Third-Generation Toyota Vitz (2017 minor change) and Vitz Hybrid

2017 Toyota Vitz

So, the current-generation Toyota Vitz has been around since December 2010 and while the sharper looks captures most baby boomers and millennials alike, its driving can be somewhat "regular". It's been on the block for about seven years and for the second time, the third-generation Vitz has been given a minor change for the 2017 model year.

2017 Toyota Vitz

2017 Toyota Vitz interior

For the 2017 minor change, the Vitz now features a brand new exterior design that keeps it edgier than the previous facelift. First, there's a new, sleeker, front nose that makes it very sleek for a compact hatchback made for baby boomers and millennials alike, and then the rear view has been drastically altered to resemble more of its big brother, the Auris. Although not much has changed on the interior, the lineup is what gets you noticed. You still have a choice of either a 1.0L or a 1.3L 1NR-FKE engine mated with a Super CVT-i gearbox but there's bad news for speedo boys in the world; the RS variant has been sadly deleted from the lineup, which is very disappointing for the speedo boys despite hearing the news that the Vitz will be ready for the World Rally Championship for the first time after 18 years. Sure is sad to see the hotter Vitz go away for the 2017 model year but there's one major addition in the 2017 Vitz range that will get you noticed also and let's cut to the chase; there's a hybrid variant.

You heard it right. There's now a hybrid variant on the Vitz and while it can be questionable to sell it alongside its relative, the Aqua, because both of them are hybrid compacts, it's undeniable proof that no car in Japan is safe from being turned into a hybrid. That's political climate for you. Anyway, the hybrid variant features a 1.5L 1NZ-FXE engine connected to an electric motor and a nickel metal battery, which Toyota keeps on using it on their hybrids rather than the Li-ion batteries most carmakers are using right now. Taking advantage of the THS II and the CVT mated on it, the Vitz Hybrid produces a total power output of 100PS and fuel efficiency of 34.4km/L. In general, that's about 2.6km/L less than the Aqua relative.

Although it isn't as enjoyable as the Vitz you are familiar with seven years ago, its compact sizing makes it good for a daily driver for work and play. The 4.5m turning radius makes it easier to park and easier to get in and out in the narrowest of situations. As for safety, the Vitz offers the Toyota Safety Sense C, comprising of Pre-Collision System, Lane Departure Alert, and the Automatic High Beam function.

2017 Toyota Vitz

The Vitz Hybrid starts at 1,819,800 Japanese Yen while the regular Vitz lineup starts at 1,181,520 Yen. Needless to say, while the new exterior design is a major improvement for the aging third-generation Vitz, the fun factor as a compact is already gone and in return, it's still a regular compact with regular tastes that is somewhat too normal for its own kind and with the addition of the hybrid variant, resistance is futile because as Japan keeps on selling more and more hybrids, the definition of "fun" will soon be wiped out from their vocabulary and who can blame them?

Photo: Toyota Motor Corporation

Emperor Akihito announces his abdication at the start of 2019

Japanese Emperor Akihito is set to be abdicated an allow his eldest son to take over his throne at the start of the year 2019, according to reports.

Akihito, aged 83, who succeed from his father Hirohito, who passed away in 1989, hinted last summer that he wants to retire, as his ailing health conditions made him difficult to take his duties.

The Japanese government is making preparations for the nation's first abdication for two centuries as the possibility of the Crown Prince Naruhito taking over is very likely, according to reports. 

The last abdication took place in 1817 when Kokaku announced his abdication and let his son Ninku take over his throne.

Report: http://www.newsweek.com/japanese-emperor-akihito-abdicate-new-year-2019-reports-541490

Extra Service

ABS-CBN's Star Cinema starts the year 2017 with a bang as the first offering of the year is a hilarious spy flick featuring the hottest celebs in showbiz as Extra Service locks their crosshairs to the cinemagoers and shoot them with their blend of wit, humor, and hotness this action-comedy flick can offer.

Extra Service

Extra Service is about three women named Aw (Arci Munoz), Em (Coleen Garcia) and Gee (Jessy Mendiola) as they're starting their new lives as your basic masseurs but behind their daily lives as masseurs, they're a trio of spies who are on a mission to reclaim a valuable treasure in exchange for their freedom. Sure is a challenging attempt for the ladies but how hard can it be?

In addition to the actresses starred in this flick, we can expect other celebs like Enzo Pineda, Ejay Falcon, Vin Abrenica, and Carmi Martin, among many others.

