Mobil Rakyat...new cars

... the battery failing (It had been parked for a few months).

I have that problem constantly with my European cars. Even worse since it can get really cold. There's not much you can do besides putting it on a trickle charger. Which is also not very practical since the drip feed requires a power outlet and better be kept inside. So it makes more sense to ask family/friends or other people you trust to drive it once in a while.
 
Land Rover news flashes:

The Discovery Sport (which is the successor of the Freelander) is completely revamped. Many improvements even in the chassis go further than a regular facelift (even the size of the gas tank has changed).

nfayoi2bonk3_800.jpg


The bigger Discovery (successor of the Discovery 4) which is a look alike, is also available in Indonesia with the 2 liter engine now. (300 hp four cylinder.)
Its price is 2.5 billion rupiah. In Europe you would pay approx. €100K.

Landrover-Discovery-c-600x300.jpg



I had a Range Rover Sport once. And really, never again. I've never had a car with so many issues, not even the Jaguar X-Type or British Leyland Princess. Luckily the resale price was very high.

Raffi Ahmad (a local selebriti you see on TV practically every day) got himself the top of the line Range Rover.

images
 
Honda sells near-Toyota reliability with a little more performance and extras. They can't afford to let any reliability issue unaddressed. BMW sells luxury, performance, and comfort. Everybody expects to continuously sink money into it just to keep it running.
 
I have that problem constantly with my European cars. Even worse since it can get really cold. There's not much you can do besides putting it on a trickle charger. Which is also not very practical since the drip feed requires a power outlet and better be kept inside. So it makes more sense to ask family/friends or other people you trust to drive it once in a while.
They now sell solar powered trickle charger. I will definitely get one if I'm parking my car outside for days, or weeks.

 
I just have my kid take it out one day a month. I don’t live in an area where it gets very cold, mostly heat related problems.
 
Ya, perhaps less battery problems but a killer for the paintwork and tires and rubber parts.
 
BMW sells luxury, performance, and comfort.

That reminded me of this: We have seen the superlatives that the car manufacturers use. Such as New XXXX or even The All-New YYYY.

Well, BMW has taken it one step further and came up with....

....The first-ever ZZZZ

.? They even use it in their price list.
 
Talking about BMW, in Indonesia the 3-series is the smallest of their sedans, hatchbacks and coupés. They do sell smaller models as the X1 and X2, which obviously are the SUV versions of the smaller models we know from our home countries.

There is a new 1-series. This has become a front wheel drive, what the purists hate but it does offer more interior space. It is design wise logically related to the X2.

u1yydf0bghvh_800.jpg


jgbywdzboqlo_800.jpg


pdby4sgbbkyi_800.jpg
 
Mercedes Benz.....

The A-class has been the baby Benz the previous years. That car is rather popular here. Now it definitely is not the infamous "I failed the Elk test" model anymore. The later models are sportier and aimed at a younger audience. A bit more for people who would also consider a 1 or 2 series Beemer or Audi A3. The weird thing is that BMW does not offer the 1 and 2 series here, the 3 series is their smallest sedan.

MB is providing the GLx family for the target group which often shops for a (2WD) SUV or cross-over. The GLA, GLC, GLE, .... are for sale in Indonesia but amazingly expensive. And in fact you see the large high end SUV (read GLS, formerly GL), which is competing with the Landcruisers/Lexus and Range Rovers, more than the cheaper versions. Unlike BMW, which is doing really well with their X1 and X2.

Going back to the A class. Officially only three versions are available in Indonesia, the hatchback (oh sorry, it is the compact Saloon), the cross-over (oh sorry, Cross Country Vehicle) and the sedan (ah no, it is Limousine or Coupé).

The CLA is revamped. So wait a bit for this second generation if you're in the market for this car. Count on a starting price of more than 810 Juta, excl. options you'd definitely want. The car is 11 cm longer than the first edition but offers less interior space.

After the CLA (so let's say the coupé sedan of the A-class), the GLA (the SUV of the A-class) will also change.

But this is a biggie; after the facelift in 2017 a new model will be presented soon.
 
