My FM Log: Midship Commencement Exercise

Update 12 concludes Year 1 of Forza Motorsport and wrapping up its first year since the game's release are two midship prize cars; the Lamborghini Huracan EVO Spyder and the McLaren Artura.

Having obtained Year 1's last two prize cars, let's get to know our midship honors before carrying out our commencement exercises.

Beginning with the Lamborghini Huracan EVO Spyder that I won from the Update 12 Open Class Tour until the October 16, 2024 deadline.

At the start of 2019, Lamborghini unveiled the Huracan EVO, the minor change version of the Huracan that became part of the Lamborghini stable in 2014.

In addition to the revamped exterior design, the 5.2L V10 engine that powers it has been updated to produce 640 hp (470 kW) at 8,000 rpm with 600 Nm of torque delivered at 6,500 rpm. The double-clutch gearbox propels the Huracan EVO from the 0-100kph time of 2.9 seconds and flat-out in over 325kph.

The Huracan EVO is the first to feature the Lamborghini Dinamica Veicolo Integrata, a new rear-wheel steering and torque vectoring system working on all wheels, controlling every aspect of the car's dynamic behavior. Functioning alongside the Lamborghini Piattaforma Inerziale and enhanced Lamborghini Dynamic Steering, it results in a more rewarding driving experience on the road and track.

The open-top Huracan EVO Spyder is the follow-up to its hardtop equivalent. Featuring the same updates as its hardtop equivalent, it comes with a foldable roof that can be opened or closed at the push of a button in just 17 seconds up to a driving speed of 50kph. It boasts improved aerodynamic efficiency compared to the previous Huracan Spyder.

Production of the Huracan lineup ended in 2024, signaling the end of the V10-powered road cars.

The last one, after clearing the Midship Tour until October 30, 2024, the McLaren Artura.

The McLaren Artura is the company's first V6-powered PHEV supercar that injects most of its motorsport know-how into the making of this unorthodox machine. The 3.0L V6 Twin Turbo engine is mated to an axial flux motor and a refrigerant-cooled Li-ion battery producing 680PS of power and 720Nm of torque. Mated to an 8-speed SSG, it sprints from 0-60mph in three seconds and has a top speed of 205mph. Running on electricity alone, it can go for as little as 19 miles.

Aside from the performance, the Artura has near-perfect weight distribution courtesy of its carbon bodywork, front double wishbone, multi-link rear, Proactive Damping Control, electro-hydraulic power-assisted steering, Carbon Ceramic Discs, forged aluminum brake calipers, and specially-developed Pirelli P-ZERO tires. It even comes with a Variable Drift Control that can adjust its drifting angle.

Quick introductions dealt with, it's time to do the commencement exercises as two midship supercars will tackle Road America, the venue of the IMSA season-ender, the MOTUL Petit Le Mans. What a way to conclude the game's first year. Anyway, let's roll the tapes.

I have to admit that the new Forza Motorsport game for the Xbox Series X and Series S consoles went to a slow start when the game was launched last year, probably because of the car content packed with old cars I am not heavily interested. Let's hope Year 2 will see some much-needed improvements for the new Forza Motorsport game to reclaim its throne. 

Seriously, let's hope Forza Motorsport's Year 2 updates will feature lots and lots of modern road cars and race cars because this is the world we live in. New World Order. As 2025 draws near, will Forza survive? Only time will tell.

And that is the end of this commencement exercise. See you next semester!

Let's Do The News! (October 12, 2024)

               

Your daily round-up of today's news...

- The Embassy of the Philippines in Lebanon urged Filipinos in the besieged country under caution following recent Israeli airstrikes. Meanwhile, the process of repatriation of Filipinos from Lebanon continues, according to the Department of Migrant Workers.

- Dengue cases in the country have reached over 269,000 which is 82% higher than the same period in 2023, according to the PH Department of Health.

- The PH Department of Agriculture has lifted the temporary ban on the importation of goats from the United States.

- The use of "mother tongue" in teaching from kindergarten to Grade 3 was stopped after the PBBM administration signed R.A. #12027.

- The official YouTube channel of newscaster Anthony Taberna is gone due to hacking.

- US President Joe Biden urged Israel to stop firing at UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon, after the IDF said its troops were responsible for an incident in which soldiers were injured.

- Boeing is slashing 10% of its workforce.

- The Tesla Robotaxi was unveiled.

