Daihatsu has unveiled its latest concept car at the 2011 Indonesian International Motor Show – the Daihatsu A-Concept, which includes the involvement of Indonesians with the support of Daihatsu Japan.
After learning the name of the concept car from the scale model we photographed and featured earlier today, we had initially thought that the letter A in the name meant an A-segment vehicle. While this could still be (or not be) the fact, the official explanation for the letter A is that it represents the first letter in the alphabet and thus signifies the start of a new life for Indonesian society.
According to PT Astra Daihatsu Motor president Sudirman MR, there are currently a group of personnel from his company transferred to Japan for the purpose of knowledge transfer, covering various fields from car design down to production.
And there’s also the fact that Sudirman MR has been recently appointed to the board of directors of Daihatsu Motor Company, firmly cementing Indonesia’s importance in Daihatsu’s plans for the future. Indonesia is being used as the launch (and possibly production) hub for this car, much like India was the center for the concept and production of the Suzuki A-Star/Alto.
This car may very well be a preview for the upcoming affordable and economical car capable of 30km/l that Daihatsu plans to launch. Or it may be not, but from the way the car was presented, this is something that Daihatsu really wants to put into production.
We are guessing that Daihatsu Japan will be introducing the next generation Mira this September, since it has already been five years since the current generation was launched(end 2006). Daihatsu is likely to style the new JDM Mira according to quirky Japanese tastes, but perhaps the design of this A-Concept will be used to create an ASEAN/world version of the car, just like how there is a separate JDM Passo/Boon design for Japan and a Myvi/Sirion design for Malaysia and Indonesia.
Look after the jump for a full photo gallery of the A-Concept.
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Proton Saga to finally come with ABS?
The engine bay photo reveals another little surprise, though it isn’t obvious upon first glance – we only spotted it upon closer inspection.
It’s an ABS brake pump located on the left side of the bay (it’s at the bottom, on the extreme left, in the photo). The shape of the entire assembly – the ABS body, brake fluid pressure pump and brake lines – is unmistakable.
To our knowledge, the Saga has never come with ABS, and there was no mention of it in the FL 1.6 Executive when that was introduced a couple of months back, so this looks very much like a big add-on feature to the car, and one that will undoubtedly be welcomed by consumers.
No ABS pump module/assembly in the FL Saga’s engine bay.
The question is of course whether ABS – and correspondingly, EBD and BA – will now be a standard production feature, albeit for the high-line versions, working its way on to the likes of the FL 1.6 Executive, or just something unique to something like the FLX?
Does the X suffix on that one mean Extra, signifying a range-topping Saga?
Audi A6 2.8 FSI and 3.0 TFSI launched at IIMS 2011
The Audi A6 has been launched in Indonesia, making it the first ASEAN country to get the new car, ahead of even Singapore. No surprise, considering Indonesia is important enough to Audi in the big picture for them to setup a factory there.
Two variants are available at launch, both with V6 engines. The inline-4 turbo seems to be missing for now, but perhaps that is to be launched later in CKD form. What is offered now is a 204 horsepower normally aspirated 2.8 liter FSI engine mated to a CVT transmission driving the front wheels, and a 300 horsepower 3.0 liter TFSI supercharged V6 with an S-tronic dual clutch gearbox driving all four wheels via the quattro all-wheel drive system.
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