I have always wanted to drive a Honda Civic Type R, FD2. It was the model year between 2007 and 2010. They say it was the first ever Civic Type R to come in four doors, while also the last generation of Civic Type R with the High-revving, normally aspirated engine. The 2.0L, K20A engine produces 222hp at 8,000rpm and 215Nm of torque, delivering power through a 6-speed manual gearbox to the front wheels. It would carry a body curb weight of 1260kg plus passengers of four, happily. Great recipe isn’t? But I don’t know how many more years later, a 12-year-old kid would read this again and say, ‘…only 200 odds horsepower and a manual gearbox? A gearbox that doesn’t know how to shift itself?’ The other day I was having lunch with a friend talking about the future of the automotive industry. With the progressive development of shared transportation, apps, autonomous vehicle and fully electric cars, we can see the consumer behaviour to the automotive industry is changing. We think there will be sectors in the automotive industry cutting down manpower jobs and we suggest the market will swift to a new form of car ownership, subscribing, like you would pay monthly to stream movies online without owning them. Then we would go back to the age when, for those who would fully own a car are people with even higher living standards in the market. See how interesting the cycle went and will be proceeding? First there were only the wealthier group could own the luxury of private mobility, then as the development of more affordable cars, a wider span of people would own a car for everyday motoring. Only then this group of people realize the costly liability of maintenance, they would seek another way of motoring. Perhaps it is already happening, some automotive dealers have been performing some sort of ‘Agility’ plans to spark newer way of private motoring. Monthly instalments for a 3-year plan then switch to another new model later and keep on ‘subscribing’. Pay a higher premium the subscription would even cover any maintenance and repair cost during the period. Back to the cabin of the FD2, it was a place for passionate drivers to live in. A sporty steering wheel with a rev counter in the middle, digital number speedometer at the further to the windscreen. A manual gearshift positioned ergonomically right for the intuitive shifting experience. All these suggest that the owners would have a higher priority in driving to the fullest while also just about practical to do weekly shopping and occasionally car lifts for 3 extra passengers.
We are going through the revolution of motoring, almost quicker than ever before. I am excited to see how the automotive ecosystem will go on for the next 20-30 years, when autonomous driving and fully electrical vehicles would be just anywhere around the corner. Eventually, perhaps, I would not be surprised to see motorist passing by with no hands on the steering wheel, checking new social messages on the windscreen with hand gestures like Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible movies. Then with a spur of the moment, that motorist would be surprised to see me driving. Driving with hands on the wheel of some similar driver’s car like the Type R I have driven above. Thanks for reading
1 Comment
|
|