Audi A3 Sedan

2014 Audi A3 Sedan

2014 Audi A3 Sedan

Now that was unexpecting. In the past, the Audi A3 was available only as a hatchback, in 3-door and 5-door guise, but for the newest A3, they've added a 4-door sedan version for the very first time in the history of the A3. Just one point, why? Some say, they want to compete with Mercedes-Benz's 4-door compact saloon, the CLA-Class and that's an actual fact. However that's the least of the problems because as I heard, somewhere in North American, AUDI USA announced that for the next A3, the Americans won't get a 5-door hatchback version like what the previous generation had and instead go for the sedan version. Seriously?

Technically, that was a bold move to follow for Audi because what they want is to make a new model which not only captures attention from everyone living in the economic superpowers but also from the emerging market like for instance, Eastern and Central Europe, particularly Russia and Turkey. Did you know that more than 60 percent of all sedans sold in Europe are sold in Russia? Well, it's true but it can also be a theory if I'm skeptical.

Anyway, the sedan version. What is it? It's based on the third-generation A3 but the sedan is 11 mm (0.43 in) wider and 9 mm (0.35 in) lower than the A3 Sportback. Also, you can expect the same choice of engines as the hatch models such as the 1.4 TFSI and 1.8 TFSI gasoline units and the 2.0 TDI diesel. Depending on the engine choices, it can be mated with either a 6-speed manual gearbox or the very clever S tronic double clutch gearbox which shifts faster than a manual as every geeks in the world would explain it.

2014 Audi A3 Sedan interior

2014 Audi A3 Sedan interior

On the inside, it's the same as the A3 hatchback with some numerous features on it. You can expect a new modular infotainment system (MIB), consisting of MMI Navigation plus, a 64 GB hard drive, DVD drive, whole-word voice control and a high-resolution 7-inch-screen. That's seems savvy for the tech geeks but I wonder what's like to be a driver's car, perhaps?

This looks like the job for...some SCIENCE ABUSE! That's right! To imagine what's like to drive this sedan model, I need to go to my room first to read some magazines. I was trying to grab an issue of one of my favorite magazines when suddenly, I heard a little pop! What was that pop going on? Perhaps...it's Peter Logan's Exploding Paste!

That's right. Driving the A3 Sedan is like getting pranked by some exploding paste only a scientist can make. In the normal roads, that's perfectly normal but if I was driving in the traffic-prone areas, say EDSA or Quezon City, that's about as stressful as working at the office overtime. Another one of its problems was the price and with prices start at around 24,300 Euros, making it twice as expensive as an entry level VW Jetta but cheaper than the A4 sedan, making it an affordable Audi saloon money can buy.

Yes, it maybe cheaper than the A4 but is it worth it? Well, no. Remember the whole exploding paste thing unless if you're tired or wired. The A3 Sedan is worth noting to be an entry-level saloon for the masses but even though this is an affordable saloon car, I'm afraid it's still not worth it to compete against the CLA because think about it, the CLA is attractive, it's technological, and that's it. I guess both the CLA and the A3 Sedan truly share the same problem and it's about why it was made for the well-educated college students for the first place. If your mum and dad thinks you passed a driver's exam and they had so much cash in the back, you can be sure that they'll buy one for you but having one of these is like showing off your ultra expensive smart phone to your peers and you said that it has more features than others. Well, it maybe a swag but I'm sorry. That's doesn't sound right to be that kind.

Available colors: Amalfiweiß, Brillantrot, Brillantschwarz, Belugabraun Metallic, Dakotagrau Metallic, Eissilber Metallic, Gletscherweiß Metallic, Lotusgrau Metallic, Monsungrau Metallic, Scubablau Metallic, Shirazrot Metallic, Misanorot Perleffekt, Phantomschwarz Perleffekt, and Dautonagrau Perleffekt.

Photo: AUDI AG

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

(cheers and applause)

Richard: Doesn't stand a chance! He he he...

(applause continues)

Jeremy: Anyway, you said that the Adipose just got scared when it sees Isabella's cute face. Wow, Adipose doesn't stand a chance against Isabella. So, who's going to be next?

Richard: I dunno. Find out next week.

(audience laughing)

Richard: Anyway, the news. And oh, has anyone saw the Doctor Who Live special? It was televised worldwide for the big revelation of who will be the 12th Doctor and as it turned out. It's someone older than Matt Smith. Peter Capaldi.