As a comedy flick, this movie fails to gut the viewers with their own brand of jokes because some say, it's a bit bland and very corny to laugh on their misfits. As a action flick, meanwhile, it doesn't pack some thrills until it hits the right spot where things starting to unfold to deliver the "extra service" this film deserves. So, it's not quite funny nor thrilling as any other action comedies had but what does this film loaded with is the sex appeal and seeing the stars dishing out their brand of hotness really wants to get your butt kicked by this film, get choked to unconsciousness, or get your bones break, whichever this film throws at you.

Extra Service may not be funny or thrilling but the sexual sensation of this film really stimulates your senses into beating yourself up right through the very end of this flick.

My rating: 2.6 out of 5

THE IDOLM@STER LIVE THE@TER FORWARD 02 BlueMoon Harmony

THE IDOLM@STER LIVE THE@TER FORWARD 02
BlueMoon Harmony

The second installment of THE IDOLM@STER LIVE THE@TER FORWARD trilogy of CDs now highlights on the BlueMoon Harmony gals of the 765 MILLION STARS from THE IDOLM@STER Million Live mobile game.

For this installment, fans got their ears on the next batch of their favorite Million Live idols such as Reika Kitakami (CV: Emi Hirayama), Karen Shinomiya (CV: Yui Kondou), Julia (CV: Aimi), Sayoko Takayama (CV: Yuri Komagata), Tomoka Tenkubashi (CV: Kotori Koiwai), Megumi Tokoro (CV: Yukiyo Fujii), Subaru Nagayoshi (CV: Yuka Saito), Yuriko Nanao (CV: Miku Ito), Chizuru Nikaido (CV: Kanako Nomura), Ayumu Maihama (CV: Megumi Toda), Mizuki Makabe (CV: Rika Abe), and Shizuka Mogami (CV: Azusa Tadokoro). In here, fans are greeted with five brand new songs and six brand new audio drama parts focusing on BlueMoon Harmony team and its sub-units Sagittarius, Pisces, Virgo, and Aquarius. Need to expect more?

Be sure to pick up the Sunshine Rhythm installment of the LIVE THE@TER FORWARD trilogy CDs and brace yourselves for the upcoming Starlight Melody installment, coming this February. There are more reasons why you should come back for more at THE IDOLM@STER Million Live.

TRACK LISTINGS:

01 ドラマ1「開演のご挨拶」

02 Raise the FLAG

03 ドラマ2「MC01～その頃舞台裏では」

04 P.S I Love You

05 ドラマ3「MC02～その頃舞台裏では」

06 プリムラ

07 ドラマ4「MC03～その頃舞台裏では」

08 待ちぼうけのLacrima

09 ドラマ5「MC04～その頃舞台裏では」

10 brave HARMONY

11 ドラマ6「終演後～その頃舞台裏では」

Let's Do The News! (January 11, 2017)

- President Rodrigo Duterte sworn in over 200 appointees to various government posts, stressing his fight against corruption. It was the first speech he made after his weeklong hiatus and the President reminded the new officials to cooperate and render the kind of service Filipinos deserve.

- Secretary Gina Lopez and three other officials of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources are facing criminal and administrative charges from a consumer group over an allegedly anomalous purchase of air quality monitoring equipment. In a nine-page complaint filed yesterday, the United Filipino Consumers and Commuters accused Lopez of inaction for not launching any investigation on what it called an anomalous purchase of equipment by the DENR's Environmental Management Bureau-Air Quality Monitoring System.

- President Duterte sent an official invitation to US President-Elect Donald Trump for the ASEAN summit to be held in the Philippines in November, President Communications Office Secretary Martin Andanar said Trump hasn't confirmed his visit to the Philippines for the summit.

- Filipino netizens draw flak against the proposed imposition of a 10-to-30 percent excise tax on cosmetic products and beauty services as an alternative to imposing additional tax on fuel products. A certain partylist representative proposed the "vanity tax" that will also be imposed on services such as liposuction, facelift, nose job, and breast augmentation and it would be better to impose it on those who want to look good, which, he said is a luxury.

- US President Barack Obama delivered his final and emotional speech of the nation in Chicago, Illinois before next week's inauguration of Donald Trump. Obama urged all Americans to stand up for US values and reject discrimination as the country transitions to the presidency of Republican Donald Trump. Obama plans to stay in Washington for the next two years while his younger daughter, Sasha, finishes high school. The president wants to give Trump the same space that his predecessor, Republican President George W. Bush, gave Obama after leaving office by not maintaining a high profile.

- Iran's political leadership has bid farewell to former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani at his state funeral in Tehran. Attendants at the funeral on Tuesday included supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and President Hassan Rouhani.

- A US jury recommended the death penalty of a white male charged with killing nine black people at a church in South Carolina last June. Dylann Roof faces 33 charges, including hate crimes, over the shootings in Charleston. Last month, the same jury convicted him of all the charges. They jury gave the verdict after deliberations on Tuesday on whether to sentence the man to death or not.