- Alpine showcased the A390_β Concept at the Paris Motor Show, previewing Alpine's first coupe SUV.

Alpine A390_β Concept

- ICYMI: Doraemon seiyuu Nobuyo Oyama passed away at the age of 90.

- Singer Soojin's North American tour was canceled.

- ABC will simulcast six more ESPN "Monday Night Football" games, including Monday's AFC East matchup between the Buffalo Bills and the New York Jets.

TTFN.

Silent Hill 2 (2024 Game)

Launched in 2001 for the PS2, Silent Hill 2 cemented its status as one of the all-time greats because of its iconic storytelling and unforgiving survival horror mechanics players can't get enough of. Being the GOAT in the Silent Hill franchise, it became appropriate to resurrect Silent Hill 2 for the new generation.

Silent Hill 2 (2024 Game)

Exclusively for the PlayStation5, the reborn Silent Hill 2 welcomes fanatics back to the cursed town with new and unforgiving ways to survive while reliving the iconic storyline. It was the right thing to do because the Silent Hill franchise is still alive and creeping. Don't adjust your portable radios.

Like in the original, players assume the role of James Sunderland, who ventures into the cursed town of Silent Hill, believing that his deceased wife Mary is alive somewhere. Trapped in the never-ending nightmare, James must confront his past sins to uncover the truth.

Thanks to the Unreal Engine, the reborn Silent Hill 2 delivers a fresh new perspective on an iconic classic. From the fluidic graphics and sounds combined with the PS5's capabilities, revisiting a survival horror legend never felt this new.

As expected, survival is key in this game, and the remake features a reworked combat system that requires some strategy to fight back or escape monsters lurking around the town, especially the ones you know. It's not just the enemies and the scarce supplies you should worry about. It's the puzzles you may encounter throughout your gameplay, and in some cases, you may need to smash some objects to find something useful.

Of course, there are different endings in this game. How will you encounter them? You'll have to play the entire game to find out.

Silent Hill 2 was no doubt one of the all-time survival horror greats when it first came out in 2001. With this 2024 remake, there are plenty of reasons to revisit a terrifying classic from a whole new perspective. Brace yourselves. The Red Pyramid Thing is awaiting your unforgiving return to this worldwide phenomenon.

Let's Do The News! (October 11, 2024)

              

Your daily round-up of today's news...

- Another phreatic eruption and volcanic smog have been recorded from the Taal Volcano in the past 24 hours. In the bulletin released by PHIVOLCS, it was stated that the phreatic eruption lasted for six minutes and created a plume that reached 2,800 meters in height.

- A magnitude 5.1 earthquake hits Jose Abad Santos, Davao Occidental.

- ICYMI: NAIA sharply raised prices for the service fee to 8000 pesos per person.

- Lebanon says 22 killed and 117 wounded in fresh Israeli strikes on central Beirut.

- Princess of Wales Kate Middleton made her surprise first public engagement since her chemotherapy ended, alongside Prince William in Southport, UK.

- Hurricane Milton's death toll hits 16. Milton has moved into the Atlantic, but many parts of the state are flooded, with some people being rescued by boat.

- The BMW Skytop has entered production and it will be limited to 50 units. The Skytop will be powered by the 4.4L V8 Twin Turbo engine producing 625hp of power. Mated to an 8-speed Steptronic Sport transmission, it has a 0-100kph time of 3.3 seconds.

2025 BMW Skytop

- Ford showcased the RS2.00 Concept, celebrating the 40th anniversary of the RS200 rally car.

Ford RS2.00 Concept

- Toyota returns to F1 as the official technical partner of the Haas F1 Team immediately.

- RIIZE member Seunghan will return to the group from his hiatus.

- Game 1 of the WNBA finals saw the Minnesota Lynx draw first blood by beating the New York Liberty at the score of 95-93 during overtime.

TTFN.

Mazda CX-80

The big brother of the CX-60, the CX-80, is here, completing Mazda's plan to launch crossovers running on a newly developed rear-wheel-drive platform.

2025 Mazda CX-80

Served as the successor to the CX-8, the first-ever, 3,943,500 Yen, Mazda CX-80 is the flagship of the Mazda lineup and obviously the most expensive in the range. Still, despite the price tag, you can sharply afford one compared to expensive luxury European imports.

2025 Mazda CX-80

Familiar looks aside, the CX-80 is 95mm longer and 50mm wider than the CX-8 it replaces, although it's 16mm lower. With such sizing, there's no doubt that the CX-80 is the "big boss" of the Mazda lineup, a real breadwinner.

