissions, 5-speed manual or 3-speed automatic.

Nissan Sentra Sport Coupe (US)

Nissan Sentra XE 3-door (US)



1989-1990 Nissan Sentra wagon (US)
B12 series
From 1985, the B12 was not as widely exported, apart from the station wagon model. This line is characterized by its squared-off styling, which was very unfashionable by the mid-1980s. The angular styling was insisted upon by Nissan's design chief at the time and contributed to the automaker's increasingly poor sales of the period. A four-wheel-drive variant was introduced during this generation. Known as Sentra in some markets.
In October 1986, European markets saw the B11 Sunny replaced by a rebadged N13 Pulsar in hatchback and saloon form (the hatchback replacing the previous N12 Pulsar, sold as the Cherry in this market). These were sold alongside the B12 Sunny estate and coupé.

A few customized sentra / sunny:


Getting ready to be customized