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This is the second time that the Formula One (F1) Singtel Grand Prix Night Race is held in Singapore. Both Singaporean and foreigners feel really excited about this event which is held from 25 to 27 September 2009 as this is the one and only one street night race in the world so far.

F1 Racing Car Displaying at Marina Square :

This is also a great time to go to Suntec City and Marina Square shopping centres for shopping because the Land Transport Authority (LTA) did a series of road closure in the Marina Centre area from 23 to 29 September. So, both Suntec City and Marina Square will be less crowded as compared with the usual days.

My family and I seized the opportunity and went to these two shopping centres for shopping this afternoon. Our intention was also to look out for the best spot and take a glimpse of the F1 Night Race in the evening.

We went high and low to hunt for the best spot and fortunately we found one.

This is the first time that I had watched F1 Grand Prix Night Race live and I really felt excited when watching the sportscars were racing in the street track. The thunderous noise made by the racing cars was so loud and ear-deafening that I had to cover my ears with my hands at times.

Click on “Play” to watch :

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First of all, I wish you have a very happy and peaceful Thanksgiving Day if you are staying in the US.

I went to the SITEX PC show and John Little Mega Sale at the Singapore Expo this afternoon as I was not working today. It was not too crowded over there probably because it was not a weekend. 

I think it is better this way so that I can really go from booth to booth to look at those laptops, desktops, gadgets and other IT accessories on display without having to get squeezed around in the crowd. Besides laptops, Apple’s iPod Classic, iPod Touch and iPhone are very popular IT products which drew the attention of many visitors at the SITEX PC show.

iPhone is in the wish-list of many people :

Besides PCs, there was also a section for selling cars. I think the event exhibitors nowadays are trying to pack a few different events together in one exhibition hall so as to cater to different needs. Maybe this is the so-called killing one bird with two stones.

Here is a picture of the sportscar displaying at the mini car show :

As for the John Little Mega Sale, I walked around and then picked up a few packets of Japanese Wasabi peas and seasoned seaweed. These are the snacks that my sisters and niece like to eat very much.

After spending a few hours at the SITEX PC show and John Little Mega Sale, I was really feeling tired and hungry so I went to the Malan Noodle restaurant to have a bowl of Chinese crunchy prawn noodle.

Here is a picture of the Crunchy Prawn Noodle :

I like the prawns which were very fresh and crunchy. You will love the crunchiness of the prawns after taking one bite. It will taste even better when eating the prawns with chili.

I spent my off day at the PC show today but I yet to have any plan for tomorrow which is also my off day. Hmm….let me think about how I want to spend my day tomorrow.

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Here comes a new electric car called Bamgoo. This is a Japanese single-seater concept car made of bamboo. Apparently, “Bamgoo” is a name derived from Bamboo. The outlook of the Bamgoo looks very similar to that of the Corbin Sparrow which is also a single-seater electric car.

Bamgoo was on a road test in Kyoto, western Japan, recently. This is an ecological-friendly concept car developed by Kyoto University’s Venture Business Laboratory.

I think Japanese are one of the most innovative people on earth to have thought of such a creative idea to build the electric car using bamboo. This is against the traditional way of using steel for building the car chassis. I’m not sure how practical it is to drive a bamboo-made car. Anyway, I think the Japanese just have some interesting ideas popping up every now and then.

Bamgoo measures 2.7 m in length, 1.3 m in width and 1.65 m in height. This single-seater electric car weighs 60 kg and it can run for 50 km on a single charge.

Here is a video clip of the Bamgoo being driven around by a mother with her kid on her lap:

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Here is another eye-catching car being displayed at the recent Paris Auto Show 2008. I’m sure this sports car is going to raise the eyebrows of many people. This is the Lamborghini Estoque – the first Hybrid four-door concept. 

This beautiful monster sports car is 5.15 metres long. Lamborghini Estoque has long wheelbase, 23-inch rear wheels, low profile and a feast of Lamborghini accents. It has four seats and ample luggage space. 

Lamborghini Estoque is the first sedan that the company has ever built. It makes a record in the company’s history for having a four-door Lamborghini as compared with its traditional two-door sports car. 

Lamborghini Estoque is believed to be targeting those who desired the performance of a sports car but needed the added room of a family car.

It is indeed very rare to see a sports car having four-door instead of two-door. The diehard fans of Lamborghini might not buy the idea of driving a four-door Lamborghini Estoque around.

Anyway, Lamborghini Estoque is a concept sports car, it won’t be on sales for now until 2010. Take a look at the all-new four-door Lamborghini Estoque concept in the video clip below :

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I think the Toyota iQ Concept is really a cute concept car. It measures 2.98 metres long which is about one foot longer than the Smart ForTwo car. As compared with the 3-door Toyota Yaris, iQ is almost 3 feet shorter.

Smart ForTwo is a two-seater car. Whereas, Toyota iQ is a 3+1 seater which can accomodate more people with its two seats that can be inhabited by adults in the front. iQ is a small and yet spacious car. It has high premium quality features. Toyota iQ can be said to be an ultra-compact vehicle that achieves exceptional space efficiency.

The 3+1 seater are meant for adults plus a child. It is optional to use the fourth seat for luggage space., The driver and the passenger can sit side by side in regular use. You can also slide the passenger seat further forwards makes room for an extra adult and child in the rear.

The Toyota iQ is the world’s smallest four-seat passenger concept car available. Besides iQ is cute by its appearance, it has intelligent space-saving design and miniaturised technology that helps to free up interior space. Toyota iQ may be a better choice than Smart ForTwo in terms of carrying more passengers because it is more spacious and practical.

