Toyota Harrier 2.2l Year 1998 Manual

I am trying to find a manual for the Toyota Harrier 2.2l, year 1998. It is pretty difficult to secure one copy in the UK, let alone in Japan. I think it is not difficult to find a Japanese copy but what about a translated copy of the manual then? Is there somewhere that I could get hold of? That will be pretty good!

Persona SE

In conjunction with Merdeka, Proton has launched the Persona SE which is actually a rebadged Gen-2 with some upgrade kits. What I failed to see is the point of Proton engineers trying to release a new version of their cars without actually changing the chasis or even the engine of the car! What I am more surprised is that the supposed to be new engine of the Persona SE, is actually a Campro IAFM CPS engine which could be found in the Gen-2! What on earth is this? Well, to be fair, buyers of the Persona SE would get some interior upgrade kits for free. You have window mounted GPS, cruise control and CD-player among other things. I think there is no need for people to buy the Personal SE if you already driving a Wira or the Gen-2.

The earlier Campro engine which you could find in the Gen-2 is the first version where it lacks Torque. I have driven in one of them before. I would have to say that the response of the engine is way much better than the Wira which I used to drive back then. The Wira 1.5 automatic only has three speed and an overdrive gear. The Waja and Gen-2 both have four speed automatic. Well, I have to say that with the launch of the CPS engine for the Gen-2, people might want to buy the Gen-2 right? Not really! Why? Considering that the Persona SE is a tat RM10,000 cheaper than the Gen-2, why would people want to buy yesterday's technology then? Would it be better to buy a new model which cost a tat cheaper than the old model? Think about it.

That is why dealers of the Waja and especially the Gen-2s are dying to sell their old stock by giving massive discount. I think it is just right now for people to buy Gen-2 and Waja because you do get good discount. I hate to say this but the Waja's engine suffers from low speed performance. If you were to drive at around 80 km/h and then move down to around 30 km/h and then tried to speed up again, you will see that the engine takes longer time to response. You would be ending up pressing the accelerator too much to cause the rav meter to 4 or 5000rpm. That is the problem. The Gen-2's engine is much better but still having minor issue when the driver tries to speed up from 30 km/h to 80 km/h. With the launch of CPS engine, I think it has solved the problem.

In the end, what are you waiting for? Persona SE is worth buying... Well, think about other cars in the same segment. Kia perhaps? Honda is out of the question because they are quite expensive. What about Toyota then?

Proton Savvy

Proton Savvy is one of the latest invention by Proton Malaysia to counter strike from Perodua's Myvvi. The sad part is that not many are bothered about the competition between the two companies because they don't really come up with good design cars with reasonable performance engines in the cars anyway. This time, Proton Savvy, as I think, is one of the by product of Proton which has gone awefully bad.

Proton Savvy has been sold in Malaysia for a few years now and not many people wants to buy it. Instead, consumers will turn to Perodua's Myvvi. Do you know why? The standard interior and exterior of the Perodua Myvvi is so much better than Proton Savvy. I went to one of Proton'
s dealer in London to have a look at the Proton Savvy and I was truly disappointed. If you remove the unconfortable looks of the interior, wait until you see the exterior of the car! The look is not pretty and the ride is not as comfortable as the Perodua Myvvi. I do understand that there are criticisms about the Perodua Myvvi too but I believe that there are no recalls for the Perodua Myvvi.

It is not all bed of roses for Proton Savvy. Recently, Proton has made a recall for Proton Savvy and it would surely cost Proton a lot. I am not sure whether the recall includes exported models but surely those Proton Savvys which are being used locally are being recalls. You will then see that the champion goes to Perodua Myvvi now.

It is all too bad for Proton because they have bought over Lotus and surely they can come up with some good design of an engine for the Proton Savvy and boy, someone needs to redesign the exterior of the car! It is too small and the car does not feel solid at all!!!

I really hope that future compact cars of Proton will set Perodua's Myvvi as a standard! Oh dear...

Gen-2

I was really happy to see that the Proton Gen2 is being sold in the UK. Although I do know that Proton has to compete with other car manufacturers in regard to their products, nevertheless, I was quite impressed to see that they have actually marketed the Gen2 using the 1.6 Campro engine.

While I am not familier with the Campro engine, I pay a visit to wikipedia.org and found out that the Campro engine installed on the Gen2 is quite impressive. It is deemed to have variable valve timing (similar to VTEC by Honda) and it is DOHC. There are several versions of the Campro but I hope that Proton have installed the best version of the Campro into the Gen2. I have yet to try out one of them. Perhaps I should go and have a test drive on my own, what do you think?

Proton Saga BLM

I came across www.paultan.org and guess what? Proton has released pictures and information regarding the forthcoming Proton Saga Base Line Model (BLM). It is really interesting to know that the so called 'cheap' model from Proton is going to be sold for about RM 30,000. That is really good news for the local market. I think it is nice for Proton to come up with new product all the time to compete with rival companies. I think it is high time for them to do so.

