Buick Encore

The Buick Enclave has been the only crossover utility vehicle offered by Buick as of now but despite having around for a few years, it's still one of the most hospitable crossovers made by Buick. I wonder what if someone wants a Buick crossover but can't afford the Enclave? Well, it looks like Buick came up with a cheaper model that slots behind the Enclave and positioned to be a desperate rival to the likes of the BMW X1, Audi Q5, and the Acura RDX. It's called the Encore and with the starting price of just 24,200 US Dollars, it seems that this is much cheaper than those luxury import crossovers from Europe and Japan. Apart from its pricing, the Encore does score with some European flair because the design is purely European and hey...did I just talk about that a few months ago?

2013 Buick Encore

Now if I can remember correctly, the Buick Encore was sold in the European market as the Opel Mokka. That's right, it's just another of the Opels turned Buick since the Opel Insignia, which became the Buick Regal in the North America and Chinese market but there's some issues here and because of my stress, I'll shorten the situation okay? Here... Encore first launched, Mokka later. Then, Mokka went sale now, Encore later. In translation, the Encore was premiered at the 2012 NAIAS in Detroit while the Opel Mokka showed up at last year's Geneva Auto Show. However, the Opel Mokka went on sale on the European market, just few months before this moment where the Encore is available for the North American and Chinese market. Hey, since it's the year 2013, it's the Encore's time to shine like some kind of pirate living at Encino, California, if you know what I mean?

I once checked it out in last year's Seattle Auto Show and it seems because someone's so generous, they even let us getting inside the Encore's interior to see how lovely is the interior of the Encore's. Need to remind you that the Encore I saw on last year's show was just a pre-production mule, not the finished product because it's not yet available until early 2013. But now it's early 2013 so the Encore is now available for the general public. However, before you jump into conclusions, here are a couple of drawbacks...

First of all, the Encore's cargo volume is too small for a small SUVs of this magnitude. With the cargo volume of just 18.8 cubic feet, the Encore is not quite a fitting compared to others. Also, the 1.4 ECOTEC engine with Variable Valve Timing has a power to weight ratio of 23lb/hp, making it too much for a small SUV of this attitude. Lastly, the front legroom of the Encore is 40.8 inches, meaning that sometimes, there's not enough room to stretch my legs at the front.

Despite the downturn, there are some ups for the Buick Encore. Despite having a not-so-good power-to-weight ratio, the Encore has a best-in-class fuel economy of 33MPG highway and this is covered by a basic 48months/50,000 mile warranty. Not bad for the Encore though...

2013 Buick Encore interior

The things that made the Encore right such as its striking European design, best in class fuel economy and the comprehensive warranty were balanced out by the things that made the Encore wrong such as bad power-to-weight ratio, bad legroom at the front, tiny cargo boot, and the fact that it was made in Bupyeong, which I think its in South Korea. The Encore may or may not be a good Buick crossover but I will say this. I want to have one more than I can handle my breath away and thanks to its status of being a world-class crossover, the Encore sure knows how to sort out against its rivals.

Available Colors: Quicksilver Metallic, Deep Espresso Bronze Metallic, Ruby Red Metallic, Glacier Blue Metallic, Brilliant Blue Metallic, Cocoa Silver Metallic, White Pearl Tricoat. Satin Steel Gray Metallic, and Carbon Black Metallic.

Photo: General Motors

Forza 4: 2010 Jaguar XFR

JAAAAAG XFR

The XF is the replacement of the Jaguar S-Type and the most powerful version of the range is the XFR, which was premiered at the 2009 North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Michigan.

It comes with the new 5.0L supercharged V8 engine developed by Jaguar themselves so it develops 503HP of power and 460.7ft-lb of torque. 0-60mph takes about 4.9 seconds and that makes it on par against other middle-class sedans.

The XFR comes with the "Dynamic Mode" that when it's set at the push of the button, the acceleration response becomes sharper, the exhaust note's more accented, and stability controls are cut off, allowing it for more "dynamic" driving feel.

Jeremy Clarkson reviewed this on Top Gear Season 13 and when handed to The Stig, it set a lap time of 1:26.7 round the Top Gear Test Track, slower than its BMW E60 M5 rival it compares.