Here is a video clip showing the Toyota IQ Concept :

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The long-awaited Lexus IS 250 Convertible has finally been unveiled at the Paris Auto Show 2008. The model of the saloon or sedan version is called IS 250 and the convertible version is called IS 250C. 

There have been many reports talking about the new Lexus IS 250 Convertible but none of them has actually got the chance to produce any pictures of the new Lexus IS 250C until it has appeared at the Mondial de l’Automobile in Paris on 02 Oct 2008.

At the Paris Auto Show 2008, the Lexus IS 250C draws the attention of the crowd by showcasing its three-piece folding aluminium top which does so in 20 seconds. As compared with the IS 250 saloon or sedan, the headlamps, bonnet, door handles and mirrors of the IS 250C convertible have been retained in order to accommodate the convertible configuration. 

The car body of IS 250C looks different from IS 250. You can see that the body panels have been re-designed to maintain design harmony with the three-part folding roof. Nevetheless, both Lexus Is 250 and IS 250C have elegant design and good-looking lines.

The IS 250C is not on sales right now. The press release says that IS 250C will be available in spring 2009 in the U.S. followed by UK in the summer. So, we won’t be seeing Lexus IS 250C Convertible running on the road until 2009.

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The Nissan Pivo 2 electric concept car is an advanced version of the first Pivo that was shown at Tokyo Motor show in 2005. Pivo 2 is powered by advanced Compact Lithium-ion Batteries and employs ‘by-wire’ technologies for braking and steering. It has a unique rotating cabin. In other words, Pivo 2 doesn’t require any reverse gear at all. 

Pivo 2 is also an environment-friendly electric concept car which delivers fun and functionality. The conceptual design of Pivo 2 uses revolutionary technology with 360 degree turning cabin and 90 degree turning wheels. 

Nissan’s advanced electric In-wheel 3D Motor is used to power each of the four wheels of Pivo 2. It can turn through 90 degrees to allow Pivo 2 to drive sideways as well as forward.

The petrol price is so high these days, I guess more and more motor car companies might be venturing into the electric car business to cater to the future demand. Commuters like us will have more options to choose from provided the price of the electric car is not sky high. 

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The Nissan Pivo electric concept car really looks cute. Its cartoon-like design will attract even more on-lookers than the Corbin Sparrow 3-wheeled electric car if it is running on the road. The imaginative electric car concept is a partnership with renowned Japanese artist Takashi Murakami at the company’s Nissan Ginza Gallery in downtown Tokyo.

The cute Pivo has a compact body and Nissan Motor says that the electric car is easy to maneuver. Pivo has an innovative cabin that revolves 360 degrees eliminating the need to reverse. It is powered by Nissan’s compact, high-performance lithium-ion battery and its unique Super Motor, resulting in zero emissions. From this, we can tell that Pivo is indeed an environment-friendly electric car.

Pivo is a three-seater car which can accommodate more passengers as compared with the one-seater Corbin Sparrow. It comes with a number of user-friendly technologies such as Nissan’s Around View Monitor. This feature helps to reduce blind spots by displaying the outside surroundings on screens mounted on the inside of the car’s A-pillars located on either side of the windshield. 

Pivo also has a dash-mounted infrared (IR) commander installed to allow the driver to operate the navigation and stereo systems with simple finger movements without letting go of the steering wheel. This feature helps to reduce distraction so as to allow the driver to drive safely.

It seems like Nissan Pivo is one of my dream cars. It might be yours too after watching the video below :

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My sister and I went to Far East Square for shopping at Orchard in December 2007. I parked my car at the basement carpark and I saw a bright-orange rare vehicle that caught my eyes instantly. However, I cannot figure out what it was because it doesn’t look like a normal car. This toy-like rare vehicle has 3 wheels and a steering wheel. Its seat is only enough for one passenger.

We were very excited and delighted to see this 3-wheeled vehicle. I was so curious and I rushed towards it to have a closer look. I got my camera and took a few pictures of this rare vehicle. Other on-lookers were as curious as us and they went closer to scrutinise it.

A few months later, I read an article reported in the Straits Times talking about this 3-wheeled rare vehicle too. Then, I get to know that this bright-orange 3-wheeled vehicle is actually an electric car. Its name is called Corbin Sparrow. In fact, this is the only 3-wheeled and single-passenger car registered in Singapore. Its car owner is a teacher at the American school by the name of James Diebley. He imported the car from California-based Corbin Motors back in 2001.

The Corbin Sparrow electric car runs on lead-acid batteries which cost less than $1 SGD a day to charge. It can run with a top speed of 110kmh and a range of 30-50 km. This 3-wheeled vehicle is classified as a motorcycle in some countries but it is registered as a car over here in Singapore.

According to the Land Transport Authority of Singapore, the Sparrow exceeded the 400kg maximum weight for a motorcycle. It weighs about 700kg and ‘has several car-like features such as a steering wheel, an enclosed body and doors’, said a spokesman. The Sparrow is powered by 13 lead-acid batteries which drive an electric motor connected to the rear wheel via a belt. It has a top speed of about 110kmh and a range of 30-50km.

I think it is not important whether or not the Corbin Sparrow is a car or a motorcycle. It is indeed a very unique vehicle. If you want to get famous, probably you should get a Corbin Sparrow and drive it around. You will definitely gain a lot of attention and attract many on-lookers to admire your 3-wheeled single-passenger eletric vehicle.

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