And similar news for BMW: The X1 which is rather popular in Indonesia, is changing. But the version of this model is only 3 years old so that means a facelift.

drmy7trbek1d_800.jpg
 
FCA (Fiat Chrysler Automobiles) has officially requested Renault to merge.

images

images


Hmm, what about Nissan and Mitsubishi then? Anyway, Renault is 'thinking about it'.

 
Omong Kosong part 2:

Honda has been teasing quite some time with the Honda e, an electric city car.

mzqy15mbh0ug_800.jpg




Yes, it is a five door. It has a lot of retro gimmicks and references to the old Honda's and will be available in 2020.

uxyyztmb3cye_800.jpg




Like the Audi e-Tron, this car will have cameras instead of side mirrors. But in this case it's not an option but standard.

mvwywc2bhs18_800.jpg


c5nyb7dbqi0i_800.jpg
 
.
The RX is the most popular Lexus in Indonesia. (Estimated yearly sale >1.100 units so it's quite rare.) I think that will change with the smaller NX and new UX. There is a 5 and a 7-seater (as of mid 2018) of this RX, the pulled out styling of the L version doesn't do it any good. It is one of the bigger models of the brand, in other continents the hybrid version is rather popular.

Now the car gets a facelift.

Before:

5cfyiiwbm1u7.jpg


After:

dkbyz2wbrzkj.jpg


To be fair, it must be said that there have been some changes inside as well, mainly to the infotainment system. Next to different controls and a larger display, Google Auto and Apple CarPlay are available.

2i3yzn4bzgle_800.jpg



More importantly the safety systems and driving characteristics got improved as well.

Obviously many people would go for a Benz or Beemer in this price class. But if you're not really interested in brand names but want extremely high quality and residual value, this is definitely a valid choice.

What is kind of interesting about the car, is that it clearly shows that the cross-overs and SUVs are canibalizing the sedan market, also in the luxury segment. For Lexus these type of cars make up 65% of their sales in the country, that was not even 20% three years ago.
.
 
Last edited:
I find it hard to like Toyota's latest "big mouth" style. A Toyota / Lexus car has to be considerably better than its Honda / Acura counterpart before I can tolerate the fish-mouth grille.
 
They prefer the term jet-fighter.

Of course there's SKYJET.



Some refer to Darth Vader.



Personally I kind of dislike BMW's new design language, esp. the kidney grilles on the front of the car; they become huge, look at the new 7-series.

This is the development over time:

1035

.
 
Toyota / Lexus grille looks like the front end of the A-7 Corsair, nicknamed SLUF (Short Little Ugly Fucker) for a good reason.

 
...this might be an interesting alternative, the Renault Koleos:

images



And it has even more features tYou can compare it with a full option new X-Trail. (Or even the X-Tremer version in RI.) It also has LED lights etc. It will set you back 460 Juta OTR in Jakarta.

Before and after facelift:

IMG_7979.jpg



Count the dashes I guess.
.
 
.
In the Tokyo Motor Show which takes place in October, it seems Honda will present a new Jazz...

honda_jazz_2020_punya_pilihan_mesin_lebih_banyak.jpg

This is a car magazine's artist impression, not an official picture.
 
BMW has introduced its new roadster, the Z4. Not cheap, count on 1,5 billion rupiah. (€95.000, $105,000)

images


images


Both manufacturers claim the cars are developed separately and will look and drive very differently though.

The Beemer has a soft top (again) which will also benefit the booth space.

Indonesia only got 20 cars. It is the Z4 sDrive 30i (that is a 2 liter engine, the discrepancy between engine size and model name gets a bit ridiculous ?).

Previously we got allotted he same amount of the X2 btw; 20.
.
 

Users who viewed this discussion (Total:0)

Follow Us

Latest Expat Indo Articles

Latest Tweets by Expat Indo

Latest Activity

New posts Latest threads

Online Now

Newest Members

Forum Statistics

Threads
5,966
Messages
97,385
Members
3,035
Latest member
Les 819
Back
Top Bottom