Goin Bulilit 8th Anniversary!

The February 10, 2013 episode of Goin Bulilit was a special one because not only our present Goin Bulilit kids meet up with the alums such as Kathryn Bernardo, Igi Boy, Miles, Julia Montes, Ella Cruz, Kiray, Nash Aguas, Sharlene San Pedro, and the other former Bulilits.

It starts with Kathryn doing the Myx Myx Myx segment, a GB classic, with the musical numbers from former and present Bulilits. Later, there was some birthday gags in store for them. Then, the corniest jokes on I'M CORNY.

While we kinda miss a GB classic called SIGAW FAMILY, GB showcased it for the first time in a sketch called SIGAW FAMILY The Next Generation. Just as I thought that yelling is more fun in GB.

On this week's Cute & A, Mrs. Cynthia Villar speaks out, answering questions straight from the Bulilits themselves.

And it all ends with Ready Get Set Goin in Who's The Buhos?

Happy 8th Anniversary, GB!

Top Gear S19E03

Toyota 86 and Jeremy Clarkson

So, Top Gear Series 19 Episode 3 aired on BBC Two and this was an epic race between the 2013 Shelby GT500 against public transport heading from Wembley to the San Siro Stadium at Milan, Italy. Jeremy Clarkson's in the 2013 GT500 while Richard and James are taking public transport.

In the end though, this was a shocking moment because...well, we're not gonna say this but...Jeremy lost the race. Yep, Jeremy and the GT500 lost the race...beaten by public transport. It's a first ever reversal on Top Gear history. It seems that public transportation got the best of him. LOSER!

Anyway, despite the loss, we're very delighted to see a Scottish songbird, Amy MacDonald, guested as STAR IN A REASONABLY PRICED CAR. She's one of the quickest female celebs on the track, recording a lap time of 1:44.4 round the Top Gear Test Track.

To top it all up, Jeremy Clarkson tries out the TOYOTA 86 round the track. It's more fun to see him reading a book while drifting the 86! When handed to The Stig, the TOYOTA 86 set a lap time of 1:31.3 round the Top Gear Track.

Six Nations 2013: England bags another win against Ireland

Okay, round 2 of the Six Nations 2013 rugby match has come to an end with England bagging another win against Ireland at the score of 12 to 6. Let me clarify this, that's 12 points for England and 6 points for Ireland, meaning England gets another win. Seems that England's Owen Farrell really nails it all to propel England Rugby on the lead. With Round 2 of the Six Nations 2013 ended, England Rugby team is in the lead by 4 points while Scotland, Ireland, Wales, and Italy all have two points while France...dead last with no wins.

PRESS RELEASE:


England keep Grand Slam dream alive with win in Dublin

England withstood a second-half Irish onslaught to claim their first victory in Dublin in the RBS 6 Nations for a decade, eventually running out 12-6 winners in the tightest of contests.

Owen Farrell kicked four penalties to Ronan O'Gara's two as England edged the battle of the two remaining Grand Slam contenders in freezing conditions.
Leading 6-0 at the interval, England wavered in the first 20 minutes of the second period and when James Haskell was sent to the sin bin at 6-6 the smart money was on Ireland to complete an impressive comeback.

But the visitors gathered themselves and played the rest of the game in the Ireland half to ensure they returned home with their RBS 6 Nations dream alive.

England started on the front foot, going through the phases and winning a third-minute penalty when Ireland failed to roll away from the tackle. Farrell made no mistake from distance, bisecting the posts from 40 metres to put England 3-0 up.

Ireland struggled to get into the game in the early stages with their handling frequently letting them down in the wet conditions, Jamie Heaslip fumbling a high ball from the restart to ease the pressure on the visitors.

And the hosts suffered a huge blow on ten minutes when in-form winger Simon Zebo pulled up injured, to be replaced by Keith Earls.

Ireland began to dominate possession, probing along the edge of the England 22 only for their attacks to break down as first Gordon D'Arcy and then Donnacha Ryan spilled the ball in contact.