James: Peter Capaldi? Well, I haven't heard about that man but he's no stranger to the world of Doctor Who, I think.

Jeremy: Yeah, Richard. Just who the hell is Peter Capaldi?

Richard: Well, for starters, like what James May said, he's no stranger to the world of Doctor Who. In the 2008 season of Doctor Who, he was Caecillus in the Fires of Pompeii episode, the one where Karen Gillan was in that episode as one of the Sisterhood. A year later, he was John Frobisher in the Children of Earth arc of its spin-off, Torchwood. His involvement at the BBC also includes being in the TV drama, The Hour, which lasted for two seasons.

Jeremy: Well, it was definitely better than standing still, waiting for when will the new Pope be. Good thing he's not (ahem)...you know. As it turned out, he's also Scottish-born just like David Tennant. Coincidence? I think not...

(audience laughing)

Jeremy: Anyway. Welcome to the world of Doctor Who...again. Peter Capaldi. Don't screw this for us when you show up for Christmas!

(audience laughing)

Jeremy: Oh, hey! The US Government. They said that they issued a global security alert because...well. It's because of what would the Al-Qaeda do for the whole month. I'm not so sure why they issues such a warning though but...this is very serious.

James: As serious as this morning's newspaper?

(audience laughing)

Jeremy: Yes. It's serious. Reason why the US issued a global warning is because Al-Qaeda's are doing some stupidity going around the Arabian Peninsula. If I said, stupidity. Yes. Some say, it could happen at the end of Ramadan, which is the holy month for the Muslims. But in theory, I don't know. Anyway, we'll look at that thing up later okay?

Richard: Yeah. There's always BBC News telling those stuff but be advised....Stay away from the Arabian Peninsula for security purposes, okay?

Jeremy: Yeah and oh...word to Chito Miranda, who was the vocal of Parokya Ni Edgar, a OPM rock band we all loved because of Mr. Suave and oh! They even collaborate with Kamikazee for THE ORDERTAKER! I love that song. He he he.... Anyway, word to Chito Miranda from Parokya Ni Edgar, our thoughts belong to you.

Richard: Why?

Jeremy: Because....he's been ashamed after some idiot uploaded his private video with his girlfriend in the net.

James: Oh...Some sort of sex scandal that wasn't supposed to be in the net until some idiot did? Aw man... This goes to show, ENOUGH WITH THE SCANDAL! SCANDALS RUIN CELEBS' LIVES, OKAY?!

(audience laughing)

Jeremy: Yeah. How many celebs got suffered over sex scandals? A lot! This is nuts! Netizens, all of you! Stop searching over scandals of your favorite celebs, okay? I mean, what's to like about those stupid sex scandals? Nothing! There's something you can hate about! Sex scandals can badly hurt not just yours but other's reputations as celebs! Got it?

(audience laughing)

Jeremy: Anyway, you still remember the whole Hayden Kho fiasco?

James: I am...

(audience laughing)

Jeremy: What? Have you watched a scandal before?

James: Uh no. No, I'm not. I'm no scandal-lover but that issue really grinds my gears. Get it? GRINDS MY GEARS!

(audience laughing)

James: Oh...There goes the song...Don't touch my birdie...

(audience laughing)

Jeremy: Anyway, moving on to...Gravity Falls. While we got happy over the season finale of the hit Disney TV show, word from the mouth is that fast-food chain Subway made a collaboration with the show and here it is...

Subway teams up with Gravity Falls!

James: Yeah. Says here for every purchase of Subway Kids' Meal, you'll get a free Gravity Falls bag. There are six of them to collect for a limited time only while supplies last. So uh...want one?

Richard: Oh yeah. I had a grappling hook! You wanna come to Subway for those?

(audience laughing)

James: Oh yeah!

Richard: Hang tight!

(grappling hook fires, then get away)

(audience laughing)

Jeremy: Okay, you guys had fun! Anyway that is the end of the news!

(Richard and James yelling)

(drop!)

(audience laughing)

Richard: Aw man! The grappling hook's not working!

James: Ouch! You're hurting my spleen!

(audience laughing)

How Cute Is Your Character? - Adipose

10 cute characters brought in by me will face my CUTENESS TESTS; getting kissed, getting hugged, and against Isabella's cuteness in a bid to top my CUTENESS RANKER leaderboard.