- FIFA says the 2026 World Cup will have 48 teams, 16 more than at present. The council unanimously approved the expansion in a meeting in Zurich on Tuesday. This is the first time in 28 years the World Cup finals will be expanded. The 2018 World Cup will take place in Russia in the summer of 2018.

- A new trailer for the upcoming Disney-Pixar's Cars 3 has arrived and looks like Lightning McQueen's not giving up without a fight, especially he has a fierce opposition against a more modern rival, Jackson Storm. With the help of his new trainer, Cruz Ramirez, can Lightning McQueen strike back in the race? Find out this Summer 2017.

- 2017 marks the 10th anniversary of everyone's favorite virtual idol, Hatsune Miku, and something big is happening to celebrate the occasion.

TTFN!!!

Stars of the 2017 NAIAS

2018 Chevrolet Traverse

The 2017 North American International Auto Show, going on now until the 22nd of January, 2017, will be the show's last outing before the incoming Trump administration that will dramatically shift the automotive sector in the United States. Thanks to the sudden rise of the controversial US President-elect Donald Trump and his tortured metaphors that changed the world for the next four years, it's assuming that car companies will go big (or go home) in the United States. during his term.

Ford, for instance, say that they will cancel building a new plant in Mexico, which Mr. Trump strongly opposes, and instead invest in building electric vehicles at their Flat Rock Assembly Plant. In addition of announcing that they will build hybrid versions of the Mustang and F-150, they also announce the return of the Ranger pick-up and the Bronco SUV in 2020. FCA, meanwhile, they would invest a billion dollars in manufacturing plants in Ohio and Michigan for new SUVs. Then Japanese car companies are planning big on the US car market. Honda launched a US-made minivan with the company's first 10-speed gearbox while Toyota launched a new-generation midsize saloon and promised over ten billion dollars to be invested in the US market in the next five years.

Anyway, while this is all in the name of Trump's "Make America Great Again" campaign, let's take a look on the stars of this year's show before giving way to the administration that we're in for a rollercoaster ride...

2017 Audi A5 Convertible
2017 Audi S5 Convertible
2018 Audi SQ5
2017 BMW 5-Series
2018 Chevrolet Traverse
2018 Ford F-150 Minor Change
2018 GMC Terrain
2018 Lexus LS
2018 Mercedes-AMG GT Minor Change
2018 Mercedes-Benz E-Class Coupe
2018 Mercedes-Benz GLA-Class Minor Change
2018 VW Tiguan Allspace
2017 Audi Q8 Concept
2017 Infiniti QX50 Concept
2018 Porsche 911 GTS
2017 Rinspeed Oasis Concept
2017 Nissan Vmotion 2.0 Concept
2017 VW ID Buzz concept

...and more.

URL: http://www.carscoops.com/2016/12/2017-detroit-auto-shows-z-debut-guide.html

Citroen C-Elysee (2017 minor change)

Back when Citroen decided to sell the C-Elysee compact saloon in Europe following its success in developing markets, including the People's Republic of China, the French car company wanted to make sure that their most affordable four-door saloon tries to cut off against the likes of other low budget saloons in Europe such as the Skoda Rapid, Seat Toledo, or even the Fiat Tipo. Sadly, its regular looks never seem to please motorists as well as its regular driving characteristics. Now, Citroen revised the low-cost saloon for the 2017 model year to cope up with its regularity.

2017 Citroen C-Elysee

2017 Citroen C-Elysee interior

No time to talk because let's see what the recent minor change has done to the low-cost Citroen C-Elysee saloon and how can this new model can keep up with its "regular" characteristics as expected for first-time buyers. First up, the exterior has been revised with the new, broader radiator grill and chrome-plated chevrons that works well with the new headlamps as well as the new LED lighting strip on top of the fog lamps while the rear view has been mildly revised.

The interior has been revised and now features a new 7-inch touchscreen interface with smartphone connectivity that makes full use of its newly found Apple Carplay, MirrorLink, and Android Auto compatibility so your smartphone can feel connected with the new C-Elysee. That all sounds lovely to toy around with but in terms of comfort, it still remains the same as well as its 506-litre boot space for your recent garage sale stuff.

As always, the C-Elysee is still powered by a choice of either a 1.2L petrol engine producing 82PS of power and 1.6L BlueHDi diesel engine producing 100PS of power, both mated to a five-speed manual gearbox.

The new C-Elysee starts at 13,750 Euros, about three hundred more than the previous model but it's still on the same price bracket as the Skoda Rapid, Seat Toledo, or even the Fiat Tipo. It maybe vale for money but you have to be wise enough not to mess this low-cost saloon from the ground up.

Photo: PSA Peugeot Citroen