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Courier-Mail
23-05-2025
- Automotive
- Courier-Mail
Van Life review: Answering the call of the wild west
Don't miss out on the headlines from Lifestyle. Followed categories will be added to My News. Ever felt like telling the boss to stick it and dropping out of the rat race for a while? Some people switch careers, buy a Harley, or a boat, or take up golf. But a lot of Aussies – kind of uniquely in this modern world – are getting back to basics and exploring our massive continent. I'm now of an age where it seems every second Facebook post I see is another old school chum who's pulled their kids out of school and hit the road for a #VanLife gap year. The thought of packing up and driving around this massive island is compelling, but generally it's an expensive itch to scratch, so I thought I would sample it first. Thankfully when I put out the call for a donor rig, Brisbane-based Titan Caravans and Toyota Australia were only too happy to indulge me. Toyota LandCruiser Prado VX and Titan 500 Sierra Blackhawk caravan. So before I knew it, we were packing up the kids and heading west for a fun long weekend – in a Toyota Land Cruiser Prado VX hauling a Titan 500 Sierra Blackhawk. I'd never towed anything before this trip, which is definitely not advisable, but Titan Caravans managing director James Creswick and the team ran me through everything I'd need to worry about, took me for a thorough test drive and got me set up to the point where I took off with confidence. The thought of manoeuvring a van into a spot at a caravan park – especially at this time of year – was a little too daunting for me, so we decided to go bush instead. We found a property out at Helidon, about an hour west of Brisbane at the bottom of the Toowoomba Range, where I could practice reversing (a dark art), and getting everything set up. The Titan had solar panels, massive batteries and an inverter, so we were pretty well set up for off-grid living. Titans are built for going off-road, so basically it will go anywhere your vehicle can get to. I was expecting that feature to be a challenge on the highway, but it was surprising how stable the Sierra felt behind the big Prado. The catch with having off-road clearance is the van feels bouncy when you're parked, but Titans have hard stands in each corner for levelling so that wasn't a problem. I don't know much about caravans but we were very comfortable sleeping in it for a few nights. On board we had a smart TV, aircon, a big fridge, toilet and shower and we gave the stereo system (internal and external speakers) a good workout. It is quite a novelty packing a caravan for a few nights away rather than packing bags and I can see why the lifestyle is appealing for growing numbers of people across the country. The new Prado has been making waves since its launch last year – a much better off-roader than its predecessor but with rugged modern styling and all the latest tech. Our VX, with black paint riding on big black alloys, looked great, especially with a tan leather interior. I reckon this VX, at $93,000, is better value than the cheapest big LC300, the GX, which is $104,000. The Toyota Land Cruiser Prado VX's tech-heavy and plush interior. The most controversial part is its third row, which doesn't fold into the floor due to the hybrid tech under the car. This gives you a raised boot platform with a narrow space behind. Toyota has filled this with a 60-litre utility box that doesn't really serve a purpose other than as storage for wet stuff. Still, the boot is massive and the third-row seats are usably roomy. The Prado handled the Titan easily, sitting flat and wafting down the highway. You never forget there's a big lump of caravan behind you, but it was surprisingly easy to get used to. Our van life weekend test run was unforgettable fun and never felt like we were roughing it. I know people set off having spent far less, but it's nice to know you can hit the road with everything you'll need – not just the basics – for well under $200,000. Now to email the boss… The Titan Caravans Australia Sierra 500 Blackhawk is $74,990 tow away TITAN CARAVANS 500 SIERRA BLACKHAWK Price: $74,990 tow away Dimensions: 5.1m long; 3.1m tall, max weight 2800kg Features: Off-road suspension; queen-size bed; battery management system; generator slide-out; aircon; bluetooth stereo; 360-degree outdoor LED lighting; reverse camera; 24-inch smart TV; fridge; kitchen; bathroom; grey and fresh water More info: Toyota Land Cruiser Prado VX TOYOTA LAND CRUISER PRADO VX Price: About $93,000 drive away Warranty/servicing: Five years, unlimited kilometres; Five years capped-price servicing Engine: 2.8-litre turbo diesel four cylinder; 150kW, 500Nm; 8-speed automatic Thirst: 7.6 litres/100km (claimed); 110-litre tank Features: LED headlights, 12.3-inch display, five-mode drive selector, on-board cooler box, JBL premium sound system
Hindustan Times
13-05-2025
- Automotive
- Hindustan Times
Second gen Honda Amaze VX delisted from official website. Discontinued?
