BOASTS EYESIGHT DRIVER-ASSIST
July 2017 THE CANBERRA REPORTER | 7
Edited by ARNALDO DE LEON
MOTORING | TECHNOLOGY
NEW CARS
It ’ s a lot of fun with a Subaru XV
BOASTS EYESIGHT DRIVER-ASSIST
By ARNALDO DE LEON
THE all-new Subaru XV , Australia ’ s compact SUV that gives you maximum fun with that legendary Subaru Symmetrical All Wheel Drive , much bigger 8-inch touch screen , upgraded technology for increased fuel efficiency , X-Mode , 5 star ANCAP safety and a roomier experience . The heart of the XV is the FB20 DOHC Dual AVCS engine with 115kW @ 6000rpm power and 196Nm @ 4000rpm of torque . It boasts a smaller diameter steering wheel for that greater feel and comes with Yokohama tyres so ensure grip on the road . Apple Carplay and Android Auto will read your text message out loud along with other information so you can focus on the road ahead .
The highlight of the XV must be Subaru ’ s world renowned technology EyeSight Driver Assist System that works like an extra set of eyes to watch the road ahead vastly improving safety though collision avoidance . This system warns you audibly if it sees anything of danger through the cameras on the front windscreen and automatically applies the brakes if you don ’ t . This feature is a must for our very own Canberra roads since most of our local accidents are caused by fatigued drivers driving a monotonous road setup blurring any oncoming hazards . Previously unique to the bigger Forester , the all-new XV now as X-Mode in which the driver can be automatically assisted on off road conditions . This modern machine with show-stopping value starts at $ 32,564 RDP that goes up to $ 40,033 RDP for the high end model Subaru SV 2.0i-S . •
Airbag giant files for bankruptcy
AFTER pleading guilty earlier this year to a felony charge in a United States court , Japanese airbag giant Takada has announced it was filing for bankruptcy . This decision followed millions of faulty airbag recalls with associated deaths of at least 16 people all over the world . Takata ’ s operations tried their best to fix the faults with recalls in every affected country involving at least two million vehicles and 30 different models . However , with this problem proving to be too large for the Takata to solve , Key Safety Systems , a Chinese-owned company based in the United States is now expected to acquire Takata ’ s asset base and operations . •
PHONES
Smart move , Nokia
RIDING the launch of the classic 3310 Nokia phone , the new owners of Nokia announced three new Android Nougat equipped smartphones for this year starting at $ 249 . This relaunch has been long awaited by fans of the brand who made mobile phones popular back in 1999 . Nokia as a brand has the reputation of long battery life and solid build quality , with these new models reflecting the same qualities using Gorilla Glass 5 screens and changing the operating system from Microsoft Windows Mobile to Android Nougat to make the phones an easy fit with today ’ s popular applications be it personal or business use . The three options ( pictured below ) are the Nokia 3 with a 5 inch display , Nokia 5 with a slighty larger 5.2 inch and the top dog Nokia 6 sporting a 5.5 inch display . The winner here is clearly the consumer , with pricing set at close proximity with each other despite the obvious gap in technology . •