I just hope that the Proton Saga BLM will be released in the market soon. I was informed that the car will come in a 1.3 litre Campro engine with Variable Valve Timing . I will be looking forward to seeing it soon.

Lamborghini Murcielago LP640

Wow! That was my first impression when I saw one on the UK soil. It was fantastic! The car was yellow in colour and it drove by me and guess what? The sound of the engine nearly blew me away. I have never come across the sound as loud as the LP640. Well, the refind sound of the Ferrari F50 came close to blow me away but not as good as the LP640. It just did!

As you know, the LP640 is the upgrade version of the Lambourghini Murcielago. Equipped with 640bhp and a 6.5l engine, everything seems to be essessive. What can you say about the car? It is quick and big. Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson managed to hit 207mph on the track at one time. It is just crazy man.

The car is actually quite sensible as it comes with a decent air-condition and it meets Euro IV emissions! Well, you do need deep pockets to get one. It is now priced at around £190,000. That is sufficient for one to buy a decent house! Anyway, with 8 miles to the gallon, one would really need to have deep pocket. Insurance for the car is pretty high too due to the high CO2 emission. Anyway, the car is a good one to buy if you are rich enough. I don't think the Jaguar XF comes near to it. The LP640 is a calls of its own. It is a dream to own one for yourself.

Perodua Viva

Hey! The car was launched on 10th May 2007. I was quite excited to see the specification of the car. Certainly the interior and the exterior of the car have improved through these few years. It has ABS, dual SRS airbag, central locking, alarm, immobiliser, cup holders, air-cond, cd player and DVVT. I was quite impressed with the fuel consumption of the car.

However, on looking at the engine of the car, it seems to me that it shares the same engine platform as the Kelisa. Oh no... The Kelisa uses the EJ-VE engine and it is the same as Viva! What?! I thought that there should be a new engine! Well, DVVT is nothing spetacular anymore. It was first used in the Perodua Kembara. The problem with Kembara is that the engine is too course. It has high rev and it is not fuel efficient at all. I have tried on the Kembara and it is not a pleasant drive. I would always need to rev the SUV before it can move especially uphill.

No doubt that the price of the Viva is around RM 40000 for a premium 1 litre Viva. It is comparatively better value for Kancil owners who wants to upgrade to a better car. Beware! Better get the 1 litre engine or else you would not have power steering at all! Just imagine driving a new car without power steering. That is some how difficult, isn't it?

Overall, the Viva is much better value for money than the Kelisa. For existing Kelisa owners, don't look down at yourself. The Viva is not much better than the Kelisa itself. I would not consider buying the Viva if I do have a Kelisa. One simple reason, the Viva has the same engine as the Kelisa. Hum... Not for me. Stick with the Kelisa my friend. Although it would cost around £6000 over here, I would think that for current Kelisa owners who want to upgrade their car, stick on with Myvi. The engine of the Myvi is so much smoother than the Kelisa. It has better torque and faster response. It has 16 valves and with DOHC and DVVT. Please correct me if I am wrong. Have fun!

'Kereta Potong'

What do you understand about 'kereta potong'? It is a term used in Malaysia to describe two different car parts being joined together to form a new car which has its new identity. Is this a common thing in Malaysia?

I don't know but I do hear people telling me that they need to increase their car's performance. A good place to look for aftermarket engines will be 'kereta potong' sites. A typical 'kereta potong' site should consist of many shades which houses many different kinds of engines. It has many parts of a car which might be useful for buyers to fix their cars.

I do have a friend back in Malaysia and he likes to modify his Honda Accord. His Honda is actually a 2.2i but he wants to modify his car so that the car will have better pick up power. Since his car is not a VTEC engine, he went on to look for an Integra DOHC VTEC engine which is a 2.2 or more. He was telling me that he wants to have a red engine and the Integra engine will fit into his car. I said that it will be not wise for him to do so because he would be spending a lot of money to fix the engine bearing in mind his car's axle, suspension and also handling would have to be changed to fit the integra engine. He said never mind.

Well, after getting advice from a few of his friends, he has decided to just change his existing air filter to K&N and changed his suspension spring to Eibech. He also managed to fit two NOS bottle into his Accord and changed his brake system to 4 pots Brembo. Well, he spent quite a lot of money but he liked it. He also managed to ask the mechanic to tweak his car's ECU. I don't know how would they know what to do as the ECU is computerised. Oh well... in the end... I can tell you that the car rocks.

From a third person's point of view, one would not be able to see the changes in the car compared to a stock Honda Accord 2.2i because he is smart. Outwardly it does not show that he has made any modification but when you look underneath the bonnet, you will know the changes. Best of all, when you drive the car, you will be able to feel the force... Very fast indeed...