Cars GT6 Should Put (Volume 12)

In a galaxy far far away, just off our backyard, lies Leopaul's Blog; boldly pushing the boundaries of car culture because there's some CARS GT6 SHOULD PUT.



Cars like...

1) Daihatsu Tanto Custom RS '13

WHY: The all new third generation Daihatsu Tanto was recently launched this week and this new version is on a tough battle against the Honda N BOX and the Suzuki Spacia. Even though it's 1km/L less than the Spacia, this new model sells quite well and as of now, it's on the top three best selling cars in Japan, falling behind the Toyota Aqua and the new Honda Fit. The model I'm interested was the Custom version, more importantly the Custom RS version because of its stylish looks and a turbocharged 660cc engine that redefines the KING OF SMALL slogan.



2) Ford Escape Titanium '13

WHY: Possible to call it Escape or Kuga? Don't care which but best to stick with Escape and oh, the EcoBoost engine that powers it provides this crossover with the added power and the added fuel economy it deserves. I sure wanna wish I wanna try this one offroad if GT6 has the chance to give this new Escape a slot on their list.



3) Honda Odyssey Absolute '13

WHY: In the previous installments, the Odyssey we have is a third-generation model but what we really want for a brand new Gran Turismo game is feature the latest installment of the Odyssey minivan. I wanna see how does the new model stacks up against the old one...well sadly, only the third generation Odyssey was featured in the game so...it's less likely to be popped up.



4) Seat Ibiza Cupra '13

WHY: The previous Gran Turismo games only featured the old Type 6L Ibiza but I want GT6 to feature the latest Ibiza Cupra complete with the 1.4 TSi engine which generates 180PS of power. Please GT6, feature the latest Seat Ibiza Cupra in the game!

5) Mercedes-Benz CLS63 AMG '11

WHY: As of now, the second-generation CLS63 AMG, like any other AMG models with the 5.5L V8 Twin-Turbo engine, remains of the best cars never featured in a video game. Although it attracts huge attention in the motoring press because of its perfect balance of style and performance, so far no video games brave enough to feature it. What's going on with them? But still, GT6, please feature the CLS63 AMG while you can!!!

The results please? So, if Polyphony's still on the rethinking process whether these cars I've mentioned will be featured on Gran Turismo 6, whether in game or as a DLC, you can't say that I didn't had a bit to do with that.

Take that to Kaz Yamauchi!

THREATS FROM NORTH KOREA: S.Koreans send flyers protesting postponed reunion

A group of South Korean activists released balloons carrying flyers calling for North Korea to resume the postponed reunion originally meant to be started last month. The group released 10 huge balloons with 200,000 flyers attached from a border city near Seoul, carrying messages criticizing North Korea's decision to put off the planned reunion as well as DVDs containing movies criticizing North Korea's human rights abuses.

Story: NHK WORLD

THREATS FROM NORTH KOREA: N.Korea criticizes S.Korean leader by name

North Korea denounced South Korean President Park Geun-hye by name for a speech she gave at Tuesday's Armed Forces Day ceremony in Seoul. In the address, Park vowed to achieve SoKor's preemptive strike capabilities for defensive purposes and establish its own ballistic missile-defense system at an early date in order to get Pyongyang to abandon its nuclear arms program. The statement from North Korea's National Defense Commission said that Park should brace for a rain of fire from North Korean forces.

STORY: NHK WORLD

Let's Do The News! (October 5, 2013)

The big science today...

- US Government Shutdown continues on its 4th day and the US congressional standoff continues.

- BF, GF, Exes, beware as the Californian government, despite in the US Shutdown, passed a law criminalizing what is known to be as revenge porn, the distribution of private, explicit photos of other people on the net, usually by ex-lovers of spouses, for humiliation,

- Yesterday, there was a massive rally going on in Makati City, in a bid against the controversial pork barrel issue. However, there's one report that really got us into chuckles and it's straight from GMA News TV's QRT where the reporter said..."Dumagsa ang mga tae". I'm sorry but...the poops are rallying? Howdy how...

- The best fan-made Hyundai Maxcruz (Santa Fe LWB) zombie survival machine is going to featured on this year's New York Comic Con this October 10 to 13, 2013 as part of the collaboration between Hyundai Motor Company and The Walking Dead, which the fourth season premieres this October 13 on AMC.