Honda Cars India has officially discontinued the VX trim level of the second gen Honda Amaze (HT Auto/Sabyasachi Dasgupta) Check Offers The top of the line variant of the second gen Honda Amaze - VX- has been officially discontinued. At the time when the third gen Honda Amaze was launched in December 2024, the carmaker had announced that it will be selling the second generation version of the sub compact sedan alongside the new model. While, since then both the variants of the second gen Amaze - S and the VX were on sale, now the company's official website has delisted the VX trim level of the model. With this, only the S trim level of the 2021 Honda Amaze is on sale alongside the 2024 Honda Amaze range. Also Read : 2024 Honda Amaze 1.2 Petrol MT: Fuel efficiency tested in city & highway conditions Second gen Honda Amaze While the second gen Honda Amaze was first launched in 2018, the facelifted model of the sedan made its debut in 2021. At the time the sedan was offered across three trim levels - E, S and VX, with the E variant being discontinued in 2023. Now though, with the VX variant being discontinued as well, the second gen Amaze is available only in the S trim which is priced at ₹ 7.63 lakh and ₹ 8.53 lakh for the manual transmission option and CVT option, respectively. The sedan gets powered by a 1.2 litre petrol engine producing 89 bhp and 110 Nm of torque. The engine gets paired with either a 5-speed manual transmission or a CVT. Inside the cabin, the S trim features an integrated 2DIN LCD screen audio system offering Aux-in, Bluetooth, and USB connectivity, complemented by steering-mounted audio and hands-free telephone controls. Functional additions included a tilt-adjustable steering wheel, a height-adjustable driver's seat for better ergonomics, and a rear center foldable armrest with a cupholder for passenger comfort. Further conveniences comprised front and rear accessory sockets, a trunk lid lining, a leather gear lever boot for manual versions, an assistant side vanity mirror, and often a dual-tone black and beige instrument panel. Also watch: Honda Amaze 2024 launched | Most affordable car with ADAS | Price, features, mileage | First Look Third gen Honda Amaze The Third gen Honda Amaze was launched in December 2024 and is available in three trim levels - V, VX and ZX. The sedan is priced between ₹ 8.19 lakh and ₹ 11.20 lakh. All the prices are ex-showroom. Just like the second gen model, the third gen also gets powered by a 1.2 litre petrol engine producing 89 bhp and 110 Nm of torque. The engine gets paired with either a 5-speed manual transmission or a CVT. The highlight of the 2024 Amaze is that it is now the most affordable car in the Indian market to come with an Advanced Driver Aids System. It also gets LED lighting, a larger touchscreen infotainment system, projector fog lamps, remote engine start, a semi-digital driver's display and connected car technology. There is also a 6-speaker sound system and lane watch camera. Check out Upcoming Cars in India 2024, Best SUVs in India. First Published Date: 13 May 2025, 12:41 PM IST
Japan Times
19-03-2025
- Japan Times
Former member of Aum Shinrikyo expresses regret 30 years on
A former senior member of Aum Shinrikyo expressed regret over his involvement in the doomsday cult in an interview ahead of the 30th anniversary of its sarin nerve gas attack on the Tokyo subway system. "I followed him despite thinking it wasn't right," the 59-year-old man said of his devotion to Aum guru Chizuo Matsumoto, who went by the name Shoko Asahara. "I should have trusted my instincts," he said. The former Aum member received a prison sentence in the first lay judge trial of the group over his involvement in a February 1995 abduction and an explosion at the former home of a religious scholar the day before the March 20, 1995, sarin gas attack. He served his sentence and was released in 2022. "Asahara may have had a desire for destruction," he said of the cult leader's orders to carry out the sarin gas attack. He said that Matsumoto may have been seeking to trigger the end of the world based on his teaching that Armageddon was inevitable. Aum repeatedly produced and used biological weapons such as the bacteria Clostridium botulinum, which causes botulism, and Bacillus anthracis, which causes anthrax, as well as chemical weapons including sarin gas and the VX nerve agent. The former Aum member said he was not informed of such activities. "I don't know why Asahara started producing poisonous gases, but it may have been for self-defense," he said. The man joined cult and donated all of his property to it in 1987 at the age of 21 after feeling that life was meaningless. "I felt free after cutting off ties with society," he recalled. When he met Matsumoto for the first time, he felt the guru was a "monster" who was able to see through him. The cult leader's preaching gradually became absurd, claiming that he was subject to poisonous gas attacks by Freemasons and claiming that he would become the king of Japan, prompting the former member to start harboring doubts. Still, the man was unable to leave the group, as it had members whom he had guided. Being criticized by people outside the cult made him more religious, he added. The man said that as someone who chose a life not bound to material things in the heat of Japan's asset-driven bubble economic boom, he sympathizes with modern youths who also do not want to have possessions. Still, he expressed surprise over existence of so-called lone wolves who commit terrorist attacks, saying he and others "took action because of Asahara, a charismatic figure." After being released from prison, the former member found employment. Last month, he completed compensation payments he had promised to family members of the abductee from February 1995. But he said "there is no end to atonement," adding that he regrets not being able to say during his time in the cult that things were not right. The man has decided to live the rest of his life in a way that does not repeat his past mistakes.