Today's cute character is...

Adipose

Is it the Adipose a living fat creature made out of human fat which served huge threat to the human race despite its cute appearance and appeared in the Season 4 opener of BBC Doctor Who?

It looks cute though but...HOW CUTE IS THE ADIPOSE?

The first test is...getting kissed. The Adipose are cute and cuddly but what is like to be kissed? Because they're made out of fat...it's gross to kiss one of those. But still, the Adipose has a kissable rating of: 5 out of 10.

The second test is...getting hugged. Is the Adipose huggable? Yes. Very. You don't need to make one of those because there was an officially licensed Doctor Who Adipose plushie courtesy of Underground Toys. If you bought one, you might as well spend the whole hour hugging one of those. Which means...the Adipose has a huggable rating of: 9 out of 10.

The final test is...against Isabella. Isabella says "Whatcha Doin?"...like this. What would an Adipose do when it sees Isabella's cute face? Sadly, it got knocked down and retreat back to its home planet, giving it a pathetic Isabella-resistance rating of: 2 out of 10.

Adipose from BBC Doctor Who scored a total of a measly 16 out of 30. Putting it behind Mog from Final Fantasy.

CUTENESS RANKER:

1) Mog - 19/30

2) Adipose - 16/30

How cute do I rank? Fairly cute. HOW CUTE IS YOUR CHARACTER?

Top Gear Season 20 finale

Top Gear Season 20 finale

This marks the end of the 20th season of BBC Top Gear and on that season finale, we saw Jeremy Clarkson test driving the brand-new Jaguar F-Type, Richard Hammond test driving the brand-new Range Rover Sport, and James May tries out the New Bus for London. It all comes up with an epic ending set near Buckingham Palace showcasing the best of British.

Formula One driver Mark Webber made a comeback for the Top Gear Formula One star in a reasonably priced car segment. He did it in 1:43.1, not only it's better than his previous lap time but he beats S.Vettel's lap time by almost a second!

That's it. That is the end of the 20th season. It has been quite a fun filled season. From the Toyota Auris racing against a cup yacht in New Zealand, finding out which country makes the best taxi, a race at the desolated BBC Television Centre, convertible supercars in Spain, the Hovervan, investigating crossover, and it all leads to the epic finale.

Series 20 gives way to numerous power tests such as the Peugeot 208 GTi, the Renaultsport Clio 200 EDC, Ford Fiesta ST, BAC Mono, Ferrari F12berlinetta, the Aventador Roadster, the Sesto Elemento, the SLS AMG Black Series, SLS AMG Electric Drive, the Jaguar F-Type, and the new Range Rover Sport.

Hope we enjoyed it. See you next season! Cheerio!

DW Live special: 12 IS REVEALED

12 IS REVEALED

At the Doctor Who Live event, after much speculation and rumors spreading through the universe, a new generation was revealed and set to replace Matt Smith in the Christmas 2013 special of Doctor Who. Yes, what we're looking up here is the new generation of Doctor Who. It's actor Peter Capaldi.

Capaldi, age 55, was no stranger to the world of DW though. When he was a teenager, he was been a huge Doctor Who fan when he's busy writing fan letters to Radio Times. Oh yeah, when I said he's aged 55, that was about the same age when Hartnell began his maiden Who voyage in 1963. Also, he's Scottish. Same as 10th Doctor David Tennant's.

In the 2008 season of Doctor Who, he was Caecillus in the Fires of Pompeii episode. Wait a minute. That episode seems familiar because Karen Gillan was in that episode as one of the Sisterhood. A year later, he was John Frobisher in the Children of Earth arc of its spin-off, Torchwood.

His recent appearance was in the survival action movie World War Z as one of the doctors from the World Health Organization, which explains a lot.

Although no stranger to Who, his newly found role as DW# 12 will surely make him one of the fresh new faces of the BBC. We'll look forward to him as he will show up on the 2013 Christmas Special, replacing 11th Doctor Matt Smith. Also, we'll be looking forward for him in next year's season 8 alongside current companion Clara Oswald, played by Jenna Coleman.

