The Volkswagen Group on Tuesday signed an agreement with Malaysia's DRB Hicom auto group for local vehicle assembly as the Wolfsburg-based automaker seeks to expand its operations in Southeast Asia under the Strategy 2018 growth program. The announcement came after VW abandoned alliance talks with Malaysian state-owned carmaker Proton earlier this year for undisclosed reasons.

The one billion ringgit ($318 million) deal with DRB Hicom will see VW beginning the assembly of Passat models from the end of 2011 with an initial annual capacity of "several thousand vehicles." The German carmaker said it plans to build further models for the Malaysian market on the basis of a local full scale production in a second expansion phase from the end of 2012.

"Developing the market potential of the ASEAN region is of major significance for the Volkswagen Group’s long-term growth strategy," said Christian Klingler, Member of the Board of Management of Volkswagen AG. "We will be using existing structures and capacities at the DRB Hicom plant in Pekan to systematically extend our presence in the Malaysian market of the future."

The Malaysian joint venture will be Volkswagen's second in the Asean region, as the German company set up assembly operations in Indonesia for the production of the Touran in 2009

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It appears that Aston Martin won't be the only British sports car maker to have a controversial small city car in its range. Lotus chief executive Dany Bahar told Car magazine that the Concept City Car, which was previewed at the recent Paris Motor Show alongside five sports car studies, has been approved for production. The comapny's CEO said the car will be manufactured in cooperation with Lotus parent company Proton and an undisclosed third party.

"Our city car has been confirmed and will be launched in October 2013," Mr. Bahar told the British magazine. "We are doing this together with Proton and another OEM [original equipment manufacturer, or car maker]. We will build three versions: one for the Asian market, one for Europe and a sportier one."

The Lotus flavored Concept City Car is based on one of the three Giugiaro-penned Proton EMAS design studies, which were first shown in Geneva earlier this year.

Built on a platform that was designed in-house by Italdesign Giugiaro, the EV concept model features a 45 kW (75kW peak power) electric motor that can be recharged by a 1.2 liter 3-cylinder engine. The hybrid plug-in drive system was developed entirely by Lotus. Unlike the front-wheel drive iQ-Cygnet, British supermini gets a rear-wheel drive setup.

With a total vehicle weight of less than 1400 kg [3,086 lbs] and 240 Nm [177 lb-ft] of torque instantly available, the City Car concept is said to complete the 0 - 50 km/h sprint in 4.5 seconds and the 0 - 100 km/h [62 mph] in 9 seconds, when operating as an EV under battery power. The top speed is pegged at 170 km/h, [105mph] with a charge sustaining top speed of 120 km/h [63 mph].

The pure electric drive range is 50 km or 31 miles, but can be extended to a total of 500 km or 311 miles when the petrol engine kicks. Lotus claims that the drivetrain returns CO2 emissions of 60 g/km.

Mr. Bahar did not say if the production model will keep the concept's extended-range hybrid drivetrain or if Lotus will offer the car with a traditional petrol engine as well.

Source: Car magazine

Lotus City Car Concept Specifications

Layout: 3-door, 4-seater, rear-wheel drive
Drivetrain Series hybrid drivetrain
Range extender engine 35 kW, 1.2-litre, 3-cylinder engine
Engine fuel Flex-fuel (methanol, ethanol and petrol)
Battery Capacity 14.8 kWh
Power/Torque 162 kW peak (54 kW continuous)/240 Nm, 0-50 km/h 4.5 seconds, 0-100 km/h 9.0 seconds
Top speed 170km/h
Range 500 km
EV range 60km
CO2 emissions 60g/km on the ECE-R101 cycle
Weight Less than 1400 kg
Transmission Single-speed transmission

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Lotus announced today that it’s taking over the “Renault F1 Team” and creating a new team named “Lotus Renault GP” that will compete in the 2011 Formula 1 season and onwards. This is not the first time that the two companies have worked together in Formula 1, as in the 1980s, Lotus used turbocharged engines sourced from the French carmaker.

While Renault will continue to supply engines and technical support, the Lotus Group will own and run the newly formed F1 team along with Genii Capital, a Luxembourg-based company that acquired Renault's stake in the team.

The British maker said that the new partnership brings the ability to quickly incorporate new technologies from F1 cars into its own road cars including hybrid technology, Kinetic Energy Recovery Systems (KERS), aero advancements and lightweight materials.

