Hungry Hippo: Honda CR-V 2.4

A full week with the new Honda CRV 2.4 has been enjoyable, especially with the current bout of rainy days. The car breezes through floods, fjording pools of water effortlessly, leaving bimmers and other family sedans in its wake.

The cabin is airy and visibility is excellent, allowing you to spot congestion and traffic build-ups a mile away (a common occurence during this festive season).



And the combined cabin and cargo area proved most helpful in lugging around a Recaro racing bucket seat and full exhaust system (from the recently de-registered DC2R). it's certainly easy to see the appeal of a soft-roader.



My only bugbear was the fuel consumption. the last time i drove it, i only managed sub-8km/L figures.

This time around, pussy-footing the car around returned 8.9km/L on average! of course it's a 2.4-litre, automatic and 4WD suv to boot, but gosh! the only time i saw 9.2km/L was when i took it all the way to the furthest reaches of Punggol for an early morning breakfast meeting.



But then, there's always the 2-litre CRV variant to look towards if fuel consumption is a major concern. and if you don't happen to live in the punggol/sengkang area... but many people may find the pace too plodding.

In white, it is a most elegant creature and drew positive responses from the lady passengers we ferried around.

The 'double-layered' jut-jaw front chin polarises opinions. it's either love or hate at first sight. i like it and it's distinctive enough to spot on the road.





p.s. excuse picture quality, the trusty SE K800i is undergoing repair work. these were taken using a SE k618i

Oldie but Goodie: mercedes-benz c200 sports edition

Many would consider the C-class something of an old-timer, although the C55 AMG remains a firm favourite among us 'younger' folks. A big shout out to DaimlerChrysler for the last minute loan of a sexy black C200 Sport Edition last Friday.

This 'run-out' spec has been outfitted with sporty niceties like new (and bigger) sports rims, aluminium trim in the cabin, big-bore exhaust (great sonorous note) and assorted garnish.

Revisiting the car has certainly opened our eyes. We'd take this over an entry level BMW 320i any day. The C200 feels nimble and the 163bhp supercharged engine is peppy compared to the sluggish Bimmer. Compact proportions mean it's easy to punt around and the standard equipment list includes electric driver AND passenger seats.

Tail-outs are easily provoked with a prod of the gas pedal, but the traction control quickly cuts in and inhibits holding a drift. Smoke outs are possible though and the footage is NOT from an AMG car, but the C200!

Temple of VTEC

gee whiz, 2 years is coming up really soon and it's about time to give up my trusty steed. After all was said and done, added, modded and de-modded, i've realised that the best way to experience the Honda Integra Type R (DC2 98specR) is as Honda intended. Factory-stock... well, apart from the mugen twin loop exhaust system, of course!

What's ahead for this m0t0rhead? well, all i can say is, it's probably going to be another high-revving Honda. The only question is, Which one? :)

Here's a short vid-clip of me driving the typeR. i know, i know, i hit 'tec for less than a few seconds at a time, but it was the only time i could be arsed to video it.

It's been a real blast.