Story: http://t.co/Z2auJ69hwI

Alpha-N Performance gives E92 M3 one last chance

Alpha-N Performance M3 E92

The BMW M3 is dead, at least in 2-door coupe form. Yes, there will be a new M3 in the future but sadly, it's going to be available only in F30 sedan variant. Because the 3-Series Coupe will be replaced by the 4-Series, we're not sure what would the M version would be but that doesn't stop the aftermarket industry to spice things up for the retiree.

Alpha-N Performance, a tuner based in Bad Neuenahr, Germany, decided to give the now-defunct E92 M3 one last chance to set it right by providing the necessary tuning needed to make it more aggressive and more powerful. Called the BT92, this M3 E92 now sports a wide body kit, characterized by its curved lines. It also comes with a new bonnet, new tailgate, new bumpers, side skirts, fenders, and new wheel house shells made out of Kevlar. The body kit will cost 15,000 Euros but depending on the paint, it could cost from either 25,000 or 28,000 Euros, depending on special requests.

In terms of performance, Alpha-N can also provide increased displacement from the E92's V8 engine from 4.0L to 4.6L along with a new crankshaft. The result, 490HP of power and 470Nm of torque. Top speed is now 315kph.

Source: MSN Auto Germany

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

(cheers and applause)

Jeremy: I maybe the first person in history to call this episode "mathematical".

James: Yeah. That would be a mistake.

Jeremy: Yeah. I'm delighted.

(cheers and applause continues)

James: Anyway. Let me guess this correctly. About Gravity Falls. It feels like Adventure Time because of the weird stuff going on around here.

Jeremy: Yes. Weird stuff coming out per episode. It just feels so "mathematical".

James: Okay, it's about as exciting to watch as Adventure Time.

Jeremy: Yup.

James: Definitely. And oh...I can see your mouth wide open when you see how tonight's episode ended.

Jeremy: Yes it is. Just.

James: Yeah but you know what? I just don't get it why Mabel's grappling hook just made a comeback on that episode.

(audience laughing)

Jeremy: Yeah. Indeed. Mabel's grappling hook made a big comeback because the fans loved it. Anyway, here it is. Look...

Mabel's Grappling Hook!!!

Jeremy: Guess even the hardened of agents or adventurers are taking a hit now because it seems that Mabel's grappling hook was proven to be beneficial after all. It goes to show that in times of crisis like for instance when your nemesis took over your establishment, this is the one gadget to use.

James: Oh. I see? Well you know what? I just want that grappling hook.

Jeremy: Yeah. Particularly, I want the one from Just Cause because it has a grenade launcher on it.

(audience laughing)

James: Anyway, while we're watching that, I'd just picked up from my homies that they just saw a teaser trailer from the upcoming third series of BBC Sherlock. Guess everyone's in the talk right now.

Jeremy: Well, you know what. I'll pass.

(audience laughing)

James: Hey, wait. Aren't we doing the news now?

Richard: Right the news and while the boys got salivated over the cracking season finale, big news because come Sunday at 7:00pm BST on BBC One, there's a special live event going on because on that fateful day, BBC will announce, and this question gave me jitters...

(audience laughing)

Richard:..."who will be number 12?"

Jeremy: Who will be number 12? Does that mean, who will be Doctor Who number 12?

James: Yeah, are they going to announce who will be the 12th Doctor this Sunday evening in Britain?

Richard: That's right and that's not all. It will be a worldwide simulcast so that the whole world will know who will be the 12th Doctor. Are you ready?

(audience yelling: YES!)

Jeremy: Well, guess I'm not be going.

James: Me too.

(audience laughing)

Richard: Well. Okay. Fine. If you don't want to know who is the 12th Doctor, then you'll not going to ask him to take a spin on our reasonably priced car, the Vauxhall Astra Tech Line.

(audience laughing)

(phone vibrating)

Richard: Oh! There goes my phone! I wonder what's going on? Oh!

James: What is it?

Richard: Says here...um...ah...never mind. Just those e-mail reset rubbishness.

(audience laughing)

Richard: Can't believe that these spam mails keep on getting me all the time. I always don't respond to those because they're spam but...why?

Jeremy: I dunno!

(audience laughing)

James: Japan now has a new taxi and here it is. Look...

Nissan NV200 Vanette Taxi LPG Bifuel

James: This is the Nissan NV200 Vanette Taxi. It's based on the NV200 minivan which I think to be it's one of the most rubbish vans I have ever seen in my life because it's cheap...