Farrell eased the pressure on England when Heaslip was penalised for coming in from the side giving the fly-half the chance to knock over another long, straight penalty.

With a six-point cushion England began to play more rugby in Ireland's half, and they were helped when Heaslip knocked on his second simple high ball of the afternoon.

Ireland's cause wasn't helped when they suffered another injury blow, fly-half Jonathan Sexton appearing to pull his hamstring as he hacked the ball on after 30 minutes, with O'Gara replacing him.

Farrell proved he was fallible when he failed with another long distance penalty attempt from the right on the stroke of half-time as England went in 6-0 ahead.

Ireland started the second period with much more intensity at the scrum winning consecutive penalties, the second of which O'Gara kicked home to reduce the deficit to 6-3 on 45 minutes.

That seemed to boost Irish confidence, with Sean O'Brien breaking two tackles as he embarked on a bullocking run out of his own 22.

England coach Stuart Lancaster introduced Courtney Lawes and Manu Tuilagi for Joe Launchbury and Billy Twelvetrees to increase England's intensity in the tackle and at the breakdown, while Dyaln Hartley took over from the misfiring Tom Youngs at hooker.

An uncharacteristic Brian O'Driscoll handling error in the Ireland 22 gave Tuilagi the chance to kick the ball through but he chose to try and pick it up, knocking on in the process and the chance was gone.

Haskell was then sent to the sin bin by referee Jérôme Garces for playing the ball on the ground and from around 35 metres O'Gara drew Ireland level with his second successful penalty - taking his personal tally against England past 100 points.

England did their best to slow down the play with Haskell on the sidelines, with Mako Vunipola replacing Joe Marler as the visitors played for territory and kept the ball tight.

But when the ball was spun wide Farrell sent a punt into the corner that forced Kearney into touch under pressure from Chris Ashton.

From the resulting lineout Ben Youngs chipped delicately behind the Ireland defence and the ball narrowly avoided the onrushing Tuilagi in the end zone.

But referee Garces pulled play back for an earlier offence by Mike McCarthy and Farrell's penalty restored England's lead to 9-6.

Almost straight away it was 12-6 as Lawes chased down Alex Goode's huge Garryowen to tackle Kearney, with Mike Brown winning the penalty as the Leinster man held onto the ball in the tackle. Farrell made no mistake and with 16 minutes left England looked the likely winners.

O'Gara had one final chance with the boot after Hartley was penalised for entering from the side but he pushed it narrowly wide of the right hand post.

There was still time for Farrell to fail with another penalty opportunity after O'Gara spilled a high ball and was pinned by Ashton but but he too missed the right stick.

As the clock ran down England forced a series of re-set scrums deep in the Ireland 22 and despite a late breakout held out to secure a famous victory and stay on course for a first Grand Slam since 2003 - the last time they won in Dublin.

URL: http://www.rbs6nations.com/en/matchcentre/22158.php

Round Three begins with Italy vs. Wales on February 23, 14:30 GMT, England vs. France on the same date at 17:00 GMT, and Scotland vs. Ireland on the 24th of February at 14:00 GMT.

Six Nations 2013: Scotland beats Italy, Welsh kicked French

Wales vs. France

It's time for another update on the RBS 6 Nations Rugby match for Round 2...

First up, it's Scotland vs. Italy. I've just got reports that thanks to the finest Scottish rugby players, especially Grieg Laidlaw, Scotland's stopped Italy's progression to the Six Nations Rugby with the score of 34 to 10. They may have been defeated by Enlgland last week but their reborn power demonstrated after defeating Italy is a sign that Scotland's fighting back...

PRESS RELEASE:


Classy Scotland stop Italy in their tracks

Stuart Hogg enhanced his burgeoning reputation with another fine breakaway try to hand Scotland a comprehensive 34-10 RBS 6 Nations victory over Italy - a first under Scott Johnson.

Outplayed by England last weekend, Scotland were worthy winners over an Italian side riding high after their victory over France, with Tim Visser, Matt Scott, Hogg and Sean Lamont all going over.
Johnson lamented his side's poor defence last weekend but the Scots were not founding wanting against Italy and as a result Greig Laidlaw was able to call the shots.