The Guardian
08-03-2025
- The Guardian
‘Burn him alive on the street': the Russian journalist targeted in UK by spy ring tasked with his murder
The long-running trial of the Russian spy ring did at least bring clarity for journalist Roman Dobrokhotov and his young family. 'The worst situation is when you don't know,' the 41-year-old Russian said, nursing a tumbler of whisky. 'When you don't know whether you should be very much worried, or you can relax. Now, definitely I know there will be other attempts.' As revelations tumbled out of the dock at the Old Bailey in recent months, Dobrokhotov, editor of the Insider, a Russian news website, has had to confront a host of uncomfortable truths. Six Bulgarian nationals with settled status in the UK – Katrin Ivanova, 33, Vanya Gaberova, 30, Tihomir Ivanchev, 39, Orlin Roussev, 46, Ivan Stoyanov, 32, and Biser Dzhambazov, 43 – were operating between 2020 and 2023 as a Kremlin spy ring based in London and Great Yarmouth that was highly sophisticated and seemingly murderous in its intent. It was run remotely by Jan Marsalek, a former chief operating officer at Wirecard, wanted over a £1.6bn bank fraud, who acted as an intermediary for the Russian intelligence services. Dobrokhotov, who in 2019 had revealed the identities of the Russian agents behind the failed nerve agent attack on Sergei Skripal in Salisbury, was one of the ring's targets along with his colleague on that investigation, the Bulgarian journalist Christo Grozev. The court heard how two leading members of the ring, Roussev and Marsalek, had discussed using ricin or the nerve agent VX to poison Dobrokhotov, who fled Russia in 2021 and moved to the UK in January 2023. In one message, Marsalek dismissed an idea, proposed by Roussev, that Dobrokhotov could have an 'accident' in the shower, saying: 'I fear that's not dramatic enough … we need something of symbolic value. 'Maybe burn him alive on the street, spray him with some super-strong acid, VX, like the North Koreans, or the ricin,' Marsalek said. 'Shower accident won't discourage others. It must create a dramatic story.' Dobrokhotov was followed closely, to the point that his iPhone pin number was noted down by one of the female members of the gang who sat next to him during a flight. They discussed abducting him and absconding with their prey by putting him on a boat. 'Dobrokhotov will be a counter migrant,' joked Marsalek. 'The problem is, how to collect him on international waters. I'm not sure the guys here will trust our abilities enough to place a submarine at our command.' 'Having said that, a successful operation on British ground would be amazing after the fuck-up Skripal stuff,' Marsalek said. It appears that Roussev was only put off the kidnap plan after an intervention from above. The 'guys raised the valid concern that we shouldn't run any such operation with that team that has never done this before in the country of residence of some of the team members', Marsalek said. The details were a shock, said Dobrokhotov. But not, perhaps, a surprise. The son of a professor of philosophy and an engineer who had made a name for himself as an investigative journalist exposing the creep of authoritarianism under Putin, Dobrokhotov made the decision to flee Moscow in 2021 when his flat was raided and passport confiscated by the authorities over a trumped-up defamation case. After making a run for it via a smugglers' route through the forest of the Russo-Ukrainian border near Luhansk in the Donbas, the journalist's first port of call had been Kyiv. He then moved to Vienna before coming to Britain where his sister had settled. Dobrokhotov's wife Kate, 40, and their two boys, aged eight and 10, along with his parents later joined him. Throughout his travels he had suspected he was still in the Kremlin's cross-hairs. 'Right after I left [Russia], I had a phone call from a Ukrainian source who is an FSB [federal security services] officer,' he recalled. 'He said, 'Immediately hide. Ukrainian mercenary guys are riding around Kyiv with your photo, and they are promised $50,000 if they return you to Russia.' I thought, OK, but I am in Vienna, I'm safe now. What I didn't know [until the trial] was that, when I was living on the same street as Christo in Vienna, the Bulgarians had rented an apartment opposite to watch us. Or that they had access to Amadeus, which is the ticket booking system and so knew [in] advance about our every flight.' There were moments in recent years outside Russia when he was sure he was being followed. While in The Hague in autumn 2022 assisting on a film about the late opposition leader, Alexei Navalny, he had spotted a man taking his photograph. Dobrokhotov took his own picture of the man shadowing him and sent it to the Dutch police. They did nothing. His own research subsequently suggested the suspect was a Ukrainian national living in Germany. But in the UK? His phone had been acting strangely at one point but he had not spotted anyone lurking. He had been reassured by the close interest shown by the British police in his safety. Then, in February last year, he was contacted by a senior officer. 'They said that they had arrested Bulgarians who were residents in Britain and do you know any of them?' Dobrokhotov said. 