(audience laughing)

James: ...this one has a 1.6L LPG BiFuel engine, seats five people, and available for taxi operators at the starting price of 3,229,000 Japanese Yen.

Jeremy: LPG you say? LPG? Can you run a car in LPG?

Richard: Well, yeah. There are some cars that runs on LPG. South Korea sells some of those cars powered in LPG such as the Carens, the Spark, the Orlando, well I don't know the others but word of warning however that LPG-powered cars are less powerful and thirstier. Well, that's my theory.

Jeremy: Well, Richard. I guess you're statement can be either true or not because...oh yeah! LPG cars are less powerful and thirstier. However, we're not going to press the issue about fuel economies, eh?

(audience laughing)

Richard: Anyway, for the 2014 season, the Pirelli World Challenge will see an arrival of FIA GT3 cars. The likes of the Audi R8 LMS, Mercedes SLS AMG GT3, and BMW Z4 GT3, will now be part of the Pirelli World Challenge next year. How's that update satisfy you?

(murmuring)

Jeremy: I had no interest on that. Sorry.

(audience laughing)

James: Me too. I don't had any interest on that kind of racing. We're only interest in high-profile names such as Formula One, WRC, and others. Speaking of F1. Anyone heard what would the sound of the V6 turbo engine that will serve as the basis for next year's season? Well, Mercedes-Benz was ready for next year's.

Jeremy: Really?

James: Want an audio sample? Here...

(applause)

James: Impressive though. I like it. Not a lot but I like it.

Jeremy: Anyway, last week, we just tackled more about Lambo's Sesto Elemento racer, which is the carbon-clad Lamborghini we got interested to. What seems unnoticed that there was some guy in Kyrgyzstan just made a replica of the Sesto in the shed. Here's the clip.



Jeremy: Interesting though. Someone sure knows how to make a replica of the Sesto Elemento out of some banger.

(audience laughing)

James: Anyway, end of the news. And in case you noticed. Voting for the best Sponge Shorts for the SpongeBob SquareShorts Original Fan Tribute contest was ended. But you can still watch some of the fan made shorts in tribute for SpongeBob SquarePants. Like for instance...

In the UNDER 18 category:
1) The Krabby Commercial by David in the USA
2) The Silver Screen by Matthew in UK
3) Get Out of Here! by David in the USA
4) SpongeBob Jellyfish Catcher by Alessio in Switzerland
5) The Krabby Patty Formula Music Video by Keith in USA

In the 18 AND OVER category:
1) Finally Home by Nicole in South Africa
2) The Interview by Brett in the USA
3) Diligence by Joshua in the USA
4) SpongeBob-Alter Krabbenburger by Jurgen in Germany
5) SpongeBob My Best Friend by Arisdagues in Mexico.

Anyway, the winning short video will be announced this August 9, 2013. Which video will win? Find out!

"Ano ang feeling 'pag 'di regular mag-go?"

On the August 2, 2013 episode of Bubble Gang:

- Electric post gags

- What they're doing in a bed...is like a movie performance!

- The Adventures of Ruffa Mae Kwento in...LAYOFFS!

- Phil Ing. Remembering good times since high school can be a mess.

- Ano ang feeling 'pag 'di regular mag-go? Bubble Gang does Nestle Acti-V Yogurt by spoofing this commercial as BESTLE ACTING-VI. Helps regulate bowel movement.

Bubble Gang does Nestle Acti-V!

- Batang Titiw...sorry. Just the T-defect. Someone's had a T-defect.

- Tata Lino provides help to everyone who meets him.

- What would you do when someone's missing in the blowout and who will pay for the treats? We get away!

- Boss has forgotten his pants for work...

- The Adventures of Ruffa Mae Kwento in...PSYCHIATRIST!

- Balitapat, giving news reports that...nothing's changed! Nothing!

Phil Vicedo

Stephen Garcia

Gina Padilla

Lani Mallari

- The highlights of BAGONG GANG. For this highlight, Team A (Roehl Mendoza, Junacho Trivino, Nicole Borgonia, Joyce Ching, and Jan Manual) and Team B (Arny Ross, Denise Barbacena, Abel Estanislao, RJ Padilla, and Maricris Garcia) are undergoing some kind of drama-style sketch to see how performing these recruits are. Coming soon, we'll find out who's the underperformer...

