What They’re Driving In The BRIC Nations
If you’ve ever had a quick brush with international economists, then you may have heard about what’s known as the BRIC nations. BRIC stands for Brazil, Russia, India and China, and they’re the up-and-coming force in world markets. Now, when I take a look through the cars reviewed here at Private Fleet, there’s not a whole heap of Chinese, Brazilian, Russian or Indian cars listed there, although China is making its presence Down Under felt with the Great Wall and Chery (OK, a lot of marques with European or US origins probably get bits assembled in China these days, but all the same…). I had to ask myself what people are driving in these countries. Are they driving their own cars or something else?
So, research time…
Deadly Venom: Is Top Speed Really That Important?
The Hennessey Venom GT
For anyone who is a true petrol head, questioning the importance of top speed in the modern world will most likely come across as hideously blasphemous. Many may even liken it to asking a lover of decent curry if spice is really that important. You might even end up with a face full of curry, and no one wants that, do they? However, with the latest hypercar news hitting the news stand that the Bugatti Veyron may have finally been overthrown by the mighty Hennessey Venom GT I have decided to ask the big one.
Optimal Appeal For Kia's Big Car
Charles Darwin espoused “The Theory of Evolution”; it certainly applies to the world of automotive transport and Kia’s Optima is a brilliant case in point. Starting off as a somewhat ugly duckling, it’s now a classy swan. With a profile not unlike Jaguar’s gorgeous XF, it cuts a sharp figure on the road, but is everything else up to the task? I check out the entry level Si Optima…
The Driven Heart
It’s well and truly a common engine size at 2.4L and churns out a respectable 148 kilowatts, albeit at a high 6300 revs. Peak torque is 250 Newton metres at a revvy 4250rpm, with the engine drinking from a 70 litre tank. Economy is quoted as being 7.9L per 100 kilometres on a combined cycle, with the weak spot being the urban figure, a tick over 11.2L. A Wheel Thing averaged, over a week, a tick under 10L/100kms in a predominantly urban driving program. Tagged as GDI, for gasoline direct injection, it’s a freespirited, if slightly buzzy, piece of engineering, revving freely when asked and quietly tootling around when not.
The Clothing Store
Lithe, angular, curvaceous where it counts, the Optima has a sense of presence on the road. The vehicle provided came clad in 
Platinum Graphite, a metallic grey which looks superb on the sharp panels. A gloss black grille, swept back and wrap around style headlights give the Optima an arrow head front end, moving to a high belt line and sweeping back into a coupe 
style rear roof line, endcapped by an angular taillight cluster. It’s cohesive and balanced. The Si misses out on the LED running lights as featured on the SLi and Platinum. At 4845mm in length, 1830mm wide and under 1500mm in height, it’s a trim and taut looking beast however it’s a touch porky at nearly 1600kg.
The Office Space
Base model it might be but the seats provided some of the best support and least stuffing around to get a comfortable seating 
position I’ve had in weeks. A mixture of manufactured leather and cloth, 
the wrap around of the wings and what feels like just the right amount of padding go, immediately, a long way to starting a journey comfortably. An efficient dash layout, sensibly laid out switchgear, paddle shifts, wide opening doors, a 500 odd litre cargo space are let down somewhat by a cheapish looking and feeling steering wheel. 
Although symmetrically laid out, there’s a touch too many buttons to look at plus there’s an Eco button hanging off the bottom right which could have been better located elsewhere.
The audio system screen is the tried and proven red dot matrix design, it sounds good but the menu system to adjust the sound becomes nonintuitive after the first two steps. The Si has an old tech foot operated park brake as well, somewhat out of tune with the rest of the tech, such as reverse camera (shown in the rear vision mirror), traction control and Hill Start Assist.
On The Road
The lack of torque is an issue at times, initially off the line and when required to make an overtaking move. It’s geared to be around 2000-2200 revs at freeway speeds, requiring either a bit of preplanning and a deft right foot or a hefty thump on the go pedal, sending the tacho surging past 4000 revs and the six speed auto back to fourth, sometimes third. The brake is beautifully 
pressured, wonderfully modulated, reading the driver’s desire to squeeze down to a stop as equally well as a momentary dab or a full emergency brake. The suspension is the well proven combination of McPherson strut front/multilink rear, providing a sublime ride on smooth surfaces and ironing out the niggles all too often found, aided by the 215/55 section rubber, wrapped around 17 inch alloys with a five spoke tuning fork design. Turn in is precise however it feels more weight on centre and lightens up left and right, feeling, oddly, as if the steering is activating the wheels from the top rather than from inside the hubs.
The Wrap
Time, money, research, result. Time and money well spent on research and the result is the Optima. The test car is priced at $31990 + ORCs and metallic paint is $595. Click here: http://www.kia.com.au/showroom/optima for more.
DIY Car Repairs: Safety Tips And More
Having spent a fair part of the weekend tinkering around with a screwdriver trying to see what was wrong with the electric windows in my Ford Fairlane, I thought I’d better talk a bit about DIY car repairs and maintenance. To my fellow female motorists, this is something that I really encourage you to have a go at. For one thing, it can save you a couple of bucks, same as it does for any DIY person; secondly, it makes it less likely that the few male chauvinist pig* mechanics out there are going to try to rip you off if you do end up having to take your car to an expert – they’re unlikely to charge you for “fixing” something that wasn’t wrong if you tell them precisely what’s wrong. And if Her Majesty Elizabeth II of England (and, for the time being, Australia) can do it, so can you!
There are some things, however, that are best left to the experts. Things to do with electric and electronics, for example. You really need to know what you’re doing with this sort of thing, same as you would for a computer (probably because it is practically a computer). The only exceptions are fuses, spark plugs and light bulbs – they’re easy enough for a DIY person to do. Turn the ignition off first.
Level 2, 9 Help Street