'So they showed me pictures, and I didn't know any of them, though actually one of them was trying to befriend me on Facebook … I learned only about all the details after the trial started.' A treasure trove of espionage gadgets was discovered by the police in a former hotel in Great Yarmouth but there was something decidedly unsophisticated about a love triangle engaged in by three of the ring members. Dobrokhotov was also reassured during the trial to some degree by the bravado and 'stupidity' shown by those after him. But he has since also learned that he remains in danger. A few months ago, the police called again. Further attempts at surveillance had been made by what appears to be a second ring operating in Britain. 'I received a warning from the police last spring,' said Dobrokhotov. 'These attempts are ongoing.' The details of the warning are being withheld by the Guardian. His wife worries. He worries. But there is only so much you can do to keep safe, Dobrokhotov said. His friend and colleague, Grozev, now lives in the US, possibly because of 'Moscow rules', the perhaps mythical convention that the US and Russia do not strike on each other's territory. Britain no longer feels safe. Dobrokhotov's current home must remain a secret. 'If you want to have an ordinary life, it's very difficult to protect yourself,' he said. 'We have to live with the facts that it's either us or them. It's either journalists are winning and Vladimir Putin loses his power and there is a regime change – or he will be going after us all the time. It never will stop. No arrest will help.'
Zawya
03-03-2025
- Automotive
- Zawya
EXEED by Al Ghurair expands to Ras Al Khaimah with fourth UAE showroom
The state-of-the-art showroom integrates innovations and services designed to enhance automotive customer experiences in the Northern Emirates. UAE: EXEED, the premium automotive brand exclusively represented by Al Ghurair Motors, proudly announces the opening of its first showroom in Ras Al Khaimah (RAK). This milestone reinforces EXEED's commitment to delivering premium driving experiences across the UAE. The RAK showroom marks brand's fourth showroom in the UAE, complementing its successful operations in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Strategically located in Ras Al Khaimah's automotive district on Sheikh Rashid Bin Saeed Street in Saqr Bin Mohammed City, the latest showroom opening is driven by the growing demand for premium SUVs in the Northern Emirates. EXEED continues to redefine premium mobility with its sophisticated and technologically advanced vehicles, further strengthening its market presence since its UAE launch in 2023. The grand opening was commemorated by EXEED stakeholders and representatives, including Ricky Mullins, Head of Business Development at Al Ghurair Motors, along with esteemed guests from the automotive industry on 25th February 2025. The EXEED showroom integrates contemporary designs and cutting-edge technology to provide a seamless customer journey. Visitors can explore EXEED's prestigious model lineup, including the stylish TXL, the sophisticated VX, the fashion-forward LX, and the sleek RX, each engineered to meet the expectations of the UAE's discerning drivers. Commenting on the launch, Oscar Rivoli, CEO of Al Ghurair Motors, stated: 'Our Ras Al Khaimah showroom marks a major milestone for EXEED as we expand our reach and bring premium driving experiences to customers from across the country. Ras Al Khaimah represents a key market, and this expansion is a testament to the increasing demand for premium vehicles in the UAE. At EXEED, we are committed to offering a seamless blend of quality, performance, technology, and innovation that elevates driver journeys in the UAE.' EXEED by Al Ghurair's presence in Ras Al Khaimah aligns with its vision of growth, combining premium vehicles with exceptional service to become a dominant force in the UAE's automotive sector. Drivers in RAK and the Northern Emirates are invited to visit the new Ras Al Khaimah showroom on Sheikh Rashid Bin Saeed Street in Saqr Bin Mohammed City, to explore, test drive, and experience the next level of automotive excellence. Customers across the UAE can also visit EXEED showrooms in Dubai at Gold & Diamond Park and Al Ittihad Road – Al Khabaisi, as well as Corniche Street – Al Khalidiyah in Abu Dhabi. For more information, contact the EXEED team at 600 540045 or via the website: About EXEED: EXEED is a new premium brand that combines the centuries-old traditions of European automotive culture with the latest intelligent manufacturing technologies that China is known for today. Designers and engineers from established premium European automobile manufacturers, take part in the development of EXEED cars, and the production itself is carried out at the facilities of an enterprise created by the Chinese company. With a wealth of experience and technical expertise, the European partners ensure identical manufacturing processes and the highest level of quality control across all of its manufacturing sites, including the EXEED vehicle plant in China. EXEED also cooperates with world-famous automotive component suppliers in the field of component manufacturing, including Fortune 500 companies such as Intel, Bosch, Magna, etc. For more information, please visit: or contact at 600 540045.