Cars GT6 Should Put (Volume 3)

Everyone knows that more and more car gamers everywhere are willing to prefer the upcoming Gran Turismo 6, coming this winter exclusively on the Playstation3 console, than the upcoming Forza Motorsport 5, coming this autumn exclusively on the new XBOX One console. However, despite the 1200-car lineup, there are some cars GT6 should put...

Cars like...

1) RUF Rt35 '12

Why: Because of EA restrictions, no Porsches are allowed to be here except the Need For Speed franchise. That's why the committee picked RUF. Some people say that RUF is a tuner for all things Porsche but it is a manufacturer of its own right. They even built the legendary CTR Yellowbird which garnered much praise and attention in the motoring world. That rings me, how come they never add just one new RUF here? Maybe this special Rt35 would do the trick.

Built to celebrate RUF's 35th anniversary, the special Rt35 was launched at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show, and it's based on the latest 991 Porsche 911 but with added turbos to develop 621HP of power and a 205mph top speed. I sure hope GT6 should feature this special machine that what makes RUF special

2) Vauxhall Astra Tech Line '13

WHY: Starting Season 20 of Top Gear, the Vauxhall Astra Tech Line (with Lifetime Warranty) served as the new reasonably priced car for the show, replacing the first-generation Kia Cee-Apostrophe-D. Oh come on. Back in GT5, you didn't feature reasonably priced cars, whereas the rival Forza Motorsport 4 game has the Cee'd and the Liana. 

Come on, GT6, you have to feature this new reasonably priced car because it's what we, Top Gear fans, want.

3) Toyota Crown Athlete S '12

WHY: Last December 2012, Toyota launched the 14th generation Toyota Crown and the Crown I was interested on, not the hybrid one, but the Athlete one with the 3.5L V6 engine and the 8-speed automatic gearbox. Although, I don't like the new model's weird look, I just wanna see this car showed up in GT6 anyway and if it does, this is probably one of the executive saloons I'm looking forward to, just in case I wanna compare it to the TOM'S Chaser and the old Toyota Aristo models.

4) Lexus IS 350 F-Sport '13

WHY: There's a new generation Lexus IS out there and even though it still has an even weirder look than the new Toyota Crown, I still want to see this car to be in Gran Turismo 6 no matter what. The one I'm interested in was the IS 350 F-Sport model. Like the Crown Athlete, it comes with a 3.5L V6 engine mated with an 8-speed automatic gearbox. I wanna compare this one to the new Crown Athlete just in case both of these showed up in Gran Turismo 6.

5) Renaultsport Clio 200 EDC '13

WHY: Despite being double-clutch only and five-door only, the new Renaultsport Clio is just one of the most anticipated hot hatches of 2013. In terms of handling, the new Clio sure behaves like a spartan and you don't need to be an expert to master this kind of hot hatch. I really want Gran Turismo 6 to feature this hot Clio for the heck of it.

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 - A Week in Review (August 3, 2013)

And now, the week in review of what's what at the Korean peninsula...

July 29, 2013

- North Korea did not give an answer on Monday to what the South calls its final proposal for talks regarding the normalization of the Kaesong Complex.

July 30, 2013

- South Korea and the US started up the 4th Korea-US Integrated Defense Dialogue in Seoul.

July 31, 2013

- South Korea awaits North Korea's response for the last offer for talks on reopening the Kaesong Complex for a second straight day.

- US Forces Korea chief nominee says OPCON transfer needed in 2015

- South Korean civic groups start sending humanitarian

aid to North Korea.

- More weapons found aboard seized North Korean ship in Panama.

August 1, 2013

- Rival parties still wrangling over who will be on the witness list for the special parliamentary probe looking into whether the nation's spy agency meddled in last year's presidential election.

- State prosecutors summoned former tax office chief Jeon Goon-pyo for allegedly taking bribes in an attempt to fight against corruption in South Korea.

- Japanese Deputy Prime Minister Taro Aso retracted earlier remarks that suggested Japan should learn from Nazi Germany's constitutional remarks.

August 2, 2013

- North Korea remain silent for a fifth day on Friday concerning South Korea's proposal for "final talks" aimed at reopening the Kaesong complex.

- The second round of negotiations with Japan and China for a three-way free trade agreement ended Friday after what South Korea called "constructive discussions"

- Prosecutors sought an arrest warrant for former chief of the national tax agency, Jeon Goon-Pyo, on charges of accepting bribes from food and entertainment conglomerate CJ Group in 2006, just after he was named commisioner of the National Tax Service.