The Italians on the other hand, were subdued in comparison to six days previous, Luciano Orquera in particular having an off day at fly-half, and the Azzurri were outfought and outthought by the Scots.

For Scotland, it was a first win of the campaign, a first in five matches and a first in seven in the RBS 6 Nations, having been whitewashed last season.

Scotland began at a ferocious pace and after half breaks from Ruaridh Jackson and Visser, the Dutch-born flyer almost opened his RBS 6 Nations account after just two minutes.

Laidaw kicked over the top and Visser looked certain to run onto the ball, gather and score, only for the bounce to get the better of him and let Italy off the hook.

Italy, buoyed by last week's performance, continued to show ambition however and they earned themselves the chance to take the lead on seven minutes when Scotland lock Jim Hamilton was penalised for coming in at the side.

Orquera, the hero against the French, was wayward with his kick however and he struck the upright from 40 metres out.

Scotland began to exert more influence on proceedings as the half wore on - their physicality which was perhaps found wanting against England, giving Laidlaw the platform to orchestrate proceedings.

And it was Laidlaw who opened the scoring on 15 minutes when Italy hooker Leonardo Ghiraldini was pinged for slowing the ball down - the scrum-half making no mistake with the penalty.

Laidlaw then doubled Scotland's advantage on 24 minutes when Andrea Lo Cicero, winning his 100th cap, was penalised for bringing a maul down.

With the wind in their sails, Scotland almost scored the first try of the match on 28 minutes when Giovanbattista Venditti completely missed a clearance kick but Tobias Botes scampered back to foil Scott just short of the try-line.

A minute later however, Visser made the breakthrough in the left-hand corner after Jackson cut inside and fed the Edinburgh winger who danced over the line for his fifth try in seven internationals.

Laidlaw added the extras but back came Italy to at least open their account just before half-time, this time Orquera hitting the target after Scotland were penalised for not rolling away.

Leading 13-3 at the interval, it didn't take Scotland long to extend their advantage and this time Scott was not to be denied.

Following a lineout on the right, Sean Maitland, off his right wing, made the initial break and offloaded to centre Scott who burst clear before Laidlaw was again on target with the conversion for a 20-3 lead.

Italy tried to rally and looked certain to get a try of their own soon after with Andrea Masi making the break and finding Orquera inside.

Tommaso Benvenuti was inside and would have had the simplest of touchdowns had Hogg not read the pass, intercepted and sprinted all of 80 metres to add to his fine try against England last weekend, Laidlaw again adding the conversion.

Again Italy responded and earned themselves a scrum just short of the Scotland line in the centre of the pitch but Scotland held firm and won the penalty - summing up the Azzurri's day.

With 15 minutes remaining, Maitland and Scott combined again with the latter dotting down in the corner, only for referee Jaco Peyper to rule that the Kiwi-born winger's pass was forward.

But Scotland had their fourth try of the match when Scott's midfield partner Lamont snaffled a loose ball and streaked through a gaping hole in the Italian defence to score just his second try in his last 43 internationals.

Laidlaw continued his fine match with another conversion before Italy, with six minutes remaining, finally made one of their scrums count - Sergio Parisse with the inside pass to Alessandro Zanni who surged over before replacement fly-half Kris Burton converted.

Geoff Cross was sin-binned in injury time for the Scots but nothing could take the gloss of their success.

Source: http://www.rbs6nations.com/en/matchcentre/22132.php

With Scotland defeated Italy, it seems that the Welsh rugby team, the WRU, is not giving up without a bloody good fight against FFR from France. In fact, Wales beat France by the score of 16 to 6, making it a first win in nine matches for Wales in Six Nations history. Nice job Wales, we're all rooting for you!

PRESS RELEASE:


North gets Wales back to winning ways

George North's late try, following a moment of magic from Dan Biggar, handed Wales a nail-biting 16-6 RBS 6 Nations victory over France in Paris.

With the scores locked at 6-6 with just eight minutes to go, Biggar chipped in behind and North, who until that stage had seen very little possession, raced onto the ball and dotted down.
It was a first win in nine matches for Wales, a first for Rob Howley as interim coach, a first of the 2013 RBS 6 Nations for the defending champions and a first since completing the Grand Slam last season, against France in Cardiff.