- Nearly 24,000 units of Ford Focus Electric and C-MAX models will be recalled by Ford because of door chime problems.

- Continuing on the Fukushima Crisis issue, TEPCO (Tokyo Electric Power Corporation) resumed operation of a new wastewater treatment system at the crippled Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Plant after a half-day suspension. It was reported that a system failure stopped the Advanced Liquid Processing System.

TTFN!

BMW 4-Series (F32)

2014 BMW 4-Series

At BMW, they're always at the forefront of creating some of the most promising cars in the market today and even though they're very expensive once you check in their preisliste, they're still worth giving a try on these. However, while some Bimmers feel as forgiving your grandma giving you money before you set off, there are some that are worth confusing, not as confusing as the newest addition to the BMW family.

The new 4-Series from BMW is a two-door coupe version which replaces the old 3-Series Coupes and it heralds the new naming scheme that from now on, sedan models will bear odd numbers such as 3, 5, and 7, where as coupe models bear even numbers like for instance...the 6-Series. Now why would BMW became so belligerent now? All we ever want is to keep BMW the same way as before and we all like keeping names for full model changes. Now, BMW is becoming more like what's going on in the news today, the North Korean peninsula, the Syrian Uprising, the Pork Barrel, the US Government Shutdown, on and on and on and on and hey, HAVE I GOT NEWS FOR YOU, BMW; WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?

2014 BMW 4-Series

Trying to fulfill BMW's slogan of "Freude am Fahren" is now heading in the wrong way because...let's be honest, there are news circulating BMW's going to make a front-wheel drive model and with an FF Bimmer in the slots, is the "Freude am Fahren" story came to a bitter climax and now became one of Germany's most boring car makers? And what was the whole point about the number 4? Don't you suppose to keep the 3-Series name like the good old days? This is just crud and changing names really infuriates loyalists into thinking what's wrong with BMW. Now, BMW makes ugly cars which is as ugly as Richard Armitage telling you a bedtime story on CBeeBies, what's next? Make it more dull to drive? That question is too early to be explained but in the meantime, let's examine what's wrong with the new 4-Series.

Although it maybe a new name for itself, it's still a 3-Series with less doors on the outside, which is suitable for the athletic type, not for the geek or nerd type or the yuppies and on the inside, it's all typical BMW interior to us. Forget about that, let's explain what you can expect on the 4-Series in terms of its driving style.

2014 BMW 4-Series interior

In the beginning, you have a choice of either a 2.0L turbo petrol, a 3.0L turbo petrol, or even a 2.0L diesel engine regardless of different kinds of configurations that caters the 4-Series' affairs. Here's a thing folks, a certain 4-Series model, the 435i, with the new 8-speed gearbox can get me from 0-100kph in about 5.1 seconds, just 0.3 seconds more than the defunct 420hp V8 manual M3, but still it's worth an attempt trying to catch up in today's trends. That's about 0.7 seconds quicker than the A5 3.0 TFSI quattro and .9 second quicker than the C 350 BlueEfficiency coupe. Impressive though, BMW sure knows how to make a coupe that blitzes through the competition and oh, if you want to make me talk like Doc, here goes...

4-Series Bimmer, you had a bad case of "8-speed-gearbox-quicker-than-manual-gearbox-itis". Yep, I already placed it on the Big Book of Boo Boos now and this case involves that how does an 8-speed auto gearbox acts quicker than the 6-speed manual gearbox and I'll let you into something...when this car is set to SPORT MODE, throttle response is even faster and the steering becomes noticeably more direct. The 8-speed gearbox have been altered to provide a significantly sportier drive. That all sounds nice but when in this mode, it has a bad case of "ride-is-too-hard-osis" and yes, it's going to be in the Big Book of Boo Boos too as well because it's going to be as stressful as putting the jigsaw puzzle in a noisy nightclub. But, if you were spending the weekend going for the shops, best to put it on COMFORT setting because in this mode, it's as fine and civilized as the song from a preschool show. Thank you.