2025 Mazda CX-80 interior

The high-quality interior is another one of the CX-80's key points because of the Nappa leather slathered on expensive models, the panorama sunroof, the Mazda Connect system, the optional Bose Sound System, and others. Being a three-row mainstream crossover, the CX-80 has a choice of three second-row seating configurations: a three-person bench seat, two captain's seats separated by a walk-through space, and two captain's seats with a middle console.

Concerning boot space, the CX-80 carries up to 258 liters with the passenger seats present up to 1221 liters with the passenger seats folded down.

2025 Mazda CX-80

The CX-80 is powered by a choice of a SKYACTIV-D 3.3, a 254PS e-SKYACTIV-D 3.3 with M Hybrid Boost, and the range-topping 327PS 2.5L e-SKYACTIV PHEV powertrain. All of these powertrains are mated to an 8-speed automatic gearbox. The one with the e-SKYACTIV-D 3.3 has 18.3km/L of fuel economy while the 2.5L e-SKYACTIV PHEV has 12.9km/L of fuel economy based on WLTC Mode standards and while running on electric power only, it has 67km of electric driving range. Enough range from your humble Muntinlupa home to a weekend trip to the SM Megamall or Okada Manila for some reason.

Although it is heavy to drive for an SUV running on FR architecture, the CX-80 feels slightly more enjoyable to drive than the CX-8 it replaces. Along with the available 4WD system, front double wishbones, rear multilink, ventilated disc brakes, and rack-and-pinion steering, it's about as luxurious to drive as expensive luxury imports or a Hyundai Palisade.

On the topic of safety, the Mazda CX-80 is fully prepared with a wide range of active safety features such as the Mazda Radar Cruise Control, Cruising and Traffic Support, and many others.

With such dimensions, interior, performance, and technology, not to mention the FR architecture running underneath, there's no doubt that the CX-80 is the "big boss" of the Mazda lineup. It's a shame that there will be no more after this because the FR architecture Mazda made has so many possibilities but sadly, this is as far as they go. Anyway, while the CX-80 completes the SUV range running on such architecture, there are other plans on the horizon so watch for it. Who knows what sort of tricks Mazda will come up.

Available Colors: Artisan Red Premium Metallic, Soul Red Crystal Metallic, Melting Copper Metallic, Jet Black Mica, Machine Grey  Premium Metallic, Rhodium White Premium Metallic, Platinum Quartz Metallic, and Deep Crystal Blue Mica.

Photo: Mazda Motor Corporation

Let's Do The News! (October 10, 2024)

             

Your daily round-up of today's news...

- The Philippines, in cooperation with the PH Department of Energy, will host the Philippine Nuclear Supply Chain Forum from November 13 to 15, 2024.

- Cardinal-designate Pablo Virgilio David met with Pope Francis at the Vatican following his appointment.

- The repatriation of 152 Filipinos from Lebanon is being arranged by the Department of Migrant Workers.

- Copies of certificates of candidacy from different parts of the country have started arriving at the head office of the Commission on Elections in Intramuros, Manila.

- The PH Department of Agriculture found no active cases of Q-Fever in the Philippines.

- Hurricane Milton made landfall in the US state of Florida as thousands fled.

- James Cleverly was eliminated from the UK Conservatives leadership race with only Robert Jenrick and Kemi Badenouch locked in for the duel.

- Indian tycoon Ratan Tata, whose group's global assets include JLR and Tetley Tea, passed away at the age of 86. Tata was one of India's most internationally recognized business leaders. The Tata Group is one of India's largest companies, with annual revenues of over $100bn.

- Acura teases the first-ever ADX compact crossover coming soon.

- The first-ever Dacia Bigster was unveiled.

2025 Dacia Bigster

- The Volkswagen Tayron was unveiled. It is the longer version of the third-generation Tiguan which is offered with a choice of a five-seater or a seven-seater.

2025 Volkswagen Tayron

- Nintendo unveiled their new Alarmo sound clock range which features alarm sounds from Nintendo games.

- Actress Amber Midthunder will star in the second season of Apple TV+ original series Monarch: Legacy of Monsters.

TTFN.

Volkswagen Tiguan Mk3 v Skoda Kodiaq Mk2

A best-seller in Volkswagen's right, the Tiguan is now in its third generation and there's a lot to talk about the latest version of one of the best-selling crossovers in Europe...or so they said.