France, on the other hand, who again failed to rediscover their autumn form that eluded them against Italy in Rome last week, have now gone five RBS 6 Nations matches without a victory.

A scrappy opening saw both sides waste the few chances they had, with defences on top and both teams tentative following defeats last weekend.

Toby Faletau knocked on with Wales well-placed in the France 22 while les Bleus captain Thierry Dusautoir followed suit for the hosts soon after.

Wales then enjoyed a brief period of sustained pressure in the France half but errors crept in at the vital moments - Biggar's short pass to Jamie Roberts was knocked on as the score remained pointless.

Biggar then attempted a drop goal from out on the right but the effort fell well short before France opened the scoring on 14 minutes with a Frederic Michalak penalty after Wales were called up for bringing the scrum down.

Leigh Halfpenny responded in kind just three minutes later however with France penalised for being offside but France's best chance of a first-half try came on 20 minutes.

Yoann Huget made the initial break down the left and after a few more phases and some quick hands from Michalak and Dusautoir, the full-back was back on the ball on the right.

With Wesley Fofana free outside him a try looked certain but Huget was unable to get the ball away and some fine Wales defence kept France at bay.

It was the story of the half with Wales able to nullify the French as they grew into the game, aided by some superb clearance kicking from Halfpenny, Biggar and Jonathan Davies.

And while Wales regained the upper hand in the closing stages of the first half, they were unable to break the gain line with Mathieu Bastareaud in particular putting in some bruising tackles whenever the Red Dragons stepped on the offensive.

France made a change at half-time time with Francois Trinh-Duc replacing Benjamin Fall - the replacement slotting in at full-back and Huget moving to the wing.

But it was Wales who made the first telling contribution of the second half, Mike Phillips bursting through the French line and galloping forward before France conceded a penalty in front of the posts on 43 minutes after Yoann Maestri went in off his feet.

Halfpenny duly converted to had his side a 6-3 lead before France wasted a good chance to retake the lead soon after.

Biggar kicked straight to touch having taken the ball back into his 22 and from the resulting lineout, France moved to within just a few metres from the Welsh line.

They took the conservative option however as Trinh-Duc went for the drop goal, only to see his effort drift wide.

France did level the scores on 53 minutes though, as Michalak notched his second three-pointer after a series of reset scrums resulted in a penalty for les Bleus.

The impressive Ryan Jones won Wales possession in the French half and while they temporarily relinquished it, a rare break from North put them back on the front foot, only for a poor Phillips kick to see the opportunity disappear.

France were enjoying the upper hand in the scrum and threatened to take a decisive lead with 13 minutes to go, but the Welsh pack held firm to keep the hosts at bay.

But then, on 72 minutes, came the decisive moment of the match. Replacement scrum-half Lloyd Williams fed Biggar, whose delicate touch with boot handed North the perfect chance for his 12th try for Wales.

Halfpenny booted a superb conversion and then added a long-range penalty on 75 minutes to give Wales some welcome breathing space.

France desperately went in search of the score that would get them back into the match but the Welsh defence, impressive all game, stood firm to seal a first win in Paris since the 2005 Grand Slam.

Source: http://www.rbs6nations.com/en/matchcentre/22140.php

Stay tuned for Ireland vs. England later...

Chevy Camaro made for the "Turbo" movie

Chevy Camaro Turbo concept

If you were on this year's Chicago Auto Show, chances are that you have spotted this strange-looking Camaro that was boosted to the max. This 700bhp Camaro was made for the upcoming animated movie made by Dreamworks, titled Turbo.

Turbo is a children's cartoon movie about a snail who has a dream of becoming a racecar driver. Really? A snail who wants to be a racing driver? That sounds weird but let's find out soon. This Camaro ZL1 boosted for the Turbo movie develops 700hp of power while no specific information was given. Some say, this will scare out of the small animals.

URL: http://www.topgear.com/uk/car-news/chevrolet-camaro-turbo-movie-dreamworks-2013-02-08