Of course, it is a two-door saloon car but it feels as cuddly as Lambie. It even has two seats in the back with 13mm of legroom, which is nice. However, there's another thing to be added in the Big Book of Boo Boos because the boot space is 445 litres, short on the Mercedes C-Class Coupe’s 450-litre boot and the Audi A5’s 455-litre load. How should I call it? Oh yeah! "Boot-too-small-itis". Great, why am I sounded like Doc anyhow?

2014 BMW 4-Series

But still, even the 4-Series had a lot of boo-boos to be filled on the Big Book of Boo Boos such as the ride, the boot, the gearbox, and whatever's wrong with it, there's nothing to go wrong with it because even though it's a drastic name change for a 3-Series-based model, it drives better. It tries to be a wolf in sheep's clothing, a bad wolf in black sheep's clothing to be precise. That makes me very relieved to explained how does the 4-Series reacts the way like its 3-Series Coupe predecessors used to be. If BMW tries to keep its "freude am fahrne" promise, maybe this car would be the best pick for the next-generation of car enthusiasts and one day, when this one's getting better, they would rather shut up and take their money for good...just for fun.

Photo: BMW A.G.

"KURIPOT"

On the October 4, 2013 episode of Bubble Gang...

- Sex scandal gags

- Ikaw at ang Ina knows about...sad selfie pics.

- The Adventures of Ruffa Mae Kwento in...boss committing suicide!

- Four boys in the hotel figuring out how to sleep...

- Bubble Gang does Ariel by spoofing this commercial as AERIAL. Proudly Kuripot, Proudly Aerial!

- Tata Lino, always here to help, always here to stay...

- Some politically correct terms to avoid the offense.

- How to distinguish what women lie about...

- Another day for work...tambay style.

- IyoTube in Just Give Me A Reason by Pink

- Truth comes unraveled in a flood-stricken place.

What's in our Car Town garage today? (October 4, 2013)

What's in our Car Town garage today?

1992 Nissan 240SX Hatchback

The 180SX in Japan or 240SX in the North American market resembles the chassis name RPS13 and yes, it's the hatchback version of the cult classic S13 Silvia even though it comes with rear-wheel drive, a favorite among drifters everywhere. This car has been a favorite among Nissan fans even though there was a story about the Sileighty, a 180SX with the S13 Silvia's face on it but anyway, JDM had gone nuts with it because no matter the alteration of its appearance, they still enjoy tuning this classic JDM all the way in style and points.

1992 Nissan 240SX Hatchback

1970 AMC Gremlin

It maybe cheaper than the Ford Pinto when it was new, more features than the Ford Pinto, and comes with a big V8 engine for a American hatchback but the Gremlin is all about as mischievous as the badge itself. You know former US Presidents Clinton and George H. W. Bush once drove the Gremlin in their youth days but since its tenure from 1970 to 1978, they've produced almost seven hundred thousand units.

1970 AMC Gremlin

2008 Ford F150

The eleventh-generation F150 was launched in 2003 and it features a more revolutionary design than the tenth-generation. It won the North American Truck of the Year award for 2004 and was Motor Trend magazine's Truck of the Year for 2004. It even got top safety ratings (5 stars) from the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in frontal collisions and became the Best Pick by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

2008 Ford F150

Let's Do The News! (October 4, 2013)

The big stuff today...

- In the third day of the US Government Shutdown, there was a shootout at the US Capitol in Washington D.C., after a high-speed car chase where the female suspect drove an Infiniti G37 and in an attempt to ram the barriers of the White House.

- A Russian-based toymaker is making special edition 1:18 scale figures of Top Gear hosts Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, and James May at a price of over 500 US Dollars. For those who are very fortunate and in the urge of shut-up-and-take-my-money-itis (sorry, hopefully this should be in the Big Book of Boo-Boos for you and I), feel free to preorder here.

- Callaway Cars, tuner and creators of the C12, announced the Corvette C7 AeroWagon customization package and for 15,000 US Dollars, they can transform the all-new C7 Corvette Stingray into a three-door shooting brake or if you're unhappy, you can revert it back to normal.

Callaway AeroWagon

- Bugatti made a special one-off Veyron Grand Sport Vitesse for world-renowned pianist Lang Lang. You may remember Lang Lang as the one who did piano scores from the Gran Turismo 5 video game.