Genii will contribute to the partnership with non-Formula 1 technolgies such as lightweight braking systems, variable compression engine technology and software. Furthermore, Genii Capital will help Proton, owner of Lotus, to expand into new markets, such as Russia, and potentially access additional automotive technologies.

Gerard Lopez, founding partner of Genii Capital, said: “For Group Lotus, access to Formula 1™ opens up new marketing opportunities and a major platform for business exchanges and development. In this regard, Genii Capital possesses shareholdings in, and direct access to, cutting edge companies in the automotive industry. Our tie-up with Group Lotus and Proton, which will enable its future road car ranges to take advantage of significant new technologies, is a natural step.”

Group Lotus CEO Dany Bahar, commented: “I can think of no better platform for automotive brand communications than motorsport and F1 We’re well aware that there has been a lot of controversy around the usage of our brand in F1 and I’m delighted to be able to formally clarify our position: We are Lotus, and we are back.”

By Csaba Daradics

Taking center stage at Proton's 2010 Kuala Lumpur International Motor Show booth alongside the Mitsubishi Lancer EVO-esque Jebat study, is yet one more concept model based on another manufacturer's vehicle, the Lekir. This time, Proton looked into its own car bin and in particular, Lotus, which it acquired back in 1994, as the Lekir is essentially a rebagded Europa coupe. Mind you, it's not the first time we've seen the Europa wearing different logos as Dodge displayed an EV concept of the model at the 2009 Detroit Show.

Depending on which part of Proton's description of the car you read, the Lekir is powered either by a 2.0-liter turbocharged unit or a 1.6-liter engine with some 220-ponies (167kW). Malaysia's state-controlled carmaker didn't say whether it plans to resurrect the Europa as a Proton.

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The 2010 Kuala Lumpur International Motor Show at the Putra World Trade Centre in Malaysia saw local automaker and owner of Lotus, Proton, revealing a host of concept models including a sport prototype of the recently launched Inspira called the Jebat. Needless to say, it's clearly inspired from the Mitsubishi Lancer EVO X.

As you may remember, the Inspira is a rebadged Mitsubishi Lancer sedan and is the result of an OEM collaboration between the Malaysian automaker and Mitsubishi Japan. However, we're not so sure if Mitsubishi had this in mind when it was signing the agreement with Proton.

In any case, the Jebat study, which could very well lead to a similar production model, features a wide body kit with blistered wheel arches and splashes of matte black paint all around the car. Power is provided by a turbocharged 4-cylinder MiVEC engine producing 237HP (177kW) at 6,000 rpm and 343Nm of peak torque at 3,000 rpm.

No word if the pseudo-EVO (that does have a nice ring to it, doesn't it?) comes with the real EVOs four-wheel drive system, but Proton has announced that the Jebat completes the standard 0-100km/h (62mph) sprint in 5.6 seconds and tops out at 232 km/h or 144 mph.

Via: Proton and CBT

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Proton has officially unveiled its Mitsubishi Lancer-derived Inspira mid-sizer, after its soft launch to the public and media in late October. Since then Proton has received over 1,800 bookings from customers around Malaysia in anticipation of its market launch this month.

The new model is the result of an OEM collaboration (the word "rebadge" sounds nastier...) between PROTON and Mitsubishi Japan, the latter providing the mechanical and design basis and the former tweaking the model for the Malaysian market.

Among those changes are the signature Proton grille and -according to the Malaysian company- the incorporation of Lotus DNA in the Inspira's ride and handling.

Dato' Sri Mohd. Nadzmi Mohd, the Chairman of Proton parent corporation Proton Holdings Berhad, explains:

"PROTON is ready to move even further ahead to become a recognised player in the global automotive industry. We have been working and collaborating with Mitsubishi for the last 25 years and its a natural step forward for us to continue to work with them in this project. One of our product strategy is to introduce non-core models through strategic collaborations which provides a more efficient, timely, and cost effective product to the market. The Proton Inspira is an excellent example of this strategic collaboration."

Proton Holdings Berhad's Managing Director Dato' Haji Syed Zainal Abidin Syed Mohamed Tahir is equally enamoured with the new model:

"The enormous level of interest shown since we first announced the introduction of the new model is certainly a big sign of approval from car buyers. PROTON would like to thank all those who have placed a booking for the Inspira and believe me, they will not be disappointed with the new generation of Proton cars coming their way."

The Inspira uses Mitsubishi's existing 1.8 and 2.0 Liter MIVEC engines, the latter of which is only available with the CVT transmission. Scroll down for the image gallery that includes pictures from the official brochure and a video from the presentation.

By Tristan Hankins

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