Renault to stop making Renaultsport Twingo

2012 Renault Twingo Gordini RS

There's been a sad news in the world of hot hatches because Renault has confirmed that they won't be building a new Twingo RS by the moment the next generation Twingo, which was influenced by the TwinRun concept, comes soon. Some say, this could be the last of the naturally-aspirated Renaultsport models ever made because pretty soon, all Renaultsport models are turbocharged.

If Renault plans to revive it, it would be turbocharged but it's unlikely to fit it with Renault's EDC gearbox because of costs and it's complicated to fit it in a small car.

Story: http://www.topgear.com/uk/car-news/renault-twingo-renaultsport-axed-2013-08-01

Scion tC/Toyota Zelas minor change

2014 Scion tC

Scion, Toyota's youth oriented brand was launched in 2003 with two models, the xA which is the first Toyota iST and the xB which is a Toyota bB. Yes, they're both made in Japan but Scion is nothing more of a North American exclusive brand targeted for the younger audience, especially speedo boys. The tC though, although it may be more of a Celica underneath it, this 3-door sports coupe is a wide appeal to the speedo boys in America. It's been three years now since the second-generation Scion tC broke loose with mixed reactions and for this minor change, what can I say?

2014 Scion tC

This minor change is a bit too unorthodox to me. While some say, it draws inspiration from its FR-S big brother, there's one hint of cost-cutting around here because based on the new front face, I can sharply assumed that the new front lamps were borrowed from the facelifted Toyota Mark X (Reiz). Suspicious or is this just a big coincidence? Although I can't say that this new face can be a bit of a fluke, the speedo boy favorite tries to keep itself "red hot" like pizza supper. Wait a minute. Red hot like pizza supper? Aw man, why did I just said that? That's morally wrong to describe that the 2014 tC is red hot as pizza supper. Seriously, pizza supper? I did this sometimes, having pizza for dinner but still this is more topical than having a gorilla in a cake.

Scion says that the 2014 tC loves to pick on a fight against the Hyundai Veloster, the soon-to-be-replaced Kia Forte Koup, and the commoner favorite, the Ford Focus. So, how does it compare? For starters, the tC carries a 2.5 L 2AR-FE straight-4 which develops a moderate 179HP of power, that's more than what you expect than the Veloster, the Koup, and the Focus. And with the starting price of just 20,965 US Dollars, that's more reasonable to buy than the Veloster, Koup, and Focus.

2014 Scion tC interior

2014 Scion tC interior

So, it's a fair choice for the speedo boys who prefer a car that suits their style and consider it a SWAG but how it's like to be a driver's car? To find out, I had to imagine myself eating too much hotdog but be warned. This isn't the hotdog contest for the faint-hearted. The first hotdog would be a pleasant one for me because I'm still on the starved basis. If I'm still hungry after eating one hotdog, I'd eat another one and one minute later, another one! And another! More and more until my stomach says "I'm stuffed", meaning that's enough. Yep, that's exactly how it feels like when you're driving the new tC because by the way you're driving it feels like you're trying to beat Joey Chestnut's record for most hotdogs eaten but sadly, it feels a bit more like...Muscle Man.

Even with the reworked suspension system, it feels a bit more "stuffed" than "starved" and oh! One more thing you may notice... There's this optional 6-speed automatic transmission with rev matching downshifts which allows quicker downshifts on the road. That all seems fine but because real men are always going for the manual, who cares? The 6-speed manual's a standard so this is how fun they'll going to shift these little suckers like a man. Changing gear is all about freedom and with the three pedals and the 6-speed manuals, it feels like that you are in complete control over the car for fun and speedo boys like it too.

So, conclusion time. While the new model may feel a bit more Muscle Man and hotdogs but it's still one of the most enjoyable front-wheel drive sportscars that money can buy. You can forget about the Veloster or the Koup or the Focus. It's this one you can keep and trick if you have the funds to scare the neighborhood. So, would you want one of these or not? That's a simple question only you can answer.

Available colors: Black, Magnetic Gray Metallic, Blue Streak Metallic, Absolutely Red, Cement, Classic Silver Metallic, and Super White.

Photo: Toyota Motor Sales USA