- The original Nintendo Wii console kicks the bucket because after 7 years, Nintendo reported that they will end production of the classic Wii console. Since its tenure, over 100 million units shipped worldwide.

- Voice PH winner Mitoy Yonting admitted that he once used illegal drugs during his youth years as a band member. Yes, he had a very bad past in his life but his talent of singing pushed his life afloat. Times are tough for Mitoy in the past and ever since he is the first to win The Voice of the Philippines last week, he now has a new lease in life as a singer.

- That video about three ladies crushing a poor puppy making rounds on the net is called a crush video, a different type of porn video where women killing animals. That article was reported by ABS-CBN two years ago where the most shocking fact is most of the crush videos were made in the Philippines. Thing is though, that video you just saw, that was just years ago and the people behind the crush video website, situated in La Union, were arrested before. Ugh...do I need to say it?

- A varsity player from the University of Santo Tomas is the latest victim of bullying. Yes, the victim's a male and he was once bullied by his fellow athletes and so far, due to his trauma, he's absent for three weeks because the more he's here, the worse he'll get bullied. Let's remember, the Anti-Bullying Act of 2013 is now a law but as of Sept. 19, 2013, there are 384 reported cases of bullying. Twice per day from May 2012 to September 2013.

Jopay, IHAW NA!

On the October 3, 2013's Banana Nite's IHAW NA segment, one of the Sexbomb girls gets interviewed by Tito Bhoy himself and that one of them is none other than Jopay from the Sexbomb girls. Jopay is one of the members of the Sexbomb girls which were once famous during their days of Eat Bulaga and thrown Filipinos to a curve with their popular Spaghetti dance. They once had their longest-running drama anthology back in GMA called Daisy Siete and runs for 8 long seasons, with the last one involving the one which claims to be a copycat of "He's Beautiful". Of course, the Sexbomb Girls are now part of Banana Split.

Meanwhile, in MALING AKALA, there are some misconceptions that have been taken seriously such as raising your pinky, holding a tissue paper, wearing a miniskirt, a frown, holding hands, use of a more expensive phone, being a drunk, and getting pulled by two women against each other.

Let's Do The News! (October 3, 2013)

The big stuff tonight, today, or this morning...

- It's Day Two of the US Govt. Shutdown and President Obama canceled his plans for his Asia visit

- In case you missed it, there was a video about three unidentified women crushing and stepping a poor little puppy making the rounds on the internet and yes, PAWS receiving numerous reports on this viral video circulating on Facebook. So far, over 50 calls and at least 150 emails (and counting) from concerned citizens reporting about the video.

Three women crushing a puppy

- While on the job covering the third-generation Daihatsu Tanto, it seems that Nissan and Mitsubishi joined forces for a kei car that targets the new Tanto we're covering. Yes, the 2015 eK Space from Mitsubishi and 2015 Dayz Roox from Nissan are previewed and it's the second of the NMKV joint-venture since the Dayz and the eK Wagon earlier this year. Expect these two new kei height wagons to hit Japan 1st quarter next year.

2015 Nissan Dayz Roox

2015 Mitsubishi eK Space

- If you think Pac-Man was once got his own 3D CG cartoon called Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures earlier this year, there's more to come as one of our video game greats gets a 3D CG cartoon and this time it's Sonic the Hedgehog. SEGA confirmed that a new Sonic cartoon is in the works and planned for a late 2014 on air.

- It's a sad farewell to one of the most respectable names in the entertainment world as Tom Clancy, the master behind military and espionage thrillers that has most readers and gamers fond of, died in the age of 66. Clancy is well known for his spy novels, the Jack Ryan stories from Patriot Games to The Sum of All Fears, and video games we know such as Splinter Cell, Rainbow Six, Ghost Recon, and others. The recent Tom Clancy game released so far was Splinter Cell Blacklist while his 17th novel, Command Authority, is due on December 2013.

- More GT6 news and this time it's going to be a warning shot against Forza 5 because...Bathurst is coming.