2024 Volkswagen Tiguan

Starting at 38,250 Euros plus additional costs, the all-new third-generation Volkswagen Tiguan is the latest evolution of Volkswagen's smash-hit crossover that loves to pick fights against the Japanese opposition, mainly the Mazda CX-5 that made the Tiguan taste defeat while towing caravans.

Beginning with the design, the third-generation Tiguan can be easily mistaken for the Touareg NF, so it's a hand-me-down from its big brother. Throwback aside, the use of the MQB evo platform resulted in a slightly increased dimension compared to its previous model. It's 3cm longer than the old model while the height and the width remain almost identical.

2024 Volkswagen Tiguan interior

As expected, the new interior employs the minimalist approach like most Volkswagens today. While the button-packed steering wheel is the tip of the iceberg, it also features a Digital Cockpit comprising a 10.25-inch digital instrument cluster and a 15-inch central infotainment display touchscreen that controls the infotainment, air conditioning, and the show-off ambient lighting. It even comes with HUD, Driving Experience Control, and the annoying IDA voice assistant.

With the second-row seats present, the Tiguan can carry up to 652 liters of boot space, an improvement from the previous model. However, with the rear seats folded down, it has 1650 liters of boot space. Ah, the irony.

2024 Volkswagen Tiguan

Thanks to the MQB evo platform, the all-new Tiguan behaves slightly better than the previous model. With the available 4MOTION 4-wheel-drive system and Dynamic Chassis Control, it can do slightly more. Should the Mazda CX-5 take note of the Tiguan's latest improvements? Who knows?

While right-minded Europeans should shy away from the 2.0 TDi variant because dieselgate, of course, the Tiguan can be fitted with the 1.5 eTSi OPF, 1.5 eHYBRID OPF, and the 265PS 2.0 TSi OPF exclusive for the R-Line variant. With the entry-level variant having 6.2 l/100 km of fuel economy based on WLTP standards, the range-topper of the Tiguan is the plug-in hybrid 272PS 1.5 eHybrid OPF. Mated with the 6-speed DSG, it does 0-100kph in 7.2 seconds and has a top speed of 215kph. Running on electric power alone, it can go up to 112km of driving range.

As always, the all-new Tiguan is packed with numerous safety features such as a lane change system, autonomous emergency braking and a lane keeping system, rearview camera system, dynamic road sign display, available park assist pro with remote parking capability, and the available trailer assist.

The all-new Tiguan may have bore the looks of its big brother from the previous decade but with the most advanced features offered and a wide array of powertrains available, including the range-topping PHEV variant with up to 272PS of power, looks it like it has the fighting chance to take down the aging Mazda CX-5 by a long shot...or perhaps some other crossover bearing similar nooks and crannies from this?

2024 Skoda Kodiaq

2024 Skoda Kodiaq

Hailing from Czechia, this is the all-new second-generation Skoda Kodiaq. Priced at 980,000 Kč, which in Euro terms, is more expensive than its Tiguan relative, the all-new Kodiaq eschews the sharp looks from the previous model in favor of a rounder one with the rearview easily mistaken for a Volkswagen ID.5 or certain Lincoln crossovers from the past decade.

2024 Skoda Kodiaq interior

Unlike the Tiguan, which is offered in five-seater only, the all-new Kodiaq is offered with the choice of a five-seater or a seven-seater with up to 2105 liters of boot space with the passenger seats folded down. Not only it's more spacious than the previous Kodiaq, but it's even more spacious than its Tiguan cousin.

Under the hood, the all-new Kodiaq is powered by a choice of a 1.5L TSi engine with mild-hybrid and 7-speed AT, a 2.0L TDi engine with the same gearbox, and the 204PS 1.5L TSi PHEV with 6-speed AT. It's their range-topper, of course, and with the PHEV powertrain mentioned, it does 0-100kph in 8.4 seconds and a top speed of 210kph, which is 5kph less than the most powerful Tiguan mentioned above.

Like the Tiguan, the all-new Kodiaq is packed with numerous safety features such as a lane change system, autonomous emergency braking and a lane keeping system, rearview camera system, dynamic road sign display, and others.

There you have it, the latest versions of the crossovers that made huge gains in Mainland Europe. The all-new Tiguan and the all-new Kodiaq have several differences despite bearing the same platform but these crossovers prove that their journey continues. Like them or not, here they come.

Photo: Volkswagen/Skoda