Third-generation Daihatsu Tanto and Tanto Custom (LA600S)

Today, Daihatsu launched the all-new third-generation Tanto tall kei van made to counter against the Honda N BOX and the Suzuki Spacia, all in the name of what it seems to be defending the honor of the Daihatsu kei-car, well sometimes. Anyway, let's do a bit of an "I Can Do Science Me" thingy, just so we can get to know about the all new model that features...the trademark pillarless sliding door on the passenger side.

If by "I CAN DO SCIENCE ME", here goes...

2014 Daihatsu Tanto

2014 Daihatsu Tanto Custom

The previous two generations of the Tanto are a bit round for its boxy shape but for the new version, things are getting a bit proportional because not only it stays true to the Tanto trend, it's starting to look even more noticing because judging by the looks, the new Tanto's design becomes even more promising, a bit more like the Daihatsu Move. Yes, I was pointing on the standard Tanto. As for the Custom model of the Tanto, however, it's as glam as a glam rocker, as punkish as a punk rocker...in a dwarf body. Sorry about that but while the standard model is basically focused for the couples raising children, the Custom targets the youth generation who wanted to express their individuality. Yes, I see what you did there.

2014 Daihatsu Tanto interior

2014 Daihatsu Tanto Custom interior

And then there's the interior and unlike the previous models, the new interior really tries to shake it up real good and because this the tallest Daihatsu kei car you can buy in Japan, your height really doesn't matter even when you're wearing a tall hat. One thing you may notice that on the more expensive versions, you can expect a smartphone-integrated satellite navigation, the same thing as expected on its Suzuki Spacia rival. Hmmm...did Daihatsu took that from its rival or is it because they're just too jealous? But wait, I haven't get through the other part because here on the brand new Tanto, there was a dealer option where you can have a rear monitor so you can have someone watching in the back without all the drama...well almost because you can expect your ears dry red from the long chatter.

2014 Daihatsu Tanto

2014 Daihatsu Tanto Custom

Anyway, now onto the real science experiment. Just how the new model stack up against the Spacia and the N BOX? Just before munching your favorite teriyaki burger in your office break, here's a quick 47-second science on the third-generation Tanto; it comes with the updated version of e:S Technology from the Mira e:S and I already know what that means if somebody told me. With this though, the new model has a fuel economy of 28.0km/L based on JC08 Mode standards. Scaling that up, that's over four more than the N BOX but 1km/L less than the Suzuki Spacia. Hmmm...maybe they did heed the warning that if Daihatsu made a car that is more fuel efficient than the kei cars Suzuki had, they'll fight back. This new model really makes the case in the game of fairness.

The Tanto Custom model offers an exclusive turbocharged model respectively in case someone asks.

Finally there's this SMART ASSIST feature available on SA models of both the Tanto and the Tanto Custom and what it does is simple...it triggers the Emergency Stop Signal system, which warns following vehicles when the driver brakes sharply, to offer enhanced active safety. They learned that from Volvo, Subaru, and many others but be warned, although this was made to halt automatically in a near-collision scenario, you must take extreme caution while driving. Yes really, your instruction manual warns you about this even TV commercials.

As for the pricing, the new Tanto starts at 1.35 million Yen, a hundred thousand more than the Suzuki Spacia.

This is the new Daihatsu Tanto and this third-generation wanted to know if the new one stands a chance against the Suzuki Spacia in terms of fuel economy, convenience, and value. The answer, I believe, is NO.

Photo: Daihatsu Motor Co., Ltd.

WALD Audi A7 Sports Line

WALD Audi A7 Sports Line

Let's be honest, the Audi A7 may not be the most elegant-looking 4-door coupe built to counter Mercedes' CLS and recently BMW's 6 Gran Coupe and sadly, this car doesn't have the "aha" factor enthusiasts deserve but what if you can try to give this European luxury coupe some makeover it deserves?

Using the normal A7, not the S line mode please, as its basis for WALD's Sports Line entry, this latest aero kit adds flavor to Audi's 4-door coupe design and the whole kit will cost about 257,250 Japanese Yen.

For rims, customers can opt in either a PORTOFINO P21C 20-inch, PORTOFINO P12 20 or 21-inch, or the Mahora M11C 19 or 20-inch rims.

WALD also offers DTM Sports Muffler for the A7 at the cost of 252,000 Japanese Yen as well whereas the muffler cutter costs about 84,000 Japanese Yen.